Snippets 26/08/21
Hi Folks!
All the chat in the club this week is about the club championships...and the super Finals day we had for the Junior Championships last Saturday.
To cover the Junior Finals day first, it was a huge success with so much talent on view in all the various age groups. Thanks so much to Karen and Lucy for organising all the matches in the lead up to Finals Day. It was also so nice to have so many Mums and Dads to support all the matches - it made for a wonderful atmosphere and again I must congratulate all 85 entrants on their sportsmanship...win or lose there was always a smile at the end of the match.
I'm sure you'll agree with me when I say that our Juniors have had a wonderful summer of tennis and camaraderie. Thanks to Adrienne and Karen for their Supervised tennis and Stephen for running the camps.
For the first time we elected a Junior Captain - both boy and girl. Theo Claffey and Lucy Schwer were the first to hold the office and proved a huge success with their continued support and involvement in all aspects of Junior tennis. Many thanks to you both.
By the way there will be a special Newsflash circulated early next week with full details of the upcoming Autumn Coaching Programme - starting week of 13th September...so keep an eye out for it.
Now for a message from our Captains, Karen & Eoin, re the Championships...
"The championships are now entering the quarter and semifinals of all events. Good luck to all the players still competing across the many events (main draw, bowls, plates). To all members, please come down and watch the great tennis being played each evening in your club. The weather is perfect for an evening of entertainment, bring a glass of wine/beer and enjoy the atmosphere.
As is traditional, the Finals of the mixed doubles championship and mixed doubles Plate matches will be played tomorrow - Friday - evening. Finals day on Saturday promises to be a great day. Matches will start from 10am, with the championship events starting early afternoon. Caroline and Sonya would ask you to 'bring a plate' of goodies...soft drinks will be provided. As you're aware, we continue to support Grace Owens' Tennis4cancer charity. Donation buckets will be available throughout the day on Saturday. We plan to present Grace with a cheque following on from the generous donations throughout our summer events.
The "At Home" will be held at the Royal Irish Yacht Club on Saturday evening. A drinks reception and prize giving will take place at 7.30pm. All are welcome to join us for a celebratory drink to mark the end of the summer tennis season. There are still some places available if you wish to sign up for the dinner following the reception. There's a limited outdoor dining option available, so please let Caroline or Sonya know if you would like to avail of that.
Thanks to all those who volunteered to umpire a match on Finals day. We still need a few more volunteers, so if you're available, please contact the office or the Captains.
We look forward to seeing you over the next few sunny days!"...Karen and Eoin.
The Winter league is creeping up.....deadline for sign up is next Tuesday, 31st.... Hey guys, have you seen the Ladies sign up sheet!!... Full twice over!!..don't be shy about signing up!...the talent (tennis!) I've seen on the courts over the summer months suggests that you'd all make a team...so come on and put your name up for selection.
Another casualty of the Covid restrictions is the ever popular Golden Oldies night - hosted by Mick and Breege Clancy. Let's hope a new date can be sorted.
Again thanks to those members who were unable to play their regular game due to the Championships ... all will be back to normal from next Sunday.
As decided by the Committee early in the summer, floodlight cards will be complimentary for the next couple of months. Cards are available from Hewett's newsagent in Monkstown and also the office…but please take note that THREE CARDS at a time is the limit to collect.
Congrats to Cliona Walsh on a superb performance at the National Junior Championships in Fitz...In her first year at U/18, Cliona reached the Final and put up a great fight...here's to next year Cliona! Cliona lives in Sligo and chose Monkstown as her club whenever in Dublin!
The sun is just breaking through again, so see you guys later in what should be a great evening's tennis...and then tomorrow....and then Saturday!!
Hard to believe it's back to school over the next few days...despite all the various restrictions I think we've all - both adults and children - enjoyed a wonderful summer here in lovely Monkstown LTC!
That's it for this week....
Warm regards
Judy