Top team toppled

MCCRAE rocketed to second on the ladder in Swan Hill tennis pennant, with a huge victory over top side McCallum.

Showing the benefit of a regular team, McCallum only dropped one men’s set along the way. 

Danny Gardner, Richard Wardle, and Paul Bethune were all three set winners in a sterling performance. 

McCallum fielded only one male substitute — youngster Will Gardner — and he was part of a winning combination when he partnered Kieran Mays to a handy 8-5 victory. 

McCallum missed the steadying influence of Craig Bath at number two, with all the other players having to step up in the ranking.

The women’s sets went heavily to McCrae. 

Substitute Marie Kingwill did best for McCallum, which badly missed Vicki Nalder, Marie Giddings and Maddi Moser.

The mixed sets were reasonably close, with two sets apiece. 

Kieran Mays and Jess Worner and Graeme McFarlane and Kingwill were successful for McCallum in a late fight-back, while Bethune and Elise Morrison and Graham Gardner and Boyd finished off a very successful day for McCrae.

In the closest result for the day, Beveridge came back hard after a big loss last week, to make nonsense of its form with an 18 game win over Curlewis. 

After a four match winning streak, Gray fell off the perch against a resurgent Splatt side, going down by 33 games, while Stradbroke ripped through a very depleted Campbell side to score a big percentage boosting win.

McCallum clung to top spot, but is now well within reach of the chasing pack. 

McCrae jumped into second place, with Stradbroke also going past Gray into third spot. 

Gray stayed in the top four, with a gap opening up to fifth. 

Beveridge and Curlewis are neck and neck in the battle for fifth, with Splatt lifting itself to a narrow seventh. 

Campbell is languishing in eighth place, and waiting for its regular players to return.