THERE was a fantastic end to the team tennis season for Cardross Tennis Club as their gents first team beat Bearsden 8-1 to secure the Divisional Championship.

Alan MacBeath and Ross Kennedy were in simply imperious form on Court 1 completely blowing their opponents, who had only dropped one set all year themselves, away in straight sets 6-1 6-2 6-2. The standard of tennis from both pairs was extremely high but Alan & Ross’ almost telepathic understanding coupled with brilliant execution of shots left even the high level opponents bewildered. It’s an absolute joy to watch these two and the joy they get from playing is evident. Court 2 saw Felix Carpenter and Jamie Miller combining to put in possibly the best performance we have seen from either of them all year. Felix’s hard work on his serve paid dividends and Jamie’s ground strokes as always were on the mark on both forehand and backhand sides making them a tough nut to crack. They took the first two sets 7-5 6-4 and wilted a little in the 3rd to lose it 6-1 as their teammates beckoned them in for tea with the job well and truly done. An excellent performance against highly skilled tactical opponents.

Third couple was Captain David Carmichael & Euan Mclatchie. It was a step up of a few divisions for Euan as he battled his usual nerves as well as the opposition. 10 straight points at the start to the Bearsden guys didn’t help matters but under the encouraging guidance of David, Euan found his range and the rest is history.

The guys ripped through the Bearsden couple with there being a noticeable drop in the confidence of the opponents as the Cardross guys started upping the pace and David applying his usual pressure at the net. He also threw in a couple of Hollywood drop shots to keep the crowd on their toes as well winning 6-4 6-2 6-2

A huge thank you goes to the other 3 members of the 1st team. Two regular players who couldn’t make tonight’s game – Graeme Porter & Keith Wilson- and our resident Bowls champion Jim Carruthers who has always performed admirably when called on.

The Cardross Ladies teams had mixed fortunes in their respective play-off games. The Ladies 1st team continued their fantastic run of form with their third league and divisional title in as many years. A strong team, with last minute changes required due to unforeseen circumstances, battled hard against familiar opposition at Rutherglen and ran out 7-2 winners on the night. Caroline Mcdaid & Gillian Branch proved too strong for their opponents in the top match winning 6-2 6-2 6-2 and gave the team the ideal platform to build on. Karen Muir & Carolyn Turk had a close match at 2nd which the Rutherglen ladies edged on a deciding set 4-6 6-1 3-6. The third couple of Lorna Brown & Janet Hogg, with Janet stepping up from the Ladies 2nd team to cover for first team regular Katie Mitchell, prevailed to win 6-2 7-5 6-3 to wrap up a great performance and secure yet another trophy for the Ladies. As soon as they were off court attention turned to the Ladies 2nd team where they were away to Kelvingrove in their own playoff match.

The newly formed Kelvingrove team proved too strong for our Cardross Ladies on the night although a look at the scores would show the actual matches closer than the 8-1 scoreline. Jill Rooney & Mia Rooney playing at first couple battled very hard against the strongest opposition they have faced this year and went down 5-7 0-6 3-6 in a very hard hitting encounter. Gwen Irving & Catherine Court won the first set before being edged out in the last two sets swinging on just a couple of key points. 6-3 4-6 5-7. In the third rubber Elaine Clancy and Sara Sullivan battled in every single set and losing the first one on a tie break set the tone and the next two slipped away on a couple of key points again. 6-7 4-6 5-7. A fantastic effort in challenging circumstances and as always everyone at the club is proud of all our players. Winning the league and gaining promotion is a fantastic achievement but the Club is delighted that 4 of their 6 teams has been promoted this season. The Club’s new challenge is to fundraise for new courts and are hosting a Ceilidh at Cardross Church Halls on 1st October 2016 with acclaimed band Crowded Croft. Tickets are £10 and are available from cardrosstennisclub@gmail.com or by calling 07810 372955.