ANDY Reid successfully defended his singles title as the Stringers World Colchester and District Individual Tournament finals took place at Frinton Lawn Tennis Club.

Reid beat Tom Peek 6-1, 6-2 in the open events and also retained his doubles title with Henry Arrell, winning 6-2, 6-3 against Mark Grover and Dan Nowell.

Anne Burton was crowned ladies champion after surviving a spirited fightback from Hannah Thompson to win 6-1, 7-5.

Burton also retained the ladies doubles title with Julie Sexton, despite dropping the first set.

They won 3-6, 6-2, 6-3 against Sophie Bardrick and Fiona Courtauld.

Bardrick had a very successful day in the mixed doubles with Geoff Digby.

They beat Simon Alabaster and Courtauld 6-3, 6-3 to win the Open and triumphed in the Over 40s against Richard and Julie Sexton, 6-2, 2-6, 6-4.

Elsewhere in the over-40s events, Andrew Knights won the singles when Pierre Smith pulled out with injury.

Knights and Smith combined to win the men's doubles 6-3, 6-1 against Colin Minter and John Oates.

Lynn Lennard-Jones defeated Jill Crown 6-2, 6-3 in the singles while Jenny King and Soozi Moffat were 6-1, 6-3 winners over Sexton and Burton in the ladies' doubles.

The over-55s men's doubles produced surprise winners when Rob Boyd and Martin Picker defeated the number one seeds, Richard Arrell and Richard Sexton 7-5, 7-5.

Jill Crown and Joan Hassell won the ladies doubles 6-3, 6-3 against Sue Bennett and Sue Lomas.

Sexton and Lennard-Jones beat last year's champions, Richard Arrell and Kerry Porter, 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 in the mixed doubles.

Youngster Miles Black, who has been playing for Wivenhoe men in the team competition, won both the under-12 and under-14 boys' singles titles after defeating Alexander Skinner 3-6, 6-1, 6-0 and Reace Figaji 6-1, 6-3.

Francesca Hughes retained her under-14 girls' singles title but was made to fight much harder by last year's runner-up, Lizzie Thompson before winning 6-4, 4-6, 6-4.

Spike Owen-Evans and Tom Thatcher won the under-14 boys' doubles beating Gus Pattinson and A.J. Putman-Slack 6-3, 7-6.

In the under-18 boys' singles, James Howarth won a tough battle with Michael Kelly, 6-3, 4-6, 6-3.

Some compensation was found for the Open singles runners-up, in the Restricted events.

Hannah Thompson defeated Sophie Bardrick 6-3, 6-0 in the ladies singles and also won the Mixed doubles with Shaun Robinson, beating Sue Bennett and Adam Gadenne 6-4, 6-2.

In the men's doubles, Tom Peek, playing with his father, Dave, eventually came out on top against Tim Elliott and Danny Saffer, 6-7, 7-5, 6-4.

The Sextons defeated Anne and Mike Burton 6-7 6-2 10-6TB in the married couples doubles.

The victory came 25 years after they beat Julie's parents to win the event for the first time.