This year is going to be a very big year for Thorpe Bay Tennis Club and one person who could not be more pleased is chairman Mike Baggs.

The club will be hosting the Essex County Junior Closed Championship for the 25th year running, the Essex Cup finals on June 20, the Southend and District finals and the Leigh and Westcliff finals.

"We like to support the county and Southend and District when we get the opportunity," said 56-year-old Mike.

However, hosting major events is just part of the story for this thriving club, which has around 800 members and organises more than 200 matches a year.

Playing tennis is the main priority, but the club also has a thriving social scene too thanks to a bar and catering facilities.

"Thorpe Bay is a members club run by the members for the benefit of the members," said Mike.

"I believe it is vital that a club gets the right balance between the top players, the social players and the social activities of the club. What we do not want is the social side taking over from the playing side."

To this end, Thorpe Bay ensures that its players compete at all levels of the game, for example, the men's first team play in the first divisioj of the Essex League, while the ladies' first team won the Essex Singles League last year.

While only the elite get a chance to play at that level, other members can enjoy competitive tennis in the Southend and District, and Leigh and Westcliff leagues.

Improving players' skills comes through regular club events and the coaching provided by the club's professional Jon Lee and an assistant at weekends.

However, improvements to players' games is not the only thing that has benefitted. With an annual turnover of £150,000 the club was able to spend £25,000 on improvements to the club facilities and a further £20,000 is put aside each year to pay for the upkeep of the club's 12 carpet and four acrylic courts.

A hard-working committee looks after the running of the club, but they are backed by club members who volunteer their time to help out. Other members assist through sponsoring events.

Thorpe Bay tennis club was founded in 1912 for the benefit of the Burgess Estate, when membership cost one guinnea for men and 10/6 for ladies.

Call 01702 585245 for more information about the club.

In the chair - Mike Baggs took over as chairman at Thorpe Bay nine years ago. The plaque lists some of the club's most famous players, including Dorothy Crighton who played at Wimbledon in the 1930s

Picture: STEPHEN LLOYD Top seeds safe

All the top seeds in the Southend and District LTA championships are safely through the early rounds to reach the quarter-finals.

The men's top seeds are Simon Bonham, Simon Chesher, Nick Plappert and Cary Wilson.

In the ladies' championsip, the top seeds are Tracey Chesher, Karen Warner, Lindsay Watts and Caren Fuller.

However, it is a different story in the mixed doubles where seeded pair John Handelaar and Steffi Rodrigues were knocked out by Roger Peters and Karen Poole. Reigning champs stay in touch

Westcliff Hard were last summer's runaway Leigh and Westcliff LTA champions and they kept their title ambitions on track with a 6-0 win over Leigh.

The victory moves them up to second place in the table, two points behind Kent Elms.

Darren Bertola and Terry Hooper beat Dave Edwards and Chris Bladon 6-4 6-4, Bernard Horwood and Graham stone defeated Trevor Paterson and Paul Fountain 6-4 6-3 and David Bishop and Keith Drum overcame Jan Thorpe and Roy Bickell 6-3 6-0.

Other men's results:

Division One - Rayleigh 1 v Leigh 1 4-2.

Division Two - Westcliff Hard 2 v Invicta 3-3, Southend Lawn v Kent Elms 2 3-3, Thorpe Bay v Westcliff Hard 2 4-2, Invicta v Southend Lawn 4-2, Kent Elms 2 v Westcliff Lawn 2 3-3.

Division Three - Leigh 2 v Leigh Road Baptist 6-0, Wickford v Thorpe Bay 2 6-0.

Division Four - Westcliff Lawn 4 v Thorpe Bay 3 6-0.

Division Five - Rayleigh 2 v Crowstone 4-2, Wickford 2 v CEHeaths 2-4, Kent Elms 3 v Thorpe Bay 4 1-5.

Determined play from the Leigh ladies saw them stop the holding champions, Kent Elms, in their tracks with a 4-2 victory in Division One.

Jo Hancock and Stephanie Haddrell got the ball rolling with a 6-2 6-3 win over Mandy White and Dawn Collins. Pauline Gutteridge and Clare Beverley kept up the Leigh pressure be beating Gail Webster and Mary Moxom 6-3 7-6.

However, Kent Elms pulled two sets back when Cezare Dane and Brenda Lincoln won 6-7 6-7.

Other ladies' results:

Division One - Southend Lawn v Hadleigh Park 3-3.

Division Two - Kent Elms 2 v Leigh 2 5-1.

Division Three - Thorpe Bay 2 v Hadleigh Park 2 5-1, Hadleigh 2 v Rayleigh 2 2-4, Westcliff Hard 3 v Westcliff Lawn 2 0-6.

Just three points separate the top four clubs in the League Division One.

Kent Elms and Southend Lawn both have 15 points and share the same sets for and against. However, Kent Elms are ahead on games for.

The League results:

Division One - Leigh v Westcliff Hard 1-5, Rayleigh v Westcliff Lawn 6-0.

Division Two - Invicta v Westcliff Hard 2 4-2.

Division Three - Westcliff Lawn 2 v Invicta 2 5-1.

Division Four - Southend Lawn 2 v Leigh Road Baptist 5-1, Crowstone v Rayleigh 2 4-2.

Division Five - Southend Lawn v St Peters 4-2. Clubs set for cup glory bid

South Essex tennis clubs are gearing up for cup fever this weekend with the semi finals of the county cup finals.

Westcliff Lawn and Westcliff Hard will meet in one of the men's Senior Cup semis, with Brentwood's Clearview and Loughton's Avenue competing in the other.

Thorpe Bay 1 and Westcliff Lawn 2 have been drawn against each other in the men's Intermediate Cup. Clearview and Loughton will face each other in the other semi-final.

In the men's Junior Cup, Southend Lawn will be playing Essex Leisure and Tennis Centre from Earles Colne in one semi, while Westcliff Lawn 4 will take on Clearview 3.

Westcliff Hard are at home to Thorpe Bay in the semi-final of the ladies' Senior Cup. Gidea Park and Chingford's Connaught meet in the other.

The Hard Courts are also in action in the ladies' Intermediate Cup when the club's seconds face Connaught 3. The Chingford club's second string take on Buckhurst Hill in the other semi-final.

Whatever the results this weekend, south Essex will have a representative in every cup final on June 20 apart from the ladies' junior cup. Hard luck for ladies

Westcliff Lawn ladies lost to Westcliff Hard by three events to one in the Southend and District Ladies' League.

In last week's Tennis section we said Thorpe Bay men won their Essex Men's League Division One game by five sets to four. This should have been five events to four.

Converted for the new archive on 19 November 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.