Dear Members Our first newsletter of 2022, and it's packed. We've all loved the lifting of many Covid restrictions and our club sessions and courts in general have been so popular whatever the weather.
This newsletter has plenty in it and features: Frosty Tournament January recap Ladies and Mens Captains updates including NEW group coaching Juniors update and launching NEW Junior Club Night on Fridays after Easter Coaches update including Half Term and Easter camps Reminder on footwear and behaviour As you'll see from the Frosty Tournament write up, our social tournaments are very well received. We are looking for an Events co-ordinator to join the committee now Andy has taken on the role of Mens Captain. If you are interested in learning more please contact [email protected]
FCTC Committee
Frosty Tournament wrap up
We had a full house on the 2nd January with 24 players burning off their turkey and mince pies, how wonderful to see all 6 courts in action. It was a fun morning with the handicap system and 15 minute matches meaning everyone got close matches.
There were 2 very familiar faces who ended up as the winners - congratulations to Tania and Andy - that's 2 in a row for Tania with her very consistent game and tramline shots! Looking forward to the next one which will be a Spring Social Tournament.
Ladies and Mens Captains updates
Ladies: The ladies have started a weekly 1.5 hour coaching session with our new Coach Dan on a Tuesday night from 7pm - 8.30pm as a 6 week trial initially. The club intends to put 2 ladies teams into the Summer Bucks Shield League this year and the coaching sessions are all part of improving our game and becoming more consistent playing with each other.
The take up has exceeded our expectations, with 12 very well wrapped up ladies joining the sessions so far - you can see the smiling faces in the photo below. We are taking feedback on board that 12 is too many for one coach so we may be splitting the group into 2 sessions once this trial has finished.
Don't forget the Monday 6pm ladies night is still on and we have a consistent regular turnout. If you have any questions on ladies tennis our Ladies Captain Maggie can be contacted on [email protected]
Mens: The men are also looking to do something similar for team coaching starting around Easter.
This summer the men will have two teams in the Bucks summer league, and there is also chance for men to play in the mixed Medley league. If any men are interested in playing team tennis or just want to find out more, do email [email protected]
General: Please don't forget that we run a singles ladder open for all members over 14. Matches can be played on your own time and it's a good way to meet other members. If you want to find out more or get involved please contact Andy on the email address above.
Juniors update and announcing new Junior Club Night from Easter
The club has a thriving junior section, and in 2022 we plan to invest more.
Exciting news, after Easter we will launch a Juniors Club Night on a Friday evening. The club will initially invest in a coach to allow the Junior Club night to be coach led. Further detail including timing to follow, it will be aimed at juniors aged 9 and above who are capable of a rally. Aman Kohli, our Committee member for Juniors will be in touch with all parents of Juniors, he and Head Coach Stephen will be hosting a session for parents one Saturday morning to share our plans and take feedback on what else could be done. We will be looking for some volunteers to step up to work with Aman on a Junior section parents group.
The club supported by Stephen will be likely entering 6 Junior teams into the Summer league again.
Featured Junior Player: Astrid and her sister Mylah, have been participating in County training sessions for a few years now. Astrid has more recently been selected to be part of the regional team. Astrid attends National training camps from time to time and is looking to make this jump up in the coming years to be a regular National training team player.
Farnham Common is a small tennis club so to have players playing at this level at the club is fantastic to see. Well done to both Astrid and Mylah who are members of the club as are both their parents who play tennis too!
And finally, we would like to remind everyone that we are a community club and our junior players are an important part of our club and are just as welcome as our senior members. There are agreed court priorities for matches and coaching, so we would like to remind everyone to continue to use the Court Booking system to avoid any clashes.
Coaches Corner
As announced in a previous newsletter, we are pleased that both Luke and Dan are now available for coaching together with Stephen. Adult coaching is proving to be particularly popular, as is the new Fit Tennis that has been launched on Mondays at 10am. And don't forget the always popular tennis camps are open for booking, see details below.
For all coaching enquires please contact [email protected] directly.
Whatsapp group reminders
In the meantime for all of you new members, don't forget that there are a set of other WhatsApp groups used to co-ordinate all the club related sessions that you can ask to be added to. Please contact the members below and ask to be added into the appropriate group - note the admin for some of the groups has changed. There is also some great tennis related chat on the groups too!
Ladies Club Night is Monday from 6pm - contact Maggie Southerden 07719 677985 Mixed Club Night is Wednesday from 6pm - contact Aman Kohli 07966 317723 Men's Club Night is Thursday from 6pm - contact Andy Davidson 07809 641880 Wednesday afternoon social tennis is at 2pm - contact Gill Prout [email protected] Sunday morning social tennis is at 10.30am - contact Gill Prout [email protected] Weekday lunchtime group for arranging informal play - contact Andy Davidson 07809 641880 Rookie Racquets - group is run by Judy D'Arcy please contact [email protected] for details
Footwear and Behaviour Policy reminder
Polite reminder, please use clean footwear when using the tennis courts so we avoid putting mud onto the courts especially the Tiger Turf courts 1 and 2. .
FC Tennis club is a friendly community club. We would like to remind everyone that we do have policies in place to ensure safety and discipline, they apply to both Juniors and Seniors. If you click on the image below you'll be taken to the club website where you can see the Safeguarding Policy, our Diversity and Inclusion Policy and the Whistleblowing Policy, including a link for raising concerns directly with the LTA. Our policies are reviewed regularly.
And finally! As always, do look on the facebook group for the latest news and why not share some pictures yourselves https://www.facebook.com/groups/2363389568 Stay safe and see you on the courts. FCTC Committee.