Queens of Halifax and top-tier newcomers Doncaster were the only clubs to hold 100% records after round two of the Yorkshire Premier League on Wednesday night. 

Queens recorded their second successive clean sweep by thrashing Woodfield 20-5 away from home. There was a shock defeat at top string for the home side’s Declan James, the world no.28, who crashed 11/9 in the decider fifth game against Welshman Emyr Evans. 

New Zealander Lwamba Chileshe did the business again for Queens at second string while England’s top junior Finnlay Withington battled back from 2/0 down to beat Luke Parker. James Earles and Danny Bray had got Queens off to a flyer with brisk wins earlier on in the evening. 

Doncaster also got a second victory of the campaign but theirs was a lot tighter. Visitors Dunnington scored straight-games lower-order victories through Ed Shannon and Matthew Stephenson, but the match turned Donny’s way as the night progressed. 

Nick Ratnarajah and Joel Arscott levelled things up at 2-2 with rapid wins, leaving Miles Jenkins and ex-England international Chris Simpson to scrap it out for the five winning bonus points. Jenkins, the 26-year-old from Solihull, took it in four to seal a 14-8 win for the South Yorkshire side. 

It was a typically lively night at Pontefract with both 1st and 2nd teams at home. The star turn was England’s great new hope Patrick Rooney, who is starting to bloody the noses of some of the big boys on the PSA World Tour. 

Merseysider Rooney, the world no.42, dispatched Hallamshire top string Nick Wall in three tight games having only just returned from America, but by then Pontefract’s victory was already assured. 

James Wilkinson and Carlton Oldham had won at fifth and fourth string respectively, before Ponte stalwart Taminder Gata-Aura sealed the team’s win with an epic five-setter against Ashley Davies, the Chesterfield lad who is now based in the US. 

Harry Falconer put a ‘W’ on the board for the visitors from Sheffield to lend a bit of respectability to the final 17-6 scoreline. The win puts Pontefract 1 third in the nascent table. 

No such riches on the adjacent courts for Pontefract 2, whose depleted squad (no Sam Todd, Abbay Singh or world no.17 Hollie Naughton) were defeated 17-6 by defending champions Abbeydale. 

Ben Beachill, son of former world no.1 Lee, got the hosts off to a great start by making short work of Sam Watts, but that was as good as it got for Ponte 2. 

Hallamshire’s Nick Wall Snr and Phil Scully were victorious for the visitors from Sheffield and Adam Turner ground down Ponte’s Matt Godson in five. At top string, Welsh international Elliott Morris-Devred resisted a plucky effort from Adam Taylor who gritted his teeth after losing the first game 11/1 but couldn’t avoid a straight-games loss. 

Wednesday’s other tie saw Hull & East Riding pick up a first victory of the new campaign as they won a see-saw encounter with Chapel Allerton. 

Fiona Moverley, the former world no.21, and Yusef Forster recorded breezy wins to get Hull off and running, but the visitors from north Leeds battled back with Richard Hinds squeezing out a five-setter against Glyn Saunders and Owan Taylor whipping Mike Reid. 

That left Ben Smith, the 19-year-old from Grimsby, and the more experienced Conor Sheen to do battle for the win and it was the hosts’ Smith who won in straight-games which included two nail-biting tie-breaks.