Last gasp heroics earn crucial draw in badminton
UNIVERSITY OF YORK SECONDS 4 vs. UNIVERSITY OF SHEFFIELD SECONDS 4
BUCS Northern Conference 3B, Wednesday 4th February 2009
Last-minute heroics from Chris Ashley and James Somerside nicked a draw with Sheffield seconds in what was effectively a re-run of last week’s equally tight BUCS Cup clash. York, after losing on points in the previous meeting, clearly had something to prove against a side that is also flirting with relegation. James Hor beat both his opponents but Tahir Shetty could not find his rhythm and, despite playing some good badminton at times, lost both of his matches.
Both pairs, Somerside/Ashley and Chu/Gatenby, lost their first matches meaning the pressure was on in the last round. Alex Chu and Captain Tom Gatenby dispatched their opponents despite a shaky opening game, witch they lost 16-21. Undeterred, they went on to win convincingly 21-9 and 21-14. The timing meant that Sheffield were leading 3-4 with Somerside/Ashley still playing. After winning their first 21-19, with some seriously impressive badminton they lost their rhythm and the second game 14-21.
(George Lowther)
However, the third and final game was close, with inconsistency letting York down at times, and they went down 12-17 and York looked set to lose the overall match. However, Somerside and Ashley staged a convincing comeback and eventually won 21-19, sealing the overall draw.
Hor’s first game had the feeling of a grudge match, with the pair having met in last week’s BUCS clash, with Hor losing. This time, though, he focused himself in an intense game and thrashed his opponent 21-14 and 21-8, regaining pride in the process. Shetty struggled in his first match, guilty of being over cautious at times and duly lost 7-21 and 14-21.
The partnership of Gatenby/Chu was extremely unlucky not to win their first match. It was a tight affair indeed, with the York pair edging the first game 23-21. However, in the second game they suffered from some bad unforced errors and lost 14-21. The third game was just as tight as the first, but still York could not put an end to their mistakes and eventually lost 19-21. Meanwhile, Somerside and Ashley lost 19-21 and 13-21.
(George Lowther)
The second round of singles went the same as the first, with Shetty letting himself down after losing 12-21 and 17-21 despite some good badminton at times from the York player. Hor played through a gruelling match, and after an initial hiccough in his first game, losing 12-21, he fought back to win, with scores of 21-11 and 21-18 sealing it for the confident Yorker.
The York pairs staged their brilliant comeback in the last round of the day. Before the second round of doubles it looked grim for York as they were 2-4 down in the overall game. However, both pairs fought impressively and York managed to nick a 4-4 draw, which keeps them clear of relegation in the league standings.
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