The Royal Sun (Begbroke), a unit which has perhaps under-achieved over the past few seasons, consolidated their impressive start to the summer campaign in notching up a second straight win last Thursday evening.

Having despatched the Gardener’s Arms the previous week, their short visit to Eynsham yielded a solid-looking 68-54 victory over the home side, the White Hart. Tougher tasks lie ahead, but at the moment the Begbroke outfit sit proudly at the top of Section One.

Entering the fray last week for their opening salvo of the season was my lot, the North Oxford Conservative Club (in Summertown). Although minus the globetrotting Coles (America, Russia, South Africa and Headington in the last two weeks!), the trip to Bletchingdon nevertheless proved fruitful as we edged out our hosts, the Black’s Head, 64-61. This was a second successive narrow setback for the Black’s Head, and they face daunting challenges in their next two outings against Premier Section line-ups.

Meanwhile over in Botley, two Section One teams met who had each been battered by higher league opposition the week before. The Green Road Club appeared to have recovered from adversity slightly the better as they ran out 65-57 winners over home side, the Seacourt Bridge. With the Plough (Wolvercote) having a bye, the opportunity was presented to their fellow Premier Section challengers, the Ploughman’s Bunch! (also of Wolvercote, and who, curiously, have added an exclamation mark to their new name during this past week) and the Chester Arms East Oxford – in possibly their last match representing this pub before its imminent closure to put daylight between themselves and their absent friend. They both duly obliged; the ‘Bunch’ (‘Bunch!’ – sorry) demolishing the Black Swan (East Oxford), 82-55, while the Chester breezed past the Gardener’s Arms (North Parade), 78-51.

The most mouth-watering fixture this week looks to be the clash at the Black Swan where the home side entertain the Royal Sun, the visitors looking to extend their winning sequence to three and thereby consolidate their early season grip on the Section One title.