Vincent Hivert, Director of Growth and Engagement at GAME4PADEL, reflects on the hugely successful weekend for the women’s and men’s Thistle padel teams after qualifying for the LTA Padel National League Division II play-off finals.
Vincent’s men beat West of Scotland padel 10-5 on penalties in the Championship tie-breaker at Edinburgh Sporting Club.
In the girls’ program, Claire McCulloch led the girls to a 10-8 win in another tighter championship tie-break.
That means both Thistle teams will qualify for the Division 2 play-offs to be played at the Roehampton National Tennis Center in the autumn, all of which leads Vincent to say: “First of all, between four teams. “It’s very competitive. Both events and qualifiers are going on in a great atmosphere, well organized by Edinburgh Sporting Club. We have enough Scottish teams to host this event in Edinburgh with Hatton, ESC, WOSP and Thistle. Also great.
“The ladies also qualified, congratulations to them, it was a very successful weekend for the Thistle team and now we can look forward to the finals in the fall, which will be a huge challenge.”
In the men’s championship, Thistle beat Hatton 2-0, Alejandro de la Caba was first with Ross Murdoch and Vincent was second with Douglas Tait.
As Vincent admits, nervousness was a factor in the final against WOSP: “Against WOSP we won the first game in the tie-break and then lost the second game in the tie-break, which was a big deal. Meaning we have to go back to the match tie-break penalty shootout.
“In this game, I was paired with Rose and we won 10-5, but it was very tense, although on a personal level, feeling that tension again and playing in a team environment and It’s good to be determined. Don’t let your teammates down.
“Ultimately, it’s the qualifying stage for the second-tier finals, they’re going to be at the NTC in London, and if we can win, we’re going back to first-tier – that’s definitely what we want.”
In the women’s championship, skipper Claire Murdoch was paired with No. 1 Michelle Crease, while No. 2 Emma Birch and Cy Saida Faraco partner.
As Claire revealed, her team was happy to play as underdogs, which made their eventual victory even sweeter, saying: “Our team consisted of some players with a lot of experience and some players with little experience. Composed, so there were no expectations and we just went in and enjoyed the game. We were actually a little bit surprised by the end result!”
After defeating WOSP in the opening game, her team played another heartbreaking final against Edinburgh Sporting Club, Claire revealed: “The game was very close and competitive, we beat WOSP in the first game with a draw. – Penalty shootout, final against ESC, also 10-8.
“There’s nothing in it, you have to have one player from the first pair and one player from the second pair and we picked Michelle and Emma and they played really well and won.
“It has been a fantastic experience for all of us and now we have qualified for the Southern Division 2 final. We are absolutely delighted to be heading to the NTC to fly the flag and are ecstatic about what we have achieved. “
Meanwhile, GB No.1 and Game4Padel Ambassador Tia Norton will be in the semifinals of the inaugural US Professional Padel League season after her Las Vegas Smash team beat the Los Angeles Beat 2-1.
Tia & Partner “Parilla” Win “The Smash” 7-5, 6-4 in Women’s Doubles, but Vegas Loses in Men’s Doubles, Pablo Amora And Juan Vazquez trailed 6-3, 6-4.
But in the decisive mixed doubles match, Amora and Palila combined for a grueling 6-4, 7-5 victory that sent Las Vegas into the final four in a draw that included Arkansas. Matrix, Cancun Waves and Miami Padel Club. It will be completed later this week.
