Pontefract 1 and Abbeydale are the only sides left with 100% records in the Yorkshire Premier League after both recorded very tight victories in round two on Wednesday night. 

Sheffield club Abbeydale inflicted a rare defeat on last season’s runaway champions Queens but it was a affair with the result going down to the wire. 

Queens were without Wales international Emyr Evans and British junior champion Finnlay Withington, so brought in Stephen Hearst and Bader Almaghrebi, who both won in their middle order. 

But Abbeydale’s Sam Watts beat Danny Bray at fifth string and Jordan Hardwick won a five-setter against England coach Josh Taylor, who was pushed up Queens’ order to no.2. 

Elliott Morris Devred faced retired pro James Earles in the top string decider. Earles won all 18 of his Yorkshire Premier League matches last season playing at either three or four, but the promotion to no.1 string to face a top-notch opponent saw him fall in four games. With that, Abbeydale took the honours 15-9. 

They sit in second place behind early leaders Pontefract 1 after world no.20 Patrick Rooney returned from the US Open in Philadelphia to cap their 16-6 victory over Hallamshire. 

This fixture was hastily relocated to Pontefract after a fire at Hallamshire rendered their courts out of action. George Wileman and Ben Hetherington enjoyed unexpected home advantage with lower-order wins for Ponte, but Ollie Turner and Adam Turner achieved parity for the visitors from Sheffield by recording four-game wins. 

Rooney, straight off the plane after his defeat to Egypt’s Marwan ElShorbagy at the US Open, showed no sign of jetlag in defeating three-time world champion Nick Matthew 3-0 in the top-string finale. 

On the adjacent courts at the West Yorkshire squash mecca, Pontefract 2 were also victorious in another close affair, beating York side Dunnington 16-8. 

The second and third strings went on first, with Dunnington newcomer Seif Heikal beating Ponte club champion Adam Taylor in four and Tom Bamford responding with a marathon five-set win over South African Luke McFarland, which finished 13/11 in the fifth! 

Ponte captain Matt Godson outclassed Ed Shannon but the match was level again once Ben Cross had come from a game down to beat Billy Hawes at fifth string. 

It all came down to the top-string tete-a-tete between world no.81 Abhay Singh, who was in the India team at the Commonwealth Games last summer, and Dunnington’s Michael Andrews. Singh won it in straight games and the five bonus points were Ponte’s. 

Doncaster sit joint third after getting their first win on the board against a much-weakened Chapel Allerton, who now sit bottom. 

Shaun Bradley and Asia Harris (fresh from victory at L'International des Mirabelles on the PSA World Tour) both cruised to early victories before Isaac Green got a 'W' for Chapel Allerton by beating world no.53 Millie Tomlinson. 

Doncaster’s top order brought it home though with Kiwi Joel Arscott and top string Simon Herbert, the world no.100 from Leicester, both victorious in quick time. 

Top-division newcomers Harrogate are just below Doncaster in fourth on points difference after a narrow 15-8 defeat at Woodfield. 

Woodfield’s lower order of Alec Tomlinson and Egyptian Adam El Shazkly got them off to a flyer, although Tomlinson had to fight back from two games down to overcome Thomas Simpson. 

Declan Christie pulled one back for Harrogate but highly promising youngster Ben Smith’s straight-games victory over Temwa Chileshe sealed the deal for the hosts. Temwa’s older brother Lwamba beat George Parker at top string but it proved only a consolation for the North Yorkshire visitors.