BOB’S OFF TO A FLYER!

Bob Jillins has started life in Division Two of the Clacton League in fine style, this week recording his second hat-trick in as many matches.

Newly recruited into the re-formed Nomads Tigers’ side, Jillins starred with an excellent maximum in his team’s drawn match with club-mates Nomads Jaguars, all three wins achieved in three-straight. He also shared an 11-9 in the fifth doubles win with Zein Shafat against Tom Wilkin and Callum Hogg. Shafat picked up the fifth Tigers’ point while, for the Jaguars, Wilkin and Chris Petrou each won two, and Hogg one.

Five of the matches between Windsor Buzzards and Brotherhood D went the distance, but it was the Buzzards who edged it 6-4. Scott Campbell took a treble and Pete Bloomfield a couple, Campbell defeating Paul Alden 11-5 in the decider and Mark Salter 11-9 in the decider. Salter won two for Brotherhood, in the process denying Bloomfield his treble, winning 11-9 in the decider. And in yet another 11-9 in the decider result, Brotherhood’s Tricia Salter excelled to beat Ray Chillingworth.

The battle of last season’s top two Division Three sides ended with Brotherhood E defeating Windsor Harriers 7-3. Kevin Pryor was unbeaten, Rodney Betts took two and Tony Edmunds one. In two tight matches, Edmunds beat Jenny Higgins 12-10 in the fifth and Betts beat Windsor reserve Ferdy Rodriguez by the same score.

Brotherhood C have started the season in good form, three from Mark Boyland, and two each from Paul Metcalf and John Gallagher, seeing them to an 8-2 success over Windsor Kestrels. Graham Bunce took the Kestrels’ points.   

In Division Three, Kelvin Olano picked up a hat-trick for Windsor Falcons against Walton D, but two each for Lynette Sparks, Maggie Earle and Adrian Sexton gave Walton a 7-3 victory. Walton also took the doubles in the closest finish of the League season so far, Sparks and Earle edging past Olano and Nikki Hayes 4-11, 11-4, 12-10, 4-11, 15-13.

In their second match, Walton D fielded a guest against Holland Hurricanes, Sparks winning three and Sexton two to earn a draw. Ian Gwillim picked up a point for the Hurricanes while Gerry Widnell twice went close, losing 11-7 in the fifth to Sparks and 13-11 in the fifth to Sexton. But Gwillim and Widnell had the satisfaction of taking the doubles 8-11, 11-8, 12-10, 12-14, 11-7 against the more experienced Sparks and Sexton.

However, the Hurricanes then lost 10-0 to Lucy Carvell, Joe Sherwin and Tom Bryden of Brotherhood F who, even at this early stage of the season, look the team to beat.

The Brotherhood H v Nomads Bobcats encounter proved a hard-fought match, Brotherhood emerging narrow 6-4 victors. Savindu De Silva recorded a maximum whilst Owen Woollard played well to defeat both Jack Riddleston and Alex Baldock in five-setters. Harindu De Silva won one but lost in five to both Baldock and Matt Sage. Sage took two for the Bobcats.

Holland Lancasters were 8-2 winners over club-mates Holland Vulcans who fielded a guest player. Frank Wimpress and Dave Wright were unbeaten. For the Vulcans, there was a debut League win for Derek Foxley and, after a barren spell, a welcome success for Mick Coker.

Dominic Joannou took his maximum as Nomads Leopards drew with Nomads Ocelots. Joannou was involved in both matches which went the distance, beating Andrew Cousins 11-9 in the fifth and, with Anne Bonny, taking the doubles 13-11 in the fifth against Cousins and Arthur Wells-Garrett. Cousins and Wells-Garrett each took two for the Ocelots.

In Division One, Nomads Panthers recorded a second 9-1 win of the season, this week beating Nomads Lions. Greg Green and Gracie Edwards remained undefeated. Ethan Lloyd beat John Hatley to take the Lions’ point, while Adam Wilkin took Green close before going down 11-8 in the fifth.

In an all-Windsor clash, the Hawks came out on top 7-3 against the Eagles. Gary Young won three, Andy Vincent two and John Barton one, with Gary Cattermole picking up a couple for the Eagles. 

It was also 7-3 for Walton B against Lawford, Mark Gale winning three, Mark Ratcliffe two and Paul Meikle one. The doubles was the closest match, Gale and Ratcliffe getting past James Tindle and Glen Laing 11-9, 12-10, 9-11, 7-11, 11-7. Laing won two for Lawford.

Finally, Walton C and Brotherhood B enjoyed an excellent evening’s table tennis, the match finishing with honours even. Simon Smith-Daye stayed undefeated for Brotherhood, with Sam Plummer’s two victories including the only match which went to a decider, beating Graham Buxton 11-9 in the fifth. Pete Burrows won two for Walton, with Buxton and Paul Newbould winning one apiece.

* The Windsor Club is holding a Quiz Evening on Saturday 16th November at the Brotherhood Hall, 7.00 pm for a 7.30 pm start. It’s for teams of up to six, £5.00 per person, bring your own drinks and nibbles. For more details or to enter a team, contact Jenny Higgins on 07790 240566.

* There are two vacancies on the League’s Management Committee. Anyone who may be interested in joining the Committee should contact League Secretary Isabel Barton (Tel : 07706 450488) for more information.

RESULTS

Division 1

Walton C 5 Brotherhood B 5;

Windsor Eagles 3 Windsor Hawks 7;

Nomads Lions 1 Nomads Panthers 9;

Lawford 3 Walton B 7.

Division 2

Windsor Kestrels 2 Brotherhood C 8;

Windsor Buzzards 6 Brotherhood D 4;

Nomads Tigers 5 Nomads Jaguars 5;

Brotherhood E 7 Windsor Harriers 3.

Division 3

Nomads Leopards 5 Nomads Ocelots 5;

Brotherhood H 6 Nomads Bobcats 4;

Brotherhood F 10 Holland Hurricanes 0;

Walton D 7 Windsor Falcons 3;

Holland Hurricanes 5 Walton D 5; Holland Lancasters 8 Holland Vulcans 2

• 

Mapledene A take an early lead in the top division of the Burnham & District Table Tennis League largely thanks to an impeccable hat-trick of wins from their ‘ace in the pack’ Liam Squirrell.  That’s two on the bounce for Squirrell as he looks to recapture the Peter Ballard trophy he last won in 2020.  Squirrells are certainly not endangered in Burnham as another Squirrell, this time of the Dennis subspecies, was the star player in Division 2 this week.

Squirrell was the stand out player in the Mapledene derby this week as with a 9-dart hat-trick followed by the bonus double point secured with partner Steve Muth.  Mapledene B fielded a very strong side with Simon Jacob taking 2 wins over George Reeves and Muth, with everyone else spreading out the remaining victories so no-one went home empty-handed.  Cold Norton A and their talisman Duncan Taylor continued their winning start to the season with a close fought 6-4 victory over their own B team.  Taylor yet again was the difference with a hat-trick of singles and this week he added the doubles point with Matt Stringer keeping him company for the duration. Stringer added victories over Dave Richardson and Dan Anderson to complete the scoring for the A Team.  Sam Lowman was the best of the B team with 2 victories over Stringer and Steve Maltby to kick off his season.  Fambridge showed great bouncebackability following last week’s unexpected reverse with a commanding whitewash victory over Woodham B.  Fambridge fielded the same trio that had lost out to Cold Norton in the opening week encounter so they were all delighted to register their first clean sheet of the season.  Captain John Poysden secured the player of the match accolade with an unblemished 9-0 scorecard, with his ‘toughest’ shootout being a 10,9,7 victory over Eamonn Hall.   Keith Adams went to the customary deciding leg with Sanjay Saptarshi but pulled through comfortably in the end – a great battle this one as Adams was constantly surprised with the blocks coming back from his powerful and loaded loops.  Hall took a leg off Adams but that was the only other blemish for his first hat-trick of the season.  Gary Young completed the rout just dropping 2 sets all night – one apiece to Trevor Collin and Saptarshi – although the Saptarshi encounter was an extremely close affair and probably deserved a deciding fifth leg – final score was 11,11,-10,9.

Division 2 hot favourites Maldon A continue to wreak havoc with a superb 9-1 victory that sees them sit atop the leaderboard and it would be a foolish gambler that would bet against them this season.  It was all going swimmingly for the Maldon team as they largely cruised their way through the first 9 matches – whitewash headlines and ‘low blow for Stow’ puns at the ready – but up stood Stow C’s Peter Chastin – the whitewash spoiler with a fine last ditch 5 set face-saving victory over Maldon’s Lloyd Bennett-Smith.  Chastin skipped home without a care in the world whereas Maldon were left with that bitter taste of doubt.  Well perhaps, but if finished 9-1 to Maldon with hat-tricks for both Colin Napper and Hamish Innes.   Cold Norton D followed up last week’s victory with another fine team performance that saw then triumph 6-4 over Blackwater B.  Cold Norton’s Dave Hancox and Peter Lucraft chipped with a brace of wins each, whilst Blackwater’s Noah Sage emulated the Norton boys with 2 wins of his own.  Sage came very close to the perfect night but was pipped at the death in the deciding leg of the opening match versus the tricky Terry Hyland.  The Maldon B crew must have been hounded into some practice this week as their results bear no relation to their very poor opening match last week.  Hat-trick merchant Steve Aspland finally registered a couple of wins, as did his partner in crime Colin Barrell as Maldon B forced a 5-5 draw with Mapledene C.  Aspland and Barrell couldn’t quite muster the guile to defeat Mapledene’s star player Dennis Squirrell who registered his first hat-trick of the season.  The final game of the Divisional week saw League Chairman and Woodham D stalwart Alan Dadswell completely hog the table in his team’s tight 6-4 win over the tricky Blackwater A side.  Dadswell played the maximum 20 legs possible taking 2 singles victories over Roger Slade and Neil Freeman, and just losing out to the awkward Alan Scammell and his bamboozling rubbers.  Dadswell them combined with Adi Kamma to take the extra doubles point with a fifth set 16-14 victory.  Gus Heath took 2 points for Woodham, with Freeman and Scammell sharing the points for Blackwater.

There was no messing around in Division 3 this week with 3 very one-sided matches.  The newly monikered Blackwater E side kicked off their campaign with a comprehensive 9-1 turnover of the Blackwater F team.  The familiar Blackwater trio from the C team days of Phil West, Kath Little and Deb Ginn will yet again be in and around the podium no doubt.  West and Ginn both went unbeaten with Little dropping the opening match to the delighted David McHattie in a thrilling 5 setter.  Little continued thrilling the large crowd with another 5 setter against Peter Hughes but just about came out on top in this one 12-10 in the decider.   Title favourites Maldon C humbled current holders St Lawrence with a thumping 10-0 scoreline, dropping just one leg all evening.  What a performance from the Maldon trio of Marty Englander, Chris Ravenhill and the old warhorse Brian Riedling.  In the final match Maldon D produced a whitewash performance as they demolished 2 player Woodham E 10-0.  100% performances from James Raymond, Arthur Shadforth and Matthew Copsey.

Pic 1 – John Poysden playing the perfect match versus Woodham B this week

Pic 2 – Action from the deciding leg in the Sanjay Saptarshi versus Keith Adams encounter this week

Pic 3 – Steve Muth serving in his win over David Jacob in the Mapledene Derby

Pic 4 – Alan Scammell from Blackwater A with 2 wins against Woodham D this week.   

Pic 5 – The ever young, Gary Young getting ready to launch another loaded topspin against Trevor Collin

The famous Times headline of yesteryear, Small earthquake in Peru: not many dead, has its
Braintree Table Tennis League equivalent in the first round of the team and restricted
knockout cups.
In addition to a number of byes and two concessions, splitting the three divisions into two for
the cups produces a number of predictable mismatches when two teams of a different
standard face up to each other.
Hence Netts A’s 8-0 win over Black Notley D and Notley A’s 8-1 against their own E team in
the team knockout – although Paul Nicol deserves credit for stretching James Hicks to 11-9,
9-11, 13-15, 11-9, 11-6 in the first and likewise Lawrence Grantham for overcoming Adam
Clift in the second.
Rayne A 5 Notley C 4 looks interesting until one consults the scoresheet to find that Rayne
had only two players and so had to concede four sets.
Paul Lucas and Adi Kamma won the five in straight games.
Notley B’s 7-2 win over Sudbury Wanderers was closer even though Wanderers’ successes
were both in doubles.
Sudbury’s A team, Nomads, featured in the closest match of the round, just getting the better
of Liberal C 5-4.
The singles were shared 3-3, Aron Jordan unbeaten for Nomads and David Razzell for
Liberal, but it was two doubles wins that took Nomads through.
The 6-3 win for Rayne E over their own C team appears something of a surprise, but one
explained by the fact that Matthew Brown was playing for the E team and that the C team
only had two players.
In the restricted cup, division three champions Netts D took all nine against Yeldham
Whitlocks B, as did Rayne F against Notley H and Notley I declared at 6-0 against Netts E.
Netts F took a 2-0 lead against Notley G but got no further.
There was still time for James Howard, 2023 cadet singles champion, to score a good win
over the experienced Ken Wilding in only his second competitive outing.
The one close match was Notley F’s 5-4 win over Sudbury Strollers, decided with a win by
Graham Chinnery and Mel Cooch in the final doubles.
Earlier Strollers’ Natalie Dodd showed what an important signing she will be by scoring a
three-straight win over Chinnery, beaten only twice in the league last season.

Gary Cattermole has very much been an occasional player for
Windsor Eagles in recent years in Division One of the Clacton
League, having played only ten matches in the past three
seasons. However he started off in the Eagles’ line-up in their opening
match against Walton B and rewarded his side with a hat-trick.
Alas for Cattermole, it was Walton B who took the honours, Jason
Gale, Mark Ratcliffe and Paul Meikle all winning twice in the 6-4
victory.
Three for Felipe Rodriguez, and two each for John Barton and
reserve Scott Campbell, saw Windsor Hawks off to an 8-2 winning
start against Walton C. Rodriguez and Barton combined to take
an 11-9 in the fifth doubles win against Graham Buxton and John
Marshall. Buxton picked up the Walton points.
Meanwhile, reigning champions Nomads Panthers began their
campaign in fine style, beating Walton A 9-1, John Hatley and
Denes Somodi unbeaten. Price took Walton’s consolation point
with a win against Gill Locke.
In Division Two, Nomads Jaguars were unfortunate to have
found themselves in opposition to favourites Windsor Buzzards in
their opening fixture, and the Windsor trio of Scott Campbell, Ray
Chillingworth and Andy Cawley showed no mercy, winning 10-0.
Only Campbell’s 11-7 in the fifth win against Chris Petrou went to
a decider.
Nomads Tigers got off to a flying start with a 9-1 victory over
Windsor Magpies, Bob Jillins and reserve Matt Sage each taking
excellent trebles. Windsor’s Dave Sweetland enjoyed a surprise
win against Dave Miller and took Jillins the distance before going
down 11-5 in the fifth.
Brotherhood C chalked up an 8-2 victory over Windsor Penguins,
Mark Boyland unbeaten, with Mark Beckham and John Gallagher

each taking two. Paul Woolnough was the Penguins’ points-scorer.
Barry Allen began his new life as a Windsor Harrier with a treble
in his side’s 7-3 win against fellow-promotees Brotherhood G. Dan
Grindrod, Gary Simpson and Danny Still each picked up a point
for the losers, although it was a tight 11-6, 11-7, 11-13, 6-11,
11-9 for Still against Jenny Higgins.
Windsor Kestrels will feel pleased to have shared the spoils with
Brotherhood D, Debra Found and reserve Kelvin Olano each
winning a couple. Mark Salter remained undefeated for
Brotherhood and shared a doubles win with Paul Alden, 11-7 in
the decider against Found and Olano. Alden took the fifth
Brotherhood point but went down 11-7 in the decider to Olano
and 11-8 in the decider to Found.
In Division Three, Brotherhood F made an impressive start to
their title challenge by white-washing one of their predicted rivals,
Nomads Bobcats. Tom Bryden, Ruby Gallagher and Joe Sherwin
all took trebles. Only two matches went the distance, Sherwin
defeating Alex Baldock 11-8 in the decider, and Bryden and
Gallagher taking the doubles 11-7 in the decider against Baldock
and Sam Watling.
Six players were making their League debut in the Windsor
Falcons v Holland Mosquitos clash. Matt Thomas, Nigel Rolph and
Nikki Hayes each won two for the Falcons to give them a narrow
6-4 victory. However, no-one could get the better of Brian Abram
who began his League career with an excellent hat-trick for the
Mosquitos, plus a shared doubles win with Chris Woods.
Nomads Ocelots enjoyed a 7-3 victory over Holland Lancasters,
Norman Jacobs, Hazel Blanche and Andrew Cousins all winning
two. Jacobs had a tight 11-9 in the fifth win over Frank Wimpress
whilst, in another close contest, Cousins went down 11-7 in the
fifth to Dave Wright. Wright took all three of the Lancasters’
points.
Three for Savindu De Silva, and two each for Tony Woollard and
Owen Woollard, gave Brotherhood H an 8-2 victory against
Holland Vulcans. Their closest success was an 11-8 in the fifth
Tony Woollard win over Derek Foxley. But this wasn’t the closest
match of the whole contest, James Horsler’s two for the Vulcans
including a 12-10 in the decider success against Owen Woollard.
RESULTS

Division 1
Walton B 6 Windsor Eagles 4;
Nomads Panthers 9 Walton A 1;
Windsor Hawks 8 Walton C 2.
Division 2
Windsor Harriers 7 Brotherhood G 3;
Windsor Magpies 1 Nomads Tigers 9;
Brotherhood C 8 Windsor Penguins 2;
Brotherhood D 5 Windsor Kestrels 5;
Nomads Jaguars 0 Windsor Buzzards 10.
Division 3
Holland Vulcans 2 Brotherhood H 8;
Windsor Falcons 6 Hollands Mosquitos 4;
Nomads Ocelots 7 Holland Lancasters 3;
Nomads Bobcats 0 Brotherhood F 10.

• 

In the last twenty-five Clacton and District League seasons, only
four teams have taken the Division One title.
Brotherhood B have won it twice and Windsor Condors once but
otherwise the title has been dominated by two teams – the
legendary Brotherhood A team of Binns, Burgess, Andrews and
Stubbings, and the current Nomads Panthers’ side, both of whom
have won it eleven times.
And it would be a brave pundit who’d bet against the Panthers
making it a record twelfth consecutive title, with the Nomads’ star
strengthened even further by the addition of Denes Somodi.
Gary Young moves from Brotherhood A to Windsor Hawks to
replace his son Daniel which will mean the Brotherhood team will do
well to repeat last year’s runners-up position.
Paul Hume is included in an otherwise unchanged Nomads Lions’
squad and they, together with the new-look Walton A team of Price,
James, Foster, Willis and Binns, will all hope to be top-four
challengers.
John Hobson’s Windsor Eagles had an indifferent season in 2023/24
by their own high standards and they may well be pleased with
mid-table respectability.
Walton C struggled at the foot of the table last season but their
Knock-Out Cup win will surely inspire them to better things,
although they may well still feature in a relegation battle with Paul
Newbould’s Walton B, weakened by the absence of Gavin Price, and
promoted Lawford, this year including Glen Laing.
However, all eyes will also be on promoted Brotherhood B who
swept aside all before them in Division Two last year. With the two
Plummers and two Smith-Dayes supplemented by Daryl Lott, it will
be interesting to see how this quintet fare at the highest level.

In Division Two relegated Windsor Buzzards have added Scott
Campbell to their squad and they start as strong pre-season
favourites. Mark Salter’s Brotherhood D look the best of the rest.
Paul Woolnough replaces Scott Campbell in last season’s third-
placed team Windsor Penguins who also welcome Paul Stanton back
into the League ranks, while John Gallagher’s Brotherhood C, which
has developed into an all-round competitive side, is unchanged.
It’s good to see Tom Wilkin back in the table tennis fold leading the
Nomads Jaguars, whilst the new-look Nomads Tigers comprising
Jillins, Shafat, Wellum, Wilkinson and Miller will be relying heavily
on skipper Miller to steer them to safety.
Kevin Pryor’s addition to promoted Brotherhood E’s squad should be
the key to their survival whilst the other promoted side, Windsor
Harriers, make a first change to their squad in eleven seasons,
Barry Allen replacing Ferdy Rodriguez.
But the Harriers, like the unchanged Windsor Kestrels who finished
bottom last term, will both need to play well to keep clear of the
relegation zone where two promoted teams, Brotherhood G with
new signing Adhuna Das, and an unchanged Windsor Magpies, will
do well to survive.
With a number of new teams and new faces in Division Three, the
battle at the top may well develop into a two-horse race between
the talented juniors of Brotherhood F and ever-improving Nomads
Bobcats.
Lynette Sparks’ Walton D is unchanged and they will, as always, be
agreeable and competitive opponents whilst Kelvin Olano is a
welcome League, playing for Windsor Falcons who, with Ferdy
Rodrigues as first reserve, should be a competitive outfit.
Dominic Joannou is the only survivor in the Nomads Leopards side,
their much-changed side this year led by Ann Bonny, whilst
Nomads Ocelots contain five familiar faces in Hazel Blanche, Sue
Lee, Norman Jacobs, Andrew Cousins and Arthur Wells-Garrett who
will be hoping to avoid finishing bottom for a second year running.
And if you’re looking for a team to spring a surprise or two, watch
out for the new Brotherhood H team which includes the promising
De Silva brothers.
Finally, the League bids a warm welcome to four teams from the
new Holland Club.

All four teams are led by established players, with Club Secretary
leading Holland Lancasters, although it could be the Hurricanes,
headed by Ian Gwillim and Gerry Widnell, who prove to be the best
of the four Holland teams.
James Horsler and Mick Coker are the familiar names for the
Vulcans whilst Pam Blakeley’s Mosquitos complete the Holland
quartet.
So good luck to all competitors, both the long-established players
as well those taking their first steps in competitive table tennis but,
above all else, enjoy your table tennis.

Tony Oswick

The Braintree Table Tennis League season opened this week with 33 teams, three more than last year and the most for 23 years.

The league’s two newest clubs, Finchingfield and Great Yeldham (known as Yeldham Whitlocks this season) account for two of the additional teams while the long-established Netts club have added one more team to their roster.

And the new clubs could well be challenging for the division three title alongside Sudbury, who added a third team, Strollers, only last year.

Finchingfield have added two important signings, Dave Punt, out injured last season but a regular division two player with Rayne before that, and Peter Clark, out of action for the last two seasons but runner-up in the division three singles in 2022.

They join John Barrett, beaten only three times last season, and Ray Bradford in what could be a winning combination.

They will have competition from Yeldham B, who have also brought in two class players, Steve Willis, a division two regular with Rayne in recent seasons, and the former Sible  Hedingham player Roy Hooper, out for a few years but a division one player until the club’s demise in 2017.

Strollers have Peter Abbott, who spent much of last season in division two but won ten out of 12 in the third division, George Berry, seven out of nine, and Geoff Barrett, 27 out of 45, together with some promised new signings.

Because of the expansion of the league to 11 teams per division, Yeldham’s A team find themselves unexpectedly promoted to division two after finishing second last season, as do Black Notley G, who finished third – in the latter’s case a chance for Graham Chinnery to show that he really belongs in the higher sphere.

Last year’s division two champions Netts B have been promoted but there has been no relegation, leaving the way clear for last season’s other title contenders, Rayne D and Sudbury Wanderers, to have a stab at the title.

Richard Whiteside’s decision to drop down to join his son Scott in the E team means that Rayne D will have less strength in depth whereas Wanderers have signed Colchester League player Colin Moss and look very much the team to beat.

By contrast little has changed at the top of division one where champions Rayne A rely again in Maria Boulton, Adam Buxton and Paul Lucas.

Runners-up Netts A again have Paul Davison, James Hicks and Andy Holmes.

As is often the case, it could be that occasional players will make the difference. 

Rayne have Lee McHugh and Mark Mulley again signed as reserves – McHugh played five times last season, Mulley two – while Netts could be strengthened by the addition of leading Colchester League player Gary Young (80 per cent last season), who is expected to make occasional appearances, and possibly 2022 men’s singles champion Michael Andrews.

Rayne C, third last year, keep the same squad of Victor Chan, Oliver Hicks, Steve Pennell and Ian Whiteside, but are promoted one place in the alphabet to acknowledge that they finished well above their B team.

Liberal B, fourth, have lost Harry Chivers, unbeaten in his 12 singles last time out, but welcome back Mike Johnston, plus Gary Copsey, another player returning to the league.

Black Notley B, fifth, will have to do without Kaung Paing and Omar Wasi, who have both moved away.  They will be replaced by Sean and Adam Clift, promoted from division two.

Kaung and Wasi won 34 sets between them last season, which could leave the team vulnerable.

They may contest the relegation place with Liberal C, who occupied it last season but were saved by the increase in teams, and promoted Netts B, where Szczepan Ziobro gets a deserved chance to test himself in division one alongside Fred Evans, Jon Hill and Joe Meleschko, all with division one experience behind them.

There were four wins from four week one matches for Chelmsford TTC juniors as the new
C&DTTL season got underway.
Division 1
Galleywood A started their division one campaign with a 7-3 home win over Chelmsford
B as James Hicks and Alistair Hill both hit three wins apiece. Hicks won his first two
matches in straight games before having to recover from 2-1 down to beat Waseem
Qureshi. Qureshi had earlier fallen victim of a Hill fightback from 2-0 behind – this was
after Hill had beaten Wiktor Delimat from 2-1 down. Last year’s runners-up Chelmsford A
started their 2024/2025 campaign with a 6-4 home win against the two-person team of
Writtle A. Harry Chivers won both of his matches though was well tested in his second
match which went the distance. Josh Bickles chipped in with a 3-0 win over Trevor
Carter – Carter had earlier got the better of Kim Shead by the same scoreline. The
Writtle duo bounced back after comprehensively losing the first game to take the
doubles encounter 3-1. Chris Penrose fired a hat-trick as his Danbury A side got the
better of clubmates Danbury B by a 7-3 scoreline – teammate Bruce Kettle chipped in
with two wins. Penrose beat Neil Want in three, Sam Lowman in four and recovered from
2-1 down to beat Sanjay Saptarshi.
Division 2
Newly promoted Buttsbury A started life in division two with a bang as they beat Writtle
B 9-1. Jamie Elliott and Harrison Hill won three matches apiece with two 3-0 wins for
David Gatheral before he was undone by Trevor Carter. Martin Archie fired a treble as
last year’s division two runners-up Hatfield Peverel A started their season with a 7-3
away win at Writtle C. Archie was taken the distance by Writtle’s John Webber while the
match between Writtle’s Gary Ward and Peverel’s Paul Mulley also went to five games –
Ward recovering from 2-1 down. The fixture between Danbury D and Chelmsford C
ended in a 5-5 draw as Chelmsford’s Simon Jarvis won all three matches. Jarvis was
taken the distance by Sanjay Saptarshi who himself beat Dusan Doszkoty and Adi
Kamma. Kamma had battled back from 2-0 down against David Penrose only to see the
Danbury man take the decider.
Division 3
In Division 3, Chelmsford D won 9-1 at Hatfield Peverel B thanks to a hat-trick apiece for
both Alex Tkachuk and Mike Johnson. Peverel’s Neil Freeman may have felt unfortunate
to have been on the losing end of two five gamers – he also lost a close contest with Alex
Tkachuk. Peter Mortensen took the scalp of Adi Kamma for Peverel’s sole point but then
missed out over five games in the doubles when teaming with Mortensen. Matthew
Brown fired a treble as Writtle D earned a close 6-4 home win over Danbury J. Gus
Heath and John Tendler won two apiece for the visitors though both players lost out to
Brown – Heath having led 2-0. Gary Copsey started his season with a treble as his
Galleywood C side got the better of Chelmsford E by a 6-4 scoreline. Chelmsford’s
Alesha Ellis-Austin and James Grimston both won twice – Grimston recovered from 2-1
down to beat Bryn Thomas. Three wins for Harry Sawford backed up by two for Dennis
Squirrell spurred Buttsbury B to a 6-4 away win at Writtle E. Sawford dropped just one
game on the night – the opener in his clash with Dave Moles, while Squirrell came
through a tough battle with Malcolm Storey. A good team effort by Danbury G saw them
take home a 7-3 win from Chelmsford F despite a hat-trick from Cleon Fernandes. Denis
Crapnell and Louis Gunn both saw Fernandes recover from losing positions to earn two
of his victories in deciding games. Danbury H and OCA C were embroiled in an
entertaining contest which ended in a 6-4 win for the home side after two wins apiece
for Scott Perry, Alan Dadswell and Peter Harverson. OCA’s Tom Barker won twice but
was undone by a recovery from Perry when leading 2-0 – Barker got a measure of
revenge in the doubles contest by teaming with Luke Richardson and edging Perry and
Harverson 3-2.
Division 4
Hutton A’s 9-1 home win over OCA D was the biggest margin of victory in week one of
division four. The father-son duo of Alex and Charlie Ware helped themselves to a treble
each while Tina Hutchinson’s only loss of the night was to David Bishop. Marty
Englander hit a hat-trick and there were two wins apiece for Chris Ravenhill and Andrea
Alleyne as Maldon B beat Danbury M 8-2. Englander dropped just two games in his
three victories while Danbury’s Graham Naggs recovered from 2-0 down to beat
Ravenhill. Alex Wilson won all three singles matches and he was backed up with braces
by Greg Cooper and John Manning as Danbury L claimed a 7-3 away success at
Highwood A. Highwood’s Melanie Bonnett won two five-gamers for the hosts but lost out
to Wilson in four close games. Nick Rounce dropped just one game enroute to his three
victories in Galleywood D’s 7-3 away win at Buttsbury C. Stewart Ireland and Lewis
Armstrong both won twice for the visitors – each losing out to Buttsbury’s Kevin Willis.
Willis pushed Rounce in their contest but couldn’t quite get a game on the board losing
out 10-12, 8-11, 13-15. Dave Powell’s three wins led his Danbury K side to a 6-4 home win
over Buttsbury D. Kevin Willis was in action again for Buttsbury and he won twice as did
his teammate Phil Shippen – Shippen squeezed past Dave Oxley-Goody in the deciding
game. After a successful campaign in division five last season, Mark Nolan fired a
hat-trick in his first appearance in division four as his Chelmsford G team drew 5-5 with
Hatfield Peverel C. Deb Ginn won twice for the visitors though she was taken to five
games by Martin Brunker. Nolan had to recover from 2-1 down against Peverel’s Bob
Hillis in the evening’s opener.
Division 5
Steve Webster and Charlie Gould won three matches apiece as Hutton B opened their
division five campaign with a 9-1 away win at Highwood B. Webster dropped just one
game while Gould squeezed past Martin Goddard and Keith Pallett by identical 3-2
score lines. Jenne Seibolt and Lucy Elliott both hit hat-tricks in Buttsbury E’s 8-2 away
win at Galleywood E. The closest contest of the evening was Steve Peacock’s
come-from-behind 3-2 victory over Freya Hart. Three wins for James Raymond and two
each for Arthur Shadforth and Kym Eames fired Maldon C to an 8-2 away victory at
Hatfield Peverel F. Peverel’s David Benstead won twice for the hosts – his victory over
Kym Eames being a nail-biting 10-12, 8-11, 11-7, 13-11, 14-12. There were three wins for
Writtle F’s Michael Anthony and two for Paul Aarons as the visitors beat Hatfield Peverel
D 6-4. Peverel’s Richard Drozd won twice but lost out to Anthony despite leading 2-1.
James Grindlay won three in Chelmsford H’s 5-5 home draw with Hatfield Peverel E. The
closest match of the night was the first of Jackie Treacy’s two wins whereby she held off
a Shengbing Zhu fightback from 2-0 down to take the decider. Zhu later lost to Davina
Brazier by the same 3-2 scoreline.
Chelmsford Junior League division 1A
The all-Hutton clash went in favour of the Hawks as Jago Ware won twice in his side’s
4-1 victory over the Harriers. Ware recovered from going a game down to James
Williamson to win six games in a row, while teammate Noah Middleton let a 2-0 lead
against Oliver Davies slip before edging out Williamson over five games. The Chelmsford
Lions and the Chelmsford Tigers posted identical 3-2 wins against the two teams from
Buttsbury who fielded the same two players for both matches. Joshua Freeman won all
four of his singles matches dropping just two games in the process – his most
competitive match looked to be his 11-9, 14-12, 13-11 win over Amir Chetitah. Chetitah
and Callum Walker were involved in a tight contest with the Chelmsford player earning a
3-2 win. Chetitah and Ethan Collins clinched the match victory in the Lions-Bats doubles
encounter with a fine recovery from 2-1 down.
Chelmsford Junior League division 1B
There were two wins for Chelmsford teams in week one of junior league division 1B as
the Jaguars beat the Hutton Hyenas 4-1 and the Leopards beat the Buttsbury Bulldogs
5-0. Tianfu Liu and Sean Kwan were undefeated in their singles matches for the Jaguars
though Liu was taken the distance by both Hutton players Jacob Fernandez and Shayan
Torne. Liu’s recovery against Fernandez was especially impressive having lost the first
two games 11-1 and 11-5. Torne and Fernandez staged a fine turnaround of their own as
they won the doubles contest 3-11, 3-11, 11-9, 13-11, 16-14. Sai Suresh and Archie Spurrier
won twice apiece for the Leopards in their victory at Buttsbury. The closest match of the
night was Spurrier’s 3-2 win over Ethan Bird which finished an entertaining 9-11, 13-11,
9-11, 11-9. 13-11 to the Leopards ace.

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Jeremy Hill, Press Officer, Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League

There were four wins from four week one matches for Chelmsford TTC juniors as the new
C&DTTL season got underway.
Division 1
Galleywood A started their division one campaign with a 7-3 home win over Chelmsford
B as James Hicks and Alistair Hill both hit three wins apiece. Hicks won his first two
matches in straight games before having to recover from 2-1 down to beat Waseem
Qureshi. Qureshi had earlier fallen victim of a Hill fightback from 2-0 behind – this was
after Hill had beaten Wiktor Delimat from 2-1 down. Last year’s runners-up Chelmsford A
started their 2024/2025 campaign with a 6-4 home win against the two-person team of
Writtle A. Harry Chivers won both of his matches though was well tested in his second
match which went the distance. Josh Bickles chipped in with a 3-0 win over Trevor
Carter – Carter had earlier got the better of Kim Shead by the same scoreline. The
Writtle duo bounced back after comprehensively losing the first game to take the
doubles encounter 3-1. Chris Penrose fired a hat-trick as his Danbury A side got the
better of clubmates Danbury B by a 7-3 scoreline – teammate Bruce Kettle chipped in
with two wins. Penrose beat Neil Want in three, Sam Lowman in four and recovered from
2-1 down to beat Sanjay Saptarshi.
Division 2
Newly promoted Buttsbury A started life in division two with a bang as they beat Writtle
B 9-1. Jamie Elliott and Harrison Hill won three matches apiece with two 3-0 wins for
David Gatheral before he was undone by Trevor Carter. Martin Archie fired a treble as
last year’s division two runners-up Hatfield Peverel A started their season with a 7-3
away win at Writtle C. Archie was taken the distance by Writtle’s John Webber while the
match between Writtle’s Gary Ward and Peverel’s Paul Mulley also went to five games –
Ward recovering from 2-1 down. The fixture between Danbury D and Chelmsford C
ended in a 5-5 draw as Chelmsford’s Simon Jarvis won all three matches. Jarvis was
taken the distance by Sanjay Saptarshi who himself beat Dusan Doszkoty and Adi
Kamma. Kamma had battled back from 2-0 down against David Penrose only to see the
Danbury man take the decider.
Division 3
In Division 3, Chelmsford D won 9-1 at Hatfield Peverel B thanks to a hat-trick apiece for
both Alex Tkachuk and Mike Johnson. Peverel’s Neil Freeman may have felt unfortunate
to have been on the losing end of two five gamers – he also lost a close contest with Alex
Tkachuk. Peter Mortensen took the scalp of Adi Kamma for Peverel’s sole point but then
missed out over five games in the doubles when teaming with Mortensen. Matthew
Brown fired a treble as Writtle D earned a close 6-4 home win over Danbury J. Gus
Heath and John Tendler won two apiece for the visitors though both players lost out to
Brown – Heath having led 2-0. Gary Copsey started his season with a treble as his
Galleywood C side got the better of Chelmsford E by a 6-4 scoreline. Chelmsford’s
Alesha Ellis-Austin and James Grimston both won twice – Grimston recovered from 2-1
down to beat Bryn Thomas. Three wins for Harry Sawford backed up by two for Dennis
Squirrell spurred Buttsbury B to a 6-4 away win at Writtle E. Sawford dropped just one
game on the night – the opener in his clash with Dave Moles, while Squirrell came
through a tough battle with Malcolm Storey. A good team effort by Danbury G saw them
take home a 7-3 win from Chelmsford F despite a hat-trick from Cleon Fernandes. Denis
Crapnell and Louis Gunn both saw Fernandes recover from losing positions to earn two
of his victories in deciding games. Danbury H and OCA C were embroiled in an
entertaining contest which ended in a 6-4 win for the home side after two wins apiece
for Scott Perry, Alan Dadswell and Peter Harverson. OCA’s Tom Barker won twice but
was undone by a recovery from Perry when leading 2-0 – Barker got a measure of
revenge in the doubles contest by teaming with Luke Richardson and edging Perry and
Harverson 3-2.
Division 4
Hutton A’s 9-1 home win over OCA D was the biggest margin of victory in week one of
division four. The father-son duo of Alex and Charlie Ware helped themselves to a treble
each while Tina Hutchinson’s only loss of the night was to David Bishop. Marty
Englander hit a hat-trick and there were two wins apiece for Chris Ravenhill and Andrea
Alleyne as Maldon B beat Danbury M 8-2. Englander dropped just two games in his
three victories while Danbury’s Graham Naggs recovered from 2-0 down to beat
Ravenhill. Alex Wilson won all three singles matches and he was backed up with braces
by Greg Cooper and John Manning as Danbury L claimed a 7-3 away success at
Highwood A. Highwood’s Melanie Bonnett won two five-gamers for the hosts but lost out
to Wilson in four close games. Nick Rounce dropped just one game enroute to his three
victories in Galleywood D’s 7-3 away win at Buttsbury C. Stewart Ireland and Lewis
Armstrong both won twice for the visitors – each losing out to Buttsbury’s Kevin Willis.
Willis pushed Rounce in their contest but couldn’t quite get a game on the board losing
out 10-12, 8-11, 13-15. Dave Powell’s three wins led his Danbury K side to a 6-4 home win
over Buttsbury D. Kevin Willis was in action again for Buttsbury and he won twice as did
his teammate Phil Shippen – Shippen squeezed past Dave Oxley-Goody in the deciding
game. After a successful campaign in division five last season, Mark Nolan fired a
hat-trick in his first appearance in division four as his Chelmsford G team drew 5-5 with
Hatfield Peverel C. Deb Ginn won twice for the visitors though she was taken to five
games by Martin Brunker. Nolan had to recover from 2-1 down against Peverel’s Bob
Hillis in the evening’s opener.
Division 5
Steve Webster and Charlie Gould won three matches apiece as Hutton B opened their
division five campaign with a 9-1 away win at Highwood B. Webster dropped just one
game while Gould squeezed past Martin Goddard and Keith Pallett by identical 3-2
score lines. Jenne Seibolt and Lucy Elliott both hit hat-tricks in Buttsbury E’s 8-2 away
win at Galleywood E. The closest contest of the evening was Steve Peacock’s
come-from-behind 3-2 victory over Freya Hart. Three wins for James Raymond and two
each for Arthur Shadforth and Kym Eames fired Maldon C to an 8-2 away victory at
Hatfield Peverel F. Peverel’s David Benstead won twice for the hosts – his victory over
Kym Eames being a nail-biting 10-12, 8-11, 11-7, 13-11, 14-12. There were three wins for
Writtle F’s Michael Anthony and two for Paul Aarons as the visitors beat Hatfield Peverel
D 6-4. Peverel’s Richard Drozd won twice but lost out to Anthony despite leading 2-1.
James Grindlay won three in Chelmsford H’s 5-5 home draw with Hatfield Peverel E. The
closest match of the night was the first of Jackie Treacy’s two wins whereby she held off
a Shengbing Zhu fightback from 2-0 down to take the decider. Zhu later lost to Davina
Brazier by the same 3-2 scoreline.
Chelmsford Junior League division 1A
The all-Hutton clash went in favour of the Hawks as Jago Ware won twice in his side’s
4-1 victory over the Harriers. Ware recovered from going a game down to James
Williamson to win six games in a row, while teammate Noah Middleton let a 2-0 lead
against Oliver Davies slip before edging out Williamson over five games. The Chelmsford
Lions and the Chelmsford Tigers posted identical 3-2 wins against the two teams from
Buttsbury who fielded the same two players for both matches. Joshua Freeman won all
four of his singles matches dropping just two games in the process – his most
competitive match looked to be his 11-9, 14-12, 13-11 win over Amir Chetitah. Chetitah
and Callum Walker were involved in a tight contest with the Chelmsford player earning a
3-2 win. Chetitah and Ethan Collins clinched the match victory in the Lions-Bats doubles
encounter with a fine recovery from 2-1 down.
Chelmsford Junior League division 1B
There were two wins for Chelmsford teams in week one of junior league division 1B as
the Jaguars beat the Hutton Hyenas 4-1 and the Leopards beat the Buttsbury Bulldogs
5-0. Tianfu Liu and Sean Kwan were undefeated in their singles matches for the Jaguars
though Liu was taken the distance by both Hutton players Jacob Fernandez and Shayan
Torne. Liu’s recovery against Fernandez was especially impressive having lost the first
two games 11-1 and 11-5. Torne and Fernandez staged a fine turnaround of their own as
they won the doubles contest 3-11, 3-11, 11-9, 13-11, 16-14. Sai Suresh and Archie Spurrier
won twice apiece for the Leopards in their victory at Buttsbury. The closest match of the
night was Spurrier’s 3-2 win over Ethan Bird which finished an entertaining 9-11, 13-11,
9-11, 11-9. 13-11 to the Leopards ace.

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Jeremy Hill, Press Officer, Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League

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The Burnham & District Table Tennis League is back with a vengeance with 3 highly competitive divisions again this year.  Already some of the top players have laid down a challenge with impressive opening week performances. 

In Division 1 the League’s top player from last season, Mr Duncan Taylor, continued from where he left off with a commanding hat-trick of victories over a somewhat shell-shocked trio from Fambridge.  A match that featured 6 of the counties finest players seeing Taylor overcoming the challenges of Keith Adams, John Poysden and Gary Young, with fantastic support from his partners in crime Kevin Read and Charles Sweeny each chipping in with 2 wins.  Taylor and his trusted doubles sidekick Read are usually an odds-on bet in any league doubles encounter but this week they lost out in a marathon battle that went to 14-12 in the fifth set as the Fambridge duo of Adams and Young were equally steadfast and brave in taking the unexpected point.  Mapledene A will be looking to go one better than their runner-up spot last season and they kicked off proceedings with a very strong side that whitewashed newly promoted Woodham C.  A bit harsh on the new boys as they pushed the Mapledeners very hard taking 4 of the matches to a fifth set.  Hat-tricks all round for Liam Squirrell, George Reeves and Steve Muth.  In the final division 1 match current champions Woodham A held out for a respectable 7-3 victory over 2 man Mapledene B.  For Woodham Lee McHugh was unbeaten, and for Mapledene the irrepressible Keith Willett was on top form taking the scalps of Dan Piglet, and Sanjay Saptarshi.

In Division 2 there was drama on the banks of the Blackwater as the two top Maldon sides met in the opening match of the season.  After lots of huffing and puffing and long matches the A team emerged victorious registering an impressive 8-2 scoreline against one of the better teams in the league.  The A team’s Dawn Baldry and Hamish Innes both scored hat-tricks, with the B sides Colin Barrell and Garry Eames both picking up a point against Brian Riedling.  Cold Norton D outscored Maldon A to take the early league leader title following a comprehensive 9-1 turnover of Stow Maries C.   Hat-tricks for both Dave Hancox and Peter Lucraft, with the plucky Tim Huxtable taking the only Stow point in his victory over Roy Gandy.  Maybe this is the year for the Cold Norton D machine – they have underperformed in recent campaigns and are due a good showing!  The last match was a much closer affair as Stow B and Blackwater B traded blows throughout the contest.  Stow’s Dave Moles took his hat-trick to square the match up at 4-4 and it was anyone’s game to win from here.  Blackwater’s Louis Gunn then blasted his way past Pete Layzell to secure a precocious 5-4 lead going into the final match of the contest.  A proper new versus old encounter this as young Noah Sage, beclad in the Blackwater armour, entered the arena to do battle with the Stow stalwart Dave Marsh.  Sage took an early 2-0 lead but Marsh was not rolling over for anyone to tickle him and duly fought back to take the 3^rd leg.  In a tightly contested 4^th leg Sage emerged victorious and secured the opening week bragging rights. 6-4 to Blackwater B.

Division 3 is back to a full complement of teams and a regular home and away season.  Blackwater D have set the early pace with a stonking 9-1 victory over Maldon E.  Blackwater’s Ron Tam and Jason Bush were unbeaten but the usually reliable hat-trick merchant Peter Davenport lost out 12-10 in the deciding leg to the hard-working John Leavett.  The individual triumphs were well distributed in the draw betwixt Blackwater C and Maldon D.   Only Blackwater’s Noah Sage notched a hat-trick, with Maldon’s young starlet Arthur Shadforth picking up a brace of wins for his team.  The final match of the week had plenty of drama before a ball had been pinged or ponged as Woodham lost their captain before the kick-off against St Lawrence.  But with the recovering Gus Heath in their team that certainly had a chance of picking up some points despite being a player down.  Heath did indeed record a hat-trick but was taken all the way beyond deuce in the fifth by the dogged Mike Pratley.  Along with Pratley, Dave Siggins and Roy Hutchins both picked up a win against Diane King – with Hutchins recovering from a 0-2 deficit to flop over the finishing line.  Heath and King came from behind in the doubles to keep the scoreline a respectable 6-4 to St Lawrence.

Pic 1 – Duncan Taylor leading the Cold Norton A Charge this week

Pic 2 – Peter Lucraft of Cold Norton D in hat-trick mode this week

Pic 3 – Opening week winners – the St Lawrence Trio of Messrs Siggins, Hutchins and Pratley

Pic 4 – Brian Riedling and Steve Aspland battle it out in the Maldon derby.

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The Clacton League is sad to announce the death of Shirley Rowlen. Shirley had been League President since 2017 and her passing ends an association of nearly fifty years with local table tennis.

Shirley will be best remembered for her role as League Secretary, a position she held for almost 26 continuous years from 1976 to 2002. But even in that one year (1980) she wasn’t League Secretary, she took on the position of League Treasurer. To compound the work-load, in the 1970s the League Secretary also took on responsibility of Minutes Secretary and Tournament Officer. And, as if this wasn’t enough, for many years Shirley was also the League’s County Representative.

During this time, Shirley did much of the behind-the-scenes work as Secretary, chivvying up clubs and players at the start of the season, getting advertisers for the Handbook and, later, getting sponsorship for the League (Avents for two years and McDonalds for one), all this at a time when the League had five Divisions and over fifty teams.   

Even when the post of Tournament Officer was created in 1980, Shirley was always closely involved in the administration of the League’s tournaments, especially the Closed Championships, often spending a lot of time ‘ringing around’, urging people to enter. At the tournaments, Shirley took on the role as ‘the lady with the mike’ – which occasionally caused amusement to her colleagues on the top table when she had difficulty pronouncing unusual names!

In 1989 and 1990, when the National Top Twelve Tournaments were held at Clacton Leisure Centre, Shirley was involved in the organisation and was a steward at both events, while she was also part of the Essex County Sub-Committee which arranged the European Qualifying Competition in Brentwood in the early 1990s.

Shirley also headed the League’s Social Committee. She spear-headed the two major events which celebrated the League 50th and 60th Anniversaries (in 1988 and 1998), as well as organising other fund-raising events. These included an annual Quiz Evening, with Shirley and husband Brian setting the questions and taking turns each year as quiz-master/mistress.

And then of course there were the regular Management Committee meetings, almost always held at Brian and Shirley’s house, some of which went on until quite late at night. But everyone was always given a warm welcome, with cups of tea and biscuits supplied at appropriate intervals.

Shirley relinquished the post of League Secretary in 2002 but she was not yet done with table tennis and, after a short break, returned to the Management Committee in 2005 as the League’s first Welfare Officer. In 2007 she took on the position of Minutes Secretary, a post she held until she retired from League duties in 2013.

Although Shirley was best known for her role as an administrator, she also played League table tennis for one season (1975/76) for Brotherhood F in Division Four, the records showing she won three times in 21 matches. Her playing prowess was later displayed in end-of-season ‘Management Committee tournaments’ in the late 1990s. These were purely fun events but Shirley’s forehand hits and movement around the table were far from shabby and, with a bit of practice, it was surmised she might have become a decent lower Division player.

However, one of the drawbacks which was discovered during these evenings was that Shirley had great difficulty umpiring. This was before the use of scoreboards, and Shirley was constantly seen counting on her fingers and holding them up to remind herself of the score!

Shirley’s valued services to the League were recognised when she was awarded the League’s Bob Phillips Trophy in 1988. She was made a Vice-President in 2002, eventually assuming the role of President in 2017. Her services to table tennis were more widely recognised when she was awarded the Corti Woodcock Trophy in 1998 by the Essex County Table Tennis Association.

As a Management Committee member, Shirley was forthright and honest in her views, and always ready to speak her mind. However, there was one notable exception. During the League’s Golden Jubilee celebrations in 1988, when Shirley was presented with the Bob Phillips Trophy, the  press report stated – “The award came as a complete surprise to Shirley and left her completely speechless – yet another ‘first’ in the League’s fifty-year history!”

All in all, it is difficult to underestimate Shirley’s contribution to local table tennis during her period as League Secretary. Both she and Brian, as League Chairman, put in a tremendous amount of effort and were, without doubt, lynch-pins of the League.

And while she was a great support to Brian in the work he did, Shirley was a formidable force in her own right. Their joint contribution to League table tennis was further acknowledged in 1998 at the League’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations when they were presented with an inscribed cut-glass bowl as a token of the League’s appreciation of their long and dedicated service.

Shirley’s last public engagement was earlier this year when she attended the finals of the League’s 2024 Closed Championships, and it was a joy to see her there.

A loyal and steadfast servant of the League, and a lady with a lovely sense of fun. We’ll miss you, Shirley, and we send our sincere condolences to Donna and Paul, and their families.

Shirley’s funeral service takes place on Tuesday 1st October at 11.45 am at Weeley Crematorium. Bright colours requested.

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