Article dated: 29 November 2014   Audience: Public

It was close until the final singles match was played last night against Parnell 1 in the semi finals to decide who was going through to the Finals.

The night got off to a great start for Cockle Bay with James Meredith & Dan Brown upsetting Parnell top seeds Michael Venus and Finn Tearney in the #1 doubles match. It came down to a 3rd set decider 6-2 4-6 10-5.

Matt Meredith & Kyle Butters also had a great win in the #2 doubles against Mark Nielsen & Steven Downs, in another 3rd set decider 6-3 3-6 11-9.

It was looking good for Honda Cockle Bay in the hope that they could pick up 2 out of the 4 singles matches to clinch a win. However, Parnell's team of current and ex NZ players brought out all their experience and picked up 3 out of the 4 singles matches to bring it to a 3-3 all draw, with a count back of sets deciding Parnell 1 the overall winner.

The #1 seeds Michael Venus (Parnell) was too strong for James Meredith (Cockle Bay) in the end, however James tested Michael and kept himself in the match with a 6-4 6-4 loss. The standard of play from both players was exceptional, proving to be a real crowd pleaser. Both players earned a round of applause from the spectators at the conclusion of the match.

#2 seeds Finn Tearney (Parnell) had a comfortable win over Kyle Butters (Cockle Bay) winning 6-2 6-2. At the age of only 17, Kyle Butters is a name to keep an eye out for in coming years. His confidence has grown week to week which can only improve his game.

#3 seeds Mark Nielsen (Parnell) battled against Matt Meredith (Cockle Bay), ending up with a comfortable win 6-1 6-2 over Matt.

#4 seeds Steven Downs (Parnell) and Dan Brown (Cockle Bay) had an epic battle against each other with the old against the young. Dan took out the first set 6-4, but Steven was not finished with and won the second set 7-6. Dan was after a scalp in the 3rd set and comfortably took out the 3rd set 6-0. Not before both players showing off a couple of crowd pleaser shots to end the night.

Congratulations to Parnell who once again have worked their way up the points table to get themselves into another Final. They will battle it out against Blockhouse Bay in the Final on 5th December. This will sure be a great spectacle to watch.

To the Honda Cockle Bay boys, congratulations on another stellar effort in getting our club through to the Semi Finals. It was so close and the club spectators have really enjoyed getting behind you and watching such fantastic tennis. Big thanks also to Team Manager, Jono Frankle, who works tirelessly picking the out of town boys up from the airport every Friday, transporting them to the venues, getting them focused for the start of each match, supporting them throughout the matches, and making sure they get back on the plane the next day. After which time they all return to their daily job commitments. The life of a tennis player is no easy ride!

Finally, a huge thank you to our Caro Bowl sponsors - Honda (Peter Ashley), Alron Enterprises (Alister McLaughlin), Apollo Plumbing (Gary Cross), Harvey World Travel Howick (Alex Beeson), and Orix (Andrew Griffin). Without these sponsors our club could simply not compete in this elite competition. So please support these organisations whenever you can.

Thanks to all our supporters who turned up for both the home and away games. Your support has been fantastic.

Let's hope we get to compete in 2015. Can't wait!

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