Tonight's tie of the night is the Hustlers trip to the Tower. Stevie Kelly takes his team into one of the trickiest venues in the EKPL full of confidence from last week after a 12-2 win over the Cuesters saw the Hustlers close the gap on the league leaders to eight points. The Tower meanwhile, are having their best ever season and currently lie in 7th. They have put together an impressive run of matches, losing just once in seven matches (a close 8-6 defeat to the Entertainers). The Hustlers will have their tails up after the title race has opened up, however the defending champions know they can afford no slip ups here...easier said than done in the Tower.

Second placed Top Guns are now within six points of the Entertainers after last week, however they face a tough trip to an Emeralds team looking to regain their pride after a 12-2 humbling from Club 2000 last week. After suffering back to back losses a few weeks ago, the Top Guns have now won three on the spin, culminating with a fine win over the highly touted Misfits last week. This should be a great match, with both teams going all out for the win.

Elsewhere in the title race, the Entertainers complete their set of first half fixtures with a home tie against EKCO. A poor performance, coupled with good play from the Greenhills saw the 'tainers lose their first match since May, and with the defeat, their rivals have clawed themselves back into the race. A win is a must for them, and standing in their way is EKCO, who although showing improvement recently, are without a win in fourteen matches.

The Salmon Leap host Langlands in what should be a good match up. Langlands are just starting to find their feet in the league, and are now unbeaten this year. They will travel to face the Salmon Leap, who, with a rich vein of form with just one loss in ten, have propelled themselves up to fourth spot.

Greenhills will be looking to finish off this set of fixtures with a victory over the Ospreys, after a great performance saw them inflict the Entertainers first defeat last week. The Ospreys are still looking for that elusive first win which keeps them rooted to the base of the table.

Fifth placed Murray face a tricky away tie to the Aces looking to keep hot on the heels of the teams involved in the title race. The Aces haven't won since their surprise victory over the Hustlers, but they will be keen to put that right tonight and begin moving up the table again.

The Misfits take on the Hunters looking to bounce back after their rapid ascent up the table was halted for the first time in weeks with a defeat at the hands of the Top Guns. The Hunters find themselves at the bottom of the "mid table pack", and will be looking to heap more misery on Ian McLean's team and begin leap frogging some teams.

Last but not least, Club 2000 will be looking to pick up where they left off from last week with another win against Cuesters. The Club boys have had an up and down start to the season, but a win tonight should keep them on track for a high placed finish. Meanwhile, the Cuesters will be hoping to snap a four match losing streak which sees them occupying fifteenth spot.

Full fixtures as follows:

Salmon Leap - Langlands
Entertainers - EKCO
Ospreys - Greenhills
Whitehills Aces - Murray
Murray Misfits - Hunters
Greenhills Emeralds - Top Guns
Cuesters - Club 2000
Tower - Hustlers

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Tie of the night tonight sees second placed Top Guns taking on the fast rising Murray Misfits. The Misfits have been on a tear recently, and have been bolstered by the signings of three of Scotland's top players in Pat Holtz, Scott Gillespie and Jamie Burnett. This recent form has seen them losing just one match in nine, and includes a draw with the Entertainers, and a victory over the Hustlers. It would take a massive points swing for the Misfits to challenge for the league this year, however sitting just seven points behind the Top Guns, they will no doubt fancy that second place is achievable. The Top Guns themselves are having a rich seasons, and are the chief challengers in the title race, sitting nine points behind the Entertainers. After losing back to back games before Christmas, they have started the new year brightly with two wins, and will be looking for a win to keep up the pressure on the Entertainers. This should be a great game, however the result may come down to what names are on the team sheet for the Misfits.

In another competitive match, league leaders the Entertainers travel to Greenhills to face Mick Dunn's side. The 'tainers have put together an impressive run of results so far this season, only dropping points to the Misfits. They currently lie undefeated so far this season, albeit by the skin of their teeth in some games in recent weeks. They returned to form with a bang last week, defeating a tough Murray team 11-3 with some impressive pool being played in the process. They face a tricky away tie to the Greenhills who have failed to find any real consistency so far this season. Despite this, they find right in themselves right in the mix for a top five finish. Greenhills is a hard venue to travel to, however this match may hinge on if the Entertainers can pick up where they left off last week or not.

Elsewhere, Club 2000 host the Emeralds in a match important for both teams trying to keep up with the pack. Just one point separates the sides, and with both teams failing to win in their last two fixtures, the pressure will be on both sides to produce the goods.

The Hustlers will be hoping the Misfits do them a favour this week allowing them to leap frog into second place if they can beat the Cuesters. John Burn's team is steadily improving and they may be looking for a good performance in this match, rather than points.

Elsewhere, the Hunters and the Aces will play out another closely fought tie. Like the Club/Emeralds match, both teams are at the bottom end of the pack, and a victory for either side is essential to try and keep up the chase.

Fresh off the back of their first ever win the EKPL, Langlands will be full of confidence going into their match with the Eagles. The Eagles themselves are coming off a hard fought draw against EKCO and will be looking to improve that result tonight.

The Salmon leap travel to ECKO looking for a win to take advantage of teams around them facing off, while EKCO will be hoping to gain their first win since the first day of the season.

Last but not least, the Murray take on bottom team Ospreys. The Murray will be looking to bounce back with a solid win tonight after suffering their first loss in ten games last week. The always vocal Ospreys will be hoping that this is finally the week they can break their duck, however there are not many harder away venues to travel to looking for a win than the Murray.

Full fixtures as follows:

Hustlers - Cuesters
Club 2000 - Greenhills Emeralds
Top Guns - Murray Misfits
Hunters - Whitehills Aces
Murray - Ospreys
Greenhills - Entertainers
EKCO - Salmon Leap
Langlands - Eagles

by a guest writer

Match of the week takes place in Club 2000 where the runaway leaders the Entertainers host the Murray. Stevie Kelly will be hoping drinking buddy Big C can mastermind an away win here, this one should be a cracker.

Elsewhere last year’s Champions come up against the Emeralds, who will be keen to bounce back from an 8balling fest by the Tower last week. The Emeralds may regard this as the perfect time to play the Hustlers, time will tell whether they are on the receiving end of a backlash.

Salmon Leap host the Greenhills, though the game has been re-scheduled for the Greenhills which will delight Greenhills players and area legends Jim McKenna and Mick Dunn.

The Murray Misfits host Club 2000 in another vital game for both teams, a game the Misfits will head into with lots of confidence after last week’s impressive victory.

The Top Guns survived a scare against the noisy Ospreys last week, and will head to the Whitehills knowing this is a team who has caused them problems over the years. Top Guns know they can't afford any slip up's though and while it's bound to be a tasty affair, should have enough to win on the night.

The Tower head to the Cuesters aiming to continue last week’s impressive form. The Cuesters may run them close but the Tower should be good enough for the win here.

The Ospreys and Hunters promises to be another noisy affair with the Ospreys team coming complete with Vocal Band. Hunters were unfortunate last week, despite being understrength and will fancy their chances of a solid win this week.

Finally, The Eagles host ECKO in what is bound to be a very close game. Neither team will be happy with a draw, but that's exactly what I predict will happen here.

Full fixtures as follows:

Eagles - EKCO
Salmon Leap - Greenhills
Entertainers - Murray
Ospreys - Hunters
Whitehills Aces - Top Guns
Murray Misfits - Club 2000
Greenhills Emeralds - Hustlers
Cuesters - Tower

by a guest writer

Well it's a Happy New Year, and we're well and truly closing in on the midway point of the2011/2012 EKPL season.
Tommorrow sees the League champions take on the Murray Misfits who have a very strong squad and will hope to take this game to the wire. Tie of the night.
There are many other good match ups tonight. The Tower host the Emeralds but hope to have a few too many gems for them on the night.
The Murray v The Salmon Leap is another very close looking match up which may see The Salmon struggle at the Murrays notoriously difficult venue. A good start is crucial for The Salmon.
The Aces verses Club 2000 should be a good match. Both teams closely matched on paper, but games aren't played on paper, thankfully. The club's home advantage make them slight favourites.
The Top Guns raise their game against the top teams and are in fact a top team themselves, but aren’t always consistent and so sometimes slip up against opponents they should beat. That's a doubt tonight as the Ospreys, although improving all the time and gaining experience, have a mountain to climb in this match.
The Greenhills should beat their opponents at home tonight, but The Eagles will be looking to swoop on any mistakes The Hills make.
EKCO against Langlands looks like a score draw, unless The Langlands boys take all their chances.
Lastly, The Hunters take on The Entertainers. This game should be dictated by how many chances The Hunters manage to take if and when The Entertainers slip up.

Full fixtures as follows:

Tower - Greenhills Emeralds
Hustlers - Murray Misfits
Club 2000 - Whitehills Aces
Top Guns - Ospreys
Hunters - Entertainers
Murray - Salmon Leap
Greenhills - Eagles
EKCO - Langlands