The Hospital Cup Tournament is a charity event to raise funds for the League of Friends of Saffron Walden Community Hospital.  Nine local clubs take part in the event, which comprises singles (ladies and men’s) and doubles (ladies, men’s and mixed) competitions.  The event is run on a knockout basis throughout the summer, with matches being best of three sets.  Each round has a four-five week playing window. 

This year The Grove LTC has kindly offered to run the tournament and to host the Finals Day, which will be on Saturday 21st September 2019.  There is no playing standard for the event, although the general expectation is for players to have competitive match experience.  If you are not sure about the playing standard, please speak to your Club representative.  If you would like to enter any of the events, please sign up on the relevant sheet. Entries must be submitted by Friday 12th April. 

Entrants must be current members of their Club at the time of entry and Finals Day and you must be available on Finals Day.  Please note that if you play in the top division of a county league or for your county, you are not eligible to enter.

If you have any queries about the event, please contact Tracy Warren.

Entry fees are £5 per singles entry and £10 per doubles entry. 

Entry forms can be downloaded by clicking here: 

Hospital Cup Singles

Hospital Cup Doubles

 

Hospital Cup Tournament Rules 2019

All players must be fully paid members of the participating club they are representing and can only represent one Club.

Players should not enter the tournament if they are not available on Finals Day, which is Saturday 21st September 2019.

Each match shall consist of three sets, the first two being tie-break sets and the third a long set.

It is the responsibility of both players/pairs in the draw to contact their opponents to arrange their match. The top player/pair has the home advantage. If by the play by date this has not happened, one player/pair will be drawn from a hat by the Tournament Secretary to proceed to the next round.

Each participating club must nominate a contact for the competition (the Club Representative).

It is the responsibility of the winning player or pair to notify their Club Representative of the result of their match within 48 hours of its completion and of both players or pairs to ensure that the result is entered on their own club master draw sheet, which should be displayed in their clubhouse. Club Representatives are responsible for entering the results of their players’ matches on the website as soon as possible after notification.

Players/pairs having difficulty in arranging matches for any reason should notify the Tournament Secretary at least three days before the deadline of any relevant round.

If a player turns up more than 20 minutes late for a match, the opposition may claim one set, if they wish.

It is the responsibility of the home player/pair/club to supply NEW balls for the match.

In any dispute, the decision of the Tournament Committee shall be final.

A player is eligible if they do not currently play in the top division of any county league and they are not aware that they will be playing in the top division of any county league before Finals Day.  If however a player subsequently plays in the top division of any county league after the closing date for entries and before Finals Day, they will become ineligible, subject to the decision of the committee.

In the event of any finalist(s) not playing their final on Finals Day for any reason other than bad weather, the title and trophy will be awarded to the other finalist(s).

The Order of Play on Finals Day will be the Men’s and Ladies’ Singles followed by the Men’s and Ladies’ Doubles, and then the Mixed Doubles final. Any changes in the Order of Play will be at the discretion of the Tournament Committee.

 

Hospital Cup Tournament - Background

Many players take part in the Hospital Cup Tournament without knowing much about the Charity or the history behind the tournament. The Committee hopes that players will find this information sheet useful and it will help to attract new players into the tournament.

The tournament dates back to the 1940’s and the trophies are something to behold! All proceeds from the Hospital Cup Tournament go to:

THE LEAGUE OF FRIENDS OF SAFFRON WALDEN COMMUNITY HOSPITAL (Radwinter Road)

Initially the Hospital Cup Tournament was set up to raise funds for the Saffron Walden & District Charitable Welfare Association. This association was founded as a consequence of the absorbing of the town’s voluntary General Hospital into the newly formed National Health Service in 1948. At this time, the Hospital’s trust funds were retained, and formed the initial investment capital of the Association. This was given the title ‘Saffron Walden and District Hospitals Trust Fund Association’. The title was later amended from ‘Hospital Trust Fund’ to ‘Charitable Welfare’ to reflect more appropriately its objectives and activities.

In 2008 this association was wound up and the League of Friends became the focus for fundraising for the Hospital Cup. Avocet Ward at the Community Hospital was recently built, and the League of Friends has been heavily involved in the fundraising for the development and equipping of this facility.

This rehabilitation unit is a facility within the hospital that provides services such as physiotherapy and occupational therapy. These services enhance the patients’ stay within the hospital and potentially enable the patient to return home earlier than they would normally have done.

The new facilities are suitable to provide patients with intensive therapy and with dedicated facilities such as a bathroom, kitchen, etc. which assist patients in coping with daily life before they return home.

The League of Friends continues to support this facility and the Community Hospital in general. All monies raised by our tournament will therefore benefit all future patients.