With the completion of Week 10, the FCPTL has reached its final quarter of play. With no division titles, promotions or demotions having been officially decided, the last 3 weeks of play should be very exciting and tension-filled as pretty much every team has a shot at promotion or demotion. Below is a recap of the play from matches last week and the Featured Match of the Week for this weekend’s play.
Division 1
Wilton Y 1.A continues to dominate Division 1 play. This past week, Wilton Y swept Woodway CC 1.A in impressive fashion, losing only 6 games total across the 4 matches. Wilton Y’s magic number for the division title now sits at 4, which theoretically they could meet with another sweep this week. The real race in Division 1 is at the bottom of the standings where it looks like six teams are currently fighting to avoid the trip to Division 2. Middlesex 1.A currently sits in last place with only 9 points and will most likely need a few sweeps to avoid relegation. After their loss to Wilton Y, Woodway occupies the uncomfortable second demotion spot with 15 points, trailing Darien CC by 2 points. Meanwhile, Lake Club 1.A made a huge jump last week with a 4-0 sweep over Patterson Club 1.A to move out of the demotion zone and now sits with 18 points along with Patterson and New Canaan CC 1.A. With these 6 teams scheduled to play each other over the next 3 weeks, the race to avoid demotion should come down to the wire.
Featured Match of the Week:
Woodway CC 1.A vs Patterson 1.A: Woodway CC now sits in the dreaded 2nd demotion spot. However, like Lake Club last week, Woodway has a chance to get out of the danger zone with their match against Patterson Club, who is only 3 points ahead of them. Woodway needs at least a win if they hope to make up ground on the teams ahead of them. Patterson will be looking to avoid its second straight sweep and instead, hope to put Woodway in the rear-view mirror.
Division 2
It’s still a tightly contested race at the top of Division 2. Six teams are within 4 points of each other for the division lead. Wilton Y 2.B and Stamford Yacht 2.A had gone into last weekend tied for the division lead. However, Wilton Y 2.B took a 3-1 win over Burning Tree CC 2.A while Stamford Yacht could only muster a 2-2 tie against Greenwich CC. Consequently, Wilton Y 2.B holds a one point lead over Stamford Yacht: 28 versus 27 points. Stamford Italian Center 2.A made a huge jump in the standings after sweeping last place New Canaan Field Club 2.B and sits in 3rd place, tied with Wilton 2.C with 26 points. Round Hill 2.A also gained ground with a 4-0 win over Rowayton 2.C and sits in 4th place, tied with New Canaan Town 2.A. At the other end of the standings, New Canaan Field Club lags the field with only 7 points and has the tall order of making up 6 points in the last 3 weeks to avoid relegation. Rowayton’s 0-4 loss to Round Hill was especially painful as it puts them in the 2nd demotion spot with 12 points, just behind Greenwich CC (13 points) and Burning Tree CC (14 points).
Featured Match of the Week:
Stamford Yacht Club 2.A vs Wilton Y 2.B: First place versus second. It doesn’t get better than this. A lot is at stake in this match. Not only the division title but also the second promotion spot. A win by either team would give them the advantage for both, while the loser could see themselves outside the 2nd promotion spot given how close the division race has been. Stamford Yacht appears to be stronger at the top of the lineup with Marc Powers, Mark McEnroe and Bhaksar Chowdhury, but Wilton Y 2.B should have the advantage in depth. If Stamford Yacht can get its horses out for the match, they should have a good chance at the win. If not, Wilton Y 2.B’s might be favored.
Division 3
Wee Burn CC 3.C took over the division lead with a 3-1 victory over Lake Club 3.B. However, it was hardly easy as Wee Burn’s 3 wins were all in the 3rd set. Wilton Riding Club 3.A had been tied with Wee Burn 3.C for the division lead; however, they fell to Darien CC 3.B 3-1 and now sit in 2nd place with 27 points, 2 behind Wee Burn 3.C. Fortunately, Wilton Riding Club still holds the coveted 2nd promotion spot, although only a scant 2 points ahead of Patterson Club 3.B and Darien CC 3.B. The race to avoid demotion is even tighter as 7 teams are within 3 points of each other at the bottom of the standings. Roxbury 3.B and Wee Burn 3.B occupy the 2 relegation spots with 14 points. However, they only trail Rowayton Paddle 3.D and Stamford Yacht 3.B by 2 points. At 17 points are New Canaan CC 3.B, Wilton Y 3.E and Rowayton 3.D.
Featured Match of the Week:
Wilton Riding Club 3.A vs Wee Burn 3.B: Wilton Riding Club is currently battling Wee Burn CC 3.C for first place and also trying to secure promotion to Division 2. Wee Burn CC 3.C is trying to avoid demotion to Division 4. Wee Burn CC 3.C could also help their brother team, Wee Burn CC 3.B, increase their divisional lead by beating Wilton Riding Club. A lot could be riding on this match, with an very interested related party watching closely.
Division 4
Aspetuck Valley CC 4.A and Darien Town 4.C kept ground with each other at the top of Division 4. Aspetuck defeated Milbrook 4.B 3-1, while Darien Town took out Middlesex by the same score resulting in both teams having 29 points. Remember if both teams are tied for the division lead at the end of the season, a coin flip could determine the winner. However, that may be a moot point as New Canaan Field Club 4.C is making a late charge. New Canaan FC swept Wilton Y 4.F 4-0 and now only trails the co-leaders by 1 point. At the other end of the spectrum, Wilton Y 4.G is in last place and after a 3-1 loss to Rowayton Paddle 4.E has a large deficit of 8 points to make up if they are to avoid demotion. The second demotion spot appears to be a three team race. Lake Club 4.C vaulted out of the danger zone with their 4-0 sweep against Greenwich CC 4.B. Greenwich CC now holds the 2nd relegation position with only 12 points, while Lake has a two point advantage plus the head-to-head tiebreaker with 14 points. Middlesex is only 3 points clear of Greenwich CC with 15 points.
Featured Match of the Week:
Darien Town 4.C vs New Canaan Field Club 4.C: New Canaan Field Club trails co-leaders Aspetuck Valley CC and Darien Town by only 1 point. New Canaan FC gets a chance to move into first place and a promotion to Division 3 with its match against Darien Town this week. Darien Town is looking for their first divisional title since joining the FCPTL, so expect some fireworks from this matchup.
Division 5
After a 4-0 victory versus 2nd place Rowayton 5.F, Weston Field Club 5.A has finally gained some separation from the rest of the Division 5 field. With 31 points, Weston FC has a comfortable 6 point lead over Rowayton and Stanwich Club 5.A. Stanwich capitalized on the Weston FC sweep and took a 3-1 win over Roxbury 5.C to move into a tie for the 2nd promotion spot with Rowayton. The bottom of the standings got tighter given the Roxbury loss and Milbrook’s 3-1 win over Darien CC. Milbrook is still in last place with 14 points, however, they have closed the gap on the teams above them. They trail Roxbury by 2 points and Stamford Yacht 5.C and Middlesex 5.D by 3 points. Milbrook will have a chance to close the gap some more when it faces Middlesex this week.
Featured Match of the Week:
Roxbury 5.C vs Wilton Riding Club 5.B: After last week’s 4-0 loss, Roxbury dropped into the relegation zone when Middlesex 5.D and Stamford Yacht both picked up 2 points in their match. This week, Roxbury faces off against Wilton Riding Club 5.B. Trailing Wilton Riding Club by only 2 points, Roxbury will look to turn the tables on their opponents this week and climb back into safety. Wilton Riding will be trying to at least a tie to keep them ahead of Roxbury.
Division 6
With a 4-0 win against New Canaan CC 6.D, Darien Town 6.D picked up their second sweep in a row and maintained their first place position. With 37 points, Darien Town is 5 points ahead of Silver Spring CC 6.A, who at least kept their division titles alive with a 4-0 sweep over Stamford Italian Center 6.C. Patterson Club 6.C followed suit with a 4-0 sweep versus Aspetuck Valley CC 6.B, which moved them into a 3rd place tie with Aspetuck at 28 points. Last place Burning Tree CC 6.B picked up 2 points against New Canaan Field Club 6.E but it may be a bit too little too late as they still remain 7 points from avoiding relegation. Wee Burn CC 6.E picked up a vital 3-1 victory over Lake Club 6.F, which, combined with Lake Club 6.E’s 4-0 loss to Middlesex 6.E, puts them in a tie with Lake Club 6.E for the 2nd demotion spot. Middlesex, who had previously been in the second demotion spot, is now 2 points clear of danger. Stay tuned as the race to avoid the drop to Division 7 is likely to look like musical chairs over the next 3 weeks.
Featured Matches of the Week:
Wee Burn CC 6.E vs Lake Club 6.E: These two teams are tied for the dreaded second demotion spot. They will face off this week to see if one team can bury the other deeper into the danger zone. In the worse case of a 2-2 split, the two teams will be battling to get the head-to-head tiebreaker of sets won and then games won.
Division 7
Belle Haven Club 7.A continued its undefeated streak with a dominant win over Silver Spring CC 7.B. Belle Haven has run its record to 35-0 and remains the only undefeated team in all of the FCPTL play. Innis Arden CC 7.A kept pace with Belle Haven with an equally dominant win over Woodway CC 7.D. Innis Arden now trails Belle Haven by only 2 points. Despite their 3-1 win over Shorehaven 7.A, New Canaan Town 7.C actually lost ground in the promotion standings to Belle Haven and Innis Arden and currently sits in third place with 28 points.
Featured Match of the Week:
Belle Haven Club 7.A vs New Canaan Town 7.C: Belle Haven faces its first tough test in their quest to complete a perfect season when it faces third place New Canaan Town. New Canaan looks like they will need a win if they are to have any hopes of moving up to Division 6 next year. However, that will be a tall order against the division leader who has shown little weakness this year.
