Grange Dyvours are Scotland’s “tennis club of the year”

Grange Dyvours have been named Scotland’s tennis club of the year – one of several accolades for the sport in Edinburgh.

The capital was well to the fore at an annual ceremony in Stirling with awards for university of the year, competition of the year and school of the year.

There were also successes on the individual front including ex-Colinton junior Jacob Fearnley following his record rise up the ATP world rankings to his current standing of 73, Calum Lloyd, the East performance coach and Sam Macneil, Scotland’s number one padel tennis male player from Dunfermline.

Dyvours’ success recognised major investment in facilities including the opening of two new indoor tennis courts and two covered padel tennis courts which has led to significant growth in membership at the club including 270 padel tennis members.

Rick Symington, Chair of the Grange Club, said: “It’s a fantastic honour to win this award. The new facilities have enabled us to start working with local schools to promote tennis as a sport. We are running a weekly free programme for Broughton High School

through our coaching team and increased pay-and-play opportunities for the local community.”

The University of Edinburgh was named University of the Year after a spell of success on and off the court. The university tennis club was praised for working closely with the city council to support the opening of revamped park courts in Edinburgh allowing students to enhance their skills while creating more opportunities for children.

Lilly Atkinson, President of the University of Edinburgh Tennis Club, said: “It’s great to win this award. The programme at Edinburgh has excelled in the last few years reaching 370 members with increased accessibility to tennis across the university. I would like to thank the rest of the committee and our coaching staff.”

Competition of the Year went to the East of Scotland Open, which attracted 350 players across 30 events, including for wheelchair players and those with learning disabilities. There were also padel tennis events and satellite competitions in parks.

Mark Gaffney, a director at East of Scotland tennis, said: “It feels brilliant to win and there is a whole host of people to thank. We have tried to create a very positive and inclusive environment for all, with disability events and satellite events to make sure the competition is inclusive of all standards where possible.”

Merchiston Castle School, meanwhile, was named School of the Year to recognise its work in developing six young players currently on the British performance pathway.

Simon Pender, Director of the Merchiston Tennis Academy, said: “It’s really nice to win this award, a real testament to all the work that we are doing at the school. I would love to thank Tennis Scotland, the players and our coaching team.”

In total, 22 awards were handed out and Blane Dodds, Chief Executive of Tennis Scotland, said: “We have an immense appreciation for all the volunteers, coaches and officials who give their time to supporting players, events and venues across Scotland and it was inspirational to hear the incredible stories behind all the finalists.”

Full list of winners

Volunteer of the Year: Lorn Shanks (Tennis Ayrshire)

Young Person of the Year: Cameron McPhee (Falkirk LTC)

Coach of the Year: Gary Whitton (Dalgety Bay Squash and Tennis Club)

Performance Coach of the Year: Callum Lloyd (East of Scotland)

Dunlop Club of the Year: Grange Dyvours LTC

Park Venue of the Year: Newlands Park Community Tennis Centre

University of the Year: University of Edinburgh

Tennis Opened Up: Russell Anderson Foundation

Official of the Year: Ben Anderson

Competition of the Year: East of Scotland Open

Lifetime Achievement: Patrick Leonard (Dumbarton TC)

International Player of the Year: Jacob Fearnley

Junior Player of the Year: Hephzibah Oluwadare

Senior Player of the Year: Ewen Lumsden

Senior Veteran Player of the Year: Marjory Love

Team of the Year: North of Scotland County Men

School of the Year: Merchiston Castle School

Padel Award: Sam Macneil and Karen Crawford

Special Recognition: Gill Milne, GB Queens Cup Team and Gordon Reid.