Cork Tennis Blog

Welcome to the Cork Tennis Blog.

This blog will keep you up to date on the tennis scene in Cork, both socially and competitively. Whether you are new to the game or an experienced player I hope you find the information and posts here, useful and interesting.

You can contact me by email at rob@racketrestringing.ie

Rob's Racketrestringing

Monday, March 29, 2010

Draws for Rushbrooke Easter Open available here.

Rushbrooke Easter Open is starting this Thursday and the draws will be available here when posted.
Draws here.

Cork Players do very well in National Matchplays.

The national underage matchplays were on over the weekend across the country and Cork players did very well.

In the under 12 category Cork had 1 boy, Adam O Sullivan and 1 girl, Alexandra Duboy playing.
There are 16 participants in each age group so competition is tough.
Alexandra finished 6th but was very unlucky not to have being higher as she lost a few matches in the Champions tiebreak.
Adam did very well and finished a fabulous 3rd in very stiff competition.  This is a great achievement and should leave him looking forward to the summer where he can aim to challenge for the No.1 spot.

In the under 14 age category Cork again had 2 representatives, Emily Daly and David Gardiner.
Emily finished 7th in a very tough group while David had a great weekend with some outstanding results and was so unlucky in the final where he lost the Champions tie break 10-8.  This really is as close as it gets.

In the under 16 age category Cork had 4 girls playing and they all did very well, Rachel Daly finished 7th, Tara O Connor came 6th, Jane Daly was 5th and Siobhan Ryan Bovey had an exceptional weekend where she came 1st. 
Siobhans' dedication and hard work has paid off and we hope she has a very successful year ahead.

Tennis in Cork is in good hands.

Thursday, March 25, 2010

Busy weekend of Tennis in Cork

This weekend is going to be a busy weekend for tennis in Cork.
It starts on Friday in Rushbrooke with the U-12 National Championships. This event sees the best juniors in the country playing for the National Matchplay Title and runs from Friday to Sunday.

And on Sunday the finals of The Winter League take place in Sundays Well.
The Winter League is a very tough event played over the worst of conditions across the province.
All the teams involved will be desperate to take home the titles to justify all their hard work over the winter months.

Tennis fans you'll be spoilt for choice this weekend.

Cork Teams in Winter League Finals

The largest team competition on the Munster Tennis calender reaches the final stages this weekend.
The Winter League Finals will be held at Sundays Well Tennis Club this Sunday the 28th.
There will be 8 teams invovled from across the province and covering 4 grades.

The Grade 1 final was played last weekend, again in Sundays Well and unfortunately for the Cork representatives, Sundays Well,  they lost out narrowly to Limerick Lawn on a 3-2 scoreline.

Hopefully the Cork teams will have better look this weekend.
There is a Cork club in each of the finals and your support would be greatly appreciated.

Grade 3
Crosshaven A V Nenagh B

Grade 4
Carrigaline B V Nenagh

Grade 5
Bandon B V Nenagh A

Grade 6
Monaleen V Crosshaven B

Best of luck to all Cork clubs this weekend.

U-12 National Championships on in Cork

The U-12 National Championships are on in Rushbrooke this weekend, starting on Friday at 1pm.
These are Ireland's top juniors and hopefully some of our future stars.
There should be some great tennis to be seen.
Come on out and support the Munster players.

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Ardfield/Rathbarry AGM

Attention all members of Ardfield/Rathbarry
AGM
Monday the 29th of March
in
The Mountain House
at 8pm.

Thursday, March 18, 2010

World Team Tennis in Mexico

Best of luck to Cork players, Grace Reidy, Sundays Well Tennis Club and Liam O Brien, Rushbrooke Tennis Club representing Ireland in the World Team Vets Tennis in Mexico.
They head off this weekend.
Do us proud guys!

Are you ready? - Season is about to begin!

Rushbrooke Easter Open is the first Open of the season and every year attracts a big entry.  This year should be no different. 
The tournament runs from the 1st to the 5th of April and entries close on Friday the 26th of March. 
Entry forms are available from the club, can be taken over the phone at 021-4811451 or downloaded here.
It promises to a great weekend of tennis and socialising.
Hope to see you there.

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Cork University performs well at Intervarsities

Every spring the Irish Universities host their annual Tennis Intervarsities. This years event was hosted by University College Dublin, at the picturesque Mount Pleasant Club in Central Dublin. The organisers of the event were Brian Gibney and Naoise McEoin, both from the area and playing in Fitzwilliam and Donnybrook respectively.

This year University College Cork sent up three teams, two mens and a ladies teams.
Men's 1st:
1. Rob Mawe (c)
2. Rob Sheahan
3. Jamie Blake
4. Conor Kelly
5. Maurice Reidy
6. Luke Warner

Men's 2nd:
1. Kevin McCarthy (c)
2. Declan Whelan Curtin
3. Cathal O'Connor
4. Stephen Crofts
5. Mark O'Donovan
6. James Cooney

Ladies:
1. Tracey O'Rourke (c)
2. Grace Morrissey
3. Vivenne Hoary
4. Maria O'Brien
5. Fiona Jagla
6. Olivia Creed

The men's draw contained 4 round robin sections each with three teams. The men's 1st included UCC 1, Tralee IT and UCD 2. The men's 2nd included UCC 2, DCU and UCD 3. The ladies draw was knockout all the way due to a smaller entry.

On the Monday both men's teams played and won. UCC 1 beat UCD 2 to a score of 8-1 (Best of 9 rubbers). And UCC 2 beat UCD 3 also 8-1. Unfortunately the ladies team lost to UCD 2 and were forced into the plate event.

On the Tuesday morning UCC 2 played DCU, consecutive champions for the previous 6 years. UCC 2 lost 9-0 but could take pride in some of the performances. This result would now put UCC 2 into the plate event against Trinity College 2.

On the Wednesday UCC 1 beat Tralee IT 7-2 to advance to the semi-finals. The semi-final matches were randomly drawn and they were Trinity College 1/UCC 1 and Dublin City University/UCD 1. Later that day UCC Ladies would beat UCD 3 to advance to the final of the plate.

On the Thursday morning the semis of the men's main draw took place. DCU would beat UCD 1 with a score of 5-1. UCC 1 played a strong Trinity team including Leinster Interpro players: Mark Carpenter and Gavin Gilhawley.

The singles were divided 3-3 with Jamie Blake beating Andrew Stevenson 6/2,6/1. Luke Warner beat Jack McHugh and Conor Kelly scored a great win against Simon Clarke 6/4,7/5. Robert Mawe, Maurice Reidy and Robert Sheahan all lost in close matches. The doubles would decide the result and unfortunately Trinity would emerge 2-1 victors.

In the plate event both UCC 2 and UCC Ladies would lose in the finals of the plate. The men's team were beaten 5-3 by Trinity 2 and the ladies 5-2 by Galway. The ladies match saw a great victory for UCC Ladies captain Tracey O'Rourke against Connacht Interpro player Marion Hanley, 6/4,6/3.

On to finals day and a sence of deja-vu as both DCU men's and ladies would walk away with the trophies. DCU men's would beat Trinity to a score of 5-0 with strong performances from their players Simon Wrafter, Dara McLoughlin, Dara Rowan and more. The ladies event was closer with a result of 5-4. Some great matches could be seen including Cork's Niamh Coveney and Jenny Claffey.

The event was fantastically organised by UCD and Mount Pleasant Tennis Club and we at UCC are looking forward to next year in Galway.

Article submitted by Kevin McCarthy.

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

Nationals Qualifiers

Congratulations to all the Cork Juniors who qualified from the Provincials last weekend and will now go on to represent their clubs and Munster in the up coming Nationals.

U-12 Girls - Alexandra Duboy - Bishopstown
U-12 Boys - Adam O Sullivan - Rushbrooke

U-14 Girls - Emily Daly - Rushbrooke
U-14 Boys - David Gardiner - Rushbrooke

U-16 Girls - Rachel Daly - Rushbrooke
                    Siobhan Ryan Bovey - Rushbrooke
                    Tara O Connor - Rushbrooke
                    Jane Daly - Rushbrooke

If I have left out any other Cork player who qualified, my apologies, if you would pass on details I will put it up straight away.
I am currently waiting on the U-10 results.

Coaches or Clubs Promote yourself here!

Attention Club Captains, Secretaries or Coaches.

If you would like to promote your club or future activities within your club, pass your details on to me and I will post them here on my blog for you.

If you're a coach and want to advertise yourself or upcoming camps or clinics, let me know and I will add them to the blog.

You can contact me on rob_leahy@yahoo.co.uk
I will post anything that is related to tennis in Cork for you.

Saturday, March 6, 2010

Davis Cup - Why Not in Cork?

I was at Day 1 of the Ireland v Turkey Davis Cup match yesterday and was treated to some outstanding tennis.

I must admit when I arrived and heard that Luke Sorensen was out injured, I was disappointed as I had hoped to see him play and show my appreciation for his Australian Open efforts, but when the first match started any disappointment was quickly forgotten.

It was James McGee's singles debut and even though his world ranking (502)was higher than his opponents(1200), the experience of his opponent at Davis Cup level (playing since 1998) would have been a huge factor and would have made it an all the more difficult debut, but boy did McGee come out firing.
His all round game, fitness level, agility as well as amazing service returns really showed why there is a difference in the rankings.
It was my first time watching James play and I was very impressed, his willingness to come forward whenever possible is something that is severely lacking in tennis nowadays and at 22 he is only going to get better.
Watch this space!

As impressed as I was with James and not wanting to insult him in anyway, the next tie was the mouthwatering one.
Marsel IIhan, ATP ranking 129 Vs Conor Niland ATP ranking 244, you would expect a step up in levels and for me there was.

I have known Conor since he was a young boy, have being beaten by him and watched him play in his first Senior Interpro but this was a totally different player at a totally different level.

It was going to be a very big ask for Conor to get a result as not only was his opponent ranked higher than him but he also qualified for the main draw of the Australian Open this year and lost a good second round match to Fernando Gonzalez and at 22 is definitely a name for the future.
It was a fabulous no holes barred game of tennis, with unbelieveable rallies, big serves and great retrieving.
The main difference was Conor's overall ability to turn defence into attack time and again.
Marsel had a very big serve and forehand but for every big shot he hit, he found Conor there waiting with a counter punch that most of the time he had no answer to.
In a post match interview Conor said he was delighted with the way he played and the way he has being playing lately and still thinks he is improving.  I hope so.

With the doubles to come today, it could be all over by this evening and then we hope Britain come thru to set up an eagerly awaited clash in Dublin?

And now it comes to my heading, why Dublin? Why not Cork?

Before yesterday I would have thought we wouldn't have a chance at bringing a Davis Cup to Cork but when I saw the lay out in Fitzwilliam yesterday there is no reason in the world why The Sports Village could not hold a Davis Cup match.
Grand stand seating could be set up on one court with the matches played on the second court.  The soccer carpet could be lifted off the other 2 courts to make them available for practice. 
The courts are of a very high standard so that won't be a problem. 
A marquee could be set up for catering outside as it was in Fitzwilliam.  One or two little touches here and there and a bit of planning and the Davis Cup could come to Cork.
I have no doubt the Cork public would fill the place, the kids would benefit from watching that standard of play as not all can make it to Dublin for every home match.

After all it is Tennis Ireland, not Tennis Dublin.  Something to think about!

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Munster Branch AGM

The Munster Branch will hold their AGM on the 31st of March at 8pm in The Firgrove Hotel, Mitchelstown.
This is open to all and is the place to make your point on any issue that my be concerning you or find out what is the plan for the coming year.

Tennis Ireland Roadshow

Tennis Ireland will present a series of workshops for parents, coaches and club officials which are designed to provide information on the latest development in our sport.
The roadshow reaches Cork on the 22nd of March at the Sports Village (old tennis village).
The plan for the day is:

Parents
12pm—2pm
Development of Young Tennis Players from 5-10 years old
Presented by Tennis Ireland Development Staff

Coaches
6pm - 7pm
ITN Assessor Training—On Court
Presented by the Coach Development Officer

Club Officials and Coaches
7pm—9.30pm
National Player Database
Presentation on the benefits for your club and your members
Understanding the process and technology supporting the project
Presented by Tennis Ireland Development Staff

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Davis Cup this weekend.

Davis Cup this weekend - Here's what you can look forward to.



Come on Ireland!

Monday, March 1, 2010

Cork Juniors Taking Part in Interprovincial Matchplays

The Junior Interprovincial Matchplays are on this weekend in various clubs around Munster and Cork clubs are well represented in all age groups.
Anyone interested in watching some very good tennis (boys and girls U-12) can make their way to Rushbrooke Tennis Club on Saturday where play starts at 10am.
Best of luck to all Cork players.

Under 10 Girls

Aoife O Driscoll - Sundays Well
Kate Littlejohn - Kilworth

Under 10 Boys
Rory O’Neill - Sunday’s Well
Ronan O’Callaghan - Sundays Well
Eoin Carey - Kilworth
Joe Lonergan - Bishopstown
Ethan Monkhouse - Kinsale
Alex Mulligan - Rushbrooke
Jeremiah Cronin - Kinsale

Under 12 Girls
Alexandra Duboy - Bishopstown
Eilis McCarthy - Cork Parks
Michelle Graef - Kinsale
Chloe Condren - Kinsale
Sophie Merry - Sundays Well

Under 12 Boys
Sean O’Callaghan - Sundays Well
Cathal Sheehy - White Church
Adam O’Sullivan - Rushbrooke
Eoin O’Sullivan - Bandon
Kiran Lynch - Lower Aghada
Eamonn O’Sullivan - Bandon
Paul Lyons - Mallow

Under 14 Girls
Emily Daly - Rushbrooke
Emma O’Sullivan - Bandon
Lisa Moloney - Bishopstown
Claire Cronin - Sundays Well
Kerrie Williamson - Lower Aghada
Aisling O’Riordan - Rusbrooke

Under 14 Boys
David Gardiner - Rushbrooke
Niall Casey - St. Michaels
Colm Alton - Lakewood
Daniel Moloney - Bishopstown
Rory O’Hara - Ballinlough
Conor Clarke - St. Michaels
Ben Clancy - Kilworth

Under 16 Girls
Siobhan Ryan-Bovey - Rushbrooke
Stephanie Corkery - Carrigaline
Rachel Daly - Rushbrooke
Jane Daly - Rushbrooke
Tara O’Connor - Rushbrooke

Under 16 Boys
Cian McCarthy - St. Michaels
Niall Woods - Cork Parks
Conor Cashman - Cork Parks
Mark Hannon - Rushbrooke