Goshtech Clinch Division Two Title

In Division Two of the Appleby Frodingham Grimsby and District Three-Man League Goshtech confirmed their promotion to Division 1 with an emphatic victory away to the Barrow Boys. The packed gallery at the Barrow club were treated to some good squash and vociferous Goshtech away support witnessing an impressive 11 – 4 win.

The first match pairing saw a much anticipated rematch and ongoing rivalry between Barrow’s Mike Smith and Jase Williams of Goshtech. As per previous meetings the match proved to be a gruelling affair. The first game saw Smith retrieve everything thrown at him and he used his forehand volley kills to great effect against the Williams’ cross court drive and.  always having a couple of points lead, Smith took the game 15–10. The second game saw Williams play some very loose cross court shots which Smith dispatched in his renowned fashion and he ran out a comfortable winner 15–7. The third game saw the inevitable Williams’ comeback. With some fine retrieving and good length lobs he moved Smith around the court and finished the points off when given the opportunity taking the game 15–7. The fourth game saw Williams revert to more power shots to vary the tempo of the game. Smith continued to retrieve well making for rallies that were long and painful. Williams clung on to take the game 15 – 11. The deciding game saw Williams lose a little bit of focus and this was all Smith needed to capitalise. He reverted back to playing how he had done in the first two games cutting out all loose shots from Williams on both the forehand and backhand. Smith edging a few points in front from the start and with Williams unable to claw them back Smith ended up taking the game 15–9 and the match 3–2.

The second string game saw Steve Foster of Barrow paired against Pat Beasley. The first game saw Beasley take a commanding lead with some deft drop shots and volley drops and running out a comfortable 15–9 winner. The second game started off in a similar style but Foster then found some neat drops and capitalising on Beasley’s lack of concentration he pulled the game back to  13–13. Beasley then clicked back into gear and took the next two points to take the game 15–13. The third game saw Beasley switch off totally and Foster capitalised by dominating the tee and winning the points with a combination of cross court drops and powerful forehand drives to take the game 15–7. In the fourth game Foster made some unforced errors to give Beasley the momentum he needed to get back onto the match. Beasley also re-found the touch required for his well renowned forehand volley drops and he ran out a 15–9 winner in the game and took the match 3-1.

The number one pairing saw Paul Bell take on Daz Atkins of Goshtech. The first game saw Atkins start off well taking a seven point lead with some good retrieving and shot selection. The warm court ensured that the rallies were never easy to finish and Bell could not pull back the deficit with Atkins taking the game 15-7. The second game followed suit with both players retrieving a lot of lost causes and some good line and length played up and down both forehand and backhand walls. Atkins again led the game from the start and closed it out 15–9. The third game was closer with both players neck and neck up to 10-10. Atkins then found a couple of decent forehand drives that ensured he pulled away in the game to take it 15–11 and the match 3–0.