Linlithgow 3s 7-12 Border Reivers
Abhishek Kumar 3-0 Del Sharratt
Sharratt rued his poor serves in this match. In every game Sharratt gave 3-4 vital points away just from serving out, this gave the momentum to Kumar and meant Sharratt just couldn’t string a run of points together. Once past the serve Sharratt generally gave as good as he got but Kumar took this in 3 games 15-9, 15-8, 15-8.
Lyle Black 1-3 Jordan Reid
This was a difficult match to follow as both players played for lets and strokes and several times the referee had to stop the flow of play to sort out interference from the opposition. The rallies were messy and both players had great court coverage and speed but the shots were rather random and luck played into this more than skill. But despite a marathon first game 21-19 to Black, Reis then won 15-11, 15-12, 15-12 for the victory.
Charlie Patrick 0-3 Graeme Gillie
Gillie has been an excellent find for the Reivers as his East League record is played 5 won 5! Gillie is another player who boasts great speed about the court, but Gillie’s shots are more controlled and was maybe rather fortunate to win by 3-0 as Patrick will feel he should have got something from the game. 15-13, 15-11, 15-12 for Gillie.
John Smith 3-0 Pat Spence
A cracking exhibit of squash, now at the Business end of the teams the skill and movement of both players was evident, Smith has an unbeaten record against the Reivers; but was caught out by Spence’s trademark deceptive shots where he seems to turn the ball in the other direction at the last minute. But smith knew he had to win to keep Linlithgow in the hunt and he duly complied with 15-11, 15-12, 15-11.
Adam King 0-3 Tony Elliot
With the match tied at 2-2 in rubbers, it all came down to this match up. The pressure was on and both players made a cagey start trying to conserve energy and not give too much away. But this match was another one sided affair as Elliot triumphed 15-6, 15-5, 15-8 to take the Victory for the Border Reivers.
Border Reivers Captain Del Sharratt said “Wow, that was a scalp! Linlithgow 3s have been in top 2-3 of the league all season and we didn’t expect to come away with the victory. We are now on 5 wins in a row and with two home ties coming up There’s no reason why we can’t keep out run going, and hopefully climb the table.”