We held a very successful and enjoyable Awards Evening, outside the Plough Pub, on the evening of Friday 17 December. Thank you to all our Members and Supporters who came along to support the event, and we hope you enjoyed the mulled wine and mince pies.

As well as presenting formally the Tournament Trophies from Finals Day (held on 12 September), we were pleased to announce the winners of our 2 prestigious Junior Awards. Congratulations to:

• Cory Kelly winner of the Gilkes Award for the Most Improved Junior.
• Luis Levens winner of the Polly Birch Award, nominated by Head Coach, for the Most Promising Junior.

We were also saying farewell to our long-time Head Coach, Craig Amison-Smith, who is retiring, having started with us in January 2014. Unfortunately, Craig’s brother passed away unexpectedly earlier in the week, and he was not able to join us on the evening because he had to go away to support the family. 

We would all like to thank Craig for his sterling efforts as our Head Coach - always hard-working, approachable and engaging. In particular, his work in developing our Junior programme has been outstanding and he has inspired a whole new generation in the joys of playing tennis.

The Club has a memento (plaque) to present to Craig, to remember his time with us, and we will deliver to him as soon as possible.

Craig – good luck in retirement, you will be very much missed.

A reminder that our new Coach, Bart Wisniewski, takes up the reins in the New Year. Bart is a racquets manager and head coach for David Lloyd Club Oxford and Horton cum Studley Tennis Club. Since 2019, he has been involved in developing the most talented young players in our region as County Coach and Captain for U8/U9/U10 County squads. Welcome aboard, Bart!