Only three of the New Milton teams were in action in the Bournemouth and District Table Tennis league last week as their other seven teams all had “byes”. The club’s only win came in Div 1 as the B team easily overcame basement boys Merton D by 8-2 down at Mudeford Wood. Unfortunately Merton’s Mick Anderson had to retire hurt during the first match of the evening against James Lewis, so Milton were gifted three games early doors. Captain Brian Bickell won his two matches and Lewis and Peter Daish, both playing up from Div 2, chipped in with one win apiece. The doubles were needed for maximum points and Bickell and Daish duly obliged in three straight ends.

A bit further down the hall, Div 2 leaders the G team just missed out on a draw as they lost 4-6 to Bmth Sports J in their first defeat of the campaign. In the first match of the evening, the previously unbeaten Simon Golding just lost 9-11 in the fifth end against Bourne’s Howard Lewis in an epic battle, but he then went on to see off Peter Richardson in three straight ends. Golding’s final match against John Crockett was a mirror image of his first, but this time he was on the right end of an 11-9 scoreline over five ends. Simon Daish (pictured below) also bagged a brace but Danny Williams drew his first blank of his campaign. The doubles were needed to force the draw, but it was not to be as the two Simons were beaten in three straight ends.

In the other league match played at Mudeford Wood on the same night, the H team (Malcolm Douglas, Keith Kensley & Les Smith) continued their losing streak as they were hammered 1-9 by Bmth Sports M in Div 4. Milton’s blushes were spared by Kensley who just managed to nick his game against Bourne veteran Jim Simmonds 12-10 in the fifth end.

The F team travelled to Southbourne to play their Times & Directory Cup preliminary round match which had been carried over from the previous week. The F’s who normally ply their trade in Div 3 faced the Premier’s Merton A and just lost out by 4-5 after some very close matches. It was level-pegging at 3-3, but Mike Roberts lost to Merton’s Mark Smith to make it 3-4. Captain Malcolm Nash needed to win his next match against Mark Butler to keep his team in the cup but lost 1-2, so that was it. Sylvia Smith gamely played the final match and beat Paul Jervis to add to her previous victory, but it was all over by then.

The F team live to fight another day however as they join their G and K teams in the consolation “Plate” competition which will be played Week Commencing 26^th January 2015. Full results details for the week are below:-

LEAGUE

DIVISION 1

New Milton B 8 Merton D 2

(Brian Bickell 2, James Lewis 1, Peter Daish 1)

DIVISION 3

New Milton G 4 Bmth Sports J 6

(Simon Golding 2, Simon Daish 2, Danny Williams 0)

DIVISION 4

New Milton H 1 Bmth Sports M 9

(Malcolm Douglas 0, Keith Kensley 1, Les Smith 0)

TIMES & DIRECTORY HANDICAP CUP – PRELIMINARY ROUND

New Milton F (Div 4) 4 Merton A (Premier) 5

(Sylvia Smith 2, Malcolm Nash 1, Mike Roberts 1)