Buzzards tame the Sharks in South Devon Table Tennis

A set of fixtures which pitched the top sides in all four divisions against their closest rivals has sorted out the favourites in the South Devon Table Tennis League.

The top of the table clash in the first division lived up to its expectations with some excellent encounters in a match that swung in favour of both sides at times.

NA Buzzards, the leaders and current champions, started well against second-placed Brixham Sharks but soon found it wasn’t going to be easy to maintain their 100% win record, as the Sharks fought back and went into the lead.

A Kevin Nicholls maximum for the Buzzards was the difference, as they recovered from 4-3 down to win 6-4 and open up a 12 point lead at the top of the table.

NA Eagles, with maximums from Mark Burridge and Jeremy Broad, kept up their challenge in third place with a 9-1 win over Brixham Trawlers.

It was also top against second place in the second division as the leaders, Grove Guerrillas, travelled to Newton Abbot to play the Ravens. Neither team took control, as the sides were only separated by a point throughout and it ended up, predictably, at 5-5.

Colin Butterworth showed his class and was unbeaten for the Guerrillas, who required the final doubles to earn the draw. The Guerrillas 13-point lead at the top makes them firm favourites for the title, although the Ravens in second spot do have a game in hand.

Both Huw Darch and Paul Hine were unbeaten as the NA Raptors defeated clubmates NA Falcons 7-3. The Taverners remain at the foot of the table following a 10-0 whitewash by the Brixham Pirates’ team of Ian Saxby, Martin Sharp and Issy Brown who had to work hard for their win with half of the sets going to a fifth game decider.

Torre Vikings lead the third division by 11 points. The Vikings, playing twice last week, firstly just saw off the challenge from Torbay Academy 4 winning 6-4 and in the process a Chris Garner maximum saw the Academy’s Matt Laws lose his 100% win record.

The Vikings team of Chris Garner, Bill Keywood and Steve Russell went on to defeat NA Kites 10-0 in their second match. Also playing twice, Torbay Academy 4 bounced back from their defeat with a convincing 8-2 victory over Dawlish Renegades with the help of maximums from Ionel Ichim and Matt Laws.

The Torbay Academy 3 team of Peter Moretta, Andy Harris and John Fowler had a whitewash victory over clubmates Torbay Academy 5. NA Kestrels kept up their challenge towards the top of the table with a 7-3 victory at Brixham against the Gulls.

The fourth division also saw a top of the table clash as the leaders, Torre Spartans, travelled to Totnes and came away with an excellent 8-2 win to open up a 13-point lead at the top. Lewis Lavery, yet to be beaten, with another maximum for the Spartans.

Another Lee Raymond maximum for NA Merlins helped them to a 6-4 victory over Brixham Seals. Torbay Academy 7 had an excellent 7-3 win at Newton Abbot against the Ospreys, despite a fine maximum from the Ospreys’ Rob Ferguson.

NA Owls progressed to the quarter-finals of the handicap singles cup with a 24-12 victory over Torbay Academy 3.

This week, NA Buzzards extended their lead at the top of the first division to 14 points following their 8-2 win over clubmates NA Owls, Herbie Sage and Kevin Nicholls with maximums for the Buzzards.

A fine Mark Burridge maximum in the second v third encounter wasn’t enough for his NA Eagles’ side, as they lost out 4-6 to Brixham Sharks, while NA Owls recovered from 0-3 down to earn a draw against NA Condors.

The Grove Guerrillas team of Colin Butterworth, David Pearson and Andrew Gilhespy have opened up a virtually invincible 22-point lead at the top of the second division table following their 10-0 demolition of Halwell B.

NA Raptors took over in second with the help of another Paul Hine maximum, as they defeated Torbay Academy 2, 7-3. Brixham Pirates opened up a 6-0 lead against NA Falcons, however the Falcons rallied and only went down 7-3, the Pirates’ Martin Sharp was unbeaten. A David Davies maximum for Dawlish Aces helped them to a 7-3 victory over the Taverners.

The only division three encounter was a whitewash victory for NA Kestrels over clubmates NA Harriers, Rob Williams, Fred Wakefield and Richard Hathaway always in control as they closed the gap on leaders Torre Vikings to just a single point.

A Grove Tigers 7-3 victory over NA Ospreys saw them leapfrog over the Ospreys into second place in the fourth division, closing the gap on the leaders Torre Spartans to eight points. Jeff Cornish and Francis Daly were unbeaten for the Tigers.

Lee Raymond and Derek Stratton maximums for NA Merlins saw them take control over Dawlish Delinquents, running out 9-1 victors. In an All Torbay Academy clash the Academy 6 side defeated Academy 7 by a score od 7-3 with the help of a Gustaw Adamczak maximum.