Netts A have clinched the Braintree Table Tennis League title, their fourth win in five years and ninth overall.

They are now out of reach of Sudbury Nomads, despite the latter’s 8-2 win over their clubmates the Wanderers.

Aron Jordan and Richard Fifield were unbeaten in Nomads’ latest success, which leaves them needing only two points in their final match to ensure the runners-up medals.

That would put them out of reach of Rayne A, who beat Liberal B 9-1.  Doubtless they would have been closer had Paul Lucas been available, but this was only his second match of the season.

Netts B moved into fifth place – Chris Parr unbeaten – with an 8-2 win over Black Notley B while Brandon Crouchman made a rare appearance to enable Liberal A to draw at Rayne B.

Division two leaders Rayne C can’t get the champagne out yet but a 6-4 win over Sudbury Strollers, the only team who could technically overtake them, means it won’t be long.

Against Strollers, Matthew Brown gained revenge on David Fiddeman, one of only two people to beat him so far, and with almost identical scores.  In November Fiddeman won 11-8, 11-6, 11-8.  This time Brown took it 11-6, 11-8, 11-9.

The rest of the division swapped places as usual with Notley C moving back up to second place despite a 6-4 defeat at the hands of Yeldham Whitlocks A. Jamie Brooks won his three singles for Notley plus the doubles with Jim Davy.

Netts D shared the points with Finchingfield A, with JJ Calisin unbeaten, while Notley D’s hold on their place is looking more unsteady after their 8-2 defeat by Rayne E.

In division three it is Finchingfield B’s grip that is unravelling – in their case on the top spot. After establishing a comfortable lead at the top when they won their first seven matches, they have now won only twice in the last seven, the latest defeat coming at the hands of Netts F, where James Howard’s three sets led them to a 7-3 victory.

That enabled Notley E to stretch their lead at the top after an 8-2 win over bottom team Netts E, for whom Lindsey Dodd won twice but couldn’t get past Dave Parker.

Fourth-placed Rayne G lost 6-4 to Notley G, the team immediately below them while Sudbury Drifters had an 8-2 win over Rayne G and Notley F beat a two-person Yeldham B 9-1.

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Wayne Wilson, Matthew Brown and Peter Davenport were the major winners at the first individual championships weekend.

Wilson won the handicap singles while Brown was successful in the division two singles and Davenport in the division three equivalent.

Wilson, giving away a three-point start, beat James Howard in the final of the handicap 21-13, 21-17, and Davenport 21-15, 21-17 in the semi-final, this time receiving three start.

Davenport’s success in the division three event came at the expense of Howard’s Netts F teammate Tom Verrier 11-4, 11-8, 4-11, 12-10 in the final after a win over Howard in the semi-final.

Brown had a close match with Charles Calisin in the semi-final of the division two event, pulling through only at 11-8 in the fifth game, before beating David Fiddeman 11-4, 11-7, 12-10 in the final – just four days after beating him in the league.

Alesha Ellis-Austin and Ashley Skeggs will contest the division one final on finals night on April 24.  They progressed via Rev Matthews and Ken Lewis respectively in the semi-finals.

The final of the handicap doubles, where partners are randomly drawn on the day, was won by Adam Clift and James Grimston, on minus 12, over Cley Dearsley and Ethan Collins 24-22, 21-19.

Skeggs won the hardbat singles with an 8-11, 11-4, 11-8 victory in the final over Steve Noble.

Report by Ron Fosker

This week saw the culmination of the annual Burnham & District Table Tennis Closed Championships.  Finals Night was held at Champions Manor Hall in South Woodham, and a baying crowd got to witness some superb sport across an evening that revealed the final 5 winners.  Dan Young was the big winner – taking the coveted Singles Crown – adding this to several other league titles won this season.

Mens Singles 2026

There were no major upsets in the preliminary groups so all the big dogs were battling it out from the round of 16.   The first upset of the day saw Simon Jacob take out 4^th seed Kevin Read and then in the quarters Jacob continued his dominance of his draw as he got the better of John Poysden.  So Jacob was through to the semi-finals, and on the other side of his half of the draw top seed Daniel Young came through unscathed.  Sam Lowman was a man on a mission at the weekend events and in the last 16 he faced multiple previous winner and #2 seed Duncan Taylor.  Lowman came out like a rocket and went 2-0 up in record speed with Taylor unable to counter any of his ferocious attacks.  Taylor is no fool and he tightened up his play in the latter sets and forced Lowman into an over aggressive stance that did not pay dividends.  Taylor, using all his nous, had recovered the match to 2-2 and looked the favourite going into the decider.  The final leg was a bit more considered and with a pinch of patience added to his play Lowman was connecting more effectively and eventually just edged this one to progress to the quarter-final stage.  Lowman came up against team-mate Ian wall but no favours were asked for or given and Lowman prevailed.  Third seed Keith Adams came through his draw to set up the semi with Lowman by getting the better of Charles Sweeny and then Kieran Skeggs in a volatile encounter.

In the semis Keith Adams came through 3-1 against Sam Lowman.  The match was tight with the tense 3^rd leg going to 15-13 after an unauthorised towelling down incident at 13-13 that clearly upset the Lowman focus.  Adams then got a good start in the 4^th leg and Lowman was unable to regain the focus required to compete.  The semi between Dan Young and Simon Jacob seemed closer than the scores suggest even though Young won in straight sets. Jacob was close in the first two sets but every time he got within a point Young would go through the gears to stay ahead.   So to the Final where Young got off to a flying start as he took the opening leg 11-3 in record time.  Perhaps it was too easy for Young as he relaxed too much and this allowed Adams to work his way not only back into the game but to take the lead winning the next 2 legs 11-7, 11-7.  Young came out fired up in the 4^th and quickly went to 6-0 with some rapid shooting, but again Adams retaliated and actually got back to 8-9, and then deuce before losing out 11-13.  The final leg was tense and points were shared tit-for-tat until Adams found himself 8-6 up and in touching distance of the Bob Cole Cup.  But like a caged animal when it is cornered, it is at its most dangerous, and the beast in Young was released and he fired off the next 5 points with some aplomb to take back the crown he last held as a 17 year old in 2019.

Mixed Doubles 2026

After a couple of years out through injuries the Duncan Taylor (Cold Norton) & Andrea Alleyne (Blackwater) partnership is back in full swing and in the early rounds everything went well as the top seeds overcame the tricky Mapledene pairing of Simon Jacob and Sue Body in the first semi-final that went to 5 legs.  On the other side of the draw Ian Wall (Cold Norton) & Lin Roff (Mapledene) had their own tough 5 setter with George Reeves and Tina Hutchinson.  The Final itself was an enjoyable affair where Wall & Roff took an early 2-0 lead being the most consistent of the pairings.  The 3^rd leg was awesome and a fitting finale to any match as Taylor & Alleyne found they needed to attack more and so the game opened up and we had a plethora of fantastic rallies – with Alleyne often hitting the winners.  As we went past deuce and up to 14-14 the lead had switched several times until eventually Wall & Roff broke the defence of their opponents to claim the Kevin Briggs Trophy

Men’s Doubles 2026

Sam Lowman & Charles Sweeny (Cold Norton) were a scratch pair establish by the seeding committee based on a desire to compete – even though seeded #4 they played superbly, really complementing each other and look a good bet to go all the way.  In the quarters they bested George Reeves and Steve Muth, and followed that by knocking out the top seeds Duncan Taylor & Kevin Read – that’s some passage!  Their Final were the unseeded Simon Jacob & David Jacob (Mapledene) – affectionately known as the ‘Jacob Crackers’ – who had to come through the preliminaries before they faced #2 seeds Ian Wall and Dan Young in a remarkable match where the Jacob brothers faced and rescued match points in both the 4^th and 5^th legs which they eventually won 14-12 and then 15-13 – that’s some True Grit for sure.  After that drama they still had to face another tricky battle with #3 seeds Keith Adams and Dan Zeffie – but again they triumphed.  So all top 3 seeds fell before Finals Night and the Seeding Committee are considering their hara-kiri options as we speak. 

In the Final the scratch pairing of Lowman and Sweeny failed to catch up with the honed technique of the Jacob Brothers who have years of experience of playing together.  The surprising element was the attacking prowess of David Jacob – we are all aware of how both of the brothers have great control around the table with superb defensive capabilities but it was the slapped forehands of David that made the difference in the first two legs where the Mapledene duo took an early 2-0 lead.  In the 3^rd set Lowman in particular was on fire and his low and forceful loops were hitting the back of the net more often than not and this turned the tide in favour of the chasing duo as they pulled back a leg.  The 4^th leg was a much closer affair and at 9-9 it looked like we might be in for a 5 setter, but a couple of loose shots from Sweeny gave the Jacobs their first Burnham Title.  They went Crackers!

Veteran Singles 2026

The Seeding Committee are pleased with this one as the top 2 seeds made the Final but there was some drama along the way.  In the round of 16 Eamonn Hall came back from a seemingly unassailable 0-2 deficit to score a notable scalp over Eric Green, and then in the quarter-finals Simon Jacob repeated his earlier antics when he upset the seedings by beating John Poysden again.  Jacob was now pitted against Duncan Taylor in the first semi, after Taylor had beaten George Reeves in the quarter-final.  An appealing mismatch of styles saw Jacob unable to get to grips with the best tactic against the defence minded Taylor and Taylor progressed.  On the other side of the draw Keith Adams came through getting past Steve Muth and then Kevin Read in the semi-final.  The Final was one of the most anticipated matches of Finals Night and it didn’t disappoint.  Taylor was out of the blocks very slowly and whippersnapper Adams had him locked down at 2-0 with some very aggressive shooting.  Taylor had a word with himself and fought harder in the 3^rd leg taking it 11-9 to set up the match nicely.  The 4^th leg still remains a mystery to those who witnessed it.  Adams went 6-0 up very quickly with masterful use of nets and edges, and even at 8-2 up it looked like the leg and Title were his – but despite the ongoing influx of further nets and edges Taylor was not for the chop and he ground the most amazing leg victory with a very satisfying edge for an 11-9 win.  The deciding leg went point for point until we reached 9-8 to Taylor.  Adams pulled backed to 9-9 and then forced an error from a Taylor retrieval to have the first match point – at which point Taylor decides to attack and his forehand smash caught the top of the net and sailed just beyond the back of the table for an Adams victory 11-9 in the fifth.

Ladies’ Singles Final

The preliminary groups brought the top 4 players together for the semi-finals but perhaps not in the predicted order, and with recent champion Dawn Baldry not in the field the bookies were at a loss for this one.  Lin Roff had to face off her Mapledene team-mate Sue Body in her semi, whilst Tina Hutchinson had to battle it out with Debbie O’Neill to reach the Final.

Roff was a firm favourite to reclaim the Ladies Singles title but she didn’t have it all her own way in a final that saw plenty of attacking table tennis, mainly from Hutchinson on both forehand and backhand.  Roff took the opening set 11-8 as Hutchinson had a nervy start.  But in the second leg those nerves dissipated and we got to see the free flowing Hutchinson attack as she blasted her way to an 11-7 leg.  The pattern of play was now established but Roff was defending well and over the next two legs was the most consistent and this culminated in a 3-1 victory.

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Eamonn Hall, Press Officer

Burnham & District Table Tennis League

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Pic 1 – Men’s Singles Final – Young v Adams

Pic 2 – Mixed Doubles Final 2026

Pic 3 – Men’s Doubles Final 2026

Pic 4 – Veteran Singles Final 2026 – Taylor v Adams

Pic 5 – Ladies Final 2026 – Roff v Hutchinson

Pic 6 – Men’s Doubles winners – David and Simon Jacob.

Last weekend saw the Burnham & District Table Tennis Annual Closed Championships where we were able to sort out the wheat from the chaff and crown the various discipline, divisional and age group champions.  In the events that were finalised over the weekend’s play there were 3 players that shone the brightest each taking two titles – Arron Chandler, Peter Harverson, and the ever young John Poysden.

John Poysden was totally dominant in the Super Vets categories where he won both the Over 60s and Over 70s Singles.  In the Over 60s Poysden beat Eric Green in the Final to retain his trophy, whilst in the Over 70s Poysden was deemed a youngster and a new kid on the block.  He quickly earned the respect of his elders mind as he quickly rampaged through the field defeating Hamish Innes in straight sets in the Final.  Innes had come through a very tricky semi-final to meet Poysden in the glory match – eventually winning 11-9 in the deciding leg against a hard-working Dick Wyman, the now ousted holder of the trophy (can we have our cup back please?).

Innes was not overly disappointed at his loss in the Over 70s Final as he had already secured a phenomenal win in the Dan Richardson Trophy for players from Division 2 and down.  A really tough field to crack.  Innes upset the seeding as far back as the group stages where he beat Graham Briggs to reverse the seeding order.  This led to Briggs meeting and defeating top seed Colin Napper early in the knockout stages.  Innes had a hard road to the Final with victories over Pat White, holder Adi Kamma, and then Briggs (again) in the Final.  The Final itself was immense – one of the best for years – with Briggs throwing everything he had at the stoic defence of Innes.  But the Innes wall held stern and the game went back and forth with Briggs levelling at 2-2.  The final leg was more of the same with Briggs attacking at full pelt but the legs and lungs of Innes held good and his control and calmness just got the better of the more ebullient Briggs.  A worthy Final in honour of our departed friend Dan Richardson, and a very worthy winner. 

Peter Harverson is one of the most improved players on the circuit this year, and it was no surprise when he took the Junior Singles title without dropping a set, with Oscar Wyman pipping Luca Riedling for the Runner-Up spot.  Harverson continued his good form into the Handicap Singles where he came through several rounds including a tricky win over Arron Chandler before meeting Colin Napper in a semi-final that went to a deciding leg before Harverson won out 21-17 against the defensive king.  His opponent in the final was Eamonn Hall who had come through a remarkable 55 minute 3 legged semi-final battle with Harry Sawford.  Hall, Harverson, and Sawford all come from the Woodham B stable and it is no wonder they have made it to the Team Handicap Final this year.  The Final was another long and tough battle with Hall taking the first leg before Harverson got his loopy lefty forehands going.  Harverson’s forehand loops gave him the edge and despite lots of long rallies he eventually took the deciding leg 21-16 for his second title of the day.

The Mixed Open Singles is a randomly drawn event for all players except the top 12 ranked players at the tournament.  Another bumper field this year saw lots of preliminary round ties before we got to the last 16 knockout phase.  Despite lots of tough matches there were no real big shocks up to the semi-finals where Arron Chandler got the better of Eric Green and then Harry Sawford got one over on Charles Sweeny.  So a young and athletic Final was on the cards.  Actually it was a bit more cagey as both players went looking for the right shots to hit – and on the day Chandler’s hit rate and accuracy was enough to get past the extensive reach of Sawford who was playing in his first Burnham Final.  In the final event of the day Chandler took to the hard bat discipline like an otter to water.  Different bats and a slightly different format but no bother to Chandler.  In the quarter-final he ousted team-mate Dan Anderson for a semi-final match-up with hardbat specialist Eric Green.  On the other side of the draw Dan Young had made it through for a semi with Ian Wall.  A high-quality final four in this one.  Both semis kicked off together and in the opening legs both games went to a sudden death winner takes all golden point at 14-14.  Coming from behind Chandler took the opener against Green, and Young nicked it against Wall.  Both Chandler and Young went on to win tight second legs to set up an all action Marty Supremesque Final.  The Final saw Young more defensive than expected and Chandler quickly took the opening leg 15-8, before a more accurate Young hit back to square the final with a second leg 15-13 score.  The deciding leg was tight with the lead being shared with Young looking the most likely to succeed as he led in the final stages.  That was until Chandler gave up the ghost and forced Young into some unnecessary attacking shots that didn’t quite land and Chandler took the final few points for a 15-13 final leg victory.  Two in the bag for Chandler!

In the Fambridge Trophy event, Woodham’s Simon Thomas was looking to recover the trophy he last won in 1998.  Despite reaching the Final he couldn’t get the better of the hard-hitting and deserved winner Neil Thompson who won in 4 sets for his fist Burnham title.

On Sunday the Ladies’ Doubles proved a popular event that saw the amazing Shirley Carroll pick up her 17^th winners medal in this event as her and partner Dawn Baldry went undefeated in the round robin schedule.  Carroll first won this event in 1976 – 50 years ago – a truly amazing feat.  Runners-up were Sue Body and Debbie O’Neill from Mapledene TTC.

In the Veterans Doubles (over 40s) Kevin Read and Duncan Taylor maintained their stranglehold on this event with another masterful display of doubles.  On the way to the Final they had to overcome the in-form duo of the weekend in the guise of David and Simon Jacob.  Their opponents in the Final were Steve Muth and George Reeves who themselves had upset the apple cart when they just about knocked out Keith Adams and Eric Green after a ding dong of a post deuce final set.  The Final was pretty close in the first 2 legs despite Read and Taylor taking both with Reeves hitting some cracking forehands.  Alas the third, and as it turns out final leg, just got away from Muth and Reeves and Read and Taylor were able to maintain this crown they have held for so long.

The only other Final of the weekend was The Consolation Plate Final for all players knocked out in the Group Stages of the main Singles events.  This one produced another set of semi-finals featuring 3 Woodham players.  In the first semi Dan Piglet outplayed Dan Anderson to reach the Final, and in the all-Woodham semi-final Peter Harverson was up against Eamonn Hall again.  Another close one but again Harverson was too strong on the day as he came through in 4 sets.  The Final was a proper rollercoaster with Harverson taking legs 1 and 4 with Piglet taking the middle two for a final leg winner takes all finale.  Throughout this match both players had been back from the table swapping long hard-hitting rallies and the final leg was no different with Piglet just doing enough to take home his plate of bacon.

A huge nod of thanks and appreciation for the chief organiser of the event Tim Huxtable for a smooth and fun tournament.

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Eamonn Hall, Press Officer

Burnham & District Table Tennis League

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Pic 1 – Junior Singles Winner and Runner-up 2026 – Peter Harverson and Oscar Wyman

Pic 2 – Ladies Doubles Winners 2026 – Shirley Carroll and Dawn Baldry

Pic 3 – The ever young John Poysden triumphing in the Over 60s and Over 70s Singles.

Pic 4 – HardBat Final 2026 – Dan Young v Arron Chandler

Pic 5 – Action from the Dan Richardson Trophy 2026 Final between Hamish Innes and Graham Briggs

Pic 6 – Mixed Open 2026 Finalists – Harry Sawford and Arron Chandler.

The Sudbury club have got two teams through to the semi-final of the Braintree Table Tennis League

handicap cup.

They have been kept apart in the draw so an all-Sudbury final is possible.  If so, it would be the first one-club final for 16 years.

Unlike previous rounds the quarter finals were all close affairs, two 5-4s, a 5-3 and a 6-3.

Sudbury Drifters were one of the 5-4 winners, coming from 4-3 down to beat Finchingfield B.  Ray Bradford did his best to thwart them by winning his three sets but two each for Geoff Barrett and Simon Grinham and one from Terry Hunneybel saw them through

Netts F accounted for the other 5-4 scoreline.  Three wins from Tom Verrier and two from James Howard accounted for Yeldham Whitlocks B.

Sudbury Strollers beat Black Notley G 5-3, with David Fiddeman unbeaten, while Rayne E had the most convincing win, 6-3 against Netts C, with Richard Whiteside’s three sets leading the way.

In the league division one the leaders both had comfortable victories, Netts A 8-2 against Rayne B and Sudbury Nomads 7-3 over Liberal A.

James Hicks was unbeaten for Netts while Karl Baldwin, Ken Lewis and Richard Fifield all won two for Nomads.

There were also two wins each for Adam Clift, Sean Clift and Chris Parr in Netts B’s 7-3 win over Sudbury Wanderers

In rearranged matches, Liberal B sprang something of a surprise by beating their own A team 6-4 (Ashley Skeggs unbeaten) while Rayne won the battle of the B teams with a win by the same score against Netts’ second string.  Peter Hance and Adi Kamma were unbeaten

In division two, Netts C improved their chances of the runners-up medals with a 7-3 win over Notley D but the smart money remains on Sudbury Strollers climbing from their lowly perch once they catch up on their matches.

They beat the higher-placed Rayne E 7-3 to make it five wins in a row.

In a rearranged match Rayne E made up for that defeat with an 8-2 win over Finchingfield A, Whiteside and James Grimston unbeaten.

Yeldham A owed their 6-4 win over Rayne D to Doug Sanders who for the first time this season bettered his teammate Roy Hooper, who lost to Dean Andrews.  Sanders dismissed Andrews 11-4, 11-4, 11-8.

Notley C featured in two close matches, a draw with Netts D and a 6-4 win over Notley D.

The fast-improving JJ Calisin took his three singles and the doubles with dad Jimmy for Netts D

Jamie Brooks was one of his victims but he recovered to win all three in their later match.

Report by Ron Fosker

Southend League – Division 2

The final week of the season and whilst the top and bottom positions in the league had been decided the second promotion and relegation places had yet to be confirmed. Three teams were involved at the bottom of the table Invicta B (54pts), Matchpoint C (54pts) and Hockley E (58pts). Invicta had to play Hockley and Matchpoint C had to play their B team who were also involved in the battle for promotion. To avoid relegation Invicta needed 7 points to finish above Hockley, Hockley required 3 points to finish above Invicta whilst Matchpoint C require a minimum of 5 points to beat Hockley’s total but more depending on their result against Invicta. Invicta and Hockley played first so Matchpoint would know exactly how many points were required when they came to play.

The week started at Invicta and Hockley found themselves without the returning Dave Chenery who was unbeaten in his previous games so far, but got off to the best possible start with Richard Kidd beating Andrew St. John in straight sets. After that though the Invicta boys found little resistance racing through the next six games to lead 6-1 just one short of their target. Kidd then came to Hockley’s rescue again as he came back from two sets down against Keith Baxter to keep his team in with a chance of getting that vital third point, but only to see it all end in vain as St. John defeated John George in straight sets to save Invicta and leave Hockley on the brink. John Blackman, with three wins, made up the winning Invicta team.

All eyes now turned to the ‘derby’ match between Matchpoint C and B. The C team now new they needed 7 points to ensure safety and relegate Hockley and, at the same time, the B team needed just 2 points to overtake Canvey in second place and gain promotion to Division 1. On paper this should have been a straight forward win for the B team the C team having struggled most of the season winning just three games. Admittedly they were without injured captain John Lott but they did have Hannah Harbour who boasted an unbeaten record in the league this season. Surely if she played she should win her three games, enough to promote the B team and relegate the C. To quote a well known saying however, ‘the show’s not over until the fat lady sings,’ and when the teams lined up on the night you would be hard put to tell which team was B and which was C.

The B team fielded regular Colin Barham but then had to call on D team players Poppy Sherman and Gary Crouch whilst the C team turned out regulars Richard Sloman, Samuel Morgan and Zachary Samuels. What would the Hockley players be thinking when they saw that line up? Whatever they did they wouldn’t have expected what happened as the C team ran out 9-0 winners to save themselves and prevent the B team from going up to Division 1. Hockley must have been distraught!  The match was remarkably one sided with one match going to five sets, two going to four sets but the rest all done in straight sets. The bookies would have done well on that one!

Turning to the rest of the games with the top two teams now confirmed, Hockley D, sitting in fourth place, thumped Stanford 9-0 and moved up a place into third after Matchpoint B’s unexpected defeat. In truth, they didn’t have to work too hard as Stanford had to call on Karen Kempster and Andrew Jessop from their D team to play with regular Randy Santiago but they were outclassed by the Hockley team of Brian Bissenden, Howard Collins and Paul Ogden. Not one set dropped all night!

Final match of the season saw already relegated Basildon C at home to Runnymede who, unfortunately, could only field two players. Having that advantage helped Basildon to a 7-2 win with Ross Letham winning his two games whilst Michael Elemide and Anton Kudyniuk weighed in with a point each. Andrew Humphris also got a brace for Runnymede.

Team of the Week – Invicta B

Player of the Week – John Blackman

As the end of the season approaches, a touch of vertigo has set in at the top of
division three of the Braintree Table Tennis League where both the leading
contenders suffered surprise defeats.
Black Notley E and Finchingfield B had only one reverse each behind them but found
their records dented by Rayne F and Notley H respectively, in both cases by 6-4.
Finchingfield had an excuse in that their top player Lucien Nolan-Bradford was
absent.
Stewart Grant won twice, including a good win over Wayne Wilson, who had lost only
eight out of 38.
But it was Wayne’s son 17-year-old son Harry who was the star of the evening,
winning all three.
No excuses for Notley E, who had their No.1 Peter Davenport in action against
Rayne F.
But he lost for only the fourth time when Dave Whiting, who had lost to him in the
first half of the season, edged home at 11-8 in the fifth game.
Whiting completed his hat-trick for the evening while Karl Bowden, borrowed from
the G team, added two more and Alastair Brown one.
Earlier it had been Nolan-Bradford whose record received its first dent of the season.
After an outstanding run of eleven matches without defeat, he was unable to wear
down a resolute Ben Southgate, who triumphed 16-14 in the fifth game in the match
against Notley G.
Surprisingly it was Finchingfield’s only blemish as Ray Bradford and Chad Rose led
them to a 9-1 win.
That win enabled them to close the gap on Notley E to three points as their rivals
were held to a draw by Netts F, Davenport undefeated this time.

With a match in hand, Finchingfield would appear to be in the driving seat, but they
have a tough run-in with two matches against Rayne F and one against Netts F, the
teams in fourth and third place respectively, while Notley E face the teams currently
seventh, eighth and eleventh.
Netts F – equal with Rayne F on points and matches won but ahead because they
have drawn more matches – added a 7-3 win over Notley G while Rayne F had a 6-4
win over Sudbury Drifters, Whiting inflicting only the second defeat of the season on
Graham Turner.
Before their victory over Finchingfield B, Notley H had gone down 6-4 to Notley F,
despite three wins for Wayne Wilson.
Yeldham Whitlocks B improved their chances of staying out of the bottom two with a
7-3 victory over Rayne G, including a good win for Steve Willis over Karl Bowden, a
player with 35 wins out of 42 behind him.

Report by Ron Fosker

The Nomads and Brotherhood Clubs are dominating the Clacton and
District League’s Handicap Cup competition this season, with two
teams from each Club reaching the semi-finals.
The all-Division Two quarter-final between Nomads Tigers and
Brotherhood F proved a nail-biter, the scores see-sawing
throughout the evening. Brotherhood won four of the five matches
which went the distance but it was the Tigers who, from 4-3 down,
took the final two matches of the evening to emerge narrow 5-4
victors.
In a fine team effort, Tom Wilkin, Matt Sage and Alex Baldock each
won one singles for the Tigers, with skipper Wilkin combining with
his team-mates to take two of the three doubles played.
Cup-holders Nomads Lions booked their place in the semi-finals by
avenging a defeat in the Group stage by Brotherhood J, edging past
their Second Division opponents 5-3. The match-score stood all 3-3
but Paul Hume and Ethan Lloyd pulled out the stops to take a
singles win apiece to seal the deal for the Lions. Hume, who
remained unbeaten on the night, was involved in the closest match
of the contest, (on-6) beating the Brotherhood number one Joe
Sherwin (+2) 11-7 in the decider.
In the only all-Division One tie, Brotherhood A ended the Windsor
Club’s involvement in the competition this year with a 5-1 victory
over the Hawks. The first two matches proved pivotal,
Brotherhood’s Kevin Gowlett and Gary Young (-6) taking the
opening doubles 11-6 in the fifth against Scott Campbell and John
Barton (+2), and Daniel Young (-1) beating Andy Vincent (+2), also
11-6 in the fifth. Two singles wins for Gowlett, who remained
unbeaten, and one for Gary Young secured the victory.

Division Two Brotherhood D are the fourth side in the semi-finals.
They used their handicap advantages to good effect against club-
mates Brotherhood C from Division One to win 5-0, Russell Stone,
Kevin Pryor and Lily Liu the wining trio. Only one match went the
distance, Liu (+1) defeating John Cleasby (-6) 11-5 in the fifth.
So the semi-finals will see two teams from each of the Brotherhood
and Nomads clubs, with each Club being represented by a First
Division and Second Division team. Nomads Lions, the Cup-holders,
will be aiming to become the first team in forty years to win the Cup
in successive seasons, a feat last achieved by Great Holland A in
1985 and 1986. Meanwhile, Nomads Tigers, who played last season
as Nomads Bobcats, will be hoping to go one better than last year
when they finished as beaten finalists.
There still remains the prospect of an all-Division One final between
the League’s top teams; or there could be an all-Second Division
final for the first time since 2005; or it could be an all-Nomads or
all-Brotherhood final. All will depend on the draw which will be
made within the next few days.

• Brotherhood A’s good week continued in Division One of the
  League when the same Cup-winning trio of Young, Young and
  Gowlett inflicted a comprehensive 10-0 defeat on Walton A to move
  back to the top of the table. All the matches, except the doubles,
  were settled in three-straight, Gowlett and Gary Young defeating
  Mark Gale and Paul Meikle 11-7 in the decider.
  Windsor Eagles took all four matches which went the distance to
  defeat Nomads Panthers 9-1. Gary Cattermole and John Pattrick
  both took hat-tricks, although it was 12-10 in the fifth for Pattrick
  against John Hatley and an even tighter 14-12 in the fifth for the
  same player against Kevin James. Hatley’s victory over Gavin Price
  in the opening match of the evening was the Panthers’ sole success.
  The Panthers, playing with a reserve, suffered a second defeat, this
  at the hands of Windsor Hawks, Felipe Rodriguez, Andy Vincent and
  Scott Campbell each winning two in their 6-4 victory. For the
  Panthers, Denes Somodi won two and shared a 13-11 in the fifth
  doubles win with Gill Locke over Rodriguez and Campbell. Locke
  enjoyed a win over Rodriguez, but went down 11-4 in the decider to
  Campbell and 11-9 in the decider to Vincent.
  Although Nomads Panthers remain a highly-talented and much-
  respected outfit, these results may well signal the end of an era for
  a team which has ruled over Clacton League table tennis in recent
  seasons. The Panthers’ record of winning the First Division title for a
  record twelve years in succession from 2012-13 to 2024-25 is a

proud one, and one which may stand for many years to come.
For the record, this week was the first time since the 2010-11
season, a season in which the Panthers finished mid-table, that a
Panthers’ side has lost 9-1, and also the first time since then that
they’ve lost two consecutive League matches.
Just one match in Division Two saw Windsor Penguins defeat
Windsor Harriers 7-3 for a second time this season. Barry Allen took
all three of the Harriers’ points, his treble including an 11-3 in the
decider win over Paul Woolnough and an 11-7 in the decider win
over Kelvin Olano-Harper. However, two each for Olano-Harper,
Woolnough and the improving Paul Stanton, plus an 11-8 in the fifth
doubles win for Olano-Harper and Stanton over Allen and Isabel
Barton, gave the Penguins a well-deserved victory.
Every player picked up at least a point as Brotherhood E edged past
Walton C 6-4 in Division Three. Jack Hillier’s treble for
Brotherhood included a 12-10 in the decider win over Lynette
Sparks, while Tony Edmonds and Joe Hillier each won one, Hillier
beating Adrian Sexton 11-9 in the decider. However, the doubles
ultimately proved crucial, Joe Hillier and Rodney Betts getting past
Sparks and Sexton 13-11, 15-17, 11-6, 9-11, 12-10. For Walton,
Sparks won two, and Sexton and Pallett one each. The two sides
are now level in fourth place on 65 points.
Holland Lancasters and Windsor Falcons are also two closely-
matched teams, separated by just two points in the League, and so
it was somewhat appropriate that their match finished all-square.
Peter Evans recorded a hat-trick for the Lancasters and shared an
11-4 in the fifth doubles win with Dave Wright over Gary Barnes
and Nikki Hayes. Dave Wright picked up the fifth Lancasters’ point.
For the Falcons, there were two each for Barnes and Hayes, Hayes
enjoying a fine 11-6 in the fifth victory over Wright, while there was
a win on League debut for Windsor’s Josh Court.
But it was far easier for the Lancasters against a Nomads Ocelots’
team once again having to play with a guest, Evans, Wright and
Tony Aresti taking it 10-0 for the Holland side.

• The closing date for this year’s Closed Championships is fast
  approaching. All entries must be in by Friday 20th March. The
  Championships, once again sponsored by Gary Cattermole and The
  Survey Initiative, take place on 11th and 12th April at the Lift
  School (formerly Clacton Coastal Academy) Sports Hall.
• The League’s Quiz Evening takes place next Saturday (21st
  March) at the Brotherhood Hall, starting at 7.30 pm. The cost, for

teams of up to six people, is £5.00 per person. For more
information, or to enter a team, telephone Ferdy Rodriguez on
07565 767266 or 01255 830951, or e-mail Ferdy on
fernando.rodriguez@sky.com
RESULTS
Handicap Cup : Round Two
Brotherhood A 5 Windsor Hawks 1;
Brotherhood D 5 Brotherhood C 0;
Nomads Lions 5 Brotherhood J 3;
Nomads Tigers 5 Brotherhood F 4.
League
Division One
Walton A 0 Brotherhood A 10;
Windsor Eagles 9 Nomads Panthers 1;
Windsor Hawks 6 Nomads Panthers 4.
Division Two
Windsor Penguins 7 Windsor Harriers 3.
Division Three
Brotherhood E 6 Walton C 4;
Holland Lancasters 5 Windsor Falcons 5;
Nomads Ocelots 0 Holland Lancasters 10.

Report by Tony Oswick

The big dogs in the top Division of the Burnham & District Table Tennis Winter League met this week in what could have been a big-winner-takes all battle.  A battle did ensue and Cold Norton B were the surprise victors on the night but the tight margin of that victory means that Fambridge can still nick the title at the death – so all eyes on the final round of matches and the League adjudicators calculator.

A strong Fambridge side travelled to Cold Norton this week knowing that a high scoring victory would probably secure an unexpected title and leave Cold Norton B weeping tears of what might have been.  Despite illness and injury in the Norton camp they fielded what would traditionally be their strongest line-up but would their bodies hold up across what was surely to be an eventful evening.  Sky and TNT were both in town to record and broadcast the ‘Battle of Burnham’ so everyone was on edge.  The opening game set the scene as Fambridge supremo and England’s finest John Poysden took an early 2-1 lead over the recovering Eric Green.  From somewhere deep inside Green fought back to square the match at 2-2 and then the decider went to a tense deuce battle – with both players having match points in the tit-for-tat rallies that took this one match over the ½ hour mark.  Eventually Green won through 16-14 and that swing of 2 points may be the difference come the reckoning hour.  What a start!  Keith Adams then pulled one back against the injured Ian Wall before a very focussed Sam Lowman got the better of Bruce Kettle to put Cold Norton 2-1 up.  Poysden avenged his early 5 set loss with a 5 set victory over Wall to maintain the rollercoaster scoring.  Cold Norton then turned the screws with 2 wins on the bounce – a 5 set battle that saw Green turn the Kettle off, and Lowman out loopylooped Adams.  The doubles was crucial – and another 5 setter for the in-house crowd and the millions tuned in across the world.  Green and Lowman let a 2-1 lead slip as Kettle and Adams took the tight 4^th set 13-11 – but this only served to rouse the Norton pairing and they won out 11-6 in the decider – another crucial battle won on the night.  At 5-2 the Norton Boys were in shock and their final point came as Sam Lowman wrapped up his hat-trick and the overall 6-4 victory against Poysden.  So the teams are 2 points apart with just one round of fixtures to go – watch this space. 

Elsewhere in the top Division there was an alphabetical upset in the Woodham derby when B defeated A – great to see some of our younger players hitting hat-tricks.  Peter Harverson took his second treble of the season, and Harry Sawford bagged his third, with thridwheel Eamonn Hall taking two points, only losing out to Dan Piglet who nicked the A team’s only singles point of the evening.  Mapledene B had an excellent win over Cold Norton A with some notable victories within the 7-3 scoreline.  Simon Jacob continues his fine run of form with another treble that takes him into the tournament as a real contender for a Finals Night feature.  Jacob’s toughest match was a comeback 5-setter against the lively Matt Stringer.  In fact Stringer was strung out all evening as he was subjected to two further 5 set skirmishes.  He almost lost out against Penhold wizard Colin Chatfield despite taking an early 2-0 lead.  Chatfield fought back but Stringer just had the edge in the decider as he won out 11-8.  However he couldn’t hold out against the tricky style of David Jacob and in the final leg it was the consistent and thoughtful style of Jacob that took the points against the more flamboyant Stringer style.  Between them Chatfield and David Jacob did get the better of Stringer in the doubles – a short one for Mr Stringer as it only lasted 4 sets!  For Cold Norton Charles Sweeny took two points on the night to keep the scorecard respectable. 

The battle for supremacy in Division 2 took a well earned break this week leaving us time to focus on the amazing battle at the other end of the table where 5 teams are now separated by just 2 points and race to be relegated is as tight as an otter’s pocket.   Cold Norton D remain on the precipice with just 2 games to go but curried up an unexpected win this week against a strong Mapledene C side.  A 6-4 victory wasn’t quite enough to jump off the bottom but they are now in a 3 way tie for the automatic relegation slot.  Neil Want hit two wins including a tight 12-10 in the fifth delight over Lin Roff, no doubt the winning shot was a dodgy net.  Rob Harris also chipped in with 2 wins, and then combined with Want for the doubles bonus.  Tony Forster added the final point with another 5 setter as he came from behind to get past the tricky Mike Johnston.  For Mapledene both Denis Squirrell and Roff took two wins for their haul across the evenings play.  Maldon C lost out to Blackwater B by a 7-3 margin and that puts them level at the bottom with both Maldon B and Cold Norton D.  The Maldon trio team took a real Quelching at the hands of Blackwater B as they succumbed to the cultured play of talisman Simon Quelch.  Quelch took his hat-trick although struggled to get past the defensive nous of Brian Riedling and only eventually won out at 14-12 in the decider.  Merv Perriman was in fine fettle with two 3 leg victories and then just lost out to Marty Englander 11-9 in the fifth.   Woodham C in full uniform took a well earned 6-4 triumph over the tricky Cold Norton E trio.  In a friendly atmosphere where little was at stake every player took at least a point.  For Woodham Alan Dadswell and Skippy Perry hit braces, as did Dick Wyman for the Nortonians.  Special mention to Oscar Wyman who won another point for his team as he defeated last year’s Roy Davis Cup winner Allan Steel in straight sets.  Next week sees the much anticipated top of the table clash to see if Maldon A will falter under the burgeoning challenge of Blackwater A.

Positions in Division 3 are largely confirmed already but a full set of fixtures this week saw Champions Blackwater C hit another 10-0 whitewash.  This week’s hapless victims being St Lawrence.  A hat-trick of trebles for Gary Smith, Peter Davenport and Tina Hutchinson.   Maldon E had a very good 7-3 return against Blackwater E with John Leavett in cracking form with another hat-trick to his name.  Blackwater D edged a tight one against Blackwater F courtesy of a fine display from Jason Bush.  Bush went unbeaten in singles and doubles as his D team ran out 6-4 winners, with Keith Thompson the best of the F side with 2 wins on the night.  In the final match of the week Tim Huxtable took centre stage as his hat-trick helped his Maldon D side secure a draw with Woodham D.  In support of the mighty Huxtable, team supremo Shirley Carroll took 2 wins, only losing out in a 4 setter with Woodham’s top player Simon Thomas.

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Eamonn Hall, Press Officer

Burnham & District Table Tennis League

____________________________________________

Pic 1 – Sam Lowman (Cold Norton B) with the most important hat-trick of the week

Pic 2 – Colin Chatfield versus Matt Stringer in a 5 set marathon this week.

Pic 3 – Peter Harverson taking his hat-trick for Woodham B this week.

Pic 4 – Colin Chatfield and David Jacob pairing up for an excellent doubles bonus

Pic 5 – Dick Wyman and Alan Dadswell go toe-to-beard

Pic 6 – Division 1 table.