The battle at the top of Division 2 between Penicuik's 2nd and 3rd Teams continued in Week 22 of the Edinburgh & Lothians Table Tennis League.
First to play last week were the 2nd Team of Clive Liddiard, Brian Bailey and Tony Brentnall who had the opportunity to put the pressure on the third team as they faced a home match against Corstorphine 3 who were struggling at the foot of the Division. The Penicuik trio were never in difficulty and the only surprise of the night was that both Clive and Brian lost a singles match as they ran out 8-2 winners. Tony won 3 and combined with Clive for a win in the doubles whilst both Brian and Clive won 2.
The pressure then shifted to Penicuik 3's match as they travelled to take on 6th placed Corstorphine 4 in the knowledge that they started the night 3 points behind the Division Leaders. James Wighton, Gary McDougal and Abby Wighton responded to that pressure brilliantly as they powered to a 9-1 victory, with Abby being the only Penicuik player to drop a match on the night. The victory keeps the 3rd Team right on the coattails of Penicuik 2 as they sit in 2nd place in the division, a point behind but with a game in hand.
In the Premier Division, Penicuik's 1st team of Greig McDonell, Colin Green and Iain Johnstone faced a difficult away fixture against Edinburgh Sports Club who sat third in the Division. After the first 3 games of the night Greig was the only winner for the visitors and they trailed 2-1. Matches 4 and 5 of the night were to prove crucial as Colin lost 12-10 in the deciding 5th end to his opposite number before Greig lost by exactly the same scoreline against the home team's number 1 player. The visitors never recovered from those two defeats and the only other victories on the night came from Greig and Colin in their doubles match and from Colin against ex-Penicuik player Martin McKay. The resultant 7-3 scoreline seems harsh on Penicuik who, but for a couple of points which went against them, could easily have ended the night with a draw.
In Division 3 Penicuik 4 hosted Edinburgh International 7 and the home side, due to the unavailability of several regulars fielded what looked like a very makeshift team. Gavin Hunter captained the side on the night but it looked like being a difficult night for the home side as he was joined by two inexperienced players playing up from Division 4 in Gregory Leplatre and Luke Hennessey. There was no need to worry however as Gavin won 3 and joined with Gregory for a doubles win whilst Gregory and Luke, making his debut at this level, won 2 singles matches each as the home side recorded an excellent 8-2 victory. The win keeps alive the 4th Team's hopes of promotion as they retain 3rd place in the Division.
First to play last week were the 2nd Team of Clive Liddiard, Brian Bailey and Tony Brentnall who had the opportunity to put the pressure on the third team as they faced a home match against Corstorphine 3 who were struggling at the foot of the Division. The Penicuik trio were never in difficulty and the only surprise of the night was that both Clive and Brian lost a singles match as they ran out 8-2 winners. Tony won 3 and combined with Clive for a win in the doubles whilst both Brian and Clive won 2.
The pressure then shifted to Penicuik 3's match as they travelled to take on 6th placed Corstorphine 4 in the knowledge that they started the night 3 points behind the Division Leaders. James Wighton, Gary McDougal and Abby Wighton responded to that pressure brilliantly as they powered to a 9-1 victory, with Abby being the only Penicuik player to drop a match on the night. The victory keeps the 3rd Team right on the coattails of Penicuik 2 as they sit in 2nd place in the division, a point behind but with a game in hand.
In the Premier Division, Penicuik's 1st team of Greig McDonell, Colin Green and Iain Johnstone faced a difficult away fixture against Edinburgh Sports Club who sat third in the Division. After the first 3 games of the night Greig was the only winner for the visitors and they trailed 2-1. Matches 4 and 5 of the night were to prove crucial as Colin lost 12-10 in the deciding 5th end to his opposite number before Greig lost by exactly the same scoreline against the home team's number 1 player. The visitors never recovered from those two defeats and the only other victories on the night came from Greig and Colin in their doubles match and from Colin against ex-Penicuik player Martin McKay. The resultant 7-3 scoreline seems harsh on Penicuik who, but for a couple of points which went against them, could easily have ended the night with a draw.
In Division 3 Penicuik 4 hosted Edinburgh International 7 and the home side, due to the unavailability of several regulars fielded what looked like a very makeshift team. Gavin Hunter captained the side on the night but it looked like being a difficult night for the home side as he was joined by two inexperienced players playing up from Division 4 in Gregory Leplatre and Luke Hennessey. There was no need to worry however as Gavin won 3 and joined with Gregory for a doubles win whilst Gregory and Luke, making his debut at this level, won 2 singles matches each as the home side recorded an excellent 8-2 victory. The win keeps alive the 4th Team's hopes of promotion as they retain 3rd place in the Division.
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