Tennis men to face Newcastle in BUCS Cup quarters
UNIVERSITY OF YORK FIRSTS 7 vs. UNIVERSITY OF NORTHUMBRIA FIRSTS 3
BUCS Cup (Tennis) Third Round, Wednesday 28th January 2009
York men’s tennis Team continued their fine cup form with a confident 7-3 win over Northumbria University on a grey afternoon at the courts last Wednesday and will now play Newcastle firsts on 11 February.
Tom Osborne’s 6-4, 7-5 win in the last game of the day sealed the win for a York team that did not look like a side without a win in this season’s league competition. They played strongly against their opponents, particularly in the singles matches, despite what were extremely difficult and slippery conditions.
Northumbria beat York 6-4 last term and in the opening stages it looked like the home team could be heading towards another loss. Peter Thompson-Glover and David Leh Helstein lost their cagey double’s match 8-6, with the strong serve of Northumbria’s impressive Adam Boba causing the pair big problems. However on the other court, Craig Macklin and Tom Osborne had just won their equally tight game 8-6 to level the scores heading into the singles matches.
(Arran Bowen-la Grange)
Boba was to cause more trouble for Thompson-Glover in their match as he took full advantage of the conditions. Glover had said beforehand that he expected the slippery surface to be more of a problem when playing singles and it was quickly apparent that his ability to move around the court was severely hindered. Despite suffering a nasty fall in the first set himself, Boba cleverly used a large amount of drop shots, causing Glover to slip frequently in his attempts to return them. He lost the first set 6-4 and, although he played well, was unable to recover from early breaks in the second which he lost 6-2.
However York were still in it, as on the parallel court Helstein rounded off a comfortable 6-2, 6-0 victory and as Tom Osborne got ready for the final game both teams knew the match was far from decided.
It looked to be heading towards Northumbria when Craig Macklin lost his first set 3-6 to Northumbria’s Ben Featherstone. However, in one of the performances of the day, he managed to win a close second set 7-5 and then take the third 6-2 to seal at least a draw for York.
(Arran Bowen-la Grange)
The teams therefore crowded around the middle court to see the outcome of Osborne’s game. Playing comfortably from the base line on the drier central court he was able to outthink his opponent and win the tense first set 6-4. Early breaks in the second seemed to have won the game for York but a spirited comeback from his opponent kept it close. However, Osborne kept his concentration and sealed a deserved victory for York.
After the match Helstein said how it had been a “good day for York tennis” with an “unexpected” victory. Both he and Thompson-Glover agreed it had been their best win of the season so far and should give them confidence in their crucial upcoming league games.
Still without a point in the league, Glover’s promise that they “will not get relegated” might seem optimistic, but a few more performances like yesterday and the team should see themselves fly up the league.
Team line-ups: York – Peter Thompson-Glover, David Leh Helstein, Craig Macklin, Tom Osborne Northumbria – Adam Boba, Scott Jones, Ben Featherstone, Alex Brown
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optimistic? hater. We just beat the no 3 in the league.
Also, great spelling of my name.
The full statement ‘Glover’s promise that they “will not get relegated” might seem optimistic, but a few more performances like yesterday and the team should see themselves fly up the league.’ appreciates your achievement in beating the No.3 team in the league, and sees it as a good omen for the remainder of your season. I assure you I am not a ‘hater’ and wish you the very best!
Apologies for the misspelling of your name.
Be a man and stand up for yourself!
Chill out big dave ‘the swede’, sense of humour malfunction anyone?