Oh dear. Today at 7pm, our Hybrid badminton team played the visiting Sutton Adults, and we got roundly thrashed in a 9-0 whitewash. Our team consisted of: Sarah (captain), Jane, Ron, Paul, Gerry and myself. Each hybrid team consists of two women and four men. Each match we will play this season will consist of 9 games. Each game can consist of up to 3 rubbers. It all sounds a lot less confusing when it's actually put into practice.
The visiting team were impressive in their efficacy, ruthlessness and general sense of purpose. We knew that it was going to be a tough match - we just didn't know how tough it would be. I had been forewarned by the St Andrews Mens 2 team captain about one of their players - a 'chubby bloke with a bad haircut who'll smash it at you so forcefully you might end up with a new face' - but seeing him in action was something else.
All in all, this was a forgettable night for the St Andrews Hybrid team. None of our nine pairings could even force Sutton Adults into a third deciding rubber. The weakest component of their overall game was, by some margin, their women's singles - but even then they managed to beat our women. It didn't help matters at all that our women, Sarah and Jane, served underhand, as they regularly do; it was all too easy for the Sutton Adults women to send a first return to the back of the court, then simply tap the second return down with a careful drop to win the bulk of the points.
Even the pairing I would have considered our strongest - Ron and Paul - could not force their opponents to a third rubber. Then I knew we were definitely in for a decimation. The difference between the club's philosophies was vast. Sutton Adults looked like a well-oiled machine, whose players had been practicing and playing together for years. By contrast, we looked like a bunch of amateurs who were 'enjoying' the occasion. I suspect that this is one outcome, desirable or not, of what Sarah set out to achieve with the Hybrid team: in our training sessions, she has made no secret of the fact that she wants us to enjoy the badminton, rather than take it with the utmost seriousness.
The chasm between the teams was painful to see. At one point, Jane lost her temper when one of the Sutton Adults women playing against her was lucky to have a shot tipped over the net. Jane scooped up the shuttle with her racket and half-heartedly hit the shuttle back to the opposing woman, but she mishit the shuttle, which spun crazily along the court ground instead. It took her a further two tries to get the shuttle anywhere near the woman! It pains me to say it, but it was cringeworthy to see.
Fortunately, there is nothing in the rules to say we cannot field players from our best teams, should the circumstances come to it later on in the season. I suspect that this is what Sutton Adults have done. Their men were certainly strong enough to compete in any district Mens 2 team. As for myself, I did not fare too badly. When I played with Paul, (known as tall Paul, as he's a little over six foot) we lost our first rubber 21-16, and the second rubber 21-12.
I also could be called up to play some matches for the St Andrews Mens 2 team, and relish the opportunity to put the record straight. I know none of the league matches will ever be easy or straightforward, but at least on Mens 2 they all serve in the customary low shorthand way, so perhaps we will have a better chance.
The next Hybrid match is on November 10th and will be away to Wimbledon, but luckily I will be working that evening as I will be either rehearsing or recording demos with my band in the morning at Kingston Uni. Morale in the Hybrid team has imploded after this decimation in just our first match; and even Gerry, usually one of our most enthusiastic players, has said he hopes he isn't selected for the next match. Our captain Sarah will have a huge job on her hands controlling the spirit of the team over the course of the season.
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