WINKY-DINKS’ WEEK

Boasters League Round 4~~

It can’t really be the case already, can it? Four weeks in, five to go, and the top 6 teams have seemingly been decided? I’m hopeful (pleading!) that things will pick up, but when I get results in such as last night’s round 4, skepticism rages. Where are half the teams?

Paddy’s Dropshots did an excellent job last week, but it all came crashing down on them this week, as only 4 players turned up for bonus points, and only 2 (yes, two!) matches have been completed. I have no idea what the problem is, they ‘played’ against Foss Nation who only had 5 players turn up as well. Paddy’s Dropshots are currently occupying the 6^th and final spot for a play-off berth, Foss Nation are thirty-two points behind them. Lots of work to be done.

The Nicker Ballers did have the bye week, so it wasn’t expected they would pick up many points, but they did have the golden opportunity to get some much needed make-up matches in (they have plenty to do!). However, there was hardly any activity going on and the 4 points they did get only makes things harder and harder for them. The Wardogs, for example, have also had a bye week this half and the have twice as many points as the Nicker Ballers. Lots of work to be done here too.

Team of the week goes to the Winky-Dinks. From 3^rd place last week, to top of the ladder this week, they picked up an impressive 40 points. Last night, they took Space Geckos to task, winning 8 of the 10 matches they played. Mind you, 4 of those results were 2-1 so it could easily have been a different story. The Space Geckos had the advantage of bonus points with 13 of them, which is the 3^rd week out of 4 they have managed to accumulate so many. A terrific average, easily the best in the league so far.

As I wandered around the courts last night, a few interesting matches are worth mentioning… Jamie Shea (Space Geckos) did what no one else has so far managed to achieve this half season, and that’s taking a game from Vikram Chopra (Winky-Dinks). He still lost 1-2, but can be happy he has broken Vikram’s perfect record! Vikram of course, thinks otherwise.

Brien Baker (Paddy’s Dropshots) hit a couple boasts too many for Tom MacEachern (Foss Nation), who was probably sick and tired of chasing those angles every other shot for 3 straight games, and took the 2-1 victory with a smile and quick trip to the keg. And Paul Ward (Wardogs) suffered his first loss of the half as he went down 2-1 to Jeff Gembis (Fire Birds) who appears to be gathering some steam.

So let’s see if round 5 brings people out of the woodwork and onto the court. Or at least the players from the last 4 teams. There is still time to get the gears greased and moving, but that window is closing rapidly - especially with the DAC Classic looming in 2 weeks time. In fact, you should be using these matches as a way to get ready for the Classic… practice, practice, practice!

THE SERIOUS CONTENDERS

Boasters League round 3~~

The contrast is blatantly obvious. Last night was a glaring example of which teams are challenging for the Boasters League championships and which teams are simply doddering through the weeks. Before I get into a couple of jarring stats for round 3, it should be noted that it was “meet the candidates” night and a high percentage of matches had to be listed as ‘self-schedule’, which certainly affected the amount of matches played. That being said, the reason the standings are as you see them is because of these two details: (Butter Nutz are excused here since they had the bye.)

·         The top 4 teams combined picked up 39 bonus points last night. The bottom 4 teams: 29.

·         23 matches have been played so far for round 3. The top 4 teams make up 16 of those.

It’s simple to see. After 3 rounds, there is already a 19 point difference between Paddy’s Dropshots in 4^th place and Wardogs in 6^th. Wardogs, mind you, have had the bye already, so their situation is not as dire as Mongoose, The Nicker Ballers (who have the bye next week) and Foss Nation (who have also had the bye but have not exactly torn it up either – they picked up only 9 points since round 2). Yes, it is only 3 rounds in, but catch-up is the worst type of game to play and typically does not work. There are still 12 players in the league that haven’t even played a match or picked up a bonus point for the half. No time like the present to start, right? A little communication, commitment…

But enough of the negativity, I’m sure you will all pick it up and get back on track. Let’s celebrate the positive instead and focus on a couple of great matches played for round 3.

Colin Bayer (Fire Birds) had his work cut out against Jason Currie (Space Geckos). Jason enjoys a fast pace onto his racquet and Colin enjoys a fast pace off his racquet, so the two complimented themselves rather well. Some long rallies, plenty of court coverage from both of them, it was Jason who ended up with the 2-1 win and his first victory of the second half.

Dave Devine (Paddy’s Dropshots) intends to blind us all with his bright pink shirt and maybe it threw John Mann (Winky-Dinks) for a loop. John struggled to match Dave’s ‘pink-power’, and lost 1-2. It was Dave’s second win for the season, so the shirt must be helping at least a little…

John Perkins (Fire Birds) extended his winning streak to 8 matches after taking care of the lovely Cathy Lysack (Space Geckos) 2-1. In fact, since we have tracking scores on Sporty HQ, John has won 22 of 24 matches, and he hasn’t lost since mid-October. I figure I may as well place a target on is back now, or at least jinx him!

So, heading into round 4 and it’s almost the half way mark of the second half. There is only 1 thing to say: Play your matches.

NUTZ AND GECKOS

Boasters League round 2~~

It’s not a two horse race, but after only 2 rounds, the Butter Nutz and Space Geckos have once again risen to the top of the standings and it all comes down to getting on court and playing matches.  The Fire Birds are only 6 points back of second place, but they kept close only because of some make-up matches through the week rather than playing on the Wednesday. That strategy will be difficult to keep up since those make-up matches pile up very quickly and as the weeks roll around, getting them in will prove challenging to say the least.

The Butter Nutz do sit out next week with the bye, but if they manage to get some make-up matches in over the week, should still find themselves in the top 4 if not top 3.

Team Mongoose and the Nicker Ballers already need to start climbing out of a hole they have dug themselves into. They picked up a paltry 14 and 17 points respectively for this week, and are on par with the Wardogs who have only played one round. The Winky-Dinks also need to be careful not to fall too far behind either. Only three round 2 matches have been played so far (out of 17), hardly a recipe for success. It is early in the season, but a lackluster start tends to be tricky to overcome later on.

There were a handful of tight results last night which I am always pleased to hear about. Patrick Petz (Paddy’s Dropshots) played true to his team’s name against Cathy Lysack (Space Geckos) as he tried to drop Cathy to death from any position on the court. And when he is on, he can be awfully effective. Cathy was forced to lunge into the front corners continuously and she was fit enough to keep the ball up to scrape out a 2-1 win.

Dane Fossee (Nicker Ballers) and Colin Bayer (Fire Birds) like to punish each other and try to see who can make the other one run more. Neither of them are afraid to oblige either, and sometimes I think they actually attempt to run more than needed, expend more energy than required, extend rallies past necessity, just for entertainment value. The healthy crowd last night appreciated the back and forth and on this day, Dane ended up with the spoils 2-1.

Next week is “Meet the Candidates” night which means most of the matches will be designated as a ‘self-schedule’. At 7pm next Wednesday all Blackballers (yes, that means you!) are invited to the gym to support the 35+ Basketball tournament and then see who you can vote for in this year’s DAC presidential and board election. It is a fun social evening, so please make the effort to come out and enjoy the festivities.