In Division I, last season’s overall champions, Ash Shopfitting, were outgunned 4-1 by the newly-named Squash Pistols.
The Pistols were always in command with Island Games gold medallists Rob Hickling and Guy Tupper both winning 3-0 at the top of the order against Jonathon Hibbs and Graeme Tanguy.
Veteran Steve Law accounted for Alex Snape 3-0 while Martyn Scriven also despatched Ian Stewart by the same margin.
The tie of the night, however, was another epic between the two stalwarts of Island squash, John Farley (Pistols) and Allen Brown.
In the course of a five-set, hour-and-a-half string it was finally settled through attrition alone, with Brown ending the victor 15-5 in the fifth.
In other Division I matches Alexander Forbes I accounted for All Sports in a tight 3-2 match and Bedell Cristin I had an easy 5-0 win over an under-strength Harriers.
Division II went to form with the big guns of Alexander Forbes II and OV’s securing 4-1 victories against Yo Yos and Bedell Cristin II respectively.
The final match between Apsley Road Garage and Chiltern was highly competitive apart from the first string where another of the Island Games gold medallists, Ronnie Jubb, accounted for John Le Maistre 3-0.
All the other strings went to four or five games.
Chiltern’s Bob Biddulph played well with consistent length to take the string 15-13 in the fourth.
Chris McNabb put Apsley on the map with a very tight 3-1 win over Andy Taylor.
That left the third and fifth strings to settle matters – and both matches went to the wire, Chiltern winning both 3-2.
In the third string David Luce, an Island Games badminton player, used his racket skills more than his mobility to see off Les Ainscough 15-8 in the fifth, while Mike Landon had five tough games with Jeff Worthington before emerging a 15-7 in the fifth.
