Week 1 Division 2 Southend Summer League
Hadleigh B were 7/2 winners over Basildon D on the opening day of competition. Two singles wins each here for Colin Barham and Dave Woolmer with Ivan Arabadzhiev adding another win with a close fought 11-9 final set win over Alwine Jarvis. Michael Elemide was Basildon’s only singles winner with a victory over Ivan. Alwine and Michael picked up Basildon’s other point with a win in their doubles together.
Stanford C recorded a big 8/1 win over Hockley C whose only success on the night came from Perry Lazell with a 4-set win over Karen Kempster. Otherwise, it was all one-way traffic for Stanford with Randy Santiago and new recruit Mike Trendell putting in unbeaten performances.
Canvey B hosted Stanford B and it was the away side who left with a 6/3 win. The 6 singles games were shared but it was the doubles that made the difference with Stanford successful in all 3 games. Trevor Hayes’ 2 singles wins for Canvey was matched by Vaughan Chambers for Stanford.
Invicta B did not let the lack of a third player prevent them from getting the better of a youthful Matchpoint B side. Andrew St John and Mike Keeble won both their singles and then combined to win the doubles to give them a 5/4 win.
The experience of Runnymede’s Tony Millward proved to be the difference when his side took on Basildon C. Tony came out on top in both of his singles games and both his doubles with partners Steve Wisbey and Andrew Humphris, but 5 sets were needed for both games. Dave Walton won both his singles games for Basildon.
Week 2
Canvey C crossed the water for their match against Invicta B but were dispatched in double quick time. The home trio of Mike Keeble, Trish Winter and Brendan Raja were 9/0 winners, dropping just 2 sets on the way.
In contrast, it was a much closer affair as Hockley C entertained Runnymede. The away side left with a narrow 5/4 win but there were some tight games. None more so than the meeting of James Evesham and Andrew Humphris. This game swung in favour of one player and then the other before James got over the line at 11-9 in the fifth set. Both Ross Collins for Hockley and Steve Wisbey for Runnymede ended the night with 2 singles and a doubles win each.
Basildon C found themselves with only 2 players for their home match against Hadleigh B but managed to pick up 3 points. A singles win each for Basildon’s Steve Walters and Kieran Wood and a doubles win together saw them restrict their visitors to a 6/3 win, for whom Dave Woolmer won both his singles.
Basildon D proved to be good for Matchpoint B, with an 8/1 victory the outcome. Sam Morgan picked up the only point for Matchpoint with a win over Michael Elemide. Despite the convincing scoreline, it was not all plain sailing for Michael and teammates Ross Letham and Errol Anderson, with several games only decided in the fifth set.
The Stanford ‘derby’ was postponed as their venue was not available.
Week 3
Hadleigh B recorded their 3rd win and top the table, but their match with Hockley C was closely fought. It seemed at the start of the evening as if Hockley would only have two players, but Gary Beck was summoned from in front of the TV to come and play and he made big impact with 2 singles and a doubles win. Dave Woolmer was unbeaten in singles and doubles for Hadleigh, and a win for Ivan Arabadzhiev over George Clark ensured a 5/4 win for the hosts. Ben Brown won Hockley’s other point with a fifth set win over Sineh Ball.
A solid team performance saw Canvey B get the better of Invicta B, 6/3 being the end result. The Canvey trio of Tony Westwell, Kevin Walsingham and Des Duffield all contributed in both singles and doubles. For Invicta there was singes win each for Trish Winter and Andrew St John and the pair combined to win their doubles.
Basildon C also visited Canvey this week to play the hosts C team. For Basildon there was singles win each for Alwine Jarvis, Ross Letham and Anton Kudynuik and the 3 of them made a clean sweep of the doubles. Steve Kemp was the best on the night for Canvey, winning both his singles.
An experienced Basildon C side got the better of the Matchpoint B juniors but there were good wins for Zachary Samuels and Sam Morgan over Dave Walton and Steve Walters respectively. Kieran Wood was the leading light for Basildon, winning both his singles and doubles games. 7/2 the score here in Basildon’s favour.
Runnymede were grateful that Tony Millward was in their side when they took on Stanford C, as he won both his singles, and doubles alongside his teammates Steve Wisbey and Steve McQuillan. However, it was Stanford who were 5/4 winners with Mike Trendell leading the way with two singles wins and a doubles win with Randy Santiago. Randy also won a singles as did son Jake.
Report by Dave Woolmer