Fives home v Colinton Z(Thurs, Dec 16,'10)

Barbarians go third

A great win for the Barbarians against Colinton Castle 6. This week, injuries again caused a reshuffle with Jonathan Frame making his debut at 1 supported by regulars Brian Sloan, Richard Nisbet and Dean Wood. And following his stunning debut last week, Robin Pollok again took to court at 5. A freak golfing injury had left me on the bench, but I played from the balcony to get the 2 ref points (Dougie, please note J).

First on court was Robin. Now, many of you may realise how sensitive the real Robin is. But following his hilarious report of last week, Robin remarked that he was going to have to watch how he played in case it made the match report. I thought he was joking, but gone was the skipping in the corridor, and there was only one ball on court for the warm up. I was worried that I’d broken his pre-match preparation and that he’d fall apart under the pressure. But I worried in vain. Just like last week, the composed Mr Pollok commanded the court from start to finish. His serve dominated his opponent, winning 27 of his 39 serves. And his returning left his opponent wondering how to get a point as he lost only 8 points from the 27 serves he faced. A great start for the team in a 9-1, 9-4, 9-3 win.

In the absence of Mr Meldrew, our very own Mr Grumpy (Dean) took to the court at 4. As usual, the first match had enough lets and strokes to qualify the entire team as referees. In a nip and tuck game, Dean went 4-1 down and was wondering what he had to do to get a point. He’d served 10 times, and scored just once. But then a run of points brought back 4-4 and so the game edged forward to 7-7. The lets and strokes were still flowing and the requests from the players were getting more and more outrageous. As I turned down a let call from his opponent (who was at least three paces from the ball) Dean decided to get in on the refereeing act by asking his opponent “did you really ask for a let there?”. A number of serves were exchanged before Dean found himself facing game point. An excellent rally followed with both players having the opportunity for a winner and both retrieving well. In the end Dean held on before finding himself game point down again. Again the point was saved and Dean brought the game to 8-8. Set 2 was called and Dean took the game to 9-8 for a game point of his own. But his opponent wouldn’t lie down and had his own chance to go to 9-9. But Dean just persevered and took the first 10-8. At this point, I was exhausted from having to concentrate on both players and their antics. I now know what the umpire felt like in that McEnroe vs Connors game. But I needn’t have worried, as Dean took control of the game and his opponent lost a bit of concentration. The game was closed out 9-1, 9-1 – 2-0 to the Grange.

Next up Richard, who is the Barbarians highest ranked player. He began well, racing to a 5-1 lead and edged on to 8-2 before closing the game out 9-4. The second game followed a similar pattern, although his opponent was putting up more resistance and Richard could be seen to be getting a bit hotter. But he again prevailed 9-4. But by now his opponent was truly warmed up and as Richard looked for some respite, the game began to turn. The third started as a game of cat and mouse (not commenting on who was who) as Richard moved into a narrow 5-4 lead. But a run of points brought his opponent to 8-5 and despite an almighty “What the **** are you doing Richard?” from the man himself, the third was lost 9-5. In the fourth, Richard raced to a 6-3 lead before being pulled back to 8-8 and a ‘set 2’ call. The game was now fast and furious with both players fit to burst. Richard lost the first point to face game point at 8-9, but rallied magnificently to take the game 10-9 and the match 3-1. An epic.

With the match won, Brian took to court against a strong and fast opponent who I worked out was the son of Dean’s opponent. Not because they looked alike, or because I had spotted they had the same surname, but rather because he too tried more ‘lets’ than the ESPC. In the first game Brian raced out to an 8-3 lead as his opponent got used to the court and up to match warmth. But as he moved into top gear, he clawed back to 8-7 before Brian just held on for a 9-7 win. But his opponent was looking good and making some retrievals that looked genuinely impossible. As he moved into top gear, Brian struggled to stay in touch and the game edged away 5-9, 2-9 and 3-9. From a Captain’s perspective, I would like to thank Brian for playing this week, cos if I had played it would have been me against the same guy and I’m not sure I’d have got a game at all.

Last up was our Baba virgin Jonathan who played a sublime game against a strong number 1. After closing out the first 9-4, a run of points saw him 3-6 down in the second before a commanding run of six consecutive points took the second. The third was another lesson in control, especially on the lob, as Jonathan rounded off an excellent night 9-6.

So back to the Grange where a party in the main club saw us dine on Franco’s finest in the Committee Room (with coasters!). A good sociable evening ensued with lots of banter on both sides. There are two options for the best comment of the night:-

1: Robin; who after being asked to pass the veggie pizza to Dean commented that he hadn’t known Dean was a veggie. And given that he cycles everywhere, how come he’s so big ! Or

2: Richard; who, reflecting on a night where four players won, and Brian lost 3-1, commented that he’d never lost to someone on the balcony before ! (I reference to my 2 ref points I believe).

Voting will finish before the next match, and the winner will win another Babas beer. (Report: Mike D)

ED: Here are the stats for those who are short on arithmetic and have made it this far...;-):

Pos	Player	Rubbers	Games	Points			Player	Rubbers	Games	Points
1	Jonathan Frame	1	3	27			Chris Green	0	0	16
2	Brian Sloan	0	1	19			Mark Williamson	1	3	34
3	Richard Nisbet	1	3	33			Kevin Vincenti	0	1	26
4	Dean Wood	1	3	28			Sandy Williamson	0	0	10
5	Robin Pollok	1	3	27			Fraser Steven	0	0	8
Total		4	13	134				1	4	94
Competition Points		16						4