U15s Guarentee Shires Final place

The county Under 15 side pulled off a great victory in a tight match against Bedfordshire, to guarantee a place in the Shires League finals to be played at Babington College, Leicester on May 24.

Beds started well, taking three of the four mixed doubles, but Norfolk fought back, sharing the boys and, once again, winning all four of the girls singles. The boys then shared their level doubles but the girls secured the match for Norfolk, taking three of their doubles to win the match 12-8. Lauren and a few others lost just one, so it really was a good team performance! Team manager, Jo Piper, said that the teams performance had improved as the season progressed and they fully deserved to be going to the finals. Representing the county were: Ed Allen, Tom Hinks, Chris Parrott, Josh Kent, Sophie Piper, Louise Thacker, Lauren Read and Amy Sharman.

* The county veterans teams finished their season on a winning note with the Over 40s taking a winning 6-6 draw against Cambridgeshire and the Over 45s completing 7-5 victories over Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire.

The Over 40s fielded a somewhat mature side in their match, with six of their eight players being over 45.The ladies won three of their level doubles, with Liz Cubitt and Suzanne Benton taking two and Mel Love and Denise Eves one. Unfortunately , the men didnt do so well, with David Guy and Tony Cox and Steve Thacker and Eddie Simmons losing all four games. But the team fought back to win three of the four mixed to gain a winning draw.

The Over 45s away win against Lincolnshire was very close with eight of the twelve games going to three sets. The men shared their level doubles, with Eddie Simmons and Mark Bennett winning two and Adrian Skipper and Krishna Kumar losing both.. For the ladies, Jenny Longmore and Sandra Robinson won both their games with Suzanne Benton and Janet Marsden sharing. The mixed doubles were shared, giving Norfolk a 7-5 victory.

In the final Over 45s match of the season against Northants, Simmons and Bennett again won both their doubles, whilst Guy and Julian Sharman won one. Norma Bowen and Jeannine Whiffen won both their games, but Longmore and Robinson lost theirs. The mixed doubles were shared, leaving the final score 7-5 in Norfolks favour, who finished the league in third place, behind Notts and Bucks. Retiring captains, Steve Thacker and Suzanne Benton, would like to thank team members for all their support throughout the season.

* The Over 60s matches against Lincolnshire are always very close affairs and their latest was no exception. Although the final scoreline was 10-2 in Norfolks favour and gave them their biggest ever win, seven of the twelve games went to three sets, so it could have been a lot closer. The team comprised Bob Tooby, Allan Palmer, David Pennington, Copper Ramjeet, Ann Hutchin, Linda Foster, Lois Ash and Pam Mace.