Shepparton North has comprehensively dismantled Murchison in round four of the competition and, to date, no-one has come close to upending North’s back-to-back title plans.
In what appears to be the regular rhythm of a Shepparton North match, the club dropped an early rubber, providing last-placed Murchison with an early glimmer of hope with a 6-5 set win.
But Shepparton North never panicked or strayed from its routine and rebounded immediately with a 1-6 win as a fresh Mark Jackson and Elliot Pritchard combination worked wonders.
Five more rubbers would be determined 1-6 or 0-6 in Shepparton North’s favour, with the outlier a 5-6 loss for Murchison in the third set, which would’ve handed the advantage back in the newcomer club’s favour and, potentially, been a momentum swinger for an unlikely upset.
Ultimately, it was a demolition job for Shepparton North and one the competition is becoming used to seeing, winning 8-53 to 1-18.
Meanwhile, Lemnos has firmed its place in the top two of the table with a 7-2 victory over McEwen Reserve Red.
It was a battle between two sides squared at 1-1, with the winner set to establish a buffer above the rest of the competition, save for Shepparton North, and it was Lemnos that got the result in comfortable fashion.
Scott McHugh and Peter Jeffrey’s second set win of 6-1 set the tone against McEwen Reserve Red to establish a 2-0 buffer, before winning 7-47 to 2-27 overall.
The loss for Red drops the team below club rival McEwen Reserve Gold, which had the bye in round four.
The pair of teams separated by percentage will do battle against one another for a second win of the summer in round five, while a top-of-the-table clash between Shepparton North and Lemnos presents a mouth-watering Friday evening of tennis.
Murchison will rest and reset with a round five bye, with hopes to get a win on the board when it returns in round six.
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