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:-
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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.

The New Milton Table Tennis Club came up with six wins out of eleven matches in the Bournemouth and District league last week, one of them a 10-0 full house in the Premier.

The A team (Umit Kaya, Brian Vibert & Russell Wilson) did a Premier double over Merton B who didn’t help their cause by turning up a player short. Merton had a chance to avoid the whitewash in the doubles, but Kaya & Wilson just knicked it 15-13 in the fifth set against veteran Danny Allen and Kevin Smith in a close scoring match.

The Premier also saw a welcome return for England Veteran Brian Bickell (pictured below) who had a two year lay-off with a shoulder injury. His two wins for the B team helped them to a precious point in their 3-7 defeat against Ringwood A, which can only help in their bid for survival in the Premier as they are currently second from bottom. They are missing star player John Hook who was injured in his last match and may be out of action for some time.

The D team (Chris Pusey, Terry Jenvey & Mike Toole) were celebrating only their third win of the campaign as they overturned their first round defeat against Ringwood B with a 6-4 win at Mudeford Wood in Div 2. This came courtesy of a magnificent hat-trick from homecoming player Toole along with a brace from captain Jenvey and one win from Pusey.

Div 4 saw the table topping H team (Eddie Tompkins, Dave Sutton & Lewis Reading) avenge their first round defeat against Merton K who were the only team to get the better of them so far this season. In Milton’s 8-2 maximum pointer, Sutton came up with his ninth hat-trick having only dropped one game all season and Tompkins and Reading bagged a brace apiece.  Full results appear below:-
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The New Milton Table Tennis Club came up with four wins out of eight matches in the Bournemouth and District league last week, one of them coming at the expense of one of their own teams in a local derby.

In their Div 2 derby first time around, the struggling D team managed to take a point off their clubmates in the E team when they lost 4-6. However, the E’s fielded a stronger team this time (Simon Golding, Simon Daish & Peter Daish) and demolished their D team (Chris Pusey, Terry Jenvey & Roy Hobbs) 10-0. The Dees needed the doubles to avoid the whitewash and indeed Pusey & Jenvey took the first set 12-10 only narrowly to lose the next two 11-13, 11-13. They scraped the fourth set 12-10 but just ran out of steam in the decider to go down 6-11.

The other scheduled derby between the A and B teams in the Premier league had to be abandoned because Bees John Hook injured himself in the knock-up necessitating an ambulance. The match will have to be rearranged.

The club’s other three wins were all 8-2 maximum pointers. In Div 1, the C team (Paul Iliffe, Frank Handy & Rob Blackmore) repeated their first round scoreline against second from bottom Bmth Sports F. Captain Handy (pictured below) led from the front with his second hat-trick of the campaign and Iliffe and Blackmore bagged a brace apiece.

Div 3 saw the other two 8-2 scorelines. The F team (Sylvia Smith, Mike Roberts & Steve Cheesman) improved on their first round draw against second from bottom Nimrod A in their own back yard this time. Cheesman came up with yet another hat-trick and Smith and Roberts won a couple each.

The G team (Mike Toole, Graham Underwood & Dave Sutton) overturned their first round 4-6 defeat against Bmth Sports K thanks to hat-tricks from new signing Toole and Sutton who was playing up a division. Captain Underwood chipped in with the one win and joined with Toole to take the doubles to make it 8-2.

Sutton deserves a special mention as the previous evening his hat-trick for his own H team in Div 4 helped them hold second from bottom Nimrod B to a 5-5 draw at Mudeford Wood. Sutton has only dropped one game for his own team so far this season.  Full results appear below:-
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Four teams from the New Milton Table Tennis Club were involved in Round 2 of the Annual Times & Directory Handicap Cup last week, with two of them progressing into the quarter-finals.

The F team (Steve Cheesman, Malcolm Nash & Ian Linney) disposed of their clubmates in the L team in Round 1 and did likewise to their A team (Umit Kaya, Brian Vibert & Steve Hemmings) to book their place in the quarter-finals. Things looked promising for the Premier’s A team as they went 2-1 up, but they then went 2-4 down against their club mates from Div 3, needing Vibert to beat Linney to stay in the match. Linney playing off a +14 start up to 21 beat Vibert 21-15 in the first set but Vibert did tremendously well to scrape the second 21-20 to set up a tantalising finale. Bit by bit, Vibert heroicly ate into the handicap but Linney held out to take it 21-19 to secure victory for the F’s.  Pictured below is the F team’s Steve Cheesman who won both his matches:-

The C team (Div 1) gave themselves a mountain to climb by turning up a player short against Div 2’s Merton F and it was all over very quickly as they lost 1-5. Paul Iliffe won the first singles, but Captain Frank Handy had to give an 8 start to Merton’s very experienced Graham Blake and lost 11-21, 8-21. Iliffe needed to beat the very useful Geoff Cherrill to keep his side in the match and took the first set 21-10, but lost the next two 15-21, 19-21, so that was that.

The H team (Lewis Reading, Dave Sutton & Les Smith) had a 3 game start as Merton C from Div 1 turned up a player short. Milton who usually ply their trade in Div 4 won the “Plate” competition last season and are looking for great things in the Cup proper this season. Reading saw off both Merton players and Sutton beat Darren Bellis to romp home 6-3.

New Milton still also have five teams in the consolation “Plate” competition and all have received “byes” into the second round to be played Week Commencing 30^th January.

The G team (Graham Underwood, Mike Toole & Dave Sutton) played their rearranged Div 3 league match against a struggling Nimrod A and put them to the sword 8-2 in their own back yard. Toole returned to the club after many year’s absence to pick up an impressive hat-trick without dropping a single set, Sutton joined him in a treble and captain Underwood bagged a brace to take the maximum four points. Full results details are below:-

TIMES & DIRECTORY HANDICAP CUP (ROUND 2)

New Milton A (Prem) 2 New Milton F (Div 3) 5

(A Team: Umit Kaya 0, Brian Vibert 1, Steve Hemmings 1)

(F Team: Steve Cheesman 2, Malcolm Nash 1, Ian Linney 2)

New Milton C (Div 1) 1 Merton F (Div 2) 5

(Paul Iliffe 1, Frank Handy 0)

Merton C (Div 1) 3 New Milton H (Div 4) 6

(Lewis Reading 2, Dave Sutton 1, Les Smith 0)

LEAGUE – DIVISION 3

Nimrod A 2 New Milton G 8

(Graham Underwood 2, Mike Toole 3, Dave Sutton 3)

The New Milton Table Tennis Club entered 11 teams in the Bournemouth and District league this season and the Christmas break gives the opportunty to reflect on their progress over the first 11 weeks.

The A team captained by Steve Hemmings came runners-up in the Premier league last season and are currently lying in fourth place on 30 points having only dropped two matches, only 2 points behind Merton A. The A team welcome back Umit Kaya after a long absence especially as he came up with hat-tricks in his last two matches. The B team team led by John Millward have only won one match this season and at 11 points are only 1 point above second from bottom Lynwood A.

In Div 1, the C team captained by Frank Handy are flying high in third place on 31 points and have won their last two matches with 10-0 full-houses. The team has benefited from excellent new signings Andy Tipsana and Rob Blackmore together with Paul Iliffe who was voted the club’s most improved player last season.

The D team captained by Terry Jenvey were relegated from Div 1 last season and are also struggling in Div 2 this season having only won two matches. On 13 points, the same as Breamore, Milton are second from bottom due to adverse games difference. The E team, however, are on 27 points and are sitting comfortably mid table buoyed up by the consistently good form of 18 year old Peter Daish.

Malcolm Nash’s F team won Div 4 last season and are giving a good account of themselves in Div 3 and are lying in mid table on 20 points.. They continue to be buoyed up by brilliant performances from last season’s new signing Steve Cheesman who has only lost 3 games so far this season.

Also in Div 3, the G team have only 1 point less than the F team but are only kept off second from bottom by a better games difference than Nimrod A, showing how tight that division is. Interestingly, the Gees, ably captained by Graham Underwood, have a game in hand which is against Nimrod A whom they beat 7-3 first time around. Watch this space!

The club’s major success story comes in Div 4 as the H team led by Les Smith are top of the table on 30 points, 5 points higher than Winton YMCA C. Dave Sutton made a welcome return to the club after a break and has only lost one game so far this season.

Also in Div 4, Lynn Willrich’s J team have struggled since excellent new signing Ben Greene departed for three months holidaying in Japan. They are third from bottom on 15 points but are well clear from Nimrod B who have only accrued 4 points. The Jays should receive a lift once Greene returns from the Land of the Rising Sun.

Malcolm Douglas’ K team occupy the second from top place in Div 5 on 26 points albeit leaders Winton YMCA E are 18 points clear on 44 points. The Kays only lost 2 matches first time around, but have already lost their first 2 matches in the second round, so they need to step up a gear to keep themselves away from the chasing pack.

The L team came bottom of Div 5 last season but have done very well to occupy 6^th place so far this season on 22 points. Ably captained by Stuart Burton, the team has benefited from new signings Maggie Brown and Boy Wonder Adam Titcombe.  The full set of  BDTTA league tables appear below:-
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