Wimbledon fornight has rolled around again.  This bastion of the start of summer is one of our greatest sporting spectacles, and with the new roof on centre court, even our not-so wonderful weather can no longer thwart the onslaught of grunting, strawberries and ball-boys running all over the place. 

I don't know about you, but when I was younger, watching Wimbledon always made me want to grab my racket and rush out to my local court in the mistaken belief that I could emulate the performances of Becker and Sampras, Martina Navratilova and Steffi Graf (I'm showing my age now aren't I!!)

So, where can our budding Serena's and Nadal wannabe's go to play?

The main tennis courts at Heanor Leisure Centre may now have been replaced by the new swimming pool, but the Centre still offers short-tennis in the sports hall.  However, for those looking for something a bit more structured, the following is a list of the tennis clubs in and around our area:

Ripley Tennis Club
Heage Road, Ripley, Derbyshire.DE5 3GG
Courts : M3 G2
Secretary: Mr. Dean Latham, 10 Rosier Crescent, Swanwick, Alfreton, Derbyshire, DE55 1RS
Tel: 01773 604865

Littleacres Tennis Club
31, St John's Road, Smalley, Derbyshire
Courts: S1 (shale).
Secretary: J S Fletcher, Littleacres, 31, St. John's Road, Smalley, Derbyshire. DE7 6EG
Tel: 01332 880620

Belper Meadows Tennis Club
Christ Church Meadows, Bridge Street, Belper. DE56 1BA
Courts : G2 M3 ( FL )
Secretary : Mrs Janet Wake, 10, Knowl Avenue, Belper , Derbyshire DE56 2TL
01773 825266

Breadsall Tennis Club
Brookside Lane, Breadsall
Courts : M2.
Secretary : Kate Burns 33, Brookside Rd, Breadsall, Derby. DE21 5LF
Tel: 01332 832814

Stanton Tennis Club
The Stute, Hallam Fields Road. Ilkeston, Derbyshire.DE7 4AZ (court address only)
Courts : S3
Secretary : Tony Buck, 7 Woodland Way, Eastwood, Nottingham. NG16 3BU Tel: 01773 787578
Mob 07946269067

Darley Dale Tennis Club
Highfields Lower School, Starkholmes Road, Matlock, Derbyshire. DE4 5JE
Courts : M3.
Secretary : Mr. Andrew Turner, Amberdale, Off Smedley Street East,
Matlock, Derbyshire. DE4 3FQ 01629 580951

Good luck to anyone and eveyone who has aspirations to become a professional tennis player, but for everyone else who just wants to have a bit of a knock-around and maybe get or stay fit, have fun!

New balls please....