Stowmarket Table Tennis Centre, Stowupland High School, Church Road, Stowupland

NEWSLETTER

AUGUST 2006

 From the Chair

Yet another season starts and there are no changes to the committee from last year and it is still not up to strength. You will see from the list in the handbook that there are a number of vacancies so if you feel able to play a part please speak to Mark Beaumont, our Volunteer Manager. If you don’t want to serve on the committee you could perhaps help in other ways such as assisting the coaches on a Friday evening or working with the disabled on a Tuesday.  

In addition to being Chairman I am also the Development Officer and maintain an overview of the accounts. Added to this I coach, act as press officer and maintain the club’s website. I have decided that this is the last year that I shall do all this and will only accept one role from next season. It is important, therefore, that we find more volunteers. We particularly need coaches so if this is something that might appeal to you please speak to Peter Avenell. Geoff and I intend running down our coaching involvement as the training is changing and we do not want to keep up with the requirements, besides we have both done our bit over the last 20 years! Sorry to be harping on again on this subject but it really is critical to the future of the club.  

On a happier note we are trying to set up a daytime club as it is clear that this has long been a desire of the older players, young mothers or people who work evenings and/or nights. There is more on this further in this newsletter. I wish you all an enjoyable season and hope to meet up with as many of you as possible.

In previous years we have put sections in the August newsletter listing the committee, Membership fees including practice fees and the playing programme. With the introduction of our handbook last this year this information was duplicated. This year, therefore, this is only to be found in the handbook, a copy of which is enclosed with this newsletter. If you do not get one you will find a small stock in the filing cabinet in the store at Stowupland once the season begins. 

Tony Mooney

 2006  Season

Start dates

Junior Development Squad – Monday 4 September

Open Club – Tuesday 5 September

Beginners/Improvers’ Coaching – Friday 8 September

Fees 2006/7 

Christmas Meal 

Again this year we will be having our Christmas meal at Mark Beaumont’s establishment, Pickwick’s Coffee Shop, Stowmarket where we have always had a great evening – ask those who regularly attend. It is an excellent occasion to mix with other club members in a relaxed atmosphere with good food.  For the last two years the adults had their meal upstairs whiles the juniors had their own party downstairs. It has been decided to continue with this and it is planned for Friday 15^th December 2006 so put it in your diary now! Parents – why not have a meal with us upstairs whilst your children are eating? It will be a two course meal so that the two can be co-ordinated to finish at the same time.  Further details will be out in the next month or two.  

Membership Forms 

Enclosed with this newsletter is the membership form for the coming season. Can I ask that you all complete one – it is important to have one for every member including those of you who do not normally bother because you have filled one in the dim and distant past and think that it is not necessary to do it again. The form is based on an ETTA template and contains sections on which we have to report under PremierClub.  The ETTA has introduced individual registration for which they have given us another form for you to complete. As this contains much information that is on our form we have amended ours to include most of what they want. As a result we have been able to restrict completion to one form rather than two. The data will then be entered into a database and sent to the ETTA electronically.  Please note that there is an activity survey that the ETTA would like to have completed which is on the fourth page. 

As before, the form includes questions on medical conditions and disability as it is important for us to know this if possible in the event of an emergency but also because the ETTA need to know when making a case for funding for our sport. Sport England want evidence that the sport is catering for all people. Copies of the forms will be kept at Stowupland but will be kept under lock with a combination and will be available only to coaches and those running sessions. The information would only be accessed in an emergency. 

Child Protection  

This is a crucial area as we have so many junior players and one that we continue to take very seriously. A policy has been produced based on an ETTA template and it will be placed on the noticeboard – we urge you to read it please. Carol Clarke is our Child Protection Officer and her details will also be on the board but you can find her telephone number as part of the committee list in the handbook. If you have any questions, or concerns, please speak to Carol. In the meantime we can report that a number of the coaches have already received training for child protection and more is being undertaken. In addition Criminal Record Bureau clearances have been obtained for all our coaches and some of our helpers. The award to us of Clubmark is recognition that we are getting this area right as a club but we have to continue to exercise care and vigilance.

Our Team Grab 2^nd Place in British Junior League Division 1

As reported after the first weekend the team were in second position in division 1 with all the players capable of beating each other, so it was going to take a mammoth effort to achieve a result. 

The team for the final weekend was Chris Doran, Stewart Mudie and Aaron Self. The task was made none the easier as Aaron had not played competitive table tennis for five weeks as he had broken a finger on his playing hand, also Chris was not feeling that well.  There was one thing for sure I knew the boys would always give their best, and after missing out last year we were determined to go one better despite us being in a higher division.  

Our first match was against the Wirral who only had two players with a third pulling out Friday evening. We took full advantage of this getting a 5-1 win and just the start we were looking for. Next it was London Progress and having beaten them first time round we were reasonably confident that we could get the win. However, although Stewart, Chris and Aaron got us off to a good 3-0 start they could not close the match out which was unlike them only to get a draw. The last match of the day was against Barnet who were now in joint second place, and we were looking for a win to keep us in second position on our own. The disappointment of not winning the last match, also Chris not feeling good and struggling to maintain his energy level, saw Stewart the player to get two sets on the board with us going down 4-2. This meant that we were now down in third place going into the last day with Barnet 2 points ahead of us and above us on sets for and against. We were also not sure how Chris was going to be feeling next morning.  

Sunday, we now need a 6-0 win and at least a 4-2 win from the team who had not lost a game. Given the circumstances I thought this was not a realistic proposition, and in my heart I had resigned myself for the worst. After a good night’s sleep, Chris seemed much better and up for it, wanting to make amen’s for the last two matches. Many of the teams were struggling with substitute players as many had gone home due to important exams on Monday. Hull St Mary was our first match, and with the top 2 players having gone home this made them a great deal weaker and we got the 6-0 win we needed. It was now Waterside next and having been beaten 5-1 first time and still with a 100% record it was going to take a miracle to get the result we needed.  Stewart got us off to a great start playing some of the best table tennis he has played beating Mathew Ware the nationally ranked 3 in Cadets 3 straight. Next it was Chris who got the better of Shaun Hall in the fifth to put us 2-0 up, Aaron could not quite get on top of David McBeath so it was now 2-1 with Chris to play Mathew who he has had several encounters with lately with I think Mathew slightly ahead. However, on this occasion Chris was just too good for him on the day. 3-1 now and the pressure was on Stewart to play David and give us the win which was a very tight affair coming out on top. The last game saw Aaron play Shaun who was just too strong for him having not played for so long. We finished with the 4-2 win and with the struggling Barnet having only their number two player playing with two weak lads it meant that we now tied with them for second place on the same points, but due to our good wins we were ahead on sets for and against, so we took the second place.  

What a great achievement, and I know some will say that if the teams were at full strength it could have been different, but our players struggled with injury and health so I think the honours were even and at the end of the day we still had to beat the full strength team who had not lost a match over both weekends. It was a true team effort as they all played their part with every game won going towards us gaining that second place.

FINAL TABLE

Player Averages

I would like to thank the parents for all their support, and to the players for the big effort you put in even when it seemed the luck was against us. Without it being a team effort by us all achievements are unlikely to be realized, I can say that I have worked with teams that has not always been the happiest but this does not apply to this squad as it has been enjoyable, and that would apply if we had not achieved what we did.  

As coaching director of the club, I know I can express the club’s congratulations to all concerned, and I am sure it will be seen as a great achievement.

Peter Avenell, Team Manager / Coach

 League Teams 

Once again we have the Eagles in the 1^st division of the Bury St Edmunds League and this time it is to be joined by a team in the 2^nd division playing under the name of Stowmarket Jaguars. It is hoped that we can enter even more teams in the season 2008/9 so if you might be interested let us know during the next season. The competition is three a side playing a total of nine singles and one doubles in each match. However, there is also a 2 a side division which cuts the number of matches down to five in total making for a much shorter match. This might appeal to some and in particular the younger player who cannot stay up too late of an evening. 

At the junior level we will once again have a team in the British Junior League and this time it is hoped that it will be in the Premier division which is the highest level of league play in the UK for juniors. The team will comprise of Stewart Mudie, of Grantham; Chris Doran, of Cogenhoe, Northants: and they are joined this season by Matthew Dodds, of Hartmill, Sheffield. They are all ranked highly nationally and the division they play in is decided by this. It is a shame that we do not have players of the right calibre locally but we are working on this and in the meantime we are lucky to have these young players representing our club nationally, which continues to give us a national profile. 

This year we will also hope to enter a team in the National Junior League, which despite its name is not national! It is organised on a regional basis as is the National Cadet League in which we plan to enter three teams as was done last season. This time it is expected that there will be two divisions which gives our less experienced players more of a game than was the case last season. The venue for the National Cadet League is once again at our club but the junior league will be elsewhere and was not known at the time of writing.

Overall we will have seven teams competing and this is two more than last season. It is good to see this progress as a club such as ours must be seen to be offering competitive opportunities in addition to the social play so that we can cater for all levels.   

A New Daytime Club 

In the past we have lost some older players who sought to play during the day rather than on a Tuesday evening. This was for a variety of reasons and some went to play elsewhere that offered this facility. We cannot do this at Stowupland as it is a school site and is not available to us during school hours. We are, therefore, looking at a couple of venues in Stowmarket that we can get at a reasonable hourly rate but it would mean moving some tables from Stowupland to wherever we decide to use.

 We need to know before we commit to this if there is still a demand. It will also be advertised more widely by using the local press and our website. One venue would only allow use in the afternoon is a short distance from the town centre and has less space but has car parking facilities. The other venue is ideal in terms of size, situated in the centre of Stowmarket and is available some mornings but parking is an issue. It would be necessary to park elsewhere and walk to the hall.

 It is intended to try one day at first but if the demand is there it may be possible to extend to a second. So if you are interested please complete the enclosed form return to Tony Mooney by early September if you might be interested stating your preferences for day and time and whether the parking issue is important to you. We will try to start the new club from the beginning of October if there is the support for it. 

 Development Update 

• Geoff Brook and Tony Mooney are being instrumental in resurrecting the Suffolk Schools’ Table Tennis Association that had ceased in 2003. Two meetings have taken place and it is planned to run the schools’ team competition in November and the singles & doubles in February 2007 so look out for the details at your schools. We will also be promoting the events through our club. Both events for Suffolk are being held at Stowupland. Winners of events have the opportunity to play at regional or even national level.
• As we have Clubmark we are listed in a supplement of the East Anglian Daily Times dedicated to school and club sport in Suffolk and it is in the paper every Wednesdays. We have been invited to submit a profile of the club and this has been done. It is planned to run a feature of the club and a photographer will be coming to the Friday session sometime in September or October hopefully with the feature following shortly afterwards, so look out for it!
• Optua Leisure is holding a Disability Sport Showcase Day on Saturday September 16th at Northgate High School, Ipswich where anyone with a physical, sensory or learning disability can take part in a range of Paralympic sports including archery, football, wheelchair basketball, wheelchair tennis, table tennis, athletics, cycling, boccia, goalball and sitting volleyball. The event is free and will be taking place from 11am to 5pm. The showcase event is part of Optua's plans to develop a Disability Sport Academy and is aimed at introducing more disabled people to Paralympic sports. In 2012 the Paralympics comes to London and disabled people from Suffolk could be taking part if they get involved now! Our club has been asked to take part and we have agreed. We will have four tables there during the period 2-5pm and if any is able to assist Tony and Geoff on the day please let Tony know. If you have a disability you will be made very welcome if you want to be a participant at any of the sports but we hope you will choose our great sport of table tennis!
• Stowupland is being considered as the Eastern Regional centre for disabled coaching and training. Greg Yarnall, Regional Development Officer, is working on this and has said that there is considerable interest in the region. This yet another initiative suggested by the club and is further evidence of our determination to make our sport available to all.
• Tony has met with Claire Ferguson who is a Partnership Development Manager based at Stowmarket High School. She is one of six in the county and the role is to co-ordinate sport in all schools in the area and to build up links with clubs. It was an exploratory meeting where some areas where we can work together were considered. One of these is “TT Networker” which is a scheme to development leadership skills for 15 to 18 year olds and offering volunteering opportunities for young people. This is a great opportunity to develop skills for life whilst taking part in your chosen and can be used to build a portfolio that can be used when seeking university places and/or careers. Prospective employers like to see this type of experience in addition to educational qualifications so if you are in this age group and interested in learning more speak to Tony.

County Success for Stacey and Alice 

Stacey Howard had great success earlier in the year when she won the Suffolk County titles for girls under 13 and under 15 and of Alice Carroll who was runner up in both these events. Well done girls – we are proud of you!

Nathan Morley also performed well, reaching the quarter finals in his event. The competition among the boys in the County is fierce and so this was a creditable performance. It is hoped that more of our junior players will take part next year. The date to put in your diary is 7^th January 2007.

Junior Championships and Special Awards

The Junior Championships took place during May and was keenly contested by all who took part. The results were as follows:

Junior Coaching

A small change is being made to Friday nights from September as it has become clear that it is not easy to provide the right level of coaching with the structure has it has been. There are those who want to play socially only and are not keen on the coaching, those who are beginners and then there are those who are improvers and who are keen to become better players. As a result your coaches feel that it would be better if the players were placed into two groups with those seeking to improve and perhaps go on to competitive play, and this would include those already in teams, being coached by Peter Avenell. The remainder would be under Geoff Brook and Mark Beaumont who will be doing alternate Fridays. There will be helpers assisting both groups as before. Those who want to move on from Geoff/Mark’s group to Peter’s will be able to do so when the coaches think the time is right.  

You may or may not know it but you have a junior representative, Nathan Morley, who is on the club committee so if you have any views on this or anything else to do with the club please tell him about it and he will report to the committee.