4 out of our 7 teams collected the win (including the grade 12 team, their first win for the season). 2 weeks left of the home and away season, before finals.

Entries are now open for the 2025 Victorian Jewish Tennis Championships (Seniors) (VJTC)!

Click here for more information: https://maccabi.com.au/jewish-tennis-champs.

Entries close on Sunday 24 August 2025

For any queries, please contact Joel on 0409 563 696.

And the Gold Logie for Modelling 🦵goes to...Jordan Jaffe (some say he should spend more time playing tennis rather than modelling based on this week's result...)

After the VJTC: we will be hosting the Interstate Challenge against NSW. Dates for the doubles will be weekend September 20 and 21. To play: please speak to Adam Needleman for further details.

Tennis Victoria Winter Pennant

Grade 5 Section 3 Maccabi 0-1-31 defeated by Harkaway 6-7-55

Jordan Jaffe/ Marty Schwarz 6-4 6-7 6-10
Gilad Nagar/ Steven Kleytman 1-6 3-6
Jordan Jaffe 2-8
Marty Schwarz 5-8
Gilad Nagar 3-8
Steven Kleytman 5-8

Coming up against a very young opposition, we knew it wasn’t going to be an easy day and we were right. In doubles, Jordan and Marty came really close after winning the first set 6-4, but lost the 2nd in a tiebreak and the 3rd in a super. Whilst Gilad and Steve couldn’t get going, and went down straight sets.

In singles, Jordan was playing his first match in 5 weeks, and although he gave it his all, his lack of match fitness and quality of opposition, resulted in a 8-2 loss. Marty, who is in excellent form, came against a future star - a 13 year old who will continue to improve week in, week out. Unfortunately Marty’s opponent was too good for him today, going down 8-5. Similarly to the doubles, Gilad who only got back a week ago, was not able to hit his absolute best, going down 8-3. While, Steve had his chances but unfortunately wasn’t able to take them, going down 8-5 against a solid opponent.

 

Definitely not the result we wanted or needed. With 2 weeks to go, next week is looking like a must win against the top team to guarantee finals

- Jordan Jaffe

Grade 7 Section 4 Maccabi 4-6-50 defeated Mentone 2-2-22

Rob Minc/ Geoff Rosenberger 6-2 6-0
Steven Gostin/ Jan Tenenberg 6-2 6-1
Rob Minc 6-8
Geoff Rosenberger 4-8
Steven Gostin 8-1
Jan Tenenberg 8-0

Easy win at home solidifies our spot in the top 2, an opposition scoreline worthy of a Richie Benaud salute!

 

Both doubles were won in a cantor. Rob and Geoff losing 2 games against a pair that has yet to lose a doubles match all season!

Steve and Jan hardly raising a sweat losing just 3 games as well.

 

To the singles and it was a reversal for both Rob and Geoff. Both having shockers!!! Rob almost turning it around though, whilst Geoff not even close. 

Jan and Steve seemed do everything in tandem today, starting and finishing off their opponents in record time. Although Jan still had time to whinge about something. A flawless display by both players showcasing the depth in our team.

2 rounds to play and a home final beckons of we continue this good form.

- Geoff Rosenberger

Grade 8 Section 3 Maccabi 6-7-51 defeated East Malvern 0-1-23

Luka Federman/ Steve Bendel 6-3 6-2
Daniel Henquin/ Darion Pohl 6-1 1-6 12-10
Luka Federman 8-0 (3-0 when opponent retired)
Steve Bendel 8-5
Daniel Henquin 8-1
Darion Pohl 8-5

Glimpsed the future of the club with young Luka Federman joining Gen X to convincingly defeat East Malvern

Solid win with contributions from each player (could’ve all been finished by 4 o’clock just like the Section 7 boys if Darion Pohl and his opposition hadn’t decided to play last and play a slugfest)

Nice sunny day played in good spirits only marred by Robert Minc’s spasmodic bellows wafting downwind from Court 1 and the local football team singing Grand Old Flag (never quite understood why grown men have the urge to embrace and have a joint sing-a-long after a game - maybe Joel Rabinov can shed some light on this unique phenomenon)

Hopefully we see a lot more of Luka. The young man was 3-0 up before his injured opponent waved the white flag in distress. He had had enough and wanted no more

Daniel was miserly in his defeat of a leftie who possessed one of the most unusual forehand grips we have seen

Darion was never gonna lose his match. At 5 each and with the sun setting in the horizon he finally decided enough was enough and closed it out

- Adam Needleman

Grade 8 Section 3 Maccabi 1-3-39 defeated by BLTC 5-5-51

Nathan Rapoport/ Zvi Schweitzer 6-3 3-6 8-10
Jay Landau/ Charlie Landau 6-4 7-6
Jay Landau 5-8
Nathan Rapoport 6-8
Charlie Landau 6-8
Zvi Schweitzer 0-8

Against a familiar foe (BLTC, who have been our bogey side over the years), we were competitive in the doubles against hard hitting opponents.

Nathan and Zvi lost a tight one 6-3, 3-6, 8-10.

Jay and Charlie played well to earn a straight sets win 6-4, 7-6.

Unfortunately from there: lost close singles matches, Jay 5-8, Nathan 6-8 and Charlie 6-8 (just a shame he gave his opponent a 1-5 head start, and had chances at 6-7 but couldn't capitalise).

Overall: Not our season. We are at the level, however just losing 50:50 points and matches. Also down on confidence.  

 

 - Joel Rabinov

Grade 10 Section 4 Maccabi 1-1-27 defeated by Black Rock 5-7-55

Daniel Goodrich/ Ben Pollak 5-7 0-6
Henry Orner/ Sebastian Raboy 3-6 2-6
Henry Orner 3-8
Daniel Goodrich 5-8
Ben Pollak 1-8
Sebastian Raboy 8-6

The Maccabi boys travelled to the scenic coastal courts of Black Rock for Round 12 of the Winter Comp – a challenging away fixture played on the slower, sliding en-tout-cas surface. The hosts, Black Rock, fielded their strongest line-up of the season from a pool of nine players, a sign they were treating this encounter very seriously. Doubles Rubbers:

Our No. 1 pairing, Daniel Goodrich and Ben Pollak, faced a formidable duo in Michael Kernahan and Max Loosschilder. After a sluggish start, Daniel and Ben fought back impressively in the first set, clawing their way into contention but eventually falling short, 5-7. Unfortunately, the second set was a different story, with the Maccabi pair unable to find their rhythm, going down 0-6. Ben later reflected, “We were in a really tight first set and although started slow, we came back to be in the match. But the second set was not like the first, going down fairly convincingly.”

Court 2 saw Sebastian Raboy and Henry Orner take on the Desmond brothers, Joseph and Luke. Despite moments of sharp net play and enthusiastic baseline exchanges, the Black Rock pair proved too polished, defeating our boys 6-3, 6-2. Henry, still battling illness, commented, “Was good to be back and playing even though a bit sick. Doubles match was fun but I have to work on communication and coming across at the net.” 
 

Up first in singles at No. 1, Henry Orner gave everything against the top-seeded Jack James but went down 3-8. Exhausted yet positive, Henry said, “My legs were tired due to sickness but I still put up a fight against a tough opponent and had fun.”

At No. 2, Daniel Goodrich faced the in-form Max Loosschilder. Trailing 2-6 and struggling with a sore lower back, Daniel displayed real grit, pulling back a few games with some clever, creative tennis — mixing slices, drop shots, and angles to disrupt his opponent. Ultimately, Max proved too consistent, and Daniel lost 5-8. “Max was too good today and dominated my short returns,” Daniel admitted. 
 

In Singles No. 3, Ben Pollak ran into a red-hot Joseph Desmond. Though he hit some crisp winners and had early chances to keep it close, he couldn't string enough points together to stay in the contest, falling 1-8. “I had chances to get to 2-2 and was hitting some nice shots, but I just couldn’t find the consistency to threaten,” Ben shared.

Then came the match of the day.

With the team already down 0-5, Sebastian Raboy stepped onto court as our No. 4 determined to salvage a point — and he did just that. In a thrilling battle that went with serve until the final change, Sebastian broke at the crucial moment and held his nerve to close out an exciting 8-6 victory against Luke Desmond. A huge effort that showed the spirit and fight that defines this Maccabi team.

- Ash Raboy

Grade 11 Section 2 Maccabi 3-4-44 defeated Burwood 3-4-43

Jesse Stowe-Lindner/ Jonah Stowe-Lindner 6-3 6-2
Aden Minaker/ Miguel Donnenfeld 5-7 7-5 10-4
Jesse Stowe-Lindner 5-8
Aden Minaker 5-8
Jonah Stowe- Lindner 8-2
Miguel Donnenfeld 2-8

Grade 12 Section 3 Maccabi 3-4-35 defeated Burwood 3-4-31

Daniel Brami/ David Cropman 2-6 0-6
Stephen Gorenstein/ David Cropman 6-0 6-0 (Walkover)
Daniel Brami 8-0 (Walkover)
Stephen Gorenstein 8-3
Paul Kovacs 3-8
Evgeni Grishin 2-8

Disappointingly, Burwood were short a player, forfeiting both a singles and a doubles match. This marked Maccabi Grade 12’s first win for the season, even though the final result ended up being a little too close for comfort.

Dan and David struggled against a solid and consistent pair, never quite finding their rhythm. The opposition kept the pressure on from the first game, and they were unable to shift momentum, going down 2-6, 0-6.

In a must-win singles match, Stephen started strongly against a fast-paced opponent whose style suited Stephen’s strengths. Stephen took control early with aggressive play and clever court coverage. Although his opponent mounted a brief comeback with some strong serving, it wasn’t enough as Stephen remained composed to close it out 8-3 and clinch the overall team win.

Paul faced a relentless opponent who gave very little away in unforced errors. There were some tightly contested games, but Paul’s opponent held firm in the key moments, especially under pressure. Paul eventually went down 3-8. This was Paul’s last match for the season, and we thank him for his efforts—we look forward to his return in the summer.

Evgeni came up against a polished opponent who was simply too strong on the day. Despite engaging in some fantastic rallies, Evgeni couldn’t quite match the consistency of his opponent, ultimately going down 2-8. A great effort nonetheless.

 -  Daniel Brami