Mini Tennis (4 – 10 years old) - We are currently in the busiest term for Mini Tennis that we have ever had at the club. Mini Reds (8 and under) is really popular with all our groups at this level full. We also began a new initiative on Thursdays at 4-5pm where we have 15 players along with 2 coaches and 2 leaders and rotate the children around different work stations. This has also proved popular and worked out very well with lots of energy, activity and fun. The Mini Orange and Green groups are busy but I would like to get the development side of this programme busier next year.
Junior Tennis (10+) - All our junior squads are currently full. These players enjoy their tennis but we need to make sure they have more competitive opportunities. The reason for coaching is to give the players the skills they need to play matches and the challenge for the coaching team over the coming year will be to make this happen.
Adult - Both our Monday evening groups are full and with a waiting list. These groups have fed new members into the club with the required skills over the last 9 years. It is a fairly limited programme with only having 3 floodlit courts but in the winter season it is the only option available. We are looking into the possibility during the summer of running further adult coaching on a Thursday evening to help with new members who are not skilled enough to play happily alongside the established members. This could be used to encourage these new members to join if they wish to access Ladies Nights, Mens Nights, Club Nights and social events that require a certain standard and they need to improve first. It won’t however prevent people from joining the club if their playing standard is not that high as Townsend wants to be seen as an inclusive, forward thinking club whilst maintaining the playing environment of the club.
As a level 5 coach with 20 years experience I do feel it is a shame that more adults don’t take advantage of my skills. Having some simple goals that you gain through team coaching or individual tuition can really improve the level of your game and your enjoyment of it. At present I have no input into any of the adult teams with regards to advanced tactics and mindsets. If any captains of the Mens/Ladies teams have ideas or would like advice I would be really pleased if they would contact me as I am really keen to help.
Enjoy the winter season and see you on court!