Last week saw the first round of matches played in the Northumbria Summer League and in the top division new team Kimblesworth Rockets took full advantage of Byker A not fielding any of their registered first team players to win 9-1 with Peter Smallcombe and Max Duffin winning three each and Dan Hutchinson two as well as the doubles. Steve Dickinson for Byker saving the whitewash winning one. Mount TTC which is last years Sringwell playing at a new venue also recorded a 9-1 win against Riding Mill with Tony Gelder, Lee Eadington and Duncan Wraight being unbeaten and only losing the doubles. A point of note was that Gelder had to play his wife Shirley who is a member of the Riding Mill squad in this match!! Last year’s Champions Cramlington Stingers only won 6-4 against The Chinese Community team NECA which included the talented student currently at Newcastle University Chun Yin Yu who won his three, Robin Francis another student at the university getting the other for NECA. Dale Aitkenhead played his first match for the Stingers after a nine-month absence having had a knee replacement last August winning two. 

In Division 4 it’s good to see Cramlingtons policy of blooding young players in the Summer as all three of the winning Falcons team had never played a league match before. They won 7-3 against NESLC and Israel Shodeinde was man of the match winning three supported by Jack Cairns with two and Alfie Davies one. 

Next week sees several Veteran players from the North East heading off to Alicante to take part in the World Championships from the 23^rd to 29^th of May. Eddie Smith, Jim Stamas, Geoff Salter, Paul Stead, Dave Godbold and Karen Henry all playing in age categories for the chance to be World Champion