Posts in category: TTI News

Dear Members,

As many of you already know, I was elected chair of TTI at the AGM in early June. I would like to update you on what has happened in the last two months and how we are progressing. I’d also like to set out the challenges and opportunities that face us and our plans.

The honour of being elected chair was quickly followed by the realisation of the importance of the task I had taken on. Table Tennis has been played as an organised sport in Ireland for many decades and the Irish Table Tennis Association (now better known as Table Tennis Ireland) was officially formed as a limited company in the 1930s.

Ireland, (North and South) has changed almost beyond recognition in the last thirty years and these socio-economic changes have had an effect. The sport has gone through cycles of mass popularity (with 700 players in the National Championships in the 1970s) to more modest numbers now (one tenth of that figure typically in the last decade). The challenge of declining numbers is not unique to Table Tennis – in fact most sports are experiencing similar patterns. Another external change is the increased supervision and governance requirements expected today in a modern society – for example child protection, whistle blower policies, social media policies, Board appraisals etc. – all good things, but all requiring the professionalization of the organisation, meaning full time professional staff. Volunteers are more difficult to find for reasons that will be evident to all. However, there are also great opportunities, for instance the strength of the immigrant populations from eastern Europe and further afield, many with an interest in the sport. The improved facilities, technical expertise and coaching available. Even reduced flight cost and the Euro (for some of us) have changed the landscape for our top players, allowing them to compete abroad much more easily than when I last held a bat seriously. Much of the above will be obvious, but I thought it useful to set it out as the context in which we are operating now.

Although these broader patterns are interesting, I was kicked into action on several more practical issues since the AGM.

1.       We are establishing an online system to allow you to affiliate, enter events, find a club etc. online – the system is known as GoMembership and you can expect to see it in the next few months. We are in the implementation stages with the software vendor, configuring the system to optimally meet our needs.

2.       We recently hosted the very successful Senior Schools International event in the University of Limerick with teams from Ireland, Scotland, England, Wales, Isle of Man, Jersey and Guernsey. We had some fantastic wins and incredible fight backs. One thing our Irish players do not lack is confidence with some incredible wins by several players none more so than Charlie Fitzgerald of Blackrock and Katie McGlone of UCD (amongst others too numerous to mention). The events unit (under Tony Farrell’s leadership), the office staff, other Board members and many volunteers deserve all the credit for this showpiece event.

3.       We had until the first of July to develop our mid-year review in order to collect the second half of our 2016 funding. We have been working on that since just before the AGM.

4.       Several changes are being suggested to various events and  the ranking scheme all of which will be subject to further consultation through the branches

5.       Establishing a new Board of Directors and setting objectives for the year ahead, aligned with the existing strategy and some thoughts we are developing on a new strategy.

So, it has been a fast start, but a good one.

Ahead of us lies several major work efforts including developing a new strategy and maintaining, or even growing funding for the sport. At a high level I want to focus on supporting Branches and Clubs, modernising our systems and processes and attracting more women to (and back to) the sport, leading to a healthier balance in the organisation. Several of the directors have set out their objectives for the next year, including Alan Strong for Coaching, Conn Higgins for High Performance, Michael Barry for Financial Management, improved accountability and governance and Liam O’Ceallaigh for Participation. We also look to make significant improvements in the Women In Sport program to focus on all women in the sport , not just new entrants.  I hope to share more of our plans with you as they develop. We are ambitious and also realistic , focusing on where our efforts are most likely to make a difference.

I, along with some of the Directors,  hope to meet all of the provincial branches before the season commences.

There are a number of vacancies at Director and Associate Director level which I would like to fill. I know that these positions could also be opportunities to help fill out your career profile. These roles are focused on a particular area and it is my intention not to ask anyone to go beyond their particular area of responsibility. Please contact the office ([email protected]) if you are interested in exploring these opportunities or want to propose someone.

·         Marketing Director, to manage sponsorship deals with a handful of suppliers and to promote the sport

·         Chief Technical Officer, to manage our small office IT environment and our developing online platforms, ideally with an interest in Information Security

·         Events Unit Chair, someone with an interest in the sport, logistics or project management

·         Company Secretary, someone with legal or compliance experience who can help redraft and rationalise our policies and regulations, in consultation with the membership, as well as briefing the Board on their duties etc.

·         Other roles are available for people with suitable skills, so please contact us if you feel you have a particular skill or expertise that could support TTI.

I would like to thank everyone who has expressed their support in the last few busy weeks, and I look forward to working with you all to ensure TTI goes from strength to strength. Please remember that we are a membership organisation and, as such, TTI, through the office staff and Directors, is always keen to hear your feedback and suggestions, especially where you can help us make improvements.

Regards

Rob Cowan

Chairman, Table Tennis Ireland

Click on the links below to download images from the Senior Schools International (approx. 3 megapixel images).

The download links will be active until the end of June.

Team Event – Part One

Team Event – Part Two

Team Event – Part Three

Team Event – Part Four

Singles Day (not so many on the last day… too busy on the computer!)

Presentations

The eagerly anticipated 2016 Senior Schools International has been and gone – and what an event it proved to be as over 200 players/officials came together and locked horns over three tantilising days of Table Tennis. 

The annual tournament returned to our shores for the first time since 2010, and once again, The University of Limerick played host to the Bord Failte supported event. 

With 25 courts set out by Friday lunchtime, all was in place to kick off another memorable showpiece event for Irish Table Tennis in the excellent UL Arena. 

Team Event

First up on Friday evening was the start of the Team Competitions. Of the 12 Irish teams in action across the 6 categories, the home sides were very much in the mix as the competition reached the latter stages on Saturday afternoon. 

On the boys side, the U14 A team of Conor Nugent and Art McLaughlin impressed, as they reached the semi final before going down to a strong Scotland A team. However, the boys showed real quality to take a bronze medal as they overcame England B for 3rd place. 

The U16 A team of Dylan Grace and Zak Earley were equally impressive. Having negotiated their way through their group and into the semis, their impressive run was halted by a strong England A. However, the boys put in an excellent performance to defeat Scotland A to claim bronze. This included 2 outstanding wins for the ever improving Grace, in particular his success over Scottish number 1 Callum Morrison.

The Under 18 Boys of Zak Wilson, Alan Walsh and Charlie Fitzgerald were in the thick of the battle all day. After sealing top spot in the group after a hard fought 3-2 win over England A, the boys faced England B in the semis. This was to be another epic. Despite 2 wins from the undefeated Zak, we were into a deciding match as Charlie faced Chan. He delivered to put the boys into the final. 

In the final, the boys faced England A once again, and like earlier, it was to go the distance. Again, Zak led from the front to take his 2 singles. However, a loss for Charlie against number 1 Bennett and a doubles loss for Zak and Alan meant that Charlie was once again in the hot seat as he faced young English Internation James Smith in the pressure cooker final match. In an amazing match, Charlie produced some of his best Table Tennis to seal the gold medal for the Irish after an energy sapping 5 set match up.

On the girls side, there was more success. The Under 14s showed huge promise, as both teams reached the semi finals where they would end up facing eachother! In the end, despite a great performance by Sophie Early to pick up 1 singles win, the A team of Natasya Barry and Silke Heinen proved a bit too strong on the day as they ran out 3-1 winners. 

In the final, the girls battled hard but just fell short to a strong English team. However, there was good news as to add to this Silver medal, the B team of Lucy Craig and Sophie produced the goods to win the 3/4 playoff and take the bronze.

There was another Silver medal in the girls team event, this time in the U18s, as the Munster duo of Chloe O’Halloran and Mair Kelly produced a string of accomplished performances to take 2nd place in an extremely competitve event. 

Later, Gold struck once more, as the Under 16 Girls team off Katie McGlone and Mia O’Rahilly Egan brushed all aside in convincing fashion to win the event outright. In the final they were tested, as Mia went down to the English number 1. However, Katie led from the front to take 2 singles wins as well as a doubles win with Mia to steer the girls to gold.

Singles Sunday

On Sunday, the Singles events kicked into action as the 6 categories started with players aiming to take home the sought after Individual titles. 

There were 5 medals in total in the main events for the Irish. In the U14 Girls, Mia O’Rahilly Egan and Lucy Craig reached the semi finals before losing out to the top English girls – however this was enough for the girls to take bronze medal positions.

In the  U18 Boys, Zak Wilson was aiming to continue his impressive form having gone unbeaten in the team event. In the singles he was looking strong, as he brushed aside Smith (ENG) and Hobson (ENG) to seal a semi final spot. This was where his run would end though, as he couldn’t quite get to grips with the Welsh Number 1 Callum Evans who ran out a 3-1 winner. Zak had to settle for bronze. 

This left 2 players in the draw for Irish hopes to rest on.- Katie McGlone and Owen Cathcart, both fighting to take home their respective U16 titles. 

Katie, following on from her Gold in Saturdays team event, was a class apart, as she brushed all aside to take her place in the medal positions. She was however made to fight to book her final place, as she was pushed all the way against the dangerous Menghistab (ENG). Keeping with her story of the weekend though, the Dubliner showed her resilience in tight situations to hold firm and take the match 11-8 in the deciding set. 

In the final, Katie was up against another English player, Sophie Barlow. With pressure on her shoulders, Katie responded to take the final in 3 tight sets and with it, the gold medal – defending the title she won 12 months ago. What an achievement!

Owen meanwhile, was making his way through the U16 Boys in similar fashion. However, the semi final was to be a match that we expect anyone who was in UL on Sunday will not be forgetting any time soon. 

His opponent was Scottish number 1 Callum Morrison. The Scot was in inspired form, taking a 2-0 lead and having Owen on the rack. The top seed battled to take the 3rd, however Morrison kept up the heat as he raced to an 8-0 lead in the 4th. Owen showed great fight to make it 8-4 but Morrisson then played some great Table Tennis to go 10-4 ahead – 6 match points. Owen then threw caution to the wind as he launched more attacks towards the Scot. Amazingly, he pulled it back to 10-10 before eventually closing the set out 15-13.

The decider was one way traffic, as the Ormeau TTC boy ran away, taking the set 11-4 to clinch victory, having once been hanging from the jaws of defeat!

In the final, Owen faced English No1 Matthew Leete. Again, this one went the distance, however there was a feeling of calm on this occasion as the Ulster player always looked in control. He went on to take the 5th set 11-3 and with it the gold Medal. 

Table Tennis Ireland is delighted to host the Senior Schools International Table Tennis Championships in UL, Limerick over the weekend of 24-26th June-2016

This prestigious event will involve over 200 of the top Senior Schools players (Boys and Girls aged 14-18yrs) and their coaches from Ireland, England, Scotland, Wales, Guernsey, Jersey and the Isle of Man together with their families, friends and travelling supporters. This is the second time (previously in 2010) that the all-action event is being hosted at the Castletroy venue, with the superb Sports Arena facilities and on-campus accommodation and catering for all participants.

 Commenting on the announcement, TTI Events Chair, Tony Farrell noted that ‘Table Tennis Ireland is delighted to be returning to the superb facilities at the UL Arena for this prestigious International event. The competition will be intense, but following their exceptional performances at European level, the Irish Teams will be expecting to compete for gold in a number of categories. As hosts, we welcome all participants and supporters, and gratefully acknowledge the assistance of Failte Ireland as our primary sponsor.’

The event is being sponsored by Failte Ireland, and Jennifer Churchward, manager of the Event Ireland Unit within Fáilte Ireland added ‘Event Ireland is proud to be supporting the Senior Schools International Table Tennis Championships.  This event will bring almost 1,000 international bed nights to the local area and provides an excellent opportunity to showcase Ireland as both an event and leisure destination.   We wish competitors and spectators alike a memorable championships that inspires future international events at the University of Limerick and  leisure visitors to the Wild Atlantic Way and beyond.’

The Team Event will commence on Friday Evening (24th) at 5.00pm and will continue through to Saturday Evening (25th) at 6.00pm.

The Singles Event will commence on Sunday Morning (26th) at 9.00am and will conclude with the Closing Ceremony and Presentations at 2.30pm.

Everyone is encouraged to attend and support their National team where admission is free. 

Table Tennis Ireland will be issuing regular updates across its social media platforms over the weekend, but if you require any further information in relation to the event, or any Table Tennis related matters, please contact me on this address or the number below, or log onto the Table Tennis Ireland website   –   www.irishtabletennis.com.

Regards.

Tony Farrell.

Chair – TTI Events Unit.
(00 353 86 804 7513)