All points north for tennis talent
Tennis talent Marcus McLaren served up a treat while representing the North of Scotland.
The Strathallan student was on duty over the weekend at the 18 and under County Cup, which was held at Nuffield Tennis Academy in Hull.
And the north enjoyed a memorable few days of action to finish top of group 3B and earn themselves promotion for next year.
Marcus teamed-up with Ben Hudson, Jamie Connel, Ruari McLennan, Christopher Horgan, Euan Mackenzie, Cameron Fryer and Ross Lyon.
In charge of the team for the event was Bruce McIver, who coaches at Stonehaven Tennis Club. He watched on as the determined young players edged out Cambridgeshire, Hampshire and West of Scotland to take top spot.
Marcus (14), from St Madoes and a member of Kinnoull Tennis Club, told the Perthshire Advertiser: “We won 5-4 in every single match.
“We had strong doubles pairings and that proved to be very helpful. The Cambridgeshire win was a really good one.
“With the overall score at 4-4, I managed to win my doubles match with Ben Hudson.
“I think I played quite well, winning two doubles and a singles. I won three out of three which is good for me at under-18 level.
“We went into the event as underdogs, when you look at rankings. We were fourth on the list.
“We’re into Division Two now which is going to be tough, but it’s good for the county to get up there. That will be next February.
“It’s a good opportunity for me to play with the county and it’s good to be involved in a team. We’re all pals and get along, which helps on court too.”
Marcus has already been busy on court this year, travelling to top events both in Scotland and south of the border. And his game has been sharpened up further by training alongside students who play for Stirling University.
“I’ve been playing a lot at school and also hitting with the university students at Stirling on Tuesday and Friday,” he said. “That helps a lot.
“We had a couple of hits as a team before we left for Hull.
“Next I’ve got the Scottish Indoor doubles at the end of March and then the inter-district at Kilgraston, which is the start of April.
“This year I want to win some grade three under-16 events in Scotland and also England. Then maybe start to play more ITF events.
“I recently made the semi-finals of a grade two in Sunderland and also played a grade one tournament in London.
“I lost first round there but played pretty well.” Competition at Marcus’ age group is strong at present and that helps to push him on.
“In Scotland there is a good level just now,” said Marcus, who is grateful for the support of business The Ventilation Experts.
“It’s good having more players, because you can get bored playing the same people all of the time.”
Fellow Kinnoull member Lexie MacMillan was also representing North of Scotland over the weekend and competed in Norwich.
Playing in Group 4B, they battled well and came up against tough opposition in South Wales, West of Scotland and Norfolk.