Tennis Volleys, with Nick Pullen
Sep 16 2008 by Nick Pullen, Birmingham Mail
EDGBASTON Priory pulled out all the stops at the National Club League Finals in Bournemouth.
The ladies came close to lifting the title but lost to favourites Holcombe Brook from Bury right at the death.
Priory had brushed aside Halton TC in the quarter-finals 5-1.
Hot property Hannah James beat Jemima Hayward 6-1, 6-2, Leyla Ogan got the better of Celia Bristowe 6-3, 6-0, while 16-year-old Celia Fraser defeated Heather McNeill 6-3, 6-3.
Aimee Jarratt was the only Priory player to miss out, going down 6-0, 6-4 to Lereesa Easterbrook.
Jarratt got her revenge when teaming up with James to beat Easterbrook and Bristowe 4-1, 4-2 in the doubles, while Ogan and Helen Lawson beat Hayward and Emily Quinn 2-4, 4-0, 10-4.
Priory then played second seeds West Hants in the semi-finals.
Once again James got Priory off to a flying start when she walloped the higher-rated Hannah White 6-0, 6-0.
Jarratt twice came from behind to beat Lisa Radford in straight sets 7-5, 7-5, while Ogan enjoyed a 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 success over Jane Bingham.
Fraser suffered the only defeat, against Michelle Farley 6-4, 6-2.
Ogan and Lawson then held their nerve to beat Radford and Farley 2-6, 6-4, 10-8 to secure the rubber and a place in the final.
It looked as though James was poised to pull off a shock win when she led world No.290 Sarah Borwell 4-1 in the first set but the Priory prospect lost 7-6, 7-4.
Jarratt also lost 6-0, 4-6, 6-0 to Danielle Hock while Fraser went down 6-0, 6-3 to Sarah Gregg.
Ogan provided the only Priory success, beating Alice MacKenzie 6-0, 6-1.
She then joined forces with James for the doubles but lost to Borwell and former Great Britian No.4 Jane O’Donoghue 6-3, 7-5.
Priory’s men perished at the first hurdle, losing to David Lloyd Raynes Park in the quarter-finals.
Simon Dickson gave Priory some early hope by beating David Brewer 6-2, 6-2.
But it was downhill from that point as James Southwood lost 6-4, 6-1 to Tom Burn, Daniel Keirnan crashed 6-7, 6-3, 6-3 to James Feaver and Nathan Rooney went down 2-6, 6-3 ,6-3 to Colin Beecher.
Even though Dickson and Keirnan beat Brewer and Fever 4-0, 4-1 in the doubles, Priory’s fate was sealed when Southwood and Rooney were beaten 4-1, 4-1 by Burn and Tim Patient.
