Thrilling championship matches

Mens singles top players Will Harrison, Ciaran Boylan and Valentin Richard.

Hamilton Tennis club's annual championships continued with top qualifiers and middle-ranking players battling it out to go through to finals week.

There were two places up for grabs in each category and dozens of spectators were treated to some thrilling matches.

Six men’s doubles pairs played a round robin format.

Will Harrison and Ciaran Boyland swept all before them as they won all their matches but there was a nail-biting tie-break decider for second place with Fraser Rabbit-Dalby and Graham Hall beating Doug Hacking and Edwin Shufflebotham.

In the mixed competition, 10 pairs were split into two groups with play-offs between the top two from each.

Gio Chimento and Tracy White comfortably beat Ciaran Boylan and Dee Hughes 5-0 but Margaret and Edwin Shufflebotham had a tougher test before defeating Sue Harrison with Doug Hacking 5-3 to seal a finals’ spot .

Sue Harrison and Tracy White won all their matches in the ladies’ doubles, and they were joined in the finals by second placed Adele Yan Lun and Eileen Merrison.

There were some closely fought matches in the men’s singles category with seven entrants taking part. Will Harrison came out on top and French visitor Valentin Richard came second.

Richard joined the club mainly to play over the summer holidays and is unable to play in finals week, so third placed Ciaran Boylan went through.

Just three ladies competed in the singles competition with Sue Harrison and Jan Jackson qualifying.

On the league scene Hamilton’s ladies’ first veterans team of Tracy White and Sue Corfield, along with Margaret Heggs and Margaret Shufflebotham, lost 5-3 to Oakham with White and Corfield winning all three sets. Meanwhile, the men’s third veterans team of Patrick Whenham-Bossy and Tony Lowe, with Joe Cunningham and Steve Plaistow, lost 6-2 to Loughborough - Whenham-Bossy and Plaistow taking both sets.