
Formby TTC F before winning the 3rd Division
Formby TTC F pulled off a remarkable victory against division leaders Southport D to take the 3rd division championship by 1 point. Needing to win 8-2 at Southport, the visitors quickly went into a 5-0 lead, though Andy Hickey got one back for the home team to restore some hope. After a break for some quality refreshments, Formby extended their lead to 7-1 with fine wins by Matthew Cranny over Alan Nolan, and Tom Miller over Tom Banton.
With just the doubles to play, and Southport needing to win both, the scene was set for a thrilling finish. Both teams had reversed their doubles order, and Tom Taylor and Andy Hickey easily saw off father and son duo Gareth and Tom Miller to make the score 7-2.
That left Alan Nolan and Tom Banton to try to save the day against Matthew Cranny and Robert Barker. This was always going to be a long shot, as Alan and Tom had lost all their singles and Matthew and Robert had won all theirs. However, the home pair got off to a good start, edging the first set by 11-9, but the Formby lads evened it up winning 11-3. The 3rd set narrowly went to Matthew and Robert, 11-9, and they managed to hang on to win the 4th by the same score. Result: 11-9, 3-11, 9-11, 9-11, and a well deserved championship win for two rapidly improving lads.
So congratulations to Formby, and a sincere thank you to them (and their army of supporters) for a match played in a most friendly spirit. We wish you all the best in the 2nd Division!