THE standout of round six matches in the Sunraysia Table Tennis pennant was the 7-4 victory by Tankard Dental over ladder leader Choices Flooring Mildura.
As a result, these two teams have traded places and Tankards now sit at the head of the ladder, despite losing the first two matches of the season.
The Tankard trio of Reece Kurrle, Thanh Nguyen and Paul Kealley have now strung together four wins in succession.
They all are playing a key role.
For the fourth time in six rounds, number three Kealley, won two singles as did his two teammates. Number two player Thanh Nguyen has won two singles in the past three rounds. In this match he went down in his first singles, however after that he teamed up with skipper Kurrle to win the first doubles in straight sets against the tough combination of Shannon Bowen and Leon Brown.
Nguyen then won his remaining two singles in fine style including a straight set win over the talented Leon Brown.
For Choices Flooring Mildura Shannon Bowen played his part winning three singles.
After dropping two matches in succession, Mallee Bearings bounced back this round defeating Regional Taxation Services 7-4 in a solid display.
Skipper Joel Thomas maintained his undefeated run in singles winning all three in straight sets. Thomas also teamed up with Liam Wood and Daniel Jansen to win both doubles.
Liam Wood offered great support to Thomas, winning two singles for the first time this season, his victory over Rohan Reimers in four sets was commendable. Reimers took the first game before Wood steadied.
This was an outstanding match with many long attacking rallies.
Andrew Cannard, for RTS, again won two singles as he has done several times this season.
Teammates Reimers and fill in Shane Carmichael won a singles each, however it was their lack of success in the doubles which proved costly.
In the remaining match Weightman’s Packaging replaced their opponents Cookes Pools & Spas in the four by winning 7-4.
This was a solid team effort by the victors despite Kate Carmichael winning three singles for Cooke’s.
Weightman’s skipper Jackson Tung’s only blemish came when he lost in straight sets to Carmichael 12-10, 11-5, 11-2. This was an unusual result for when these two play it is usually a lengthy five-setter.
Despite this loss, Tung enjoyed a successful night winning two singles and taking part in both doubles’ successes.
Teammate Dylan Wood also won two singles and with the score at five rubbers to four he grabbed the four points for his team.
His five-set win over Casper McCarthy was a highlight, and it was a match full of attacking forehands from both young guns. Wood took the points 6-11, 11-4, 11-7, 9-11, 11-8.
Round 6 winter pennant results:
PENNANT 1:
Mallee Bearings 7 (Joel Thomas 3, Liam Wood 2) d Regional Taxation Services 4 (Andrew Cannard 2, Rohan Reimers, Shane Carmichael 1);
Weightman’s Packaging 7 (Jackson Tung, Dylan Wood 2, Lee Leeson 1) d Cookes Pools & Spas 4 (Kate Carmichael 3, Casper McCarthy 1);
Tankard Dental 7 (Reece Kurrle, Thanh Nguyen, Paul Kealley 2) d Choices Flooring Mildura 4 (Shannon Bowen 3).
PENNANT 2:
Weightman’s Packaging 9 (Quentin Clark, Brendan Alderton 3, Harry Gujral 2) d Mallee Meats 2 (Ashley Morrison 1);
Cookes Pools & Spas 9 (Tom Morrison, Marcus Cimino 3, Michael Hensgen 1) d Mallee Bearings 2 (Jamie Kealley, Josh Arnold 1);
Pinnacle Packers 11 (Peter Midgley, Andrew Jones, John Fitzpatrick 3) d Choices Flooring Mildura (forfeit).
PENNANT 3:
Weightman’s Packaging 6 (Ryan Peterson 3, Karly Leach, Koby Grace 1) d Exposed Signage/Apparel 5 (Marita Grace 2, Nick Kiapekos, Wendy Simpson 1);
Regional Taxation Services 7 (Sabrina Fitzpatrick, Dave Tanner, Sam Campbell 2) d Sammy’s Slammers 4 (James Jarvis 3).
PENNANT 4:
Weightman’s Packaging 8 (Curtis Crabtree, Gary Leach, Raj Gujral 2) d Tankard Dental 3 (Ildi Healy 3);
Dunkley Scales 7 (Tom Gilmour, Deegan Kerslake 3) d Mallee Meats 2 (Maria Starikov, Jenny Leach 1).
