Hello, Chagford Tennis Fans and welcome to our bumper newsletter!

Date for the Diary

On September 4th 2022, we will host the Matthew Cup at Chagford Tennis Courts. The event will be mildly competitive, with pairs either pulled from a hat or assigned according to fairness. We are very keen to involve as many of the Rusties and club members who do not play so often. For those of you who came to the event in May, you will know that this is an informal, inclusive and fun day for all the family, in which any gentleman who smashes a lady will be booed and sent to Coventry. Or Moretonhampstead at least. That said, we may skew the whole thing so two guilty middle-aged men can beat an 11 year old. Please bring food and drink.

"More satisfying than winning a BAFTA"

Match Reports

On Sunday July 17th, Chagford played the home leg of their friendly match against Victoria Park. In punishingly hot conditions, Keith and Ray fought back from a bruising 6-0 first set to win their second set and then the tie-break in a typical display of guile and grit, while Ben managed to arrive from London only an hour late having battled train cancellations and melting rail tracks to join Jasper in a lively encounter on Court One which resulted in a solid victory for Sonic and the Octopus. Both pairs lost their second game, so it was honours even (the away match, which also featured sterling performances from Ian and Hugh, also resulted in a draw).

Jasper ‘Sonic’ Emmanuel, Keith ‘Back of Gus’s Head’ Altman, Benjamin ‘Octopus’ Davis, Ray ‘The Lob’ O’Connell

Then on Sunday 31st July, we hosted a friendly versus our local rivals from Okehampton, with much more distinctly Dartmoor-ish conditions: blustery and cool. A new four of Ian, Keith, Gus (the real one) and Martin took on 3 from Oke, supplemented by a ringer in the form of Hamish Mitchell. Good sporting games were had by all, with the overall outcome ending in another very creditable draw

All in all, a highly encouraging start, against quality opposition, which gives us great confidence going into the competitive Winter League later this year.

Competitions

The Men’s Team will be entering the Winter League later in the year. We are very keen to start a Women’s Team. Anyone who is interested, please contact Rachel Johnston (rachel.johnston90@hotmail.co.uk)

Grant Notten - a celebration

By now, you should all be familiar with Grant, the sunlight feeding Chagford’s blossoming tennis scene. It seems incredible that only a few months ago, most of us were fat, lazy, unmotivated and stupefied by two years of sitting on the sofa watching Netflix and screaming at Google Classroom. Now, thanks to Grant, in addition to the Club Sessions, there are Rusty Racquets, Silvers, the League, and an incredibly vibrant youth scene, with virtually every kid in the Primary School playing. Every week, there are around 50 Juniors and 50 adults playing tennis sessions at various times. And all of them have a smile on their face, because Grant creates such a positive, enjoyable atmosphere. Thanks to Grant’s expert coaching, players are rising through the ranks, transitioning from Rusty to Silver, Silver to Gold, Gold to Lakker. Arise, Lord Notten of Mojo. Chagford salutes you.

Lord Notten of Mojo

Some Silvers

Some Rusties

Shot of the Year

Nominations so far:

• Gus’s impossible return of Ben’s smash when he had turned away thinking the point done and dusted.
• Rachel’s double-handed backhand down the line.

Please send any new nominations to Ben. The winner receives their pick of a shot of tequila at Gidleigh Park or a family pack of COVID winter shots from Chagford Medical Centre.

Membership

As a reminder, our membership fees are currently paid annually with renewals every April. Do please encourage anyone you play with to join if they haven’t already. You get access to all the club facilities and sessions (listed below), plus membership is needed to take part in the leagues. Pay and Play is also available for the very low price of £3/hour, bookable through Clubspark. To avoid disappointment, do please ensure you book either as a member or through Pay and Play in order to gain access to the courts.

We are working on being able to pay for membership on a monthly direct debit for next season, and we’ll let you know when this option is available.

Contact Ian (iandrenwick@gmail.com) for further details or questions.

Club Session times

We now have three club session times:

• Tuesdays 6-8pm
• Wednesdays 1-4pm
• Saturday 1-4pm

In addition, Grant’s training session times are on Fridays as follows. Please contact Grant directly should you be keen on developing your game:

• Rusty Racquets: 9.30-11am
• Silver Group 1: 11-12:30
• Silver Group 2: 12:30-2pm

The Rusties also have a practice session on Wednesdays 11-1pm

There’s just TOO MUCH TENNIS! Hope to see you all out there soon. Have a great summer!

Chagford Tennis Committee