Top Tennis,Top Players,Top Coaches,Top Fun

Locally one of my aims was to revamp the squad system after 6 weeks I can say that the new format has met with outstanding success from players and parents.The above picture are a montage from our 10s and 12s squads that train on Monday afternoon. The training is the best on offer in South Canterbury headed by of course myself and our Team of coaches Tyler Begg(Canada) and Jeff West (Texas) and of course Tony Brosnahan the New Development officer for Tennis South Canterbury.There are social squads available in town but we operate serious training for juniors that want to improve and realize tennis is fun but requires a certain amount of discipline for success. Its great to see many of the new faces excel over these weeks and all participants are benefiting by truly professional coaching.

Not only do we work with the representative players but we also deliver one of the best schools tennis programs in New Zealand and have done so for the past five years. Below are pictures from today with Jeff and Tyler and the Kids from Cannington School working on the serve.

Out and About with the Tennis Team

A tennis match can be sometimes easier to predict than a days weather , the above pictures are just some of the places and events I have been too in the last couple of weeks.Its true that one can experience four seasons in one day on the court here in New Zealand.Yesterday I spent time at the South Canterbury Closed Hardcourt Championships and temperatures went from one extreme to the other, testing the competitors.Great to see so many enjoying the opportunity to improve and practice their skills they have learnt at coaching.What good coach would not want their players to experience an event such as this.Matches are a good indication where you are really at with your tennis.As a coach one sees many juniors capitulate in matches to players of the same ability or less as they have set an unrealistic goal and have too high of expectations of themselves.When they don't achieve in their mind its a total breakdown of head dropping, wrong shot selections and eventually leading to tears and a sense of failure.How do coaches and for that matter parents deal with this? As a coach one says lots of things that to any one but the person concerned will be logical and sound advice,...until the player accepts his own weaknesses and works on them to improve then all the talk under the sun will be of no use. One plays because you enjoy the game,its a challenge! you don't need to compete against your self and one must give more time to competing against the person at the other end.As an experienced coach I know maturity can overcome such a case, just like a tennis match the coach or the player should never give up in finding solutions and realize that sometimes it takes more time with certain players to see a clearer picture, if one thinks too hard or places too much concern it can become a catastrophe !It takes time and perseverance ...the best advice lower the expectations and don't place too much on the winning side of things, find out the reasons why you play the game and then that will be a start in the right direction.Parents, Coaches and players need to remember that tennis is a very disciplined sport that requires good technique and a strong mental resolve ,you are going to have your ups and downs at times... but hey isn't life like that? There are lessons to be learned from this game that throws up challenges just like life itself, if you continue to hide from this it catches up sooner rather than later.

South Canterbury produce Top Boy and Girl

South Canterbury boys dominated the Southern District Primary and Intermediate Schools Tennis Finals in Dunedin where the eight top juniors vied for places in the South Island finals.

South Canterbury was represented by Sam Lane, Jack Deeley, Adam Beck and George Tarbotton in the boys with Annabel Ellis, Charlotte Lamb, Amelia Race and Anna Cochrane making up the girls' team.

Lane confirmed his position as the top ranked boy in the Southern District by taking the title with a 6-3 6-4 win in the final over Paddy Ou from Otago.

He had earlier beaten Carlos Reid from Otago in his semifinal 6-4 6-3.

Beck and Tarbotton met in the consolation final with Beck taking a very tight match 6-7 6-1 11-9.

Deeley completed the clean sweep taking the plate final 9-3 from Mitchell Wilson from North Otago.

In the girls, Annabel Ellis completed the winning double for South Canterbury in taking the title with a 6-2 6-2 win over Laura Overton from Southland.

Ellis had progressed to the final with a 6-1 6-1 win over Jessie Stevenson from Otago. Lamb made the consolation final but went down 4-6 6-3 10-3 in a close match with Courtney O'Callaghan from Southland.

Lane and Ellis will form part of the Southern District team to take on Canterbury's top qualifiers to contest the South Island titles. (thanks Desmond)

All players are members of the South Canterbury rep training program headed by "the eye " .Players benefit from great coaching and realistic goals and approaches by the team, I always believe a coaches role is to give the correct pathway and sometimes one has to tell the players and parents some things that they do not necessarily want to hear, and that is a sign of a good coach ,its important to remain positive and most parents and juniors appreciate this.You cant beat experience and sometimes coaches that have never played at a high level can set impossible goals, and give players a game plan that their style of play cannot implement.

Sam Lane Makes New Zealand Team

Well Done to Sam Lane who as been recently named in the New Zealand 12s team to tour Australia In December.As coach its satisfying to know that a junior who puts in and gives 100% at coaching gets rewards,always ready to drill never complaining that the drill is too hard, Lane has improved immensely over the past 14 months and earned his selection with recent results in 12s indoor nationals and the recent Masters Series.Lane won the Southern primary schools tournament in Dunedin Yesterday.Annabel Ellis also made it a double by winning the girls event also.

Winner's All round

The above picture is most of the winning 12s team from South Canterbury that participated over the weekend in the annual quads competition in Dunedin.Five associations from the Southern region compete in a teams competition in various age groups.For many juniors in our team it was their first major tennis event outside local junior interclub.Some found the going tough at times but every one that played will be better off for the experience and this will enhance their improvement next time they step out on the court.The 12s recorded a huge win beating local hosts Otago in the final round to clinch the victory and stopping a clean sweep of age groups by Otago.Its been a huge accomplishment for Coaches and Committee to bring together a competitive team that starts from weekly Squad practice.

Tennis Exhibition a "Big Hit"

Last Sunday members of the Tennis South Canterbury training squads and parents were invited to an exhibition by new coaches Jeff West (Dallas, Texas) and Tyler Begg (Calgary ,Canada). Both Players put on a great display with Jeff edging out Tyler 6-2 in a hard fought encounter.The winner will play Head Coach Stephen Dries ( the eye) at a date to be set..........:). Squad members played matches throughout the afternoon and some decided places for quads in Dunedin this weekend.Newly appointed South Canterbury Development officer Tony Brosnahan was on hand to meet and greet the players and parents as well as cooking a great BBQ.At short notice is was great to see so many squad members attend.Coach Steve is very pleased how the new look squad is shaping up.

Lets Continue with the Same!

Geoff Pollard was re-elected Tennis Australia president yesterday, seeing off a challenge from ex-Australian Open boss Paul McNamee for the job.So I guess after 20 years of mediocre results, its an endorsement to carry on as usual.Except for Lleyton Hewitt and Pat Rafter Australia has little to show from the Pollard regime.Its intersting to note that both Hewitt and Rafter have called for change.Hewitt's mananger David Drysdale said the 28-year-old's push for change was based on what he believed was best for the sport.

"Lleyton's disappointed with the decision because he felt it was the ideal time for change," Drysdale told AAP.

"He hopes the decision has been made for all the right reasons which is for the betterment of Australian tennis, not due to little deals done with the states (who hold voting rights).

The vote was secret what does that tell you, come on Tennis Australia lets know who voted for who and just how close was the vote in the end.McNamee, who made a brief appearance at the Melbourne hotel where the meeting was being held prior to the result being publicly announced, said he wished Pollard well.

"I do believe that Australia needs to rebuild its status as a great tennis nation and, in order to do this, there are many ongoing issues that must be addressed," McNamee said in a statement.

Really theres administrators sitting on huge salary's making wrong decisions and implementing useless plans and its the players who are striving for some support and direction getting poorer by the day.....trying to fullfill their sporting dream that suffer. Cant wait for the next 20 years...............Not

The Moment of truth for Tennis Australia

The battle for the presidency of Tennis Australia between Paul McNamee and Geoff Pollard is coming to a head and will be decided next Monday.And in an article by the Sydney Morning Herald ,journalist Will Swanton had this to say "THE man responsible for grooming the next generation of Australian champions can barely have a rally. But does it matter?"''He could hardly feed you balls,'' a source said. ''He can't hit with anyone. He does a lot of reading on the game, and he loves it. But he can't play, no.''

Tiley's lack of playing prowess might be inconsequential. But with Australian tennis in such decline and player development constantly under the microscope, it's worth a mention because he has the gig ahead of a flock of former touring professionals who want to be involved. His positions of the Australian Open director and player development manager will come under review if McNamee takes office after the TA election on Monday. Intersting times and I am sure Tennis New Zealand are watching
very closely the result of Monday's vote.
The link to the article from SMH is here

All systems Go

Geraldine Primary was one of the first schools to hit the court in the TSC schools program.44 keen kids were shown skills by The Team of coaches Consisting My self, Jeff West and Tyler Begg.An early morning start was the order of the day this morning with the Elite training mornings kicking off.This program is fully supported and funded by TSC and one of the best initiatives for juniors who are looking to put in more effort with their tennis.Some of the juniors are pictured below with coaches.
Pictured with the coaches are Sam Lane, Ryan Ammar, Geraldine Prisk and Tom Deeley.Jeff West( Texas) and Tyler Begg (Canada) are coaches working with us over the summer and they had a chance to visit Oamaru at the weekend and below is not Japan but somewhere in the gardens of Oamaru, New Zealand.Tyler(right) Jeff(left).They were also given a lesson in ten pin bowling with the "eye" coming out on top in a little coaches competition in Oamaru yesterday.

And yet another serve for Tennis Australia

It just doesn't sit right, an Australian Open on a US-owned surface. Wimbledon has its English grass. The French Open its red clay. The US Open has an American hardcourt … and so does the Australian Open? One of the TA big wigs claimed before the 2007 tournament that Roger Federer had endorsed the move. Only for the world No.1 to arrive at Tullamarine Airport, screw up his face and say he'd never played on it.
Read the full article here

Storm Clouds Brewing for Tennis Australia

Tennis New Zealand took a hammering a few weeks ago and now across the ditch their counterparts at Tennis Australia have storm clouds forming.As Tennis Australia prepares to reveal a loss of close to $7 million for the past financial year and at a time when just two Australian women and two men are inside the top 100 in the respective world rankings, Pollard, 65, is facing the first test to his leadership since being elected in 1989.Paul McNamee's nomination by Tennis West has caused unease at Melbourne Park, where he served as Australian Open tournament director and then chief executive for 12 years until 2006. His relationship with several key Tennis Australia figures remains cool.Now also LLEYTON Hewitt, in a unambiguous attack on chief executive Steve Wood and player development director Craig Tiley, Hewitt said the changing of the guard five years ago had failed.

"In my opinion tennis in Australia and the way it is being administered needs addressing, as we are falling behind many other nations in the world, as well as other sports in our own country," Hewitt said.

"Five years ago there was a change of personnel and many hoped things may get better, however talking with other players, former players and many people who have been involved in tennis for a long time, it sounds like it is getting worse. Read that story at this LinkAnd this in the Australian who says "Every summer we receive emails, mostly of despair, from parents lamenting the poor coaching opportunities for their children. Coaches write that they feel disenfranchised by a system that takes talented young players and impounds them into a centralised, unilateral coaching model. Many think that unless their child is a prodigy then the coaching system is not accessible to them" LINK The trouble is that when National Body's get it wrong its the juniors of today that suffer...........remember Time waits for no one , especially tennis players.- the eye.

Look whats coming for Easter Next Year!!!

Serena Williams has posed nude for this month’s special Body issue of ESPN Magazine. While fans are loving the open stance of the tennis ace, the International Tennis Federation is not amused. The ITA is contemplating stripping the world no. 1 of her berth in the 2010 Australian Open. Further, she can be banned and fined $500,000. Just a month ago, Serena was fined $10,000 for threatening a line judge at the US Open.

Out and about in South Canterbury NZ

Over the past two weeks we have been busy with various groups in South Canterbury.Above are keen juniors from Geraldine after a fun session. Below are girls just wanting to have fun at Timaru Girls High after one of our visits.

Great Conditions For South Canterbury Spring Open Junior Tennis Tournament

Above Henry Race ( Left) and Tom Deeley( Right) taking time to refill their drink bottle during play in the Junior Tournament.You can find results and draws at this link Special mention to all South Canterbury Juniors participation all receiving lots of tennis on Day 1 with impressive results.I kept a watch on all players but special mention to Daniel Kelliher, George Tarbotton,Eli Palmer and Duncan Rollinson all gaining valuable experience from their matches.Below is a short video of todays highlights.