This year’s Individual Championships get underway at the Grange School on Monday 20th March with the Mens’ and Ladies Doubles, culminating in the Finals Night on Friday 31st March.

No need to book in advance, just turn up on the night (see registration times below), and it’s completely free!

The Program of Events (see entry conditions) appears below.  Good luck to all NMTTC members who enter!

Last week saw the New Milton F team knocked out of the annual Times & Directory Handicap Cup competition in the semi-finals, but two of the club’s teams made it through to the semi-finals of the Plate competition.

In the Cup proper, the Div 3 F team (Ian Linney, Steve Cheesman & Sylvia Smith) lost their semi-final against the Premier’s Ringwood A despite a hat-trick from Cheesman. It went right down to the wire at 4-4 with Linney needing to beat Ringwood’s Oliver Crossley in the ninth and final match but he narrowly lost 15-21, 21-14, 19-21.

In the Plate quarter-finals, the Premier’s B team (Brian Bickell, Shaun Newcomb & John Millward) gained some light relief from their parlous league position by beating Div 4’s Bmth Sports M 5-4 to book their place in the semi-finals. England veteran Bickell is still recovering from a shoulder injury but played cannily to win his first hat-trick since his return. It was poised at 4-4 when wheelchair player Newcomb beat Bourne’s Maggie White to follow suit with his team-mates.

The other team to progress through to the Plate semi-finals was the Div 3 G team (Graham Underwood, Mike Toole & Bev Scott-Johns) who did so at the expense of their club mates in the D team (Terry Jenvey, Malcolm Floyd & Chris Pusey) who usually play a division higher. It was all over at 5-0 and then club treasurer Floyd narrowly beat club secretary Scott-Johns in the mandatory sixth match to make it a tad more respectable at 5-1.  The triumphant G team are pictured below: l-r Mike Toole, Graham Underwood (Captain) & Bev Scott-Johns.

The E team (Peter Daish, Simon Daish & Simon Golding), who normally ply their trade in Div 2 faced a very strong Div 1 side Bmth Sports D which included ex Milton player Alan Gordon. Milton went ahead 3-2 but Gordon beat Golding having already seen off the other Simon to level things off at 3-3. Unfortunately the two Simons lost their final matches to exit the Plate at 3-5.

The L team featuring Stuart Burton (captain), James Harper and Maggie Brown had to travel to Colehill to take on Shamrock A who normally play a division higher than them in Div 4. In another very tight match and despite a hat-trick from captain fantastic Burton, Milton just lost 4-5 to be denied progress to the Plate semis.

The New Milton club are assured of at least one of their teams making it through to the Plate Final as the B team has been drawn against the G team in the semi-finals.

The break in the league programme enabled the two postponed derbies to take place. The A team repeated their first round 9-1 trouncing of their B team who are firmly stuck on the bottom of the Premier. In Div 3, the second placed G team assumed bragging rights over their F team as they converted a first round 5-5 draw into an 8-2 drubbing. Full results details of all matches are below. Read the rest of this entry →

As well as being captain of the New Milton C team playing in Div 1 and a virtuoso violin player and teacher to boot, Frank Handy has another string to his bow, namely being a very well respected cross country runner.

I am pleased to be able to print an extract of a recent article in the New Milton Advertiser along with a photo kindly provided by the Sports Reporter:-

New Forest Runners were out in force for their cross-country championships, held at Denny Wood near Lyndhurst on Sunday 19^th February.

The NF championships were combined with the seventh event in the CC6 winter series. Although weather conditions were good, there was enough mud and hills to make the 5 mile course a challenge for the 17 New Forest ladies and 16 Forest men who competed.

The ever consistent Frank Handy (11^th CC6 overall) won the New Forest senior men’s championship from the up and coming newcomer Henry Harris (14^th).

The photo shows our very own Frank in the centre and it looks as though he can hardly keep his eyes open!

The New Milton Table Tennis Club had a much better week in the Bournemouth and District league as they came up with six wins out of their nine matches. The table-topping H team (Lewis Reading, Dave Sutton & Eddie Tompkins) clinched promotion from Div 4 to Div 3 as they took maximum points off Winton YMCA B in their 8-2 victory at Mudeford Wood. Third-place Merton J can no longer catch Milton who look like going up as champions.

With one promotion in the bag, two of the three teams with relegation worries may yet survive after spirited performances last week. The D team (Terry Jenvey, Mike Toole & Malcolm Floyd) are still second from bottom of Div 2 having earned a precious point away in their 4-6 defeat by Merton F courtsey of a brace apiece from captain Jenvey and Toole. However, on paper Milton have an easier run up than third from bottom Breamore.

In Div 4, the third from bottom J team (John Parkhouse, Ben Greene & Andrew Stainton) did their survival hopes no harm at all as they improved on their first round draw with Merton K to beat them 6-4 at the Grange. Greene has provided a major boost to the Jays as he is unbeaten in his two matches since returning from a three month jaunt in Japan. He was joined in a treble by 18 year old Stainton scoring his third hat-trick of the season. It is still going to be a close run thing as second from bottom Nimrod B have two matches left whereas Milton have just the one.

In the Premier, the bottom-placed B team had a stay of execution as their match against second place Bmth Sports B was postponed as the Bourne couldn’t put out a team. Milton lost 1-9 first time around, so they’re not expecting too much joy from the return match, especially having lost star player John Hook to an achilles tendon injury.

Div 3 saw the F team (Sylvia Smith, Ian Linney & Steve Cheesman) do their promotion chasing G team a favour by beating their close rivals Merton G 6-4 in their own back yard. Smith played out of her skin to score her second hat-trick of the season and was joined in a treble by Cheesman, his tenth of the campaign.  A photo of the full F team squad (l-r Malcolm Nash (Captain), Ian Linney, Sylvia Smith, Mike Roberts & Steve Cheesman) appears below.

The G team (Graham Underwood, Mike Toole & Elliott Storr-Smith) beat Ringwood A 8-2 to jump over them to second place, courtesy of hat-tricks from captain Underwood and Toole. Full results details of all matches are below:- Read the rest of this entry →

Brian Bickell’s wife Olga has kindly passed on details of Brian’s successes in the Vetts Nationals last weekend.

Brian has had a long struggle to get some strength back in his shoulder after nearly two years away from table tennis, but is now back playing in the Premier league for the B team, and did very well in his first Vetts (Veterans English Table Tennis Society) Tournament since his injury.

Brian made his comeback at the Vetts National Tournament at the K2 Leisure Centre, Crawley and made it through the the semi-finals of his class, narrowly losing to nationally ranked Number 1 player Ramesh Bhalla.

Brian joined with Vetts newcomer Norman Meaney in the doubles and they beat the established pairing of former World Gold champion Geoff Bax and Terry Wilson in the final. Brian has been asked by George Evans, a former world champion, to play doubles with him in the April Nationals. Watch this space!

After a week in which the New Milton Table Tennis Club could only muster two wins out of eight matches in the Bournemouth and District league, with only three weeks of the season left to go, three of the club’s teams could possibly be playing in lower divisions next season.

The B team in the Premier are favourites for the drop as they lost 0-10 to Bmth Sports C to swap places at the bottom. Milton lost star player John Hook to an Achilles Tendon injury in a match a month ago, and although England Veteran Brian Bickell is back in action for the Bees, there is a huge hill to climb. Milton have a game in hand over the other basement boys, but unfortunately this is against their A team to whom they lost 1-9 first time round.

The D team who were relegated from Div 1 last season and are second from bottom in Div 2 may still save themselves from the double-drop if the remaining results go the same way as in the first round. They crucially managed to do the double over third from bottom Breamore with a 7-3 win which reduced the deficit to two points. The doubles would have brought parity but unfortunately the Milton pairing lost over five sets.  Depending upon the availability of super-sub Mike Toole who scored a hat-trick in that match, they may overtake Breamore to send them down instead.

The J team may yet preserve their Div 4 status if again the remaining results go the same way as the first half. Currently third from bottom, they really needed to do the double over second from bottom Nimrod B but lost 3-7, despite a hat-trick from star turn Ben Greene (pictured below) back in action after a three month jaunt in Japan. The Jays now only have two matches to save themselves as the surrounding teams have a game in hand, but Greene’s return certainly strengthens their arm.

The club’s only other win came in Div 5 as the promotion chasing K team (Mike Gent, Geoff Biggs & Malcolm Douglas) reprised their first round 6-4 win over Bmth Sports N courtesy of Gent’s sixth hat trick of the campaign. The L team were hot on their club mates’ tail in third spot but they lost 1-9 to Shamrock B to drop down two places in the table. Full results details are below:- Read the rest of this entry →

With 5 teams left in the last 8 of the Times & Directory Handicap Plate competition, the New Milton Table Tennis Club eagerly awaited the draw to see which of their teams would be playing against their own club-mates. Well, the draw has taken place and strangely enough there is just the one local club derby in the quarter-finals, with the D team facing the G team.

Terry Jenvey’s D team won the Plate in 2014/15 and are looking for success away from the league where they are languishing second from bottom in Div 2. Graham Underwood’s G team are currently second from top in Div 3 and wouldn’t they just love to win the Plate and promotion in their first season in the league. The Gees are the “home” side so the match will be played at the Grange School, Somerford.  Just a reminder below of the D team who won the Plate final in 2014/2015: Kai Major, Terry Jenvey (Captain) and Chris Pusey.  Kai is not playing competitively at the moment having only recently recovered from a major illness, but Terry and Chris are still treading the boards for the D’s.

John Millward’s B team are second from bottom of the Premier and have to travel to Chapel Gate to take on Div 4 basement boys Bmth Sports M, so both teams are looking for a bit of light relief from a disappointing season so far. The good news for the Bees is that wily England Veteran Brian Bickell is back from long term injury and can replace John Hook who suffered an Achilles tendon injury in a league match.

Stuart Burton takes his L team away to Cole Hill to face Shamrock A who play a division higher in Div 4, while the E team from Div 2 entertain Bmth Sports D (Div 1) home at Mudeford Wood.

In the Cup proper, Malcolm Nash’s Div 3 F team take on the Premier’s Ringwood A in their semi-final at a neutral venue to be decided. If Milton succeed, they will face either Merton G or Merton K in the Cup Final.

You have to go as far back as the 1997/1998 season for when one of the club’s teams last won the actual Cup (the A team), but the Plate was won by Les Smith’s G team last season (2015/2016).

All matches are to be played week commencing Monday 27^th February 2017.

The full draw is below:-

TIMES & DIRECTORY HANDICAP CUP

New Milton F (Div 3) v Ringwood A (Premier)

Merton K (Div 4) v Merton G (Div 3)

TIMES & DIRECTORY HANDICAP PLATE

Bmth Sports M (Div 4) v New Milton B (Premier)

Shamrock A (Div 4) v New Milton L (Div 5)

New Milton E (Div 2) v Bmth Sports D (Div 1)

New Milton G (Div 3) v New Milton D (Div 2)

The New Milton Table Tennis Club came up with five wins out of eleven in the Bournemouth & District league last week. Three of those wins were maximum-pointers including one 10-0 full house.

Div 5 saw the L team (Reuben Donvito, Adam Titcombe & Bill Collinge) come up with their best result this season from matches actually played. Their 9-1 win over second from bottom Nimrod C was a significant improvement over their first-round 6-4 victory and came courtesy of hat-tricks from the two 13 year olds Donvito and Titcombe. Donvito was making his league debut (and how!) and Titcombe really enjoyed his fourth treble of the season. The teenagers crowned their evening by demolishing the Nimrod pairing in the doubles in three straight sets and are pictured below after the match (l-r Adam Titcombe, Reuben Donvito).

The club’s other 9-1 win came in Div 3 as the high-flying G team (Mike Toole, Graham Underwood & Elliott Storr-Smith) repeated their first round scoreline against Merton G. Captain Underwood and Toole both scored hat-tricks and 15 year old Storr-Smith bagged a brace. Storr-Smith displayed a maturity beyond his years to recover from losing his first set 2-11 against Merton veteran Dave Chapman to take the second 11-9. The teenager was really going for his hat-trick but unfortunately lost the next two sets 7-11, 6-11.

The full house came in Div 4 as the table-topping H team (Lewis Reading, Dave Sutton & Eddie Tompkins) vastly improved on their first-round 6-4 win over Shamrock A. Now on 40 points, they are six points ahead of second placed Winton YMCA C but Winton have a game in hand.

The other teenager from the club to win a hat-trick was 18 year old Andy Tipsana whose fifth treble of the season helped his C team to a 7-3 win over Div 1 basement boys Broadstone C.  Full results details are below:-
Read the rest of this entry →

There was a break in the Bournemouth & District league programme as the week was given over to the annual Times & Directory Handicap Cup competition. Two teams from the New Milton Table Tennis Club were involved in the Cup itself with the F team booking their place in the semi-finals. Five of the club’s teams took part in Round 2 of the “Plate” with all of them going through to the quarter-finals.

The F team (Ian Linney, Steve Cheesman & Mike Roberts) are currently top of Div 3 in the league and are looking to add the Times & Directory Cup to their putative laurels. At 4-2 up against Div 2’s Merton F, Cheesman completed his hat-trick by beating Merton’s Geoff Cherrill to take Milton through to the semi-finals.

The H team (Eddie Tompkins, Dave Sutton & Lewis Reading) won the Plate competition last year and were hoping for success in the Cup proper this season. It was not to be however as they lost 3-5 to Merton G who play one division higher in Div 3. Their nemesis just happened to be hat-trick heroine Norma Millward, wife of New Milton B’s team captain John Millward.

The club’s 100% success rate in the Plate included three matches with the opposition unable to reply. The B team (John Millward, Brian Bickell & Shaun Newcomb) disposed of Premier fellows Merton B 8-0 including hat-tricks from the homecoming Bickell and wheelchair player Newcomb. The G team (Graham Underwood, Mike Toole & Bev Scott-Johns) disposed of fellow Div 3 side Bmth Sports L 6-0, and the L team (James Harper, Stuart Burton & Bill Collinge) from Div 5 did likewise to Bmth Sports F from Div 1.

The closest Plate match was the E team’s encounter with fellow Div 2 side North Bmth A as Milton just edged it 5-4 against the high-flyers thanks to a hat-trick from Simon Daish. Also from Div 2, the D team (Terry Jenvey, Malcolm Floyd & Chris Pusey), actual winners of the Plate in 2014/15, disposed of Div 5 basement boys Bmth Sports L by the more emphatic 7-2. This came courtesy of a hat-trick from Club Press Officer & Treasurer Floyd, and a brace apiece from captain Jenvey and Pusey.  The D team are pictured below (l-r Terry Jenvey, Malcolm Floyd & Chris Pusey).

Full results details are below:-

TIMES & DIRECTORY CUP – ROUND 3 (QUARTER_FINALS)

New Milton F (Div 3) 5 Merton F (Div 2) 2

(Ian Linney 1, Steve Cheesman 3, Mike Roberts 1)

Merton G (Div 3) 5 New Milton H (Div 4) 3

(Eddie Tompkins 0, Dave Sutton 2, Lewis Reading 1)

TIMES & DIRECTORY PLATE – ROUND 2

New Milton B (Prem) 8 Merton B (Prem) 0

(John Millward 2, Brian Bickell 3, Shaun Newcomb 3)

Bmth Sports P (Div 5) 2 New Milton D (Div 2) 7

(Chris Pusey 2, Malcolm Floyd 3, Terry Jenvey 2)

North Bmth A (Div 2) 4 New Milton E (Div 2) 5

(Simon Golding 2, Simon Daish 3, Andrew Daish 0)

New Milton G (Div 3) 6 Bmth Sports L (Div 3) 0

(Graham Underwood 2, Mike Toole 2, Bev Scott-Johns 2)

New Milton L (Div 5) 6 Bmth Sports F (Div 1) 0

(James Harper 2, Stuart Burton 2, Bill Collinge 2)

The Cup semi-finals and Plate quarter-finals are to take place week commencing 27^th February. With five New Milton teams in the final eight of the Plate, the draw is eagerly awaited to see the make-up of the inevitable club derbies.