Moreton Morrell v Manchester

Manchester sent a six strong team to Moreton for a series of evenly matched singles rubbers. First on court were were Martin Harris for the hosts and Andrew Luce for the visitors. Martin got off to a good start taking the first set 6-4 before Andrew responded with a 2-6 second set. With the match going into the third set Frost's Law came to mind. In a recent match against the Hamsters Robert Frost had postulated that in such cases the player that wins the second set goes on to win the third. in this test of the theory Martin and Andrew traded games until 5-5 with Martin taking the deciding game and the rubber. A crack in the Frost theory and 1-0 to Moreton.

The second rubber saw John Miller take on George Johnson. George had struggled on this court for Manchester in the Interclub Championship earlier in the season but was on strong form taking the first set 1-6 before Miller found some resolve and fought hard in second set with both players playing some excellent tennis. At 5-5 it was Johnson that found the necessary points to take the rubber and level the match 1-1.

Last up before lunch were Andrew Hamilton and Bob Howe. A close fought first set went to Andrew and Moreton Morrell 6-5. The second set saw a few too many unforced errors from the visitor and Andrew was able to secure the rubber with a 6-3 win. 2-1 to Moreton in the match.

Lunch: Chicken and ham pie, roast baby potatoes, roast root vegetables, cavolo nero and gravy. Followed by a chocolate pudding desert served with caramel sauce and custard. 

The lunch break also saw Keith Beechener and Paul Johnson choose to take to the court early having set their plates aside to be consumed later. They were watched by George Johnson who had left the lunch table to support his father who took the first set 2-6 before Keith responded with a 6-2 set of his own. The third set would provide a second opportunity to test the wobbling Frost’s Law Theory. The theory that says having won the second set the third would inevitably also fall to Keith. Paul won 4-6 leaving the match at 2-2.

Next up Tony Branfield took on Ross Macleod. This was Ross’s first visit to Moreton and so he was unfamiliar with the fast floor and the catering. Unlike Tony he did not forgo lunch, setting aside a plate for later but instead sat down with the main group. Despite the additional ballast the match started evenly with both players trading games to 4-4. Tony was able to take the crucial points in the last two games of the set to make it 6-4. He continued this form in the second set winning the vital 40 alls and taking the set 6-1, a scoreline which flatters more than it describes the contest. The win put Moreton up 3-2 with one rubber to go.

Grant Arthur was given the task of carrying the hosts over the line while Richard Dyson had the job of defending the visitor's honour. Grant took a quick first set 6-2 before Richard became more accustomed to the unfamiliar court and made the second set much more competitive but at 5-5 40 all it was Grant that found the winning point to take the rubber 2-0 and give Moreton the match 4-2.

Thanks to the players for some entertaining matches and to our visitors for making it an enjoyable day. Thanks also to Clare for a winning lunch and congratulations to the Johnson family, unbeaten on the day.

 

Frost’s Law Theory vague idea: thoroughly debunked. As if the evidence of this match was not enough Mr frost himself had played George Johnson the day before at Leamington. Robert took the first set 6-5, George responded with a 5-6 of his own then the decider went to Robert 6-4. I wonder if the opposite is actually true.