Dorset Teams Miss Out On Promotion At Aegon Winter County Cup
Dorset’s County Cup teams both secured second placed group finishes and, as a result, saw their promotion hopes put on hold until the next round of the nationwide event.
The ladies’ team travelled to Barnstaple for the group 5A matches over the weekend of the 22nd to the 24th November and suffered a rude awakening in their opening match against fellow south-coast team Devon on the Friday.
The team were unable to keep up with their opponents in the singles and the match result was confirmed after Devon secured their fifth rubber of the opening six, before sweeping all three of the doubles matches.
In the second group match on the Saturday, Dorset’s ladies brushed themselves off and showed their fighting spirit with a battling 5-4 victory over another south-coast rival, Cornwall. A strong start in the singles put them 4-2 up and in need of a just one win in the doubles to take the tie. A resurgent Cornwall side briefly threatened to cause an upset, but Dorset got the win they needed to complete the match victory.
A more comfortable result followed on the Sunday, with the team showing off their doubles prowess to register an impressive win over Lincolnshire. The tie was level at 3-3 after the six singles rubbers, but a clean sweep in the led the team to a 6-3 win.
Unfortunately for the team, their defeat to Devon had proved decisive with their opposition going on to win all of their matches to claim top spot and promotion to group 4B. Dorset ladies’ second placed finish means that they will be competing in group 5A again in the next edition of the event.
Dorset’s men experienced a similar journey in the group 3B of their event at the David Lloyd Club, Southampton. A hard-fought victory in their opener on the Friday against Hampshire & Isle of Wight gave them south coast bragging rights in the group. Two decisive wins in the doubles sealed the tie for Dorset after the scores were at 3-3 after the singles.
The team showed their battling qualities in their next match again Suffolk on the Saturday. The tie went the same way as Dorset’s first match had, after sharing the singles rubbers 3-3, the teams were only separated in the doubles. Two wins from the three rubbers saw Dorset over the line and into contention for a first placed finish in the group.
In the final match of the group, it was winner take all between Dorset and their opponents Cheshire. Dorset found themselves on the back foot after coming out of the singles matches 4-2 down and in need of clean sweep in the doubles to take to the tie. But there was to be no miracle for the team after Cheshire registered a decisive win in one of the rubbers completing a 5-3 win, Dorset’s promotion hopes were over.
Similarly to the ladies’ team, Dorset’s second placed finish means they will stay in the same group for the next edition of the County Cup, with promotion being the main target once again.
Team Players:
Ladies: Anna Battersby, Emma Bennett, Jodie Bratchell, Hannah Gamage, Lauren Hill, Charlotte Payne, Amelia Stuart, Elizabeth Toop.
Men: Thomas Beach, Matthew Coombes, Adam Glynn, Piers Herfet-Jones, David Hill, Richard Irwin, Tim Prossor, David Sanger, Adam Watson, James Whike.
Click Here for more information on the ladies’ team’s matches at the Aegon Winter County Cup
Click Here for more information on the men’s team’s matches at the Aegon Winter County Cup
By Harry Lund