Close call as hot Bay fight back

Beacon Bay won the Buffalo City men’s first league tennis title when they defeated their traditional rivals, Old Selbornians, in a closely contested final round.

The Old Boys combination of Ryan Little and Nicos Efstratiou captured the first set against the tall Bernard de Boer and upand-coming young Sam McQuirk at 7-5, only to see their opponents strike back to take the second at 6-2. Old Boys sealed the deal by romping through the final set super tiebreaker with the loss of only one point.

In the clash between the second couples of each team, Ryan Armstrong and Jean Coetzee put on a display of fireworks allowing Joseph Townes and Sebastian Hensberg a mere two games in their encounter.

The Old Selbornian pair made amends for this defeat. Coming back from one set down against De Boer and McQuirk, they squeezed their way through to victory at 10-8 in the super tiebreaker.

The Armstrong/Coetzee combination resurrected themselves from the jaws of defeat after trailing Little and Efstratiou 1-4 in the final set super tiebreaker. In a nail-biting finish the Beacon Bay pair shoehorned their way through at 6-2, 6-7, 10-6 to take Beacon Bay to victory.

In the other first league fixture Beacon Bay B and Alfa drew in matches.

Gary Thorne and Grant Stuart used their experience as a doubles couple to score straight set victories over Alfa’s Lester Barkhuysen/Kaylan Padley and Graham Jekels/Jeremy Adcock partnerships dropping a mere four games overall.

Both Alfa couples were victorious over the Steven Wood/ Ethan Gibbons combinations. Barkhuysen and Padley won 75, 6-1, while Jekels and Adcock were made to fight every inch of the way before emerging victorious at 7-5, 7-6.

The women’s first league once again proved a huge success with the top 12 players divided into three teams and playing a round-robin.

Led by Cherie Biggs, the Wilson team of Sheila Smith, Kim O’Leary and Joy Brits amassed 44 games to the 34 gained by Head’s Cindy Taylor, Gill van Niekerk, Lorna Grotjohn and Kleber. DETAILED RESULTS OF FIRST LEAGUE MATCHES: MEN

BEACON BAY A v OLD BOYS Bernard de Boer, Sam McQuirk lost to Ryan Little, Nicos Efstratiou 7-5, 2-6, 110 lost to Joseph Townes, Sebastian Hensberg 6-2, 2-6, 8-10

Ryan Armstrong, Jean Coetzee bt Little, Efstratiou 6-2, 6-7, 10-6 bt Townes, Hensberg 6-0, 6-2 Beacon Bay A 2 (8), Old Boys 2 (5) BEACON BAY B v ALFA Gary Thorne, Grant Stuart bt Lester Barkhuyzen, Kaylan Padley 6-2, 6-1; bt Jeremy Adcock, Graham Jekels 6-1, 6-0 Steve Wood, Ethan Gibbons lost to Barkhuysen, Padley 5-7, 1-6; lost to Adcock, Jekels 5-7, 6-7

Beacon Bay B 2 (5); Alfa 2 (4) WOMEN HEAD v WILSON Cindy Taylor, Lorna Grotjohn lost to Cherie Biggs, Joy Brits 6-7

Cassie Kleber, Gill van Niekerk lost to Sheila Smith, Kim O’Leary 5-8 Taylor, Van Niekerk lost to Biggs, O’Leary 3-10.

Kleber, Grotjohn bt Smith, Brits 7-6 Taylor, Kleber bt Biggs, Smith 7-6 Van Niekerk, Grotjohn lost to O’Leary, Brits 6-7

Wilson 47, Head 34.