Essex Ladies powered their way back into Division One of the National Inter County Tennis Cup last week.

Having been relegated last year, Essex captain Christine Jolly was determined to see her team bounce back as quickly as possible.

Playing their Division Two fixtures at Cromer on the Norfolk coast, they coasted through against strong opposition for the first four days.

Essex beat Kent, Norfolk, Oxfordshire and Sussex, barely breaking sweat, and in doing so, ensured the quickest possible return to the top division.

The final day pitted them against South Wales, who were also unbeaten, the result dictating who would go up as champions.

With the score at four rubbers a-piece, the outcome hinged on Amanda Janes and Zoe Mellis.

However, despite leading 4-1 and 5-3 in the final set of the final match, the pair lost the next four games.

It didn't really matter at the end of the day and Christine Jolly praised the all round team effort.

The team through the five days consisted of Amanda Wainwright, Mary Collins, Amanda Janes, Zoe Mellis, Amanda Brown, Lara Naqushbandi, Sophie Cockell and Caroline Janes.

The news was not so good of the Essex men's team, who were relegated from the top flight after a dismal display at Eastbourne.

Unable to find a settled team, captain John Marnock experimented on a daily basis but couldn't find a winning formula until the final day when a 9-0 thrashing of Leicestershire saved face but little else.

Two early defeats meant relegation loomed as early as Wednesday.

The team had to beat Kent to retain some hope, but went down by six rubbers to three.

The pairs of Danny Ward and Matthew Coombs, Michael Ellames and Simon Harston, and Simon Bonham and Vince Ranson, all beat the Kent third pair but were generally overpowered.

There was more bad news as they crashed to Hampshire and the Isle of Wight seven rubbers to two and the team must now take stock and claw their way back to Division One.

The Save & Prosper Essex Open Junior Tennis Tournament gets underway on Monday.

As one of the strongest junior events in the calendar, local players will face tough competition for the major honours.

The tournament is hosted by the Gidea Park club with their seven courts in use, and play also takes place in the nearby Raphaels Park.

Three hundred competitors are in this year's tournament which includes one of the largest entry of girls players ever seen.

In the draw are some top ranked British juniors, including Anne Keothovang from Middlesex who is a Great Britain international and last year's runner up in the boys 18 and 21 singles Billy McManus.

The No 1 ranked British girl in the 12 & under age group is Holly Richards and she is the top seed in the event.

In the girls' events Janice Torr from Billericay is among the favourites in the 16's while Emma Kitchen (Cranston Park) Claire Dixey (Havering), Emma Priest (Brentwood Hard) and Victoria Simpson (Billericay) are among the seeds in the 12's seed in the 12's.

Tennis coaching is available in the school holidays for juniors at Stock Tennis Club, in Stock Road, Billericay.

The dates are: Monday, August 9 to Wednesday, August 11: 9.30am to 10.30am older beginners (approximately 12-16 years); 10.30am to 11.30am experienced players (approximately 12-16 years) and intermediate. Monday, August 16 to Wednesday, August 18: 9.30am to 10.30am beginners and eight to 16 years; 10.30am to 11.30am intermediates.

The cost is £10 for three days and to book a place, telephone Terry Stares on 01621 741799.

Converted for the new archive on 19 November 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.