Division One champions Newton Abbot Batmen continued their winning run at the top of the table, even though the league's number one player and Batmen regular, Dennis Gibbs, succumbed to Halwell's Dave Wadling to lose his 100 per cent record, writes Alan Maynard.

The match, on a cold night at Halwell, started well for the visitors, even though Halwell's Mick Atkinson pushed Gibbs all the way, counter-hitting at every opportunity and taking the first two sets, before Gibbs edged a deuce third set and the final two to squeak to a narrow victory.

Wadling was able to soak up Tony Halse's aggressive game to win in four and so maintain his own unbeaten record.

It was the encounter with Mike Dummett and his clever pimple-smooth switching game that toppled Wadling's rhythm together with his unbeaten record to put Batmen into a 4-2 lead.

Halse was able to overcome Halwell's Rod Sugden 12-10 in the fifth for 5-2 before Wadling and Gibbs took to the table.

Gibbs took the first, but could not get through Wadling's counter-hitting defence. Gibbs tried to push around a few points but found Wadling's opening spin shot too hot to handle and another 100 per cent record was gone.

Atkinson found a way through the anomalies of Dummett's game by hitting straight through and winning in three to leave the score at 5-4 to Batmen with just the doubles left.

After a tight first set Gibbs and Dummett gelled well to win in straight sets as Batmen won 6-4 and take a small advantage over their rivals.

'As usual, it was a high quality close game with many great points and twists and turns which we were glad to eventually win,' said jubilant captain Gibbs.

Halwell were able to retrieve one point from the loss by beating Taverners 9-1, a score that went one better than Batmen's result against the same team from Bishopsteignton.

A Taverners team effort from Colin Harrop, Geoff Read and Gerald Norton who all took a point from extremely close matches, helped keep them in fourth spot and helped remind the top teams that every point will count this season.

The shock of the season so far was Batmen's 10-0 whitewash over second placed Brixham Gulls, who recruited youngster Aaron Millman from the club's third division outfit Brixham Swallows.

Only Gulls' Mark Smith was able to claim a set in the match as Batmen extended their lead to a substantial 26 points, with just Halwell, who have games in hand, looking likely to be the only other serious contenders for the title.

David White was in great form on his return for Gulls in their derby match against Brixham Trawlers taking a brace and then coming from two sets down to overcome Trawlers' Alan Maynard to win a maximum 12-10 in the final set. Brixham Trawlers did well at 6-1 down to win the last three sets and go down by a respectable 6-4 scoreline.

Vital points were gained by Marldon as they launced their survival campaign against Newton Abbot Academicals.

It was Marldon's Helen Parton who beat Doug Morgan, Alan Tyrrell and Nigel Hunt to take a maximum and leave the match at 4-4 with two to play. However, John Oatley was unable to capitalise on the situation, going down to Morgan deuce in the third and fourth, while Tyrrell and Hunt beat Parton and Dave Atkin in three to win the encounter 6-4.

Brixham Trawlers held out against Academicals in a marathon match at Newton Abbot in which Chris Baron was the unlikely hero for Trawlers.

Baron, struggling this season to find form, hit through the defensive play of Alan Tyrrell, Doug Morgan and Jim McIvor to come away with a fine maximum, his first since February 2009. Tyrrell and McIvor were able to win their remaining matches and the doubles, to finish the match all square and stay just two points behind Trawlers with two games in hand.

At the top of Division Two, Dawlish Aces were able to take advantage from some venue availability confusion at Bishopsteignton to claim a 10-0 victory against strugglers Hasbeens, without a ball being hit, to go top of the table. This was capitalised on in the Dawlish derby against Diamonds, in which only Diamonds' Mike Coxhead was able to claim a point – in the match against Steve Cooper – as Diamonds continue to wallow at the wrong end of the table. The wins sent Dawlish Aces seven points clear at the top.

Challengers Newton Abbot Battlers kept in touch with two 8-2 away wins, against Tykes and Hasbeens.

Ed Thompson was unbeaten in both encounters and was supported well by Dave Friend, who lost only to Tykes' Pat Darch over the two matches.

The Hasbeens' encounter saw Hugh Doxat-Pratt returning to the league from the dissolved Barnabas Sports Trust. He was able to beat Hasbeens' Dave Alexander in straight sets to help his new team to victory.

Although Tykes suffered a setback, losing to Battlers, they were able to make up points against the suffering Hasbeens.

Kevin Ayling, Steve Metcalfe and Chris Garner won all games against Mike Wickens, Richard Fitzgerald and Gerry Bennett, along with the doubles, to crush Hasbeens 10-0 and leave the Denbury team still in contention.

In Division Three, Dawlish Drifters go nine points clear over nearest rivals 21 Down as they claimed victories over struggling stablemates Dawlish Dinosaurs, who were only able to field two players, and Newton Abbot Livewires, who pushed all the way, but were unable to avoid a 7-3 defeat.

Tony Munson, for Drifters, was unbeaten in both matches, only dropping two sets against Livewires Ashleigh Stephens and Dinosaurs' Richard Rains as he marched on to maximums and third spot in the Division Three averages.

21 Down had a fruitful trip to Brixham, beating Brixham Rebels 7-3 in which both Daniel Brewer and Connor Adams won all their games against Marilyn Parton, Kevin Salt and Steve Munns. Parton took Brewer all the way, losing 11-5 in the fifth as both Brewer and Adams went on to add to their tally in straight sets in the doubles.

Brixham Swifts were able to hold back Newton Abbot Livewires thanks to Richard Johns, who smashed Andrew Tyrrell's 100 per cent unbeaten record.

The Johns' father and daughter doubles partnership of Richard and Jazmin, clinched another vital point against Tyrrell and Cheryl Stephens to stunt Livewires victory to 6-4. Swifts' Jazmin Johns was unlucky not to cause an upset by just missing out in two of her matches, 11-6 and 14-12, in the fifth against Andrew Tyrrell and Ashleigh Stephens respectively.

It was the same story for Johns in the Swifts' derby match against Rebels, as she succumbed to Steve Munns 11-5 in the last to come away empty handed in a match in which Chris Meah for Swifts claimed a maximum, leaving the result all square and still anybody's title in this tight division.

Division One: Halwell 9 (Mick Atkinson 3, Rod Sugden 2, Dave Wadling 3) Taverners 1 (Colin Harrop 1, Nick Williamson 0, Geoff Read 0); Halwell 4 (Mick Atkinson 2, Rod Sugden 0, Dave Wadling 2) Newton Abbot Batmen 6 (Dennis Gibbs 2, Mike Dummett 2, Tony Halse 1); Marldon 6 (Helen Parton 3, Dave Atkin 2, John Oatley 0) Taverners 4 (Colin Harrop 2, Nick Williamson 1, Geoff Read 1); Newton Abbot Batmen 10 (Dennis Gibbs 3, Mike Dummett 3, Tony Halse 3) Brixham Gulls 0 (Andrew Millman 0, Brian Pengelly 0, Mark Smith 0); Newton Abbot Academicals 5 (Alan Tyrrell 2, Doug Morgan 0, Jim McIvor 2) Brixham Trawlers 5 (Terry Stead 1, Chris Baron 3, Alan Maynard 1); Brixham Gulls 6 (Michael Lu 2, David White 3, Mick Mercer 1) Brixham Trawlers 4 (Terry Stead 1, Alan Maynard 2, Ian May 0); Newton Abbot Batmen 8 (Dennis Gibbs 3, Tony Halse 3, Sam Hurst 1) Taverners 2 (Geoff Read 1, Nick Williamson 0, Gerald Norton 1); Newton Abbot Academicals 6 (Doug Morgan 1, Nigel Hunt 2, Alan Tyrrell 2) Marldon 4 (Helen Parton 3, Dave Atkin 1, John Oatley 0).

Division Two: Tykes 2 (Pat Darch 1, Kevin Ayling 1, Chris Garner 0) Newton Abbot Battlers 8 (Dave Friend 2, Ed Thompson 3, Keith Hawkins 2); Hasbeens 0 Dawlish Aces 10 (match conceded); Hasbeens 2 (Dave Alexander 0, Mike Wickens 1, Richard Fitzgerald 1) Newton Abbot Battlers 8 (Dave Friend 3, Ed Thompson 3, Hugh Doxat-Pratt 1); Dawlish Diamonds 1 (Frank Frain 0, Mike Coxhead 1, Don Beesley 0) Dawlish Aces 9 (Steve Cooper 2, Ed Crawford 3, Dave Davies 3); Tykes 10 (Kevin Ayling 3, Steve Metcalfe 3, Chris Garner 3) Hasbeens 0 (Mike Wickens 0, Richard Fitzgerald 0, Gerry Bennett 0).

Division Three: Dawlish Dinosaurs 1 (Richard Rains 1, Saidi Alikwani 0) Dawlish Drifters 9 (Tony Munson 3, Nathan Cram 2, Matt Reed 3); Brixham Rebels 3 (Marilyn Parton 1, Kevin Salt 1, Steve Munns 1) 21 Down 7 (Austin Booth 0, Daniel Brewer 3, Connor Adams 3); Newton Abbot Livewires 6 (Cheryl Stephens 2, Andrew Tyrrell 2, Ashleigh Stephens 2) Brixham Swifts 4 (Jazmin Johns 0, Richard Johns 3, Joshua Millman 0); Dawlish Drifters 7 (Tony Munson 3, Matt Reed 1, Richard Rains 2) Newton Abbot Livewires 3 (Robert Stephens 1, Ashleigh Stephens 0, Cheryl Stephens 2); Brixham Swifts 5 (Chris Meah 3, Peter White 2, Jazmin Johns 0) Brixham Rebels 5 (Kevin Salt 2, Steve Munns 1, Janette Atkinson 1).

Challenge Cup – Round One – Brixham Pirates 5 Brixham Swifts 2; Brixham Gulls 5 Halwell 1; Newton Abbot Livewires 1 Dawlish Aces 5; Newton Abbot Battlers 5 21 Down 1. Round Two – Dawlish Diamonds 5 Marldon 3; Brixham Trawlers 3 Taverners 5.

Round Two fixtures (to be played by December 31): Brixham Pirates v Brixham Rebels, Tykes v Brixham Gulls, 21 Up v Newton Abbot Academicals, Full of Beans v Dawlish Drifters, Brixham Swallows v Dawlish Aces, Newton Abbot Battlers v Hasbeens.