Table tennis

There was temporary respite from league action in the Canterbury and District Association as the Dare Cup and Lew Vale Cup competitions reached the quarter-final stages. In the team handicapped Dare Cup, where players play two 25-point legs per game, Blean B, of Division 3, took a 196-point handicap advantage to Division 1’s Whitstable Natives A. Adam Goodall, Barrie Thomas and Barry Cook for Natives were hard pushed to overcome the handicap and the Blean team of Laurie Newman, Peter Cole and Alan Dilnot were 17 points ahead going into the doubles, only for Natives to emerge triumphant by 36 points. Faversham B, needing to overcome a 182-point handicap, travelled to Chestfield Warriors 7 from Division 2. Aaron Hollingsworth, Linda Wickings and Jill Weaver, of the Warriors, saw their guests nibble away at their handicap advantage until, after the nine singles, Callum Mcdonagh, Matthew Waters and Mark Fox had reduced Faversham’s deficit to just seven points. Warriors then surprised their Division 1 opponents by just edging two superb winning legs, to establish a 12-point overall victory. Warriors 6 of Division 2, welcomed Herne Bay G from the division below. Bay’s Robin Bozier, Frank Tunak and Paul Messenger started 154 points ahead but Warriors’ John Metcalfe was unbeaten in the contest and he, Bob Young and Aaron Hollingsworth ensured both teams were level on 487 points after the doubles. They had to play on until one team reached 500, which Warriors achieved by an eightpoint margin to progress. Warriors 5, currently leading Division 2, faced a 140-point deficit for their visit to Herne Bay I – third in Division 3 – but accomplished their task to earn a semi-final place. Individual handicaps come into play in the Lew Vale Cup, in which players contest two legs per game, up to 21 points in each leg. Chestfield Warriors 1, of the Premier Division, hosted Blean A, currently second in Division 2. Steve and Dennis Cannon, together with Kell Davies for the Warriors, had to battle hard to overcome the superior handicaps of Barry Shirley, Derek Whiddett and Rob Easton for Blean but edged to an 11-8 win. Division 3 leaders Blean C saw off Division 1 opponents Whitstable Natives A 13-5. Despite their superior handicaps, Herne Bay G, of Division 3, found themselves 3-0 down after three games against Division 1’s Warriors 3A. Paul Messenger, Robin Bosier and Mick Barwick showed their resilience by taking a 9-7 lead but Warriors’ Dirk Froebrich levelled and his side then edged the doubles to claim an 11-10 victory. Division 1 leaders Herne Bay B beat Division 2’s Choughs B 15-5 in their quarter-final tie as Vince Corbin, Paul Bee and Simon Lee made light of their higherhandicapped opponents.