Champions crowned in Division 3, Division 2 all but sorted, and a seismic shock result in Division 1, all in a busy week for the Burnham & District Table Tennis League.

Having drawn last week against leaders Fambridge the pre-season favourites Mapledene A needed a decisive win against the surprise Title challengers Cold Norton B.  Anything other than a high scoring victory would be a nail in the coffin of the quest for glory.   So going down 5-0 in the opening half of the match didn’t really help.  The dream was scuppered, the open top bus parade cancelled and the fat lady would never sing again.  The pick of the opening exchanges was a 4 setter where Sam Lowman kept his cool to get the better of Men’s Singles Champion Reece Seddon.   Seddon did fight back and in match 6 used all his nous to come through a tight 5 setter against Ian Wall – and finally Mapledene were on the scoreboard.  Could they rally and perhaps somehow muster a draw from the dregs of the match.  Absolutely not – Cold Norton switched on the turbos, won the doubles and went on to clean sweep the last 3 singles for an astonishing 9-1 victory that should see them clinch the most unexpected of Titles.  The final match of the night saw Seddon again lose out in a tight 5 setter against player of the match Eric Green.  Cold Norton travel to bottom team Woodham C for their final match needing just a victory to claim their first ever Division 1 crown. Amazing.

Elsewhere in Division 1 there were high scoring victories for Mapledene B and Cold Norton C, and a tight triumph for Woodham A.  Cold Norton C scored a whitewash 10-0 win over Woodham C with hat-tricks all round for Arron Chandler, Kim Shead and Tim Cramphorn.  In this one-sided affair only one match went beyond 3 sets and that saw Cramphorn come from behind to finally best the energetic Adi Kamma.  A good night’s work for Cramphorn who has been struggling to convert his play into points this season.   Mapledene B looked worried after Colin Chatfield lost out to Woodham B’s Dan Patynski in the opening match – but they needn’t of as that was the last blot on their copy book as they ran out 9-1 winners.  Despite the scoreline it wasn’t all one-way traffic as the Woodham trio fought hard.  None more so than Captain Eamonn Hall who lost out in deciding sets to both Keith Willett and Simon Jacob.  In the match with Jacob, Hall looked like he was cruising to the most unexpected win of the season at 2-0 (11-4, 11-3) and 9-3 up but Jacob suddenly upped his game and went on a twiddle frenzy that befuddled his opponent and as the gap closed the confidence levels switched, Hall became like a fish up a tree, and Jacob somehow grasped a victory from the guts of defeat.  Willett completed his hard-earned hat-trick in a topsy turvy 5 setter against Patynski.  Woodham A were better stacked this week with both Harry Chivers and the travelator that is Lee McHugh in attendance.  In the 6-4 victory over Cold Norton A Chivers hit a treble including 5 set wins over Arron Chandler and Duncan Taylor – markers for the upcoming Burnham Tournament.  McHugh chipped in with 2 wins including another 5 setter against Chandler but lost out to Taylor in 3.  Tony Bonnici added the final point in a straight sets encounter with Steve Sawyer, but earlier on he had also gone the distance with Chandler but lost out despite having had a decent lead at one point.

The Division 2 crown has almost certainly gone to Stow Maries A who finished their campaign with a Ken Sheard inspired 7-3 victory over Blackwater B.  They needed 8 points to be sure so now they have to wait for Maldon A to drop just one point in their final two matches – not an impossibility but Maldon do have to play a couple of the decent mid-table sides who can field some very top Division 2 players, so its very unlikely.  So back to the commentary and less of the speculation, Stow’s trickster Ken Sheard hit an unbeaten treble and his cohort of Peter Chastin and Richard Storey both won 2 out of their 3 matches.  For Blackwater Simon Quelch handed Peter Chastin a ‘You’ve Been Quelched’ calling card, and Louis Gunn did a number on Richard Storey – both gaining significant kudos and ranking points in equal measures.  Quelch and Gunn then blotted the Sheard copy book as they took the doubles against Sheard and Chastin in straight sets.  Maldon A didn’t really help themselves as they stumbled to a 6-4 win over Stow B, although the Innes family pride was on full show as Hamish Innes and son Ross Kirby both hit impressive hat-tricks for the 6 winning points.  The Innes senior treble might have been expected but this was Kirby’s first Division 2 treble and was much less expected so what a night for the duo.  Naturally they celebrated by losing the doubles in a long and tight 5 setter against Peter Hance and Nicky Reece-Ford.  Maldon B recorded the same score as their A team as they overcame the Cold Norton D challenge with a 6-4 triumph.  As is often the case, Steve Aspland was their stand out player with another unbeaten night.  Terry Hyland was the best of the Cold Norton bunch with wins over Colin Barrell and Garry Eames.  The Blackwater A trio warmed up for the upcoming Burnham tournament with a perfect night against 2 player Stow C – only one match went beyond 3 sets when plucky Jean Chasmer took the second leg of her match against Neil Freeman.  Trebletastic times for Blackwater’s Alan Scammell, Denis Balic, and Freeman.

Maldon C have been the long time Division 3 champions-elect, following this week’s 9-1 result against Blackwater F they are now actual bonafide Champions.  With a Maldon twist the squad and their support crew will be holding an open top barge parade this weekend along the Promenade – everyone is welcome, banners are encouraged.  Not to be outdone each of the Maldon players this week scored a hat-trick of wins but somehow that form evaded them in the doubles which was won by Blackwater’s Oscar Wyman and Anne Brewer.  So 8 straightforward victories and one tough one as Ella Sach came from behind to edge her match against Wyman for her hat-trick, with the other trebles going to Shirley Carroll and Chris Ravenhill.  Blackwater C have all but secured the runner-up spot but they’ll be disappointed they didn’t close that mathematical certainty as they just squeezed past St Lawrence A with a tight 6-4 win.  Colin Barham was in fine fettle with his hat-trick and Chris Rolison bagged a brace, and they combined for the Brucie Bonus doubles to secure the overall victory.  For St Lawrence Mike Burton was back in action and taking good wins over Rolison and Jacqui Treacy.  Allan Steel maintained his 100% win rate as his Woodham E side drew with Kath Little’s Blackwater E trio.  Nothing the Little Crew could do against the hardened Steel but they battled hard in all the other matches to secure enough points for the draw – with Phil West and Deb Ginn each winning their other 2 singles matches, and Little taking a nervy last gasp 12-10 in the fifth point over Diane King.

Pic 1 – Cold Norton B’s heroic Eric Green taking his season defining hat-trick against Mapledene A

Pic 2 – Dan Patynski takes Woodham B’s only point in the opener with Colin Chatfield.

Pic 3 – Mapledene B’s wily Keith Willett in hat-trick form against Woodham B this week.

Pic 4 – Tim Cramphorn serving for the match and his personal treble against Graham Briggs this week.

Pic 5 – Stow A’s hat-trick man Ken Sheard in action this week

Pic 6 – Maldon C’s Ella Sach, one of the many hat-trickonians from Maldon this week.

Report by Eamonn Hall

The final week of the season in Division 2 of the Southend League and with the title secured by Stanford B and relegation ensured for Invicta B the last issue to be decided was the runner up spot.

Canvey B and Hockley C were locked together on 101 points as they started their final matches Canvey lining up against relegated Invicta and Hockley facing a tricky encounter against their own D team.

Both matches, in fact, went as expected with Canvey racking up an unbeatable 9-0 win with Trevor Hayes, Terry Giddens and Kevin Walsingham in fine form with just some limited resistance coming from Mike Keeble and Sarah Ball who went to five sets against Giddens and Hayes respectively.

The best that Hockley C could do then was to equal that 9-0 scoreline but that never looked on against their D team who had reigning Ladies Singles champion Hannah Harbour in their ranks plus up and coming teenager William Evesham. John George made up their team as a late replacement for another promising teenager Elliot Brackenbury. In many respects the evening couldn’t have got off to a worse start for the C team of Mike Worship, Paul Ogden and Paul Strutt who found themselves 4-1 down with all hopes of second place now in ruins. Chances of a comeback also went as after Strutt reduced the deficit against George in five long sets Ogden and Evesham started another battle royal eventually decided in Evesham’s favour 15/13 in the deciding set. A good win for Strutt against Harbour was some compensation and left the D team as 5-4 winners. Worship and Ogden both recorded wins against George whilst Harbour finished with a brace. Evesham took the POTM honours.

Champions Stanford B had an easy end to their season against a two man Rawreth G team winning 8-1. Richard Kidd got the consolation point for Rawreth beating Mark Downey but there were two wins each for Adrian Armstrong and Randy Santiago.

Matchpoint C almost completed the perfect whitewash against Runnymede winning 9-0 and dropping just one set all night. Hat tricks for John Lott and Dennis Squirrell and a second hat trick in succession for promising youngster Lotte Mills, one half of this year’s Ladies Doubles Championship winners.

Player of the Week – William Evesham

Team of the Week – Canvey B

At last, after nearly six months unbeaten, Rayne E’s Matthew Brown has met his match in the Braintree Table Tennis League’s second division.

Brown had won all 47 of his singles this season but that came to an end when he met Natalie Dodd.

The Sudbury Wanderers player, in her first season in the league, had to fight for the win but got there in the end after five games 11-4, 8-11, 11-9, 3-11, 11-6.

It was a match that also brought to an end Brown’s unbeaten run in the doubles.  Not so long this time as he and Dave Allinson lost in the third match of the season to Roy Hooper and Doug Sanders of Yeldham Whitlocks A, but he and his various partners, had remained unbeaten since then.

This time it was Louise Hartshorn and Ian Shrubsole who did the damage against Brown and Peter Rickwood.

Brown’s wins over Hartshorn and Shrubsole were Rayne E’s only return in the 8-2 win for Wanderers.

The result was a bonus for Rayne’s D team, their rivals for second place, who could only manage a draw against Black Notley C.

Rev Matthews was unbeaten for Notley, including a tight 7-11, 8-11, 12-10, 12-10, 11- 9 win over Adi Kamma.

Notley’s D team improved their own chances of grabbing second place with a 7-3 win over Netts C, with Alesha Ellis-Austin unbeaten.

Richard Whiteside won his three singles in Rayne F’s 6-4 defeat by Notley E but spare a thought for Martin Brunker, who battled through three five-game sets but came away empty-handed.

Bottom team Netts D managed only two sets against Yeldham A, but both were worthy of note.

Dave Montgomery, playing up from division three, scored a good win over Kevin Mills while Jimmy Calisin got the better of Doug Sanders, who doesn’t give much away.

In division one, there were two 10-0 wins, an unsurprising one for Rayne A against their own C team but a more unexpected one for Notley B over Liberal C.

Rayne B and Liberal B, competing for the unsung fourth place in the table, had differing fortunes, Rayne B losing 7-3 to third-placed Sudbury Nomads – for whom Aron Jordan was unbeaten – while Liberal B had an 8-2 over Netts B with James Mullane and new signing Chris Denyer unbeaten.

Scott Dowsett and Zach Harrington took seven sets between them in Liberal A’s 7-3 win over Notley A.

The top two in division three continue to pull away, the gap to third-placed Notley G widening considerably after their 8-2 defeat by leaders Finchingfield A.

Second-placed Sudbury Strollers were even more dominant with a 9-1 win over Finchingfield’s B team.

Notley I remain comfortably fourth after wins of 7-3 over Notley H and 6-4 against fifth-placed Rayne G.  Ben Southgate won six out of six.

At the other end of the table, Rayne H, in tenth place, scored a good win over Yeldham B, three places above them. Chris High, Ian Rubens and Tim Townsend all won twice but could not find a way past Steve Willis.

Netts F stayed above their E team after beating them 6-4, where the E team’s Dave Montgomery stretched his unbeaten run to 18.

Report by Ron Fosker

They’ve been at the top of Division Three of the Clacton League

all season but Ruby Gallagher, Joe Sherwin, Lucy Carvell and Tom Bryden of Brotherhood F have now confirmed their position as Divisional champions, a well-deserved success for a talented group of young players and the first side of all-juniors to win the Third Division title for twelve years.

This week, Brotherhood trio of Gallagher, Sherwin and Carvell recorded a 7-3 victory over Windsor Falcons, each player notching up two wins. Kelvin Olano-Harper stayed unbeaten for the Falcons but he was given a scare by an inspired Ruby Gallagher, Olano-Harper scraping through 6-11, 11-2, 11-9, 9-11, 11-9.

Meanwhile, Brotherhood H maintained their hopes of finishing as runners-up with a comfortable 10-0 victory over bottom team Holland Mosquitos.

But Nomads Bobcats are hot on their heels, only five points behind in third place, after a 9-1 success over Nomads Ocelots. Alex Baldock and Matt Sage took trebles, although Sage had a tremendous fight against Andrew Cousins before winning 11-9 in the decider. Cousins took the Ocelots’ point.

Derek Foxley is enjoying an excellent first season and he notched up an impressive hat-trick for Holland Vulcans against Walton D, also sharing a five-set doubles win with James Horsler. Alas for Foxley, two each for Maggie Earle, Deborah Pallett and Lynette Sparks saw Walton over the line 6-4.

And in an all-Holland clash, the Vulcans proved no match for the Hurricanes, Gary Stallwood and John Smith-Daye unbeaten in the Hurricanes’ 9-1 victory. Foxley took the Vulcans’ lone point, beating Gerry Widnell 11-8 in the fifth in the final match of the evening.

The Holland Lancasters v Nomads Leopards’ encounter ended all-square. There were two each for Dave Wright and Pam Cousins of the Lancasters but it was the Leopards’ Lily Liu who stole the show with a fine maximum. The closest match of the contest saw Cousins edge past Anne Bonny 12-10 in the decider.

In Division One, Nomads Panthers consolidated their position at the top with an 8-2 success over Windsor Eagles. Gracie Edwards remained undefeated, with Gill Locke and Denes Somodi winning two each. Somodi was involved in a tight game with John Pattrick before edging it 8-11, 13-11, 13-11, 7-11, 14-12. The consistent Gary Cattermole picked up the two Eagles’ points.

Walton B beat Brotherhood B 7-3 for a second time this season, Mark Gale defeating Simon Smith-Daye 11-8 in the decider on his way to a fifth hat-trick of the current campaign. There were two for Mark Ratcliffe and one for Paul Meikle. Smith-Daye’s two for Brotherhood included an 11-5 in the fifth win over Meikle.   

Gavin Price starred for Walton A in their 8-2 victory over club-mates Walton C, Derek Willis and Andy Foster each contributing a valuable two points. Graham Buxton won twice for the losers.

In Division Two, three for Scott Campbell, two for Dave Martin and one for Andy Cawley gave Windsor Buzzards a 6-4 win over Brotherhood E and the six points they needed to guarantee the title. Kevin Pryor picked up a couple for Brotherhood and, with Fred Gallone, enjoyed a good doubles win over Campbell and Ray Chillingworth.

With two matches remaining, second-placed Brotherhood C need just four points to claim the runners-up spot and they made no mistake against Windsor Harriers, Mark Boyland, Paul Metcalf and Mark Beckham unbeaten in the 9-1 victory. The Harriers prevented the whitewash by winning the doubles.

There was another 9-1 result for Brotherhood against Windsor, the Brotherhood D team defeating Windsor Magpies. Paul Alden and Mark Salter were unbeaten for the winners, with Windsor reserve Kelvin Olano-Harper taking the losers’ point with victory over Tricia Salter.

Neil Chegwidden took three and Paul Woolnough two as Windsor Penguins drew with Nomads Jaguars, the Jaguars’ fifth drawn match of the season. Chris Petrou took two, Tom Wilkin and reserve Alex Baldock one each for the Jaguars, with Petrou and Wilkin combining successfully in the doubles. Unusually for a drawn match, no individual matches went the distance and only three went to a fourth set.

However it was much closer in a second drawn match, where Nomads Tigers, playing with two reserves, drew with Brotherhood G, five matches going the distance and every player picking up at least one point. Bob Jillins starred for the Tigers, his hat-trick including an 11-4 in the fifth win over Dan Grindrod. The two Tigers’ reserves each won one, Alex Baldock narrowly beating Gary Simpson 13-11 in the fifth and Sam Watling edging past Danny Still by an even closer 16-14 in the fifth. Grindrod’s two for Brotherhood included a 12-10 in the fifth victory over Watling, while Simpson beat the same player 11-7 in the fifth. Still, with a win over Baldock, and a doubles victory for Grindrod and Simpson, completed the scoring.

* For the record, the last all-junior side to win the Division Three title were Lucy Burton, Tom Burton and Kelvin Olano-Harper of Brotherhood J in 2012/13. The runners-up that season were the  Brotherhood I team of Rowan Cottee, Allen Denyer, James Smith-Daye and John Wrigley.

*  Final preparations are being made for the League’s Closed Championships, sponsored by The Survey Initiative, to be held on 12th and 13th April at the Coastal Academy Sports Hall. Entrants will receive more details, including individual check-in times, during the first week of April.

RESULTS

Division 1

Walton A 8 Walton C 2;

Windsor Eagles 2 Nomads Panthers 8;

Walton B 7 Brotherhood B 3.

Division 2

Windsor Buzzards 6 Brotherhood E 4;

Windsor Penguins 5 Nomads Jaguars 5;

Brotherhood C 9 Windsor Harriers 1;

Brotherhood D 9 Windsor Magpies 1;

Nomads Tigers 5 Brotherhood G 5.

Division 3

Holland Lancasters 5 Nomads Leopards 5;

Holland Hurricanes 9 Holland Vulcans 1;

Report by Tony Oswick

Division Champions Basildon A having no game this week, second place Matchpoint A completed their last fixture of the season away to Rawreth Megazone C. Yet again Harry Sawford was unbeaten and took the POM award. Team mate Stephen Heard added two more wins to give them a 5 – 4 away victory. Adi Kamma won two and Garry Hartgrove and Paul Brown one each for the home side. Matchpoint’s win leaves them one point  behind Basildon, with the leaders having one more match left to play. Matchpoint have pushed them all the way this season and deserve much credit for keeping interest in the title going almost to the wire.

The bottom two sides, Hadleigh Forum C and Wakering, met at Forum for both side’s final fixture for the season. A 6 – 3 home win was not enough to change Forum’s position propping up the division. Not for the first time this season, Wakering’s Callum Turner was unbeaten. However, Forum’s trio of Paul Fawell, Mark Everard and the much-improved Todd Barker each took two wins to ensure the victory.

Mapledene took a 5 – 4 home success over a two-man Brand Identity B side. Mick Grout was player of the match for the visitors. His three wins were hard fought including an 11 – 7 fifth set victory over Dawn Baldry and two four set wins. Dawn and John Tendler pitched in with sufficient success to edge the result, leaving the observer to wonder what might have been if Brand had had a third player.

Congratulations to Division 1 Champions Basildon A. They finished off their season in fine style, winning 6 – 3 away to Brand Identity B. Unfortunately, though, for the second week in a row, Brand were not able to field a third player. Nonetheless, these six points mean that Basildon finish six points clear of their nearest rivals. In Arun Joy and Les Hoey they have two players who have topped the divisional averages, only losing half a dozen times between them all season. They have been ably supported by Rob Burton, Stephen Walters and Jenne Seibolt. This week’s win came courtesy of another Arun hattrick with a pair being added by Stephen and one for Jenne. Mick Grout was again Brand’s best player taking two wins. Dale Gutteridge added one.

Canvey A have had a good season, finishing in third place. In their final match of the campaign they overcame Mapledene 5 – 4 at home. Captain Ray Wilson again provided the foundation for the win. His three undefeated won him another POM prize. Two wins from Bob Skews sealed the win. Mapledene’s skipper, Andy Seaman, was their best player, too, winning a pair of victories. Dawn Baldry and Lin Roff won one each.

In an enjoyable end-of-season match Hadleigh Forum B entertained Rawreth Megazone C. The visitor’s Garry Hartgrove was a class above the Forum players, taking all his rubbers. However, the home side, of Mick Tappenden and Jim Stait, led by stalwart David Woolmer, each managed two wins apiece to finish up 6 – 3 winners.

Report by David Barnes

The young guns of Netts F have won their way through to the final of the Braintree Table Tennis League handicap cup.

Sixteen-year-olds JJ Calisin and James Howard and Tom Verrier, 14, will be hoping to make it four wins in a row for a Netts team after successes for the C team last year, E team the year before and C team (with a different set of players) in 2022.

Their win in the semi-final dashed Finchingfield A’s hopes of doing the double of the cup and the third division title.

John Barrett, Peter Clark and Dave Punt were unable to overcome the handicaps of the younger players and succumbed 5-1.

Calisin, with a five-point advantage, opened the proceedings with a 21-19, 21-9 win over Punt, followed by Howard’s 21-15, 21-12 win over Barrett, playing off a 12 handicap.

Clark gave the home side some hope with a win in three games against Verrier (+6) but a win for Calisin (+6) over Barrett restored the two-set lead and this was followed by wins for Verrier (+8) over Punt and Howard (+10) over Clark to clinch their path to the final.

The other semi final had to be postponed and will be played later.

In the league division two, Black Notley C racked up two wins over their clubmates, 8-2 against the F team and 6-4 over the D team.

Matt Stephenson won twice for the F team, while for the D team Alesha Ellis-Austin scored a good win over Rev Matthews but an in-form Mark Nolan remained unbeaten.

Leaders Sudbury Wanderers beat Netts C 8-2, with Richard Kemp unbeaten, while Rayne D took advantage of Rayne E’s inactivity to jump into second place with a 7-3 win over Rayne F, despite three straight-game wins for the F team’s Richard Whiteside.

Notley D’s defeat by their C team came after they had scored an 8-2 win over Netts D.  

They welcomed back Alan Billing for the first time this season and he played as if he had never been away, winning his three singles and the doubles with Stewart Ireland.

Notley E sprang a surprise with a 6-4 win over Yeldham Whitlocks A, three places above them.

Jamie Brooks led the way with three wins.

Particularly commendable was his win over Roy Hooper (a player with a 74.4 per cent average before this match compared with Brooks’ 55.2).

But equally commendable was Matt Brooks’ win over Doug Sanders (23.3 per cent versus 56.4).

Division three leaders Finchingfield A came up against an unexpected hurdle in Rayne G’s Alastair Brown.

With only nine wins out of 45 behind him, Brown’s wins against Dave Punt and Ray Bradford came out of the totally unexpected drawer.

John Barrett was the only Finchingfieldian unfazed by Brown’s unorthodox style and took his three singles to lead the home side to a 7-3 victory.

Yeldham B had the misfortune to come up against Sudbury Strollers’ strongest team of the season, Richard Fifield, Richard Kemp and Peter Abbott, who were unlikely to give much away.  Steve Willis’s win over Abbott was the only one that eluded them.

Yeldham got one more point against Netts F but must have hoped for something better than an 8-2 defeat against a team 13 points behind them.

Netts F also had a 7-3 win over Rayne H.

An injury to Nigel Parmenter a few minutes into the evening hit Notley H’s hopes against Notley G.  Parmenter doggedly finished the first set but was unable to continue and it was only Jill Canning’s win over Jacqueline Smith that broke the duck.

Tony Brown remained unbeaten for the second match running in Notley I’s 6-4 win over Netts E.

Report by Ron Fosker

Honours were even in the big Division 1 showdown this week at the very top of the Burnham & District Table Tennis League.  A decisive win for either leaders Fambridge or the chasing Mapledene A would have left the victors in charge of their own destiny.  However with both protagonists settling for a draw this has now left the barn door wide open for Cold Norton B to nip in and shoplift the title away from the bookies favourites. 

So in the battle for top spot Fambridge travelled to the Mapledene Arena expecting to face a trio consisting of Reece Seddon, Liam Squirrell, and potentially Mitchell Jones – a frightening thought for any league encounter across the county let alone the Burnham District.  However Mapledene had resisted this line-up and that made for a much more even encounter.  Seddon was present and he kicked the evening off with a settling 3-0 victory in the battle of the Captains against John Poysden.  Gary Young was up next for Fambridge and quickly found himself 2-0 up against the fiery Jordan Allen.  But Allen was not going down without a fight and following some encouragement from his team-mates he bolstered his defence and squared up the match at 2-2.  Slightly irked at the cheek of this attempted comeback Young upped his game and completed the win to put Fambridge on the board.  Mapledene’s Steve Muth then took an unexpected straight sets point against Bruce Kettle and so the match continued tit-for-tat all the way to the final match where Seddon defeated Young to complete the even stevens affair that helps neither team.  A hat-trick for Seddon that bodes well for his attempt to retain the Singles crown at the upcoming Burnham Closed Tournament.  Mapledene won all their five victories in straight sets, but when the matches were close the experienced heads of Fambridge were able to see out the wins through endeavour and patience winning all three 5 setters on the night.  Fambridge have now completed their season and have to play the waiting game to see if either Mapledene or Cold Norton B can muster the energy to challenge their points haul.  These two meet next week and the fireworks are ready to explode. 

Mapledene B recorded a very decisive win over Cold Norton C.  Mapledene’s Simon Jacob was the star player with an unbeaten singles treble and he then paired up with Kieran Skeggs for the bonus doubles point.  The in-form Arron Chandler was the only Hot Nortonian as he posted good wins over David Jacob and Skeggs – again watch out for Chandler in the Mixed Open Singles event this year – a potential winner for sure.  Cold Norton A had the pleasure of the services of Matt Stringer this week and he was on stupendous form as he bossed his way past the Woodham B trio without so much as a glitch in the 9 legs he limited himself too.  For Woodham Sanjay Saptarshi made a welcome return and after a rusty start he was able to grab a couple of much needed points for Woodham in wins over Steve Maltby and Neil Want.  Want and his partner ‘nets and edges’ combined for a couple of victories including a long 5-setter against Harry Sawford.  Maltby was on fire early doors against Saptarshi and carried that form into his match with Eamonn Hall to record his only win on the night.  So with Stringer and Maltby in great form the doubles against Saptarshi and Hall should have been a cake-walk for them but they somehow rescued a defeat from the jaws of victory having taking an early 2-0, 7-4 lead before a tactical realignment from the Woodham pair that saw them negate the firepower of Stringer and impose their own authority to take the tight third set and then romp the final two. 

A 10-0 whitewash victory for Leaders Stow Maries A against their bewitched, bothered and bewildered opponents Stow Maries C seems aplenty to secure the Division 2 Title – although not mathematically certain just yet.  Maldon A can still catch the Stow Express but can’t afford to drop any points in their last 3 matches – a tall order.  So trebles all round for the Stow trio of Ken Sheard, Peter Chastin and Gary Brignall without much resistance from the opposition.  Jean Chasmer did well to take a leg off Brignall, but she couldn’t do the same in the family battle with son Chastin who showed no mercy in his straight sets victory – although he has since been de-invited from all family gatherings.  The harsh realities of table tennis in Essex hit hard at times.   Maldon A put on a good display against the tricky Blackwater A trio triumphing 7-3 on the night with Colin Napper and Lloyd Bennett-Smith unbeaten in their singles endeavours.  For Blackwater Roger Slade and Neil Freeman took the long road in 5 set victories over Dawn Baldry, and Freeman and Alan Scammell combined for another 5 set point against Napper and Baldry.   Mapledene C boosted their league standing as they bested Blackwater B in a 7-3 thriller.  Dave Woolmer posted his 4^th hat-trick of the season and was the best of the Mapledene crew, with able support from Dennis Squirrell who secured 2 points over the duration of the night’s sport.  Woodham D may have lost out to Maldon B in a 4-6 loss but they had the star attraction in the ever improving youngster Peter Harverson who posted another hat-trick and in doing so laid down a marker for the Dan Richardson Trophy event at the Burnham Closed Tournament – could a non-seed really take the title?  For the victors Steve Aspland and Garry Eames both won 2 singles – Eames having a full night of fun playing all 15 legs available to him in his singles encounters.  Cold Norton D bashed out a surprising comfortable 7-3 win over Stow Maries B, but they did have their best players out to play.  The very awkward Pete Lucraft was unstoppable as he pushed and tweaked his way to an excellent treble, and he was ably supported by his wingmen Neil Want and Terry Hyland both with 2 victories and both falling to the trusty backhand of Peter Hance.

Maldon C have all but claimed the Division 3 Title – so the real race is amongst the undercard to see who will emerge to share the podium with Maldonites.  Blackwater C are favourites for the coveted runner-up spot and their only real challengers left in the race as we approach the final furlong are Maldon D.  However Maldon D did themselves no favours this week despite a tight 6-4 victory over stablemates Maldon E, they really needed to be posting 9 or 10 points to worry the Blackwateronians.  Blackwater C were victorious themselves in their own derby battle with Blackwater E coming out 7-3 winners thanks to interclub hat-tricks from Peter Davenport and Chris Rolison.  Thridwheel Jacqui Treacy chipped in with a win over Phil ‘Wild’ West but she was undone by both Kath Little and Deb Ginn as they lay down markers for the upcoming Ladies Singles tournament.  West didn’t stay wild for too long as he combined with Little for a big win in the doubles taking 3 sets after deuce for the victory.  Maldon D’s 6-4 win came courtesy of a treble from James Raymond in the singles and then he had a big hand in the bonus doubles victory when he paired up with Matt Copsey.  Copsey and Luca Riedling both got the better of Patrick Coyne for the final 2 points, and for Maldon E John Leavett and Kym Eames scored a brace of wins each over Copsey and Riedling.  Peter Davenport was a busy man for Blackwater this week as he also made an appearance in the Blackwater D loss to St Lawrence.  The match finished 7-3 to St Lawrence and Davenport was on his knees come the end of the evening.  Dave Bateman takes the credit for being the only player to beat Davenport all week – but it was his 7th and final match of a very long evening!  In fact Bateman beat all in front of him for his 3 wins and he combined with League stalwart Mike Pratley for a 3 set win over Ron Tam and Davenport (hadn’t had enough table time by now?).  Pratley added 2 extra points from the singles and Dave Siggins rounded off the scoring with a win over Jo Hart.  Blackwater F turned up for their match without Davenport in tow – he must still have been suffering from his exploits earlier in the week.  Woodham employed the Dusty Bin tactics with a 3-2-1 ratio in the singles and a doubles bonus for a 7-3 victory.  Woodham’s star player Allan Steel remains on 100% win rate after another nine dart treble – this form has instilled Steel as the only odds-on favourite at the Burnham Championships where he is bound to take the Fambridge Trophy.  Woodham’s Diane King had a good night taking 2 wins both in straight sets, and Reece Arundell completed the Dusty Bin with a single win over Mike Crumpton in 5 tight sets.  David McHattie was the best of the Blackwater bunch with 2 wins to his name across the evening.

Pic 1 – Mapledene A’s Captain and Treblemaker Reece Seddon at the Mapledene Arena this week

Pic 2 – The brilliant Matt Stringer on hat-trick form for Cold Norton A

Pic 3 – The Family Affair as Jean Chasmer tries to outdo son Peter Chastin in the Stow Maries Derby this week

Pic 4 – Woodham’s starlet Peter Harverson with another unbeaten evening under his belt

Pic 3 – Matt Stringer and Sanjay Saptarshi take to the table for their one-sided contest.

Report by Eamonn Hall

• 

Windsor Buzzards edged ever-nearer to the Clacton League’s Division Two title with an 8-2 win over Brotherhood G and now need just six points from their last three matches to confirm their position as Divisional champions.

Andy Cawley and Dave Martin took trebles in the Buzzards’ victory against Brotherhood G, but it was no push-over with four of the individual encounters going all the way. Cawley edged past Danny Still 11-9 in the fifth and, with Ray Chillingworth, defeated Dan Grindrod and Gary Simpson 11-7 in the fifth in the doubles.

Grindrod and Simpson took a point each for Brotherhood, Grindrod defeating Pete Bloomfield 11-8 in the fifth and Simpson beating the same player 11-6 in the fifth.

Third-placed Brotherhood D beat Windsor Harriers 6-4. Mark Salter took three and Paul Alden two, with the pair combining to win the doubles 12-14, 11-4, 15-13, 9-11, 11-9 against Barry Allen and Isabel Barton. Among the five matches which went the distance were Allen’s two victories for the Harriers, 13-11 in the decider against Alden and 11-9 in the decider against Tricia Salter. The unlucky Salter also went down 11-6 in the decider to Barton.

Nomads Tigers beat Windsor Penguins 6-4, a reverse of their early-season score. Dave Miller stayed unbeaten for the Tigers, with Neil Chegwidden and Paul Woolnough winning a couple each for the Penguins. Tigers’ reserve Matt Sage picked up a point and narrowly lost 11-6 in the decider to Woolnough.

Peter Aumord of Windsor Kestrels is enjoying something of a table tennis Indian summer, beating Brotherhood E’s Duncan Dunne, Kevin Pryor and, in a tight contest, Fred Gallone 11-9 in the fifth on his way to an impressive maximum. Unfortunately, they were his side’s only points, Gallone, Dunne and Pryor each taking two in Brotherhood’s 7-3 success.  

There were trebles for father and son duo, John and Jonathan Hockley, as Nomads Jaguars defeated Windsor Magpies 9-1. Alan Rutledge nearly caused an upset against the previously unbeaten Jonathan Hockley, narrowly going down 11-8 in the fifth. John Plummer took a last-gasp consolation point for the Magpies with an 11-9 in the fifth success over Tom Wilkin in match ten.  

In Division Three, top met bottom with a predictable result, Brotherhood F beating Holland Mosquitoes 10-0, a result which mathematically – almost, but not quite – guarantees the Brotherhood juniors the title.

Second-placed Brotherhood H faced a determined Nomads Leopards’ trio and they had to battle hard for their 6-4 victory in a match where no-one stayed unbeaten. Owen Woollard won a couple for Brotherhood, but lost to Miaomei Liu, whilst Savindu De Silva was denied his hat-trick by Dominic Joannou. Harindu De Silva picked up a point and shared a 13-11 in the fifth doubles win with Woollard against Liu and Anne Bonny. For the Leopards, Joannou and Liu each won two.

So, with four matches left, Brotherhood H lead third-placed Nomads Bobcats, who were without a fixture, by just four points.

Elsewhere, Holland Hurricanes beat Windsor Falcons 6-4. Gary Stallwood remained unbeaten, his 11-5, 11-4, 14-16, 11-8 win over Kelvin Olano-Harper ending the latter’s thirty-match unbeaten run. Gerry Widnell picked up a couple for the Hurricanes but it was John Smith-Daye’s 11-9 in the decider win over Nikki Hayes which ultimately tipped the balance for the Hurricanes.

Holland Vulcans were 6-4 victors against a Nomads Ocelots’ side fielding a guest player to record their third win of the season. Derek Foxley was unbeaten for the Vulcans whilst Arthur Wells-Garrett took a couple for the Ocelots.

Holland Lancasters were forced to play with two guest players against Walton D so it was no surprise that Walton ended 8-2 winners. Dave Wright took the two Lancasters’ points but he was unable to get the better of Maggie Earle who took their individual match 11-7, 10-12, 11-13, 11-8, 11-3.

Nomads Panthers continued their stately progress at the top of Division One with an 8-2 success over Brotherhood A. Greg Green maintained his 100% season record, with Gracie Edwards and Denes Somodi winning two each. The ever-reliable Kevin Gowlett took the two Brotherhood points, which included a hard-fought 11-9, 3-11, 7-11, 11-7, 11-9 victory over Edwards.

But Nomads Lions, 7-3 winners against a two-player Windsor Eagles, are putting up an excellent challenge and are only ten points behind the Panthers. Charlie Fulcher stayed unbeaten against the Eagles, for whom John Pattrick won two and shared an unexpected three-set doubles win with John Hobson against Jason Lloyd and Adam Cuthbert.

Windsor Hawks were 8-2 winners against Walton B, Andy Vincent and Felipe Rodriguez remaining unbeaten. Hawks’ skipper John Barton was involved in the two closest matches of the evening, defeating Mark Ratcliffe 11-5 in the fifth but going down 11-6 in the fifth to Paul Meikle. Mark Gale picked up the second Walton point.

A Peter Burrows’ hat-trick, and two each for Graham Buxton and Clive Allenby, saw Walton C home 7-3 against Lawford. Glen Laing picked up two wins for Lawford and, with Ian Sherwood, celebrated Lawford’s first doubles victory of the season, 11-9, 11-9, 7-11, 11-5 against Burrows and Buxton.

* The League’s Closed Championships, sponsored by The Survey Initiative, has attracted an excellent entry of 70 players. The Championships are being held on 12th and 13th April at the Coastal Academy Sports Hall. All entrants will receive more details, including individual check-in times, at least seven days before the Championships.

* Congratulations to the Clacton League players who were successful in the recent Colchester Closed Championships. Gracie Edwards swept the board in the Ladies’ events with success in the Ladies Singles, Ladies Doubles and, with Greg Green, in the Mixed Doubles. Paul Hume took a well-deserved first major individual title when he won the Mens Singles by defeating his good friend, James Denyer. However, James did have success when, with Greg Green, he took the Mens Doubles title.   

RESULTS

Division 1

Brotherhood A 2 Nomads Panthers 8;

Walton C 7 Lawford 3;

Windsor Hawks 8 Walton B 2;

Nomads Lions 7 Windsor Eagles 3.

Division 2

Windsor Harriers 4 Brotherhood D 6;

Windsor Magpies 1 Nomads Jaguars 9;

Brotherhood G 2 Windsor Buzzards 8;

Nomads Tigers 6 Windsor Penguins 4;

Brotherhood E 7 Windsor Kestrels 3.

Division 3

Holland Lancasters 2 Walton D 8;

Holland Mosquitoes 0 Brotherhood F 10;

Windsor Falcons 4 Holland Hurricanes 6;

Nomads Ocelots 4 Holland Vulcans 6;

Nomads Leopards 4 Brotherhood H 6.

Report by Tony Oswick

Chelmsford A reclaimed second position in division one with a 10-0 away win at Galleywood A in a fixture which saw three wins apiece for Harry Chivers, Simon Jarvis and Josh Bickles. Chivers did not drop a game in his singles matches while Jarvis needed to recover from 2-1 down against James Hicks, and Bickles earned victory over Alastair Hill with a 12-10 scoreline in the fifth game. Chelmsford can thank third-placed Danbury B for helping to keep their title dreams alive as they ran out winners over leaders Danbury C – Sam Lowman fired a treble and there were two wins from Matthew Stringer in a 6-4 victory. Two matches went the distance: Trevor Lloyd and Gary Young did well beating Stringer and Arron Chandler in the doubles before Stringer came from behind to see off Lloyd 7-11, 10-12, 15-13, 11-6, 12-10. Chris Penrose won all three as Danbury A earned a 7-3 away win at the division’s bottom side Chelmsford B. Penrose did not drop a game in any of his three singles victories while teammate Bruce Kettle was on the end of two five-game losses – Waseem Qureshi won their matchup 13-11 in the fifth while Kelvin Edeh took the last game 12-10. While ten points separate the top two teams vying for the title with two fixtures remaining, Danbury C will surely find a way over the line in their final two matches of the season against the bottom two teams Galleywood A and Chelmsford B.

A Gary Ward treble was not enough to prevent Buttsbury A edging closer to the division two title as his Writtle C side fell to a 7-3 loss to the division’s leaders.  Ward dropped just one game in his three wins while Buttsbury’s impressive junior Joshua Freeman earned two singles victories and teamed with Rob Burton for a 3-2 success over Ward and John Parodi in the doubles. There was another win for second placed Maldon C but they were unable to make up any ground on the leaders as they also posted a 7-3 victory in their away trip at Chelmsford C. Maldon’s Chris Hancox, Dawn Baldry and Colin Napper won two matches apiece while Adi Kamma’s two wins was the high point for the hosts. Hatfield Peverel A continued their good form of late with a fourth consecutive win as Martin Archie posted a hat-trick in an 8-2 home win over Danbury D, while Mark Glenister and Robin Armstrong warmed up for their week 26 meeting with leaders Buttsbury by firing trebles in an 8-2 home win over Danbury F.  There were three wins for Tim Cramphorn and Neil Want in an 8-2 home win over Old Chelmsfordians B who remain winless and rooted to the foot of the table.      

The top three teams in division three went winless in week 25 as leaders Chelmsford D were held to a 5-5 home draw by OCA C, second-placed Galleywood C lost 6-4 on the road at Writtle D while third placed Buttsbury B were held to a 5-5 home draw by Danbury H.  Those three matches saw unbeaten outings for Chelmsford’s Chris Denyer, Writtle’s Matthew Brown and Buttsbury’s Harry Sawford. Elsewhere, Cleon Fernandes went undefeated in Chelmsford F’s 5-5 draw at Writtle E, Rev Matthews and Kuzey Musabak won three apiece in Chelmsford E’s 9-1 win at Danbury G, and Peter Hance and Terry Hyland went unbeaten for Danbury J in their 7-3 home win over Hatfield Peverel B. Just three points separate the top three teams in this division though leaders Chelmsford D hold the trump card of a fixture in hand. 

Hutton A continue to lead the way in division four though the 16 point gap to second placed Buttsbury C should be reduced when Buttsbury play their fixture in hand. Third placed Maldon B may still also come into the equation as they have to face both title rivals and also sit 16 points behind Hutton. There were perfect evenings for Buttsbury C’s Lucy Elliott, Oscar Hutt and James Hughes in a 10-0 away victory at Danbury J, Alex Ware and Oladapo Owolabi went undefeated in Hutton A’s 8-2 away win at bottom of the table Danbury M, and Lyndon Bubb secured another hat-trick in Buttsbury D’s 7-3 triumph over Hatfield Peverel C. Farooq Ahmed won all three single matches as OCA D edged a tight fixture 6-4 against Galleywood D – Nathan Blore and Nick Rounce both won twice for Galleywood. Maldon B cruised to a 10-0 home win over Chelmsford G with Marty Englander, Brian Riedling and Chris Ravenhill all three-match winners, while Highwood A and Danbury K fought out a close encounter as the latter took a 6-4 win back to Danbury.

Hutton B hold a 15 point lead with a game in hand in division five as they registered a 9-1 win at ARU thanks to trebles from Gheorghe Nita and Charlie Gould, As the affectionate saying goes: “If anyone can, Ron Tam can” and he certainly delivered for Writtle F by hitting a treble in their 8-2 away win at OCA E.  Richard Drozd also went undefeated though his Hatfield Peverel D side were held to a 5-5 draw at Peverel’s E team – Davina Brazier and Jackie Treacy won two singles matches each. Martin Goddard won all three in Highwood B’s 6-4 home win over Hatfield Peverel F, Mike Pitt backed Goddard up with two wins while David Benstead earned two victories for Peverel.  Goddard and Pitt recovered from 2-1 down to take the doubles encounter with Benstead and Peter Hughes 3-2.

The overall results may not set pulses racing but there were some intriguing vignettes among recent matches in the first division of the Braintree Table Tennis League. 

Zach Harrington, for instance, illustrated the continuing improvement in his form this season with an excellent win over Maria Boulton in Liberal A’s 9-1 defeat by Rayne A.

Boulton had beaten him 11-5. 11-5, 11-2 in their first meeting earlier in the season but this time it was Harrington who came out on top 11-4 in the fifth game.

In doing so he bettered teammate Scott Dowsett for the first time, an achievement in itself as Dowsett had lost only twice before that match.

It means that Harrington, who won only two of his first 15 singles, has gone on to lose only four of the next 15, including to Paul Lucas and Adam Buxton in this match.

Oliver Hicks was another one to make his mark, although not perhaps as he would have wished.  After his landmark victory over his dad James in the previous match, he re-registered with Rayne’s A team only to find himself facing his old Rayne B colleagues in his first match for the current champions.

But his former teammates showed no sentimentality and both Steve Pennell and Ian Whiteside got the better of him in the A team’s 8-2 win.

In Rayne B’s next match, it was Dave Moles who stood out.  Normally in division two, he stepped up to take a singles in the top sphere when he overcame Black Notley A’s Chris Parr, never an easy task.

This was one of those curious matches – although not as rare as logic would suggest – where no one won all three and no one lost all three.  Sean Clift and Sam Burrows won two for Notley A and Whiteside two for Rayne B in a 6-4 victory for Notley.

It was Parr who outscored his teammates in Notley A’s other match, a defeat by the same score to Liberal B, where he was the only one to beat James Mullane.   Adam Cuthbert remained unbeaten for Liberal B.

Liberal B’s other match was another round-the-houses affair, where A beat B, B beat C, C beat D and D beat A.

The flesh on those particular bones amounted to Karl Baldwin and Ken Lewis winning two each for Sudbury Nomads and Mullane and Alistair Hill winning two for Liberal B.

The match appropriately ended in a draw.

Sam Burrows and Steve Noble were both unbeaten in Notley B’s 8-2 win over Netts B while Netts’ A team racked up another 10-0 win, this time over Rayne C.

The only frisson of excitement in the latter match came from Keith Martin stretching men’s singles champion Paul Davison to five games, something that doesn’t happen very often.

Report by Ron Fosker