Winchester College, 6th November 2011
Eleven pairs contested the tenth anniversary edition of the RFA Schools' Winchester Doubles tournament, held at Winchester College.
The first round produced a lengthy battle between Bradfield and Winchester III, eventually won by the Bradfieldians. Their penchant for long matches then continued into the quarter-finals, where they lost a three-game cliff-hanger to Blundell's I. Meanwhile, the fancied St. Paul's I were taking their time settling down before beating Winchester II in two close games.
Things went more to plan in the bottom half of the draw, Winchester I defeating St. Paul's II convincingly, while Derby Moor dismissed St. Paul's III. It was Derby Moor's first appearance in this event, and they continued to play excellent fives to defeat Winchester's first pair at the semi-final stage. Blundell's top pair meanwhile gave a good account of themselves in their semi-final against St. Paul's I, but were handicapped by injury towards the end of the match and lost in two games.
The final was disappointingly one-sided, with Derby Moor failing to unsettle the Paulines with their hitting and being defeated in straight games by superior doubles play and court-craft. Both pairs can be proud of their achievement: Derby Moor for reaching the final at their first attempt, and St. Paul's for playing better and better as the tournament progressed and emerging as clear winners.
The subsidiary competition was eventually won by Bradfield's plate specialists Butler and Cummings, who played more games than anyone else on the day and are now well on their way to completing a dinner service.
Results
1st Round: Bradfield bt Winchester III 8-15, 15-12, 15-7; St. Paul's II bt Blundell's II 15-1, 15-1; St. Paul's III bt Marlborough 15-5, 15-10
Quarter-finals: St. Paul's I bt Winchester II 16-14, 15-13; Blundell's I bt Bradfield 12-15, 15-11, 16-14; Winchester I bt St. Paul's II 15-7, 15-3; Derby Moor bt St. Paul's III 15-2, 15-6
Semi-finals: St. Paul's I bt Blundell's I 15-6, 15-13; Derby Moor bt Winchester I 15-13, 15-7
Final: St. Paul's I (T Parker & F Thomas) bt Derby Moor (J Goodwin & M Baxter) 15-2, 15-5
Plate: Bradfield (D Butler & S Cummings)