TABLE TENNIS: Ipswich Premier champions Britannia Eagles have made a solid start to the season.They started off with an 8-2 away win over Sidegate Lane A, where Nigel Hodder earned the home side's only victory with wins over Alan Turner and Andrew Holmes.

TABLE TENNIS

IPSWICH Premier champions Britannia Eagles have made a solid start to the season.

They started off with an 8-2 away win over Sidegate Lane A, where Nigel Hodder earned the home side's only victory with wins over Alan Turner and Andrew Holmes.

In his other game, Hodder just went down to Andrew Dosher in the third in a thriller that could have gone either way.

Eagles also defeated their fellow Britannia side Flamingo's 7-3, where Holmes and Dosher were unbeaten.

There was real drama in Eagles' match with last season's runners-up, St Margaret's A. Firstly, Dosher scored a famous victory over arch rival Richard Hutchinson, then with Eagles leading 5-3 the hall was plunged into darkness. Owing to so many games going the distance, the automatic timer turned off the electricity and the home side had to concede the remaining matches so it finished 5-5.

Trimley, who have been strengthened by the return of local boy Charles Fulcher and Suffolk's number one junior, Lee Barnes, are in second spot.

In recent weeks they beat TXU Asteroids 7-3, as Barnes and Fulcher won their matches. They also enjoyed a 7-3 win over Sidegate Lane, as Bozier won his three games including a victory over Hodder.

In their first match though, Trimley just scraped a 6-4 win at Rosary, for whom Andrew Warner won all his games and Vicky Gray notched up a notable win over Fulcher.

St Margaret's defeated the other Britannia side 7-3 as Hutchinson and Gary Bloomfield were unbeaten on the night.

In the battle of the Claydons, the A side beat the B side 7-3 in a match where no one won all their matches as Michael Wright, Barry Thain and David Young and Carl Ashton all won two matches each.

In the First Division Trimley B are on top and have enjoyed wins over BT Wulfs 6-4 and Capel A 7-3.

Against Wulfs Dave Alford was Trimley's star, beating Trevor Read, but he couldn't beat Capel's Graham Mortimer – although Nick Anthony did.

Britannia Hawks are in second spot but have played a game less. In their match with ISC One they won 8-2 as Paul Broxton and J Ramsden won their games.

Newly-formed Washbrook are in third spot and have had wins over Britannia Ravens (7-3) and Suffolk County Council (6-4).

Jimmy Farrow, playing down from the Premier Division, helped his team in the 7-3 win with three as Alan Leveridge responded for Ravens with two.