Super Summer League
Barton Builders crowned champions - By Dave Murphy
Barton Builders have become the Milton Keynes Super Summer League Table Tennis Champions for 2003. The team, consisting of Steve Silk (Captain), Steve Dobbins, Kieran Dabbs, Mick Harper and Andy Trott won all their matches and finished with 65 points, 10 points ahead of their nearest rivals.
In the last match of the competition Avengers faced Pacmen with a one point advantage. Pacmen had to beat Avengers 5-4 or more to win the runners-up spot. In the first match of the evening Avengers' Ryan Keates beat Ian Packford in straight games to get off to a good start 11-7, 11-4, 11-6.
Paul Gatiss (Avengers) won the first two games against Craig Campbell 11-9, 11-4, but Campbell fought back to win 6-11, 7-11, 7-11 to make it all square and saw a disappointed Gatiss come off the table.
The third player for Avengers, Simon Pryke, faced Mark Jackson in a five set thriller. Jackson took the first 9-11 but Pryke gritted his teeth to take the second 12-10. The next two games went both ways but it was Jackson who won the fifth, 12-10, to push his team 2-1 ahead and to break Prykes 100% record.
Paul Gatiss faced Ian Packford next but could not prevent his team losing another match when he lost 11-7, 7-11, 9-11, 7-11.
In the fifth match, Keates saw himself 2-0 down against Jackson, 7-11,6-11, but produced a remarkable comeback to win the next three games 13-11, 11-9, 11-8 to pull it back to 3-2.
Pryke beat Campbell in four 11-7, 11-9, 7-11, 11-8 to square it back to three games all.
Gatiss was very unfortunate not to win the first two games against Jackson losing 10-12,11-13. Paul won the next 13-11, but lost the fourth 9-11, to put his team into no mans land.
Keates had to beat Campbell to stay in with a chance and got off to a good start winning the first 11-5. It was Campbell who took the second and third 6-11, 8-11 to get closer for the runners-up spot. The fourth game could have gone either way, with some fantastic rallies, but it was Campbell who took the game and match to see the Pacmen come second.
The last match of the evening saw Pryke beat Packford 11-3,11-3,11-5.
The League, which saw 55 top players take part, was very successful. Many thanks to Mark Purcell of Map Electronics for sponsoring the event. A thank you to organisers Dave Gatiss, Dave Murphy and Paul Gatiss for all their effort in making it happen. A thank you also to the MKTT Centre for the donation of three bottles of wine to the winners.