5 March 2006
Taranaki finished the
season unbeaten with a comprehensive 19-5 win over Wairarapa at the Rotokare
courts in a Christie Cup challenge in New Plymouth on Saturday. The win
means their name will be engraved on the trophy for the first time since
2002-03. The trophy is the symbol of supremacy for Central Districts tennis.
Taranaki got off to a
flyer, only dropping two singles matches, No 1 Aaron Hine lost 2-6,1-6 to
Jono Hurley and Zac Wills lost 3-6 5-7 to Matt Spooner. No 3, 4 and 5,
Michael Fleming, Chris Popata and Cameron Koch all won easily and No 6
Jonathan Ussher won in three sets. The women's were all impressive winning
their singles easily and the Cup was all but in the bag with a 10-2 lead.
In the doubles Wairarapa
took the top men's and top women's matches. Wills and Ussher lost 2-6, 0-6
to Hurley and Spooner while Linda Reid and Leith Atkins lost 3-6, 4-6 to
Emma Stevenson and Katie Wyeth. Fleming and Ussher won 6-4, 6-4 and Hine and
Popata won a tight one 4-6, 6-4, 7-6. Taranaki's teenage pair of Nicole Koch
and Aleisha Ford won 6-1, 6 -1 as did Cindy Death and Clare Fairey.
Taranaki won all the combines except the top pairing of Hine and Fairey lost
4-9 to Hurley and Stevenson, making it a clean sweep for the Wairarapa No
1.
Selector Alaister
Murdoch was rapt with the win saying, " Its a long time since Taranaki's
women won all their singles. It was a good team effort.