The Table Blades gathered at the Gorbals sports centre on 20 February 2013 in what is hoped will be a regular sporting encounter.
Excellent fun was had. A league has been mooted. The players in this proposed league:
- Gary "Quick Wrist" Little
- Chris "Thunder and Lightning" Forbes
- Bruce Morton: "The Spin Doctor"
- Greg "Maple Grief" Hemphill
In a friendly atmosphere - marred only occasionally by exhibitions of alpha-male strutting and fist-pumping - 2 hours of table tennis ensued. Match results are given below. These results will not count towards league positions, given that today's meet was the first in which Maple Grief Hemphill appeared and was the first time in a long time that the self-styled "bear rising from slumber", had wielded a blade in anger. (Little, Forbes and Morton had played a few times prior to Hemphill joining the party).
The results do show however, that Hemphill, having got his fat ass whipped in early encounters, quickly began to show signs of the quality which had once brought him admirers among the table tennis connoisseurs of Canada and beyond. Indeed, the only game that reigning champ Little lost today was in a thrilling encounter with the Maple Grief, who emerged victorious in a 12-10 victory.
For the record, today's scores..
Bruce v Gary
6 11
8 11
7 11
6 11
3 11
4 11
Bruce v Chris
11 8
11 7
9 11
7 11
Bruce v Greg
11 8
11 9
11 4
11 4
8 11
Chris v Gary
10 11
7 11
8 11
Chris v Greg
11 8
7 11
11 8
11 9
Greg v Gary
6 11
9 11
12 10
7 11
5 11
So, as we gather at the starting line of this table tennis league, the big questions are:
Can Quick Wrist Little be dislodged as the reigning champ?
If so, how and by whom?
Can Thunder and Lightning prevail as The Spin Doctor battles hard for second place?
Will their titanic struggle be made pointless by the surging presence of the Maple Grief?
Gentleman - fellow Table Blades - I invite you to reply and comment and, initially as we approach the real deal, suggest how we allocate points in this league. I'm thinking this:
A straight victory = 3 points
A victory which went over the 11 match points (e.g a 12-10 win) gives the loser in that game 1 point towards his total in the league.
Also, the doubles games today were super fun. I think it'd be cool to decide on who partners who in an ongoing, separate, doubles league. That is, we keep those teams the same every week and allocate enough time in each meet for 3 or 4 games in the Doubles League.
Thoughts?
A splendid blog Doctor. I fully back all ideas suggested. I especially like the idea of a point for losing player if game goes to sudden death. For the doubles tournament, perhaps an official draw for pairing people up is in order?
ReplyDeleteGood call on the Doubles pairings. Let's make it random: next meet, let's toss coins, draw straws or have a brief moonwalk competition to decide the pairs.
ReplyDeleteThere is always a sense of anticipation and excitement whenever a new player comes to the table. Today was no different with the arrival of Maple Grief a man known for shouting the odds but who ultimately left the court in a whisper. Taking my title of champ has been something Thumbler and Lightbulb and the Spineless Doctor have tried unsuccessfully to do in the past but nothing I seen today makes me think this will change. As for the slumbering Maple Syrup only the coming weeks will show what he is capable of. What is interesting is the battle for 2nd place. A previously confident Forbes now finds himself under sever pressure from the other 2. In the entertainment world this is the only game in town!
ReplyDelete"sever pressure" ? Perhaps that's what you meant to say. It's unlike you, Gary, to lose an e.
ReplyDeleteHahaha! Still raging my earlier lengthy tome was lost!
ReplyDeleteI promise you, boys. I will be the one to beat within a fortnight. WHY HAVE YOU AWOKEN ME FROM MY ANCIENT SLUUUUUUMBER???!?!?!
ReplyDeleteAfter some extensive research online, I finally purchased a new table tennis bat today. Countless blogs, forums and websites were read and several Chinese gurus consulted before making my final decision. Although most experts seemed to indicate that the 'Butterfly' brand was the best, and although I was severely tempted by a bat called 'The Dark Storm' to tie in with my nickname, I ultimately decided upon the revolutionary Blutenkirsche Elite Table Tennis Bat. Apparently its fairly new on the market so maybe i'm taking a bit of a risk. but hey, thats just the way I roll. I'm dangerous. Beware the Blutenkirsche....or you'll get hit by lightning!................................................................ (but not on thursday. it doesnt arrive til friday. Doh!)
ReplyDeleteNot the Blutenkirsche! That thing hasn't been properly tested yet! Anything could happen. Play Gary with it first. I'm gonna stand at a safe distance and will not approach the table until I hear the all-clear siren. No way.
ReplyDelete