kannan nithi
11 November, 2024
Sport

Reunion for former Sibford trio on opposing sides

Ratley A slipped to a surprisingly heavy 9-1 defeat against Millennium A. Jack Shardlow and Jack Garner were undefeated in their singles and won the doubles, while Peter Harris chipped in with two points. Brian Hobill picked up a consolation lone point for the home team.

Table Tennis photo by Lisa Keffer

Tadmarton A are now the only undefeated team in Division 1 and only two points off the top with two games in hand. They overcame stubborn resistance from Bodicote B to come away with a 7-3 victory. Phil Blowey impressed for Bodicote with two wins against higher ranked opponents. Kannan Nithi fell agonisingly short against Jason Tustain, saving five match points before going down 13-11 in the deciding 5th set. Another five-setter in the doubles saw Blowey and Nithi just edge it 11-9 at the end. Bodicote A defeated their club C team 7-3. Gary Jackson completed another clean sweep, supported by Roald Myers with two wins and a single win from Toby Dow. Paul Rowan picked up two wins for the C team. Millennium B have strengthened their squad this season with the return of Phil Beesley to the league. However, this was not enough to stop visitors Ratley B winning 8-2.  John Price continued his recent run of good form with three wins, while Earl Sweeney reversed a recent run of surprise defeats to also win all of his singles. Clive Irwin added a point and combined with Sweeney to win the doubles.

In Division 2 Shutford A remain unbeaten, after a 7-3 away win against Tadmarton B. The match saw a reunion for Paul Waller, Pete Jackson and Sean O’Keeffe more than a decade after they used to regularly top the league from their legendary venue in Sibford. On this occasion O’Keeffe was playing against his former teammates, he picked up 2 points was unable to overcome Waller who was unbeaten on the night. Andrew Sabin and Nicholas Walker scored two wins apiece for the visitors. Bloxham A, also undefeated, top the table after a 9-1 win against a depleted Millennium C side. Shipston B defeated Bodicote E 8-2. The final scoreline did not reflect a number of very close matches; the opening singles set the tone for the night with game scores of 19-17, 10-12, 19-17 and 12-10 for Yao Fu against Christopher Dickens. Fu picked up Bodicote’s only other win on the night, while Nick Morgan was undefeated for Shipston, Dickens won his other two matches and Tadge Sabatowski picked up another two points. Bodicote D defeated Bodicote F 7-3, Martin Bird led the way with three wins, Peter Fernbank added two points and Janice Rowan another, while Jason Crocker picked up two wins for the F team.

In Division 3, Ratley C were too strong for Shutford C winning 10-0 with wins for Piotr Grysakowski, Ben Pick and Colin Simpson. Bloxham B went down 4-6 against their C team. Ian Critchley and Paul Harris scored two wins apiece for the B team, while Richard Anstis and Lewis Genney with 2 wins apiece in addition to the doubles and Malcom Charles with a further win ensured that Bloxham C came out on top. Alan Smith scored three wins for Bodicote H, but still ended up on the losing side as they went down 4-6 against Bodicote G.