The Cumbrian 10&U Boys team played County Cup over 1st and 2nd June 2013.
Captain Lee Burrell sent in this report:
The Cumbrian Team
Captain: Lee Burrell
Assistant: Colin Carr
Players:
James Hale, G1*
Tom Casey, G1
Matthew Davidson, G1
James Griffin, O1*
1st June, Day 1
Cumbria v Yorkshire Yorkshire won 6-2
James Hale v Oliver Vessely Yorkshire won
Tom Casey v Thomas Horsely Cumbria won
James Griffin v Lleyton Scott Yorkshire won
Hale & Griffin v Vessely & Scott Yorkshire won
It was a very windy first day but tough conditions didn’t stop a great performance all round in the singles with a good win for Tom. The 2 James’s were very unlucky not to come away with wins, missing out in match shoot-outs despite for the best part being the better players in their matches.
I felt both James’s were the strongest two Cumbrian players on the day but felt the pressure in the doubles. Nevertheless, still a massive effort from the whole team and they should be applauded.
Cumbria v Derbyshire Cumbria won 8-0
James Hale v Morgan Hodgson Cumbria won
Tom Casey v William Toft Cumbria won
James Griffin v William Haynes Cumbria won
Hale & Davidson v Toft Hawkins Cumbria won
It was still very windy during the second fixture, but the Cumbrian boys played very smart and this was an outstanding all round performance from the whole team. The score says it all!!!
2nd June, Day 2
Cumbria v Cheshire Cheshire won 6-2
James Hale v Danny Urey Cumbria won
Tom Casey v Finlay Michaelis Cheshire won
James Griffin v Sebastian Camancho Chester Cheshire won
Casey & Griffin v Cooper & Michaelis Cheshire won
Hale was comfortable at 1 and came away with a good win, but Cheshire’s 2 & 3 were more physically developed than the Cumbrian boys and used this to their advantage with comfortable wins.
The doubles was the last match of the weekend and a dead rubber. Griffin & Casey still produced some good stuff against arguably the best doubles pair at the event.
Cumbria v Northumberland Northumberland won 6-2
James Hale v Will Gray Cumbria won
Matthew Davidson v Gareth Rickaby Northumberland won
James Griffin v Cole Cartmel Northumberland won
Hale & Davidson v Gray & Rickaby Northumberland won
This was the big match for the Cumbrian boys as winning this meant playing Cheshire in the doubles for a potential shoot-out for the title.
Hale was solid again at 1. Davidson put up a good fight at 2 and showed real competitive spirit but narrowly missed out on the big points losing in 2 tie-breaks.
Down to the penultimate doubles of the weekend with still a chance of winning the title we came very close. Davidson partnered Hale for this one and produced another good performance coming very close but just losing 11-9 in the match tie-break.
Notable Performances:
James Hale was very strong in all matches and some of his very best tennis was against Danny Urey in the ‘couldn’t miss’ first set 4-0. Against Oliver Vessely James was a set and 3-1 down but brought it back to the brink of victory at 9-9 in the match tie-breaker.
Amazing ‘never-say-die’ performances also came from James Griffin when 3-1 down against William Haynes he went on to win 8 games in a row to take the match. Tom Casey was also 3-1 down in his second set against William Toft. Tom found another gear and turned it around to win the match 5-4, 5-3.
These were real moments of truth and proof of the brilliant overall team spirit and competitive edge.
Well done to the boys for their excellent attitude, work rate and behaviour all weekend, they are a really fun bunch. On court, their efforts and sportsmanship were unsurpassed.
Thanks to parents and a special thanks to Colin Carr who was fantastic all weekend, great fun, working hard watching every point and really getting involved. With his good tennis brain I hope he gets involved with more County Cups to come.
It was a memorable weekend and thanks to all involved.
Lee Burrell
Cumbria 10 & Under Boys County Cup Captain 2013