Albany Lawn Tennis Club
We are a friendly tennis club with over 300 members aged from 4 to 85. Albany is a unique tennis club on the Isle of Man proudly boasting privately-owned floodlit courts and facilities, as well as an indoor court ensuring play is possible in all weathers and seasons. We offer opportunities for social play, a great coaching team, men’s, ladies’ and mixed League tennis, and a tournament programme for all. New members are always warmly welcomed. Come along and visit us any time, meet our friendly club members and see our excellent facilities. We operate a ‘try before you buy’ policy so you may visit three times with a member before having to commit to join the club. Click buttons below for LEAGUE INFORMATION and UPCOMING EVENTS.
Messages from our Social Facebook Group
**COURIER NEWS 10 January 2019**
by Pat Sharp
Next Wednesday the club will be hosting a Sponsors Lunch to say Thank you to all companies and individuals who support the club. These days sponsorship is vital for sports clubs to provide the services required and Albany LTC shows their appreciation with this lunch. Also invited are Life members, V President, the committee and the press. In fact, for all who give of time or money to make the club as successful as it is. I do hope all our members appreciate this and use the companies involved when looking for a service. Lunch is provided by the Friday Morning Ladies group with Jan Gaskill doing a marathon task co-ordinating everything.
A date for your diary – Friday 22 February at 7.30pm - Albany’s Night at the Races, which will be in the capable hands of John Morrison of Morrison Photos Ltd. This is always a fun night with most people making a small profit. You will be able to order a fish & chips (£10) or sausage and chips (£8) supper price includes a soft drink or tea or coffee. Anything else is bring your own and take the empties away. There will be a raffle donated good prizes will be welcome. We require sponsors for each race and race sheets and booking details will be sent to all members next week. Our lounge has a seating limit of 54 people so book your places early.
Would parent members and associate members be interested in playing on the outdoor courts on Saturday afternoons with their children? The coaching that is on from 12 – 2pm plus some county coaching only uses the indoor court so if the weather is good the three outside courts are free. Just remember the club rule that any child under 13yrs old must have an adult with them. If your child isn’t involved in the indoor court why not have a game with them.
**COURIER NEWS 3 January 2019**
by Pat Sharp
The annual junior Christmas tournament organised by club coach Ian Watson was again a success with junior and mini tennis members playing in teams both on court and in a quiz. After 3 hrs plus a packed lunch the winners were announced and Team Dancer with Jack Christian and Millicent Benson (81.4%), 2nd were Team Comet - Ava Austerberry, Sophie Christian and Ryan Cliffe (68%) and 3rd was team Vixen - Orry Farnworth, Oliver Neagle and Magnus Benson (38%). A good time was had by all and the mini tennis members really enjoyed being on court with the older juniors. Thanks to Ian for another successful event.
Another of our juniors, Sarah Long (12yrs) was away before Christmas playing in a 12 & under event at the Bolton Arena. This level of competition is tough but Sarah played well winning her first match 6/1 6/3, against a higher ranked player Imani Shah. Then it was the top qualifying seed Hima Fernando, who is ranked 24 in the UK. Sarah, whose UK ranking is 94, lost 1/6 0/6 but a lot of games went to deuce. She was playing in a doubles event in Bristol after Christmas then back to Bolton for another grade 3 event. She has recently played a lot of UK events and the experience is improving her game. I’ll have those results for next week and hopefully results from Magnus and Millicent Benson, plus Charlotte Clarke’s schedule also, updates on Roch Mirski, Orry Farnworth, Jayden Go and Jack Christian. This all looks good for the future of the club with 8 or more juniors tackling UK players who have much greater opportunities with training and competition than do our youngsters faced with travel and accommodation costs – I don’t know how the parents manage it and I would love to find some sponsors to assist them. Please contact me on 861497or (e-mail albanytennispr@manx.net if anyone has any ideas.
Meanwhile the next generation will re-start their coaching when school re-starts – as from Monday 7th January with various sessions throughout the week – if you are not sure of your sessions time please contact Ian by e-mail ianwatsonpts@manx.net. The mini tennis red ball sessions will start at 12 on Saturday 12 noon January 12 – there are 5 places available – “1st come first served”
New players are given 3 free taster sessions and if they wish to continue they will be invited to become a member. You have to be a member for the club’s insurance, data protection and child protection obligations. Mini Tennis membership includes free coaching on most Saturdays.
Why are indoor court bookings blocked up to 1030 on 1st January?
As a courtesy to neighbours who have been unhappy with the noise early on bank holidays.
Final reminder for the junior fun day this Saturday 22nd Dec 10-2pm which is available to all our juniors up the age of 18 yrs. it’s a red ball mini tennis red ball team event and quiz plus so other events.
Junior Team Tennis Fun Day and Quiz on Saturday 22nd December 10am-2pm.
Mini tennis Red ball team tennis
Bring a packed lunch!
Cost £5 each
Sign up on the flip chart board in the club house by Thursday evening!
I forgot to put Sonny’s name on the board last night, there is a good chance he will forget when he goes with his mum this evening. I will be bringing him though!
Congratulations to the Isle of Man Ladies Tennis Team from Albany LTC!!Isle of Man Tennis Team Narrowly Miss Promotion Last weekend the Isle of Man Ladies Tennis Team travelled to Boston, Lincolnshire to compete in the annual Winter County Cup event. This is a huge event including counties across Britain, with 11 divisions hosted at different venues. The Isle of Man were part of a division including Cornwall, Northamptonshire and South of Scotland. The weekend saw some strong performances from the Isle of Man team. On day one they played Cornwall, who had recently come down from a higher division. The day started promisingly with singles wins from Elena Snidal (6-1 6-0) and Charlotte Clarke (6-0 6-1). However despite a close three set match for Hannah Snidal (2-6 6-4 2-6) the team could not clinch any more singles wins. Hannah Snidal teamed up with Alison King to take a doubles win (6-3 6-1) however Cornwall were stronger overall and took the tie 6-3. Day two saw the Isle of Man take on Northamptonshire. Clare Borland had a slow start with her singles match but after support from the rest of the team managed to turn the tables and win in three set (3-6 6-1 6-0). Again, Clarke (aged just 13) out hit a more experienced player to win convincingly (6-2 6-1). Karen Faragher also out manoeuvred her opponent to win (6-1 6-1). Whilst Laura Feely played a high intensity match, but narrowly lost in three sets. Thankfully, the Isle of Man dominated the doubles with H Snidal and King taking their second win after a tight first set and Faragher and Feely back on top form to also take the win (6-1 6-2). Final score Isle of Man 5, Northamptonshire 4. On the last day the Isle of Man played the South of Scotland. After the previous day’s performance the team were confident of a win, but had the added time pressure of a flight to catch! E Snidal and Borland set the ball rolling with comfortable singles wins, shortly followed by Clarke (undefeated in singles over the weekend) and Faragher. This meant the Isle of Man only needed to win one of the doubles matches to take the overall win. H Snidal and King stepped up again and maintained their unbeaten record for the weekend - so the team had done it! With Faragher and Feely also winning their doubles match, the final score was Isle of Man 6, South of Scotland 3 (and plenty of time to get to the airport!) Meanwhile, Northamptonshire had beaten Cornwall, meaning that three of the four teams were tied on two wins each. On count back of rubbers won, the Isle of Man finished eventual runners up to Cornwall, managing to hold off Northamptonshire based on the number of sets won – showing that every set counted! Overall a fantastic weekend of tennis and promising performances ahead of this summer’s NatWest Island Games in Gibraltar. Report by Team Captain - Elena Snidal Photo left to right: Alison King, Hannah Snidal, Charlotte Clarke, Elena Snidal, Laura Feely, Karen Faragher and Clare Borland.
Such a good learning tool for children
6 reasons why tennis is a great choice for your child
tenniscanada.com
In an article titled, Health Benefits of Tennis: Why Play Tennis? Dr. Jack L. Gropple curated research from renowned scientists to prove the validity of the old adage&c...**COURIER NEWS - 22nd November**
by Pat Sharp
Sponsorship is very important to all sports clubs and individuals and I wonder if the companies concerned gain the publicity they would like. As all our members know, we rent spaces for company banners in our indoor court and this week we welcome two companies: Mylchreest Motors Ltd and Laxey Dental Surgery who have both taken banner space. Some sponsors also support competitions or individuals and this is greatly appreciated by the club’s committee and members. I do hope if you are looking for a plumber or hairdresser, finance or legal advice, a removal service or new home, a new car or need a tooth sorted or the services of the professional people etc. PLEASE take note of our banners and the phone numbers.
If any members know of a company that might be interested in this form of advertising – the rates are £150 p.a. – less than £3 per week – let me know and I’m happy to contact them. Meanwhile “Thank You” to our sponsors and I’m sure all sports will agree that this form of support keeps island sport afloat. We will be hosting all them at our annual Sponsors Lunch on Wednesday 16th January 2019.
Children in Need – Jan Gaskill reports good support for the Children in Need charity. Jan made Pudsey Bear buns and other Friday Ladies Club members also made cake and gave donations. The Mini members at coaching on Saturday also enjoyed the buns and with their parent’s donations added to the Friday collection a total of £134.10 was raised.
Magnus and Millicent Benson played another tournament, this time a mixed 8&U event during half-term in Taunton, Devon with Magnus finishing third and Millicent eighth.
FINAL reminder – please attend the club’s Annual General Meeting next Wednesday 28th November in the club lounge starting at 6.30pm.
Congratulations also go to Charlotte, who made the Dinner just in time after a cancelled flight from London City, a taxi ride across London, and a delayed flight out of Gatwick!!
Charlotte received a voucher from the IOMLTA in recognition of her great performance in winning the Road to Wimbledon this year.
There was also a voucher for Roch, who had an equally fantastic journey through to the semi finals - Roch will be presented with his voucher at a later date.
Congratulations Charlotte! An enjoyable evening, thank you guys😀
Congratulations Charlotte!
I wasn’t stressed at all 🤪!!
The club's Annual General Meeting was held at the club on Wednesday 28 November at 6.30pm.
The meeting presented the 2017/8 statutory accounts, which were adopted, and the membership and indoor court fees for 2019/20 were agreed. David Long was voted in as the club's new Chairman, and we wish him well. David will take up the info@albanyltc.co.uk e-mail address.
Recycling Initiative
Wear it Pink Day 2018
Road To Wimbledon 2018
Congratulations to all the players who entered this year's Road to Wimbledon event. On the 15th July, 8 boys and 8 girls competed in the Isle of Man County section of this competition. The winners, Rich Mirski and Charlotte Clarke, qualified to play at Wimbledon against the other county champions. The runners up, Jayden Go and Sarah Long, also got to go to Wimbledon for some special coaching sessions.During the week of 13th August, the County champions played in round robin and knock-out matches at Wimbledon. An Isle of Man player has never progressed from the group stage before, but this year both Roch and Charlotte did and both got all the way to the semi-finals!! Charlotte even went on to win the girls' tournament altogether. This is an extraordinary achievement by both players, whose hard work and dedication should be commended, together with that of their parents and of their coach, Ian Watson. Congratulations to all of you!
Photos from Road to Wimbledon 2018
Charlotte's Tournament winning point!
Outdoor Courts
The planned repainting of the outdoor courts, that was due to commence on 13th August, has been postponed. Given the need for good weather coupled with the availability of the contractors, this is now likely to take place in early summer/late spring in 2019. In the meantime, we thank you for your help in keeping the courts clear of leaves and pine needles as much as possible. It is the degradation of these things that is primarily responsible for the levels of algae we experience on the courts. Following cleaning this year, all courts are currently in good shape; the planned painting is a cosmetic improvement more than a necessity at the moment.A Glimpse at Our History
Here are the videos shown on the night of the '50 Years at Ballaughton' Celebration Dinner held in September 2016, which shows the timeline of Albany's development over the past 50 years.
All these sessions are a great way to play some tennis and meet friends, and are open to senior members and nominated juniors. Join in our fun and friendly social sessions held each week on:
OPEN TO ALL
- Sundays 10:00am to 12:00pm
- Tuesdays 7:00pm to 9:30pm
- Wednesdays 10:30am to 12:30pm
