Borders tennis youngsters enjoy successful weekend

Young tennis players aged 8-10 across the Borders had an action packed weekend of local competition recently at the Borders Tennis Centre in Galashiels and indoors at Earlston High School.

The annual Primary School team tennis and 8 and under individual competitions saw lots of thrilling sponge ball tennis over both days, with some players taking part in matches for the first time.

The primary school event involved eight teams from across the region, with the composite Earlston/Gala team of Jamie Russell, Seth McDougall and Fletcher Green overcoming a strong Melrose side of Rory Wight, William Campbell and Daragh McLaughlin in the final.

There were 14 entrants for the individual competition, with Cullen Sutherland (Hawick) winning a tight boys final against Rory Wight (Melrose) 10-8 and Aimee McBurnie (Earlston) narrowly coming out on top in a closely contested girls final against Bethan MacLeish (Earlston) 10-9.

The competitors for the eight and under individual event

Meanwhile, the Borders 10 and under district team welcomed a high-quality squad from Fife to the Borders Tennis Centre on Saturday for an afternoon of matchplay.

In total, 23 youngsters took part in the friendly match, which was yet another valuable and enjoyable experience for the Border players.

Commenting on the busy weekend, Junior Coach Jonny Adamson said: “It’s fantastic to see so many young players in our district enjoying the game and having the opportunity to play so many matches on their doorstep.

“It was great to see the youngsters grow in confidence over the weekend and enjoy competing. Our thanks must go to Al McCulloch and the rest of the coaching team at Earlston for their organisation and running of these ever popular annual competitions.

“We were also delighted to welcome a team from Fife down to Galashiels for a friendly match which was played in a terrific spirit.

“It was yet another chance for our players to test themselves against quality opposition and they should be proud of both their results and performances, which were extremely encouraging.”