Honiton Petanque Club entertained both North Devon clubs in a double-header of action, and, for the first time, achieved back-to-back Devon League wins, writes Chris Bigmore.

The first match, against reigning champions Torridge-based U3A, , saw Honiton secure a comfortable 4-1 success. The victory was made all the more impressive given that Honiton fielded two players making their debut owing to the absence of a couple of regular players!

The opening triple saw Jenny Lavender, Chris Bigmore and Charlie O’Reilly win 13-6 and that was followed by a 13-10 victory for Cecily Young, Ben Bentley and Brian Diffey.

In the doubles, Bentley and O’Reilly easily won their game 13-1 to seal overall victory with the hosts holding a 3-0 match lead.

A 13-6 defeat for Diffey and Young was followed by a 13-10 win, a terrific score given they had trailed 12-8, for Bigmore and Lavender.

The same team played in the second match against Pig On The Hill (Westward Ho) though this was a much tighter affair, with Honiton finishing 3-2 winners.

In the triples there was a decisive 13-0 defeat for Young, Bentley and Diffey, but there was an immediate response from the home side with Lavender, Bigmore and O’Reilly bagging an emphatic 13-1 win.

The doubles matches began with a 13-11 win for Bentely and O’Reilly before the overall win was sealed with a 13-4 victory for Young and Diffey 13-4.

Lavender and Bigmore went down 13-7 in the final doubles, but the match win was already assured.

Honiton team captain , Chris Bigmore, said: “These were two tremendous performances by the team, particularly after having to draft in two late replacements for their first matches, and we are more than matching the targets we set for the season.”

The next two matches for Honiton see the reverse of these fixtures - away in North Devon.