French gave final polish to table tennis championships

Press, Volume CXV, Issue 33941, 6 September 1975, Page 4

French gave final polish to table tennis championships

(By

BOB SCHUMACHER

Experienced observers and players involved in the New Zealand table tennis titles in Christchurch last week were in general agreement that they were among the best held.

There were many reasons for the success of the week, which started on a high note when Hutt Valley upset predictions by winning the Kean Shield men’s teams’ title for the first time since the inception of the trophy contest in 1940.

But, primarily, it was the presence of a French party that added impetus to the tournament.

The French players did not arrive in Christchurch until Tuesday afternoon, but that evening they

played an international fixture against New Zealand and amply demonstrated their expertise by winning, 9-1.

Although the French were impressive, the New Zealanders were far from outclassed and it Was only their vulnerability under pressure that prevented them from winning more than One match.

The truly great exhibition by the French champion, Jacques Secretin, and the veteran world championship competitor, Vincent Purkhart, will linger long in the memories of those present. But the French players were far more serious when it came to the national open titles. They captured the five championships and only in the women’s doubles was there the prospect of a New Zealand victory.

Secretin, nine-times the French champion and fourteenth-ranked player in the world, was quite unorthodox, but his control and confidence left no doubt that he would become the fourth overseas player to carry off the men’s singles. Seeded second behind the title-holder, Richard Lee (Auckland), the Frenchman breezed through the early rounds. At no stage did he appear likely to concede a game and it was an accomplishment for his opponents to reach double figures in any game. Secretin came to New Zealand with a reputation of being one of the world’s

most brilliant lob defenders. But he seldom resorted to that tactic. His ability to disguise the spin and direction of his shots close to the table had his opposition bemused. The Frenchman elimi-

nated his countryman, Purkhart, in the semi-finals, but he struck his most obdurate opponent in the final when confronted with the sixth seed, James Morris (Northland) The 22-year-old Northlander has been to the forefront of New Zealand table tennis for the last four years and has compiled an impressive record against overseas opponents.

However, he has yet to win his first national open singles and it was rather unfortunate that he should be pitted against a worldclass competitor after having proved best of the New Zealand players. Morris was especially impressive in reaching the final. He also did not concede a game during his

progress through the rounds. In the quarterfinals, Morris was too quick for the 19-year-old Canterbury player, Maurice Burrowes, who was unseeded. However, Burrowes had given his home supporters a thrill by ousting the third seed, Dhoondt, in the previous round. Except for the women’s doubles, the French players were superior. Ann Stonestreet (Auckland) and Neti Traill (Northland) appeared a more effective combination against the French women, Yveline Leclerc and Dominique Szalka, in the women’s final. Ahead 10-5 at ends and 16-10 in the deciding game, the New Zealand pair were poised for a notable win. However, through overanxiety and pressure, Miss Stonestreet and Mrs Traill committed some unforced errors to surrender their commanding lead; they held another match point at 21-20, but lost that too and did not receive another chance. The initial triumph of Hutt Valley in the Kean Shield was an amazing achievement for an association which only regained A grade status last year by winning the B grade and winning the B grade and promotion-relegation Apart from Gary Murphy, second-ranked in the country, his three teammates, Terry Murphy, Murray Bbrlase and Hone Ridley, were not nationally ranked. But with Gary Murphy leading by example — his only loss was to Lee — and his associates lending valuable support in doubles and contributing several important singles successes, Hutt Valley after losing to Auckland in the first round, defied the odds and gained the title on a count-back from Franklin. Canterbury, without Wayne Adamson — who played a significant role in Franklin’s advancement — and Lee, never looked likely to win the trophy for the fourth successive year. Canterbury was forced into the embarrassing position of playing a promo tie n-relegation with Otago, the B grade winner, to hold its A grade position for next year. Canterbury won, although not as decisively as the 6-3 margin might suggest. But Hamilton, last year’s winner of the women’s Teagle Shield was not so fortunate. It lost to Wellington in the play-off and was relegated to the B grade next year.

The Canterbury women did as well as expected, but had to accept' second to Auckland which had the three top-ranked New Zealand women in its team. Jan Morris, the province’s leading woman, played exceedingly well throughout the tournament and won 11 of her 13 si- 'les.