Week Commencing 16th May 2005

Swindon Table Tennis: Finals Night and Presentation Evening

A great finish to a successful season

The best way to finish a season is with a bang, and Swindon Table Tennis League certainly did their best to achieve that with an event with something for everyone. The event, held at the GWR Sports Association club in Shrivenham road, Swindon, was well attended with spectators gathered on all sides of the hall,  eagerly watching the action on the centre table.

Starting off the evening was the finals of the end of season Handicap Doubles event. Division 4's Mark Dowling and Liz Whittaker had an excellent handicap of plus 12, compared to their opponents, Division 1's Dino Ciorra and Pete Epps, who started with minus 13. Because of this Dowling in particular decided to take the initiative and go for broke at every opportunity... even on return of service... but this played to Epps and Ciorra's strengths, and they both capitalised on the opportunity to gradually gain points through consistent and defensive play, winning the match 21/19, 21/17.

The next event was the Division 3 singles final between Alan Kimber and young Phil Hadland. A battle between age and experience, this one was going to be a tough match to predict, and Hadland appeared to be in complete control at the start with some marvellous loop shots rocketing past his opponent. However, it wasn't long before Kimber found a weakness and by blocking the ball back and stopping Hadland from getting into position to launch his attacks, he won the first game 11/8 and then stayed in control for the rest of the match, winning 11/6 in the following rounds. 

Mark Dowling who played in the Handicap Doubles was also to feature in the final of the Handicap Singles. This time the handicap for his Division 1 opponent was even greater (-17), but then that's no surprise considering it was Ray Powell, who was third in the league averages last year. Watching Ray play is always a pleasure particularly with the artistry of his serves - but it was easy to get distracted from the fact that while Ray was playing some good shots, Dowling was playing some great returns and his all-out approach was paying off against Ray's open play. In fact full credit must go to Dowling, who not only beat Powell but did it with a huge margin to spare (21/10 and 21/7).

Mark Dowling receiving the Handicap Singles trophy from Roy Hazell, with runner-up Ray Powell.

Dowling also won the Division 4 Singles event, with his team-mate Liz Whittaker runner-up, while the Division 2 Singles was won by Trevor Bannister with runner-up Mark Smith.

The best match of evening was left until last; the Division 1 Singles event, between titans Tim O'Mahoney and Ian Packford. On paper Packford should have beaten O'Mahoney on many occasions, as Packford is seeded higher in the English Table Tennis Association rankings .... but somehow it's never happened. Packford got off to a great start and won the first game 11/7 with some incredibly fast shots off the table, but in the second and third O'Mahoney countered with innocent-looking shots that were laced with deadly spin. It was at this point that Ray Powell whispered some advice to Packford - and whatever it was, it seemed to have the desired effect as in the next game Packford was at one point 6-0 up, and went on to win 11/5. With the scores all square at two games each and one game to go, it was all to play for, and despite the 11/5 defeat in the last game O'Mahoney bounced back and fought evenly against Packford until the score-line was 9 points each, with Packford to serve. Packford took a gamble and in a change of tactics changed his service from down the side of the table to straight at O'Mahoney. This caught him off-guard and won Packford the point - but the shot was so rare from Packford that O'Mahoney assumed the next one would go down the sideline again... but he was mistaken, and Packford won the Division 1 Singles Trophy 11/7, 8/11, 7/11, 11/5, 11/9, beating O'Mahoney for the first time.

Great as these matches were, they were only half of the evening, as Swindon Table Tennis League uses this event to present the main trophies to all it's winners of the season. Therefore it's only right to mention some of the big success stories of the year.

In the Swindon Junior League, Ethan Gunton and Matthew Lloyd of Link B won, with Link D (Matthew and Daniel Sweet) runners-up. Gunton and Lloyd also tied on the most games won, while Jacob Holland of Link A kept the highest average. 

In Division 4, Lee Bowen, who has been struggling with I'll health in recent years, made a great comeback and won the Division 4 rankings (both Games Won and Averages) while his team (Sanford Link H) won the Division 4 title.

In Division 3, Julian Steele-Davis of St Saviours B commanded the rankings, with a huge majority of 9 won games more than his nearest rival, Bob Hallett. However, it was Bob's team (Ferndale E) that came top of the Division.

Division 2 winners Ferndale B have much to be proud of. Having finished third from bottom in the Division last year, this is a great turn-around and  they are on the up and heading for Division 1. Their new player Dave Bottomley certainly helped, as he came top in the Division 2 rankings, but only just, and Dave Greaney of Ridgeway A deserves a mention for being only 1 game behind.

But of course the stars are the winners of Division 1, and there, as usual, Eddie Roofe reigns supreme. This year not only did he claim a 100% average on games played, he also played all possible matches, making him the undisputed king of table tennis in Swindon. And his team, Centre Fitness A, consisting of Roofe, Matt Prior, Tim O'Mahoney, Dave Richards, and Kevin Satchell, were the winners of the Division, and are therefore top of the League.

Members of Division 1 winners Centre Fitness A: Matt Prior, Eddie Roofe, Tim O'Mahoney

Ever thought of taking up table tennis?

With renewed interest in the sport, Swindon Table Tennis League are planning on setting up a Division 5 next season, especially for beginners. If you've ever thought of giving table tennis a go, now is the ideal time to start. People of any age or level of fitness can play, and typically it's only a few pounds a session. Contact Tim Arbon on 07749 713444 for details, or look on the League website: www.swindontabletennis.co.uk