A SUGGESTION

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 60, 27 March 1937, Page 15

A SUGGESTION

"YoUeyer.")

Why Not a Winter Club in Hastings? ASPHALT COURTS

(By

How many Hawke's Bay tCnnis players realise tkat aspkalt courts Are at their best ta the winter? in summer sunshine tkey are too hot. in Christchurch and Wellington, the two maia atrongholds of Kew Zealand tennia, hard court competitxons are arranged for the winter. Wkile the number of players in tkls district does not warrant such a eompetition, the tiime seems ripe toi tke fofinatioh of a winter club. To tke tennis enthusiast wko does not play golf. the cold montks offer an opportunity for praoticej in the spring, when the eiin is shining on fresh green eotifts, we are all far too keen to ' ' waste time ' ' in practice. We must actually play with the same few timehonoured opponentsj m there are not enough courts for singles, only doublos are tulowed. With Christm&s come holidays and toufnamehts, ahd when they are over we ara not keen enough to bbther about improving our game. If a winter tennis club Cotiid be foimed iu Hastings, at least two of thid season 's repfesentative players would be interested, and in conVersatioh wi.th this writer both expressed their readiaesa to asfiist young players with adviCe. Here is a method by which the loW standard of Hawke's Bay tennis migkt be improved. In the summer the best playera feel that it is not good for their game to play with others not nearly so effieientj this lead$ to the form&tion of cliqnes in each club. In the winter^ with no champidnships in view, tke position is quite different* At Parkvale, where there are six excellent aspkalt courts, winter memburs are admitted for a very small subscription, but tke courts are rarely m use after .the summer. Hawke's Bay ClUb's Easter ToUrney. It is to be koped that Hawke's Bay, usually nnlucky with their tournaments, ■will kave fine weather fOr tli8 revival of tkeir Easter championships. Promineat viaiting players likely to ba present include Miss Marjorie Macfarlane, of Auckland, ahd Mak Perkins, of Wellington. Eerkins, wko won a thrilling singles flnal against Koel (WilSon laet season, skouid retain his tifcle, but Miss Macfarlane will find Mre, Milburn a i ormidable opponenfc. The Auckland lady has not competed in Kapier since 1920, when she Won all three championship events, Witk no outstanding pairs in ihe men's or combined doubles,, results in those divisioas are open to conjecture, but in tke women 'a doubles Mrs. Cotterill and Mrs. Milburn ehould defeat Miss Macfarlane and Mrs. Hassall. If this matck eventuates the writer hopes fco be a spectator — all four are players well wortk watching. Ha&tinga Club Championships, These competitions appear likely to lapse. If they kad been played on iixed datee, an interesting tournament would have resulted, for the club contains at least ten players who kave won titles in open tournaments of recent years. The men's singles and combined doubles would have afforded eapeeially keen rivalry. Manawatu Defeat Wanganui. An Manawatu last Saturday defeated Wanganui by the sweeping margin of aixteen matches to eight, the Christie Cup will remaln in Palmerston North sntil next season The Hawke's Bay team which will play for that trophy next year will be up agaiust a very tough propoaition, for the prevailing Wind of Palmerston Nortb ia worth about fifteen in every matck to the local players