FINALS WEEKEND
2023
Finals Weekend 2023
The sun was shining over Riverside for our latest edition of our annual Finals Weekend. With
highs of 26° the September sun set the stage for what would be yet another great weekend of
tennis and cake eating!
The crowd rolled in with great numbers. They packed the bank behind courts 1-3 and were treated to some great tennis. Steve and Sarah secured the first title of the weekend with a win over John and Jo in the mixed vets event. They were presented the trophy by the club's longest standing member Dennis Haggaty, who joked that he had been sitting for most of it.
The junior finals year on year seem to increase in standard. Damian came out on top in both the Mini Orange and Green events with some bilstering tennis and is definitely one to keep an eye on in future years. Rory pipped Ben in the Boys U11 event. Hari and George beat Aidan and Joe in the boys U18 Doubles event, which was a great display of tennis.
As the first day drew to a close the crowd migrated to courts 7/8 where the Ladies Doubles and Mens Singles events were taking place. Carolyn and Liz fought off a title challenge from the junior pair - Hattie and Jiselle. They won 6-3 6-4. In what many have described as the match of the weekend Jamie and Mike battled it out in a match which couldn't have been any closer or longer! A three hour battle saw Jamie come out on top, winning the third set in a tie break.
Day two kicked off with the Girls U18 final. Hattie secured the silverware with a win over Jiselle. Noah beat Espen in the under 14 event and Nick and George won the Men's Drawn event over Sam and Karim. The second round of matches saw a finals day classic between two of the clubs biggest prospects, Carlos and Hari, a match up which we suspect could be a Men's Singles final in the next few years. Sam and Jamie got the better of Rio and Mike in a high standard Men's Doubles final. A new name will be engraved onto the Ladies Singles trophy as Jiselle became the youngest Ladies Singles champion at 14 years old with a narrow victory over last years champion Hilary.
The weekend came to a close with two extremely close finals. The Mens Vets saw all of the long lung-busting rallies, the customary grunting from Bill and drama that we have become accustomed to over the years. James and Bill fought hard to win 11-9 in a third set tie break. In the Mixed Doubles event Nick and Carolyn got off to a great start winning the first 7-5. Mike and Jiselle fought back to win the next two sets 7-6 6-1.
A big thank you to everyone who played their part in running the event this weekend, with special thanks going to the Tournament Committee for their hard work organising the event.
Steve and Sarah being presented the Mixed Vets trophy by longest standing member Dennis. They beat John and Jo in the final.
Jane and Hilary being won the Ladies Vets competition. Sadly Pauline and Sara had to retire due to an injury in the match.
Well done to George, Sam, Damian, Jack, Vidita, Ben and Rory who all competed well in their events.
Nick and Jo won the Mixed Drawn final against Jamie and Jane
A hotly contested U18 Boys Doubles saw Hari and George beat Aidan and Joe.
The Mixed Vets event saw the battle of the couples. David and Melinda were up against Bill and Anne but Bill had to withdraw through injury.
The crowd having a great time!
The last session on the Saturday certainly delivered. Carolyn and Liz beat Hattie and Jiselle 6-3 6-4. Jamie battled back from a set down to beat Mike 0-6 7-5 7-6 in a classic.
Hattie beat Jiselle in the Under 18's Girls final.
Nick and George beat Sam and Karim in the Men's Drawn.
Sarah and Jane beat Louise and Sara in the Ladies Drawn.
Noah and Ruben competed for the under 14 title. Noah came out on top.
The Ladies singles saw Jiselle become the youngest ever Ladies champion at the club at 14 years old. Hilary put up a good fight in the mid day heat.
The Mens Doubles final saw Sam and Jamie beat Mike and Rio in a high quality match. 7-5 6-3.
Our pick for match of the weekend saw Hari pushed all the way by Carlos in the U16 boys.
The mini red event saw Caleb, George and Henry competing for the silverware. Well done to George who came out on top.
Bill and James won a thriller against Steve and Ken 11-9 in a third set tie break in front of the evening crowd.
Mike and Jiselle battled back from a set down against Nick and Carolyn to win the Mixed Doubles title.