New Milton TTC local player Matthew Daish ( aged 11) recently took part in the Milton Keynes U-13s 2 star tournament, Matthew, playing in his New Milton kit, was competing with 17 other youngsters from across the country.

Matthew got off to a great start, winning both of his group matches and topping his group. In the next group Matthew came up against a tough opponent Ben Proud (ranked 9^th in the U-12s). Daish eased past Proud 3-1 to claim the victory. His second opponent was Hiba Feredj ( ranked 2^nd in the U-13 girls). Daish edged it 3-2 after his coach Peter Daish called a “time-out” at a critical point which saw Matthew through to the final.

In the final Matthew came unstuck against the number 1 seed Edward Haskell. Haskell, ranked 24 places above Daish in the U-13, beat Daish 3-0 to claim the trophy with Daish claiming the runner-up spot.

On a slightly happier note, as a result of his performance Matthew has automatically qualified for the U-12 national finals in Walsall, and has now moved up the ranks from 12^th to 7^th in the U-12 ETTA rankings.

Report written by Simon Daish.