A NUMBER of players from Tavistock and BATs Badminton Clubs entered the end of season Plymouth and District Churches Badminton League tournament last weekend.
In the singles competition a number of junior players produced some excellently fought games. The hardest games were against those who play in the same clubs as them.
Frances Ward played well and came runner-up in the ladies' singles with Susie Povey a close third. James Cooper and Chris Woodruffe both played well only to lose in the semi-finals after two hard matches.
In the men's divisions 4, 5 and 6 doubles competition, James Cooper and Chris Woodruffe won through from their round robin stage to come up against the two players in the final they had lost to in the singles. After a tough match James and Chris lost out and had to settle for the runners-up trophy.
In the ladies' divisions 2 and 3 doubles, Nikki Gabb and Helen Bull played well together and took the overall title. As only a few pairs had entered the event every point counted in the final reckoning.
In the mixed divisions 4, 5 and 6 competition, a number of pairings from BAT's Badminton Club entered.
A number of players at BATs are playing their first season of league badminton and it was the first end of season tournament they had been eligible to enter.
Each of the new pairings played well and came away feeling pleased with the results they obtained against other players with many years experience in league badminton.
After the round robin stages John Marshall and Glynis Hingston came through to play a tough quarter final against James and Heather Cooper. It was difficult to call which way the final result would go as both pairs found it difficult to gain much of an advantage. In the end, James and Heather won out after two close games.
In the semi-finals James and Heather came up against two players they had met earlier on in the day during the men's and ladies' doubles. They found the pairing too strong and lost out after putting up a lot of resistance.
In the mixed divisions 2 and 3 doubles, two pairs from Tavistock Badminton Club entered. Peter Barry partnered Nikki Gabb and found the other pairings too strong, which meant they were often struggling for points.
Alan Berry partnered Helen Bull and, though both started well, Helen suffered a couple of injuries during play and they were unable to trouble the eventual winners and runners up.