AT the halfway stage of the Clacton and District Table Tennis League season, Nomads Panthers hold a 22-point lead at the top of division one and look odds-on favourites to make it four titles in a row.

Sam Hume and John Hatley have ably filled the gap left by James Denyer and, with Gill Locke and Colin Webber as reliable as ever, only a disaster of monumental proportions can prevent the Panthers taking top honours again.

Four teams, including three Windsor sides, are vying for the runners-up spot.

The excellent Felipe Rodriguez and Andy Vincent have been consistency personified for the Hawks, while the ever-dependable Eagles are always there-or-thereabouts and won’t be far away come the end of the season.

The Condors, who include Colin Stallwood, Greg Green and Martin Hogg in their squad, have the pedigree but their three top players have appeared together in the same team only once so far.

Walton C, with the flair of Gary Young allied to the solidity of Derek Willis and energy of Paul Meikle, could be the team to spoil the Windsor party.

Brotherhood D, unexpectedly promoted to the top flight last season, continue to battle hard but are rooted to the bottom while Windsor Kestrels, ten points off the relegation zone, lack the one elite player to guarantee them safety.

Nomads Tigers and Windsor Owls are two evenly-matched teams at the top of division two.

Daryl Lott, Roger Hance, John Marshall and John Bonner of the Tigers are one of only two unbeaten sides in the league while Frank Burbidge and Mark Salter have been in sparkling form for the Owls.

But don’t rule out the chances of Lawford, whose regular threesome are, on their day, a match for anyone in the division.

At the other end of the table, there’s little to choose between the bottom four teams.

Nomads Bobcats are nine points clear of the relegation places but, having already used 11 different players, including reserves, it’s impossible to second-guess the likelihood of their survival.

Of the other three teams, Nomads Jaguars and Windsor Magpies will be looking to Andrew North and John Plummer respectively to lead them out of trouble while Brotherhood E will need one of Duncan Dunne, Tony Edmonds or Rodney Betts to step up to the plate.

Nomads Pumas have been long-time leaders in division three and, with Eric Lemke playing alongside regulars Lionel Goddard, John Bowers and Andrew Cousins, have the all-round ability to finish as champions.

Second-placed Walton D, led by the still-unbeaten Rivhu Khan, are just seven points behind and an unexpected runners-up spot could well be within Walton’s grasp.

If there’s to be any challenge to these two teams, it will likely come from Nomads Wildcats, who have two capable performers in Andrew Cawley and Brian Friday.

However, Nomads Leopards, since the recruitment of Jason Lloyd and Ethan Lloyd, have risen rapidly from the lower reaches of the table to their current fourth position – and could go higher.