Defending champions Pontefract back in control at top of Yorkshire Premier League
Pontefract 1 reasserted control at the top of squash’s Yorkshire Premier League with an emphatic victory at Hallamshire in week seven.
The defending champions slipped to their first defeat of the season the previous week against Doncaster, but normal service was resumed with a 20-1 triumph in Sheffield that extends their lead to 11 points over new second-placed team Dunnington, who have played a game more.
Ben Beachill made his first appearance of the season and crushed Hallamshire's Jack Cornell, before skipper Matt Godson recovered from dropping the first game to beat Nick Wall Snr, finishing off with a rare 'bagel'.
Frenchman Laouenan secured the win with a quick success against Hallamshire captain Adam Turner, leaving in-form world no.51 Sam Todd and Scottish international Rory Stewart to finish the job with equally brisk victories.
Doncaster were retrospectively docked six points from their victory over Pontefract 1 after it was confirmed that they fielded four full-time pros in their team – one more than rules permit.
By way of sanction, their victories at no.4 and no.5 in that match, recorded by David Turner and Joel Arscott, were given to Pontefract as 3-0 victories, reducing Doncaster's victory margin to 14-8.
That outcome was compounded by an 18-7 home defeat to Queens which now leaves the 2023/24 champions 24 points off the lead in third.
Dunnington replaced Doncaster in second after coming from two down to win a cracker 17-9 at Ferriby Hall.
It was Dunnington's Welsh no.1 Owain Taylor who completed the fightback with a four-game victory over Samuel Ince-Carvalhal. The result leaves Ferriby Hall second from bottom, having played a game more than bottom side Pontefract 2, who were not in action.
Cleethorpes leapfrogged Harrogate into fourth place thanks to their middle order, whose three victories secured a 17-7 home win over the Straysiders.