South east tennis will be mourning the loss of one of the game's stalwarts tomorrow.

Tributes have poured in for James "Goldie" Clark whose funeral will be held at Southend Crematorium at 4pm tomorrow.

The 81-year-old died on June 11 but Goldie will be remembered for the amount he put into tennis in Southend over the years.

"With the death of Goldie Clark, Southend tennis has lost a true friend," said Southend & District LTA chairman Bob Hammond.

"As a player and administrator, Goldie displayed huge enthusiasm for the game of tennis, always giving one hundred per cent on and off court.

"He was a canny, feisty competitor, who enjoyed pitting his wits as much as his racket skills against his opponents. He was always magnanimous in victory, generous in defeat."

But Hammond said Goldie's greatest service to local tennis was his work for the Southend and District LTA.

For many years he organised and ran the summer and winter tournaments with supreme efficiency.

And Goldie's passing is also being mourned at Thorpe Bay LTC where he was a member for many years.

"Goldie's contribution to the development of Thorpe Bay LTC both on and off the court was quite remarkable," said Thorpe Bay chairman Mike Baggs.

"Goldie was instrumental in bringing the Essex junior tournament to Thorpe Bay 28 years ago, where it still remains."

Goldie was a member at Thorpe for 40 years and a committee member for two decades.

He was chairman of the Thorpe Bay Gardens club between 1977 and 1984, and was club captain between 1967 and 1969.

In his latter years the husband, father and grandfather enjoyed playing golf and was a member at Thorpe Hall GC.

Published Thursday, June 19, 2003

Brought to you by the Evening Echo