President’s vs Captain shield Challenge

One of the most popular club events of the club calendar, this year’s President’s vs Captain Shield Challenge, held Sunday 15th June, did not disappoint.  Forty players arrived eager to see whether they would be playing for the President’s or Captain’s team. Meanwhile the President and Captain had been busy selecting their players and strategically working out their pairings to gain the edge on the day. A last minute shortage of ladies saw Alex McTaggart & Tom Bartle agree to step up to play in a ladies spot.  

Each mixed doubles pair played 5 rounds in the social 8-game format, with each game won contributing a point to their team’s cumulative total. It was exciting to watch the points accumulate during the day with both President and Captain in the lead at times. 

Rachel Wilson and Harry Sumpter were the high scoring team for the President at 32 points, and not far behind were Mike Quach and Katherine Milton bringing in 29 points for the Captain. The President’s team managed to take the Shield 204 points over 193 to the Captain with rain coming right at the end of the last game which the Captain had orchestrated to be between himself and the President as a finale. 

Congratulations to Steve Koolloos as only the second President to win the Shield Challenge, but congratulations also to Andrej Budja for organising such a fun event for the club where the Spirit of Careel Bay Tennis Club was on display throughout the day. Thanks also to Angie Webster for keeping all our players fed throughout the day and the BBQ was another one of Chris Contro’s  finest efforts.