Girls' Tennis Parties come to Exeter

Working in partnership the three bodies are running a series of tennis parties aimed exclusively at girls. The taster sessions, taking place on 11 May, 8 June and 6 July, 13:30-15:00 at Riverside Leisure Centre, will work to improve the agility, coordination and racquet skills of girls aged eight and under. 

The aim of the sessions is to promote and develop girl’s tennis in the Exeter area. Each session will focus on creating a fun and enjoyable atmosphere with lots of game-based activities set up and run by some of the best coaches in the region. All girls are invited to simply come and give tennis a try; players don’t need a racquet, or to even have played tennis before.

Steve Ashton Director of Tennis, at Exwick Tennis Club explained how important it is to get girls into tennis from a young age. He commented: “Our goal is to offer girls a fantastic opportunity to take up the sport by taking part in high quality tennis programmes that cater specifically for Girls tennis. In my experience travelling around with players on the tennis circuit there has always been a lower percentage of girls participating in competition at club and county level. Our aim is to increase participation levels in competition so that there are as many girls taking up the sport as boys in the region”.

Girls who attend the sessions will also be invited to join a three week girls only tennis programme at either Exeter Tennis Centre or Exwick Tennis Club. Exeter Tennis Centre’s Director of Tennis Will McNally is excited about the prospect of getting more girls into the sport. He said: “We want to give girls the chance to try tennis, and if they like it offer them opportunities to develop and even compete. All of our coaches are extremely passionate about the game and aim to make these sessions enjoyable for everyone. Tennis is a superb sport to get into and the UK has a reputation for producing world class female players, it would be brilliant to see more girls playing at a grass roots level and see where that takes them. ”

The new girls programme follows Exeter Tennis Centre’s Charlotte Wallace’s recent trip to Argentina. The Performance Manager joined the likes of Laura Robson for team GB’s World Group II playoff in Buenos Aires as part of an educational campaign to provide better opportunities to female coaches in the UK.

Charlotte said: “It is brilliant to see that these opportunities are being offered to young girls. Tennis is a really exciting and enjoyable game for both boys and girls and we want to make it as easy as possible for them to experience it.”

The sessions are already expected to be hugely popular with the LTA recommending advanced booking for the limited places. For further information please contact Steve Ashton on 07835 041 719 or email steve@exwicktennisclub.co.uk.