CIPPENHAM Table Tennis Club have recorded satisfactory results during the one-day third weekend of the Senior British League.

Both teams lost matches to the side at the top of their division, but the first team fought back well to defeat Urban in their other game, and the second team finally gained a first point in what has otherwise been a difficult campaign.

In their opening match, the Cippenham first team found themselves 4-2 down against North London club, Urban.

Josh Bennett gave his side the perfect start against Antony Costantinou but defeats for Martin Adams, Martin Gray and Tom Windram saw Cippenham slide into a 3-1 deficit.

The doubles matches were shared and Cippenham were left needing to win all the reverse singles in order to claim both the league points at stake.

Bennett, later named the man-of-the-match, started the comeback by winning 3-1 in a tightly contested encounter with Bradley Tuttle, and when Gray swept past Costantinou with consummate ease the scores were suddenly level.

Adams then played Sujay Jagannathan and won a topsy-turvy game 3-1, and Windram administered the coup-de-grace (also 3-1) against Jamie Fisher.

That was an important win for Cippenham which increased their advantage to five points against the team immediately below them in the table. Defeat would have cut the gap to a mere one point.

In the afternoon match, Cippenham had to take on Division One South leaders, London Academy II.

The local club led 2-1 after Bennett and Windram had both won over the five-game distance against Ho Yin John Lee and Karin Khassal respectively.

However, London Academy stepped up through the gears and eventually won 7-3 with only a doubles win for the two Cippenham juniors, Benntt and Windram, adding to their score.

Adams came closest otherwise when he led Khassal 2-0 only to lose 17-15 in the fifth end.

The Cippenham second team had to travel to the BATTS club in Harlow for their matches and, in the 10th game of the campaign, eventually won their first point against sixth-placed Generation Two.

The result keeps them routed to the foot of Division Three South but, with plans for the restructuring of the Senior British League, it is unlikely to result in relegation.

Cippenham had the doubles - introduced into the Senior British League match format at the season - to thank for their first point as they won both matches.

The first four singles ended 2-2 with Christos Hannides beating Mike Rhodes and Paul Baker getting the better of Charlie Childs in only three games.

After the doubles had put the score at 4-2 in favour of Cippenham, it was the turn of Tony Stead to get into the scoresheet as he beat Vincent Cheung to put the local club 5-3 ahead.

Baker and Steve Smith lost respectively to Rhodes and Childs to make the final score 5-5.

Smith had been the only winner for Cippenham in the earlier match when beating Steve Pound in the final set of a 9-1 defeat to league leaders Horsham Blades.