2009 ROYAL AIR FORCE LAWN TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS REPORT

The 2009 Royal Air Force Tennis Championships were held at the RAF Tennis Centre Halton during the week 20-25 July and saw 66 competitors enter; a relatively healthy field during these challenging operational times. The good old ‘British’ weather was anything but predictable, which required both players and organisers to remain flexible in order to maximise the amount of tennis played each day.

With only one draw, some notable players lost in the first round to some of the new faces to the event. These ‘unknown’ quantities, new to RAF tennis, were a welcome addition and bode well for a bright future for the sport. In the event of having just a single draw, the Men’s Open Plate Competition became a fiercely fought event. The eventual winner, Sqn Ldr Edward Dodwell played several highly competitive matches before reaching the final where he met Pilot Officer Peter James of the University of Wales Air Squadron. Sqn Ldr Dodwell, a seasoned player, won the match 6-1, 6-4.

The mixed doubles final saw Wg Cdr Vicky Gosling and Sqn Ldr Nigel Ibbetson play Wg Cdr Helen Stewart and Fg Off David Hayes. On paper the match should have been a closely fought tie; both Wg Cdrs Gosling and Stewart are both in the Ladies' squad and Sqn Ldr Ibbetson and Fg Off Hayes are station players at RAF High Wycombe. Stewart and Hayes had formed an extremely sound partnership and the consistency of their play ensured the first set was won 6-2. Although their opponents made a valiant effort to draw the match level, Stewart and Hayes were too strong and powered their way to a second set victory.

A notable match in the Men’s Veterans Competition saw two of the ‘big guns’ and stalwarts of RAF Tennis - Flight Sergeants Mark Lane and Kev Doyle - fight it out. The spectators were witness to some excellent baseline rallies and a determined Doyle won through in two extremely tight sets 7-5, 7-5.

The Men’s Open Doubles Plate Final was competed by Wg Cdr Roy Hesketh partnering Sgt Barry pitted against FS Martin Burnell and Sgt Danny Batson. Played indoors due to the onset of heavy showers, this was a hard fought match and went to 3 sets with the pairing of Burnell and Batson winning 6-2, 3-6, 7-5.

After the rain during the week it was a relief to arrive at the Tennis Centre on Saturday - Finals day -to find the courts bathed in sunshine. The Men’s Inter-Station final saw RAF Cranwell A come up against RAF Lyneham A; represented by Flt Lt Chris Evans/Plt Off Peter James and FS Kev Doyle/Cpl Andy Keeley respectively. The first set went to Evans and James 6-2 but Keeley and Doyle kept the match alive by battling hard in the second, winning through a very tight set 7-5 to set up the all deciding third set. At 3-5 the RAF No 1, Chris Evans, had to hold serve to stay in the match, which he duly did; but soon after, Lyneham, being a break up, had the chance to serve the match out through Andy Keeley. Cranwell were not about to concede and broke serve to level the set at 5 all. Cranwell won their next serve heaping the pressure back on Lyneham to serve and level the deciding set 6-6 to force a Championship Tie-Break. Lyneham duly delivered and the spectators were treated to a hard fought final game which Cranwell won 8-6.

The Ladies Inter-Station final endured a 3 set battle between RAF Waddington’s Flt Lt Emma Clamp/Cpl Rhae McCartney versus RAF High Wycombe’s Squadron Ldr Delia Chadwick/Sqn Ldr Kate Frayling. A nervous, shaky start for High Wycombe allowed Waddington to take the first set 6-4. Not about to lie down, the High Wycombe pair raised their game and a combination of Chadwick’s powerful ground strokes and Frayling’s net play resulted in them breaking serve at 4-4 to secure the second set 6-4. The final set came together for the High Wycombe pair as they cruised ahead 4-0. A fight back by Waddington to make it 4-2 wasn’t enough to stop High Wycombe taking the final set and the match at 6-2.

Meanwhile, in the first of 3 veterans matches scheduled for finals’ day, Sqn Ldr Damian Gange partnered by FS Mark Lane played Sqn Ldr (Retired) David Stillman and Flt Lt (Retired) Ged Doherty. Gange/Lane won the first set 7-5, but a resilient Stillman/Doherty came back in the second, 6-3, to set up a deciding third set. This thrilling final set was also decided by a Championship Tie-Break with Stillman/Doherty victorious 7-6 (7-5).

The Ladies' Open Singles final was a contest between Sqn Ldr Delia Chadwick and Cpl Rae McCartney, with McCartney coming through to win in a score of 6-3, 6-2 which saw her finally winning the Ladies' Single’s title having been runner up to her sister, Lyn, for a number of years.

The Men’s Open Final saw the No 1 and 2 seeds for the competition meet and pitted the 2006 Champion, Flt Lt Chris Evans against the 2007 Champion Cpl Andy Keeley. This match was always going to be a hard fought battle and Keeley exercised his intent to reclaim the trophy by winning the first set 6-3. It was clear that this was not the end of the story, and Evans bravely fought back to win the second set 6-1. Evans held his nerve in the final set to win 6-3 and lift the trophy for the second time.

The Veterans' Final was even tighter than the score line showed, with Flt Lt (Retired) Ged Doherty, in his second victory of the day, winning against FS Kev Doyle, in a tense two-setter, 7-6 (7-3 tie break) and 7-5.

Having completed an epic singles fixture Evans and Keeley were once again battling out in the Men’s Open Doubles Final where youth and determination would be matched against the wise and experienced. FS Mark Lane, Men’s Captain, paired with FS Marc Hughes, Head Coach would play the pairing of RAF No 1 and 2 in the form of Flt Lt Chris Evans and Cpl Andy Keeley. There was no 'Changing of the Guard' this year as Lane/Hughes, despite losing the first set 4-6, went on to win the second and third sets 6-2, 6-4. The result was Hughes’ 16th Open Doubles title and Lane’s 7th; some achievement!

An addition to this year's prizes was the Head Coach's trophy. RAF Tennis Head Coach, FS Marc Hughes commissioned a bespoke trophy reflecting the coaching philosophy of continuous improvement and “making each shot, game and match” better than the last. This year’s recipient was Flt Lt Chris Evans, an outstanding player who has wholeheartedly embraced the coaching philosophy and is very much respected by his team-mates. Sponsored by Safire, the trophy was designed and produced by this high quality engineering company at short notice.

More information on RAF Tennis is available at the RAF Tennis website ( www.raf.mod.uk/raftennis) or through your PEd Flt.

ROYAL AIR FORCE LAWN TENNIS ASSOCIATION CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS – 25 JULY 09