Bath Street Marine Table Tennis Club
A Table Tennis England PremierClub
News Release - BSMTTC News 96
Dateline: 31 August 2019
A Date to be Remembered!
In the history of Bath Street Marine Table Tennis Club Friday the 30th August 2019 must surely go down as a date to be remembered! It was the official 'Grand Opening' of the Club's brand new home on the Marine Travel Arena in College Road, Crosby, and what a fabulous evening it was!
The Opening
Accompanied by Bootle MP, Peter Dowd, and Sefton Central MP Bill Esterson, Table Tennis England Chair, Sandra Deaton, performed the opening ceremony, congratulating the club on its achievement and saying that the new room showed just what could be achieved by a relatively small amount of money.
The Club's new home was built by local firm, Eagle Containers Ltd, and anyone who has seen the building and been inside it will quickly realise how unlike a 'container' it actually is! The finish and quality of workmanship that has gone into the new building show just what can be achieved in terms of a 'portable' modular building for a relatively modest price.
The building which has cost £86,000 was financed by a grant from Sport England of £57,000, a grant from Sefton Borough Council Community Transition Fund of £10,000 and funds raised by the club from members, supporters and sponsors of £19,000. From the date of the start of demolition of the old club room, 29 April 2019, it took just 3 months to get the new room built, the new site prepared, and the building installed and finished ready to go! An amazing achievement by all involved.
We believe that Bath Street Marine TTC is the first table tennis club in the Liverpool area to own its own premises and to have those premises open and accessible to members and guests 7 days a week. The new home will enable the club to expand its offering of daytime social and recreational table tennis for the local community, increase the space and playing facilities for its thriving junior section and maintain its competitive participation in the Liverpool & District Table Tennis League.
Below is a short video with pictures from the opening ceremony.
So Much More
The Grand Opening however did not end with just the formal opening ceremony. The occasion provided the opportunity for the Liverpool League to present to club member Clare Peers the Liverpool Ladies Singles trophy which she won at this year's Liverpool Closed Championships. The trophy was presented by the General Secretary of the League, Tom Purcell. Tom pointed out that Clare has now won the trophy 10 times, a record! However, in all that time she has never been formally presented with the trophy before! It was fitting therefore that it should be presented at the Grand Opening. Sandra Deaton presented the trophy. Following the presentation Clare, together with former olympian and 5 times English National Ladies Champion, Andrea Holt, gave a short playing demonstration, before Andrea shared a few table tennis playing tips with the spectators.
A short video with pictures of the presentation follows.
They Made it Possible
Neither the building itself, nor The Grand Opening, would have been possible without the support of so many members, friends, and generous sponsors. It was great to see so many turn out for the ceremony. In introducing the evening Club Chairman, Bernard Cooney, acknowledged and paid tribute to the many to whom we owe deep gratitude for making this new home possible, from the distinguished guests who performed the opening ceremony to the ground workers and contractors who built and delivered the new home and ensured it has the appropriate services; the local council and staff of Table Tennis England who have recognised the value of the facility and encouraged the club at every stage of a quite long journey; the partnership with Marine FC, The Liverpool & District League, chartered architect Bill O'Hara and solicitor Stephen Breen all have played a part in making this project possible. Our sincerest thanks go to all who have been involved and supported this amazing development.
We truly believe that the enhancement this new facility brings will enable this thriving club to continue and develop its primary aims of promoting table tennis within the local community as a sport for all and a source of healthy, fun, exercise.
Below is a short video of some of the guests who attended the Grand Opening. Our thanks to photographer and club member Herve Gillet for a great collection of pictures!