PSOBLTA v International Club – 8 August 2015
Lost 8-1
Certainly one of our highest standard matches of the season; the Pubs took on the IC on a beautifully sunny afternoon on Saturday. The venue for the battle were the grass courts of the magnificent Stoke Park which can now proudly boast as being one of the ‘20 tennis courts around the world you must play in your lifetime’ according to Business Insider (which is one of many accolades which the Stoke Park Country Club, Spa and Hotel has achieved)! A line up for the Pubs consisted of Marc Baghdadi, Jon Basell, Ben Gordon-Smith, Austin Coventry, Tom Green and Stefan Rhodes. Their objective was to take on a team of ex-international players which included a couple of ex-professional players. The IC team consisted of: Adrian Blackman, Lee Childs, Blake Hutchins, Andrew Kennaugh, Andrew Phillips and Paul Siviter (captain). In short – objective failed!
A number of excruciatingly close deciding champions tie-breaks went the way of the IC, lending to a result of 8-1 which did not quite reflect the competitiveness of the matches being played. A big result was achieved by Marc and Stefan in beating the IC’s first pair, although sadly not before the result of the fixture was decided.
Everyone, however, was a winner afterwards as a most enjoyable tea was served on the veranda of the club. Many thanks to
- all the players for their hard work on court;
- Brad for digging out a pom-pom in an attempt to bring camaraderie and a touch of glamour to the support;
- the IC for picking up the tab for the post-match tea; and
- above all, to the fantastic support we have from Chester and Hertford King in allowing us to play the match at such a superb venue.
Edward Cooper – PSOBLTA Match Manager