DATELINE

There were plenty of shocks in this year's M&G Investments Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League Annual Closed Tournament. After a Mens Singles event full of surprises former Champions Dave Cole and Rik James are joined at the Semi-Final stage by George Reeves and Tony Halling. The biggest upset of the weekend occurred in Group five of the Mens Singles where Alistair Piper beat the number three seed and many people's favourite for the title - Vytas Rybakas, 3-1. Although Vytas qualified in second place from this group and managed to beat Kevin Read (3-1) and Steve Kerns (3-0) this just wasn't his day. He was no match for the lightning quick Tony Halling in his Quarter-Final where Tony sailed through 11-6, 11-3, 11-7. There were no such problems for Rik James who was a 3-1 winner over Adrian Pitt in the second round and he came through 11-4, 13-11, 11-6 in his Quarter-Final against Peter Ballard. Likewise, Dave Cole was also very impressive and he ran out a Winner after three tight games against Paul Davison. They will be joined by George Reeves who came through the Quarter of the draw vacated by Vytas. George was an excellent 3-1 winner over Steve Joslin and he made no mistake as he beat Gary Young 11-5, 11-6, 11-7 with a very forceful display to book his Finals Night appearance.

Tony Halling of Rawreth looked really sharp in the Men's Singles
and will be looking for two titles on Finals Night as he bids for the
U21 & Men's Singles crown

The M&G Investments Chelmsford & District Table Tennis League Finals Night takes place on Monday 13 February 2006 at the Old Chelmsfordians Association, Lawford Lane, Chelmsford at 19.30 hours and the action will begin with the Mens Singles Semi-Finals where Dave Cole faces George Reeves and Rik James meets "new-kid on the block" Tony Halling. Admission is free.

Two of the firm favourites whichever way you look at it for Finals Night. Dave Cole (ECC) and Rik James (Bocking) will both feature in the Men's Singles semi-finals and also in the Men's Doubles Final where they must start as hot favourites being former champions.

Julie Vansertima will be aiming to win an unprecedented sixteenth Ladies Singles title. Her Final opponent will be the hard-hitting County Junior Laura Pyman who came through her Semi-Final with a 3-0 victory over Melanie Bonnett. Julie had a tougher time in her penultimate match and she needed all her guile and experience to dispose of Jean Chasmer 3-1. A determined Jean put up a fine showing before losing 7-11, 11-9, 11-8, 11-6. Julie will be favourite to make it four titles, as she has already annexed the Ladies Doubles title (for a fourteenth time) and the Two-Down Singles Crown. Paired with regular partner Jean Chasmer, they came through a real struggle in the Ladies Doubles Final before they beat the impressive scratch pairing of Laura Pyman and Janet Pannell 9-11, 11-4, 4-11, 11-5, 11-9.

As a scratch pairing
Laura Pyman (Baddow Village) & Janet Pannell (Danbury)
put in a fantastic effort in the Ladies Doubles final, just losing out in the 5th end. Laura will also be bidding for her first ever Ladies Singles title on Finals Night, but she has a real mountain to climb to get it!

Julie was also involved in the most dramatic encounter of the whole weekend where she and Dave Cole just scraped through a superb all-action Mixed Doubles Semi-Final against Rik James and Holly Stubbings. Great point followed great point before Julie and Dave finally edged home 11-13, 11-9, 15-17, 11-7, 14-12. Their opponents in the Final will be Melanie Bonnett and Steve Kerns who scored an excellent first-round 3-1 win over last year's Runners-Up Paul Davison and Jean Chasmer and a rather nervy Semi-Final success over Danbury team-mates Janet Pannell and Neil Want.

They may start as underdogs in the
Mixed Doubles Final on Finals Night
but maybe it's time
for an upset?
Melanie Bonnett (Elmtree) and Steve Kerns (ECC) might just pull it off?

Dave Cole and Rik James were the obvious Favourites in the Mens Doubles and they duly booked their Final appearance. However, they had to fight hard to see off Adrian and Sam Pitt 3-1 and they had a real struggle before they came through their Semi-Final 11-5, 11-13, 7-11, 11-9, 11-6 against Steve Joslin and Paul Davison. They will meet the impressive new pairing from Rawreth - Tony Halling and Charles Sweeney in the Final. It was a very close call before Tony and Charles edged out Hamish Innes and Peter Ballard 7-11, 11-9, 10-12, 11-7, 12-10 in the Quarter-Final although they made slightly easier work of Jon Hill and Steve Kerns in the Semi-Final where they came through 11-7, 11-7, 5-11, 11-9.

Top seed Rik James dominated the Veterans Over 40s Singles imposing his class on the event from the outset. He was an assured 11-9, 11-4, 11-9 winner over Peter Ballard and an untroubled 11-7, 11-9, 11-5 winner over Steve Kerns. He will be joined in the Final by his old school friend - Peter Hayden, a Winner of the Under 21 Singles back in 1984. Peter produced some excellent tactical play to dispose of Hamish Innes 11-9, 15-13, 11-9 and Ian Whiteside 11-9, 10-12, 11-5, 11-7. Hamish Innes had come through a superb attack versus defence marathon in round two when he just edged out Eric Green 9-11, 11-4, 7-11, 11-5, 13-11.

The Tournament's newest event, the Over 40 Doubles was won by the favourites Rik James and Peter Hayden. They were never really in trouble in the Final and it was only in the third game that they came under pressure from Hamish Innes and Peter Ballard before they ran out 11-3, 11-2, 16-14 winners. Hamish and Peter seem to have used up all their of their luck in their previous encounters. They just edged out Ken James and Keith Spicer 11-7, 9-11, 11-5, 10-12, 12-10 and it was an even closer call a round later where they saw off Gary Ward/Trevor Carter 6-11, 11-5, 3-11, 11-4, 16-14.

Top-seeded Peter Ballard became the third player to win the Over 60 Singles title. His hardest test was in the final against fellow defender Ian Whiteside who contested a hard-fought match for the first three ends before capsizing in the fourth end. Peter eventually ran out a 11-5, 6-11, 11-9, 11-2 winner.

The top two seeds Vytas Rybakas and Tony Halling will contest the Under 21 Singles Final on Finals Night. Tony required four ends to beat both Haydn Upson and Alistair Hill. Vytas looked to be in deep trouble in his Semi-Final when he fell 2-0 behind against a determined Simon Webber and although he raised his game sufficiently to triumph 9-11, 7-11, 11-5, 11-4, 11-9 this clearly wasn't one of his better days.

No.3 seed, Vytas Rybaka (Elmtree)
did not have the happiest of tournaments. Still he came away with the U18 Singles title and will be bidding for the U21 Singles title on Finals Night. The match against Tony Halling (Rawreth) could be an explosive affair.

There were plenty of shocks in the Two-Down Singles. Steve Northcott started the ball rolling with a five game win over top seed Eric Green in the second round and he scored two more good wins, downing Mike Johnson (3-1) and Alistair Piper (3-1) before falling to the vastly improved Dave Calleja 3-2 in the Semi-Final. Calleja had done well to dispose of Keith Spicer 3-0 a round earlier. Julie Vansertima dominated the other half of the draw with victories over Colin Powell (3-0), Norman Smith (3-1), Adrian Pitt (3-1) and in the Semi-Final she saw off Gary Brignall 3-2. Dave raced into a two-nil lead in the Final, but thereafter it was Julie who always looked the more comfortable and she eventually ran out a 6-11, 9-11, 11-6, 11-5, 11-7 winner, the first Lady to take the title.

Bradley Hudgell excelled in the Four-Down Singles and he came through stern tests to take a very well earned title. He saw off Tom Hill 11-6, 11-3, 8-11, 11-9, then top seed Gary Copsey 11-9, 3-11, 11-4, 14-16, 11-6 and his Final victim was second seed Russell Forde where he ran out a 11-3, 12-10, 10-12, 11-4 winner. Last year's Six Down Champion and this year's Four Down Winner who would bet against Bradley striking Gold in next year's Two Down Tournament?

There's no doubt that 15yr old Bradley Hudgell pulled off one of the best performances by a junior player in the tournament as he stormed through the two top seeds to snatch the 4Down Singles title on his first season at this higher level.

Peter Sun, the top seed ran out the Winner in the Six Down Singles. He was tested at the Semi-Final stage where Adam Pitt only succumbed 8-11, 11-7, 8-11, 11-13 and he didn't have it all his own way in the Final against James Cheesman where James went down fighting 10-12,10-12, 5-11. The hard-hitting James Stapley had upset the seedings ousting second seed David Gatherall 3-2 before falling 3-0 to Cheesman.

Vytas Rybakas made sure he doesn't go home empty handed as he retained his Junior Boys Singles title for a fourth successive year. Controversially seeded straight into the Final he made no mistake in defeating Bradley Hudgell 11-5, 11-3, 8-11, 11-7 to take the title. Bradley had done well to reach that stage and he came past Tom Hill 3-2 after a hard-fought Semi-Final encounter.

Results were reversed in the Under 16 Singles and this time it was an inform Tom Hill who emerged as a 3-1 Final Winner over Bradley Hudgell. Tom had come through really tight battles against Philip Twite (3-2) and top seed Greg Green (3-1) and by the time he reached the Final Tom was clearly going to be a difficult man to beat. So it proved, and he hit the Jack-Pot!

Greg Green equalled a record last achieved by Peter Hayden in the early 1980s. He won the Junior Doubles for a third successive year and with a third different partner. This time he was joined by Holly Stubbings and they sailed through to take the title, only dropping one game en route to the Final when they required four games to get the better of Colin Matthews and Danny Pettit in the first round. Their Final opponents were Tom Hill and Hannah Pitt and after winning a tense first end 15-13, they ran out as 11-3, 11-5 Champions. With two more years left in the Junior age group one wonders whether Greg will be looking towards using a different partner again next season or the year after?

Greg Green (Hatfield Peverel) & Holly Stubbings (ECC)
were virtually untroubled on the way to taking the
Junior Doubles title.
Holly also took the
Junior Girls Singles with a confident display against fellow Girls British League team member, Laura Pyman.

Holly Stubbings added a second title by capturing the Junior Girls Singles trophy. Her big test came in the last game of a keenly contested Round Robin event and she fought back from losing the first end to get the better of Laura Pyman 9-11, 11-8, 11-9, 11-6. Laura made sure of second place by beating both Lorna Staff and Hannah Pitt, but her win over Hannah by a 11-9, 9-11, 11-4, 13-11 margin wasn't without a few anxious moments.

The Favourites for the Under 14 Singles, the unrelated Pitts - Adam and Hannah did not disappoint and it was Adam who came through to take the title with an 11-3, 11-8, 11-6 win over Hannah. Both players fought their way through to the Final without dropping a game, and Adam saw off Kane Lambert 11-7, 11-5, 11-9 and Stevie Pell 11-7, 11-4, 11-3. Hannah managed to keep Scott Dowsett at bay winning 11-8, 11-6, 11-7 and she beat Gavin Trod 11-7, 11-3, 11-7 at the Semi-Final stage.

The Junior Handicap Singles featured some very well contested battles and Dacre Pell (-7) always looked a likely contender for glory. His first big test came in the Semi-Final stage where he needed all five games before he emerged as a 6-11, 6-11, 12-10, 13-11, 12-10 winner over Freya Herzberg (+7) and he eventually became the Champion by defeating Tommy O'Donnell (-6) 5-11, 8-11, 11-7, 11-6, 12-10 in a very well contested Final.

Dacre Pell (ECC), another junior who is showing tremendous potential, captured the Junior Handicap Singles title. But as the scoreline shows he certainly didn't have matters all his own way.

ECC's Keith Spicer took the Senior Handicap Singles title played using the old 21-Up scoring system. Keith ran out a comfortable 21-15, 21-3 winner over an exhausted Eric Green in the Final whilst the Handicap Doubles was won by the two Neils - Freeman and Gooday, who claimed the title with a 21-12, 21-19 victory over Richard Hiskey and Gary Ward. It was pleasing to see that many of the Handicap games were very keenly contested with many games decided by the closest possible margins.

	Obviously the 21up scoring system still suits some! In particular Keith Spicer (ECC) who won the Handicap Singles.
	Pictures by Arthur C Clark Studios ETTA Authorised Photographer