HALES Gnats clinched their first-ever Beccles and District Table Tennis League title after 39 years with a 7-3 win over Hales Tornadoes. Rob Pennell won all his matches for Tornadoes, but the Gnats team of Gordon Howes, Oly Howes and David Flatt won all their other matches.

HALES Gnats clinched their first-ever Beccles and District Table Tennis League title after 39 years with a 7-3 win over Hales Tornadoes.

Rob Pennell won all his matches for Tornadoes, but the Gnats team of Gordon Howes, Oly Howes and David Flatt won all their other matches.

They now lead the table from Hales Ants by five points and still have one fixture left to play.

Ants were hampered by only being able to field two players against Hales Eagles. Of the seven matches played on the evening, four went to a fourth leg, but Ants won them all to finish 7-3 winners.

Tornadoes also played Framingham Gull, but lost 6-4. Again, Rob Pennell won all his matches, including the doubles with Derek Pennell, but Gull won all the remaining matches.

The league also held its league championships last week, in which 16 players competed in eight events.

In the Under 60s Handicap Singles, Oly Howes and Alan Harper progressed to the final. Barney Garrod and Doug Cheer will contest the Over 60s Handicap Singles.

Young Luke Glaysher made it to three finals. In the Open Handicap Singles final he will face Gordon Howes.

In the Junior U21 Singles final, he meets Tom Herne and he will then team up with James Skilleter in the Pot-Luck Doubles final against Barney Garrod and Alf Stubbs.

James Skilleter is also in three finals as he will face Greg Collett in the 21-up Open Singles final and will then team up with Greg Collett to play against Gordon Howes and Oly Howes in the Open Doubles final.

James is also still in the Open Singles competition which has reached the semi-final stage. He plays against Oly Howes for the right to play Greg Collett or Barney Garrod in the final.