BOLTON Arena is currently running a series of tennis coaching sessions for players of all standards and ages. RICHARD MULLIGAN decided to go and see how they could improve his game

THE chance of a tennis coaching programme at the Bolton Arena with top coach Jim Edgar was too good to miss.

More importantly I wanted to know what he could do for my game in the hour we had together.

Jim has been coaching since 1985, and two of the professionals under his wing, David Sherwood and Johnny Marray were, earlier this week, selected to play doubles for the Great Britain European Team Championships team.

During Jim's own career he once played doubles against Tim Henman in a game that he recalls: "I lost but should have won."

He may have played across the court from one of Britain's greatest post-war tennis stars, but I would like to think that he had never seen anything quite like the forehand passing shot which I hit during our warm-up!

We began with a bit of a loosener and some volleys at the net. After that Jim suggested that we play a few points so that he could assess my level of skill.

He felt that I was of an "intermediate" standard, in that I was not a beginner but not yet up to competition standard. He was impressed with my serve and my speed and movement around the court, but immediately identified two weaknesses as being my preparation for shots and my backhand.

My preparation could improve by taking the racquet back before the ball bounces which would give me more time to make the shot.

Practice always makes perfect and I spent a period of time just hitting balls and taking on the advice that Jim was giving me.

My shots were not too consistent at first but Jim is a patient teacher and there were plenty of words of praise if I hit a beauty, and encouragement if I hit a stinker.

My backhand has always been weak and lacking in power and direction, and for this reason Jim suggested a double-handed shot. While practising this we also discovered that I have quite a strong left hand and decided I should use it as the dominant hand in the stroke.

This meant some fine-tuning of my grip, but again, a bit of patience from the coach helped make the transition.

I came away having a clear idea of adjustments I could make to my game, and really enjoyed the lesson.

At present there are more than 50 courses running at the Arena, catering for all ages and all standards of player.

The current scheme runs until the end of December but will be followed by similar programmes in the New Year.

Jim hopes the sessions and the excellent facilities at Bolton Arena will encourage people such as myself to consider tennis an activity that can be played all year round.

"Tennis no longer has to be just a summer sport," he says. "When I was a kid there were hardly any indoor facilities, but places such as the Arena mean people can play whenever they want to - even during winter evenings when it is dark and cold outside.

"We aim to provide courses to attract everyone and anyone, from people that want to play five times a week to those that just want to play every now and then.

"We want people down here who are good players and want to tinker with their game, we want people who have never played before and people that just want to come along socially."

Anyone interested in the courses should call 488100.