Shenkman records breakthrough win over Taylor-Matthews on Day 1 of FLM Super League
Fahey's Forcers earn early bragging rights on back of solid performance by Woods-Casey
Day 1 of the 2025 FLM Super League saw upsets, tight finishes and a couple of blow-outs on Tuesday as the 16 best players in the UK took to the Queen’s Club for the high profile team event.
The Forcers got up to an excellent start on the back of John Woods-Casey, who completed a comfortable 9/3 win over Darren Long. The Melbourne pro was patient and consistent, absorbing Long’s forcing and grille play. On every mistake, Woods-Casey was able to counterpunch with some excellent finishes of his own.
Team captain Rob Fahey then sealed the bonus point for the Forcers by beating the local pro Bryn Sayers. Sayers was making his return to competitive tennis for the first time since the 2024 Champions Trophy having recovered from an operation on his hip. Sayers leant on his legendary high serve to make progress in the points, but was not as sure in his rallying play as his typical self. Meanwhile, Fahey was spry and nimble-footed, covering the court well and putting some devastatingly accurate forces past his opponent.
The Slayers recovered a point from the fixture in the doubles, as the Queen’s Club duo of Neil Mackenzie and Bertie Vallat gelled better than Claire Fahey and Craig Greenhalgh. Fahey was being bombarded at the back of the court, while Vallat sent a couple of missiles through Greenhalgh up at the net. It pushed Greenhalgh out of position for the rest of the match, with Fahey unable to compensate.
The evening match between the Henchmen and the Mavericks saw Nino Merola on his quest to defend his MVP crown against Lewis Williams. It was a cat and mouse battle, as Williams was using all the angles of the court to put Merola off his game, stretching and holding a lead in the one set match. Merola was resolute in response, never letting the set run away from him and putting in a solid stint of aggressive play to bring the match back to 7-all. At that point, the match became a lottery, with Williams successfully attacking a couple of key short chases to deny Merola the lead, before snatching victory for himself moments later.
Robert Shenkman then took to the court against his long time mentor Ben Taylor-Matthews in a matchup between the finalists from the previous edition. Shenkman had a point to prove, masterfully deflecting Taylor-Matthews’s increasingly rapid forces and turning the point to winning shotmaking in his own right. Shenkman was taking galleries at every opportunity, backing his retrieving from the service end to win him points. Taylor-Matthews became increasingly frustrated, thrashing the ball about as Shenkman was equal to the task. It took a long final game as Shenkman searched for the ultimate point, but before too long he had cemented his maiden victory against a current top 6 player.
The final doubles match of the evening had extra jepoardy with the bonus point for winning the fixture still on the line. Henry Henman and Vaughan Hamilton for the Mavericks quickly adapted to each other’s play, utilising Henman’s frantic movement around the front of the court and Hamilton’s excellent boasting and volleying from the back. Louis Gordon and James Medlow tried to bring some heat but could not make it stick, as the Mavericks moved to an easy win over the defending champions.
Match results:
Sayers’ Slayers lost to Fahey’s Forcers 1-2
Darren Long lost to John Woods-Casey 3/9
Bryn Sayers lost to Robert Fahey 3/9
Bertie Vallat & Neil Mackenzie def Claire Fahey & Craig Greenhalgh 9/2
Shenkman’s Henchmen lost to Matthews’ Mavericks 1-2
Nino Merola lost to Lewis Williams 7/9
Robert Shenkman def Ben Taylor-Matthews 9/2
Louis Gordon & James Medlow lost to Vaughan Hamilton & Henry Henman 2/9
Points table after day 1:
Fahey’s Forcers: 3 points (133%)
Matthew’s Mavericks: 3 points (111%)
Shenkman’s Henchmen: 1 point (90%)
Sayers’ Slayers: 1 point (75%)
