Albany Lawn Tennis Club coach Max Stokoe took the Isle of Man nine-under-team to compete in the LTA Tennis County Cup in Wrexham last weekend.

The youngsters went up against top players from Cheshire, Derbyshire and Wales. All the IoM team players are members of Albany, although some do play at other clubs as well as they are keen to play as often as possible – which can’t be bad thing.

The players were Tommie Manuja, Tommy Jelly, Albert and Arthur Orton, Alejandro Mason Ganzo, Zara Stefanovic, Sophia Colley, Amber Cunningham, Gianna Dang Aoen and Sophia Mason Ganzo.

A special mention to the Orton brothers who had fantastic doubles win over Derbyshire. Are they the next Skupskis? I can remember seeing Neal Skupski playing eight-and-under short tennis in Manchester versus JJ Moore (IoM) and arguing with the referee (Bryan Sharp) over a ball called out.

He was determined even at that age - you have to be determined to win matches and Albert and Arthur are. Also, well done to Zara Stefanovic and Amber Cunningham for their impressive wins.

Apart from the learning gained by travelling and playing against unknown players, it was a good team-building trip and they also went to watch Wrexham in a league match. Special thanks go to Sure Isle of Man for its support and the parents who travelled with Max and the team.

- On Sunday, March 23 Albany’s indoor court will only be available from 2-3pm as the court and lounge have been booked for a birthday party – the club may even try senior mini tennis.

These booking are income for the club - we all know how expensive it is to run the facilities.

The indoor court and lounge make a good venue for sporty parties - enquiries to [email protected]

PAT SHARP