Do you ever read a book and love it so much that you go round telling people about it? Like everyone you meet. That’s exactly what happened with myself and Conor Niland’s book The Racket! From his experience as a junior on the tournament circuit (one I know a lot of tennis parents will recognise) to his days on a tennis scholarship in the US to the rollercoaster ride that is the Pro Tour, Conor’s book is a compelling read. If you are anything like me, you’ll finish it in a couple of...

You might have heard of tennis coach Todd Larkham for a host of reasons. It was Todd who spotted a young Nick Kyrgios and coached him through to the Pro Tour and beyond. It’s brilliant to hear about that journey on this episode. You may know Todd was some player reaching no.136 in the World and that he played at each and every Grand Slams. Or have you seen Todd is one of the Coaches who feature on the ace Coachlife website which brings hundreds of video lessons from the Junior Coaches of...

Just to be clear, County Cup’s one of my favourite things in the whole wide world. I want to start with this as everything you are going to listen to comes from a starting point of love and wanting to make something that is great even better! And you see, I do think Junior County Cup (focusing in on 11U, 12U and 14U) can be improved as a result of a couple of flaws - and I’d love to know if you agree and what improvements you’d make to LTA Junior County Cup. For avoidance of doubt, this is...

Sporting parents, coaches and players - today you’re in for a treat! Wayne Goldsmith is an international coaching expert from Australia who has influenced the thinking and teaching of some of the world’s leading athletes, coaching and teams. But if I’m honest that’s not why I was so excited about speaking to Wayne. The reason I was buzzing to chat with Wayne is because he is my no.1 go to source for wisdom on navigating the challenges of being a sporting parent and a coach too. As you’ll...

You know in life there are some people who are amazing at making things happen. Who are driven to get things done. And when it comes to tennis I think Fabio Molle is absolutely one of them. Fabio runs a successful tennis e-commerce business called Functional Tennis. He came up with an idea for a brilliant tennis product called The Saber which he took from concept to manufacture. A process I loved talking to him about on this episode. He’s a very successful tennis podcaster - having recorded...

Amazing adventures can be had by tennis players at American Universities! However, if you’re going to make it a great adventure rather than an OK or not so good adventure you’ve got to plan and prepare effectively. And that is where this episode comes in! Today’s guest, Marleyna Trifunovic, is in a unique position to tell you all about the US uni experience as she has just returned from three years at Wilmington University in Delaware. Marley’s story and guidance can, I think, give players...

This is episode 91 of My Tennis Journey. As you’ll probably know, the vast majority of the episodes have been dedicated to the sport I’ve loved since I first picked up a racket in Skelton in Cumbria aged 9 or 10. But dear, lovely tennis - I’ve got a confession to make. Whilst as Whitney sang I will always love you - I’ve also fallen for another sport. And that sport is pickleball. I’d like to explain why and what I plan to do in the world of pickleball. I’d also like to tell you one...

What happens when you put one of the world's most famous tennis coaches together with an outstanding neurologist with a passion for our beautiful game? The answer is a fantastic book that can help shape the approach you take to tennis and the approach you take to life. The book is called Billion Dollar Mind, and in today's episode, we have the two authors. The coach is the world famous Rick Macci, who featured prominently in the King Richard film as he coached Serena and Venus as juniors,...

Calling tennis parents, tennis coaches and tennis people - please do play today’s episode as Alison has an inspirational story and shares inspirational guidance on her tennis journey and her approach to coaching which has kickstarted a love of tennis in some of the UK’s rising stars like Hannah Klugman and Arthur Fery. From a tennis parent perspective, I loved hearing Alison talk about the importance of the relationship between the coach, the player and the parent too. The importance of...

Ever read a book that has changed the way you think, the way you behave? Today’s interview is with the co-author and a stakeholder in the publication of a brilliant book that has had such an impact on me!  The book is called Sports Performance Parenting and the co-author in question is Gordon MacLelland from Working With Parents in Sport. This edition of the book is a collaboration with British Gymnastics and joining Gordon and I to talk all things sports performance parenting is Alex...

There’s loads of podcasts about tennis from the Pros to the grassroots - but I’m not aware of any podcasts that are hosted by juniors with a focus on junior tennis - until now! In today’s episode Stan Salmon (13) a junior tennis player from Derbyshire interviews Emily Appleton about her journey from the juniors to the Pro Tour. Emily had an amazing junior career reaching no.10 in the World and is now making strides as a Pro. As you’ll hear, Emily has some great guidance for juniors on how...

Sally Appleton is the Mum to Emily Appleton. Following a successful junior career which saw her reach World no.10, Emily has gone on to be a professional tennis player competing around the World on the Tour. Today’s episode is an episode of two halves. In the first half, I asked Sally about her experiences as a tennis parent to Emily as a junior. Then in the second half we get to chat about a parent’s perspective of being a Mum to a pro player! Sally’s in a brilliant position to do this...

Ceire Mullins has had an action packed journey from GB tennis junior to international padel player and now Head Coach of Church Broughton Tennis Club where she will take over from me! As you’ll hear, Ceire has an infectious energy for the the sports of tennis and padel… MUSIC CREDITS Earth by MusicbyAden https://soundcloud.com/musicbyaden Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported — CC BY-SA 3.0

What does it take to make the journey from a talented junior to being a rising star on the pro tennis tour? There's many variables and if there was a set recipe I’m sure thousands of parents and coaches would cook it up for their little proteges! But I firmly believe lessons can be learned from those who have made the journey. Today, I’m really excited to talk to one such stakeholder. Shane Deacon is an LTA GB National Pathway Coach, he’s the inventor of the amazing TargetBound tennis...

Dear Tennis Parents, I totted up recently and our three children have played around 800 matches at tournaments. I know what attending tournaments with your child/children can be like. I know it can be rewarding, inspiring and joyful. I also know it can be stressful, challenging and frustrating. Today’s episode is with a leading sports psychologist who can help us tennis parents with our journeys! I know this is an episode I will listen to again and again… For more info on Callum Gowling...

Hello everyone, as anyone who knows me knows…I love Church Broughton Tennis Club. I love the role we play in the Community and seeing so many players of all ages enjoying our brilliant game(s). Today, I’m announcing that I’m going to be stepping down as Head Coach at Church Broughton at the end of Dec. And I want to explain why… MUSIC CREDITS Earth by MusicbyAden https://soundcloud.com/musicbyaden Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported — CC BY-SA 3.0

Andrew Jarrett has had an amazing tennis journey from the early years in Derbyshire, to playing Davis Cup for GB, Coaching GB at The Olympics - and then going on to Wimbledon as The Championships Referee from 2006-2019. Andy has talked all about this and a whole lot more in his book Championship Points which has gone to the top of the Amazon charts! In this episode, we talk about a subject which is close to our hearts - County Week or LTA Summer County Cup as it is also known. An event we...

Ben Bartram may only be 17, but as you’ll hear he’s already had a series of amazing adventures in the wheelchair tennis world! He’s won the Junior US Open, risen inside the top 20 men’s rankings and recently returned from being a member of the winning GB World Cup team alongside Alfie and Gordon. Ben’s passion for the journey shines bright, but just don’t ask him to play FIFA - you’ll hear why! Enjoy…

I truly believe that listening to Sandi Procter’s tennis journey is worth an hour of your time! The LTA President has an incredibly compelling back story within our sport! Ever wondered how the red, orange and green balls came about? Wonder no more! Been impressed with the LTA’s Tennis Leaders programme? Find out how Sandi made it happen! Having listened to Sandi’s journey, I'm confident she'll make good things happen as LTA President. Whether you’re a tennis player, coach, parent,...

You might not be aware but we are currently in the midst of the LTA Junior Nationals. These are singles and doubles competitions for 16U and 18U girls and boys. You might not be aware but I think you should be aware and I think your tennis playing children or pupils should be aware to! Today’s guest is Richard Joyner, the Tournament Director of the LTA Junior Nationals and together we’d like to put forward the case on why the LTA Junior Nationals are worthy of your attention. The events...

I'm writing this on my 50th birthday! Having successfully navigated through to my half century, I figured that it would be a good time to tell My Tennis Journey. My good friend and LTA Lifetime Achievement Award winner Keith Reynolds kindly offered to do the honours of interviewing me. I loved chatting to Keith about my early tennis years, my time working in beer and football and meeting some of the game's biggest stars and why I left that all behind for a chapter in tennis! I hope you'll...

'What affects my tennis and training the most?' Today's guest Mylène Petitpas posed this question and explained the answer is nutrition because food affects every part of our body from head to toe! As a tennis parent, I find what foods to give the children before, during and after tennis tournaments puzzling. I try my best when it comes to providing decent nutrition options - but if truth be told I haven't found much information out there to help. So I've tried to go and find some...

Abbie Lench (LTA Head of Clubs, Parks, Counties and Volunteering) and Simon Spalter (Tennis Volunteer Community Facebook Group) join me to look at the amazing contribution volunteers make to the clubs and counties of British Tennis. We cover a range of topics which will hopefully help existing volunteers and inspire new volunteers. As a Coach and tennis parent, I am aware of just how much work volunteers do in our club and our county. And I know it is the same throughout the Country - this...

Exciting news! A friend Hugo and I have launched a new Community Interest Company called We Say Play. A Community Interest Company is - in the words of Wikipedia - ‘designed for social enterprises that want to use their profits and assets for the public good.’ And that’s exactly what we want to do! I’d love it if you’d have a listen to this short little podcast to hear about our We Say Play mission to inspire children to get playing… To find out more about We Say Play or to get in touch -...