By John Thomson
On Monday 4 November the Lilydale Division 1 team hosted the team from Kew.
Lilydale’s team this week was John Thomson and Murray Howlett.
In the doubles John and Murray got off to a good start and had the first four hoops before Kew won their first. Kew then started to work back into the game and then it was 5 all then 6 all, so the 13th hoop had to be played to decide the winner. This hoop was a battle then Kew placed their ball in the hoop only to have Lilydale do a nice jump shot to win the game, 7 hoops to Kew 6 hoops.
John played in the first singles. He struggled early which gave his opponent a head start. Eventually John ran a couple of hoops but he was no match for his better credentialled opponent. Kew 7 hoops to Lilydale 3 hoops.
Murray played in the next singles. Murray started well and was able to dictate most of the play and continually put his opponent under pressure. Lilydale 7 hoops to Kew 3 hoops.
At the lunch break the scores were Lilydale 2 games 17 hoops to Kew 1 game 16 hoops. This game was going to go down to the wire.
John played first up after lunch. This game was tight with both players failing to run hoops they would normally get. John just got his nose in front on the eleventh hoop and the Kew placed their ball in the 12th hoop only to have Lilydale do a jump to win the game, 7 hoops to Kew 5 hoops.
In the last game Murray played. Murray was playing well but his opponent ran a couple of nice long hoops to get a break and then go on and win 7 hoops to Lilydale 4 hoops.
The final score for the day was Lilydale 3 games 28 hoops to Kew 2 games 28 hoops. A very close hard fought game.
Lilydale’s Division 2 team this week travelled to Kew.
The team comprised Alan Jones, Mick Crawley and Kerri McCracken.
Alan and Mick played first in the doubles. Alan and Mick started well and were able to control most of the game by keeping their opponents away from the hoops. Lilydale 7 hoops to Kew 3 hoops.
Kerri played in the first singles. Both players were doing well, then the Kew player was able to run consecutive hoops and set up a break winning 7 hoops to Lilydale 4 hoops.
Mick played in the next singles. This game was almost a carbon copy of the previous singles game, with the Kew player able to set up a break and be able to hold it to win 7 hoops to Lilydale 4 hoops.
At the lunch break the scores were Kew 2 games 17 hoops to Lilydale 1 game 15 hoops. With two games to play after lunch Lilydale had the job in front of them.
Kerri played in the next game. Again, this was another tight game with neither player able to get the ascendancy. Then late in the game Kerri was able to run a nice long hoop and get a small break and go on to win 7 hoops to Kew 5 hoops.
This win evened up the score with 2 games a piece and 22 hoops a piece, so it was all down to the last game to see which team would win the day
Team captain Alan Jones played in the decider. No player was giving an inch in this game as players traded hoops and cleared their opponents balls trying to set up a break, eventually something had to give and it was the Kew player that faulted and let Alan in to take the win in a close one 7 hoops to Kew 5 hoops. A terrific captain’s win.
Final scores Lilydale 3 games 29 hoops Kew 2 games 27 hoops.
This win keeps the Lilydale Division 2 team firmly on top of the ladder. Lilydale are 2 tests, 10 games and 47 hoops in front of second place with one week to play.
On Thursday the Lilydale handicap team travelled down Maroondah Highway to play Ringwood.
This week the Lilydale team comprised Murray Howlett, Kerri McCracken and Murray McLean. Murray McLean is a relatively new player and has been playing well at club level, so this week he has stepped up to play his first game of competition.
Kerri played the first singles game. Kerri’s opponent was starting with a 1 hoop disadvantage. Kerri got away to a blistering start and at no time did she allow her opponent to get a look in and went on to have a remarkable 7 hoops to 0 win.
In the first of the doubles the two Murray’s, Howlett and McLean, teamed up. Lilydale were starting with a 2 hoop disadvantage. This game was quite close, but Lilydale worked their way into the game making up their 2 hoop disadvantage and taking the lead and eventually winning 7 hoops to Ringwood 5 hoops.
Murray McLean played in the next singles. Neither player had any advantage in this game. For his first singles game in competition Murray was doing very well and kept out positioning his opponent and went on to win 7 hoops to Ringwood 3 hoops. A great start to what I am sure will be a positive future playing competition.
In the next doubles Murray Howlett and Kerri teamed up. Ringwood were starting with a 1 hoop advantage while Lilydale had a 1 hoop disadvantage. Ringwood started the game well, while the Lilydale pair struggled to run hoops and make up ground with Ringwood going on to win 7 hoops to Lilydale 3 hoops.
At the Lunch break the scores were Lilydale 3 games 24 hoops to Ringwood 1 game 15 hoops. With two games to play either team could win.
Kerri played in the last singles game for the day. Kerri was starting with a 1 hoop disadvantage. Kerri struggled to make up the disadvantage while the Ringwood player was playing well. Kerri started to come good late in the game but the Ringwood player held on to win 7 hoops to Lilydale 4 hoops.
With one game to play Lilydale still had their noses in front, just.
The last game was a doubles and the two Murray’s teamed up again. Ringwood had a 1 hoop advantage. Both teams got off to a good start. It took a while for Lilydale to catch up Ringwood’s advantage but they did and it was then hoop for hoop and after the 12th hoop it was 6 hoops each with the 13th hoop to decide the winner. Ringwood was able to set their balls up better than Lilydale and were then able to run the hoop winning 7 hoops to Lilydale 6 hoops.
The final scores for the day were Lilydale 3 games 34 hoops to Ringwood 3 games 29 hoops.
This win puts the Lilydale handicap team firmly in top spot. Lilydale are 3 tests, 16 games and a massive 84 hoops ahead of second place with one week to play.
