Jack Carrington Tournament
Post date: Apr 21, 2021 9:56:48 PM
Matt Casey won his first senior table tennis title with victory in the Jack Carrington tournament on Monday. He defeated the unfortunate Liam Robilliard in the final, who had to retire in the first game due to injury.
There were few real surprises in the Round Robin part of the The Jack Carrington Tournament on April 19th although Craig Dunning took the scalp of Kay Chivers on his way to winning Group G. The surprises in the tournament were to come later. Dunning subsequently went out to Steve Ozanne in the first round of the knockout part of the tournament.
In Group D, Ozanne had come through in second place to Liam Robilliard (one of the eventual finalists), taking Robilliard to five games before succumbing to the latter’s silky skills. Steve was then knocked out in the quarter final by Paul Hainsworth who had reached that position after an entertaining, big hitting, first round battle with Nye Matthew, whom he nevertheless beat three games straight.
Newcomer to the GTTA League Division 3, Eric Teteruck came through second in his group only to face Jez Powell in the first round of the knockout. In league terms Powell is often regarded as a wolf in sheep’s clothing - a player of first division abilities playing in the second division. An ongoing shoulder injury prevents Powell from playing at the higher intensity required of Division 1 standard. Powell has an active role in mentoring junior players in the second - in preparation for their development into first division standard players. Teteruck went out in 3.
Left hander Andy Gill, winner of Group E, beat Chas Elliot in the first round having the requisite fire power and nous to overcome Elliot’s entertaining, old school bat and defensive playing style. Gill made a good start in his quarter final match against Mathew Casey, taking the first game 11-7. He subsequently ran out of steam - succumbing to the very able but unseeded Casey who was eventually to become the other finalist.
In Group A, the enthusiastic and improving Juliet Yeaman lost to Paul Hainsworth but outplayed Mark Windsor to earn herself a place in the first round of the knockout against Sam Clark. After a poor score in her first game against Clark, Yeaman stepped on the gas to narrow the margin but still went out 3-11; 10-12; 9-11.
Two games down to Liam Robilliard in the quarter final, Clark threatened to take the match to four when he reached deuce against Robilliard in the third game. However it was not to be as he lost that one 13-11.
Sneaking through the rounds and not mentioned so far is Group B winner Ryan Bichard, who dispatched Steve Martin in the first round of the knockout and Jez Powell in the 4th quarter final. In the second semi-final Bichard came up against the talented Robilliard. Robilliard’s resurgent skills saw him beat Bichard - another improving player - in 4 games.
Meanwhile in the first semi-final, Group C winner, Mathew Casey showed great patience and presence in controlling the attack of seeded player Paul Hainsworth, blocking his play and timing his own attacks to perfection. The surprise was that he beat Hainsworth three games straight. 11-9, 11-9, 11-6.
The disappointment of the evening was the anti-climatic final, which never happened. With the Casey having taken an early 7-3 lead, Robilliard over-stretched when reaching for a forehand and went down, visibly in pain. He clearly signalled to the umpire that he could not continue with a suspected torn calf muscle and so Matthew Casey won the Jack Carrington Trophy by a walk-over.