MS02 9-9

Master's one posted a spirited 9-9 draw against top ranked team Royal Oak to be placed equal second after the first round of the master's two competition last night.

Ryan 'new master' Quinn looked all style and comfort as he dispatched Vernon Choy to end a losing streak which some observes thought would now be the start of a major winning streak.

Rob 'where is his mind' Drent struggled slightly with the superfast ball and court and eventually went down to Shaun Ridyard 3-2.

Then came two of the best enthralling matches played by Devonport master's players this year.

Dietmar 'lethal' Londer did everything but take out Kieth Littmonden - a player at the top of B2 and a couple of hundred points ahead of him on the grading list.

He ran Keith ragged and at several moment it looked like Keith's legs had gone completely. The tension of the match and the players nerves were not helped by some dubious refs calls - and Bruce was not even there. Dietmar had match point at 8-6 in the fifth and played some great squash but Keith showed his experience retrieving everything to length and making no mistakes to take the match.

Then it was crowd favorite Adam "walloper" Watton up against Daniel Lal, another B 2 who was two hundred points ahead of Adam on the grading list.

The match see-sawed with some typical power from Adam and some finesse against some deft touches and boasts from Daniel who was surprisingly nimble around the court for his size. It went right down to the wire with Adam also holding match points before losing 10-9 in the fifth. 

Lets say the champagne was waiting but the cork did not quite pop. So a gutsy draw given we only won one match and it bodes well for a successful spring campaign.