In the men’s competition, Cashmere has been a class act all season and meets rivals Elmwood, who have been affected by player availability in the post-Christmas competition.
The other semi-final is between Bishopdale and Burnside Park, teams of young players, many of whom have played college tennis in the United States.
Cashmere will go into its semi-final as favourites given its dominance in the round-robin matches, but much will depend on who of the many players on Elmwood’s books takes the court.
Cashmere captain Tim Meredith said his team is looking forward to playing Elmwood in front of a home crowd.
"We haven’t played them in semi-final or final on our courts for some time.
"We always enjoy our matches against them and recognise it will be 50-50 given the squad of amazing players they can call on," he said.
Meredith is playing with his brothers Tim and Matt, and Lucas Evans who was the top singles player for the Christ’s College team that won this week’s South Island secondary schools championships at Wilding Park.
Harry Weeds, who is also an outstanding golfer, makes a timely return to tennis this week as Cashmere’s other regular, Liam Barrett is unavailable.
Elmwood manager Ashley Forbes said his club will field a very competitive team for the play-offs.
Elmwood only had three singles players last week against Burnside Park, including Tennis Canterbury’s general manager Bevan Johns, Lawrence Darling and James Spence.
They put up a good fight, but when play was abandoned late afternoon due to rain, Burnside Park won as it was leading 3-2.
Forbes said the good news is both Lawrence and Elliott Darling are available this week.
Bishopdale can be proud of its season during which its form has improved each week.
Burnside Park will be tough competition as coach Remi Feneon was back in the team last week and EJ Gonzaga, the Canterbury secondary schools’ champion, is in form.
In the women’s competition, Elmwood is 17 points clear of its nearest rival, Te Kura Hagley.
Both teams are stacked with experienced players who have competed at national level.
Elmwood will play at home against the young Bishopdale team, which had to default last week as most of its players were involved in the secondary schools’ teams event.
Elmwood has the formidable Abby Mason and Louise Oxnevad as its top players, and possibly mid-Canterbury’s Holly-Jayne Feutz, the Canterbury secondary schools’ champion.
Te Kura Hagley plays Cashmere in the other semi-final. Ruby Young, Cashmere’s number one and its trump card, could face Te Kura Hagley’s captain Beth Williamson.
Others in the strong Te Kura Hagley line-up include Michele Kelsen, Petra Belzova, Bailee Wilson and Adele Orangi.
- The finals will be held on March 9.
By Diane Keenan
