Herald Report December 15th

Royal Mail were anticipating a red letter day when leading Shottery B 5 - 1 at the break but, after a fight back from the Villagers, found themselves at 5 - 4 going into the final set. The match outcome rested on the shoulders of Nello Mauri who overcame tough resistance from Tony Remes to win through, and so both complete a personal treble and give his team the narrowest of victories. Wilf Chan also delivered a first class performance with straight games successes over both Remes and Tim Fell. Malcolm Heritage added the all-important sixth win, while Dave Milton notched a brace for Shottery B with Fell also getting on the card after overturning an early disadvantage against Heritage. The doubles proved to be a see - saw affair with Remes and Fell finally coming through 9 - 11 in the decider.With the Postmen needing to make their usual early morning deliveries they were so keen to vacate the premises after the match that they locked up before one of their opponents had been able to reach his car! Fortunately he did not have to spend the night there as he was able to summon the Royal Mail captain who returned to reopen the compound.It was an eventful week for Shottery B as they were in action again the following evening when they played host to their own third string. Milton proved the star of the show recording a perfect performance without the loss of a game. In the only set to go the distance Remes narrowly squeezed home against Chris Bowles to chalk up a brace which was emulated by Fell. However neither player could overcome Shottery C's talisman Rob Poole who scored both their successes as the senior side ran out 8 - 2 winners.
The final scoreline was not a true reflection of events when FISSC entertained Henley A. The opening action saw the Farmers' Malcolm Smith take a two game advantage against Peter Quince, only for his opponent to raise his performance and clinch their encounter over the distance. This established the tone for the evening as in three other singles the hosts took an early lead only to be denied. Peter Bruce-Moore was edged out by Geoff Shephard, while Peter Florence lost out in similar manner to both Quince and Ron Shakesheff. The latter was making his Stratford league debut and marked it with a treble as his team wrapped up all the  singles. Last call was the doubles and it seemed that, once again, FISSC would let their initial lead slip away when, after securing the first two games, their opponents fought back to draw level. However, just as a whitewash was on the horizon, Smith and Bruce-Moore drew on hidden reserves to ensure a consolation victory.

Author: via Stratford-upon-Avon Table Tennis League
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