Banbury Cross’s Mark Sykes kept his dreams alive of a hat-trick of titles in the English Indoor Association's Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire area competitions.

Sykes has booked his place in the finals of the singles, pairs and triples as he bids to reach the national finals for the first time.

He crushed Carterton’s Andy McIntyre 21-5 in the singles semi-finals, and will now face Chipping Norton’s Martin Shepherd, who squeezed past Carterton’s Paul Sharman 21-19, in the final at Oxford & District on Saturday (10.15am).

Sykes will be attempting to go one better than last year when he suffered the agony of seeing a commanding 18-6 lead disappear on the way to a 21-18 defeat by Carterton’s Andy Wise.

In the pairs semi-finals, Sykes and Keith Holloway dismissed Oxford & District’s Norman Rae and Paul Comley 27-11.

Their opponents in the final at Oxford City & County on Saturday, February 21 (10am) will be Clive Houndslow and David Harding, who beat Tim Godman and Steve Mead 23-14 in an all-Foxhill clash.

Sykes kept up his three-pronged attack for glory by teaming up with Holloway and Alan Docherty to brush aside Oxford City & County’s Dean May, Steve Gibson, Ray Gaskins 22-11 in the triples semi-finals.

The Banbury Cross trio now face a Carterton side of McIntyre, Tim Jupp and Stuart Richens in the final at City & County on Monday, February 23.

They came through their semi-final with a thrilling 20-19 win over Oxford & District’s Howard Watts, Chris Earl and Chris Allen.

McIntyre also booked his place in the fours final with Carterton teammates Jim Hicks, George Weedon and Chris Weedon by beating Foxhill’s Godman, Mead, Rees Lee and Harding 19-12.

Hopes of an all-Carterton final were dashed though as the side skipped by Sharman slid to a 19-11 defeat against Oxford & District’s Eddie Pilgrim, Comley, Watts and Allen.

The fours final will take place alongside the pairs at City & County on February 21.

SEMI-FINAL RESULTS

Singles: M Sykes (Banbury Cross) bt A McIntyre (Carterton) 21-5, M Shepherd (Chipping Norton) bt P Sharman (Carterton) 21-19.

Pairs: C Houndslow & D Harding (Foxhill) bt T Godman & S Mead (Foxhill) 23-14, K Holloway & M Sykes (Banbury Cross) bt N Rae & P Comley (Oxford & District) 27-11.

Triples: A McIntyre, T Jupp, S Richens (Carterton) bt H Watts, C Earl, C Allen (Oxford & District) 20-19, A Docherty, K Holloway, M Sykes (Banbury Cross) bt D May, S Gibson, R Gaskins (Oxford City & County) 22-11.

Fours: E Pilgrim, P Comley, H Watts, C Allen (Oxford & District) bt B Turley, S Timms, B Clave, P Sharman (Carterton) 19-11, J Hicks, G Weedon, A McIntyre, C Weedon (Carterton) bt T Godman, S Mead, R Lee, D Harding (Foxhill) 19-12.

OXFORD & District’s Chris and Glenn Allen face Hartlepool’s Alan and Paul Hartley in the first round of the national Father and Son Championship at Northampton on Sunday (6.30pm).