Koalas and Banksias take top spots

Tuesday Night by Brendan Grant Tuesday night was a perfect night for tennis. First match of the evening. Ladder leaders Speirs were up against Murray. In the absence of their number one player, the Speirs team looked on paper, to be undermanned. The scorecard was to tell a different story as Anna Speirs, Liam Delany, Michael McCormack and David Aldous fought hard all-night to take all but one set against their opponents. Speirs 6-5-35 def Murray 1-1-22 On the next courts, McDonagh and Grant fought it out all night with scores all level after 4 sets. The pairing of Greg McDermott and Jaden Findlay got over the line in a close 5th set. Mark Poole and Liam Wilson defeated Michelle Pigdon and Max O’Loughlan in the last. McDonagh 5-4-32 def Grant 2-2-25 The next match of the evening was between Blake and O’Loughlan. O’Loughlan started strong, with Mark O’Loughlan and Sarah Fox taking the first set 6-1 against Rohan West and Tony Canterbury. Shane Hutchinson and Liza Karras steadied the ship for the Blake team taking the next set 6-3 against Glenn Fox and James Fox. Blake went on to win three of the last four sets and sure up second spot on the ladder. Blake 5-4-29 def O’Loughlan 2-2-23 Tuesday Ladder: Speirs 24, Blake 21.5, McDonagh 15.5, Grant 12.5, Evans 10.5, Murray 7, O’Loughlan 7. Wednesday night by David Mims and Simon Young Wombats played Kangas in a wildly fluctuating affair, with two tie-breaks to Wombats, more than offset by two 0-6 losses. The first of those tie-breaks saw Josh Koning and Sean Pitchford burrow to a 5-2 set lead, before Kangas Peter and Liz Scales bounced back to level five all, then jump to a 6-1 tie-break lead. But Wombats dug deep, and somehow managed to level the scores before going on to a stunning 9-7 win in a marathon set that had teammates looking on in awe. Amidst the maelstrom of the night, there was one shining light, in the form of player of the match, Sean Pitchford, who won all three of his sets. Despite his amazing ability to ignore various partners cries of “leave it” and strike balls that were surely sailing long, and an uncanny ability to return opposition shots with his unique forehand-backhand-cricket defense like stokes, Pitchford was the standout of the evening. His heroics however were not enough to get Wombats over the line. Scores: Kangaroos 3-32 d Wombats 3-20 Koalas took on top side Bilbies and Ted Lovick had lots of deuces on his serve and noted a final score that didn’t reflect the closeness of the match at all. Will McAlister stepped in for the Koalas with Julie Aldous and Veronica Chambers supporting Ted. Emma Kay was strong for Bilbies, but Will was the saviour on the night for Koalas who won 5 sets to 1, 32-18 games. Koalas took top spot and pushed Bilbies to fourth on the ladder. Wallabies’ regulars Will Smith, Alice Kilpatrick, Jeremy Veneman and Dafydd James were a well-oiled machine against Kookaburras who included Simon Young having just returned from Queensland. They played two tiebreaks, but player of the night was awarded to Wallabies Alice Kilpatrick. Wallabies won 6/36 to 0/14. Wednesday Ladder: Koalas 24, Wallabies 23, Emus 19.5, Bilbies 19.5, Kangas 18.5, Wombats 12.5 and Kookaburras 5.5. Thursday night by Courtney Purcell It was a cold windy night this week however, that didn’t seem to deter the competitive edge in matches this week. The Gum Trees faced off against Lilly Pillys. Anna Francis rallied superbly but her opposite Jodie Morrow found snappy volleys at net and served strongly after warming up. Arthur Gerrans played his third consecutive match this week and began with a bang and a 6-2 win with partner Chelsea Dean. Gum Trees’ Tim Vardy and Bob Carpenter were not letting any opportunity slip in the ‘Carpenter rematch’ and took theirs in a tiebreak, 7-1. Peter Barnes and Bob won all their sets for Gum Trees who won every set bar the opener winning 5/32 to 1/23. The top of the table clash between Wattles and Banksias was the match of the night with lengthy sets, and two tiebreakers both going Banksias way. Bill Jones and Jo O’Brien won Wattles only set in the hotly contested affair. After being on the bottom in Round 1 Banksias have worked their way up the ladder. Andrew Raftery has now joined teammates Nat, Bron and Kimberley beating top side Wattles to lead the comp for the very first time. Banksias won 5/34 to 1/23. Bottle Brush faced off against Flame Trees this week with Flame Trees taking out the win. The score sheet didn’t account for some great matchups with some very handy sneaky shots from Brad Freind and great rallies between all players. The night finished strongly with a super competitive last set. Bottle Brush’s Chris Hill and Al Crocket played out a tiebreaker against Courtney O’Loughlan and last-minute fill in Haydn Murrell. Courtney and Haydn snatched the win 8-6. Flame Trees picked up 7 points in the 6/36 to 0/12 win. Thursday ladder: Banksias 27, Wattles 25.5, Flame Trees 25, Gum Trees 25, Lilly Pillys 14.5, Bottle Brush 9. Thanks must go to players who provided reports in the absence of their captains this week. Social tennis enjoyed the welcome return of Mary Reilly, Sue Reynolds, Jenny Bell and Anne Devenish last Wednesday. Arthur Gerrans has also joined the regulars as his final school year concludes. Quality mini matches take up three courts from 1pm each Wednesday afternoon. MTA is holding a Pickleball Skills Development Clinic next Sunday the 30 November. Are you ready to take your game to the next level? Join in the clinic, led by a Level Two Accredited Pickleball Coach. Choose from two sessions: 11am – 1pm or 1pm – 3pm. Each session is capped at 12 participants to ensure personalised coaching and plenty of court time. For $35 per person, all the equipment is supplied, just bring your enthusiasm. To book your spot, head to the MTA website. It is perfect for players looking to build confidence, sharpen technique, and grow their love of the game.

Koalas and Banksias take top spots

Crucial tiebreak triumphs at night tennis

Full moon, fierce matches, and fun rivalries

Weather disrupts tennis but spirits stay high

Summer night competition back with a bang

Another week of competitive tennis

Rufous Whistler – arrival of a summer songbird

Bombers go back-to-back in A grade

“No stone unturned” – Police committed to the long-haul in manhunt

Start your engines, Wilby Drags are back

Most popular stories