An Ecclesfield tennis club has beaten the odds to survive after “phenomenal” support from the public led to a burst of funding.
The £10,000 from Ecclesfield Parish Council was critical to meet the crowdfund target goal of £25,000 needed to ensure Thorncliffe Tennis Club would retain its £7,500 Sports England pledge.
The funding comes after the only club in Sheffield’s north was on the brink of collapse, unable to raise enough money in enough time to urgently resurface its courts.
Without this funding, the three outdoor courts would have been be unable to pass safety standards, and the club might have been forced to close.
Karen Lyon, fundraising manager for Thorncliffe Tennis Club, said: “When we started out with this I can tell you people really didn’t think it would succeed. It took us nine weeks but we did it.
“The public has been phenomenal. The support from local tennis clubs, the offers from companies helping us to resurface the courts, and of course the parish council have been incredible.”
Eric Smedley, 92, at Thorncliffe Tennis Club, Credit: Thorncliffe Tennis Club Facebook page.
