The pundits were proved wrong when Masterton scored a 7-2 win over Gladstone in the final of the Wairarapa Tennis Association's Gawith Shield regional one competition at the Masterton Tennis Centre on Saturday.
All the talk beforehand suggested a close contest with the end result going right to the wire but, as it happened, Masterton were comfortable victors, winning four of the six singles matches and all three of the doubles.
The men's singles saw Luke Atkinson, Chad Parsons and Duncan Oakley all register straight set victories for Masterton with Gladstone's sole success there coming from Angus Preston, also in straight sets.
In the women's singles it was one win apiece, with Georgia Atkinson doing the business for Masterton and Sandra McNab likewise for Gladstone. The talented Atkinson did not, however, have things all her own way against Zoe Schofield with the latter taking the first set 7-6 before Atkinson struck back to win the next two 7-5, 6-2.
The men's doubles produced a couple of close-fought three setters with Masterton winning them both. In each case the third set was a thriller, Atkinson and Bunny taking theirs 7-5 and Parsons and Oakley theirs at 7-6. In the women's doubles Masterton's Atkinson and Warren were more dominant, winning in straight sets.