Ladies stay in Group 1

AEGON SUMMER COUNTY CUP - LADIES DIV 1

DEVONSHIRE PARK, EASTBOURNE

MON 19 – FRI 23 JULY 2010

JULIA BONE
CELIA BRISTOW
LAURA DEIGMAN
CLAIRE HAMILTON
JEMIMA HAYWARD
LAURA JONES
HELEN LAWSON
CLAUDIA MARSALA
ALISON LONGFIELD (non playing captain)

Our 3rd year in Group 1!  Well practiced at staying in the top group! 2010 brought with it renewed vigour and a desire to go further than we had before.  New blood - 2 Lauras and Claudia Marsala.  Our team was a mixture of youth and experience - the opposition didn’t stand a chance!

Despite continued LTA discussion around the county week format, the challenge in Group 1 remained the same - 6 counties, 45 doubles matches, 1 overall winner, 3 counties stay, 2 go down… no mercy!!

MON v MIDDX

Sunshine & seagulls and new opposition - Middlesex had come up from Group 2 last summer.  They were hoping to bring in such players as Laura Robson and Ann Keothavong to play us but their big guns failed to show and before long with Celia/ Laura Jones and Jemima/Helen winning their opening rubbers, we were 2-1 to the good! The crucial 3 v 3 rubber under our belt encouraged Laura Deigman at her 1st ever county week, playing with Claire Hamilton to win a vital 2nd set tie break and clinch a win in round 2.  Jemima “trees” Hayward & Helen “flowers” Lawson got their county week off to a rolling start winning all 3 of their rubbers.  The 5-4 Monday win started the week off well.
 
TUES v SURREY

Tuesday brought Julia Bone, down from her Loughborough graduation – a 1st if anyone wondered! – straight in at no 1 pair partnering Jemima.  A tough entrance as Surrey were on form.  J & J picked up 2 rubbers as the day progressed and the new pairing of Laura D/Helen beat the Surrey no 3 pair convincingly.  However despite delicious sandwiches and extra spectators, Celia Bristow/Claudia Marsala, 15, couldn’t seal a victory and the overall result of 3-6 was how Tuesday ended.
 
WED v CHESHIRE

Brilliant weather, a few cooked breakfasts and the energy of the Bucks players was obvious for all to see! Claire Hamilton back, a bit more team juggling and before we knew it Bucks had gone 3-0 up before lunch.  2 tough, nail biting 3 setters, both going our way before the heavens opened and a 4 hr rain delay ensued.  A revised format to a 10 point tie break in the 3rd set saw Julia Bone/Claire Hamilton just miss out 8 – 10 in both their last 2 matches, as did Celia/Laura Deigman in their last round.  But Jemima/Helen held tight and a competitive tie break against Cheshire’s 3rd pair sealed the win in the gathering gloom around 8.30pm.  Boy did we need dinner that night!!  A close run but much needed 5-4.

THURS v ESSEX

A key match - take out Essex then Bucks Ladies are safe in Group 1 for the 3rd year.  The team stayed the same as Wednesday. Jemima/Helen took out the 2nd pair convincingly while Claire/Julia came up against a solid Essex 1st pair. 1 all in matches with the 3rd’s battling it out.  1 set all, 6 games all, Laura D/Celia step up and win the tie break 7-3. Momentum with Bucks 2-1 up.  Julia/Claire vs the 3rd pair, a set and 5-2 up looking comfortable before a big comeback by Essex who take the 2nd set 7-5. No need to panic - the girls then win the 3rd set 6-0!  Jemima/Helen have a tough match vs the 1’s and win 7-5, 6-3 even with Jemima feeling a little queezy after the first set!  4-1 up. Celia/Laura D yet again the last ones on. After losing the first set 6-4 the girls take the 2nd 7-6.  Another 3rd setter and yet again 6 games all.  Laura/Celia obviously love the pressure and took the tie break 7-4 and seal a 5-1 victory for Bucks. They tired out the 2nd pair so much that they withdrew from the last round. Last rd Helen/Jemima get their 3rd rubber of the day and Laura/Celia lose to the first pair. Final score 7-2. 

FRI v HERTS

Herts are top of the group and must beat us to become County Week winners so we knew it was going to be a tough match.  Our 1st and 2nd pairs remained the same with a new 3rd pair coming in - Laura Jones and Claudia Marsala.  Unfortunately after only playing 1 game on the grass the heavens opened and the rest of the day was spent on water based Astroturf courts at a school.  Rd 1 Jemima/Helen and Claire/Julia both lost tough matches in the championship tie breaks while Laura/Claudia found the 3rd pair unbeatable. 3-0 down going into rd 2.  Herts continued to play well and ended up being too strong for us on the day.  We went down 5-1 with a consolation win for Helen/Jemima beating the 1st pair in the championship tie break.

OVERALL RESULT

Overall, Bucks came third and Hertfordshire were Group 1 winners. A team performance to be proud of!  We had injuries, a lot of daily team changes, new accommodation, a mixture of weather and some long days.  A job well done!  We look forward to our winter challenge at Bolton in Group 2 now…..