MARK Titchener says it will be an honour to represent his country after qualifying for the World Masters Badminton Championships in India later this year.

The 46-year-old came through a gruelling set of eight qualifying tournaments which spanned the country from Newcastle to Bristol with partner Haydn Dibble to secure their place in the men’s doubles O45s category.

Father of two Titchener, from Coate, never believed that representing England was a possibility for him, having started the sport at the age of 11.

But having entered the qualifiers last September, it became a reality as the pair claimed a victory at the Northumberland Open, in Newcastle, before clinching their spot in the top four with a semi-final finish at the All England Championships in Hatfield last month.

“We started off quite well, the first couple of tournaments, I think we finished third, or semi-finals, and there were a couple of good ones at the beginning,” he said.

“Then we had a bit of a lull in the middle, a bit of disappointment where we kind of thought, are we going to make the top four because, at that stage, I think we were seventh or eighth in terms of our rankings so we were a little way off making the team at that stage.

“The last couple of tournaments, we did really well.”

Titchener, who is head of service delivery at Connect Group, formerly Smith’s News, at Kembrey Park, who helped sponsor the duo during their qualifying campaign, now turns his attentions to training for the competition which will be held in Kochi from September 10-17 and is looking to savour the opportunity.

“I can’t wait really,” he said.

“The chance to represent England at a World Championship event - the pinnacle of our sport - is amazing and it should be a really good trip.

“It was probably one of those things that was beyond us but as the season progressed, we thought there is a reality and possibility that we could make the team.

“Our eight-month journey has had its highs and lows - there were even a couple of times where we didn’t think we’d make the team.

“Momentum kicked in a little bit after Christmas, we thought, ‘let’s give this a really good go over the last few months of the season’.”