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Derby Day Delight!

SG EBT Berlin team from Saturday's Clash
Back Row L-R: Kai, Tim, Robert, Francis
Front Row L-R: Adam, Lisa, Kate
Hey guys, welcome to the final update for the three part blog series. Hope you enjoyed reading about what I got up to while over here in Berlin. 

Today, Saturday marked the end of my first trip to Germany and Berlin and what a trip it was. Meeting up with my team-mates for the first time last Friday to winning the Berlin Derby today (Saturday 14th September). It has been a successful week. I have really enjoyed this week of training and competing in Germany and I have learnt so much from a single week that I will now use to motivate me further for the future.  

Today my team SG EBT Berlin lined up against the Berlin Breweries in an exciting clash. My team-mates knew these players well as they train altogether sometimes in the Berlin set-up but this week we didn't train with them as they were our competition this time. I knew it was going to be a tough match as every game in this league is tough but I was delighted to get on court and get another two wins in the Women's singles and Doubles with my partner Lisa. Today, I won both of my games in three sets (The league plays best of 5 to 11) so I was pleased with my performances as I won in convincing fashion. The boys doubles matches were played to an extremely high standard with the two points going the way of my team SG EBT Berlin. This gave the team a 4-0 lead, which meant we had secured 2 points from the match. One more point and it would mean our opposition would get no points. It all adds up at the end, so really important to push for the fifth point. 

The Berlin Breweries Hall
Unfortunately, the two boys singles went the way of the Berlin Breweries, despite our boys battling hard, it was not enough to beat their opposition. This meant the tie was 4-2 in favor of us with the mixed doubles to play. An important clash, as a win for the Breweries would mean they get 1 point from the tie (4-3) but a win for EBT Berlin would mean 2 points for us and none to our opposition (5-2). See a copy of the results in the below image. I really enjoyed playing in this match, which was played to such a high standard with huge supports from both teams making for a fantastic atmosphere. I have been welcomed by everyone I have met in this week from the people in my own club to players from the other teams which is really nice and has helped me settle in quickly.

Match Result: SG EBT Berlin 5 - 2 SV Berlin Breweries

 I can't wait to come back to Berlin in three weeks time where we will play our first home games of the season at SG EBT Berlin. Hopefully, with the new addition to our team in former German number one and European Champion, Marc Zwiebler, we can cause some damage. I look forward to playing alongside Marc for the season and can't wait to see what I can learn from him. Let's go EBT!! First up for me, I have a trip to Poland this week and the Czech Republic the following week before I head back to Berlin. Busy times but ready and excited to get going!

Check back soon, for another update on my progress. But first, back to college for me this week...


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