10:20am Thursday 29th October 2009
A LONG-time servant of York tennis has died. Peter Sutherland, a member of York Tennis Club and a former York and Yorkshire veterans’ doubles champion, passed away at St Leonard’s Hospice after a short illness. He was 62.
Sutherland, who was born in Hampshire, was educated at Poppleton Road School and a boarding school in Acaster Malbis.
He joined the Army, serving in the 30th Royal Signals Regiment at Blandford, where he rose to the rank of regimental sergeant major – one of his major tasks being to train a group which had guard duties at Buckingham Palace.
During his 25 years in the services, Sutherland played for the Army football and tennis representative teams. He left the force in 1988 and worked in the education administration section at North Yorkshire County Council.
Sutherland played football for Bishopthorpe in the York and District League and tennis at Heworth before moving to the York club at Clifton Park.
He won the Yorkshire veterans’ doubles title with John Linfoot in 2003 and was in the York team which won the county title in 2005, beating Hallamshire in the final.
He twice won the York veterans’ doubles title with Peter Witherwick and they also won the Barkston Ash open veterans doubles and Huddersfield doubles in the late 1990s.
Sutherland, who lived in Osbaldwick, leaves his wife Elinor, son Mark and daughter Zoe. The funeral is at York Crematorium tomorrow at 11.30am.
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