The Carmarthen Table Tennis Club was started in 1986 by John Finnemore.  It celebrated its 38th anniversary in February of 2024.

 

Sadly, we lost John to illness in the same month.  He will be greatly missed. 

 

After finding no established club in the area he approached the Manager of the Carmarthen Leisure Centre to seek a way of providing

space for a Table Tennis club. This was finally achieved by using a cricket net to cordon off one badminton court in the centre's main hall. This space initially had one or two tables on it but,  through hard work and a good name, the Club expanded in size until they had five tables

squeezed into this space.

 

With the attendance of more and more players and assistance from the:

- Sport Council for Wales, in 1994

- Table Tennis Association of Wales (TTAW) now Table Tennis Wales (TTW),

- Foundation for Sports and the Arts, in 1996

- Sport Council For Wales - Community Chest 2009

- Sport Council For Wales - Community Chest 2015

the Club now occupies 3 full badminton courts; most Thursday it has 8 to 10 tables in use with a further 2 in reserve.

 

Some of the early funding provided extra lighting above the playing area and was installed in July 1999.  During the refurbishment

of the Leisure Centre in the autumn of 2009, the 1999 lights (having turned yellow with age) were replaced with fluorescent lights, giving a table top light value of 500 LUX.  A new floor covering also ensured a good grip for players.  

 

These facilities not only ensure the Club has a firm foundation but also provides one of, if not the, best locations for playing table tennis in Wales.

 

At the same time as the Club was developing, a number of members were keen to extend their abilities and were looking for challenges beyond its boundaries. This initially came from playing friendly matches against other clubs in the area.  In 1987 for the 1987/88 season, the Club applied to the Swansea and District Table Tennis League to become a member.   After some debate (Carmarthen is 30 miles [48 kilometres] from Swansea), it was agreed that our Club would join them. The first Club team were John Finnemore, Stan Eastwood and Peter Muckleston.

 

The Club has entered a number of teams into this League each year since 1988.  Our best season on early 2020's saw the Club have 7 Teams in the League.  COVID soon effected that and in season 2023/24 there will only be 3 Carmarthen teams playing in the Swansea League (2 of which will be in the Premier Division).

 

From 2011 (until he stepped back  from this role in July 2022), Stan Eastwood (Club Secretary) was also the Chairman of the Swansea and District Table Tennis League.  Stan is also the designer and web master for both the Carmarthen Table Tennis Club web site and the Swansea and District Table Tennis League web site (www.swanseatabletennis.com).

 

Carmarthen Table Tennis Club continues to have a solid input into the League.