Spring Update – March 2026
The Annual Tournament of the Kendal & District Table Tennis League took place at Kirkby Stephen Grammar School on Sunday, March 1st. All of the senior events were played through as far as the semi-finals and the finals were played at Natland TTC on Tuesday, March 3rd. Burton A captain, Ben O’Flynn, finally defeated his long-time nemesis and defending champion, James Neal of Natland in the semi-final only to narrowly lose the final in a thrilling 5-set battle with Archie Catnach, also of Natland. However, revenge was very sweet in the doubles final where Ben & his father Matt became only the second ever KDTTL father and son doubles champions by beating the defending champions, James Neal & Archie Catnach in another exciting final.
The KDTTL Senior League will complete by the end of April. Burton A are currently 2nd in Division 1. Burton B currently lie in 6th place but with games in hand stand a good chance of finishing in the top half. In Division 2, Burton C remain at the top having won all of the 14 matches to date. Burton D are 5th. Only one Burton team, Burton C, is still in the Knockout Cup Competition and will play their Quarter Final at Crook on Monday, March 23rd.
Following tremendous help, support and facilitation from Margaret Burton, Matthew Harris and Emma Woodburn of Burton Morewood Primary School, Martin Wakelin and Tony March ran 3 taster sessions in the Burton Memorial Hall, on February 27th, for years 4, 5 & 6 from the local school. On the day, 18, 18 and 20 budding table tennis players attended from years 4, 5 & 6 respectively. Since running these 45-minute sessions, 10 new junior players have come along to Junior Table Tennis on a Thursday evening (5 to 6).
Adult social table tennis continues each Thursday from 6.00 to 7.00 pm, cost £3. Anyone wanting more information or to book a place should contact Tony March by phone or text/WhatsApp on 07814 029471 or by This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. All ages and standards welcome, including beginners. The important thing is to come along and have fun!
The KDTTL Junior League is reaching its final stages and will culminate in a ‘Finals Night’ for each Division in the middle of April. Burton Badgers, featuring Zach Martin and Hugo Robinson, will play in the final Division 1 session and Burton Bears, with Toby Craig and Eben Johnson, will represent Burton TTC in Division 2.
Tony March – 21.3.26
NOVEMBER 2025
The competitive table tennis season is now well underway and Burton A, captained by Ben O’Flynn, are currently sitting 2nd in Division 1 of the Kendal & District Table Tennis League (KDTTL) and embroiled in their usual battle with Natland A for the Division 1 Championship. Burton B, captained by Paul Hines, have started well and are comfortably mid-table in Division 1.
In Division 2, Burton C, captained by Tony March, are unbeaten and riding high at the top of the table. Burton D, captained by Martin Wakelin, have started slowly but now that Martin is back to full fitness will shortly start to climb the table.
Adult social table tennis is on Thursdays from 6.00 to 7.00 pm, cost £3. Anyone wanting more information should contact Tony March by phone or text/WhatsApp on 07814 029471 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Otherwise, just turn up! All ages and standards welcome, including beginners. These sessions are particularly suitable for people who played when they were young but then career and kids got in the way and now want to get back into it thirty years later! Coaching is provided for those that want it. The important thing is to come and have fun!
Junior coaching for junior players is also on Thursdays, from 5.00 until 6.00 pm, cost £2.50. Again, either contact me as above or just turn up. Anyone from aged 8 or above is welcome to attend, including beginners. All table tennis takes place in the Burton Memorial Hall. During late November and early December, it is best to contact me first as the hall is booked for Xmas bingo and we will have to switch the day.
The KDTTL Junior League starts in the last the week of November and Burton will one team in each of the two divisions. Burton Badgers, with Zach Martin and Hugo Robinson, will play in Division 1 and Burton Bears, with Toby Craig and Eben Johnson, will represent Burton TTC in Division 2.
Tony March – 18.11.25
AUGUST 2025
Table tennis will resume at the Burton Table Tennis Club at the beginning of September, starting with match practice for players wishing to represent Burton in the Kendal & District League. Burton TTC will have teams in both of the 2 Divisions, and League matches will start week commencing Monday, September 22nd, 2025. Match practice will take place from 7.00 to 8.00 on Wednesdays, the 3rd, 10th and 17th of September. Anyone wishing to play for Burton next season is welcome to attend, free of charge.
Adult social table tennis will resume on Thursday, September 11th @ 6.00. These 1 hour sessions will then run every Thursday, except for Christmas holidays, special events at the hall etc, right through until May 2026. Cost £3. Anyone wanting more information should contact Tony March by phone or text on 07814 029471 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Otherwise, just turn up!
Junior coaching for 7 to 18-year-olds will also resume on Thursday, September 11th @ 5.00 and run until 6.00. Cost £2.50. Again, either contact me as above or just turn up. There will also be a free taster session for anyone aged 7 and above who has not previously attended junior coaching. This will run from 4.00 to 5.00 on Thursday, September 11th. Again, contact me for further information or just turn up!
I look forward to another great table tennis season.
Tony March – 7.8.25
APRIL 2025
Burton Juniors Excel
At the Kendal & District League Annual Tournament, which was held at Kirkby Stephen Grammar School last month, Burton TTC juniors, Zach Martin and Zach Crewdson excelled. Zach Martin, age 10, reached the semi-final of the Under 11 singles and 8-year-old Zach Crewdson was runner-up in both the Under 13 and the Under 16 doubles. A great effort by both boys. Zach Crewdson also played in the first ever Cumbria 1 Star Open Table Tennis Tournament, also at the excellent Kirkby Stephen venue, and was runner-up in his group, which contained 7 players. This was a fantastic achievement by one of the youngest players in this Table Tennis England event.
The Kendal & District Senior League is now reaching its final stages and Division 2 has been completed. Burton C, captained by Simon Waring finished second, just 4 points behind champions, Natland E. Burton D, captained by Martin Wakelin, were third in this 9-team division.
Tony March – 21.4.25
FEBRUARY 2025
Burton Table Tennis Club currently has 4 teams in the Kendal & District Table Tennis League. There are 2 teams in Division 1, Burton A & B, and 2 teams, Burton C & D, in Division 2. There are 3 players in a team and home matches are played on Wednesday evenings, from 7-9, in the Burton Memorial Hall. At the time of writing, Burton A, having fulfilled half of their fixtures, are lying 2nd in Division 1. The team of Gary Deakin, Ben O’Flynn and Peter Baxendale have won 7 of their 8 matches so far this season, losing only to League Leaders Natland A. Burton B, captained by Paul Hines, are currently lying 3rd but could be caught by a couple of teams with games in hand. In Division 2, Burton D and Burton C are currently 1st and 3rd respectively, but Burton C, featuring a very strong squad of John Fitzgerald, Bryan Walker, Simon Waring and Paul Capstick Newell, with 2 games in hand, are favourites to capture the Division 2 title. The league matches will complete in April.
On Thursday evenings, Junior Coaching runs from 5.15 to 6.00 and is followed by an Adult Social Session from 6 to 7. There are currently 7 juniors attending the junior sessions and 8 people attending the adult social. Anyone interested in getting involved with either of these sessions, or indeed in playing competitively, should contact Tony March (Chair and Level 1 Table Tennis Coach) on 07814 029471 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Burton-in-Kendal Table Tennis Club – January 2026
Dogfight at the top of Division 1
With 10 of the 18 matches now played, Burton A are currently top of Division 1 of the Kendal & District Table Tennis League (KDTTL), a single point ahead of arch-rivals Natland A. The head-to-head match between these two high quality teams was a monumental battle and despite Burton A’s Gary Deakin inflicting a first defeat of the season on Natland’s top player and last year’s player of the season, James Neal, the match was edged 20-19 by Natland A. Burton B are currently sitting 5th in this 10-team division but have a game in hand on the team immediately above.
In Division 2, Burton C are still unbeaten and remain 34 points clear of nearest rival, Kirkby Stephen A, and with a game in hand. Graeme Wheelhouse is one of only 2 unbeaten players in the Division. Since my last update, Burton D have climbed to 5th in this 8-team division. Burton C made it to the final of this season’s first knock out cup competition, the Divisional Shield, but were narrowly beaten by a Kirkby Stephen A team featuring the Division’s best player, Paul Smith.
Adult social table tennis continues in the Burton Memorial Hall on Thursdays from 6.00 to 7.00 pm. The cost is £3. Anyone wanting more information should contact Tony March by phone / text or WhatsApp on 07814 029471 to make sure it’s on or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. All ages and standards welcome, including beginners. Coaching is provided for those that want it. The important thing is to come and have fun!
Junior coaching is also on Thursdays, from 5.00 until 6.00 pm, cost £2.50. Anyone aged 7 or above is welcome to attend, including beginners and the first session for new players is free. All table tennis takes place in the Burton Memorial Hall.
The first round of this year’s Kendal & District Junior League has now been completed. Burton Badgers finished 4th in Division 1. Zach Martin and Hugo Robinson competed extremely well against opponents who were often older and bigger and will have learned a lot from the experience. Burton Bears, featuring Toby Craig and Eben Johnson, finished joint top of Division 2 Red. Both players won 7 of their 10 singles matches and only missed out on promotion to Division 1 due to an inferior head-to-head record against Milnthorpe Devils. The second round starts shortly.
The club was recently the very grateful recipient of a small legacy from the estate of the late Bill Willink, who lived in Dalton House for many years. Everyone associated with the club would like to express their appreciation for this very kind gesture.
Tony March – 18.1.26
SEPTEMBER 2025
Table tennis has now resumed at the Burton Table Tennis Club. The club has entered 4 teams in the Kendal & District League, 2 in Division 1 and 2 in Division 2.
Adult social table tennis is on Thursdays from 6.00 to 7.00 pm, cost £3. Anyone wanting more information should contact Tony March by phone or text on 07814 029471 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Otherwise, just turn up! All ages and standards welcome, including beginners. Coaching is provided for those that want it. The important thing is to come and have fun!
Junior coaching for junior players is also on Thursdays, from 5.00 until 6.00 pm, cost £2.50. Again, either contact me as above or just turn up. Anyone from aged 8 or above is welcome to attend, including beginners.
All table tennis takes place in the Burton Memorial Hall.
Tony March – 19.9.25
MAY 2025
The final of the Kendal & District Table Tennis League (KDTTL) Knock-Out Cup was held at Burton on Wednesday, April 30th. The winners were Natland B who defeated Crook B, 5-1, in an entertaining final. The match was followed by the KDTTL End of Season Presentation Evening at which the winners of the 2 divisions and various other awards were presented. The event was hosted by Burton Table Tennis Club, refreshments and light snacks were provided and the kitchen was brilliantly managed by Margaret Burton. Tony March collected the Division 1 Runners-up awards on behalf of Burton A, who finished second to Natland A. Burton C were Runners-up in Division 2, just 4 points behind a young and talented Natland E team and their awards were collected by John Fitzgerald, who also collected the first ever ‘Top of the Averages’ trophy for Division 2, having won 36 of his 39 singles matches, at a win % of 92.3%.
Division 2 of the Spring Junior League completed at Natland on April 22nd. Burton TTC had 2 teams in this division and Burton Beavers, represented by Louis Gwillim and Zach Martin, finished 2nd in this 8-team division and left with the silver medals. Burton Bears, who rotated between 3 players, Hugo Robinson, Toby Craig and Eben Johnson, finished 6th. Louis also collected the ‘Best Player’ award, having finished top of the averages, having won 19 of his 20 singles matches at a win rate of 95%!
The Thursday evening adult social sessions have now paused for the summer break and will resume on Thursday, September 11th @ 6.00. Similarly, the Thursday early evening Junior Coaching sessions will break for the summer following the final session on Thursday, May 22nd.
During the 2024/25 season, 17 players have represented the Club in the KDTTL Senior League, 15 people have attended the Adult Social sessions, and 9 children have attended Junior Coaching. Thanks are due to Martin Wakelin for leading the Junior Coaching sessions.
Table tennis will resume at the Burton Table Tennis Club at the beginning of September, starting with match practice for Senior League players on Wednesday, September 3rd @ 7.00. Have a great summer!
Tony March – 21.5.25
MARCH 2025
The Finals of the Kendal & District League Annual Tournament took place at Natland Village Hall on Tuesday, March 11th. Burton Table Tennis Club had 2 players in the finals. Gary Deakin won the Veterans Singles defeating Alan Turner from Dalton 3-1 in the final. Ben O’Flynn, also of Burton A, made it all the way to the final of the Band 1 Singles, the blue-ribbon event, only to be beaten 3-0 by Natland’s inspired James Neal.
The annual KDTTL Knock-Out Cup has reached the quarter-final stage. Burton C & Burton D are still involved but both have difficult away matches at Natland. The tennis gods may need to help us!
Attendance at the Thursday evening adult social sessions continues to grow and Phil Newsham has now joined the group of Burton based players which includes Richard Owen, Ali Burrows and Paul Chang, 3 of the original members of the group. Players are also attending from Holme and Carnforth and occasionally Kirkby Lonsdale.
Tony March
