Hey everyone,   I hope you all had a great Summer, & enjoyed the great weather we had.  It was great to see so many people down at the courts over the last few months.

As you can see below from the team, the club has been busy with lots of events, socials, competitions, coaching  and work around the grounds.   We are, as always, grateful for the support and time people give to help make these a success.   It is great to see the club so vibrant and we hope that you are getting value from being a member.

Briefly, I wanted to highlight some areas I picked up on, in the last newsletter:

On the results of the survey ( in a separate document), thank you to all who participated and gave their ideas & opinions on the club. Sone main points:

• Participation is up from last year (i.e. the amount of people playing at least once a week)., with a good balance of social and competitive aspects of the club featuring highly as reasons people come down to the club.
• The satisfaction with the facilities is generally very good.  The changing area has been called out by a number for upgrading.
• Club communications was an area we were keen to get feedback on.  People were generally satisfied, but there were areas for improvement. Moving to ClubZap was, in part a response to the WhatsApp fatigue voiced by members.
• We also raised availability of courts.  The use of time slots seems to have helped. However we will continue to look for improvements (such as the use of Clongowes for a longer period,   better booking system etc)
• The satisfaction with the club and committee is a new question we introduced this year. It is something this committee would like to see future committees continue with.   Generally a positive view of both, again room to improve. This will serve as a good barometer of the value for money the club provides.

Given some of the feedback from the survey and conversations with members, there are certain projects and initiatives that we are putting together in a 3  - 5 year plan.    This is to help members agree / disagree with initiatives the club could undertake and add ideas that we have not thought of.  We see this as being important, so all of us members can input and be part of making the club what we want it to be.

Other than that – have a great Autumn and hope to see you down on the courts.

Dave.

Following on from a successful Spring Championship, our Internal and External Leagues continue, along with International evening Tournaments.

DLTC External Leagues:

Summer League 14th May - 28th June

Both Ladies Clane 2 and 3 made it to the Play-Offs.

Clane 1 Ladies played Class 5, made it through to the Finals, which was held in Rathgar tennis club. De Vesci proved too strong on the day. Congratulations to the ladies for bringing home a Runner-Up flag for the club.

Mixed League 4th July - 15th August

Two teams made it to the Play-Offs. Clane 2 were beaten in the Quarter finals and Clane 1 were beaten in the last 16.

Senior League 31st August - 19th October

Clane Lawn Tennis club has entered 4 ladies and 2 men's teams. All matches are still in the round robin stage. Some of the teams, both men and ladies are doing well and hopefully will make it  through to the Play-off stage of the league.

CLTC Internal Leagues:

Singles Box Leagues 7th May - 20th July

Ladies had 6 boxes which included an >60’s box for the first time.

 

Winners Ladies

Box 1 Aimee Bagnall    R/U  Muireann Ryle

Box 2 Gillian Keegan    R/U  Joan Doyle

Box 3 Laura Edwards   R/U  Lorraine Power

Box 4 Jacinta Clarke     R/U  Elaine Cafferty

Box 5 Aileen Duffy        R/U  Therese Curran

Box 6 Monica Bagnall   R/U  Sheila Lynch

 

Winners Men

Box 1 Robert Murphy    R/U  Gareth Brogan

Box 2 Phil Byrne           R/U  Josh Mc Keon

Box 3 Colm D’Rosario  R/U  Ger Murray

Box 4 Darragh Noonan R/U  Peter Dromgoole

>60’s Box Gerry Walsh R/U  Gerry Mc Tiernan

Floodlight League 29/30th September - 24/25th November

CLTC has entered 5 Ladies and 3 Men’s teams.

A big ‘thank you’ to all the members who always come down to the club to support the home team matches.  It is much appreciated by the players.

Club Ladders

The club ladders remain the primary system used to select players for both Internal and External Tournaments and Leagues.

If you wish to join the Club Ladder please contact:

Ladies - Judie Colthurst and Tanya Mc Cormack, Men's - Gareth Brogan.

New Rules and Guidelines

March 2025 saw the introduction of updated rules and guidelines by the Committee,  following consultation with members.

• Court Booking Rules
• Club Ladder Rules
• Guidelines for Internal and Box Leagues
• Team Selection Guidelines

All of the above are on display in the clubhouse.

New Mentoring for Junior Girls and Boys

This initiative was firstly introduced by Wayne Quinn.

The aim of this internal project was to give valuable insight to match play format and learn from experienced senior adult members.

A huge thank you to Hilary Moss and Wayne Quinn who spear-headed the mentoring for the junior girls and boys.

Junior Girls Bebhinn Doyle, Eve Fahy, Laura Edwards, Laura Matyzek

Mentors Suzanne Banim, Sinead Mc Fadden, Sonja O’Neill, Sarah Clarke

Junior Boys, Hubert Matojif, Rory Featherstone, Matthew Mc Tiernan, Jason Mc Cormack, Fionn Murray, Harry Reid.

Mentors Wayne Quinn, Gareth Brogan, Barry Kiely, Harry Kelly, Colm Gray, Dave Ferguson

The format was to run a box league over the Summer months. Due to time restraints not all matches were played but valuable friendships were established. The ladies hope to finish off with an evening of tennis, pizzas and prizes soon.  The Men hope to do something similar, but Wayne is away for a few weeks at present.

DLTC Duffy Cup and Harp Cup

Suzanne Banim was chosen to join the Dublin team, to play in the Belfast and District League 2025 on the 16th August in Cavehill Tennis Club. This annual match, now in its 75th year, involves the Duffy Cup and Harp Cup. In 2024 saw Dublin win both cups. 2025 unfortunately sees the silverware staying in Belfast.   Dublin will host the above event in 2026.

External Opens and Tournaments

This year saw a number of our members, both adults and juniors, first time for juniors, participate in external Opens. A huge congratulations to all our members who took part, travelled long distances and represented our club.

New Men’s Doubles Championship Trophy

Following the club championship last year, the club reached out to the members to gauge interest in sponsoring a new men's doubles trophy. While the Plate had served for many years, it was felt the right moment had come to mark a fresh chapter.

Several members responded, which was encouraging, however, the first response was from Jonathan Ryle, representing the Ryle family.

Many thanks to the Ryle family for the beautiful trophy.

Clane Lawn Tennis Club Championship 2025

The club championship is the highlight of any tennis club and Clane Lawn Tennis Club is no different.  Without the Championship, there would be a big hole in the calendar year.

The club had a wonderful three weeks of competitive tennis, super atmosphere and fabulous treats and sweets from the kitchen.

Many thanks to the Championship Committee

Judie, Catriona, Paula, Barry, Harry, Ciaran, Shaun,  Elizabeth and Gareth.

Championship comprised of

Events 5

Entries 128

Matches 175

Players 128

Event	Winner	R/up
Men Singles	Richie Mahony	Wayne Quinn
Men Singles Plate	Josh McKeon	Blazej Kryszewski
Women Singles	Claire Dalton	Sarah Clarke
Women Singles Plate	Milena Rowinska	Elizabeth Kiernan
Men Doubles Winner	Richie Mahony/Joe Gleeson	Stephen Sherry/Daryl Skelly
Men Doubles Plate	Shaun Mahoney/Josh McKeon	Adriano Cichos/Mathew McTiernan
Women Doubles Winner	Claire Dalton/Cathy Walsh	Aimee Bagnall/Gillian Keenan
Women Doubles Plate	Laura Edwards/Eve Fahy	Lisa Ryan/Monical Bagnall
Mixed Doubles Winner	Shaun Mahoney/Sonja O Neill	Philip Bryne/Aimee Bagnall
Mixed Doubles Plate	Aisling McCormack/Jason McCormack	Mathew McTiernan/Jo Patchell

 

After the Club Championship Evening dinner, both Gareth and myself had announced, we are stepping down as Captains. We are asking members to consider putting their name forward for the roles at the AGM in November.

Outline of duties for the Captains Role of the Clane Lawn Tennis Club

Being club Captain is a busy but rewarding position in any tennis club.

• serve as the main point of contact for all club members and also for external club captains in relation to external leagues.
• work with sub-committees in relation to organizing the club calendar, ie social events, internal, external leagues and evening tournaments.
• attend monthly committee meetings and convey information to relevant sub committees.
• recruit players for both internal, external leagues and tournaments.
• a good understanding of leagues, tournaments rules, players abilities is helpful but not necessary as captains work with sub-committees.
• oversee the selection process of players for internal, external leagues and tournaments.
• ensure players are registered and eligible to play in external leagues.
• enter club teams for external leagues with the relevant league official systems.
• appoint team captains for external leagues, ensure they have the relevant documentation ie rules of league, rules of subbing and score sheets.
• supply new tennis balls for home matches.
• ensure courts are fit for play on match days/evenings ie court flooding or icy conditions. Decisions made and relevant communication to visiting team captains.
• enter match results of external league matches to the league official system within the specified timeframe

Both Gareth and myself want to say it is an honour to be captains of such a great club. The club has become our second family. Being Captains has opened our eyes to the work that goes on behind the scenes in relation to all club events.

We have learned so much. Our first few weeks,  we were like the proverable ’rabbit in head lights’. Thank you all for trusting us with the task of Captains. Thank you all for sharing so many nice moments.

Regards

Elizabeth and Gareth

Our junior members enjoyed a very busy summer of tennis. Our very popular tennis camp ran for 8 weeks during July and August and was attended by 142 children across the various age groups. The children enjoyed fun tennis and activities both on and off the court. The great weather added to the enjoyment and lots of time outdoors on the courts. The summer camp concluded with a party for each age group where tennis, games, treats etc. were enjoyed by all.

This camp owes much of its success to the commitment, dedication and hard work of our clubhouse and court supervisors and assistants. This hardworking group ensure the safety and well-being of all the children in attendance. As a small token of gratitude this group were treated to a pizza and fun-tennis evening on August 24th.

Thank you to Liam Burke who visited the camp some afternoons to share his skill and expertise as a table tennis champion. Liam taught the children rules and skills of table tennis and this was a wonderful addition to our camp this year.

Thank you to Tommy McAndrew who as always was on hand to help with setting up and preparing for our juniors each day.

This year was the third year of the Ben Wallace Awards. These very special awards which are sponsored by Ben’s family were presented at the end of each party. The winners were:

6 – 9yrs: Zoey Moran and Eve Dunne

10 – 12yrs: Ava Wilson and Holly Coonan

Teens: Nicole Zapryanova And Katie Wolf

Well done to all of our juniors who participated in the club championships this year. Juniors over 14yrs old are eligible to participate so do consider it for next year if you are interested. A special mention to Eve Fahy and Laura Edwards who won the Ladies Doubles Plate Final and Jason McCormack who along with Aish won the Mixed Doubles Plate Final.

Well done to so many of our teens who participated in a table quiz hosted by Cora McCormack on Saturday 30 August as part of the Rally for Hope fundraiser. Thank you to Cora for all her work in putting the quiz together and doing quizmaster on the evening. Check out ‘Fundraising’ section for more on this. During the summer teens had the opportunity to participate in a Singles Box League. Results:   Girls:  1st Anna Grainger  2nd Martyna Araskieviez

Boys: Overall Winner Jamie Green

(Note: Scores can only be calculated for those who return cards)

Our U-18 boys’ and girls’ teams played their first matches in the DLTC league on Sunday 14th September. We would like to wish both teams the best of luck in their endeavours over the coming weeks. Matches are home and away at 5pm on Sunday afternoons. Your support for our juniors would be much appreciated.

Finally, autumn into winter 8-week coaching program commences on 1st October to 29th November with a break for mid-term. Details posted on the ClubZap Junior App.

Junior Committee

Well done to our President Mick Hennessy for hosting a fantastic night in aid of Ben for Barretstown in June.  The event was extremely well attended by members and Ben’s Mum Orlagh was there to cheer on all the players!  Congratuations on raising over €1000 and of course to all the winners on the night: Joint 1st place Harriet Ormonde and Christina Loughlin, 2nd place Emer Keating and 3rd place went to three of our men, Paul Hopkins, Dr. Joe and Tommy McAndrew.  Thanks to all who attended and supported Barretstown.

We had a super turnout for the Paddy Behan Memorial in July with three 1st prize winners on 15 points each!  The names were put into a hat and drawn as follows: In 1st place and Winner of the Paddy Behan Cup was Wael Zarl.  2nd place was Milton d’Rosario and in 3rd place was Therese Burchael.  Well done to all the worthy winners!

A huge thankyou to Eoghan Burke and band “Drunken Nights” for providing  great entertainment on the night and to Breeda and family for sponsoring all the tournament prizes! A big shout out to Tommy McAndrew for having the room so well organised beforehand and who is always there to lend a hand when needed!

Our club championship kitchen this year was a huge success with two voluntary members providing food and drink to all each night.  On championship finals night a prize for best hosts was given to a lucky pair.  Congratulations to Sonja & P.J who won a voucher for the Pot & Pantry!

Sincere thanks to everyone who volunteered to help run the kitchen. We are so very grateful for your help and of course your baking talents!

Paula & Social Committee

As we head into Autumn after a very busy Summer, there has been a lot of work completed in the tennis club. With the good weather in April and May we repainted the pod and surrounding fencing to protect the wood structure for the next few years. To the side of the pod we have a new home for our tennis ball machine. We recently purchased over 120 new balls for the machine as well as 2 ball collectors to avoid unnecessary bending when collecting balls!! Please remember to cover the ball machine after use.

New court carpets were installed on courts 3 and 4 around Easter and the process took about a week.  These carpets have now bedded in.  Please do not bring chewing gum onto any court especially the new ones. 

The club car park had some large potholes which we cemented in during the Summer. There were “no parking signs” installed to deter non-members from parking in the club car park.  We tackled a major cut back of all trees and hedges on the shed side which was undertaken by Hugh, Sean, John, Tommy and Thomas. A big thank you to all. Thanks to our members generosity we purchased new scoreboards in time for the championships. 

Finally, thanks to you, we have prevented over 700 tennis balls going to landfill through our introduction of the dyuce recycling program. 

As always a lot of work goes on behind the scenes to keep the clubhouse looking well and clean and this is down to Tommy, so thank you Tommy.

 

RALLY 4 HOPE smashed it for TENNIS 4 CANCER!

 

Clane Lawn Tennis Club was buzzing with energy and community spirit on Saturday 30th August as members and friends came together for our Rally 4 Hope fundraiser in aid of Tennis 4 Cancer.

The event proved to be a great success raising over €6000 in support of two incredible charities, ARC Cancer Support and The National Breast Cancer Research Institute.  Every euro raised went directly to these vital organisations to enable them to continue their life-changing work.

Despite the rain, from early morning to late afternoon, our courts were filled with enthusiastic players, each signing up for 60 minute rally slots.  Adding to the fun, participants got to choose their favourite songs for the Rally 4 Hope soundtrack with our DJ’s Liam Burke, Ronan Behan, Tommy McAndrew, Dave Fergusson and Eoin McCormack spinning everything from golden oldies to modern hits, keeping the atmosphere upbeat and lively throughout the day.

Off the court, the clubhouse café became a hub of activity, with members and supporters dropping in to enjoy refreshments, meet friends and cheer on the players.  Alongside the café, we also had a cosy book nook adding a warm and welcoming touch to the day.  A huge thank you goes to Supervalu Sallins and Friels of Straffan for their generous donations of sandwich platters as well as our brilliant baking volunteers who stocked the café with delicious treats! The sense of camaraderie was unmistakable, a true reflection of what makes our club so special!

A special highlight of the day was the Teen Table Quiz hosted by Cora McCormack, Anne O’Shea and Harriet Ormonde.  The quiz drew a fantastic turnout from our junior members and was filled with laughter and plenty of brain teasing fun! This additional feature to the program gave our younger members the chance to enjoy the event and contribute to the fundraising success.

In addition, everyone who took part or donated online was entered into a free draw for an array of prizes up for grabs adding an extra element of excitement to the day.  The outstanding attendance and generosity of our members ensured that our ambitious fundraising target was not only met but surpassed.

We would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to everyone who played, donated, supported and rallied with us to make this event happen! Special thanks to Dunnes Stores Clane who sponsored the event and to the many local businesses who sponsored prizes. 

Here’s to many more rallies on and off the court and don’t forget to check out our RALLY 4 HOPE video on Clane LTC Facebook page to get a sense of the fun & laughter had on the day!

Warm regards,

The Committee

 

 

 

 

 

We are delighted to recommence our Enjoy Tennis program with coach Enzo and our KARE residents which started back on Monday 29th September.  The sessions bring great joy, energy and offer those with disabilities the opportunity to stay active, build skills and share in plenty of fun on the court.

 

This summer, four of our most accomplished ladies generously volunteered to mentor some of our most promising older junior girl members.  Special thanks to Suzanne Banim, Sonja O’Neill, Anita Beaumont and Sarah Clarke who agreed to pair up with our fantastic juniors Bebhinn Doyle, Eve Fahy, Laura Edwards and Laura Matysek.  Some great games were played (in between the many summer holidays, Gaeltacht and other summer activities taking place!)

The mentorship will culminate in a a round robin social evening on a date to be confirmed in the coming weeks.  We are grateful to our senior members for encouraging and inspiring the next generation and it’s fantastic to support our younger members who are challenging us all on court. With so many girls giving up sport in their teens, it’s important that our club encourage younger girls to take up tennis and keep playing.

Hilary Moss

Clane Lawn Tennis Club was formed in 1973.  Since that time many members have contributed in making it one of the best in the country, receiving the Overall Club of The Year Award in 2002.

Congratulations to Lily Wright, Mary O'Connor, Maura McCormack and Peter Duffy, four of our non-playing members who dedicated many years to making the club a success up to the present time.  Each of them was deservedly presented with a Certificate of Merit Award on the day of our Championships Finals Saturday 13th September 2025. All four joined the club in 1973 and both Peter and Mary have served on the committee up to the last few years.

Peter was Chairperson when we celebrated our 25th Anniversary and was also our President from 2013 to 2016. When the site was bought in 1980 Peter did tremendous work on the clearing the grounds in preparation for the construction of new tennis courts.

Lily was also Past President of the club and organised many fundraising events.  Lily has continued to play tennis up until recently.

Mary was secretary for many years and organised lots of  tournaments and Championships throughout her years in the club.  Mary was also had a huge hand in the success of receiving the Club of the Year Award in 2002.

Maura, who is also a Life Member was secretary in the early years and did tremendous work with within the junior section of the club.

Many thanks to Chairperson Dave who presented the awards on Championships Finals Day!

Sincerely,

Liam Burke