Family badminton success spans generations.
Saturday the 2nd of February saw the well
established Newquay Cup badminton tournament played at the Newquay sport
centre. The mixed event has benefited from being widened to include separate
draws for both affiliated league and social players, resulting in the highest
entry for many years with one box of 6 pairs in the social event and 3 boxes of
5 pairs in the league.
The social results were very close with just 19 points
dividing the top three pairs. The experienced Martin Penny and Dee Frost
managed to edge out their Camborne club colleagues Steve Knucky and Marnie
Boston by just 4 points to take the runners up spot. However the event was won
by the Camborne husband and wife pair
of Mark and Della Griffiths who dropped just 1 point from their 10 ends to win
in convincing style, and is their second consecutive tournament win having
triumphed in the 2012 West Cornwall Bonanza in Truro.
The league event was handicapped and saw a pleasing spread
of players from various competitive clubs throughout Cornwall and Devon.
The
Tecans (Pool) pair of Steve Ellis and
Kay Bossinger took all their ends, winning Group A by 7 points from the Mounts
Bay pair and reigning champions of Lee Chapple and Hester Luke who also qualified
for the semi finals as highest second placed pair. Group B was won impressively
by Grandmother/grandson partnership of Jack Dyer and Jennifer Collins (First
Edition), and Group C was won by the experienced Pair of Alison Philp and
Andrew White (First Edition/Mounts Bay).
The semi-finals saw the handicaps
reviewed for all and Lee and Hester produced their finest play with clinical
and attacking play to account for Andrew and Alison in both ends. Jack and his
grandmother Jenny again upset the odds by battling hard and defeating the much
fancied pair of Kay and Steve by just 21-20, 21-20.
The final was a tense
affair with around 40 people watching the spectacle. Jack and Jenny showed
great patience and defence in the first end with good holding and net play and
fantastic pick ups, and whilst Lee and Hester played solidly they were unable
to reproduce their semi final standard and could not make up the 8 point handicap
losing 21 – 15. The second end was a much closer affair and despite Hester and
Lee taking it 21 – 20 the cumulative points meant that Jack and Jenny lifted
the title from the reigning champions. The wining pair which amazingly spanned
three generations, proved to be popular victors as the crowd acknowledged the
tremendous feat of grandmother Jenny managing to triumph over her considerably
younger opponents.
The event was well run, played in a great spirit and enjoyed
by all. The organisers wish to thank the staff at the sports hall who kindly
remained on in order for the matches to be completed.
