Tennis club in Inverness makes history after perfect season
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Bellfield Park Tennis Club’s men’s doubles team made history by completing the Galbraith Highland League without dropping a single set.
The Inverness club won all of their matches by a clean sweep, cantering to the league title in the process.
It is the first time a team has ever been so dominant in the competition, with the team spirit and flexibility of pairings playing a big role in their success.
“Obviously we set out with the goal of winning the league, doing our best and seeing how far we could go,” Bellfield player and coach Stephen Anniss explained.
“We didn’t necessarily think we would win every match 8–0, but it’s a good thing for the club.
“We have players ranging from 17 to their 50s, and a lot of the young ones who have been competing nationally. It’s good to have them coming back and competing, and then a few club players stepped in and still put on great performances.
“That kept the team spirit up and kept us going, especially at the end of the season when the pressure ramped up.
“Everyone kept pulling out big wins, so it was good. Everyone bought into the season. We probably used 11 players throughout the year – nine pretty regularly – so we had loads of different partnerships.
“Everyone has been playing with each other throughout the years, so it was never a big deal having different pairings play.
“That all amalgamated into one team that could do really well, and we’re all interchangeable with each other which is a good thing.”
The bar has now been set extremely high for future seasons, but Anniss believes that will only ensure the hunger remains at the club.
“Now we’ve done it, we’ve set a standard so we have to try to achieve that standard as best we can,” he added.
“Ideally we’d love to win it like that every time, but it may not be the case. We’ll just always put our best foot forward, set out with the goal of trying to win the league and playing the best we can to see how close we can get again.
“Other teams will see that and fight back.
“It can put a target on our back, but everyone enjoys that – that’s where you test yourself.
“A lot of the guys here have competed for years, so it helps to keep our competitive spirit up as we get on a bit in age and we’re not playing the national tournaments as much.
“It allows us to try and replicate the British doubles tennis players who are doing so well up in the Highlands.”
