Representing some of the best players in the two counties, the Devon & Cornwall team travelled to the West Hants Club in Bournemouth via minibus with team captain and coach Adrian Williams, which presented a great opportunity for them to get to know each other better. Staying overnight in a hotel also presented an opportunity for the players to learn to be independent and make decisions for themselves. For many of these players this was one of the first times they have been away without their parents and everyone single one of them coped very well with the experience.
Taking part over two days, the training camp was led by Debbie Hale (West Hants 11U Girls Academy Programme lead coach) and a team of coaches from The West Hants club and Adrian. The training involved drills and racket skills, movement and footwork, decision-making and some strength and conditioning work off court as well. The players loved these sessions and worked extremely hard at learning new skills and performing to the best of their ability. The afternoon on each day involved matches and competitive situations where the team from Devon & Cornwall played against the team from West Hants. This is where the team from Devon & Cornwall really came into their own and put in some masterful performances against their experienced opponents. The competition was based on a points system across the two days, with players accumulating points for mastering skills, work ethic, behaviour and a number of other achievements. Devon and Cornwall narrowly lost out over the two days, despite being more successful in the matches, dues to scoring slightly less points in the skills elements.
Team Coach Adrian Williams said, “Overall the trip was a resounding success and the behaviour of such a young group of players was a credit to both them and their parents. Everyone involved in the organisation and delivery of the trip had a great time and are looking forward to running it again next year.”
