New county lead coach wants to take Kent to the top

The Kent Lawn Tennis Association have recruited a new county lead coach - and he has big ambitions.

Craig Allen is no stranger to Kent, having started his tennis and coaching in the Gravesend area at the age of 16. His ambition is to make Kent the leading county in British tennis.

Allen will be working closely with Harriet Izzard to manage the County Training Programme, taking responsibility for the philosophy, the content and delivery of the training sessions, whilst managing the coaching team. He will also be part of the selection process for county teams and preparation for County Cup competitions.

Allen said: “Having spent my entire coaching career in Kent, I am thrilled to be taking on the role.

“I share the passion and dedication in continuing to bring great success to Kent Tennis. I’m confident that we can strive to find ways to make Kent the leading county in British Tennis.”

Allen has already had a long and successful career in the county, working as head coach at Bexley Tennis Club where he was invited to be involved in the county training programme, supporting the Kent performance coach Clint Harris.

During his time as coach at Bexley the club built a strong reputation as a county training base and was subsequently recognised as a county funded club.

He went onto work at the

High Performance Centre based at The Bromley Tennis Centre between 2003 and 2010, where he was fortunate to work with some of the best players Kent have produced, including many who have represented Great Britain. In 2010, Allen went on to run his own successful performance programme for players aged over 11, basing the programme at the Park Langley Tennis Club from 2013, until 2019 when, after 23 years as a loyal, committed and very successful Kent captain and coach he moved on to a role in the

LTA’s national performance pathway team as a lead county pathway coordinator for the central and east region.

Craig Allen