Whaplode Drove have once again been crowned champions in Division One of the Hunts and Peterborough Badminton League.
The South Holland side won nine of their ten fixtures in the men’s six league, edging out Jack Hunt into second place by two points after an exciting finale to the season.
Pearl once had a stranglehold on this title, and held it for a significant amount of years.
But, in the 2014/15 season, Whaplode Drove managed to wrest is away from them – only for Pearl to take it back again the following season (when it was decided in the last game of the season).
In the 2016/2017 season Jack Hunt won the title, similarly going down to the wire – and this year was no different.
Throughout the season it became evident that this would be a close competition once again, with both Jack Hunt and Whaplode Drove being dominant in their home venues. It would be away performances that would be where the league was won or lost, most notably against the Pearl teams.
Whaplode started the season with a 6-3 home win against Apollo, but then the possibility of winning the league was quickly put into doubt.
They then travelled to Jack Hunt, where they were thoroughly dominated and lost 7-2.
Drove’s next two games were away at Pearl’s two sides – where they managed to win both with a 6-3 score line.
Further victories away at Court and Apollo kept the pressure on Jack Hunt, who were winning all of their matches.
Jack Hunt then travelled to Pearl’s top side, where they were put to the test and found wanting. A 6-3 defeat put them level on points with Whaplode again.
At this stage, Whaplode had four home games left, with Jack Hunt being the last team to visit.
Good victories against the Pearl sides, both 6-3 scorelines, were followed by a 9-0 thrashing of Court.
Jack Hunt also went unbeaten during this period, making the final game of the season the League decider.
Both Drove and Jack Hunt had amassed 16 points, only having lost one match each previously.
The match started well for Whaplode as they made their home advantage count, winning two of the first three rubbers (a rubber being the best of three games to 21) to go 2-1 up.
The second set of three rubbers went a similar way, with Whaplode’s third pair missing victory by a very small margin against the Jack Hunt first pair of Mustafa and Kaminga.
At 4-2, the match was not yet finished, but left Jack Hunt needing to win all three of the final rubbers.
The Whaplode first pair of Seaton and Coles were first on court and had no problems winning their third game in two straight games, ensuring that the match was won.
The remaining two rubbers went the way of Jack Hunt, resulting in a final score of 5-4 to Drove.
Some good badminton was played throughout the night, with the usual competitive attitude, and old rivalries will be renewed again next season.
Pearl 2nd were relegated this season, and will be replaced by Ramsey – who just managed to edge out St Mary’s by an additional match win in Division Two.
- Whaplode Drove is a friendly club, who also have a men’s 2nd team, mixed teams and a ladies’ team.
They meet on Monday nights (7.30-10pm) at the Elizabethan Centre in Whaplode Drove, and any anyone interested in playing either socially or competitively can contact them through their Facebook page, Whaplode Drove Badminton.
