T&RA CHRISTMAS NEWSLETTER 2015 Chief Executive Update With Christmas fast approaching, a few words from me to summarise the season to date. The T&RA are now working with three different sponsors. Neptune are still our lead sponsor for Real Tennis and they continue to generously cover most of our Tennis tournaments. We have joined forces with Brown Advisory who are our prime Rackets sponsor, and we have just completed our first event with them – the National Schools. Finally, the Jesters have stepped in to sponsor the main amateur Rackets events. Unfortunately some key events in Rackets remain unsponsored – so some further challenges ahead. The season opener in Tennis was the Junior British Open, run superbly by Paul Weaver, which saw just short of 50 youngsters take part. The Under 18s was won by Felix White who beat Rory Giddins in the final – more on Rory shortly! The main event was the Neptune British Open in November, masterminded by Al Lumsden as Tournament Director for the sixth time. The honours went to Steve Virgona, who beat the ever-green Tim Chisholm in the final, regaining the title he had won two years ago. Steve teamed up with Chris Chapman to secure the doubles title, in an exhilarating battle against Bryn Sayers and Ricardo Smith. For those not able to visit the Queen’s Club, both events were streamed – a first ever for the British Open and something which we hope to repeat in the future. Many other events were held – I should perhaps single out David Watson who retained the Over 50s Amateur Singles title – for the fifth time.
The Rackets season has seen its usual busy term, from the victorious Cheltenham pair (Ben Snell and Nick James), Richard Owen winning the Manchester Gold Racquet and the Invitation Singles and then Jamie Stout not giving an inch whilst defending his World Singles crown against the valiant Will Hopton. John Prenn sponsored the UK leg with his usual magnificent generosity which characterises everything he does for the game. Alex Titchener-Barrett won the Amateur for the eighth successive year, rewriting the record books – beating Richard Owen in the semi-final and then Tom Billings in the final. The National Schools were split between Eton and Queen’s and featured a Schoolgirls doubles for the first time; the final saw the Willis sisters (Highgate) beat the Cockroft sisters (Wellington). The main event was won by Eton’s Rory Giddins who overcame Ben Cawston (Peter Symonds College) in the Foster Cup final. Rory capped a brilliant few months, showing his skill in both games; but hats off to Ben, who will return next year to challenge for this prestigious title. My thanks to David Kay-Shuttleworth of Brown Advisory for presenting the prizes to all the winners. For virtually all my time as CEO, I have worked alongside William Maltby as Chairman. There have been many changes in this period – I hope you all agree for the better. William stepped aside at the AGM and David Watson has stepped up. I’m looking forward to working with David and wish William all the best for his “retirement” – although I fully expect he will continue to grace our courts. My thanks to Katie and Andrina in the office – who make the wheels turn, often in the same direction.
T&RA CHRISTMAS NEWSLETTER 2015
British Junior Open Singles Championship 2015 Results from The Queen's Club, Sunday 23rd August Nearly 50 youngsters from many different clubs around the country and also overseas competed over three days in the top junior event of the year. This year the event took place at Queen’s Club and Seacourt as one of the Queen's Club courts was out of action. The finals were all held at Queen’s Club on Sunday 23rd in front of a large crowd of parents and supporters.
Felix White Under 18 Champion Girls Plate Queen's Club, Saturday 22nd August Under 18 Georgie Willis (Seacourt) beat Felicity Sargent (Moreton) 8/5 Under 16 Isolde Taylor beat Farran Brown 6/0 Seacourt, Friday 21st August
L-R Tim Jarvis, Rory Giddins, Alfred Backhouse, Huw Thomas, Paul Weaver, Vaughan Hamilton, Felix White, Erik Barker
Under 14 Amy Pye (Prested) beat Jessica Medlow (Seacourt) 8/0
Finals Under 18 Felix White (Radley) bt Rory Giddins (Queens) 6/3 6/2 Under 16 Erik Barker (Washington DC) bt Vaughan Hamilton (Moreton) 6/4 6/1 Under 14 Alfred Backhouse (Radley) bt Huw Thomas (Seacourt) 6/1 6/0 Under 12 Tim Jarvis (Canford) bt Ollie Jameson (Seacourt) 8/4 Jessica Medlow (L) and Amy Pye (R)
T&RA CHRISTMAS NEWSLETTER 2015
Over 60 Amateur Doubles Mick Dean and Philip Shaw-Hamilton win the Over 60 Doubles at Radley
Dean and Shaw-Hamilton reached game point and a long chase to defend, whereupon Dean produced a nick serve to retain the service at 7-7. Shaw-Hamilton then also produced a couple of tricky serves to reach 40-15 and then beat last gallery from the hazard with another raking backhand to finish the match. It could hardly have been much closer.
The early rounds saw Bob Compton and Peter Mason give a game account of themselves against the heavyweights, without much reward in games, as did Colin Butler and Mike Seymour who did garner a few more games (3 and 2 respectively) in very decent matches with Jamie Bebb and Marek Stefanovicz and John Prenn and Richard Moore. Jill Newby and Jonathan Fisher played one of the matches of the day to beat Bebb/Stefanowicz 8-6, with the result in doubt up to the end, to qualify for the semi-finals. Philip Shaw-Hamilton and Mick Dean staged a stout comeback from 1-5 to beat the 2nd seeds John Prenn and Richard Moore 8-6 to also qualify while the losers were forced to play another match to earn the right to play Paul Weaver and Duncan Colquhoun in the semifinal. Paul Weaver’s speed and aggression combined well with Duncan Colquhoun’s volley and courtcraft and John Prenn’s power (4 winning forces won one game without reply) was never quite enough, despite Richard Moore’s consistency. They did recover from 0-3 to 3-3, but the holders and top seeds then progressed with relative ease. Jill Newby and Jonathan Fisher then raised their game impressively to capitalise on some slightly scrappy play from Mick Dean and Philip Shaw-Hamilton in the other semi-final. They held a 5-3 lead before the match just ebbed away from them. Fisher’s back-court retrieving and dispatch combined well with Jill Newby’s superb volleying, though, and they will have been pleased with their performances. The final saw Weaver and Colquhoun have the edge, apparently, through much of the match with Dean and Shaw-Hamilton fighting hard to stay on terms. Down 1-2, 2-3, 4-6 and 6-7,
L-R Duncan Colquhoun, Paul Weaver, Philip Shaw-Hamilton and Mick Dean
L-R Mick Dean, Jill Newby and Philip ShawHamilton
Noel Bruce Cheltenham beat Harrow to win the Noel Bruce Cup 32 pairs entered, 64 players, which created an exciting qualifying tournament comprised of eight groups of three; group winners joining the eight top pairs in the knock out main draw. Seven of the eight qualifiers met their match in the round of sixteen; although Charterhouse II remarkably overcame Winchester before running into top-seeds Harrow in the quarterfinals. The other quarter-finals went to form, although Eton did reach match point before
T&RA CHRISTMAS NEWSLETTER 2015 Will Hopton’s travel arrangements forced them to concede against Wellington. Haileybury/Cheltenham II was the match of the round, with the fourth seeds, Richard Owen and Alex Duncliffe-Vines (CHE II), overcoming fifth seeds Tom Billings and Mark Farmiloe (HAI) in five tight games. The first semi-final was a titanic struggle which lasted over two and a half hours. Top seeds Alex Titchener-Barrett and Charlie Danby (Harrow), winners for the last three years, took a 2 game lead against Cheltenham II’s Owen and Duncliffe-Vines. Two games later it was 31 with Harrow on the brink of another final; but back came Cheltenham, levelling 3-all to take the match into a deciding seventh game. However, they couldn’t maintain the momentum, and the defending champions came through at the death. The second semifinal saw establish world-ranked pair Ben Snell and Nick James, Cheltenham, overcoming James Coyne and James Fuller, Wellington, in four exciting games. Whilst the result was not in doubt, the Wellington pair put on a fabulous match against their more illustrious opponents and forced them to play their best Rackets. This avenges last season’s defeat at the same point, when Wellington then took the honours in a seven game struggle. Final (sponsored by the T&RA) Thursday’s final saw a rematch of the Noel Bruce finals of 2012/13 and 2013/14, won 4-3 and 4-1 respectively by the Harrow pair. However, the Cheltenham pair showed a gritty determination from the first game which they won with the loss of four points. Queen's professional, Ben Snell, moved around the court with ease, ably supported by regular doubles partner, Nick James (the Mole). The second game saw the champions dig deep and establish a solid 14-4 lead, with Alex TitchenerBarrett playing his usual power game and partner, Charlie Danby, who has played in every Noel Bruce final for as long as anyone can remember, showing silky skills combined with brilliant anticipation. However, game ball was
not secured and the Mole stepped in and served with sublime variation, with BS mopping up anything not won by his partner. Levelling to 14-all, and then a set to three, where Cheltenham retained their momentum to take a two game lead, 15/4 17/14.
Nick James(L) and Ben Snell(R) The third game was a tense affair, close all the way but Cheltenham reached 14 first, before Harrow inevitably levelled. Both pairs had their chances and served for the game but it was Harrow who took the honours, 17/16, to bring the match back within their reach. The gallery knew there was a match to win, or lose. The fourth game was the decider, with Cheltenham always ahead and this time they didn't relax, winning 15/7, and resume a two game advantage. Harrow were perhaps disheartened and it was Cheltenham who romped through the final game, dropping a single point. This was Cheltenham's first victory in the Noel Bruce since its inception in 1929 and a fabulous reward for the Cheltenham pair's perseverance, since Ben and Nick first teamed up. Expect to see Harrow resurgent next season; having won the cup seven times in the last ten years is a remarkable achievement. Simon Mansfield presented the prizes and the Pol Roger champagne. Thanks to Al Gourlay for his organisation and patience, never an easy affair.
T&RA CHRISTMAS NEWSLETTER 2015
Category B Hyde The 10-19s (Category B) provided another weekend of inspiration and amazement for the talent on show down at the Hyde! The tournament as always was split into the 10-14s and the 15-19s - the latter having the better attendance this year. The 15-19s -- Peter Paterson was the number one seed for the 15-19s, but Tom Bomford was up for a ruck in the quarter-finals, having dispatched Nino Merola 6/0 6/1 in the previous round. In the end the seed prevailed 6/3 0/6 6/4, but it was an intense battle. Closer still was the somewhat epic 6/2 2/6 6/5 victory Tom Lewis had over Jonny Whitaker - proving once again that a good railroad can give you a leg up at this level. Tom then continued his winning streak into the semi-finals where he managed to overcome Paterson 6/3 6/2 with more of the same. Despite the size of the Hyde dedans, Tom was managing to contain Peter's main wall forces by controlling the serve better than most. On the other side of the draw Philip Dunn (seeded 2) had a good tussle with Simon Barker (who seems to be back to playing fit again after a poor year), but it was still straight sets: 6/2 6/4. In the semi-final Philip played Zak Eadle (son of) who had been tested by the home professional Jez Brodie the day before 6/2 6/5 and was seemingly carrying an ankle injury. As far as the crowd were concerned Zak would not win if he played like he had the day before.... He did not. Although the first set went 5/6 in Mr Dunn's favour it was all Eadle after that 6/2 6/2. His explosive speed and animated persistence was befuddling at best!
The final saw Zak facing Tom Lewis, but after a gruelling weekend Tom's strength seemed to have dwindled a tad by the time the final came about. With a bit less punch to the railroad and a slightly slower ground speed Zak seemed like a whirlwind in comparison and swept to a 6/0 6/0 victory in very little time. The 10-14s -- Henry Mullan was on fire this weekend. With a trip to Philly on the horizon to try his hand out in the States, he looked eager to work on his game, and started off by dispatching the number one seed Ben Boddington 6/1 6/2 having made swift work of Alex Evans the round before. Showing a similar efficiency Robert Shenkman managed to deal with David Watson in short order 6/2 6/0 although the match was certainly closer than score suggested.
Finalist, division 10-14 Robert Shenkman (L) Henry Mullan (R) The final between Robert and Henry was quite a dogged affair - each set taking far longer than the end score might suggest as the rallies just kept going and going. Neither player was making unforced errors nor was there very little target hitting, but in the end Henry seemed to be able to win more of the long
T&RA CHRISTMAS NEWSLETTER 2015 points by being slightly less consistent, but slightly more powerful and unexpected. Henry Mullan won the final 6/2 6/2.
Sir Andrew Hamilton (L) Martin Rogers (R)
Finalists, division 15-19 Tom Lewis (L) Zak Eadle (R)
Category C Moreton Morrell
25– 29 handicaps: Martin Rogers (L) Charles Doyly (R)
There were several excellent matches from a very encouraging entry this year. In the 25-29 section MMTCC’s Martin Rogers, better known for his doubles play, was in fine form not dropping a set, although a close run thing in the second set by MCC’s Irina Dulbish. Newmarket’s Charles Doyly, who has been playing for only five years, looked assured and was consistent up to the final when Rogers’s powerful volleying off the serve posed him too many problems. Charlie Harries-Jones (L) Sir Andrew Hamilton (R)
T&RA CHRISTMAS NEWSLETTER 2015 In the 20-24 band, James Law of Hatfield did well to overcome everything that Mike Henman threw at him and Chris Aley of Prested pushed Charlie Harries-Jones in the first two sets. Harries-Jones and Leamington’s Robert Frost had a close encounter and Nick Baker scraped home against Law 6/5 in the third set of an excellent match which in the final game neither seemed to want to win! However, the match took a lot out of Baker who held HarriesJones for two sets in the final but tired towards the end.
Category D Hatfield Finalists Category D
Moreton Morrell was at its best in autumnal sunshine; it was an enjoyable and friendly tournament as usual with two worthy winners. Tom Granville and Nick Jury were thanked for their organisation and marking over the weekend.
Martin Richards (L) Jonathan Fisher (R) Hatfield once again had the honour of hosting the Category D Singles event for players between 30-39 handicap and as in previous years the event was split into 2 divisions 30-34 and 35-39.
20-24 handicaps: Nick Baker (L) Charlie Harries-Jones (R)
In the 30-34 section the final ended up being an all Hatfield affair as Martin Richards, who last year won the 35-39 section, managed to triumph over Jonathan Fisher 6/5 6/4 in a very tense and closely fought battle. Jonathan started as favourite as the Number 1 seed, against his unseeded opponent, but Martin always managed to keep his nose in front with an incredible exhibition of power hitting both in defence and attack. On 4 or 5 separate occasions Martin managed to beat chase 2 or better with forces for the Dedans, on game point, to keep his momentum and despite
T&RA CHRISTMAS NEWSLETTER 2015 some very tenacious play from Jonathan, Martin always seemed to have an answer to everything he had to offer. In the 35-39 section it was a battle of the young against the even younger as Rupert Derham, 28 year old member from Middlesex, took on Vaughan Hamilton, 15 year old member from Moreton Morrell. Both players had come through very tight semi-finals, Rupert against Newmarket member Mark Gooden 4/6 6/4 6/3 and Vaughan against Hatfield member David Barnes 5/6 6/3 6/3. Sadly the final couldn’t quite live up to either of those matches as Rupert got off to a lightning fast start and rushed off to a big lead and Vaughan was never really able to get a foothold in the match. The final score of 6/2 6/0 didn’t do the match justice and certainly judging by his two earlier matches, Vaughan has a huge amount of potential and will go on to be a very good player in the future. Rupert was a very deserving winner though, putting in an almost faultless display in the final and will be hoping to emulate Martin Richards next year in the 3034 section.
Category E Holyport
the second set Chris started to regularly hit winners and pushed Henry all the way. However, Henry was able to win the critical points to take the second set 6/4 and the 4044 Championships. 45-49 Bracket The first semi-final saw Isabel Candy of RTC take on Robert Stewart of Leamington. The first set was an epic contest, reaching 5-5 before Robert was able to win the key moments to take the set 6/5. In the second set Robert served tightly to take the set and the match 6/5 6/2. The second semi-final saw Stephen Blount of Oratory take on Andy Keeley of Holyport. Stephen progressed to the semi-final after receiving a walkover against Tim Messer of Moreton Morrell. Despite Andy’s home court advantage, Stephen started the semi-final the stronger winning the first set 6/2. The second set was closely fought with Andy eventually winning 6/4. Andy raced into an early lead in the decisive set and never relinquished his advantage to win the match 2/6 6/4 6/1. In the final both Robert and Andy played at a high level throughout in a gripping contest. Both players retrieved well and hit some excellent winners but Robert won the crucial points to win the match 6/5 6/5 and the 45-49 Championships.
40-44 Bracket The first semi-final saw Chris Kroeger of Leamington take on Fred Pilkington of Queen’s Club. Chris was able to adapt to the court conditions quicker and although Fred hit some excellent shots, played very consistently to win 6/3 6/1. The second semi-final saw David Sarson of Oratory take on Henry Lidington of Bristol. The first set was hard fought but once Henry found his range he was able to close out the match 6/3 6/0. In the final Henry started at a high level and was retrieving well winning the first set 6/1. In
40-45 Handicap Group Winner Henry Lidington (L) and Finalist Chris Kroeger
T&RA CHRISTMAS NEWSLETTER 2015
Category G Leamington
45-49 Handicap L-R Andy Keeley, (finalist) and Winner Robert Stewart, Henry Lidington and Chris Kroeger
Category F Prested 55-59 Just five players played in this event but each player was evenly matched and we were excited to see who came through on top! The surprise package of this event was Prested’s young superstar Amy Pye who snuck in the event as a 59.9. Amy managed to win her group losing just 1 match along the way. She showed plenty of tactical nous as well as some formidable cut shots to either corner! Amy was up against another Prested player in Ian Hawkey. It was a tight match in the group stage and we all anticipated a cracking final! Amy was on unstoppable form, she swept Ian aside 6/4 6/2 to claim the title, her handicap jumped to 55, watch out for this one in the future! 50-55 This was an all Prested affair, all players had handicaps between 50 and 52, it was anybody’s trophy! Vince Lucey boasted the lowest handicap in the event and he wanted to make this count, all matches in the group were close. Mike Cotton made his way to the final collecting two big wins along the way, he just had to beat the unbeaten Vince Lucey to claim the title. Vince was on fine form in the final, he clinically beat Mike 6/3 6/0 and with it won the Category F title.
13 players competed for this 60+ handicap event. Bristol's Chris Harland dominated the early exchanges in the 60-64 section and continued his good form beating Leamington's Jeff Avery 10-1 in a very one sided final. Local players Ben Compton and Julie Levy competed for the 65+ crown. Julie played beautifully, racing into a 5-1 but Ben fought back heroically to run out a 10-7 winner. In the 65+ plate event John Tacchi defeated Tony Branfield in a tightly contested final.
Manchester Gold Racquet
Winner Richard Owen
Finalists L-R Richard Owen, Alex DuncliffeVines
T&RA CHRISTMAS NEWSLETTER 2015 the momentum and shortly held game ball, 146. But Owen saved the point and won two further points 8-14. Several game balls followed but eventually Billings secured the first game, 15/8.
Doubles Finalists (L-R A Duncliffe-Vines, R Owen, N James G Sandbach. Winners A Duncliffe Vines & N James 10/15 15/8 3/15 18/14 16/5
Plate Doubles Finalists J Bebb, G Loup, C Membery, Symonds
Invitation Singles Rackets Championship Final Sunday 15th November Richard Owen bt Tom Billings 8/15 15/3 15/9 15/7 After an edgy start by both players, Tom Billings opened a 3-0 lead, which Richard Owen clawed back to 3-3. Shortly later it was 5-4 Billings, but then Billings pulled away to 9-4. A fabulous rally was finished superbly by Owen which let him back in but only for a point 5-9. Top class retrieving by Billings but Owen reduced the deficit to 6-9. Billings then regained the service, served a roller to set up
Second game and Billings 2-0 ahead but great shots by Owen took him 10-2 ahead, forcing Billings out of position, ten points on the service hand. Billings played an astonishing shot to regain the service and a further point but again Owen plays straight down the line to take back the service and two more points 123. The players exchange serves but Owen made three points to take the game 15/3 and level the match. Owen dominated the early exchanges in the third game to lead 2-0. Billings served briefly but to no avail and Owen continued to hit clinical winners into the corners to lead 10-0, eight points on the service. Billings now served to 1-10 but Owen hit a characteristic winner down the line. Owen in briefly but Billings regained composure to reduce the deficit to 310. They traded points to 6-13 before Billings took a serve early to regain the serve. Steady serving by Billings reached 9-13. Owen back in and won a long rally to reach game ball which he converted with an impressive service, 15/9, and with that a 2-1 lead. Billings hit two balls into the gallery to let Owen open up a 2-0 lead, before gaining the serve. He reduced the lead to 1-2 before Owen's accuracy in the corners took back service. Owen served impressively to 11-1, nine straight points before Billings caught a hammer serve brilliantly. But again Owen responded to recover the serve and play into the extreme corners 12-1. A deft Billings touch briefly gave him some respite and the change to recover to 7-12, including an astonishing rally at 3-12, Billings' best run of the match. Owen came back into serve to win the next three point to take the game 15/7, and the match by three games to one. John Prenn presented the prizes in front of a packed gallery.
T&RA CHRISTMAS NEWSLETTER 2015 The British Over 50s Amateur Singles Championship was played at Lord's on 27th, 28th and 29th November. The tournament attracted one of the strongest fields ever seen in this event. Holder David Watson won for the 5th time to draw level with John Ward and now only Howard Angus and Colin Dean have won this event more often. In a remarkable Sunday's work David lost only 6 games in total in beating John Prenn in the semi-final and Simon Shenkman in the final thereby overcoming the World Over 50, Over 55 and Over 60 Amateur Champions.
Richard Owen Winner of the Invitation Singles Championship 2015
Finalist Simon Shenkman (L) and Winner David Watson (R) 050 Amateur Singles L-R Tom Billings, John Prenn, Richard Owen
Over 50 Amateur Singles MCC, 27-29 November 2015. David Watson beat Simon Shenkman 6/2 6/0 to win the Over 50s Amateur Singles for the fifth time
James Rothman took 4th seed Simon Barker to 3 sets but Barker then proceeded to take the first set off Simon Shenkman in a semi-final which lasted nearly two hours and seemed to leave the winner with little in reserve for the final. Other notable performance came from Anthony Jenks with a decisive win over Andrew Petrie, the much improved Nick Browne who beat Simon Talbot-Williams to set up a quarter final meeting with Simon Shenkman and Patrick Lawrence QC who led Watson 4-2 in
T&RA CHRISTMAS NEWSLETTER 2015 their quarter final before appearing to run out of steam.
an epic 5-6 loss to Charlie Seddon, failed to qualify. Henry Batstone and Charlie Seddon both looked impressive at times, though Henry won their encounter comfortably. Benedict Yorston played well to defeat Georgie Willis, but failed to impact consistently on the two older players. Felix White won the other group easily, with a win even over Leo Boddington. The main battle was for 3rd place, won by Wolmar Boris-Moller by a nerve wracking 6-5 over a valiant Ed Gordon. Injury struck again in the final stages as Charlie Seddon was forced to withdraw with a calf strain, clearly stretched too far by his contest with Georgie Willis.
Amateur Singles Plate Finalist Ronald Paterson (L), and winner Simon Talbot-Williams (R)
Schools Tennis Invitation School U18 Singles at Radley
However, the remaining semi-final made up for the gap; Leo Boddington just pipped Henry Batstone 6/5 in a truly monumental match, finely balanced until 5-5 40-40. Both players reached heights as never before; Henry’s movement and strokeplay was a delight though Leo’s sheer doggedness and ability to return the extra ball eventually just proved enough.
With a slightly disappointing turn-out this year after the withdrawal of two 30+ handicap players from Tonbridge (Ed Hyde - University interview) and Bristol (Henry Lidington injury), this became something of a Radley championship. Georgie Willis (Highgate) did her best to intrude but after three close games, especially
(L-R) Leo Boddington, Felix White and Henry Batstone
T&RA CHRISTMAS NEWSLETTER 2015 An almost equally magnificent final was won, just, by Felix White. He had, though, to come from 0-3 down to a rampant Boddington. However, his superior strokeplay and the experience of keeping cool under pressure (from winning the National U18s last August at Queens) proved just enough. It was a great finish to the day, and one which Felix, Leo and Henry should be justly proud.
T&RA Awards Real Tennis
Warburg Trophy for best performance by a British Professional - Claire Fahey with William Maltby and David Norman Rackets
Greenwood Trophy - most improved player Nick Hatchett (RTC) with Rob Fahey and David Watson
Latham Cup - for best performance by a Rackets professional – James Stout
Baerlein Cup for best performance by a British Amateur - Conor Medlow with David Norman
T&RA CHRISTMAS NEWSLETTER 2015
Neptune British Open 2015 sponsored by Neptune Investment Management Steve Virgona is the 2015 British Open Champion. Steve Virgona and Chris Chapman win the doubles final 15-24 November at The Queen's Club Negretti Cup for the best Amateur performance - Tom Billings (Charlotte Billings collected the award)
Singles final S Virgona (2) beat T Chisholm (4) 6/3 6/2 6/4
Most Improved player Alex Duncliffe-Vines (Katie Robertson collected the award)
Maltby Salver for volunteer of the year (decided by the Chairman and CEO) - Peter Luck-Hille
Tim Chisholm won the opening game, but Steve Virgona responded taking the next three. TC fought back to 3-all, but SV took the next three games with an impressive selection of shots, 6/3. The players shared the first pair of games in the second set, but then SV stamped his authority taking the next three games to 41, volleying impossible looking winners with elegance. They shared a pair of quick games to 5-2. SV worked his way to set point in the next game which he converted with a main wall boast, 6/2, and a two set lead. Six tight games were shared at the start of the third set. But then SV again pulled away to lead 5-3, covering every inch of the court. A mercurial game followed from TC to 4-5. In what was to prove the final game, TC successfully defended two match points, but SV converted the third to take the set 6/4, winning by three sets to love. In winning his second British Open, he regained the title he had won two years ago.
T&RA CHRISTMAS NEWSLETTER 2015 Richard Green presented the trophy on behalf of Neptune Investment Management. Doubles Final C Chapman & S Virgona (4) bt B Sayers & R Smith (3) 6/3 2/6 6/2 6/5
L-R R Smith, B Sayers, D Watson, R Green, S Virgona, C Chapman Bryn Sayers & Ricardo Smith started strongly taking the first two games, before Steve Virgona & Chris Chapman responded taking three straight games, 3-2. BS/RS rallied to level, before SV took charge and steered his pair through the next three games, and the set 6/3. Once again BS/RS took an early lead but SV/CC rallied before BS/RS took three more games to lead 5-1. After a brief fight back to 25, BS/RS closed down the set 6/2, and levelled the match. Steve Virgona and Chris Chapman in action
Eight time winner Steve and first time winner Chris
The pairs shared the first four games in the third, but then superb defence by CC and world class attack by SV took four straight games and the set 6/2, and a two sets to one lead. SV/CC maintained the momentum into the fourth set to lead 1-0, before their opponents played an exceptional couple of games to lead 2-1. SV/CC then eased away to 4-2 via two SV winning galleries. Another pair of games shared and the score reached 5-3. BS saved a match point and then recovered to 4-5. Three more match points saved in the next game and then 5-all. The eleventh game produced another two match points; it only required the first of these for Steve Virgona to claim his eighth British Open Doubles title and the first for partner Chris Chapman. Richard Green presented the trophy on behalf of Neptune Investment Management.
T&RA CHRISTMAS NEWSLETTER 2015
InterUniversities Tournament A large entry in the two draws (the Inter-Uni Cup and the Handicap Singles) made this year’s Pol Roger Inter-Uni Event another great success. Players from Cambridge (C) were joined by representatives from Middlesex (M), Newcastle (N), Exeter (E), Bristol and Durham over four days of intense but very good natured competition. In the first semi-final of the Inter-uni cup Cambridge 2 played Exeter in what was probably the best contest of this tournament. Home heroes Matt ‘tonsils’ Shaw (25.7) and Jimmy ‘5.18am’ Campbell (27.2) faced Ben Boddington (13.7) and Tom Larminie (54.6). The two singles matches went with handicap and left the rubber to be decided by the doubles. After trading games for the first half of the match, Matt Shaw found some good serves (after much urging by his partner) and clinical volleys to compliment the increasingly solid back court play of Campbell. Cambridge completing the win to set up a repeat of last year’s all Cambridge final against CURTC 1 (Ed Kay, Jamie ‘who?’ Giddins and Alex Evans) who had already cruised through their previous rounds to reach the final themselves. The final got under way with a clash of the men’s and women’s captains Alex ‘jet lag’ Evans (13.7) and Sophie ‘Osprey of the year’ Morrill (46.1) and was continued with Ed ‘thanks for coming’ Kay (4.1) vs Jimmy C, both ties going as expected to CURTC 1. Playing for pride, Matt Shaw returned from playing Fives to partner Jimmy in the doubles. Despite Jimmy’s cunning plan to put the opposition off with looping lob dedans forces, the 1st team pair were triumphant.
Rackets World Championship
RACKETS WORLD SINGLES CHALLENGE 1st Leg Philadelphia James Stout beat Will Hopton 15/7 15/9 15/3 15/5 James Stout took no prisoners in the 1st leg match winning 15/7 15/9 15/5 15/3 over challenger Will Hopton before a highly enthusiastic Philadelphia gallery. Partisans were evenly matched in vocal support for both players, as Stout kept raising his game to new heights. Hopton’s game was also brilliant, but this wasn’t to be his day. Total points were 6024. 2nd Leg Queen’s Club Jamie Stout beat Will Hopton 15/6 to retain his world championship. Jamie Stout served two aces to open his account and then added a third point after an exciting rally. Will Hopton responded with two points of his own to trail 2-3. However, Stout then eased away to 7-2, before Hopton was able to claw back a point. Four more points in the next hand gave Stout an 11-3 lead. Hopton rallied and they exchanged a couple of points to 12-4. Hopton was fighting for every point but couldn't reach several world class finishes by the champion. Stout held Championship Point at 14-6; he missed the first but didn't need another invitation to seal the vital game and, with it, the World Championship.
T&RA CHRISTMAS NEWSLETTER 2015
Amateur Singles Championships Alex Titchener-Barrett is Amateur Champion - for EIGHT consecutive years. Proudly sponsored by the Jesters
Alex Titchener-Barrett continued his dominance of the Amateur Championship, winning the coveted title for the eighth year in a row. A remarkable achievement and a new record surpassed the achievements of James Male and HK Foster, although Alex still has a few more crowns to collect to equal James' incredible eleven triumphs.
too briefly and ATB served to 12-2, then 13-2 in the next hand. TB then recovered to 5-13. ATB then served to match point and the next point secured the game 15-5. ATB won the Amateur Singles for the eighth year in a row and was presented with the famous Amateur Singles trophy by Charles Hue Williams, a true gentleman of Rackets. The event was sponsored by the Jesters' Club; and thanks to Alastair Gourlay for providing a livestreaming service.
National Schools Championships Sponsored Advisory
by
Brown
Tom Billings took an initial 2-0 lead before Alex Titchener-Barrett struck back, sweeping into a 9-2 lead. TB won back the service to recover to 4-9. ATB extended his lead to 12-4 using power and accuracy. The pair exchanged points to 13-5. But it was ATB who closed out the game 15-5, and into a one game lead. TB again took the first point but ATB was in impervious form, hitting a mixture of clever shots to lead 12-1. TB fought back in to reduce the deficit to 4-12. After a couple of more exchanges ATB held a 13-6 lead. TB fought back to 10-13 serving to a good length and exploiting the opportunity. ATB didn't capitalise on his next hand and TB levelled 1313. ATB won back the service and closed out the next five points to secure the second game, 18-13, and a two game to love lead. ATB continued his run into the third game to lead 2-0. He then won a spectacular point and an ace to 4-0. TB back into serve but double faulted at 1-4. ATB seized the opportunity and extended his lead to 7-1. TB broke the rhythm to 2-7, but again ATB surged ahead and soon it was 11-2. TB back in but all
Foster Cup 2015 Winner - Rory Giddins (Eton)
T&RA CHRISTMAS NEWSLETTER 2015 Senior Schoolgirls
(LR) David Kay-Shuttleworth: Ben Cawston (PS); WINNER Rory Giddins (Etn); Garth Milne (Winner 1960 and 1961)
Renny Cup 2015 (L-R) Chris Davies: Julian Haynes (Mal): David Makey; WINNER Ed Hyde (Ton): David Kay-Shuttleworth
Incledon Webber Cup 2015 (L-R) David KayShuttleworth: WINNER Dom Coulson (Mar): Matteo Perper (StP); Tim Cockroft
Jim Dear Cup (L-R) Howard Angus; Freddie Bristowe (Wel); WINNER Julian O'Riordan (Ton); David Kay-Shuttleworth
The event, as one might expect at this early stage of the development of girls’ Rackets, was very much dominated by serve. Nearly all the girls chose an overhead lawn tennis serve, hit for the most part hard onto the back wall, and the receivers struggled to get into a position to make a return. The exceptions to the predominant hard lawn tennis servers were Georgie and Anna Willis, from Highgate School, who mainly cut the ball into the side wall and corners to an excellent length that their opponents found very difficult to deal with. The most exciting match of the day was the penultimate match in the Group stage between Wellington 1, Olivia and Honor Cockroft, and Marlborough, Millie McKelvey and Georgia Gibson which ended in a draw, one game each, Wellington 1 taking the opening game 15/12, but unable to take a match point in the second, Marlborough coming back to win it 18/17. Highgate were the only pair to win all their Group matches, so they progressed to the play off final where they met Wellington 1, who qualified by just pipping Marlborough on points difference in their head to head match, but with a much better points difference over all their group games. The first point of the final was the best rally of the day! Wellington 1 served most effectively to get to 14-9 but didn’t manage to win game ball. Highgate came back in and served through to 14 all whereupon Wellington opted for set 3, but Highgate ran through for the game 17/14. Again in the second game it was the serving of the Willis sisters that told against the Cockroft sisters, Highgate taking the game 15/2 to become the first winners of the Girls Senior Doubles.
With every good wish to all our members for a Happy Christmas and New Year