Spineroos Coaching Program on offer for students

The program will be on offer during the third school term and is delivered by local coaches to primary school students over an eight-week period.

The Rockhampton Table Tennis Association is embarking on a Spineroos Coaching Program during the third school term.

This is a product developed by Table Tennis Australia and is delivered by local coaches to primary school students over an eight-week period.

The Spineroos Program provides a fun and engaging first experience of table tennis for youngsters attending primary schooling who have to

register through the program’s website upon being set up by the national sporting body.

Each participant receives a kit bag that includes a Spineroos T-shirt and a bat and balls. More details on this initiative will be will be available in the very near future.

Teams in the open grade fixture competition are doing their best to finish on top of the leaderboard with only two rounds remaining before the

premiership is awarded on the first past the post basis.

This weekly competition is based on four-player teams that are split into two sections with the points gained by each two-player sub team aggregated.

The combination of Matt Pettett, Ann-Louise Stewart, Dave Hockings and Patricia Green still holds a handy lead in this fixture however sides

consisting of Rayden Smith, Erica Nolan, Emily Steffen and Dave Milverton as well as Joel Coughlan, Monica Deeth, Allan Clarke and Linda

O’Sullivan currently share second spot and some impressive results by either of these outfits could see some alterations to the top-end of the

leaderboard.

Teams lead by Dane and Kerrod Coughlan and Matthew Steffen appear to be too far off the pace to worry the leading contenders.

Some entertaining singles clashes unfolded in the latest round with Erica Nolan coming from behind to run down Ann-Louise Stewart 8-11, 11-9, 7-11, 11-7, 11-7 in an encounter that produced plenty of long hard-hitting rallies.

Joel Coughlan was in a very destructive mood as he continues his training regimen with the Australian Paralympic squad and his hapless victims on this outing were rising juniors Matthew Steffen and Nick Green.

Coughlan ran out the victor in straight sets in both matches.

Chris Leitner and Linda O’Sullivan engaged in a lengthy battle that Leitner lead two-zero before O’Sullivan fought back to level the contest. In the decider Leitner prevailed by a few points.

Leitner didn’t enjoy the same outcome when pitted against Allan Clarke and in another marathon went down fighting 11-9 in the fifth game decider.

Glen McDonald, who is subbing and coming off a break from the sport, did very well to extend Dave Hockings to five sets and in a contest that produced a variety of attacking and defensive plays Hockings recovered from a spot of bother to post a win 11-6, 11-13, 9-11, 12-10, 11-7.

In an incredible spectacle veteran Gerard Watts created a win over Kelsey Le Maistre over fiver long games.

Watts had to draw on his extensive experience to defend his way out of trouble when behind by two games to one to win the fourth set 11-9 and then the fifth, which could just as easily gone the other way, 15-13.