NEWSLETTER - December 2016
Welcome to the latest newsletter from Newton Abbot Table Tennis Club and a particular welcome to the many new faces who have recently joined us.
Christmas closure
Our last sessions before Christmas will be on Friday 16th Dec & Saturday 17th Dec, then we will have a two week break returning on Friday 6th Jan & Saturday 7th Jan 2017. Enjoy your Christmas & New Year!
NA Buzzards visiting the Coca Cola lorry and sampling the delights of Exeter Christmas market
South Devon & Torbay Table Tennis League
Excellent performances have come from all of our 8 teams we have playing in the local League.
Division One – NA Batmen sit in 2nd place with the Buzzards in 4th. Great individual performances from our coaches Dennis Gibbs and Kevin Nicholls who sit just behind Kris Piwowar at the top of the averages, and Kelvin Cheung and Shaun Gibbs also feature in the top 8 players.
NA Buzzards Kevin Nicholls & Jon Cheung v NA Batmen Shaun & Dennis Gibbs
Division Two –NA Eagles trail just 3 points behind leaders Torbay Academy 3 after the first round of matches with all 3 regular players, Andy Tyrrell, Ed Crawford and Jim McIvor featuring in the top 8 of the averages
Division Three – NA Hawks lead the 3rd Division table, with Doug Morgan and Ben Swettenham 3rd & 4th in the averages. NA Falcons have had player availability issues most of the season but are picking up valuable points and sit in 6th place (many thanks to the reserves who have helped in fulfilling fixtures).
N A Hawks’ David Doxsey & Ben Swettenham winning a recent doubles v Torbay Academy 4
Division Four – NA Ospreys are currently in the runners-up spot, with the Kites and Owls also doing well. Ospreys’ skipper Dale Fabian leads the averages with the Owls’ Travis Graham in 2nd place. The Ospreys’Luke Robins has won 9 out of 9 sets he’s played (not enough games played to feature in the averages). Great to have a family team competing in the 4th Division. Team Bayliss (Owls) Dad Rob, and sons Dylan and Rowan, are improving all the time and will be a force to reckon with as the season progresses, they are being assisted this season by an on-form Travis Graham.
Club Sessions – These remain extremely popular, particularly on Friday nights, and together with the League matches being played in the Dance Studio we regularly have over 40 players enjoying their table tennis at Teign School on Fridays. Saturdays is a bit quieter but with a good recent influx of newcomers this session is now getting very popular again. Apologies to all, particularly the youngsters, as it is increasingly difficult to spend much time with you all on the coaching front especially on a Friday night when most of our coaches are involved in league matches.
Coaches
The coaching team above are supported by many other experienced players who are happy to help those who want to improve their game.
Tables – The club have acquired 3 excellent second-hand tables from Exeter, which gives us a total of 12 match quality tables, with a further 7 school tables if required.
Sessions open to all - We continue to attract players from other clubs to join us at our sessions at Teign, to benefit from our excellent facilities, and gain some extra practice. The cost of 3-hour sessions remains at £3.50 for adults and £2.50 for juniors with further reductions for families. There is no membership fee and absolutely everyone is welcome to come along and join in.
Give it a go, for free – Come and join us,we are particularly keen to encourage beginners, females and those just wishing to get more active, at our Saturday morning sessions from 9.00 – 12.00. See who you can bring along! Remember your first trial session is free.
Table Tennis Bats– we have found a good supplier of quality rubbers and blades from China, making new bats and replacement rubbers far more affordable. ie blades from £8 each and rubbers from £3 each. Have a chat with Tony and maybe have a go with some of the bats he has made up.
Website – The website is constantly updated with useful information. Team details, fixture lists, contact details and newsletters, together with all the club’s policies, codes of conduct etc. If you have anything that you would like to see added to the website or any ideas for improving it, then please speak to me(Tony), or send an email.
Facebook – Check out our Facebook page for weekly updates on how our teams are progressing in the league. Please feel free to contribute items and photos.
Club Volunteer of the year – Many thanks for your support in my gaining this award, most embarrassing!! As with any club it is not all down to one person, and I thank everyone for their help and support. The club has come a long way in just over 3 years and with your continued support will continue to grow.
A link to this newsletter is sent to all those players who have attended our practice sessions at Teign School in the last few months. If you do not wish to be included on my circulation list please let me know. tonyhalse@hotmail.com
Link to South Devon & Torbay Website for all fixtures and results in the local league www.tabletennis365.com/southdevonandtorbay
