ST. ALPHONSE & BRUXELLES WRAP UP ANOTHER SUCCESSFUL SEASON

Wow!  The St. Alphonse and Bruxelles Table Tennis Club have just wrapped up another very successful season.  The club usually runs from the late fall until early spring…i.e. whenever “tending to the crops” has been done or can’t yet be started.  The club has been running now for about the past 7-8 years and was started by a gentleman by the name of David Claeys. 

He requested tables from the M.T.T.A. and we were able to oblige by providing three top quality tables and nets based on assistance which we had received from the SPORTS LEGACY TRUST FUND.  David has since moved on to British Columbia (I think) and the club has been under the stewardship of Linda and Jerry De Vlieger of St. Alphonse for about the past 4-5 years.  They used to play every Tuesday and Thursday evenings but this year Fridays seemed the norm.  The club has an active membership of 35-40 players aged from about 10 to almost 70.  They draw players from surrounding hamlets in both the Central and Westman Sport Regions.  The club is very relaxed in nature and they play tons and tons of singles and doubles games in their “league.”  Linda doesn’t want to get “too serious…its for fun you know” so there really isn’t a “club champion.”  However, their results are processed towards Manitoba and Canadian Ratings and Rankings so that players can track their progress should they so wish. 

I am hoping that some players will make the trek to Winnipeg for the upcoming Western Canadian Open Championships but if not I hope to get out there next winter as table tennis prepares for the 2008 POWER-SMART MANITOBA SUMMER GAMES that will be held in nearby Carman.

And if anyone is looking for a nice Sunday afternoon drive, head out towards the St. Alphonse and Bruxelles area…beautiful hamlets, nooks and crannies abound….

Ron Edwards Reporting