Conditions were perfect for Numurkah Lawn Tennis Club’s 89th Australia Day tournament.
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The extravaganza of regional tennis and entertainment attracted more than 120 entries from the Goulburn Valley region and beyond, with plenty of competitors travelling for the tournament, played across the long weekend.
Club champions and Numurkah Warrior teammates Nick Fenaughty and Helene Steward won their respective open singles titles on Saturday in brilliant displays of tennis.
Host club heroes Fenaughty and Steward are considered tennis royalty in this part of the world and this pair shows no signs of giving up their titles easily.
Fenaughty, 26, claimed his sixth open when he outlasted Warriors colleague Harley McCarthy 8-5 in an enthralling final, which tested the stamina of both players.
Fenaughty was 3-5 down and had to dig really deep to secure the victory in a match that was full of long rallies and brilliant shots.
In the women's draw, Steward defeated Isabella Crossman, 12, 6-3, in the final.
Like the men’s final this was also a cracking encounter with a lot of the games going to deuce and Steward had to really pull out all stops to overcome the Rich River youngster.
Not resting on their laurels Steward and Fenaughty then joined forces and took on all in the men's A-grade doubles on Sunday which they duly won defeating the Melbourne father and son combination of John and Chandler Zahra 8-4 in a entertaining set.
Another local saluted in the B-grade men's final on Saturday when Rhys Cason got the better of Tungamah’s Liam Williams posting a 6-3 victory with both playing some quality shots.
The women's B-grade singles went to Mooroopna’s Nicola Brown, who outlasted local Clara Lukies in a best of three sets in the final.
The Saturday twilight mixed saw a good field of entries and the players were entertained by LBDJ, who spun tunes for the duration of the matches.
The winners of the A-grade saw Crossman gain some consolation from her singles loss when she joined forces with her father Andrew to take the title from the mother and son combination of Aaron and Lisa Niglia.
Ravens player Cathy Brown joined forces with her nephew Angus to hoist the B-grade mixed trophy from regular and popular visitors Anthony and Di Wilson from Nathalia.The family-oriented theme continued in the C-grade mixed when the husband and wife duo of David and Kris Walker edged out Rod Brown and Melissa Eddy from Mooroopna.
Sunday saw the staging of the men's and women's doubles and a good field turned out to try their luck with Echuca’s Leanne Moore and Michelle Winchcombe taking out the A-grade women's doubles.
The men's B-grade saw some close contests all day, but the eventual winners were local Col “McTavish” Mackay and Tungamah’s Liam Williams, who won all four of their sets in convincing style.
Runners-up were the Shepparton father and son duo of Michael and Will Clurey, who also played some great tennis during the day.
The women's B-grade saw another local pair victorious as club president Catherine Church and Kris Walker went one better than last year as they won the title on a countback from regular Nathalia visitors Di Wilson and Corrina McLeod.The C-grade women's doubles saw up and coming Numurkah junior Hannah O’Brien join forces with Mooroopna’s Melissa Eddy for a solid win with Katie Mills and Lynda Ashcroft filling the runners-up position.
The men’s C-grade award went to the David and Goliath pairing of Numurkah junior Hudson “Mouse” Storer and Nathalia’s Anthony Wilson with the unlikely duo not putting a foot wrong all day.
Storer was pleased with his Australia Day-themed cooler and it was back-to-back wins in this event for the feisty youngster as he won last year with Lochie O’Brien.
The runners-up prize went to Melbourne visitors Josh Carroll and Damien Poole.
All players - local and those visiting - commented on the excellent state of the courts which is a credit to curator Geoff Sutcliffe's hard work and dedication to the cause.
RESULTS
Saturday
Open singles
Men's A-grade singles: winner: Nick Fenaughty; runner-up: Harley McCarthy.Men's B-grade singles: winner: Rhys Cason; runner-up: Liam Williams.Women's A-grade singles: winner: Helene Steward; runner-up: Isabella Crossman.Women's B-grade singles: winner: Nicola Brown; runner-up: Clara Lukies.
Open Mixed:
A-grade mixed doubles: winners: Andrew and Isabella Crossman; runners-up: Aaron and Lisa Niglia.B-grade mixed doubles: winners: Angus and Cathy Brown; runners-up: Anthony and Di Wilson.C-grade mixed doubles: winners: Dave and Kris Walker; runners-up: Rod Brown and Melissa Eddy.
Sunday
A-grade men's doubles: winners: Nick Fenaughty and Helene Steward; runners-up: John and Chandler Zahra.B-grade men's doubles: winners: Col Mackay and Liam Williams; runners-up: Michael and Will Clurey.C-grade men's doubles: winners: Anthony Wilson and Hudson Storer; runners-up: Josh Carroll and Damien Poole.A-grade women's doubles: winners: Leanne Moore and Michelle Winchcombe.B-grade women's doubles: winners: Kris Walker and Catherine Church; runners-up: Di Wilson and Corrina McLeod.C-grade women's doubles: winners: Hannah O’Brien and Rhiann Eddy; runners-up: Katie Mills and Lynda Ashcroft.
Shepparton News editor