The Goulburn Murray Tennis Association season kicked off at the weekend, with action being highlighted by a Kyabram derby in GM3.
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GM3 Kyabram Bombers 5-58 defeated Kyabram Redbacks 4-53
In what was the match of the day in the division, the all-Kyabram showdown shaped up from the start to be a close tussle.
The Redbacks got off to a hot start, winning two out of three first-round matches, including the men’s doubles, where the experienced heads of Graeme Elliott and George Brega were able to come back against Ben Dickens and Evan Cooknell to secure an 8-5 victory.
The Redbacks were also able to get off to a hot start in the women’s doubles, with Marg Haw and Shylee Donaldson claiming an 8-2 victory.
The Bombers hit back with an 8-2 victory of their own, with Mitchell Cox and Marissa Hooper combining well for a strong win.
The second round of matches went the same way, with the Redbacks winning the men’s and women’s doubles thanks to the pairing of Sam McConnell and Elliott, as well as Haw and Susie Bennett.
However, the Bombers were able to keep themselves in the game with another mixed victory to Greg Tarrant and Alyssa Christou to keep the Redbacks’ lead to five going into the last round of matches.
Down the stretch, the Bombers turned the game on its head, securing all three sets.
Evan Cooknell and Abby Prycroft combined for a strong number one mixed doubles victory 8-5 and then when Marissa Hooper and Alyssa Christou combined for an 8–6 victory, the scores were tied with only one set left.
Mitchell Cox and Greg Tarrant completed the comeback, combining for an impressive 8-3 victory to hand the Bombers their first win over the Redbacks in several years.
The Bombers will look to keep this momentum going with a home game against Euroa, while the Redbacks will look to get on the board with a tough road trip against Tatura.
GM2 Kyabram Bombers 3-40 lost to McEwen Reserve 8-72
A new-look Kyabram Bombers side had a tough first match up against reigning premier McEwen Reserve.
Regan More again showed that he will be one of the best players in the division, winning two of his three sets of the day, triumphing in his number one singles match-up 6-2 and then combining with David Starling for a solid 8-5 victory.
In a family affair, Sheree Starling combined with daughter Tayla Starling in her senior tennis debut to grind out a hard-fought tiebreaker victory.
Tayla then combined with Natasha Dodos in the other women’s doubles match to battle out a long, tough tiebreaker loss.
Dodos battled hard all day in her return to the GM2 team after a couple of years. She battled in a tough singles match to lose a tiebreaker against local tennis stalwart Cathy O’Brien.
Despite the best efforts of the team, McEwen Reserve managed to get too many big victories to secure a dominant 32-game victory.
The Kyabram team will look to bounce back from this result, knowing it has a lot more in the tank with its round two matches against Nathalia.
GM4 Open Kyabram Bombers 3-49 lost to Tatura Twisters 6-67
In a grand final rematch from last season, Kyabram was looking to again get the better of a Tatura side that has long been dominant in the division.
The new faces in the team showed they will be a strong asset, with Cameron Heard and Perry Jackson combining for a strong 8-5 victory.
However, the story of the day was young gun Max Hausler showing that his future in tennis is a bright one.
Hausler won two of his three sets, combining with Amy Harrison for a hard fought tiebreaker victory 8-7.
He was then again able to battle hard, combining with a hobbled Michael Argeat to win another tiebreaker set.
Unfortunately, Tatura showed its strength and is a team to beat in the division.
The Bombers will hit the road in the second round of the season to take on Numurkah.
GM4 Open Kyabram Redbacks 1-37 lost to Tongala 8-69
In their first match ever, the Kyabram Redbacks came up against a tough Tongala team that made the finals last year.
Led by Anthony Li and Rachael Costello from last year’s Bombers team that won the premiership, the new team showed signs of promise in its first match.
Hugh Cunningham and Lachlan Rodriquez both made their full-time debut for Ky Lawn, showing that they are ones to watch in the future and combining for an 8-5 victory.
Unfortunately for the Redbacks, that was the only set win for the day, with Tongala’s experience proving too much.
In round two, the Redbacks will play their first home match of the season against competition newcomer St Andrews.
Junior tennis round-robins conclude this weekend
The final of three Kyabram and District Tennis Association junior round-robin days will be held this Saturday, October 25.
It's not too late for juniors to come down and try tennis before the season starts on November 8.
Start time is 9am and any juniors that are interested are free to come down and try the sport.