0
0
ROUND 12
PENNANT ONE:
Results of round twelve matches of the Sunraysia Table Tennis pennant featured a percentage boosting win by Tankard Dental over Weightmans Packaging despite both teams looking even on paper, Regional Taxation Services grabbed victory narrowly over Max Miller Carpets who have lost the past two matches despite leading 5-3 in both, while ladder leader Mallee Bearings after their first defeat last round bounced back to defeat Cookes Pools and Spas.
– Tankard Dental 9 (Wayne Carmichael 3, Jackson Murphy, Paul Kealley 2) d Weightmans Packaging 2 (Jackson Tung 2)
Tankard Dental proved too strong for Weightmans Packaging winning 9-2 and securing third place on the ladder by percentage. In an even team display Wayne Carmichael won three singles while teammates
Jackson Murphy and Paul Kealley won two each. Victory in both doubles was the icing on the cake for Tankards.
In all there were four five set matches which all went the way of Tankards. Weightmans skipper Jackson Tung was the only player to fly the flag winning two singles.
– Regional Taxation Services 6 (Matt Ljubic 3, Thanh Nguyen 2, Shane Carmichael 1) d Max Miller Carpets 5 (Kate Carmichael 2, Leon Brown 1)
For the second round in succession Max Miller Carpets grabbed defeat from the jaws of victory. In this match against Regional Taxation Services the Carpeters controlled the match early and when Kate Carmichael and Liam Wood defeated Matt Ljubic and Shane Carmichael in straight sets in the second doubles the Carpeters needed one singles of the final three to grab the valuable four points.
From here RTS took control with Matt Ljubic avenging an earlier season loss to Kate Carmichael winning a exciting match 11-6 11-8 8-11 10-12 11-8. Ljubic’s teammates Thanh Nguyen and fill in Shane Carmichael then accounted for their respective opponents Leon Brown and Liam Wood in straight sets to secure outright second place on the ladder.
– Mallee Bearings 7 (Gavin Carmichael, Mark Dorman, Rohan Reimers 2) d Cookes Pools & Spas 4 (Joel Thomas 3)
Ladder leader Mallee Bearings after a hiccup last round bounced back this week to account for second placed Cookes Pools and Spas 7-4 despite Joel Thomas again winning three singles in a comfortable fashion.
The Bearings trio of Gavin Carmichael, Mark Dorman and Rohan Reimers won two singles each. A vital result was the first doubles when experienced pair Gavin Carmichael and Mark Dorman recovered from a one game to two deficit against Joel Thomas and Russell Walder to win in five sets, a rare defeat for the Cookes pair.
PENNANT TWO:
Top side Weightmans Packaging had an easy win against Mallee Bearings in this round; second placed Max Miller Carpets won the final two rubbers to down third placed Cookes Pools & Spas by just one rubber; and Pinnacle Packers picked themselves up from the bottom of the ladder with their win against Mallee Meats.
– Weightmans Packaging 9 (Quentin Clark, Tom Morrison 3, Andrew Jones 2) d Mallee Bearings 2 (Jamie Kealley 1)
You have got to feel for Mallee Bearings. Except for the last round, they have, since round six, been bottom of the ladder. Last round they narrowly defeated Cookes Pools & Spas. This round however, they were unceremoniously dumped back to sixth with a nine rubbers to two drubbing at the hands of ladder leaders Weightmans Packaging.
There was however, one outstanding highlight for the cellar dwellers. As has been previously mentioned, the Weightmans Packaging doubles duo of captain Quentin Clark and number three Tom Morrison have been unbeaten on the previous eight occasions they played together. That is almost beating every team twice. However, in this match, with the result already determined (Weightmans Packaging led six rubbers to one going into the second doubles), the Mallee Bearings pair of captain Jamie Kealley and his number three David Sergi put an end to the perfect scoring machine that had previously been Clark and Morrison. Of course, it was no easy feat, and the Mallee Bearings pair needed the full five sets to get the result. Clark and Morrison won the first set 12-10. Kealley and Sergi hit their stride in the next two sets, taking them 11-9, 11-8. The Weightmans Packaging pair hung on in the fourth set, taking it at 13-11. Clearly, Clark and Morrison were keen to keep their unbeaten record intact, but not as much as Kealley and Sergi were keen to break it!! The final set was the longest, with the Mallee Bearings pair winning it 14-12. A great result.
Despite their loss in this doubles rubber, both Clark and Morrison won their three singles rubbers; Clark being the captain was more or less “expected” to win three, but Morrison, at number three was certainly not. However, that does not take into account his rapid improvement this season. Morrison opened his account with an unexpected five set victory against Mallee Bearings captain Jamie Kealley. He followed that up with a straight sets win against the number two, Marcus Cimino, and in the final rubber bested his opposite number Sergi in four sets.
As well as those six rubbers, number two Andrew Jones won two, a five set victory against David Sergi in the opening rubber, and a five set win against Cimino in the second last rubber. In between he played (except
for the second set) a strong match against Kealley, Kealley winning that one 9-11. 11-2, 17-15, 15-13.
Final scores: 9 rubbers to 2 and 30 games to 14.
– Max Miller Carpets 6 (Jeremy Corrin, Daniel Jansen 2, John Fitzpatrick 1) d Cookes Pools & Spas 5 (Ashley Morrison 3, Josh Arnold 1)
After a slow start to the season, where they lost four of their first seven matches, Max Miller Carpets have been a model of consistency, winning their last five. The win this round was an important one, as they fronted up to third placed Cookes Pools & Spas. A loss here would have seen Ashley Morrison’s team just one win behind them on the ladder – as it turned out, Max Miller Carpets have a three game buffer to their chasers, with just three rounds remaining before the finals.
Cookes Pools & Spas won three of the first four rubbers; firstly, number two Josh Arnold earned his money against Max Miller Carpets number three John Fitzpatrick, Fitzpatrick’s never say die attitude ensuring this match went for five sets, which it did; then, Ashley Morrison accounted for the in-form Daniel Jansen in just three sets, and finally these two (Morrison and Arnold) accounted for Jeremy Corrin and Jansen in the first doubles rubber.
Max Miller Carpets then hit back winning three of the next four – Corrin disposed of Arnold in straight sets, Jansen did the same to Cookes Pools & Spas Ryan Hensgen, and Corrin and Fitzpatrick won the second doubles against Morrison and Hensgen, keeping their win loss rate at a nice 50 percent.
That set the scene for three interesting head to head clashes – Morrison showed why he is head of the aggregate with a three set win against Corrin; but then Max Miller Carpets came into their own, firstly, Daniel Jansen gave a polished performance against Josh Arnold, winning in three, and John Fitzpatrick put in another five setter, this time getting on the winning end against Ryan Hensgen. After being two sets to love down 3-11, 9-11, John outplayed his opponent to take the last three 3, 8 and 7.
For Cookes Pools & Spas, Morrison again won three, Arnold one, and as mentioned, Morrison and Arnold took the first doubles.
Final scores: 6 rubbers to 5 and 22 games to 18.
– Pinnacle Packers 6 (Peter Midgley 3, Marcus Cimino 2) d Mallee Meats 5 (Kevin Johns 2, Jordan Cole, James Jarvis 1)
It seems that the battle for third and fourth on the ladder will not be decided until the final round of this competition.
Teams third and fourth (Cookes Pools & Spas and Pinnacle Packers) have five wins for the season, and teams fifth and sixth (Mallee Meats and Mallee Bearings) have four wins. The interesting numbers here however, are that Mallee Meats (lying fifth) have won and lost an identical number of rubbers as third placed Cookes Pools & Spas, and have a better win/loss when it comes to games. So if Kevin Johns can drag his team to a couple of wins before the end of the season, the team could jump up to third!!
But for the moment, that dream is on hold … Mallee Meats lost this week to Pinnacle Packers who jumped from sixth to fourth, and sent Mallee Meats from fourth to fifth.
Peter Midgley, captain of Pinnacle Packers, had his best night since round 6, the last time he won his three singles matches. He did it in style too, dropping just one set along the way.
Marcus Cimino subbed for Zac Galbraith, and delivered two wins to the cause, in four sets against James Jarvis, and a tough five setter against Jordan Cole, who was subbing for the injured Terry Martin.
And despite not having played doubles together before, Midgley and Cimino got the better of Johns and Cole to take the first doubles in four sets.
Mallee Meats were certainly not disgraced in this encounter, Johns won two singles rubbers, and Cole and Jarvis one each, and Johns and Jarvis won the second doubles, an exciting five setter against Midgley and Furqaan Ahmad.
Final scores: 6 rubbers to 5 and 23 games to 20
PENNANT THREE:
Exposed Signage & Apparel dropped a spot from third to fourth as a result of their loss to Tankard Dental, coupled with Mallee Meats defeating Sammy’s Slammers; in the final match, bottom side Weightmans Packaging took a surprise win against second placed Regional Taxation Services.
– Tankard Dental 6 (Luca Capizzoto 3, Steve Pongrac 1) d Exposed Signage/Apparel 5 (Levi Williams, Damen Southgate 2, Riley Clemence 1)
Tankard Dental and Exposed Signage & Apparel came into this match first and third on the ladder, at the end, Tankard Dental were a further game (now four) clear of their nearest opposition, and Exposed Signage & Apparel dropped to fourth, by a mere handful of games, on percentage.
The game was close … Exposed Signage & Apparel won five of the nine singles rubber on offer, captain Levi Williams and number two Damen Southgate won two, and Riley Clemence continues his impressive debut season, and is still the leading number three player in the competition.
But Exposed Signage & Apparel lost both doubles, Williams and Southgate went down in straight sets to Steve Pongrac and Luca Capizzoto, the leading doubles combination at the moment, having won nine of their twelve matches together. And the second doubles was over in four sets, Capizzoto and Steve Parker too good for Levi Williams and Riley Clemence.
Capizzoto continues to impress, this week, for the tenth time this season, he went home having won all his singles rubbers, only opposing captain Levi Williams could get a set from him, and that was only one.
Steve Pongrac won one singles rubber, that against opposing number three Clemence, in a far from impressive performance.
So whilst this was not the most pretty of wins for the ladder leaders, the numbers still say they have won eleven of their twelve matches to date.
Final scores: 6 rubbers to 5 and 23 games to 18.
– Mallee Meats 7 (Michael Smyth 3, Nick Kiapekos, Hamish Smyth 1) d Sammy’s Slammers 4 (Marita Grace, Nhat Dat 2)
Mallee Meats picked up their sixth win for the season, and with Exposed Signage & Apparel losing to Tankard Dental as just described, took third spot on the ladder by the barest margins. To date, these two teams have each won 66 rubbers, and have each lost 66 rubbers. Mallee Meats have won a total of 249 games to Exposed Signage & Apparel’s 248, and have
conceded just a fewer less games, 245 to 252. Talk about close. Fair to say fourth spot on the ladder is not yet resolved.
Mallee Meats captain Michael Smyth dominated this match. He won his three singles rubbers, and participated in wins in both doubles encounters. Smyth certainly did not have things all his own way either. Opposing number two Nhat Dat played three good sets in his four set defeat to Smyth, going down 12-14, 11-9, 13-11, 11-1. Whilst Smyth took a routine three set win against Koby Grace, his win against Marita Grace was far from a forgone conclusion. Smyth took the first two sets, lost the next two, and scraped over the line 12-10 in the fifth.
Smyth and his number two Nick Kiapekos dominated the first doubles, downing Marita Grace and Dat in straight sets, but when Michael and son Hamish took on Marita and her son Koby in the second doubles, they were extended, at least for the first three sets. Being two sets to one down, the Smyths turned up the heat and took the last two sets 4 and 2.
For Sammy’s Slammer, Marita Grace and Nhat Dat won two singles each, both defeating Nick Kiapekos and Hamish Smyth.
Final scores: 7 rubbers to 4 and 24 games to 19.
– Weightmans Packaging 6 (Karly Leach, Nicole Hunt 2, Sabrina Fitzpatrick 1) d Regional Taxation Services 5 (Shaun Gifford 3, Leo Parker 1)
In the final match in this pennant, Weightmans Packaging took a surprise win against second placed Regional Taxation Services to haul themselves off the bottom of the ladder.
Weightmans Packaging broke a streak of seven losses to record this win, and whilst they will not feature in finals play, wins such as this one may change the complexion of the teams in it.
The three Weightmans Packaging players all had a hand in this win, captain Sabrina Fitzpatrick with one win, number two Karly Leach and number Nicole Hunt each with two wins each. Fitzpatrick and Leach also won a very close five set doubles rubber to, at that time, give them a three rubbers to one lead.
Regional Taxation Services captain Shaun Gifford kept his team well and truly in the contest – he won his three singles rubbers, dropping just one set, and that to Karly Leach. Shaun played both doubles, he and Rodney Galvin lost to Fitzpatrick and Leach in the first doubles, and later he and
Leo Parker outlasted Leach and Nicole Hunt to win in five to level the match at four rubbers all.
And when Gifford defeated Fitzpatrick in the first match of the final round of singles, it gave his side the lead for the first time in the match. Karly Leach quickly equalised however, downing Leo Parker in straight sets, and Hunt completed the job for the all-ladies team, downing Rodney Galvin 11-5, 9-11. 11-7, 11-9.
Final scores: 6 rubbers to 5 and 22 games each
PENNANT FOUR:
The two top teams in this grade, Weightmans Packaging and Dunkley Scales cruised to easy wins in this round.
– Weightmans Packaging 9 (Glenn Leeson, Chelsey Avers 3, Gary Leach 1) d Tankard Dental 2 (David Healy, Maria Starikov 1)
This match featured teams first and third on the ladder, and Weightmans Packaging was untroubled to win.
Both Glenn Leeson and Chelsey Avers finished the night with the maximum three singles wins, and together they won the first doubles. Number three Gary Leach defeated his opposite number Curtis Crabtree, and with Leeson the second doubles.
Leeson’s biggest competition in this match came from Tankard Dental number two Maria Starikov. Not surprisingly, really, as Maria leads the aggregate, and pushed Glenn all the way, Leeson finally taking the match 11-5 in the fifth set.
Avers continued her great run of form, she has now won 14 of her last 15 singles matches, and sits a solid third on the aggregate. Her three wins here all came in three sets.
For Tankard Dental, Starikov and David Healy each defeated Gary Leach, to record the only two wins for their side.
Final scores: 9 rubbers to 2 and 28 games to 11.
– Dunkley Scales 8 (Ildi Healy, Katrina Clifford, Derek Hung 2) d Mallee Meats 3 (Tom Gilmour 3)
This match was between teams second and fourth on the ladder, and Dunkley Scales convincingly.
The trio of Ildi Healy, Katrina Clifford and Derek Hung won two singles rubbers each, but none of them could get the better of Mallee Meats’ Tom Gilmour.
Both doubles also went to Dunkley Scales; in the first Katrina Clifford and Derek Hung combined well to defeat their more experienced opponents Wendy Simpson and Tom Gilmour. In an exciting five set encounter, the Dunkley Scales pair won 11-8, 9-11, 11-5, 8-11, 11-9. Ildi Healy and Clifford had a much easier time of it in the second doubles, downing Wendy Simpson and Jenny Leach in straight sets.
Gilmour was the only Mallee Meats player who recorded a win, he won his three singles, one in straight sets, the other two in five, and he and
Simpson came close to winning the first doubles, but fell short to Clifford and Hung.
Final scores: 8 rubbers to 3 and 28 games to 14
For further information on Table Tennis contact Gavin Carmichael 0408 237 907.
