Tennis. Boys Reach Ulser Semi Final
In their first year of competitive tennis the Form 1 boys’ tennis team have made the fantastic achievement of reaching the semi final of the Ulster Schools Tennis Cup. In their qualifying section the Rainey boys played Cambridge House, Coleraine A I and Belfast HS and after the series of matches came out on top. The boys, however, had to work hard for their success and deserve great credit for their efforts.
The first match was a home tie against Cambridge House and wins for number 3 seed Jack Monaghan and number 4 seed Anton Lupari meant that the match was all square going into the doubles. A win by Jack and Anton meant the match was 3 – 3, but Rainey took the honours on a superior game count. Next up, the boys travelled to Coleraine A I, but without number 1 seed Mark Mc Lean who had a leg injury. This match also finished in a 3 – 3 draw, with wins for Anton Lupari and replacement Robert Riddell.
Anton and Robert also won their doubles, but unfortunately the match was lost when the games were totalled. In their final match the boys knew they had to defeat the previously unbeaten Belfast H S and by the biggest score possible. In this match they put in a fabulous performance to win 5 – 1, with wins for Jack Monaghan, Anton Lupari and Robert Riddell in the singles. Anton and Jack won their doubles to make it 4 – 1 and then Jack and Neal Hastings played brilliantly to win their doubles and make the final score 5 – 1 to Rainey. This result was enough to just send the team into the cup semi final where they will play Sullivan Upper School from Holywood. This will be a big challenge for the local boys’, because their opponents won their section comfortably, but it is a challenge they will relish and we have every confidence in them doing well. Good luck to the boys in the semi.
The junior boy’s team have also had a pleasing season. They have been at a slight disadvantage because the junior section is a combination of Form 2 and 3. All the Rainey team are Form 2 so on many occasions they have been playing against boys who are a year older. They began their campaign at home against Ballymena Academy.
They drew this game 3 – 3 with single wins by Mark Rooney and Scott Campbell and a doubles win by Mark and Jonathan Douglas. Next up they travelled to Muckamore to play Ballyclare H S and in this match they impressively had a clean sweep, winning each game to record a 6 – 0 win. Mark Rooney, Scott Campbell, Jonathan Douglas and Rory Nicholl all played impressive tennis to achieve this result. Larne G S were their next opponents and we knew this would be a difficult game because they had beaten everyone else and all their players represented Larne Tennis Club. However, number 1 seed Mark Rooney played brilliantly to win his match. Scott Campbell, number 2 seed then followed him with an excellent win. Unfortunately, the Rainey boys could not maintain this and lost the match 4 – 2. They then completed their section with an away game against Coleraine A I.
The boys knew they had to win to have a chance of being runner up in the section. Yet again, they put in a very gutsy performance. Singles wins by Mark Rooney and Scott Campbell, were followed by a doubles win by Jonathan Douglas and Rory Nicholl. This left the match score 3 – 3, but the Rainey boys won the match on games count back. The junior team now has to wait and see if they have finished runner up in their section and maybe clinched a place in the Ulster Schools’ Plate Semi Final.
Well done to all the members of the Form 1 and junior boy’s tennis teams for having a really successful and enjoyable season. This it is hoped will lead to more success in years to come.
