Horncastle Tennis Club celebrated their Davis Cup Trophy Tour event on Saturday 24 September and more than 380 tennis fans from around the county flooded in to the Coronation Walk site for the chance to see this huge trophy up close. The magnificent iconic trophy is adorned with inscriptions dating back to 1900 and of course the latest additions- Andy and Jamie Murray et al.
The Davis Cup is the ‘World Cup’ of tennis and after Team GB won the cup in 2015, the Lawn Tennis Association pledged to tour the country to make sure as many grass roots players and fans were able to view it as possible. “We were delighted and honoured to be chosen to host this event for Lincolnshire Tennis,” said membership secretary and Coach Shirley Sutton. “The trophy is the biggest in world sport, standing over a metre high and just as wide.
The trophy came direct from Scotland, in a transit van adorned with larger than life pictures of the Davis Cup winning team and took almost an hour to set up.
VIP guests Victoria Atkins MP, Horncastle Mayor Bill Aron and David Chambers of Lindum Construction were welcomed to the event also and, very fittingly on this day, Ms Atkins went on to present Club Coach Karl Sutton with an LTA award for commitment to Aegon Team Tennis.
Horncastle fields Aegon teams in all age groups, from 8U upwards, and this award recognised the fulfilment of all fixtures and good organisational and communication skills. Two of the junior teams, 8U and 14U, won their division this year too. In presenting the award, Ms Atkins said how wonderful it was to see the courts so full with especially the children running around having fun and keeping active.
Team tennis activities were planned by the coaches, who coped well with the seemingly never ending queues to play. In true Davis Cup fashion, the cheering for teams was loud and energetic.
Players from six years through to seniors competed for either the blue or red team throughout the day. There were also opportunities to test your service speed and play the longest rally, along with many co-ordination games and activities run by Tennis Leaders.
The courts were full all day, as was the spectators’ area. The hog roast, bar and cakes ensured everyone had an enjoyable afternoon. Especially entertaining to watch was the Cardio Tennis sessions, with accompanying loud music, which saw 30+ adults taking part and later more than 35 children wanting to join in the fun with their own version!
Tennis continued under the floodlights and visitors continued to arrive until the trophy was eventually packed away ready for its onward journey - next stop Stratford upon Avon.
The club is currently offering a half price Davis Cup Trophy Tour discount for any new members joining before the end of October. Call the club on 07917 410 657 or email horncastletennis@outlook.com for full details.