The second round of matches in the Eastern Valley Table Tennis League saw Cwmbran Aztecs establish an early lead in Division One following their 23-12 win over Cwmbran Blues. For the Aztecs, player of the match, Tony Collins, completed a whitewash of his opponents with three straight set wins and his team mate Mark Edmunds also enjoyed three wins. The Blues were unfortunately missing two of their regulars players, but Mark Farrow and guest player Mike Bishop picked up consolation wins.
Moving into second place at this very early stage of the season are the 'new boys' Cwmbran Tigers following their 24-12 win over Cwmbran Colts. Going into the last three matches the Tigers had held a narrow 13-12 lead but the Colts were swept away in straight sets to obtain a score line that did not reflect the closeness of the rest of the match. For the Colts there were wins each for Mathew and Ben Pearce and Colin Price scored five points for his team.
The final match in Division One saw YMCA Preachers defeat Cardiff Nomads 20-14, thanks to a player of the match performance from Claire Flannagan with her three wins. She was well supported by Ray Goulding with his two wins and Eric Turner with one win. For the Nomads Mike Bishop picked up two wins and Peter Gordon one win.
In Division Two, Cwmbran Eccentrics are the new leaders following their 25-12 win over Cwmbran Panthers. Despite the margin of win it was a very competitive match with the Eccentrics winning four of their matches in five sets. Player of the match was the Eccentrics Ian Shipley with three wins, well supported by John Thomas who also had three wins plus Lincoln Alford with his two wins. For the Panthers, their guest player, Stan Williams picked up their solitary win with Howard Gaut collecting five points and Yuri Cherkasenko four points.
Maintaining their second place position are North Gwent Cougars following their 21-9 win over Cwmbran Fellows. For the Cougars Sam Slatter, Goran Karabar and Jon Deacon all picked up two wins each, however, it was the Fellows' Wayne Ford who picked up the player of the match with his three wins. A family double of player of the match awards this week!
The final match in Division Two saw the previous leaders, Cwmbran Lions beaten 19-16 by Cwmbran Dynamos, in a closely fought match. For the Dynamos both Alex Jones and Richard Lownsbrough picked up two wins each, but, they were no match for the Lions' player of the match, Mike Blatchford with his three wins.
