Helensburgh Tennis Club’s ladies’ first team started their 2018 campaign with a narrow but encouraging 5-4 win over David Lloyd Renfrew.

With all the players feeling somewhat rusty after a long wet winter, Yolande Trewhella and Gay Black at third couple lost the first set and then re-grouped to win the second, but they couldn’t quite keep up the momentum, going down 6-2 in the final set.

At second couple, Jo Kerr and Ann Morison faced two ladies who rushed the net on every occasion, giving the visiting pair little opportunity to find a consistent rhythm.

Having lost the first two sets, however, Jo and Ann combined well to take the third 6-3, their lobs proving to be very effective.

First couple Katie Hope and Karrie Walters, meanwhile, enjoyed a close, hard hitting match with very little between the pairs throughout the first two sets which, due to Karrie’s impressive serving, they just managed to win 6-4, 7-6. The third set was a more straightforward win by 6-2.

The Helensburgh men’s first team, however, could not find similar winning ways as they started their season with a 6-3 defeat at home to Kirkhill.

The team had to call on the services of three second team players due to the unavailability of regular first team players.

David McCowan and Kevin Stephen at first couple lost their opening 0-6 and should have taken the second set but they lost it on a cruel net cord in the tie break. The pair then lost the third set 2-6.

Bill Ram and Phil Hamilton at second couple struggled to match their opponents’ consistency and lost all three sets, while Iain MacLaren and Keith Love at third couple took their opening two sets 6-4 6-2 before digging deep and producing a great run of shots to win the tie break in the third set 7-3.

In other matches, the Helensburgh ladies’ second team travelled to Nuffield Milngavie where they came away with a great 9-0 win before recording a decisive 7-2 victory away at Stepps.