Tennis

Free racquets for young fans

Budding tennis stars in east Perthshire were presented with free racquets last week.

The youngsters had all taken part in tennis for kids courses run by Blairgowrie Tennis Club.

The courses, which were fully subscribed, ran on Saturday mornings and Tuesday evenings and were part of a £1million nationwide investment by the sport’s governing body, the Lawn Tennis Association.

Susan Whiteford, a coach at Blairgowrie Tennis Club, said: “The children have been learning the skills required for a game groundstrokes, service and volley - in a fun way and are all developing well.

“The Tennis for Kids project was set up after Great Britain won the Davis Cup in 2015 and the free six week course is aimed at attracting 20,000 new young players to the game.

“Blairgowrie Tennis Club was delighted to be involved in the initiative and it was great to see that it was so popular, with 20 youngsters signing up to take part.

“After attending the course for four weeks, all the children are given a free tennis racquet and coaching will be offered to the children after the course finishes up until the school holidays.”

Pupils at Newhill and St Stephen’s RC primary schools in Blairgowrie also enjoyed taster sessions run by the club.

Blairgowrie Tennis Club offers coaching for all players from three-years-old to adults at its new state-of-the-art courts at the JJ Coupar Recreation Park on Coupar Angus Road in the town.

Pre-school sessions are on Wednesday afternoons with coaching for five- to eight-yearolds on Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays.

Coaching for eight- to 11-year-olds is on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Older children have coaching on Fridays and adults on Monday evenings. For more information, see the website at www. blairgowrietennisclub.co.uk or contact Susan Whiteford on 01250 874304.