Table Tennis Ulster’s March Newsletter is now available for download. Click here to view.
Josef Veselsky – A Profile
As this is the 75th Anniversary of the establishment of the 32-county Irish Table Tennis Association, it was decided to publish a profile on our distinguished Life President, Josef Veselsky.
Josef, known as Joe to all, in addition to being the Life President of the ITTA, is the former President of the Swaythling Club, Honorary President of Swaythling Club International, and recipient of the Order of the White Double Cross by the Slovakian Government.
Whilst the ‘older generation’ will know something of Joe, that is probably not the case for members under 30 years of age. We would, therefore, invite our members to read and be amazed.
Joe was born in Bratislava, the medieval capital of Slovakia, in October 1918, the very same month that the independence of Czechoslovakia was officially proclaimed. Growing up in this historical town, Joe lived in a cultural melting pot due to the town’s geographical position, bordering the two independent countries of Hungary and Austria.
During his youth Joe developed great sporting ambitions and poured his energy into table tennis. At a time when the sport was growing in popularity in Eastern Europe, and when the great players Bohumil Vana and Vaclav Tereba were on the Czech team, Joe gained a national ranking of No. 7.
Table tennis didn’t pay the bills however, and so Joe got a job working in a bank, where he met the other love of his life, the wonderful Katarina, Kathy, with whom he had a wonderful marriage and two children, Peter and Kate. Like Joe, Kathy had a wonderful sense of humour, and the old adage, that behind every successful man there is a woman, could have sprung from the Veselskys’ own marriage; Kathy was a quiet but wonderful woman, who was her husbands greatest supporter throughout their 64 year marriage, until her death in 2009.
In 1938, Joe was 20 when Hitler invaded Czechoslovakia. Joe joined the Czech underground movement, living and operating in the Carpathian Mountains. When war ended in 1945, Joe was still a young man and he returned to table tennis, and went on to have the great honour of captaining a Czech team.
Life was not easy under the new political regime however, and so the decision was made to move the family out of Czechoslovakia, through Hungary, to Switzerland, where asylum was sought. The family’s original intention was to settle in Australia, but difficulty in obtaining the necessary emigration papers resulted in the family moving to Ireland in August 1949, where, with a limited knowledge of English and the business, Joe built up an impressively successful jewellery business.
Australia’s loss was Ireland’s gain, as once the family had settled into their new lives on the emerald isle, Joe once again returned to table tennis. The Irish Association was so impressed with Joe that he soon became the non-playing Captain of the Irish team. As the Irish Men’s Coach at the World Championships in Sarajevo in 1973, Joe’s personality and leadership shone, with players’ later saying that he made them feel 10 feet tall as they walked into the arena.
Tommy Caffrey, who played for Ireland over 140 times from the 1950s until the 1970s, said of Joe “He is one of the rare breed”. Tommy recalled of his playing years with Joe “whether it was a Worlds or Europeans we always had to meet for afternoon Tea. My first introduction to Danish pastries was at the World Championships in Dortmund in 1959. Afternoon tea was part and parcel of every Worlds almost as essential as the play itself. All the star players from around the World were drawn to Joe like a magnet. I had met them all before I was out of my teens thanks to him. They all loved the decency in Joe.”
The Swaythling Club was founded in Stockholm in 1967, for Table Tennis Champions and Officials, who have represented their country in a World Championship. It is named after Lady Swaythling, mother of Ivor Montagu, President of the World Table Tennis Federation 1926-1967. In 1972 Joe was elected the new President of the Swaythling Club, a position he held until 1987 when he retired, but only after bringing together representatives from the far corners of the globe and joining them together into an impressive and harmonious club.
Mrs Diane Scholer, former world champion and current President of the Swaythling Club, knows Joe for the last 40 years and said “Over the many years I have been involved in table tennis – first as a player – then as Secretary and ultimately President of the Swaythling Club International – Joe became Ebby’s and my very dear friend. His uncanny habit of assessing correctly each individual on their own merit and ability – never ceasing to give advice and assistance whenever needed – was quite remarkable. Kathleen and Joe were, and still are, the kindest couple I have had the pleasure to know. It has been a great privilege to follow in his footsteps as President of the Swaythling Club – and an honour to have met him.”
Pat O’Brien, former senior international and the current Irish representative of the Swaythling Club in Ireland, said, “The words nice and incredibly helpful only begin to describe Joe”.
Joe also held the post of President of the Irish Association for many years before eventually being elected Life President. During this time he introduced the Joe Veselsky Award, which is presented annually in recognition of endeavour and achievement in administration within the Irish Association.
Joe was also recognised for his dedication to table tennis by the Slovakian Republic’s Government, who honoured him in 2008 by awarding him the Order of the White Double Cross.
Speaking on behalf of the Board and the membership generally, Joe Hickey, President of the ITTA, said, “Joe Veselsky is a one of a kind – a great man with an incredible story – a man without whom table tennis would be the poorer. May we all have the benefit of his wisdom and generosity for many years to come”.
Medals at JC6N
A strong Irish team of Junior and Cadet players travelled to the Isle of Man last weekend in search of good performances and hopefully medals at the Junior & Cadet 6 Nations. The Team events took place over the Friday and Saturday, with all four teams securing bronze medals. In the individual events, the Cadet Boys of Zac Wilson and Kevin Hutchinson both progressed through the group to the QF stage, where they were eliminated. A similar story in the Junior Boys – Declan O’Brien was unlucky to meet the top seed in the Quarter Final, with Ryan Farrell also eliminated at the same stage by the eventual event winner.
The story was a little more positive for the girls – Ashley Givan(pictured) won a bronze medal in the Junior Girls main event, with Hannah Lynch-Dawson also scoring bronze in the Cadet Girls main event. Both players had chances to progress to the Final but were edged out at the last hurdle.
So bronze was the colour for the Irish team at the Isle of Man – a reasonable return for the squad, but also perhaps some regret that no players manage to qualify for an individual Final. In the Consolation event, Edel O’Reilly claimed Gold in the Juniors and Elayna McGlone took gold in the Cadets.
Murphy & Mogey Crowned National Champions: Report & Results
At a superb Butterfly National Senior Championships this weekend, John Murphy and Amanda Mogey beat off all-comers to take Senior National titles home with them.
In the Women’s event, Mogey faced UCD’s Sarah Timlin in the Semi Final. Mogey raced into an early lead, taking the first three sets and looked to be cruising. Timlin fought back though and with support from her UCD team-mates, took the next two sets, indeed dominating the 5th set on an 11-4 score line. Mogey was clinical and ensured that she progressed to the Final, maintaining her composure to close out the match 4-2. Ashley Givan was superb in her semi-final, defeating Sabina Devereux without ever giving her opponent a chance to get into the match. So the Ulster and Ireland team-mates faced off in the Final – both have dominated the Senior scene this year. Mogey was in devastating form and the match never really lived up to its billing as Mogey took command from the outset – Givan could not get going and Mogey took the title with a 4-0 win. It was a fantastic performance from Mogey and she looks to be in top form heading towards the World Championships later this month.
In the Men’s event, fans were finding it very difficult to predict a winner in what is a very strong section at present. Many felt Gavin Maguire could repeat his 2009 title success and the UCD man looked to be in fine form, claiming the Under 21 title on Day 1 of the event. He faced a very tough Quarter Final against Peter Graham – this was a classic, with Maguire fighting hard to claim a 4-3 victory. He faced Paul McCreery in the Semi-Final – McCreery also many people’s favourite for the event. McCreery stepped up his level and Maguire could not repeat his QF heroics – McCreery progressing to the Final. In the other half of the draw, reigning champion John Murphy saw off Mark O’Flynn in a keenly contested QF, while Ashley Robinson defeated ALSAA’s Sam Logue. Robinson had recently defeated Murphy at the Fermanagh Open, but Murphy, an experienced Nationals Campaigner at this stage was very much in the zone, producing some outstanding shots to progress to the Final. One senses that both Maguire and Robinson will be back again and again over the coming years – both have youth and serious ability in their favour.
And so to what turned out to be the match of the day, if not the season. McCreery claimed a nervy 1st set 11-7, before Murphy levelled the next set by the same score line. McCreery then hit top gear, taking the 3rd 11-4 and then added the 4th to get to just one set away from his first National Senior title. The match now went up a level, Murphy is renowned for his battling abilities and he certainly was not going to give up. Both players scrapped for every point, with Murphy producing several moments of pure class to claw his way back into the game taking the 5th and 6th set to set up a final set decider. Murphy had momentum on his side now and his steely determination to retain his title was visible in every moment of the final set. He took an early lead and never let go, to close out a dramatic match and claim his 5th National Senior title – a phenomenal achievement. McCreery can be rightly proud of his performance and it looks inevitable that the Ulster player will one day be National champion – he has all the attributes in his locker. The day belonged to John Murphy however – a performance full of heart, skill and quality under pressure – a true National Champion.
Full results available here
In the Under 21 Men, Gavin Maguire claimed his first National Under 21 title, with a fine victory over Ashley Robinson. Ballincollig’s Edel O’Reilly also produced a fine display to claim gold, beating Hannah-Lynch Dawson to claim the title – both these young talents have many further years ahead at this level. The Restricted Singles(pictured above) saw Ian Brown claim another National title for Ballincollig, with a win over York Road’s Kevin Hutchinson. Brown was in fantastic form over the weekend, also managing to make the Men’s Quarter Final – a fantastic achievement for a player ranked 28 in Ireland pre Nationals. Michael Cunningham and Rena McCarron Rooney claimed National titles in the wheelchair singles events, and Cunningham went on to claim a further title in the wheelchair doubles, partnering with John Finn to see off the challenge of Quinlan & Rooney. In the Veterans event, an in-form Tommy Fitzgerald progressed past Pawel Kopacz in the semi-final, where he faced Tibor Pofok(the CYM Terenure man had eliminated Killarney TTC’s Anthony Redmond in the other semi). Pofok wasa also in good form over the weekend and recorded a good win over Fitzgerald to claim the Veteran’s title. In the Women’s Doubles, Amanda Mogey and Ashley Givan looked to be a dominant force and proved unbeatable, with a Final victory over Jean Wyse and Teresa Devanney. In the Men’s Doubles, the Ulster pair of Daryl Strong and Peter Graham caused somewhat of a surprise in claiming a fantastic victory over Men’s Singles finalists Murphy and McCreery.
(Photo with thanks to Alan Betson Irish Times)
STIGA Challenger Series – Donic Report
Club Donic held their second STIGA Challenger tournament this season on Sunday 26th February. 90 players had preregistered for this event and the format was slightly different for this tournament, with players put into divisions before the tournament commenced.
There were 5 divisions, with 2 groups of 9 in each division, meaning that all players got a minimum of 8 matches. In each group of 9, the winner of Group 1 played the runner-up of Group 2 in each division. The format proved to be a great success with terrific matches in all of the divisions from Division 1 down to Division 5.
Results are as follows:
Division 5: Third Place: James Drumm and Eoin Kane (both from Delvin)Second Place: Ben Lacey (Raven)First Place: Charlie Drumm (Delvin)
Division 4: Third Place: Derek Mulholland and Stephen Lowe (both from Raven)Second Place: Sean Fox (St. Tiernans)First Place: Nathan Caulfield (Raven)
Division 3: Third Place: Shane Mulready (St. Johns) and James Carroll (Ballyroan)Second Place: Paddy Vaughan (Mountrath)Third Place: Conor O’Reilly (St. Johns)
Division 2: Third Place: George Goodson (Mountrath ) and Dylan de Ruscio (Salesians)Second Place: Charlie Whelan (Ballyroan)Third Place: Dylan Grace (Rathdowney)
Division 1: Third Place: Scott Jestin (Mountrath) and Michael Saly (Club Donic)Second Place: Kate Whelan (Ballyroan)Third Place: Luke Dempsey (Carlow)
Well done to all who took part and many thanks to Club Donic and our generous sponsors STIGA Ireland
STIGA Connacht Veterans Report
STIGA Connaught Veterans Tournament Report
Drum Community Centre, Athlone, hosted a very successful Veterans Tournament on Saturday, 25 February. 48 competitors provided thrills, spills and no mean drama during a most enjoyable day, capably administered by Michael Barry and Kariem Sabir. Tommy Caffrey emerged victorious in the Mixed Over 40s and in the Men’s Over 60s events. A dramatic, tense 40s semi-final encounter with Kevin Devaney went to expedite, which Tommy won 6,9,8. He proceeded to defeat Tibor Pofok in the final,8,-9,8,5. Later, he beat Martin Pickles in the final of the 60s. This tremendous double is a testament to the maestro’s enduring skills and competitive instincts. In the Restricted Over 40s, Tibor beat Kevin 3-1 in the final.
Jenny Harrison triumphed over Teresa Devaney in a very strong, well contested Ladies Round Robin. Helena Dennett and Gillian Richardson finished third and fourth. Jenny and Helena travelled over from England, lured by the famed hospitality of past Athlone events. Their attendance greatly enhanced the event.
Kariem Sabir re-established his stranglehold on the Over 50s. Philip Shaw registered a good victory here over Martin Pickles. Also, Jay McAllister performed really well in the 60s event.
The Over 70s saw a potential upset to the old order, but Ted Mahaffy shaded it narrowly on countback from friend and rival Ronnie Drain. The gap at the top appears to narrow. Liam Perris was a little erratic, while Jim Sheehan should benefit from his new bat, next time! The Doubles saw Dunst/Sabir overcome Richardson/Mahaffy in the final.
The irrepressible Michael Cunningham put on a bravura performance through the day. Playing inspired table tennis, he overcame marquee names like Kieran Murphy, Brian Finn and Oliver Adamson. He succumbed to Tibor Pofok in the Over 40s, but only on his scoreline of 8, 7,-7,-10,-4. Absolutely awesome!!
A most convivial dinner was enjoyed afterwards at the Jia Jia Restaurant by twenty tired, happy competitors. TT banter, tactical technical discussion, and hatching plans for further travel continued into the small hours. Athlone, we most certainly will return, especially as Alan Taylor can enjoy a lie-in until 6am!
Finally, the invaluable support of STIGA in running the Veterans Society is greatly appreciated.
Click here for full results
Intervarsity Championships Report
(L-R) Gav Reilly, Chris Harrison, Gav Maguire, Rory Coffey(C), Sean O’Gorman, Jack Stapleton, Simon Hickey. Photography by Kim Sin Yap
The Intervarsity Championships took place on 25/26 February in the fine surroundings of UCC’s Mardyke Arena, with some familiar names emerging victorious, although not without some very tight matches that could have gone either way.
This was the first Intervarsity Championships since the death in November 2011 of Judge Hubert Wine, former Irish international, who purchased and donated the trophy for the Men’s Team Champions that bears his name. The Men’s Team Championship final for the Hubert Wine Cup, first played for in 1949, saw a familiar face off between 12 time defending champions UCD and their opponents of 2011 and 2010, CIT. UCD had come through to the final with wins over DIT and Queens, followed by a semi final match-up against a strong UCC team. Meanwhile, CIT had accounted for UCC, Griffith and Trinity followed by victory against Queens in the semi finals. Both teams were missing some key players, and it was CIT who got off to the better start, at one stage leading 3-2, and with UCD trailing 0-2 in sets in the 2 matches on the table it looked like an upset was on the cards. These matches ebbed and flowed, and it was clear that the title would be decided in how these matches went. UCD pegged both rubbers back to 2-2, and in critical exchanges, especially between the respective #1 players, Gavin Maguire (UCD) and Ian Brown (CIT), with Brown especially playing some outstanding table tennis, both points fell to UCD, and as the singles matches finished it was UCD who held the advantage at 7-5 going into the 3 doubles. All 3 doubles went to the Belfield side, and it was UCD who took the title 10-5, Irish Champions for the 13th year in a row.
The Men’s Team Plate was a tight match between Griffith College and DIT, both competing at their first Varsities, and it was Griffith who took bragging rights, taking the Men’s Team Plate 8-6.
The Ladies team event was an edgy affair. UCC held the initial advantage with a 3-0 lead, due to a late withdrawal leaving UCD one lady short. This was retrieved quickly by UCD, with the first 3 singles going to UCD, and tying the score at 3-3. UCD took a 2-1 advantage in the next round of singles, and lead the match 5-4, but UCC were not to be outdone and came back strong to claim the doubles match and set up a deciding doubles rubber. The match went all the way to a 5th set, where UCD just edged out a small advantage at 8-8 in the 5th, taking the 2 points for a 10-8 lead and, making no mistake on their first Championship point, took the tie 3-2 and the overall match 6-5, winning the Irish ladies title for the 4th year in a row.
In the Men’s singles event, the ties went largely as seeded, with #1 seed Maguire facing James Herley (CIT) in the first semi final, while #2 seed Brown faced UCD #2 Jack Stapleton. 3-0 score lines in both matches gave us a 1v2 Championship Final, with Maguire in no mood to have a repeat of the previous days close team match, running out a 3-0 winner, and taking the title for the 3rd year in a row.
The Ladies singles, a large round robin, also largely followed form, as other results made it a straight shootout between UCD #1 Sarah Timlin and Huizhuang Xie, UCC #1. A tight match, as it was in the team event the previous day, with both players competing in their first Intervarsities, saw Timlin take the match 3-1 winning the ladies singles title, Xie in 2nd place, and Laura Sebille (UCC) and Emma Jane Helen (UCD) taking 3rd & 4th.
Thanks go to Joe Kelleher, UCC Club Captain, and his Committee, as well as the staff of the Mardyke Arena, for organising and hosting the event.
Givan in Top Form at ITTF Junior Circuit
A team of Ireland’s top Junior and Cadet players are in Sweden this week to take part in the ITTF Junior Circuit at the prestigious Swedish Open. The team will also participate in the Saffir International Open. The event began yesterday(Wednesday 22nd Feb) and the team already recorded some impressive results, with Ashley Givan leading the way.
Givan recorded some big wins in the Groups Stage of the Junior Girls, beating both SINGEORZAN of Romania and MEZZAPESA of Luxembourg by 3 sets to 1. She was unlucky against top English Junior Emily Bates, losing by the narrowest of margins in a 5 set thriller. These fine wins meant that Givan progressed to the knock-out stage of the event – a fantastic achievement for the current Irish Junior and Senior Number 1. In the knock-out stage, Givan was drawn against another Romanian, ROSCA. She pushed the Romanian all the way, showing immense character to battle back to 3-3 in sets from a 3-1 deficit, before eventually succumbing in the 7th set. This was a fine performance from Givan who did not look out of place against a player ranked almost 300 places higher than her in the World Junior Rankings. This fine form was also reflected in the Doubles were she was paired with the Hong Kong player YEE KA NG. This newly formed Doubles team progressed all the way to the Quarter Finals, before finally being eliminated by a very strong Russian pair.
Her teammates Katie McGlone and Hannah Lynch Dawson will have their focus firmly on the Cadet events but will have gained valuable experience by playing the older Junior players – Lynch Dawson also recorded a fine victory over Nortwegian DOVA in the Plate event which will be a massive confidence boost as the Cadet event kicks off.
The Boys team of Ryan Farrell and Declan O’Brien were also in action, recording a good win in the Doubles over the Norwegian pair JORGENSEN & SANDBER before being eliminated in the last 32 by ROBINOT & ANGLE of France. The Singles represented a tough challenge for both players, with Farrell recording the only victory of the Main competition with a fine performance over POLAKOV of Uruguay. Farrell built on this result with some fine performances in the Plate competition, recording wins over KIRILLOV of Russia and FLAGLIEN of Norway, before being eliminated in the last 16 by the Welsh Junior Conor Edwards.
The Cadet event continues today with the Safir event including the ITTF Hopes Under 12 event taking place over the weekend.
This tournament is being streamed by www.pingistv.se – best wishes to coach John Murphy and all of the team in Sweden.
Ulster ‘Futures’ Squad going from strength to strength
Ulster ‘Futures’ Squad going from strength to strength
Nineteen enthusiastic children attended the recent Ulster ‘Futures’ Squad Training camp at Banbridge TTC with children ranging from 8-12 years old under the guidance of 4 current Ulster coaches, Gervis Knox, Arnold Morgan, Philip Jamison and Amanda Mogey. Players have been identified throughout the season from schools, regional squads and tournament results from all corners of Ulster with players ranging from Belfast, Ballymena, Broughshane, Newtownabbey, Cavan, Monaghan, Banbridge, Donegal, Coleraine and Islandmagee completing the squad.
This squad is catered towards those players who have the potential to represent Ulster or Ireland in future years and is the first step on the performance pathway to achieving this goal. The squad meets on a monthly basis and the progression in these players is clear to see with players improving at a rapid rate from one session to the next.
The players trained for 4 intensive hours, with every player getting a chance to do multi-ball to refine techniques, improve footwork and improve reaction times. Players also had the chance to play with high quality sparring partners. The main theme of the day was to improve consistency, work on footwork, refine techniques and ultimately to enjoy their table tennis! Players also had the chance to work on their fitness levels through a series of agility exercises and sprints.
A small competition was held for the last hour of the session with Castlerahan’s Jason Zhang winning the boys event defeating team mate Daniel Murdock, and Monaghan’s Lydia McConkey winning the girls event defeating the much improved Emma Wylie from Banbridge.
The next session will be held in March, and selected players will be notified as soon as possible.
If you know any players aged between 7-12 who are of a relatively good standard who would be interested in attending this monthly squad, please contact the Talent ID Officer Amanda Mogey who will arrange for a school or club visit to carry out an initial informal assessment.
STIGA Challenger: Carlow Report
STIGA Challenger: Carlow Report by Ray Cleare
A 69 strong field made up of eight clubs showed up to contest the recent challenger event held at the Presentation College Carlow. The action got underway at 10.00 am with 5 divisions offered in a very competitive field.
The tournament had at least 15 players playing in their first event which is exactly what the Challenger series was designed for – to encourage players of all levels to compete in a fun atmosphere.
In Division 1 there were 7 entries and after the round robin 4 players emerged :Luke Dempsey, Kate Whelan, John Mansfield and Tadhg Downey.
After two very entertaining semi-finals Kate Whelan (Ballyroan) and Carlow’s own Luke Dempsey progressed. The final was a hotly contested affair with Luke winning out 3-0 but it was a lot closer affair than the score line suggested.
The Division 2 final saw Justynne Fabian (Carlow) up against Jessie Hayes (Mounrath) with Justynne winning 3-1 in a very close affair. Katie Hayes finished 3rd and Daniel Owcazarek
4th.
The Division 3 semi-finals were an all Carlow affair with Matthew Taylor, Sophie Kenny-Cleare, Ayo Oke and Bishal taking up the spots.
Matthew and Bishal progressed to the final with Matthew running out the eventual winner 3-0.
In Division 4 the semi’s were made up of Radek, Nathan Caufield, Benjamin Duffield and Ryan Fitzgerald.
Nathan Caufield (Sacred Heart, Finglas) and Radek (Carlow) got through to the final but Carlow were to be denied with Nathan winning 3-1 in a very close final.
In Division 5 the 4 players who progressed were Natasya Barry, Alan McWey, Davin McEvoy and Liana Riba. The final saw Natasya (Athlone) up against Alan from (Ballyroan) with Natasya winning out 2-0 in a close final.
I’d like to take this opportunity to thank Tommy Fitzgerald for generously sponsoring the prizes, Presentation College for providing a great venue and to all the parents and coaches who helped out on the day.