Headline: 'Travellers A tighten their grip in Division 1 table tennis'

After the festive break and a well-earned rest, Table Tennis sprang back into action last week in the Fun88 sponsored Isle of Man Table Tennis League. 

Division 1

Travellers A (7) Ramsey A (2) 

Travellers A: Scott Lewis (3); Liam Chan (2); Malcolm Cummings (2)

Ramsey A: Chris Holland (2); Wael Kassim (0); Chris Holmes (0).

It was business as usual for table toppers Travellers A. Scott Lewis retained his 100% record and was unbeaten on the night. Ramsey A were not able to field Duncan Alexander, so Wael Kassim kindly stepped up to play, and acquitted himself well but ultimately lost 3-0 to Lewis, who then defeated Chris Holmes in 4 sets. Holmes did win the 3rd 11-8 but Lewis sealed it in the 4th 11-8. The match between Lewis and Ramsey's Chris Holland was perhaps the most eagerly awaited but this went the same way with Lewis winning the first 2 sets 11-8 and 11-4, only to drop the third 8-11, but he then came back to win the 4th 11-7. Elsewhere for Travellers, Liam Chan lost his 100% winning record, losing to Chris Holland in a counter-hitting masterclass, eventually losing in 4 sets, 8-11, 11-6, 5-11, 7-11. Chan then retrieved his night by defeating Holmes in 4 sets, and Kassim in 3. Malcolm Cummings was Traveller's 3rd player and held firm with his tough to beat block and loop game. He had a topsy turvy match with Kassim, winning the first 11-1 but then losing the second 9-11. He then won the 3rd game 11-5 and the 4th 11-7, to notch up another point for Travellers. Chris Holmes put up a tremendous fight against Cummings, winning the first two games 11-7 and 15-13, but Cummings then adjusted his tactics to fight back and he won the last 3 games 11-7, 11-1 and 11-9. A good result then for Travellers which solidifies their position at the top - they now have 73 points compared to Ramsey's 59, after 9 fixtures. 

Ramsey C (0) Strathallan (9) 

Ramsey C: William Dalugdugan (0)

Strathallan: Andrew Paterson (3); Wayne Taylor (3); Andrew Horne (3)

Ramsey C were similarly afflicted by absence and were thus only able to field one player. William Dalugdugan bravely stood his ground against the experienced 3 Strathallan players, and whilst he played well, he was unable to make any real dent in the opposition. Andy Horne made a rare appearance as stand-in for Julian Brierclife and used his long pip blocking game to good effect against young William. This was a really useful 9 points for Strathallan which takes them to 4th in table with 48 points.  

Desmonds Douglas A (0) Arbory (9)  

Desmonds Douglas A: Jim Travers (0); Russell Kent (0); Tommy Cowin (0)

Arbory: John Magnall (3); Mike Tamarov (3); Jason Quirk (3)

Bottom of the table Desmond's had a 'tough gig' here with the combined talent and experience of Arbory to face. Although the score on the night was 9-0 to Arbory, there were distinct pockets of resistance and good play from the Desmonds trio. Jim Travers took the first set of John Magnall 12-10, but was unable to resist the chop and short pip chop and drive game of Magnall, losing the next 3 games 8-11, 2-11 and 7-11. Travers followed this with a 5 setter against Mike Tamarov, with the latter pulling through 11-6 in the 5th. Finally, Travers was unable to cope with Jason Quirk, losing in 3 straight games. Tommy Cowin also put up a great fight against Magnall and whilst he lost in 3, each game was extremely close. The win keeps Arbory firmly in 3rd place in the table with 56 points. 

Travellers B (7) Ramsey B (2) 

Travellers B: John Shooter (3); Malc Lewis (2); William Shooter (2)

Ramsey B: Lisa Lord (0); Glenn Callow (2)

Ramsey B was also unable to field 3 players, and were without Tim Baker and Wael Kassim, so Lisa Lord bravely stood in as Player 2 here. Glenn Callow did well to win an important 2 points for Ramsey B by defeating firstly William Shooter in 4 games, and then Malc Lewis in an impressive straight sets win. Lisa put up some strong resistance, taking Lewis to 13-15 in their second game, but was unable to add to Glenn's points tally. This leaves Travellers B solidly in 5th place with 40 points after 9 fixtures, whilst Ramsey B sit a little adrift in 6th place on 32 points, but still well placed at this stage of the season. 

Division 2 

Peel A (5) Tower B (5)

Peel B: Stuart Mason (3); Ken Hegarty (2); Maggie Mulhern (0)

Tower B: Graham McFarlane (1); Dario Mazzotta (2); Simon Radcliffe (1)

This top of the table clash looked like it might be closely fought, and this proved to be the case. Stu Mason was the star of the night with 3 excellent wins. First up was Graham McFarlane whom Stuart disposed of in 4 games, then step forward Dario Mazzotta who had other ideas. He put up a tremendous fight with his combination bat, only to lose to Mason 11-13 in the 5th game. Simon Radcliffe also put up a great fight, but lost in the end to Stuart after 5 hard fought games. Ken Hegarty also put up some strong resistance to Dario, but on this occasion Mazzotta came out tops with a narrow 5 set win. Hegarty then managed to retrieve his night with an excellent win against Radcliffe, winning 16-14 in the 4th game, and did really well to defeat the experienced McFarlane in 4 games. Maggie Mulhern stepped up to play as Peel A's third player and whilst she played well against McFarlane, ultimately lost in 5 sets. 

Ramsey D (2) Copy Shop B (8)

Ramsey D: Charlie Callow (2); Francesca Lord (0); Megan Lord (0)

Copy Shop B: Sasha Thomas (2); Sonja Shaw (2); Rob Wright (3)

Ramsey D were without 2 of their regulars, so sisters Francesa and Megan Lord stepped up to play alongside Charlie Callow. He did really well to beat Sasha Thomas in 5 close games, and then Sonja Shaw in 4 - again mostly in close games. Rob Wright however was a step too far however for Charlie, and Rob blasted his way to victory in 4 games. Wright added to Ramsey's misery, showing no mercy against both Francesca and Megan, albeit both sisters took a game off Wright. Sasha and Sonja added further points by both defeating Francesca and Megan, and compounded this by taking the doubles, and an emphatic 8-2 win for them - Copy Shop B now sit in 4th place in the table.   

Travellers D (1) Travellers C (9) 

Travellers D: Jackie Gill (0); Maurice Campbell (0); Ege Niyazi (1)

Travellers C: Paul Mathieson-Nelson (3); Alex Buck (3); David Buck (2)

Travellers D had young Ege Niyazi step up to play with them in this match, and he did well to take a point by defeating David Buck in 4 games. Paul Matthieson-Nelson extended his unbeaten run for Travellers C with 3 straight sets wins. He continues to show consistent and strong form in Division 2, and is doing all he possibly can to ensure Division 1 play next season. His team sits in 5th place on 48 points, but they have a match in hand, so they could reduce that deficit in the coming weeks. 

Desmonds Douglas B (4) Peel B (5)

Desmonds Douglas B: Peter Russell (1); Neil Ronan (3)

Peel B: Stuart Perry (2); Maggie Mulhern (2)

Stuart Perry and Maggie Mulhern were without their third player for Peel B, as were Desmonds. Each did well to defeat Peter Russell in 4 games. They could not however get past the brick wall that is Neil Ronan. He was magnificent on the night, defeating Perry in 4 after losing the first game, and then Mulhern in 5 tense games. Perry and Mulhern then took the doubles in a close 4 set match, and the 5 points which kept them in 3rd place on 58 points, and just in touch with the top 2 teams.  

Tower C (3) Copy Shop C (7)

Tower C: Margaret Forsyth (0); Steve Curtis (2)

Copy Shop C: Sasha Thomas (3); Rob Wright (2); Grant Paterson (2)

The closest match of the night was the doubles, with Margaret Forsyth and Steve Curtis teaming up to defeat Wright and Thomas, with the 4th game going to them 14-12.  Tower C were another team to be without a third player, which unfortunately means that the other team wins 3 points by way of a forfeit. Gratefully received by Copy Shop C I'm sure. Steve Curtis put up a stout defence however with his highly effective chop and push game. His first point came by way of a grinding 3 set win over Wright, with the first being a closely fought 16-14 scoreline. Curtis then defeated Grant Paterson in 3 sets, in what appeared to be more routine fashion. His luck ran out however against young Sasha Thomas who blasted past Curtis in 3 games without a problem. This defeat leaves Tower C  in a precarious situation second from bottom, and some serious work to do.

Division 3

Ramsey E (2) Ramsey F (8)

Ramsey E: Francesca Lord (1); Lisa Lord (1); Megan Lord (0)

Ramsey F: Matthew Bell (3); Tom Tsitsos (1); Ryan Holland (3)

A magnificent win for the Ramsey F boys - 3 for Matthew and Ryan, takes them to 2nd place with 75 points, now 9 behind Copy Shop E, but still in touch after 10 matches. Ryan was in great form with emphatic wins for him in all 3 matches. Matthew was pushed harder and had to really work for his wins but he came through in impressive style in all 3. Tom backed up his teammates well with an additional point by beating Megan in 5 close games. For Ramsey E, Francesca took a point from Tom, as did Mum Lisa. 

Copy Shop D (2) Peel D (8)

Copy Shop D: Darren Shaw (2); Jake Saulnier (0); Pat Halliwell (0)

Peel D: Liam Bibby (3); James Devereau (2); Ali Ramirez (2)

For Peel D, Liam Bibby was unbeaten in this fixture, with solid 3 and 4 set wins over Shaw, Saulnier and Halliwell. Darren Shaw had 2 tremendous wins over James and Ali, both in 4 games. Closest match of the night was between Saulnier and Ramirez with Ali pulling through 11-8 in the final game. Doubles went to Liam and Ali in 5 games. The 8 points takes Peel D to 5th place and just clear of the bottom 2 teams. 

Ramsey G (0) Copy Shop E (10)

Ramsey G: Megan Lord (0); Henry De Silva (0)

Copy Shop E: Ege Niyazi (3); Daniel Levine (3); Mike Levine (3)

It was a bit of a drubbing for poor Megan and Henry against the in-form team in the 3rd tier. They were without a third player too which meant 3 points were instantly dropped unfortunately. Megan managed to get a game off Daniel but other than that, the Copy Shop trio of Mike, Daniel and Ege were clinical. This takes them 9 points clear in the 3rd division after 10 fixtures. 

Picture narrative (credit to Malcolm Lambert): Duncan Alexander of Ramsey A showing the great technique that has contributed to his 100% record so far this season.