FLISS Pickard made up for missing out on a medal at the Commonwealth Games by winning the Open Women’s Standing title at the British Para Table Tennis National Championships.

The 23-year-old from Burnley said she was inspired by her time on the Gold Coast where she lost out in the bronze medal match as she stormed to a 3-0 victory over Tamar Pickford in Grantham.

Pickard, who admitted she was shocked to be included in the Team England squad, was determined not to go to Australia just to make up the numbers.

And while she missed out on a medal - losing 3-0 to home favourite Andrea McDonnell - the experience made her more determined to succeed in the sport.

Pickard underlined that determination on home soil to win her second national title - five years after winning it for the first time - as she beat pal Pickford 3-0 in the final.

“I’m pleased because we are close friends,” said Pickard. “We know each other’s game inside out.

“Last year when we played each other it was a huge 3-2 battle so I just wanted to go about things with more quality and go forward from what I learnt in Australia.

“I was able to dictate the match and keep the intensity up so I’m very happy.”

She added: “The Commonwealth Games has really inspired me and pushed me on.

“This is what I want to do now and I 100 per cent believe that I can.”

Todmorden’s Megan Shackleton also showed she has a bright future in the sport as she pushed her regular doubles partner Sue Gilroy in the Open Women’s Wheelchair category.

The experienced Gilroy had to fight off a determined challenge from the 18-year-old to win her 23rd national title.

Gilroy has been the dominant force in women’s wheelchair table tennis in the UK for more than 20 years but was pushed to five sets on two occasions by Shackleton and was full of praise for her young GB team partner.

“Megan has really come on,” she said, “and I knew it was going to be tough because I’ve only been back in training five or six weeks after major surgery.

“To win the National title 23 times is a massive thing and I’m really proud to be National champion again. It would be great to see more wheelchair players coming through – class 4-5 was mixed this year and I certainly didn’t expect to get through to the final but I really enjoyed playing. I am sure Megan will be pushing for the title next year as she is a really talented player.”