A SET of fixtures that pitched the top sides in all four divisions of the South Devon & Torbay Table Tennis League against their closest rivals has sorted the favourites out in all the divisions, reports Tony Halse.

The top-of-the-table clash in the first division lived up to its expectations with some excellent encounters in a match that swung back and forth.

NA Buzzards, the leaders and current champions, started well against second-placed Brixham Sharks but soon found it wasn’t going to be easy to maintain their 100%-win record as the Sharks fought back and went into the lead.

A Kevin Nicholls maximum for the Buzzards was the difference as they recovered from 4-3 down to win 6-4 and open up a 12-point lead at the top of the table. NA Eagles, with maximums from Mark Burridge and Jeremy Broad, kept up their challenge in third place with a 9-1 win over Brixham Trawlers.

It was also top against second place in the second division as the leaders, Grove Guerrillas, travelled to Newton Abbot to play the Ravens.

Neither team took control as the sides were only separated by a point throughout and it ended up, predictably, at 5-5. Colin Butterworth showed his class and was unbeaten for the Guerrillas who required the final doubles to earn the draw.

The Guerrillas’ 13-point lead at the top makes them firm favourites for the title, although the Ravens in second spot do have a game in hand.

Both Huw Darch and Paul Hine were unbeaten as the NA Raptors defeated clubmates NA Falcons 7-3.

The Taverners remain at the foot of the table following a 10-0 whitewash by the Brixham Pirates’ team of Ian Saxby, Martin Sharp and Issy Brown who despite the one-sided scoreline, had to work hard for their win with half of the sets going to a fifth game decider.

Torre Vikings, having caught up with their fixtures, lead the third division by 11 points. The Vikings, playing twice this week, firstly just saw off the challenge from Torbay Academy 4 winning 6-4 and in the process, a Chris Garner maximum saw the Academy’s Matt Laws lose his 100%-win record.

Vikings’ trio of Chris Garner, Bill Keywood and Steve Russell went on to defeat NA Kites 10-0 in their second match.

Also playing twice, Torbay Academy 4 bounced back from their defeat by the leaders with a convincing 8-2 victory over Dawlish Renegades with the help of maximums from Ionel Ichim and Matt Laws. The Torbay Academy 3 team of Peter Moretta, Andy Harris and John Fowler had a whitewash victory over clubmates Torbay Academy 5.

NA Kestrels kept up their challenge towards the top of the table with a 7-3 victory at Brixham against the Gulls.

Division Four also saw a top-of-the-table clash as the leaders, Torre Spartans, travelled to Totnes and came away with an excellent 8-2 win to open up a 13-point lead at the top. Lewis Lavery, yet to be beaten, with another maximum for the Spartans.

Another Lee Raymond maximum for NA Merlins helped them to a 6-4 victory over Brixham Seals. Torbay Academy 7 had an excellent 7-3 win at Newton Abbot against the Ospreys despite a fine maximum from the Ospreys’ Rob Ferguson.

Meanwhile, NA Owls progressed to the quarter finals of the handicap singles cup with a 24-12 victory over Torbay Academy 3.