Seldom does just a handful of points make the difference between a 4/1 win and a 5/0 defeat! But so it was in the match against that glorious Club that is the Hurlingham, with its fabulous facilities set in 42 acres next to the Thames in Fulham.

Three of our team played in the last match pre Covid in 2020 and we were looking for revenge having suffered a 4/1 defeat back then.

For me it was a welcome return to HiHo scoring instead of PARS. Why were we ever forced to change, certainly for the older age groups?

4 out of the 5 matches went to 5 games and unfortunately for the GB Vets we were not on the winning end of any of them!

Ash Chakraborty at No.1 faced an agile hard hitting opponent. A see saw match the result resting on a few points at the end of the 5th. 1/0 down.

James Dubois at No.3, fresh from his British National win in the O75’s, faced a very young looking, tall athletic opponent. The knock-up did not bode well for James but his dogged perseverance paid off until the end of the 5th which he narrowly lost. 2/0 down.

Mick Murray at No.2 was on the receiving end of another difficult opponent. The result of a 3/0 defeat belies the fact that all games were very close. 3/0 down.

Philip Courtenay-Luck at No.4 looked to be in command early on but his awkward opponent eventually won through in the 5th. 4/0 down.

The last match was doubles played on an extended singles court. Nigel Belle and David Parker had a great match. 0/1, 1/1, 1/2, 2/2, 11/15 – another defeat!

So a 5/0 win for Hurlingham.

The legendary post match meal and hospitality was as usual superb. Our thanks to Paul Lubbock and the Hurlingham Club for hosting the GB Vets and we look forward to next year when we will be looking for revenge…again!

Full results were as follows:
 

Nigel Belle
Match Manager

GB Vets team: Ash Chakraborty, David Parker, Mick Murray, James Dubois, Nigel Belle, Philip Courtenay-Luck.	Both teams