Pemberton & Wiseman Win The Under 21s

Pemberton & Wiseman Win The Under 21s

24/01/23: Jack Pemberton & Gwydion Wiseman won the men's U21 tournament in association with Advanta Wealth at Eton on Sunday.

A healthy entry of 18 pairs took to the start line on a freezing cold day at Eton, with a healthy contingent of Shrewsbury pairs, plus current school players from Mill Hill, Harrow and St.Olave's as well as students from Oxford, Cambridge and players who learned their Fives at Harrow, St.Olave's, Westway, Marlborough, Highgate, QEB, Alleyn's and Berkhamsted. The competition organiser was notable by his absence at the start of the competition, still stationary on the M40, but thankfully the wonders of modern technology, some balls courtesy of Eton and the presence of Seb Cooley as temporary unflappable stand in meant that things got up and running more or less on time.

The pairs were divided into four groups, with the group winners heading straight into the quarter-finals and the seconds and third playing off in round two for the right to join them, the round two losers joining group fourths and fifths in the plate. The two ante-post favourites - new pairing Jack Pemberton & Gwydion Wiseman and Olavians Genesis Nsenga & Prajeeth Sathiyamoorthy (looking for a record-extending fourth win in the competition) - cruised through the group phase and were joined by another Olavian pair in Aaditya Deshmukh & Tommy Farmer and Harrow schoolboys Gus Stanhope & Casper Stone. After an early defeat, scratch pairing Fred Prickett & Joel Robb looked to be finding some form, Millhillian school pair Charlie Graville & Edgar Gibson did well to come second in a tough group and ex-QEB players Avinash Kumararuban & Abilash Sivathasan were unlucky to miss out on a play off spot, losing three tight matches. The other key match in the group stages was between Cambridge's Jamie Levinson & Freddie Kottler and Shrewsbury's Jack Home & Guy Bradshaw, a 15-14 win for the Cambridge pair all important in giving them a more winnable play-off game.

The pairs finishing second all duly won their play-off rounds, Home & Bradshaw unlucky to come up against Prickett & Robb, Gibson & Graville winning the Mill Hill derby against Billy Briggs & Sam Barker, Levinson & Kottler continuing their run with a win over the Salopian Eds, Clark & Prideaux, while the other Cambridge pair of Tom Xu & Lewis Drummond lost against Harry Webster & James Crews, ensuring some Salopian representation in the quarter-finals.

Webster & Crews played well to score 7 points against Sathiyamoorthy & Nsenga in the last eight, while Pemberton and Mill Hill coach Gwydion Wiseman showed little mercy to Mill Hill pair Graville & Gibson, cruising past them for the loss of just 2 points. Levinson & Kottler's excellent run came to an end at the hands of Stanhope & Stone while the final quarter-final produced one of the matches of the day as the Harrovian/Cholmeleian pairing of Prickett & Robb won a 15-14 thriller against the unlucky Deshmukh & Farmer. Joel & Fred had really hit their stride by this stage and offered a serious threat to Prajeeth's chances of retaining his title. The first game of their semi-final was a roller-coaster ride that just went the way of the Olavians, 13-12. This was enough to give Prajeeth & Genesis the momentum in the second game, which they won 12-6 to clinch their place in the final, where they would take on Jack & Gwydion, ominously comfortable winners in the other semi-final against Gus & Casper.

A select group of spectators braved the sub zero temperatures to watch the final and were rewarded with a fantastic match that was played at an extremely high level. The first blows were landed by Prajeeth & Genesis, perhaps benefitting from a much tougher game in the semis, and they quickly established a 5 point lead. Gradually, though, Jack began to find his volleying range and with Gwydion finding some his set piece rhythm and a real threat from the back court, they fought back, levelling and then reaching 11 first. Prajeeth & Genesis responded well, though, denying Jack & Gwydion a winning opportunity before levelling the game at 11-11. These were probably the key moments of the match and it was Jack & Gwydion who once again seized the initiative, retaking the lead and converting it this time into a 14-11 win. All four players were showing the full range of their talents: Prajeeth & Gwydion showing the benefits of all of the tournament experience they have acquired over the years, Jack showing just why he has become a regular at the top end of the Berkhamsted Division 1 team this season and Genesis - the only one of the four players still at school - more than holding his own, especially in the back court. Prajeeth & Genesis started well again in the second game but this time when Jack & Gwydion hit back they couldn't find the answers and Jack & Gwydion moved away smoothly to a 12-7 victory to claim their first title at this level, due reward for a terrific performance against excellent opposition.

As always, the plate produced some excellent matches and it was the QEB pair of Avinash & Abilash who came through strongly, turning round their morning fortunes and finishing with a fine 15-10 win over Briggs & Barker, who had had the better of them in their morning group stage match. There was also an excellent - not to mention feisty - all-Salopian Plate B final with the younger pair of Louis Hursthouse & Harry Mitchell coming out on top.

The most disappointing aspect of the day was the absence of a women's competition - a lack of entries making it simply not viable on this occasion. An attempt will made later in the season to try and get it played - hopefully there will be a better response next time.

Thanks to Eton for hosting the tournament, to Advanta Wealth for their sponsorship, to Seb Cooley for holding the fort impeccably and to Ryan Perrie for the late afternoon coffee when the temperature plummeted even further.

Round Two

H.Webster & J.Crews beat T.Xu & L.Drummond 12-7

F.Prickett & J.Robb beat J.Home & G.Bradshaw 12-2

J.Levinson & F.Kottler beat E.Clark & E.Prideaux 12-7

C.Graville & E.Gibson beat B.Briggs & S.Barker 12-0

Quarter-Finals

P.Sathiyamoorthy & G.Nsenga beat H.Webster & J.Crews 15-7

F.Prickett & J.Robb beat A.Deshmukh & T.Farmer 15-14

G.Stanhope & C.Stone beat J.Levinson & F.Kottler 15-5

J.Pemberton & G.Wiseman beat C.Graville & E.Gibson 15-2

Semi-Finals

P.Sathiyamoorthy & G.Nsenga beat F.Prickett & J.Robb 2-0 (13-12, 12-6)