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Although players travelled from Nottingham, Northamptonshire and Yorkshire, most came from local clubs in Leicestershire and indeed the winners were from the home club.

April 10 was a lovely day with sunshine throughout which warmed the chill, caused by the cold east wind.  The players were in fine form and good humour and some enjoyable tennis way played.

A raffle which raised £55 was held for "Breakthrough" the breast cancer charity supported by BWTA.

Thanks are due to Club Manager, Geoff Thomas, Ground Manager, Martin Byrne, and Jane Wright, Joyce's daughter.

Group winners of the matches played in the morning were as follows:-

Play resumed in the afternoon with all the respective winners at each level prepared to do battle.

In the top group the winners of groups 1 and 4 had both won 2 matches and their final match between each other proved to be very exciting.  This was a match between pairs with very contrasting styles.  Irene and Sue both hit the ball very hard, Sue flat and Irene with lots of topspin.  They relied on that to enable them to volley the ball away.  However Jennie and Marilyn (winners in 2000) and who have played together for over 50 years, were not letting them get their own way if they could help it!  They managed to vary their shots, lobbed a great deal and made Sue and Irene fight for the match.  It was a very exciting finale to the day with Sue and Irene winning in the end on a tie-break (7-5)  The afternoon group winners were as follows:-

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Group Winners

Group Seconds

Group Thirds

Group Fourths

Group Fifths

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Organised by Jane Stokes

With a full draw of 16 couples, it was decided to play the Lansdown System for this event.

The tournament was to have been played on the grass courts at the Centre where The Nottingham Samson Open was held the week before Wimbledon.  Although we had a fine day, the previous two days' heavy rain had made the surface unplayable for our ladies. Much to the disappointment of most players the tournament took place on the outside acrylic courts.

The standard of play was high, with players travelling from as far away as South Wales, Cheshire, Buckinghamshire, Worcestershire and Yorkshire.  A set was played in the first round of the box matches, with the winners of each box competing again in another Round Robin. The same format was played out for the players coming 2nd, 3rd, and 4th respectively.

The ladies enjoyed this format as everyone who competed played more matches.

The players who qualified for 1st - 4th position were:

Group A - Margaret Fincham & Meloney Milner - Lincs

Group B - Cindy Fryer & Phyllis Bentham - Cheshire

Group C - Dawn Gumbley & Penny Malmont - Worcs

Group D - Jan Homan & Pat Walne - Leics & Oakham

The winner’s of this tournament were Margaret Fincham & Meloney Milner with Cindy Fryer & Phyllis Bentham close runners-up

Due to a late withdrawal, there were only 7 pairs, so the tournament was played as one round robin box,  each match was a short set - first to 6, tie-break at 5-5.

Set in idyllic surroundings along side the River Avon with Warwick Castle in the background eleven pairs of ladies arrived to play in what turned out to be a most enjoyable tournament.  A superb lunch was arranged and taken outside in the sunshine.

Boxes A, B and C were played in the morning, each match being one set. The first placed pairs moved into Box 1, the second placed pairs into Box 2 and the third placed pairs into Box 3 in the afternoon and the two fourth placed pairs played a best of three set play-off.

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Organised by Jean Sexton

We had a ten pair entry, which gave us a very good day's tennis but where the other six pairs? We played everyone in our league in the morning and then had a break for a delicious lunch provided by Byfleet stalwarts Sylvia Hodges and Jean Porter.

The top match in the afternoon was a fine contest between Julie Metz and Pam Campbell who played Frankie Cable and Joy Dally. After a very close battle it was one set all, so a final set tie break, that Julie and Pam won but only just!

Betty Howard and Kay Davies won the second group and other winners were Jean Sexton and Mary Scarlett, Jill Bard and Barbara Simpson, Joan Powell and Lorna McCullough.

Thanks to the Byfleet Club, Sylvia and Jean for hosting the day and to Tony Scarlett for putting matches on court, and after last year, thanks for NO RAIN.

These are good tennis days please enter next year if you can?

Results

Pam Campbell & Julie Metz (Dorking) bt Frankie Cable & Joy Dally (Ealing & Byfleet) 6-4, 2-6, 1-0 (5)

Kay Davies & Bette Howard bt Sheena Blenkinsopp & Alison Smith 6-3 6-4

Mary Scarlett & Jean Sexton bt Jean Shenton & Lisa Smith-Dubendorfer 5-7, 7-6 (5) 1-0 (6)

Jill Bard & Barbara Simpson bt Helen Jary & Kay Preston (3^rd set-tie game)

Lorna McCullough & Joan Powell bt Enid Clare & Janet Darby (3^rd set tie-break game)

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