Young Tennis Players Of Promise

Press, Volume C, Issue 29674, 18 November 1961, Page 9

Young Tennis Players Of Promise

AS in previous seasons, the early tennis tournaments in Christchurch at Labour week-end and show weekend have this season brought to light another batch of young players who have shown that they are now able to play among seniors with some success. A few of these boys played in only one tournament, but most played in both. Of those who played in both the most successful were G. Ford and J. Cullington. Ford, a red-headed Boys’ High School player, aged 17. who was only tenth on the junior ranking list last December, in the Labour ■week-end tournament beat L. Sandford, then A. Brooks, one of his junior rivals, and in a semi-final gave an excellent display against the winner of

: the tournament, G. Moss. Moss 1 won 6-4, 6-2. Ford showed much speed around the court ■ and well-developed net play; ■ he is well-built and should . have plenty of stamina in . testing matches. While Ford was impressing at Labour week-end, CullingI ton was put out in the first ; round by M. O'Malley, but he ■ had his success in the tourna- : ment at Show week-end. He t beat D. Marshall in the first round, then Ford, 6-4, 2-6. 6-4 in the second round and in a quarter-final had a long . match with R. Minson which i he almost won. The score was : Minson, 6-1, 1-6, 10-8. A • Cashmere High School pupil. Cullington was ranked sixth ; junior last December and he had an excellent season. Tall : and slim, he plays with great I determination.

Another improving player I who appeared in both tourna- . ments is J. Brebner, of Boys' ; High School. He won his first i matches in both but was un- , lucky enough to have to meet W. Thom in his second match each time. He performed rea- ; sonably well in both, his scores being, 3-6, 3-6, and - 1-6, 4-6, respectively. Two players who were ahead of Ford, Cullington and Brebner last season, L. W. Watkins, of Rangiora High School, and R. G. Hastie, of Boys’ High School, did not have a great deal of success. Watkins has been one of the province’s leading juniors for two seasons or more. He was seeded fourth for the Labour week-end tournament, but It was unfortunate that he had to meet P. Alexander, an uncertain starter, in a prelimin-

: ary round. At Show week-end . he beat V. Price but then , lost to the third-seeded L. J. Walpole. However, Watkins t won the mixed doubles with ■ Miss J. Davidson and had i earlier reached the semii finals of the Labour week-end ■ doubles with Hastie. He is s quite the most experienced of I the younger group. Hastie lost to the very cons sistent Lincoln High School I player, W. Edgecumbe in the . first round of the first touri nament and to W. Thom in ! his match in the second. ; Edgecumbe lost to Alexander . after his defeat of Hastie and ■ was put out by the Marlborough player, R. Herd in i the first round of the second • tournament L Stanton of ; Lincoln High School lost both I his first round matches, one to Brebner and one to Ford, but both were very close. L. Sanford also lost both his first rounds. There was also some impressive play from some young players who appeared in only one of the tournaments and foremost among these were A. Brooks and R. McCutcheon, both of Boys’ High Schools.