HARD COURT TOURNEY

Press, Volume XCVI, Issue 28324, 9 July 1957, Page 14

HARD COURT TOURNEY

Proposal Favoured By Canterbury

Because it considers that New Zealand Davis Cup teams of the future should have some experience of hard-court play, the management committee of the Canterbury Lawn Tennis Association will recommend to the New Zealand association that a national hard-court tournament should be played annually. Reporting to the committee al its meeting last evening, the president (Mr W. A. Clothier) said that the sub-committee set up to consider the proposal favoured such a tournament ana considered that the best time foi it to be played was Easter. It was not considered feasible to hold it at any other time as players would not want to change from grass court play to hard court and back to grass court, he said. A further recommendation was that performances on the hard courts should be taken into consideration by the selectors when making up the ranking list.

All the sub-committee’s recommendations were approved.

The committee will also ask the New Zealand association what steps have been taken to obtain the services of a national coach. Included in the minutes of the New Zealand association’s management committee was a minute recording the committee’s regret that few associations were holding coaching schools for juniors and advising that funds were available for approved schemes. Lack of Coach

Mr J. K. Burtt said the main reason why coaching schools were not held was that lack of a suitable coach. He mentioned an earlier proposal for a national coach and said that on this occasion the New Zealand association was asked to investigate the matter. The finance required for coaches in every province would be too heavy but it was quite possible to have a national coach to attend the various provincial schools, he said. On the motion of Mr G. Atkinson, the Wilding Park committee was asked to investigate the possibility of installing lights at Wilding Park for night tennis. Mr Atkinson said all the facilities were at the park and night tennis was growing in popularity. The Opawa club was granted permission to hold an inter-club night tennis competition in the coming season. The Wellington association advised that as the New’ Zealand championships were to be held in Wellington next season it would nominate Mr L. H. Pollock for the presidency of the New Zealand association. On the motion of Mr Burtt it was decided to advise Wellington that in view of the many years’ service he had given to the game, Canterbury would support the Hawke’s Bay nomination of Mr A. H. Richards, of Napier, for the position.