POPPS ‘B’ : A Terry Wassall, B: Joan Bottomley, C: Robin Thomas
POPPS ‘A’ : X: Terry Allington, Y: Peter McMullen,  Z: Derek Greenwood

A gathering of friends – or is it? This twice-yearly ‘conference’ of strategy, method & guile has come round again, drawing a coterie of support & en-couragement from an attractive bevy of male & female ‘fans’ or interested parties. The cat & mouse of selection completed in advance was thrown into chaos with a late withdrawal through an unexpected issue of ill-health. A key player in the armoury of the ‘A’ team firepower, JT, forwarded a cryptic & sickly message to management, suggesting the onset of a virulent strain of something almost deadly which had lain him low & made it impossible for him to move comfortably in pursuit of little white balls whilst also dealing with little green men in his tummy. Was it a bug, was it merely a life-challenging strain of something green & mobile, or, was it a sinister under-hand, under-duvet attempt by a desperate opponent to swill our winning run down the pan? Having suggested to JT to lie low (and still), keeping an eye open for unusual events, strangers in his midst (including little green men, of course) & to consider future strategies to combat this vile threat, Agent McMullen, newly returned from naval duty in the furthest empire, postponed his weekly ejection from The Bull & agreed to polish his pimply bits for some action at Club Lane. Enhanced by the rotundly fit & feisty academic from Leeds, TW, our opponents strutted confidently into the arena, with their disarmingly confident smiles & demeanour: Sporty Joan, looking lean & mean & Agent Robin, recently released from birthing duties across the globe & reluctantly press-ganged into demon-strating his unique & specialist skills (?), made up a threatening challenge for the ‘A’ team. Let battle (or ping-pong) commence.

1: AvX – Terry W.v Peter: 8-11/12-14/9-11 AWAY WIN. Confident flashing start from Peter with Terry W. struggling to find his length (!); the 2nd game saw Terry W. begin to find the edges but Peter buckled his swash & comfortably ploughed his way to a win: Elegance restored in the 3rd game, as Peter toyed with Terry W. (as in a cat playing with a toy mouse), before casually stroking his way to a confident win.

2: BvY – Joan v Terry A.: 2-11/7-11/2-11 AWAY WIN. Despite Joan aiming her steely eye at Terry A. from the start, refusing to give quarter to Terry’s relentless defence, the points eluded Joan entirely in the 1st game: great patience by Joan in the 2nd game saw a closer contest as she established more focus; sadly, the 3rd game returned to a one-sided sprint from Terry, concluding a disappointing start from Joan.

3: CvZ – Robin v Derek: 4-11/8-11/11-8/9-11 AWAY WIN. Brisk 1st game from Derek with Robin tense & not performing (!); a slick 2nd game from Derek followed by a shockingly casual 3rd giving Robin a tiny window of light as he powered into the 4th to a 4-1 lead, as Derek continued his rather casual approach; dragging the game back to 8-8, Derek finally finished it off.

4: BvX – Joan v Peter: 5-11/11-9/8-11/4-11 AWAY WIN. Steady performance from Joan, still slightly over-hitting her forehands & allowing Peter to comfortably complete the 1st game; in the 2nd game, Joan focused so tightly on each shot that Peter was lulled into losing sight of the ball; Peter pulled back his concentration in the 3rd & pushed calmly through the 4th to a comfortable win.

5: AvZ – Terry W. v Derek: 7-11/3-11/6-11 AWAY WIN. Steady 1st game by Derek whilst still warming himself up, followed by a strong & unremitting 2nd game & a gentle but convincing 3rd.

6: CvY – Robin v Terry A.: 4-11/2-11/2-11 AWAY WIN. Crushing & demoralising 1st game from Terry followed by more of the same in the 2nd. Robin attempted to play a more\creative game in the 3rd but Terry simply squashed the plasticine flat!

7: BvZ – Joan v Derek: 6-11/11-8/5-11/10-12 AWAY WIN. Good sound start from Derek but Joan competed well & she motored on to a convincing win in the 2nd; the 3rd game saw Derek get a grip but the onset of tiredness in the 4th allowed Joan to challenge & lose out only at the death.

 8: CvX – Robin v Peter: 10-12/9-11/9-11 AWAY WIN. Tight 1st game with Peter tiring & Robin concentrating beyond his usual standard. The 2nd game slipped Peter’s way, just & after a close contest the 3rd game also slipped into Peter’s lap.

9: AvY – Terry W. v Terry A.: 12-10/11-5/11-6 AWAY WIN. Tight three games from Terry A. but with sound challenging shots from Terry W., particularly in the 1st game. Steady progress from Terry A., however, simply put too heavy a load on Terry W.’s backhand.

An important & convincing win for the ‘A’ team & a disappointing defeat for the ‘B’ team, albeit with some notable improvements & close shaves in various games. With conspiracies & dramatic thoughts put to one side, we can be grateful that this rather gentle & painless stroll further enhanced ‘A’ team’s position & kindly encouraged the ‘B’ team’s future.

Thank you all for a good evening together!

The A team suffered its only defeat so far in the handicap doubles against Tradesman 2 in our division. Mark Knapton who plays in the second division  inspired the youngsters to great eforts, and we found their 18 points start too much to pull back.

On the 29th December the Mystery Doubles was held at the Halifax Table Tennis Centre. Popps were represented by Derek and Terry A. Terry partnered Andrew Woodhead, a student now based in London. He is the son of Robert Woodhead a well known Halifax league player. Andrew is a cracking player and together with the tight defence of Terry, they managed to reach the final. 

The final against Simon Pugh a top first division player and Derek Harwood of the second division was very tense. Andrew and Terry lost in five games, but it had been a great experience. Andrew’s speed of movement and fantastic hitting was a joy to watch.

It had been a very successful evening and thanks must goe to all the people who work so hard behind the scenes.

A: Rose Tipton, B: Derek Wiiliamson, C: Colin Anker
X: Terry Allington, Y: John Taylor,  Z: Derek Greenwood

Another well-anticipated meander to the heights of Old Town beckoned, with a drizzly yet warm winter’s evening cushioning our body thermometer against the previous extremes of life ‘on top of the world’. Our vault across the entrance wall, our usual aptitude test on a arrival, contrived by a locked gate for which the key has obviously long rusted away, preceded our penetration of the chapel’s inner sanctum in pursuit of the unmistakable sound of table tennis balls, brayed rhythmically in preparation for the contest ahead. Taking a break from the excitement of local pig racing events to indulge in subtle & less porky activities, Rose, Colin & Derek W. made us welcome with their anticipated friendliness & the prospect of break-time snacks & hot drinks. After friendly responses regarding our now well-known & received website, our hosts ushered us to the starting line, ensuring that we made note of a new & important addition to the room, a closed wooden cupboard for all the spare balls. Previous matches had stretched the games on a regular basis due to spare balls being stored in open boxes inside larger cardboard boxes in one corner of the room, in a position which, invariably, became the target of every forehand smash from across the table. Hours spent trying to identify the ‘playing ball’ from all the other spares in the boxes had taxed our recognition skills to the limit, this activity having never been an integral part of our TT training! – at last, the problem was resolved and so the match began.

1:AvX – Rose v Terry: 3-11/4-11/7-11 AWAY WIN: A good even start in the 1st game with strong & searching forehands from Rose: Terry, however, was playing his all-consuming game, followed by more of the same in the 2nd: a mild revival by Rose in the 3rd could not prevent an easy win for Terry.

2:BvY – Derek W. v John: 6-11/6-11/3-11 AWAY WIN: An aggressive start from John saw Derek W. over-hitting forehand smashes: more precision from Derek W. in the 2nd but a similar result & a 3rd which saw John imposing an aggressive style to sweep forward to a 3-0 win.

3:CvZ – Colin v Derek: 9-11/6-11/3-11 AWAY WIN: A steady but convincing 1st game from Derek despite letting it slip away a little towards the end, followed by a more positive 2nd game & a devastatingly aggressive 3rd game which left Colin with nowhere to go at 0-3.

4:BvX – Derek W. v Terry: 12-14/4-11/3-11 AWAY WIN: Strangely tight 1st game with strong early punches from Derek W. but Terry hung on in there to the death: an easy 2nd game for Terry with Derek W. seeming flustered & off balance was followed by an overwhelming 3rd from Terry in which Derek W. seemed to lose the plot.

5:AvZ -Rose v Derek: 11-7/11-5/11-6 HOME WIN: Poor match for Derek, losing control as Rose outplayed him comprehensively from beginning to end with venomous smashes & short delicate lobs, taking her to a very convincing 3-0 victory.

6:CvY – Colin v John: 3-11/11-7/5-11/4-11 AWAY WIN: Easy stroll for John in 1st game with Colin looking for his range. In the 2nd game, Colin pushed ahead as John fluffed shots, largely off his fingers, enabling Colin to hold on for 1-1. John recovered his composure to move ahead to 2-1 & pushed on confidently through the 4th to a relatively easy win.

7:BvZ – Derek W. v Derek: 4-11/4-11/8-11 AWAY WIN: Easy confident match for Derek, with Derek W. losing focus as Derek became more accurate & punishing, powering to an easy 3-0 victory.

8:CvX – Colin v Terry: 3-11/1-11/4-11 AWAY WIN: A walk in the hills for Terry, with Colin looking dazed at 0-1, confused at 0-2 & experiencing nightmares whilst still awake (just!) at 0-3!

9:AvY – Rose v John: 4-11/9-11/11-6/11-4/11-9 HOME WIN: Easy 1st game followed by steady 2nd put John in the driving seat. However, Rose’s admirable tenacity saw her knuckle down to dealing successfully with John’s tricky serve, his encroaching tiredness & her increasing confidence in her own ability. In the end, this was a very convincing & confidence-boosting victory for Rose.

As usual, a relaxing & friendly evening observing the customs & rituals of the good folk of Old Town as they ‘streaked out’ from the usual serious business of pig racing: question is, do our friends race the pigs or do the pigs race each other? – the mysteries of these rituals may be explained to us on a future visit – or perhaps they are subject to an embargo, a secrecy clause or anything, in fact, which might preserve the dark & magical qualities of this intriguing corner of Calderdale. Thanks for a splendid evening, Old Town!

We are now reaching the stage where we are having our return matches, so the results are more predictable. Ramsbridge beat us 9-0 last time, although there were some close games. Joan has gone down with some strange virus, so we have parachuted in Alwyn Kershaw, who played with some distinction for our Summer League last year, so we may register an improved performance, the rest of the team being Terry Wassall who may demonstrate some flashes of brilliance, and Robin Thomas, fresh from 3 weeks in Hong Kong, stuffed to the gills with exotic food with a partly pickled brain after too many lagers in Wanchai.

Ramsbridge have around 5 competent players to pick from and three very smart shirts, complete with Ramsbridge logo, between them. Tonight’s team was: Rod Veal, Steve Hanson & Joe Broadbent.

Robin took a long time to get into his first match V Rod, who rattled off 11-3 and 11-4. However, Robin managed a mini-fight back in G3 by winning 12-10. But it was short lived and Rod wound up G4 at 11-4. Rod was more consistent and Robin could not sustain his concentration after his unexpected winning game.

Then Steve beat Terry 11-2, 11-7 and 11-7, via a mixture of cunning serves and general accuracy. Terry won one or two hits, but his extended viral condition has left its mark on his ravaged body. Joe Broadbent, with a height and age advantage, then took on Alwyn and we observed a significant improvement in the standard of playing, with long rallies, careful placement of the ball and some weird from-under-the-table spin serves from Joe. Joe won 11-7, 13-11 and 11-9. Alwyn tried various strategies, including tossing the ball up to tempt Joe into unwise smashes, but it only worked to a point. He could have won the last 2 games, but Joe was just too steady.

Steve then returned to the table to surprisingly lose the first game to Robin at 10-12, but sanity returned as he reeled off 11-1, 11-5 and 11-4. Alwyn improved his performance against Rod, by taking the first game 11-8, using a range of techniques, good returns, tossing it up and largely staying on his feet. But Rod kept his head in G2, surviving a close battle to win 12-10. At this point I noticed how professional Ramsbridge looked on this cold night, with their smart shirts, shorts and clean socks. In contrast, Popps kept their tracksuit bottoms on and displayed a motley collection of tops, including Alwyn’s massive blue T Shirt which billowed round him like a hyperactive sail. Rod then prevailed in the remaining games 11-8 and 12-10. Overall, it was a set which Alwyn could have won; all he needed was a bit of stardust.

Joe’s serve confused Terry in the next set where he eased to 11-5, 11-7 and 11-1, with Terry fading badly in the 3rd game. Alwyn tried to attack more against Steve, as he felt his defence was not really working. It was to no avail as Steve won 11-4 in G1, then 11-8 and 11-4. Joe against Robin was a bit of a formality, with Joe winning 11-4, 11-8 and 11-8. Joe’s serve was effective and his returns were steady. Robin executed some useful returns, but to no avail.

Finally, Terry restored some pride by winning a 5 game set against Rod, 12-10,8-11,9-11,11-5 and 5-11, as he gradually introduced some accuracy into his smash regime.

So again we lost to Ramsbridge, but this time we won one set. Alwyn had sets he could have won, Terry did win one and Robin took 2 games. We just have to hang in there and team manager, Tom ‘Kenny Dalglish’ Sunderland is hoping to arrange a team practice, so some improvement may be possible as we enter 2011.

This was POPPs B’s last game before the Christmas break and, given the Tradesmen are second in the division just behind POPPs A, were not expecting anything other than a lesson in humility. And so it turned out. The Tradesmen’s trio of youngsters, Sam, Matthew and Alex, two of whom could barely see over the table, were full of confidence, bordering on arrogance, and energy. They were all very good indeed and not much to pick between them.  Sam and Alex play particularly well given their lack of height and will be even more formidable when they grow another 12 inches or so. POPPs B lined up with Joan, Tom and Terry W.

Needless to say, Tradesmen won 9 sets to nil. Sam didn’t drop a game. He was the most casual in his approach and rarely looked as if he needed to take his games very seriously, usually waiting to receive serve with his bat hanging loose below table height. He had one of these modern serves where the ball is thrown up to quite a height before service. If quite so many had not been served into the front edge of the table he no doubt would have won his games even more convincingly. I found it hard not to follow the travel of the ball all the way up and all the way down so was partly mesmerised by the time the serve actually happened and I had to try and return it.  All the POPPs team took him to 8 in most of the games with Tom losing 12-10, 11-9 and 13-11. This was the last set of the night.

Joan took Matthew to 13-11 in one game and took a game off Alex 11-9. Terry took a game off  Matthew 11-9. But that was about it. It looked as if all the Tradesmen’s players could have played a bit better than they did and perhaps they would have if they found it necessary. There was some evidence that they would not react too well to genuine pressure, not that the B team were capable of applying any on this occassion. There is no doubt all three of the youngsters could go far if they continue with the coaching they are receiving and that they will mature into formidle senior players. The only thing they would learn from playing the likes of us is how to lose comprehensively with some dignity and decorum!

Having beaten the Robins in a close match in November POPPS expected them to receive a handicap. Although POPPS had won 6 sets to 3 many of the games were very close and the overall points difference for the match not that great. In the event the Robins got a 54 point start which seemed pretty fair. So POPPs started the match feeling that although it would undoubtedly be close, we had a chance of pulling it off. However, what little confidence we had was to evaporate over the first 2 of the 9 scheduled games. Two of the Robins team were as before, Jo and Colin. Their number 3 on that occasion was replaced for the doubles by Paul. POPPs was made up by Tom, Joan and Terry W, the victors of the last encounter.

To win the match we needed to win each of the 9 games by an average of 6 point. Games in doubles are played to 42 so we needed to win each game on average 42 – 36 to stay on par and scrape a victory. The first game saw Tom and Joan face Paul and Colin to lose 31 – 42. Not a disaster but this added to the overall points deficit. Next Tom and Terry played Paul and Jo losing 33 – 42. Given that the idea was to get to 42 first this didn’t look too promising! Terry and Joan managed to win the next game against Colin and Jo 42 – 38 , too close to make up the needed points. One third of the way through the match and our disadvantage had increased from the original 54 handicap to 70. From now on we needed to win the remaining 6 games by an average of over 11 points. Dear reader, it was not to be!

Game 4 was Tom and Joan against Paul and Jo, the strongest pair, with POPPs losing disastrously 24 – 42.  This was followed by Tom and Terry against Paul and Colin losing 30 – 42 and Joan and Terry against Paul and Jo losing 36 – 42, a little more respectable but way short of the wins needed. Two thirds through the match and our deficit was now 106.

Things got worse! Tom and Joan lost to Colin and Jo 26 – 42. Tom and Terry beat Colin and Jo 42 – 32 and Joan and Terry lost to Paul and  Colin 17 – 42. POPPs lost the match by 135 points, 283 – 418.

It would not be fair to say the handicapper got it wrong as the 54 lead given to the Robins was probably about right going by the last league match. However, for the doubles match the Robins were easily the strongest team, and not just because Paul was the strongest player. Both Jo and Colin played better than the POPPS players most of the time and generally were better organised and mobile. For POPPs Joan was by far the most agile and mobile but Terry and Tom are not great movers! The only possible flaw in the Robins strategy was to win so easily even when it was obvious the match was in the bag. A forward thinking strategist would have been paying a bit more heed to the handicap they might get in the next round!

The match was played in good spirit  and we look forward to meeting the Robins again in the second half of the season