Ladies Group 4 at Cheltenham on 18th-22nf July 2011
Captains Report:
We travelled down to Cheltenham, some new and some very familiar faces within the team.
With some last minute changes due to injury within the team, Shanice Dunk and Sarah Kate O’Grady came into the squad for the first time representing Nottingham at Ladies County Week.
Monday saw us up against Cambridge who we knew would be one of the weaker teams so a win was important. After round 1 we had an all important win in the 3v3 round with Sarah Usher and Sarah- Kate taking the vital rubber. Emily Crowe and Paula Peters saw off the third pair in the second round and Charlotte Phillips and Sarah Wright took all three of their rubbers to continue their winning streak from the previous year making it 18 on the trot.
Day 2 saw us play South Wales who had managed to draft in 2 very highly ranked players as their first pair after their defeat on day 1.
After round 1 we were 3-0 down losing a tough 3 set match through Sarah Wright and Charlotte who were narrowly defeated 7-6 in the 3rd set. We battled throughout the day but with two more 3 set matches closely lost we were unfortunate not to pick up a rubber and suffered a 9-0 defeat. With Shanice having to return home due to family illness this put the 6 players under immense pressure though reinforcements were on their way.
Day 3 saw us face Northumberland and again we knew if we could secure victory we should retain our position in Group 4. The team from the following days remain unchanged. Picking up 2 of the 3 rubbers in the first two rounds we were 4-2 up heading into the final round. With Sarah Wright and Charlotte winning comfortably we were 5-4 winners and the team were delighted.
On the Thursday we faced leaders East of Scotland and we knew it was going to be a tough match as they had dropped very few rubbers. With a few team changes and no reinforcements arriving we went out to have fun. Tiredness was beginning to show and although Sarah Usher and Emily picked up a great win in 3 sets we were unfortunate not to pick up any more. We lost 8-1 and team moral wasn’t at its best.
The last day saw us face North Wales, and with comedy and entertainment restored with Sarah Kate and Sarah Usher we went out to end the week on a high. We lost 6-3 but retained our group 4 position which was the goal of the week so overall a good performance.
The whole team put in some great performances and I hope the stresses and the strains from the week were ironed out by the enjoyment of the team spirit. With all 6 girls (well 5 and one old lady !!!) playing every day I really appreciate all their hard work, determination and honour for representing their county. It’s tough out there with little back up of substitutions and supporters and I hope that our younger players will continue to support our county tennis set-up in the future. The experience of team competition is invaluable and I hope that we have a strong flow of players continuing to progress into the team and enjoy it throughout their tennis careers.
The team, pictured from left to right
Sarah Wright (Captain), Paula Peters, Emily Crowe, Charlotte Phillips, Sarah-Kate O’Grady, Sarah Usher - and also Shanice Dunk. (not in photo)