Press Report issued on 4 June 2022

Nikita Tkachuk double gives Chelmsford F the edge

Chelmsford F did well to beat Danbury J in the division three knock out cup final in the Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League having finished 17 points behind them in the league competition. In what was a very hard fought final the Chelmsford F team – Nikita Tkachuk, Alex Tkachuk and Luke Richardson prevailed 5-3. Nikita Tkachuk scored a vital 11-4, 7-11, 11-9, 15-17, 11-8 victory against John Robinson and he sealed the win for his side by beating Dave Marsh 11-4, 6-11, 11-6, 11-7. Dave Meah will consider himself unlucky to have been on the losing side as he beat both Luke Richardson (11-4, 18-16, 3-11, 11-1) and Alex Tkachuk (5-11, 11-8, 6-11, 11-8, 11-5).  

Danbury L secured the league and cup double in division four by beating second placed Writtle E 5-1. It wasn’t plain sailing but the Danbury L side (Mervyn Perriman, Denis Crapnell and Denis Balic) raced into a 4-0 lead before the Writtle duo of Neil Thompson and Dave Moles gave their side a lifeline by beating Mervyn Perriman and Denis Crapnell 11-8, 6-11, 2-11, 11-7, 11-9 in the middle doubles. It wasn’t enough and Maldon’s “Mr. Reliable” Denis Crapnell (who had a 100 % singles success rate in league matches) sealed the Danbury victory by defeating Malcolm Storey 11-6, 11-8, 11-4.

Buttsbury also made it a league and cup double by beating Chelmsford H 7-2 in the division five knock out cup final. Frances Hutt, Jamie Elliott and Oscar Hutt raced into a 5-0 lead. Frances Hutt had been poised at 2-2 against Peter Davenport but she made no mistake in the decider winning 14-12, 7-11, 6-11, 11-8, 11-4. Oscar Hutt played his part with a 4-11, 11-8, 1-16, 11-9 success against Paul Bullock whilst Jamie Elliott had done well to beat Jacqui Smith 11-2, 11-3, 11-7.

At the recent Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League AGM the Chelmsford League Committee have said “good bye” to Arthur Clark who has retired as Junior Match Secretary and Tournament Organiser after many years of service. The fact that Arthur was made a Life Member of the League in 1993 tells you just how long he has been involved. He is also a three time recipient of the League’s Rosebery / Pope & Smith Award - in 1988, 2002 and 2012. Lee McHugh replaces Arthur as Junior Match Secretary with David Gatheral taking over as Tournament Organiser. Matthew Brown, a recipient of the Rosebery / Pope & Smith award in 2011 has retired as League Treasurer and Competitions Secretary.  Discussions are ongoing to fill these positions.

Belated congratulations are extended to John Holland who won the Over 80s Mixed Singles title at the VETTS National Championships at Aldersley, Wolverhampton in May. John recovered from 10-7 down in the fifth end to pip Ray Dixon (Staffs) 11-7. 10-12, 11-5, 9-11, 13-11 in a thrilling final. Former Chelmsford Mens Singles Champions Lorestas Trumpauskas (Chelmsford Champion in 1999, 2000 and 2001) and Neil Charles (Chelmsford Champion in 2008, 2010 and 2011) contested the Over 50s Mens Singles Final with Lorestas coming out on top 11-9, 11-7, 9-11, 11-5.  Rather annoyingly neither of them look much different from when they played in the Chelmsford League.

 Anyone who has lost two decent bats with Butterfly Roundel Rubbers is requested to contact Kath Little (mobile no. 07762 312838). Kath reports that the bats “were placed in someone else’s bag probably by mistake, perhaps a couple of months ago, and probably at Danbury TTC, West Maldon TTC or at a tournament”. Kath has been given the task of reuniting them with their rightful owner.

Steve Kerns, Press Officer, Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

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Press Report issued on 15 May 2022

Writtle A come from behind to win 2022 Open Knock Out Cup Final

Writtle A are the Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League 2021/2 Open Knock out Cup Champions after beating Chelmsford B 5-4 in a top-class final.  It was a match the young Chelmsford side came very close to winning having stormed into a stunning 4-2 lead. The opening doubles is always a vital encounter if a team is planning an upset and Chelmsford B (Harry Buckle and Saul Chivers) made a great start by beating Lee McHugh / Arron Chandler 11-5, 7-11, 11-7, 11-6. Game on. Writtle hit back in the second game - Duncan Taylor arguably the most experienced player in the League, despatched Charlie Craig (10-12, 11-8, 11-2, 11-8). The third game was a big one and Harry Buckle restored the Chelmsford lead with a fine 11-9, 11-3, 6-11, 11-6 win over Lee McHugh. Game four was another big one, and Arron Chandler levelled the scores, to 2-2, by fighting back from 2-0 down to beat Saul Chivers 9-11, 4-11, 11-8, 11-8, 11-5. The middle doubles saw Harry Buckle and Charlie Craig secure a fine 12-10, 13-11, 11-8 win over Duncan Taylor and Lee McHugh and Charlie Craig extended his side’s lead to 4-2 by defeating Arron Chandler 11-6, 11-5, 9-11, 9-11, 11-7. Chelmsford B had one hand on the trophy. However,  Writtle were far from finished and they fought back strongly. Lee McHugh beat Saul Chivers 11-9, 3-11, 11-8, 11-8 and Duncan Taylor defeated Harry Buckle 11-6, 11-8, 9-11, 15-13.  It all came down to the final doubles and Duncan Taylor and Arron Chandler sealed the victory for their team with a 12-10, 11-8, 11-8 win over Charlie Craig and Saul Chivers. What a good final !.  Lee McHugh, the Chelmsford League Coaching Officer deserves the final word on what was a great match - “Competing against those I coach (especially juniors) is not an experience I can say I genuinely enjoy, however what I can say is that I’m very proud of how far they have come in the sport…….”. Hear, hear.

The Chelmsford Junior Knock Out Cup Final was between Chelmsford A and Chelmsford B and  Chelmsford A (Harry Buckle, Charlie Craig and Josh Bickles) ran out 5-1 winners. All games were well contested and Saul Chivers was on target for the B team with a 11-6, 8-11, 12-10, 11-3 victory over Charlie Craig. Charlie Craig / Josh Bickles had given their side a vital winning start by beating Saul  Chivers / Nikita Tkachuk 11-9, 11-5, 9-11, 11-9 in a hard fought opening doubles encounter. Josh Bickles eventually sealed the win for his side with a very hard fought 11-9, 2-11, 19-17, 11-9 victory over Harry Chivers. With Chelmsford Mens Singles Champion Daniel Young also eligible it has to be said that the strength in depth of the Junior players at the Chelmsford Club is fantastic.

All players are reminded that the 2022 Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League Annual General Meeting will take place at 19.30 hours at Old Chelmsfordians Association, Lawford Lane, Roxwell Road on Thursday 26 May 2022. All clubs should be represented

Steve Kerns, Press Officer, Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

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Press Report issued on 8 May 2022

John Holland’s hat-trick gives Galleywood A the edge

Galleywood A were in action twice in the first division of the Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League. By beating Danbury C 8-2 they moved off the bottom. Both sides fielded reserves and Galleywood fared best. The evergreen John Holland led the way with a hat-trick and this included a 11-7, 8-11, 6-11, 11-9, 11-3 win over Sam Phillips and a really hard fought 14-12, 11-8, 7-11, 9-11, 14-12 win over David Gatheral. Steve Kerns saw off Ken Sheard 11-5, 10-12, 11-6, 9-11, 11-7. Galleywood rounded off their Season with a 4-6 defeat to Danbury B. Dan Anderson was undefeated for Danbury B and this included a desperately close 11-13, 12-10, 6-11, 11-6, 15-13 win over James Hicks. Gary Brignall scored the stand-out win of the night - a superb 11-9, 11-7, 17-15 victory against Sam Lowman.

Division two produced a remarkably close finish for second place. Hatfield Peverel A (95 points), Chelmsford D (95 points), Writtle C (94 points) and Danbury D (94 points) were all involved in what must surely be the closest finish on record. Danbury D beat Danbury G 6-4 in a match where no one player stayed undefeated. Gus Heath and Ian Cranstone both won twice for Danbury D as did David Gatheral and Sanjay Saptarshi for the G team. Gus Heath gave his side a perfect start with a 11-8, 12-10, 1-11, 11-7 win over Sanjay Saptarshi whilst Ian Cranstone did well to beat David Gatheral 11-7, 9-11, 14-12, 6-11, 13-11.

Second-placed Maldon A produced a strong performance in division three to beat Chelmsford F 8-2, their seventeenth win of the season. Lloyd Bennett-Smith led the way with a hat-trick whilst the emerging Nikita Tkachuk won twice for the Chelmsford team. All four Maldon players – Hamish Innes (83 %), Brian Riedling (58 %), Dawn Baldry (80 %) and Lloyd Bennett-Smith (89 %) had excellent seasons and they look well equipped to make their mark next year in division two.  Danbury K led by a hat-trick of wins from Peter Hance were 7-3 winners over Danbury H. Hance was pegged back to 2-2 by Dave Powell but he pulled through to win 11-5, 11-7, 5-11, 8-11, 11-8. OCA D also won 7-3. Richard Baxter and Connor Payne were both undefeated against Hatfield Peverel B.

Chelmsford Pumas beat their nearest rivals – Buttsbury Bees 4-1 in junior league division 2A. Cleon Fernandes led the way with wins over Jamie Elliott (11-9, 11-8, 7-11, 11-9) and Ben Brown (11-6, 11-7, 11-6). Cleon Fernandes was also in action for Chelmsford Leopards against Buttsbury Bats and his wins over George Hagland (11-6, 11-7, 11-6) and Oscar Hutt (9-11, 11-8, 11-2, 11-13, 11-7) were again instrumental in his side winning 4-1.  In yet another match which was decided 4-1 Chelmsford Pumas beat Writtle Rattlesnakes. Harrison Hill was undefeated this time beating Mime Pummell (11-7, 11-9, 11-8) and Archie Pummell (11-5, 9-11, 18-16, 11-9).

Buttsbury Badgers took two big strides towards winning junior league division 2B. They beat Chelmsford Jaguars 5-0 with Oscar Hutt and Harry Hutt carrying all before them and they also beat Chelmsford Antelopes 4-1. Oscar Hutt again dominated proceedings with wins over Samaksh Sirohi (11-6, 11-7, 11-3) and Richard Carter (14-12, 8-11, 10-12, 11-6, 11-7). Chelmsford Jaguars scored their first win of the season by beating Chelmsford Wildcats 4-1. Emilie Guilloux shone here, retaining her 100 % record with wins over Atharv Srivastava and Richard Carter. Chelmsford Jaguars made it win number two with a 4-1 victory against Writtle Racoons. Emile Guilloux was again undefeated beating Luv Goel (11-4, 11-9, 11-7) and Kush Goel (11-4, 11-5, 11-5). In yet another game decided 4-1, Writtle Racoons ran out 4-1 winners against Chelmsford Antelopes. Luv Goel won twice and Kush Goel picked up one win, a close one (11-4. 9-11, 3-11, 11-8, 11-9) against Aryan Gupta.

The leaders Buttsbury Bulldogs were in action three times in junior division 2C. They beat Chelmsford Jaguars 5-0. Callum Walker and Joseph Hutt had to work hard for this victory and Joseph Hutt was stretched to beat Daniel Lewis (9-11, 11-8, 15-13, 15-13). They also beat Buttsbury Beavers 3-2 although Lucy Elliott won twice for the Beavers. Good wins as well; (6-11, 11-7, 12-10, 11-7) against Callum Walker and (11-9, 11-8, 11-6) against Joseph Hutt. They made it three wins by beating Chelmsford Eagles 4-1. Joseph Hutt was undefeated this time. Lucy Elliott was again to the fore as Buttsbury Beavers defeated Chelmsford Lions 3-2. She won her two singles and partnered Noah Middleton to a hard-fought doubles success (11-7, 8-11, 9-11, 14-12, 11-7) against Atharv Gupta and Aarav Toshnival.  Felix Reeve won twice to guide Chelmsford Cougars to a 4-1 win over Chelmsford Eagles and Buttsbury Beavers edged out Chelmsford Eagles 3-2. Lucy Elliott was again undefeated although Yishai Choo went down battling. Lucy won this one; 11-5, 11-1, 10-12, 11-9.     Yishai Choo also beat Noah Middleton in five ends (9-11, 6-11, 11-6, 11-4, 11-8).

Steve Kerns, Press Officer, Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

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Press Report issued on 1 May 2022

Nyree Marsh adds Team Handicap Cup to her Handicap Singles title

Chelmsford H are the 2021-2 Handicap KO Cup Champions in the Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League. Their team of Nyree Marsh (handicap of 30), Cleon Fernandes (21) and Harry Chivers (63) beat Buttsbury B (Jamie Elliott, Lucy Elliott and Oscar Hutt) 5-1 in the final. For Nyree Marsh, the winner of the Handicap Singles at the Chelmsford Tournament in January this was an impressive and possibly unique double. Nyree sealed her team’s win by beating Jamie Elliott (48) 21-17, 22-20. Harry Chivers who has progressed from division four (where he had a 100 % record) to division two (where he has a 70 % record) in the same season gave his side a winning start by beating Oscar Hutt (21) 21-19, 21-15, whilst Cleon Fernandes (21) played his part by beating Oscar Hutt 21-13, 21-18. In their Semi-Final Chelmsford H overpowered Danbury M - Ken Wilding, Paul Thirkettle and Anne Mills 5-0 whilst Buttsbury B defeated Maldon C (Dawn Baldry, Andrea Alleyne and Ella Sach) 5-1.

The Open KO Cup final will be between Writtle A and Chelmsford B. Writtle A - Duncan Taylor, Lee McHugh and Arron Chandler were stretched to beat Danbury B 5-3. Lee McHugh played his part in their victory by fighting back from 2-0 down to beat Sam Lowman (9-11, 4-11, 11-2, 11-4, 11-6) and Dan Anderson (14-12, 11-9, 11-9). Duncan Taylor sealed their win by beating Sam Lowman 11-6, 11-8, 7-11, 11-5. Chelmsford B – Harry Buckle, Charlie Craig and Saul Chivers beat Danbury A 5-2.   Chelmsford B suffered an early setback when Eric Green beat Harry Buckle 11-7, 11-3, 11-5 but three five game wins gave them the ascendancy. Charlie Craig beat Babul McLeod 13-15, 11-5, 11-8, 9-11, 12-10 to give them a 2-1 lead and he sealed his side’s victory by beating Bruce Kettle 9-11, 11-8, 11-6, 11-6.  Saul Chivers played his part by beating Bruce Kettle 11-4, 12-10, 7-11, 11-7.

Danbury D won the division two KO Cup final with a thrilling 5-4 win over Danbury G. David Gatheral scored two big wins for the G side, beating Chris Buer (11-8, 11-7, 8-11, 11-6) and Ian Cranstone (8-11, 11-9, 11-9, 11-8) whilst Ian Cranstone kept his side in the hunt with a last gasp 11-4, 9-11, 9-11, 11-9, 12-10 victory against Eamon Hall. The deciding doubles always had a five game look about it and Gus Heath and Ian Cranstone came through in five ends against Sanjay Saptarshi and Eamon Hall 11-2, 11-7, 8-11, 9-11, 11-8. Champions !. In their semi-finals Danbury D beat Chelmsford D 5-2 and Danbury G defeated Writtle B 5-1. Sudheep Kamma had impressed for Chelmsford D with a fine 9-11, 11-8, 11-7, 10-12, 11-9 win over Ian Cranstone.    

The division three KO Cup final will be between Danbury J and Chelmsford F. Danbury J beat Chelmsford H 5-3. Dave Marsh scored two important wins beating Joachin Mapes (11-6, 12-10, 11-2) and Paul Nichol (11-9, 11-6, 11-5) whilst Denis Crapnell (playing up from division four) played his part with wins over Todd Martin (2-11, 11-4, 8-11, 11-7, 11-8) and Joachin Mapes (11-9, 11-4, 11-4). Chelmsford F ran out 5-1 winners against Writtle D. Andy Swales sealed their win with a hard fought 11-8, 11-6, 6-11, 10-12, 11-8 success against Colin Barham.

Writtle E will face Danbury L in the division four KO Cup final. The semi-finals were contrasting affairs. Writtle E defeated OCA E 5-4. Four games were decided in the fifth end and crucially Writtle won three of them. Neil Thompson beat David Bishop (10-12, 11-7, 11-9, 10-12, 11-8) whilst Thompson and Dave Moles defeated David Newman and David Bishop in the middle doubles (13-15, 7-11, 13-11, 11-9, 11-9). It all came down to the last game and Dave Moles / Colin Griffiths beat David Newman / Russell Hall 11-7, 11-8, 3-11, 9-11, 11-8 to book their final place. The other semi-final saw Danbury L (Mervyn Perriman, Denis Crapnell and Denis Balic) secure a 5-0 win over Chelmsford G.

The division five KO Cup final will be between Buttsbury and Chelmsford J. Buttsbury (Frances Hutt, Jamie Elliott and Oscar Hutt) were 8-1 winners against Danbury N. Frances Hutt played her part with a five game win over Steve Martin (8-11, 11-3, 11-4, 10-12, 11-7). Chelmsford J were 5-3 winners against Danbury M. Jacqui Smith beat Ken Wilding by a last gasp 6-11, 12-10, 9-11, 16-14, 12-10 margin. Peter Davenport made no mistake against Ken Wilding and he won 11-5, 11-6, 11-6 to secure the win for his side.

Chelmsford B are through to the Junior Cup final. Their side of Saul Chivers, Harry Chivers and Nikita Tkachuk were 7-0 winners over Buttsbury. Jamie Elliott gave a great account of himself against Harry Chivers before losing 14-12, 6-11, 9-11, 5-11. Chelmsford B will face the mighty Chelmsford A in the final.   

Steve Kerns, Press Officer, Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

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Press Report issued on 10 April 2022

Hatfield Peverel A promoted after closest of finishes

OCA B’s 7-3 win over Hatfield Peverel A in division two of the Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League represented a top-class performance by the OCA side. Kevin Worthington bagged a hat-trick and Gareth Joice and Trevor Carter both won twice. However it was Hatfield Peveral A who had the greater cause to celebrate. The three points they picked up meant they finish second with 95 points, ahead of Chelmsford D (who also scored 95 points) by virtue of that fact that they won more matches. In a totally unprecedented evenly matched division Writtle C finished fourth with 94 points.  Carrying the flag for Hatfield Peverel A were Martin Archie (73% ) with backing from Neil Freeman (49 %) and Gareth Davies (48 %).

There are still some outstanding games in division three. Maldon A, the runners-up, turned on the style to hammer fourth placed Chelmsford E 9-1. Lloyd Bennett-Smith (88 %) and Hamish Innes (84 %) were both undefeated. Adi Kamma showed up well for the losers with a 11-9, 13-11, 11-8 win over Brian Riedling. Danbury K did well to beat the higher placed Writtle D 6-4. Nicky Reece-Ford was unbeaten with wins over Malcolm Henstock (14-16, 11-5, 11-2, 11-7), Peter Layzell (11-7, 10-12, 11-7, 11-3) and Colin Barham (11-8, 6-11, 11-9, 9-11, 11-5).

Buttbury Bees edged ahead 3-2 against Chelmsford Leopards in division 2A of the Junior League. Jamie Elliott won both of his singles beating Jishaant Shah (10-12, 11-3, 11-5, 11-7) and Cleon Fernandes (11-13, 11-7, 11-9, 11-7).

Chelmsford Antelopes (Samaksh Sirohi and Arnav Kumar) stay second in division 2B of the Junior League after beating Chelmsford Jaguars 5-0. They trail Buttsbury Badgers by 10 points but intriguingly they have two games in hand.

Chelmsford B (Harry Buckle, Charlie Craig and Josh Bickles) were 5-0 winners against Chelmsford D In the Open KO Cup. Sudheep Kamma did well to take a game off Harry Buckle before succumbing 7-11, 11-9, 4-11, 5-11. Chelmsford B now face a mouth-watering semi final clash against Danbury A.  

The Division two Cup final will be an all Danbury affair. The division two Champions – Danbury G (Sanjay Saptarshi, Daniel Piggott and Eamon Hall) beat Writtle B 5-1. Daniel Piggott impressed greatly downing the challenges of Paul Sturton (11-6, 11-8, 11-6) and Trevor Collin (11-3, 11-8, 11-7). They will meet Danbury D (Chris Buer, Gus Heath and Ian Cranstone) in the final. Danbury D did well to beat Chelmsford D 5-2. Gus Heath excelled beating Harry Chivers (11-7, 11-4, 11-7) and Vineeth Kamma (9-11, 11-8, 11-8, 11-7); the win over against Vineeth sealing their victory.

Writtle E are through to the Division four Cup final. They beat OCA E 5-4 in a roller coaster semi-final, fighting back from 2-0 and 4-3 down. The last two games were tense affairs. Neil Thompson (who had previously pipped David Bishop 10-12, 11-7, 11-9, 10-12, 11-8) beat David Newman (11-5, 15-13, 11-9) and in a nail-biting concluding doubles Colin Griffiths / Dave Moles saw off David Newman / Russell Hall (11-7, 11-8, 3-11, 9-11, 11-8). The great comeback was repelled.

Chelmsford J (Peter Davenport, Jacqui Smith and Paul Bullock) have fought their way through to the Division five Cup final.  They beat Danbury M 5-3 after a hard fought semi-final. Jacqui Smith was involved in two five enders. She beat Ken Wilding (6-11, 12-10, 9-11, 16-14, 12-10) but missed out (14-12, 4-11, 9-11, 11-5, 5-11) to Anne Mills. Peter Davenport was undefeated with wins over Martin Knights (11-6, 11-2, 11-7) and Ken Wilding (11-5, 11-6, 11-6).

Buttsbury B are through to the Handicap KO Cup final. Their team of Jamie Elliott (handicap of 48), Oscar Hutt (handicap of 21) and Lucy Elliott (handicap of 8) always had the edge against Maldon C.  Ella Sach (handicap of 29) gave Maldon a life line by beating Oscar Hutt (18-21, 21-15, 22-20) but Buttsbury were in the driving seat and Jamie Elliott defeated 2022 Chelmsford Ladies Champion Dawn Baldry (handicap of 67) 20-22, 21-12, 21-13 to give his team a convincing 5-1 victory.  

Steve Kerns, Press Officer, Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

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Press Report issued on 27 March 2022

Maldon A defeat Galleywood B for a second time

Maldon A and Galleywood B – the two outstanding teams in division three of the Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League went head-to-head for a second time, and Maldon A again came out on top. They produced a really determined display to win 7-3 with Dawn Baldry, Hamish Innes and Lloyd Bennett-Smith all winning twice. Maldon A also won three fiercely fought five setters. Lloyd Bennett-Smith beat Gary Copsey 12-14, 11-4, 11-7, 7-11, 11-8 and Dawn Baldry defeated John Holland 9-11, 6-11, 11-6, 11-5, 11-8. Hamish Innes got in on the act by beating Mark Glenister 7-11, 11-5, 7-11, 11-7, 11-9.  Maldon A added eight points to their total by beating Danbury H 8-2. It looked like being another very intense match with the first two games decided at deuce in the fifth end. Danbury’s Richard Allen beat Brian Riedling by a wildly fluctuating 5-11, 16-14, 11-8, 2-11, 12-10 margin and Lloyd Bennett-Smith equalised by beating Dave Hancox (11-4, 4-11, 3-11, 11-6, 12-10) but thereafter it was Maldon who called the shots. Meanwhile Galleywood B also won, beating Chelmsford F 7-3. The talking point here was the outstanding hat-trick which Nikita Tkachuk scored. Nikita was on sparkling form, downing the challenges of Gary Copsey (12-10, 4-11, 11-5, 11-7), Mark Glenister (11-9, 7-11, 4-11, 11-3, 15-13) and John Holland (6-11, 11-8, 12-10, 11-2) – a superb display. Despite their second loss of the season Galleywood B still lead the way with 127 points from 17 games with Maldon B second on 114 points from 16 games. Chelmsford F also drew 5-5 with Danbury K. League stalwart Peter Hance excelled this time winning his three singles which included a well executed 11-5, 11-13, 11-3, 11-5 victory against the afore-mentioned Nikita Tkachuk.  Bottom placed Hatfield Peverel B did well to beat Writtle D 6-4. Paul Mulley led the way with three wins whilst Michael Lucey won twice. Lucey beat Colin Barham 15-13, 11-9, 3-11, 6-11, 12-10 in the closest game of the night. Chelmsford E - Joachin Mapes (three wins), Adi Kamma (two wins) and Dave Parker (two wins) produced a strong team performance to beat OCA D 8-2.  Danbury J were another side who hit top form. John Robinson (two wins), Dave Meah (three wins) and Dave Marsh (two wins) ran out 8-2 winners against Danbury K. Another League stalwart (and former League Press Officer) Mo Hardy rolled back the years by beating John Robinson (4-11, 11-8, 11-8, 4-11, 11-9).

OCA A moved into second place in division one by beating Chelmsford C 7-3. Matthew Mulley (21 wins out of 21) led the way and he received good support from Bertie Makoli who won twice. Both sides fielded reserves and it was Robin Armstrong who fared best. He beat Braintree League team-mate Mike Johnston (6-11, 11-4, 11-5, 9-11, 11-6). Chelmsford C were also in action against Chelmsford B, and they again lost 7-3. Chelmsford Mens Singles Runner-Up Harry Buckle turned in a power house performance beating Mark Allaway (11-2, 11-6, 11-5), Wiktor Delimat (11-6, 11-9, 11-7) and Victor Chan (8-11, 11-8, 11-7, 11-2). Mark Allaway made his mark with a superb 11-9, 7-11, 16-14, 5-11, 14-12 win over Charlie Craig.

The competitive nature of division two was demonstrated perfectly this week. Top placed Danbury G were held to a draw by bottom placed Danbury F. No single player remained unbeaten and Gordon Gatheral won twice for the F side - good wins as well. He beat Sanjay Saptarshi (11-9, 11-6, 7-11, 11-8) and his son David (12-10, 11-7, 6-11, 11-9). Danbury G remain favourites to win this division with 96 points from 16 games but the champagne remains on hold. Writtle C and Chelmsford D share second place with 92 points. Writtle C lost 6-4 to Danbury E despite the fact that Gary Ward won his three singles. John Gagg chipped in with a battling 11-8, 11-7, 3-11, 3-11, 11-7 win over Tony Forster. In another close finish Tony Forster prevailed 8-11, 11-3, 11-5, 11-13, 13-11 against John Parodi. Chelmsford D were on the right side of a 6-4 win against Writtle B; Sudheep Kamma, Harry Chivers and Victor Chan all won twice to counter the excellent of hat-trick of wins that Trevor Collin picked up. Collin beat Harry Chivers (9-11, 7-11, 11-7,11-8, 11-8), Victor Chan (8-11, 11-9, 11-6, 11-5) and Sudheep Kamma (9-11, 11-9, 12-10, 11-9) – three very good wins and each one achieved after having lost the first end. Writtle B also lost 6-4 to Danbury K. Danbury’s Colin Napper excelled this time. He notched up three excellent wins, downing the challenges of Phil Smith (6-11, 11-3, 8-11, 11-7, 11-9), Trevor Collin (3-11, 11-6, 11-4, 13-11) and Matthew Brown (8-11, 12-10, 11-7, 11-7). The dependable Mick Richardson won his three singles as OCA C drew 5-5 with OCA B. Team-mate Mick Hayes chipped in with a fine 11-6, 10-12, 11-6, 4-11, 11-9 win over Gareth Joice.

Danbury L are division four Champions and it was fitting that it was their talisman – Denis Crapnell (30 wins out of 30) who dominated the evening in their 5-5 draw against Highwood B. Anne Mills in her first appearance of the Season won once beating Russell Downton 11-4, 8-11, 7-11, 11-8, 11-6. Writtle E stay second despite losing 6-4 against OCA E. David Newman led the way with three wins and Farooq Ahmed secured the victory for his side by beating Ian Hockley 10-12, 12-14, 11-9, 14-12, 11-7 in the last game. Quite a battle !. Highwood A did well to beat Highwood B 6-4, good going as Roger Patient was unbeaten for Highwood B. Patient opened proceedings with a 16-14, 11-4, 12-10 victory over Keith Fitz-John. Highwood A also drew 5-5 against Chelmsford G. No one player remained undefeated and the Chelmsford duo of Todd Martin and Harrison Hill and the Highwood pairing of Melanie Bonnett and Keith Fitz-John all won twice. Todd Martin’s win over Keith Pallett couldn’t have been much closer. Martin prevailed 14-16, 13-11, 9-11, 11-6, 11-9.  Elsewhere OCA E ran out 8-2 winners against Chelmsford H.   David Newman was on top form and he was undefeated for OCA E whilst Cleon Fernandes won twice for the losers.

Hatfield Peverel C (96 points from 15 matches) look good for second place in division five. They beat Maldon C 9-1, after Mick Carter and Karen Braney were both undefeated. Victoria Farrell beat Kath Little 11-6, 11-9, 11-7 for the loser’s sole success. OCA F (89 points from 15 games) consolidated second place by beating Danbury N 6-4. Their leading player Stuart Wintle (84 %) won his three singles. Mike Morecroft pipped Steve Martin by a last gasp 12-10, 9-11, 11-8, 3-11, 12-10 scoreline.

Division 2A of the Chelmsford Junior League produced three clear-cut sets of winners this week. Chelmsford Leopards (Harrison Hill and Alesha Ellis Austin) ran out 5-0 winners against Buttbury Bats. A different Chelmsford Leopards side (Cleon Fernandes and Dion Fernandes this time) also beat Writtle Rattlesnakes 4-1. Archie Pummell emerged as a fifth set winner (11-9, 11-9, 5-11, 6-11, 11-7) over Dion Fernandes. Leaders Chelmsford Pumas made it five wins out of six by beating Buttsbury Bats 4-1. Harrison Hill was unbeaten for the Pumas whilst Jamie Elliott was on target for Buttsbury, and he beat Ben Chivers 11-9, 11-5, 11-7. The other game was closer and Chelmsford Pumas beat Chelmsford Leopards. Cleon Fernandes was undefeated for the Leopards with two hard fought wins. He beat Harrison Hill (3-11, 11-9, 7-11, 12-10, 11-7) and Alesha Ellis-Austin (11-6, 9-11, 11-8, 11-5).

In Junior division 2B the leaders Buttsbury Badgers (Oscar Hutt and Lucy Elliott) made it four wins out of four by beating Chelmsford Wildcats 4-1. Oscar Hutt won both of his singles whilst Harel Choo showed up well by beating Lucy Elliott (11-9, 11-4, 11-6).

Oscar Hutt and Lucy Elliott were also in action in Junior division 2C. Representing the leaders Buttsbury Bulldogs they defeated Chelmsford Lions 4-1. Oscar Hutt was again unbeaten.  They lead the way with 17 points out of 20.

Steve Kerns, Press Officer, Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

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Press Report Issued on 20 March 2022

Chelmsford A crowned first division Champions  

Runaway leaders Chelmsford A have been crowned Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League first division Champions and such is their level of dominance that they still have two matches left to play. Galleywood A put up a fight before losing 8-2. Gary Brignall powered his way to a quick fire 11-7, 11-5, 11-6 win over Kim Shead and James Mullane excelled. He beat James Liddiard 9-11, 8-11,  11-9, 11-7, 13-11 - a gem of a win !. James Hicks wasn’t able to register a victory but he pushed Mens Singles Champion Dan Young all the way before succumbing 11-8, 11-5, 5-11, 6-11, 9-11. OCA A jumped into second place. The brothers Mulley – Matthew and Mark were undefeated as they beat Danbury A 8-2. Mathew Mulley made it 18 wins out of 18 and he powered his way to three singles wins. He beat Eric Green (11-4, 12-10, 11-7), Bruce Kettle (11-8, 11-8, 11-7) and Dave Richardson (11-5, 11-7, 12-10).  A strong Writtle A side dented the hopes of Danbury B of finishing second by beating them 7-3. Lee McHugh and Duncan Taylor were both undefeated. Lee McHugh was pushed by Sam Lowman before he prevailed 11-6, 11-8, 7-11, 9-11, 11-7. Chelmsford B, who are fifth,  scored their sixth win of the Season, a narrow 6-4 victory over Danbury A. Harry Buckle led the way with three wins whilst Eric Green and Dave Richardson both won twice for Danbury. Richardson pipped Charlie Craig 6-11, 11-7, 5-11, 12-10, 12-10 in the closest game of the night.

With six scorecards to account for in division two it’s hard to know where to start. The battle at the bottom of the table couldn’t be closer with a mere two points covering fifth placed Writtle B and ninth placed Danbury E.  The leaders Danbury G took a step closer to the title by beating second placed Writtle C 6-4. Sanjay Saptarshi was again their match winner and he beat Gary Ward 11-9, 9-11, 11-6, 6-11, 11-7 - Gary’s second defeat of the Season. Another player to turn in a top-notch performance was Harry Chivers and his excellent hat-trick helped Chelmsford D draw 5-5 with Danbury D. Rising star Chivers gave Chelmsford the best possible start, by beating Chris Buer 12-10, 11-7, 7-11, 11-7. Fourth placed Hatfield Peverel A defeated Danbury E 8-2. Martin Archie led the way with a hat-trick but he had to pull out all the stops to get the better of Tony Forster (11-4, 6-11, 11-13, 11-7, 11-9) and Dick Wyman (11-5, 11-5, 3-11, 4-11, 11-9). The match between OCA B and Danbury D finished tied at 5-5. OCA‘s Kevin Worthington and Trevor Carter and Danbury’s Gus Heath and Ian Cranstone all won twice. Trevor Carter defeated Gus Heath in five ends (4-11, 11-5, 11-13, 11-9, 11-6). Chelmsford D did well to beat OCA C 6-4, good going as Mick Richardson was undefeated for OCA C. Dave Porter beat Sudheep Kamma 11-9, 12-10, 5-11, 4-11, 11-9 in the closest game of the evening. OCA B ran out 7-3 winners against Danbury E. Kevin Worthington led the way with three wins. He pipped Dick Wyman 12-10, 11-4, 6-11, 12-14, 11-8.    

In division three Danbury J consolidated third place by beating Hatfield Peverel B 8-2. Dave Marsh led the way with three wins which included a hard-fought 7-11, 11-8, 11-7, 3-11, 11-9 victory over Paul Mulley. OCA D ran out 7-3 winners against Danbury H. Richard Baxter led the way with three wins and Richard Upson won twice. The match between Writtle D and Chelmsford E was a 5-5 draw. Jarek Pietraszuk won his three singles for the Chelmsford side and this included a hard-fought 7-11, 11-7, 11-5, 10-12, 11-8 success against Peter Layzell.

Danbury L with 105 points can’t be overtaken in division four. They could only field two players against second placed Writtle E but with Denis Crapnell (27 wins out of 27) carrying all before him they won 6-4. Crapnell looked a class apart, racing to 3-0 wins over Malcolm Storey (11-5, 11-3, 11-5), Colin Griffiths (11-5, 11-5, 12-10) and Dave Moles (11-7, 11-2, 11-6). Writtle E also lost 6-4 to Highwood A. This match saw Keith Fitz-John turn in a masterful display.   He beat Colin Griffiths (11-13, 11-4, 11-5, 8-11, 11-6) in his opening singles and followed this up with two more cracking wins – 11-6, 11-7, 14-12 against Neil Thompson and 11-4, 12-10, 11-6 against Malcolm Storey.   In yet another match decided 6-4 Galleywood C beat Maldon B. Colin Blore led the way with three wins. Galleywood also lost 7-3 to Chelmsford H. Harrison Hill gave yet another glimpse of his huge potential by staying unbeaten. He defeated Colin Blore 11-6, 11-8, 11-6.  

Buttsbury remain on target to win division five. Oscar Hutt, Frances Hutt and Alex Ware ran out 9-1 winners against Hatfield Peverel E and Jamie Elliott, Ray Horton and Oscar Hutt defeated Danbury M 7-3.   Jamie Elliott stayed unbeaten and with 20 wins out of 20 he has had an outstanding Season. He beat Ken Wilding (6-11, 11-9, 11-3, 11-4), Martin Knights (11-8, 11-3, 11-7) and Paul Thirkettle (7-11, 11-8, 11-9, 11-2). Buttsbury also beat Maldon C 9-1. Ben Brown and Jamie Elliott were both undefeated this time. Danbury N were 8-2 winners against Chelmsford J. Steve Martin and Graham Naggs both won their three singles. John Wickins fought back from 2-0 down to defeat Ron Tam 4-11, 6-11, 11-5, 11-9, 12-10. Ella Sach, was another player to win her three singles and she led Maldon C to a 6-4 win against Hatfield Peverel D. Ella trailed Phil West in her third singles but she came through very strongly to win 12-10, 7-11, 8-11, 11-6, 11-1. Hatfield Peverel C beat OCA F 6-4 in a match where no one player stayed undefeated and no one went home empty handed. Suzanne Shaw made her mark with a fine 11-7, 6-11, 5-11, 11-6, 12-10 victory against Richard Drozd.

Buttsbury Bees beat Writtle Rattlesnakes 3-2 in Junior League division 2A. Ben Brown defeated  Archie Pummell (11-8, 11-7, 11-7) and Mimi Pummell (11-8, 11-5, 11-4).

Buttsbury Badgers, leaders of Junior League division 2B scored their third win by beating Chelmsford Antelopes 4-1.  Harry Hutt beat both Richard Carter (11-8, 11-7, 11-8) and Samaksh Sirohi (8-11, 4-11, 11-6, 11-7, 11-6). Chelmsford Antelopes in turn ran out 5-0 winners over Chelmsford Wildcats. Richard Carter beat Harel Choo in five games (11-7, 11-9, 9-11, 9-11, 11-4).

Both games in Junior League division 2C resulted in 4-1 wins. Chelmsford Eagles (Yishai Choo and Freya Hart) beat Chelmsford Lions. Aarav Toshniwal was on target for the losers with a 11-9, 11-7, 9-11, 3-11, 12-10 win over Yishai Choo. Buttsbury Beavers (Tommy Hudd and Lucy Elliott) were also successful. They defeated Fraser Holmes and William Guilloux 11-7, 8-11, 11-9, 9-11, 12-10 in a gripping doubles encounter.   

In the Handicap KO Cup Danbury M (Paul Thirkettle, Ken Wilding and Martin Knights) came out on top 5-3 against Chelmsford E even though Rev Mathews was undefeated for Chelmsford. Playing off a handicap of 60 Matthews did well to beat Ken Wilding (handicap of 25) 13-21, 22-10, 21-18, Paul Thirkettle (handicap of 40) 14-21, 21-18, 21-17 and Martin Knights (handicap pf 40) 23-21, 6-21, 21-14. Buttsbury B – Lucy Elliott (handicap of 8), Oscar Hart (handicap of 21) and Jamie Elliott (handicap of 48) ran out 7-2 winners against Danbury N. Jamie Elliott gave them a winning start with a 21-11, 13-21, 21-10 win over Roy Gandy (handicap of 49) and they never looked back after that. Maldon C are also safely through to the next round. Andrea Alleyne (handicap of 47), Ella Sach (handicap of 24) and Kym Eames (handicap of 29) ran out 5-1 winners against Danbury J. Andrea Alleyne clinched their victory with a convincing 21-14, 21-8 win over Dave Marsh (handicap of 66).

Chelmsford B (Josh Bickles, Charlie Craig and Saul Chivers) progressed in the Open KO Cup by beating Chelmsford D 5-1. The last two games produced stirring battles. Harry Chivers / Sudheep Kamma beat Josh Bickles / Charlie Craig in the  middle doubles by a mind-blowing scoreline of 13-11, 11-5, 7-11, 9-11, 24-22 (yes 24-22) and Charlie Craig had to pull out all the stops to get the better of Victor Chan (14-12, 5-11, 11-5, 9-11, 15-13). Writtle A (Lee McHugh, Aaron Chandler and Richard Storey) ran out 5-1 winners against Chelmsford C. Aaron Chandler showed up well with a fine five game win over Simon Jarvis (8-11, 7-11, 11-8, 11-6, 11-7).

Danbury D emerged as 5-2 winners against Writtle C in the 2 Down KO Cup. Chris Buer, Gus Heath and Ian Cranstone all played a part in this win with Chris Buer scoring a vital 12-10, 4-11, 7-11, 11-5, 12-10 win over John Webber which stopped his side falling two games behind. It wasn’t John Webber’s night as he also lost a second five setter against Ian Cranstone (11-5, 9-11, 6-11, 11-6, 9-11).  Writtle B (Paul Sturton, Phil Smith and Trevor Collin) came through 5-2 against OCA . Trevor Collin made his mark with an impressive 11-7, 11-6, 11-7 win over Dave Porter.

In the 4 Down Knock Out Cup OCA E (David Newman, David Bishop and Russell Hall) beat Highwood A 5-1. Russell Hall played his part with a last gasp 8-11, 11-5, 8-11, 11-4, 12-10 win over Keith Fitz-John. Writtle E (Neil Thompson, Ian Hockley and Malcolm Storey) ran put 5-0 winners over Highwood B. Neil Thompson put them 2-0 ahead by beating David Cockrell 11-5, 11-9, 11-13, 6-11, 11-9.    

Steve Kerns, Press Officer, Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

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Press Report Issued on 6 March 2022

Fine performance from John Webber gives Writtle C the edge  

Writtle C moved into second place in division two of the Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League by beating fourth placed Hatfield Peverel A 6-4. Without their leading player Gary Ward it was John Webber who held them together with three wins. He beat Martin Archie (11-9, 11-4, 11-6), Neil Freeman (11-7, 11-4, 11-9) and Gareth Davies (9-11, 11-9, 11-8, 11-4). John Gagg played his part by getting the better of Neil Freeman (11-9, 11-6, 8-11, 3-11, 12-10).   OCs C (Mick Richardson, Mick Hayes and David Porter) did well to beat Danbury F 7-3, good going as Sam Phillips won his three singles for the Danbury side. Phillips prevailed over five fluctuating ends against Mick Richardson (6-11, 11-5, 6-11, 11-4, 11-8).  Danbury F also drew 5-5 against Danbury D. Chris Buer was undefeated for Danbury D although he had to pull out all the stops to get the better of Sam Phillips (10-12, 11-5, 10-12, 11-8, 11-9).   

Danbury B, back in sixth place in division one but with two games in hand on some of their rivals  could still conceivably challenge for second place. Sam Lowman was undefeated as they beat a two-man OCA A side 7-3. Lowman had to battle hard for his two wins and he beat Terry Dowsett (11-7, 8-11, 12-10, 8-11, 11-7) and Robbie Burton (11-9, 11-13, 11-4, 9-11, 12-10). Danbury reserve Gus Heath made his mark with an excellent 11-5, 11-3, 11-9 win over Robbie Burton.   A very strong Danbury C side of Keith Adams, Ian Whiteside and Trevor Lloyd powered to a 9-1 win over Chelmsford C. Simon Jarvis was Chelmsford’s sole winner with a 11-7, 11-4, 11-8 win over Ian Whiteside. Leaders and Champions elect – Chelmsford A were a player short against Writtle A. However, with Mens singles Champion Daniel Young remaining undefeated they won 6-4. Daniel Young beat Lee McHugh (11-4, 10-12, 11-7, 12-10) whilst McHugh made his presence felt with a 11-9, 7-11, 11-8, 13-11 victory against James Liddiard.

Galleywood B, with 14 wins out of 15 - took another step towards the division three title by beating  OCA D 8-2. Mark Glenister’s win over Connor Payne could hardly have been closer with Glenister edging it 13-11, 10-12, 9-11, 12-10, 11-9.  The records of their three regular players indicate what a consistent side they have been – John Holland (91 %), Mark Glenister (74 %) and Gary Copsey (89 %). Hatfield Peverel B and Danbury K couldn’t be separated. No one player stayed unbeaten and Hatfield Peverel’s Roger Slade and Paul Mulley and Danbury’s Nicky Reece Ford and Peter Hance all won twice. Peter Hance’s game against Phil Shippen “went to the wire” with Peter Hance finally taking it 11-1, 11-4, 9-11, 7-11, 12-10. Peter Layzell stayed undefeated as Writtle D beat Danbury H 7-3. Layzell had to work hard to overcome Dave Powell 3-11, 11-5, 8-11, 11-8, 12-10. Chelmsford E beat the higher placed Danbury J 6-4. Adi Kamma led the way with three wins. He beat Kevin Willis (11-4, 10-12, 11-7, 12-10), Dave Marsh (11-2, 11-9, 9-11, 11-4) and Dave Meah (11-8, 11-9, 7-11, 11-9).

In division four the leaders Danbury L took another step towards the title by beating Chelmsford H 8-2. Dennis Balic was unbeaten whilst Cleon Fernandes won twice for the losers. He beat Mervyn Perriman (12-10, 2-11, 1-18, 11-4) and Derrick Pearson (11-9, 8-11, 8-11, 1-18, 11-9). Chelmsford G ran out 7-3 winners against Highwood B. Dusan Doszkoty won his three singles whilst Harrison Hill chipped in with a 9-11, 12-10, 11-9, 9-11, 11-9 win over Dave Cockerell. Quite a battle.    

In division five Hatfield Peverel C returned to pole position by beating Chelmsford J 10-0. Andy Whiley, Richard Drozd and Andy Simmonds gave nothing away. Richard Drozd looked to be in trouble against Paul Bullock after losing the first two games quite comfortably, but he eventually pulled through 4-11, 6-11, 12-10, 11-7, 11-7.   Paul Thirkettle stayed unbeaten as Danbury M defeated Danbury N 7-3. Graham Naggs was on target for Danbury N with a hard earned 9-11, 11-7, 6-11, 13-11, 11-7 win over Ken Wilding. League stalwart Stuart Wintle has hit top form and is undefeated for five matches. His three wins helped OCA F beat Hatfield Peverel D 6-4. Kath Little did well to beat David Bishop 3-11, 15-13, 13-11, 15-11, 11-8.

Buttsbury Bees are the early leaders in division 2A of the Junior League. Ben Brown and Jamie Elliott raced to a 5-0 win over Buttsbury Bats although Ben Brown had to work hard to beat George Hagland 7-11, 11-6, 12-10, 12-10. Chelmsford Pumas are in second place and they beat Chelmsford Leopards 3-2. Todd Martin won both of his singles. The Leopards hit back and Cleon Fernandes and Jishant Shah did well to beat Todd Martin / Alesha Ellis-Austin 16-14, 12-10, 11-9 in a very hard fought doubles encounter. Writtle Rattlesnakes emerged as 3-2 winners against Buttsbury Bats; good going as George Hagland won his two singles for Buttsbury Bats. Mimi Pummell beat George Standish 8-11, 11-6, 11-9, 9-11, 11-9 in the closest game of the night.

Meanwhile in division 2C of the Junior League, Chelmsford Cougars (Felix Reeve and Daniel Lewis) made it three wins out of three by beating Chelmsford Eagles 5-0. With Joshua Lewis replacing Felix Reeve they also beat Chelmsford Lions 4-1. Joshua Lewis gave his side a winning start by getting the better of Jaithra Bommu 11-5,11-7, 7-11, 12-14, 11-9. Buttsbury Bulldogs (Joseph Hutt and Callum Walker) ran out 4-1 winners against Buttsbury Beavers. Callum Walker prevailed over five fluctuating ends against Tommy Hudd (11-5, 11-3, 12-14, 4-11, 11-7).  

Steve Kerns, Press Officer, Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

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Press Report Issued on 27 February 2022

Big win for Danbury A pushes them into second place

Danbury A jumped into second place in division one of the Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League by beating Danbury C 10-0. Danbury C weren’t at full strength and Danbury A took full advantage. Eric Green, Dave Richardson and Babul McLeod powered their way to a 10-0 win. Danbury A are now well placed to finish second. They have 68 points, three more than third placed OCA A, and it is Danbury A who have a game in hand. Galleywood A produced their best display of the Season to beat Chelmsford C 7-3 - a result that lifts them off the bottom. Peter Radford was unbeaten for Galleywood whilst Gary Brignall also showed up well. He beat Wiktor Delimat (14-16, 13-11, 2-11, 11-7, 11-6) and most impressively Simon Jarvis (11-9, 14-12, 11-5). OCA A beat Writtle A 7-3. The brothers Mulley – Matthew and Mark turned in another power-house display and won all seven games. In the pick of the night’s action Arron Chandler pipped Bertie Makoli 11-4, 12-10, 10-12, 8-11, 12-10. Danbury B ran out 6-4 winners against Chelmsford B. Sam Lowman led the way with a hat-trick whilst Dan Anderson impressed as well. He beat Saul Chivers (11-8, 11-8, 12-10) and Josh Bickles (13-11, 11-9, 11-7). Match of the evening, was arguably the high-octane clash between Charlie Craig and Sam Lowman where Sam prevailed 11-8, 6-11, 11-3, 9-11, 13-11.

Leaders Danbury G scored their eighth win of the Season in division two by beating OCA C 6-4,  and Sanjay Saptarshi again led from the front. He won his three singles. His record of 89 % (32 wins out of 36) is outstanding. David Porter won twice for OCA C and this included a fine 11-6, 9-11, 11-3, 9-11, 11-8 win over David Gatheral. Sanjay Saptarshi showed up well in his third singles powering his way to a 11-3, 11-3, 8-11, 11-3 win over Mick Richardson. Chelmsford D excelled by beating Danbury E 8-2. Harry Chivers (three wins), Victor Chan (three wins) and Sudheep Kamma (two wins) all played well whilst players of the calibre of Danbury’s Tony Forster and Neil Want drew blanks. Harry Chivers was outstanding. He beat Neil Want (9-11, 11-4, 11-4,11-5), Tim Cramphorn (11-8, 13-11, 11-6) and Tony Forster (11-7, 11-6, 11-7).   Team-work saw Writtle C prevail 6-4 against Writtle B. John Webber, Dave Carter and John Parodi all won twice. Dave Carter, playing up from division three performed exceptionally well, beating Phil Smith (11-7, 11-9, 5-11, 3-11, 11-9) and Rod Maclennan (10-12, 11-5, 7-11, 13-11, 11-9).  

Maldon A, second in division three,  were 8-2 winners this week against OCA D. Hamish Innes and Dawn Baldry were both undefeated. Amanda Hogger won a close encounter12-14, 11-3, 11-9, 9-11, 11-7 against Garry Eames for the losers. Danbury K ran out narrow 6-4 winners against Chelmsford E. No player was undefeated and no one went home empty handed. Dave Parker pipped Peter Hance 2-11, 11-6, 10-12, 11-6, 12-10 in the closest game of the night. Danbury J (Alan Dadswell, Dennis Crapnell and David Meah) dominated against Danbury H, so much so that they won 10-0. Alan Dadswell was pushed in the last game but he eventually eased home 15-17, 11-7, 7-11, 11-7, 11-8 against Dave Hancox. Elsewhere, Chelmsford F - Nikita Tkachuk (three wins), Andy Swales (two wins) and Luke Richardson (two wins) beat Hatfield Peverel B 8-2.  

The eye-catching performance in division four went to 11 year-old Harrison Hill who made the transition from the Junior League to division four look seamless. He won his three singles for Chelmsford G in their 3-7 defeat against Maldon B. Shirley Carroll, Victoria Farrell and Ella Sach all won twice for Maldon B.  Writtle E led by a trio of wins from Neil Thompson beat Highwood B 7-3. Thompson posted wins against Russell Downton (11-6, 11-4, 11-3), Roger Patient (11-9, 14-12, 8-11, 11-9) and Dave Cockerill (13-11, 8-11, 11-5, 11-5).  The match between Galleywood C and OCA E finished tied at 5-5. Will Goodchild had to pull out all the stops to get the better of David Newman 7-11, 9-11, 11-7, 11-6, 16-14. Cleon Fernandes was another player from the Chelmsford Junior League to excel this week. He won his three singles as Chelmsford H edged out Highwood A 6-4. He had quite a battle with Keith Fitz-John before sneaking home 11-7, 10-12, 11-7, 9-11, 13-11.

OCA F jumped into second place in division five courtesy of their 9-1 win over Maldon C. Stuart Wintle and Bob Francis were both undefeated whilst Mike Morecroft won twice. Morecroft had to work hard for his two successes. He beat Ross Wheeler (4-11, 11-3, 5-11, 12-10, 11-8) and Kym Eames (5-11, 11-4, 11-2, 12-14, 11-8). The other three games in this division were much closer. Hatfield Peverel E beat Danbury N 6-4 in a match where no one player remained undefeated. Hatfield Peverel’s Deb Ginn and Karen Braney and Danbury ‘s Graham Naggs and Jo Hart all won twice. Chelmsford J and Hatfield Peverel D couldn’t be separated. Peter Davenport won his three singles for Chelmsford J and this included a titanic struggle against Kath Little in the first game where he won 11-4, 12-14, 11-7, 10-12, 12-10.  It was honours even as well (5-5) in the match between Danbury M and Hatfield Peverel C. Paul Thirkettle was undefeated for Danbury and Martin Knights chipped in with a 11-6, 11-8, 7-11. 7-11, 15-13 win over Andy Whiley.

Chelmsford Pumas (Alesha Ellis-Austin and Ben Chivers) were 5-0 winners against Writtle Rattlesnakes in division 2B of the Chelmsford Junior League. Allesha Ellis Austin gave her team a winning start by beating Luv Goel 7-11, 11-9, 12-10, 11-3 in the opening encounter. Buttsbury Badgers beat Chelmsford Jaguars 3-2 although Emilie Guilloux was unbeaten for Buttsbury in her singles. Emilie defeated Oscar Hutt (11-9, 11-3, 11-7) and Harry Hutt (11-9, 5-11, 11-4, 11-8).

Steve Kerns, Press Officer, Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

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Press Report Issued on 20 February 2022

James Hicks on good form for Galleywood A

In division one Galleywood A did well to draw with Danbury A. However, both Galleywood A and Chelmsford C look to be doomed to relegation. They both trail Danbury B by 15 points and Danbury B have a game in hand. In a match where no one player stayed unbeaten and no one went home empty-handed Eric Green and Dave Richardson both won twice for Danbury as did James Hicks for Galleywood. James Hicks showed up well. He beat Eric Green (6-11, 11-5, 5-11, 11-8, 11-7) and then Dave Richardson (12-10, 10-12, 12-10, 13-11) – they don’t come much closer;  before missing out (5-11, 11-5, 16-18, 6-11) against Babul McLeod. Galleywood’s new signing James Mullane made his mark with a fine 9-11, 11-8, 11-4, 12-10 win over Babul McLeod. In yet another high-octane encounter Dave Richardson defeated Gary Brignall 10-12, 11-3, 8-11, 11-8, 11-9.

In division three second placed Maldon A were narrow 6-4 winners against Writtle D. Lloyd Bennett-Smith was undefeated for Maldon and he sealed the win with a 11-5, 11-8, 14-16, 12-14, 11-9 win over Malcolm Henstock. Peter Layzell impressed with his 11-6, 12-10, 11-8 win over Hamish Innes.

The division four match between Highwood B and Chelmsford H finished tied at 5-5. Chelmsford’s Khalid Davis dominated and he beat Martin Goddard (11-8, 16-14, 11-6), Dave Cockeril (11-4, 7-11, 9-11, 14-12, 11-9) and Russell Downton (11-6, 11-7, 10-12, 11-8).

Buttsbury are well placed in division five, one point behind the leaders Hatfield Peverel D but with a game in hand. Jamie Elliott won his three singles as they beat Danbury N 6-4. Steve Martin edged out Ray Horton 11-8, 7-11, 2-11, 11-7, 11-9 for the losers.  

Jamie Elliott was in action again for Buttsbury Bees who beat Chelmsford Leopards 3-2 in division 2A of the Chelmsford Junior League. Elliott defeated Dion Fernandes (11-8, 11-5, 11-6) and Cleon Fernandes (11-13, 11-6, 8-11, 11-6, 11-6). Jamie Elliott was also undefeated in singles as Buttsbury Bees lost 2-3 to Chelmsford Pumas. This time he beat Ben Chivers (11-5, 11-8, 11-6) and Todd Martin (8-11, 11-7, 11-9, 8-11, 11-5).

Buttsbury Badgers were 5-0 winners against Writtle Racoons in Junior division 2B. Harry Hutt and Oscar Hutt carried all before them.  The match between Chelmsford Antelopes and Chelmsford Jaguars was closer with the Antelopes winning 3-2 despite the fact that Emilie Guilloux was undefeated for Chelmsford Jaguars. Emilie beat Arnav Kumar (11-4, 11-5, 11-4) and Samaksh Sirohi (11-4, 12-10, 9-11, 11-7).   

Buttsbury Bulldogs ran out 4-1 winners against Chelmsford Eagles in Junior division 2C. Tommy Hudd led the way with two wins. He beat Francesca Hart (11-3, 11-9, 8-11, 16-14) and Freya Hart (9-11, 11-7, 11-9, 14-12). Chelmsford Cougars also made a successful start. They beat Buttsbury Beavers 3-2. Felix Reeve was their match-winner. He beat Joseph Hutt (11-8, 11-3, 11-7) and Lucy Elliott (11-5, 11-6, 11-9).

Steve Kerns Press & Publicity Officer Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

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Press Report Issued on 16 February 2022

Daniel Young, 17, is Chelmsford Mens Singles Champion

Daniel Young, 17, was crowned the 2022 Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League Mens Singles Champion at Old Chelmsfordians Association on Tuesday evening in front of a large and appreciative crowd which included 10 players from the League’s Bat & Chat Session.  In what was definitely a great evening for the younger players Harry Buckle, also aged 17, was Mens Singles runner-up.

The opening game featured top seed Duncan Taylor and Daniel Young. Taylor’s cast iron defensive game is often one that Juniors struggle against. This isn’t the case with Daniel Young. Despite falling 0-5 down in the first game he won the next seven points and the first game 11-8. Duncan hit back winning the second game 11-7. Duncan looked to attack more but it was the patient Daniel who eventually ran out the winner 11-8, 7-11, 11-9, 11-7.

The second game gave the Finals Night audience their first view of Harry Buckle who played Lee McHugh. Harry started nervously but soon settled down. Despite serving into the net at 9-9 he won the first game 12-10. In the second game it was all Harry and he powered home 11-2. The third game was much better for Lee and he won comfortably 11-5. Harry started the fourth end really well and surged into a 5-0 lead, and although Lee fought back to 7-3 and 9-9 Harry sealed victory 12-10. Game, set and match to Harry 12-10, 11-2, 5-11, 12-10.

The Mens Doubles Final featured two new pairings and it was the Danbury pairing of Trevor Lloyd and Bruce Kettle who emerged as winners 9-11, 11-7, 11-4, 11-9  against James Liddiard and Daniel Young. After a hesitant first end they dominated and with Trevor Lloyd’s renowned forehand and Bruce Kettle’s pacy backhand calling the shots they looked to be the more likely winners, which they were.

The three down Singles Final was held over from the weekend and it featured Galleywood team-mates John Holland and Mark Glenister. Mark started the more brightly and he edged the first two games 11-8, 12-10. Was an upset on the cards ?. No, John hit back and forcing his opponent to have to scramble against his superbly executed drop shots he pulled through to win 8-11, 10-12, 11-8, 11-8, 11-6. The last point perhaps captured the nature of this victory. John’s perfectly executed “drop-shot” left Mark floundering.   

The Under 19 Singles Final featured the same two players who would later contest the Mens Singles Final. It was attack, attack, attack and more third ball attack as Harry Buckle turned in a superb display to beat Daniel Young 11-9, 11-6, 11-4.  

The Veterans Singles Final featured the 2020 Champion – Gary Young and Keith Adams, surely one of the most improved players in the County in the last five years. Keith’s topspin forehand is devastating on it’s day and he looks to get in at every opportunity. Gary was never far behind and came very close to winning the third end but it was Keith who prevailed 11-9,  11-7, 16-14 to add the Veterans Singles Crown to the Over 50 Singles title he won at the Tournament weekend.

And so to the main event, the Mens SIngles Final. This time Daniel Young came out all guns blazing and won the first end 11-3. Harry Buckle fought back and won the second end 11-7. Game on.  However, it was Daniel who prevailed and after winning the third game 11-7 he surged clear to win the fourth game 11-4. Not the youngest ever Mens Singles winner but it’s still a magnificent achievement for a Junior to become Mens Singles Champion.

Steve Kerns Press & Publicity Officer Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

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Press Report issued on 13 February 2022

Matthew Mulley outstanding for OCA A

Chelmsford A, the outstanding team in the first division of the Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League were held to a 5-5 draw by OCA A. OCA’s Matthew Mulley was the star of this match, no question, and he powered his way to three singles wins beating James Liddiard (11-7 11-9, 11-9), Kim Shead (11-6, 11-7, 11-7) and Gary Young (12-14, 11-6, 11-3, 11-8). He has a 100 % singles record (12/12 wins). Kim Shead played his part by beating Mark Mulley (9-11, 6-11, 11-9, 11-9, 11-9) having previously lost to Rob Burton (9-11, 11-9, 8-11, 5-11). The low scoring nature of this division can be illustrated by the fact that Danbury C are now in second place with 62 points out of 120. They did well to beat Danbury B 6-4. Trevor Lloyd was again their star performer and he stormed to a hat-trick of wins. He defeated Dan Anderson (11-5, 11-6, 11-8), Cameron Gray (11-6, 11-3, 11-9) and Chris Buer (11-6, 11-4, 11-3). Very impressive.  Writtle A have slipped back.  Lee McHugh was unbeaten against Chelmsford B but Saul Chivers, Harry Buckle and Charlie Craig all won twice as Chelmsford won 7-3. McHugh had to pull out all the stops against Charlie Craig before he won 13-11, 6-11, 9-11, 11-7, 11-9.    

Division two produced three tightly fought matches this week. John Webber and Gary Ward were both undefeated as Writtle C beat OCA B 6-4. Writtle C now have 72 points, the same as Hatfield Peverel A in second place. Webber fought back from 2-0 down to beat Charles Yeung 8-11, 8-11, 11-9, 13-11, 11-6 in the opening game of the evening. Danbury E also won 6-4, against Danbury F. Neil Want led the way with three wins. He beat Gordon Gatheral (11-4, 11-7, 11-5), Ken Sheard (11-5. 11-8, 11-5) and Alan Scammell (11-4, 11-9, 11-5). Pretty dominant. The match between OCA C and Writtle B finished tied at 5-5. No one player stayed unbeaten and Mick Richardson and Dave Porter (OCA) and Matthew Brown (Writtle) all bagged two wins. Matthew Brown gave Writtle a winning start by beating Mick Richardson (11-13, 11-7, 10-12, 14-12, 11-8) and he carried on the good work by defeating Dave Porter (11-8, 11-6, 9-11, 10-12, 11-8) but he became a victim of Mick Hayes in his third singles (9-11, 7-11, 6-11).  An excellent win for Mick Hayes. The exceptional result in this division was the very strong performance that Hatfield Peverel A turned in to beat Chelmsford D 8-2. Martin Archie led the way with three wins and he received excellent support from Neil Freeman and Gareth Davies who both won twice. Martin Archie defeated Victor Chan, the best of the Chelmsford players – 12-10, 6-11, 11-1, 14-12. A rather unusual looking scoreline.

Galleywood B (101 points out of a possible 130) are almost as dominant in division three as Chelmsford A are in division one. This week they beat Danbury J 8-2. John Holland and Gary Copsey were both undefeated whilst Dave Meah beat Mark Glenister (11-8, 11-4, 9-11, 11-8) for the losers. Chelmsford E also won 8-2 against Hatfield Peverel B. Rev Matthews and Joachin Mapes both won their three singles. Michael Lucey missed out by the narrowest possible margin twice. He lost 11-7, 8-11, 11-8, 9-11, 10-12 to Joachin Mapes and equally closely (8-11, 11-13, 11-9, 11-7, 9-11) to Rev Matthews. Andy Swales dominated affairs as Chelmsford F beat OCA D 7-3. Swales completed his hat-trick by beating Amanda Hogger (11-5, 11-13, 12-10, 8-11, 11-5).

In division four Danbury L made it 10 wins out of 12 by defeating Galleywood C 7-3. Denis Crapnell (24 wins out of 24) retained his 100 % record and he beat Colin Blore (two wins for the Galleywood side) 11-7, 9-11, 11-8, 11-6. Blore also had a fought win against Denis Balic and he battled back from 2-0 down to triumph 7-11, 9-11, 12-10, 11-8, 11-9. OCA E ran out 9-1 winners against Maldon B in a match where Farooq Ahmed and David Bishop gave nothing away. Writtle E beat Chelmsford G 6-4. Chelmsford were handicapped by being a player short but Neil Thompson beat both Dusan Doszkoty (18-20, 7-11, 11-9, 11-9, 11-7) and Vasile Barbulet (11-8, 11-5, 11-9) to ensure Writtle emerged as winners.

In division five Buttsbury surged to a superb 9-1 win over the higher placed Hatfield Peverel C team. Jamie Elliott (three wins), Gary Carr (three wins) and Ben Brown (two wins) called the shots. Richard Drozd prevented Hatfield Peverel C from being whitewashed with his 9-11, 11-9, 2-11, 11-7, 16-14 success against Ben Brown.  Hatfield Peverel C did better against Hatfield Peverel E and won 6-4. Mick Carter led the way with a hat-trick and he sealed the victory for his side by beating Gary Simmons 12-10, 11-5, 11-7 in the last game of the evening. Roger Slade was unbeaten for Hatfield Peverel D who beat Danbury M 7-3 whilst Maldon C combined well to get the better of Chelmsford J 6-4. Paul Bullock was unbeaten for Chelmsford J and this included a widely fluctuating 11-6, 6-11, 11-3, 5-11, 11-7 win over Rob Sach.

Steve Kerns Press & Publicity Officer Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

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Press Report Issued on 6 February 2022

Danbury A hit top form against Chelmsford C

The battle for second place in division one of the Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League couldn’t be closer. A mere nine points separates second placed Danbury C and seventh placed Danbury B who have two games in hand on some of their rivals. The big shock this week was the 10-0 roasting that Danbury A dished out to Chelmsford C. Eric Green, Dave Richardson and Babul McLeod were all on top form and Chelmsford C just couldn’t find a foothold however hard they tried.  Eric Green gave Danbury A the perfect start by beating the hard-hitting Simon Jarvis 12-10, 8-11, 11-8, 11-13, 11-3. Danbury C fared no better against the all-conquering Chelmsford A. Daniel Young, Gary Young and Kim Shead powered home 10-0 and with 87 points they lead the way by a huge 31 points. Kim Shead impressed this time. He beat Wiktor Delimat (7-11, 11-9, 11-9, 3-11, 11-7), Simon Jarvis (12-10, 7-11, 11-7, 12-10, 11-4) and new signing Adam Cuthbert (10-12, 11-5, 9-11, 11-3, 11-7). Three excellent wins. Danbury C also dented Writtle A’s hopes of finishing second by beating them 8-2. Trevor Lloyd and Sanjay Saptashi were both undefeated. Ryan Pitt was on target for the losers and he defeated David Gatheral 7-11, 11-9, 11-7, 9-11, 11-9. OCA A with the “brothers Mulley” in tandem are a force to be reckoned with. Mathew and Mark captured all six singles plus the doubles as they beat Chelmsford B 7-3. The doubles went to “the wire” with Matthew and Mark sneaking home 7-11, 11-9, 11-5, 9-11, 11-9 against Josh Bickles and Harry Buckle.  

OCA C impressed in division two and the upturn in form of League Chairman Dave Porter has been particularly impressive. OCA C’s 6-4 win over second placed Writtle C owed a lot to Porter’s excellent hat-trick of wins. He beat John Parodi (11-7, 12-10, 8-11, 7-11, 11-9), John Webber (11-9, 11-9, 11-6) and John Gagg (11-9, 11-2, 11-6). Leaders Danbury G won again, 7-3 against Danbury E. Their top player – Sanjay Saptarshi (88 %) again led by example and he powered home to three wins. He beat Tim Cramphorn (11-6, 11-6, 11-7), Neil Want (11-2, 11-2, 11-6) and Dick Wyman (11-3, 11-3, 11-4). “First division” written all over that performance. Team-work saw Hatfield Peverel A beat Danbury F 7-3. Gareth Davies, Neil Freeman and Martin Archie all won twice in a match where the last six games were all decided in the fifth end. Sam Phillips won twice for the losers and this included a fine 4-11, 11-9, 8-11, 11-8, 11-8 win over Martin Archie. The match between Danbury E and Writtle B finished tied at 5-5. Paul Sturton was unbeaten for Writtle A.  Dick Wyman did well to beat Trevor Collin 9-11, 11-1, 11-8, 6-11, 11-5.

Danbury K had the misfortune to have to play against the two outstanding sides in division three in successive weeks. They lost 9-1 to second placed Maldon A and 8-2 to the leaders Galleywood B. Peter Hance was on target against Maldon A with a fine 11-6, 3-11, 6-11, 11-4, 11-8 win over Lloyd Bennett-Smith but Hamish Innes and Dawn Baldry were both undefeated. Mark Glenister and John Holland were both undefeated for Galleywood with Peter Hance beating Bryn Thomas narrowly 9-11, 11-8, 12-10, 12-10 for their sole singles success. Maldon A also beat Danbury J 7-3. Hamish Innes, Dawn Baldry and Brian Riedling all bagged two wins whilst Dave Marsh won twice for Danbury J. Dave Meah showed up well with a fine 13-11, 11-5, 11-7 win over Hamish Innes. In another match where no single player stayed undefeated Writtle D beat OCA D 6-4. Dave Carter secured the Writtle victory with a superb 12-10, 11-6, 7-11, 5-11, 11-6 win over Richard Baxter.  Baxter had also been involved a in hard fought five-setter with Bob Garson. This time he won 11-8, 13-15, 11-7, 2-11, 12-10.  The match between Chelmsford E and Chelmsford F also finished 6-4, with the Chelmsford E team edging it. Rev Matthews won his three singles and he sealed the victory for his side by beating Andy Swales 13-11, 7-11, 11-7, 11-8 in the last game of the night. The match went to form when Danbury H played Hatfield Peverel B. Dave Hancox won his three singles as Danbury H won 7-3. Richard Allen gave Danbury H a winning start by beating Paul Mulley – the best of the Hatfield Peverel players 11-6, 7-11, 11-7, 8-11, 12-10.

Danbury L scored their ninth win of the season to move 19 points clear in division four. Denis Balic and Denis Crapnell were both undefeated in their 8-2 win over Maldon B. Denis Crapnell (21 wins out of 21) retained his 100 % singles record. Writtle E are third and they beat Chelmsford H 9-1. Malcolm Storey and Dave Moles both won their three singles whilst Harrison Hill was on target for Chelmsford H. He beat Neil Thompson 11-9, 13-11, 8-11, 13-11. Highwood A did well to beat Galleywood C 6-4; their second win of the season. Keith Fitz-John excelled. He beat Will Goodchild (11-9, 11-4, 8-11, 13-11), Nathan Blore (8-11, 11-9, 6-11, 11-8, 15-13) and Ron Salton (5-11, 11-9, 11-9, 9-11, 11-5). An excellent evening’s work. OCA E led by the reliable Farooq Ahmed beat Chelmsford G 7-3. David Newman provided the support with two wins. Chelmsford G in turn beat Chelmsford H 8-2. Dusan Doszkoty led the way with a hat-trick and he sealed this by beating Cleon Fernandes 12-10, 12-10, 5-11, 5-11, 12-10 in nail-biting last game of the evening. Galleywood C scored their third win of the campaign by beating Highwood B 6-4. Will Godchild led the way with three wins.

OCA F top the table in division five with 64 points, just one point ahead of Hatfield Peverel E. OCA F beat Chelmsford J 7-3; Stuart Wintle’s hat-trick giving them the edge. Chelmsford’s John Wickins beat Bob Francis 11-8, 11-9, 4-11, 7-11, 11-9 in the closest game of the night. Hatfield Peverel E also won 7-3, beating Hatfield Peverel D. Gary Simmons won his three singles whilst Deb Ginn and Bob Hillis both won twice. Simmons was also undefeated as Hatfield Peverel E beat Maldon C 8-2.  Five games were decided in the fifth end and Hatfield Peverel E won four of them. Bob Hillis also won his three singles on this occasion beating Kym Eames (11-5, 11-3, 11-3), Ross Wheeler (11-5, 12-10, 7-11, 8-11, 11-7) and Brian Dixon (11-9, 11-3, 11-6). Danbury M came out on top 6-4 against Maldon C. Ron Tam led the way with three wins. His third win could have gone either way before he got the better of Ella Sach 11-7, 7-11, 11-6, 8-11, 11-9.

Steve Kerns Press & Publicity Officer Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

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Press Report Issued on 30 January 2022

Unseeded Harry Buckle fights his way to the mens singles semi-final

In one of the more “open” Championships in recent years seedings didn’t count for much in the mens singles at the Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League Closed Championships which were played at St John Payne School over the weekend. Three seeded players failed to win their groups. Trevor Lloyd missed out against Josh Bickles, whilst Eric Green lost against Harry Buckle and James Liddiard lost to Dan Pigott. The shocks continued into the knock out stages.

Top seed Duncan Taylor, who not only played on Friday night in the Veterans events but travelled to St. Neots in Cambridegshire to play for Essex Veterans first team on the Saturday would have had a justifiable excuse if he had lost.  It didn’t effect his performance and he beat Babul McLeod (11-9, 11-9, 11-5), and Matthew Mulley (1-11, 12-10, 13-11, 11-5) to make it to Finals Night.  Matthew Mulley had previously beaten Gary Young (6-11, 11-8, 12-10, 11-1).

Duncan Taylor will play Daniel Young in the semi-final. Daniel Young beat Martin Archie (11-2, 11-3, 11-7), Bruce Kettle (11-5, 11-6, 11-4) and Mark Mulley (11-9, 12-10, 9-11, 11-9). Mark Mulley had made his mark (no pun intended) by beating Charlie Craig (11-8, 11-6, 6-11, 11-5). Charlie had earlier scored one of the wins of the day (make that the weekend) by ousting James Liddiard (8-11, 10-12, 16-14, 11-9, 11-9).    

In the bottom half of the draw the up-and-coming attacking players ran riot. Harry Buckle stole the show. Josh Bickles beat Rob Shrimtpon (8-11, 11-7, 11-13, 11-2, 11-4) before losing very narrowly to Harry Buckle (11-7, 13-15, 9-11, 10-12). Harry Buckle had previously defeated Ken Sheard (11-8, 11-8, 14-12) and Daniel Piggott (11-6, 11-5, 11-6) and with everything to play for Harry Buckle beat Josh Bickles to make it through to Finals Night on Tuesday 15 February 2022 at Old Chelmsfordians Association.

Harry will play Lee McHugh who had already won the Under 40s Singles on the Saturday. Lee defeated Neil Freeman (11-4, 11-8, 11-4), Steve Martin (11-4, 11-4, 11-3) and Sam Lowman (9-11, 11-6, 11-8, 11-9) who he had previously beaten in the Under 40s singles final.  Sam Lowman had excelled and he scored a gem of a win by beating the second seed – Keith Adams 11-5, 14-12, 11-7. 

The ladies singles has been played to a conclusion and the favourite Dawn Baldry has won the title. She beat Nyree Marsh 11-9, 11-8, 11-8 in the final.  Nyree beat the second seed Frances Hutt in the penultimate round 11-7, 12-10, 12-10 whilst Dawn fought her way past Jacqueline Smith 11-7, 11-5, 11-6.

The mens doubles will be played on finals night. It didn’t go to plan. Daniel Young/ James Liddiard fought their way past Charlie Craig / Harry Buckle 11-7, 11-8, 11-8 and then in a really nail-biting encounter top seeds Gary Young / Keith Adams 5-11, 11-9, 11-8, 3-11, 12-10. They booked their place in the final by beating brothers -Mark and Matthew Mulley 11-9, 11-7, 7-11, 6-11, 11-4. They will play the third seeds – Trevor Lloyd and Bruce Kettle. Lloyd and Kettle needed five ends to get the better of Dan Anderson / Sam Lowman (5-11, 5-11,11-3, 11-3, 11-5) in their quarter-final and if that wasn’t hard enough they prevailed 6-11, 11-5, 11-8, 11-13, 11-9 after a thrilling semi-final battle against Duncan Taylor / Lee McHugh.   

The ladies doubles saw Frances Hutt / Ella Sach capture the title at their first attempt. They came out on top 11-6, 8-11, 11-8, 5-11, 12-10 against Shirley Carroll / Dawn Baldry after a really hard-fought encounter. Trailing 10-6 in the decider they must have thought their chance had slipped away but they didn’t give up and they eventually went on to win a thrilling decider12-10.

The mixed doubles competition has also been completed. Top seeds Harry Buckle / Dawn Baldry are the champions and they beat Lee McHugh / Nyree Marsh 11-8, 11-9, 12-10 in the final. Lee and Nyree had upset the seedings by getting the better of second seeds Paul Sturton / Frances Hutt 11-5, 12-14, 11-9, 9-11, 11-6 a round earlier. Dawn / Harry had been extended to four ends in their semi-final by Adhuna Das / Gary Young (6-11, 11-2, 11-5, 11-6).

The veterans (O40s) singles final will be played on Finals Night. Holder and top seed Gary Young booked his place in the final by beating Eric Green (11-3, 11-9, 11-4) and Trevor Lloyd (11-8, 10-12, 11-8, 11-3) and he will face Keith Adams in the final. Keith saw off Kim Shead (11-9, 11-6, 11-9) and in his semi-final he fought back strongly from 2-0 down to get the better of second seed – Duncan Taylor - in one of the best matches of the weekend (4-11, 10-12, 11-8, 11-9, 11-8). After a slow start this match became positively gripping and the last few rallies were for the connoisseur !.

Duncan Taylor took immediate revenge for his Veterans Singles defeat by bouncing back to win the veterans doubles. Paired with Babul McLeod they secured a fine 11-7, 11-9, 11-7 win over the veterans singles finalists – Gary Young / Keith Adams. The fourth seeds Mark Allaway / Kim Shead were beaten by Rod Maclennan / Neil Freeman 7-11, 12-10, 7-11, 5-11.

Keith Adams, the favourite made no mistake in the over 50s singles. He powered his way past Sanjay Saptarshi (11-8, 10-12, 11-7, 11-8), Babul McLeod (11-9, 11-8, 10-12, 11-3) and in the final he made no mistake against Bruce Kettle (11-8, 11-0, 11-4). Bruce Kettle excelled on this occasion by getting the better of Trevor Lloyd (11-7, 10-12, 13-11, 16-14).  

Trevor Lloyd came through a strong field to capture the over 60s singles. He disposed of Graham Naggs (3-0), Ian Whiteside (3-0), Trevor Collin (3-0) and he beat Bruce Kettle 11-8, 5-11, 11-5, 7-11,11-7 in a fluctuating final. Trevor Collin had excelled, taking out Babul McLeod 3-0 whilst Babul had ended the hopes of John Holland 3-2.   

The over 70s singles is another new event and John Holland completed the full set of titles, having previously won the over 40s singles, over 50s singles and over 60s singles. He beat Ian Whiteside 3-0 after three closely contested games in the final.

The Handicap Singles is very difficult to predict. A player can seemingly be going well for a few rounds but can perish very quickly if a handicap is just too far out of reach. Arguably the top -rated player in the event – Daniel Young (playing off a handicap of 89) looked good as he powered his way past Phil West (20), Ella Sach (29), Davina Brazier (23) and most impressively Andrea Alleyne (47). He met his match against Roger Slade (40) in the semi-final who won 18-21, 21-12, 21-17.  Slade had also seen off Rev Matthews (60), Sudheep Kamma (63), Mervyn Perriman (67) and Denis Crapnell (58). Nyree Marsh (30) dominated the bottom half of the draw beating Vineeth Kamma (60), Josh Bickles (88), Saul Chivers (73) and in the semi-final Dan Anderson (76) 21-15, 19-21, 21-18. Dan Anderson had also impressed with wins over Harry Buckle (87), Robert Shrimpton (77), Lee McHugh (90) (a close one this: 21-14, 16-21, 22-20) and Deb Ginn (23) before he lost to Nyree. In the final Nyree made no mistake by beating Roger 21-5, 21-17.  

If the Handicap Singles is difficult to predict it is nigh on impossible to select a winner in the Handicap Doubles. Not only do the handicaps come into play but certain styles are more compatible than others. Dawn Baldry and Cleon Fernandes (with a combined handicap of 44) eventually emerged as winners beating Roger Slade / Lee McHugh (combined handicap of 65) quite convincingly 21-9, 21-9 in the final.

Top seed Lee McHugh (who had an excellent weekend) won the first of the new events – the Under 40s Singles. He beat Aaron Chandler (11-9, 9-11, 11-7, 11-8) and Sam Phillips (14-12, 11-4, 11-5) to book his final appearance and he defeated Sam Lowman - the second seed, in a free-flowing final (11-9, 12-10, 9-11, 11-3). Lowman had to work hard to get the better of Rob Shrimpton (7-11, 12-10, 11-8, 11-8) and Dan Anderson (11-9, 11-6, 14-12).

The under 19 singles will be played on finals night and it replaces the defunct under 21 singles. Dan Young and Harry Buckle who both played so well in the mens singles will contest the final. Dan Young beat Saul Chivers 11-5, 11-5, 9-11, 11-7 in his semi-final whilst Harry Buckle turned it on to defeat Charlie Craig 11-5, 11-7, 11-8 at the same stage. Saul Chivers ended the aspirations of Josh Bickles 2-11, 11-9,11-4, 11-7.    

The under 19 doubles was played on a round robin basis and Harry Buckle and Charlie Craig came out on top.

Ben Chivers is the 2002 Under 15 singles champion. He claimed the title by beating Alesha Ellis-Austin 11-7, 8-11, 11-9, 6-11, 11-4 in the final. Felix Reeve and Oliver Martin were the losing semi-finalists.

The division two singles is traditionally one of the more open events. The top seed has often failed to live up to expectations. Not this year.  The favourite – Chris Buer came out on top. He beat Ken Sheard, Richard Baxter and Sanjay Saptarshi 13-11, 17-19, 11-7, 12-10 in a very well contested final. Richard Baxter made his mark in no uncertain terms beating Hamish Innes and Saul Chivers. Sanjay Saptarshi’s run to the final saw him see off Eamon Hall, John Holland and Daniel Piggott.    

The division three singles final will be between John Holland and Mark Glenister and it will be played on Finals Night. John Holland used all of his experience to beat Nikita Tkachuk 11-7, 12-10, 11-9 and he will play Mark Glenister who scored a superb 11-9, 12-14, 9-11, 12-10, 11-7 semi-final win over Hamish Innes, a game which lasted close to 45 minutes. Glenister had earlier done well to end the hopes of Sam Phillips (11-3, 11-7, 11-13, 11-9) and Dusan Doszkoty (11-2, 9-11, 12-10, 11-9).

Denis Crapnell was crowned the division four singles champion. He beat Mervyn Perriman (who had lost to Adi Kamma in his group) 11-9, 11-6, 11-8 and Harry Chivers (12-10, 4-11, 11-5, 11-7) and in the final he powered home 11-4, 11-4, 11-1 against Dusan Doszkoty. Dusan had booked his final place by beating Adi Kamma (11-4, 11-6, 11-8) and Farooq Ahmed (11-7, 11-8, 9-11, 11-8).   

Bob Hillis is the division five singles champion. He came through closely fought games against Davina Brazier (12-10, 6-11, 11-9, 11-8), Deb Ginn (6-11, 11-9, 11-9, 8-11, 11-7) and in the final he beat Jacqueline Smith (11-9, 11-7, 8-11, 11-9). Jacqueline had beaten Jamie Elliott (8-11, 11-9, 13-11, 12-10) at the semi-final stage. A pleasing feature of this year’s event was just how many of the successful players in the divisional tournaments take part in the League’s Bat&Chat sessions. John Holland, Denis Crapnell, Bob Hillis and Jacqueline Smith all fall into this category.  

There appears to be “no stopping” Chelmsford A in division one of the Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League. With James Liddiard (18 wins out of 18) and Gary Young both staying undefeated they beat Chelmsford B 8-2. With a massive 77 points out of a possible 100 they lead second placed Writtle A by a huge 26 points. Writtle A also won 8-2, defeating bottom placed side Galleywood A 8-2. Lee McHugh and Duncan Taylor carried all before them. Ryan Pitt came up trumps against Gary Brignall, winning 5-11, 11-7, 5-11, 11-8, 11-9. Danbury C, have moved into fourth place. Trevor Lloyd led the way as they beat Chelmsford B 6-4. With 86 % Lloyd has been an excellent signing. There were some very close games with Shirish Basant Rai getting the better of Ian Whiteside 11-6, 7-11, 11-8, 18-20, 17-15 after the longest encounter of the week.  OCA A scored their third win on the trot and it isn’t totally inconceivable that they could challenge for the runners-up spot. They beat Danbury C 6-4 after Trevor Lloyd had again won his three singles. Lloyd defeated Mark Mulley 11-3, 8-11, 11-8, 3-11, 12-10 after a widely fluctuating opening encounter.    

Writtle C have climbed into second place in division two. Gary Ward can’t put a foot (and in his case a powerful back hand topspin) wrong this Season and he again won his three singles as Writtle C beat Chelmsford D 7-3. Harry Chivers won twice for Chelmsford and this included a 9-11, 11-8, 9-11, 11-4, 12-10 victory over John Webber. Chelmsford D were also on the wrong end of a 6-4 defeat against Danbury F. Colin Napper stole the show with three hard fought wins. He beat Vineeth Kamma (11-5, 8-11, 11-9, 8-11, 11-8), Sudheep Kamma (13-11, 11-7, 5-11, 7-11, 11-3) and Harry Chivers (11-2, 11-13, 11-7, 6-11, 11-7).   Danbury G edged home 6-4 against Hatfield Peverel A. Sanjay Saptarshi sealed the win for his side after an epic 11-7, 5-11, 6-11, 12-10, 12-10 win over Martin Archie in the last game of the night. OCA B won three five enders to beat Danbury F 7-3. Gareth Joice and Trevor Carter were both undefeated. Trevor Carter had to pull out all the stops to get the better of Ken Sheard 11-13, 3-11, 11-4, 11-5, 11-9 whilst Gareth Joice was equally stretched as he saw off Colin Napper 11-5, 5-11, 4-11, 11-9, 12-10.    

Leaders Galleywood B showed their strength in division three. They left John Holland out yet they still beat Hatfield Peverel B 9-1. Mark Glenister and Bryn Thomas both bagged three wins. Phil Shippen was on target for the losers with a 11-6, 11-9, 6-11, 11-9 win over Gary Copsey. OCA D did well to beat Danbury J 6-4. Richard Baxter was the architect of this win with three successes. John Robinson pipped Ian Butler 11-6, 9-11, 8-11, 11-1, 17-15. A very hard fought fifth end. Danbury J were in turn on the right side of a 6-4 result against Writtle D. Dave Marsh won his three singles and this included a last gasp 11-4, 9-11, 11-6, 7-11, 12-10 victory against Bob Garson. Writtle D put this result firmly behind them and ran out comprehensive 9-1 winners against Chelmsford F. Malcolm Henstock and Peter Layzell both scored hat-tricks. Henstock was tied at 2-2 against Luke Richardson but he surged home in the fifth end to win 5-11, 11-7, 12-10, 10-12, 11-4. OCA D beat Danbury K 7-3 courtesy of a good team performance. Richard Baxter, Richard Upson and Connor Payne all won twice. Peter Hance impressed for the losers with a 11-8, 11-8, 6-11, 14-12 victory against Richard Baxter. Chelmsford E also won 7-3. The improving Rev Mathews led the way with a hat-trick and he secured his third win by getting the better of Richard Allen 11-4, 7-11, 11-4, 15-13. Dave Powell fought back strongly from 2-0 down to get the better of Joachim Mapes 7-11, 6-11, 11-6, 11-8, 11-1

Danbury L lead the way in division four. Denis Balic and Denis Crapnell were both undefeated in their 7-3 win over OCA E. Denis Balic saw off Farooq Ahmed 11-9, 11-5, 9-11, 9-11, 11-9. Quite a battle. Maldon B (fielding an all-lady line up) emerged as 6-4 winners against Highwood A. Fittingly it was another lady who dominated the action. Melanie Bonnett won her three singles and this included a fine 9-11, 9-11, 11-4, 11-9, 11-8 win over Andrea Alleyne.  Maldon B added another eight points to their total by beating Highwood B. Bryan Speller and Andrea Alleyne were both undefeated this time.

Division five leaders Hatfield Peverel C ran out 9-1 winners against Danbury N. Mick Carter and Andy Simmonds were both undefeated.  Hatfield Peverel C won the two five setters. Mick Carter beat Graham Naggs 11-5, 11-5, 9-11, 6-11, 11-8 and Andy Whiley beat Steve Martin 11-9, 7-11, 8-11, 11-2, 11-8. OCA F emerged as narrow 6-4 winners against Danbury M.  Stuart Wintle was their match-winner and he beat Paul Thirkettle – the best of the Danbury players - 11-6, 9-11, 11-6, 5-11, 11-5. Another all-lady team, this time – Hatfield Peverel D beat Buttsbury 7-3. Davina Brazier took centre stage with three singles wins. She beat Frances Hutt (11-7, 13-11, 3-11, 11-9), Ray Horton (9-11, 11-3, 12-10, 4-11, 11-8) and Oscar Hutt (11-5, 11-7, 11-7).

Steve Kerns Press & Publicity Officer Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

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Press Report Issued on 23 January 2022

Duncan Taylor out to win Mens Singles title

A new venue, two new events to contend with; and the same number of entries as last time (105). The Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League Annual Championships are back after a year’s absence, at St. John Payne Catholic School, Chelmsford, CM1 4BS (Patching Hall Lane entrance) over the weekend of Friday 28 January 2022 to Sunday 30 January 2022.  Action is scheduled to finish at 18.00 hours on the Sunday evening. A big change this year is that the blue riband event – the Mens Singles will take place on the Sunday. Finals Night will take place on Tuesday 15 February 2022 at the Old Chelmsfordians Association, Lawford Lane. Refreshments – bacon rolls and sausage rolls will be available on the Saturday and Sunday mornings. Players will receive E-Mails relating to their starting times. Admission is free and it is hoped that former players pop in to watch.

Ace defender Duncan Taylor - the 2018 Champion, is the man to beat in the Mens Singles. He will face stiff opposition from second seed Keith Adams (in his first venture into the Chelmsford tournament), Trevor Lloyd, Mark Mulley, Gary Young, James Liddiard, Lee McHugh and Daniel Young. The other seeded players are Matthew Mulley, Bruce Kettle, Babul McLeod, Sam Lowman, Eric Green and Ian Whiteside. Expect a strong challenge from the up-and-coming Chelmsford Table Tennis Club Junior contingent – Harry Buckle, Charlie Craig, Josh Bickles and Saul Chivers. Group two stands out. Second seed Keith Adams takes on Wiktor Delimat and Charlie Craig. Group seven is equally competitive. Lee McHugh comes face to face with Dan Anderson and Saul Chivers.

It is difficult to see beyond Dawn Baldry in the Ladies Singles. Frances Hutt is seeded second, but Dawn will be very difficult to beat.  Nyree Marsh, runner up in 2019 will also be out to make her mark.

Gary Young / Keith Adams are the top seeds in the Mens Doubles and they are due to meet Duncan Taylor / Lee McHugh in the Final. Other pairs who you can’t  discount are brothers Mark Mulley /Matthew Mulley , Bruce Kettle / Trevor Lloyd, Daniel Young / James  Liddiard, Dan Anderson / Sam Lowman and Babul McLeod / Eric Green.  

Gary Young - the holder, is favourite for the Veterans Singles and he is scheduled to face Duncan Taylor in the Final on Finals Night. Keith Adams and Trevor Lloyd are seeded third and fourth. Young and Adams have paired together and they are expected to annexe the Veterans Doubles where they are scheduled to play Duncan Taylor and Babul McLeod in the Final. 

The Over 70s Singles is a new event this year. The evergreen Ian Whiteside is the top seed and John Holland is seeded second. John will be bidding to become the first player in the League’s history to win the Over 70s Singles as well as the events he has won in the past – Over 60s, Over 50s and Veterans Singles.

As befits the demographics of the League, the Over 50s Singles is very strong this year. Keith Adams is seeded no. one with Trevor Lloyd seeded no. two. Bruce Kettle, Babul McLeod, Eric Green, Ian Whiteside and Martin Archie make up the seeded berths.

Trevor Lloyd will be looking to retain his Over 60s title and he is seeded to play Bruce Kettle in the Final. If all goes to plan Lloyd will play Babul McLeod in the penultimate round and Kettle will play Eric Green.  

New pairing Harry Buckle and Dawn Baldry are top seeds in the Mixed Doubles and their Finals night opponents are projected to be Frances Hutt and Paul Sturton. Frances and Paul are expected to face Lee McHugh / Nyree Marsh in their Semi-Final whilst Harry and Dawn are scheduled to meet Jacqueline Smith and Robert Shrimpton.

Shirley Carroll / Dawn Baldry are strong favourites to capture the Ladies Doubles and they are seeded to play Ella Sach / Frances Hutt in the Final.

The Divisional events have been moved to the Saturday and the division two event looks particularly strong. Chris Buer is the top seed and in a very evenly matched field John Holland is seeded second. The quality of the other seeds speaks for itself – David Gatheral, Saul Chivers, Hamish Innes, Daniel Piggott, Sanjay Saptarshi and Neil Freeman. Neil Freeman’s group really is a tough one. He will face Richard Baxter and Sam Phillips.

John Holland goes again in the division three singles and he is seeded to play Hamish Innes in the Final. Again, the other seeded players are all equally capable - Sam Phillips, Dawn Baldry, Richard Baxter, Mervyn Perriman and Gary Copsey.

Mervyn Perriman is the top seed in the division four singles. The hugely promising Harry Chivers is seeded second with Denis Crapnell and David Moles making up the seeds.

David Smith is the man to beat in the division five singles with Jamie Elliot due to face him in the Final. The other seeds are Jacqueline Smith and Robert Hillis.

The Under 40s Singles is another new event this year and Junior players are not eligible. Lee McHugh is the top seed with Sam Lowman seeded second. Daniel Anderson and Robert Shrimpton are seeded third and fourth. Lowman has drawn a short straw. He faces Wiktor Delimat and Sam Phillips in his group.  Lee McHugh’s group is another strong one. He goes head-to-head with Shirish Basant Rai and Richard Storey.

The Junior Singles has become the Under 19 Singles this year following a Table Tennis England directive to take into account the fact that very little play took place last year. Daniel Young, the holder will be very hard to beat but the likes of Harry Buckle, Charlie Craig, Josh Bickles and Saul Chivers will all be out to make their mark. The Final will take place on Finals Night and it replaces the Final of the now defunct Under 21 Singles.

Another player who has made great progress -Sudheep Kamma is the favourite to win the Under 15s Singles and the other seeds are Alesha Ellis-Austin and Lotte Mills.

The Junior Doubles is being played as a “Round Robbin” event. Harry Buckle / Charlie Craig are top seeds but all of the four other pairings are worthy of mention : Nyree Marsh / Daniel Young, Vineeth Kamma / Sudheep Kamma, Saul Chivers / Harry Chivers and Nikita Tkachuk / Josh Bickles.    

In the League first division - leaders Chelmsford A produced yet another impressive performance to beat Danbury A 8-2. Gary Young won his three singles to ensure Danbury remained in charge in a match where the last three singles encounters produced some stirring battles. Babul McLeod defeated Daniel Young 11-7, 11-9, 8-11, 9-11, 14-12 and Dave Richardson got the better of Kim Shead 9-11, 12-10, 8-11, 11-9, 11-9. There was no let-up in the last game and Gary Young was hard pressed to get the better of Bruce Kettle 8-11, 11-9, 11-7, 9-11, 11-8. Danbury B are third and Sam Lowman won his three singles in his side’s 6-4 win over Chelmsford C. Lowman beat Simon Jarvis, the best of the Chelmsford players 16-18, 11-4, 8-11, 11-7, 11-8.  Galleywood A made a great start against OCA A. Gary Brignall defeated Terry Dowsett 8-11, 11-9, 7-11, 11-7, 11-9 and James Hicks beat Peter Hayden 15-13, 5-11, 13-11, 4-11, 11-8. Get in there.  However, OCA A reasserted themselves and with Matt Mulley (six wins out of six) winning his three singles OCA A won 8-2.   If OCA A field the likes of Mark Mulley, Matt Mulley, Peter Hayden and Terry Dowsett regularly expect them to surge up the table.

Danbury G lead the way in division two after drawing 5-5 with OCA B. Gareth Joice was the star of the show here and he produced a superb performance to beat all three Danbury players. He beat Eamon Hall in his opening game (13-11, 3-11, 11-7, 11-5) and then most impressively Sanjay Saptarshi (15-13, 6-11, 11-8, 11-9) and finally David Gatheral (4-11, 11-8, 11-9, 11-8) for an excellent hat-trick of wins. Writtle C did well to beat Danbury D 7-3. Gary Ward (23 wins out of 24) is flying this Season and he produced yet another top draw performance. Wins over Gus Heath (11-5, 11-9, 11-8), Chris Buer (11-6, 11-7, 11-9) and Steve Buer (11-9, 11-4, 11-6) tell their own story. Writtle B also did well to beat the higher placed OCA B 7-3. Trevor Collin took centre stage this time. He downed the challenges of Trevor Carter (11-9, 11-8, 5-11, 8-11, 11-6), Richard Baxter (13-11, 10-12, 11-6, 11-8) and Kevin Worthington (11-8, 11-7, 11-8). Well played again. Writtle B were also involved in a 5-5 draw with Hatfield Peverel A. No one player stayed undefeated and Writtle’s Trevor Collin and Rod Maclennan and Hatfield Peverel’s Martin Archie and Gareth Davies all won twice. Rod Maclennan’s fine win over Martin Archie (11-9, 11-7, 11-5) stood out on this occasion. In another match where no single player stayed undefeated Danbury E beat OCA C 6-4. OCA’s Mick Richardson and David Porter and Danbury’s Dick Wyman and Tony Forster all bagged two wins. Tony Forster had given Danbury a winning start by getting the better of Mick Richardson 10-12, 11-9, 11-7, 4-11, 11-8.       

Galleywood B are back on track to win division three. They powered their way past Chelmsford E 9-1. Gary Copsey and John Holland were both undefeated. Maldon A are second, and they beat Hatfield Peverel B 7-3. Hamish Innes won his three singles at a canter. Danbury H did well to beat the higher placed Chelmsford F 6-4 . Dave Powell led the way with three wins whilst Dave Hancox beat Luke Richardson 12-14, 3-11, 11-6, 12-10, 11-9 in the closest game of the night.    

Danbury L have moved into pole position in division four but they won’t gain too much satisfaction from their 9-1 win over Chelmsford G who only had one player. Vasile Barbulet certainly made his  mark with his fine 11-9, 11-1, 11-6 win over Mervyn Perriman.  Teamwork won the day as OCA E beat Highwood A 6-4. Farooq Ahmed, David Newman and Russ Hall came out on top although Melanie Bonnett remained undefeated. She beat David Newman 3-11, 16-14, 8-11, 11-6, 12-10 and in an even closer finish she saw off Farooq Ahmed 5-11, 13-11, 11-8, 5-11, 18-16. That’s getting your money’s worth.  Neil Thompson was undefeated as Writtle E beat Galleywood C 7-3. Thompson completed his trio of wins with a 12-10, 11-7, 9-11, 5-11, 11-7 victory over Colin Blore.

OCA F climbed into second place in division five with their superb 9-1 win over Hatfield Peverel E. David Bishop, Bob Francis and Stuart Wintle won all nine singles. Curiously the doubles went astray and Gary Simmonds and Deb Ginn came out on top 10-12, 11-8, 8-11, 11-9, 11-6 against David Bishop and Bob Francis.  Danbury M also won 9-1.  Paul Thirkettle, Ken Wilding and David Smith beat Chelmsford J.  Paul Thirkettle fought back strongly from 2-1 down to get the better of Paul Bullock 6-11, 11-9, 6-11, 11-3, 11-2.  Danbury N complete this week’s results with their 7-3 win over Hatfield Peverel A. Graham Naggs led the way with three wins whilst Steve Martin came out on top in the night’s closest game with a 11-7, 8-11, 11-6, 6-11, 14-12 win against Kath Little.

Steve Kerns Press & Publicity Officer Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

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Press Report Issued on 19 December 2021

Inform Bruce Kettle – unbeaten for Danbury A 

The young Chelmsford B side - 6-4 losers to Galleywood A the week before, redeemed themselves in division one of the Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League by beating Danbury A 6-4. Saul Chivers, Harry Buckle and Charlie Craig all won twice although they all missed out against an inform Bruce Kettle. In a high class match the Chelmsford side acquitted themselves superbly. Charlie Craig defeated Dave Richardson 8-11, 11-7, 7-11, 11-7, 11-8 and Saul Chivers sealed the win for his team with a 11-9, 3-11, 11-7, 5-11, 13-11 victory over Richardson. Chelmsford B enter the Christmas break in second place. Danbury A fared better against Danbury B and won 7-3. Dave Richardson led the way and his trio of wins included a fine 8-11, 11-9, 11-13, 11-5, 12-10 victory over Sam Lowman and a 11-9, 9-11, 6-11, 11-6, 11-9 success against Dan Anderson.

The points were shared in division two, where Danbury D drew 5-5 with Danbury E. Chris Buer was unbeaten and he sealed the draw for his side with a 7-11, 14-12, 11-7, 11-13, 11-8 victory against Neil Want. Steve Buer won an even closer encounter. He beat Dick Wyman 11-8, 18-20, 13-11, 4-11, 11-8. Quite a battle.

The division three match between Danbury K and Writtle D also finished tied at 5-5. Writtle D led 5-3 but Danbury K finished the stronger. Alan Dadswell beat Colin Barham 11-4, 11-1, 12-10 and Nick Reece-Ford completed his hat-trick by beating Dave Carter 13-11, 11-3, 11-6 to earn Danbury K a share of the points.

Maldon B did well to beat the higher placed Writtle E 6-4 in division four. Shirley Carrol excelled. She beat Neil Thompson (7-11, 11-6, 11-5, 11-8), Ian Hockley (11-7, 6-11, 11-8, 12-10) and Malcolm Storey (6-11, 17-15, 11-7, 11-13, 11-9).

Division five leaders Buttsbury missed out 7-3 against OCA F. Frances Hutt was undefeated but Harry Hutt and Oscar Hutt were unable to add to the title. David Bishop, Stuart Wintle and Suzanne Shaw all won twice for the old Chelmsfordians team.

The Chelmsford Junior Leagues aren’t quite finished yet and the teams have up to 14 January 2022 to complete their fixtures. Division 1A is finalised and Buttsbury Bees, the Champions beat Chelmsford Pumas 5-0. Jacob Lawrence (86 %) and Jamie Elliott (92 %) were both undefeated. Chelmsford Tigers emerged as 3-2 winners against Buttsbury Bats. Singles were shared and Aarav Mehta and Soumil Jain (Tigers) and George Hagland and George Standish (Bats) all won once.

Buttsbury Badgers lead the way in division 1B but this week they lost 3-2 to second placed Writtle Rattlesnakes. Harry Hutt (79 %) was undefeated for the Badgers despatching Archie Pummell (11-6, 11-9, 6-11, 11-8) and Mimi Pummell (13-11, 11-7, 11-6). Buttsbury Badgers did better against Buttsbury Beavers and won 5-0. Harry Hutt and Joseph Hutt carried all before them. Chelmsford Jaguars did well to beat Chelmsford Beavers 3-2. Lotte Mills won twice, beating Joseph Hutt (11-5, 11-7, 11-5) and Oscar Hutt (13-11, 11-2, 11-7).  

In division 1C - the Champions Chelmsford Antelopes scored their ninth win of the Season beating Buttsbury Bulldogs 5-0. Samaksh Sirohi (100 %) and Arnav Kumar (93 %) were both undefeated. Writtle Racoons won twice. Luv Goel picked up two wins in their 4-1 victory over Chelmsford Eagles. Atharv Gupta was on target for Chelmsford Eagles, beating Kush Goel (11-9, 11-7, 12-14, 11-4).  Writtle Racoons also beat Chelmsford Falcons 4-1. Luv Goel again won twice, beating Kehsaw Barrie (11-3, 11-5, 6-11, 11-7) and Kologn Barrie (11-4, 11-3, 11-7).   

The 2021/ 2 Chelmsford League Championships will be held over the weekend of Friday 28 to Sunday 30 January 2022 at St. John Payne’s Catholic School, Chelmsford, CM1 4BS. The closing date for entries is 02 January 2022 and the entry form can be found on the League’s Website.  

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all players.

Steve Kerns Press & Publicity Officer Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

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Press Report Issued on 12 December 2021

Keith Adams on superb form for Danbury C

There were two outstanding performances in division one of the Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League this week. They came from players with contrasting levels of experience. Keith Adams, a regular in the Essex Veterans teams won his three singles as Danbury C lost 4-6 to runaway leaders Chelmsford A. Adams powered his way past Gary Young (11-6, 11-6, 11-8), Daniel Young (11-7, 11-5, 12-10) and Kim Shead (11-2, 11-3, 10-12, 11-4). Sam Phillips added a notable win as well. He defeated Gary Young (11-8, 11-8, 5-11, 11-9). Bottom team Galleywood A secured their first win of the Season, 6-4, against Chelmsford B. Six games were decided in the fifth end and these were shared 3-3. 17 year-old Saul Chivers took centre stage on his first division debut. He beat Gary Brignall (11-9, 9-11, 7-11, 11-2, 11-8), Steve Kerns (9-11, 11-5, 12-10, 8-11, 11-8) and James Hicks (8-11, 11-8, 11-6, 5-11, 11-6). Well played !.  James Hicks had given the Galleywood side an excellent start by beating Josh Bickles (11-8, 12-14, 7-11, 11-6, 12-10). Galleywood A also drew 5-5 with Danbury C. This time Sam Phillips scored a superb 11-7, 11-8, 11-6 win over Peter Radford in his first singles but he was well beaten 3-0 by both Gary Brignall and James Hicks. Peter Radford redeemed himself with a fine 11-9, 14-12, 11-8 victory against Trevor Lloyd. Chelmsford C did well to beat the higher placed Writtle A 6-4. Duncan Taylor (93 % / 14 wins out of 15) was unbeaten for Writtle whilst Robert Shrimpton and Simon Jarvis both won twice for Chelmsford C.

Danbury G are the new leaders in division two. They take over from Chelmsford D who they beat 7-3. Sanjay Saptarshi (88 %) gave his side a superb start with a 11-7, 11-6, 6-11, 11-8 win over Saul Chivers, who had played so well in the first division earlier in the week. Chelmsford D were on the back-foot and David Gatheral and Sanjay Saptarshi both recorded “maximums”. Gatheral defeated Vineeth Kamma (11-9, 11-8, 11-5), Saul Chivers (11-8, 11-5, 11-9) and Sudheep Kamma after a very hard fought encounter (11-9, 6-11, 11-6, 14-16, 11-8). An undefeated Eamon Hall took centre stage as Danbury G beat Danbury F 7-3 after no fewer than seven games had gone to a decider. Gordon Gatheral won twice for the losers and this included a very tight and against the form book win over his son – David (9-11, 11-9, 11-9, 10-12, 11-8). OCA C jumped above OCA B after beating them 7-3. David Porter (with his first maximum of the Season) and Mick Richardson were both undefeated. Porter completed an excellent trio of wins with a 13-11, 6-11, 12-10, 5-11, 11-9 victory over Trevor Carter having also defeated Gareth Joice (12-10, 5-11, 11-7, 11-9) and Charles Yeung (11-5, 11-8 13-11).  Writtle C powered to a 9-1 win over Danbury F. Gary Ward (95 %) who has been outstanding this Season again won his three singles whilst John Webber banked three wins and John Parodi won twice. Ken Sheard was the sole Danbury F winner on this occasion.

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Sanjay Saptarshi vs Saul Chivers (Division 2 : Danbury G vs Chelmsford D)

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The Gatheral Derby - Gordon vs David (Division 2 : Danbury G vs Danbury F)

Galleywood B have reclaimed pole position in division three. Maldon A were without their three leading players against Chelmsford E and well beaten 9-1. Rev Matthews (three wins), Adi Kamma (three wins) and Dave Parker (two wins) ran amok. When Adi Kamma beat Brian Riedling 11-7, 10-12, 14-12, 8-11, 14-12 in the third game Maldon might well have had some inkling that it wasn’t going to be their night. Galleywood B meanwhile beat Danbury H 9-1. Mark Glenister and John Holland were both unbeaten whilst Colin Blore chipped in with two wins. Maldon A returned to winning ways by beating Danbury H 8-2. Hamish Innes won his three singles and this included a 11-6, 11-9, 11-1 win over Dave Powell, the best of the Danbury players. Dawn Baldry rounded off a strong Maldon performance by beating Dave Hancox 5-11, 11-7, 11-5, 5-11, 11-8. Hatfield Peverel B scored their second win of the Season - a 6-4 success against OCA D. Paul Mulley and Roger Slade both picked up three singles wins. Paul Mulley beat Connor Payne (11-8, 7-11, 11-4, 12-14, 11-8) in the closest game of the evening. Danbury J also won 6-4. Dave Marsh led them to a victory against Chelmsford F. Marsh was on top form, powering his way past Andy Swales (11-9, 11-1, 11-5), Alex Tkachuk (11-3, 11-7, 11-5) and Luke Richardson (11-5, 11-7, 11-8).

Leaders Chelmsford H made it eight wins out of eight in division four. The records of Harry Chivers (100 %) and Joachin Mapes (92 %) speak for themselves and they were both undefeated in their 7-3 win over Galleywood C. Annabel Sweeney was desperately unlucky not to register a win, losing 10-12, 7-11, 13-11, 11-9, 10-12 to Ron Salton and 5-11, 8-11, 13-11, 9-11, 10-12 to Will Goodchild. Danbury L are Chelmsford H’s only credible challengers and they overpowered Highwood B 10-0. Mervyn Perriman, Denis Balic and Denis Crapnel gave nothing away. Danbury L were equally dominant against Highwood A and they again won 10-0. Mervyn Perriman had to work hard against Melanie Bonnett but he came through in five ends (11-8, 11-5, 8-11, 8-11, 11-6). OCA E scored their fourth win of the Season, beating Highwood B 8-2. Farooq Ahmed won his three singles for Old Chelmsfordians and he completed his hat-trick with a 11-7, 8-11, 11-4, 11-7 win over Roger Patient who had won twice for Highwood.

Danbury N scored their first win of the season in division five with an excellent 8-2 victory against Maldon C. Ron Tam and Steve Martin were both undefeated. Further up the table Hatfield Peverel E also won 8-2. Bob Hillis and Deb Ginn both stayed unbeaten. Deb Ginn beat John Wickins 7-11, 11-7, 11-8, 11-4 to secure her “full-house”. Hatfield Peverel C jumped above Hatfield Peverel D into second place, by beating them 7-3. Richard Drozd and Andy Simmonds both bagged hat-tricks. In a closely fought division Buttsbury and Hatfield Peverel C both have 50 points, followed by Hatfield Peverel D on 49 points and Hatfield Peverel E on 47 points. Everything to play for.

There was a first win for Chelmsford Tigers and a first defeat for the Champions Buttsbury Bees in division 1A of the Junior League. Cleon Fernandes was the “catalyst” on this occasion. He marked his debut for this team with two wins. He toppled Jacob Lawrence (9-11, 16-14, 12-10, 11-6) and Ben Brown (9-11, 11-13, 11-4, 12-10, 11-6). Two very hard fought wins. Buttsbury Bees returned to winning ways against Buttsbury Bats. Their leading player – Jacob Lawrence won twice as they ran out 3-2 winners. Lawrence beat George Standish (11-9, 11-8, 11-3) and George Hagland (11-4, 10-12, 11-9, 11-7). Chelmsford Panthers ran out 4-1 winners against Buttsbury Bats. Richard Carter won twice, although he had to pull out all the stops to get the better of George Hagland (11-9,7-11, 6-11, 11-5, 11-9). Second placed Chelmsford Leopards concluded their programme by beating Chelmsford Panthers 4-1. Cleon and Dion Fernandes took all four singles but they missed out in the doubles against Felix Reeve and Arnav Kumar (11-7, 9-11, 6-11, 11-6, 6-11).

Steve Kerns Press & Publicity Officer Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

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Press Report Issued on 5 December 2021


Mulley brothers win all six singles for OCA A  

OCA A took a giant stride away from the relegation zone in division one of the Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League by beating Chelmsford C 8-2, their first win of the Season.  New signing Matthew Mulley and his equally hard-hitting brother Mark won their six singles and Robert Burton contributed a useful 8-11, 11-6, 8-11, 11-8, 11-8 win over Mark Allaway. Matthew Mulley was clearly on good form beating Simon Jarvis, Cristian Bernardo and Mark Allaway all 3-0. They now have a healthy 32 points. Writtle A moved into second place by beating Danbury A 6-4. Duncan Taylor was undefeated and Lee McHugh won twice, although he missed out 5-11, 11-9, 6-11, 16-18 to Bruce Kettle.  Chelmsford A with 55 points out of a possible 70 are heavy favourites to capture the title. James Liddiard (15 wins out of 15) and Gary Young (16 wins out of 18) led the way as they defeated Danbury B 9-1. Sam Lowman was on target for Danbury with a fine 12-10, 5-11, 11-6, 11-9 win over Daniel Young.       

Chelmsford D are the new leaders in division two. Saul Chivers (three wins), Sudheep Kamma (two wins) and Vineeth Kamma (three wins) powered to a 9-1 victory over Writtle B. Peter Layzel beat Sudheep Kamma 2-11, 15-13, 7-11, 11-9, 11-9 whilst Saul Chivers had to dig deep to get the better  of Trevor Collin 8-11, 8-11, 11-3, 11-3, 11-8. Hatfield Peverel A ran out 7-3 winners against a two- man Danbury D. Danbury’s Chris Buer impressed again, beating Martin Archie (11-9, 11-6, 11-8), Gareth Davies (11-5, 7-11, 11-8, 11-8) and Neil Freeman (10-12, 11-4, 14-16, 11-4, 11-5). The match between Danbury E and Writtle C was a hard-fought affair which finished tied at 5-5. The inform Gary Ward (17 wins out of 18) was again undefeated and he fought back from 2-0 down to get the better of Neil Want 5-11, 5-11, 11-7, 11-6, 11-7.  

Second placed Galleywood B were convincing 10-0 winners over Chelmsford F in division three. The very strong team of James Hicks, Gary Copsey and John Holland carried all before them. However, they will lose the services of James Hicks who is now tied to the Galleywood A team in division one.  Writtle D scored their first win of the Season - an impressive 8-2 victory over Hatfield Peverel B. Dave Carter led the way with three victories which included a fine 14-12, 11-8, 11-4 win over Paul Mulley.  It was “honours even” between Danbury J and Danbury K. Dave Marsh and David Meah both won twice for Danbury J whilst Nicky Reece Ford and Peter Hance both bagged two wins for Danbury K. Dave Marsh prevailed against Nicky Reece Ford, just, 5-11, 13-11, 11-4, 8-11, 11-9. OCA D did well to beat Chelmsford E 7-3. Richard Upson excelled. He defeated Adi Kamma (11-4, 8-11,11-7, 6-11, 11-3), Chris Young (11-7, 11-4, 12-10) and Joachin Mapes (11-6, 11-4, 11-9).

Division four produced three sets of clear-cut winners. Leaders Chelmsford H (Joachin Mapes, Nyree Marsh and Harry Chivers) powered their way past Maldon B 10-0. Nyree Marsh fought back from 2-0 down to get the better of Shirley Carroll 6-11, 4-11, 11-6, 11-8, 11-9. Writtle E were equally dominant. Ian Hockley, Dave Moles and Neil Thompson defeated OCA E 10-0. There were two close finishes and David Newman was on the wrong end of both of them. Neil Thompson beat Newman 11-8, 9-11, 4-11, 11-9, 12-10 whilst Ian Hockley defeated the unfortunate David Newman 11-3, 11-6, 9-11, 11-13, 13-11. Chelmsford G (Adam Hill, Dusan Doszkoty and Vasile Barbulet) were 9-1 winners against Highwood A. Melanie Bonnett came through in five hard-fought ends against Adam Hill (12-10, 13-15, 8-11, 11-8, 11-8).  

In contrast to division four division five produced four hard-fought matches. Buttsbury are top but they could only draw with Chelmsford J. Frances Hutt remained unbeaten and this included an odd looking 11-8, 1-11, 7-11, 12-10, 11-6 victory over Jacqui Smith. Hatfield Peverel E did well to beat Danbury M 7-3. Bob Hillis was unbeaten whilst Deb Ginn and Gary Simmons both won twice. Ken Wilding traded games with Deb Ginn before he claimed victory 11-8, 8-11, 3-11, 11-7, 11-9. Hatfield Peverel C led by a Mick Carter “full-house” beat Maldon C 6-4. Kym Eames won twice for Maldon but Mick Carter proved a step too far. Carter won this one 11-3, 11-9, 11-7.  Danbury N without a win to date did well to push OCA F before succumbing 6-4. Stuart Wintle was undefeated for the Old Boys whilst Bob Francis won twice. This included a quite bizarre looking 12-10, 16-14, 3-11, 2-11, 12-10 victory against Graham Naggs.    

Buttsbury Bees made it seven wins out of seven in division 1A of the Junior League. Ben Brown and Jamie Elliott over powered Chelmsford Tigers 5-0. Chelmsford Pumas (Oliver Cheung and Todd Martin) ran out 4-1 winners against Chelmsford Panthers, and although they won all four singles they lost the doubles 7-11, 11-9, 9-11, 6-11 to Harrison Hill and Richard Carter. Chelmsford Leopards are second and they beat Chelmsford Pumas 4-1. Cleon Fernandes was unbeaten.

Chelmsford Antelopes demonstrated just how far ahead of the opposition they are indivision 1C. They beat second-placed Chelmsford Cougars 5-0. Richard Carter and Arnav Kumar gave nothing away although Carter was pushed by Joshua Lewis before he won 11-7, 11-13, 11-8, 12-10. Buttsbury Bulldogs moved into third place with their 5-0 win over Chelmsford Eagles. Callum Walker and Adhuna Das carried all before them.   

League Cup Secretary - Matthew Brown has reported from the first round of Handicap Knock Out Cup matches. “The Cup competitions are underway.  With 22 teams entered, representing seven Clubs, there were six first round matches. As always, determining handicaps is a tricky business, not least because juniors in particular improve very quickly, and mixed in with closely fought matches were some very one-sided games”.

“The tightest match of the round was Chelmsford H versus Writtle E, where the juniors of Chelmsford H – Harry and Saul Chivers plus Joachin Mapes, just got the better of Writtle E’s established trio of Dave Moles, Ian Hockley and Malcolm Storey. Five of the nine games went to a deciding set but it was Harry’s rather more straightforward 21-15, 21-14 win over Malcolm that decided the tie in Chelmsford’s favour”.

“Writtle were also on the wrong end of the results card when their B team of Ryan Pitt, Rod Maclennan and Phil Smith lost 6-3 to Danbury G’s trio of Sanjay Saptarshi, Luca Bailey and Eamonn Hall. Unfortunately for Writtle their captain, Rod, had to retire at match point in his first game (all the other five players insisted!). Despite this set back Writtle did their best to give the Danbury team a run for their money, with Phil winning his three matches but Ryan was unable to support him, most notably losing 15-21, 21-17, 16-21 to Luca”.

“Chelmsford E, led by Dave Parker and with Adi Kamma and Chris Young alongside him, ran out 5-3 winners over Danbury H’s Richard Allen, Jean Chasmer and Dave Goody. There were two deciding set wins for Jean over Adi (17-21, 21-14, 18-21) and Chris (21-19, 25-27, 14-21) but two wins from each of Adi and Chris plus Dave Parker’s 21-19, 24-22 win over Dave Goody was enough to see the Chelmsford team through”.

“The youngsters of Buttsbury B were run away 8-1 winners over the division one team of Chelmsford C. A last gasp 18-21, 21-18, 18-21 win for Vasile Barbulet over Jamie Elliott was Chelmsford’s sole return for a night trying to play “catch up”. Oscar Hutt, Jacob Lawrence and Jamie Elliott used their handicaps to their best advantage to easily hold off Vasile, Mark Allaway and Simon Jarvis”.

“Another top division team playing in the handicap cup were the all-star Chelmsford A team of James Liddiard, Daniel Young and Gary Young. They found themselves playing the division five side of Danbury N (Graham Naggs, David Smith and Steve Martin). The results speak for themselves, the handicappers misjudged Danbury’s David Smith, who is more often seen at Melbourne’s Bat & Chat sessions and who won his three matches with ease (only once allowing the opposition to get back to zero). The two matches that Chelmsford did win were, as you would expect, by the tightest of margins, with Gary Young defeating Steve Martin 6-21, 21-19, 21-19 and James Liddiard getting the better of Graham Naggs 11-21, 22-20, 22-20”.

“The last of the first-round matches involved a third division one team - Danbury B’s Dan Anderson, Eric Green and Sam Lowman who got the better of Buttsbury A’s Joseph Hutt, Gary Carr and Frances Hutt. The sole junior for Buttsbury - Joseph Hutt, did his job with two straight sets wins over Eric and Dan but with mum Frances unable to win any of her three games and Gary Carr losing 17-21 in the deciding game to Eric Green, it was the Danbury team who prevailed 5-3”.

Steve Kerns Press & Publicity Officer Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

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Press Report Issued on 28 November 2021

Chris Buer on excellent form for Danbury D  

Danbury D are very much in contention in the low scoring division two of the Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League and they are joint top of the table with 42 points out of a possible 70. An unbeaten Chris Buer led them to a 7-3 victory against OCA B with three good victories. He beat Gareth Joice (8-11, 12-10, 11-4, 11-5), Trevor Carter (10-12, 11-9. 11-9, 8-11, 11-4) and Kevin Worthington (11-6, 12-10, 11-7).  With a record of 76 % Chris Buer is proving to be a very reliable no. one player for this side. Tony Forster was another player on top form this week and his trio of wins enabled Danbury E to beat Hatfield Peverel A 6-4. Forster powered his way to wins over Neil Freeman (11-7, 11-6, 11-5), Phil Shippen (11-4, 11-2, 11-7) and Gareth Davies (11-9, 11-4, 10-12, 11-4).

In division one a two man OCA A did well to draw with the higher placed Danbury A. Mark Mulley led the way with a trio of wins. He beat Bruce Kettle (7-11, 11-8, 6-11, 11-6, 11-4), Dave Richardson (9-11, 11-6, 11-6, 11-6) and Babul McLeod (11-8, 11-6, 11-7).  Dave Richardson prevailed against Terry Dowsett (11-3, 5-11, 14-12, 12-10).

Danbury J moved into third place in division three by beating Hatfield Peverel B 8-2. Dave Marsh led the way with three victories. The doubles provided the closest game of the night and John Robinson and Dave Marsh pipped Paul Mulley and Michael Lucey 15-13, 6-11, 9-11, 11-2, 13-11.

In division four Highwood B emerged as 6-4 winners against Highwood A. Roger Patient won his three singles for the B side whilst Melanie Bonnett picked up two victories for the A side. Martin Goddard defeated Keith Pallett 11-6, 11-4, 6-11, 6-11, 13-11 in the closest game of the night.

Buttsbury scored their fifth win of the Season in division five by beating Danbury M 7-3. Jamie Elliot and Frances Hutt were both undefeated. It is also interesting to note that this team has used no fewer than 10 players to date this Season. David Bishop was undefeated as OCA F beat the higher placed Hatfield Peverel C 7-3. Bishop was extended by Andy Simmonds but he prevailed 11-8, 15-13, 6-11, 7-11, 11-5.

Chelmsford Pumas ran out 4-1 winners against Buttsbury Bats in division 1A of the Junior League. Oliver Cheung was undefeated and he beat George Standish (9-11, 11-8, 11-9, 11-2) and George Hagland (13-11, 8-11, 11-6, 11-9). Chelmsford Leopards led by Cleon Fernandes beat Chelmsford Tigers 3-2. Cleon Fernandes beat Soumil Jain (11-6, 11-5, 11-8) and Aarav Mehta (8-11, 11-2, 11-5, 11-3).

Chelmsford Antelopes, runaway leaders of division 1C were given their toughest examination yet by Writtle Racoons, despite winning 4-1. Richard Carter won both of his singles but Blake Webster deprived Arnav Kumar of his unbeaten record winning 9-11, 8-11, 11-9, 14-12, 11-8. Carter and Kumar were also stretched in the doubles, all the way, against Blake Webster and Oliver Smith-French before they emerged as 11-7, 11-13, 18-16, 6-11, 12-10 winners.   Writtle Racoons, represented by Blake Webster and Mimi Pummell this time, ran out 5-0 winners against Buttsbury Bulldogs. Mimi Pummell beat Adhuna Das 11-8, 8-11, 11-1, 9-11, 11-6 in a widely fluctuating opening game.

Chelmsford Table Tennis Club Juniors had a very successful day on Saturday in the National Junior League at the Ellenborough Club in Enfield and their A team of Josh Bickles, Saul Chivers and Harry Chivers followed up on their success in the previous round of matches (where they were promoted)  by topping the division one table this time. The teams they beat from Milton Keynes, Ellenborough and Fusion are from some of the largest and most established Clubs in the country. Josh Bickles (9/9 wins), Saul Chivers (8/9 wins) and Harry Chivers (4/9 wins) all played a part in this success. The B team also came tantalisingly close to repeating this feat and they just missed out to Ellenborough B on count-back. Sudheep Kamma (6/9 wins), Vineeth Kamma (6/9 wins) and Cleon Fernandes (5/9 wins) all excelled as well.  

Steve Kerns Press & Publicity Officer Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

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Press Report Issued on 21 November 2021

Hamish Innes maximum gives Maldon A the edge against Galleywood B  

Division three doesn’t often make the headlines in the Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League but the most eye-catching performance went to Maldon A this week. They hammered leaders Galleywood A 9-1 to take over at the top of the table. John Holland beat Dawn Baldry in the opening game but thereafter it was Maldon calling the shots as Lloyd Bennett - Smith and Hamish Innes remained undefeated. Hamish Innes excelled, securing three wins in closely fought games. Hamish beat Mark Glenister (11-9, 11-9, 11-9), John Holland (1-11, 11-9, 11-9, 11-9) and Bryn Thomas (11-3, 12-10, 11-6). Lloyd Bennett-Smith sealed a superb Maldon victory by beating John Holland (9-11, 11-6, 11-8, 11-8) in the last game of the evening. Maldon A also beat third placed Chelmsford F 8-2. Dawn Baldry scored a hat-trick this time, beating Nikita Tkachuk (7-11, 11-5, 11-8, 11-6), Alex Tkachuk (11-13, 11-7, 11-6, 11-7) and Luke Richardson (11-3, 15-17, 11-2, 11-5). Alex Tkachuk excelled for the losers, defeating Hamish Innes (12-10, 7-11, 11-5, 6-11, 11-9). Chelmsford F in turn drew 5-5 against Danbury K. New comer Sam Phillips was unbeaten for Danbury and he was well supported by Nicky Reece-Ford who won twice. Without Sam Phillips Danbury K did not fare so well and they lost 8-2 to Hatfield Peverel B - Peverel’s first win of the Season. Paul Mulley led the way with three wins whilst Michael Lucey and Phil Shippen both won twice. Phil Shippen fought back from 2-0 down to beat Mo Hardy 5-11, 9-11, 11-9, 11-2, 11-8. It was honours even between Chelmsford E and Writtle D as Robert Garson won his three singles for Writtle D.  OCA D did well to beat the higher placed Danbury H 7-3. Richard Baxter and Richard Upson both won their three singles.

Chelmsford A reasserted themselves as the team to beat in division one. Daniel Young, James Liddiard and Gary Young hammered Galleywood A 10-0, their third maximum points win of the Season. It’s easy to see why they’re top. James Hicks put up a terrific fight against Daniel Young before succumbing 11-8, 6-11, 18-16, 3-11, 10-12. Danbury B shared the points with Writtle A. Ace defender Duncan Taylor won his three singles for Writtle whilst Sam Lowman and Daniel Piggott both won twice for Danbury. Daniel Piggott pipped Lee McHugh 11-7, 11-8, 11-13, 8-11, 14-12 whilst Sam Lowman defeated Lee McHugh 11-9, 8-11, 11-9, 11-9. A strong Danbury C team beat Chelmsford C 8-2. Keith Adams, in his first game of the Season led the way with three wins. Chelmsford’s Simon Jarvis did well to beat Trevor Lloyd 3-11, 11-8, 5-11, 11-4, 11-6. Chelmsford C did better against Chelmsford B, drawing 5-5. No one player stayed undefeated and no one went home empty handed either. Charlie Craig beat Simon Jarvis 7-11, 8-11, 11-8, 11-7, 11-4 and Rob Shrimpton 11-9, 11-9, 11-7 but he missed out against Mark Allaway 8-11, 11-7, 5-11, 4-11. A very good win for Mark.

Chelmsford D and Danbury G, the top two teams in division two, both won this week. Chelmsford D disposed of OCA C 7-3. Saul Chivers was undefeated whilst Mick Richardson showed up well for the Old Chelmsfordians side beating Sudheep Kamma 11-5, 12-10, 0-11, 10-12, 11-8 and Vineeth Kamma 11-9, 12-10, 11-6.   Danbury G went one better; they beat Writtle C 8-2. Sanjay Saptarshi led the way with a hat-trick whilst David Gatheral won twice. David Gatheral certainly got his “money’s-worth” in this match. He beat John Webber 11-8, 11-9, 9-11, 10-12, 14-12 and John Gagg 12-14, 6-11, 11-5, 12-10, 11-8 but he missed out to John Parodi 11-8, 7-11, 11-7, 8-11, 9-11. Danbury G also drew 5-5 against Writtle B. Danbury’s Sanjay Saptarshi and David Gatheral and Writtle’s Trevor Collin and Paul Sturton all won twice. David Gatheral beat Trevor Collin 6-11, 8-11, 13-11, 11-5, 14-12 in the pick of the night’s action.  It was also “honours even” between Writtle B and Danbury F. Trevor Collin was undefeated for Writtle B this time. Rod Maclennan beat Ken Sheard 9-11, 11-5, 11-6, 11-13, 13-11 in the closest game of the evening. Danbury F ran out narrow 6-4 winners against OCA C. Good going as Mick Richardson was unbeaten for the Old Chelmsfordians team.  Ken Sheard prevailed against David Porter, just, 11-8, 11-13, 11-8, 7-11, 13-11.

Leaders Chelmsford H made it six wins out of six in division four, by beating OCA E 7-3. Harry Chivers and Joachin Mapes were both undefeated with Chivers making it a superb 18 wins out of 18. Farooq Ahmed gave Joachin Mapes all kinds of problems before he missed out 12-10, 6-11, 9-11, 11-6, 10-12. Chelmsford G drew 5-5 with Galleywood C. Colin Blore was undefeated for Galleywood whilst Steve Peacock beat Jason Clark 9-11, 15-13, 12-10, 5-11, 11-8 in the closest game of the night. Chelmsford G also beat Highwood B 8-2. Newcomer Vasile Barbulet secured hist first “full house” of the Season and he beat Francis Whitbread 12-14, 11-5, 11-6, 11-2 in the last game of the night. Danbury L stay second and they beat Writtle C 8-2. Denis Crapnell retained his 100 % record and he beat Ian Hockley 11-9, 11-3, 11-7, Dave Moles 11-7, 9-11, 10-12, 11-4, 11-1 and Neil Thompson 12-10, 11-9, 8-11, 5-11, 11-5.

Hatfield Peverel D secured two big wins in division five and they top the table with 46 points although Buttsbury (35 points) have played two games less. They beat Maldon C 9-1 after Roger Slade and Phil West had carried all before them and they defeated OCA F 8-2 with Roger Slade again remaining undefeated. Stuart Wintle picked up two wins for the OCA side and this included a hard fought 11-5, 9-11, 7-11, 11-6, 11-9 victory against Pete Mortensen. Chelmsford J ran out 7-3 winners against Danbury N. Peter Davenport won his three singles and he completed an excellent evening’s work by beating Ron Tam 11-5, 11-7, 11-6.

It has proved to be a very productive week for Buttsbury Bees who won three times in division 1A of the Junior League. They beat Buttsbury Bats 3-2 with Jamie Elliott ‘s two wins giving them the edge. Elliott beat George Hagland 11-8, 11-8, 11-7 and George Standish 2-11, 11-9, 11-8, 11-9. Jamie Elliott has only lost once in eight games. With Jamie Elliott joined by Jacob Lawrence they also beat Chelmsford Leopards 5-0 and with Jacob Lawrence paired up with Ben Brown they defeated Chelmsford Panthers 5-0. Panthers were represented by Arnav Kumar and Samaksh Sirohi who have been playing for Chelmsford Antelopes in division 1C. Samaksh pushed Jacob Lawrence really hard before succumbing 12-10, 8-11, 8-11, 14-16. Chelmsford Pumas beat Chelmsford Tigers 4-1. Oliver Cheung won twice for the Pumas beating Aarav Mehta 11-4, 11-5, 8-11, 11-8 and Soumil Jain 11-7, 11-7, 11-4. Chelmsford Panthers also beat Chelmsford Tigers 3-2. Aarav Mehta was unbeaten for the Tigers and he saw off Harrison Hill 6-11, 13-11, 11-6, 11-6 and Richard Carter 11-8, 14-12, 14-12. Chelmsford Leopards were indebted to Cleon Fernandes in their 3-2 win over Buttsbury Bats. Cleon won twice, beating George Standish 6-11, 11-1, 11-2, 11-4 and George Hagland 11-7, 11-4, 11-5.

Writtle Rattlesnakes top the table in division 1B. Archie Pummel won twice as they beat Chelmsford Tigers 4-1. Emilie Guilloux went down fighting, just succumbing 12-10, 6-11, 13-11, 8-11, 10-12.

Chelmsford Cougars are second in division 1C and Felix Reeve and Dan Lewis were both undefeated as they beat Chelmsford Eagles 5-0. Dan Lewis beat Harel Choo 7-11, 12-10, 11-4, 11-13, 11-8 in the pick of the night’s action.   

Steve Kerns Press & Publicity Officer Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

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Press Report Issued on 11 November 2021

Lee McHugh scores hat-trick as Writtle A stun leaders Chelmsford A

First division leaders Chelmsford A suffered their first defeat in the Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League this week, against Writtle A by a heavy 8-2 margin,  in what must be one of the shocks of the Season. Writtle’s Lee McHugh scored a magnificent hat-trick beating Kim Shead (8-11, 11-4, 11-6, 11-6), Gary Young (11-9, 6-11, 9-11, 11-7, 11-5), and Daniel Young (14-12, 11-8, 4-11, 11-9). Duncan Taylor and newcomer Liam Harris both won twice in what was clearly a great night for Writtle. Liam Harris won two cliff-hangers; 9-11, 8-11, 11-6, 15-13, 11-9 against Daniel Young and 11-8, 11-5, 7-11, 8-11, 16-14 against Kim Shead. Ian Wall made his debut for Danbury A against Danbury C and his three wins were instrumental in enabling Danbury A to share the points. Ian Whiteside showed up well for Danbury C with wins over Dave Richardson (11-8, 7-11, 11-8, 11-5) and Neil Want (7-11, 11-6, 11-6, 11-6). Danbury B did well to beat OCA A 6-4, good going as Mark Mulley was undefeated for the Old Chelmsfordians team.   Sam Lowman and Matthew Stringer balanced the books by both winning twice. This result means Danbury B have climbed into second place with 32 points.  

First played second in division two and in such a tight division it was fitting that it finished tied at 5-5. Chelmsford D’s rapidly improving Saul Chivers, ranked 265 on the League ranking list made a mockery of this particular piece of data with three wins whilst Chris Buer and Gus Heath both won twice for Danbury D.  Saul Chivers disposed of Chris Buer 11-6, 11-5, 5-11, 15-13 in his first game. Danbury D who are tied with Chelmsford D on 35 points beat Danbury F 8-2. This time Gus Heath and Steve Buer won their three singles whilst Chris Buer missed out against Tim Pulham 9-11, 12-10, 11-13, 11-8, 10-12. Quite a battle !. The “Martin Archie success story” continues and his three wins helped Hatfield Peverel A beat Writtle C 6-4. Archie powered his way to a 11-7, 11-5, 11-3 win over Gary Ward; Ward’s first defeat of the Season. Team work was the order of the day as Danbury E beat OCA B 6-4. Neil Want, Dick Wyman and Tony Forster all won twice whilst Trevor Carter bagged two wins for the Old Chelmsfordians side. Dick Wyman defeated Gareth Joice by the odd looking scoreline of 9-11, 11-9, 11-6, 16-18, 11-1.

Leaders Galleywood B turned out a strong team of Bryn Thomas, James Hicks and John Holland in division three and they powered their way to a 9-1 win over OCA D. The OCA side had to wait until the last game to register a success, and Richard Baxter made no mistake beating Bryn Thomas 11-9, 11-7, 11-6. Baxter also had fierce battles against James Hicks, succumbing 14-12, 7-11, 7-11, 16-18 and against John Holland, missing out 7-11, 9-11, 11-7, 11-4, 10-12. Danbury J, led by unbeaten performances by Dave Marsh and John Robinson ran out 7-3 winners against Chelmsford E. Robinson fought back from 2-0 down to beat Adi Kamma 6-11, 9-11, 11-8, 13-11, 12-10. Maldon A, who are second made it five wins out of five by beating OCA D 7-3. Dawn Baldry, Hamish Innes and Brian Riedling all picked up two wins for Maldon. Richard Baxter won twice for the Old Chelmsfordians side and this included a 9-11, 4-11, 11-6, 11-9, 13-11 victory against Brian Riedling. It was honours even between Writtle D and Danbury H. Bob Garson was unbeaten for Writtle D whilst Richard Allen and Dave Powell both won twice for the Danbury team. Richard Allen defeated Dave Carter 7-11, 9-11, 11-6, 11-8, 14-12 in a nail-biting last game of the evening.

Galleywood C were the week’s big winners in division four, and they recorded an eye-catching 9-1  win against Maldon B. Colin Blore and Will Goodchild were both undefeated whilst Ron Salton won twice.  Ron Salton edged out Shirley Carroll 8-11. 8-11, 12-10, 11-8, 11-8. Leaders Chelmsford H ran out 7-3 winners over Danbury L. Harry Chivers was undefeated whilst Joachin Mapes picked up two wins. Harry Chivers remains undefeated with a record of 15 wins out of 15. Writtle E beat Highwood A 8-2, courtesy of unbeaten outings for Dave Moles and Ian Hockley. Keith Fitz-John impressed for the losers with a 9-11, 11-7, 9-11, 11-6, 11-9 victory over Malcolm Storey.

Division five produced three clear-cut sets of winners. Hatfield Peverel C beat Chelmsford J 9-1 after Richard Drozd and Mick Carter had stayed undefeated. Mick Carter gave Hatfield Peverel a winning start by beating Peter Davenport 11-9, 6-11, 11-9, 8-11, 11-8 in the opening game. Danbury M also won 9-1. Norman Hayes and Paul Thirkettle were unbeaten against Danbury N. This time it was Norman Hayes who gave Danbury M that important winning start, by beating Graham Naggs 11-7, 7-11, 6-11, 11-6, 11-5.  Buttsbury beat Hatfield Peverel E 8-2. They lead the way and Ray Horton (three wins), Keith Cullen (two wins) and Frances Hutt (two wins) all played a part in their success.

In division 1 A of the Chelmsford Junior League Buttsbury Bees emerged as 3-2 winners over Chelmsford Pumas.  Jamie Elliot and Ben Brown won one each for Buttsbury whilst Ben Chivers won twice for Chelmsford Pumas. He beat Jamie Elliott by a last gasp 11-9, 10-12, 12-10, 9-11, 11-9 margin. No shortage of excitement there. Buttsbury Bats ran out 4-1 winners over Chelmsford Tigers. George Hagland won his two games, and this included a hard fought 8-11, 8-11, 11-6, 12-10, 11-8 success against Harrison Hill.

Buttsbury Badgers top the division 1 B table with 15 points, level on points with Chelmsford Wildcats, but they could only beat Chelmsford Jaguars 3-2. Emilie Guilloux won twice for the Jaguars beating Harry Hutt (11-7, 11-9, 4-11, 11-8) and Oscar Hutt (9-11, 11-9, 11-9, 11-6). Second placed Chelmsford Wildcats missed out against Buttsbury Beavers 3-2. Harry Hutt and Oscar Hutt were representing Buttsbury Beavers this time and Harry Hutt won twice, beating Malachi O’Leary (11-9, 12-14, 11-4, 11-7) and Harrison Hill (11-6, 11-7, 11-5). Writtle Rattlesnakes who have games in hand are very much in contention and they beat Buttsbury Badgers 4-1. Elliot Gardiner won twice, beating Harry Hutt (11-5, 12-10, 2-11, 11-7) and Oscar Hutt (11-7, 11-1,11-5).     

There is no stopping Chelmsford Antelopes in division 1C. Their record of 29 points out of 30 tells its own story. Samaksh Sirohi and Arnav Kumar were 5-0 winners against Chelmsford Eagles. Buttsbury Bulldogs are second, 14 points adrift. Adhuna Das was undefeated as they beat Chelmsford Falcons 4-1. Harel Choo beat Callum Webster (7-11, 11-3, 11-7, 11-9) to register for Chelmsford Falcons. Chelmsford Cougars complete this week’s results with a 4-1 win against Writtle Racoons. Harrison Hill won twice, beating Oliver Smith-French (11-13, 11-9, 11-4, 11-4) and Blake Webster (11-4, 11-4, 12-10).

Steve Kerns Press & Publicity Officer Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

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Press Report Issued on 7 November 2021

Gary Ward on top form for Writtle C

Division two of the Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League looks like being very well contested. Chelmsford D lead the way with 30 points from five matches and no fewer than six more teams follow within six points. Writtle C were the week’s big winners, and the hard-hitting Gary Ward retained his 100 % singles record (12 wins out of 12) as they beat Writtle B 9-1. John Webber also won his three singles although it was the form of Ward that caught the eye. He beat Dave Moles (11-7, 12-10, 15-13), Trevor Collin (11-7, 11-7, 11-5) and Rod Maclennan (11-9, 11-3, 11-8). Hatfield Peverel A impressed by beating OCA B 6-4, good going as they were a player short. Martin Archie (with an 80 % record to date) led the way with three wins. Bottom team OCA C did very well to draw against Danbury G. Mick Richardson excelled. He beat George Ashley (11-8, 12-10, 11-7), Colin Napper (14-12, 5-11, 11-9, 11-8) and Sanjay Saptarshi (11-7, 6-11, 6-11, 11-8, 11-4), an excellent evening’s work. It was honours even between Danbury E and Chelmsford D. Saul Chivers was undefeated for Chelmsford whilst Chelmsford’s Sudheep Kamma sealed the draw by beating Neil Want 11-7, 4-11, 6-11, 11-4, 11-8 in the last game. Dick Wyman won twice for Danbury and this included a widely fluctuating 7-11, 13-11, 11-1, 6-11, 13-11 victory over Vineeth Kamma.  

Third placed Danbury B were 6-4 winners over second placed Chelmsford B in division one. Sam Lowman’s hard-earned hat-trick gave his side the edge. He beat Victor Chan (12-10, 11-8, 11-9), Shirish Basant Rai (9-11, 7-11, 11-1, 11-8,11-5) and Charlie Craig (11-4, 10-12, 11-7, 4-11, 11-6). This was Charlie Craig’s first defeat. On the subject of Charlie Craig his League ranking of 142, based on the Table Tennis England rankings must surely be due for drastic revision. It’s miles adrift !.  The match between Writtle A and OCA A finished level. Lee McHugh won his three singles for Writtle whilst Mark Mulley and Terry Dowsett both won twice for the Old Chelmsfordians team. Galleywood A could only field two players against Chelmsford C and they slipped to an 8-2 defeat. Simon Jarvis was undefeated for the Chelmsford side whilst Gary Brignall made his mark for Galleywood with fine wins over Wiktor Delimat (11-8, 7-11, 11-8, 11-5) and Robert Shrimpton (9-11, 11-9, 11-4, 11-5).

Galleywood B top the table in division three and they made it five wins out of five by beating a two man Writtle D 9-1. John Holland and Mark Glenister were both undefeated. Glenister had to work hard to defeat Malcolm Henstock 11-5, 11-9, 9-11, 7-11, 12-10. Third-placed Chelmsford F have also won their opening five games and they were 7-3 winners over Hatfield Peverel B. The fast-improving Nikita Tkachuk was undefeated. In a match where no single player stayed unbeaten Danbury K ran out 6-4 winners against Chelmsford E. Danbury’s Nicky Reece Ford and Peter Hance and Chelmsford’s Rev Matthews and Adi Kamma all won twice in a match where five games were decided in the fifth end. For those looking for the unusual the match between Danbury H and Danbury J delivered. There were no fewer than five “Dave’s” taking part. The honours were shared between Danbury H (Dave Goody, Dave Hancox and Dave Powell) and Danbury J (Dave Meah, Dave Marsh and John Robinson). No single player remained unbeaten and no one went home empty handed either. Dave Powell beat Dave Marsh 12-10, 5-11, 6-11, 11-8, 14-12 in the closest game of the night.

Chelmsford H lead the way in division four with 31 points from four matches. Harry Chivers (100 %) and Joachim Mapes (92 %) were both undefeated in their 8-2 win over Highwood A. Maldon B also have 31 points but they have played five matches. Dawn Baldry (12 wins out of12) retained her 100 % singles record as they defeated Chelmsford G 7-3. Bryan Speller played his part by winning twice, and this included a last gasp 5-11, 11-9, 9-11, 11-8, 14-12 win over Vasile Barbulet. Writtle E were also on good form, and they beat Highwood B 9-1. Ian Hockley and Malcolm Storey were both undefeated. Roger Patient was on target for the losers with a 10-12, 11-4, 16-14, 9-11, 13-11 victory over Dave Moles. Farooq Ahmed (92 %) and David Newman (83 %) were both unbeaten as OCA E defeated Galleywood C 6-4. Farooq Ahmed was pushed against Colin Blore but he eventually prevailed 3-11, 11-5, 9-11, 11-8, 11-7.

Division five is another very evenly contested division. Hatfield Peverel E lead the way with 30 points, but two defeats in their opening five matches is evidence that there is everything to play for. Deb Ginn led the way as they ran out 8-2 winners against Danbury N. Her team-mate Gary Simmons had to pull out all the stops to get the better of Graham Naggs 10-12, 11-6, 10-12, 11-8, 11-9. Hatfield Peverel D are in second place with 29 points. They beat Chelmsford J 9-1. Roger Slade and Kath Little were both undefeated. Paul Bullock made his mark for the losers with a 11-9, 11-9, 8-11, 8-11, 12-10 victory against Phil West. No single player remained unbeaten in the clash between Hatfield Peverel C and Danbury M. The match finished tied at 5-5 after Hatfield Peverel’s Mick Carter and Andy Simmonds and Danbury’s Norman Hayes and Paul Thirkettle had all won twice.  Mick Carter had to pull out all the stops to get the better of Paul Thirkettle 9-11, 6-11, 11-6, 11-9,11-9. OCA F led by an undefeated Stuart Wintle beat Maldon C 6-4. Wintle’s hat-trick included a 11-9, 11-9, 11-9 win over Andrea Alleyne, Andrea’s first loss this Season.

Chelmsford Leopards won twice in division 1A of the Junior League. They lead the way with 17 points from five matches. Cleon Fernandes won twice against Chelmsford Pumas to give them the edge with wins over Alesha Ellis Austin (11-8, 11-9, 11-5) and Todd Martin (4-11, 11-7, 11-13, 11-9, 11-7). Chelmsford Leopards also beat Chelmsford Panthers 4-1. Cleon Fernandes was again undefeated whilst sister Dion was involved in two very hard fought five enders. Dion Fernandes beat Keen Wong Anan 11-2, 3-11, 11-8, 8-11, 13-11 but missed out against Emilie Guilloux 12-10, 8-11, 12-14, 11-3, 8-11.

Buttsbury Badgers moved up to second in division 1B. Harry Hutt and Oscar Hutt beat Buttsbury Beavers 5-0. Samuel Quant showed up well for Buttsbury Beavers pushing Oscar Hutt (11-6, 11-13, 12-10, 11-8) and Harry Hutt (11-9, 8-11, 11-7, 11-7) in his two games.  They also lost 3-2 to Writtle Rattlesnakes. Archie Pummell won twice beating Oscar Hutt (11-9. 10-12, 11-9, 11-9) and Harry Hutt (11-2, 12-14, 11-9, 11-7). Mimi Pummell fought back strongly from 2-0 down to get the better of Oscar Hutt 9-11, 7-11, 11-2, 11-4, 11-4.

All conquering Chelmsford Antelopes (24 points out of 25) dropped their first point in division 1C. Samaksh Sirohi was undefeated in their 4-1 win over second placed Buttsbury Bulldogs although Richard Carter missed out against Adhuna Das 7-11, 11-8, 9-11, 8-11.  Buttsbury Bulldogs beat  Writtle Racoons 3-2, although it was Writtle’s Blake Webster who impressed. He beat Adhuna Das (11-5, 12-10, 9-11, 3-11, 11-7) and Calum Walker (11-8, 11-7, 7-11, 14-12). Buttsbury Bulldogs picked up another 3-2 win by beating Chelmsford Eagles. Calum Walker won twice defeating Atharv Gupta (13-11, 11-4, 13-11) and Freya Hart (10-12, 1-19, 11-4, 11-8). The doubles provided a cliff-hanger finish with Atharv Gupta / Freya Hart beating Tommy Hudd / Calum Walker 11-5, 6-11, 6-11, 11-5, 18-16. Writtle Racoons led by a Blake Webster double were 3-2 winners against Chelmsford Eagles. Freya Hart and Atharv Gupta both beat Kush Goel. Chelmsford Cougars complete this week’s action with a 5-0 win over Chelmsford Falcons. Felix Reeve and Francesca Hart were both undefeated.

Steve Kerns Press & Publicity Officer Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

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Press Report Issued on 31 October 2021

Matthew Mulley undefeated on Chelmsford debut

Chelmsford A are setting a strong pace in division one of the Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League. Gary Young, another new signing Matthew Mulley and James Liddiard ran out 10-0 winners against OCs A. They have 34 points out of a possible 40. Six games were decided in the fourth end but Chelmsford won all of them. Terry Dowsett pushed Gary Young hard before succumbing 5-11, 9-11, 11-7, 10-12.  Gary Young and James Liddiard have both won nine singles out of nine. Danbury C are improving. The signing of Trevor Lloyd has made a big difference and he won his three singles against Danbury B. Ian Whiteside prevailed, against Dan Anderson 14-12, 11-9, 10-12, 6-11, 12-10 in the closest game of the evening whilst Neil Want earned Danbury B a share of the points by beating David Gatheral 14-12, 11-8, 5-11,7-11, 11-7 in the last game of the night.

Neil Want was in action again in division two and his hat-trick enabled Danbury E to draw with Danbury F. Alan Scammell won two five enders for Danbury F beating Sam Phillips 11-7, 7-11, 11-7, 8-11, 11-7 and Dick Wyman 7-11, 11-7, 11-9, 8-11, 11-6.

Danbury K did well to beat Danbury H 8-2 in division three as only one point separates the two teams. Peter Hance was undefeated whilst Mo Hardy won twice which included a last gasp 11-8, 10-12, 11-9, 9-11, 13-11 success against Richard Allen.

In division four Maldon B suffered their first defeat of the Season, a 7-3 reversal to OCs E. Farooq Ahmed dominated proceedings, powering to three wins : 11-9, 16-14, 11-3 against Bryan Speller, 11-2,11-4, 8-11, 11-1 against Andrea Alleyne and 11-7, 11-6, 11-4 against Shirley Carroll.

Buttsbury top the table in division five and Jamie Elliott, Jacob Lawrence and Khalid Mohammed powered to a 10-0 win over Danbury N. Jamie Elliott opened proceedings with a 11-8, 11-8, 8-11, 14-12 victory against Ron Tam.

Buttsbury Bats ran out 4-1 winners against Chelmsford Panthers in division 1A of the Junior League. Jacob Lawrence was undefeated whilst Keen Wong Anan was on target for the losers. He beat George Standish 11-13, 6-11, 11-8, 11-9, 11-2.

Chelmsford Wildcats lead the way in division 1B and they emerged as 4-1 winners against Chelmsford Jaguars. Samaksh Sirohi and Prayak Gupta won all four singles although Samaksh Sirohi had to dig deep to see off Emilie Guilloux 8-11, 11-6, 6-11, 11-8, 11-7. The Wildcats could only field one player against Writtle Rattlesnakes and they lost 4-1. Writtle’s Archie Pummell beat Malachi O’Leary 11-9, 11-1, 11-9. Writtle Rattlesnakes also beat Buttsbury Beavers 3-2. Archie Pummell was undefeated whilst Harry Hutt beat Mimi Pummell 11-6, 6-11, 11-5, 7-11, 12-10 in the closest game of the match.

Chelmsford Antelopes made it 20 points out of 20 in division 1C. Arnav Kumar and Richard Carter were 5-0 winners against Chelmsford Cougars although Richard Carter had to dig deep to get the better of Daniel Lewis 18-16, 9-11, 11-6, 8-11, 11-8. Quite a battle. Writtle Racoons, with Blake Webster undefeated beat Chelmsford Falcons 3-2.  Kehsaw Barrie was on target for the losers with a 12-10, 8-11, 9-11, 1-18, 11-6 victory against Kush Goel.

Steve Kerns Press & Publicity Officer Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

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Press Report Issued on 24 October 2021

Saul Chivers hat-trick fires Chelmsford D to 8-2 win

A mere three point covers the top five teams in the ever-competitive division two of the Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League. After four rounds of matches Chelmsford D top the table with 25 points, courtesy of their impressive 8-2 win over Hatfield Peverel A.  Saul Chivers led the way with a hat-trick and brothers Sudheep and Vineth Kamma both won twice. Saul Chivers beat Martin Archie, the best of the Hatfield Peverel players 11-8, 9-11, 8-11, 11-5, 11-5. Writtle B were 6-4 winners over OCs C, good going as Mick Richardson was undefeated for the Old Chelmsfordians side. Richardson completed his hat-trick with an excellent 4-11, 14-12, 6-11, 12-10, 11-6 victory over Paul Sturton. OCs B led by an undefeated Gareth Joice ran out 7-3 winners against Writtle C. Joice defeated John Webber 11-13, 11-3, 11-9, 8-11, 11-7 to complete his trio of wins. Danbury G are second with 24 points and Sanjay Saptarshi was undefeated in their 6-4 win over Danbury D. Saptarshi played well to beat Chris Buer 12-10, 5-11, 11-9, 11-7.

Chelmsford B made it three wins out of four in division one having entered the Season with relatively modest expectations. They moved into top spot by beating Writtle A 8-2 and although Chelmsford A have a game in hand Chelmsford B have already gained the respect of all their rivals. Charlie Craig (with nine wins out of nine) was again undefeated and this included a fine 9-11, 11-5, 11-4, 11-8 success over Lee McHugh.  Danbury A were 7-3 winners against a two player Galleywood A team. Bruce Kettle won two hard fought five enders. He beat Gary Brignall 11-4, 7-11, 11-6, 6-11, 11-8 and James Hicks 3-11, 9-11, 11-9, 11-2, 11-7.

Maldon A moved into second place in division three after beating Writtle D 7-3. Dawn Baldry remained unbeaten and this included a last gasp 11-7, 11-13, 11-2, 5-11, 13-11 victory over Dave Carter. Maldon A also beat Danbury J 7-3. New signing Lloyd Bennett-Smith won his three singles although he was stretched by both Denis Crapnell (who he beat 11-8, 4-11, 7-11, 11-6, 11-8) and by   Dave Marsh (where he won 17-15, 7-11, 11-8, 5-11, 11-8).  Galleywod B stay top, just, and they beat Danbury J 6-4. Gary Copsey (eight wins out of nine) won his three singles for the Galleywood side. Danbury’s Dave Meah secured a fine 12-10, 11-9, 16-18, 11-4 victory over John Holland – Holland’s first defeat of the Season. Chelmsford E, led by Rev Mathews beat Hatfield Peverel B 6-4. Matthews received good support from Pietraszuk Jaroslav who won twice.  Chelmsford F also won 6-4, beating OCs D.  Joachin Mapes led the way with a trio of wins, and this included a hard-fought 11-9, 8-11, 15-13, 7-11, 11-9 win over Tom Barker.

Chelmsford H are going to be hard to beat in division four. Harry Chivers (nine wins out of nine) and Joachin Mapes (eight wins out of nine) were both undefeated in their 9-1 victory over Highwood B. Joachin Mapes beat Roger Patient 11-9, 9-11, 5-11, 11-9, 11-9 in the closest game of the evening. Chelmsford G beat the higher placed Writtle E 7-3. Vasile Barbulet led the way with three wins which included a monumental 11-9, 11-9, 18-20, 9-11, 11-8 victory over League General Secretary Dave Moles.  Galleywood C led by an undefeated Colin Blore ran out 6-4 winners against Highwood A. Blore completed his hat-trick with a 11-6, 11-13, 11-4, 11-7 win over Melanie Bonnett. Danbury L (with three wins out of four) are the early leaders of this division and they beat Galleywood C 9-1. Mervyn Perriman and Denis Crapnell both won their three singles. Galleywood had to wait until the last game to get off the mark, and Colin Blore will probably think it was worth the wait. He beat Denis Balic 9-11, 11-7, 13-11, 7-11, 11-9.

Division five looks like being very closely fought. Hatfield Peverel E lead the way with 22 points after four matches, a far from dominant return of points. They lost this week to their C team., for whom Mick Carter was unbeaten. Carter beat Deb Ginn in five ends; 3-11, 11-5, 3-11, 11-4, 11-6; as widely fluctuating a game as you’re likely to see. Maldon C are second with 21 points. Team work saw them “across the line” against Chelmsford J. Ross Wheeler, Ella Sach and Rob Sach combined to counter Peter Davenport’s three wins. Ross Wheeler fought back from 2-0 down to beat John Wickins 12-14, 9-11, 11-8, 11-4, 11-4.  Hatfield Peverel D impressed this week. Peter Mortensen dominated as they beat Danbury M 8-2. Kath Little beat Norman Hayes 6-11, 12-10, 11-5, 8-11, 11-9 in the closest game of the evening.

Chelmsford Leopards are the early leaders in division 1 A of the Chelmsford Junior League. Dion Fernandes and Cleon Fernandes were 5-0 commanding winners against Chelmsford Tigers although Dion Fernandes had to pull out all the stops to get the better of Soumil Jain 5-11, 11-7, 10-12, 13-11, 11-6.   They were in turn beaten 4-1 by Buttsury Bees.  Jacob Lawrence led the way with wins over Dion Fernandes (11-2, 11-5, 12-10) and Cleon Fernandes (11-5, 14-12, 11-9). Ben Brown prevailed against Dion Fernandes, just (4-11, 11-4, 11-6, 13-15, 12-10). Chelmsford Pumas ran out 4-1 winners against Buttsbury Bats. Todd Martin led the way with two wins and a share in a doubles win with Ben Chivers.  Chelmsford Pumas in turn lost 3-2 to Chelmsford Panthers. Keen Wong-Anan was undefeated, beating Malachi O’Leary (11-8, 11-7, 11-6) and Alisha Ellis-Austin (14-12, 7-11, 11-9, 11-9).

Chelmsford Antelopes are setting a red hot pace in Junior division 1C. They made it 15 points out of 15, yes; that is 15 points out of 15;  and rather incredibly with other teams not having played an equal number of games they lead the table by a full 10 points. Samaksh Siroh and Arnav Kumar gave nothing away against Chelmsford Racoons, although Kumar had to dig deep to see off Luv Goel 15-13, 6-11, 8-11, 11-8, 11-7.   Chelmsford Falcons were 3-2 winners against Chelmsford Eagles. Kologn Barrie won twice beating Nathaniel Slade (11-7, 12-10, 11-5) and Atharv Gupta (11-6, 11-8, 11-9).

Steve Kerns Press & Publicity Officer Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

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Press Report Issued on 17 October 2021

Sam Lowman undefeated for Danbury B

Danbury B emerged as 7-3 winners against Galleywood A in division one of the Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League after a hard-fought match where no less than seven games were decided in the fifth set. Amazingly not one single game was decided 3-0. Danbury B’s Sam Lowman was the top performer with an excellent hat-trick of wins. He beat Gary Brignall 7-11, 11-4, 11-7, 12-10, Peter Radford 11-8, 6-11, 11-7, 11-9 and James Hicks 12-10, 11-5, 9-11, 14-12. A superb night’s work. Elsewhere Dan Anderson overcame James Hicks after a widely fluctuating struggle 9-11, 11-2, 11-2, 10-12, 12-10. Leaders Chelmsford A made it three wins out of three by beating Chelmsford C 6-4. As the result indicates they didn’t have it all their own way. Gary Young was undefeated but he was stretched by both Wiktor Delimat (12-10, 12-14, 11-5, 11-13, 11-6) and by Simon Jarvis (8-11, 11-8, 10-12, 11-9, 11-9). Simon Jarvis made his mark by beating Daniel Young 12-10, 10-12, 11-9, 11-9.   Danbury C scored their first win of the Season, by a 7-3 margin over OCs A. Terry Dowsett was undefeated for OCs but Ian Whiteside, Colin Napper and David Gatheral all won twice to give Danbury the ascendancy. OCs A also lost 8-2 to Chelmsford B who have jumped into second place. Charlie Craig and Josh Bickles were both on superb form and both bagged hat-tricks whilst Shirish Basant Rai won twice. Charlie Craig completed an outstanding evening’s work with a 11-9, 11-7, 11-5 victory over Robbie Burton. Writtle A ran out 6-4 winners against Danbury C after Ryan Pitt, Richard Storey and Aaron Chandler had all won twice. Danbury C’s new signing – Trevor Lloyd will give them fresh impetus that they can compete at this level. Lloyd remained undefeated although Richard Storey only lost narrowly 11-6, 4-11, 11-6, 9-11, 8-11. Good effort !.  Elsewhere, Writtle A fielding a line-up featuring both Duncan Taylor and Lee McHugh ran out 7-3 winners against Galleywood A. Taylor and McHugh gave nothing away.  

Danbury G impressed in division two as they powered to a 9-1 win over Danbury E. Dan Piggott and Sanjay Saptarshi were both undefeated whilst Neil Want was on target for the losers with a fine 11-7, 10-12, 11-5, 11-5 win over David Gatheral.  The reliable Gary Ward (nine wins out of nine to date) led Writtle C to a 6-4 win over OCs C whilst early leaders Hatfield Peverel A did well to beat Danbury F 8-2. Gareth Davies excelled with three singles wins. He completed his evening’s work by defeating Gordon Gatheral 12-10, 10-12, 11-9, 7-11, 11-7.  It was honours even between Danbury F and OCs B. Gareth Joice was undefeated for the Old Chelmsfordians side.  OCs B also shared the points against Chelmsford D. OCs’ Kevin Worthington was undefeated whilst Keith Martin picked up two very hard fought wins for the Chelmsford side. He beat Charles Yeung 8-11, 10-12, 12-10, 12-10, 11-9 and Gareth Joice 11-7, 11-8, 5-11, 5-11, 11-9. Danbury D ran out 6-4 winners against Writtle B, good going as it was Writtle B’s Paul Sturton who remained unbeaten. Sturton had to pull out all the stops (and a little bit extra) to beat Chris Buer 11-13, 11-7, 11-4, 10-12, 12-10 to seal his hat-trick.

In division three Galleywood B (23 points out of 30) are top and they beat Danbury K 7-3. James Hicks, Bryn Thomas and Mark Glenister all won twice. In a game which had “division one” written all over it David Gatheral defeated James Hicks 13-11, 11-8, 11-8. David Gatheral has also set a record of sorts. How many players can have appeared in the results for three divisions in the same Press report ?. Maldon A are second and with Hamish Innes remaining undefeated they beat Danbury K 7-3. The last game of the evening was the tightest and Peter Hance saw off Dawn Baldry, just, 5-11, 12-10, 11-8, 10-12, 14-12. OCs D scored their first win of the Season by beating Writtle D 7-3. Richard Baxter (six wins out of six) led the way. Chelmsford F were in control against Chelmsford E, winning 8-2. Nikita Tkachuk won his three singles and Luke Richardson and Andy Swales both won twice. Team work enabled Danbury H to beat Hatfield Peverel B 7-3. Dave Goody, Richard Allen and Dave Powell all won twice. Richard Allen defeated Paul Mulley 11-9, 8-11, 11-13, 11-6, 15-13 in the closest game of the night.

Division four leaders Maldon B scored their second and third wins of the Season, beating Danbury L 6-4 and Highwood A 7-3. Dawn Baldry (nine wins out of nine) won’t lose many at this level and she overcame Danbury L’s Kevin Willis (9-11, 11-3, 11-6, 10-12, 11-4) in her most testing encounter.  OCs E scored their first win of the Season, 7-3 against Chelmsford G. David Newman and Farooq Ahmed both stayed unbeaten. Vasile Barbulet overcame Russ Hall 11-6, 12-10, 10-12, 10-12, 14-12 in the closest game of the night. Highwood B ran out narrow 6-4 winners over Galleywood C. Roger Patient won his three singles for the Highwood team whilst Will Goodchild with two wins fared best of the Galleywood side. Chelmsford H also won 6-4. Harry Chivers was undefeated and he beat Ian Hockley, the best of the Writtle players 11-7, 11-5, 11-7.

Leaders Hatfield Peverel E were clear-cut winners in division five. They powered to a 9-1 win over Hatfield Peverel D. Gary Simmons and Deb Ginn were both undefeated. Three games were decided by last gasp margins and Kath Little missed out narrowly twice. She lost 11-8, 7-11, 11-6, 9-11, 9-11 to Gary Simmons and 6-11, 9-11, 11-7, 11-8, 9-11 against Deb Ginn. Danbury M ran out 6-4 winners against Maldon C, although Andrea Alleyne (seven wins out of seven) remained undefeated for Maldon.  Andrea had to dig deep to beat Norman Hayes 6-11, 5-11, 11-5, 11-8, 11-4. Chelmsford J (Peter Davenport, Jacqui Smith and Shengbing Zhu) were also 6-4 winners against OCs F, although they all missed out against Stuart Wintle. It was 6-4 again as Buttsbury A beat Hatfield Peverel C. Tomasz Krolikowski won his three singles for Buttsbury. Keith Cullen prevailed, just, 12-10, 12-14, 6-11, 11-6, 12-10 against Richard Drozd. Buttsbury A in turn added eight points to their total by beating Hatfield Peverel D 8-2. Jamie Elliott and Ben Brown were both undefeated. Jamie Elliott beat Davina Brazier 11-4, 9-11, 11-5, 5-11, 11-6 in the last game of the evening.

Chelmsford Pumas beat Chelmsford Tigers 3-2 in division 1A of the Chelmsford Junior League. Good going as Aarav Mehta won twice for the Tigers. Mehta beat Alesha Ellis-Austin 9-11, 12-10, 12-10, 11-5 and Todd Martin 7-11, 11-9, 11-17, 11-5.   Chelmsford Panthers also won, 3-2, with Chelmsford Tigers again the victims. Soumil Jain won twice for the Tigers beating Keen Wong-Anan 11-5, 7-11, 11-8, 11-7 and Pratham Raut 11-6, 11-7, 6-11, 11-9.

Chelmsford Wildcats ran out 5-0 winners against Buttsbury Beavers in division 1B to move into top place. Harrison Hill and Malachi O’Leary carried all before them. Harrison Hill had to work hard against Aidan Tucker before he triumphed 7-11, 11-5, 10-12 , 11-8, 11-7. The Wildcats also beat Buttsbury Badgers 3-2. Harrison Hill was again undefeated. Buttsbury Badgers in turn picked up a 4-1 win over Chelmsford Jaguars. Joseph Hutt led the way with a 9-11, 11-9, 11-9, 11-8 win over Lotte Mills and a 11-9,11-5, 11-7 victory against Francesca Hart.    

Chelmsford Antelopes have made a perfect start in division 1C. Samaksh Sirohi and Richard Carter powered to a 5-0 win against Chelmsford Falcons. They have scored 10 points out of 10. Chelmsford Cougars also started impressively. Dan Lewis was undefeated as they beat Chelmsford Eagles 4-1. Dan Lewis overcame Felix Reeve narrowly, very narrowly 12-10, 8-11, 4-11, 14-12, 11-9 in the first game. Adhuna Das was in turn unbeaten as Buttsbury Bulldogs beat Chelmsford Falcons 3-2.   

Steve Kerns Press & Publicity Officer Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

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Press Report Issued on 10 October 2021

James Liddiard unbeaten in his first two matches

Chelmsford A scored two emphatic wins in division one of the Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League, beating Danbury A (8-2) and Chelmsford B (10-0) and they look to be the favourites to take the title. Newcomer James Liddiard and Dan Young were undefeated in both matches whilst Gary Young (who only played against Chelmsford B) was undefeated in that match. For Chelmsford B who had won 10-0 themselves last week it might have appeared to have been a sobering experience but the Chelmsford B side actually acquitted themselves pretty well in defeat. Harry Buckle pushed Gary Young all the way before succumbing 9-11, 6-11, 11-5, 11-7, 9-11 and he came similarly close against Daniel Young before missing out 11-7, 7-11, 11-9, 3-11, 8-11. Josh Bickles took Daniel Young to five fluctuating ends before he lost 8-11, 6-11, 11-3, 11-2, 4-11.  Danbury A did well to beat Chelmsford C 7-3 in their second match.  Dave Richardson scored an impressive hat-trick which included a 11-6, 7-11, 10-12, 11-9, 11-5 win over Simon Jarvis. Wiktor Delimat impressed for the Chelmsford team with his 11-6, 6-11, 4-11, 11-9, 11-7 victory over Babul McLeod.  

One point separates the top four teams in division two and it is Danbury E (13 points) who lead the way after two games. Tony Forster, Dick Wyman and Tim Cramphorn all won twice in their 6-4 win over Writtle B. Dick Wyman set them on their way by beating Trevor Collin 12-10, 16-18, 11-7, 5-11, 11-9 in a well contested opening encounter. Gary Ward’s hat-trick gave Writtle C the edge as they beat Danbury D 6-4. Ward had to pull out all the stops to get the better of Chris Buer 11-9, 9-11, 5-11, 14-12, 16-14. Quite a battle. Danbury D were in turn 8-2 winners over OCs C. Steve Buer and Chris Buer were both undefeated on this occasion. Writtle C missed out 6-4 against Chelmsford D for whom Harry Chivers, Sudheeep Kamma and Saul Chivers all won twice. They all missed out against Gary Ward who secured his hat-trick with a 11-7, 9-11, 11-6, 12-10 win over Harry Chivers.  It was team-work which enabled Hatfield Peverel A to beat Danbury G 6-4. Martin Archie, Neil Freeman and Gareth Davies all won twice to counter Sanjay Saptarshi’s three wins. Saptarshi fought back from a heavy first game defeat to beat Martin Archie 2-11, 12-10, 11-8, 12-10 to seal his third win of the night.

Galleywood B lead the way in division three with 16 points. Mark Glenister, Gary Copsey and John Holland powered their way to a 10-0 win over Hatfield Peverel B.  Maldon A led by an unbeaten Hamish Innes ran out 8-2 winners against Hatfield Peverel B. Gareth Davies won twice for the losers and this included a 11-4, 11-13, 11-9, 16-14 win over Brian Riedling. Danbury J were 6-4 winners against Writtle D. Dave Marsh’s hat-trick gave them the ascendancy. Malcolm Henstock pipped Dave Meah 5-11, 11-9, 10-12, 11-4, 12-10 in the best game of the night. Writtle D were also on the wrong end of a 6-4 defeat against Chelmsford F. Andy Swales won his three singles for the Chelmsford side and Alex Tkachuk won twice.  Danbury J impressed by beating OCs D 9-1. Dave Marsh, John Robinson and David Meah won all nine singles but drew a blank in the doubles on this occasion. Tom Barker and Ian Butler were surprisingly comfortable 11-9, 11-2, 11-4 winners against Dave Marsh and John Robinson.  Danbury H ran out 6-4 winners against Chelmsford E. Dave Hancox’s three singles was the difference between the two teams. Hancox secured his third win by beating Dave Parker 12-10, 11-9, 10-12, 6-11, 11-5 in the last game of the night.

Second placed Maldon B (15 points) scored their second win of the Season in division four. Dawn Baldry was undefeated as they beat Highwood B 8-2 and she received good support from Brian Speller and Shirley Carroll who both won twice. Newcomer Roger Patient picked up two wins for the Highwood side. Danbury L ran out 7-3 winners against OCs E and they top the table with 16 points. Denis Crapnell led the way with three wins whilst Dave Goody and Kevin Willis both picked up two wins apiece. Farooq Ahmed won twice for the losers.

Hatfield Peverel C were the week’s big winners in division five. Richard Drozd and Mick Carter were both undefeated in their 9-1 win against Danbury H. Hatfield Peverel E did well to beat Maldon C 6-4, good going as Andrea Alleyne won her three singles for Maldon C. Andrea had to fight back from 2-0 down to get the better of the tenacious Alistair Brown 9-11, 10-12, 11-8, 11-9, 11-8. Danbury M were 6-4 winners against OCs F who paid the price for being a player short. Stuart Wintle was unbeaten for the Old Chelmsfordians team and this included a hard fought 9-11, 11-7, 5-11, 12-10, 11-6 win against Martin Knights.

Junior League action is underway and Buttsbury Bees made a winning start in division 1A . Jamie Elliott was undefeated as they defeated Chelmsford Panthers 3-2. The game between Pratham Raut and Jamie Elliott went “to the wire” before Elliott sealed victory 7-11, 11-5, 10-12, 11-6, 12-10.  Chelmsford Leopards beat Buttsbury Bats 4-1. Cleon Fernandes led the way with a 11-6, 11-5, 11-4 win against George Standish and a 11-2, 11-8, 11-3 victory over George Hagland.

Chelmsford Antelopes were 5-0 winners over Chelmsford Eagles in division 1C. Richard Carter and Arnav Kumar dominated this match.     

Steve Kerns Press & Publicity Officer Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

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Press Report Issued on 3 October 2021

Flying start for Chelmsford B in division one  

Table Tennis has returned to the Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League after the 2020-21 Season had to be abandoned following the Covid induced break. The League has retained it’s five senior divisions and refreshingly it also has three junior divisions which commence shortly. Doubles play has been retained in League play, something that is no longer the case in the neighbouring Braintree League.

It has been quite a while since we have had an all-teenage line-up in division one of the Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League. The Chelmsford B side of Josh Bickles (aged 15), Harry Buckle (17) and Charlie Craig (17) powered to a 10-0 win over Danbury C. They will be joined by Shirish Basant Rai and should do well this year in a division one which is missing the 2019-20 winners - Maldon A.   Danbury B were impressive 8-2 winners over Chelmsford C. Newcomer Matt Stringer was undefeated and he set them on their way with a last gasp 11-8, 9-11, 11-2, 8-11, 12-10 victory over Simon Jarvis in the first game. Simon Jarvis fought back with wins over Dan Anderson (3-2) and Sam Lowman (3-1). The match between OCs A and Galleywood A finished tied at 5-5. OCs powered into a 3-0 lead and then found themselves pegged back to 3-3, so perhaps a draw was a fair result.  OCs’ Rob Burton produced a display which can’t be bettered. All three of his games were decided at deuce in the fifth end. Burton fought back from 2-0 down to beat James Hicks 12-10 in the fifth end, but lost to Gary Brignall at 14-12 in the decider. He rounded off an excellent evening’s work with a 14-12 in the fifth end win over Steve Kerns. Gary Brignall and James Hicks both excelled by beating Terry Dowsett.

Division two is often very closely matched. From the look of this week’s results that could be the case this year as well. OCs B drew 5-5 with Danbury G. No player stayed undefeated. Kevin Worthington and Trevor Carter both won twice for Old Chelmsfordians whilst Eamon Hall and Sanjay Saptarshi both bagged two wins for Danbury. Kevin Worthington sealed the draw for OCs by beating Eamon Hall 11-7, 7-11, 11-6, 11-6 in the last game of the night. Chelmsford D edged out Danbury F 6-4 after a hard-fought game. Alan Scammell won his three games for the Danbury side but Adi Kamma and Sudheep Kamma “balanced the books” with two wins apiece. Saul Chivers beat Denis Balic 11-5, 12-14, 5-11, 11-9, 19-17. Quite a tussle !.  Danbury E ran out 7-3 winners against OCs C. Neil Want was unbeaten for Danbury and this included a 11-8, 11-9, 11-13, 9-11, 11-9 victory over Mick Richardson, another nail-biter. Hatfield Peverel A were 6-4 winners against Writtle B. Martin Archie led the way with three impressive wins and he concluded an excellent evening’s work by beating Phil Smith 11-8, 11-8, 7-11, 11-9 in the last game of the evening.       

Division three saw all three games decided by 6-4 scorelines. Galleywood B led by the redoubtable John Holland beat Chelmsford E. Adi Kamma won twice for Chelmsford and this included fighting back from 2-0 down to get the better of Colin Blore 9-11, 10-12, 11-9, 11-8, 11-8.  Chelmsford F beat Danbury H, good going as all three of their players lost to Gordon Gatheral. In the game of the night Gatheral hung on to beat Nikita Tkachuk 14-12 in the decider, after Tkachuk pulled back from 10-6 down. It was a similar story when Danbury K beat OCs D.  Danbury K came out on top even though Richard Baxter remained undefeated for the Old Chelmsfordians side. Baxter completed his hat-trick with a 12-10, 11-7, 9-11, 12-10 win over Peter Hance in the final game of the match. Mo Hardy had to pull out all the stops to beat Farooq Ahmed 11-7, 11-7, 10-12, 4-11, 12-10.

Danbury L are the early leaders in division four. Mervyn Perriman, James Gatheral and Denis Crapnell were 9-1 winners against Chelmsford G. Newcomer Vasile Barbulet was the sole winner for Chelmsford with a 11-6, 11-5, 11-13, 6-11, 11-8 win over James Gatheral. Writtle E beat Galleywood C 8-2. Ian Hockley led the way with a hat-trick and this included a 6-11, 11-7, 12-10, 11-4 success against Colin Blore, Galleywood’s best player. Highwood A are also off to a winning start. Melanie Bonnett led the way as they beat OCs E 6-4. Melanie got the better of David Newman 3-11, 12-10, 11-6, 14-12 to secure the win for her side.

Hatfield Peverel D have made a flying start in division five. Deb Ginn, Kath Little and Davinia Brazier powered to a 9-1 win over Danbury N. Deb Ginn and Davinia Brazier both bagged hat-tricks whilst Kath Little only missed out to Dan Wise. OCs F led by David Bishop’s hat-trick were 6-4 winners against Hatfield Peverel E. Bishop had to work hard to secure his third win, before he pinched the victory by beating Gary Simmons 11-4, 9-11,11-4, 10-12, 11-8 in the last game of the evening. Chelmsford J’s Peter Davenport, Jacqui Smith and Paul Bullock all won twice as they beat Danbury M 6-4. Paul Thirkettle picked up two wins for Danbury M. Maldon C ran out 7-3 winners over Buttsbury after Andrea Alleyne had led the way with an undefeated performance.  

Jan Fuller, the 2018-19 runner-up in the Ladies Singles at the Chelmsford Closed Championships (and who has recently moved to Norwich) was a triple medallist in the 2021 ITTF Parkinson’s World Table Tennis Championships played in Berlin in September. Gold was achieved in the Ladies Singles with wins over Silke Kind (Germany) 11-7, 12-14,11-9, 11-9 in the Semi-Final and against Margie Alley (USA) 16-14, 11-8, 11-7 in the Final. Jan also won a Silver medal with team-mate George Chan in the Mixed Doubles and a Bronze medal in the Ladies Doubles with Chile’s Digna Lopez-Abarca.    

Steve Kerns Press & Publicity Officer Chelmsford District Table Tennis League

 

 

 

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