Winners ready to take centre stage

Whitchurch’s Civic Centre is the venue for the return of the SPS Whitchurch League’s annual presentation dinner (7 for 7.30pm) with 110 people booked to attend.

The county’s record-breaking reigning British Senior Merit champion, Callum Wraight, is one of the guests of honour, on a night that will see Woore proclaimed as treble winners after their first division, Shropshire Star Cup and Jubilee Doubles triumphs.

County deputy president Mick Jones, recently inducted into the Premier League’s hall of fame, is among the winners of the most wins awards, along with former county senior team regular John Breeze and North Shropshire Ladies stars Donna Bennett and Maureen Corley.

Other divisional champions – two: Wem A, three: Shavington; four: Newport; five: Whixall B; six: District D.

Most wins awards – division one: Nick Hughes & Donna Bennett (both Malpas Sports); two: Mick Jones (Hodnet A), Samantha Ellison (Wem A); three: Mark Bibby (Shavington), Maureen Corley (Wem USC B); four: John Breeze (Newport), Helen Crocker (Cheswardine); five: Richard Twining (Wollerton), Eve Hollins (Adderley C); six: Paul Bryan (Wem USC C), Pat Paddington (District D).

The function adds up to another long day for league chairman Phil Scott who, as the county’s delegate to the BCGBA, will be attending a management meeting of the sport’s governing body in the morning.

One of his duties at that gathering may well be to explain the Shropshire proposal, supported by Yorkshire, that the numbers allocated to counties for the British Junior Merit should be based on the entries they have for their qualifiers for the under-18 singles knockout.