Tennis: Helensburgh champions defend their titles

Jun 26 2009 by Andy Galloway, Lennox Herald (main ed)

KATIE Fulton and Alan MacBeath defended their singles titles at Helensburgh Tennis Club with ease at the weekend.

Katie was up against 17-year-old Lizzie Burt, and dominated the play in the first set with a series of powerful ground stokes and passing shots.

In the second set, Lizzie tried to out-rally Katie, but she just didn't have the power to match the former Scottish champion, and succumbed to the inevitable as Katie recorded her 12th club singles title.

In the men's final, Alan MacBeath was up against first-time finalist David McCowan. David knew he was going into the match as underdog and from the first point tried to match Alan shot for shot.

This worked for a while, but David began to make errors on the vital points and the first set was soon in the bag for Alan.

In the second set Alan’s 5-1 lead was reduced to 5-4, but he served for the title and took the game to love, becoming champion for the second year in a row.

Alan and Katie were soon back on court in the ladies and men's doubles event. Alan teamed up with Kevin Stephen, who had just celebrated becoming a dad for the second time.

They were up against the top second team pairing of Ian Parlane and Gordon MacGregor. There was nothing between the pairs in the first set until the ninth game when Alan and Kevin produced a series of outstanding winners to break Gordon's service.

Alan held on to his service and the first set was in the bag. The second set went almost exactly the same way with only one break of serve, again in favour of Alan and Kevin.

In the ladies doubles Katie Fulton partnered 19-year-old Emily Reid against Liz Wylie and Denise Laverty.

The first set went with serve until the eighth game when a stunning backhand drive down the tramline at 30-40 from Katie gave her side a vital break of serve.

Emily held her serve in the next game to give them the first set. There was nothing between the two pairs in the second set and it was decided on a few forced errors at vital points from Liz and Denise who saw their dream of glory disappear. Katie and Emily wrapped up the match winning two sets to love.

In the mixed doubles Katie and Alan teamed up together against David McCowan and Robyn Sheves. It was soon clear that Katie and Alan still had plenty left in reserve as they raced to a first-set lead.

David and Robyn could do little in the second set to stop their opponents going for the triple and soon their agony was over as Katie and Alan wrapped up the match two sets to love.