THE first round of the Malvern Table Tennis League's Handicap Competit-ion, which has continued after the Christmas break, saw a fascinating contest between Manor Park Oak at the top of Division Two and Merlins from Division One.

The Oak edged home by 11 points thanks to a fine display by Paul Coleman and the advantage of a handicap of 80 points. For the losers Mike Wheatley took points off all of his opponents.

Another Division Two team beat more illustrious opposition when Poolbrook Rangers beat Manor Park Express. The player to catch the eye on this occasion was Dave Steen, who provided stern resistance for Rangers all evening and led his team to a comfortable win.

Manor Park Amateurs missed David Desouza in their match against Crackpots E. Good all round play by Colin Dolding, James Palmer and Pete Harrold saw Crackpots progress.

They will be joined there by Manor Park Maulers, who belied their league form in the defeat of Crackpots C. Bill Smith took points off Ed Palmer (6-11, 14-12, 11-9, 11-7) and Ray Davis just edged ahead of Stan Ginn (6-11, 11-5, 15-17, 11-9). Richard Cullis kept the score line close but could not do enough to stop the Maulers.

Manor Park Express Juniors came up against the strong Ledbury Lions team and this very young side did well to gain the points they needed to win the match. Ben and Josh Salisbury and Geoff Burford can be most satisfied with their efforts. Malvern Juniors C found the experienced Wombats team difficult to shift. Colin and Alan Sage both did well but their combined efforts were not enough to turn the tide.

Police had a convincing victory over Manor Park Travellers. Alan Holmes, Colin Gale and Malcolm Dalley pulled out all the stops against their Division One opponents.

RESULTS: Manor Park Express Juniors (360) 470, Ledbury Lions 440; Malvern Juniors C (195) 378, Wombats 444; Ledbury Merlins 398, Manor Park Oak (80) 409; Manor Park Express 423, Poolbrook Rangers (260) 523; Crackpots C 428, Manor Park Maulers (165) 485; Crackpots E (45) 450, Manor Park Amateurs 314; Police (260) 510, Manor Park Travellers 441.