TENNIS

Southland Times, Issue 21820, 24 September 1932, Page 15

TENNIS

(By

“Chop.”)

Annual meeting of Southland Association on Wednesday. The coming season promises to be a boom one. . . New courts are being laid down all over the province. Sports depots report heavy sales of tennis material. There are sure to be three keen competitions in Invercargill—A, B and C grade. , , ... . , Most clubs are holding their official openings next Saturday. The game has made considerable progress in the Southern District. Why do the clubs there not form themselves into a sub-association and affiliate with the Southland Association? The parent body will do all it can to foster tennis in any addition to the family. For a number of years the Invercargill Club has been under a stigma so far as its courts were concerned; and while the defects of the courts were often considerably exaggerated it has to be admitted that there was great room for improvement. That improvement has now been effected and the club will commence the 1932-33 season in happier circumstances than for many years past. The cause of most of the trouble has been the drainage system. This has been completely overhauled. A new court has been made out of No. 1 and three other courts have received expert treatment on their surface. The improvements have put a severe strain on the finances of the club—but that is in keeping .zith the times. The-Waihopai club has had four courts top-dressed and judging from the buoyant tone of the annual meeting another very successful season should be experienced. Clarkson and Mrs Clarkson, who last year played for Georgetown and who have in the meantime changed their place of residence, are numbered among the new members. Allan Baird has also joined, but will be turning out for Central in match play. .. f The Georgetown Club held its official opening on September 10 and by now its enthusiastic members have well and truly got their eye in. R. Thomas, Rugby Park’s leading man last season, will be in the Georgetown A's this season and may easily work his way to first place. George Barnes will again lead the troops.

The Southend courts present an excellent appearance and it will not be surprising if this club plays a much more prominent part in the A grade competition this season. With Allan Baird to strengthen the men Central should just about carry off the shield. Paterson has only to continue to improve as he did last year to trouble many opponents and McKay is always to be relied upon. There is no team in town whose ladies can compare with Misses Melvin, Guest and Wade. The Moana Club commences the season with vastly improved courts and an increased membership. Its team will make a bold bid for the C grade championship. Members of the St. Mary’s Club always enjoys its tennis to the utmost, without worrying unduly about the winning of matches. This season opens for them most favourably, the membership being well maintained, the courts in good order and the finances sound. The Gladstone Club will be without the services of Miss Tapley for most of the season and Hanan will in all probability be playing for Invercargill. With Hewat, Hamilton, Russell, McInnes, and Misses Russell, Abbey-Jones and Webb the team should nevertheless be fairly strong. Makarewa has decided to enter two teams in the Invercargill C grade competition, but so promising are the suburban players that one of these teams may be relegated by the association to B grade. A new court is being put down at Makarewa. . Nightcaps is another club which is adding a court. Miss Kelly, who last year represented Eastern District and Southland, is at present teaching at Nightcaps. She will greatly strengthen the club and should bring on her young cousin, Miss Hunt, who did so well in the junior championships last Christmas. The Central Club is putting down a couple of concrete courts in place of the somewhat decrepid asphalt courts which have previously done service. It is hoped that the new courts will solve the problem of superfluous water. Kennington will be keen to retain the B grade premiership. If the club has any funds available they could be used to advantage improving the run-back which is the only defect in the courts. There is an obvious moral in the following story in the Manchester GuardianE. C. Peters has the proud distinction of being the only Englishman who has beaten Tilden. It happened in this way. Peters plays an exasperating game. He has a poor service, and no drive in the usual sense of a fast, low-flying shot; instead, he sends over “loppy” returns, high, slow drops to the baseline, “poached eggs, as they are called. His backhand is sound, and he is a good volleyer. The match was played on a fiery and dusty court at the Carlton Club in Cannes. In the first set Tilden played carelessly, as though Peters was unworthy of serious effort. Peters industriously attacked Tilden’s uncertain backhand and soon led at 4—l. Then Tilden roused himself, took four games running, faltered, lost control of the ball, made mistakes on his backhand—and Peters won the first set. The second set began with Tilden’s service, but so annoyed was he with the course of events that he refused to serve—that is, he did not serve to Peters, but instead bounced the balls gently on the ground eight times, thus forfeiting a love game, and crossed over. In vain he tried to recapture his great game; it had gone, and Peters won his resounding victory. Afterwards the two met again on the Riviera, and Tilden won, but it took him five sets; he seemed particularly to dislike Peter’s style of tennis.