Families to the fore in round 9

TANKARD Dental, after a loss last round, snatched victory from the jaws of defeat to move back in to second place on the ladder in round 9 of the Sunraysia Table Tennis pennant.

Their opponents Regional Taxation Services, who are languishing at the foot of the ladder, will rue the loss of the second doubles, when they held three match points.

The RTS pair of Rohan Reimers and Edi Re took a two-games-to-one lead over Reece Kurrle and Paul Kealley, and in the tense fourth game, three times they had match point, only for their opponents to survive and take the fourth 15-13.

Kurrle and Kealley then proved too steady, winning the fifth – an opportunity lost for the RTS team.

Tankard then steadied, winning two of the last three singles to win 6-5.

Tankard returned to second place on the ladder with this victory and have won five of their past six matches, which is a better record than any other team.

Skipper Reece Kurrle for the second time this season won three singles, although he was pressed by opposing number three Edi Re, winning in a tough five-set slog.

In breaking their three-match losing streak Cookes Pools & Spas moved to within one point of the top four, defeating Choices Flooring 7-4 despite Wayne Carmichael winning three singles.

His five-set win over niece Kate Carmichael was a highlight, with the match decided by a scoreline of 7-11, 11-4, 11-8, 9-11, 11-7 in uncle Wayne’s favour.

In a match where both No.3 players were

absent, top team Mallee Bearings maintained their lead at the head of the ladder with a 5-4 victory over fourth-placed Weightman’s Packaging.

Without a doubt the best match of the night featured the Wood brothers. Dylan, for Weightman’s, exploded out of the blocks, winning 11-1 over Liam. They then traded many long rallies but Dylan’s strong forehands resulted in him taking the second narrowly.

Older brother Liam then took control, winning the next two games to level the match.

Again in the fifth they traded some strong forehands before Dylan won an excellent match 11-1, 12-10, 4-11, 5-11, 11-6 – their parents had witnessed a special contest.