This weekend saw 150 players from all over the United Kingdom and the Channel Islands travel to Limerick to compete for the Senior Schools International. In the fantastic setting of University of Limerick Sports Arena, the teams were afforded top class playing facilities in which to display their talents.
Friday and Saturday saw the fiercely competitive team events. On home turf, Ireland progressed to three of the six finals. The Under 18 Boys and Under 16 Girls were both beaten by strong English teams. Ireland’s Under 16 team of Ashley Robinson and Declan O’Brien, coached by Mark O’Flynn also faced a strong English team. The team combined perfectly in a highly pressurised match to deliver a cherished team gold in a thrilling 3-2 encounter.
Sunday was the singles and the Irish team produced some outstanding performances to dominate their opponents from the 6 neighbouring countries. With 6 gold medals on offer, Ireland took home 4 of the titles, with Shi Zhao Li, Ashley Robinson, Paul McCreery and Ashley Givan all performing with great skill under intense pressure to deliver for Ireland.
Main Results
Team Event
Under 18 Boys: 1. England A, 2. Ireland, 3. England B
Under 18 Girls: 1. Wales, 2. Guernsey, 3. England A
Under 16 Boys: 1. Ireland A, 2. England A, 3.Wales
Under 16 Girls: 1. England A, 2. Ireland, 3. England B
Under 14 Boys: 1. England A, 2.Wales, 3. England B
Under 14 Girls: 1. Wales, 2. England A, 3. England B
Singles
Under 18 Boys: 1. P.McCreery(Ireland), 2. T.Maynard(England)
Under 18 Girls: 1. A.Loveridge(Guernsey), 2.C. Thomas(Wales)
Under 16 Boys: 1. A.Robinson(Ireland), 2. Ping Ho(England)
Under 16 Girls: 1. A.Givan(Ireland), 2. T.Armitage(England)
Under 14 Boys: 1. S. Li(Ireland), 2. L.Morgan(Wales)
Under 14 Girls: 1. C.Carey(Wales), 2. E .Torkington(England)