Restricted Championships - Season 2000-2001

This event is held for any of the county league players but NOT the named 'A' Team individuals who have been mentioned at the CBA committee meeting.

Just because this competition is restricted meant nothing to the number of competitors that turned up. A huge entry in all sections, allowed for some good games and everything was wrapped up, at a rather late 10.00pm.

The problem with this event is that everything is held on the one day - singles, doubles and mixed. So, if a player enters all events, they are sure to be knackered by the end of the day.

Ladies Singles

The first semi saw Jill Turner play against her club partner, Aileen Groat. Jill's experience of playing for the county and hitting some good finishing shots, allowed her to progress to the final, winning 11-1, 11-4.

Young Amy Simpson showed how she is improving in Caithness Badminton by easily beating Susan Craigie 11-3, 11-0, in the second semi-final.

After losing the first set in the final 11-4, Amy started to find her feet and produced some killing shots that Jill had no answers for. But Jill always had that extra edge on Amy and finished the match, sneeking the second set, 11-9.

Mens Singles

Unfortunately, I was unable to be present for both semi-final matches but did manage to catch some of the action in the final between Benji and Richard.

The final was a battle of who could last the longest and hit the hardest. Richard seemed to be holding Benji well until the last few points of the match, when Benji's power was just too much for the youngster. The big man eventually pulled through to win 2-1.

Ladies Doubles

As above, I was unable to see the semi-finals.

The final was an all Dunnet contest Lyndsey & Margaret Calder against Susan Craigie & Isobel Mackay. The two pairings have probably played against each other on numerous occasions in the Brittania Hall, Dunnet - so, they all new where each others weak areas would be.

The mother and daughter pairing pulled away to win the first set 15-7. But the second proved to be a harder task with Susan and Isobel starting to find their game. Eventually, Lyndsey and Margaret had the better strokes and pulled away to finish the match 15-12.

Mens Doubles

The two young boys, Richard Scott & Sean Henstridge, provided the shock of the day in this tournament, beating Daz and Raz in the first semi-final of the competition 2-1. I call it a 'shock' but the young boys are playing so confidently and well together that others may think different.

In the second semi, Benji Mackay & Eric Livingstone took on Martyn Cook & Charlie Henderson.
Martyn and Charlie have been playing together for a few games now and proved to be a tough core to break. But, Benji and Eric sneeked through, very closely, 15-13, 15-11.

The final was as close as the other games, with the young lads eventually winning 2-1. Some controversial decisions by the referee, could have ruined a good match but it didn't seem to bother the young and excitable lads, who went on to lift the Mens Doubles title.

Mixed Doubles

By the time this event arose, there were a lot of weary legs appearing on the competitors who had played all day. Also, due to number one seed pairing Russell Craigie & Lynda Hall, having to leave on work commitments, it left the competition wide open.

The first semi-final saw David Swanson and Lyndsey Calder beat Lynda Hall and Martyn Cook. The first was a struggle for Davie and Lyndsey - but they managed to claw back a 10-3 lead from Linda and Martyn, to win 15-11 and then continue to the final with a second set win of 15-5.

The second semi saw Ian Nicolson & Jill Turner take on Richard Scott & Amy Simpson. Richard and Amy strolled through the first set. The second proved to be tighter, with the game going to a tie-breaker. Richard and Amy showed that they are turning into a good partnership, if Richard can keep his cool, and took the second 17-16.

The final was a short affair with Davie and Lyndsey finishing the winners 15-13,15-1. The two youngsters didn't seem to be on their usual form, probably because of the amount of games they had played in one day.

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