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Caithness 'A' team retain cup after Orkney clash


By Ali Morrison

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Caithness badminton teams made a very choppy crossing to Orkney on February 15 for the return legs of the 2019/20 inter-county challenge.

With the scores from the first leg standing at 8-4 in favour of Caithness in the "A" team contest, they needed five matches to secure victory. The "B" team were trailing 7-5 going into their tussle so had a difficult task ahead of them.

In the "B" team match both the third men’s pairing of Tom Ross and Jamie Davidson, who was receiving his first cap for Caithness, and third ladies of Sarah Mackenzie and Pauline Craig got off to a good start as they took the opening sets. However, the Orkney pairings settled into their game and managed to claim both opening games, giving them a 2-0 lead.

Sam Campbell teamed up with young player Sean Campbell to take on Orkney’s second men’s pairing. The Caithness pair put up a good fight but went down 2-0.

The Caithness 'B' team who took part in the inter-county match in Orkney.
The Caithness 'B' team who took part in the inter-county match in Orkney.

The second ladies saw another three-set match with Orkney taking the opening game. But the Caithness pairing of Marion McCoustra and Rebecca Mayer, another first cap for the Caithness team, fought hard to win the remaining two sets and get them on the scoreboard.

The remaining two matches in the level doubles both went in favour of Orkney, meaning they had a 5-1 lead after the level doubles.

Pauline Craig and Jamie Davidson got Caithness their second win of the match at sixth mixed, winning comfortably in two sets.

Rebecca and Tom played at fifth mixed, losing the opening set 17-21. They put in a great effort to win the remaining two and take the score to 5-3.

Marion and Sean had another three-set battle at fourth mixed but this time just lost out 21-15 in the final set.

With the best possible result now being a draw, the pressure was on the final three pairings. Orkney’s experienced pairings were too steady and Caithness couldn’t get another point on the board, with the islanders winning 9-3 and retaining the trophy with a 16-8 victory after both match scores were added.

Jamie and Rebecca did well in their first performances for Caithness and the team was grateful to Mark Mackay (Wick) for stepping in after a late call-off.

The "A" team fixture began with the best match of the day at third ladies.

The Caithness 'A' team who were successful against their Orkney counterparts.
The Caithness 'A' team who were successful against their Orkney counterparts.

The new pairing of Donna Majilton and Kate MacNicol took a while to settle, losing the first set to Orkney before being 20-14 down in the second set. A great show of determination and skill saw them go on an eight-point winning streak to win the set 22-20.

The final set was a battle all the way to the end, with Orkney just securing the last few points to win the set 21-18.

Another new pairing, Craig Jappy and Mark McCoustra at third men’s, were outplayed by their Orkney opponents in the first set but a stronger second set saw them just lose out 21-16.

Carole Begg and Lauren Gunn got Caithness their first point with a comfortable 21-9, 21-16 win at second ladies.

Another great three-set game at second men’s saw John Durrand and Euan Jappy stun their Orkney opponents by taking the opening set. Orkney were not going down without a fight, winning the next 21-19.

After some fantastic rallies it was Euan and John who levelled the match score 2-2.

Shona Mackay and Beckie Gunn then put Caithness in the lead with a comfortable win at first ladies.

Caithness's top pairing Mark Mackay and Martyn Cook were made to work for their victory in a three-set battle but managed to increase the lead to 4-2.

The visitors were keen to get the remaining game on the scoreboard but Orkney managed to win both fifth and sixth mixed, taking the score back level 4-4.

Euan and Lauren secured the overall victory, winning 22-20, 21-17 at fourth mixed. Third mixed was an Orkney win in three sets before comfortable victories in Caithness's favour at both first and second mixed saw the team emerge 7-5 winners to retain the cup with an overall 15-9 score.

Caithness Badminton Association said it was grateful to local company GMR Henderson for sponsoring the teams' new kit.

The next event in the badminton calendar is the annual inter-county match against Shetland on Friday, March 6, in Wick, followed by the annual Caithness Invitation Tournament. Spectators are welcome.


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