Open doubles top seeds' Dolder and Wearden, eased into the final, although dropping the second game to Clare Peers and Ian McElwee - who had seen off Thabet and Ford in the previous round - in the semi's, the holders then winning the next two, 8 and 8.   

Unbeaten in division one doubles combat this season, Peter Lee and Keith Bird, could have expected a stiffer challenge from their CC mates John Lau and Mikael Bellec, but disposed of them in straight games in the quarters'.  Then came the tricky Watson and Beech team and in the process, let slip a 2-0 lead, before pulling themselves together to win 11-9 in the fifth. The holders while not at their best, did enough to defeat Peter Lee, a winner with Paul Tsang in 1976, and his CC partner Keith Bird, after a tight 11-9 opening game, the Ford pair winning the next two 8 & 7, to become the first couple to retain the title since 1999, when Paul Hutchings and John Rankin managed it.      

 With three times veteran champion Peter Lee, the only former winner in the draw, Chris Ford and Wavertree Labour's Gary Watson, looked odds on to reach the final . The Labour man, with a slightly tougher draw, accounted for George Lennon before lining up against Peter Lee, won the title in 1995, 96 & 98. Gary dashed any hopes Lee harboured of reviving past glories and after winning that one, the Labour man dismissed Ken Connor to reach his first Closed final. The other half of the draw produced wins for Chris over Rob Davies, Michael Tierney and then doubles partner, Thabet in the semi's.  Chris started slowly again in his opening game against Gary, who edged it 12-10, Chris drawing level in the next 11-8.  The next game produced a mixture of tremendous shots one minute and was error strewn the next. Watson probably regrets not capitalising on a couple of game points when he had Ford stretched but the Cadwa man squeezed home 16-14. Again, in the fourth, the ascendancy swung one way then the other, the Labour man at times unable to keep Ford's heavy top spin drives on the table. He did though hang in and battled his way two a couple of game points, before a relieved and frustrated Ford, captured the game 15-13, the set and the title for the first time.    

 

Top seed in the junior singles was Mark Roscaleer who plays for Harold House in division one, where he has chalked up a number of impressive victories. In the semi-final, he ousted Dave Graham protegee Jamie Hewitt, now coached by Ian McElwee, who, although now promoted to the Bath Street 1st team, has yet to match the experience of the Halton British League player. 'Dark horse' Mark Ambrose from Ormskirk, saw off Liverpool CC newcomer Michael Kwan in the other semi', which produced a rare first versus third division final.  In a rip roaring encounter, Roscaleer took a 2-1 lead and held match points on two occasions in the fourth, but couldn't clinch the vital points before Ambrose, who earlier had won the third division singles title, levelled matters, to the delight of the crowd, who were hoping for more.  The lead changed hands a number of times and it developed into an exciting nip and tuck affair. Hot favourite Roscaleer appeared to tighten up towards the end and at 10-10, Ambrose seemed the calmer of the two. The top seed, looked  totally bemused when Ambrose sensationally took the points and the title at 12-10, the first ever junior from his club Maghull to do so.