Usual suspects shine

Table tennis stars put competition on notice

Mount Gambier Table Tennis Club continued its Winter season last week, with some of the usual suspects serving notice to the rest of the competition that they mean business.

The first A Grade battle saw Sweet versus Sweet, with Three Stooges player Travis facing off against his mother Sirinat’s Wobblies.

The junior Sweet set the tone early with a 4-game win over Wobblies player Robin Pellen, and went on to keep his sheet clean including an anticlimactic triumph over Sirinat in the last rubber of the match.

Travis’ efforts ensured the Stooges marched to a convincing 7-4 victory, with Kevin Patzel also going undefeated on the night. The second of the A Grade contests was even more lopsided, Leigh Barry keeping his singles record intact to power his Freeballers team to a resounding demolition job of Chandler Jantosh’s Wanderers by a scoreline of 9 rubbers to 2.

Barry was well supported by teammates Ward Freeman and Justin Hitchesson who also had solid nights for the victors, whilst the only positive for the Wanderers was Rohan Hardcastle’s gritty 5-game come-from-behind victory over Freeman.

The first B1 match was a tight tussle between Johnny McBain’s McHallebert and David HarrisJones’ Net Ninjas. The contest seesawed all night, a string of three victories for the Ninjas through the middle section of the match was swiftly cancelled out by three to McHallebert, giving the latter an unassailable six wins.

Net Ninjas player Harris-Jones scored a late consolation win over McBain in a dead rubber, making the scoreline appear closer than it really was, Ninjas taking it out 6-5. Harris-Jones was the only player of either team to post a clean sheet. Led by the formidable combination of Mark and Dale Bachmann, who both kept a clean sheet, I’ll Be Bach had no such difficulty taking care of Gary Hocking’s Late For Dinner in the second B2 match.

Dale Bachmann didn’t have it all his way in his encounter with Late For Dinner’s Eoin McIluff, the two combatants going tit for tat throughout until Bachmann eventually prevailed 13-11 in the deciding fifth game.

Ultimately I’ll Be Bach scored a landside 9-2 victory. A brave Heather McGregor, usually playing in C Grade, dipped her toe into B2 competition when she was called on to fill in for the depleted Willies team for their match against Joel Shafer’s Campers.

McGregor looked like causing a major boilover at the very start, leading Campers player Lenny Van Der Linde by 2 games to nil. Van Der Linde regained his composure however, wresting momentum in the third to eventually wear his opponent down and score a relieving 5-game victory.

Schafer went through the night undefeated as the Campers eventually posted a 7-4 win. Marga Steele was the best performer for the Willies. The final B Grade contest of the night saw Allan Withers’ Jams lead from start to finish, running out comfortable 8-3 winners over Kylie Boston’s The Richards.

Jedda Hardcastle was the star of the night with a clean sheet for the victors, strongly supported by Withers, while Boston and Richard Horrigan fought valiantly for The Richards.

A fired up and vocal Matthew Scott did his utmost to lift his Mixed Up team against Tracey Rawlings’ Beware B Nice in their C Grade battle.

With overall scores locked away at 5 rubbers apiece going into the final rubber, Scott and Rawlings stepped in to square off for their respective teams.

Rawlings drew first blood, claiming the first game 11 points to 9, before Scott took control in the second, unsettling his opponent with his chaotic energy.

The pressure situation overcame Rawlings as she regularly missed regulation shots, gifting Scott an easy 4-game victory.

Bellissimo got off to the perfect start in their C Grade encounter with JAD’s Army, Pier Varasso and Annaliese Holtz victorious in their respective opening singles rubbers.

Holtz remarkably overcame a 2-0 deficit against the Army’s Angus Billing, storming home to claim a 5-game thriller.

Throughout the night just as one team appeared to gain the ascendency the other would fight back. Billing would be forced to play another 5-game energy sapper late in the piece, drawing on all his determination to overcome plucky newcomer Kobi Gilbertson. JAD’s Army player Jarrah Schafer was the hero of the night, maintaining a clean sheet to inspire his team to a close 6-5 win.

3-rubber winners:

• A Grade: Leigh Barry (Free Ballers); Travis Sweet, Kevin Patzel (Three Stooges).

• B1 Grade: David Harris-Jones (Net Ninjas); Mark Bachmann, Dale Bachmann (I’ll Be Bach).

• B2-Grade: Joel Schafer (Campers); Jedda Hardcastle (Jams).

• C Grade: Jarrah Schafer (JAD’s Army); Matthew Scott (Mixed Up)