Serving up an ace future for Scots tennis talent

Published on Friday 12 September 2008 22:58

FEW people who know their tennis would have bet against Calum MacGeoch winning a men's title in his beloved sport. Fewer would have considered his goal achievable so soon.

Two weeks ago, as his hero, Andy Murray, smashed his way through to the business end of the US Open, MacGeoch was claiming scalps of his own at Rothiemurchus and Aviemore Tennis Club.

The humble set-up at Inverdruie may be a far cry from Flushing Meadows, but MacGeoch's performances could grace any stage. Having won the final in two straight sets against Dave Fidoe, 32, he can now proudly call himself the club's reigning men's champion. And all before he has even started secondary school.

At the tender of age of ten, this boy among men is one of Scotland's best tennis prospects. Having first picked up a racket at the age of seven, the youngster from Boat of Garten hopes one day to emulate his hero, Murray.

"Calum is one of our stars," said Sophie Ashcroft, of Tennis Scotland. "It shows there is real strength and depth behind the success of Andy Murray. It's not just a one-off."

If Murray's first Grand Slam final has done much to raise the hopes of Scottish tennis, there are youngsters aplenty with similar potential.

Organisations promoting tennis in Scotland have made the most of Murray's success. Goals of encouraging participation have been superseded. Now the aim is to drive up standards and create champions.

It is a ripe time for forward planning. There are 32,000 members across Scotland's 215 tennis clubs, nearly 5,000 more than four years ago, and a healthy 14,000 are juniors. According to SportScotland, the national sports agency, 977 juniors regularly play in competitions.

Once public courts are taken into account, as many as 55,000 Scots are estimated to be regular players.

The figures are impressive, but those at the helm of the game know they cannot be complacent. Ellinore Lightbody, the Scottish national coach, told The Scotsman that in time she hopes other countries will look to Scotland as a shining example of how to train youngsters.

"The strength and depth of talent in Scotland is increasing all the time," she said. "Given the ripple effect of the Andy Murray factor, with more youngsters lifting a racket for the first time, that situation is unlikely to change soon.

"In the past Scotland has tended to look at models adopted elsewhere for guidance but there is no reason why, ultimately, other countries will not look to us to learn how to produce winners."

As well as encouraging the availability of the sport in parks and identifying emerging talent as young as six, Tennis Scotland has established Scotland's inaugural academy, in partnership with Edinburgh independent schools St George's and Merchiston Castle.

The pioneering facility, launched last year, allows promising youngsters – Calum is one – to develop their game on indoor and outdoor courts, and within the education system.

It recognised two kinds of players and trains them accordingly: first, tour players, those deemed capable of going on to succeed nationally and globally, who are given a reduced academic programme and a personal tutor; and second, challengers, young players who study full-time but receive three tennis sessions a week.

The academy's coaching programme is overseen by Marcel Du Coudray, a former South African Davis Cup player and one-time coach to Nikolay Davydenko, current world No 5.

Since taking up his post, Du Coudray has been impressed with the capabilities of his charges, who he hopes will have no need to decamp abroad, as was the case with Murray, who went to Barcelona at 15.

"Scottish kids want to fight really hard. They are more determined and willing to push themselves in practice than other kids," De Coudray said. "The one thing that surprised me when I first arrived was the number of top British players who were Scottish. There was Jamie and Andy Murray, Jamie Baker and Colin Fleming. These guys are huge models and we have tried to capitalise on that.

The academy's legacy has yet to emerge, but already it is unearthing diamonds, along with the Scottish National Tennis Centre in Stirling.

As well as Calum MacGeoch, Tennis Scotland points to a host of other promising young players, such as Joanna Henderson, 14, from Aberdeen, who is the British number one in the 14 and under age group, and Jonny O'Mara, 13, who started playing at four and, thanks to the tutelage of Judy Murray, among others, was ranked first in the 12- and under age group last year.

Next month, it is hoped yet more youths will be offered a taste of the game, courtesy of the Glasgow Festival of Tennis, which coincides with a Glasgow tennis international at the city's Scotstoun leisure centre. Close to 1,000 children attended last year's event, and with recent Scottish success on the courts, more are anticipated this year.

"The performances of Andy and Jamie Murray will, we hope, inspire and encourage children to get involved in tennis," said a spokeswoman for sportscotland. "We will continue to invest in Tennis Scotland and tennis facilities, ensuring young players have the best network to develop their skills and progress to international competition."

However, the aspirations of many continue to be hamstrung by a dearth of adequate facilities and a geographical imbalance of good centres where they might hone their skills.

The latest figures available, part of a 2006 audit by SportScotland, show there are 2,173 outdoor courts throughout the country. Of those, almost half – 1,014 courts – are owned by local authorities and schools, allowing the wider public community access. And of the 102 indoor courts in Scotland, around a quarter are in the domain of councils. Six are clustered in Craiglockhart Tennis and Sports Centre in the capital.

As Tina MacGeoch, Calum's mother, told The Scotsman: "There needs to be more indoor courts across the country, especially in the Highlands. It is impossible to play in the winter."

Furthermore, of those courts surveyed, only half were found to be of a satisfactory standard; one in four was recommended for replacement or refurbishment.

So widespread is the work required that only vast sums will make a difference. An estimated 31.4 million is needed to bring the national stock of tennis courts up to an acceptable standard. Added to this are 25-year periodic maintenance costs of 55.8 million and annual maintenance costs of 10.7 million.

The problem is acknowledged by David Marshall, chief executive of Tennis Scotland. "Facilities are obviously another huge challenge for us, especially getting access to the right facilities that doesn't require large travel distances," he said.

With the necessary investment on behalf of the tennis bureaucracy, and dedication on the part of its players, there is no reason Scotland cannot produce more top competitors.

Ten years ago, The Scotsman's veteran sports journalist Harry Pincott, now retired, conducted a telling interview with Judy Murray about her precocious sons, in which he envisioned Lottery funding as a useful aid. "By that time," Pincott wrote, "Murray's sons should be in the forefront of a Scottish onslaught on British, European and world tennis." Since then, much progress has been made, but with even more investment, the likes of Calum MacGeoch stand a greater chance than ever of launching their own onslaught.

Facilities limited away from central belt

IT IS very difficult for promising young players when they do not live in the cities and central belt of Scotland. Away from places like Stirling and Edinburgh, the facilities for tennis are limited. In the Highlands, it's the worst place in the country for tennis. There are no indoor courts, which makes it difficult when the outdoor courts freeze over. Even the tennis coaches give lessons skiing in winter. Hopefully there will be indoor courts soon.

For Calum to train, we had to make a five-hour round trip to Stirling, just for a few hours of coaching. It seemed as if we were on the A9 all the time.

The state of tennis in Scotland has got better, but there's still a lot of talent that isn't getting the opportunity. The funding is much better in England.

Fortunately, the tennis academy at Merchiston offered him a place when he was nine, and we took it. It's a good course, because it combines his coaching with a full-time education. His coach thinks very highly of him, and Calum has great aspirations, but so does every child. You have to be realistic. By having a normal education, it prepares him for everything in life.

Calum was as surprised as anyone when he won the men's final at ten, beating players more 2ft taller than him. Andy and Jamie Murray are his inspirations. He saw Andy play a few years ago, and his success means a lot to him – it gives him something to aim for. Tennis is all he thinks about.

Tina MacGeoch, Mother of Calum MacGeoch, men's champion at ten

Crucial to capitalise on success so far

IN many ways, Scottish tennis has never had it so good – the key is to do everything possible to capitalise on success.

We have seen the effect on our juniors with the standard improving and youngsters all now aware that success on the world stage need not be only a pipe dream.

To maintain the numbers playing at the very top, we must make tennis at entry level easily accessible. We are working in schools, many of which do not traditionally play the game, to improve their links with clubs.

The clubs have a huge role to play and while most appreciate the importance of recruiting juniors, some will have to change significantly. Any club looking for funding for courts, for example, will only get it if they tick all the right boxes on access for juniors.

We are working closely with local authorities to improve park tennis, with structured coaching sessions an obvious way to make sure anyone interested in tennis is not lost to the sport.

There is a far more co-ordinated approach to tennis in Scotland but we have a long way to go. If we can stimulate interest we will not have facilities to cope.

Substantial areas of the country are still not served by indoor courts, including the Highlands and the Borders, and that is something that will have to be addressed. Failure to do so can surely not be allowed to be an option.

Ellinore Lightbody, National coach, Tennis Scotland