With the season in full swing and the June weather behaving itself, it was the turn of the white attired Longthorpe Mixed C to visit the Needingworth stronghold.  Returning to the mixed B fold for their first outing together were Ben C and Lizzie.  Tasked as the No 1’s, they faced the established pairing of Julian and Suzie, whilst the more senior Nikki and just plain old Jim took on Paul and Miranda.

With the Longthorpe pair struggling to come to grips with the slower hard courts, the Needingworth 2’s grabbed the initiative and sprinted to a 1st set win almost as quickly as our 1st pair lost their 1st set.  Unfortunately, both the Needingworth teams 2nd sets failed to go to plan and the whole momentum shifted Longthorpe’s way, leaving Nikki and Jim wondering how it’s possible to lose a 2nd set when you bageled the 1st.

Being 3-1 down at the turnaround meant it was a long way back to produce any sort of much needed result, but hey-ho, this is Needingworth, and we never give up.  Fortunately. after a long absence from competitive tennis, Ben and Lizzie got their act together and started timing the ball sweetly and producing the type of aggressive tennis they are known for.  Hard earned 7-5 first set win to the Needingworth pair. 

It was a hard match on the other court with our 2nd pair taking on the very pair that thumped our own 1st pair.  With the set swinging one way and then the other, it was all finely balanced when tragedy struck at 5-5 with Longthorpe breaking and gaining the advantage.  Slightly deflated and feeling like the sword of Damocles was hanging over our heads, inspiration manifested itself when, just like the shopkeeper in Mr Benn, John F popped up and told us that Lizzie and Ben had taken their 1st set.  With renewed faith, the tie-break was won.  More good news arrived when Ben gave the thumbs up for their 2nd set.  With the draw secured and the last set of the match taking on the same topsy-turviness of the first, it was always going to be a battle of the ladies to see which one would hold their nerve the longest.  The winner – Nikki.

This was a superb evenly balanced match against a very honest and fun loving Longthorpe team and a great win for Needingworth, who turned a 3-1 deficit to a 5-3 win.