Please find attached results of Ulster School Individual and Ulster Schools cup. Click to download.
Ulster Senior Open: Results
This weekend was some great table tennis played as some of Ireland’s top players gathered for the Ulster Senior Open.
In the Men’s event, Paul McCreery and John Murphy cruised through to the Final – McCreery didn’t drop a set and only Daryl Strong stretching John Murphy, taking their match to 5 sets. Murphy took a first set lead in the Final, but then McCreery upped a gear and took control of the match, going on to grind out a 3-1 victory over his international teammate and claim the Ulster Senior Open title.
In the Women’s event, Ashley Givan recorded another home province victory, cruising to the title in straight sets with a win over Connacht’s Sarah Timlin. Earlier in the event, young guns Katie McGlone and Hannah Lynch-Dawson both caused big surprises, each with 5 set wins over Jean Wyse and Sabina Devereux respectively to progress to the semi-finals – a great achievement for both young players.
Ballymena’s Pawel Sulkowski claimed the Class II singles title with a straight sets win over Jonathan Porter. Sulkowski also went all the way to the Final of the Veterans event, taking Pioneers Kevin Mackey to 5 sets – Mackey proved too strong for him and claimed the title, preventing what would have been a fine double for the Ulster man.
In the other events, McCreery and Murphy were a formidable partnership in the Open Doubles, claiming the title with a win over Logue and Robinson. In the Under 21’s, Dawid Sulkowski added to his father’s victory with a great win in the Under 21’s, defeating Jonathan Porter in the Final – Porter thus having the dubious distinction of finishing runner-up in both competitions to the father and son pair! However, the youngster will have been delighted to reach the 2 Finals in one day and will look to go one step further next time out.
Please see attached full results with thanks to Jamie McConkey.
County Antrim Open Report
Strong sees off Academy Strongtower challenge to claim the County Antrim Open title.
Fifty nine table tennis enthusiasts from all over Ireland travelled to the Ballymena Academy gymnasiums to participate in the 2012 County Antrim Open. The quality entry included no less than fourteen of Ulster’s top twenty players headed by new Ulster number one Philip Wallace. Top Ulster veteran Pawel Sulkowski was back trying to defend the title he won in 2011 and Daryl Strong, a former Irish number one, also choose the event for his welcomed return to tournament play.
To qualify for the Open event the players had to finish in the top two of a group of six players. Anyone in third place qualified for the Class two event, those fourth in their group qualified for the Class three event and fifth and sixth placed players battled out for the Class four event. There was a total of ten seeds each heading one of the ten groups.
In the qualifying group stages the top seed Philip Wallace qualified from group one unscathed with convincing victories over Ballycastle’s Francis Shirley, John Walker, NICS’s Will Fleming, Coleraine’s T Cichey and Belfast’s Andrew Loane. Loane snatched second place to continue in the Open competition.
Second seed Fermanagh’s Gervis Knox was top of a very competitive group two defeating Zac Wilson, Randolph Loney, Arnold Morgan, Maurice Rooney and local Ballymena lad Johnny Moore. Belfast’s Maurice Rooney edged second spot ahead of Glenburn’s Zac Wilson and Tandragee defender Randolph Loney by virtue of sets won.
In Group three Academy Strongtower player, and Ballymena Open winner, Dawid Sulkowski romped into the Open with some excellent attacking table tennis defeating Ivan Jeffers, Paul McGuiggan, Vincent O’Regan, Joe Mullan and the youngest competitor in the event ten year old Philip Montgomery. Tyrone’s Ivan Jeffers accompanied Sulkowski into the Open.
Group four had the defending champion Academy Strongtower’s Pawel Sulkowski in fine form finishing top of the group ahead of Ballymoney ace Gary McClelland, Peter Martin, Adrian Pietras, Ray Fleming and Michael Cichey. McClelland, playing his best table tennis of the season, also made it into the Open.
Group five was a real tough group with Martin Pickles causing the first upset of the day defeating fifth seed Mark McAllister in five gruelling sets. McAllister did finish second defeating Wexford’s Jake Kells, Anthony Dobbs, and team mate Ingus Feldmanus to give the host club Academy Strongtower three qualifiers for the Open.
In Group six Belfast stalwart Ted Mahaffey qualified along with fellow veteran Ian Davies from Ballyclare, each securing wins over Anselm Brankin, Colin Clements, Maurice McCullough and Michael McLarnon.
Group seven had top seed and pimples specialist Roy Coard top the group ahead of Ballyclare’s Gary Crawford with wins over Brian Lockhart, Shane Murray, Thomas Davies and Zac Ng.
In group eight Philip Jamison, as expected, topped the group with Dublin’s Kalen O’Neill a close second thanks to wins over Richard Black, Alan Cairns, Jonny Wilson and William Walker.
The ninth group had the only seeded casualty of the day with Barry Dickson ending up third behind group winner Daryl Strong and the ever improving Trevor Knox. Alan Jamison, James Dillon and Harry McGoldrick also succumbed to the attacking play of Strong and Knox.
The tenth and final group also had a minor upset as Richard Davies qualified ahead of Mark Gordon with wins over Jimmy O’Hara, David Boyd and John Moore. Gordon also made it to the Open as runner-up.
The County Antrim Open’s twenty qualifiers then formed four further groups of five with the winner of each group progressing to the semi-finals. The first group saw top seed and Ulster number one Philip Wallace lose to a rejuvenated Daryl Strong in four brilliant sets of table tennis 7-11, 11—8, 3-11. 10-12. Second seed Gervis Knox marched majestically to the semis with four wins where he would meet his nemesis from previous tournaments the young Dawid Sulkowski. Defending champion Pawel Sulkowski took the last semi final spot with four excellent wins – only defender Maurice Rooney was able to take a set from the champion. Pawel would have Daryl Strong as his semi-final opponent.
In the first semi-final the defending champion Pawel Sulkowski found Daryl Strong on top form and although he managed to take a set from the Newry teacher it was Strong that progressed to the final.
The second semi-final proved a step too far for Gervis Knox as he lost in four frantic sets to Dawid Sulkowski 7-11, 11-9, 12-14, 9-11 with the third set proving his waterloo losing a good lead and a set point that would have put him in the driving seat.
The final turned out to be a five set classic with Dawid taking a close first set 12-10. Strong took the second set comfortably but lost a tight third set. It looked like the reigning Ballymena Open champion Dawid Sulkowski was going to add the Co Antrim to his trophy cabinet but Strong clawed his way back into contention with an excellent exhibition of attacking table tennis to take the fourth set and he repeated the medicine in the fifth set to claim the title.
The Class two event went to Barry Dickson who defeated starlet Zac Wilson over five sets. The experienced Dickson had to use all his guile to defeat Wilson recovering from a set down and two sets to one down to snatch victory 5-11, 11-8, 6-11, 12-10, and 11-5
The Class three event was won by Randolph Loney whose super defence could not be consistently penetrated by Wexford’s attack-minded Anthony Dobbs. Loney won in straight sets 11-7, 11-8, 11-7.
The Class four semi finals were very keenly contested. In the first semi Ballymoney’s Paul McGuiggan defeated Banbridge’s Arnold Morgan in five sets 5-11, 11-5, 11-6, 6-11, 11-7. The second semi final was a Fleming family affair between brothers Will and Ray Fleming. Ray edged the first set 12-10 but Will fought back strongly to take the second set 11-7. Ray won a close third set 11-9 and took an even closer fourth set 12-10. In the final McGuiggan produced his A-game to defeat Fleming 11-8, 11-7, 11-8.
The outgoing County Antrim Secretary Norman McBride thanked all the competitors for their sporting behaviour, Ballymena Academy and host club Academy Strongtower for the use of the gymnasiums, ex Irish international table tennis star Jimmy O’Hara for doing the presentations, Arnold Morgan and his fellow umpires for their assistance, Andrew Dennison Sports for the ball sponsorship, Ted Mahaffy for supplying additional scoreboards’ and nets and all the people that assisted with setting up and taking down of the tables, surrounds and umpires tables etc.
A pair of Stiga trainers and two tops were left in the gym after the tournament. Please e-mail Norman McBride if any of the items are yours [ [email protected]]
UCD Challenger: Belfield a big hit
Over 100 players took part in the latest round of the Stiga Challenger Series, on 21 January in UCD Belfield. Belfield proved an excellent venue for the event, with plenty of table space and spectator seating, as well as the Café overlooking the event area, the only complaint being the broken TV resulting in a faint hope of an afternoon watching Leinster in the Heineken Cup, while simultaneously ‘supervising’, being cruelly dashed!
The normal format of the event was followed, with an initial grading round leading to the players being broken up into 4 divisions based on their grading round results.
Semi Finalists in Division 4 were Andrew Timmins (St. Colmcilles), Derek Mulholland (Raven), Jack Carroll (Ballyroan) and Conor McShane (Blackrock), with Mulholland defeating McShane in the final.
In Division 3, the semi finalists were James Carroll (Ballyroan), Mimi Nguyen (Deansrath), Ian Manley (St. Tiernans) and Claire Handcock (Rathdowney), with Manley defeating Carroll in the final.
Division 2 quarter finals saw an all York Road matchup between Joe Proudfoot and Ali McCool, with McColl coming through; Jessie Hayes (Mountrath) defeated Kenneth Lyons(Blackrock); Andrew Mansfield (Rathdowney) came through against George Goodson (Mountrath), while James O’Connor(Blackrock) won his match against Paudi McDonald(Ballyroan). Hayes and O’Connor were the final matchup after wins over McCool and Mansfield, with O’Connor taking the Division 2 win.
In Division 1, the 5-8 places were made up of Katie Hayes (Mountrath), and Andrew Robinson, Tim Maguire and Bernard O’Sullivan (all Blackrock). It was a Midlands monopoly in the semi finals, with Scott Jestin (Mountrath) overcoming Diarmuid Whelan (Ballyroan) in the first semi final, while Eoghan Whelan (Ballyroan) was the winner over John Mansfield (Rathdowney) in semi final 2. A close final was taken by Eogan Whelan, beating Scott Jestin into 2nd place.
UCD would like to thank everyone who supported the event, and look forward to seeing everyone again at another event in Belfield in the future.
Thanks must go to Con O’Ceadaigh and Maria Gallagher at the control table for putting some shape on the chaos(!) that is a Challenger event, to the Committee and team members who assisted with running the event as well as with the hall set-up and also to Tommy Fitzgerald of Stiga for providing the prizes for the event.
Results
Division 1 1 Eoghan Whelan Ballyroan
2 Scott Jestin Mountrath
3-4 John Mansfield Rathdowney
Diarmuid Whelan Ballyroan
5-8 Katie Hayes Mountrath
Tim Maguire Blackrock
Bernard O’Sullivan Blackrock
Andrew Robinson Blackrock
Division 2 1 James O’Connor Blackrock
2 Jessie Hayes Mountrath
3-4 Ali McCool York Road
Andrew Mansfield Rathdowney
5-8 George Goodson Mountrath
Kenneth Lyons Blackrock
Paudi McDonald Ballyroan
Joe Proudfoot York Road
Division 3 1 Ian Manley St. Tiernans
2 James Carroll Ballyroan
3-4 Claire Handcock Rathdowney
Mimi Nguyen Deansrath
Division 4 1 Derek Mulholland Raven
2 Conor McShane Blackrock
3-4 Jack Carroll Ballyroan
Andrew Timmins St. Colmcilles
East Midlands: Cadet Results
Saturdays Results Cadet Events: East Midlands 4*
Cadet Boys Banded
Zack Wilson
Beat Omar Khassal 3-1 ( Finished eventual R/up )
Lost Adam Jepson 2-3
Lost in Group on countback but great result beating Omar Khassal who ended up going all the way to the final
Kevin Hutchinson
Beat Ashley Felix 3-0
Beat Daneil Clarke 3-0
Beat Baiden Throughgood 3-0
Beat Jake Westwood 3-2
Lost Josh Bennett 1-3
Won his group and second round in style. In the last 16 Kevin came through a tough match against the higher ranked Jake Westwood. In the last 8 he lost out to Josh Bennett in match that saw Kevin win the first to 4 and lead the second 9-4 but it wasn’t to be as Josh fought back to win the second and eventualy ran out a 3-1 winner.
Cadet Boys Open
Zack Wilson
Beat Zachary Mandel 3-1
Beat Timothy Denby 3-2
Lost Gabriel Achampong 1-3
Beat Alex Ramsden 3-0
Lost Jack Bennett 1-3
Zack got out of his group in Second place after a tight 3-1 loss to the 10th seeded Gabriel Achampong. In the second round Zack was too good for Alex Ramsden winning 3-0 which set him up with a last 32 match against Jack Bennett the number 3 seed. Zack showed in this match what great potential he has for the future giving the number 3 seed a scare but eventually going down 3-1
Kevin Hutchinson
Beat Adam Jepson 3-0
Beat Joe Franklin 3-0
Beat Bradley Wood 3-2
Beat Edward Haskell 3-1
Lost to Luke Savill 0-3
Kevin who was unseeded beat Bradley Wood the number 11 seed for the tournament in his group 11-9 in the fifth. In the last 32 Kevin faced Edward Haskell where he ran out a 3-1 winner. In the last 16 he faced the number 8 seed Luke Savill where Kevin he lost 3-0.
Cadet Girls Banded
Elayna Mcglone
Lost Hiba Feredj 2-3
Beat Sarah Austin 3-0
Beat Bavika Mistry 3-0
Lost Katie McGlone 3-1
Elayna played well to get to the last 8 were she meet her sister Katie. In a very tight match Katie came out on top in a very close 4 sets.
Katie McGlone
Beat Kate Dixon 3-2
Beat Jestine George 3-0
Beat Laura Edwards 3-0
Beat Elayna McGlone 3-1
Beat Hannah Noutch 3-2
Beat Nicole Bird 3-0
In the group Katie had good wins over Laura Edwards and Kate Dixon. In the last 8 Katie had a hard fought win over her sister Elayna deuce in the 4th. In the semi final she came from 9-7 down in the 5th the beat Hannah Noutch 12-10. In the final Katie was in great form winning against Nicole Bird 3-0 and taking the Cadet Girls Banded Title to add to her Under 13 Girls Crown.
Cadet Girls Open Singles
Elayna Mcglone
Lost Maria Tsaptsinos 0-3
Lost Beth Wislon 1-3
Beat Jestina George 3-0
Elayna had the England Cadet National Champion in her group Maria Tsaptsinos who she lost to 0-3. Although she beat Jestina George 3-0 she lost out in 4 sets in her lat match in the group to Beth Wilson leaving Elayna in 3rd place in the group.
Hannah Lynch Dawson
Beat Hannah Noutch 3-1
Beat Georgina Walker 3-0
Beat Stephanie Cross 3-0
Lost Beth Roberts 1-3
Hannah who was 4th seed for the tournament won her group in good style. This set up a last 8 match with Beth Roberts in which Hannah lost deuce in the 4th.
Katie Mcglone
Beat Beth Roberts 3-1
Beat Eva Gadzhova 3-0
Beat Hannah Noutch 3-1
Lost Chrissie Slott 0-3
Katie had a good win over Beth Roberts of Wales in her group and Hannah Noutch in the last 16. In the last 8 she faced Chrissie Slott who ran out a 0-3 winner but it has to be said that Katie was playing in 3 events on the saturday and that took its toll in this match ( the only match Katie lost on the Saturday ).
Under 13 Girls
Katie McGlone
Beat Denise Payet 3-0
Beat Bhavika Mistry 3-0
Beat Holly Johns 3-0
Beat Imogen Barber 3-2
Beat Hiba Feredj 3-0
Katie who was Number 1 seed for the event won her group in style to set up a semi final with Imogen Barber. The semi final saw Katie lose the first 2 sets but with Katie in no mood to lose this semi final she came back to take the next 3 sets to secure her place in the final. In the final Katie was in a class of her own winning 3-0 against number 2 seed Hiba Feredj to crowned Under 13 Champion.
Ulster Junior Championship Report 2012
Ulster Junior Championships Report 2012
An action packed day was had at the recent Ulster Junior Championships held at the Valley Leisure Centre with a round robin format used to ensure that all players were guaranteed to play plenty of matches.
The U10, U14 & U21 categories kicked off the action in the morning.
Philip Jamison (Larne) was in imperious form defeating Castlerahan’s Kieran Reilly to win the U21 event. Oisin Reilly (Castlerahan) & Stephen Fawcett (Monaghan) were the losing semi-finalists.
The next event to conclude were the U10 girls with Lucy Craig (Glenburn) defeating Jordan Hazzard (Monaghan) in a well deserved 3-0 victory. These 2 players are certainly ones to watch out for in the future!
The U10 boys which had an encouraging entry was won by the impressive Owen Cathcart (Glenburn) who defeating Ethan Duffy (Monaghan) in 3 sets. Philip Montgomery (Ballymoney) and Matthew Brown (Monaghan) excelled to reach the semi-final stages.
The U14 girls was dominated by the Finn sisters from Glenburn. On this occasion, it was the younger sister Rebecca who defeated her older sister Laura in 5 excellent sets. Emma McSorley (Glenburn) on her comeback from injury excelled to finish in bronze position with Elizabeth Cathcart (Glenburn) who has greatly improved over the past season finishing in 4th position. Glenburn certainly dominated in this category with their players claiming the top 4 positions.
Eric Shekleton (Castlerahan) performed magnificently to cause a great upset in the U14 boys defeating Jonathan Porter (Fivemiletown) in 5 tantalising sets. Eric overcame the dangerous Ryan McConkey (Monaghan) in the semi-final, with Jonathan defeating Monahan’s surprise package Joshua Hall in the other semi-final.
The U12 girls was once again a battle between Glenburn’s Rebecca Finn and Castlerahan’s Leah Shekleton. The standard of play between both these girls was exceptionally high with many excellent rallies. After some scintillating rallies, it was Leah who came out on top defeating Rebecca in 4 close sets. Fivemiletown’s Megan Carson finished in 3rd position with Monahan’s Lydia McConkey in 4th position.
Owen Cathcart was victorious for the second time on the day winning the U12 boys singles defeating Islandmagee’s Iain Dick in 3 sets. Owen’s hardest battle came in the form of Ethan Duffy in the semi-final stage whom he defeated in 5 close sets. Iain reached the final with a solid 3-1 win over Glenburn’s Adam Barr.
Annalise Walker (Fivemiletown) recorded an excellent win in the U17 girls defeating Emma Ludlow (Glenburn) in 5 stupendous sets to claim gold. Erin Thompson (Glenburn) put in a good performance finishing in bronze position with Laura Finn finishing in 4th position.
The U17 boys was perhaps the most competitive section with numerous players staking a claim to win the title. There was shocks galore in the earlier rounds with Kris Foster (Monaghan) defeating Trevor Knox (Fivemiletown) at the quarter final stage and Eric Shekleton defeating his Castlerahan team-mate Kieran Reilly also in the quarter-finals. In the semi-finals, Jonathan Porter made up for his earlier loss in the U14 final defeating Eric Shekleton in 5 games, whilst Kris Foster recorded an excellent 3-1 win against Ryan McConkey. In the final, Jonathan was too strong for Kris winning in 3 straight games.
Thanks go to tournament organizers Tony Philips and Jamie McConkey for ensuring the smooth running of this event. Thanks also go to Arnold Morgan for assisting with umpiring on the day and Cathryn Gibson and Amanda Mogey who helped with the administration of this event.
Results
Under 21 Boys
1. Philip Jamison (Larne)
2. Kieran Reilly (Castlerahan)
3. Oisin Reilly (Castlerahan)
4. Stephen Fawcett (Newbliss)
Under 17 Boys Under 17 Girls
1. Jonathan Porter (Fivemiletown) 1. Annalise Walker (Fivemiletown)
2. Kris Foster (Drung) 2. Emma Ludlow (Glenburn)
3= Eric Shekleton (Castlerahan) 3. Erin Thompson (Glenburn)
3=Ryan McConkey (Newbliss) 4. Laura Finn (Glenburn)
Under 14 Boys Under 14 Girls
1. Eric Shekleton (Castlerahan) 1. Rebecca Finn (Glenburn)
2. Jonathan Porter (Fivemiletown) 2. Laura Finn (Glenburn)
3= Ryan McConkey (Newbliss) 3. Emma McSorley (Glenburn)
3= Joshua Hall (Newbliss) 4. Elizabeth Cathcart (Glenburn)
Under 12 Boys Under 12 Girls
1. Owen Cathcart (Glenburn) 1. Leah Shekleton (Castlerahan)
2. Iain Dick (Islandmagee) 2. Rebecca Finn (Glenburn)
3. Adam Barr (Glenburn) 3. Megan Carson (Fivemiletown)
3= Ethan Duffy (First Monaghan) 4. Lydia McConkey (Drung)
Under 10 Boys Under 10 Girls
1. Owen Cathcart (Glenburn) 1. Lucy Craig (Glenburn)
2. Ethan Duffy (First Monaghan) 2. Jordan Hazzard (Castlerahan)
3. Philip Montgomery (Ballymoney)
4. Matthew Brown (Monaghan)
Irish on International Duty
The first Irish team into action in 2012 is our Junior and Cadet Boys and Girls who are today preparing with a training session in Grantham College for this weekend’s Bribar East Midlands 4 Star Junior Open. Play begins tomorrow and much is expected of this Irish team, many of whom have been preparing at a camp organised by Club Donic in Lucan this week.
The Junior Boys are Declan O’Brien(pictured) and Ryan Farrell. O’Brien will really fancy his chances this weekend – he is seeded number 2 behind England’s Lewis Gray. Farrell has had a really good domestic season to date and will face 10th seed Laurence Gray in the Group stage.
The Cadet Boys are Zac Wilson and Kevin Hutchinson – Hutchinson in particular has been in good form this year and tops the National rankings with wins at the Irish Junior Classification and Ulster Junior Open. Wilson also recorded a tournament victory at the recent Ulster Junior invitational and will look to impress this weekend on international duty. Both players will also play in the Cadet Banded, Junior and Junior banded events, ensuring lots of table time.
The Cadet Girls are Elayna McGlone and Hannah Lynch-Dawson. Hannah has had some excellent results in England this year and is also undefeated domestically with three tournament wins from three this season. She is seeded fourth and will look to progress to the knock-out stages. Elayna McGlone has also been consistent this year across the ranking events and is gaining experience at international level. This tournament is another step in the long-term development of these players.
Sunday afternoon sees Edel O’Reilly and Ashley Givan play the Junior Girls event – both have fine pedigrees at this level and would also have hopes of making the knock-out stage.
Best wished to the entire Irish squad led by NPCs John Murphy and Louise Long. Check back on Monday for an event review. Also best wishes to Katie McGlone who on this occasion is not on the Irish squad, but is top seed in the Under 13 Girls event and will look to bring home some silverwear.
Click here for full draw.
Irish Feature in ITTF Rankings
The ITTF has published World Rankings in the Senior, Under 21, Under 18 and Under 15 age categories. See below for Irish World Ranked players in each category;
Senior Men701 MCCREERY Paul IRL918 MURPHY John IRL 962 MAGUIRE Gavin IRL 1209 ROBINSON Ashley IRL
Senior Women216 LIU Na IRL(pictured)669 MOGEY Amanda IRL 983 GIVAN Ashley IRL
Under 21 Men279 MCCREERY Paul IRL471 MAGUIRE Gavin685 ROBINSON Ashley IRL
Under 21 Women695 GIVAN Ashley IRL
Under 18 Men479 ROBINSON Ashley IRL
Under 18 Women550 GIVAN Ashley IRL
The Valley Leisure Centre Ulster Junior Invitation Event Report
The Valley Leisure Centre Ulster Junior Invitation Event 2011/2012
The Valley Leisure Centre played the perfect host to the Ulster Junior Invitation Event or ‘Christmas Cracker’ as it is more affectionately known on 29th December. After the Christmas festivities this was the perfect opportunity for players to work off the Christmas turkey and chocolates and back into a competitive table tennis environment.
Invited players were split into their own age category and played an energy sapping round robin event ensuring that all players did battle against one another.
This year for the first time, an U10 category was added for both girls and boys showing the increased numbers coming through at this age group.
U17 Boys
Kieran Reilly once again dominated this event going undefeated throughout to win this event for the second year running. Kieran was however made to work for his victory claiming a ferociously tight 5 set victory over Trevor Knox. Trevor in fact had match point at 10-9 in the final set, however Kieran showed excellent battling qualities to win 12-10 to secure the title. Kieran was also pushed to 5 sets by his younger brother Oisin who eventually finished in 4th place. Knox was dominant in his remaining matches to finish in silver position with Kris Foster in bronze position.
U14 Boys
Zak Wilson really came of age in this event, defeating the higher ranked Jonathan Porter in 4 games. Wilson won his remaining 7 other games fairly comfortably to remaining undefeated to clinch this title. Porter gained silver losing only to Wilson however had an epic 13-11 win in the 5th set against Ryan McConkey who finished in 4th place. Eric Shekleton had a successful tournament losing only to the top 2 finishers.
U12 Boys
Owen Cathcart despite still qualifying as an U10 played superbly to defeat the current Ulster number 1 Iain Dick in 4 sets. Cathcart was dominant throughout in this event, losing only 2 sets the entire day. An excellent display from someone so young. Dick was dominant in his remaining 6 matches, recording a series of 3-0 victories to win the silver medal. Ethan Duffy who incidentally also qualifies as an U10 player finished in bronze position losing out only to Cathcart and Dick. James Magrath had a good tournament finishing in 4th position defeating the higher ranked Adam Barr in 4 sets.
U10 Boys
Castlerahans Jason Zhang proved to be the surprise package in the U10 boys making a name for himself in this new event. Zhang remained undefeated throughout, with his toughest match against Philip Montgomery whom he defeated in 5 gruelling sets. Jack Dick had an excellent tournament losing only to Zhang and grinding out a series of excellent 5 set victories against Conor Nugent, Matthew Cherry, Philip Montgomery and Joshua Murdock. Philip Montgomery did well to finish in 3rd position losing only to Zhang and Dick, with Joshua Murdock finishing in 4th position.
U17 Girls
Emma Ludlow was dominant in this category remaining undefeated and in fact was the only player on the day not to lose a set. A very competent display by this young lady. Sally McConkey was in outstanding form to defeat Erin Thompson in 4 sets and thus win a well deserved silver medal. Thompson defeated Annalise Walker in another close 4 set match to claim bronze.
U14 Girls
Irish number 1 Hannah Lynch Dawson once again dominated in this age category remaining undefeated to win this title for a second year running. Laura Finn excelled losing only to Lynch-Dawson to successfully claim the silver medal. The greatly improved Elizabeth Cathcart defeated Emma McSorley for third position. It was a welcomed return for McSorley who has been out for several months with injury.
U12 Girls
This event went very much according to seeding with a repeat of last years results. Rebecca Finn defeated Leah Shekleton in 5 games in an excellent match. Both players proved to be too strong for the rest of the field with Finn triumphing to win gold, and Shekleton claiming silver. Megan Carson put in a sound performance to finish in 3rd position with Lydia McConkey defeating Ellie Purdy in 5 close games to finish in 4th position.
U10 Girls
Carys Mawhinney proved to be too strong for the rest of the field remaining undefeated to clinch gold. Lucy Craig displayed excellent potential losing only to Mawhinney to finish in 2nd position with Jordyn Hazzard defeating her team-mate Lauren Matthews to finish in 3rd position.
Thanks go to the Valley Leisure Centre who very generously sponsored this event. Thanks also go to Jennifer Thompson and Andrew Dennison who ran the top table ensuing the smooth running of the event.
Results
U10 Boys
- Jason Zhang (Castlerahan)
- Jack Dick (Islandmagee)
- Philip Montgomery (Ballymoney)
- Joshua Murdock (Castlerahan)
- Conor Nugent (Valley)
- Nicholas Martin (Academy Strongtower)
- Matthew Cherry (Glenburn)
- Mark McDowell (Valley)
U12 Boys
- Owen Cathcart (Glenburn)
- Iain Dick (Islandmagee)
- Ethan Duffy (First Monaghan)
- James Magrath (Glenburn)
- Adam Barr (Glenburn)
- Taidgh Hazzard (Castlerahan)
- Daniel Murdock (Castlerahan)
- William Love (Castlerahan)
U14 Boys
- Zak Wilson (Glenburn)
- Jonathan Porter (Fivemiletown)
- Eric Shekleton (Castlerahan)
- Ryan McConkey (Newbliss)
- Ben Sullivan (Glenburn)
- Dylan Duffy (First Monaghan)
- Harry McGoldrick (Craigavon)
- Ryan Drayne (Emyvale)
- Dylan Murdock (Castlerahan)
U17 Boys
- Kieran Reilly (Castlerahan)
- Trevor Knox (Fivemiletown)
- Kris Foster (Drung)
- Oisin Reilly (Castlerahan)
- Dylan Scott (Newbliss)
- Stephen Fawcett (Newbliss)
- Peter Neeson (Academy Strongtower)
- Jonathan Wilson (Academy Strongtower)
U10 Girls
- Carys Mawhinney (Glenburn)
- Lucy Craig (Glenburn)
- Jordyn Hazzard (Castlerahan)
- Lauren Matthews (Castlerahan)
U12 Girls
- Rebecca Finn (Glenburn)
- Leah Shekleton (Castlerahan)
- Megan Carson (Fivemiletown)
- Lydia McConkey (Newbliss)
- Ellie Purdy (Banbridge)
U14 Girls
- Hannah Lynch Dawson (Drung)
- Laura Finn (Glenburn)
- Elizabeth Cathcart (Glenburn)
- Emma McSorley (Glenburn)
- Emily Hill (Islandmagee)
U17 Girls
- Emma Ludlow (Glenburn)
- Sally McConkey (Newbliss)
- Erin Thompson (Glenburn)
- Annalise Walker (Fivemiletown)
Connacht Junior Classification – Egan and Williams Dominate
92 Players turned out for the first Connaught Junior Classification event of 2011/12, held in De La Salle Hall, Castlebar, Mayo on Saturday the 17th December 2011.
Players from Mayo, Sligo, Galway, and Roscommon all took part in what was an exciting day for table tennis in the west of Ireland there were some fine performances from players. Brian Dunleavy won the under 12 Boys and Daragh Egan was sensational is winning both the Under 14 and Under 17 Boys. Meanwhile Marie Williams was in outstanding form and also doubled up, taking both the Under 12s and Under 14s Girls titles. Breakthrough performance of the event was Roscommon’s Yasmin Barry(pictured above) – hopefully a sign of the continued development of the game in Roscommon.
Full Results
Under 10 Boys:
1st David Taylor Sligo
2nd Thomas Joyce Mayo
3rd Daniel Veigas Mayo
Under 10 Girls
1st Sarah Dunleavy Mayo
2nd Aiofe O’Dowd Sligo
3rd Anna Tigue Mayo
Under 12 Boys
1st Brian Dunleavy Mayo
2nd Martin Williams Mayo
3rd Eddie Ditchburn Mayo
Under 12 Girls
1st Marie Williams Mayo
2nd Amanda Taylor Sligo
3rd Yasmin Barry Roscommon
Under 14 Boys
1st Daragh Egan Mayo
2nd Brian Dunleavy Mayo
3rd Martin Williams Mayo
Under 14 Girls
1st Marie Williams Mayo
2nd Amanda Taylor Sligo
3rd Niamh Molloy Galway
Under 17 Boys
1st Daragh Egan Mayo
2nd Mark Melynchuck Mayo
3 Martin-Edward Ditchburn Mayo
Under 17 Girls
1st Niamh Molloy Galway
2nd Chloe Durkin Mayo
3rd Michelle Hodgins Sligo