221112 | bsmttc

News Release - BSMTTC News 148

Dateline: 12 November 2022

Lest we forget!

Remembrance Day has marked the end of another Cup week in the Liverpool League. Perhaps it is fitting therefore that as we remember all those who have served our country so faithfully, and those who have given their lives in service, that we also remember those who have served our club and our sport. This week has been Round 2 of the respective Divisional Cup competitions and the club has been well served by the 5 teams that have been in cup action. Here is a brief report on how they have fared.

1st and A Teams (Division 1 - The Readman Cup)

It seems that both of the Div 1 teams are being hit by player injury or absence at the present time. This week was no exception, with, in effect, 3 substitutes being called into action to help the teams fulfil the fixtures. First up was the A Team with a home draw against East Wavertree. Lawrence Kenwright was parachuted into the A Team for this one and made an immediate contribution. Regular A Team members Colin Turner and Sam Pierce were also able to contribute as the team raced through the card to secure a 5:0 win. Lawrence was again called into action for the 1st team later in the week. They faced a much sterner test away to a very strong Merseyside Police team. Even Freddie Bainbridge had to be called out of retirement for this one. A very good match followed. Although there were some close games and sets only Lawrence was able to secure a single point on the scorecard the team going down 5:1. At least there will be some club representation in Round 3.

Above: The two teams in the BSM A v East Wavertree match. Lawrence Kenwright, Colin Turner & Sam Pierce (BSM A); Arash Khozee, Lee Madin & David Ao (East Wavertree), pluse non-playing East Wavertree captain, Tony Dixon.
And below:
The two teams in the Merseyside Police v BSM 1st match. The Police squad, Neil Pickard, Abdul Alsuwailem, Mitch Barker & Jonathan Taylor and the BSM 1st squad of Lawrence Kenwright, Dermot Tierney & Fred Bainbridge.
And on the right the two match cards.

B Team (Division 2 - The Rumjahn Cup)

Captain Brian Crolley found himself with a little bit of a dilemma for his team's visit to Cadwa for their Div 2 cup match. With 2 regular team members not available, he drew on photographer Ray Hibbs to stand in on the night as well as take snapshots! And what a fabulous contribution he made! No.1 Barry Davis led the charge for the visitors and was excellently supported by Colin Mitchell and stand-in Ray. Ben Griffiths for the home side tried his best to hold the visitors at bay, taking two singles in style, but it was not enough! The BSM B side running out winners 2:5. They will be heading into the semi-finals!

Above the BSM B team, Ray Hibbs, Colin Mitchell & Barry Davis; The Cadwa side of Alan French, spectator, Ian Burrows & Ben Griffiths; and the match card.

E Team (Division 4 - The Forrest Cup)

The Junior Team faced Liverpool YM A, who they had played in the League the previous week. But a rather different looking YM team turned out for this one. A really good match ensued. 4 pairs of singles were played. Star performance from Henry Sinker, playing at No.1 he showed real discipline and application and came through two very tough 5 game sets winning both! It is only a shame that his second win didn't count in the final score as technically the YM team had reached the winning score line at the end of set 7. Daniel Duncan also put in a very good performance for the juniors also notching up a win. The visitors however overall proved too strong running out winners 2:5. A very good match though.

Above the players in the BSM E (Jnr) v Liverpool YM A match. From the left - Jamie Bruce, Simon Craske, Alby Ofoeme & Ali Bruce (Liverpool YM) and Izzy Boyd, Daniel Duncan, Henry Sinker and Scott French (BSM E). Followed by the score card.

F Team (Division 5 - The Stamp Cup)

New team captain Alan Hale seems to be a little spoilt for choice with his players at the moment, and the improvement in performance of each must be presenting real headaches! The F Team had a home draw with Sefton Park D, a tricky tie, especially as the G Team had already fallen to a Sefton Park E side in the previous round! And what an excellent match it proved to be. Alan introducing his surprise selection in the form of new player, Rafal Glowacki. Rafal may be new to the game of table tennis and match play but his determination to play and improve himself is second to none. And this shone through as he definitely took the 'Player of the Match' award winning both his singles. With positive contributions from all team members the team won through with a first class 5:2 win. Keep an eye on this team in the next round!

On the left the BSM F Team and on the right the visitors, Sefton Park D. Below right the match card and below left - some of the jubilant spectators!

And in conclusion.......

Three teams through to the semi-finals of the respective cup competitions. That's not bad! Some very good matches this week and every team put in an excellent performance.