A lesson in the rain

I was at the Eastview tennis courts tonight; I was supposed to be giving lessons, but about 15 minutes in the rain started. As I was packing up, two kids who had just finished playing soccer on the field next to the courts came over with a soccer ball and started playing foot tennis. I see this all the time at school. The men's team always play after tennis practice with the soccer team, and I'm always impressed. They have so much control. Our men’s team is able to control the tennis ball with their feet just as well as they can with their racket.

These two kids who were playing did not display the same control I see with our men’s team, but I was just as impressed. Not because of how they handled the ball, but because of how eager they were: they had just finished playing and even though it was raining and they couldn’t use the field since another game was going on, they found a way to keep playing.

I grabbed a tennis ball and walked over to them and asked them if they had ever played foot tennis with a tennis ball. They said they hadn't. I told them how I know a bunch of guys who play scholarship sports and do it all the time. I told them if they practiced and continued to play soccer and work hard maybe they could get a scholarship or even go pro. Their faces lit up. I told them that they should try playing foot tennis with a tennis ball and I gave them a tennis ball. The boys were so thankful. They couldn't believe that I said they could keep the ball. They started to try immediately.

USCA Soccer team and fans at the PBC soccer championships during fall 2012

As I was leaving I watched them play; they were excited and I was excited. I could tell these kids loved their sport and they were inspired by the idea that they could get a scholarship or even go pro. These young athletes clearly had passion, displayed by their practicing in the rain. I am also quite sure they were great kids - I've never seen kids so gracious for being given an old tennis ball.

I hope our athletes see the lesson here. There is always a way to practice. Even if it’s raining and you can’t get on the court you can shadow swing, do fitness, review previous matches, write down your goals, or watch instructional videos online. We forget that talent is not our natural ability. When we look at the athletes most praised for their talent such as Wayne Gretzky or Michael Jordan we often overlook that they are also known for practicing more than anyone else. Talent is what we create by putting forth every effort we have. Talent is hard work. We can do whatever we put our minds to.

The weather can prevent us from practicing, but these two boys are a reminder to us that weather is just a speed bump on our journey. With passion and hard work, there is no obstacle too large to stop us. 

Skyhawks B Team Shows Impressive Teamwork

When I found out Simcoe Tennis was going to have a travelling team that was going to compete against other clubs I was, and still am, super excited. Really, you probably cannot imagine how excited I am (I’m normally pretty excited, but this was a new height even for me). As a college tennis player, I knew how valuable this experience would be. Tennis is always seen as an individual sport, but until you get to play team tennis, you do not realise how much of a team endeavour it really is. I was excited for our athletes to get the opportunity to play in this environment, supporting one another, and playing together.
 

This past weekend, I got to travel to Collingwood to watch our B Team compete. It was amazing because right away, their first team match, they were acting as a team. When a player was sitting off they would be sitting on the sidelines cheering on their teammates. During their doubles play the teams were communicating and most of the teams came up with strategies. When a player finished their match they would ask me how the team was doing hoping that all their teammates were playing well. It was almost unbelievable to see.
 

Team tennis is a completely different game. It is great because you are competing as a team, meaning you may win or lose your match, but that doesn’t mean the team will win or lose. Everyone’s score is equally important. That is why you want to win your match, but you also want your teammates to win theirs. You want to cheer them on, stand next to their court and encourage them. Furthermore the attitude you have on the court is even more important than usual. If you are acting down you can bring your teammates down which will affect their performance, but if you are high energy and doing your best to compete, you can cause your teammates levels to rise also. Even if you lose your match, you can be a huge part of your teams’ victory by cheering on your teammates and doing your best to fight during your match to inspire your team. However, this also works the other way around. If you win your match, but do not try to help your teammates, you may have equally contributed to a team loss. I don’t know if the B Team was aware of all of this when they were playing this weekend, and my guess is they were not, but that makes the experience even better. Why? They did not only want to see their teammates do well, but they wanted to see their friends do well.
 

Our Skyhawks are taking to the court again this weekend. Our A Team will be playing in Newmarket and our B Team is playing Astra at home. I am really excited again and am hopeful that we will see more Skyhawks spirit as our season continues.