14th February 2017 Match Reports

As anticipated the Eastern Valley Table Tennis League Division One title will be decided by the last match of the season, the rearranged match between YMCA Preachers and Cwmbran Blues. The Preachers are 16 points behind the joint current leaders Cwmbran Aztecs and Bristol Nomads, whilst the Blues are in the favourites position being only 6 points behind the leaders.

In the latest round of matches the Aztecs beat Blaenavon Aces 23 - 8. For the Aztecs both Tony Collins and Mark Edmunds won their 3 matches but it was Collins who secured the player of the match award. The highlight of the match was the win for the Aztecs Iestyn Howells over Bethany Brewer in 5 sets. Howells was guesting for the Aztecs from Division Two.

The other match in Division One saw the Blues take a giant step towards winning the title by beating the Nomads 23 - 15 in a very competitive match. The Blues were thankful to a player of the match performance from David D Lloyd with his 3 wins. Lloyd was well supported by Mark Farrow with 2 wins and Roger Grech, with 7 points. For the Nomads Peter Gordon had 2 good wins over the higher ranked Farrow and Grech.

The Division Two title has been won by Cwmbran Panthers who secured the top position with a 18-16 win over their nearest rivals Cwmbran Dynamos. Going into the final match of the night the teams were level 15-15, but the player of the match, Panthers' Mike Blatchford, saw off his opponent Richard Lownsbrough 3-1 to win the match for the Panthers. Blatchford was well supported by his team mates Yuri Cherkasenko and Howard Gaut and included a good win for Cherkasenko over the higher ranked Alex Jones. For the Dynamos Lownsbrough battled very well for his 2 wins and Will Smith-Haddon had a good win over the higher ranked Cherkasenko.

The 3rd and 4th positions were decided with the win for Cwmbran Fellows over Cwmbran Devils 22 - 9. For the Fellows there were 3 wins each for Wayne Ford and Chris Thomas but it was Ford who picked up the player of the match. For the Devils, guest player, Stephen Flannagan, was playing his first match of the season and he had a good win over Haydn Skinner. Another guest player Matthew Powell battled well for his 4 points.

The final match of the night was certainly the highlight of the season for the young North Gwent Cougars who secured their first win of the season by 16-15 over Cwmbran Eccentrics. In the final game Iestyn Howells beat the higher ranked Lincoln Alford 3-0 to provide his team with their debut win. Howells also picked up the player of the match award for his 3 wins. The match also saw another first with the Cougars Sam Slatter securing his first win of the season by defeating the experienced Alan Howse. For the Eccentrics both Alford and Matthew Powell picked up 2 wins each.

Author: via Gwent Table Tennis Club
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