Hastings Closed Championships
The Hastings Closed Table Tennis Championships took place at the Hastings Academy on Saturday, 6th April 2019. It was a long day with play starting at 9am and the last match completed by 5.30pm. There were 41 entrants which was the highest figure for a number of years and we were pleased to welcome some of our junior players too. The Junior Singles, which was played as a Round Robin, was won by Arthur Bracken with Emily Koester the Runner-up and James Barry in third place.
The two main events, the Men’s Singles and Women’s Singles were won by the two of the favourites, Paul Barry and Rose Rainton. Paul won the trophy for the 16th time although he last held the title in 2014. Rose is a similar multiple holder of the Women’s Singles title and this was her 22nd win. An amazing record for both players. Paul defeated Dave Butler in the Men’s Singles final 11-4, 11-9, 11-2 having previously beaten Bashar Obeyed in the Semi-finals. Dave had a tremendous Semi-final match against Arthur Bracken and just pipped him 8-11, 10-12, 11-7, 11-8, 11-7. However, the Match of the Day must go to Arthur Bracken who overcame the holder, Nathan Darby, in the Quarter-finals 11-9, 10-12, 12-10, 11-6. Rose’s opponent in the finals was Sue Pingram with the score 11-6, 11-2, 11-8. Rose and Sue hadn’t had it all their own way earlier in the day as they both came Runners-up in their group matches losing to Tina Beaney and Sheila King respectively.
The Division 2 Championships perhaps the most competitive event with many strong players. The title went to Kevin Barry who met Jamie Martin in the final with Kevin coming out the victor after being two games down. The final score 8-11, 7-11, 11-5, 11-5, 11-7. Division 3 was played as a Round Robin event with Dave Watters finishing in first place and Peter Saunders the Runner-up.
The three doubles events had some interesting partnerships and there was no obvious favourite in any of the events. The Women’s Doubles trophy was held aloft by Rose Rainton and Sue Pingram after winning 11-5, 9-11, 11-9, 11-6 against Tina Beaney and Sheila King. The Mixed Doubles gave Rose her third title of the day but it was a really close match in the final when partnered with Robin Gibbs they won 8-11, 13-11, 11-7, 8-11, 11-7 against Nathan Darby and Tina Beaney. The Men’s Doubles was won by father and son Paul Barry and Ryan Heselden which kept the family tradition going as Paul had won it with his father, Jim Barry, previously in 1985. Paul and Ryan had a good win in the final against Dave Butler and Nick Standen 11-2, 11-7, 11-9.
An excellent tournament with some tremendous matches and a mention must be made to the high level of sportsmanship throughout the day; the players were a real credit to their sport.
Thanks go too to all who helped make the day such a success.
Diane Webb
8th April 2019
