William went into his 2nd Orange tournament at Dallington LTC in Northampton with low expectations following a very tough (Grade 4) first Orange tournament at Peterborough a few weeks earlier. He set himself the goal of winning 2 matches, because he knew some of the stronger competitors from his performance squad sessions.
However he played five box matches (round robin) and won them all to achieve his place in the final. The toughest match of the five was against Henry Grayson, his friend & squad partner. William lost the first set 7-1 with number of unforced errors but he recovered and put Henry under pressure by moving him around the court with some well placed shots, forcing errors from his opponent. At 1-1, William took charge of the match and won the final set.
In the final William came up against a very experienced player from Cambridge. William had a set point in the first set but lost after 2 clear points. The match was concluded in 2 sets after a close fought battle, with William pleased with his performance against a tough opponent.
Results:
1. Archie Reid – won 7-3, 7-4. 2. Joshua Bright – won 7-5, 7-0. 3. William Richards won 7-3, 7-1, 4. George Criteson won 7-3, 7-5 and 5. Henry Grayson – won 1-7, 7-5, 7-4.
The final v Alex Boyd-Bench lost 6-8, 4-7.
