The Sheldon and District Summer League have got their new season underway and the early pacesetters in division one are Marston Green Tavern with a 7-1 win away to East Birmingham Allotment Holders Association. With the same scoreline over Sheldon Dukes The Harvester lead division two while in the third division Maggies and Crown Arrows share the top spot with respective 5-3 wins over Willclare Sports and Social and Shirley RBL Misfits.
The biggest win of the opening day fixtures was 8-0 supplied by division four team Meadway Sports and Social who accounted for Langley Hall Sports and Social Flights.
There were five maximums recorded in the first week’s games two of them going to J.Burdett (Castle Vale Residents) and one each for N.Clarke, K.Reynolds (Iron Horse Flights) and C.Smith (Ridgemere Flights).
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The South Birmingham League are to introduce a new cup into their itinerary the Edna Meek Memorial Cup in memory of a lady who played for the Banbury Club in the league for many, many years. The inaugural game saw her club form two teams Banbury ‘A’ and ‘B’ who played against each other the ‘B’ side running out the 5-3 winners.
winners Banbury ‘B’ including John Meek { Edna’s husband } and Gary and Wendy (Edna’s children)
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There were 6-2 wins for the top two teams in division one of the Forest of Arden Summer League leaders Journeys End defeating Ivy Leaf to stay just one point ahead of Highwood KB who won against Crown Arrows.
In division two the top two teams played each other Journeys End Flights pushing Highwood Arms down one place to third after beating them 5-3. Taking over the number two spot is Riley’s Resurrected who won their home tie with Crown Arrows Flights 5-3 to remain four points off the top with a game in hand.
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Mick Gorst suffered his first loss in twelve games in the Shirley Red Lion Premier League when after winning 3-0 against Brian Lawton he went down 3-2 to eighth in the table Lee Harris, however Gorst holds on to pole position but now his lead has been reduced to just one point as Mark Gwalchmai continues his climb up the table into second place with a 3-0 win over third placed Chris Thomas and a 3-2 success against Pete Silver.
Paul Higgins moved up three places in the table to fourth with wins over Dave Fisher, Lee Harris and Brian Lawton, Higgins hitting a 180 in each of his three games.
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Just one game played in the Small Heath League this week which saw Moseley All Service move off the foot of the table when they recorded their first win in ten games a 6-3 home win against Emerald Flights who replace Moseley at the bottom of the table.
In the league’s Worthington Singles Competition a final win over over Pete Yardley (Emerald Club) saw Terry Webster (East Birminggham Allotment Holders Association) crowned champion, John Frost (Mitre) and Neil Parsonage (Emerald Club) were losing semi finalists.
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It was cup final week in the Camp Hill League the League Cup title going to Hay Mills Lions with Grange Social Club runners up while the Consolation Cup was won by Cotterills Lane Club who defeated Station Bar in the final.
The final meeting to reform the league is at 8.00pm on the 6th July at the Wagon and Horses (Digbeth). This will be the last chance for anyone to enter a team in the new season which will get underway on the 20th July.
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What’s The Point have gone from fourth to top of the Winmau Centre Monday Night League after handing out a massive 48-0 whitewash to their opponents bottom of the table Double Trouble. Former leaders 3 Yam Yams and A.Stokie drop to third place after fourth placed The Outcasts inflicted upon them their first defeat of the season a 29-19 reversal to leave them on 379 points three off the top and two behind Is It In who won 35-13 against Where’s My Team.
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Although winning 2-1 against Mark O’Donnell then losing by the same scoreline to Dave Humphries Dave Howlett is still leader of the Premiership Division in the Sheldon Marlborough Cricket Club Singles League with 16 points, Humphries is second with 14.
Neal Rughani had a jump from seventh to top of the Championship Division when he followed up two 2-1 wins over Jake Humphries and Mitch O’Donnell with a 2-0 win in a rearranged fixture with former leader Ken Salsbury to put him on 14 points. Pete Jones also has 14 points his latest games seeing him win 2-0 against both Martin Cox and Ray Turner.
Even though Steve McCarthy lost 2-0 to Alan Wale and Pete Ayling he has returned to top of the division one table but only on average from Wale who has a game in hand. Former leader Nigel Ricketts played just one game against Nicola Brown which he won 2-0 to give him third place and 14 points but with games in hand on the two players above him.
The overall table sees Dave Howlett still in pole position with 16 points but he is now joined by Steve McCarthy and Alan Wale who are also on the same number of points.
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As would be expected when the top two teams in the Brierley Hill Monday Night League played each other the result was always going to be close and it could not have been any closer than 5-4 going in favour of the away team and league leaders Dudley Sports ‘C’ who have now opened up a six points advantage over their hosts and second in the table The Bridge.
Third placed Bulls Head (Netherton) surprisingly lost their home tie with tenth in the table Dudley Sports ‘B’ 6-3 to leave them on the same 24 points as High Acres and The Bell and twelve points off the top.
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The Brierley Hill Friday Night League played off the finals of their Doubles Knockout, both semi finals finished with a close 2-1 result as A.Wakeman and D.Bull (Miners, Wollescote) beat R.Powers and J.Batham (Brickmakers Arms) and M.Flatman and J.Powell (Pensnett Welfare Club) won against N.Cooper and D.Cooper (Brickmakers Arms).
The final was another close affair with Wakeman and Bull just getting the 3-2 edge on Flatman and Powell to take the title.
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Leader Kevin Harris added another two wins to his tally in the Winmau Centre Thursday Night Champions League when he followed up a 7-0 win over Paul Walters with a 4-3 success against Paul Boddison to put him on 73 points from 14 games. Robert Pierce beat Devinder Singh 4-3 and Rob Harris 5-2 to move into second place on 66 points while Louis Burley made it eleven wins in as many games with a 7-0 win over Rhys Langford to give him 65 points five more than reigning champion Mick Baker who has played the same number of games as Burley and is fourth in the table.
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The Pip Club League played off the finals of their Belgrave Cups, in the division one final Bulls Head ‘A’ (Polesworth) beat Birchmoor Club while the Belgrave Shadow Cup title went to Sports Bar ‘180’ with Belgrave Club runners up.
In the division two Belgrave Shadow Cup final divisional leaders Winning Post had a final win over Old Liberal.
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White Horse gallop on in the Cradley Tuesday Night League a 5-4 win over third in the table Brickmakers Arms taking their points tally to 34 and their unbeaten run to seventeen games. Second in the table Crown (Station Road) lost ground as they went down in their home game against eighth placed Rose and Crown 5-4.
Winning through to the next round of the league’s doubles knockout are M.Tedstone / L.Buttler (Crown, Station Road), D.Male / A.Apiti (Bulls Head), D.Arnold / H.Johnson, A.Arnold / D.Shilvock (White Swan), R.Hill / T.Johnson (Members Club) and N.Steventon / T.Collier (Rose and Crown).
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Ex Serviceman’s Club are top of the Rowley Monday Night League table, their latest fixture drew them a home game against bottom of the table Yeltz Bar, the result was a convincing 9-0 win for the leaders to maintain their two points lead over their nearest rivals Springfield Social Club who won their home tie with Ex Serviceman’s ‘B’ 7-2.
With wins for the top six teams in the league the top of the table remains unchanged.
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Horse and Jockey have lost their second place in the Wednebury and Darlaston Wednesday Night League after losing 7-2 away to St Mary’s ‘A’, both teams now locked together on the same points and average in third place. Leaders Staffordshire Knot beat Civil Defence 6-3 to hang on to a six points lead over second placed T & R Bar who beat St Mary’s ‘B’ 7-2, however they do have a game in hand on Staffordshire Knot.
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Dewdrop, leaders of the Hilltop Friendly Tuesday Night League have opened up a two points lead after beating Old Hop Pole 5-2, Old Hop Pole with 26 points drop to third behind The Vine whose 4-3 win against Merry-Go-Round has given them a slight average advantage over Old Hop Pole. Island Inn in fourth place were 4-3 winners at Hayes Social and they like Vine and Old Hop Pole are also on 26 points.
At the other end of the table the two bottom teams squared up to each other, the 4-3 win going to Albion who move up one place to two from bottom and leave Horseley Tavern firmly rooted at the foot of the table and pointless.
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Boldmere St Mike’s suffered their first defeat of the season in division one of the Sutton and District League, their 6-3 reversal away to Old Oscott Arrows has put both teams on 12 points with Boldmere just having the edge on average, joining them with the same number of points is third in the table The Beehive who won their home tie with Plough and Arrows 7-2.
In division two it was top half versus bottom half with the top half teams winning, leaders The Boot were surprisingly held to a close 5-4 home win by bottom of the table The Park who have lost all seven of their opening games. Golden Hind kept in touch and are on the same points as Boot after their 6-3 win at Boldmere Tap.
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Week three of the Netherton Thursday Night League saw leaders Dudley Ex Serviceman’s Club drop their first game of the season as they won 6-1 away to The Crown. Second placed Dudley Sports are on the same six points as the leaders after a 4-3 home win over Fairfield ‘B’ and making up a trio of unbeaten teams is third placed Bulls Head who beat Delph Bell ‘B’ 4-3.
White Horse moved off the foot of the table in style as they chalked up a 7-0 win over The Widders to push them to the bottom of the league.
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The Stourbridge and District Monday Night League staged the quarter finals of their League Cup which produced just one surprising result, in the local derby between Ten Arches ‘A’ and Ten Arches ‘B’ it was the sixth placed ‘B’ side who beat their third in the table rivals.
In the other games leaders Ashwood won 6-3 against Stourbridge RBL, second in the league Britannia accounted for their hosts Plough with a 7-2 result and Bird ‘A’ (Stourbridge) who are fifth also won 7-2 against seventh placed Bird (Wordsley).
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Riley’s ‘C’ took their unbeaten run in division one of the Wolverhampton Tuesday Night League to ten games when they won 6-3 at home against second in the table Ashmore Inn giving them an eight points lead over their rivals, although they have played one game more than Ashmore.
Dog and Partridge and Pavilion stay locked together on the same 18 points at the top of division two Dog and Partridge winning 4-3 at The Boat while Pavilion had a more comfortable 6-1 home success over Pendulum. Riley’s ‘A’ lost 6-1 at The Bull and in the process lost third place to Sunbeam who were 5-2 winners at Wednesfield Legion ‘C’.
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Cleveland Arms have now caught up in the number of games played in the Tettenhall Wednesday Night League their 7-0 home win over Jones Road putting them in third place on the same 28 points as second in the table Riley’s ‘A’ but with a game in hand. Riley’s ‘A’ won 5-2 away to Moreton they have played one game more than leaders Whitmore Reans WMC and are two points adrift following Whitmore’s 5-2 win against Brewood British Legion.
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The Tamworth League played off the first two rounds of their Andrew Evans Memorial Cup and going into the hat for round three will be Prince of Wales ‘B’, Prince of Wales ‘A’, Three Tuns (Fazeley) and Belgrave Club.
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