Southend Junior Players Win Essex schools competition

Howard Grant took time away from normal Southend Junior Coaching duties, to coach members of his Hullbridge Teams in the Essex Schools Team competition. Schools from all over the county converged on Batts in Harlow on the 4th Oct, to play the right to represent Essex in the National Schools Team Event, Howard had many of his juniors taking part on the day, and 3 of them who all come from the same school The Eastwood Academy, triumphed in the under 16 boys event, Sidney Dorn, Dan Payne and Hullbridge newcomer Harry Harwood all took the Essex trophy along with Billy Praim-Singh.
It was good to see so many Southend League players taking part, proving how strong we are, at producing some of the best Juniors in Essex, now comes a bit more hard work from Howard, as he has to prepare the boys for their next round of matches against the English Schools finest Table Tennis players, Good luck "H" and well played lads.

Report from Karl Dorn, SDTTL Press Officer

Mike Watts Award for Hockley Table Tennis Club

At their club night on Thursday 27 June, Hockley TTC were presented with the Mike Watts Award for development in Table Tennis.  This is an award presented to an individual or club that has developed TT within the Southend League. 

The Hockley TTC has grown over the past few years to a 6 team club with three club nights and have ambitions to find a way of having a dedicated TT centre within their area.  With their determination, I would think that they will achieve this.  The club ranges in ages and standards and it was good to see juniors from this club entering the SDTTL Junior Tournament this season.

Well done Trevor Vincent and the Hockley TTC

 

2013 Southend Table Tennis League Junior Tournament

Southend Table Tennis League Junior Tournament

 

This weekend saw the annual Southend Junior Table Tennis Tournament take place at Hullbridge Sports and Leisure venue, in Hullbridge, where youngsters competed in 8 different events.

An early start was the order of the day, as an extra event was added  to cope with the fantastic influx of new youngsters wanting to play the sport this year, an influx that has seen Junior coaching increase in the local area to meet demand. The Southend league is fast becoming one of the best attended junior Table Tennis leagues in the county, seeing many of it's Juniors go onto represent Essex in matches all over the country.

The players were split into different age groups, where groups of 4 would play each other to determine the winner and runner up, they would then move on to the knock out rounds reaching the final, to then see who would take this years honours.

 The under 11 final was between Canvey's Ryan Williams and Hullbridge's Dan Zeffie, the boys showed many good touches during the game, with Ryan's experience telling in the end ,giving the title to the Canvey player, this will be the first of many meetings between these two in years to come.

The Under 13 title was won by Hullbridge's Zoe Davis who beat fellow team mate Emily Smith in the final, both girls showing the boys how its done. The same pair met in the final of the Girls event, with the same outcome, these two look on course to be future Essex stars, as they both get better every time they play.

The under 15 event was taken by Hullbridge's Sid Dorn who met ever improving Rawreth player Adam Hill, who has increased his weekly training with great effect, County player Sid was eventually too strong for Adam, and he promised to use more hairspray in future as he went on to win in 4.

The Under 18's saw rivals Ben Matthews and Kieran Skeggs come together, Rawreths Ben was the victor in this match, but was pushed all the way with fantastic table tennis skills from both players.

The Open was Kieran Skegg's event, getting his own back on Ben Matthews in the final, the rivalry continues.

The Boys was the final event, pitting Thorpe Bay's Kieran Skeggs against Sam Lowman, players who have known each other for years, with once again Kieran coming out on top, proving too strong and skillfull for Runnymead's Sam.

A great day was had by all, showing that the Southend Table Tennis League is the place to be if your a Junior Table Tennis player!

Karl Dorn, SDTTL Press Officer

 

 

Veterans National Championships - 2013

Veterans National Championships - 2013

 

Kevin Caldon again for the second year in a row reached the final Over 50's National Championships held at Tiptree on the 11^th and 12^th May and after beating Clive Carthy in the Semi Final he narrowly missed out on become National Champion in the final to Nigel Eckersely in the in what was a hard fought very tight affair played over five sets (12, -8, -9, 9, 7).

 

International Team Championships of Veterans Societies - 2013

 

Kevin Caldon now ranked No 4 in the England Veterans Over 50's has been selected to represent England in the above event at Over 50's level which is to be held in Birmingham from the 27^th to 30^th June 2013.

 

Kevin was selected to play in this event last year but was unable to attend due to injury, so must be especially pleased to have another opportunity to represent England in an International Event.

 

Report from George Reeves, Rawreth TT Club

Essex Coaching & Development Programme for Cadet and Junior Players 2013-2014

Essex County TT Association:

Essex Coaching & Development Programme for Cadet and Junior Players 2013-2014 -

Essex Coaching and Development Officer, Stuart Gibbs, has embarked on an exciting new programme of coaching and development opportunities for cadet and junior players in the county.

Stuart will be providing opportunities for young players in the county to train together and is determined to raise the standard of play within Essex.

See more from Ken Field's Report

2013 Essex Juniors Closed Championships

2013 Essex Juniors Closed Championships will be held at BATTS on Saturday 13th April 2013.

 

Closing date for all entries will be 26th March 2013.

There are U18, U 15 and U 13 events for boys and girls.

 

Entry Form

Essex Assessment Training Group-Clacton Coastal Academy-3rd Feb-13

It is not often that players have an individual coach at training sessions although Essex County Coaching Officer Stuart Gibbs managed to enlist the services of ten coaches to support the twelve Essex juniors who attended the Essex Assessment Training Group session in February. Players from the Clacton, Colchester, Southend and Burnham leagues were represented. The juniors were fully committed to the training tasks assigned by Stuart and worked hard throughout the five hour session. Three new players were welcomed to the group and they demonstrated the progress that they are making at their local clubs. The standard of play was enhanced by James Denyer, Sam Lowman and Sidney Dorn, all of whom have represented Essex in ETTA Inter County Championship matches at either Cadet or U18 level. The volunteer coaches did a great job, always on hand to encourage the young players to give of their best and to provide advice and support. Thanks go to Felipe Rodriguez and Gill Locke for organising the venue.

 

The next training session for the group is being held at BATTS Harlow on Sunday, 21st April. S. Lowman

 

Tribute to Roy Kirk

ROY KIRK 27/08/1934 TO 14/01/2012

 

Roy seems to have played for St Peters forever, until he retired a couple of years ago, but he probably joined in the late seventies or early eighties. He was extremely reliable, a firm believer in fair play, had a very sense of humour and for many years rode his motor bike to the matches. He and Ray Elsdon made a formidable doubles team in the Summer league and didn't concede many games. Following the replacement of his hips, he found side movement difficult and progressively recovery from playing table tennis took longer so he called it a day.

 

One of his other interests was cricket. In his fitter days he played for Rayleigh Fairview Cricket Club and latterly, Roy, Ray Elsdon and Brian Parker were regular supporters of Essex at Chelmsford.

 

I am sure that all who played with and against Roy will have fond memories of him and miss him. His funeral will be at Southend Crematorium at 4pm on Thursday 17^th January.

 

Paul Reed

TABLE TENNIS SPECTACULAR ON 5/6 JANUARY 2013 !

Hi all,

 

Imagine a table tennis tournament about 40 minutes drive from here with one hundred thousand dollars prize money for one weekend's play. Now imagine it's being shown live on Sky Sports . Finally imagine you can be part of it !

 

It's all taking place at Alexander Palace in North London on the weekend of 5th and 6th January. Sixty four players from across the world will be battling to pick up the first prize of 20,000 dollars.

 

This is the first table tennis event to be put on by sports promoter Barry Hearn's Matchroom company and he's calling it the World Championship of Ping Pong to help sell it to the masses. He's also using hardbats so we get longer rallies.

 

If you come along , you are quite likely to find yourself being interviewed live on Sky TV and be caught by all the TV cameras showcasing the event. Add to this an area open to everyone with practice tables and hardbat coaching , autograph sessions , plus trade stands, bars and food outlets, and you are going to be kept pretty busy !

 

So what should you do next ? Let me know if you want to come to a fun filled Alexander Palace with the sort of atmosphere you may have seen at Barry's famous darts events. Play starts at noon on Saturday and 12.30 on Sunday.

Tickets are £20 per day for adults, £10 per day for juniors and concessions.

 

Matchroom have given us a brilliant one off opportunity to get these tickets in advance at half price. BATTS is holding a qualifying tournament at the BATTS club on Sunday 16th December with the four semi finalists gaining entry to the big event. Anyone can enter the qualifier ( in advance please) or come and watch. Matchroom will be in attendance selling advance tickets for £5 (juniors and concessions) and £10 adults. If you can't be there, I can pick your tickets up for you. I can also organise transport to Alexander Palace when I know numbers. Please tell your friends too !

 

This could be a once in a lifetime chance to say " I was there . I was on Sky Sports when someone I knew picked up the 20,000 dollars first prize ! ".

 

Just let me know and I will make all the arrangements !

 

Best wishes,

Neil Brierley

www.batts.org.uk

www.normanbooth.org.uk

Please email Ken Field to get the tickets to this event at half price special offer. 

 

 

Sidney Dorn Essex Cadet Debut

Hullbridge's 13 year old player Sidney Dorn made his debut for the Essex Under 15 Cadet Team this Saturday morning, which took place at the regional Table Tennis center based in Harlow. He made a brilliant start to his Essex career, winning all of his matches against teams from Cambridgeshire and Suffolk, he did this only dropping one game and I have to say he looked unbeatable from the first point of the day. Sid who suffered none of his normal nerves, played with great style and precision, hitting nearly every loop and forehand drive he attempted. Sid was part of a five man team, 3 boys and 2 girls who all did there bit magnificently, beating both counties 10-0 and 10-0 in Stuart Gibbs first game as Essex coach .
Karl Dorn, SDTTL Press Officer

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SDTTL Hosts Coach Awareness Training Session

SDTTL Hosts Coach Awareness Training Session

John Andrews (ETTA Regional Development Manager) and Stephen Gertsen (ETTA Regional Coach) to support pilot coach development event in Southend area.

Following his recent election to the post of Essex County Table Tennis Association Coaching and Development Officer, Stuart Gibbs has organised a coach awareness and development event for coaches in the Southend area.

The Coach Awareness Training Session will be led by ETTA Regional Coach, Stephen Gertsen, with ETTA Regional Development Manager, John Andrews also in attendance and will take place at Hullbridge TTC, Lower Road, Hullbridge SS5 6BJ.

The session will be held on Tuesday, 6th November, commencing at 7:30 p.m. and finishing at 9:30 p.m.

See the whole Report from Simon Lowman, Essex County TT Association

2012 Medal Presentation

Photo Slideshow from the 2012 Medal Presentation which was held today 15th July 2012 at the Rawreth TT Club.

Veterans National Championships 2012

 Veterans National Championships 2012

 

Kevin Caldon (Southend Mens and Veterans Champion) narrowly misses out  on becoming the Over 50's National Champion to Keith Williams, after a superb performance at the Veterans National Championships held over the weekend of the 12th and 13th May at Thornbury near Bristol.

 

Wins along the way included a Quarter Final win over Joe Kennedy (Over 50's England Ranked at No 4) in 5 sets, after coming back from being 0 - 2 down and a 3 - 0 whitewash in the Semi Final over the much fancied No 1 seed and Over 50's England ranked No 1 player Brian Johns.

 

This was an especially impressive performance considering he only resumed playing well into the current season from an injury that kept him out for the best part of 18 months.

 

George Reeves

Ron Parker, Canvey TT Club Treasurer

Message from Geoff Banthorpe, Canvey Table Tennis Club

 

'Congratulations to our Treasurer Ron Parker, who has reached his 85th birthday.  Ron has been a stalwart at our club and I am sure that most of the players who visit Canvey to play matches would agree with me that he is a credit to the League. 

National Junior League 2011 - 2012, Report from Paul Skeggs

National Junior League 2011 - 2012: Ellenborough, Enfield , North London,

Sat 3 Mar 2012

Report from Paul Skeggs

 

Lawrie Neville of Warehouse Centre retires from Table Tennis

Lawrie Neville of the Warehouse Centre Plays Last Competitive LeagueMatch. Due to a significant back problem, Lawrie Neville has decided that at the age of 84, he should retire from competitive table tennis. What could have been a sad occasion at The Warehouse Centre became instead a celebration of Lawrie's long career in the sport.

 

Report from Graham Back.

Photo Gallery from the Czech TT Tournament, June 2011

Essex County Table Tennis Players during the Czech Republic TT Tournament, June 2011.

Photos sent by Stuart Gibbs & Ed Hodson.

SDTTL Quiz Night

SDTTL Quiz Night, Rawreth 19th November 2011.

Report from Ken Field,

Photo Gallery

“Bill Smith” Hard Bat Championships 2011

Annual "Bill Smith" Hard Bat Championships were held at the Hullbridge Sports Association's Table Tennis Club, Sunday 13th Nov 2011.

 

Report from Ken Field

Essex Junior Trials - 2011

Latest from the Essex Juniors Trials - October 2011

• Essex Juniors Assesment Report 2011
• Essex Juniors Ranking List Published on Essex County TT Association

Congratulations to Hullbridge TT Club Juniors and all other Southend TT League Juniors who represented the SDTTL on these trials.

Essex Interleague Fixtures and Rankings

The 2011-12 Essex Interleague Fixtures and Rankings now available from our website. http://www.sdttl.info

 

2011/12 Interleague Fixtures

 

2011/12 Interleague Rankings

Summer League 2011 - Final Tables

2011 Summer League Final Tables are now live on SDTTL website. Thanks to Lou Hopkins for the work he's done updating the tables for us.

 

Congratulations to the teams who won the Summer League in each Division and to all the players who played the Summer League this year.

 

Good luck to all on the new Winter League starting soon.

 

Berti, SDTTL Webmaster

Fixtures & Constitution - Winter League Season 2011-12

The new 2011-2012 Winter League Season starts 18th September. Good luck to all the Teams.

• - Constitution
• - Fixtures Chart Premier & Division 1
• - Fixtures Chart Division 3

2011 Medal Presentations

2011 Medal Presentations - Photo Gallery from the presentation picnic at Rawreth TT Club on Sunday 17th July.

Hadleigh Forum Tournament

Honours shared at the Hadleigh Forum Tournament

 

Every year one player seems to figure strongly in all events so it was refreshing to see a variety of winners in this year's tournament held at Eastwood Community Centre on Tuesday 10^th May 2011.

 

The Handicap Singles was won in a very close final by Paul Reed (handicap +7) who plays for Hadleigh Forum in the Basildon League, narrowly defeating Garry Hartgrove (handicap scratch).  Paul and Garry had progressed to the final with semi-final victories over Paul Fawell ( - 5) and John Tendler (-5) respectively.  The closeness of the majority of the matches in this event indicated the accuracy of the handicapping.

 

Garry obtained some revenge on Paul in the Handicap Doubles final when partnered by Colin Napper (combined handicap +2) as they were victorious against Paul Reed and David Woolmer (combined handicap +4).

 

The Straight Singles event went to form, being won by John Tendler who overcame Mick Tappenden in the final.

 

As always, a most enjoyable evening.

 

Graham Farmer