IC of GB v Puente Romano 

Venue : Royal Marrakesh Tennis Club, Morocco

Date : 1st – 4th Dec 2022

IC of GB Team : Johnny Barr (Captain) , Shaun Leleu , Jim May , Mark Loosemore , Gary Drake

Matches against our good friends at Puente Romano are always magical, but none more so than this year as we were invited to play our annual fixture in Marrakesh. Due to the pandemic the annual match between Puente Romano and Royal Marrakesh Tennis Club was postponed so we were asked if we’d mind making it a tri angular away in Marrakesh, it was so good that it may just have to become an annual fixture!! The kind hospitality shown by the Royal Marrakesh team was simply fabulous.

With 3 teams and so many matches each team captain agreed a shortened format with the first to 9 games with a mix of singles and doubles, quite sensible considering that Marrakesh is still warm in December.

Puente Romano we as strong as ever boasting an ex Wimbledon Champion in Pat Cash and several other ex ATP pros, with Royal Marrakesh Tennis Club fielding 1 ex Moroccan international and 1 current Junior International.

On behalf of the IC of GB we extended an invite to both teams to visit and play us in the UK so we could repay their kind hospitality and welcome. Special mention must be made of Shaun Leleu (Managing Director of Puente Romano & IC of GB) for his kind hosting and great organisation of this most fabulous match in the most magical of settings. Without such hospitality and hand of friendship these trips can never be possible.

IC of GB Match Manager Johnny Barr

Match Final Standings

1st Puente Romano : 6 rubbers

2nd IC of GB : 4 rubbers

3rd Royal Marrakesh TC : 1 rubber

Match Scores

Johnny Barr / Gary Drake beat Patrick Noben / Hannouch Salah (Royal Marrakesh) : 9-5

Jim May lost to Sergio Perez (Puente Romano) : 8-9

Mark Loosemore beat Santi Godfrid (Puente Romano) : 9-8

Jim May beat Hannouch Salah (Royal Marrakesh) : 9-5

Shaun Leleu / Gary Drake lost to Sergio Gomez Barrio / Pat Cash (Puente Romano) : 7-9

Mark Loosemore lost to Marco Cataldi ( Royal Marrakesh) : 5-9

Johnny Barr / Shaun Leleu lost to Sergio Gomez Barrio / Santi Godfrid (Puente Romano) : 7 -9

Jim May / Gary Drake beat Pat Cash / Sergio Perez (Puente Romano) : 9-6

Fixture: IC of GB v Bradfield College

Venue: Bradfield College

Result: Bradfield College  5 - International Club of GB  8

Date 11/10/2023

This long standing fixture ( and the only IC fixture against a school side) was played with the usual good spirit and excellent hospitality from the school. Added focus was required from the IC team this year to win the fixture 9 rubbers to 5 as Bradfield are the current holders of the Youll Cup, the first time the school have won the illustrious tournament (the Independent schools championship for boys) .

The fixture made up of 2 women pairs and 3 men’s pairs for a midweek match in October is always a challenging commitment so thanks as always to those members and guests who extended their seasons to represent the Club. 

IC team 

Jamie Muirhead, Jack Shawyer (guest), Graham Neale, Charlie Durham (guest), Andrew Smith,  Andrew Creighton, Nathalie Squires, Alison Fleming, Joy Tacon, Emma Barker (guest)

Mercelis Trophy

Venue: Chevy Chase, Washington DC, USA

Date: 21-26th August 2022

Result: Germany are Champions, GB come 4th

This year in the Mercelis Trophy, Emma Hurst was our Open age group lady, with Kerry Quirk as our O40 representative. The pair teamed up together to play against Germany, USA and Luxembourg.

The German's proved too strong for everyone and won the event without dropping a match. Our GB team finished 4th, but had some closely contested matches and finished on a high beating the Luxembourg pair in the final doubles.

An amazing experience, with a high standard of tennis, and new friendships made both on and off the court.

About the Mercelis Trophy:

The Mercelis Trophy is a ladies' competition for teams composed of:

• 1 lady player over 40
• 1 lady player under 40
• 1 playing or non-playing captain

Format:

• 1 singles over 40
• 1 singles under 40
• 1 doubles played by 2 ladies, 1 of which must be over 40

Results:

USA 3 GB 0

Germany 3 Luxembourg 0

Germany 3 GB 0

Luxembourg 2 USA 1

Luxembourg 2 GB 1

Germany 3 USA 0

IC of GB v Yorkshire

Result: IC of GB 1 - 3 Yorkshire

Event Date: 21st August 2021

Venue: Ilkley

Resuts (IC names first):

Eric Knowles /Ashley Broomhead lost to Paul Layfield / Richard Hutchinson 2-6 3-6

Simon Ickringill /  Cath Davies lost to Gareth Hutchinson / Karen Mitchell 3-6 6-3 7-10

Simon Ickringill / Eric Knowles lost to Gareth Hutchinson /Richard Hutchinson 7-6 3-6 6-10

Ashley Broomhead / Cath Davies beat Paul Layfield / Karen Mitchell score unknown

IC of GB v AELTC

Result: IC of GB 2 – 2 AELTC

Event Date: Friday 16th July 2021

The IC match against the AELTC was once again a very high standard, and was played on the Championship grass courts in blazing sunshine. The IC of GB Team of Emily Arbuthnott, Leyla Ogan, Andy Burgoyne and Hugh Jacques played fantastic tennis in both the doubles and the mixed doubles, with all matches being played in such a sporting way. This was Emily Arbuthnott's IC of GB debut and she played excellently winning both of her matches. The All England Club made us feel so welcome throughout the afternoon and after the match hosted a delicious dinner which our team thoroughly enjoyed. It was a very close resulting in a draw at 2-2.

Thank you as always to the AELTC for being such wonderful hosts for our annual fixture.

RESULTS

1st Round:

Alistair Felton & Sean Thornley vs Andy Burgoyne & Hugh Jacques     AELTC 6-2 6-2

Katie O'Brien & Karen Hunter vs Leyla Ogan & Emily Arbuthnott          ICGB 6-4 7-5

2nd Round:

Katie O'Brien & Sean Thornley vs Emily Arbuthnott & Andy Burgoyne  ICGB 6-3 6-3

Amanda Elliott & Alistair Felton vs Leyla Ogan & Hugh Jacques           AELTC 6-2 6-3

Overall Match Score                          AELTC- 2        ICGB- 2

Cambridge won a hard fought match on a great day at Fenner’s. With all four 3 set matches going against the IC it could have gone either way but the IC of GB were beaten by the better side on the day.
 

Result: Cambridge beat ICGB 7-4

Mikhail Kaminski vs Craig Edmondson 6-4, 6-2

Salil Navapurkar vs Alastair Filmer 4-6, 4-6

Pascal Gehlehrt Vs Jamie Muirhead 6-7, 7-5, 10-8

Dominic Pilger Vs Tim Prosser 4-6, 1-6

Patrick Smart Vs Sergey Yelnik 4-6, 6-3, 10-5

Theo Williamson Vs Jerry Garrendra 7-6, 6-0

Kaminski/Gehlehrt vs Edmondson/Filmer 6-7, 7-6, 10-4

Pilger/Victor Baycroft vs Yelnik/Garrendra 2-6, 4-6

Navapurkar/Legg vs Muirhead/Prosser 4-6, 6-7

Kaminski/Gehlehrt vs Muirhead/Prosser 6-2, 6-2

Pilger/Legg vs Yelnik/Garrendra 7-6, 6-7, 17-15

The match between the IC of GB and the Seniors Lawn Tennis Club of Great Britain has been running for over 60 years.  For many years the match has been played at St. George’s Hill Tennis Club.  There was much anticipation that the match would be on grass.  Unfortunately, a torrential down pour 2 days before meant the grass was unplayable as the area has a high water table.  It was however, warm and dry.

Michael Dawe the SLTC captain arranged an excellent meal which was taken in the splendid surroundings of the club’s lake.  No match was held last year due to the pandemic, so this match reunited tennis friends from the home counties and beyond. 

Result:  Draw 4:4 split   

Over 45: SLTC ½ : ICGB 3 ½              Over 60: SLTC 3 ½ : ICGB ½

Over 45:

Ian Udel & James Acheson-Gray vs Adam Boucher & Chris Hearn                   D 6/3/6/7

                                                      vs Richard Ground & Jon Entract                  L 4/6 2/6

Paul England & Tony Ballardie      vs Adam Boucher & Chris Hearn                  L 3/6 3/6

                                                       vs Richard Ground & Jon Entract                 L 3/6 2/6

Over 60:

Paul French & Michael Dawevs     vs Richard Walmsley & Tony King                W 6/1 6/5

                                                       vs Peter Hannon & Boyd Cuthbertson          W 3/2 6/0

Arun  Vethakhan & Godfrey Evans vs Richard Walmsley & Tony King               W 6/2 6/3

                                                        vs Peter Hannon & Boyd Cuthbertson         D 6/3 6/7

8th October 2019

Bradfield College

Result: IC of GB win 10-3

 

On the 8th October, the IC team of 6 men and 4 women played in the annual fixture against Bradfield College for the Henry Billington Salver, kindly donated last year by his son Tony. The weather in west Berkshire was challenging but only meant we had to utilise their wonderful indoor acrylic courts until the weather cleared and we could revert to the 6 outdoor clay courts to conclude the match.

Following some very close fought matches the final score of 6-3 for the men and 4-0 for the women was more lop sided than the tennis suggested. The quality of the tennis on display from the Bradfield team was the highest I have seen in the 8 years I have been playing in the fixture, and there is more to come as the tennis programme continues to develop under the stewardship of Damian Fuller. One particular low light for the IC (and highlight for Bradfield of course) was the loss by Andy Creighton and Johnny Barr to the Bradfield first pair of Angus Creighton and his partner Bailey McAtee.  

The teams retired to a private room at the Bull Inn, a local hostelry, for a wonderful dinner hosted by the school where Tony Billington presented the Henry Billington Salver to the winning Captains.

Thanks to all the members of the IC listed below for taking time out of their busy schedules on a Tuesday afternoon in October to play and the aim for next year is to have teams of 6 for both men and women (to reflect the strength in depth of the Bradfield teams now coming through.)

Fleur Clegg
Alison Denly
Nathalie Squires
Alison Longfield (guest) 

Andy Creighton
Johnny Barr
David Collins
Lewis Barnes
Richard Ground
Simon Curtis

IC of GB v IC of France

4/5 October 2019

Match venue: Queens Club

 

GB WINS 27 – 7

GB Team – Mark Beim, Simon Curtis, Oscar Podlewski, Roger Taylor, Henk Hijeboer, James Marsalak, Andy Philips, Chris Hearn, Robin Drysdale, Mike Dawe, Alec Allen, Lee Childs, Paul Martin, Rupert North, David Collins, Jo Shepherd, Ali Innes, Pat Wire, Judy Horn, Anne Clark, Nuala Kalfayan

Match Report by Mark Beim

This year our match was held at the prestigious Queens Club. We had a strong team with many great matches played over the two days. Thanks to all my players for playing and thanks for Queens for hosting and the delicious lunches and dinners. We were royally looked after.

 

Match highlights – wonderful dinner with entertaining speeches from Benson, Clare Wood, Mark,  Michel Leclercq and the French captain Heiner Tadault plus a fun game of ‘who am I’ which caused a lot of entertainment.

 

Henk had to described himself as Dracula and Jack the Ripper! 

 

Thanks to all my players for playing and winning!

 

Special thanks to Ross Niland and Lee Childs (in particular) who helped greatly in organising the event.

IC of GB Team with our amazing Puente Romano hosts

With great expectation, our team of Lewis Burton / Jim May / Ross Matheson / Gary Drake / Shaun Leleu & Johnny Barr headed off to the fabulous Puente Romano Resort in Marbella, Spain to take on the might of the Spanish team.

In previous years Puente Romano have fielded ex Davis Cup players and Grand Slam Champions such as Pat Cash, and this year was no exception with Puente Romano fielding Pato Clavet (ex ATP #18 with career wins over Messrs Agassi / Sampras amongst many others) and his brother Jose (Pepo) Clavet who himself made the 3^rd round at Roland Garros and is the current coach to Feliciano Lopez.

Although the match was on the Saturday our IC of GB team flew out on Thursday and had 2 days of hard clay court training sessions, followed by watching the Seniors Masters Cup also being held at Puente Romano the same weekend. With players such as Tommy Haas, David Ferrer , Tommy Robredo and Feliciano Lopez our IC of GB team were inspired and came out of the blocks fast and furiously against our elegant hosts.

IC of GB Team 3pts v Puente Romano 4pts

Lewis Burton lost to Pato Clavet 1-6 0-6

Jim May lost to Nicolas Delgado 4-6, 6-2, 0-1 (7) *

Ross Matheson beat Ales Dvorak 6-1, 6-3

Shaun Leleu beat Antonio Diaz 6-1 / 6-3

Johnny Barr / Gary Drake beat Rene Primelles 6-4,6-0

Johnny Barr / Gary Drake lost to Jose Clavet & Sergio Gomez 5-7, 6-7

Jim May / Ross Matheson lost to Jose Clavet / Pato Clavet 8-10 in a pro set**

As the match lasted so long in the searing heat and due to the fact that both Clavet brothers had to do the match warm ups for David Ferrer and Feliciano Lopez in their 7pm it was agreed by both team captains that with the match tied at 3-3 that a pro set in front of a packed Puente Romano Crowd who had gathered to watch The Seniors Masters Event would be a fitting finale.

Special thanks and sincere gratitude to Shaun Leleu of the Puente Romano resort and Bill Doyle the Puente Romano captain for their incredible hospitality in their generous hosting, but most importantly for the fabulous teams they put out against us with players who play hard and fairly plus can socialise in equal gusto. This is truly the most exceptional fixture and it is an absolute pleasure to arrange, play and captain it – competition will be hot for places as we aim to compete even harder in 2020.

Johnny Barr (Match Captain IC of GB v Puente Romano 2019)

IC Week 2019

8th - 12th September

Full results can be found here

The ladies were crowned deserving champions beating France in the final, while the men narrowly lost to Germany in the 3rd place play-off, with France winning the event. We were very well looked after - Le Touquet is a fantastic town to play tennis in.

IC Week - Men's Event - Match Report

Men's Captain Nick Adams:

Team: Lewis Burton, Oscar Podlewski, Seb Jackson, Nick Adams, Andy Burgoyne

The men's IC Week event was attended by 8 teams, a number of which fielded very strong individuals.  The host nation had the over 45 world champion and a past over 45 world champion (and past ATP no 61) on their seniors team, as well as a player who was until last year 170 in the world leading their open bracket.  It was no surprise that they ran out comfortable winners of the competition.  Other teams also had strong players representing their teams - Michael Berrer, with a win against Rafael Nadal in 2016, playing the tour until 2017 and inside top 50 at peak, turned out for Germany, and Luis Hererer, also top 50 at peak played for Mexico.

The GB team, represented by Lewis Burton and Oscar Podlewski in the Open, and Seb Jackson, Andy Burgoyne and Nick Adams in the over 45s finished 4th.  The team played well to beat Luxembourg 4-2 in the quarter finals, winning both doubles comfortably to clinch the tie.  However, the French were simply too strong at singles in the semifinals, and the team were 4-0 down before the doubles matches.  In the 3rd/4th play-off vs Germany, we were pipped at the post, losing on a deciding champions tie-break with Michael Berrer proving the difference between the teams - experience certainly counted!

The hospitality was fantastic, with the French IC putting on very generous evening events throughout the week.  As a team we were chaperoned by 1967 Roland Garros winner Francoise Durr, who was tireless in her efforts to ensure we enjoyed ourselves.  We agreed to award Francoise membership of the IC of Great Britain.

IC Week - Ladies Event - Match Report

Ladies Captain: Leyla Ogan 

Team: Katie O’ Brien; Lucie Ahl and Leyla Ogan 

We had a great week in Le Touquet competing in IC week. On day 1 ee were drawn against Ireland first round and we had a 3/0. Katie was competing in the open age group and Lucie in the over 40s. Lucie and myself paired up for the doubles. We had a great start to the event and beat the Irish 3/0. The afternoon was spent relaxing and exploring around the town. In the evening we had a really nice dinner on the harbour and were treated to the train ride in and out of town. 

We played Germany in the semi finals: We knew this was going to be a tough day as we knew the girls from various events. We went into the doubles at 1-1 after Lucie had a tough match and Katie played awesome to level the tie. Katie and Lucie battled thru an epic doubles having lost the first set 6-0 but then won 10-8 in the champs tie break to put us into the finals. 

The ladies and the men enjoyed a cycle round town with the other teams and had a great sightseeing trip. 

Day 3 was Finals Day v France followed by a Gala Dinner. Lucie was first up against Olivia Ferry and started out so strong. Her experience prevailed and put GB in the lead. Katie was on next in the open age group. Katie who barely made a mistake all week continued her form and got the job done. GB beat France 2-0 in the finals and we were the champions. We were presented at the Gala Dinner 

We all had a great week and enjoyed the hospitality of the French. It was great to meet new people and catch up with old tennis friends. 

Great trip and thanks for the support everyone

Result: USA win 20-16 and retain the trophy

The 2019 Ted Avory Cup was held in Berkeley, California from the 27^th-30^th August 2019. The bi-annual fixture between the USA and GB took place at Berkeley Tennis Club just outside of San Francisco. Both countries fielded strong teams with players from the open to the 75s age categories.

20 matches were played on day 1, with many tightly fought battles and some stand out matches being played on court number 3 in particular. First up was Michael Dawe who lost out to Paul Wulf in a thrilling match ending in 3^rd set tiebreak which went to Wulf 10-6. Then came the battle of the Judy’s who fought out a 3 hour epic match with Judy Horn narrowly losing out to Judy Newman 10-7 in the 3^rd set tiebreak. Henk Nijeboer, Simon Bramwell, Tash Starling, Ali Innes and Phillip Siviter all picked up great singles wins whilst we also had some brilliant doubles results. The open/30s mens doubles match was of a particularly high standard and GB got the win with a great performance from Mark Whitehouse and David Culshaw. The day ended with the US leading 11-9.

The official match dinner was held on the Wednesday evening at the Claremont Country Club. Speeches were made by both captains and honorary memberships were given out from both the US IC and the IC of GB. Erika Smith and Paul Wulf were made honorary members of the IC of GB and Amanda Elliott and Philip Siviter were made honorary members of the US IC.

On day two 16 matches were played with notable singles wins from Mark Whitehouse, Tash Starling and Henk Nijeboer, followed by some very close doubles matches where we won a couple in the 10 point tiebreaks – revenge for the previous day! Congratulations to Henk Nijeboer and Tash Starling for winning all their matches over the 2 days. The fixture ended with the US retaining the trophy by claiming victory by 20 rubbers to 16.

The IC’s of GB and the USA hosted a Special Olympics clinic on the Friday morning as part of the philanthropic movement of the IC, before visiting the Napa Valley wine district for a wine tour in the afternoon.

Many thanks to the US IC for a fantastic match and hospitality, and also to the GB team for being brilliant both on and off the court!

GB Team

Tash Starling, Amanda Elliott (c), Ali Innes, Claire Haslett, Karen Hunter, Susie Dart, Karen Cass, Judy Horn, Anne Clark, Mark Whitehouse, David Culshaw, Simon Bramwell, Paul Scullard, Graham Neale, Michael Dawe, Phillip Siviter, Henk Nijeboer

US Team

Julie Silverira, Shannon Gordon-Carney, Mary Beth-Williams, Judy Newman, Anne Young, Maria Smith, Lisa Cheng, April Jourdan, Makenna Thiel, Mai Ichikawa-Abel, Andre Barnes, Francesca La'O, Mylene Martin, AlisaYee, Erika Smith (c), Paul Wulf, Mike Tammen, Joshua Osswald, Tyler Browne, Joe Bachmann, Jeff Greenwald, Brent Abel, Andre Dome, Shaun Choudhury, Rick Fried, Nick Brunner, Charlie Hoeveler (c)

Results in full below.

DAY ONE                                                                                                        DAY TWO

Date -  17-18th August

The IC of GB welcomed the IC of Norway for the first time, with the match taking place at the scenic St George’s Hill Club in Weybridge.

The Norwegians arrived on the Saturday however plans for some grass court practice were scuppered by the weather. In the evening we had an informal meal before the tennis on the Sunday. We welcomed Mike Carroll and Julian Tatum as guests from the IC Council to introduce them to the away team, many of whom were playing an IC match for the first time.

On Sunday some morning showers prevented the match from taking place on the grass, so we played on the artificial clay. GB benefited from home advantage winning 7-1, which included some closely fought matches. We look forward to arranging the away fixture in 2021. 

Results

Tash Starling & Oscar Podlewski bt Karoline Steiro & Marcus Andresen 6-3 7-6

Venki Sundaram & Chris Clark lost to Karl Henrik Bredvold 0-6 6-0 1-0

Henk Nijeboer & Terry Clarke (guest) bt Thomas Wettergreen & Iver Helgaker 4-6 6-1 1-0

Tash Starling bt Karoline Steiro 6-0 6-3

Oscar Podlewski bt Marcus Andresen 6-2 6-3

Henk Nijeboer & Chris Clark bt Iver Helgaker & Carsten Greve 7-6 6-1

Max Koep (guest) by Thomas Wettergreen 6-3 6-3

Jasper Richardson (guest) bt Karl Henrik Bredvold 6-1 6-3

The IC of GB hosted Fitwilliam LTC on the 10th August at Moor Park. The match was played on the grass with the IC team captained by Paddy May.

After some hard fought matches Fitzwilliam edged the IC of GB by 5 rubbers to 4.

Fitzwilliam LTC beat IC of GB 5-4

Results in full below, (Fitzwilliam players first)

Singles:

Sean Collins beat  Paddy May 6/3 2/6 10/7

Sean McCullagh beat Dave Culshaw 6/4 7/5

Ben Dillon lost to Gary Thompson 2/6 0/6

Graham Smyth beat James Wrisdale 4/6 7/6 10/7

Sarah Curran lost to Laura Morrill 3/6 1/6

Alexandra Pickerill lost to Emma Kudzin 4/6 3/6

Doubles:

Sean Collins & Sean McCullagh beat Dave Culshaw & Paddy May 2/6 6/3 10/7

Ben Dillon Graham Smyth beat Gary Thompson & James Wrisdale 6/2 7/6

Sarah Curran & Alexandra Pickerill lost to Laura Morrill & Emma Kudzin 3/6 1/6

Fitzwilliam win 5/4

Match Report

Fixture: IC of GB vs Public School Old Boys LTA

Result: IC of GB Won 6-3 

On Saturday 3rd August the IC of GB took on the Public School Old Boys (PSOBLTA) at Stoke Park. It was great to see a mixture of new and established names from both the I/C and PUBs teams faces playing in the fixture. Once again the fixture involved some high quality tennis, with the result going in favour of the I/C by 6 rubbers to 3. A number of matches were especially keenly fought, with the pick of the first round matches being a narrow win for the I/C first pair of Nathan Rooney and Simon Dickson over PUBS second pair James Marsalek and Tom Colautti to edge I/C into a 2-1 lead. The win for the I/C was sealed after another particularly high quality match in which the I/C pair of David Culshaw and Barney Smith edged out Marsalek and Colautti 6-3, 7-6. Despite a number of close results, all matches were played in good spirits and in such fantastic surroundings on the grass courts of Stoke Park.  Our thanks go out to Stoke Park for allowing us to use the venue once again for this fixture, for feeding and watering both teams and of course to all of those who played. Special thanks also go to Andrew Smith for being stand in photographer!

Results in full: (IC of GB team first)

Nathan Rooney & Simon DIckson beat Nick Nugent & Ben Draper 6-1 6-0

Nathan Rooney & Simon DIckson beat James Marsalek & Tom Colautti 5-7 7-6 10-6

Nathan Rooney & Simon DIckson beat Jamie Murihead & Nick Ames 6-1 6-1

Barney Smith & David Culshaw beat Nick Nugent & Ben Draper 7-5 7-5

Barney Smith & David Culshaw beat James Marsalek & Tom Colautti 6-3 7-6

Barney Smith & David Culshaw beat Jamie Murihead & Nick Ames 6-2 6-3

Hugh Jaques & Felipe Bunster lost to Nick Nugent & Ben Draper 2-6 1-6

Hugh Jaques & Felipe Bunster lost to James Marsalek & Tom Colautti 4-6 0-6

Hugh Jaques & Felipe Bunster lost to Jamie Murihead & Nick Ames 2-6 2-6

IC of GB v Yorkshire at Ilkley. 

The score ended up a draw 2-2. Match results as follows, IC names first.

Ian Blakeman/ Ashley Broomhead bt Andrew Hutchinson/ Paul Layfield 6-4 4-6 6-3
David Brown ( guest )/ Sarah Thomas lost Gareth Hutchinson / Karen Mitchell 4-6 4-6
Ian Blakeman / David Brown bt  Andrew & Gareth Hutchinson 6-3 7-6
Ashley Broomhead/ Sarah Thomas lost Paul Layfield/ Karen Mitchell 1- 6 5-7

The sun came out which made for a grass court contest in a closely fought match. Following the match drinks and dinner at The Fleece pub, Addingham.

The IC team of Jeff Hunter, Oscar Podlewski, Fergus O'Connell, Tim Matthewson, Matt Morrow, Sergey Yelnik and Mattis Wetzel won 7-2. The IC edged a hard fought singles round 4-2, before showing its doubles experience by winning all 3 doubles rubbers.

The match was played on grass at Iffley Road in Oxford. Our thanks go to the Oxford captain, Oliver Nunn, and his team for hosting us. 

GB v Ireland Results (IC of Ireland win 10 rubbers to 5)

Open Singles

Felipe Bunster v James Cluskey 6-1, 6-0 IRE

Morgan Dunne Ciaran Fitzgerald 6-2, 6-4 IRE 

Open Doubles

Felipe Bunster & Morgan Dunne v James Cluskey & Ciaran Fitzgerald 6-2, 6-1 IRE 

1st Round Seniors

Karen Cass & Judy Horn v Lesley O’Halloran & Carmel O’Hare 6-4, 6-4 IRE 

Siobhan Nicholson & Anne Clark v Joanne Murnaghan & Emma Doyle 6-4, 6-1 GB 

Dalton Odendaal & Raj Ranawat v Bryan Smyth & Brian Lawlor 6-2, 6-0 GB 

Anders Johansson & Peter Hannon v Bernard McCormack & Pat Guiry 6-3, 6-4 IRE 

2nd Round Seniors

Karen Cass & Judy Horn v Joanne Murnaghan & Emma Doyle 6-3, 5-7 (10-6) IRE 

Siobhan Nicholson & Anne Clark v Lesley O’Halloran & Carmel O’Hare 6-3, 6-1 IRE 

Dalton Odendaal & Raj Ranawat v Bernard McCormack & Pat Guiry 4-6, 6-3 (10-6) IRE 

Anders Johansson & Peter Hannon v Bryan Smyth & Brian Lawlor 4-6, 6-2 (10-6) GB 

Mixed Seniors

Siobhan Nicholson & Dalton Odendaal v Lesley O’Halloran & Bernard McCormack 6-3, 6-4 GB 

Judy Horn & Raj Ranawat v Carmel O’Hare & Pat Guiry 6-4, 3-6 (10-7) IRE 

Karen Cass & Anders Johansson v Joanne Murnaghan & Bryan Smyth 6-2, 4-6 (10-3) IRE 

Anne Clark & Peter Hannon v Emma Doyle & Brian Lawlor 6-3, 6-1 GB

AELTC vs IC of GB

19 July 2019

 

Melanie South & Georgie MacPhail        vs         Karen Hunter & Claire Haslett    AELTC 7-6 (4) 6-4

Sean Thornley & Rob Blythe                  vs        Alistair Filmer & Chris Clarke     AELTC 6-2 6-3

Melanie South & Sean Thornley             vs        Alistair Filmer & Claire Haslett    AELTC 6-3 6-3

 

4^th Rubber was a dead rubber due to Karen Hunter withdrawal

 

Rob Blythe & Georgie MacPhail             vs         Andy Kennaugh & Chris Clarke  IC 1-6 6-1 10-6

 

Match score 

AELTC 3           IC GB 0

 

The second leg of the trip for our pre-Wimbledon guests from Belgium and the Czech Republic took place on Friday 28^th June at St George’s Hill on the grass. Given that each team played different number of matches, the results were based on percentage of wins. The IC of GB won on the day, winning 71% of matches.

As always, St George’s Hill put on a lovely dinner in the Tarrant Room, which was attended by the new Club Chairman, Richard Foster. Special thanks to St George’s Hill for welcoming and hosting the IC teams and to visiting captains Fanda Stejskal and Robert Van Malder for contributing to a wonderful match.

GB – 71% (10 matches won from 14)

Czech Republic – 40% (4 matches won from 10)

Belgium  - 25% (2 matches won from 8)

Round 1

Ladies doubles: Diane Casteleyn & Eliane Moureau (Belgium) lost to Marie Pinterova-Neumanova & Iva Simunkova (Czech) 6-1 5-7 10-6

Ladies doubles: Toni Thompson & Ali Innes (GB) beat Sylva Stefkova & Eliska stejskalova (Czech) 6-1 6-0

Men’s doubles: Rudy Michielsen & Michael de Marneffe (Belgium) lost to Frantisek Stejskal sr & Petr Simunek (Czech) 6-1 5-7 10-6

Men’s doubles: Andras Pinter & Ladislav Tyra (Czech) lost to David Waite & Henk Nijeboer (GB) 6-1 6-0

Men’s doubles: Eric Lingg & Vicent Limauge (Belgium) beat Dan Lobb & Michael Gradon (GB) 6-4 6-4

Men’s singles: Patrick Bolle de Bal (Belgium) lost to Michael Appleton (GB) 6-2 4-6 10-2

Round 2

Ladies singles: Hana Guy (Czech) beat Chrissie Runnicles (GB) 7-5 6-2

Ladies doubles: Elisabeth Sliepen & Brigitte Bocken (Belgium) lost to Sue Hill & Dee Oakley (GB) 6-2 6-1

Ladies doubles: Gill Thompson (guest) & Toni Thompson (GB) beat Olga Merglova & Lucie Simunkova (Czech) 7-5 6-1

Men’s doubles: Robert Goethals & Robert Van Malder (Belgium) lost to Clive Hutchings & Benson Greatrex (GB) 6-3 7-6

Men’s doubles: Frantisek Stejskal jr & David Simunek (Czech) beat Paul Martin & Chris Clark (GB) 7-6 6-4

Round 3

Men’s singles: Frantisek Stejskal sr (Czech) lost to Henk Nijeboer (GB) 1-6 6-4 10-4

Men’s doubles: Rudy Michielsen & Robert Van Malder (Belgium) beat Clive Hutchings & David Waite (GB) 6-1 6-1

Ladies doubles: Marie Pinterova-Neumanova & Hana Guy (Czech) lost to Dee Oakley & Gill Thompson (GB) 6-4

Men’s doubles Ian Vasicka & Richard Trojan (Czech) lost to Benson Greatrex & Dan Lobb (GB) 6-1 6-2

Ladies doubles: Sue Hill & Chrissie Runnicles (GB) beat Iva Simunkova & Lucie Simunkova (Czech) 6-4 1-6 11-9

Round 4 – started but did not finish

On Sunday 30th June the IC of GB hosted the ICs of Belgium and Czech Republic at the Hurlingham Club, in the third and final fixture of their week as our pre-Wimbledon guests. 

The weather and playing conditions were perfect, as were the grass courts, and the match was played alongside the club’s annual Garden Party, which this year was even more spectacular than usual, with the club celebrating it’s 150th year. 

The IC of GB were victorious on the day, with some great tennis and fun had by all. The match was followed by a very enjoyable doubles exhibition between Joe Salisbury and Rajeev Ram, and John Peers and Henri Kontinen, and our visitors finished their trip at the first day of The Championships. 

Many thanks as always to all who played.

Results as follows: 

Roy Henderson & Peter Bretherton beat Andras Pinter & Frantisek Stejskal sr
Pauline Fisher & Anne Clark beat Diane Casteleyn & Eliane Moureau
Hugh Jaques & Alistair Filmer beat Frantisek Stejskal jr & David Simunek
Jo Shepherd & Kate Gowar beat Eliska Stejskalova & Lucie Simunkova 
Andrew Pisker & Paul Scullard beat Eric Lingg & Vincent Limauge 
Henk Nijeboer & Pauline Fisher beat Robert Van Malder & Brigitte Bocken
Iva Simunkova & Olga Merglova beat Karen Cass & Anne Clark
Michel de Marneffe & Elisabeth Sliepen beat Ladislav Tyra & Marie Pinterova-Neumanova
Alistair Filmer & Kate Gowar beat Fratisek Stejskal jr & Sylva Stefkova
Henk Nijeboer & Peter Bretherton beat Robert Goethals & Rudy Michielsen
Hugh Jaques & Jo Shepherd beat Ian Vasicka & Hana Guy (1 set played)

A team of 8 ladies headed up to Cambridge on Sunday for the fixture against a joint Oxford and Cambridge team. Unfortunately our string of luck with the weather came to an end this year with the players being unable to get on the grass and surviving a few rain breaks, however the match was still played with a great competitive spirit and was a thoroughly enjoyable day. It was great to have some of the players from the previous years returning to compete again this year.

The IC team came home with the trophy after a 7-1 victory. The team consisted of:

- Steph Cornish

- Manisha Foster

- Laura Morrill

- Amy Partridge

- Susie Dart

- Jo Shepherd

- Teresa Caitlin

- Annabel Watson

Result: Winners - Natasha Starling and Mark Whitehouse
Venue: AELTC

This year's Autumn Meeting once again took place at the All England Club, Wimbledon.  After a long (each pair played atleast 45 games!) and competitive day of tennis, Natasha Starling and Mark Whitehouse were crowned Champions after they beat Vicky Brook and New Zealand's Anton Bettink in the final.

The playing standard was of a very high level and featured some current and ex-pros.  Andy Kennaugh and Paul Martin won prizes for Shot of the Day and Biggest Contribution respectively.

A lively dinner was enjoyed at Firestables in the village before a small crowd were seen impressively throwing some shapes at Hemmingways.

Our thanks, once again, to the AELTC for kindly allowing us to host the event at such a prestigious venue.

Mixed Partnerships
Tash Starling & Mark Whitehouse
Susie Dart & Paul Martin
Diana Kyllman & Felipe Bunster
Frances Hendry & Lewis Barnes
Vicky Brook & Anton Bettink
Judy Horn & Adam Boucher
Amanda Elliott & Andy Kennaugh

Result: IC of GB Runners-up
Venue: Mallorca, Spain

The IC of GB put up a stern defence of the trophy but just lost out to Germany in the ‘final'. Unfortunately, we had some withdrawals late on that made it impossible to field a full IC team, but we were happily able to invite Richard Santy and Hafeez Hameed as guest players and accepted the kind offer of a local golfer, Kadar, to complete our lineup. Shamus Donald worked hard to organise the trip and it was a shame he couldn’t be there with us. Shamus has been a great supporter of this event in recent years.

Due to the absence of Belgium, we faced a Spain B team on the Friday and came through impressively 6-1. Hafeez and Richard both comfortably won their tennis singles but lost a third set champions tie-break in the doubles. Dan Lobb and David Culshaw won the 2 points on offer in the tennis/golf (straight sets win in the tennis then a 4&3 win in the golf). The evergreen Keith Wooldridge (a “machine” playing off a handicap of 6!) was a convincing winner on the golf course as Kadar wrapped things up behind him.

As is always the case at this event, the evenings were very social and great fun (not least because of the fantastic hospitality of the Spanish team which is dominated by members of the extraordinary Tintore family). However, Friday night wasn’t as ‘big’ as Saturday night. Hameed dominated on the hotel pool table, Santy was the most-improved on the green baize through the weekend, Culshaw the most stylish (of course) while Lobb suffered greatly from back, hip, knee, elbow and mental problems.

Saturday’s play was marred by rain but didn’t prevent a fair result for us against Germany. Their tennis players were extremely strong, spearheaded by Marcello Craca (former singles ATP top 100) who is undoubtedly one of the best over 40’s in the world. Hafeez and Richard enjoyed the challenge but both fell short in their respective singles before rain put paid to the doubles - 2-0 to Germany. On the golf course, Keith just lost out in his rain-affected match but Kadar came through for us again - so the score was 3-1. Dan and David again won their tennis match in straights sets, which meant, with the overall score at 3-2, it came down to 18 holes matchplay at the beautiful Capdepera Golf Club (which boasts Rafa Nadal as a member), albeit in heavy rain for much of the round. As an honest captain writing this report, I cannot lie - I let the side down! Mr Culshaw was supreme but couldn’t get us over the finish line on his own and from being 3 holes up at one point, the match was halved. Germany therefore took the honours in their first appearance at the event.

Saturday evening was spent at our lovely host hotel Vanity Suites and Spa in Cala Mesquida. The teams decided to mix the seating plan up and another great night ensued. The wonderful Berta Tintore has inherited the event from her father and president of the IC of Spain, Juan Tintore. Juan was sadly in ill-health and unable to attend. We wish him a speedy recovery but his event is in very safe hands. Berta gave a lovely speech, prizes were handed out, thanks were given and we were then treated to an impromptu performance from the depressingly talented David Culshaw on the hotel piano. After a medley of hits, he invited us all to join in with a fine rendition of Hotel California...and some us duly butchered a singalong. Most of the group decamped to a local bar where several (unnamed) team members didn’t surface from until the early hours.

I must give special mention to Pauline Wooldridge for bringing additional glamour and sophistication to the GB team (and for keeping Keith on the straight and narrow) and to Antonia Amer for her tireless work bringing the tennis courts up to a good playing standard - the clay courts had been completely ruined by the recent dreadful weather in Mallorca.

This is a great event - competitive, a lot of fun and played in the very best spirit - it embodies what the IC is all about. Long may it continue.

Result: IC of GB 17 – IC of France 19
Venue: AELTC (Sat) and LTA National Tennis Centre (Sun)

The GB team narrowly lost 19-17 on home turf in the bi-annual fixture against the travelling French team.  It was an exceptional weekend with a record number of matches played.

On Saturday, the match was held on the indoor courts at the AELTC and the tennis was followed by dinner in the Rolex Suite, with amusing speeches from Mark Beim, Benson Greatrex and the French team captain, Heiner Tadault.

The LTA kindly allowed us to host the second day of play at the National Tennis Centre in Roehampton.  Both venues proved a success and the hospitality offered was warmly received by all.

It was a weekend to remember and in the words of IC Captain, Mark Beim, “It was one of the best matches played against the IC of France in recent years!”.

Results (IC of GB players listed first)

Captain: Mark Beim

Saturday 6th October
Pippa Horn beat Marie Ambroise 1-6 6-4 [10-7]
Katie O'Brien beat Laure Eline Faure 6-1 6-1
Sean Thornley lost to Lionel Mansour 6-1 6-1
Steph Cornish lost to Mathilde Cor 4-4 6-2 [11-9]
Miles Maclagan lost to Elie Rousset 6-3 6-4
Jo Shepherd lost to Olivia Fery 7-5 6-1
Teresa Catlin beat Sophie Didelot 6-1 6-0
Andy Burgoyne beat Heiner Tadault 6-3 6-4
Mark Beim lost to Ludwig Pellerin 6-4 6-4
Pippa Horn & Freya lost to Marie Ambroise & Laure Eline Faure 6-4 7-6
Chris Hearn beat Chris Bernelle 7-6 6-3
Robin Drysdale lost Bruno Delorme 6-2 6-2
Sean Thornley & Steph Cornish beat Lionel Mansour & Mathilde Cor 6-3 7-6
Barry Fulcher lost to Lionel Mansour 7-6 6-4
Mark Cox beat Christophe Cochet 6-2 6-2
Mike Dawe lost to Jerome Vanier 6-0 6-0
Mark Beim & Andrew Burgoyne lost to Ludwig Pellerin & Heiner Tadault 3-6 6-3 [10-8]
Jo Shepherd & Teresa Catlin beat Olivia Fery & Sophie Didelot 6-1 6-2

Sunday 7th October
Amanda Elliott beat Marie Ambroise 4-6 6-1 [10-6]
Pipa Horn lost to Laure Eline Faure 6-0 6-4
James Marsalek beat Ludwig Pellerin 7-6 6-4
Susie Dart lost to Olivia Fery 6-0 6-0
Katie O'Brien beat Mathilde Cor 6-1 6-1
Tim Sagar lost to Lionel Mansour 3-6 7-5 [10-6]
Jo Shepherd beat Sophie Didelot 6-3 6-0
Mark Cox lost to Bruno Delorme 6-0 6-1
Paul Scullard beat Jerome Vanier 6-3 7-6
Andy Burgoyne lost to Ludwig Pellerin 6-0 6-3
Mark Beim lost to Heiner Tadault 6-1 4-6 [10-7]
Henk Nijeboer beat Christophe Cochet 6-1 6-0
Graham Neale lost to Christophe Bernelle 6-4 2-6 [15-13]
Susie Dart & Pippa Horn lost to Olivia Fery & Laure Eline Faure 6-2 6-3
Jo Shepherd & Amanda Elliott beat Marie Ambroise & Sophie Didelot 6-2 6-3
Henk Nijeboer & Mark Cox beat Jerome Vanier & Christophe Cochet 7-6 1-0 Rtd
Tim Sagar & Katie O'Brien beat Hiener Tadault & Mathilde Cor 6-2 6-2
Mark Beim & Andy Burgoyne lost to Lionel Mansour & Ludwig Pellerin 4-6 6-3 [10-3]

Result: IC of GB 4 - 5 IC of GB
Venue: Puente Romano, Marbella

The IC of GB were narrowly beaten 5-4 by a world class team in a hard fought battle at Puente Romano, a most gorgeous tennis resort in Marbella - Spain.

The Puente Romano team included some current and ex-world ranked ATP players such as David Sanchez (ex ATP #43) who was defeated by Lewis Burton in a match of the highest standard. Their team was further complimented by Marco Djokovic (currently ATP #916) and Carlos Gomez (current ATP #268), Nicholas Delgado (ex ATP player).

Puente Romano hosted us fabulously with special mention to Bill Doyle their club captain and the resort's Managing Director Shaun Leleu, for their huge generosity in making this one of the most popular overseas fixtures in our IC of GB Match Calendar.

Results (IC of GB players listed first)

Captain: Johnny Barr

Lewis Burton beat David Sanchez 7-5 6-4
Jim May lost to Tom Hulme 6-4 6-2
Ross Matheson lost to Ales Dvorak 7-6 6-4
Mark Loosemore beat Bill Doyle 6-0 6-2
Shaun Leleu beat Nicholas Delgado 4-6 3-1 Retired
Johnny Barr & Gary Drake lost to Marco Djokovic & Rene Primelles 5-7 6-4 [10-8]
Jim May & Lewis Burton lost to Marco Djokovic & David Sanchez  6-1 6-2   
Johnny Barr & Mark Loosemore lost to Ales Dvorak & Nicholas Delgado 6-2 6-4
Gary Drake & Ross Matheson beat Rene Primelles & Carlos Gomez  7-5 7-6

Result: IC of GB 5 - 6 LTA Juniors
Venue: National Tennis Centre

The IC of GB narrowly missed out on winning the John Dunningham Trophy, losing six rubbers to five on the outdoor clay courts at the LTA National Tennis Centre.  The match was played to a very high standard with the fixture being settled on a final champions tie-break.

It was a privilege to have John Barrett present the John Dunningham Trophy to the winners and we wish the LTA Juniors well with their final preparations for the Junior Davis Cup.

Our thanks to Jane O'Donoghue and Chris Wilkinson at the LTA for organising a great match and for being wonderful hosts.

Results (IC of GB players listed first)

Naomi Cavaday lost to Sasha Hill 6-4 7-5
Alex Walker beat Holly Staff 6-2 6-3
Natasha Starling lost to Elysia Dudeney 6-2 6-4
Mark Whitehouse beat Felix Gill 6-3 7-5
Oscar Podlewski beat Jack Pinnington Jones 7-5 6-3
Tim Sagar lost to Joel Pierleoni 7-6 2-6 [10-6]
Chris Clark lost to Harry Lozell 6-1 6-4
Naomi Cavaday beat Holly Staff 6-1 7-5
Alex Walker & Natasha Starling lost to Sasha Hill & Elysia Dudeney 7-6 6-3
Mark Whitehouse & Tim Sagar beat Felix Gill & Harry Lozell 6-4 7-6
Oscar Podlewski & Chris Clark lost to Jack Pinnington Jones & Joel Pierleoni 6-7 6-3 [10-6]

Result: IC of GB 2 - 3 Yorkshire
Venue: Ilkley LTC

The annual match against Yorkshire was played on the new grass courts at Ilkley LTC in brilliant sunshine.  It was a great opportunity to catch-up with old friends and every rubber was played in good spirit, despite a 3-2 loss.

The highlight of the day was Ian Blakeman and Ashley Broomhead coming back from three match points down to beat Richard and Andrew Hutchinson.

Our thanks to Yorkshire and Ilkley LTC in particular for hosting such an enjoyable fixture.

Results (IC of GB players listed first)

Cath Davies & Sarah Thomas lost to Karen Mitchell & Louise Marshman 7-6 6-2
Ian Blakeman & Ashley Broomhead beat Richard Hutchinson & Andrew Hutchinson 3-6 7-5 [10-8]
James Ickringill & Peter Vann (guests) beat Paul Layfield & Gareth Hutchinson 6-3 6-4
Ian Blakeman & Ashley Broomhead lost to Paul Layfield & Gareth Hutchinson 7-5 7-5
James Ickringill & Peter Vann (guests) lost to Richard Hutchinson & Andrew Hutchinson 6-3 1-6 [14-12]

Result: IC of GB 5 - 4 Harvard and Yale (Men's)
Venue: Roehampton Club

The IC of GB team secured a closely fought 5-4 match win against a touring Harvard and Yale men's team on the grass courts at Roehampton Club.  This fixture is part of a series of warm-up matches for the touring Harvard and Yale team as they build towards the Prentice Cup, a biennial match against Oxford and Cambridge that takes place in the UK every four years.

The match was followed by dinner and the Weatherill Cup was presented to the winning IC of GB captain, Richard Ground, by Barry Weatherill.

Results (IC of GB players listed first)

Johnny Barr & Lewis Burton lost to Grant Solomon & Stefan Doehler 6-3 6-4
Johnny Barr & Lewis Burton beat Jean Thirovin & Logan Weber 6-1
Johnny Barr & Lewis Burton beat Dylan King & Ziqi Wang 6-2

Richard Ground & Oli Golding beat Grant Solomon & Stefan Doehler 6-3
Richard Ground & Oli Golding lost to Jean Thirovin & Logan Weber 2-6 7-5 [10-6]
Richard Ground & Oli Golding beat Dylan King & Ziqi Wang 6-3

James Spooner & Anton Bettink (guest) lost to Grant Solomon & Stefan Doehler 6-2
James Spooner & Anton Bettink (guest) lost to Jean Thirovin & Logan Weber 6-4
James Spooner & Anton Bettink (guest) beat Dylan King & Ziqi Wang 6-3 6-4

Result: IC of GB 1 - 1 Harvard and Yale (Ladies)
Venue: Stoke Park

The visiting Harvard and Yale ladies team continued their warm-up for the 2018 Seabright Cup with the quadrennial fixture against the IC of GB ladies team at Stoke Park.  Due to an unfortunate injury to one of the players in the second game of the first set only two matches were completed and the fixture was tied 1-1.

Our thanks to Stoke Park for being such wonderful hosts and we wish Harvard and Yale well in their forthcoming match against Oxford and Cambridge.

Results (IC of GB players listed first)

Cath Gunn & Kate Gowar lost to Valerie Shklover and Erica Oosterhout 7-6 7-5
Kate Gowar & Katie O'Brien beat Lexi Milunovich & Sam Martinelli 6-1 6-1

Result: IC of GB 2 - 7 Public Schools Old Boys
Venue: Stoke Park

After a number of years of narrow victories for the IC the PUBS team put is a solid performance to beat the IC of GB in this year’s fixture. Although the weather was not quite as hot as the last few weeks, we avoided the rain and the entire match was played on the grass courts. 

Once again the fixture involved some very close matches with a number of tie breaks.  The match was very well contested, and played in good spirits.

Our thanks go out to Stoke Park for allowing us to use the venue once again for this fixture, and thanks to all of those who played.

Results (IC of GB players are listed first)

Nathan Rooney & Lewis Burton beat Dominic Hemy & Matt Kirby 3-6 6-4 [10-1]

Chris Clark & David Culshaw lost to Rob Searle and Ben Draper 2-6 6-3 [10-3]
Hugh Jacques & Andy Kennaugh lost to Rich Wire & Sean Thornley 7-6 6-2
 

Nathan Rooney & Lewis Burton beat Rob Searle and Ben Draper 4-6 7-5 [10-3] 

Chris Clark & David Culshaw lost to Rich Wire & Sean Thornley 6-0 6-1
Hugh Jacques & Andy Kennaugh lost to Dominic Hemy & Matt Kirby 6-4 6-2

Nathan Rooney & Lewis Burton lost to Rich Wire & Sean Thornley 3-6 7-6 [11-9]

Chris Clark & David Culshaw lost to Dominic Hemy & Matt Kirby 6-4 6-2
Hugh Jacques & Andy Kennaugh lost to Rob Searle and Ben Draper 6-4 6-3

Result: IC of GB 8 - 6 IC of Ireland
Venue: The Limpsfield Club

Friendships were once again renewed at the annual match against the IC of Ireland which was played on a glorious sunny day at The Limpsfield Club in Surrey.  The match was competitive and played in great spirit, with the IC of GB delivering a hard-fought 8-6 victory.

Our thanks go out to The Limpsfield Club and all its membership for supporting the fixture by granting us the use of their courts and facilities for the entire day.

Results

Lewis Barnes lost to James Cluskey 6-3 6-1

David Culshaw lost to Fergus O'Connell 6-4, 6-2

Lewis Barnes & David Culshaw beat James Cluskey & Fergus O'Connell 6-4 3-6 [10-6]

Chrissie Runnicles & Anne Clark beat Michelle Buckley & Dearbhla Kelly 6-1 6-2

Siobhan Nicholson & Judy Horn lost to Deirdre Collins & Joanne Williamson 7-6 7-6

Chrissie Runnicles & Anne Clark lost to Deirdre Collins & Joanne Williamson 6-3 6-4

Siobhan Nicholson & Judy Horn beat Michelle Buckley & Dearbhla Kelly 5-1 retd

Johnny Barr & Martin Cornish beat Conor McCullough & Noel Sheridan 6-3 6-1

Mike Dawe & Peter Hannon beat Bernard McCormack & Pat Guiry 6-1, 6-1

Mike Dawe & Peter Hannon lost to Conor McCullough & Noel Sheridan w/o

Johnny Barr & Martin Cornish beat Bernard McCormack & Pat Guiry 6-3, 6-2

Johnny Barr & Siobhan Nicholson beat Bernard McCormack & Deirdre Collins 6-4 6-2

Martin Cornish & Chrissie Runnicles beat Pat Guiry & Dearbhla Kelly 6-4 4-6 [10-6]

Mike Dawe & Judy Horn lost to Conor McCullough & Joanne Williamson 6-2 6-1

Result: IC of GB 0 - 3 AELTC
Venue: AELTC

The match against the AELTC was played in great spirit on grass courts 6 & 7 in fine weather, with AELTC winning three closely fought matches in straight sets.  After the match The All England Club kindly invited us to a wonderful dinner.

Our thanks to the All England Club for hosting this annual fixture so well.

Results

Tim Sagar & Chris Clark lost to Rich Wire & Chris Archer 6-3 6-4
Kate Gowar & Tim Sagar lost to Katie O'Brien & Rich Wire 7-5 7-5
Leyla Ogan & Chris Clark lost to Gill Brook & Chris Archer 6-3 6-3

Maharajah of Kutch Tennis Trophy – Result: IC of GB 7 – 3 IC of France
Le Touquet Golf Cup – Result: IC of GB 3 – 1 IC of France

This year’s Maharajah of Kutch 45+ tennis and golf match was played over two days at Moor Park, with golf on Thursday being played at Gerrards Cross Golf Club.  The IC of France brought three golfers, including their President Thierry Pham and four tennis players.

The golfers played at the picturesque (but hilly!) Gerrards Cross Golf Club on Thursday. Playing 4 ball better ball matchplay David Waite and Alec Allen narrowly lost to Thierry Pham and Christian Peugeot with Alan Purnell and Julian Tatum levelling the match against Patrick Faviere and Caroline Greatrex (IC of France guest player).

Meanwhile at Moor Park the IC of GB with a relatively strong team went 4-1 up in the tennis.

Thursday dinner was at the Bull Hotel where the IC of France team were staying.

On Friday the golf and tennis were both at Moor Park. There were a number of changes in the IC of GB team for Friday with Anne Clark added to the tennis team and Shamus Donald and Simon Curtis replacing Alan Purnell and Julian Tatum in the golf. Tony Billington replaced Caroline Greatrex as the guest IC of France golfer.

The Friday golf results ended with both the IC of GB pairs of David Waite and Simon Curtis and Shamus Donald and Alec Allen winning to retain the Le Touquet Golf Cup 3-1.

With a further 5 tennis rubbers played on Friday the IC of GB managed to win the tennis match 7-3 to retain the Maharajah of Kutch Trophy.

The official dinner was held in the magnificent Thornhill Room at Moor Park on Friday evening. 

Our thanks to Benson Greatrex (captain), Bill Gowans and Anthea Stewart for organising the fixture and the IC of France team for making the match so enjoyable, with particular thanks to Dominique Legat the IC of France match manager.

The next Maharajah fixture will be in France in 2020.

Result: IC of GB 7 - 1 Seniors LTA of GB (Men's)
Venue: St George's Hill LTC

A strong IC of GB team completed a 7-1 win in the annual match against the Seniors LTA of GB on the grass courts of St George’s Hill LTC.  The standard of tennis was very high across both the 45+ and 60+ age categories that were contested on the day.

Our thanks to St George’s Hill LTC for allowing us to host the match at their Club and for the thoroughly enjoyable hospitality both teams experienced.

Results (IC of GB players are listed first)

60+
Mike Dawe & Jeremy Woods beat Martin Cornish & Steve Alger 6-4 6-2
Mike Dawe & Jeremy Woods drew against Robin Drysdale & Freddie Menzies 4-6 6-2

Dave Rawlinson & Andrew Soul beat Martin Cornish & Steve Alger 6-2 6-2
Dave Rawlinson & Andrew Soul beat Robin Drysdale & Freddie Menzies 6-3 6-1

45+
Graham Neale & Ian Udace drew against Chris Hearn & Dan Lobb 6-3 4-6
Graham Neale & Ian Udace beat Adam Boucher & Paul Scullard 6-3 7-6

Declan Power & Francis Caudwell beat Chris Hearn & Dan Lobb 6-3 6-4
Declan Power & Francis Caudwell beat Adam Boucher & Paul Scullard 6-2 7-6

Results: TBC
Venues: The Edgbaston Priory Club (27th June), St George’s Hill LTC (29th June) and The Hurlingham Club (1st July)

RESULTS

@ Edgbaston Priory on 27th June 2018
Result (win ratio): 1. GB (75%) 2. ARG (60%) 3. CHL (44%) 4. URY (18%)

Philip Siviter (GB) beat Jorge Cano (ARG) 7-6 6-0
Hugh Jaques (GB) beat Elias Estaban (CHL) 6-4 6-4
Teresa Catlin (GB) beat Maria Ruiz Barbot (URY) 6-3 6-2
Andrew Smith (GB) & Enrique Morea (ARG) beat Marcelo Lombardi Marin & Roberto Depaulo Martinez (URY) 6-2 6-3

Benson Greatrex & Mark Cox (GB) beat Carlos Mancini (ARG) & Juan Carlos Paradizo (URY) 6-3 6-3
Tony King & Hugh Jaques (GB) lost to Marcello Filippini & Philippe Pinet (URY) 6-3 7-6
Joy Tacon & Pat Wire (GB) beat Carol Haddad Bahna & Ana Arias (CHL) 6-3 6-1
Phil King & Norman Church (GB) lost to Thomas Lynch (ARG) & Jaime Pinto Bravo (CHL) 6-4 7-5

Phil King & Tony King (GB) beat Felipe Bunster Galeno & Jaime Pinto Bravo (CHL) 3-6 6-2 10-2
Carolina Carabantes Senoret & Christian Damm Jimenez (CHL) beat Mabel Bove & Enrique Morea (ARG)6-3 3-6 [10-3]
Anthea Stewart & Jenny Waggott (GB) beat Cora Mallea & Graciela Lombardi (ARG) 6-0 6-1
Felipe Ortiz Rojas & Sergio Elias (CHL) beat Pedro Karliner & Roberto Depaulo Martinez (URU) 7-6 6-4

Pat Wire (GB) & Cora Mallea (ARG) beat Leyla Musalem & Carol Haddad Bahna (CHL) 6-3 6-1
Mark Cox & Benson Greatrex (GB) lost to Carlos Mancini & Thomas Stanlhandske (ARG) 6-4 3-6 [10-7]
Fiorella Bonicelli & Maria Ruiz Barbot (URY) beat Laura Naldrett Bunster Galeno & Ana Arias (CHL) 6-0 6-0
Elias Estaban & Felipe Bunster Galeno (CHL) beat Marcelo Lombardi Marin & Juan Carlos Paradisso (URY) 6-3 6-2

Tomas Lynch & Jorge Cano (ARG) beat Juan Carlos Paradizo & Juan Berchesi Mourelle (URY) 6-1 6-0
Alan Purnell & Norman Church (GB) beat Jean Brisson & Federico Garcia Vigil (URY) 6-0 6-0
Philip Siviter & Kevin Havelock (GB) beat Walter Quinke & Pedro Karliner (CHL) 6-1 6-2
Teresa Catlin & Jenny Waggott (GB) beat Fiorella Bonicelli (URY) & Leyla Musalem (CHL) 6-2 7-6

Kevin Havelock & Anthea Stewart (GB) loast to Cora Mallea & Carlos Mancini (ARG) 6-4 2-6 [10-7]

----

@ St George’s Hill on 30th June 2017

Result (win ratio): 1. ARG (67%) =2. GB & CHL (57%) 4. URY (19%)

Blessed with fine weather, a full day of tennis took place on the front grass courts and given that some teams played a different number of matches, the result was based on % matches won.

The match was followed by dinner in the evening for seventy people, which included the Chairman of St George’s Hill, Peter Jamieson. Gifts were exchanged with the opposition.  Special thanks to Thomas Stalhandske for leading the South American team, St George’s for hosting us so well again and to the players and guests who all contributed to a very enjoyable day.

Henk Nijeboer & Clive Hutchings (GB) beat Walter Fernando Quinke & Jean Paul Brisson (URY) 6-1 6-1
David Waite & Jeremy Woods (GB) beat Pedro Karliner & Juan Fernando Berchesi Mourelle (URY) GB 6-1 6-0
Anthea Stewart & Chris French (GB) beat Laura May Benster (CHL) & Maria Ruiz Barbot (URY) 7-6 6-1
Mabel Amanda Bove & Graciela Lombardi (ARG) beat Ana Maria Arias & Leyla Musalem (CHL) 6-0 6-1
Tomas Miguel Lynch & Enrique Francisco Morea (ARG) beat Jaime Rene Pinto Bravo & Felipe Eduardo Ortiz Rojas (CHL) 6-4 6-2

Karen Cass & Dee Oakley (GB) lost to Fiorella Bonicelli (URY) & Cora Mallea (ARG)  4-6 6-2 [10 point breaker]
Alec Allen & Chris Clark (GB) lost to Esteban Elias & Felipe Bunster (CHL) 7-6 4-6 [10 point breaker]
Juan Carlos Paradizo (URY) & Christian Ignacio Damm Jimenez (CHL) lost to Luis Medus & Carlos Marcelo Mancini (ARG) 6-2 6-1
David Collins & Benson Greatrex (GB) beat Marcello Filippini & Philippe Pinet (URY) 6-3 7-6
Roberto Walter Depaulo Martinez & Marcelo Lombardi Marin (URY) lost to Jorge Juan Cano & Thomas Stalhandske (ARG) 6-4 6-0

Di Hunter & Jenny Gorringe (GB) lost to Ana Maria Arias & Leyla Musalem (CHL) 6-0 6-0
Jeremy Woods & Clive Hutchings (GB) beat Federico Garcia Vigil & Pedro Karliner (URY) 6-1
Chris French & Toni Thompson (GB) beat Carol Bahna & Carolina Senoret (CHL) 6-0 6-0
Benson Greatrex & David Waite (GB) lost to Carlos Marcelo Mancini & Enrique Francsisco Morea (ARG) 6-4 6-2

Anthea Stewart (GB) & Luis Medus (ARG) beat Cora Mallea & Carlos Marcelo Mancini (ARG) 6-4 6-2
Karen Cass & Toni Thompson (GB) lost to Maria Ruiz Barbot & Fiorella Bonicelli (URY) 6-4 4-6 1-0
Jamie Rene Pinto Bravo & Sergio Elias (CHL) beat Enrique Francisco Morea (ARG) & Pedro Karliner (URY) 6-4 6-4

----

@ The Hurlingham Club on 2nd July 2017

On the final day of tennis for the visiting teams of Argentina, Uruguay and Chile, the Hurlingham Club provided a fabulous venue, wonderful weather, and pristine grass courts.

The tennis was very competitive and high quality, although most opted for just one match on the day, a combination of the heat, a full schedule, and possibly a late night at the Grosvenor House Hotel the previous evening at the annual IC Ball. 

The overall match wins were as follows:

Great Britain 3
Argentina 4
Uruguay 3
Chile 2

The match of the day went to Marcelo Flippini & Philippe Pinet (Uruguay) vs Carlos Marcelo Mancini & Esteban Elias (Argentina) - a fantastic doubles which drew a good crowd as people arrived for the Garden Party, with the Uruguayan pair edging the match 6-4 7-5. 

Thanks as always to the Hurlingham Club for their very kind hospitality, and to the IC of GB players who always play this fixture in such good spirit.

Dominic Inglot and Franko Skugor beat John Peers and Henri Kontinen 6-0 7-5

Result: IC of GB 3rd
Venue: ICLTK Tennis Club, Prague

The IC of GB touring team finished 3rd overall in the CQS IC 4 Nations Trophy held at the ICLTK Tennis Club on the Stavanice Island in the heart of Prague, Czech Republic.  The event featured teams from the ICs of Belgium, Hungary and the Czech Republic.

Interestingly, matches used a time based format with games won awarded to countries and individual players after one hour of play.  The first day featured pairs from each country competing against other nations, and on the second day, players were paired off with individuals from other countries.  It was a relatively unique and interesting format for all involved.

There were also many opportunities to get to know the players from other teams at a variety of social events organised by our hosts Jiri Medonos and Helena Sukova.  Of particular note, participants were treated to a formal dinner and a riverboat cruise up the Vltava river.  There was also a sightseeing tour of the beautiful Chateaux Nelahozeves and an evening of opera at the Zofin Palace on Slovansky Island.

GB captain Jeremy Woods was privileged to be made an honorary member of the IC of Czech Republic.

Our thanks to the IC of Czech Republic for hosting such a wonderful event.

IC of GB Team
Keith Ajegbo
Nuala Dwyer
Ashley Compton-Dando
Di Oakley
Jeremy Woods (capt)
John Barrett (guest)

Result: IC of GB 4 – 5 Cambridge University (Men’s)
Venue: Fenner’s

The IC lost a very competitive match against a strong Cambridge side on the grass courts at Fenner’s, where five of the six singles matches went to third set 10-point breakers.

The IC found themselves 4-2 down after singles and despite a promising start in the doubles the team succumbed to a 5-4 defeat overall.

The match was played in a great spirit and there was some very high level tennis. 

Both teams enjoyed a BBQ afterwards and our thanks to Cambridge University for hosting another great match and our guests, Cozzy Markides and David Scales, who both stepped in as last minute replacements for injured players.

Results (IC of GB players listed first) 

Jon Tassell beat Michal Kaminski 5-7 6-3 [10-3]
Paddy May lost to James Shemilt 5-7 6-2 [10-8]
Cozzy Markides (guest) beat Tim Prosser 7-6 4-6 [10-7]
David Scales (guest) lost to Toni Morales 6-4 6-7 [10-7]
Tom Green lost to Finn Ranson 6-3 7-6
James Wrisdale lost to Jack Long-Martinez 3-6 7-5 [10-6]

Jon Tassell & Paddy May beat Michal Kaminski & Tim Prosser 6-4 6-2
Tom Green & James Wrisdale lost to James Shemilt & Jack Long-Martinez 6-4 7-5 
Cozzy Markides & David Scales (guests) beat Toni Morales & Alex Mardinian 4-6 6-4 [10-4]

Result: Ladies finished 3rd; Men finished 5th
Venue: Real Club de Polo de Barcelona

The ladies and men's teams both came away with two wins and a loss each to finish 3rd and 5th respectively at the 2018 Potter Cup.

The opening day saw both the men's and ladies teams compete against the IC of France.

The ladies beat the French team 2-0 to progress to the semi-finals and although they ultimately lost the semi-final 2-1 against the IC of Italy, they went on to beat the IC of Germany on the final day of competition to finish 3rd overall.

The men suffered a 5-0 loss against a strong French team but went on to beat Belgium 4 -3 in the play back event, and finished 5th overall after the Danes withdrew on the final day due to player injuries.

The quality of tennis was exceptional and there were several former Top 50 players competing in the event.  The social events organised by our hosts were also fantastic.  The dinners held at the Real Club on the Friday evening and the Polo Club on Saturday were very much appreciated by all of the players and spectators alike.  Special thanks to Berta Tintore for helping to organise such a wonderful few days.

Results (IC of GB players listed first)

Day 1 - Friday 1st June

Men's 1st Round
IC of GB 0 - 5 IC of France
Ross Matheson lost to Stephane Grolier 6-4 6-0
Nick Adams lost to Christophe Damiens 6-2 6-2
James Turner lost to Laurent Schram 6-2 6-3
Ben Knapp lost to Herve Bardot 4-6 6-0 7-5
David Mills lost to Olivier Bardet 5-7 6-2 6-3

Ladies 1st Round
IC of GB 2 - 0 IC of France
Eilidh Smith beat Marie Larras 3-6 6-2 6-2
Michelle Oldham beat Chantal Grimal 6-2 6-1

Day 2 - Saturday 2nd June

Men's 5th - 8th Playoffs
IC of GB 4 - 3 IC of Belgium
Ross Matheson lost to Christophe Thijs 6-4 6-4
Nick Adams beat Eric Lingg 6-3 2-3 rtd
James Turner lost to Philippe Heirebaudt 6-3 6-1
Ben Knapp beat Patrice Delstanche 6-1 6-2
David Mills beat Serge Wynen 6-3 6-1
Ross Matheson & James Turner beat Christophe Thijs & Serge Wynen w/o
Nick Adams & Ben Knapp lost to Philippe Heirebaudt & Patrice Delstanche 6-3 3-6 [10-7]

Ladies Semi-Finals
IC of GB 1 - 2 IC of Italy
Leyla Ogan beat Gloria Pizzichini 6-4 6-1
Michelle Oldham lost to Alice Canepa 4-6 6-0 6-1
Leyla Ogan & Eilidh Smith lost to Alice Canepa & Madar 6-2 6-2

Day 3 - Sunday 3rd June

Men's 5th - 6th Playoff
IC of GB beat IC of Denmark w/o

Ladies 3rd - 4th Playoff
IC of GB 2 - 1 IC of Germany
Leyla Ogan beat Sabine Gerke 7-5 6-5 rtd
Eilidh Smith lost to Elena Wagner Bergomi 6-2 6-2
Leyla Ogan & Michelle Oldham beat Silke Meter Heckmann & Elena Wagner Bergomi 5-7 6-1 [11-9]

Result: IC of GB 7 - 2 Oxford University (Men's)
Venue: White Horse Leisure Centre, Abingdon

The men's IC team secured a 7 - 2 victory against Oxford University at the White Horse Leisure Centre in Abingdon.  The venue was switched from the traditional Iffley Road site after overnight storms left the grass courts unplayable.

Three third set 10-point tiebreaks went our way and helped provide a 4 - 2 lead after the first round of singles matches.  The team then followed up with a clean sweep of the doubles to secure the win overall.

Our thanks to Oxford University and their captain, Saleem Rizvi, for being such generous hosts.

Results

Tim Matthewson beat Saleem Rizvi 6-3 6-1
Fergus O'Connell beat Cameron Bowie 6-7 6-4 [10-8]
Tariq Khalifa lost to Oliver Nunn 6-3 6-2
Matt Morrow beat Edward Kandel 6-2 2-6 [10-8]
Greg Weir beat Kirill Titov 2-6 7-6 [10-1]
Johnny Barr lost to Casper Scheible 6-3 6-4

Tim Matthewson & Johhny Barr beat Saleem Rizvi & Cameron Bowie 7-5 6-2
Fergus O'Connell & Greg Weir beat Edward Kandel & Kirill Titov 7-6 6-3
Tariq Khalifa & Matt Morrow beat Oliver Nunn & Casper Scheible 6-2 6-0

Result: IC of GB 2 - 10 IC of France
Venue: La Faisanderie and La Boulie

The IC of France delivered a comfortable 10-2 win against the British touring team in a storm hit match that took place on the eve of the French Open in Paris.

Unfortunately the courts on the opening day of play at the beautiful Club Stade Francais were unplayable until the early evening and only three matches were completed.  Despite the damp conditions, the official dinner that followed was very enjoyable and there were entertaining speeches from Marie Ann, the French Captain, as well as Thierry Pham, Benson Greatrex and Mark Beim.

The sun came out on Saturday and a full set of fixtures were completed at La Boulie, the venue that has traditionally been used for this match over the last few years.  Lunch on the terrace overlooking the golf course was stunning.

Our thanks to Marie Anne, Thierry Pham and the IC of France for their wonderful hospitality and in particular for arranging tickets to the Presidents Box at Roland Garros on Monday 28th May.  It was an amazing day as usual!

Results (IC of GB players listed first)

Friday 25th May 2018
Judy Horn lost to Sophie Didelot 6-2 6-1
Paul Scullard & Mark Beim beat Jacques Hervet & Jean Leclercq 3-6 6-3 [10-4]
Benson Greatrex & Gilles Destremau lost to Bruno Renoult & Marc Renoult 6-1 6-2

Saturday 26th May 2018
Jordan Grey lost to Heiner Tadault 4-6 6-1 [10-7]
Paul Scullard lost to Jean Leclercq 7-5 6-1
Mark Beim & Christophe Damiens beat Bruno Renoult & Ludwig Pellerin 6-2 6-2
Jordan Grey lost to Ludwig Pellerin 7-5 7-5
Graham Neale lost to Laurent Schram 6-2 7-6
Benson Greatrex lost to Didier Kaisserian 6-2 6-0
Colin Dowdeswell lost to Patrick Boukobza 6-3 6-1
Judy Horn & Benson Greatrex lost to Fab Desplanques & Bruno Renoult 6-0 6-1
Mark Beim lost to Nicolas Fourcade 6-4 4-6 [10-7]

Result: IC of GB 13 – 0 Bradfield College

Venue: Bradfield Tennis Centre

The IC of GB were awarded the Henry Billington Trophy after securing victory against the students of Bradfield College.  There was also an opportunity for a few guests to play in the match following the late withdrawal of IC members due to unforeseen circumstances.

The match was played in good spirit and despite the score line there was some excellent tennis on display. Bradfield fielded quite a young team which bodes well for closer matches in years to come.

The match was followed by a special dinner to celebrate the event’s 60th anniversary.  IC luminaries present to support and attend the dinner included The Lord Iliffe, Tony Billington, Chris Gorringe, Mike Stotesbury, James Wyatt, Tim Billington, Geoffrey Hamilton and Sarah Lion-Cachet.

Results (IC of GB players listed first)

Adrian Blackman & Oscar Podlewski (guest)

beat Thomas Wynne & Bailey McAtee 6-2 6-4

beat Jonathan Schleicher & Paolo Ravano 6-0

beat William Mercer & Freddie Baker 6-0

David Collins & Chris Jenkins (guest)

beat Jonathan Schleicher & Paolo Ravano 6-2 6-0

beat Thomas Wynne & Bailey McAtee 6-1

beat William Mercer & Freddie Baker 6-1

Jonny Barr & Andy Creighton

beat William Mercer & Freddie Baker 7-6 6-0

beat Thomas Wynne & Bailey McAtee 6-0

beat Jonathan Schleicher & Paolo Ravano 6-0

Karen Hunter & Gill Thompson (guest)

beat Imogen Lowe & Amber Miles 6-0 6-0

beat Tatiana Wiggin & Ellie Stopps 6-0 6-1

Fleur Clegg & Joy Tacon

beat Imogen Lowe & Amber Miles 6-1 6-0

beat Tatiana Wiggin & Ellie Stopps 6-1 6-1

Result: IC of GB 8 – 0 Oxford and Cambridge (Ladies)

Venue: Cambridge University LTC

A very strong IC of GB team came through unscathed against a combined Oxford and Cambridge ladies team.  The match was played in glorious sunshine on the grass courts at Fenner's and it was thoroughly enjoyable with lots of close matches.

Our thanks to the Cambridge captain, Claudia Dickinson, for organising the match and Cambridge University for being such wonderful hosts.  All the players enjoyed refreshments throughout the day and several players continued on into the city centre for drinks by the river after the match.

Results (IC of GB players listed first)

Round 1
Alex Walker and Laura Morrill beat Jenny Mair and Katie Dewsnip 6-4 6-3
Anjoli Foster and Teresa Catlin beat Nanami Yamaguchi and Frances Benson 6-2 6-1
Susie Dart and Jo Shephard beat Claudia Dickinson and Joanna Zada 6-1 6-3
Judy Horn and Karen Cass beat Eloise Hamilton and Lucy Denly 6-2 7-6

Round 2
Alex Walker and Laura Morrill beat Nanami Yamaguchi and Frances Benson 6-4 6-3
Anjoli Foster and Teresa Catlin beat Jenny Mair and Katie Dewsnip 7-6 6-2
Susie Dart and Jo Shephard beat Eloise Hamilton and Lucy Denly 6-2 6-1 
Judy Horn and Karen Cass beat Claudia Dickinson and Joanna Zada 6-3 6-0

Result: IC of GB 3 – 6 Fitzwilliam Club

Venue: The Fitzwilliam Club

The IC of GB’s touring team lost six rubbers to three against a strong Fitzwilliam Club team in Dublin at the weekend.

Following a welcome dinner on Friday evening, matches commenced on Saturday and were played across three rounds on the indoor hard courts at the Fitzwilliam Club.  Tim Matthewson and Tim Weir both secured singles wins, but the Brits trailed 4-2 after the first two rounds of play.

Unfortunately, Tim Weir pulled his calf muscle in the last game of his singles match and although he was able to hobble across the line he was unable to compete in the afternoon’s doubles matches.  Rather than claim a walkover, in true IC spirit, the Fitzwilliam Club agreed to another singles match being played instead, which Constantine Markides lost in a closely fought final set tie-break.

In the two remaining doubles matches, Anjoli Foster and Jo Shepherd came back from a 6-0 first set loss to win their match in a final set tiebreak but Tim Matthewson and Greg Weir came up short.

After the match, both teams enjoyed a lovely dinner in a private room at the Fitzwilliam Club, followed by a night out in Dublin.

Our thanks to Jane Fennelly, the captain of the Fitzwilliam Club team, all of the players and the Club itself, for their warmth and generosity in hosting such a wonderful couple of days.

RESULTS (IC of GB players listed first)

Round 1
#3 Tim Weir beat Brendan Dempsey 6-1 6-2
#4 Greg Weir lost to Gary Kilduff 6-1 6-1
#2 Jo Shephard lost to Lauren Deegan 6-3 6-2

Round 2
#1 Tim Matthewson beat Sean Collins 6-0 6-3
#2 Constantine Markides lost to Cal Craven 6-2 6-1
#1 Anjoli Foster lost to Jane Fennelly 6-2 6-1

Round 3
Anjoli Foster & Jo Shephard beat Jane Fennelly & Lauren Deegan 0-6 6-4 [10-5]
Tim Matthewson & Greg Weir lost to Sean Collins & Cal Craven 7-6 6-4
Constantine Markides lost to Gary Kilduff 3-6 6-4 [10-8]

Result: IC of GB Finished 3rd

Day 1: IC of GB 0 - 6 IC of Germany I
Day 2: IC of GB 3 - 3 IC of Germany II (IC of GB Won on sets)

Venue: Frankfurter Tennis Club 1914

Our touring team had a fantastic time at the Wallenberg Trophy in Germany this weekend, an annual multi-team competition involving the ICs of Sweden, France (replaced by a second team from Germany), Great Britain and Germany.  Playing on the red clay in Frankfurt the IC of GB put in a sterling effort to finish third overall.

The British team, captained by David Collins, lost their opening match 6-0 to a strong German first team after losing three of the four singles matches in final set 10-point tie-breaks.

However, in the third / fourth play-off against the German II team, the British team came back from a 3-1 deficit after the singles to tie the match 3-3.  Straight set wins for Michelle Oldham and David Collins, as well as Amanda Elliot and Barry Scollo, in the mixed doubles, meant the IC of GB won the match on sets and finished third overall.

The IC of Germany I team beat the IC of Sweden in the final.

Our thanks to the IC of Germany for their hospitality and for hosting such a wonderful event.

Results (IC of GB players listed first)

Day 1 vs IC of Germany I (6-0 Loss)
Michelle Oldham lost to Suzanne Fortum 6-1 3-6 [10-6]
Amanda Elliot lost to Svenja Weidemenn 3-6 6-0 [10-7]
David Collins lost to Jurgan Marzenell 7-6 4-6 [10-8]
Barry Scollo lost to Marcelo Craca 6-1 6-1

Michelle Oldham & David Collins lost to Suzanne Fortum & Jurgan Marzenell 7-5 6-3
Amanda Elliot & Barry Scollo lost to Svenja Weidemenn & Marcelo Craca 6-2 7-6

Day 2 vs IC of Germany II (3-3 Win on sets)
Michelle Oldham beat Monika Kamen 6-4 6-3
Amanda Elliot lost to Lisa Kaiser 7-6 2-6 [9-11]
Barry Scollo lost to Timo Rugler 6-3 3-6 [12-9]
David Collins lost to Marian Stamm 6-2 6-2

Michelle Oldham & David Collins beat Monika Kamen & Marian Stamm 6-2 6-3
Amanda Elliot & Barry Scollo beat Lisa Kaiser & Timo Rugler 6-2 6-3

Result: Under 35s 7 - 1 Over 35s
Venue: LTA National Tennis Centre

The IC Under 35s team triumphed 7-1 against the experience of the Over 35s in the traditional season opening match at the National Tennis Centre today.

The match provided a great opportunity for some of the Club's younger members to get some early match play and there proved to be lots of competitive matches, played in true IC spirit.  It was especially great to see four members making their debuts.

The Under 35s led 3-1 after the first round of men's and ladies doubles, before going on to take a clean sweep of the mixed doubles matches that followed.

Our thanks to Barry Cowan and Philippa Coates for organising the fixture and the LTA for kindly allowing use of the National Tennis Centre.

Results (Under 35s players listed first)

Men's Doubles
Craig Evans & Dom Hodgson lost to Barry Cowan & Dan Lobb 7-6 2-6 10-7
Jamie Muirhead & Alex Wilton beat Simon Bramwell & Hugh Jaques 6-4 6-3

Ladies Doubles
Mel South & Laura Morrill beat Emma Ormerod & Olivia Fery 6-1 6-4
Anabel Watson & Alexandra Walker beat Katherine Laidler & Dearbhla Kelly 6-0 6-2

Mixed Doubles
Craig Evans & Mel South beat Barry Cowan & Emma Ormerod 6-4 6-2
Dom Hodgson & Laura Morrill beat Dan Lobb & Olivia Fery 4-6 6-2 10-7
Jamie Muirhead & Alexandra Walker beat Hugh Jaques & Dearbhla Kelly 6-4 6-4
Alex Wilton & Anabel Watson beat Simon Bramwell & Katherine Laidler 4-6 6-4 10-7

Result: IC of GB 5 – 7 IC of The Netherlands 
Venue: Amsterdam

The IC of Netherlands reclaimed the Francis Wallis Trophy in Amsterdam with a 7 – 5 victory over the British touring team consisting of Susie Dart (capt), Frances Hendry, Richard Wire, Seb Jackson, Adam Boucher and Russell Howat.

The Dutch team sheet included former top 30 player Stephanie Rottier, as well as some other highly experienced and seasoned former pros.  Undeterred, Russell Howat and Richard Wire got the team off to a great start with two singles wins, but three third-set Championship tie-breaks in favour of the Dutch and a loss for Susie left the Brits chasing a 4 – 2 score line at lunch and an overall score line of 5-4 in Holland’s favour after the afternoon’s doubles matches.

After splitting the mixed doubles matches on the second day the match was still very much alive and it came down to Seb Jackson’s singles against a player 14 years his junior, which provided a wonderful finish to the weekend.  Having played a total of eight Championship tie breaks, it was only fitting that the final match and tie decider should be decided by a nail biting championship tie break which the Dutch won 11-9 to clinch the match 7-5 overall.

Our thanks to the Dutch IC who provided wonderful hospitality, great facilities and a competitive, but warm and friendly atmosphere. We look forward to the rematch in 2019.

Results - Saturday (IC of GB listed first)

Over 30 Singles
Frances Hendry lost to Marlot Meddens 3-6 6-3 (2-10)
Richard Wire beat Bart Van Monsjou 6-4 6-3

Over 45 Singles
Susie Dart lost to Stephanie Rottier 0-6 0-6
Sebastian Jackson lost to Fernon Wibier 3-6 6-4 (9-11)
Adam Boucher lost to Johan Vekemans 7-5 3-6 (5-10)

Over 55 Singles
Russell Howat beat Martin Koek 6-4 0-6 (10-8)

Doubles
Susie Dart & Frances Hendry beat Stephanie Rottier & Barbara Kint 6-3 3-6 (10-8)
Seb Jackson & Richard Wire beat Fernon Wibier & Stephen Noteboom 6-3 2-6 (10-3)
Russell Howat & Adam Boucher Lost to Johan Vekemans & Martin Koek 5-7 1-2 rtd

Results - Sunday (IC of GB listed first)

Susie Dart & Russel Howat lost to Merlot Meddens & Martin Koek 1-6 1-6
Frances Hendry & Richard Wire beat Stephanie Rottier & Stephen Noteboom 6-3 2-6 (13-11)
Seb Jackson lost to Bart Van Monsjou 2-6 7-6 (4) (9-11)

Result: IC of GB Winners
Venue: Casa Mesquida Resort, Mallorca, Spain

The IC of GB touring team of Colin Bennett, Mark Willis, David Collins, David Mills, Simon Curtis and Shamus Donald (captain) won the Mallorca tennis/golf event in November for the first time in several years. 

Our tennis players and tennis/golfers were undefeated at the Son Besso Tennis Club and provided the foundation for a 7-0 win over Belgium and a 5-2 win over Spain.  Colin Bennett, who was just back from injury, got the team firing on day one with a hard-fought, straight sets victory over the  Belgium number one, Alain Carlier.

Simon Curtis had a tight golf singles against Spain’s Enrique Tintore, losing by one hole to a birdie on the last having been two up with three to play!  It was a hugely enjoyable trip played in a great spirit on the Son Servera, Capdepera and Pula courses at the Casa Mesquida Resort.

Our thanks to Berta Tintore at the IC of Spain, Antonia Amer at Vanity Golf and Mateu Llobera at the Cala Mesquida Resort for hosting such a wonderful event.

Unfortunately this event has been cancelled due to a lack of player availability.

Result: IC of GB 19 - 9 IC of France
Venue: AELTC (Saturday) and Reed's School (Sunday)

It was another wonderful weekend in London with our IC friends from France. This year the match was hosted at the AELTC and Reed's School on consecutive days in October. The majority of matches were close and we were fortunate to win eight final set Champions tie breaks. There were many highlights over the weekend and the match was played in great spirit throughout. The Saturday evening dinner was a great success, with amusing speeches delivered by IC of GB Captain John Feaver and Heiner Tadault from the IC of France.

Our thanks to the All England Club and in particular, Adrian Blackman at Reed's School for their help with the fixture.

Results @ AELTC (IC of GB players listed first)

Steph Cornish beat Eline 3-6 6-4 10-8
Jo Shepherd lost to Fery 6-1 6-0
Tim Matthewson lost to Mansour 7-6 6-4
Susie Dart beat Folcher 6-1 6-0
Barry Fulcher beat Heiner Tadault 5-7 6-2 10-8
Paul Martin beat Rafidison 6-3 6-2
Andy Burgoyne beat Nakai 6-2 6-2
Rob Booth beat Bernelle 6-2 6-3
Chris Hearn beat Ameline 6-4 4-6 10-8
Matt Coombes beat Quertier 6-3 6-2
Clifford Bloxham beat Delorme 0-6 6-4 12-10
Alec Allen lost to Renoult 7-6 6-2
Susie Dart & Jo Shepherd beat Fery & Folcher 6-0 6-2
Steph Cornish & Mark Whitehouse beat Eline & Mansour 6-4 5-7 11-9
Tim Matthewson & Barry Fulcher beat Rafidson & Tadault 6-3 3-6 10-8
Paul Martin & Andy Burgoyne beat Nakai & Bernelle 4-6 6-1 7-6
Matt Coombes & Chris Hearn beat Quertier & Ameline 6-4

Results @ Reed's School (IC of GB players listed first)

Lorraine Ristic beat Folcher 6-3 6-3
Amanda Elliot beat Eline 6-1 6-2
Mark Whitehouse beat Mansour 6-4 6-4
Tim Matthewson lost to Tadault 6-2 rtd
Paul Martin beat Nakai 6-3 6-2
Mark Beim lost to Bernelle 6-4 4-6 14-12
John Feaver lost to Renoult 6-3 6-3
John Feaver & Lorraine Ristic beat Folcher & Renoult 6-7 6-2 10-8
Paul Scullard beat Ameline 6-2 6-2
Martin Cornish beat Delorme 6-2 6-2
Amanda Elliot & Mark Whitehouse lost to Eline & Mansour 9-7

Result: IC of GB 0 – 6 Puente Romano
Venue: Puente Romano, Marbella, Spain 

This September saw another fabulous trip to Spain involving an IC of GB team that featured Johnny Barr (Captain), Gary Drake, Lewis Burton , Mark Loosemore  and Rob Searle.

The match was played at the magnificent Puente Romano Resort in Marbella, with the Brits looking to win for a second year in a row. However, Puente Romano had other plans and they put out a very strong team with five former top 500 players in Pato Clavet (ATP #18), David Sanchez (ATP #41), Pepe Imaz (ATP #146), Sergio Gomez (ATP #222) and Marco Djokovic (brother of someone rather more infamous and himself an ex top #500 ATP player), along with Resident Czech Pro Alex Dvorak and former Welsh International Shaun Leleu.

In a fabulous format of 3 singles and 3 doubles, the score of 6-0 to the host team doesn’t do justice to the closely fought contest.

The match was played in true IC spirit, both on and off the court, and it was an absolute pleasure to play against a huge array of former top ATP players who still play to a phenomenal level.

Our thanks to Shaun Leleu and Puente Romano for organising such a great fixture.  We were royally hosted and entertained at this magnificent resort at the same time as their Seniors Masters Tennis event including tennis legends such as McEnroe / Pioline / Noah / Grosjean / Wilander / Cash and eventual winner Carlos Moya.

We look forward to taking on Puente Romano again in 2018 and will lick our wounds with a smile on our face knowing that we played our part in a most magnificent fixture.

Results

Rob Searle lost to Pato Clavet 6-3 7-6
Lewis Burton lost to Marco Djokovic 6-2 6-2
Mark Loosemore lost to Alex Dvorak 6-3 6-3

Gary Drake & Johnny Barr lost to Pepe Imaz & Sergio Gomez 7-5 6-4
Gary Drake & Johnny Barr lost to Sergio Gomez & Shaun Leleu 7-5 7-5
Lewis Burton & Rob Searle lost to David Sanchez & Marco Djokovic 6-1 6-0

Result: IC of GB 3 - 8 IC of Ireland
Venue: Sutton LTC, Dublin

The IC of Ireland beat the British team 8 - 3 at Sutton LTC in Dublin, Ireland. Captained by Peter Hannon, the British team featured Siobhan Nicholson, Karen Cass, Judy Horn, Sarah Thomas, Jane Hannon, Andrew Smith, Anders Johansson and Brian Lawlor. 

Our hosts, Tom and Mary Barry very kindly put on a superb party on the Friday evening at their house and following a competitive match on Saturday both teams were treated to a fantastic evening in a local seaside restaurant and night caps at Howth Yacht Club. The IC of Ireland President, Bryan Smyth, was awarded honorary membership of the IC of GB.

The weekend was very sociable and huge success (bar the result!). Everyone truly enjoyed themselves and our thanks to the IC of Ireland for being wonderful hosts.

Results (IC of GB listed first)

Siobhan Nicholson & Sarah Thomas lost to Lesley O'Halloran & Carmel O'Hare 6-0 6-1
Karen Cass & Judy Horn lost to Gina Niland & Niamh Kennedy 7-6 6-2
Siobhan Nicholson & Jane Hannon beat Gina Niland & Niamh Kennedy 6-2 6-0
Karen Cass & Judy Horn lost to Lesley O'Halloran & Carmel O'Hare 6-2 6-1

Peter Hannon & Brian Lawlor lost to Pat Guiry & John Boylan 6-3 7-5
Andrew Smith & Anders Johansson beat Bryan Smyth & Tom Barry 6-3 6-3
Peter Hannon & Brian Lawlor lost to Bryan Smyth & Tom Barry 7-6 rtd
Andrew Smith & Anders Johansson lost to Pat Guiry & John Boylan 6-1 6-2

Siobhan Nicholson & Brian Lawlor beat Gina Niland & John Boylan 6-4 7-6
Karen Cass & Anders Johansson lost to Lesley O'Halloran & Pat Guiry 4-6 6-3 (10-8)
Judy Horn & Andrew Smith lost to Carmel O'Hare & Tom Barry 6-1 6-3

Result: IC of GB 0 – 6 LTA
Venue: LTA National Tennis Centre, Roehampton 

The annual match against the representative team of national junior players has always been a challenging fixture for the IC and the trend continued with a strong LTA side being put out at the NTC.  The score line didn’t reflect the closeness of some of the matches, particularly the No.1 singles matches with Amanda Elliot and Tim Sagar, and the men’s doubles.

John Barrett kindly presented the Trophy on John Dunningham's behalf.

Our thanks to Martin Weston and Nick Weal at the LTA for organising and hosting the match so well.

RESULTS

Amanda Elliot lost to Erin Richardson 7-6 6-4
Annabel Watson lost to Tiegan Aitken 6-0 6-2
Tim Sagar lost to Ryan Storrie 2-6 7-5 (10-7)
Josh Whiteman lost to Oscar Weightman 6-1 6-4

Annabel Watson & Amanda Elliot lost to Tiegan Aitken & Erin Richardson 6-4 6-3
Josh Whiteman & Tim Sagar lost to Oscar Weigtman & Ryan Storrie 6-2 5-7 (10-7)

View match information on the IC Council website >

Result: IC of GB - Winners
Venue: Bulgarian National Tennis Centre, Sofia 

The IC of GB ladies team beat the IC of France 2 -1 to win La Carreta Cup on the clay courts of the Bulgarian National Tennis Centre in Sofia. Frances Candy won her singles and Pat Wire & Libby Eden won the deciding doubles to win the title.

The opening two days saw 3 – 0 victories over the Bulgarian 1^st and 2^nd teams.

The IC of GB players were treated to a tour of Sofia city, an interesting experience that covered historical sites dating from the Roman period in 4000 AD. The British team also enjoyed lunch each day, a gala dinner and a special guest appearance from 3-time Wimbledon doubles Champion Paul McNamee who was visiting the Club.

Thank you to the IC of Bulgaria for being wonderful hosts and for putting on a great event.

Result: IC of GB finished 3^rd
Venue: Royal Tennis Club & Royal Golf Club, Liege, Belgium

The annual tennis and golf fixture took place in the city of Liege in Belgium at the Royal Tennis and Royal Golf Clubs, both stunning venues with superb facilities and hospitality. Thankfully we had four indoor clay courts at our disposal on a rainy Friday, moving to the outside clay on Friday.

Congratulations to our hosts, the IC of Belgium, on winning the event, beating France in the final 5 rubbers to 2. A tremendous feat against a very strong French side who fielded their over 55 and 60's national champion, over 45's semi-finalist and an ex top 100 player.

The IC of GB, Captained by Simon Curtis lost out to France in the semi-final 4 rubbers to 3, with some noticeable performances by Benson Greatrex and Shamus Donald on the golf course!

Two days of tennis and golf were followed by a lovely meal and speeches at the Royal Liege Golf Club.  We would especially like to thank Patrick Lemaire for organising this years event, which also included two nights out at two wonderful typically Belgium restaurants. The team are now connoisseur of the local speciality boulets.

Result: IC of GB 2 - 2 Yorkshire
Venue: Ilkley LTC

The IC of GB played a Yorkshire IV on the grass courts of Ilkley LTC on a beautiful late summer's day. Played in the usual competitive friendly atmosphere a draw was the right result and all of the players enjoyed lunch at the club afterwards.

Unfortunately due to injuries the ladies fixture wasn't played.

Our thanks to Simon Ickringill for organising the match and Ilkley LTC for being a wonderful host venue.

Results
Eric Knowles & Ian Blakeman beat Andy Hutchinson & Gareth Hutchinson 6-3 4-6 (10-7)
Eric Knowles & Ian Blakeman beat Paul Layfield & Peter Vann 6-2 5-7 (10-5)
Simon Ickringill & John Haworth lost to Andy Hutchinson & Gareth Hutchinson2-6 0-6
Simon Ickringill & John Haworth lost to Paul Layfield & Peter Vann 3-6 4-6

Result: Men finished 7th, Ladies finished 5th
Venue: Tennis Club 1899 Blau-Weiss, Berlin

IC Week 2017 was hosted by the IC of Germany on the red clay of the Tennis Club 1899 Blau-Weiss in Berlin.  The weather was generally kind and the format was two 45+ singles and a doubles, and two open men’s singles and a doubles. 

The team was treated to a fantastic evening on Friday at the palace theatre on Friedrichstrasse for a three-course dinner and to see the show “The One” - an international show involving amazing trapeze displays, dancing and costumes.  

On the Saturday night, there was a Jubilee Dinner hosted by the IC of Germany at the Seminaris Campus Hotel. Barry Weatherill was awarded the IC of Germany Sportsmanship Award, known as the "Gottfried", 'after Gottfreid von Cramm, the famous German Davis Cup player and three times Wimbledon finalist'.

At the Sunday presentation the IC of GB captain, Seb Jackson, was also awarded honorary membership of the IC of Germany.

Special thanks must go to Alexander Kurucz of the IC of Germany for all his efforts in organising such a great event and to Jeremy Woods for agreeing to come and play at the ripe old age of 68 at the last minute so we could field a full team.

Overall it was a thoroughly enjoyable event with great camaraderie amongst our men’s and ladies teams and across the other ICs.

Men's Results (IC of GB players listed first)

Day 1 | IC of GB 6 - 0 IC of Canada
Timur Shadiev beat Stauble 6-0 6-2
Seb Jackson beat Marinkovic 6-2 6-3
Paul Scullard beat Boyce 6-0 6-0
Jeremy Woods beat Pellew 5-7 6-1 11-9

Timur Shadiev & Seb Jackson beat Marinkovic & Stauble 6-2 6-4
Paul Scullard & Jeremy Woods beat Boyce & Pellew 6-7 6-4 (10-7)

Day 2 | IC of GB 0 - 6 IC of Belgium (Quarterfinal)
Timur Shadiev lost to Morretti 2-6 0-6
Seb Jackson lost to Lovinfosse 4-6 1-6
Paul Scullard lost to Thys 2-6 4-6
Jeremy Woods lost to Vanderveeren 1-6 1-6

Timur Shadiev & Seb Jackson lost to Morretti & Lovinfosse w/0
Paul Scullard & Jeremy Woods lost to Thys & Vanderveeren 4-6 3-6

Day 3 | IC of GB 3 - 3 IC of USA (USA win on sets count back)
Timur Shadiev lost to Orban 4-6 0-6
Seb Jackson beat Stahl 6-4 6-7 (10-6)
Paul Scullard beat Kuchta 3-6 7-6 (10-8)
Jeremy Woods lost to Garvin 1-6 0-6

Timur Shadiev & Seb Jackson beat Orban & Stahl 6-3 6-2
Paul Scullard & Jeremy Woods lost to Kuchta & Garvin 2-6 1-6

Day 4 | IC of GB 5 - 1 IC of Switzerland
Seb Jackson beat Della Piana 6-3 6-2
Jeremy Woods lost to de Bruyn 6-3 6-1

Switzerland conceded the other four rubbers.

Ladies Results (IC of GB players listed first)

Day 1 | IC of GB 1 - 2 IC of France
Francis Hendry lost to Marie Ambroisne Faure 4-6 4-6
Katie Shaw lost to Olivia Fery Gravereux 1-6 1-6
Francis Hendry & Susie Dart lost to Marine Saladin & Virgine Vandermeersh 4-6 1-6 (3-10)

Day 2 | IC of GB 3 - 0 IC of Ireland
Francis Hendry beat Maria Morrison 3-6 2-6
Katie Shaw beat Jane Conan 6-0 6-1
Francis Hendry & Susie Dart beat Jane Conan & Maria Morrisey 6-1 6-2

Day 3 | IC of GB 3 - 0 IC of Belgium
Francis Hendry beat Caroline Remus 6-0 6-2
Katie Shaw beat Diane Guns 3-6 6-3 (10-8)
Francis Hendry & Susie Dart beat Diane Guns & Remy 6-4 6-4

Result: IC of GB 22 - 33 IC of USA
Venue: The Edgbaston Priory Club

The 2017 Ted Avory Cup was hosted by the IC of GB at the Edgbaston Priory Club, Birmingham. The event started with a welcome BBQ at the Club on Monday evening.

Both teams fielded 25-strong squads, featuring players from the Open category all the way through to the 75s.

Thirty-one matches were scheduled for grass on the first day's play. However, heavy rain meant the fixture was played indoors and the US team took a 17-14 lead. They followed up with an overall 33-22 victory after a total of 55 matches were completed by the end of the second day.

At the gala dinner on Tuesday evening Benson Greatrex was privileged to receive an honorary membership of the IC of USA. The gesture was reciprocated when Bob Litman was also made an honorary member of the IC of GB.

Our thanks go to Charlie Hoeveler and Erika Smith for bringing a great US team, as well as Edgbaston Priory Club for allowing the IC to host the event at their Club.

Result: Runners-up
Venue: Royal Leopold Club in Brussels

The Royal International Lawn Tennis Club of Belgium celebrated its 70th anniversary with a superbly organised ‘El Juego de Pelota’ event for teams of two men over 70 and two men over 75. The beautiful and very heavy trophy for this event was donated many years ago by the IC of Mexico and is a small replica of a stadium for the old Mayan game of juego de pelota (ball game). The last time this IC event had been held was in 2014 in Mexico City.

The participating teams were France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, South Africa as well as two teams from Belgium plus GB, which had as team members Mark Cox, Alan Purnell, Roy Henderson and Henk Nijeboer.

The event was played at the Royal Leopold Club in Brussels in a knock-out format with France reaching the final after victories over Belgium A (6-0) and Germany (4-2), while GB got there after beating Ireland (4-1) and Belgium A (5-1).

The final was played over two days with France leading GB by 3-1 after the singles. The deciding doubles matches, which were watched by many players and supporters, both went to a third set tiebreak, but France managed to win one of them beating GB 4-2 and thus retaining the title they had won in Mexico in 2014.

The event was played in an excellent atmosphere and the hospitality of the Belgians once again was without equal. There was a cocktail party on the day of arrival, a dinner at a restaurant at the Grande Place, a gala dinner with prize giving in a beautiful lakeside resort at the end of the tournament and two tours. A delightful lunch was served every day at the Leopold Club. At any time teams and partners were transported by bus or by private cars of members of the organising committee.

There was also a ladies match played between the ICs of Belgium and GB which was won convincingly by GB (Anne Clark, Rosie Dennis, Jenny Waggott and Pat Wire).

Pierre Mignot was made an honorary member of the IC of GB and Mark Cox was made an honorary member of Belgium.

View match information on the IC Council Website.

View match information on the IC of Belgium website.

Result: IC of GB 5 – 4 PUBS
Venue: Stoke Park 

On Saturday 5th August the IC of GB took on the Public School Old Boys at Stoke Park. Although the weather was a bit mixed, the fixture started off on the grass, but eventually the players moved indoors following a downpour. Fortunately, the sun came out again and the fixture was finished on the grass. 

Once again the fixture proved to be very close, and like last year the result came down to a Championship tie break in the final match. The match was very well contested, and rounded off with an enjoyable tea in the Stoke Park grounds. 

Our thanks go out to Stoke Park for allowing us to use the venue once again for this fixture, and thanks to all of those who played. 

IC Team
Lee Childs
Chris Clark
Andy Kennaugh
Tim Matthewson
Nathan Rooney
Tim Sagar (Guest)

Result: IC of GB 13 – 6 IC of Belgium
Venue: Royal Zoute Tennis Club, Knokke, Belgium

The Jack van den Eynde Trophy event this year took place in the beautiful seaside town of Knokke with its sandy beaches and woodlands just north of Ostend, Belgium.

Nineteen tightly contested matches were played (together with several friendly, non-counting matches) in the wonderful facilities of the Royal Zoute Tennis Club.

The high level of play throughout was to be expected with the inclusion of past Davis Cup and tour players on both sides.

Conditions were perfect, with excellent courts kept in top condition by the balance of warm sunshine and the odd summer shower which did little to dampen the players’ enthusiasm.

The British team were treated to magnificent hospitality, starting with a barbecue hosted by Rob Kuijpers in the garden of his nearby home, where all the players could meet up, relax and prepare for the following day’s tennis.

The meals throughout the weekend were all superb and the hotel chef was given a warm round of spontaneous applause at the matches conclusion on Sunday.

Speeches of welcome were given at the official dinner on Saturday night by the IC of Belgium President Michel de Marneffe and both team captains.

Presentations were also made by the IC of GB to both the IC of Belgium and The Royal Zoute Tennis Club.

Team Captains Alain Carlier and Jeremy Woods were honoured by the granting of Honorary Memberships to the respective opposing IC’s.

The GB team comprised 11 players (including one prospective member) together with 3 partners and the overall result was IC of GB 13 rubbers, IC of Belgium 6.

Results – Day 1 (IC of GB players listed first)

Roger Ambrose & Mike Carroll lost to Rob Kuijpers & Rudy Michielsen 3-6 6-4 7-10

Shirley Fox & Lorraine Ristic beat Martine Van de Winkel & Anne Jacob 6-3 6-0

John Paish & Jeremy Woods beat Patrick Hombergen & Robert Van Malder 6-3 6-1

Martin Cornish & John Barrett beat Marc Grandjean & Milo Jacques 6-1 6-2

Steve Alger & Nigel Mann beat Alain Carlier & Vincent Limauge 6-0 7-6

John Paish & John Barrett beat Michel de Marneffe & Marc Grandjean 6-0 6-1

Shirley Fox & Martin Cornish beat Anne Marie Van Coillie & Daniel Charles 6-4 6-1

Lorraine Ristic & Jeremy Woods lost to Raphaela Liziero & Robert Goethals 3-6 7-5 5-10

Shirley Fox beat Anne Jacob 6-4 7-5

Steve Alger lost to Alain Carlier 5-7 2-3 rtd

Nigel Mann beat Vincent Limauge 6-2 6-7 10-4

John Barrett beat Marc Grandjean 6-2 1-1 rtd

Results – Day 2 (IC of GB players listed first)

Lorraine Ristic beat Raphaela Liziero 6-7 6-2 10-6

Alain Carlier beat Nigel Mann 7-3

Steve Alger beat Vincent Limauge 6-2

Martin Cornish beat Robert Van Malder6-3 6-1

Roger Ambrose & Mike Carroll lost to Paul Lamote & Rudy Michielsen 3-6 4-6

John Barrett & Jeremy Woods beat Milo Jacques & Daniel Charles 6-0 6-0

Shirley Fox & John Paish beat Anne Marie Van Coillie & Marc Grandjean 7-5 4-6 10-8

Result: IC of GB 2 - 2 AELTC
Venue: All England Lawn Tennis Club

The match was played in a great spirit at a very high standard. It was closely fought and an honourable draw was the final outcome. After the match The All England invited us to a wonderful dinner. The IC would like thank The All England for hosting this annual fixture.

Results (IC of GB players listed first)

Katie O’Brien & Leyla Ogan beat Vicky Brook & Steph Cornish 6-4 6-7(5) 10-5

Sean Thornley & Joe Dewhurst lost to James Auckland & Alistair Felton 1-6 6-7(2)

Sean Thornley & Katie O’Brien beat James Auckland & Vicky Brook 6-3 6-4

Joe Dewhurst & Leyla Ogan lost to Alistair Felton & Steph Cornish 2-6 3-6

Result: IC of GB 5 – 3 Seniors LTC of GB
Venue: St. Georges Hill LTC

Unfortunately due to earlier rain the match was played on hard courts.  As ever the BBQ after the match was excellent and all players enjoyed themselves.

Results

45+ pairings
David Collins & Chris Hearn beat Graham Neale & Christ Hardy 6-4 6-2
David Collins & Chris Hearn beat Paul England & Declan Power 6-1 6-2 

Richard Walmsley & Simon Curtis beat Graham Neale & Christ Hardy 7-6 7-6
Richard Walmsley & Simon Curtis drew with Paul England & Declan Power 6-7 6-4

60+ parings
Robin Drysdale & Martin Cornish lost to Mike Dawe & Richard Wayman 1-6 4-6
Robin Drysdale & Martin Cornish beat Aran Vetakaan & Jeremy Woods 6-2 6-4

Boyd Cuthbertson & Niall Sweeney lost to Mike Dawe & Richard Wayman 1-6 2-6
Boyd Cuthbertson & Niall Sweeney drew with Aran Vetakaan & Jeremy Woods 2-6 6-1

Results: 1^st IC of GB (27.5 wins from 36 matches, 76% win ratio); 2^nd IC of South Africa (19.5 wins from 38 matches, 51% win ratio); and 3^rd IC of Canada (10 wins from 40 matches, 25% win ratio)
Venues: The Edgbaston Priory Club (28^th June), St George’s Hill LTC (30^th June) and The Hurlingham Club (2^nd July)

It was a pleasure to welcome two large IC teams from Canada and South Africa for the pre-Wimbledon series of matches at Edgbaston Priory, St George’s Hill and The Hurlingham Club. Given that some teams played a different number of matches, the overall result was based on % matches won. After the three matches GB finished first with 76%, South Africa were second with 51% and Canada third with 25%.

At Edgbaston Priory the teams managed to practice on grass the day before the match but had to retreat to the superb facilities of the Indoor Tennis Centre on match day, where 7 rounds of doubles matches were played on three courts. The enthusiasm to compete and connect was palpable and the tennis was played in a wonderful spirit and to a great standard.

The scenic St George’s Hill LTC hosted the second leg of the pre-Wimbledon tour for our guests. Preceding the tennis on Thursday evening, John Beddington very kindly organised a drinks reception at the High Commission of Canada in Central London for all participants. On the Friday, the weather held and 50 players were able to play on the beautiful front grass courts for the whole day.

The evening dinner was well attended by 65 people and guests included the Chairman of St George’s Hill, Peter Jamieson. Gifts were exchanged with the match captains, Leonie Grondel (SA) and Jim Cameron (Canada).

The final leg of the tour for our pre-Wimbledon guests was completed on Sunday 2nd July at The Hurlingham Club. It was a fantastic day and the spirit of the IC evident on and off the court. The sun shone and the grass courts were in excellent condition. The Garden Party was a huge success, and the exhibition doubles match was well supported. The day ended with Pimms by the courts, with our visitors very excited about their trip to The Championships the following day.

There was laughter, friendship, lovely food, great tennis and a few formalities at the match dinners which were wonderfully hosted by Edgbaston Priory, St George’s Hill and The Hurlingham Club.

RESULTS

@ Edgbaston Priory on 28^th June 2017

Round 1
Lynn Hughes-Butlin & Leonie Grondel (SA) lost to Janice Longhurst & Pamela Rosenbaum (CAN) 3-6 6-3 9-11
Perry Grant & Chris Lister-James (SA) beat Graham Watt & Jim Cameron (CAN) 6-3 6-2 SA
Ricky Buwalda & Terry Rosenberg (SA) lost to Terry Redvers & Adrian Coles (CAN) 2-6 4-6

Round 2
Mark Cox & Steve Alger (GB) beat Jean Hubert & Danie Botha (SA) 7-5 6-0
Laura Atkinson & Karen Clark (CAN) lost to Leyla Ogan & Joy Tacon (GB)2-6 3-6
Bob Awrey & Phil Cox (CAN) lost to Laurie Butlin & Rob van der Schyff (SA)1-6 4-6

Round 3
Laura Atkinson & Dale Kozicz (CAN) lost to Rosanne Duke & Rene Plant (SA) 2-6 3-6
Christa Cameron & Sally Coles (CAN) beat Lynn Hughes-Butlin & Terry Schweitzer (SA) 6-3 2-6 10-4
Graham Watt & Jim Cameron (CAN) lost to Simon Curtis & Keith Bland (GB) 6-7 4-6

Round 4
Fran MacLennan & Julie Willson (GB) beat Sharon van der Schyff & Danny Buwalda (SA) 6-2 6-2
Jean Hubert & Terry Rosenberg (SA) lost to Mick Webb & Philip King (GB) 6-3 0-6 5-10
Anthea Stewart & Joy Tacon (GB) beat Kathy Mueller & Dale Kozicz (CAN) 6-1 7-5 

Round 5
Jackie Robinson & Jenny Waggott (GB) beat Christa Cameron & Sally Coles (CAN) 7-5 2-6 12-10
Perry Grant & Chris Lister-James (SA) lost to Steve Alger & Simon Curtis (GB) 3-6 6-3 10-6
Philip King & Alec Davidson (GB) lost to Terry Redvers and Tim Griffin (CAN) 1-6 4-6 

Round 6
Ricky Buwalda & Rob van der Schyff (SA) beat Mick Webb & Alan Purnell (GB) 5-7 6-3 10-8
Rosti Brankovsky & Denis Ing (CAN) lost to Mark Cox & Keith Bland (GB) 1-6 2-6
Sharon van der Schyff & Terry Schweitzer (SA) beat Jackie Robinson & Jenny Waggott (GB) 6-2 6-2

Round 7
Rosti Brankovsky & Tim Griffin (CAN) were leading Lynne Hughes-Butlin & Danie Botha 6-2 0-2
Bob Awrey & Phil Cox (CAN) were leading Alec Davidson & Alan Purnell (GB) 8-0
Rosanne Duke & Rene Plant (SA) beat Karen Clark & Kathy Mueller (CAN) 6-0 6-0 

@ St George’s Hill on 30^th June 2017

Round 1
Pamela Rosenbaum & Sally Coles (CAN) lost to Danny Buwalda & Leonie Grondel (SA) 3-6 3-6
Sian Southwell-Sander & Toni Thompson (GB) beat Karen Clark & Laura Atkinson (CAN) 6-3 6-2
Anthea Stewart & Di Hill (GB) lost to Lynne Hughes-Butlin & Rene Plant (SA) 4-6 0-6
Henk Nijeboer & David Waite (GB) beat Bob Awrey & Phil Cox (CAN) 6-1 6-1
Ricky Buwalda & Rob van der Schyff (SA) lost to Terry Redvers and Tim Griffin (CAN) 6-7 2-6
Jeremy Woods & Dave Collins (GB) beat Terry Rosenberg & Chris Lister-James (SA) 6-1 6-1 

Round 2
Sian Southwell-Sander & Pat Wire (GB) beat Dale Kozicz & Kathy Mueller (CAN) 6-0 6-2
Janice Longhurst & Christa Cameron (CAN) lost to Terry Schweitzer & Sharon van der Schyff (SA) 3-6 3-6
Karen Cass & Jeremy Woods (GB) lost to Rosanne Duke (SA) & Denis Ing (CAN) 2-6 3-6
Perry Grant & Jean Hubert (SA) beat Jim Cameron & Graham Watt (CAN) 3-6 6-3 10-8
John Feaver & Bill Gowans (GB) lost to Danie Botha & Laurie Butlin (CAN) 6-7 5-7
Mike Dawe & Keith Bland (GB) beat Adrian Coles & Rosti Brankovsky (CAN) 6-1 6-2 

Round 3
Toni Thompson & Anthea Stewart (GB) beat Dale Kozicz & Kathy Mueller (CAN) 6-2 0-6 10-8
Pamela Rosenbaum & Christa Cameron (CAN) lost to Danny Buwalda & Terrey Schweitzer (SA) 0-6 7-5 6-10
Sally Coles & Graham Watt (CAN) beat Terry Rosenberg & Lynne Hughes-Butlin (SA) 6-4 1-6 10-2
Keith Bland & David Waite (GB) lost to Dennis Ing & Tim Griffin (CAN) 2-6 6-1 10-6
Lauri Butlin & Jean Hubert (SA) beat Adrian Coles & Rosti Brankovsky (CAN) 7-5 6-2
Bob Awrey & Phil Cox (CAN) lost to Ricky Buwalda & Rob van der Schyff (SA) 1-6 2-6 

Round 4
Laura Atkinson & Terry Redvers (CAN) lost to Rene Plant & Dani Botha (SA) 2-6 1-6
Karen Cass & Pat Wire (GB) beat Sharon van der Schyff & Leonie Grondel (SA) 6-1 6-1
Toni Thompson (GB) & Rosanne Duke (SA) beat Janice Longhurst & Karen Clark (CAN) 6-2 7-6
Chris Clark (GB) & Jim Cameron (CAN) beat Chris Lister-James and Perry Grant (SA) 4-6 6-3 10-8 

@ The Hurlingham Club on 2^nd July 2017

Round 1
Rene Plant & Rosanne Duke (SA) beat Judy Horn & Cath Davies (GB) 6-4 6-1
Roy Henerson & Peter Bretherton (GB) beat Bob Awrey & Phil Cox (CAN) 7-5 6-0
Janice Longhurst & Christa Cameron (CAN) beat Sharon van der Schyff & Leonie Gronel (SA) 6-2 2-6 12-10
John Paish & Jeremy Woods (GB) beat Terry Redvers & Tim Griffin (CAN) 6-2 3-6 10-7 

Round 2
Chris Lister-James & Perry Grant (SA) beat Steve Alger & Richard Walmsley (GB) 6-3 6-4
Jean Hubert & Danie Botha (SA) beat Rosti Brankovsky & Dennis Ing (CAN) 6-7 6-2 10-3
Martin Cornish & Jonathan Leslie (GB) beat Jim Cameron & Graham Watt (CAN) 4-6 6-1 10-6
Pauline Fisher & Shirley Fox (GB) beat Pamela Rosenbaum & Sally Coles (CAN) 6-3 6-3 

Round 3
Jurate Hardy & Cath Davies (GB) beat Karen Clark & Alison Taylor (CAN) 6-3 6-0
Anne Clark & Pauline Fisher (GB) beat Lynne Hughes-Butlin & Terrey Schweitzer (SA) 6-2 6-1
Adrian Coles & Tim Griffin (CAN) beat Rob van der Schyff & Terry Rosenberg (SA) 6-0 6-2 

Round 4
Sue Bartlett & Karen Cass (GB) beat Kathy Mueller & Dale Kozicz (CAN) 6-3 6-1
Rene Plant & Perry Grant (SA) beat Laura Atkinson & Graham Watt (CAN)
Peter Bretherton & Shirley Fox (GB) beat Ricky Buwalda & Danny Buwalda (SA) 6-4 6-4
Dennis Archer & Jonathan Leslie (GB) beat Laurie Butlin & Jean Hubert (SA) 7-5 6-1
Steve Alger & Kate Gowar (GB) beat Chris Lister-James & Rosanne Duke (SA) 6-2 1-6 10-6

Results: IC of GB finished runners-up | Final: IC of GB 0 – 4 IC of Italy | Group Stages: IC of GB 6 – 0 IC of Ireland; IC of GB 6 – 0 IC of Russia; IC of GB 4 – 2 IC of Israel.
Venue: The Royal Leopold Club, Brussels
Format: Adult captain, 2 junior boys and 2 junior girls. The winners of the 2017 European Regional event go through to compete in the 2018 Compass IC Junior Challenge Finals.

A strong Italian side triumphed over Great Britain to win the Compass European IC Junior Challenge and secure their place in The Worldwide Finals in Japan, October 8th-12th 2018.

In the other play off matches Israel were winners over Austria to take third place with Austria fourth. Germany took 5th place with a win over Ireland who unfortunately had an injured player all week and ended up in 6th place.  In the other match, Belgium record their first win over Russia for 7th and 8th places.

Many thanks go out to Keith Pullin for captaining the British team and The IC of Belgium who organised the event efficiently and in a very welcoming and friendly manner typical of the IC motto of " Hands across the net, friendship across the ocean".  This attitude was also well in evidence from the juniors who not only showed good sportsmanship and attitude on court but also mixed well and made many tennis friends from several countries during the week.

There were many candidates for the IC Sportsmanship awards.  The girls went to Juliana Carton of Ireland who still 14 & under, and eligible to play in the next European event in two years’ time, handled herself well on court and in a good manner.  For the boys both the Austrians Marco Koppensteine and Adrian Vormehus were great competitors on court but also very friendly off the court.  In the end the Sportsmanship was given to Adrian Vormehus - perhaps a little because of his unique playing style which was two handed but not in the common modern way -  he hits both left and right handed with two forehands…..…and two overhead smashes!  Great to see some variety in modern play that has not been coached out of him.

Results: Finished runners-up | IC of GB 3 – 1 IC of France; IC of GB 4 – 0 IC of Belgium; and IC of GB 1-3 IC of Spain
Venue: Club de Campo Villa de Madrid

The three-day Robert Abdesellam Trophy took place in scorching temperatures at one of Spain’s most prestigious country clubs in the heart of Madrid. Represented by Graham Neale (55s), Richard Wayman (65s), Karen Cass (50s) and Miranda Hosking (55s), the team played three matches in three days against the ICs of France, Belgium and Spain, each playing one doubles and a mixed per day.

With court temperatures exceeding 40 degrees on the first day, play didn’t start until 6pm in the evening. Despite the challenging conditions the GB team stormed to a 3-1 victory against France, with all three wins coming from third set 10-point tiebreaks.  This was followed the next day with a 4-0 win against Belgium. Unfortunately the team lost to Spain in the last match. Spain and GB both had two wins each after three great days of competition but GB finished runners-up overall after a count back on sets won.

Final Positions:
1. IC of Spain
2. IC of GB
3. IC of France
4. IC of Belgium

About Robert Abdesselam
Robert Abdesselam’s legacy is an important one for the world of tennis. Son of an Algerian lawyer, he was a junior champion of France in 1937 and 1938 and university champion in 1939 before going on to feature on the French Davis Cup team. On a personal level, he participated a volunteer in the second World War and went on to have an international political career that led to him being acclaimed with the French Legion of Honour. He was a French delegate at the United Nations and a founder of NATO. An international lawyer for Lacoste, he was Vice President of the French Tennis Federation and of the International Tennis Federation, a founder of the Centenary Tennis Clubs Association and President of the International Club of France.

Result: IC of GB 5 - 8 Cambridge University
Venue: Fenner’s Sports Ground, Cambridge

The IC of GB lost against Cambridge in a highly competitive match on the grass at Fenner’s Sports Ground. Cambridge had a stronger team than in recent years and pulled ahead in the opening singles and we were unable to respond.

The day was enjoyed by everyone with brilliant hosting as always.

Results (IC of GB players listed first):
Johnny Cornish lost to Michal Kaminski 6-3, 4-6, 2-6
Rob Blythe beat Tim Prosser 7-6, 6-4
Dave Culshaw beat Joe Koebele 5-2 rtd
Josh Whiteman lost to Martin Florea 1-6 4-6
Bruno Nikolic lost to Jerry Ganendra 1-6 2-6
James Spooner lost to Jack Long-Martinez 2-6 1-6

Rob Blythe & Dave Culshaw lost to Tim Prosser & Michal Kaminski 7-6 6-7 8-10
James Spooner & Johnny Cornish beat Jerry Ganendra & James Shemilt 6-4, 6-4
Dan Lobb & Josh Whiteman lost to Jack Long-Martinez & Nick Darby 6-7 1-6
Andrew Page & Bruno Nikolic lost to Nikhil Sharma & Nick Darby 4-6 4-6

James Spooner & Johnny Cornish lost to Jack Long-Martinez & Michal Kaminski 6-4 2-6 2-10
Dan Lobb & Josh Whiteman beat Nikhil Sharma & Nick Darby 6-4, 6-2
Andrew Page & Bruno Nikolic beat Jerry Ganendra & Charlie Song 6-4, 6-3

Results: Men 3rd | Ladies 3rd
Venue: Real Club de Polo de Barcelona

Both the men's and ladies team secured third place overall after three days of competition on the red clay courts of the prestigious Real Club de Polo de Barcelona.  It's the highest finish the men have had for 10 years and it was a great start for Jo, Sian and Leyla in the inaugural ladies 40+ event.

Men's Results (45+

Day 1: IC of GB 4 - 3 IC of Belgium
Seb Jackson beat Christophe Thijs 7-5 4-6 6-0
Andy Phillips lost to Gunter Vanderveeren 2-6 6-3 3-6
Dan Ahl beat Alain Carlier 4-6 6-1 6-3
Ben Knapp beat Vincent Limauge 6-0 6-0
David Mills lost to Pierre This 7-5 3-6 2-6

Seb Jackson and Andy Phillips lost to Christophe Thijs and Pierre This 6-1 6-6 retired
Dan Ahl and Ben Knapp beat Gunter Vanderveeren and Daubresse 6-2 6-3

Day 2: IC of GB 1 - IC of Italy 4
Seb Jackson beat Marco Meneschincheri 6-3 6-4
Andy Phillips lost to Anthony Altobelli 4-6 4-6
Dan Ahl lost to Enrico Casedei 1-6 2-6
Ben Knapp lost to Lucien Vespan 2-6 2-6
David Mills lost to Giovanni Lelli Mami 3-6 1-6

No doubles matches were played.

Day 3: IC of GB 4 - 1 IC of USA
Seb Jackson beat Jeff Cohen 6-2 6-0
Andy Phillips beat Tobias Svantesson 6-3 2-6 1-0 (12-10)
Dan Ahl beat Horacio Rearte 6-7 6-3 1-0 (11-9)
Ben Knapp beat Frank Vermeer 6-4 7-5
David Mills lost to Ron Bobman 3-6 6-3 0-1 (6-10)

No doubles matches were played.

Ladies Results (40+)

Day 1: IC of GB 0 - 3 IC of Italy
Jo Shepherd lost to Kathy Agnelly 3-6 3-6
Leyla Ogan lost to Flora Perfetti 0-6 6-4 3-6

Jo Shepherd & Sian Southwell Sander lost to Kathy Agnelly & Manu Falletti 7-6 1-6 8-10

Day 2: IC of GB 0 - 2 IC of Spain
Jo Shepherd lost to Paula Cabezas 5-7 1-6
Leyla Ogan lost to Eva Bes 3-6 3-6

No doubles matches were played.

Day 3: IC of GB 2 - 1 IC of USA
Jo Shepherd lost to Mercedes Michel Retired injured
Sian Southwell Sander beat Sheila Walker 6-1 6-2

Leyla Ogan & Sian Southwell Sander beat Sheila Walker & Mercedes Michel 6-3 6-3

Result: IC of GB 10 – 7 IC of France
Venue: La Bouille, Paris

The annual match against the IC of France was once again held at la Bouille in the beautiful region of Versailles. The match was a very tight affair with GB winning 10 - 7. The sun shone the whole weekend and the match was played in a wonderful IC spirit.

The hospitality was second to none with delicious lunches and dinners held out on the terrace overlooking a magnificent golf course. John Feaver's amusing speech was a highlight as the IC Captain!

Special thanks to Thierry and Patrick for the weekend and of course the special day at Roland Garros! We look forward to seeing our French friends in the return match in October.

Results (IC of GB players listed first):

Anne Clark lost to Isabelle Billard 2-6 2-6
Judy Horn beat Brigitte Cadoret 6-3 7-5
Nuala Dwyer lost to Nicole Hesse-Cazeaux 4-6 1-6
John Feaver lost to Francis Boyer 2-6 4-6
Mark Cox beat Michel Berges 3-6 1-0 rtd
Jamie Feaver beat Ludwig Pellerin 7-6 7-5
Chris Hearn lost to Jean Leclercq 3-6 1-6
Tim Matthewson beat Jeremy Tweedt 6-4 4-6 10-8
Frances Hendry lost to Silhem Bellahouel 0-6 2-6
James Turner lost to Stephane Huet 0-6 0-6
John Feaver beat Gilles Destremau 6-1 6-3
Nuala Dwyer & Mark Cox beat Manne Ghisolfi & Patrice Beust 6-4 6-4
Susie Dart & Andy Burgoyne beat Brigitte Cadoret & Christophe Bernelle 6-2 6-3
Tim Matthewson & James Turner beat Jeremy Tweedt & Patrick Boukobza 6-2 6-4

Nuala Dwyer lost Marie Anne Ghisolfi 6-4 4-6 10-8
Mark Cox beat Patrice Beust 6-4 7-6
Andy Burgoyne beat Franck Peyre 6-3 6-4

Result: IC of GB 11.5 – 1.5 Bradfield College
Venue: Bradfield College

The International Club produced a team of 6 men and 4 ladies for the only fixture we have against a school side in the UK, following in the footsteps of famous names from the IC of GB namely Gorringe, Billington and Stotesbury. Tim and Tony Billington were there to provide loyal support to the team despite the enticement of the All England golf afternoon which clashed and robbed us of one of our stalwarts.  Thanks must go to a number of guests who helped complete the teams after some last minute injury withdrawals and business clashes.

This is the blue riband fixture in the season for Bradfield College and the IC is treated extremely well. The quality of tennis was up to its usual high standard although the experience, guile and artistry of the IC teams on the doubles court was too strong for the pupils. Despite the apparent one-sided scoreline there were some close games and the match was played in a tremendous spirit and the pupils were a credit to Bradfield College.

Special mention needs to go to IC member Andrew Smith who had answered the last minute call up flying in from Italy where only 48 hours previously he had cycled 423 kms from Florence to Rome, and then recuperated watching the first day's play from the Rome Masters. The plan was that Adrian Blackman would do the majority of running in this partnership but with him also curtailed by an injury Tufty was surprisingly agile having spent "so much time in the saddle" over the previous days.

The ladies team won reasonably easily and we were grateful to some friends of the IC for helping make up the numbers for a midweek fixture which obviously is difficult for many. Ladies can expect an early rallying call next year.

Bradfield treated the team to a wonderful dinner in the Wardens Room, with the Headmaster also making an appearance illustrating the importance of the fixture to the College. Speeches were made by Damian Fuller, The Director of Tennis at Bradfield, and Andy Creighton, who made special mention of Tony Billington's contribution to Bradfield tennis and his fund raising exploits and drive to complete the building of the new clay courts.

Next year’s fixture will be a couple of weeks earlier to avoid the start of external exams at the College to ensure they are at full strength and I already have a few names inked on the team sheet which is great and reflects the enjoyment of the fixture for all those who have participated past and present.

Although we were hoping to play the match on the pristine artificial clay courts being laid adjacent to the three indoor courts at Bradfield College, the fixture came 3 weeks too early, so this pleasure will have to wait until next year’s fixture.

Men’s Results (IC of GB players listed first):
J. Tassell & C. Jenkins
beat J. Davis & F. Briggs 6-1 6-1
beat B. McAtee & F. Baker 6-0
beat J. Hodgkinson & C. Edwards 6-0

A. Blackman & A. Smith
beat J. Davis & F. Briggs 6-4
drew against B. McAtee & F. Baker 6-4 4-6
beat J. Hodgkinson & C. Edwards 6-2

A. Creighton & B. Keenes
beat J. Davis & F. Briggs 6-3
beat B. McAtee & F. Baker 6-3
lost to J. Hodgkinson & C. Edwards 6-2 6-1

Ladies Results (IC of GB players listed first):
C. Moore & C. Deller
beat I. Lowe & E. Lenon 6-3 6-3
beat L. Lee-Smith & A. Miles 6-1 6-4

B. Wright & F. Kipling
beat I. Lowe & E. Lenon 6-2 6-1
beat L. Lee-Smith & A. Miles 6-2 6-4

Moor Park proved to be a wonderful venue for the annual IC Golf Day yet again. The weather was kind and the course was in excellent condition.

This year we had a team competition for the first time, along with the usual individual stableford, nearest the pin and longest drive prizes.

Golf was followed by a fantastic three course dinner in the picturesque clubhouse with prize giving.

Thank you to everyone for playing and look forward to another successful event next year.

Ladies Winner: Caroline Greatrex
Men’s Winner: David Mills
Team Event Winners: Philip Siviter, Carol Siviter, Benson Greatrex and Caroline Greatrex
Longest Drive: Gary Stewart
Nearest the Pin: Jeremy Dier (accepted by Johnny Barr)

Result: IC of GB 4 - 2 Oxford and Cambridge Universities (Ladies)
Venue: Fenner's Sports Ground, Cambridge

The ladies fixture against Oxford and Cambridge Universities was played on a not-so-sunny day on the grass courts at Fenner's Sports Ground.  The match featured 3-pairs playing two rounds of doubles. The IC took a 2-1 lead after the first round and went on to win 4-2 overall.

Our thanks to Cambridge for being such wonderful hosts.

Results (IC of GB players listed first):

Frances Hendry & Anjoli Foster beat Monika Kondratowicz & Jenni Mair 6-3 6-2
Susie Dart & Karen Cass beat Amy Partridge & Jane Coombs 6-1 7-5
Judy Horn & Marilyn Watson lost to Nanami Yamaguchi & Sarah Cen 1-6 4-6

Frances Hendry & Anjoli Foster beat Nanami Yamaguchi & Sarah Cen 7-6 6-3
Susie Dart & Karen Cass beat Monika Kondratowicz & Jenni Mair 6-3 6-3
Judy Horn & Marilyn Watson lost to Amy Partridge & Jane Coombs 6-1 6-2

Result: IC of GB 5 – 3 IC of Germany
Venue: Frankfurter Tennis Club

The IC of GB delivered a win in the annual fixture against the IC of Germany at the FTC 1914 Palmengarten in Frankfurt. Represented by Jurate Hardy, Matt Coombes, Phil King, Tony King and Jeremy Woods, the touring team took a commanding 4-2 lead on Saturday. Unfortunately, the match only featured two doubles the following day due to various injuries and one win proved to be enough for an overall 5 – 3 victory.

The IC of Germany team included their President Alex Kurucz who played doubles on Sunday; it was Alex who donated the Dunlop Trophy in 2008.

The matches were extremely competitive with the ladies singles between Silke Meier-Heckmann and Jurate Hardy and the men's singles between Jörg Müller and Matt Coombes being particularly close.

The IC of Germany were excellent hosts and we would like to thank Wolfgang Popp for delivering an extremely well organised fixture and Detlef Braun for arranging the official dinner at the Union International Club in their historic building.

Results (IC of GB first):

Jurate Hardy beat Silke Meier-Heckmann 6-3 6-4

Phil King lost to Christopher Rummel 0-6 1-6

Tony King lost to Wolfgang Popp 6-2 6-2

Matt Coombes beat Jorg Muller 6-2 6-4

Jeremy Woods beat Peter Dinckels 6-4 1-0 rtd

Juarate Hardy & Matt Coombes beat Silke Meier-Heckmann & Jorg Muller 6-2 7-6 (11-9)

Juarate Hardy & Tony King lost to Silke Meier-Heckmann & Christopher Rummel 6-2 6-1

Benson Greatrex & Matt Coombes beat Wolfgang Popp & Alex Kurucz 6-1 6-0

Result: IC of GB Under 35s 3 – 5 IC of GB Over 35s

Venue: LTA National Tennis Centre

The annual members’ over 35s versus under 35s match took place once again on the indoor hard courts at the National Tennis Centre, Roehampton. The match was captained by Philippa Coates (under 35s) and Barry Cowan (over 35s) and provided a debut opportunity for new member Sean Thornley, who remained undefeated on the day.

The match was tied 2-2 after the first round of men’s and ladies doubles. However, the over 35s team claimed three of the four mixed rubbers in the second round of play to claim a 5-3 victory overall.

It was a great match to get the season underway.

Our thanks to the LTA for allowing us to host the fixture at the prestigious National Tennis Centre.

Results (U35 players listed first):

Cath Gunn & Katie O’Brien lost to Olivia Frey & Kate Gowar 6-4 3-6 8-10

Philippa Coates & Annabel Watson beat Alex Innes & Marilyn Watson 6-7 7-5 10-6

Greg Weir & Felipe Bunster lost to Mark Hadley & Andy Burgoyne 1-6 1-6

Jon Tassell & Sean Thornley beat Phil Cliff & Paul Siviter 6-3 6-4

Katie O’Brien & Sean Thornley beat Kate Gowar & Andy Burgoyne 6-3 6-4

Philippa Coates & Jon Tassell lost to Alex Innes & Phil Cliff  4-6 6-7

Cath Gunn & Greg Weir lost to Olivia Frey & Mark Hadley 3-6 6-7

Annabel Watson & Felipe Bunster lost to Marilyn Watson & Paul Siviter 6-2 2-6 2-10

Result: IC of GB 6 - 3 Fitzwilliam Club
Venue: LTA National Tennis Centre 

The annual match against the Fitzwilliam Club was played in beautiful sunshine on the hard courts at the LTA National Tennis Centre, Roehampton.

The IC of GB team took a commanding 4-2 lead after the completion of the first round of singles matches. This was followed by a round of mixed and men's doubles matches, with the IC of GB picking up a couple more rubbers to complete a 6-3 victory.

The teams enjoyed informal welcome drinks and food together the night before the match and an official dinner after the fixture. 

Our thanks to Laura Peterzan for organising the match and to the LTA for enabling us to host the fixture at their venue.

Results (IC players listed first):

Natasha Starling beat Nicola Drummy 6-1 6-0

Amanda Elliot beat Lauren Deegan 6-4 6-7 10-8

Tim Matthewson beat Mark Carpenter 6-3 6-2

Gary Thomson lost to Cal Craven 7-6 6-3

Tim Weir beat Brendan Dempsey 7-5 4-6 10-4

Greg Weir lost to Gary Kilduff 6-2 6-4

Amanda Elliot & Greg Weir beat Lauren Deegan & Brendan Dempsey 6-3 6-3

Natasha Starling & Tim Weir lost to Gary Kilduff and Nicola Drummy 6-2 3-6 10-6

Gary Thomson & Tim Matthewson beat Mark Carpenter and Cal Craven 6-2 6-1

Venue: The Wimbledon Club

David Waite, our Chairman, welcomed nine of this year’s twelve new members to a dinner at the Wimbledon Club on 7 January 2017.  Earlier in the day six new members had also played tennis with committee members at the AELTC.

The evening was a great success and each new member was presented with a tie or a scarf and listened to a short speech about the IC by David Waite.

Our thanks to The Wimbledon Club for hosting the dinner.

New Ordinary Members: Craig Evans, Sean Thornley, Olivia Smith, Amy Partridge, Jurate Hardy, Catherine Davies, Luisa Cowper, Steph Cornish, Lewis Burton, Joe Dewhurst, Timur Shadiev and Jonathan Southcombe.

Visiting Member: Olivia Gavereaux (IC of France)

New Young Associate Members: Megan Davies and Maria Budin.