Enniskillen Juniors lead the way to Ulster Success in Sligo

Enniskillen Juniors at inter-provincial match between Ulster and Connaught

There was a large Enniskillen contingent of Under 12 tennis players who travelled to Sligo last Saturday to participate in the Under 12 friendly inter-provincial match between Ulster and Connaught.

All 4 players contributed points in wins for Ulster against Connaught. The girls won 6 matches to 0 and the boys won 4 matches to 2. It was the first time all 4 were making their debut on the inter-provincial scene.

Jared Monaghan opened the scoring for the Ulster boys with a 7/5, 6/1 victory over Gavin Durkan. Having started well, Jared's opponent made a strong come back but Jared was able to lift his game again to win the second set comfortably 6/1 showing plenty of his usual deft touches around the net.

Young Ronan McKeever played Liam Bell from Connaught which was the closest and hardest fought of all the single matches. Despite some crushing forehands, Ronan lost the first set on a tie break and after finding himself 5/1 down in the second set, he clawed his way to 5/4 but ultimately lost 6/4. However, Ronan was able to record his first win of his inter provincial career when he secured his doubles match with Matthew Robinson winning 6/3, 6/4.

Meanwhile, Jared Monaghan and Leon Gibson fought out the match of the day and narrowly lost to Gavin Durkan and Robert Hennessey. This match featured many long rallies with both base line and volley rallies thrilling the spectators.

Meanwhile, in the under 12 girls, Ulster sent a strong girls squad to Sligo which included Enniskillen sisters, Hannah and Sarah Cousins. Continuing with their recent form, both girls achieved maximum points with comfortable victories in their singles' matches and went onto to accompany each other in the doubles winning 6/2, 6/1.

The strong representation and performance of the Enniskillen Juniors reflects the growing interest in the sport in Enniskillen and augers well for the future.