The Edinburgh Reporter September 2023

22

Six a side at Kirk Brae

Teenage tennis

champ Chenming

feeling just capital

EDINBURGH HAS a new national tennis

champion in 13-year-old Chenming

(David) Dong who has won the Play Your

Way to Wimbledon under-14 competition

on the hallowed turf of London SW 19.

Not only that but Chenming, a student

at the Merchiston Castle Tennis Academy,

powered through in emphatic style

dropping only one set in seven matches.

In the final he beat Strathgryffe’s Lucas

Nolte in straight sets having seen off GB

junior rep Zachary Verret in the semis.

Honourable mentions also go to the

capital’s Hanna Augustynska who

reached the quarter finals of the girls

singles while Luke Turnbull from East

Lothian, was runner-up in the Learning

Difficulties category.

Players had to qualify through a

series of tournaments and in Chenming’s

case the highlight was winning a

Tennis Europe singles at Craiglockhart

during July.

Chenming took up tennis in his native

Beijing as a six-year-old, but along with

his family, moved to Edinburgh in August

2020 to take advantage of facilities at

Merchiston Castle’s international school.

At local club level Chenming, pictured

with his trophy at Wimbledon, turns out

in under-18 junior matches for Paties

Road-based Thistle LTC.

Coached by Callum Lloyd this hot

prospect is currently resting an injury

sustained on his way to Wimbledon glory

but according to mum Xia he looks

forward to contesting ITF junior events

later this year.

THE BOUNDARY boys,

both players and

supporters, look on

during a successful

six-a-side cricket

tournament hosted by

the Kirk Brae club at their

Double Hedges Park

ground supported by

Autorek, an Edinburgh-

based financial services

company.

Five teams each

played over five games

each including an

Autorek Select drawn

from Edinburgh,

Glasgow and London

offices before Carlton

emerged as winner.

Participants then

enjoyed a post-match

barbecue.

Kirk Brae chairman

Sharez Khan said of an

event designed to

promote cricket in the

community: “With 50+

attendees/participants it

was a thoroughly

successful event and one

that Kirk Brae will look to

host again next year to

make the most of the

Scottish summer with

some good cricket, great

company, and terrific

food. Kirk Brae is all

about growing cricket in

the local community. I’d

like to thank Autorek for

sharing our vision.”

Chenming

(David) Dong

THE VOICE OF SPORT

Cougar captains

Corstorphine skippers feel confident ahead of the new rugby season

[email protected]

RE-ELECTED Corstorphine Cougars women’s

rugby captain Emma Turner, pictured with

men’s captain Eoin Kelly right, is optimistic the

squad can go one better in the coming season

having finished runners-up in both league and

cup last time out.

Likewise the men, whose skipper was also

re-elected, enter the new campaign in Division

Two of the East Leagues with momentum

having finished second in a very competitive

2022-23 campaign.

The women are already underway in their

Premiership campaign and they hit the ground

running with a 76-0 win at Garioch, scoring a

dozen tries including four from Merrick

Gunderson and a “hat-trick” by Tanya Griffin

with KIyomi Honjigawa landing six conversions.

Club spokesman Kevin West saidof the

women’s hopes: “Finishing second in both the

league and cup was a fantastic achievement

but that has just made the squad hungrier

for success.

“The depth of having two squads has been

hugely beneficial for the progression of the

team. Having competition for places ensures

consistency in performance and helps bring that

competitive edge to training. Pre-season has

been a huge learning curve as some new ideas

have been brought in to which the squad has

reacted well. We look forward to our women’s

1st XV being a competitive force again this year.”

Regarding the Corstorphine men’s team

Kevin said: “With several new additions

to the club, it solidifies squad numbers and

greatly boosts the prospects for the team

finishing top of the ladder this year.”

The new coaching team lead by Marc Maiden

and Fraser Morrison has been in place since

the end of last season and has been pro-active

in bringing up the quality of core skills and

fitness levels.

“It’s a hugely important year as the club looks

to continue its progress on the park and start

redevelopments on its changing facilities with its

ambitious ‘Building UP’ plans which will also

incorporate a new gym and storage facilities,”

said Kevin.

Captains Emma Turner

and Eoin Kelly

The Boundary Boys

at Kirk Brae