Kingswood  LTC  Newsletter

November 2020

This time of year is always a difficult one as the Winter season still has a while to run but thoughts must already turn to Summer tennis as so much planning needs to go into the various events and matches which will not take place till some months hence.

So began our last newsletter!  And all the planning, of course, came to nothing as, not long after that February newsletter, life as we knew it ground to a halt.  So much has changed since then with first, no tennis, followed by singles only, eventually doubles, finally matches and then back to square one. And who knows where next?

The only whole club communications have really been about COVID rules and regulations so we thought it would be a good time to summarise what has been going on at KLTC and to look forward to moving forward beyond Coronavirus.  

Club Finals’ Day

This year, the Senior Club Tournament took on a rather shortened format and culminated in Finals’ Day in late September with restricted spectators due to Covid rules and some very hard-fought matches. Many thanks to all the organisers, umpires and marshals all of whom made the day run smoothly, and also to the players and spectators who created tremendous atmosphere. 

Open Tournament

This event proved largely a day for our youngsters.  James Beaven (aged 15) comfortably defended his men’s singles title, losing only a handful of games. James is now playing at a very high level and he continues to work hard to improve. Read below to discover how he has progressed from a moderately keen tennis playing child to a force to be reckoned with! James and his father, Neil, won a fantastic and very close men’s doubles match against Clifford Stretton and Simon Mortimer. Clifford was however, able to get revenge on James by winning the mixed doubles. His partner was another star of the day, 18-year-old Holly Gale, the only player to win all three of her events. Holly wasn’t our youngest female champion though, as she helped 16-year-old Niamh Hyde triumph over the more experienced pair of Cheryl Agius and Ruth Eppey, seasoned champions of KLTC.

Results

James Beaven vs Hefin Bowen 6-1, 6-2

Holly Gale vs Cheryl Agius 6-4,6-3

Neil/James Beaven vs Clifford Stretton/ Simon Mortimer 5-7, 6-4, 6-2

Holly Gale/Niamh Hyde vs Cheryl Agius/Ruth Eppey 3-6, 6-3, 6-3

Holly Gale/Clifford Stretton vs Niamh Hyde/James Beaven 7-5, 4-6, 7-5

Vets’ Tournament

Despite their lack of youth, the Vets’ finals demonstrated that guile and experience are worthy allies! A titanic battle in the mixed doubles saw Lesley Gale and Chris Hyde narrowly defeated 4-6, 7-6, 7-5 by the Catlows. Having been denied victory in this event, Lesley joined forces with new member Shula Payne to win the Ladies Vets’ Doubles. The two ladies then took to opposite sides of the net for the Ladies Vets’ Singles with Lesley getting the upper hand on this occasion. Shula’s husband Victor won the Men’s Vets’ doubles with partner Mike Smith.

Results

Nigel Catlow vs Victor Payne 6-1, 6-2

Lesley Gale vs Shula Payne 6-4, 6-0

Shula Payne/ Lesley Gale vs Janet Catlow/ Didi Hyde 6-3, 6-4

Victor Payne/ Mike Smith vs Nigel Catlow/ Paul Hawker 7-6, 6-2

Janet/ Nigel Catlow vs Lesley Gale/Chris Hyde 4-6, 7-6, 7-5

Team news

Matches had just started with a record number of winter team entries and wide participation amongst members when Lockdown 2 struck.  The results of the few matches played in October are set out below and hopefully the teams will go on to complete the season without too much match rearranging, although of course diaries are eerily empty! 

Junior News

The Junior coaching programme after lockdown in March was very busy with some 120 children attending each week. As part of the Junior timetable we have included two new group sessions; Mini Red on a Wednesday evening from 5.30-6.30pm and Mini Orange/Green on a Thursday evening from 6-7pm. 

Our Summer camps and October Half Term camps were also very well attended with between 25 and 30 children participating each day. 

Unfortunately, we will have to postpone our Junior finals day until next February due to the second Lockdown.  

We hope to return to our coaching programme from Thursday 3rd December; however, this will be dependent on Government advice and announcements. Should we be able to return, it may be subject to additional restrictions - we will update members in due course. 

For any booking or enquires please contact Valentin on 07919453206 or coaching.kingswoodltc@gmail.com.

A Profile of KLTC’s Open Champion

James started playing tennis at 10 years old as a hobby, having previously played snooker, golf and cricket.  When he was 11, he took a trial at Sutton Tennis Academy to join the tennis scholarship at Cheam High School. At this point, he hadn’t played in any LTA competitions but liked the idea of playing tennis every day as part of school life. He was accepted onto the course and was one of the weakest players at the start, as many of the other boys had played tennis from a very young age. Once he started his programme, he had tennis training every day that included fitness squads as well as play and he gained in strength and ability. Not long afterwards, he won a place in the Surrey County Tennis Team. 

James started playing for the Mens 2nd team at Kingswood when he was 11 partnering his dad, Neil. He quickly progressed to the first team and now partners Valentin in the Surrey Men’s Grade A Knockout doubles. They reached the final earlier this year but this was cancelled due to Covid 19.

He has continued his tennis training programme at Cheam Sports LTC and then back at the Academy. For the last six months he has also had fitness training with Mike Smith and this has greatly contributed to his development and success on court this year. He trains at least two to three hours a day and his goal is to be a professional tennis player. To this end, he is planning to go to an American university on a tennis scholarship.

When not on court, James loves listening to music, watching comedy films and is learning the guitar.

 Achievements:

 Currently ranked 27 in the country at U16.

Member of the Surrey squad

 Tournament highlights:

 2017 Surrey Junior Trophy U12 Singles

 2018  St George’s Hill U14 Boys’ doubles

        Virgin Active U16 Boys’ singles

 2019  Surrey county champion U14 Boys’ singles

          Surrey county champion U16 Boys’ doubles

          The Grove U18 Boys’ singles and doubles

 2020 Woodford Wells Open Men’s singles and doubles

 Cheam Sports Club Men’s Singles Champion 2020

Kingswood LTC Men’s Singles Champion 2020

Social Tennis

Social sessions began again after lockdown under a new guise.  To comply with new LTA guidance, games had to be organised in advance with all players’ names noted down for future reference.  Many members have really enjoyed the new format as it means that all partners/opponents/courts are known in advance so there is very little wasted time on court.  Players’ abilities can also be matched so that balanced 4s can be planned for. Many thanks to all the organisers for their hard work on this – it isn’t easy to sort everyone out, particularly taking into account last minute injuries and the foibles of the British weather!

The court booking system is now fully operational on the KLTC website.  This shows any bookings made including organised club sessions, confirmed team matches and individual member bookings.  This system means that if you want to play at the club, you can easily check that there is court availability.  We are regularly reviewing the booking system to ensure that it is working smoothly and that any courts previously booked which are not going to be used are freed up for members to book.  This is particularly important for evening play during the winter. 

KLTC Bar

Since the bar opened after the first lockdown, it has proved to be an enormous success and a positive contribution to KLTC despite Covid rules and restrictions with sales since early June of some £4,400. It has meant that social sessions could conclude with a relaxed drink in the sunshine (often) and more latterly comfortably seated on the new enhanced clubhouse furniture!  Huge thanks must go to the Bar construction committee, in particular Nigel, Gill and Brian, who between them have given very generously of their time and talents to create a cosy and highly attractive bar area and interior to the clubhouse.  Equally important has been Gill’s tireless work making the bar such a popular venue, training and organising bar tenders, checking the bar is always well stocked and monitoring (and often doing!) the cleaning of the clubhouse to ensure we adhere to Covid guidance. 

Other News

Many members were saddened by the recent death of longstanding member Joyce Phipps. Joyce played regularly into her late eighties and was last seen on court at her 90th birthday tea party, some eight years ago. Joyce will be remembered as a lovely lady and very good player, skilled enough to have played in open club finals. Her friends have commented on how delightful she was to play with, always sparky and positive, with a wicked sense of humour. Joyce loved the club not just for the tennis but as a social hub. Fondly remembered by many, she certainly left her mark.

AGM

A reminder that our virtual AGM will take place via Zoom/Teams on Thursday10th December at 7 pm.  Details were sent out by Whatsapp and email on 11th November.  If any member wishes to propose a resolution, notice of this must be sent in writing to the Club Secretary by Thursday 26th November.  If you wish to attend the meeting, please register by email to nigel.catlow@gmail.com.    

Finally, we would like to wish everyone a very happy Christmas and a prosperous and healthy 2021.  We hope that there will be a lot more tennis and the need for many fewer regulations!