The second division in the Braintree Table Tennis League is turning into an unpredictable melange where everyone, it seems, is capable of beating everyone else – apart from the team at the top.

The teams from second to tenth are separated by just nine points, while the gap between first and second has risen to 17 points.

Results from week four show just how tight everything has become.  Four of the five matches were decided at 6-4 while the fifth was a draw.

Even leaders Rayne C got involved in the mix, needing a win in the final set to gain a 6-4 victory over Black Notley C.

They were grateful to Steve Buer’s three singles to see them through.

Notley C stay in second place, equal with the club’s D team, who also lost 6-4, in their case to Sudbury Strollers, where John Colvin was once again unbeaten and newcomer Tracy Fernandes won twice.

Netts D are one point behind after their win against Rayne E, for whom Richard Whiteside was unbeaten, although he was stretched to five games by Jimmy Calisin.

Bottom club Finchingfield A are still feeling the absence of the injured Peter Clark, but they stretched Rayne D to 6-4 and would have snatched a draw but for Peter Rickwood and Dave Allinson’s win in the doubles at 11-9 in the fifth.

Netts C and Yeldham Whitlocks A are floating just above them after their draw.  Roy Hooper’s defeat by Charles Calisin was only his second of the season.

In division one leaders Netts A had no mercy on Liberal B where they took all ten, including a first maximum of the season for Joe Meleschko.

Teams from Rayne and Sudbury squared up to each other twice.  Rayne A beat Sudbury Wanderers 9-1 while Sudbury Nomads beat Rayne B 8-2

Karl Baldwin was unbeaten for Nomads and was the only one to beat Adi Kamma.

The other match in the division featured a return to Notley for Netts B, who played there as Notley A last season.  This season they just failed to beat the current Notley A.  Luke Burridge’s three singles ensured a 6-4 win for the home side.

Leaders Finchingfield B chalked up another win in division three, this time 7-3 over Notley E, who had won their previous two matches.

In the clash between two previously unbeaten players, it was Lucien Nolan-Bradford who came out on top against the vastly experienced Dave Parker, whose unconventional style would fox many other 17-year-olds.

Notley’s H team climbed to third with a 9-1 win over Netts E, with father and son Wayne and Harry Wilson both undefeated.

The club’s G team also notched up a win, 6-4 over Sudbury Drifters.  New signing Ricky Moriconi picked up his first maximum.

The other match in the division, Yeldham Whitlocks B against Netts F, ended in a draw.  No one won three or lost three but 14-year-old Tom Verrier can be pleased with a good win over the reliable Steve Willis.

The second division in the Braintree Table Tennis League is turning into an unpredictable melange where everyone, it seems, is capable of beating everyone else – apart from the team at the top.

The teams from second to tenth are separated by just nine points, while the gap between first and second has risen to 17 points.

Results from week four show just how tight everything has become.  Four of the five matches were decided at 6-4 while the fifth was a draw.

Even leaders Rayne C got involved in the mix, needing a win in the final set to gain a 6-4 victory over Black Notley C.

They were grateful to Steve Buer’s three singles to see them through.

Notley C stay in second place, equal with the club’s D team, who also lost 6-4, in their case to Sudbury Strollers, where John Colvin was once again unbeaten and newcomer Tracy Fernandes won twice.

Netts D are one point behind after their win against Rayne E, for whom Richard Whiteside was unbeaten, although he was stretched to five games by Jimmy Calisin.

Bottom club Finchingfield A are still feeling the absence of the injured Peter Clark, but they stretched Rayne D to 6-4 and would have snatched a draw but for Peter Rickwood and Dave Allinson’s win in the doubles at 11-9 in the fifth.

Netts C and Yeldham Whitlocks A are floating just above them after their draw.  Roy Hooper’s defeat by Charles Calisin was only his second of the season.

In division one leaders Netts A had no mercy on Liberal B where they took all ten, including a first maximum of the season for Joe Meleschko.

Teams from Rayne and Sudbury squared up to each other twice.  Rayne A beat Sudbury Wanderers 9-1 while Sudbury Nomads beat Rayne B 8-2

Karl Baldwin was unbeaten for Nomads and was the only one to beat Adi Kamma.

The other match in the division featured a return to Notley for Netts B, who played there as Notley A last season.  This season they just failed to beat the current Notley A.  Luke Burridge’s three singles ensured a 6-4 win for the home side.

Leaders Finchingfield B chalked up another win in division three, this time 7-3 over Notley E, who had won their previous two matches.

In the clash between two previously unbeaten players, it was Lucien Nolan-Bradford who came out on top against the vastly experienced Dave Parker, whose unconventional style would fox many other 17-year-olds.

Notley’s H team climbed to third with a 9-1 win over Netts E, with father and son Wayne and Harry Wilson both undefeated.

The club’s G team also notched up a win, 6-4 over Sudbury Drifters.  New signing Ricky Moriconi picked up his first maximum.

The other match in the division, Yeldham Whitlocks B against Netts F, ended in a draw.  No one won three or lost three but 14-year-old Tom Verrier can be pleased with a good win over the reliable Steve Willis.

Report by Ron Fosker

If there was an award in the Clacton League for the most improved player in recent years, then John Gallagher of Brotherhood G would certainly be one of the leading candidates.

Having progressed from a run-of-the-mill Third Division player only a few seasons ago, the Brotherhood G captain is now one of the most consistent and reliable players in Division Two, as evidenced by a stand-out performance this week in his side’s 8-2 success over Windsor Penguins. Gallagher remained unbeaten on the night, in the process inflicting a first defeat of the season on Kelvin Olano-Harper.

There were a couple each for his team-mates Mark Boyland and Mark Beckham, Beckham involved in the closest match of the contest, edging past Paul Woolnough 17-15 in the fifth. Olano-Haprper’s two points for the Penguins included a victory in five over Boyland.

The Brotherhood G victory puts them level at the top alongside Brotherhood F, 6-4 winners this week over Brotherhood D. Neil Chegwidden and Mark Salter took a couple each, and Paul Alden one, but the ‘D’ team’s Adi Kamma, making his League debut, stayed undefeated.  

Lawford got on the winning trail at the fourth attempt, doing it in style 9-1 against Nomads Jaguars, with only four matches extended to a fourth set. Charlie Denholm and John Colvin took trebles for Lawford, Andy Hart’s win over Richard Spence the sole Jaguars’ success.

A weakened Windsor Kestrels went down 7-3 to Windsor Harriers, Barry Allen taking his three for the Harriers and Ferdy Rodriguez two. For the Kestrels, there were a couple for Graham Bunce and one for Peter Aumord.

In Division Three, pre-season title favourites Brotherhood H had to battle hard before overcoming Holland Vulcans 8-2, Dan Grindrod and Gary Simpson both taking hat-tricks. Grindrod edged past Bob Keefe 11-9 in decider, whilst Simpson beat both Keefe and Derek Foxley by the same 11-5 in the fifth score. Danny Still took a couple for Brotherhood but was narrowly beaten 11-9 in the decider by Keefe. 

Nomads Leopards and Holland Hurricanes are both eyeing a top-two finish and, when they met this week, the match ended all-square. Gary Stallwood took his maximum for the Hurricanes whilst there were two apiece for Doug Green and Dominic Joannouu of the Leopards. Green and Joannou beat Stallwood and Ian Gwillim in a crucial doubles.

A hat-trick for Peter Evans and two for Dave Wright, plus a shared doubles win, saw Holland Lancasters home 6-4 in a hard-fought match against Windsor Falcons. Matt Thomas’ couple for the Falcons included a 6-11, 12-10, 11-13, 12-10, 11-7 win over Wright.   

Jack Hillier notched up a fine hat-trick in Brotherhood E’s 6-4 success against Walton E. The two teams shared the four matches which went the distance, Walton’s Maggie Earle involved in all four. She edged past both Tony Edmonds and Joe Hillier 11-9 in the fifth, lost 11-7 in the fifth to Jack Hillier and then, with Adrian Sexton in the doubles, went down 12-10 in the fifth against the two Hilliers. Sexton also won a couple for Walton.

Nomads Ocelots were again forced to field a guest player and once again, despite a Mike Wellum treble, ended up in defeat, this time 6-4 at the hands of Windsor Magpies. Wellum’s closest victory was against Dave Sweetland, 11-4 in the decider.

For the first time in many seasons, the battle at the top of Division One looks like developing into a three-horse race between Nomads Panthers, Nomads Lions and Brotherhood A.

Kevin James, in his first appearance as a Nomads Panthers’ player, stayed unbeaten to help his side to a 10-0 victory over Windsor Buzzards. Denes Somodi and Greg Green also stayed unbeaten, Somodi’s 11-5 in the decider victory over Andy Foster the only match extended to a fifth set.

It was also 10-0 for Brotherhood A against Walton A, Gary Young, Gracie Edwards and Kevin Gowlett the winning threesome. Edwards had a close 11-7, 7-11, 14-16, 11-7, 11-4 battle with Mark Gale, but the doubles was the closest match, Edwards and Gowlett beating Gale and Mark Ratcliffe 11-6, 10-12, 11-8, 9-11, 11-6.

Despite dropping their first point of the season, Nomads Lions will feel content with their 9-1 victory over Windsor Hawks. Both Adam Cuthbert and Charlie Fulcher, making a first appearance this season, took trebles, but their shared doubles victory was too close for comfort, 17-15 in the fifth against Felipe Rodriguez and Andy Vincent. Adam Wilkin picked up two wins for the Lions but went down to Andy Vincent, Wilkin earning praise  from his opponent for his sportsmanship after calling an edge against himself at a crucial point of the match when neither his opponent nor the umpire had seen it.

Windsor Eagles defeated a Brotherhood B side fielding two reserves 9-1 but the score-line fails to tell the whole story, with the Eagles winning all five matches which went to a final set. Gary Cattermole and Gavin Price with trebles, and John Pattrick with two, were the Eagles’ points-scorers. Simon Smith-Daye took Brotherhood’s sole success in the first match of the evening against Pattrick.

Finally, three for Graham Playle, two for John Cleasby and one for Dave Miller saw Brotherhood C home 7-3 against Walton B. Pete Burrows got two points for Walton and Paul Newbould, with an 11-6 in the fifth win over Miller, their third. 

* The closing date for the League’s first Tournament of the season, the Drawn Doubles, is Friday 7th November. The Tournament takes place on Saturday 22nd November at Windsor’s St James’ Hall venue.

* The Windsor Club’s Quiz Evening is being held on Saturday 29th November at the Brotherhood Hall. For more information or to enter a team, contact Jenny Higgins (Tel : 07790 240566). Once again, see the League’s website for full details.

RESULTS

Division 1

Windsor Hawks 1 Nomads Lions 9;

Windsor Buzzards 0 Nomads Panthers 10;

Brotherhood A 10 Walton A 0;

Brotherhood B 1 Windsor Eagles 9;

Walton B 3 Brotherhood C 7.

Division 2

Windsor Harriers 7 Windsor Kestrels 3;

Brotherhood G 8 Windsor Penguins 2;

Lawford 9 Nomads Jaguars 1;

Brotherhood F 6 Brotherhood D 4.

Division 3

Windsor Falcons 4 Holland Lancasters 6;

Nomads Ocelots 4 Windsor Magpies 6;

Walton C 4 Brotherhood E 6;

Holland Vulcans 2 Brotherhood H 8;

Nomads Leopards 5 Holland Hurricanes 5.

Report by Tony Oswick

Hockley A team’s  usual players weren’t available this week but rather than be a problem for captain Dan Patinsky it gave him a chance to call up two of the fastest improving juniors in the league. William Evesham and Elliott Brackenbury were playing Division 3 two seasons ago and having already risen to Division 1 this year it was great to see how they would fair in the Premier Division and they didn’t disappoint. William started slowly by losing his first match to Andrew Murray but then the two Hockley players didn’t look back, winning their other 5 matches between them and helping Hockley to a comfortable 8-1 win over Invicta A. Surely they will be regular Premier Division players next season.

Another 8-1 result came in the form of a Rawreth B victory over Basildon A. A great win for Arun Joy over Gary Young for Basildon’s consolation win in a match where the individual scores show it to have been a much tighter affair than the overall scoreline suggests. Three wins a piece in this one from Dan Zeffie and Arron Chandler.

The final game to report on this week is a 6-3 win for Brand Identity over Matchpoint A. Hat-tricks for Dave Jacob and Steve Muth but the fact that Brand Identity had only two players has helped Matchpoint out with three useful points.

Report by Duncan Taylor

With last week’s leaders in Division 1 Hockley C, not having a fixture this week, club mates Hockley B took the opportunity to leapfrog them to the top position, thanks to an emphatic 9 – 0 roasting of the home side at Basildon B. Joe Odegbami was again Hockley’s player of the match. However, his unbeaten performance was matched by team mates David Colwill and Stuart Adshead. Basildon’s Dale Gutteridge and Chudi Ukpaka both came close against Stuart, but the Hockley man prevailed in the fifth set both times.
Hadleigh Forum B’s veteran Tony Jacks had a night to remember against visitors Stanford Le Hope B, going the whole match without losing a single set. Such a feat deservedly gives him the POM award. Tony was assisted by Mick Tappenden who got two wins and Dave Woolmer with one, giving the home side a 6 – 3 victory. Adrian Armstrong won two for Stanford and Dave Hancox one more.
Hosts Mapledene were too strong for Hadleigh Forum C. There were maximums for both Mick Johnston and Dawn Baldry, whilst colleague John Tendler added two in a comprehensive 8 – 1 victory. Rising star Todd Barker had a notable success for Forum in overcoming John in a close contest.
Third placed Rawreth C kept in touch of the Hockley teams with a hard-fought 6 – 3 home win over Wakering A. The victory was a collective effort with all three of the home side’s team of Adi Kamma, James Grimston and Colin Clements winning twice. Barbara Chabior was again Wakering’s best player, taking two wins, whilst her team mate Martin Shaughnessy overcame James in a thrilling five-setter for the other Wakering success.

Report by David Barnes

Four games and four home wins this week in Division2 and some pretty convincing wins at that. Stanford C started the week beating Runnymede 6-3 then Wakering hammered Hockley E 8-1, Canvey B beat Matchpoint C 8-1 and Hockley D rounded the week off whitewashing Invicta B 9-0.

Stanford’s win could have matched those other results if it wasn’t for Tony Millward who recorded the perfect hat trick for Runnymede, but unfortunately his teammates Heather Stiles and Steve McQuillan were easily outgunned by the home team of Mike Trendell, Chris Crooks and Peter Moxham. Nine matches and not one went beyond three sets!

Wakering fielded  their top strike force of Callum Turner and Mike Grout against Hockley E and they were duly rewarded as both players weighed in with perfect hat tricks. Stewart Mills found it slightly harder going but got the better of Amar Al-Soufi and John George both in four sets before succumbing in a five set battle with Richard Kidd 11/4 in the decider having led 2-1 at one stage.

Canvey B’s big win came courtesy of the experienced trio of Kevin Walsingham, Tony Westwell and Trevor Hayes with Hayes recording a perfect hat trick. Matchpoint, however, did not go down without a fight and came close to increasing their solitary point. Richard Sloman got their consolation beating Westwell in straight sets and Samuel Morgan came close twice to adding to that losing in five sets to Walsingham and Westwell.

Hockley D’s win has lifted them up four places into fourth place and gives them a third successive victory. It wasn’t as straight forward as it sounded though as six games went to four sets after the first match of the night had gone to five, Paul Ogden beating Andrew St. John 11/7 in the decider. St.John also came close to extending his match against Brian Bissenden to five sets, having lost the first two he won the third 13/11 but was just edged out 16/14 in the fourth. Paul Strutt was the other Hockley player recording a hat trick and the Invicta players can feel slightly aggrieved as Hockley had more than their fair share of nets and edges on the night.

Player of the Week – Tony Millward

Team of the Week – Hockley D

Report by Paul Strutt

Invicta C maintained their unbeaten run in Division 3 with a crushing 9-0 win over Evolve B.  However, the youngsters were up against it from the start as they were only a two-man team.  The League leader’s victory was completed in double quick time with the loss of only one set.

There was a similar scoreline when Canvey C welcomed Wakering C to their offshore haven.  The Canvey trio of Ray Baker, Chong Shing Lam and player of the match, Steve Kemp, proved to be too strong for their visitors, who have introduced several new players to the League this season. 

Hockley F have climbed to second place in the table following a comprehensive 8/1 win over Matchpoint D.  Maximums here for Gary Beck and Robert Garlick, but Cooper Hill prevented the whitewash with a straight sets win over Ivan Arabadzhiev.

Stanford D were another team that were a player short when they travelled to Hockley to take on their young G team.  Kris Chankov got the home team off to a good start with a narrow, 13/11 in the 5^th, win over Karen Kempster. This proved, however, to be their only win on the table, as Karen and Andrew Jessop won the remaining games for Stanford to earn their team a 5-4 win.     

Brotherhood F are the early leaders in Division Two of the Clacton League after notching up a third consecutive win, this week defeating Brotherhood J 8-2. Paul Alden and Neil Chegwidden, making his first appearance of the season, each recorded trebles for the ‘F’ team.

There was a point apiece for Ruby Gallagher and Tom Bryden for the losers, Bryden coming close to getting a second but going down 13-11 in the decider to Chegwidden.

Brotherhood G have also made an excellent start to their campaign with yet another 7-3 victory, this time over Nomads Jaguars. John Gallagher was the unbeaten player of the match, with Mark Boyland and Mark Beckham each winning two. Nomads’ Chris Petrou and Andy Hart, who inflicted a rare defeat on Boyland, both took a point, whilst Bob Jillins went close before going down 11-9 in the fifth to Gallagher.

A maximum from Barry Allen was central to Windsor Harriers’ 7-3 success over Nomads Tigers, Allen also sharing an 11-5 in the fifth doubles win with Ferdy Rodriguez against Matt Sage and Jack Riddleston. Sage with two and Alex Baldock with one were the Tigers’ points-scorers.

Lawford’s winless start continued, going down 6-4 to Brotherhood D, although they will feel frustrated by losing all four matches which went the distance. Kevin Pryor remained undefeated for Brotherhood, with Fred Gallone taking two and Lily Liu one, an 11-9 in the fifth win over Ian Sherwood 11-9 in the closest match of the evening. Charlie Denholm picked up a couple for Lawford and James Tindle one.

Windsor Penguins recorded a 6-4 victory against Windsor Kestrels thanks to trebles from Kelvin Olano-Harpper and Paul Woolnough. There was a point each for Jonathan Found, Debra Found and Allen Denyer of the Kestrels, Debra Found beating Paul Stanton 11-7 in the fifth and Denyer defeating the same player 11-5 in the fifth.

Holland Hurricanes are the early leaders in Division Three, following an 8-2 success over club-mates Holland Vulcans.

Gary Stallwood with three, and John Smith-Daye and Gerry Widnell with two each were the Hurricanes’ points-scorers. Derek Foxley won the two points for the Vulcans.

Hat-tricks from Dominic Joannou and Doug Green guaranteed Nomads Leopards a win against Brotherhood E, the final score 8-2. Nomads’ Anne Bonny beat Joe Hillier 11-5 in the fifth in the only match which went the distance.

Windsor Falcons edged past Walton C 6-4, Gary Barnes recording a debut League maximum, with Matt Thomas contributing two and Nikki Hayes one. For Walton, Maggie Earle took two and Deborah Pallett one, whilst the Adrian Sexton must have set some sort of record by losing all his three singles matches by an identical 11-8 in the fifth score-line.  

A two-player Nomads Ocelots will feel pleased to have held the talented Brotherhood H side to an unexpected draw. Mike Wellum’s three for the Ocelots included the tightest of 11-9, 9-11, 9-11, 13-11, 13-11 victories over Gary Simpson, whilst Hazel Blanche enjoyed a surprise win over Owen Woollard and then, with Wellum, took the doubles against Simpson and Dan Grindrod.

Holland Lancasters took full advantage of playing a Windsor Magpies’ team fielding a guest, winning 7-3. Peter Evans remained unbeaten and shared a doubles success with Dave Wright over Dave Sweetland and John Plummer. Sweetland’s two for the Magpies included a 9-11, 7-11, 14-12, 13-11, 11-7 victory over Wright.

Nomads Lions have set out like a rocket in Division One, this week recording their third whitewash win in as many weeks.

Adam Cuthbert, Ethan Lloyd and Adam Wilkin all remained unbeaten in the 10-0 victory over Windsor Eagles, but Wilkin had two nip-and-tuck encounters, beating Phil Smith 7-11, 11-8, 12-10, 9-11, 11-9 and John Pattrick 12-14, 11-9, 12-10, 11-13, 11-9.

It was also 10-0, but somewhat more comfortable, for Brotherhood A against club-mates Brotherhood C, with only one match extended to a fourth set. Kevin Gowlett, Daniel Young and Gary Young were the winning trio.

Greg Green took his maximum in Nomads Panthers’ 8-2 victory over Walton B. John Hatley and Gill Locke each won two, as did Peter Burrows for Walton.

In an all-Windsor clash, the Hawks beat the Buzzards 8-2. There were hat-tricks here for Andy Vincent and Scott Campbell of the Hawks while, for the Buzzards, there was a point each for Andy Foster, an 11-8 in the fifth victor over John Barton, and Dave Martin.

It was also 8-2 for Brotherhood B against Walton B, the in-form Russell Hillier remaining unbeaten. Joe Plummer and Simon Smith-Daye each won two, the youthful Plummer defeating super-veteran Derek Willis 11-8 in the fifth in a match where the age gap between the two players was a mere sixty-six years.

* The League’s first Tournament of the season takes place on Saturday 22nd November at Windsor’s St James’ Hall venue with the Drawn Doubles Tournament, the first time this has been held since 1993. It will be played on a handicap basis, with a higher-grade player paired with a lower-grade player in a random draw. Full details have been sent to all players and these can also be found on the League’s website. Entry will be limited to 32 players, with a closing date for entry of Friday 7th November.

* The Windsor Quiz Evening is being held on Saturday 29th November at the Brotherhood Hall, 7.00 pm for a 7.30 pm start. The Quiz is for teams of up to six players, £5 per player, bring your own drink and nibbles. For more details or to enter a team, contact Jenny Higgins (Tel : 07790 240566). 

RESULTS

Division 1

Brotherhood C 0 Brotherhood A 10;

Windsor Hawks 8 Windsor Buzzards 2;

Walton A 2 Brotherhood B 8;

Nomads Panthers 8 Walton B 2;

Nomads Lions 10 Windsor Eagles 0.

Division 2

Windsor Kestrels 4 Windsor Penguins 6;

Brotherhood J 2 Brotherhood F 8;

Windsor Harriers 7 Nomads Tigers 3;

Brotherhood D 6 Lawford 4;

Nomads Jaguars 3 Brotherhood G 7.

Division 3

Brotherhood E 2 Nomads Leopards 8;

Windsor Falcons 6 Walton C 4;

Holland Lancasters 7 Windsor Magpies 3;

Holland Hurricanes 8 Holland Vulcans 2;

Brotherhood H 5 Nomads Ocelots 5.

Report by Tony Oswick

Cold Norton B continue to stretch their lead in the top division of the Burnham & District Table Tennis Winter League season.  As they have the most reliable squad is it too early for the local bookmakers to be paying out already?

The week started very well for League leaders Cold Norton B as they bested their own A team 7-3 with only the A team’s Duncan Taylor providing any resistance to the B team juggernaut.  Taylor was able to register his first treble of the Burnham season but that was all the point scoring the A team could muster as the B team trio of Eric Green, Dave Richardson and Ian Wall combined for the remaining 7 points.  Nearest rivals Fambridge and Mapledene A then went head to head and 2-man Fambridge came away unbeaten but having to squander 3 points for lack of staff.  A comfortable hat-trick for John Poysden, and a less than comfortable treble for Bruce Kettle who saw off George Reeves in 4 sets but needed 5 sets and then some to eventually overcome the mighty challenge of Glenn Johnson – the deciding set was very tight at 10-10, so imagine the intensity at 20-20!  Kettle finally let off some steam and came through this marathon of a match 23-21, by far the longest game in recent Burnham history to secure the 7-3 winning margin.  A result that could possibly end Mapledene’s aspirations for the championship this season.  Further down the table there was a welcome win for Woodham B, largely courtesy of their star player Sanjay Saptarshi with an untroubled nine-dart treble.  The rest of the matches were unorthodox to say the least.  Stow’s Matthew Brown won two 5-setters coming from behind in both.  Firstly against Eamonn Hall, and then from the brinkest of brinks against Peter Harverson where he found himself 0-10 behind in the deciding leg – yes you read that right 0-10 down – and one by one he pulled back the points, rattling off an amazing 12 points on the bounce for the most amazing win ever witnessed in living Burnham history.  Stow’s Ken Sheard also took 2 wins against Harverson and Hall using his anti-spin rubbers to great effect – he took a 2-0 lead in both matches, allowed both opponents to then catch him up before dispatching them in the 5^th ends.  Hall and Harverson took minor consolation from wins over Stow’s third player Peter Chastin.  It was a welcome and profitable return to league play for Cold Norton C’s Arron Chandler as his unbeaten evening kept his team in the running and finally forced a draw with the very in-form Mapledene B.  For Mapledene the tricky Colin Chatfield and the masterful Keith Willett won the rest of their matches including pairing up for the important doubles point.

The top two sides in Division 2 both won this week creating an even bigger gulf between themselves and the chasing peloton.  Leaders Mapledene C stretched their lead with an uncomfortable 9-1 win over the plucky Maldon C team.  Six of the matches went to a deciding set in this one and Mapledene showed true grit to win five of them – the sort of form that will get you over the line!  Maldon’s Chris Ravenhill was involved in four of those 5-setters as he played out the maximum 20 sets across the evening.  He squandered the lead against Andy Seaman to lose out 6-11 in the final leg, came from behind with a mighty 16-14 5^th leg victory against Tony Ayliffe, and then in his final singles match he took a 2 set lead but was pegged back by the wily Dennis Squirrell to lose out 11-7 at the death.  Rumours of night cramps and night terrors at the Ravenhill residence cannot be verified at this time.  Despite Ravenhill’s resistance there were quality hat-tricks for both Seaman and Squirrell.  Maldon A were only able to field a 2 player team and that may have cost them vital points in the championship race.  The Maldon pair of Colin Napper and Dawn Baldry were still able to secure a 6-4 win over Cold Norton D, with Baldry dropping the single point in a 5 set roller-coaster against Terry Hyland.  In the Blackwater derby the A team asserted their dominance with a comprehensive 8-2 triumph that saw Denis Balic record the only treble of the evening.  Balic’s team-mates, Alan Scammell and Noah Sage, both hit a brace of wins with Scammell losing out in 5 sets to Louis Gunn, and Sage unable to master the perfect popping pimples supplied by Merv Perriman.  Stow B’s Peter Hance broke the winning streak of Maldon B’s talisman Steve Aspland as he racked up a hat-trick for his team in their 6-4 victory this week. Hance had most difficulty against the rangey Garry Eames where he needed all 5 sets to finally get over the line.  Stow’s Nicky Reece-Ford chipped in with 2 wins, and of course just like clockwork Aspland and trusted bedfellow Colin Barrell took the doubles win.

Blackwater C are as dominant as you can get in Division 3 and this week displayed no mercy as they destroyed the dreams and hopes of the St Lawrence trio.  A final scoreline of 10-0 that was largely straightforward for the champions-elect with the exception of the opening match between old sparring partners Blackwater’s Colin Barham and St Lawrence’s Mick Robinson.  Barham looked to be cruising through St Lawrence, until Robinson hoisted his sails and caught a following wind that saw him square up their match at 2-2.  The final leg was close throughout but one of Robinson’s sails must have ripped near the end as Barham took the last few points to secure the 11-9 win and set his team on course for the whitewash victory.  So trebles all round for the Blackwater C threesome of Barham, Tina Hutchinson and Neil Thompson.  Blackwater D are the nearest of the chasing pack and can just about see Blackwater C on the horizon.  This week the D team put in an impressive display against their own F team and came away with a respectable 8-2 win.  For the F team Jason Bush had good wins over David Gardner and Roger Tiffin but the star of the evening was the D team’s Jacqui Treacy with an excellent treble aswell as combining with Gardner for the doubles bonus.  Nothing could separate the E teams from Blackwater and Maldon this week despite a mighty effort by Maldon’s John Leavett as he won all his singles and the doubles to provide the cornerstone for his team’s points haul.  For Blackwater Phil ‘Wild’ West and Andy Simmonds both won their remaining two singles, and Kath Little chipped in with the final point to secure the draw.

The Burnham League would also like to acknowledge the passing of Maldon TTC legend Tom Elder this week.  Tom was a constant presence in our league for many decades and the winner of many of our Championship trophies.  A tough competitor, never shy to share an opinion, and a great encourager of new talent.  He will be sorely missed.

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Eamonn Hall, Press Officer

Burnham & District Table Tennis League

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Pic 1 – Stow Maries’ Matthew Brown – The Escape Artist.

Pic 2 – Duncan Taylor – back in winning mode this week.

Pic 3 – Sanjay Saptarshi in treble form against Ken Sheard

Pic 4 – Blackwater E’s talisman John Leavett

Pic 5 – Nigel Brand v Neil Thompson this week

Pic 6 – Tom Elder RIP

Rayleigh Mill picked up another win in week 5 of the Southend Premier Division season with new signing Liam Squirrell again leading the way with three 3-0 wins against Brand Identity. Colin Chatfield had to work harder for his three wins, the closest of his matches ending 11-5 in the 5^th end with Richard Jackman. Jackman, Dave Jacob and Adam Jackman all managed to beat Steve Maltby giving us a 6-3 win to the Millers.

A clash between two of the bottom 4 clubs as the league stands in week 5 saw Invicta host Matchpoint. It was the home side who came out on top due in the main to a player of the match performance from Tony Ayliffe. His three wins along with two from Steve Marr and one from Malcolm Henstock saw Invicta win 6-3, Stephen Heard the strongest performer for Matchpoint with two wins, the other Matchpoint win coming from Alex Deacon.

Another 6-3 win but this time for away side as Hadleigh Forum visited Basildon A. Martin Turner in fine form with three wins for Forum ably supported by Neal Barker with two wins and Berti Makolli with a win over Charles Yeung.

Hockley A went down 8-1 to Rawreth B this week but the match was much closer than the scoreline suggests with Kim Shead coming out on the right side of two 11-9 in the 5^th matches against Dan Patynski and Sanjay Saptarshi and there was and even closer win for Dan Zeffie who in the last game of the night beat Tarun Goel 12-10 in the fifth end. Player of the match was Daniel Young who  stood out with 3 solid wins for Rawreth.

And finally this week, a routine win for Thorpe Bay A this week as they overcame Stanford A by a scoreline of 8-1. Hattricks for Kieran Skeggs and Ian Wall with the only blot on their copybook being a 5 set win for Josh Freeman over Chris Ballard.

Report by Duncan Taylor

What a difference a week can make! Last week Hockley B could only field one player and lost 9 – 0. This week they managed to find a full team and thumped struggling Hadleigh Forum C by the same score. Joe Odegbami took the player of the match award, but team mates Stuart Adshead and David Colwill were also unbeaten in a one-sided away win.
Hockley’s other team in this division, Hockley C, who took over top spot in the table last week, entertained Basildon B. Despite a few close contests, the hosts won comfortably 8 – 1. Stalwart Tim Pang was unbeaten, as was Stephanie Haddrell who overcame two of her opponents in the final set of their matches. Jenne Seibolt got the only victory for the visitors when he defeated James Evesham. The victory keeps Hockley C top.
Hadleigh Forum’s veteran Tony Jacks took the POM trophy for his hat trick in their 7 – 2 away win at Canvey A. Mind you, it was a hard fight, with tight wins in the fifth set of two of his three match-ups. Team mates David Woolmer and Anthon Ranjit-Singh both won two – David losing to Bob Skews and Anthon to Peter Cray.
Trevor Collin made his debut for Rawreth C when they visited Stanford Le Hope B. He was taken all the way in his matches against another debutant, the home side’s Mike Trendell, and by veteran Adrian Armstrong. Despite this, Trevor’s unbeaten performance gave him the POM prize. Team mates Gary McCarthy and Colin Clements took two wins each, whilst Adrian and Mike recorded one victory apiece for the home side, as Rawreth took the match 7 – 2.

Report by David Barnes

Wakering B made it four wins on the trot and sit top of the table after a 6-3 away win against Invicta B. Any team hoping for promotion must have strength in depth and although without their number one player this week, Callum Turner, they are fortunate to have the experienced Mick Grout in their squad, a more than adequate replacement. He won all his games albeit he was pushed all the way by Trisha Winter who won the first two sets before conceding 11/7 11/7 11/6. Paul England weighed in with two more wins for Wakering but fell in five sets to John Blackman. Andrew Deadman got Wakering’s other point beating Keith Baxter but lost in five to Winter to give Invicta their third point.

Stanford C chalked up their third win in succession as they moved past Invicta into third place after beating Hockley E 6-3. Vaughan Chambers is the man in form for Stanford recording his second maximum of the season and not dropping a set in the process. Randy Santiago got two wins including a hard fought five set win against Neal Klyman and Jake Santiago got the other point coming close to recording a double but losing in five sets to Richard Coulon. Amar Al-Soufi got two points for Hockley with wins against both Santiago’s.

A two man Basildon C lost their fifth successive match in succession losing 8-1 at home to Hockley D. Michael Elemide got their consolation point beating Howard Collins but Hockley’s Paul Ogden and Brian Bissenden were rarely troubled as they won both their games against Elemide and Victor Galben. Galben almost grabbed a second win but lost in five sets to Collins 11/9 in the decider.

Report by Paul Strutt

League leaders, Invicta ‘C’ kept up their unbeaten record with a 6/3 victory against Hadleigh Forum ‘D’.  Sarah Ball took the plaudits here with a fine maximum, and she received good support from teammates Steve Lennox, who notched a double and skipper Mike Keeble who added a single win.  Jan Thorpe was the best on the night for Forum with two wins.

Hockley ‘F’ have moved into second place after a resounding 8/1 win over Wakering ‘C’.  Hat-tricks here for Ross Collins and Gary Beck, and a brace for Graham Gregory.  The closest game of the match saw Nigel Strike earn Wakering’s only point, but he had to do it the hard way.  After losing the first two sets to Graham, he recovered well to take the next three 12/10, 11/9, 11/9.

Differing fortunes this week for the Evolve junior teams.  The ‘A’ team visited Matchpoint ‘D’ and emerged with a 7/2 win.  Teddy Kent was the deserved POTM with a quick fire maximum, but he received excellent support from teammates Harley Dowding and Sasha Syderenko, who both recorded two wins.  For Matchpoint, there was a win apiece for Cooper Hill and David McHattie.

It was the same scoreline in the match between Evolve ‘B’ and Canvey ‘C’, but it was the Islanders who came out on top on this occasion.  Chong Shing Lam and Che Martin went unbeaten on the night with David Coverley adding the extra.  Ehsan Khan and Jonah Omigie with a win each for Evolve.

Report by Dave Woolmer

What do you get if you cross a Squirrell with a Piglet?  A surprising outcome is the answer, as current player of the season Sam Lowman found out this week when he unexpectedly triumphed over the league’s top player Liam Squirrell and then disastrously fell to the left trotter of Dan Piglet for his first loss of the Burnham & District Table Tennis Winter League season. 

It was a busy week for Lowman as he first led his Cold Norton C trio to a shock 6-4 win over Mapledene A with a hat-trick of wins including the now infamous 11-9 fifth set victory over the reigning Singles Champion Squirrell.  You have to venture back to February 2024 for the last time Squirrell lost a singles match in the Burnham League – he has been that dominant!  So all credit to the man of the moment and constant honeymooner Lowman.  Squirrell won his other 2 matches in straight sets and partnered up with Steve Muth for the doubles point.  For Cold Norton Dave Richardson opened his C team account with 2 good wins against Muth and Peter Barrett.  Later on in the week Lowman was out again – he gets out a lot for a recently married man – this time for the Cold Norton B team to whom he is now locked in.  The opening match saw another potential Singles Final showdown as Lowman took on the very dangerous Dan Young.  Another 5 setter where the momentum bounced around each leg until Lowman won out 11-6 in the decider.  At this point Lowman may have relaxed a bit too much thinking the hard work was done – he did beat Tony Bonnici in 3 legs, but in his final encounter came up against the hard-hitting leftie Dan Piglet (handedness not political leaning!).  Piglet took the opening set, and Lowman squared up at 1-1 but then Piglet blew him way with a huff and a puff for a quick fire finish.  As we remember from Jurassic Park docuseries – ‘nature finds a way’.  Young took impressive wins over Ian Wall and Eric Green, and Piglet completed his evening with a notable win over Green and a very close 5 set loss to Wall.  But that was all the points for Woodham as bookies favourites Cold Norton took the remaining spoils including the very important doubles Brucie bonus that gave them the win.  Mapledene B have surged up the table following their 10-0 whitewash victory over 2-man Stow Maries A.  It was all pretty straightforward for the Mapledeners with just one match going to a deciding set where Paul Brown, of Basildon fame, beat Gary Brignall to complete his unbeaten evening.  Mapledene duo Glenn Johnson and Keith Willett only dropped 1 set all evening – with these two playing regularly the Mapledene B side may be eyeing up a podium finish.

Division 2 is shaping up to be a proper bunfight with 5 teams fighting it out.  Maldon A look to have the strongest squad and continue to rack up the points and are now just behind leaders Mapledene C but crucially with a game in hand.  Mapledene unWantedly dropped points this week as they shared the spoils with a Neil Want inspired Cold Norton E.  Want hit a hard-earned treble including two 5-setters but was mistakenly dropped from doubles which probably cost his side the victory.  Norton’s Dick Wyman chipped in with 2 wins of his own but was unable to get passed the consistent play of Sue Body who was the best of the Mapledene crew.  Maldon displayed their ruthless side whilst dispatching a very good Blackwater B trio with an 8-2 victory.  Trebles for both Colin Napper and Hamish Innes but they failed to convert this dominance into a doubles point where they somehow fell to the Merv Perriman and Roger Slade pairing.  Perriman took the sole singles point for his Blackwater side with a 3 set success over Ross Kirby.  Woodham C showed no bouncebackability this week when they lost further ground as they fell to a 3-7 loss against the tricky Blackwater A trio.  For Blackwater Neil Freeman was central to the cause as he went undefeated in the singles – although Scott Perry took him well beyond deuce in the 5^th set and had his own match points but alas he flunked them and Freeman won out 16-14 and his sigh of relief was heard all across the Blackwater estuary.  As predicted Maldon B’s talisman Steve Aspland is now fully up and running and fired off his second treble of the campaign in his side’s 6-4 home victory over Cold Norton D.  With Aspland on song it was no surprise that he also won the doubles with regular partner Colin Barrell – its very probable that these two won’t lose again all season.  For Cold Norton Terry Hyland had good wins over both Barrell and Garry Eames.

Blackwater C enhanced their formidable status this week as they saw off the challenge of podium hopefuls Maldon D.  So in the last 2 rounds of play Blackwater C have trounced their 2 nearest rivals and opened up a considerable runaway lead.  They won’t be caught!  Gary Smith hit another hat-trick for Blackwater in their 7-3 win, albeit with a tricky 5-setter against the effervescent Tim Huxtable – that match was sure to have been a good 40mins long!  Huxtable won his other 2 encounters against Andrea Alleyne and Peter Davenport.  That was Davenport’s only loss though as he contributed 2 singles victories to the points haul and he and Alleyne combined for a comeback 5 set doubles bonus.  Second placed Blackwater D edged a tight 6-4 scoreline against Woodham D.  The wrist-twisting Roger Tiffin took the biscuit in this one with a very comfortable set of 3 victories.  Woodham’s debutant Simon Thomas got himself off to a good start with a brace of wins although he must have wondered what he had got himself in for in the opening leg of the fist match of the night that went all the way to 18-16 in his favour.  Luckily things sped up after that!  The lovable Blackwater E trio had a confidence-boosting 8-2 triumph this week as they saw off the challenge of St Lawrence.  Trebles for Deb Ginn and Phil West with Kath Little chipping in with 2 wins for the welcome points haul.  The final match of the week ended in stalemate as Maldon E and Blackwater F traded blows but a winner failed to emerge as Keith Thompson took the final point of the night against the until-then-unbeaten John Leavett to even up the scoreline.  In a repeat of last year’s encounter the plucky Brian Dixon came out on top against Mike Crumpton to register his first win of this season.  For Blackwater Keith Thompson hit another treble as he remains unbeaten this season.

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Eamonn Hall, Press Officer

Burnham & District Table Tennis League

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Pic 1 – Sam Lowman plying his trade at Woodham this week.

Pic 2 – Eric Green and Dan Young battle it out this week.

Pic 3 – A hat-trick for Basildon socialite Paul Brown

Pic 4 – Gary Smith stretching for his treble

Pic 5 – Blackwater D trio – Roger Tiffin, Jacqui Treacy & Dave Benstead

Finchingfield B and Rayne F have emerged as the front runners in division three of the Braintree Table Tennis League.

Both have recorded three wins in the first three weeks of the season.

Finchingfield B had to work hard for their 6-4 win over Sudbury Drifters, with Geoff Barrett and Ian Whipps in good form for the visitors.  But Lucien Nolan-Bradford’s three singles, plus the doubles with Peter Dacey, helped steer them home.

Rayne F, who started the week two points behind, drew level with Finchingfield after an 8-2 win over Black Notley F.

Conrad Gomes and Dave Whiting were undefeated.

After dropping down a division, Dave Parker made a successful division three debut by taking his three singles in Notley E’s 7-3 win over Yeldham Whitlocks B.  Ken Wilding did likewise.

Eighteen-year-old Frank Chapman was unbeaten in Netts F’s 6-4 win over Notley H, as were Tim Gowers and Ian Rubens in Rayne G’s 8-2 victory over Netts E.

Rayne C continue to set the pace in division two. 

Matthew Brown was unbeaten in their 7-3 win over Finchingfield A, but John Barrett can be pleased with the two wins he picked up for the losers.

Rayne’s other two teams in the division were on the same table where the D team comfortably beat an E team that included two reserves 9-1.

In division one, the clash between Netts A and Rayne A has been a title decider in recent years but with the abdication of Rayne’s 2024 title-winning trio, is likely to have less bearing on things this time, so much so that Netts felt able to include two of last year’s B team in their line-up and still ended up 7-3 victors.

Sudbury Nomads made it two wins out of two with a 9-1 victory over Netts’ B team.  The one that got away was the most notable of the evening, an excellent win for Charles Calisin over the much-travelled Ken Lewis.

James Mullane and Zach Harrington took all seven in Liberal A’s 7-3 win over Notley B while John Andrews, in his first match of the season, was unbeaten in Rayne B’s 6-4 win over Liberal B.

Report by Ron Fosker