Narrow Victory clinches Stockton Title for Doran
By Alan Ransome
The Championship was divided into 2 sections; the team events which took place on Saturday, together with the Cadet Under 15 and Mini Cadet Under 13 events, then on Sunday the main Junior events took place.
In addition to England, the national teams from Scotland, Wales, Ireland, Ulster, Jersey and Guernsey all entered the Stockton tournament plus the majority of the leading club teams from all parts of the United Kingdom.
The organisers, the Cleveland County Table Tennis Association, were overwhelmed with the entries received. Altogether, approximately 200 players participated.
Christopher Doran, the tall Northamptonshire attacker, clinched the Junior Boys title in the Stockton on Tees Junior 4 Star championships tonight after an epic five game victory over Derbyshire’s Liam Pitchford.
In the Championships sponsored by TEES ACTIVE Ltd, Doran reached the final with victories over Derbyshire’s Daniel Lowe by 3 – 1 and unseeded Billy Deville from Essex in straight games. In the final against Pitchford, Doran clinched the title by 3 games to two after winning the third game by 11-9 and the decider by the same score. Pitchford reached the final from the third seeded position by beating the top seed, Damien Nicholls from Staffordshire who was representing England by 11-7 in the 5th in the semi final. Nicholl’s England colleague, William Maybanks, went out in the second round after losing in three straight games to Deville.
The Junior Girls’ singles was won by Peniel’s new Chinese recruit Liu Meihan who reached the final by beating the England No. 1 from Derbyshire, Emma Vickers, by 3 – 1 in the semi final. Liu, who is better known by her English nickname of Maria, beat the Guernsey starlet, Alice Loveridge who had won the Cadet singles earlier, by a comfortable 3 games to one.
Loveridge came from an unseeded position to reach the final by beating the fourth seed, Caroline Hallows from Cheshire who was representing England, by 3 games to one in the quarter finals and Cleveland’s Karina Lefevre, also playing for England, at 11-4 in the 5th in the semi. Lefevre reaching the semi final with a five game victory over the second seed from Sweden, Michelle Quach, in the quarters.
Derbyshire’s Liam Pitchford stamped his authority on the Cadet Boys singles by beating the second seed, Sean Cullen also of Derbyshire, who was representing England, by 3 games to 1 in the final.
Pitchford looked in control throughout as he beat the second England cadet, another Derbyshire player, in the competition, Daniel Lowe, by 3 games to one in the semi final.
Guernsey’s Alice Loveridge, coming from the third seeded position, was the deserved winner of the Cadet Girls singles defeating the long pimpled exponent, Natasha Rees, of Wales, comfortably in the final. Loveridge beat the second seed, Emily Bates of Lincolnshire by 3 – 1 in the semi final and Cornwall’s Martha Travis who was representing England in the competition, by the same score in the quarter finals. Natasha Rees came through with a 3 – 1 win over another England player, Cleveland’s top seeded Karina Lefevre in the quarter finals, with a victory by 3 - 1 over her Welsh team mate, Megan Phillips who came through unseeded to reach the semi final.
Zak Zilesnick of Middlesex was a comfortable winner of the Mini Boys Cadet title beating second seed, Sam Walker of Nottingham by 3 – 1 in the final and Sussex prospect Helshan Weerasinghe in straight games in the semi final. The Mini Cadet Girls was a comfortable victory for Emily Bates who beat Peniel’s Bethany March in the semi final and Ireland’s Ashley Givan in the semi.
England made a clean sweep of the four team titles. The Junior Boys team of Damien Nicholls and William Maybanks clinched the Junior Boys title by beating the Sparton Warriors Club by 3 – 0 in the final. Nicholls beat Chris Doran by 3 games to nil, whilst Maybanks beat Alim Hirji after coming back from two games down. The English pair won the doubles by 3 – 1. In the semi final, the England team beat the Irish club, Eastpoint 3 – 0.
The England Girls team of Emma Vickers and Caroline Hallows had two close contests before collecting the girls’ title, beating Peniel A 3 – 2 in the semi and London Progress 3 – 1 in the final. For Peniel Liu Meihan proved too strong for both the English girls. The doubles win by 3 games to 2 proved to be the vital set for England in this match. In the final against Progress, Michelle Quach put the London club ahead with a 3 – 1 victory over Hallows, but three wins for Emma Vickers against Hannah Hicks, the doubles by 3 - 1 and against Quach at 11-9 in the 5th proved decisive.
The England Boys team consisting of Sean Cullen and Daniel Lowe scored a comfortable victory over Barnet’s Zak Zilesnick and Reece Tan by 3 – 0 in the final, whilst the England Girls, Karina Lefevre and Martha Travis defeated the Weald team of Kirsty Wilson and Yolanda King by 3 – 1 in the final. Karina Lefevre won two for England in the final, whilst Yolanda King beat Martha Travis to score the one Weald victory.
TEES ACTIVE LTD STOCKTON-ON-TEES 4 STAR JUNIOR TABLE TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS – RESULTS
Junior Boys Singles Semi Finals
Chris Doran (Northamptonshire) beat Billy Deville (Essex) 11-7,11-7, 11-4
Liam Pitchford (Derbyshire) beat Damien Nicholls (England) 5-11,11-8,17-15,5-11, 11-7
Finals
Chris Doran beat Liam Pitchford 3-11,11-6,11-9,7-11, 11-9
Junior Girls Singles Semi Finals
Liu Meihan (Essex) beat Emma Vickers (England) 11-1,11-4,7-11,11-7
Alice Loveridge (Guernsey) beat Karina Lefevre (England) 14-12,11-9,6-11,11-9
Finals
Liu Meihan beat Alice Loveridge 11-9,11-5,8-11,11-2
Cadet Boys Singles Semi Finals
Liam Pitchford *Derbyshire) beat Daniel Lowe (England) 11-7,11-9,7-11,12-10
Sean Cullen (England) beat Graeme Barella (Durham) 11-7,6-11,11-5,13-11
Finals
Liam Pitchford beat Sean Cullen 6-11,11-6,11-3,11-3
Cadet Girls Singles Semi Finals
Natasha Rees (Wales) beat Megan Phillips (Wales) 2-11,11-8,11-8,11-9
Alice Loveridge (Guernsey) beat Emily Bates (Lincolnshire) 11-7,11-5,6-11,11-8
Finals
Alice Loveridge beat Natasha Rees 11-8,11-5,11-7
Mini Cadet Boys Singles Semi Finals
Zak Zilesnick (Middlesex) beat Helshan Weerasinghe (Sussex) 11-7,11-5,11-8
Sam Walker (Nottinghamshire) beat Ross Wilson (Kent) 11-2,11-6,5-11,13-11
Finals
Zak Zilesnick beat Sam Walker 11-2,11-8,9-11,11-8
Mini Cadet Girls Singles Semi Finals
Emily Bates (Lincolnshire) beat Bethany March (Essex) 11-7,11-4,11-6
Ashley Givan (Ireland) beat Hannah Hoskin (Essex) 11-9,12-10,12-10
Finals
Emily Bates beat Ashley Givan 11-8,11-6,11-6
Grade 1 Boys Singles Semi Finals
Zak Zilesnick (Middlesex) beat Callum Morgan (Scotland) 11-6,11-7,11-8
Calum Main (Scotland) beat Liam Tildsley (Cheshire) 11-6,11-7,9-11,11-6
Finals
Zak Zilesnick beat Calum Main 11-8,11-7,17-15
Grade 1 Girls Singles Semi Finals
Rachel Anslow (Essex) beat Annie Hudson (Cheshire)12-10,11-4,11-3
Megan Phillips (Wales) beat Rebecca March (Essex) 11-9,13-11,11-6
Finals
Rachel Anslow beat Megan Phillips 11-6,6-11,11-9,11-7
Junior Boys Team Event Semi Finals
England (Damien Nicholls and William Maybanks) beat East Point (Mark O’Flynn and Sam Hanley) 3-0
Sparton Warriors (Alim Hirji and Chris Doran) beat DHS London Progress (David McBeath and Garth Kinlocke) 3-2
Finals
England beat Sparton Warriors 3-0
Junior Girls Team Event Semi Finals
England (Emma Vickers and Caroline Hallows) beat Peniel A (Liu Meihan and Charlotte Callcut) 3-2
DHS London Progress (Hannah Hicks and Michelle Quach) beat Kingfisher (Melissa Wright and Ayonija Sundararajan) 3-2
Finals
England beat DHS London Progress 3-1
Cadet Boys Team Event Semi Finals
England (Sean Cullen and Daniel Lowe) beat Weald (Lewis Gray and Sam Walker) 3-0
Barnet (Reece Tan and Zak Zilesnick) beat Howard (Helshan Weerasinghe and Ross Wilson) 3-0
Finals
England beat Barnet 3-0
Cadet Girls Team Event Semi Finals
England (Karina Lefevre and Martha Travis) beat Ormesby (Chloe Whyte and Jessica Dawson) 3-1
Weald (Kirsty Wilson and Yolanda King) beat Wales (Natasha Rees and Angharad Phillips 3-1
Finals
England beat Weald 3-1