The Isle of Man Table tennis team played their second weekend of British League National C1 fixtures recently.

Team IoM had a strong squad consisting of Duncan Alexander, Rebecca Bayley, Mike Tamarov and Sam Edwards. The aim was to climb from their starting position of seventh in the table.

The weekend opened with a crucial clash against Crewe who sat three places above the Island.

Alexander set the tone superbly, producing a commanding 3-1 win over the Crewe number two. Further victories from Edwards, Tamarov and Bayley showcased some excellent attacking table tennis and put the Isle of Man firmly in control.

But a difficult run followed as Alexander, Tamarov and Edwards were edged out in their next singles, allowing Crewe to pull level at 4-4.

That left Bayley to contest a dramatic decider. After falling 2–0 behind, she showed tremendous composure to take the third end 17-15, before levelling the match with a confident fourth.

In a tense final end, Bayley’s aggressive topspin play proved decisive as she clinched the game 11-6, sealing a superb 5-4 victory for the Isle of Man against higher-ranked opposition.

Next up was league leaders Halton, arguably the toughest assignment of the weekend.

Despite periods of excellent attacking play from all four Manx players, the top ranked side proved too strong.

Edwards earned the Isle of Man’s sole point with an outstanding win against the Halton number three.

Sunday opened with a meeting against fourth-placed Pudsey in what became a fiercely competitive encounter despite the final scoreline.

Alexander narrowly lost the opener 3-1 despite some clever tactical use of his anti-spin rubbers. Tamarov responded superbly, grinding out a five-set win to level the match at 1-1.

The doubles proved pivotal, with Alexander and Edwards unable to overcome an in-form Pudsey pairing.

Trailing 4-1 heading into the reverse singles, the Isle of Man fought hard but were outplayed in key moments. Bayley forced her opponent to a deciding fifth set but was edged out 11-8.

Pudsey ultimately ran out 8-1 winners in a match closer than the score suggested.

The final fixture saw the team take on second-placed Albert who fielded a particularly strong lineup.

Alexander battled well but was unfortunate to lose a tight 3-2 contest against Albert No2, while both Edwards and Tamarov suffered similar narrow defeats.

Bayley delivered the highlight of the match once again though with a superb five-set victory, taking the decider 13-11 against the Albert number three.

Alexander and Edwards then faced significant pressure in the doubles, but the Albert duo’s quality proved decisive.

The remaining singles also went Albert’s way, leaving the Isle of Man unable to halt the momentum of one of the division’s strongest teams.

- Despite the mixed results, the Isle of Man closed the second weekend holding on to a very respectable seventh place in the standings - and a promising platform as they look ahead to the third weekend of competition in January.

Further details of the British Club League can be found at https://british.ttleagues.com/league/2290

KEN MITCHELL