The top two teams in the Burnham & District Table Tennis League clashed this week in a tense and tight encounter at the Mapledene arena – Mapledene A held on for the win thanks to the bonus doubles victory and remain ensconced at the summit, but watch out as here come Fambridge.

Daniel Young was the less than secret weapon deployed by Mapledene A as they hosted their nearest rivals Cold Norton B this week.  Young was able to record a fine hat-trick of wins that included a clash of styles 5 set victory over Eric Green.  Despite his flawless record young Young was cruelly dropped for the vital doubles encounter in which his team-mates Gary Young and Steve Muth mercilessly destroyed their opponents and thus facilitated the overall victory – with the remaining points coming from the 2 singles wins by the elder Young. For Cold Norton B Sam Lowman had two good wins including his own deuce+ 5 setter against the hard working Steve Muth.  The 6-4 victory keeps Mapledene atop the table, for now. 

With the top two teams in action and sharing the spoils Fambridge took it upon themselves to record a near perfect 10-0 scoreline against Cold Norton C that sees them leapfrog Cold Norton B into the runner-up slot.  The strong Fambridge trio of Mark Stones, Keith Adams and captain John Poysden all scored hat-tricks with Adams and Poysden unwilling to drop a set between them.  Cold Norton’s Chris Buer got the closest to breaking the duck when he took Stones to deuce in the fifth but just ran out of gas at the vital moment as Stones finished off the leg 12-10.  Cold Norton A remain in the running for a top 3 place altho’ they haven’t been able to field their strongest line-up regularly enough to really trouble the top spot.  This week they rolled over a 2 man Maldon A side and came out 8-2 to the good with Kevin Read taking the player of the match plaudits with a 9 dart treble for his singles.  Maldon’s Lloyd Bennett-Smith gave a good account of himself as he came from behind in both his 5 set victories against Charles Sweeny and Steve Maltby.

With the two top teams in Division 2 away on a warm weather training camp Maldon B embraced the opportunity presented to them and steamed passed Blackwater B in a 10-0 victory that sees them split the top two and sends out a reminder that the Maldonians are still here and still in contention.  The Maldon war cry was led by Captain Colin Napper who won 4 points on the night in a measly 12 sets of ping pong.  His trusted lieutenants were Dawn Baldry and Hamish Innes both racking up more hat-tricks for their impressive seasons.  Blackwater’s Neil Thompson top span his way into contention against Innes – taking that match all the way to deuce in the deciding set but Innes held on for the tightest of victories. 

Maldon C and their talismanic leader Steve Aspland were both back to winning ways this week.  Aspland led from the front with a barely troubled hat-trick and as is the norm for this team he paired up with Colin Barrell for the extra doubles point that led to the overall 7-3 winning margin.  Barrell took two wins, and their third player Garry Eames chipped in with a notable 4 set victory over Dave Marsh.  Maldon D couldn’t emulate their stablemates achievements this week as they fell to the combined skills and efforts of Cold Norton D in a 7-3 loss.  This was Cold Norton D’s first win since the opening fixture of the season and keeps them 6 points clear of their fallen victim at the bottom of the division.  Despite the loss Maldon’s Shirley Carroll should be very pleased with her two wins for her team – her first double of the season.  In the final game in this division Woodham D and Stow Maries D played out an even stevens draw with Stow’s Tim Pulham the stand out player as he defeated the Woodham trio without the need for any deciding sets.   Woodham’s Gus Heath and Alan Dadswell each scored a brace of singles wins to keep their side in contention.

Plucky St Lawrence maintained their grip on the Division 3 title as they romped through Woodham E this week.  The St Lawrence Galacticos were pretty dominant all evening with the only real sticking point being the forceful play of Woodham’s Peter Harverson.  He lost out 12-10 in the fifth set to the wily Mike Pratley and took his team’s only point against Steve King.  Pratley and Mick Robinson recorded their hat-tricks with Robinson doing so without dropping a set – in fact he never really got close to dropping one.  The Blackwater teams continue to fight it out for the silver medals with the E and D teams both securing good wins this week.  Blackwater E were the 8-2 victors in the match with Maldon F, with David Sage taking the headlines for his second hat-trick of the season.  Blackwater D had a closer encounter with Maldon E as they emerged 6-4 winners on the night.  All of the Blackwater players took wins during the match but none of them could get past the emerging star of this Maldon team Arthur Shadforth.  This was Shadforth’s first hat-trick and he had to work hard for it as his rollercoaster matches with the more experienced Dave Benstead and Jaqui Treacy went deep into 5 sets – great to see such application and determination from a young player.

Pic 1 – Maldon C talisman Steve Aspland (top of page)

Pic 2 – Blackwater E’s hat-trick hero David Sage

Pic 3 – Maldon E’s emerging star Arthur Shadforth with his first hat-trick of wins this week

Pic 4 – Cold Norton’s Kevin Read in sparkling form this week

The big match in Division Three of the Clacton League saw Brotherhood E go three points clear at the top after a hard-fought 7-3 victory over Windsor Harriers. There were two each for Brotherhood’s Fred Gallone, Tricia Salter and Duncan Dunne in a match where no-one stayed unbeaten.

Three of the League’s most experienced female players were on show but it was Tricia Salter (pictured below) who took the honours, defeating Jenny Higgins in three-straight and Isabel Barton 11-9 in the fifth.

Brotherhood won three of the four matches which went close in five but the Harriers took the closest contest of the evening, Barton coming back from 10-7 down in the fifth to defeat Gallone 11-7, 11-9, 13-15, 9-11, 14-12. Barton took two for the Harriers.

Nomads Leopards are the third team in the promotion hunt and they are only seven points adrift of the leaders after beating a two-player Nomads Ocelots 10-0. The Ocelots nearly took a point but Chris Wilmotte eventually overcame James Horsler 12-10 in the fifth.

And it was also 10-0 as Windsor Magpies consolidated fourth place with a comfortable victory against Nomads Lynx.

Tom Bryden produced his best form of the season to stay unbeaten in Brotherhood F’s 8-2 win against Nomads Bobcats. Lucy Carvell and Ruby Gallagher contributed two each. Three matches went the distance, Bryden beating Matt Sage 11-9 in the fifth and Gallagher beating Jack Riddlestone by the same score. Sage picked up the two Bobcats’ points.

And there was a third victory for a Brotherhood side in this Division when the ‘G’ team defeated Walton E 7-3, despite a treble from Walton’s Maggie Earle. Dan Grindrod, Danny Still and Gary Simpson all won two for the winners.

In Division One the all-Nomads, top-of-the-table clash ended in a 10-0 whitewash win for the Panthers against the Lions. John Hatley, Gracie Edwards and Greg Green all stayed unbeaten, Greg also having the satisfaction of beating Dad Martyn in three-straight.

Trebles for Gary Young and Kevin Gowlett were central in Brotherhood A’s 7-3 win against Walton A, a result which moves them into second place above the Lions. Walton enjoyed a rare doubles victory, Kevin James and Derek Willis beating Gowlett and John Cleasby 11-6 in the decider.

Windsor Eagles were 8-2 victors over Walton C. Gary Cattermole and Mel Rampton recorded hat-tricks, with Phil Smith taking a couple, including a close 11-9 in the decider win over Paul Meikle.

Mark Gale won a singles for the losers and shared a fine doubles win with Meikle against Smith and Cattermole.

Pete Burrows stayed unbeaten for Walton B but bottom team Windsor Buzzards will feel pleased with the final result which ended all-square. Dave Martin had two close wins for the Buzzards, 15-13 in the fifth over Graham Buxton and 11-6 in the fifth over John Marshall, while Andy Cawley’s couple included an 11-7 in the fifth win over the unfortunate Marshall.

In Division Two Brotherhood D maintained their unbeaten record with a 6-4 victory against Brotherhood C. Joe Plummer was player of the match with his second hat-trick of the season, while Sam Plummer took two. There were a couple for Mark Boyland of the ‘C’ team.

Second-placed Lawford defeated Nomads Jaguars 9-1, Richard Spence and Charlie Denholm the maximum men, although Spence only just made it 14-12 in the fifth against Kevin Hogg. Chris Petrou took the Jaguars’ point after a marathon 11-6, 9-11, 17-15, 19-21, 11-7 tussle with Ian Sherwood.

Walton D stayed third and Nomads Tigers fourth after the two teams fought out an honourable draw. Denes Somodi took three for the Tigers, with Clive Allenby and Paul Woolnough winning two each for Walton. The closest match of the evening saw Allenby beat Dave Miller 11-9 in the fifth.

Finally, the battle of the two Windsor sides ended in a 7-3 win for the Penguins over the Kestrels. There were three for Scott Campbell, and two each for Sharon Gowlett and Annabelle Stallwood, Stallwood taken the distance before beating both Debra Found and Jackie Bunce. Allen Denyer was the Kestrels’ best player, winning two singles and, with Bunce, sharing an unexpected doubles success against Campbell and Gowlett.

* Next week sees the start of the Group stage of the Knock-Out Cup. Teams are reminded that the winning team should send the result sheet to Tony Oswick within 24 hours of the match being played. Results and tables will appear at regular intervals on the League’s website.

Teams are also reminded of the new rule whereby some matches will be played as best of three sets rather than best of five. Full details are included on page 9 of the League Handbook and also with the Cup information sent out to all players.

RESULTS

Division 1

Windsor Buzzards 5 Walton B 5;

Brotherhood A 7 Walton A 3;

Nomads Lions 0 Nomads Panthers 10;

Walton C 2 Windsor Eagles 8.

Division 2

Lawford 9 Nomads Jaguars 1;

Windsor Penguins 7 Windsor Kestrels 3;

Walton D 5 Nomads Tigers 5;

Brotherhood C 4 Brotherhood D 6.

Division 3

Windsor Harriers 3 Brotherhood E 7;

Nomads Ocelots 0 Nomads Leopards 10;

Brotherhood F 8 Nomads Bobcats 2;

Nomads Lynx 0 Nomads Magpies 10;

Walton E 3 Brotherhood G 7.

Three results from the Premier Division this week to bring you and the first two resulted in 6-3 wins that followed the same pattern of the player of the match winning three but unfortunately being on the losing side. The first match saw the Rawreth A side of Charles Sweeny, Mike Hayes and Kevin Read beat Irons A with the Rawreth players winning two each against John Monk and Babul McLeod. They were however not able to get the better of Reece Seddon who took his three for the Irons.

The same fate befell Duncan Taylor of Rayleigh Mill who won his three against a Brand Identity team of David Jacob, Richard Jackman and Steve Muth but finished the wrong side of the result as the Brand players all managed to beat Steve Maltby and Rob Harris. Taylor did not have it all his own way and had to fight back from 2 sets down to Jacob mainly down to some inspired play by the Brand Identity man.

The final game this week saw Rawreth B go down 8-1 to the irresistible force that is Thorpe Bay A. Three wins a piece for Mark Stones and John Poysden with the only blot on the Thorpe Bay copybook being a good win for Rawreth’s Keith Adams over Paul Sayer.

Although recording a maximum possible score in a 9 – 0 home drubbing of lowly Hockley C,  Invicta A will be disappointed to only extend their slender lead at the top of the Division 1 table by one whole point. Steve Marr was yet again their Player of the Match.

Second place Stanford Le Hope A managed to keep in contention by virtue of a comfortable 8 – 1 victory away to Rawreth Megazone D. Their Peter Weatherall and POM Ian Sangster were both unbeaten, whilst Noah Unstead was responsible for saving the home sides blushes. However, this slip-up for Rawreth meant they fell one place to fourth.

Lentern took advantage of Rawreth’s reversal to move above them into third place. In a good all round team performance they had an excellent 7 – 2 away win at Brand Identity B. The home side’s ‘Mr. Reliable’, Barrie Delf, got both his team’s successes, but a Paul Sims hat trick, and two each for Martin Archie and Peter Lucraft, saw Lentern to victory.

A weakened Hadleigh Forum B were punished by visitors Canvey A. Despite two wins from Forum’s captain Dave Woolmer and one from Mark Everard (playing up from the C team) Canvey won 6 – 3. Stalwart Ray Wilson was unbeaten, Peter Cray got two and Jo Hills one, in a victory that will do Canvey’s league position no harm.

A full strength Rawreth Megazone C team were too strong for home side Mapledene. Both POM Garry Hartgrove and Mike Hayes were unbeaten for the visitors, with Colin Clements adding a further point in a 7 – 2 victory. Mike Johnston and Andy Seaman got one win each for Mapledene.

RESSC recorded a well deserved 7 – 2 home win over struggling Hadleigh Forum C. Bob Skews and Richard Gill got hat tricks, and Alan Dadswell chipped in with a single. Dave Thomas and Satwant Gill got one win each for Forum.

Small margins can make a difference and they did this week in Division 2. A 6-3 win for leaders Matchpoint A and a 9-0 win for second placed Basildon A has left the two teams level on points from the same number of games, but Matchpoint stay top as they remain unbeaten compared to Basildon’s one defeat.

Matchpoint were without their number one player Evie Knaapen against Stanford B and it made a difference as both Rob Salvage and John Handscombe managed to beat young Lucy Elliott and John picked up a further point beating Jeremy Giffin. Both these wins coming in five sets. None of the Stanford boys could get near James Elliott though, who took all his three wins in straight sets to take the POTM award. Jeremy finished with two wins and Lucy picked up her point with a win against Mark Downey. Stanford slip to fourth as a result.

Basildon’s 9-0 whitewash came against Hockley D and although a little one sided the match was played in the best spirit and even managed to provide an insight into Polish swear words. Apparently ‘Djokovic’ is included! On the table Les Hoey completed a perfect hat trick and Arun Joy and Szymon Jarka completed their individual hat tricks, albeit they had to overcome some stern resistance from Paul Strutt who took both to five sets.

Wakering’s number one Callum Turner was back on the table this week and leading his team to a 6-3 win against Matchpoint B. Another perfect hat trick for him with Paul England chipping in with two wins and Stewart Mills with one. Dan Stewart got two wins and Alexander Deacon one for Matchpoint. Wakering move up to third whilst Matchpoint slip to fourth.

At the bottom of the table Rawreth Megazone E met Basildon B and although it resulted in a 7-2 win for the home side there were three five set games and Basildon actually led at one stage Andy Roff getting the better of Bob Garlick. There then followed seven successive wins for Rawreth until Jenne Seibolt picked up a second win again against Bob Garlick. Sandwiched in between were hat tricks for Richard Kidd and Jonathan Allen and Bob Garlick picking up his point against Richard Reibold. It must have been a hard evening for Richard Kidd whose three games all went to five sets. The win pushes Rawreth out of the bottom two for the first time this season and leaves Basildon four points adrift at the bottom.

The closest game of the week turned out to be Runnymede’s home match against Invicta B. The home team found themselves 3-1 down at one stage, pulled themselves level at 3-3, then found themselves 4-3 down. Fortunately, they had the in-form Dmitry Kisil and Steve Wisbey to play and they both won their matches to give the home side victory. Kisil completed a hat trick and Wisbey recorded a brace but there was no joy for Anne Adlington on the night. For Invicta Barbara Chabior won twice with single wins for Michael Keeble and Sarah Ball.

Team of the Week – Rawreth Megazone E

Player of the Week – Richard Kidd

In Division 3 Alex Bowden continued his impressive run of form with another unbeaten performance as Matchpoint ‘C’ visited Stanford ‘C’ and came away with a 7/2 victory.  Alex was backed up by teammates Roger Sherman and Max Mayo who each won two games, though neither could get the better of Stanford skipper Mark Farley.  As this week’s round of matches gets underway, Matchpoint have hit the top of the table, although it may prove to be a brief stay with their closest rivals yet to play.

The young Matchpoint ‘D’ team faced a tough challenge when high-flying Stanford ‘D’ came to town.  Matchpoint got off to the best possible start when wins for Ollie Milchard and Blake Stewart in their opening games saw them take a 2/0 lead.  Thereafter, Stanford asserted their superiority and closed out the match with the loss of only one more game.  6/3 the final score in their favour.  Ollie picked up the other point for Matchpoint but two wins each for the Stanford trio of Peter Moxham, David Arnett and Andrew Jessop completed their win and saw them return to the top of the table.

Dean Johnson achieved his first maximum of the season for Hadleigh Forum ‘D’ as they recorded a 6/3 win against Hockley ‘E’, and he was ably supported by his teammates, Todd Barker (2 wins) and Jean Catley (1 win).  For Hockley, John George was the best player with a couple of wins, and he was close to a win over Dean, before eventually falling short at 11/9 in the final end.  Graham Gregory added the extra point.

Canvey ‘C’ were again indebted to Trevor Hayes as his maximum led them to a narrow 5/4 victory over the youthful Hockley ‘F’ side.  William Evesham and Elliot Brackenbury both recorded wins over Andy O’Rawe and Alan Owen but it was a blank night for Amelia Taylor.  She was, however, agonisingly close to what would have been only her second win of the season.  She led Alan by two sets only to fall just short at 11-9 in the decider.

Aaron Price continued his recent run of good form with a brace for Evolve in their match against Rawreth Meggazone ‘F’.  Reuben Stracey chipped in with another point but the greater experience of the Rawreth team told, and they ran out 6/3 winners on the night.  Jan Thorpe was the POTM with an unbeaten performance with Graham Back (2) and Mike Webb (1) adding the extras.

Three results from the Southend Premier Division this week and two tight affairs to start off with. The first saw a 5-4 win for Rawreth B against Hockley A. All three Rawreth players chipping in with wins and it was great to see the lesser spotted Mike Hayes and Andrew Halling back playing this season with Halling picking up two wins as did Peter Barrett and Hayes picking up a win which in the end proved to be the difference. No Rawreth player could get the better of Player of the Match Matt Stringer though as he took all his three singles.

Equally tight but perhaps only because Thorpe B had 2 players was their 5-4 victory over Rayleigh Mill. Kieran Skeggs won all his against Eric Green, Steve Maltby and Steve Sawyer while Rich Stubbington also overcame the two Steve’s. Green beat Stubbington in a close 5 setter for the Miller’s extra point.

The final game of the week saw Irons A record a 7-2 win over Brand Identity A. Reece Seddon leading the way with another three wins ably backed up with two wins apiece from Babul McLeod and John Monk. One win each for Simon Jacob and Richard Jackman for Brand Identity.

Invicta A managed to keep a fingertip hold on to first place in Division 1 this week, courtesy of a strong 7 – 2 win away to Rawreth Megazone C. Steve Marr was again POM, winning all his three matches, a feat emulated by his team mate Lee Marson. Gary Hartgrove and George Davis (playing up) got one each for the home side.

Stanford Le Hope A remain second, but the gap between them and Invicta is now two points. They had a stiff test at home to Brand Identity B. Despite two wins by stalwart Barrie Delf for the visitors, another hat trick from Stanford’s  Mitchell Jones, together with two successes from Ian Sangster, gave their side a 5 – 4 victory.

Lentern had a bit of struggle at home to an improving Hadleigh Forum B. However, thanks to a Martin Archie treble, they squeezed out a 5 – 4 result. The match was a close affair with several five setters. The visitor’s David Woolmer was unfortunate to lose out 11 – 9 against Lentern’s Paul Sims in the fifth set of their contest.
David and colleague Tony Jacks scored one success each, but Mick Tappenden was the visitor’s star performer with two wins.

Brand Identity’s setback has pushed them one place down the table, with Rawreth Megazone D taking the opportunity to leapfrog them by handing out a hiding away to bottom side Hockley C. Cleon Fernandez’s maximum gave him the POM prize, but his team mate Adi Kamma was also unbeaten. Ollie George got Hockley’s consolation win in an 8 – 1 drubbing.

RESSC are beginning to move in an upwards direction. This week they travelled to Canvey A and came away with a comfortable 7 – 2 victory. John Holland was POM and skipper Bob Skews also won all his contests. Peter Cray and Ray Wilson won one each for Canvey.

Despite a pair of wins from Dave Thomas Hadleigh Forum C did not have enough in the tank as they entertained Mapledene. An Andy Seaman threesome and two each from Charles Yeung and Bill Smith gave the visitors a comfortable 7 – 2 win.

What goes around comes around so they say and it did for Hockley D in Division 2 this week. In their match last week they could only field two players, lost 5-4, and missed a great chance to chalk up their first win of the season. This week they met Basildon B in a vital bottom of the table clash and found themselves playing a two man side as Covid had taken out Basildon’s best player this season Jenne Seibolt. Hockley took full advantage running out 8-1 winners, ending their winless run and moving up to eighth place in the table. Paul Ogden claimed his second POTM award with two wins, Paul Strutt also won two and Neal Klyman claimed the other point. Richard Reibold was Basildon’s lone winner.

There was no change in the bottom two teams with Rawreth Megazone also succumbing to an 8-1 defeat against Canvey B. The Islanders should possibly be renamed the Murraymints as their recent surge up the league table continues to be inspired by Andrew Murray’s performances. Four games, four wins and four POTM awards leaves them in sixth place and they are now closing the gap on fifth placed Wakering.  To be fair to Rawreth the score could have been closer as four games went the full distance but only Steve McQuillan managed to claim a win beating Des Duffield. Kevin Walsingham also completed his hat trick.

Invicta B fell to their seventh successive defeat, not surprisingly against Matchpoint A, and they sit two off the bottom albeit with a six point advantage. Barbara Chabior provided their consolation point beating Jeremy Giffin in five sets but otherwise there was a perfect hat trick for Harry Sawford and another three wins for Evie Knaapen.

Having played a two man team last week Runnymede found themselves a player short against Basildon A. Steve Wisbey and Tony Millward both managed to beat Stephen Walters who unfortunately had to play with a wrist injury and Tony fully extended Les Hoey going two sets up before the Basildon man ran out the last three sets 11/4, 12/10, 11/3.

Closest match of the week was Wakering’s 5-4 win at Stanford B with Zac England’s hat trick proving to be the difference supported by a win each from Stewart Mills and Paul England. Mark Downey and Robert Salvage shared the points for Stanford but there was no joy on the night for David Arnett. Stanford stay in third place on games won as they Matchpoint B and Wakering all have 45 points.

Player of the Week – Harry Sawford

Team of the Week – Hockley D

‘Very much a derby game’ was how the meeting of the Stanford ‘C’ and ‘D’ teams in Division 3 was described. ‘C’ team skipper Mark Farley certainly thought so and, in determined mood, he recorded a flawless hat-trick and this, added to two wins from Randy Santiago, meant a 5/4 win and ensured the bragging rights for his team.  All the ‘D’ team players contributed on the night with Martin Winter their best player with two wins.  Andrew Jessop and Peter Moxham also chipped in with a win apiece.

Matchpoint ‘D’ picked up a couple of valuable points as they try to move away from the lower reaches of the Division 3 table.  Rawreth Meggazone ‘F’ were their opponents, and for them, Robert Garlick was the POTM with an unbeaten performance, well supported by Edward Philcox and Mike Webb with two wins each.  Matchpoint’s Richard Sloman was their points winner with wins over Gloria Acheampong and Ethan Russell.  Despite this defeat, the Matchpoint team were commended for their attitude and sportsmanship throughout.

The match between Canvey ‘C’ and Invicta ‘C’ was a close affair, notable mainly for the performance of Invicta’s Trisha Winter who put an end to the long unbeaten run in this division of Canvey’s Trevor Hayes.  Despite her heroics, she ended up on the losing side as Steve Kemp’s maximum was the mainstay of Canvey’s 5/4 victory.  Trevor added the other two points for the Islanders, whilst for Invicta there were two wins for Trisha plus a win apiece for teammates David Youngman and Jonathan Gould.

The meeting of two of our junior sides turned out to be a very one-sided affair as the Matchpoint ‘C’ trio of Max Mayo, Lotte Mills and Alex Bowden proved to be far too strong for the very young Hockley ‘F’ team and ran out 9/0 winners in double quick time.  Alex was the POTM as he maintained his unbeaten record this season.  Despite the scoreline, this match was played in good spirits by all the players.  With this big win, Matchpoint have moved into third place in the league, hot on the heels of the joint leaders, Stanford ‘D’ and Invicta ‘C’.

Aaron Price led the way for Evolve as his team overcame the challenge of Hadleigh Forum ‘D’, a 6/3 win being the outcome.  Aaron recorded a ‘perfect’, straight sets hat-trick, with his teammates Ben Berwick, two wins, and Teddy Kent, with a single win, completing a solid team performance.  Todd Barker, with a brace, was Forum’s best player on the night with Douglas Brown adding their other point.

Sage & Bush – a Recipe for Success

Woodham C continue to dominate proceedings in the second division of the Burnham & District Table Tennis League as they remain the only team across the whole league with a 100% win rate.   Whilst in Division 3 David Sage and Jason Bush cooked up a fine win for Blackwater E as they ‘got one up’ on their very own C Team.

The developing story of Division 2 this season is whether any opponent will be able to beat the dynamic Woodham C team.  Woodham C are firmly lodged at the top of the table with an impeccable 8 wins from 8 matches – and only one of those has been anywhere near a close encounter.  This week they travelled the short distance to Cold Norton D and came away with another 9-1 victory.  Adi Kamma was the player of the match with his hat-trick but was ably supported by Graham Briggs who was also unbeaten, and David Meah with 2 wins as he just lost out to the wily and unconventional style of Gordon Gatheral.  Woodham D didn’t fare so well despite Gus Heath’s phenomenal hat-trick against Maldon C – alas they were his team’s only points as the Maldon trio of Colin Barrell, Steve Aspland and Garry Eames each won their remaining singles and as per norm Aspland and Barrell won the doubles.  The remaining Division 2 matches were closely fought derbies.  Blackwater A and Blackwater B fought out a tight draw with the B team’s Louis Gunn and Noah Sage winning the last 2 singles of the night to come back from 3-5 down to square things up and frustrate the A Team.  Neil Freeman was on fine form for the A Team as he won all his matches including a hard-fought 5 setter with Gunn.  In the Stow derby the C team hosted the B team, but it seems the C team had given up before they started as they were a player short.  Invigorated by the underdog status the C Team’s Pete Layzell was inspired to a superb hat-trick of wins to keep the score more than respectable as they finally went down 4-6.

Division 3 saw all 3 Blackwater teams in action as they compete for the runner-up position – by the end of the week’s competition only 2 points separate the 3 teams with the D Team in the ascendency.  Blackwater C will rue their missed opportunity as they were humbled by their very own E team in a humiliating 8-2 reverse.  This one will be talked about for years to come down at the West Maldon Community Centre.  The C team lost out in three 5 setters as the E Team’s Jason Bush and David Sage completed their hat-tricks.  The E team’s third player was the fabled and much respected Norman Hayes who somehow defied human and medical logic to play out all of his matches to deciding fifth sets and two of those went to deuce and beyond – with one win and two defeats, but what an effort.  Hayes benevolently left the doubles to Messrs Sage and Bush (if only they ran a local horticultural business!) to complete the 8-2 landslide.  Meanwhile Blackwater D travelled to the depths of Mayland to take on the runaway league Leaders St Lawrence.  The Blackwater trio all came away with points as they secured an unexpected but very welcome draw, with David Benstead winning the final match of the night for Blackwater.   For St Lawrence the experienced duo of David Siggins and Mick Robinson each won two singles and combined to just about take the doubles 14-12 in the decider against Benstead and Jacqui Treacy.  Treacy and Chris Rolison took two singles each for the delighted Blackwater team.

In Division 1 Cold Norton A’s streak of good form was halted in dramatic fashion as they succumbed to a very strong Mapledene B side.  Cold Norton’s Duncan Taylor was unstoppable as he dominated all of his matches – but unfortunately that was it for Cold Norton on the night as they failed to win another single set as Mapledene ran out 6-4 winners with 2 wins a piece for David and Simon Jacob and Kieran Skeggs. Whilst the Mapledene B side were admirably thwarting the Cold Norton A advance their A team took full advantage to strengthen their position at the head of the table with a comfortable 8-2 victory at home to Cold Norton C.  Mapledene’s captain Reece Seddon doing the most damage with a hat-trick of wins with Cold Norton’s in form Kim Shead providing the most resistance as he was able to record excellent wins over Steve Muth and Peter Barrett.  In the final match of the week Maldon A were able to muster some decent pointage from their 7-3 win over Stow Maries A which will undoubtedly help their cause come the relegation reckoning.  Both Harrison Hill and Derek Balding won all their singles to ensure the healthy winning margin.

Top of page – The mighty Duncan Taylor – another hat trick in Burnham this week.

Pic 1 – Action from the Double Derby at Blackwater – as Norman Hayes holds court whilst Neil Freeman and Alan Scammell discuss doubles tactics on the court behind.

Pic 2 – A frustrated Blackwater A – Alan Scammell in action with Neil Freeman and Merv Perriman waiting in the wings

Pic 3 – The infamous Blackwater chefs – Jason Bush & David Sage

Pic 4 – Woodham C’s Graham Briggs in winning action against Terry Hyland this week.

Windsor Kestrels will feel entitled to open a champagne bottle or two this week as they celebrated their first win of the season in Division Two of the Clacton League.

Languishing at the foot of the table, the Kestrels enjoyed a 7-3 success over Nomads Jaguars’ second-string side, Graham Bunce staying unbeaten and Debra Found winning two.

In two crucial matches, Bunce beat Chris Petrou 11-6 in the decider, while Bunce and Found edged the doubles 11-9 in the decider against Kevin Hogg and Callum Hogg. Petrou won a couple for the Jaguars.

It was a double disappointment for the Jaguars when, in their second match against Brotherhood C, they went down 6-4. Mark Boyland won three and Mark Beckham two for Brotherhood, but the Jaguars came out on top in another close doubles, Petrou and Kevin Hogg beating Boyland and Beckham 11-7 in the decider.

At the top of the table, leaders Brotherhood D were given a stern test by Walton D, the match ending all-square. Simon Smith-Daye won three and Sam Plummer two, Smith-Daye’s hat-trick including an 11-8 in the fifth win over Andy Foster. Foster won two for Walton, although he struggled before overcoming James Smith-Daye 11-6 in the fifth. Foster and Clive Allenby had the satisfaction of inflicting a first doubles defeat of the season on Brotherhood, beating Plummer and Simon Smith-Daye in four.

Lawford defeated Brotherhood B 7-3 in a match where every player picked up at least one point. James Tindle, in his first appearance of the season, won three for Lawford and Richard Spence two. Charlie Denholm chipped in with an 11-6 in the fifth victory over Mark Salter in the closest match of the evening.

Windsor Penguins and Nomads Tigers enjoyed a tough tussle, the match ending with honours even. Denes Somodi won his three for the Tigers, with Dave Miller getting an important 11-6 in the decider win over Sharon Gowlett. For the Penguins there were two each for Scott Campbell and Annabelle Stallwood, Campbell defeating Miller 11-5 in the fifth and Stallwood edging past Colin Webber by the same score.

In Division Three Windsor Harriers beat Walton E 6-4 despite a sparkling maximum from Walton captain Lynette Sparks. Her toughest match was against Isabel Barton, eventually winning 11-6 in the decider.

Three from John Plummer, and two each from Dave Sweetland and Alan Rutledge, saw Windsor Magpies home 7-3 against Brotherhood F. The improving Ruby Gallagher picked up two points and, with Lucy Carvell, took the doubles against Plummer and Sweetland.

Brotherhood E cantered home 10-0 against Nomads Ocelots, Rodney Betts and Tricia Salter’s doubles win against James Horsler and Anne Bonny the only match extended to a fourth set.

And there was another 10-0 result in another Brotherhood v Nomads encounter, Danny Still, Dan Grindrod and Gary Simpson all taking trebles for Brotherhood F against the Lynx.

In Division One Nomads Panthers brought out the big guns against Brotherhood A and it was enough to see them to a 6-4 victory. James Denyer maintained his 100% record although it was a tight 9-11, 2-11, 12-10, 12-10, 11-9 against Gary Young. The doubles ultimately proved pivotal, Denyer and Greg Green beating Young and Kevin Gowlett 11-6 in the decider. Young and Gowlett won two singles apiece for Brotherhood.

Walton A were 6-4 winners against Walton B, Kevin James winning three and Derek Willis two. Pete Burrows, in his first appearance of the season for the ‘B’ team, won a couple, although it was a close 4-11, 15-13, 9-11, 11-6, 11-9 against Willis.

Finally, the all-Windsor clash between the Eagles and Buzzards ended, somewhat predictably, 10-0 in favour of the Eagles, John Pattrick, Mel Rampton and Phil Smith all taking trebles.

RESULTS

Division 1

Walton A 6 Walton B 4;

Brotherhood A 4 Nomads Panthers 6;

Windsor Buzzards 0 Windsor Eagles 10.

Division 2

Walton D 5 Brotherhood D 5;

Nomads Jaguars 4 Brotherhood C 6;

Windsor Kestrels 7 Nomads Jaguars 3;

Windsor Penguins 5 Nomads Tigers 5;

Lawford 7 Brotherhood B 3.

Division 3

Nomads Ocelots 0 Brotherhood E 10;

Walton E 4 Windsor Harriers 6;

Brotherhood F 3 Windsor Magpies 7; Nomads Lynx 0 Br

There were wins for both Hockley teams in the Premier Division of the Southend & District Table Tennis League this week. Hockley A were in fine form as they pulled out an unlikely 9-0 scoreline over Hadleigh Forum A. Sanjay Saptarshi living up to his ‘Sensation’ nickname from the Burnham league won all his games as did Matt Stringer and Player of the Match Dan Patynski.

Hockley B overcame the Millers of Rayleigh 6-3 in a match that saw a number of hard fought games. Three wins as you might expect for Andy Cunningham but there was also a great hattrick for Player of the Match Dave Colwill as he saw off the best efforts of Rob Harris, Colin Chatfield and Eric Green. There was one win a piece for the Rayleigh trio over Keith Abbott.

In a top of the table clash Thorpe Bay A came out on top against Rawreth A 5-4 despite a great hattrick for Liam Squirrell against Paul Sayer, Mark Stones and John Poysden. Stones and Sayer picked up two wins over Charles Sweeny and Kevin Read while Poysden defeated Sweeny for the win.

In the final game this week there was a close win for Irons A over Thorpe Bay B, in the main due to three wins for Reece Seddon. Player of the Match Seddon was backed up with a win each for Dave Bowles and Babul McLeod over Adam Deadman. Kieran Skeggs and Richard Stubbington with two wins a piece for the Bay.

Three wins for Saptarshi

Another week, another leader at the top of the Division 1 table. This time it is Invicta A, albeit only by the finest of margins. They have the same number of points as last week’s leaders Stanford A, but have lost one less match. Invicta’s impetus came from a comfortable 8 – 1 home win against Hadleigh Forum C. The visitor’s Mark Everard was their only player to have any success, overcoming Lee Marson. Tony Ayliffe and Steve Marr were unbeaten for Invicta.

Stanford came a cropper away to Forum’s B team 6 – 3. Tony Jacks was their POM, being unbeaten. It was a team effort, though, with Dave Woolmer adding two and Mick Tappenden one. Pat White got two for Stanford, just edging a five-set thriller against Mick, and Pete Weatherall added one.

Brand Identity B maintain third place with a 6 – 3 win at home to Hockley C. No one player was unbeaten, however. Each of the home side’s John Lott, Jenny Harrison and Mick Grout won two. Brian Bissenden also got two victories for the visitors and David Chenery one.

Lentern are now joint fourth with Rawreth Megazone D. Lentern had Martin Archie to thank for the basis of their away win at Canvey A. His POM hat trick gave his side a 5 – 4 victory, whilst Peter Lucraft and Wayne Farmer chipped in with one win each. Peter Cray and Ray Wilson got two successes each for Canvey.

In a ‘derby match’ between the D and C teams, Rawreth Megazone D came out on top. Yet again, the C team could only muster two players, which contributed to the D team’s 6 – 3 success. Mike Hayes was unbeaten for the winners, whilst Garry Hartgrove got two for the losers.

There were some close contests in the match between RESSC and Mapledene. Both Mapledene’s Lin Roff and their POM Mike Johnston eked out successes in close five-setters. Mike went on to win all three of his rubbers, whilst Lin succumbed to RESSC’s Bob Skews in the very first match of the evening. Bill Smith added one further win for Mapledene to give them a 6 – 3 away win. Bob got two for the home side, and Richard Gill, one.

Another week, another leader at the top of the Division 1 table. This time it is Invicta A, albeit only by the finest of margins. They have the same number of points as last week’s leaders Stanford A, but have lost one less match. Invicta’s impetus came from a comfortable 8 – 1 home win against Hadleigh Forum C. The visitor’s Mark Everard was their only player to have any success, overcoming Lee Marson. Tony Ayliffe and Steve Marr were unbeaten for Invicta.

Stanford came a cropper away to Forum’s B team 6 – 3. Tony Jacks was their POM, being unbeaten. It was a team effort, though, with Dave Woolmer adding two and Mick Tappenden one. Pat White got two for Stanford, just edging a five-set thriller against Mick, and Pete Weatherall added one.

Brand Identity B maintain third place with a 6 – 3 win at home to Hockley C. No one player was unbeaten, however. Each of the home side’s John Lott, Jenny Harrison and Mick Grout won two. Brian Bissenden also got two victories for the visitors and David Chenery one.

Lentern are now joint fourth with Rawreth Megazone D. Lentern had Martin Archie to thank for the basis of their away win at Canvey A. His POM hat trick gave his side a 5 – 4 victory, whilst Peter Lucraft and Wayne Farmer chipped in with one win each. Peter Cray and Ray Wilson got two successes each for Canvey.

In a ‘derby match’ between the D and C teams, Rawreth Megazone D came out on top. Yet again, the C team could only muster two players, which contributed to the D team’s 6 – 3 success. Mike Hayes was unbeaten for the winners, whilst Garry Hartgrove got two for the losers.

There were some close contests in the match between RESSC and Mapledene. Both Mapledene’s Lin Roff and their POM Mike Johnston eked out successes in close five-setters. Mike went on to win all three of his rubbers, whilst Lin succumbed to RESSC’s Bob Skews in the very first match of the evening. Bill Smith added one further win for Mapledene to give them a 6 – 3 away win. Bob got two for the home side, and Richard Gill, one.

Matchpoint B took advantage of rivals Stanford not having a game and moved into third place in Division 2 after a 6-3 win against Rawreth Megazone E. Stephen Heard, on his debut, was the POTM and he was supported by a brace from Debbie O’Neill and a single win from Dan Stewart. Debbie had to work particularly hard for her wins beating Jaspreet Singh in five sets after being 2-1 down and then doing even better against Jonathan Allen coming back from two sets down before winning the next three 11/7 11/9 11/7. Richard Kidd picked up two wins for Rawreth and Jonathan got the other point after another five set match this time edging out Dan 11/8 in the decider.

Wakering bounced back to form and moved within a point of Stanford in fifth place after a comprehensive 8-1 win against Invicta B. The father and son double act of Paul and Zac England both recorded maximums with Andrew Deadman providing the other two points. Barbara Chabior was again Invicta’s best player beating Andrew in straight sets and just going down in five to Paul.

Basildon B find themselves bottom of the table after losing 8-1 at home to a revitalised Canvey B. It’s now three games and nine victories for Andrew Murray since his return and his performances have seen the Islanders climb from tenth place to sixth in those three matches. A perfect hat trick for him, another hat trick for Kevin Walsingham and a double for Des Duffield made it a miserable night for the Basildon boys for whom Jenne Seibolt got their consolation.

In the final game of the week a still winless Hockley D almost picked up an unlikely win away at Runnymede as despite only being able to field two players they took the match to a last game decider which saw Runnymede’s Steve Wisbey beat Neal Klyman in four sets to snatch the win. Hockley’s Paul Ogden took the POTM honours with a perfect hat trick whilst Neal got the better of Barry Edgar for their other point. Anne Adlington got the other win for Runnymede against Neal.

Player of the Week – Paul Ogden

Team of the Week -Matchpoint B

Firstly, a result carried over from Week 7 in Division 3.  The young Hockley ‘F’ side took on a (much) older and more experienced Rawreth Meggazone ‘F’ team.  The evening started well for Hockley when Kris Chankov got the better of Edward Philcox after the closest of games, Kris eventually winning 12-10, 8-11, 11-9, 9-11, 11-9.  Unfortunately, that was as good as it got for the home side with Rawreth eventually running out 8/1 winners with the further loss of only two sets.  Jan Thorpe took the POTM honours with Graham Back also unbeaten.

The first three matches played in Week 8 were all close affairs.

Rawreth Meggazone ‘F’ were a player short for their trip up the A13 to take on Stanford ‘C’.  Despite this, they made a fight of it, with two wins apiece for Mike Webb and Ro Brett, although neither were able to get the better of Stanford skipper, Mark Farley.  With Mandy Till and Karen Kempster unable to add any points, the home team were 5/4 winners.

Alex Bowden continued his impressive run with another unbeaten performance as his Matchpoint ‘C’ side travelled to the home of the league leaders, Invicta ‘C’, and came away with a 5/4 victory.  His ‘perfect’ hat-trick was backed up with two wins from Roger Sherman.  Indeed, Roger was close to recording a maximum himself.  In his game against Trisha Winter, he led by two sets before Trisha rallied and got home 9-11, 5-11, 11-7, 12-10, 11-9.  The Invicta points came from Trisha with two wins with Brendan Raja and Keith Baxter adding a win apiece.

There was a first hat-trick of the season for Matchpoint ‘D’s Blake Stewart in his teams 5/4 win over Hadleigh Forum ‘D’.  Teammate Oliver Milchard gave good support with a couple of wins; indeed, it was his 5-set win over Forum’s Jean Catley in the final game of the match that confirmed the win for his team.  Todd Barker was Forum’s best player on the night with two wins.  Jean and Sineh Ball both with a single win. 

It was a tough night for a young Evolve team when they took on Hockley ‘E’.  Although Ben Berwick took Graham Gregory to a deciding set, they were only able to win one more set as Hockley ran out 9/0 winners.  Keith Denyer took the POTM honours with teammates Graham and Gary Beck also undefeated.  11-year-old Archie Wakerly played his first match for Evolve and will certainly learn and improve as the season progresses.

It was an equally tough night for the junior players of Hockley ‘F’ when they hosted Stanford ‘F’.  Vaughan Chambers, Andrew Jessop and David Arnett showing their greater experience in a 9/0 victory.  There were though encouraging signs for the future as Elliot Brackenbury forced Andrew into a fifth set and William Evesham pushed David all the way before eventually going down 11-8, 11-13, 11-8, 9-11, 8-11.  No scares for Vaughan as he took the POTM with a straight sets maximum

Cold Norton A Team ‘Love it when a plan comes together!’

There were plenty of fireworks in the Burnham & District Table Tennis League this week as Mapledene A reclaimed top spot and all three division 1 Cold Norton teams recorded banging wins including a memorable evening for the Cold Norton A Team who blasted and whizzed their way passed perennial champions Fambridge. 

With Leaders Woodham on a mid-season break it was up to the peloton members to decide who would make the break this week.  Up stood early season leaders Mapledene A who put down a vey strong 9-1 winning margin against a competent Maldon A trio.  Mapledene’s starlets Daniel Young and Reece Seddon won all their matches including the doubles.  Steve Muth won 2 of his singles and was just pipped late on in the deciding set of his encounter with superb Maldon leftie Jon Stokes.  Cold Norton A fielded their holy trinity of players this week leaving Fambridge without a prayer.  The Cold Norton trio of Duncan Taylor, Charles Sweeny and Kevin Read all won 2 a piece, but none of them could conquer the Fambridge archangel Keith Adams.  Adams must have stood in something en route to the venue or it really was divine intervention as he held on and overcame the challenge of both Read and Taylor despite being drawn into a 5^th set shootout in both ties.  Read & Taylor did get their revenge in the doubles though, securing the extra bonus point for the overall 7-3 victory.  With Cold Norton A of late fielding stronger sides they have pushed themselves back into contention as the league splits down the middle into a championship race, and a race for survival.  Cold Norton B are firmly in that championship race and this week’s whitewash against Mapledene B has really pushed them back into the melee.  A largely straightforward set of hat-tricks for the Cold Norton B boys Eric Green, Sam Lowman and Ian Wall – although Mapledene’s David Jacob threatened to spoil the party when in the final game of the night he came back from 0-2 down to force Green into a final deciding set he wasn’t expecting.  Green recovered his composure and won out 11-8.   In the survival race Woodham B lost out to Cold Norton C despite having the unbeaten player of the match in their ranks.  Cold Norton triumphed 6-4 with Kim Shead and Arron Chandler taking 2 wins each and then crucially combining for an excellent doubles victory over Sanjay Saptarshi and Dan Patynski.  Saptarshi was the star turn winning all his singles for the majority of the Woodham haul.

In Division 2 Woodham C continue to pull away from the chasing pack, and at this stage it looks like their only title challengers will be Mapledene C and Maldon B – but of course this can all change in the bat of an eye.   Both Woodham teams recorded good wins this week.  Leaders Woodham C welcomed the Stow C trio to their manor, and to be honest were poor hosts as they only allowed Stow to go home with a single point courtesy of Pete Layzell’s 5 set win over the previously undefeated Graham Briggs.  Kudos to Layzell, but that didn’t help his cause too much as the Woodham trio of Briggs, Chris Hancox and David Meah swept away every other challenge for an emphatic 9-1 victory.  Gus Heath was in impeccable form for Woodham D this week, 4 wins in 12 sets which formed the bedrock of his team’s 8-2 winning margin over Cold Norton D.  Heath was ably supported by wingmen Mal Henstock and Alan Dadswell.  Maldon B continued their efforts to keep in touch with the leaders as they overcame the challenge of Stow B for a 7-3 victory.  It was all about team work for the Maldonians as they each won 2 games but none of them had the wit or the guile to defeat the master of the backhand Peter Hance.  Hance has now played 9 and won them all – perhaps he should be picked every week!  Mapledene C lost some ground on the leaders this week as they were held to a 5-5 draw at the Mapledene Arena by Maldon C.  No hat-trick this week for the Maldon Talisman Steve Aspland just the bare minimum 2 wins as he was outfought and outlasted by the gutsy Lin Roff in a tense 5-setter.  Roff completed her hat-trick with wins over Colin Barrell and Garry Eames, whereas Barrell and Aspland recovered to grab the match-saving doubles win.  In the remaining division 2 matches there were conflicting emotions for the two Blackwater teams.  The A-Team ran out 7-3 winners over Stow D with hat-tricks for Neil Freeman and Denis Balic, whereas the B-Team succumbed to a 6-4 defeat against a resurgent Maldon D side despite Blackwater’s Louis Gunn recording the only hat-trick of the evening.  Two wins each for Maldon’s youth and experience combination of Brian Riedling and Marty Englander plus a doubles victory to secure the result.  That win lifts Maldon D off the bottom of the table at the expense of Cold Norton D.

In Division 3 St Lawrence continue to dominate the leaderboard and this week’s victims were Maldon E.  St Lawrence ran out 9-1 winners to keep a stranglehold on the top spot.  Hat-tricks for the ever reliable Mick Robinson and Steve King, with Mick Pratley chipping in with 2 wins but just losing out to Maldon starlet Arthur Shadforth.  Blackwater D and E fought out an in-house battle for the local bragging rights – but both teams failed as they settled on a draw, shook hands and agreed to return to fight on another day.  Blackwater E had Peter Davenport to thank for 4 of their points whereas the E Team shared their successes a bit more evenly with 2 wins for both Jacqui Treacy and Chris Rolison.  Blackwater C were much more clinical as they dispatched a 2 man Maldon F team 7-3, with all 3 Maldon points courtesy of the paddle of John Leavett.  This fine form deserted the Blackwater C squad as they played their second match of the week losing out in a 6-4 battle with Woodham E.  A battle it truly was as 5 of the matches went deep into 5^th sets with Woodham cruelly winning 4 out of these 5 ‘could go anyway’ encounters.  For Woodham Chris Crooks won all his singles and paired up with dark horse Mitch Davies for the doubles victory, and for Blackwater both Andy Simmonds and Phil West took 2 wins.  Those extra points push Blackwater C into second place but really the whole of the division is in the running for runner-up slot this season.

Top of page – Brian Reiding in unstoppable form this week as he warms up with Maldon team-mate Shirley Carroll

Pictured above clockwise :-

1. The battle for supremacy betwixt Kim Shead of Cold Norton and Sanjay Saptarshi of Woodham
2. Fambridge’s Keith Adams hols out against the Cold Norton onslaught
3. Eric Green and Sam Lowman pair up in the doubles for Cold Norton
4. Maldon’s Arthur Shadforth saving his team from a whitewashing this week