It was a mixed weekend for North Ayrshire as they got off the mark in Senior British Club League Premier Divison. The Scottish club played two games in as many days as they hosted BATTS and Fusion, which culminated with one win and a defeat.

North Ayrshire had lost their two opening games of the season and the visit of BATTS on Saturday posed another tough encounter, having previously played their fellow title challengers, Brighton and Ormesby.

It ended with North Ayrshire claiming their first two sets of the season, but not enough to secure a win as they went down 5-2. A brilliant double courtesy of Viktor Gorman, who defeated Joshua Bennett and Haotian Chen, gave them a platform to build upon but two narrow defeats in deciders saw them come up short.

Chris Doran, not for the first time, was BATTS’ main man as he secured a double, though he had to overcome a huge challenge from rising Scottish youngster Gavin Yuan, who remarkably went 2-1 up before agonisingly missing out 15-13 and 11-9 in the fourth and fifth ends to the much more experienced Doran. As always seems to be the case, Doran just finds a way.

Doran had a more comfortable outing against Chris Main and also teamed up well with Chen in the doubles, as they won 3-0 against Gorman and Yuan.

Bennett and Chen also picked up a singles win apiece, though Chen had to overcome a very problematic scenario as he found himself 2-0 down to Main before firing back emphatically, dropping just eleven points in the final three ends. Bennett defeated Yuan 3-1 in what was another very encouraging performance.

That seemingly gave North Ayrshire confidence, though, and they got their first match victory a day later, defeating Fusion 6-1. The London-based outfit had defeated Drumchapel Glasgow the day before and flew to Scotland looking for back-to-back wins. However, without Shaquille Webb Dixon and Larry Trumpauskas, they found the going tough.

Aided by the presence of Colin Dalgleish, who replaced Main, he was able to get them off to a good start as he held off Francesco Bonato in five ends. Coupled with Gorman’s third win of the weekend, an excellent straight games win over Lorestas Trumpauskas, they were in position to get the win they craved.

Dalgleish and Yuan then combined for a dominant doubles win over Martynas Matuzevicius and Trumpauskas before victory was sealed by Yuan, who dispatched Matuzevicius in four ends.

Trumpauskas did get Fusion on the board, and doing so impressively, it should be said, by defeating Dalgleish, but it would be the Scots who would have the last laugh.

Yuan’s stock has certainly risen this weekend; he defeated Bonato with relative ease before Gorman completed an outstanding individual weekend with a fourth win in as many attempts, overcoming Matuzevicius 3-0.

That result has seen North Ayrshire climb above native counterparts Drumchapel Glasgow on the league table, who are now the only winless team. They meet in an important contest later this month. Fusion are also on one win from four, while BATTS are third, level on points with their next opponents, Brighton