Paul Drinkhall is back in the Senior British Clubs League, Premier Division!
The three-time Olympian will play in the fixtures this weekend after signing for Drumchapel Glasgow.
It will be the first time Drinkhall has played in the top domestic division in almost exactly a decade, since helping Sycamore win the title in February 2016. He has played for other clubs over the years including Ormesby and Barrow.
“I practice a lot with Aaron McKibbin and he obviously plays for Drumchapel,” said Drinkhall, explaining how the move came about.
“I think because there was only one foreign player allowed, every team started looking into whether there were British players available and I’m not signed for a club abroad so I think I was the obvious target.
“I’ve played quite a bit over the years, mainly Ormesby in the early years, then at a few different clubs and I’m looking forward to it.
“Whether it’s the British Clubs League or any other competition, I always enjoy playing at home because you don’t get to do it that often, and also in a team event – so it should be good.”
Drumchapel are currently bottom of the Premier Division, having lost all four games in Weekend 1, but with four games this weekend at BATTS there are certainly opportunities for them to move up the table – and Drinkhall believes there isn’t much to choose between the teams in the division.
“There are quite a few strong teams who, if they played each other twice in two days, could have a very different result,” he said.
“Drumchapel are currently at the bottom, but there are a few results and that could change quickly. Everything is possible and it will be an interesting season.”
The prospect of a match against fellow Englishman David McBeath, who plays for Ormesby, will have to wait as the teams do not meet this weekend, but Drinkhall would like a meeting in the future, as well as the chance to take on some of the English youngsters active in the division, such as Isaac Kingham (BATTS) and Larry Trumpauskas (Fusion).
“It would be good to play against Dave and some of the youth players I’ve worked with now and seen a bit more of them,” said Drinkhall, who is also looking forward to the central weekend format, as opposed to the home-and-away format that has been emerging in recent seasons.
“I think there are pros and cons to both, but maybe this way is more accessible and a slightly better atmosphere and possibly you get a slightly higher level because you can use players for more than one match at a time,” he said.
Follow all the action this weekend on BCL’s social media channels and look out for live streaming details!
The action starts at 10:30 amSaturday, December 13, with one match per round streamed live on the Table Tennis England YouTube Channel, full matches, results and tables are available on the official Website of the British club competitions.
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