Manchester, 3rd/4th December 2011
James Toop today scored his fourth successive N/national Singles title, winning in two games over Will Ellison. For James, this title – his fifth in total – moves him into a clear second place behind Wayne Enstone in the list of all-time winners, overtaking Eric Marsh and John Pretlove, each with four titles. It will undoubtedly be a disappointment for Will to fall at the final hurdle for a second year, but he does have the consolation of having beaten Dan Tristao for the first time in competition. However, it could be that that win – only secured with a 16-15 win in the third of three games! – took too much out of him to mount a significant challenge to James, who by contrast had a more routine two-game win over former champion Matt Cavanagh in the semis.
The first round of the tournament produced a few tight matches, with Dave Fox and Inigo Ackland pushing their higher-seeded opponents close, but not quite far enough. Ed Kay and Charlie Brooks went a step further and knocked out Luke Thomson and Dan Grant, respectively, in hard fought contests. In the quarter-finals, the top three seeds had comfortable victories, as did fifth seed Matt Cavanagh in his game against John Minta.
James continued this trend in his semi-final encounter with Matt, winning to 6 and 4, and consequently reaching the final in relative comfort. As with last year, the match of the tournament was the other semi-final, between Will and Dan Tristao – once again, it went to 3 games, with Will winning the third 15-13. Fantastic retrieving and superb shot-making made for very entertaining Fives, but ultimately it was Will’s superior fitness that carried him through.
The final was, as expected, a high-quality, high-attrition match, with rallies consistently lasting over 50 shots. The first game was neck and neck up to 8-8, when James upped the intensity, went on a run of points and took it 15-9. Will was stung into action, raising his game to put much more pressure on his opponent, and a 10-4 advantage was the upshot at the start of the second game. James dug in once again and his ability to move Will around the court with precision line and length paid dividends as he moved ahead and took the game, match and title, 15-9, 15-11.
The plate was hotly contested, with the first-round losers keen to make amends. With five students (and Dave Fox!) in the plate, it highlighted the youth on show over the weekend. The final, in a repeat of the previous weekend’s BUCS final, was between Inigo and Dan Grant, with Dan taking the glory.
RESULTS
1st round: J.Toop bt S.Wyatt-Haines 15-2, 15-1; C.Brooks bt D.Grant 15-5, 15-12; M.Cavanagh bt T.Dean 15-8, 15-1; J.Minta bt I.Ackland 16-14, 15-7; W.Ellison bt G.Rees 15-2, 15-0; H.Buchanan bt C.Burrows 15-3, 15-3; E.Kay bt L.Thomson 15-13, 15-12; D.Tristao bt D.Fox 15-13, 15-7
Quarter-finals: Toop bt Brooks 15-3, 15-0; Cavanagh bt Minta 15-5, 15-5; Ellison bt Buchanan 15-5, 15-6; Tristao bt Kay 15-8, 15-7
Semi-finals: Toop bt Cavanagh 15-6, 15-4; Ellison bt Tristao 12-15, 15-11, 15-13
Final: Toop bt Ellison 15-9, 15-11
Plate: Grant