Changes to County Training
We would like to inform you of important changes to County Training from January 2024.
Premier Tennis have delivered County Training on behalf of Tennis Oxfordshire for the past 3 years. In that time, the programme has gone from strength to strength and we very much hope that everyone involved has enjoyed and benefitted from the experience.
Tennis Oxfordshire would like to thank Premier Tennis for all they have done to make the programme such a success.
From January 2024, a new and re-focused County Training programme will be introduced. Various options have been considered, with particular attention given to the junior player programme (age 11 to 18) and how best to strengthen links to County Cup preparation and competition.
As a result of this review, from January 2024 County Training will operate as follows:
- For players aged 8 to 10 there will be little change to the existing County Training format. 90-minute training sessions (per age group) will be held on a Saturday or Sunday at the White Horse Tennis Centre, across 10 months of the year. The programme will seek to replicate and build on the success of the past 3 years.
- We expect the coaching team to be largely unchanged with the programme overseen by a County Junior Performance Coach. The number of County Training places available will stay the same and participation in County competition and events will continue as before.
- For junior players (age 11 to 18) County Training will evolve into a County Cup Preparation Programme. Monthly training at the White Horse will be replaced by County Cup squad training sessions held in the weeks immediately prior to County Cup events. The programme will involve 8 –10 hours of high-quality training for 11U, 12U, 14U and 18U players. There will be separate sessions for boys and girls with training scheduled at a time and venue best suited to each age group.
- County Cup squad training will be for players selected for County Cup Teams, with all players expected to attend. The size of squads may vary depending on the cohort of players in each age group.
- The programme will be overseen by a County Junior Performance Coach with training sessions run by County Cup team coaches / captains. Final details of the new programme are currently being put in place and further updates will follow.
Tennis Oxfordshire remains committed to providing the very best tennis programme and experience for mini and junior players. It also recognises the significance of this change for junior players who may have attended County Training in the past but who may not currently play in County Teams or be part of a County Team squad.
The move to the new format will be kept under careful review in the first 12 months of operation and we will actively seek feedback from players, parents and coaches throughout this period.
If you have any questions about changes to County Training or the County Cup Preparation Programme please contact countytennis@tennisoxfordshire.co.uk
