New Mills Tennis Club

CLUB NEWS ARCHIVE

Hi everyone and welcome to the 2008 season. We are hoping for some very good weather this year so that we can play as much tennis as possible. Im still working in London at the moment but back in New Mills most weekends, and still organising tennis.

Social tennis has now started and Friday evenings and Sunday mornings are both well attended. We have a Mens Singles tournament on Sunday 18th May, 13.30 start. This should be a great event, with many players attending. On Saturday 31st May, there is also a Mens Singles tournament at Glossop (the Mel Harrop trophy).

Subscriptions for the years are now due. Junior membership is now £30, senior is £60 and family is £90.

This year we also have two junior teams in the Slazenger North East Cheshire League. We are entering a boys team for the first time. The Mens North East Cheshire fixtures start in May and we are playing in Division 3, having been promoted as Champions last year. High Peak mised doubles fixtures will be posted as soon as they come through.

On the International Tennis scene, it is now the clay court season. As I type Roger Federer is about to take on Rafael Nadal for the Monte Carlo open title. A repeat of last years final, it should be a classic. Next up is Rome and then Hamburg before Roland Garros starts on the 24th of May. Federer is coming into form again and Nadal is also playing very well, bidding for his fourth consecutive title.

See you on court

Chris (27-04-08)

Hi everyone and a warm welcome to 2008 !!!

This is the first NMTC newsletter of 2008.

After a great 2007 season and thanks to some very fine weather recently, we are now ready to take on the 2008 season. At the end of last year, we had a lovely Christmas meal at the Soldier Dick pub in Furness Vale. We are hoping to have a similar social occasion towards the end of March/early April.

I attended the fixtures meeting a couple of weeks ago. It is always difficult to try and get fixtures that everyone will like.. We have 3 Sunday matches (2 at home) and loads of matches in June. Trying to stay in Division 3 of the North East Cheshire League which will be difficult. I think these fixtures give us the best chance of doing it though.

The Winter League have won 4 matches from 8 played and are safe in Division 6. This is a good achievement as we only got promoted last season. High Peak League and Junior League fixtures will appear on the website shortly. This year we are entering 2 junior u-18s teams in the North East Cheshire League

Social tennis has been well attended recently and we will be having a preseason social doubles tournament at the beginning of April. This years there will also be many junior, 2 mens singles and a mens doubles tournament.

If anyone is interested in going to the French Open this year, there will be a contingent going from New Mills. Tickets are on the web www.frenchopen.org.

On the International Tennis scene, Novak Djorkovic managed to win his first grand slam at the Australian pen. This was a fantastic achievement, especially as he needed to beat Federer in the semis. Attention now focuses to the clay season, can Federer dethrone Nadal at the French ? I think he can. Watch this space.

Well done to Maria Sharapova too winning her third slam title at the Australian Open.

See you on court

Chris (17-02-08)

Hi everyone,

Apologies for no newsletter last month, I've been working in London. This year has been a great success for the tennis section, we have collected over £3000 in subscriptions. The atmosphere in the section is very healthy, and social tennis has been well-attended all season. This has been helpded by the long spell of dry weather at the end of the season.

We have had several achievements this season. Our Mens North East Cheshire Team being promoted to division 3 was a big success. It will be a challenge to stay up next season but it will be nice to play in another league for at least a season. The junior team also did well this year winning four of out six matches in their first season. Next year we plan to put a second team in.

This year we held two Mens Open Singles tournaments. Both were won by Colin Barratt. This is a fantastic achievement as he played football on both Sunday mornings before turning up for an afternoon's singles !!! Given all the injuries I have had, I was happy to get to the Glossop Mens Singles Final, only losing on a final tiebreak to Dominic. Still the only person to have won the title in two consecutive years (2004, 2005).

Building on our Winter League promotion last year, the side are doing well again and currently 2nd in division 6. Another successive promotion maybe on the cards. Thanks to Liz Douglas for her efforts in running this team.

We had a very enjoyable lmeal a few weeks ago at the Sportsman in Hayfield. The annual Christmas meal takes place on Friday 7th December at the Soldier Dick in Furness Vale. Please let Adrian or my mum know (new mills 01663 746529) if you can attend. I'll also be doing an Xmas quiz at the Club, hopefully the Saturday before Xmas.

On the International Tennis scene, Roger Federer managed to hold off Novak Djokovic in the US Open Final. Djorkovic has made great advances this year and is a more compelte player than Nadal in my opinion. Nadal is still the king of clay but the clay season takes a toll injury wise and can't see him keeping this level of inteensity up for much longer. It is great to see Nalbandian back from the lower reaches of the top 30, to beat Federer twice at the Madrid and Paris Masters and win both titles. Good to see him back in the top 10 too. Ability wise he is the world no 2 and the only player with Djorkovic who can beat Federer on surfaces other than clay. Nalbandian is my tip for the 2008 Australian Open.

On the Ladies side, Henin is still the best. Williams sisters have done well to get their level back too. My tips for Grand Slams next year - Ivavanovic and Jankovicm, plus Henin for the French

Xmas Newsletter in a few weeks

Chris (07-11-07)

Hi everyone,

Well it only seemed like a moment ago that the season was starting. Now we are nearly at the end of August. The season has been good for the club on a number of levels. Firstly, we have for the first time entered a junior team in the North East Cheshire League. This has gone well and our juniors have won four out of six matches. Next year will see two junior teams. Our North East Cheshire team have also won division 4A of the league. This comes on the back of our Winter League team having won their division last winter. All our teams are doing well.

Memberships are roughly what they were at the end of last season with a few still to come in. I am doing some end of seaosn publicity that will hopefully attract some additional members.

Following the respray two years ago, the courts are in excellent condition and will need another respray in season 2009. We need to be looking to resurface the courts in around 2013, but a lot depends on club finances.

Next Sunday will be a big day for the club with our Mens Open Singles and also the pub six-a-side cricket. Please feel welcome to attend and support the club.

On the International Tennis scene, this Mondy sees the start of the US Open. Federer looks favourite with the Ladies event wide open.

Sad to see Henman retire, but its the right decision. He has had a great career even without the Wimbledon trophy, and deserves great credit for what he has achieved over the years.

On a personal note, I feel happy to have been part of the club's success over the last few years. It is now time for others to step forward and move the club in the right direction.

Chris (25-08-07)

Hi everyone,

Great news on the tennis front !!! Our Mens North East Cheshire Team have just won promotion to division 3 of the North East Cheshire League for the first time in the club's history. We won a tough last match against Ryecroft 11 sets to 6 to make the step up to division 3 . This is a fantastioc achievement for the club. After seven years as captain of this team, I have decided to sign off on a high note, in order to focus on my career (which will most likely be abroard). Next season, Rob Morton and Andy Storer will be joint team captains.

On the subscriptions front we are also doing well and have collected almost £2500 so far, with further monies due to come in.

There will be several junior coaching courses running during the summer holidays. Please contact Andrew Morton on 01663 746529 for further details. Juniors are also welcome to attend social tennis on Friday evenings and Sunday mornings.

There will be another Mens Singles and Doubles tournament running soon towards the end of August. Watch this space for further details.

On the International Tennis front, Roger Federer managed a Houdini-like escape to win the Mens Wimbledon Singles for the fifth consecutive year, equalling the record set by Bjorn Borg. Nadal played well to push him all the way though. Venus Williams did well to come back from injury to win the Ladies title and a great effort from Marion Bartoli of France to reach the final. Next Grand Slam is the US Open end August.

The Mens International Graa Court Challenger Tournament starts at the Northern Tennis Club this Sunday with the final next Sunday 22nd July.

See you on court

Chris (13-07-07)

Hi everyone,

The weather has picked up again and we are having another great season. Spent a week at Roland Garros watching the matches on the clay, some rain, some sun but nothing that prevented Nadal winning his third title in a row. Federer will have to wait another year. Justine Henin won the ladies event defeating 19-year old Ivanovic in straight sets. Now its the grass court season ........

Back at New Mills, things are going well. Our Mens North East Cheshire Team have won all six of our matches and we are top of Division 4A. We have our best chance ever of winning the division this year, having narrowly missed out two years ago in the play-off. Just four matches to go. It would be great for the club to get up to division 3 next season.

Our junior team is also doing well and have won two out of four matches. This is an excellent achievement as they are playing in an Under 18's league. Thanks go to Steve Graver for organising this.

Social tennis has been very well attended recently both on Friday evening and Sunday morning. Our subscriptions have now reached £2000 and we have yet to hit the peak season around Wimbledon.

Two Mens Open Singles were held recently. The first of these was the Mel Harrop trophy (Glossop Mens Open Singles). This was won by Dominic who narrowly beat me in a tiebreak decider. I was happy to reach the final though, given the injury problems I have had over the last two years. We also held our Mens Open Singles last weekend. This was won by Colin Barratt who defeated Mark Ridgeway 6-3 in the final. We will be hosting our 2nd Mens singles on Sunday 22nd July, 1pm start at the club.

On the social side, the Hot Bananas will be playing at the club at 9pm on Saturday 23rd June. The band have headlined the One World Festival the last two years and it should be great fun to see them in the clubhouse !!!

See you on court

Next newsletter after Wimbledon ...

Chris (11-06-07)

Hi everyone,

We have had an excellent start to the season ! Four consecutive weeks of fine weather and some excellent results too. Our Mens North-East Cheshire team have won their first two away matches against Astrazeneca and the Northern and are currently top of the table. Our High Peak League mixed team also have a win and a draw from their first two matches. Our new Junior mixed team also won their first match last week away against Knutsford.

We are also doing well in terms of memberships and have a number of new members who have joined the club. One of these is a lady who used to play as a junior with Tim Henman !

On the social side, the club is also doing well. Friday evenings and Sunday mornings have been well attended. We also had a very successful start-of-season meal at the Pack Horse, Hayfield last night.

The club will be holding a Mens Open Singles on Sunday 3rd June. This will start at 1pm.

On the International Tennis scene, the clay court season is now underway. Nadal managed to beat Federer in the Monte-Carlo final and the Rome tournament takes place next week. The French Open starts on Sunday 26th May.

See you on court

Chris (06-05-07)

Hi everyone,

April 1st has arrived and the official start of the tennis season is here !! Lots of catch up on in this newsletter.

Our Winter league team have been promoted from division 7 to division 6 of the league. This is an excellent achievement and thanks go to Liz Douglas for organising the team this year.

For the first time this season, the club is entering a junior mixed doubles u-18s team in the North East Cheshire League. This should be a challenging experience for our juniors, who need competitive match play. We are also again enetring teams in the North East Cheshire Mens and High Peak League Mixed Leagues this season.

On the social side, the club continues to go from strength to strength. Sunday mornings have been really well attended and we are starting Friday evenings again, as the hour has gone back.

The club as a whole is also doing well. The 1st cricket eleven are now back where they belong in division 1 and the bowling club also have an additional team this year. If we have good weather, it should be a fantastic season all round.

The AGM of the club took place last week. The Tennis Section have an additional Committee member, Steve Graver. Our representatives on the General Committee are myself (continuing in role as Acting General Secretary, Andrew Morton and Steve Graver. Our tennis committee comprises myself, Andrew Morton, Liz Douglas, Steve Graver, John Eary, Howard and Val Ballard.

The reconvened AGM takes place on Thursday 19th April at 21.00 with a General Committee meeting afterwards. The first tennis committee meeting of the season will take place in May.

On the International Tennis scene, some changes at last ! Federer has lost twice in recent weeks to Canas, who hasnt played for 18 months due to a drugs ban. Canas is through to tomorrow's Miami Masters final, playing the very talented Djokavic. Serena Williams continued her comeback today beating Henin in the Ladies Final.

I'm also doing a quiz Saturday 14th April, 21.00 in the clubhouse.

See you on court

Chris (01-04-07)

Hi everyone,

Well Winter is almost over (not that we actually had one). Daylight is falling onto the beloved courts of New Mills once more. Another season on the way.

There is lots to report on. Firstly, our Winter league team are still top of the division and we have a good chance of promotion. We also won the High Peak league for the first time last year. Thanks go to Liz Douglas for organising the matches in both leagues. Steve Graver has also entered a mixed junior team for us in the Cheshire league. Im joint-captain of the North East Cheshire team this year.

I'm living in London at the moment and not sure exactly if I'll be playing much at the club this year.

The club AGM will be on Thursday 15th March at 8pm. We need as many members as possible to attend this, as several important issues will be discussed.

On the International tennis scene, Roger Federer again continued his dominance of the men's game with a comprehensive victory against Fernando Gonzalez in the Australian Open. Gonzalez played well though and should have a good year. Can Federer defeat Nadal at the French this year ? I think so and it would be good for tennis if he could. Meanwhile Andy Murray continues to make great progress.

It was great to see Serena Williams back at the Australian Open, winning her first grand slam for two years.

See you on court

Chris (17-02-07)

Hi everyone,

Hope all is ok and that you are enjoying Christmas. A Happy New Year to you all. This season has been excellent for us both weatherwise and tenniswise. I'm not sure whether I will be around this season but if so it will probably be my last at the club, before leaving the area.

The club as a whole has had a very successful year too, with each doing well. The cricket 1st team gained promotion and the atmosphere and results in the bowling section have been simply fantastic.

The Australian Open will soon be upon us again. For more info on the season's first Grand Slam tournament please go to www.ausopen.org. Roger Federer will be aiming for his tenth Grand Slam title.

See you on court in the New Year

Chris (30-12-06)

Hi everyone,

Hope that all is ok tenniswise. The winter season is now fully underway and we finally have some winter weather !!

We are having very impressive attendances at Sunday morning social tennis at the moment. The winter league tennis team are also top of the league with three wins and a draw from the first four matches. This is a marked improvement from last season where we just avoided relegation.

In addition to outdoors tennis, we are also playing regularly indoors at Sportcity. If you interested in playing indoor doubles this winter, then please contact Chrismorton99@btopenworld.com

There are a number of events happening at the club at the moment. This coming Saturday 25th November, there will be a quiz night at the club, which will start at 9pm. On Wednesday 13th December, the tennis section are having their annual Christmas meal. A week later, there will be the last General Committee meeting of the club before Christmas on Wednesday 20th December.

On the international tennis scence, the last week has seen Justin Henin defeat Amelie Mauresmo to claim the WTA end-of-year title. And Roger Federer won his third end of year Masters event, defating James Blake 6-0, 6-4, 6-3 in the final today.

There is now a break from International ATP tennis with the next event being the Davis Cup which will take place during the weekend of 3rd December.

Chris (19-11-06)

Hi everyone,

Hope all is OK. The last newsletter of this season, which is fast approaching the end. Weatherwise, we've had an excellent June and July, and September looks promising. Another good season with lots of positive things happening both within the tennis section and the club as a whole.

Firstly the good news from other sections of the club. The cricket 1st team won at Hollingworth on Saturday to secure promotion to the 1st division of the Derbyshire and Cheshire Cricket League. This is great news for the whole club and our congratulations go to the cricketers for this fantastic effort.

Two weeks ago, the bowling section also hosted the Derbyshire cup final competition. This was a brilliant day and a great advertisement for the club. The bowling section have had their best season for a number of years and have also attracted a number of new bowlers for next season.

Now onto tennis. With all of the North East Cheshire Matches now complete, we finished 6th out of 11 teams in Division 4, which is still a good effort. After six years as team captain and several large phone bills, I've handed over the captaincy for the team to my brother Rob and already we have new players signing up for next season. The High Peak League team have one match to play, and are mid-table with two wins and a draw from five played. The Winter League matches start in two weeks.

From the junior coaching side of things, we now have real strength in depth with several juniors making substantial progress this season. Of particular note has been the progress made by Stephen Noon, Dan Baker, Alex Graver and Alex Stobart. We now need to move out older juniors into regular matchplay too.

On memberships, we are currently at £2750 for the season with more money to come in. By the end of the month, we should be at our £3000 target which we achieved last season. If anyone has yet to pay this seasons membership, please send a cheque for £25 (junior), £60 (senior) or £90 (family) payable to New Mills Bowls Cricket and Tennis Club to 27 Parkway, New Mills SK22 4DU.

This weekend, the club hosted a Mens Open Singles Event, the second of the season. We started at 1pm and finished at 8.15 pm, bad light preventing the final from being played. Phillippe va de Vyvere and Colin Jones shared the joint 1st place.

This coming Sunday 17th September, the club is hosting an Open Day and this is an integral part of the New Mills Festival. The tennis event will be a Doubles Tournament with rotating partner (American tournament). This starts at 10.30. At 11.00 the bowling section pairs event starts and you can enter with or without a partner. At 2pm, playing for the Mike Oliver Trophy will be New Mills and Hayfield Cricket teams. The trophy is in memorial to Mike Oliver, a promising young cricketer from the club who sadly passed away in a motorcycle accident.

The whole day will be a great one for the club. Please do your best to attend !!!

On the International Tennis scene, two great weeks of tennis at the US Open. Maria Sharapova fully deserved to win the Ladies Final, defeathing Mauresmo in the semi 6-0, 5-7, 6-0 before defeating Justin Henin 6-4, 6-4 in the final. A great effort.

Another genius performance from Roger Federer to win his third US Open title in a row, and ninth Grand Slam title. Andy Roddick can be proud of his performance in the final though (losing 2-6, 6-4, 5-7, 1-6), and its good to see him back at the top of his game. Andy Murray made big strides at this tournament too, winning three matches and raising his ATP World Ranking to 16.

Next up is the European Indoor season and then the end of year Masters in Shanghai (fifth grand slam) for the top 8 players with Nalbandian and Mauresmo defending their titles.

As I said at the start of the season, this is probably my last season at the club. Having made a career change into teaching, I now need to focus on my career. This means that the club will have to take a back seat, and I will most likely be moving out of the area and hoepfully out of the UK. In the five years since I've been back in New Mills, I've never known the club as healthy as it is now; all sections are in good shape. We have excellent facilities and the right mix of people on the General Committee to take the club further forwards. If indeed this is my last season, I will look back fondly at what the club has achieved.

p.s if you are interested in discovering new music, then try the site www.radioblogclub.com. A band worth checking out is Midlake and the track Roscoe. An Amercian band very reminiscent on Neil Young, Crosby Stills and Nash, rumours era Fleetwood Mac. Check it out.

Chris (11-09-06)

Hi Everyone,

The penultimate newsletter of the tennis season 2006.....

We've been having a good season this year, largely helped by the weather. Memberships are at about the same level as last year and we will again surpass £3000 for tennis subscriptions.

Team tennis for the summer has also largely been completed. Our North-East Cheshire Mens Team finished sixth out of 11 teams in division 4A. This falls below last years achievement of finishing second and proceeding to the play-offs. However, the division was slightly stronger this year. This was our seventh season in this division. Next year will be our twentieth season in the league (I can remember our first match in 1988 against Priory where I won something like 2 games in six sets !!). For all this time, we have never been relegated from a divsion, just kept moving up, although we've been stuck in 4A for the last seven years. This is a good achievement and credit goes to our past team captains too ; Andrew Ballard, Stephen Gould, Andrew Morton.

Having run the team for six seasons now, I have decided to hand it over as I may not be around New Mills after this summer. My brother Rob will be the team captain and I will help if I am around New Mills next season. Over the longer term, it is more important for the side to be in the league in any division as it is a good league. Playing more juniors in this team is the key and to achieve this we may have to move down a division.

The High Peak mixed doubles team have played four matches and won two, with two left to play. Buxton will also be joining the league again next year. A big thanks goes to Austin Royle from Glossop Tennis Club for maintaining this league over the last two seasons.

Our Winter League fixtures start in September. Liz and Kevin Douglas will be running this team and I won't be involved. If you are interested in playing, then please let Liz and Kevin know. Home matches are at weekends and often midweek. This is our fourth season in this league and it is healthy for our section to be playing competitively in winter against other sides.

The club as a whole is going from strength to strength. All aspects of the club are doing well, cricket, bowls, tennis and the social side. In particular this season, the bowling section has seen some fantastic league matches and notable achievements. The green is in excellent condition and the section is growing. Thanks go to Kath Hibbert and the rest of the section for the efforts they have put in. Having done the job of (Acting) General Secretary for a year now, I can better appreciate that each section of the club needs each other for the club to be successful.

Thanks also to the efforts of Andy Bowers in negotiating a settlement with our previous brewery. This has put the club on a firmer financial footing. The club has a new treasurer, Dean Kennedy, and is indebted to the work put in over the last three years by Lee Burgess.

Next Sunday 20th August (1pm start), the club is hosting a Mens Open Doubles Event. This has been publicised and we need as many as possible to turn up and support it. You can enter with or without a partner. If we have an odd number, then I'll just run the event and not play.

Yet again a tennis masterclass from Federer at Wimbledon. As I write this newsletter (essay, encyclopedia !), Federer has reached yet another final, that of the Toronto Masters where he will play Richard Gasquet tomorrow. Another title on the way. Andy Murray is making fast progress now with his new coach Brad Gilbert. I reckon he'll be top ten by the end of the year. As far as the US Open goes, Federer looks fave again with maybe Nalbandian, Roddick, Blake, Nadal and Haas with a chance. The Ladies probably Sharapova or Clijsters, both liking the surface.

Hopefully quiz night at the club in two weeks, Sat 26th August ........

Chris (13-08-06)

Hi Everyone,

I hope that all is OK. The weather is fantastic at the moment, and we having a good season.
Here is this month's newsletter :

Memberships
We're currentl;y running at about the same level as last year on memberships. If anyone wants to play this season and hasn't sent a cheque yet, please send to Chris Morton, 27 Parkway, New Mills, High Peak SK22 4DU. Th subs for this year are £90 family, £55 senior and £25 junior.

Team Tennis
Largely due to non-availability of players but also a stronger division this year, our Mens North East Cheshire team have finished mid-table with four wins and a draw from then matches. This is still a good effort and I'm still on the lookout for a team captain for next year as I've done this for six seasons now.
Our High Peak team have also done OK, with two wins from three matches. Again, we will be entering a winter league team this year in the East Cheshire League.

Social Tennis
Social Tennis has been well-attended this year, and we have this on Friday evenings and Sunday mornings. This Sunday 16th July is our last Mens North East Cheshire match of the season so social tennis will be in the afternoon.

Club tournaments
The club held a Mens Open Singles in June. I defeated Andy Wise narrowly in the final but the progress Andy has made in the last twelve months has been fanatastic. Reaching the final for the second year was a great achievement. Our Mens Open Doubles has been postponed from Sunday 23rd July till another Sunday in August (watch this space). However, there will be a social doubles tournament on Sunday 30th July.

Starting in August too, we will also be having a Mens Singles internal ladder.

Harry Handford
One of the bowling sections longstanding members, Harry Handford, sadly passed away recently from a heart attack whilst watching a bowling match. This was despite the best efforts of three nurses in attendance at the match. Our section, and the club as a whole extend our thoughts to his family.

Wimbledon/US Open
Roger Federer produced another masterclass of grass court tennis to take the Wimbledon title this year. However, he was pushed all the way by Rafael Nadal. The rivalry between the two is great for the Mens game and they are by far the best two players on the circuit at the moment, with Nalbandian close behind. My tip for the US Open is James Blake, but I wouldn't be surprised to see these two in the final once again.

It was also great to see Amelie Mauresmo close out her first Wimbledon title. A fantastic talent and one of the nicest personalities on the ladies tour too.

The Northern Challenger Tournament
This year, again the Northern club at Didsbury are hosting the grass-court challenger tournament. This starts this Sunday with qualifying and the final is on Sunday 23rd July. For more info, please call 0161-445-3093.

Quiz night
I hope to be running a quiz night next Saturday 22nd July at 21.00 in the clubhouse.

See you on court

Chris (14-07-06)

Hi everyone,

Hope that all is ok. Just recently back from teaching in France and its good to see that the weather is a lot better now and plenty of people are playing on the courts. If you haven't yet paid this year's subscription then please send a cheque payable to New Mills Tennis Club to Andrew Morton, Membership Secretary, 27 Parkway, New Mills, High Peak SK22 4DU.

Social Tennis has been well attended recently both on a Friday evening and Sunday morning. We have picked up some new members too and will be doing a lot more publicity around Wimbledon. This coming Sunday 18th June starting at 13.00 we have our Mens Open Singles tournament. Andy Storer is defending his title this year, having defeated Andy Wise last year.

Largely due to injuries and non-availability but also a stronger divisiob, the North East Cheshire Team have been struggling for wins. We've only won two out of five and need two wins from the last five to be safe in the division. We won't come anywhere near finishing second this year and just staying up will be an achievement. Its important we keep a team in this league (whichever division) and im trying to get someone else to do it next season as I won't be here (six seasons is enough !).

The High Peak League team have played two, winning one and losing one

The club now has a new brewery on board (JWD Brands). This is increasing bar sales and the new brewery are giving us a lot of financial support and publicity for the World Cup. Please feel free to pop down for the World Cup matches.

On the International Tennis scence, I was lucky to be able to see the entire of the first week at Roland Garros. A truly impressive performance from Nadal to beat Federer in the final. Wimbledon looks interesting this year and good weather will make the courts bounce higher like clay giving Nadal a long shot. Federer looks favourite but im tipping either Mario Ancic or David Nalbandian this year. Henmans current form is good and he has an outside chance.

For the Ladies, Henin-Hardenne could follow up her French victory with another title. But my money is on Mauresmo or Sharapova.

Now finally fully fit after an injury nightmare the last two years. Hoping to avoid crutches this year !!!

Chris (16-06-06)

Hi Everyone,

I hope that all is ok. We've had some good weather recently and there have been plenty of people on the courts. Just a quick reminder on subscriptions ; we need to collect these as early as we can. The cricket section have already collected £2000 and at present we have only collected £600. If you can't make it to the club either this Friday or Sunday, then please send a cheque payable to New Mills Bowls Cricket and Tennis Club to Andrew Morton. 27 Parkway, New Mills, High Peak SK22 4DU.

The subscriptions for this season are : adult - £55; Family - £90; junior - £25

This coming Sunday 7th May we have an Open Day at the tennis club and this has been publicised locally. Starting at 10.30 there will be a social doubles tournament on two courts and adult coaching on another court. The junior activities start at 2pm. Clubhouse will be open too. Please try and come if you can.

The team matches have started again. Despite another lengthy lay-off this winter, i'm back to full fitness. This Sunday, our North-East Cheshire Mens team managed an impressive 13 sets to 5 win away to Hazel Grove. We have our sights firmly set on (automatic) promotion rather than play-off this year. The High Peak fixtures start this Saturday.

This years Club Men's Open singles will take place on either Sunday 4th or Sunday 18th June - 1pm start. Watch this space for further details. Each month there will also be a social doubles tournament.

The club overall is moving in the right direction and we now have a new brewery on board. This will greatly help the financial position. I'm continuing as Acting General Secretary to the whole club until the end of the summer when I am (definitely) moving abroard. Also in the process of handing over the work that I do within the section this season.

Now that the courts have been done, we really need to accelerate our efforts as a section to get more senior members. Our junior section is really healthy but an increase of say 10 senior members would make a real positive impact on the section. On the subject of the work that was done on the courts last season, can I extend the thanks of the section to Lee Burgess who has stepped down as Treasurer after a three year tenure. We wish him all the best in the future.

On the International Tennis Scene, the French Open is fast approaching on the horizon. Nadal again looks favourite. Can Federer beat him on clay ? What a final that would be at Roland Garros this year. Starts 29th May and coverage on Eurosport/BBC.

If you are at a loose end this Saturday 6th May, then head down to the club for 9pm. Another one of those quiz events and should be a good attendance following the 1st cricket team playing at home.

See you on court !!!
Chris (03-05-06)

Hi Everyone,

British Summer Time is finally here and the tennis season has started !! We've had some fantastic weather this weekend too, to kickstart the season. There will be a full programme of events this summer, so watch this space for further details. Firstly, some dates for your diaries. The most important of these is this Thurday 30th March which is the AGM of the whole club. This starts at 20.00 in the clubhouse. There are several important items to be discussed so please try and attend if you can.

For the start of Easter too, I'll be running a quiz night on Friday 7th April, starting at 21.00. On Saturday 8th April, we are hoping to have a local blues band Blue John playing at the club.

The winter league fixtures have finally finished. We played nine matches, won three and drew two. We managed to stay in the division again which is a considerable achievement. We will be entering a team in the league next season. The summer fixtures start soon and we have two friendly matches (home and away) against Heyes Lane on Sunday 9th and 23rd April, these are warm up games for out first proper match, which will be away to Hazel Grove on Sunday 30th April. The High Peak League fixtures will start in May this year.

Friday night social tennis starts this week at 17.00, please come down if you can. Sunday morning social tennis is also continuing. This season is going to be fantastic ; weatherwise, tenniswise and with England bidding to win the World Cup for the first time in 40 years, the club will be a good place to be this summer. I will be continuing in my role as Acting General Secretary to the club until the end of the summer, when I plan to hand over to someone else. I'm hoping to do a similar handover for the tennis section responsibilities I've got. Moving to pastures new (hopefully abroard!) will be a step in the right direction for me and I will certainly miss the club. However, I feel it is time for others to continue the good work we have done in the section and overall at the club. It isn't healthy for the section or the club to rely on a few individuals.

On the International Tennis Scene, it was good to see Henman beating Safin and Hewitt at Miami this week. The final is next Sunday and Federer is again looking too strong. The European clay court season starts next and the French Open will most likely see a Federer-Nadal final.

See you on court

See you on court (or at the AGM)

Chris (26-03-06)

Hi Everyone,

A Happy New Year to you all. Hope you are all ok. Here is the first newsletter of 2006 !! At long last we are into February and the tennis season is fast approaching us.

Memberships
The clubs financial situation is improving at the moment and we are on the point of changing breweries which will help (see more below). However, we still encourage memberships to be paid early if possible to help the cash flow situation.

At the General Committee meeting in December, it was decided to increase subscriptions by £5 across the board, both seniors and juniors. The rationale for this, which I fully support, is that the club has invested considerable sums of money in capital expenditure resulting in fantastic facilities. Therefore, this merits a subscription increase. Our subscriptions for the coming 2006 season are :

Senior - £60 (£55 if paid before 1st June)
Junior/Student/OAP - £25 (£20 if paid before 1st June)
Family (max 2 adults and 2 children) - £90 (£85 if paid before 1st June)

Cheques should be payable to New Mills Bowls Cricket and Tennis Club and sent to Andrew Morton, Membership Secretary, 27 Parkway, New Mills, High Peak.

Annual General Meeting and next General Committee Meeting
The next General Committee meeting of the club will take place on Thursday 2nd March at 20.00 in the clubhouse. The main business of the meeting is to prepare for the General Committee meeting, which takes place on Thursday 30th March at 20.00. Please put this date in your diaries, we need as many attendees as possible. As Acting General Secretary, I am doing the preparation for this meeting, and am greatly indebted to Ray Kirby, Alistair Stevens and Brian Hoggins for their assistance too.

One of the main tasks will be to deliver AGM notice leaftes the week preceding the meeting to every member, and any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

Social Tennis
Social Tennis is now up and running on Sunday mornings, starting from 10.30. Starting in March, we will also be reinstating the Friday evening social tennis slot, which starts at 17.30. There will be several tournaments and social events held this year, including our Mens Open Singles and Doubles.

Team Tennis
Our Winter League fixtures are now complete and we have managed to stay in the division again. The current results table is shown below:

Last week, I also went to the North East Cheshire League Fixtures meeting. I have put the fixtures on the website (see Team Fixtures). Our first match is Sunday 30th April, away to Hazel Grove. We are hoping to go one better and actually win the division this year, bettering last year's performance. We will also be entering a mixed doubles team again in the High Peak League.

Social Events at the club
Next Friday 17th February I will be running a quiz at the club 21.00 start. Please try and attend if you can.

International Tennis
Again, what a fantastic Australian Open !! Some great matches. Federer again proving that he is the master and none can equal him. The final was good and Baghdatitis put in a brilliant effort. The highlight for me though was the Federer Haas match, Tommy Hass coming back from two sets to love down and losing in five. Some great highlights of this match on the bbc website. Great too to see that Nicolas Kiefer is making a comeback ; reaching the semis and only losing to Federer. www.ausopen.org

As far as the Mens game goes, I think Federer, Haas, Kiefer, Nalbandian, Baghdatis will pick up all the major honours this year. The key to the mens game seems to be a variety and the ability to play on different surfaces without picking up injuries and burn-out. Just look at Hewitt, Roddick and Nadal who are all struggling with injuries now. Henman also will do well to complete season. He should be proud though of what he has achieved for the game. Murray should have a good year but needs a good clay court season.

It was great to see Mauresmo win the Australian too and the comeback of Hingis. Again, the key is staying free of injury and I expect Mauresmo to win both the French and Wimbledon this year.

See you on court (hopefully injury free this time)

Chris (07-02-06)

Hi everyone,

Hope that all is ok. I'm finally back on a tennis court at last after a three month layoff. Here is the last NMTC newsletter of this season.

This season has been a really good one for us. The most important thing was that we got the tennis courts resprayed. We really need to thank the General Committee of the club for this, for putting their faith in our section to move forwards and develop.

Our juniors have come on a long way this season. Our most improved junior this season has been Andy Wise. Andy managed to reach the final of our Men's Open Singles event, beating me in the process. Our team performances have also been vastly improved and we managed to finish second in division 4A, therefore progressing to a playoff that we narrowly lost on the away replay. The High Peak League also got off the ground and several matches were completed. At present, the club is currently competing in the East Cheshire Winter League (won two matches and drawn one).

On the membership side, the section has again managed to reach the £3000 target. Next season will hopefully see further increases in membership.

Overall I think it has been a great season for us ; in terms of membership, performances and weather. Thanks to all of you, have a good Christmas and New Year. See you on court (rather than on crutches) in 2006.

A few dates for your diaries to :
Wednesday 14th December - New Mills Tennis Club annual Xmas meal. If you haven't received a menu yet or want to come please phone New Mills 01664 746529.
Thursday 15th December - New Mills Bowls Cricket and Tennis Club General Committee meeting at EIGHT O CLOCK (please pay attention Mr General Secretary!!) in the clubhouse.
Friday 16th December - New Mills Bowls Cricket and Tennis Club annual Xmas Quiz at nine o clock in in the clubhouse

In the wider tennis world, Roger Federer confirmed his position as world number 1 in 2005 with victories at Wimbledon and US Open. Marat Safin played well to beat Federer in the semis of the Australian Open and go on to beat Lleyton Hewitt in the final. The year also saw the emergence of Rafael Nadal, who dominated the clay court season, finishing with his win at Roland Garros. Andrew Murray made fantastic progress also to move from 400 to 60 in the world rankings. And what a fantastic performance from one of the most talented and all-round players on the tour, David Nalbandian who rallied from two sets to love down to beat Federer in the end-of season Masters Cup in Shanghai  (see masters-cup.com)

On the ladies side, Venus Williams made a fantastic comeback to defeat Lindsay Davenport in this year's Wimbledon Final. It was great too to see Kim Clijsters win her first Grand Slam at the US Open after a difficult year and injury comeback. 2006 sees the return of Martina Hingis at the Australian Open, which starts 16 Jan. See ausopen.org

Happy Christmas and New Year
Take Care, Chris (08-12-05)

Hi everyone,

The end of the season is now almost upon us (officially when the clocks go back end this month). We've had a good season with a number of achievements. On the membership front, we've picked up some new members and are just slightly short of £3000 in memberships.

A big note of thanks goes out to the general committee of the club who authorised the expenditure on the tennis courts. We are very grateful for this, and it will help us to move forward as a section.

Again, our juniors have shown good progress, across all age groups. Andy Wise and Gareth West have both played for our Mens North East Cheshire League and made a valuable contribution to our best performance ever; coming second in division 4A. As a result, we had a playoff against Bramhall Queensgate; drawing 9-9 in our first home match, and losing 4-11 in the replay. This was a fantastic effort by all concerned and we are in a good position to win the division outright next year.

The High Peak League also got off the ground this year and we are hoping that it expands next season. Thanks go to Austin Royle of Glossop for organising the league this year. For the third consecutive season, we are playing in the East Cheshire Winter League and the first match takes place this weekend.

On the social tennis side, we've also had a good season, helped by the weather. Our annual Mens Open Singles was won by Andy Storer, with Andy Wise the runner up. Social Tennis is continuing throughout the winter on Sunday mornings and we'll be playing at Sportscity indoors too.

Financially speaking, the club as a whole is also on a stronger footing going into the winter season. We have a number of events planned for the coming months including discos, karaoke, live bands and quiz nights. The next quiz will take place on Saturday October 22nd, 20.00 at the club.

From a personal perspective, it has been very rewarding to see the whole club (not just the tennis section) develop over the last five years. We have a good General Committee and are moving the club forward, in the right direction.

On the International tennis scene, this year's US Open saw glory again for Roger Federer, who defeated Andre Agassi by thee sets to one in a thrilling final. It was fantastic to see Kim Clijsters win her first Grand Slam too, defeating Mary Pierce in the final. For full match reports see usopen.org.

On the mend from (various) injuries now. See you on court this winter !!

Chris (08-10-05)

Hi everyone,

The season seems to have gone really quickly this year. We have had a better season than last, both in terms of weather and membership of the tennis section. Now that the courts have been done, we have a real opportunity to make further progress. Here is the newsletter for August.

At the start of the season, I thought that our North East Cheshire Mens team would finally be relegated, after four seasons of narrowly avoiding the drop. In fact we've finished second in division 4A and progressed to a play-off for promotion to Division 3. This is a fantastic performance and we have a real chance of winning the match and moving up to a higher standard of mens doubles. The match takes place on Saturday 10th Sseptember, 14.00 hours at New Mills against Bramhall Queensgate 2. Please come and support us.

Thanks to Austin Royle from Glossop Tennis Club for organising the High Peak mixed doubles league this year. This league finishes end September and to date we have played five with a win and two draws. The East Cheshire Winter
League starts end September and we are entering one mixed team for the third consecutive year, playing in division 7.

A number of our juniors are making the successful transition from junior coaching to matchplay tennis. Gareth West and Andy Wise have both made great progress this year. Andy reached the semi-finals of our Mens Open Singles and defeated me 6-4 in the semi-final. Gareth has continued to make substantial progress with hs doubles play. A number of our younger juniors are also improving.

Social tennis (on Friday evening and Sunday morning) has done well this year. We've reduced the number of tournaments in order to focus more on our newer social members, and this has resulted in greater participation. Friday evening social tennis will continue to end September. From October onwards we be also playing regularky indoors at Sportcity Manchester.

Two weeks ago, we held our annual Mens Open Singles. A good turnout resulted in some competitive matches. Andy Storer won the title for the second time in three years, defeating Andy Wise in the final. Due to holidays and non-availability, our Mens Open Doubles has been put back to the afternoon (2pm start) of Sunday 11th September. This is the club's Open Day and coincides with a number of other events held at the club. There will be a social doubles tournament in the morning too.

We are also reestablishing the tennis committee. Both Andy Wise and Liz Douglas have recently joined the committee and we welcome them. A meeting will take place at the end of the month, and we will be looking at our autumn and winter activities.

The US Open starts at the end of this month. Rafael Nadal defeated Andre Agassi to take the Montreal title this weekend and has a very good chance of winning at Flushing Meadow. Roger Federer is defending his title. Svetlana Kutnetskova of Russia is defending her ladies title. There will be coverage live on Sky Sports and British Eurosport. For more info go to usopen.org and sky.com

Next general committee meeting is this week - Thursday 18th August at 20.30

Chris (16-08-05)

Hi everyone,

We've had an excellent month so far, both on and off the court. Off the court, the clubs finances have been doing a lot better, considerably helped by the good weather we are experiencing this summer. Good news is the weather is forecast to continue.

Our subscriptions are up substantially on last year. They currently stand at £2600 and we are confident that the £3000 target will be reached. Those of you who have been down to the courts recently will have noticed the colour has changed, meaning ..... they have been resprayed and playing really well. A big thank you to the General Committee for supporting the tennis section. The work on the courts (which cost £4000 in total) has secured the tennis section for the next five years.

These are just some of our Key Selling Points. There are many more. Please let me know if you have any ideas. One of the most important things we need to do is to properly establish the tennis committee again, bringing in new people and fresh ideas. The first meeting of the season will take place next week - date and time to be advised. It is important for us to get the committee back on track. This ensures the section continues to function, and that there exists an proper democratic decision-making process if key players leave.

I will be doing an interview with High Peak Radio later this week and promoting the club.

One date for your diaries is Sunday 31st July, 10.00. This will be our key event of the year ; a Mens Open singles (open to non club members for the third year). The courts will also be officially opened at 10.00 by (I'm hoping) someone semi-famous and hopefully from within tennis.

Wimbledon is now over for another year. The Ladies Final was thrilling with Venus Williams just pipping Lindsay Davenport in three close sets. Roger Federer won his third consecutive Wimbledon with a straight sets win over Andy Roddick. Even by Federer's high standards, this was a class performance. For match reports wimbledon.org

Next up is the US Open, starts end August. usopen.org

Meanwhile there is an ATP Grass court challenger event at the Northern Lawn Tennis Club this week. This is at Palatine Road, West Didsbury. for more info : thenorthern.co.uk

I'm also doing a quiznight at the club this Friday 15th July - 21.00 start (flexible!)

See you on court. Enjoy the good weather !

Chris (12-07-05)

Hi everyone,

Finally we have at least a week of good uninterrupted weather forecast, so the tennis season can properly start. Here is the June 2006 newsletter.

Tennis Courts Respray
At May's General Committee meeting (held on 26th May), the issue of the tennis courts respray was again discussed. Basically, the club authorised this a year ago and the cost was accounted for in the 2004-2005 financial year budget. If not for the bad weather, the courts would have been
resprayed last August. Unfortunatley the financial situation deteriorated somewhat over the winter months and several large bills had to be paid. As a result, the club is not yet in a position to be able to spend the £3000 needed to respray the courts. We are hopeful that the next General Committee meeting (to be held on Thursday 23rd June) will give the go-ahead for the work to be done and the courts can be resprayed the first week of July.

Please be patient on this issue. We are working on it. In the meantime, if we as a section can use the bar as much as possible, support the club and get involved as much as we can, that would be a great help.

• Wimbledon
• Start of school holidays
• New Mills Festival in September

Social Tennis is now up and running well on Friday evenings and Sunday mornings, well attended on both days. We're holding back on running tournaments until July to try and get social tennis properly established, fully integrating our newer members. There willl be three social doubles tournaments, one each month from July to September, an under-18's boys singles tournament (Steve Powner trophy), Mens Open Singles and Mens Open Doubles. The last three willl have to start at 13.00 pm, so as not to clash with social tennis on Sunday mornings.

Team Tennis
We're doing well on the team tennis front. The High Peak League is up and running now, it is a new mixed doubles league that involves us, Glossop, Buxton, Bamford, Edale and Tideswell. We've played the first two matches and lost 1-5 to Glossop and drawn 4-4 with Tideswell. We also have our strongest North-East Cheshire squad for about five years., due to an influx of new members. Phil Lodge has joined the club from Buxton and Aaron Mellor from Woodside. Our juniors are coming on too. We've won three from the first four, which is far better than I forecast at the start of the season.

Other items of club news

• The cricket section have started work on their indoor artificial wicket. This is completely funded out of grants and sponsorship and will be a great facility for the club once it is up and running.
• Colin and Julie Smith were away on a well-deserved break last week and social member Mark Stansfield did a great job holding the fort at the bar.
• Due to work and family commitments, plus the demands of running the cricket section, Alistair Stevens has decided to resign as Club Secretary. I am covering the post until end August, by which time we hope to have found a replacement.
• Despite six months out of the game through injury, I managed to successfully defend my Mens Singles title at Glossop. I'm also back playing again, due to the joint miracle of the Red Sea curing my arm and the sterling efforts of the NHS Physio service at New Mills and Sue Coverley.
• You may have noticed that our club website has some items a little out of date. This is my fault as I haven't had time to submit new and relevant content and photos. I'm sorting this out this week as a matter of urgency.

Social and other Events at the club
Friday 17th June - Clearview comedy duo appearing at the Cricket Club, 20.00
Saturday 18th June - quiznight hosted by me, 21.00 start.
Thursday 23rd June - General Committee meeting, 20.30 start

International Tennis
I was lucky enough to witness some of the drama at Roland Garros last week. The best match I saw had to be the third round between Ferrero and Safin (Marat winning in four sets). Also had a nice friendly chat with the greatest mens doubles pair at the moment Max Myrni of Belarus and Jonas Bjorkman of Sweden. In a thrilling final, Rafael Nadal of Spain beat Mariano Puerta of Argentina to take his first grand slam title at the age of 19. The first of many I reckon. A great effort from Puerta though who showed great fighting spirit and has a good future ahead too (see full match report below). The Ladies Final was a non-event with Henin blasting away Mary Pierce in two rapid sets.

Next up is the grass-court season and Wimbledon. Federer and Sharapova are defending their titles. Tim has a chance but there are simply too many good players around. I'm tipping Andy Roddick with Serena Williams for the Ladies event. Wimbledon starts Monday 20th June www.wimbledon.org

Spanish teenager Rafael Nadal defeated Mariano Puerta 6-7 6-3 6-1 7-5 to win the French Open at his first attempt. It was a dramatic opening set - Nadal went 2-0 up but, after having treatment on his thigh, Puerta broke back and clinched a thrilling tie-break. Nadal levelled the match at one-set all with a single break and strolled to the third as the Argentine visibly tired. The pair swapped breaks twice in a fascinating fourth set but Nadal broke again in the 12th game to triumph. The 19-year-old walked onto Philippe Chatrier Court as overwhelming favourite after winning three tournaments on clay in the build-up to Paris. And things seemed to be going his way when he broke Puerta in the first game of the final with his trademark thundering forehands. At 15-40 down in the fifth game, the Argentine called for the trainer and received treatment on his right thigh. The interruption turned the opening set on its head. Puerta saved the break-points and then forced Nadal into errors to break back at 3-3. The left-handed opponents matched each other for pounding groundstrokes, deft drop-shots and an inevitable tie-break ensued. Puerta clinched the tense breaker 8-6 to take a surprise one-set lead but, after such a frenetic first set, the unseeded Argentine was not able to keep up the momentum. Nadal broke to take a 3-1 lead in the second as Puerta carelessly hit the ball long and the Spaniard served out the set to level the match. The 19-year-old ran away with the third set, breaking a tiring Puerta three times to seal a 6-1 scoreline, which did not do credit to Puerta's own moments of ingenuity. As Nadal edged closer to victory in Paris, Puerta dug deep again to set up a thrilling finale. The Argentine forced Nadal into making mistakes and was rewarded with a break in the first game of the fourth set. Then Puerta's own unforced errors gifted Nadal the break straight back - and a game of cat-and-mouse ensued much to the delight of the roaring Roland Garros crowd. The Spanish teenager recovered from triple break-point down in the seventh game, but two games later he surrendered a 30-0 lead and a resurgent Puerta broke again at 5-4. The Argentine carved out three set-points to stand on the brink of forcing a deciding fifth set. But some dazzling footwork and reactions at the net somehow saw Nadal break straight back again. At 6-5 up Nadal produced an array of pounding shots to move to a decisive break-point on Puerta's serve. And the Spaniard only had to watch as his opponent skewed his shot wide to hand him the break and the match. Nadal's victory saw him finish the clay-court season undefeated in 24 matches - and he become the first man since Mats Wilander in 1982 to win the French Open on his debut.

Chris (08-06-05).

Hi everyone,

The season is well and truly here now, the good weather has arrived. We had a really succesful Play Tennis Day in April. This has resulted in some extra members. We plan to run another day around Wimbledon.

Team tennis is now up and running. This Sunday 15th May we have our first North-East Cheshire match at home against Alderley Edge. Next Wednesday is also our first High Peak League match against Glossop. Juniors are playing in both teams this year.

Social Tennis has also been well attended recently, both on Friday evenings and Sunday mornings. We'll be running our first social doubles tournament next Sunday 22nd May, 13.00 start.

There is a General Committee meeting next week - Thursday 19th May (20.00). We are hoping to get the go-ahead to get the courts resprayed at this meeting, but this depends on club finances. The first tennis committee meeting of the season will also be later this month - date to be advised.

Next Friday - 20th May, I'm running a quiz in the clubhouse (8.30 pm start). Please try and attend this if you can. Thanks to Paul Bowers for running the last two quiz nights which have been brilliant and very well attended.

If you haven't paid your subscription yet, please send it in as soon as you can (myself included!).

The French Open starts wb 24th May. Federer and Coria are looking very strong but Nadal is my favourite. Henman will do well to make the second week this time.
For more info frenchopen.org .Coverage on British Eurosport

Now playing tennis again !

Chris (14-05-05).

Hi everyone,

Our Play Tennis Day on Sunday was a great success. We managed to attract some new members to the club and raised the profile of the club overall. We were lucky that the weather held up.

Social tennis is now up and running on Sunday mornings and Friday evenings. There will be some tournaments organised later in the season. Team tennis starts soon; we should have our first fixture for the High Peak League early May. These matches will be on Saturday afternoons and the format is 2 men and 2 ladies (mixed doubles League). Let me know if you are interested, not only in playing but helping to run the team too.

Due to injuries and non-availability of players, the North East Cheshire League will be more of a struggle this year. We just need to keep going in the league, which is good for the club (even if we drop a division). First fixture is Sunday 15th May at home.

For the fifth successive year, Glossop tennis club are holding a Men's Open Singles on Saturday 14th May. Entry is £6 and the event starts at 09.15. Our Open singles and doubles events will take place later in the season.

There will be a quiznight in the Clubhouse, hosted by Paul Bowers on Saturday 30th April, 20.00 start. We need to get at least 1 team from tennis to the event. Let me know if you can attend.

We are hoping to get the tennis courts resprayed w/b 20th June, but this wholly depends on the finances of the club at the next General Committee meeting 19th May. We need to help to generate funds for the club, not only for our section, but the club as a whole. The cricket section have managed to raise £20,000 in funds (grants, sponsorship etc) for an artificial wicket. Let me know if you have any ideas and can help to organise a social event that would attract tennis members or another event such as a carboot sale. The latter would be a good idea, particularly on a Saturday morning in May between junior coaching finishing and a cricket match starting.

On the International Tennis scene, the French Open starts wb 24th May. Gaston Gaudio and Anastacia Myskina are defending their titles. Tim Henman isn't having a good start to the season, and will do well to match last year's semi place. My tips are Guillermo Coria, last years finalist and Rafael Nadal. Federer also in with a shout, but struggles on clay. Safin a good outside bet too. The ladies event is wide open. I think Kim Clijsters or Amelie Mauresmo will win this year, neither having won a grand slam yet.

Chris (still suffering from tennis elbow, so my first grand slam title will have to wait for the moment) (20-04-05).

Hi Everyone,

Here is the newsletter for March. Rather than type it out under separate headings, I'd thought I'd have a go at a new format.

British Summer Time starts this Saturday and the tennis season will be here. We haven't had the best weather this winter but have managed to keep playing. Our second year in the East Cheshire Winter League was a success we managed to stay in the division. This summer we have two teams; one mens in the North-East Cheshire league and one mixed in the High Peak League. Please let me know if you are interested in playing for either team, fixtures start in April.

Starting next week, we'll also be having social tennis nights on Fridays, in addition to Sunday mornings. Please make a note in your diaries for Sunday 17th April. This is our tennis Open Day and is supported by the LTA (although we are not affiliated to the LTA). There will be loads of publicity around this and we need your support. If all goes to plan, this day will result in more tennis members and greater exposure for the club as whole. There will be a social doubles tournament in the morning and various events throughout the day. This year, we'll be running several social tournaments, and again a mens open singles and open doubles.

Due to bad weather last August and September, the tennis courts were not resprayed. Please be patient with this though, I had a chat with the contractor last week and he will come and do the respray week beginning 20th June. This is the first week of Wimbledon, but is also a week when we have no team fixtures. The courts will only be out of action for a couple of days. We can't book the job for earlier as the club needs to have the money available, or later because the weather will get the better of us again.

There are plenty of social events happening at the club too. This Easter Saturday 26th March, there will be a quiznight hosted by Paul Bowers, 20.30 start in the clubhouse. Please try and support this, the last quiz was a great success with over 40 people attending. Another date for your diaries is Thursday 7th April, 20.00 in the clubhouse. This is the Annual General Meeting of the club. There will be at least one vacancy on the General Committee so if you are interested in standing, please let me know. The composition of the Tennis Committee will be decided at the meeting and we'll have our first tennis committee meeting of the season the week preceding the Open Day.

On the International Tennis Scene, Roger Federer continues to win everything in sight, beating Lleyton Hewitt in straight sets to take the Pacific Life Open. Kim Clijsters made a welcome return to the top flight, beating Lindsay Davenport to win the Ladies Event. This week sees the Miami Nasdaq Open. Then its the European claycourt season, finishing with the French Open end May.

I haven't played tennis myself since mid-November due to severe tennis elbow (striking my illustrious career at the ripe old age of 31). Hoping to start playing again sometime in April. If any of you have any advice on tennis elbow, please let me know.

See you on court, Chris (22-03-05)

Hi Everyone,

Just a few weeks to go before the season starts and we have the extra hour in the evening. Here is the newsletter for February.

Memberships
Thanks to those of you who have already paid your subscriptions. We have decided to hold subs at last years rates until the AGM, which will take place in March. The fees are £50 adult, 80 family and £20 junior. We urgently need to get as many subscriptions in as possible before the AGM. Cheques payable to: Andrew Morton, Memberships Secretary, 27 Parkway, New Mills, High Peak SK22 4DU.

The Courts
The problem of moss has come back a bit on the courts, in certain places (particularly the 3rd one). We are now having some frosts, but the courts generally are ok, given they haven't been painted for seven years. We are hopeful of getting them resprayed in April or May, which depends on club finances.

Social Tennis
This is still taking place on Sunday mornings and will also start on Friday evenings from beginning April. The first social doubles tournament will take place Sunday 17th April, 10.30 onwards. This will also be an LTA Play Tennis Day and there will be lots of publicity around this.

Junior Coaching
The Saturday morning sessions are due to start again on 5th March.

Social Events
There will be a quiznight hosted by Paul Bowers this Saturday 26th February (20.30 start). Please support this event, we need a tennis team to attend ! On Sunday 6th May, in the afternoon, there will be a Comedy Duo singing called Clearview. More events to follow soon .....

Meetings
This Thursday 24th February is the Geneal Committee Meeting 20.00 start.

Tennis committee meeting and AGM will be in March

International Tennis
Marat Safin, defeated Lleyton Hewitt to win the Australian Open, beating Federe on the way in the semi. French Open is next grand slam, end May

Chris (22-02-05)

Memberships for 2005
In order to help the club's cashflow, we are encouraging members to pay early. If you are able to pay subs by the General Meeting in early March, they are held at last year's rates: £80 family, £55 senior and £20 junior. Cheques payable to New Mills Tennis Club and sent to: Andrew Morton, 27 Parkway, New Mills SK22 4DU.

Winter Tennis at Sportcity
Several of us play winter tennis at Sportcity Indoor Tennis venue, Manchester. If you are interested then please let me know. The centre is open seven days a week, till 10pm on weekdays. If juniors attend then it is £5 per hour court booked.

Teams this season
We are entering teams in the North East Cheshire and Tameside Leagues. If you are interested in playing, then please let me know. Fixtures meeting for Cheshire league is 25th January.

General Committee meeting
Next meeting is Thursday 27th January, 20.00 in the pavillion. Next tennis committee meeting in February.

Quiz night at Club
I'm doing a quiznight on Friday 21st January, 20.00 start. Please let me know if you can come.

Australian Open
Starts on 17th January. Coverage live on Eurosport, starts midnight through to midday. eurosport.com

Winter League Results

Our matches are over for another year. Here is the latest table. We are safe from relegation. Again ! Thanks to everyone for playing.

Chris (10-01-05)

Hi Everyone,

Hope that all is ok with you all. Here is the last newsletter of this year.

Winter League
Thanks to all those who played in the winter league this season. We have now completed all 10 matches, with three draws, two wins and five losses. No cancelled matches due to bad weather. Juniors Andy Wise and Gareth West both played a number of matches and the experience was good for them. We need a team captain for this league for next season who is willing to go to the fixtures meeting and be responsible for selecting teams etc. If anyone is interested then please let me know. It is good for the club to be in this league.

The condition of the courts/club income in winter
We have now cleared all the leaves from the courts. There is some moss but considerably less than before the courts were treated. Fortunatley, we haven't had too many severe frosts. At the last General Committee meeting, it was confirmed that the £3000 cost of respraying the courts had been ringfenced. Due to some high costs recently, the financial situation of the club has worsened slightly. Hopefully, the Christmas and New Year period will be busy in the clubhouse. The Darts and Dominoes league is also starting again soon. In order that we can get the courts done next April/May, we all need to support the bar as much as possible this winter. If you know anyone who may be interested in hiring the facilities for a birthday party, wedding reception etc, then please let me know. During the winter the clubhouse is open on Monday, Thursday and Friday nights, and all day Saturday and Sunday.

Christmas clubhouse opening times/Christmas Quiz
I'm running a Xmas quiz at the club this coming Friday 17th December, 20.00 start. Please support this if you can, last years Xmas quiz was a great success. During Xmas and New Year, the clubhouse will be open as follows :

Weekend of 17th/18th Dec; ChristmasEve; Boxing Day; Monday 27th December; Thursday 30th December; New Years Eve; New Years Day

Subscriptions
In order to help the club's cashflow this January/February, we would like everyone to pay their subs early again if possible. Rates are ; £55 adult, £20 junior and £80 family (2 adults/children maximum).

Christmas Meal
Our Christmas Meal this year is at the Pack Horse Hayfield, Wednesday 15th December, 20.00 start.

International Tennis
The Houston Masters Tennis was won by Roger Federer who defeated Lleyton Hewitt 6-2, 6-2 in the final. Noone can touch Federer at the moment, this year he's won the Australian, Wimbledon, US (a 6-0 set against Hewitt in FINAL in 18 minutes, unbelievable) and Houston. 3 out of 4 grand slams plus the Masters. Safin is not far behind though. The next Grand Slam is the Australian Open from 17-30 January. Check out ausopen.org

Meanwhile, Spain defeated USA 3-2 to take the Davis Cup. Fantastic performances from Rafael Nadal and Carlos Moya.

High Peak Radio
High Peak radio are giving us a lot of free publicity at the moment. This is greatly appreciated. I'm actually being interviewed by them tomorrow for the 2nd time in 3 months. Interview goes on air next week and concerns the club facilities that we have and can offer to the "good people of the High Peak". They are at : 106.4 & 103.3 FM

HAPPY CHRISTMAS AND NEW YEAR ! Hopefully I can lift a tennis racket in January, I'm in the process of discovering tennis elbow for the 1st time in my illustrious career to date and it's not a good time !

Chris (10-12-04)

Dear all,

I've not been able to play much for the last month due to tendonitis (not a tennis injury) and injuring my hip jumping over a wall. Anyway, at least it's not mid-june, it could be worse. Here is the tennis newsletter for November.

Subscriptions
Subscriptions for this year have reached £2,700, just below last year's total.

Christmas meal
The tennis club Christmas meal will take place on Wednesday 15th December, 20.00 start at the Pack Horse in Hayfield. Menu details to follow. If you can attend, please phone John Eary on 01663 743870.

Winter League
We've played six matches so far, with a win and three draws. Juniors have played in most matches. We just need to win one more to get seven points, so I've put our strongest sides out at the moment, before playing the juniors again. It is a good experience for the club to be in the league, as it extends the season.

Upcoming Meetings
The next General Committee meeting will take place on Thursday 24th November, 20.00 start in the clubhouse. Phil McGinnity, John Eary, Dad and myself are your representatives on the Committee. If you want any issues raising, please let us know. One of the most important issues that we need to look at is that of the old teahut which is unsafe.

The next tennis committee meeting will take place at 20.00 a week later Thursday 2nd December in the pavilion.

Social Events
The next social events taking place in the clubhouse are as follows:
Friday 19th November - Comic Relief fundraising evening
Friday 26th November - quiznight

International Tennis
Marat Safin won the Paris Masters, defeating Stephanek in the final. Safin has now won Bejong, Madrid and Paris Masters in the last month. The end of year Houston Masters takes place from 13th-21st November, coverage on Sky. Henman, Federer, Hewitt. Moya. Roddick, Coria and Gaudio are competing for the coveted "fifth grand slam".

Chris (8-11-04)

Dear all,

The tennis season is finally over! The hour goes back next weekend and darkness reigns. But, things are still happening at nmtc.

Memberships
Memberships for the 2004 season stand at £2600 with some more still to come in. Thanks to everyone, particularly those who paid early this year to help the club with cash-flow. We have 65 separate memberships now, with over a hundred members, if family memberships are counted.

Winter League
The winter league is now up and running. We have played four matches so far. Results to date are one win, two draws and a loss. I'm continuing to play Andy Wise and Gareth West in this league. They are both making great progress, particularly Andy Wise. We have six matches left and just need to win another to stay in division 7 (which we will do).

The courts respraying
Due to wet weather in September and early October, the contractor hasn't been able to spray the courts. However, we are first on the list for April 2005. The courts cannot be sprayed till then as a continous dry and warm spell of weather is required. The general committee of the club have ringfenced the money for our courts repsray next year. I''ll recontact the company after Christmas and sort out some reasonable timescale for the work. At least we have had the courts treated for moss this year, which has greatly improved their playability.

Work that needs doing at the club
The tennis season might be over but there is still work to do. Jobs that urgently need doing are as follows :
1) Leaves fallen from trees removing from courts. If left, they will add to slipiness on the courts.
2) Anyone playing at the club, please check inside the changing rooms. There are five heaters on, that protect against frost. Just needs checking that they are working. If they dont, then let me know please. If the main pipes to the boiler freeze, then we will have problems !
3) I've a list of members and telephone numbers on an Excel spreadsheet. I need someone to phone round and get members e-mail addresses so I can create a true and representative d-list on e-mail.

Social Events at Club
I'll be doing a quiz night at the club Friday 5th November, 20.00 start. Please let me know if you can attend. We need to make this one a success.