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indiana


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The LTA
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Need a new chief executive to come in from the outside and knock some heads together. Hello !!

Hmm ...

And while yes there do appear to be some fairly ingrained cultural issues, gotta give it a go.

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Coup Droit


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From a management consultant turned pro coach (which begs a few questions in itself)

www.standard.co.uk/business/how-the-economics-of-tennis-are-holding-back-britain-s-talent-a3575506.html

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Born2WinTennis


Club Coach

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That's a great article, sure I've read it before but very worth another read. I couldn't agree more with most of it, a lot of coaches in this country are pricing out all but the richest families from starting or keeping their kids in tennis lessons. The LTA made a great start with two years of free 6 week coaching blocks for beginners with Tennis 4 Kids, but alas they are now charging £25 for it, as of 2018.

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baxi2


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Max Clifford passed away this weekend , for those in the know of course he advised the LTA  on some thorny issues that needed his specialist input .

Hopefully he will be in a better place  -  still expertly deflecting the press and arranging super-injunction's in the sky !

RIP



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The Realist


Junior player

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and no longer molesting young women and girls which is why he died in prison



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Anne


Improver

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 This is the first time I have replied and made school boy error !

In reply to The Realist 

"The LTA have always had their favourites. If you don't get on the gravy train early on, they are just not interested....."

This is so true and it will never change unfortunately. I have never posted any information previously, but I feel people on this board need to know what is going on. Ryan got an 85% tear to his ATF at Wimbledon Juniors and it did not heal completely till February this year, due to scar tissue from the injury. It is quite demoralising when he was at the NTC during the week to see juniors having access to the Science and Medicine team on a regular basis, yet Ryan was denied any off this, due to him not being a favourite. We were not asking for money just to access the facilities which the LTA have. 

Everyone is entitled to their opinions, however I feel Ryan has had a very good year despite what has happened and to reach the high 600's within 9 months is a good achievement. Also I must add as people on here regularly compare players, which I do not agree with as they are all individuals with different game styles and personalities and develop at different rates. Ryan actually started ITF tournaments  2 1/2 years later than Jay Clarke and considering Jay got funding from the start and has a sister and brother who play, in itself is an advantage. Ryan is from grass roots tennis, did not pick a racket up till he was 8 and then only played for an hour a week to start with. Ryan did not play with any consistency till he was nearly 11. Yet he sill managed to win a Grade 1, the first boy to do so since Dan Evans (please correct me if I am wrong) , reach the semi final of 2 and quarters finals of 2. He lost in the Orange bowl to Denis Shapalov, beat Chung in Canada,  Felix at Roehampton, to name just a few and not forgetting this was achieved without any support from the LTA and Ryan travelling on his own. Ryan must be the only GB player to win a Grade 1 without any coach present and not receiving any help from the Federation. I even asked for Ryan to see an LTA coach after he beat Felix at Roehampton, as he did not play as well in the following match, so I knew he would struggle to beat McNally when he had not served very well. I was turned down and informed that they could not help or coach any players who were not on a a programme, yet they will stand and watch the match only to no doubt criticise. If Ryan had been privilege to the support which the favourites are and the physical conditioning which they receive, who knows where he could be now. Ryan missed a vital 6 months due to his ankle, at a very important stage in his career, which is going from juniors to mens. When you take this into account and say for instance he is a year behind his peers, Ryan would have surpassed the criteria.

The reason for Ryan not receiving funding is due to him apparently not being a fighter, obviously the powers that be have not seen his 3 set record and to judge on the months after Wimbledon when he had lost his confidence on his ankle, if unfair when they would not have judged others. 

I have brought several points up with the LTA in the hope of appealing their decisions only to be rebuffed 

The goal posts for funding move each year, to allow for their favourites to be nominated and now they have given 70,000 funding to juniors, who have been having the best for several years and the coaches of their choice, as they "got on the gravy train early" !!

 



-- Edited by Anne on Thursday 21st of December 2017 08:03:47 AM



-- Edited by Anne on Thursday 21st of December 2017 08:07:59 AM



-- Edited by Anne on Thursday 21st of December 2017 08:08:46 AM

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indiana


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So sorry to read all that, Anne.

Some of the lack of help re medical facilties and advice for by results, in spite of everything, by a distance in ranking results GB's #2 teenager, is absolutely disgusting. But when we have heard of players outside the system not even getting a "hello" from LTA coaches when abroad let alone say any opportunity for advice and / or practice with the chosen few, not at all surprising.

Even Jay Clarke for a good while apparently had little help from the LTA. I wonder what nebulous supposed reasons there may have been for that such as "not being a figher". But they've sure jumped all over him in the last year or so. 

I have never seen Ryan play but I knew some of his past and relatively very late start from the forum and some of his results are very clear to see. There are certainly one or two on the forum who know rather more, including some of what you have referred to, and have long championed him as having great potential and certainly one to watch.

I do hope that by Ryan's own play and by persistent but reasonable points made on his behalf to the LTA that he can get much more of a look-in. All the very best to him!



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Anne


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Hi Indiana 

If you went by singles ranking, Ryan was actually GB #1 teenager going into Wimbledon, Jay was GB #1 with doubles included and as everyone knows Jay is a very good doubles player and had top 10 players as partners. Jay was also receiving assistance off LTA coaches at Roehampton, yet Ryan was denied this assistance when I enquired about it. I find it hard to understand how you can have a junior beat someone like Felix and then not to offer assistance when asked, I wasn't asking for money just knowledge.

 



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Oakland2002


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Anne I think there is a lot of sympathy for yours and Ryans position on this board. As you point out he has got to the level he has got to without many of the advantages that by chance or design are available to others.

There is an enormous advantage to being part of a Tennis family because it is a relatively small talent pool and such a technical game. Indeed I think there needs to be a separate pathway bringing players through from genuine grass roots Tennis, even if its not around coaching but around the availability of medical advice and rehabilitation packages for those who make the short list for funding.

I have spent some time in Southern Californian over the last couple of years and there was a lot of very positive feedback around the impact he made there despite not being in the USTA junior system and how committed Ryan is to being a professional tennis player.

Thank you for posting. Please dont take any offence to any particular posts, it is a discussion board and although most are aware of what a small pool of players the U.K. has of a standard to have any impact professionally (ie how good the players are being discussed) and its utility to them as a resource re results etc... on occasions it is the equivalent of a discussion about football over a pint in a pub by people who dont know the difference between the deuce and ad side of a court.

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The Realist


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Many thanks for the update about Ryan, Anne. Sadly your story confirms all my worst thoughts about the LTA and their attitude to young players. My children have never hit the dizzy heights that Ryan has, but , like many tennis parents, I have had bad experiences of the LTA's favouritism. For them to treat a player of Ryan's obvious talent in that way is just disgusting. I sincerely hope that Ryan is able to prove them wrong and to fulfil his clear potential. Hang on in there. You are not alone, and from one tennis mum to another one, a big hug.



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paulisi


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I'm very disappointed, but not surprised. It seems if the LTA have not supported you from the early years, then they are not interested unless you are high profile i.e Katie Swan.
It is not just Anne & Ryan that this happens to, I've spoken to many other parents when at tournaments and hear the same story.
Out of interest is Ryan now with JTC as he seems to be travelling to overseas tournaments with some of their young talent?

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Anne


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Ryan has been based at JTC this year and they have been extremely supportive, unfortunately Ryan has a very different game to most and it has taken a few months for him to adapt and for the coaches to understand him. The disadvantage of an Academy if that unless you are getting funding you will not get your own coach.
Unfortunately the LTA do not take factors like this into account, as when you are trying to improve your game it can result in loses and the LTA go off charts and graphs alone. A loss is a loss in there eyes regardless of whether it is to someone ranked 1000 or someone ranked 200, Ryan is on an upward spiral but due to not hitting 600, his application was rejected for PSP funding.
At this moment in time we do not know where Ryan will be based next year.

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paulisi


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Thanks Anne.
I would have though Ryan was a likely candidate for PSP funding. I'm very suprised it was rejected.

It seems the LTA are making it as hard as possible.....


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paulisi


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Anne wrote:

The disadvantage of an Academy if that unless you are getting funding you will not get your own coach.

 The academies are great, but i've seen it for myself at tournaments that the funded players take priority and if a funded player and non funded player are playing at the same time, the funded player gets all the attention.



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Coup Droit


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As a long-standing fan of Ryan, my support is unwavering.

However, my 'advice', for what it's worth, would be to not get swept along in the battle against the LTA, the comparison with Jay (or anyone else), any injustices done, what the LTA should be doing, who has a private coach and who doesn't etc. etc. etc.

They are all - unfortunately - very fair points. And other countries have similar problems.
But they are all part of a bigger battle that, almost by definition, cannot be won and they sidetrack the young player from the only thing that matters; and that isn't whether he has funding or not but how to make it as a successful tennis player. Obviously, the first bit can make the second bit easier but they are not issues that are joined at the hip.

The LTA - in my view - is a disgrace. But there are many players in the world who have no federation help who do succeed. There are several British players who spring to mind who lost all their tennis momentum by battling too long and hard with the LTA (of the younger group, players like Isaac Stoute maybe?). The rights and wrongs of it are no consolation ten years hence.

Wishing Ryan the very best with his ankle, finding a base, and pushing on - he's got great potential to do so.

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