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Sunraysia Table Tennis Winter Pennant results round 15: –
PENNANT ONE: –
Bishop Builders 6 (Shannon Bowen, Arthur Paar 2, Jackson Tung 1) d Mallee Bearings 5 (Mark Dorman 3, Ali Taheri 1)
Pinnacle Packers 7 (Wayne Carmichael 3, John Gray, Peter Midgley 1) d Fishers IGA 4 (Gavin Carmichael, Ashley Morrison 2)
Max Miller Carpets 8 (Rick McMeekin 3, Shane Carmichael 2, Sony Sefer 1) d Weightmans Packaging 3 (Andrew Cannard 2, Mark Ljubic 1)
PENNANT TWO: –
Tankard Dental 9 (Nicholas Dorman 3, Bernadette Fitzpatrick, Peter Fitzpatrick 2) d Fishers IGA 2 (Andrew Jones 2)
Spanline 6 (Geoff Wright 3, Arnold Jago 2, Leon Brown 1) d Pinnacle Packers 5 (Matt Ljubic 2, Lee Thomas 1)
PENNANT THREE: –
Mallee Bearings 9 (Michael Hensgen, Sabrina Fitzpatrick 3, Peter Edwards 2) d Bishop Builders 2 (Claire Ljubic 1)
Dunkley Scales 8 (Jessica Dorman 3, Leonie Dunkley 2, Shirley Whitecross 1) d Pinnacle Packers 3 (Karly Leach 2, Mick Bacon 1)
Fishers IGA 7 (Cole Keegan, Sam Hensgen 2, Helen Frania 1) d Weightmans Packaging 4 (Peter Kelly, Roy Cubit 2)
Fishers IGA player of the round: Arthur Paar
PENNANT ONE:
Max Miller Carpets 8 (Rick McMeekin 3, Shane Carmichael 2, Sony Sefer 1) d Weightmans Packaging 3 (Andrew Cannard 2, Mark Ljubic 1)
With a comfortable victory in round fifteen of Sunraysia Table Tennis, Max Miller Carpets have finished minor premiers after inflicting a big defeat of 8-3 on Weightmans Packaging. In a solid workout leading to the second semi final this week the Carpeters trio of Rick McMeekin, Shane Carmichael and Sony Sefer won three, two and one singles respectively in an even display.
Early in the match Weightmans took a 2-1 lead, however were unlucky in the next three rubbers going down in five in each. The first of these was the first doubles when Carpeters combination of McMeekin and Carmichael outlasted the tough pairing of Mark Ljubic and Andrew Cannard 15-17 8-11 11-6 13-11 11-7.
The very next match featured Shane Carmichael and Mark Ljubic with Carmichael inflicting his second defeat of the season on his more fancied opponent. 
Carmichael recovered from a 1-2 deficit to defeat the “five set king”. The next singles again was an entertaining five setter as Rick McMeekin took a two games to love lead only to have Andrew Cannard level the match. McMeekin lifted in the fifth to win 11-3.
Weightmans had given it their best shot and from here Max Miller Carpets did not look back going on to a strong win on centre court.
Pinnacle Packers 7 (Wayne Carmichael 3, John Gray, Peter Midgley 1) d Fishers IGA 4 (Gavin Carmichael, Ashley Morrison 2)
Second placed Pinnacle Packers also warmed up to the finals with a steady 7-4 win over third placed Fishers IGA. 
Wayne Carmichael with three singles victories as well as participating in both doubles victories sounded a warning for his opponents with the finals only a week away. Carmichael has won the singles aggregate from Rick McMeekin by the barest margin. These two have been the standout players all season and will line up against each other in the second semi final this week.
This was the first time the Packers had their side together for some time and they will be better for the run. With the finals about to commence Fishers IGA player Ash Morrison showed his best form for the season defeating both John Gray and Peter Midgley in close five setters.
Bishop Builders 6 (Shannon Bowen, Arthur Paar 2, Jackson Tung 1) d Mallee Bearings 5 (Mark Dorman 3, Ali Taheri 1)
In the remaining game on the stage court fifth placed Bishop Builders took an early 3-1 lead and then a 4-2 advantage, over fourth placed Mallee Bearings. From this point the Mallee Bearings combination jolted into action winning four of the next five rubbers to take a 5-4 lead courtesy of skipper Mark Dorman winning three singles.
To keep his team alive Arthur Paar then played inspiring table tennis to defeat the in form Ali Taheri in a fantastic five set struggle 13-15 11-7 11-9 8-11 11-8. This levelled the match at five rubbers all. Jackson Tung for the Builders then accounted for fill in Kevin Johns to give his team a well earned victory and at the same time some disappointment as there team has missed the finals by a small percentage after finishing on the same points as their opponents Mallee Bearings.
PENNANT TWO:
Tankard Dental, with a win this week over Fishers IGA, finished the season with a perfect record, fifteen wins from fifteen games. And Spanline took their fifth win for the season, against Pinnacle Packers, for the second time in their last two meetings.
Tankard Dental 9 (Nicholas Dorman 3, Bernadette Fitzpatrick, Peter Fitzpatrick 2) d Fishers IGA 2 (Andrew Jones 2)
Tankard Dental were not extended in this match. Nicholas Dorman once again took three singles wins, and both his team mates, Bernadette and Peter Fitzpatrick took two each. Add to this, victories in both doubles, and the result was an effortless 9 rubbers to 2 win.
The only player from Fishers who could put up any resistance was captain Andrew Jones. 
Jones took two singles, but his team were outplayed in all departments.
Final scores 9 rubbers to 2 and 30 games to 12.
Whilst Tankard Dental went on their merry way to a perfect winning score at the top of the ladder, Fishers, who have been third for the majority of the season, dropped a spot and picked up the Wooden Spoon by virtue of this loss.
Spanline 6 (Geoff Wright 3, Arnold Jago 2, Leon Brown 1) d Pinnacle Packers 5 (Matt Ljubic 2, Lee Thomas 1)
The absence of regular players from both sides failed to diminish the interest in this match. Matt Ljubic’s Pinnacle Packers side was without Seval Fuat and Brian Hosking: these two players replaced by Lee Thomas and Glen Brown respectively. Spanline was missing George Papanicolaou, Leon Brown making a cameo appearance here.
Spanline have in recent weeks emerged as the Dark Horse of Pennant Two, due entirely to the form of their number three Geoff Wright. And once again Wright showed that his haul of three singles wins last week was no fluke. Again in this match he did the same, and it was just as well, too. Wright became just the fourth player to record a win over Matt Ljubic this year, downing Matt in a high standard four set match.
Captain Arnold Jago could not keep up with Wright, bagging just two wins, these against Thomas and Glen Brown. Jago did come close to downing Ljubic however. He led 9-11, 12-10, 11-9 but could not hold Ljubic out in the final two sets, losing them 6 and 7. A great effort nonetheless.
Leon Brown took a single victory, and a timely one at that. With the scores at 5 all, Leon played Glen Brown. After dropping the first set, he took control of the next three, winning 8, 4 and 3 to give Spanline the match win.
Those rubbers were enough to get the win for Spanline. They could not snare a win in either doubles, Jago and Wright losing in straight sets to Ljubic and Thomas, and later Wright and Leon Brown, after leading two sets to one in the second doubles against Ljubic and Glenn Brown 11-13, 11-9, 11-8, the lost their way in the fourth and fifth, conceding them 11-4, 11-6.
Spanline are coming good at the right end of the season. Their being only four teams in this pennant, all teams of course will be playing in the finals. The heartening thing for Spanline, is that, although they have only won just five (of a possible fifteen) matches, they have won three of their last four. And an extra fillip from this result was that they jumped Fishers IGA for third.
Final scores here 6 rubbers to 5 and 23 games to 18.
PENNANT THREE:
In this final round of home-and-away games of the season, first placed Mallee Bearings played fourth placed Bishop Builders, second placed Fishers IGA came up against Weightmans Packaging who occupy third spot, and fifth placed Pinnacle Packers were looking a win against sixth placed Dunkley Scales. It was that match which produced the excitement and a somewhat surprise result.
Fishers IGA 7 (Cole Keegan, Sam Hensgen 2, Helen Frania 1) d Weightmans Packaging 4 (Peter Kelly, Roy Cubit 2)
This was the closest match in terms of results, and the winners, Fishers IGA needed a win to ensure their second place on the ladder.
In a good team effort, Fishers took the win 7 rubbers to 4. Cole Keegan although being the aggregate leader (and now winner) in this grade, did not take three wins on this occasion. He was backed up well by his team mates, Sam Hensgen and Helen Frania.
Keegan and Hensgen took two singles each, 
Frania one, and the three of them worked well in the doubles, Fishers dominating them, taking the first in three sets, and the second in four.
Weightmans Packaging could do no better than four rubbers; Peter Kelly and Roy Cubit taking two each.
Kelly has had a good season, notwithstanding that he is only fifth on the aggregate. Kelly has missed a third of the season, and his strike rate of 83%, if extended over the whole season, would have him in second spot on the aggregate. On this night, however, he fell to Sam Hensgen, and he and his partners in doubles could not get into the match.
Final scores: 7 rubbers to 4 and 24 games to 18.
Mallee Bearings 9 (Michael Hensgen, Sabrina Fitzpatrick 3, Peter Edwards 2) d Bishop Builders 2 (Claire Ljubic 1)
In a dominant performance, Mallee Bearings thrashed a disappointing Bishop Builders in this final round. This win gave Mallee Bearings eleven wins for the season, one more than second placed Fishers IGA.
Both Sabrina Fitzpatrick and
Michael Hensgen took three singles wins, and number three Peter Edwards two. The second doubles fell to Fitzpatrick and Edwards in four sets against Claire Ljubic and Jeff Hards.
Claire Ljubic was helpless to assist her team, she won but a single rubber, and with Graham Southwell, the first doubles. And that was the sum total of her team’s wins.
Bishop Builders may well feel lucky to be playing in the finals … the team with which they were vying for fourth spot, Pinnacle Packers also lost in this final round (more of that below), and a loss such as this may well leave the team a little flat going into the elimination match next week.
Final scores 9 rubbers to 2 and 28 games to 12.
Dunkley Scales 8 (Jessica Dorman 3, Leonie Dunkley 2, Shirley Whitecross 1) d Pinnacle Packers 3 (Karly Leach 2, Mick Bacon 1)
In the upset of the round, and probably the upset of the year, Dunkley Scales denied Pinnacle Packers a place in the finals. Twice these two sides have met, and twice Pinnacle Packers have emerged victorious, six rubbers to five. On this occasion, however, the Scalers turned the tables, trouncing the Packers, eight rubbers to three and in so doing extinguishing their chances of finals action.
For once, the Dunkley Scales team had all things go right for them, Jessica Dorman won three singles, Leonie Dunkley two, and Shirley Whitecross one. And that was not all, they took both doubles, and both in three sets.
Shirley Whitecross would feel satisfied with her performance … she finally defeated Quentin Clark in a performance in which she was clearly the better player. She won 4, 5 and 5.
Pinnacle Packers missed the finals cut by the barest of margins. The difference between their scores and those of Bishop Builders, was only one game for and one game against throughout the whole of the season. All very well to talk about it now, but if they had lost even six rubbers to five in this match, they would have made the finals !!
Final scores here: 8 rubbers to 3 and 25 games to 12.
