OUTSIDE THE LINES

MAY 2025

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A WORD FROM THE PRESIDENT

Wow another season has flown by with interclub and the club champs now completed. I didn’t think the weather could get worse, but we were certainly challenged by the huge winds in February and the heavy rain in April.

It was great that we played most of the Open club champs indoors at the Renouf Centre over two consecutive rainy weekends in April, with the Vets and Masters club champs played at the club over the ANZAC weekend when the weather was glorious. We were able to use the Renouf Centre indoor courts at no cost as part of an offset for the affiliation fees paid by the club to Tennis Capital-Coast. This is the first year we have used these hours for the club champs and we will look to do this again next season.

A report on the club champs and interclub has been provided by Ben Leggett, who did an absolutely outstanding job in running the club champs over two sites and three weekends, with his regular emails to members keeping everyone fully informed. Thanks, Ben, for the huge amount of time you spent on making the club champs such a success.

I would also like to thank everyone who took part in the champs. I think the health of a Club is shown, in part, by the popularity and competitiveness of its club champs and, based on this, our club continues to be very strong.

A special shout out to the junior Boys B grade Kakapo team who finished a very close second in their post-Christmas competition, which is likely to result in promotion to the top A grade next season. The junior club champs are to be held on 17 May when we can we look forward to some more competitive tennis matches.

Congratulations to Herve Michaud, Oscar Horsley and Daisy Lackie who were selected to represent Wellington in the annual Hexangular tournament held over ANZAC weekend. This tournament is played between Wellington, Wairarapa, Taranaki, Manawatu, Kapi Mana and Whanganui, with Wellington winning this year for the first time in a number of seasons. Special mention goes to Herve who captained the Wellington team this year. It is great that our club continues to have a strong presence.

To maintain/improve the astroturf playing surface, arrangements have been made for Courts 2–4 to be commercially groomed/cleaned by a rotary machine and the moss sprayed. The Club is also looking to have a similar type of treatment completed for Court 1. Members will be aware that the back of court 1 has become especially slippery. (This has improved for now thanks to the great work of Maurice, who water blasted out dirt and other debris.) Grooming should help to reduce the slipperiness, although this will involve a different process as rotary machinery is unable to be used on court 1 due to access issues.

One of the main reasons slipperiness has developed is the accumulation of pine needles, leaves etc and it would be greatly appreciated if members could take a few minutes every so often to sweep the courts to prevent the build-up of debris. Leaf rakes, brooms, bins etc are in the room next to the downstairs entrance to the clubhouse and leaves, pine needles can be placed on the garden or in the area behind Courts 2–3.

Thank you to everyone who attended the working bees at Salamanca in March and Newtown earlier this month. Both grounds now look great, with extra work done at Newtown to help prevent dirt accumulation/improve drainage on court one and to clear the accessway through the gate behind court four. The turnout for the Newtown working bee was, I think, a record with the many hands making for light work on the day.

We continue to rely on a small number of volunteers who donate a significant amount of time to make the club the best in Wellington, and I would like to thank them again for their continued support. The club is always looking for members to put their hands up to assist, even in a small way, and if you can help in any capacity, please come and see me.

Tennis continues over winter with clubdays on Sundays afternoons from 1.30pm and Herve running his very popular 1-hour free adult coaching sessions prior to these club days for a few more weeks. Winter interclub is also due to start in June and the courts continue to be available for play.

I look forward to seeing everyone at the club soon.

Paul Rountree

Newtown working bee crew.

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CLUB CAPTAIN'S UPDATE

Ben Leggett

Interclub Season Wrap‑Up

What a huge interclub season it’s been! With 19 teams on court across the grades, it’s been another busy and rewarding year representing the club in competitions throughout the region.

A massive thank you must go to all of our team managers, who put in countless hours organising line‑ups, courts, and communications, and of course to the players who proudly represented the club week in and week out. Your commitment, sportsmanship, and club spirit did not go unnoticed.

While unfortunately we had to withdraw from Women’s Premier 1 this season, we see this as an opportunity rather than a setback. Our focus now is on growing depth, strengthening pathways, and doing some clear planning ahead of next season with the goal of returning to the top grade stronger than ever.

There were plenty of outstanding results to celebrate:

• Women’s Premier 2 – Runners‑up
• Wellington Mixed E – Runners‑up
• Monday Night Men’s A Grade – Runners‑up
• Wellington 3 – Runners‑up in Men’s 2nd Grade

A massive congratulations to Billy and the Men’s 6th Grade team, who took out the title post‑Christmas!

Special mention to Tate Macpherson, who finished the Men’s 2 competition unbeaten – an outstanding achievement.

Enjoy a well‑earned off‑season everyone. Rest up, recharge, and we look forward to coming back even stronger for the new interclub season!

Club Championships Wrap‑Up

Our Senior Club Championships were played over an action‑packed three‑week period in April, using a mix of indoor courts and our club courts, and attracted over 50 unique entries across Open, Veterans, and Masters events. It was a fantastic celebration of competitive tennis and club spirit.

A huge thank you to all players for the flexibility and understanding shown throughout the championships as we worked around weather, court availability, and scheduling. Thanks also to everyone who helped behind the scenes to organise and run what was a really fun and successful Club Champs.

Open Champions

Open Singles

Men’s Singles: Oscar Horsley

Women’s Singles: Daisy Leckie

Oscar and Daisy capped off outstanding tournaments and will now represent our club at the Champion of Champions. We wish them the very best against the region’s top players.

Open Doubles

Men’s Doubles: Oscar Horsley / Herve Michaud

Women’s Doubles: Kari Garelja / Asoiva McKavanagh

Mixed Doubles: Marty Simonlehner / Asoiva McKavanagh

Plate Winners

Men’s Singles Plate: Michael Smith

Women’s Singles Plate: Jianfang Teng

Men’s Doubles Plate: Caspar Moxham / Sam Pearson

Women’s Doubles Plate: Jianfang Teng / Toshiko Chalmers

Mixed Doubles Plate: Craig Sengelow / Karen Donnelly

Veterans & Masters Champions

Veterans

Men’s Singles: Shekhar Belram

Men’s Doubles: Mike Upchurch / Mike Tilbrook

Women’s Doubles: Jude Varcoe / Asoiva McKavanagh

Mixed Doubles: Peter Scott / Naomi Burwell

Masters

Men’s Doubles: Sjoerd Koster / Michael Graham

Women’s Doubles: Treacey Lucas / Karen Donnelly

Mixed Doubles: Peter Scott / Naomi Burwell

Veterans Plate

Veteran’s Men’s Singles Plate: Ben Leggett

Veterans Men’s Doubles Plate: Ben Leggett / Daniel Riordan

Veterans Mixed Doubles Plate: Marty Simonlehner / Asoiva McKavanagh

Masters Plate

Masters Men’s Doubles Plate: Dave Chan / Rod Moon

Masters Mixed Doubles Plate: Sjoerd Koster / Karen Donnelly

 

Congratulations to all winners and finalists, and thank you to everyone who took part. The enthusiasm, sportsmanship, and competitive spirit on court made this year’s Club Championships a real highlight of the season.

The champs are not over quite yet with our juniors taking the court on Sunday 17 May. All the best of luck to those playing and we will update you via the next newsletter of the results.

         

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MARTINBOROUGH TOURNAMENT WINNERS!

Asoiva Mckavanagh won the Gold grade women's doubles with Daisy Leckie and the Gold grade mixed doubles with Marty Simonlehner at the Martinborough Over the Hill tournament back in January (Gold grade is the top competitive grade). Congratulations Asoiva, Daisy and Marty!!

 

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COACHING SESSIONS FOR 2026

Hervé Michaud

Keep an eye on the coaching page for details of courses for 2026: https://clubspark.kiwi/WellingtonTennisClub/Coaching

It has been a very good term and I still have plenty of available slots for individual or group classes coming up.

If you want lessons during the day or at lunchtime, please reach out as it is always easier to get available courts.