Halfway through the Tennis Geelong Triples season, some teams have begun to emerge as favourites.
In Section 5, however, all teams are still in the mix, which was evident in the clash between Lara and Grovedale’s Backhanded Compliments.
The Grovedale squad are making their return to the competition this year after having a break for all of 2024, while Lara’s Ben Griffin and Richard Blanco have been strengthened from last season’s wooden spoon Section 5 squad with the full-time addition of young Louis Smith. Both teams were 2-1, both having lost in round 1 and having one bye each.
Coming into the match, Grovedale had a strong record in doubles sets, where Lara had made their mark in singles. The first two sets continued this trend, with Grovedale’s top two of Matt Francis and Jarrod Bateup taking the number 1 doubles set 6-1, while Lara’s Blanco claimed a 6-2 victory over Joel Kopanica. The remaining sets became closer, as Francis and Kopanica won a 6-5 set over Smith and Blanco, while Lara’s Griffin had a 6-4 triumph over Bateup.
The match was level on sets and games going into the number 1 singles and 3 doubles. At 4-3, Grovedale’s Francis appeared to be on the verge of taking the first singles rubber of the year over Lara’s Smith, who was 8-0 across juniors, seniors, and night competitions in 2025.
Smith showed the advantage of his match-play and tightened the screws to win the last three games, taking the set 6-4. Number 3 doubles was a battle all the way through, but Grovedale’s Kopanica and Bateup had a stronger tiebreaker to take the set 6-5. It was not enough however, as Lara claimed a one-game advantage, taking the match 3-3 29-28.
The other Section 5 match pitted first-place Coco Bewares against the fifth-place Highton Flyers. The Flyers were without some of their regulars, but found a couple of timely fill-ins that performed strongly, and claimed a 5-1 upset win. Coco Bewares’ only set win came at number 1 singles, where Keir McHarg won a tiebreaker over Devon Hassall.
The loss puts Coco Bewares into third place at 17 points, just behind Lara and Grovedale with 20 and 18 points apiece. Highton moved into fourth place, ahead of Grovedale’s Bogsy and Blokes, who had the bye.
