Now this year was a ripper and it was so pleasing to see a couple of young fellows win it for a change, given that the combined average age for the Men's title in the past has been around 80 years , this year was less than half . Matty Thompson and Mike Galante are two guys who i used to hit tennis balls to at my old club in town and about 3 years ago my old coaching buddy Justin Clapin and myself held them off to win the Club Champs 6-4 in the third. Back then their consistency was 2 or 3 shots in then go for a winner , how the times have changed and tennis is like that . I have always played a brand of tennis that wasn't unlike my hero Mats Wilander who had a mindset that he wouldn't miss so if his opponent was good enough to out hit or out think him then so be it. This year however was different because they didn't miss !! My partner was a 16 year old kid who i taught from the ages of 7 through to 13 , Mike Offerman, he now hits like a man and i am proud of the player he has become , as i am of the two guys we lost to . Tennis is a progression of the body and mind together , some get it , some just can't quite grasp it , i was lucky enough to be on court with the future of the game locally and in the process was probably part of local tennis history . The Albany Open tends to have teams that dominate for a few years as my good friends Jonny Tuckett and Justin Taylor have , just as Max Loveridge and Peter Holmes did when i was a lad.
The 2014 Albany Tennis Open was the changing of the guard locally , i felt old out there along side those lads but found a way to still be competitive at nearly 45 years of age . How many players can still be competitive with the youth as they grow older and more experienced and still enjoy the battle? It is a game that is a true test of character especially as we age ...... keep fit , keep the faith , it's not how good you were, but like my buddy Brett Patten said "it's how good you can still become".........
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