Lost Count?

Next week we shall witness another Cup Final at Bath Street Marine Table Tennis Club, perhaps it is fitting that it falls in the week in which we celebrate World Table Tennis Day? The latter, World Table Tennis Day, is on St George's Day, Tuesday the 23rd April, a significant day in its own right. The Cup Final - which is the final of the Liverpool League, Frank Murphy Veterans Handicap Cup - will be on Wednesday 24 April (at Marine).

It is ironical that on the day of the Cup Final two local rival football teams will be playing out a derby match in the English Premier League, ironical because the cup final will also be a local derby! It features two teams from Bath Street Marine Table Tennis Club! In fact this will be the fifth time in 11 seasons that two BSM teams have played each other in the final of this competition, amazing! And I have lost count of how many times a club team has been in the final of this competition in recent years - I know it is more than 5!!

Whichever of the two teams wins the Cup (pictured below) it will be the third successive year that the Club has won this trophy! Spectators will be most welcome to come and watch which of the two teams lifts the trophy - there will be some top class table tennis too as both teams feature some very evenly matched top division players.

World Table Tennis Day provides an opportunity to celebrate the diversity and inclusivity of table tennis as a sport. So, in this coming week we will celebrate that inclusivity and diversity by showcasing two things. On Wednesday the cup final showcases some of the best players the club has and how competitive the club has been in participating in local tournaments. All that is best about league and competitive table tennis. Whereas, on Tuesday, we will celebrate just how inclusive table tennis is by showcasing some of the best of 'social' table tennis - Bat & Chat as some call it! These daytime sessions of social table tennis - which take place just about every weekday morning - provide a safe and welcoming space where anyone can come, have a game or two of table tennis, or just try table tennis, have a cup of tea, maybe even a biscuit and have a chat! A little bit of physical exercise, getting out and playing a sport, counting and strategy also help mental wellbeing, and the social interaction, meeting new friends, having a chat, all contribute to general well being. It is why table tennis, and especially social table tennis is such a great activity. Come and try it on Tuesday!

And if you would like a bit of a quiz, here is a picture quiz for you - probably all of the answers are somewhere on the club website!! Here are 6 pictures, they are all winners of the Frank Murphy Cup for BSM covering the period 2014 - 2023. Can you identify the people and put a year to their success in this competition? The pictures are not in any order!