Anyone for (table) tennis?

Pat Duffy is living proof that table tennis is the ideal way to keep fit – and make friends for life, as Caroline Lindsay discovers

There’s something mesmerising about watching Pat Duffy and his partner play table tennis. A blur of bats ricochets the ball to and fro as the players dance from one foot to the other, keeping the momentum going.

Their energy and dexterity is all the more remarkable when you consider Pat, from Perth, has been playing the sport for more than half a century.

“I started at age 10 playing in what we knew as ‘the club’ in the Newrow, 50 yards from my house,” he says. “I would be there every weekend learning from the older guys”.

It wasn’t long before Pat and his partner Jimmy Moss were winning the Perth doubles championships and Pat was soon snapped up by Perth City Boys Club before signing for the Perth and District league in 1966 at the ripe old age of 13.

Today he plays mostly at the Saints Table Tennis Club, which he helped found back in 1974, and where he’s also the secretary, treasurer and head coach.

“My interest in coaching started as soon as I left the junior ranks at age 17,” says Pat, who has also coached various Scottish junior squads over the years. “I was never going to be content just playing – I wanted to run my own club, do things my way and share my experience and the knowledge I had picked up along the way.”

Awarded Perth and Kinross Coach of the Year in 2005 he, also received the George Mortimer Award for service to local sport in 2012.

When Pat, now 63, took early retirement from his job at General Accident, it meant even more time playing and coaching his beloved sport.

As well as playing in Scottish teams over the years and taking part in the British Championships, he travels to Bathgate once a month to compete in the Scottish Veterans tournaments, which are every bit as competitive.

“I enjoy the competitions and of course it’s not just about winning,” he says. “Young or old it’s about being the best you can be and always looking to play better the next time.

“At our club the youngest player is just seven while at 80 years young Jack Oughton still plays a mean game. My team, which is top of division one most weeks, includes me at 63 and a 14-yearold player. I can’t think that would happen in many sports.”

“Grandad, son or daughter and grandchildren can all play together.

It’s not just about winning. Young or old, it’s about being the best you can be and always looking to play better the next time

It can bring families closer together and allows them to spend quality time with each other. The family that plays together stays together.”

And he is keen to stress the health benefits of the sport. “It improves hand-eye co-ordination and reflexes, and stimulates mental alertness.

“It’s easy on the joints and it really helps to burn calories. Someone weighing about 10 and a half stone can burn 272 calories by playing table tennis for one hour.”

Saints Table Tennis Club meets at Perth Grammar School on Monday nights, 7pm-9pm.