Week 17 Match Report

SURESTRIKE RAMSEY ‘D’ NO LONGER STANDS FOR DUCK

In the First Division of the DLP Adapted Bathrooms sponsored Isle of Man Table Tennis League the top team, Copy Shop A, relied on a super-sub to stay six points ahead of ABC Arborists. Strathy comfortably remain third but Breakaway moved to within three points of fourth-placed Tower A. In the relegation zone Foxdale are now just three points adrift of Travellers A and Zurich Spinners who suffered at the hands of Copy Shop’s unlikely lad.

Travellers B extended their lead in Division Two and Peel A moved back to second place, one point clear of Copy Shop B who had a rest week. At the bottom Tower C now have two matches in hand but are 32 point short of salvation whilst their relegation rivals, Travellers D and Peel B are now four points apart.

In the Third Division Surestrike Ramsey D despatched their duck following a Jack Yardley hat-trick and a super performance from his grandsons particularly in the doubles. At the top Surestrike Ramsey C remain six points clear of Victory Roll Saints as both teams took full points in their respective matches.

Hot of the press, the Island Games Table Tennis squad has just been announced. Congratulations and wishes of good luck go to Paul Corran, Sean Drewry, Hadyn McLarney, Jane Kneale and Rebecca Bayley who will be our representatives in Jersey this June.

DIVISION ONE

Copy Shop A (8) Zurich Spinners (1)

Top-placed Copy Shop A scrambled to field a third player so at the last minute Malcolm Lambert stepped in to help them out. His 11/9, 9/11, 10/12, 11/8, 11/5 opening win over Nigel Beattie led to an unexpected hat-trick which bizarrely places him top of the averages in the first division. Sean Drewry notched up another hat-trick but Tommy Cowin did the double over Jane Kneale to post the Spinners’ loan point as Colin Barron won the odd set but had another barren night.

ABC Arborists (9) Travellers A (0)

Second-placed Arborists were gifted three points as relegation zoned Travellers A were a player short. John Magnall, Jason Quirk and Mike Tamarov whipped through their matches against Stu Mason and Stu Douglas in straight sets. However, the opening match between Magnall and Mason almost made it to a fourth set. Mason lost on a tie break 3/11, 6/11, 10/12.  

Strathallan A (8) Tower A (1)

Third-placed Strathy were looking for back-to-back white-washes but Dave Parsons put paid to Hadyn McLarney’s hat-trick hopes in three swift sets 11/9, 12/10, 11/2. Mike Bayley nearly disappointed Julian Briercliffe but lost their last set 6/11 and Paul Kozlowski took a consolation set off Andy Patterson who was breaking in his new bat. Tower A stay fourth but Breakaway A are now only two points behind them.

Breakaway A (5) Foxdale A (4)

Breakaway’s Paul Corran clocked-up his seventh hat-trick of the season in straight sets. His playing partners Keeran Chan and Ben Christian secured fifth-placed Breakaway’s narrow win with a point apiece purloined from Andy McLarney and Ken Mitchell respectively having lost when they played Will Bayley and earlier against Mitchell and McLarney respectively. Foxdale’s four points reduced their deficit to just three points as fellow strugglers Travellers A and Zurich Spinners both lost 1-8.  

DIVISION TWO  

Travellers B (10) Travellers D (0)

Only David Buck made it to a fourth set in this Travellers club derby. Paul Nelson, Colin Brown and Gary Shilling totted-up their fourth clean sheet. With 13 wins in a row Travellers B extended their lead to 22 points over nearest rivals. Conversely, tenth-placed Travellers D team have registered just one win and that was against the bottom team. Hence, Juan Moore, Alex Buck and his father David are flying dangerously low, although they are only four points behind Peel B who are due to play the top team next week.

Peel A (8) Peel B (2)

At first glance it looked like Peel B had beaten their second-placed A team colleagues 8-2 but the scorecard had been mischievously altered. However, take nothing away from Sasha Thomas who did well to win his matches with Les Wilson and Maggie Mulhern to deny them their hat-tricks. Nathan Evans narrowly lost a marathon match will Mulhern 7/11, 11/9, 4/11, 12/10, 12/14 and Harry Walters got to a tie break before losing to Wilson. 

Tower B (6) Travellers C (4)

Another Steve Curtis hat-trick helped Tower B remain in fifth place. Simon Radcliffe lost 11/6, 8/11, 6/11, 6/11 to Alan Harding but added two more points with wins over Jackie Gill and Adrian Tinkler. Harding. Gill and Tinkler took a point apiece off Yanchun Wang but couldn’t salvage a draw for sixth-placed Travellers C as they lost the doubles to Curtis and Radcliffe 9/11 in the fourth set.

Copy Shop C (4) Surestrike Ramsey A (6)

Rhys Yardley wasted no time in registering another straight sets hat-trick and doubles win for fourth-placed Surestrike Ramsey A. His team-mate Wael Kassim failed to counter Malcolm Lambert’s chops but beat both Pedro Cardoso and Max Walker to ensure the win for Ramsey. Lambert and Cardoso had both beaten Carl Blatcher before Walker went the long way round to pip him 12/14, 11/7, 13/11, 5/11, 11/9.

DIVISION THREE 

Surestrike Ramsey D (6) Surestrike Ramsey E (4)

‘Team Yardley’ broke the ‘D for duck’ hoodoo at the expense of their fifth-placed E team. Jack Yardley hit a hat-trick, his grandsons Alex and Dylan both beat William Taylor and then delivered the doubles for a welcome win. Tyler Hannah and new signing Sally Green picked up the remaining points for Surestrike E by beating the Yardley youngsters.

Surestrike Ramsey C (10) Peel C (0)

Frank Feeney, Billy Cain and Matthew Emison skittled-out seventh-placed Peel C to stay top of the league still six points clear of second placed Victory Roll Saints. Tom Noble, Mason Prince and Corin Haddock found points hard to come by but Haddock got to a fourth set twice and Prince had two tie breaks in his 10/12, 9/11, 13/15 heart breaker with Feeney.    

Victory Roll Saints (10) Breakaway B (0)

Breakaway B were a player short which put them three down against the teachers from St Ninian’s who look set for promotion in their first season. Matty Kelly, Steve Ryder-Clague and Matt Harvey each bagged a brace for Victory Rolls Saints although Kieran Lane and Steve Walters came close against Ryder-Clague. Lane lost in four sets whereas Walters ran out of luck. Having got back level he ended up losing 11/9, 10/12, 8/11, 11/7, 6/11.

Copy Shop D (7) Junior Development (3)

Copy Shop D maintained third place thanks to hat-tricks from Zac Walker and Billy Coulter who also captured the doubles. Kyle Dodd did his best to deny Junior Development any points but Scott Horne, Josh and Cameron Dudley were not to be denied a point apiece. The Dudley’s did it in straight sets whereas Horne had to come back from two sets down to diddle Dodd 4/11, 9/11, 11/1, 11/5, 11/5.

MALCOLM LAMBERT

Author: via Isle Of Man Table Tennis Association
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