The week’s fixtures in Division One of the Hastings & District Table Tennis League served only to emphasise the gap between the leading group and the lower half of the table.
Leaders Hollington Academy A returned to winning ways with an emphatic 10-0 defeat of Bexhillians D with Paul Barry, returning from a seven week absence,
Andy Furnival and Basher Obeyed unbeaten. Bexhill provided some unexpected resistance early in the match with Brian Beaney losing out 14-12 in the fifth to Furnival and Trevor Towner leading Obeyed 2-1 before losing in five games.
Bexhillians A (Martin Kellaway, Rob Warner, David Rayment) matched their rivals with a 10-0 dismissal of Bexhillians B with the losers’ Yotza Krstic closest to breaking their duck with a tight five-game loss to Kellaway.
Bexhill B suffered more than most as they returned to the table 24 hours later to face another top team in Saints A. This time they went one better, going down 9-1 with Dave Butler and James Winchester unbeaten and Andy Syrett winning twice for Saints. Andy Summers took Bexhill’s consolation but John Ellis provided most entertainment, leading Winchester 6-1 in the decider before the Saints man reeled off ten consecutive points to win. Ellis also came back from 2-0 down to level against Syrett before fading in the second half of the fifth.
Saints A also beat Saints B 9-1, when once again Butler and Winchester won three and Syrett two. Ron Davenport picked up the win for the B side. Butler was immaculate in both matches, not dropping a game.
Dark horses Hollington Academy B are in third place, two points ahead of Saints A, after beating Tackleway B 10-0. Rose Rainton, Sam Collins and Robin Gibbs were unbeaten while Adrian Goodrum came closest to an upset for Tackleway.
Bexhillians C beat Tigers A 9-1 with maximums from Graham Gillett and John Wilson and two from Alan McCleave. Sheila King picked up Tigers’ win, coming from 2-1 down to beat McCleave.
Two-man Hollington Academy C still managed to beat Tackleway A 6-4 with three wins for Nick Standen and two for Scott Bills. The Academics had to fight all the way with three of the first four matches requiring a fifth game and all going to Academy before Roy Funnell beat Bills in the last set of the match.
