Finalists decided for Autumn table tennis season

The last regular round of the Mount Gambier Table Tennis Autumn season was played this week, with this week’s finals spots still up for grabs in two of the three grades.

Scott Davies stepped in to substitute for Villains in their A Grade encounter with Chandler Jantosh’s Trotters. Jantosh and Felix Owusu both triumphed in their opening singles rubbers to give Trotters a 2-0 start, before Villains player Sirinat Sweet claimed victory in 5 enthralling games against Robin Pellen.

Trotters extended their lead out to 4-1 and managed to keep their opponents at bay for the remainder of the match, a later flurry of wins to Sweet and Davies not enough to snatch victory, Trotters gettinghome by 6 rubbers to 5.

The other A Grade match was even more decisive, Leigh Barry recording another clean sheet to guide his Toffees to a comfortable 7-4 win over Ben Newman’s Rovers. Newman was the best performer for his side. Barry’s Toffees will now square off against Scott Davies’ regular team, the Gunners, in this week’s A Grade decider.

With the B Grade finalists already decided, all matches this week were simply for pride.

Potter player Sarah Thomson showed her class, keeping her singles record intact on the night to help her team to a narrow win against Nathan Schubert’s Hammers. Potters jumped out to a 4-1 lead before Hammers clawed their way back thanks to inspired determination from Schubert and Cameron Beal. With scores locked away at 5 rubbers apiece, Thomson prevailed in four close games over Beal to give Potters the 6-5 victory.

Spurred on by undefeated performance by Gary Hocking and Youssef Malicdem, Spurs recorded a dominant victory over Andrew Telford’s Baggies. Telford and Alistair Earl tried valiantly but they found themselves fighting an uphill battle all night, the Spurs proving much to strong and ultimately recording an easy 9-2 win.

Allan Withers, Alex McGregor and Joel Schafer all won their opening singles rubbers to give the Red Devils the perfect start to their battle against Rob Halleday’s Cottagers, but a victory to Jedda Hardcastle sparked a remarkable comeback for the Cottagers, they went on to win 6 of the last 7 rubbers of the night for 6-5 overall victory. The Hammers will now face the Cottagers for the B Grade title this week.

Chris McGregor’s Clarets, who this week had the bye, had to rely on Tracey Rawlings’ Wolves beating Deakin Lofthouse’s Canaries to have any chance of making the C Grade final. The Canaries were having none of it though. Lofthouse, John Malicdem, Lorraine Halleday and Jarrah Schaffer all brought their “A-game” from the very first toss-up, the Canaries charging to an incredable 9-0 lead before Wolves player Keith Pryor finally salvaged some respectability for his team with a victory over Halleday. The Canaries 10-1 demolition job means they now go on to this week’s C Grade final where they will meet Aravind Bablu’s Blades, who also made it through with a strong win over Lenny Van Der Linde’s Rams.

Bablu was the star for the victors, keeping his singles sheet clean, while Van Der Linde closed out an ultimately heartbreaking season with another strong individual performance.

Registrations are now open for the Winter season, commencing on July 26. Mount Gambier Table Tennis Club is always welcoming of new players of all ages, experience, and capability. Practice is held at 7pm on Monday nights, and competition is at 7pm on Wednesday nights at the Mount Gambier Showgrounds Hall. To register your interest, please contact the club at [email protected] or find the club’s Facebook page, or just come along on a Monday night and speak to a friendly welcoming committee member.

3-Rubber winners
A Grade: Sirinat Sweet (Villains); Leigh Barry (Toffees)

B Grade: Gary Hocking, Youssef Malicdem (Spurs); Sarah Thomson (Potters).

C Grade: Aravind Bablu (Blades); Deakin Lofthouse, John Malicdem, Jarrah Schafer (Canaries)

LAST MINOR ROUND: Felix Owusu in action