By Sam Russell
On Wednesday afternoon the usually bustling astroturf and tennis courts had been hushed to eerie desertion, as the unrelenting snowfall of the last week caused the postponement of all but one of the BUCS fixtures.
York St. John Men’s 1sts braved the trip from the other side of the city, and will be glad they did; their unlikely win saw them leapfrog York Men’s 2nds, who were pushed back into last place of the BUCS Northern Conference League 3B. Still without a win after four league games, York 2nds are left to face the increasingly real threat of relegation.
St. John took the first two games as Michael Truswell and Simon Templeman beat Talfryn Provis-Evans and Tom Dainty respectively. York’s first pair, Adam Hirst and James Somerside, won against the opposition’s second pair to recover a point and inspire comeback hopes. York’s own second pairing, Tim Robson and Ollie Metcalf, pushed St. John’s firsts to a third match and were close to completing what could have been a pivotal win; they were, in the end, edged out 19-21.
Robson and Metcalf beat St. John’s second pair (21-13, 21-17), but on the other courts St. John were completing a rout in the singles, winning all four. The score going into the final round was 2-5, and the match already lost. York’s first pairing, however, showed no loss of determination and beat their counterparts 21-13, 21-23, 21-16 in a match that more than once saw captain James Somerside sprawling across the court to make return after improbable return.
Afterwards, Somerside explained that some 2nds players, including himself, were often being called up to replace injured 1sts players, which could go some way to explaining the 2nd team’s poor form. He nonetheless condemned his team’s performance, commenting: “[The team] are not improving, and are expecting results without putting in the work.”
He also pointed out some inconsistent results that he felt demonstrated the team’s failure to play to its potential in the league: such as the draw in the previous league fixture against Durham 2nds – a team they’d comfortably beaten in the cup. They’ve also enjoyed a good record against St. John this year; winning five and drawing one of the last six games against them.
Next week, weather permitting, Sheffield Hallam 2nds will visit for a game that may play a major part in consigning one of the two to relegation. Hallam are in fourth place out of six teams – two points ahead of York. A York win could potentially see them leapfrog Hallam, St. John and even Durham, with only the untouchable Hull 1sts and Leeds Met. Carnegie 3rds above them. A loss, on the other hand, could leave them frozen to the foot of the table, with the easiest of their fixtures behind them.