2nd Ahoghill Company Section hosted 4th Newtownabbey in the opening round of this year's national table tennis competition.
This was our first participation in competitive table tennis for over four years, with our last involvement being Round 2 of the 2018/19 competition. To prepare the boys and to determine which three would represent 2nd Ahoghill we held tryouts throughout December, eventually deciding upon Jonah, Luke and Stephen.
There was a total of nine matches to be played, with each boy facing all three players of the opposing team once. Each match was the best of five games, with each game being first to 11 points. The team to win five or more matches would claim their place in the next round – the Irish Semi-Finals.
After opening in prayer, and finalising the fixtures, the matches got underway.
First series of matches
The experience and skill of Newtownabbey was evident from the start. Their three senior boys made few unforced errors and the pressure of fighting for every point resulted in our boys losing the first three matches.
Jonah v Samuel: 7-11 8-11 3-11
Luke v Tsai: 4-11 5-11 7-11
Stephen v Stephen: 5-11 6-11 10-12
Second series of matches
The second series of matches were a similar story and Newtownabbey pushed ahead to win those three matches as well, claiming their place in the Semi-Finals in the process.
Luke v Samuel: 0-11 4-11 4-11
Jonah v Stephen: 11-13 8-11 11-13
Stephen v Tsai: 3-11 2-11 3-11
Third series of matches
The disappointment and frustration was clear in the third and final series of matches, and despite their efforts the boys succumbed to another three defeats.
Luke v Stephen: 11-3 7-11 11-9 8-11
Stephen v Samuel: 4-11 2-11 4-11
Jonah v Tsai: 1-11 4-11 11-13
This meant the final scoreline was 0-9 to Newtownabbey. This doesn’t reflect the quality of play within the individual matches, and Jonah, Luke and Stephen should be encouraged by their performances. They challenged their older opponents in several prolonged rallies and caught them flat footed with carefully aimed returns at various points throughout the night. There is budding potential in all three boys which is sure to improve with practice and experience.
Congratulations to 4th Newtownabbey on progressing to the next round, we wish them well as they face the winner of 3rd Carrickfergus v 1st Garvagh in the Irish Semi-Finals.