Congratulations to the Leicestershire Men’s County Squad who had a most successful week in Cambridge, playing in the immaculate surroundings of the University, where they were undefeated in their Division Four matches. It is quite a few years since Leicestershire Men played Division Three tennis and that is something to look forward to next July.
"Played 5 Won 5" sounds impressive and the squad’s play was indeed impressive for the whole week since all five matches were won quite comfortably. The County team had been in the doldrums for a few years, slipping down to Division Five at one point. However, there has been a great revival in the past couple of seasons and the County now has a squad of young, keen and talented players who all want to do well for Leicestershire tennis. Three promotions in these years means that the men will now be playing at the level that they should be. A most noticeable reason for their success, apart from their playing ability, was the tremendous team spirit which shone through for the whole week. This excellent attitude will be needed in spades next year when in Division Three the squad will face counties as strong as Lancashire, Essex and Middlesex. However, the Leicestershire team is still improving and three of them are under twenty years old.
The “senior” players Tom Kisiel, Jack Simpson, Jon Cloke and Adam Popowicz blended well with three exciting young players Connor Glennon, Marc Westgate and Ben Mullis to form strong pairs throughout the week. These three youngsters add a new dimension to the team which is vital if Leicestershire are to consolidate in Division Three or even get promoted to Division Two. There were only seven players in the squad but luckily there were no injuries and the players’ fitness saw them through to a win against Notts on the Friday to ensure an undefeated week.
On Monday the weather delayed things so Leicestershire had to wait until Tuesday before completing a 7-2 defeat of Berkshire. North Wales were beaten 8-1 followed by a 6-3 win against Hereford and Worcs. The team needed to defeat West of Scotland to ensure promotion, which they did 6-3, and the title was wrapped up on Friday against Notts 4-2. The final match was not completed since the final positions were now decided.
Once more, congratulations to all the players who are now looking forward to Winter County Cup. It’s great to see the players all wanting to play for the County and to raise the profile of tennis in Leicestershire. All of these players have represented junior Leicestershire teams for many seasons and it is pleasing to see them now playing at a high standard for the Men’s County Team. There is healthy competition between the players which creates a team with a competitive edge. It all bodes well for the foreseeable future. Let’s hope so!