Medal Success at National Championships

The most prestigious event on the Table Table Scotland calendar was held at Bells Sport Centre, Perth on 29 February and 1st March. North Ayrshire Table Tennis Club players brought home a record amount of medals and national titles with Martin Johnson winning the Junior Boys National title to add to his Junior British title he won in November 2019.

Senior Events

Former Auchenharvie Academy pupil, Martin Johnson played his best table tennis to date reach the semi finals of the Men’s Singles event. Martin got a great win over the Scottish no3 ranked men Niall Cameron 3-1 in the last 16 and Scottish no7 John Hannah in the quarter finals 3-1. This was to set up a blockbuster match v Scottish no1 and 14 time champion Gavin Rumgay in the semi final. Martin lost out in a highly competitive match 3-1 to Gavin but shows the level Martin is competing at, how much he has improved after moving to Düsseldorf Germany to train full time.

No7 seed and club coach Chris Main reached the Quarter Finals of the Men’s Singles losing out to eventual winner Colin Dalgleish. Jamie Johnson and Ryan Henry both qualified into the knockout stages and lost out in the last 16 of the Men’s Singles.

Chris Main and Holly McNamara teamed up well in the mixed doubles where they reached the final of the Mixed Doubles. They got a superb 4 set win in the semi final win over Scottish no2 woman Lucy Elliott and Scottish no3 men Niall Cameron. 4 time winners Colin Dalgleish and Rebecca Plaistow proved too strong in the final beating Chris & Holly 3-1.

Martin Johnson & Partner Danny Bajwa who both moved out to top table tennis centre Düsseldorf, Germany at the start of the season, showed they are the perfect doubles team winning the Men’s Doubles for the first time and retaining their Junior Boys Doubles title.

Junior Events

In the U15 Boys singles event, North Ayrshire had two players going for the title, 13 year old Nathan Hogg and14 year old Johnson. Nathan Hogg the Scottish no3 worked his way to the semi final with two fine wins over two of the top Aberdeen players. Nathan put up a good fight v top seed Borui Chen but Borui proved too strong in the semi final. Jamie who was seeded no2 going into the competition reached the final to set up a final v Edinburgh’s Borui Chen. Jamie played great but lost out in 3 close sets to finish the event in runners up position.

Chad Duncan and Nathan Hogg played well to reach the semi finals of the Junior Boys Doubles. They lost out in a close battle to players from South Ayrshire TTC.

In the girls event, West Kilbride’s Jess Hogg reached the semi finals of both the u15 girls and the u18 girls. Holly narrowly lost out in the group stages of the junior girls, just losing out in the deciding set to both the Scottish no2 and no3.

Holly and Jess paired up in the Junior Girls Doubles event with wins over top Dumfries pairings Shannon Brown and Maria DeSilva and two top Edinburgh players to reach the final. Jess & Holly lost in 4 close sets to the top seeds from Glasgow.

Martin Johnson backed up his impressive day of results on the Saturday with winning the Junior Boys title on the Sunday. Martin seeded 3 going into the event, beat doubles partner Danny Bajwa 3-1 in the semi final and Scottish no1 ranked junior Dylan Curry 3-1 in the final.

Club Coach Jordan McGinlay adds ‘What a weekend of results for the North Ayrshire players at the very top level of table tennis in Scotland. The hard work and training the players have to put in on a weekly basis is tough and it’s so deserving that the players are getting their rewards’

NATTC have classes and sessions running 5 days per week all over North Ayrshire. Beginners, over 50’s & school classes. Find us on Facebook, Twitter for more information

The most prestigious event on the Table Table Scotland calendar was held at Bells Sport Centre, Perth on 29 February and 1st March. North Ayrshire Table Tennis Club players brought home a record amount of medals and national titles with Martin Johnson winning the Junior Boys National title to add to his Junior British title he won in November 2019.

Please see below detailed reports from the Table Tennis Scotland website written by Stewart Armitage and Gordon Muir.

TTS Senior Report (Saturday) – https://tabletennisscotland.co.uk/dalgleish-and-plaistow-take-the-honours/

TTS Junior Report (Sunday) – https://tabletennisscotland.co.uk/johnson-and-yau-victorious/

A&S Herald article – /https://www.ardrossanherald.com/news/18283376.table-toppers-savour-success-national-championships/