Paraparaumu Beach retain crown
Paraparaumu Beach arrived at the women’s premier interclub final down by two matches and with only three players, and they won anyway.
They beat Khandallah four matches to two at the Renouf Tennis Centre on Saturday night, retaining the title they won last year.
The team was one player short after 12-year-old Amy Kieboom broke her left wrist in the school playground on Tuesday.
Under the rules it was too late to call up a replacement player, so Paraparaumu Beach defaulted the singles and doubles matches she would have played in.
The remaining players, New Zealand’s fifth-ranked women’s player Leela Beattie, Amelia Lawson and Antonia Lawson won the four remaining matches in straight sets, dropping a combined seven games.
The result could not have been predicted. Paraparaumu Beach was already missing Aucklander Holly Stewart and Georgia Kingi, who were both unavailable, and the teams’ round robin tie finished seven-sets, 50-games all earlier this month.
Club captain Lane Lawson said he was quietly confident his team could still win, and in actuality never looked like losing.
‘‘Our girls dealt with it a whole lot better than the other crowd did. We were so much more composed on the night.’’
The team had earned the right to retain their title.
‘‘Last year Leela and Holly really dominated for us. This year it’s got much more of a local feel to it.’’
The tie was played in front of a strong crowd - he said about 300 people watched from the indoor Renouf Centre grandstand, which was about 80 per cent full.
‘‘I’ve never seen so many people there for club tennis ... you had to park 400 metres down the road to get in. It was a great ad for tennis.’’
Tawa-Lyndhurst retained their men’s title, beating Thorndon 8-7 on sets, after the tie finished three-all on matches.
The result meant last year’s two first-time winners went backto-back.
Thorndon had won 13 of the 14 seasons before Tawa-Lyndhurst beat them in the last two grand finals.