London reigned supreme on the first day of the Inter-Regional Finals, winning four of the six team titles on offer, including a clean sweep of the girls’ events.

In a dramatic day at WV Active Wolverhampton, East and South East also won boys’ titles, the latter denying London a fifth title.

Tomorrow sees attention turn to the singles – but it is not only about individual glory, as the overall best performing team across the weekend will take the Tonge Trophy.

All photos by Michael Loveder – click here to see more on our Flickr page.

Girls

U11 final: London 3 North East 2

Dorian Cheung took first blood for the North East, beating Evie Turner- Samuels 3-0 (11-7, 11-4, 11-7), but Zoe Gonpot restored parity in three (6, 12, 8) against Harriet Goodwin.

The pivotal doubles went the way of London, with Astrid Chaingneau joining Turner-Samuels in beating Cheung & Goodwin 3-1 (7-11, 11-7, 12-10, 11-5). Turner-Samuels then clinched the all-important third point by defeating Goodwin 7, 6, 6. Cheung, however, had the last word as she won her second individual match, coming from 2-0 and saving match points in the third to beat Gonpot 3-2 (8-11, 6-11, 12-10, 11-9, 11-7).

The final was between the top two in a round-robin group, and it had been the same scoreline when the two teams met the first time as London finished top and North East second.

The other two regions in the group were North West and East Midlands, with EM represented by one player, Gretchen Hill. Despite effectively starting every match 3-0 down, she fought hard every time, notably against Darcy Horabin of North West, who won 12-10, 11-5, 15-13.

U13 Final: London 5 South East 0

London duo Isabella Turner-Samuels and Daphne Beebe were too strong for South East pair Calina Dawson and Kate Smith, as Turner-Samuels emulated her younger sister Evie in winning gold.

Turner-Samuels beat Dawson 3-0 (8, 5, 12) in the first match and Beebe then defeated Smith in four (11-7, 9-11, 11-6, 11-9), and it was all over when the Londoners took the doubles 3-1 (11-4, 11-6, 10-12, 11-7) despite missing match points in the third.

Dawson came close to getting South East on the board, but ultimately was defeated 3-2 (5-11, 14-12, 11-6, 5-11, 11-9) by Beebe, and Turner-Samuels completed the clean sweep with a 3-0 (6, 3, 10) win over Smith.

South East had won their two matches in Group 1 5-0, though Kate Smith had to battle from 2-1 down to beat Ava Manders (NE) 3-2 (11-6, 8-11, 10-12, 11-8, 11-8). It was also a pair of 5-0 victories for London in Group 2.

U15 Final: London 3 Yorkshire 2

The destination of the final trophy of the day hung in the balance until the very end, but it was London who completed their fourth triumph in a match which they led 1-0, trailed 2-1 and eventually won 3-2 as four of the five ties went to a deciding game.

Lianna Shilani Tousi was the difference as she won two matches – including the first of the day as she beat Mia Longman 3-2 (11-7, 6-11, 13-11, 6-11, 11-6), from 4-0 down in the decider.

Tilly Simms levelled for Yorkshire as she overcame Parmis Ahsani 3-2 (12-10, 10-12, 11-3, 6-11, 11-7), and she and Longman then took the doubles 3-1 (11-9, 13-15, 11-6, 11-7).

Ahsani levelled by sinking Longman 3-2 (11-8, 7-11, 11-7, 10-12, 11-8) and it was left to Shilani Tousi to edge out Simms 3-2 (11-7, 10-12, 11-4, 12-14, 11-7) to seal the title.

London had come through Group 2 as winners, but were threatened by East Midlands in their final match. It stood at 1-1 after the first two singles, but London won the doubles 15-13 in a decider (having trailed 2-1) and went on to win the tie 4-1 overall.

Earlier in the group, East Midlands beat East 3-2, despite Eva Eccles won two for East, beating Melissa Withers and Millie Noble, while East got a 3-2 win of their own over North East as Samantha Rupapa beat Isabella Murphy in the deciding match. Again Eccles won both her singles.

In Group 1, Yorkshire’s closest match was against North West as, who they beat 4-1 but needed to come from 2-0 down in two matches – Longman & Simms recovering to win the doubles (5-11, 6-11, 11-3, 11-4, 11-5) against Jessica Morris & Isabella Hamer, and Simms beating Morris in the final match (6-11, 9-11, 11-9, 11-7, 11-0).

Boys

Under-11 final: London 3 East 2

London prevailed in dramatic circumstances as East’s Nathan Lindsay had to retire in the final match, while trailing 2-1 to Parsia Ahsani.

Wilson Zheng had struck first for East, defeating Ahsani 3-0 (11-8, 11-6, 11-7), but Zaid Aldilimi levelled with a 3-0 (7, 0, 7) win over Lindsay.

The doubles was a superb match as the London pair finally took their fourth match point to seal it 3-2 (11-9, 11-9, 3-11, 6-11, 12-10), but Zheng’s 3-1 (10-12, 11-3, 11-6, 11-1) win over Aldilimi set up a grand finish.

Sadly for the East, Lindsay could not continue after the third game, with Ahsani leading 11-7, 9-11, 11-5.

In the groups, East picked up two 4-1 victories, although in the match against South, the beaten side’s point was a superb 3-2 win for Rohan Bhide against Lindsay (11-8, 9-11, 14-12, 12-14, 11-2).

East also beat SE 4-1, though Zheng had to play well to beat Ryan Goodier 3-2 (13-15, 11-4, 11-8, 7-11, 11-8) in the crucial fourth match. Oscar Wan then came from 2-1 down to beat Yaqub Ahmed-Ali in the final match.

In Group 2, London won all three matches, while the other three sides won one each.

North West beat Yorkshire 3-2 as Rowan Kumar beat Daniel Chai 3-2 (5-11, 11-4, 11-9, 10-12, 13-11) in the decider. NW earlier won the doubles 14-12 in the fifth.

Yorkshire ended on a high with a thrilling 4-1 victory over South West. It was 1-1 after the opening two singles, but Yorkshire went in front for the second time by winning the doubles in five.

The last two singles both went to five and were as close as you like – Harry Tomlinson beat Toby Haworth 3-2 (11-9, 11-4, 5-11, 9-11, 15-13) and Chai then overcame William Richards 3-2 (13-15, 4-11, 11-8, 15-13, 11-9).

Under-13 final: South East 3 London 2

South East halted London’s juggernaut in its tracks by defeating them 3-2, with two victories for Callem Pace and one for Dan Caroe.

Pace put the first point on the board with a 3-1 (11-7, 12-10, 9-11, 11-5) victory over Phil Snell, and it was 2-0 when Caroe overcame Albert Hyseni 3-0 (11-3, 11-1, 11-4).

London hit back to take the doubles 3-2 (11-8, 10-12, 9-11, 11-5, 11-8) and keep the tie alive, but Pace’s 3-0 (13-11, 11-3, 11-7) clinched it for South East. Snell did have the satisfaction of coming from 2-0 down to defeat Caroe 3-2 (8-11, 2-11, 12-10, 11-6, 11-9) to make the final scoreline 3-2.

In the group stage, London edged top spot as they defeated North West 3-2 in the final match. Sam Davies struck first for NW against Sultan Adeleke, but Oliver Tong beat Ben Keeley in five games to level and Hyseni & Snell won the doubles for London.

Davies won his second match, defeating Tong, but Adeleke saw London through with a superb 3-2 (11-5, 12-10, 7-11, 7-11, 11-7) victory over Keeley.

In the other group, South East had three 4-1 wins and a 5-0 whitewash. The closest match saw East defeat East Midlands 3-2 with the aid of two five-setters – Charles Donald beat Winston Hill 11-8, 8-11, 8-11, 14-12, 12-10 and Donald & Elliott Lugg won the doubles 11-8 in the fifth against Hill & Micah Smith.

Under-15 final: East 4 North East 1

The East pair of James Donald and Alexander Graham held off a spirited North East challenge to take the title.

Donald started with a 3-1 (11-7, 11-8, 8-11, 11-7) victory over Tom Wardell and Graham then went the distance with Zac Greenhough before coming through 3-2 (8-11, 11-9, 11-4, 7-11, 11-8).

The doubles saw a fine comeback by North East’s pairing of Wardell & Anand Raviprakash from 2-0 down to level, but the East pair shaded the decider to win 3-2 (11-7, 14-12, 5-11, 5-11, 11-9) and make the outcome mathematically certain.

Graham made it 4-0 by defeating Wardell in 3-1 (12-10, 5-11, 12-10, 11-8), but Greenhough put North East on the board by beating Donald, also in four (8-11, 11-6, 12-10, 11-6).

In the groups, North East won all three matches 5-0 but it was not all as one-sided as it seems. Against South, they needed three five-setters – Wardell versus Theo Kniep, the doubles (Wardell & Zac against Kniep & Matt Ley) and Raviprakash versus Kniep.

North East also needed to dig deep in a couple of matches against London – the doubles went to 11-9 in the decider, while Wardell defeated Teagan Khazal 11-3, 6-11, 11-9, 16-18, 12-10. In their final victory, over East Midlands, Greenhough had to battle past Joel Smith 3-2 (11-2, 10-12, 11-4, 10-12, 13-11) in the last match of the tie.

East won all four of their group matches, including 4-1 against South East, in which they were set on their way by a remarkable 3-2 (19-17, 9-11, 11-7, 7-11, 12-10) victory for Donald over Harvey Sandwell.

Group results

Under-11 Girls
b North East 5 East Midlands 0; London 5 North West 0; London 3 North East 2; North West 5 East Midlands 0; London 5 East Midlands 0; North East 5 North West 0
Under-11 Boys
Group 1: East 4 South 1; South East 4 South 1; East 4 South East 1
Group 2: London 5 Yorkshire 0; South West 5 North West 0; London 4 South West 1; North West 3 Yorkshire 2; London 5 North West 0; Yorkshire 4 South West 1
Under-13 Girls
Group 1: South East 5 North West 0; North East 4 North West 1; South East 5 North East 0
Group 2: East Midlands 5 South 0; London 5 South 0; London 5 East Midlands 0
Under-13 Boys
Group 1: South East 4 Yorkshire 1; East 5 South West 0; South East 4 South West 1; East 3 East Midlands 2; East Midlands 5 South West 0; Yorkshire 5 East 0; Yorkshire 4 South West 1; South East 4 East Midlands 1; East Midlands 4 Yorkshire 1; South East 5 East 0
Group 2: London 4 South 1; North West 5 North East 0; London 3 North East 2; North West 5 South 0; South 3 North East 2; London 3 North West 2
Under-15 Girls
Group 1: South East 5 South West 0; Yorkshire 4 North West 1; South East 4 North West 1; Yorkshire 5 South West 0; Yorkshire 5 South East 0; North West 5 South West 0
Group 2: London 5 North East 0; East Midlands 3 East 2; East Midlands 5 North East 0; London 4 East 1; East 3 North East 2; London 4 East Midlands 1
Under-15 Boys
Group 1: East 5 Yorkshire 0; North West 5 South West 0; East 5 South West 0; South East 3 North West 2; North West 4 Yorkshire 1; South East 5 South West 0; Yorkshire 4 South West 1; East 4 South East 1; East 5 North West 0; South East 4 Yorkshire 1
Group 2: East Midlands 3 London 2; North East 5 South 0; East Midlands 3 South 2; North East 5 London 0; London 5 South 0; North East 5 East Midlands 0

Comebacks

The following came from 2-0 down to record 3-2 victories:

U15G: Mia Longman & Tilly Simms (Y) bt Jessica Morris & Isabella Hamer (NW) 3-1 (5-11, 6-11, 11-3, 11-4, 11-5)
U15G: Tilly Simms (Y) bt Jessica Morris (NW) 3-2 (6-11, 9-11, 11-9, 11-7, 11-0)
U15G: Caron Charles (SE) v Jessica Morris (NW) 3-2 (8-11, 5-11, 12-10, 11-9, 11-4)
U15B: Joseph Hadley (SW) bt Louis Fell (Y) 3-2 (8-11, 1-11, 11-9, 11-9, 12-10)
U11B: Daniel Chai (Y) bt William Richards (SW) 3-2 (13-15, 4-11, 11-8, 15-13, 11-9)
U11G: Dorian Cheung (NE) bt Zoe Gonpot (L) 3-2 (8-11, 6-11, 12-10, 11-9, 11-7)
U13B: Phil Snell (L) bt Dan Caroe (SE) 3-2 (8-11, 2-11, 12-10, 11-6, 11-9)