With the temperatures set to be high, and grass courts of Devonshire Park lush, the scene was set for yet another battle for the Men of Kent. Although Captain Burgoyne was sidelined after shoulder surgery, the Kent men looked strong with a mixture of experience and youth alongside the fighting spirit for which Kent are so well known.
Day 1 versus Surrey
Day one saw a familiar foe in Surrey, historically a difficult match for us and perhaps more so with them being defending champions. The Kent line up was Lewis 'Luigi' Burton and the everlasting Rob ' The Pearl' Searle at pair 1, Matthew 'Shorty' Short and 'Gandalph' Jim May at pair 2, and finally Francis 'Dino' Sargeant and Alastair 'Many a nose' Filmer as pair 3.
On the bench was new comer Thomas 'Mini Burton' Wright as our youngest squad player in the summer for over 20 years, and Paul 'Chef Dogg' Cook and Patryk 'Forehead' Koscielski also waiting in the wings with Colin Beecher coming down later in the week to balance out Tom's youth!
The first court saw an incredibly high level match between the two of the best pairs in the event which saw the Burton/Searle partnership take Kent 1-0 up in an amazing opening rubber. Meanwhile Short and May made light work of their match to Kent 2-0 up against the 2013 champions. Filmer and Sargeant were not to be left out with a tidy performance at third pair and on lunchtime day one everyone looked on as Kent were 3-0 up. Round 2 saw Matt Short injured and unable to really compete and Surrey took their first win of the day and with it all the momentum. before we knew it Filmer and Sargeant went the same way and Burton and Searle down. Surely we weren’t going to tea at three all? Not with Robbie Searle on the court and with the will of lions he and Luigi Burton wrestled the match around and took us to 4-2 at tea.
Round three saw the introduction of Tom Wright taking the place of the injured Short, but against Surrey's best pair. Although Tom made a great debut, it was a step too far, even with the great Jim May, but Tom showed without doubt that he will be a force for Kent in the future, 4-3. The Burton/Searle combination took their third win of the day and put Kent over the finish line, closely followed by Filmer/Sargeant. With momentum being a key ingredient at County Week, beating last year’s champions had sent a message to the others teams, Kent are in the hunt.
Day 2 versus Hampshire and IOW
With our tails up, Kent warmed up in the summer sunshine, music on the side of the court. Captain Burgs had shuffled the cards a little putting Matt Short with Francis Sargeant at 3rd pair, Searle and Burton at 2 and Jim May with Alastair Filmer at 1. Hampshire’s first pair had won all their matches on day one, but, but day one wasn’t versus Kent! With Burton showing a great combination of big serving and drop volleys and partner Searle unleashing huge forehands and flashing across the net like a blond haired ninja Kent were 1-0 up. Short and Sargeant played like an established pair right away and Kent’s SAS took us quickly to 2-0. Like an old glove, Kent had seen the Filmer/May partnership many times and as usual it was a joy to see with Jim's silky timing and Alastair's gunslinger reactions at the net. For the second day in a row Kent found themselves 3-0 up at lunch.
The Kent support was as loud and proud as ever, the players calling each other’s names across the courts and the reserves and Captain in full voice at the back. 'It only happens in the garden' came a voice from beyond. It was Matt Short, with the loudest voice in the U.K., and of course he was referring the Kent being 'The garden of England'. Our tails were up and it was clear for all to see. As we moved through the day Kent were ready and able to perform in all the close situations and as the sun set on day two we were worthy winners 6-3.
Day 3 versus Hertfordshire
The battle of all battles is the general feeling when Kent and Hertfordshire collide, but truth be told, although we have had some famous victories, we certainly have been on the losing side more times than not and memories of a 9-0 loss a few years before still stings for those involved on that day. Colin Beecher had arrived the previous night, but Captain Burgoyne couldn’t change the line up from the day before after a brilliant performance against Hampshire, but Colin was Sub if required. The SAS partnership resumed normal service and got us quickly on the scoreboard. The crowds were the biggest of the week as word spread through Kent that we were on a charge at the title. Then suddenly, and without warning it looked like perhaps the wheels were falling off as for the first time in the week there was a serious sign of trouble. Although Filmer was on fire, his partner 'Jungle' Jim May had heat stroke and they went down in flames. Meanwhile Burton and Searle were taken apart and we were 2-1 down and behind for the first time in the week. After a short lunch break we hit the courts again in the scorching 30° sun, and in an exciting round with no close matches the heroes of Kent stood tall and cast a shadow over their Hertfordshire opponents as if to say 'Not today'. As Matt Short unloaded his 100th missile like forehand of the week, we were level. 3-3 at tea time and all to play for.
It was so hot that Captain 'Burgs' as under an umbrella to shield his 'even redder than normal' face from the sun. Lewis Burton laughed at the sight of his captain; hit a winner and the laughed again! The team spirit immense, the crowds enthused, it came down to the last match and we heard a new chant from the Galleries 'God, is a Kentish man!'. I can’t say for sure that this is true, but on this day the Kentish men were not for losing, and the Burton/Searle partnership pushed us over the finish line. At the end of day three Kent were the only un beaten team at Eastbourne.
Day 4 versus Lancashire
With the title insight the Captain recalled stories of years past when we had slipped up after some great wins and ended up with nothing at the end of the week. Hopefully ready, we hit the courts in yet more scorching sunshine. A win today would put us tantalisingly close to a title we hadn’t held since 2007, but in our way were a clearly pumped up Lancs team.
Kent lined up with Jim May/Colin Beecher at one, Searle/Burton at two and the SAS at three. The early exchanges didn’t go well for Kent apart from the SAS who were too strong at three, and at lunch we were behind 2-1. It was a shock for Kent, who were expecting to be at least 2-1 up, but expectations are always dangerous and Kent were reminded to stay in the moment. As the temperature soared, so did the support, and the level of play, on both sides. By 2pm it was all hanging in the balance when Jim May inadvertently played a master stroke. Jim questioned why his opponents were taking so long between points? This simple question seemed to unease their opponents and from that moment the afternoon turned Kent’s way with wins at one and two. We were level 3-3
All to play for in round three, and Lancs got off to a quick start taking a set in 20 minutes on the first court. Again Kent dug deep and on the middle court as Lewis and Rob hit top gear in what was Lewis's best match of the week, and before we knew it, it was 4-4.
Down to the SAS, and in the most exciting match of the week Matt Short and Francis Sargeant became heroes. It was tight, but when needed they stood taller, prouder and perhaps even better looking!
Kent win 5-4 and head in to day 5 needing a win to claim the title.
Day 5 versus South Wales
You can see it, and even smell it, but you can’t have it, you have to take it! We were expecting a battle royale as South Wales were playing to stay up. Kent started unchanged from Thursday, and as Beecher and May unloaded on the third pair 6-0 6-0 the energy was starting to go from the Welsh and we were 3-0 up at lunch. Captain Burgs Subbed in Alastair Filmer for Francis Sargeant for a final push for the line and in a strange moment of fate two matches ended exactly at the same time, and before 3pm Kent had the title. The boys huddled, and savoured the moment as the Captain arrived with 12 pints of Pimms to sip in the sunshine….What a week!
Summary
As always The Kent Men were greater than the sum of their parts, but this week, the spirit was perhaps even more than usual. The tennis was excellent, but the most impressive thing to behold was that when it got tight, the whole team pulled together and the individuals thrived under the pressure, making Kent an unbeatable force in the 2014 event. As Captain I couldn’t be prouder of our achievement and although I have been part of a winning side as a player three times before, it was my first as Captain, which was a special feeling.
We look forward to returning as reigning champions in 2015 and the residents of Eastbourne have a whole 51 weeks off before they here the war cry of
‘COME ON THE GARDEN’
Kent Men, 2014 Champions, and well deserved...