In the regional semis, Emily won again today, as did her team mate, and they again both won the doubles.

The final is tomorrow.

It's still a couple of weeks before National League (minus Div. 1 and 1A) Tennis kicks off (regional league plays in March/April, national league in May/early June, with the elite national Div 1 and Div 1A playing in November/early December)

But the fixture list and player lists are up.


There are 276 teams playing in the national league (men only). Usually about 10 players listed per team.

96 teams in Div 4, 96 in Div 3, 48 in Div 2, and 12 teams in Div 1B (plus the 12 from Div 1A and 12 from Premiere Div)


Can't say I've checked them all (!), but from a quick scan of the teams that the GB guys were playing for last year:

Everyone seems to be down on the same team list again except for Tom F, and Slabbers, and Stefan Markland Markovic (no sign of those three).

Adam Thornton-Brown, the only new name I see, seems to have signed up to take Stefan's place (at the club where Oliver Hudson also plays).

If there are new players at other clubs, I won't have seen them.

NB some of the team lists are speculatory though - i.e. Jack Carpenter is still listed (he might be playing, or the club might just have put him down, not knowing, it costs them nothing, no downside, but if his name is not on the list, he can't play, were he to call and say he fancied it, say).

-- Edited by Coup Droit on Sunday 3rd of May 2015 08:23:44 AM

In the women's league, there are 180 teams: 12 in Div 1B, 48 in div 2, 48 in div 3 and 72 in div 4.

Some of our girls play in the elite 1 and 1A (which have finished) but the other names seem to be much as last year, with the following notes:

Jade Curtis is a new name, newly signed up

Eden Silva has also contracted to a new team

Lisa W is down to play (effectively the second team, as she didn't play much in the first team in Nov)

Lucy Brown is also on a team list (not as a new arrival but didn't note her there last year so might have had a licence just not played)

Anna Fitz also down to play (although might be historic, pot-luck). Same team as Em.

Hero 'Slimbomb' Marcus comes through !!!

And all thanks to Bob (well, mainly, at any rate . . .)

Marcus won his singles 6-3 6-3, against a very decent-ranked player (getting on a bit but far higher than any of the guys that the Brits above played today).

And also won his doubles, 6-3 6-1.

So, 4-2 victory for Capdenac - and they'll think it money well spent !!!

 

And Jamie Feaver got a very good win 6-3 6-0 against a decentish player, and won his doubles, and the team won 6-0

-- Edited by Coup Droit on Sunday 3rd of May 2015 02:39:34 PM

CD,
How long does the league run for that Marcus' team plays in? As was reading Bob's post in the Móstoles thread about Marcus not playing challenger Q so he can pick up guaranteed money from playing French league tennis.

Madman, the league runs for about 6 weeks - it's a pool of 6 teams, so 5 matches, with a gap week for the 24th May (because of RG qualies, I'm guessing, although I haven't checked, maybe just a gap week). So dates are 3/5, 10/5, 17/5, 31/5, 7/6

Then there are usually promotion play-offs (although last year they seemed to have canceled the play-offs and just promoted the top team).

Beefy, absolutely - the money difference is amazing/ridiculous.

I think Marcus' fee is on the high side. He is the number one player (and by quite a margin) for his team so I'm guessing he's got a pretty hefty premium. I know guys who get £500. Sometimes they get a £200 'win' bonus on top, for instance. I also know teams that now pay nothing (policy move,, train young kids etc.)

But, yes, the fee is huge and especially, as mentioned before, when you consider that Marcus' team, for instance, is only about the 140th team in the country - WELL down the rankings.

(NB Just to be clear, and stating the obvious, that's NO criticism of Marcus - in fact, I think that any GB player who complains about funding, has any sort of ranking and who DOESN'T go and play French league tennis is an idiot and almost doesn't 'deserve' funding - under the 'treat yourself as mini business' ethos, you'd be mad not to, financially first but also for the experience).

As to where the money comes from, well, it's a good question. No paying spectators, that's for sure (LOTS of spectators but free). No direct state funding i.e. money from the FFT to do so. Sometimes, bit not always, direct corporate sponsorship (i.e. x amount directly FOR the team). Sometimes local council direct funding i.e. all sports clubs with national level teams will get a certain amount of funding.

But generally it comes out of club profits and the club puts a high priority on top level tennis. Obviously, corporate sponsorship and county and regional sport council funding come into this pot too, and more might come BECAUSE you've got a top flight team, but the money is not directly earmarked for the team so the club committee can use it as they like and choose to pay top tennis players to keep their team in the national tables.

It should be remembered that, if you take Marcus' club, Capdenac - it's a little town (about 4,000 people, counting those in the outlying areas). It has a decentish rugby team. But tennis ranks right up there. With a town of 4,000, and looking down their list on the FFT official results site, they have:

1 national league men's tennis teams,
5 (!) regional (south-west of france) level men's teams,
2 regional women's teams,
2 county women's teams,
a couple of county men's teams,
1 regional +35 team,
1 regional +45 team,
2 county +50 team,
a couple of 'fun' mixed teams,
half a dozen junior teams . . .

that's a HUGE number of players, players' families, players' businesses, that will all be involved. It will be impossible to walk into a shop or a classroom and not find at least half a dozen people who are actively involved in tennis and tons more who know people who are or who go to watch sometimes or whatever. That is what makes the money side work.

NB

A1, Gary, I'm not advocating that Brits should play French league INSTEAD of Aegon team - if they have the choice, then they have to make a decision, based on money offered, but also based on other factors (i.e. less time and travel, and tiredness therefore, if you play in the UK; i.e. good experience, set up foreign club ties/network, if you play abroad)

But those who chose nor to play either (or not to try French league) and then moan about funding annoy me.

Yes, it's all down to the ITF futures giving such stupid prize money.

But it's like the bank robber when asked by the judge: "why did you rob the bank?" Answer: "because that's where the money is".

If you need money, go where the money is. And, for whatever reason, money is in European league tennis. (And in Aegon A1 team tennis too). So go to one or the other.