Melbourn won 16-8

The Seconds went into this match against Stamford, the last of the opening half of the season, in a good position in the league: sitting second in the table with 97 points on the back of a 5-2 record. However, we were only 5 points ahead of our visitors at the start of this one, part of a general trend in Division 3 of only a handful of points covering the top 5 teams (Cambridge 3rds were in top spot with 99 points; Stamford’s 92 had them fifth in the standings). Everything to play for, then.

The first to try where Kate Bradshaw (1) and Spike Marlow on Court 1, with Aidan Hird (4) taking on Jason van der Westhuizen simultaneously on Court 2. Kate started off against Spike looking a bit stiff, as if she hadn’t had the chance to warm up as thoroughly as she wanted (… or was it the coldness of the evening?). However, even though Kate wasn’t executing to her normal level the patterns looked favourable as Spike seemed determined to take Kate on on a touch and drop-shotting game. Tennis Great Rod Laver once explained his tactics were to take on an opponent on their strongest shots, because if you could beat them on their strength then they had nowhere else to turn. What Laver failed to include was base assumption underlying this ploy is ‘Be Rod Laver’, which was an option only open to him! Mere mortals find playing into an opponent’s best shots less effective. Spike certainly discovered that as Kate look increasingly assured and in control, wrapping up an 8-15, 15-11, 15-9, 15-7 win that once again proved, to quote another sage of our age (John-Claude van Damme) “It isn’t the size of the dog in the fight that counts; it’s the size of the fight in the dog.”

Meanwhile next door Aidan was taking on Jason in an intriguing tussle. Many of the rallies ended from Aidan’s racket, with stunning winners interspersed with some more question attempts to kill the ball when not fully balanced. However, he made this work in the opening game, fighting back from game-balls down to win it on a breaker. Then, as Jason observed afterwards, his teammates talked to him… game two saw the ratios change, and we were at a game all. Aidan dug in well in the third, using his shuddering power well to claim it, but Jason wasn’t going away and claimed the fourth. Fitness came into the equation in the fifth as Aidan’s footwork slowed a little; not much but marginally was enough to be decisive. This resulted in a number of strokes as balls pinged out from the front angle – match-ball was one of these as Aidan came up just short, 16-14, 7-15, 15-13, 11-15, 9-15.

Following Kate on Court 1 was Richard Gouriet (3), who took on the whippet fit Owen O’Hara. This first game of this was nip-and-tuck as Richard sought to bring out his variety of low powerful drives and neat touches, but Owen proved a cussed opponent, scrambling to make unlikely retrieves. It went to a breaker, which eventually broke the Stamford man’s way 18-16… and this proved to be a big moment in the match as maybe Richard could have front ran to victory, but at this stage of his comeback to team Squash recovering from behind against someone who essentially demands you outrun him was too big an ask. Richard kept trying to find the pattern that would allow him to exit rallies without having to play double figures worth of shots, but wasn’t able to establish one consistently enough to turn things around, going down 16-18, 10-15, 11-15.

It was a nip-and-tuck evening of Squash though, and as Richard was being edged out Jan Brynjolffssen (2) was getting off to a flier against Jon Oakley, with his drop shots working like a dream… and just as importantly Jon having something of a nightmare finding his usual accurate attacks. The first game was good from Jan’s perspective – the second he was on fire, with one high backhand volley, taken tight to the side wall but still somehow faded to stay tight to the same wall and then tight to the tin and straight into the nick generating audible disbelief from his opponent. This level couldn’t be maintained, Jan dropping away slightly in the third (also making some unfortunate choices on key points late in the game) but a back-to-basic approach in the fourth paid dividends as he completed an excellent 15-8, 15-4, 13-15, 15-9 win.

That meant we were on to a decider. Usually this would be the top strings. Not so on this occasions as for time-of-arrival reasons the extra pressure fell instead on the #5s, Melbourn’s Matt Walker and Stamford’s Alex Boughton. Game one went decisively Matt’s way as his crisp hitting forced Alex into back corners that he struggled to get the ball out of. The second also saw Matt race out into a lead. However, by now Alex had got his eye in (and shaken the 1 hour long car journey from his legs) and was managing to dig balls out to ask Matt to hit one more ball. This seemed to catch Matt by surprise, leading to some rallies he had complete charge of going unexpectedly against him. But as things got close Matt’s play tightened up, and he was able to squeak home. The opening points of game three saw Matt caught out by an Alex drop played from deep (1-1) but then follow this by determinedly tracking the ball on the next point, which allowed him to adjust his body position to play a super-clean forehand volley drop winner. Galvanised by this, Matt kept the mobility up to power to a big lead, which he held to the death to wrap up a 15-5, 15-12, 15-6 success.

The win means the 2nds reach the midway point of the campaign with 113 points and a 6-2 record. There are a number of matches to be played still this week and on re-arrangement, but even after these are sorted through the team are likely to be there or thereabouts at the top of the table. Which is a nice way to go to the festive break, isn’t it?