The race for second place in the Senior British League Premier Division could be decided this weekend as Ormeau take on North Ayrshire.
Ormesby sit at the top of the table, unbeaten in their five matches before the league was split into a top and bottom half. Both Ormeau and North Ayrshire won three of their five fixtures, with Saturday’s tie set to be crucial in the race for second.
The Ormeau team that will welcome North Ayrshire to Northern Ireland will be made up of Oriol Monzo, Matt Ware and Zak Wilson. All three have had a strong season, with Ware and Wilson both putting in player of the match performances.
This weekend could also see Ormeau pick up their first win at home of the year as all their victories have so far come on the road.
Gervis Knox, co-founder of Ormeau, said: “We were delighted with our previous performance against Fusion with a monster fight back from the Ormeau lads. It leaves us with a fighting chance for second place with a win over North Ayrshire this weekend, although as ever we will be up against it with a strong visiting team made up of current and ex Scottish internationals.”
Four players, Colin Dalgleish, Sean Doherty, Chris Main & Martin Johnson, are travelling for the North Ayrshire. Dalgleish has been instrumental in the North Ayrshire campaign, picking up three player of the match awards and winning 80% of his matches.
Ahead of the fixture Main said: “This is a big match for us and our players, this is the first time we have finished in the top half of after the split and want to finish as high up as we can. We want to go on Saturday and play our best table tennis and take our chances.
“We are looking forward to the match and will be a close one no doubt. Last time we played Ormeau they just got the better of us 4-3 in a very close and high quality match.”
The tie starts at 13:00 and will be streamed on the Ormeau Facebook page.
You can also find match stats, results and fixtures on TT Leagues.