Barnsley Tennis Coaching

Alice Robson - Head Coach
LTA Level 4 – Private Lesson £30*

 Alice Robson is an LTA Accredited Plus, Level 4 Senior Coach. Alice is motivated by helping   players along their tennis journey. She enjoys seeing players enjoy the game and being   passionate about seeing an improvement in their technical and tactical game.

She has been coaching for over 15 years and is Captain of Yorkshire 8&U and 9&U Girls. She   was awarded National Development Coach of the Year in 2019/20. Alice has reached an LTA rating of 5.2 and competed for the women’s 1st and 2nd team when she was studying at Leeds Beckett University. She continues to compete within the Yorkshire League Division 1 as well as National Premier League.

 Alice has been a Head Coach in Yorkshire since 2018. She is privileged that she can be part   of the development of tennis. She has found it very rewarding seeing clubs and coaching programmes grow and the impact it has on players' lives and tennis journeys. She has learnt that creating strong partnerships (between schools, clubs and coaches) is integral to the development of the sport.



Helen Johnson - Lead Coach
LTA Level 3 – Private Lesson £27*

 Helen is a Level 3 LTA Accredited Coach. Helen has been coaching for the past 10 years in   Leicestershire and Yorkshire at local clubs in the area. She was the women’s captain at Leeds Beckett University competing in the women’s 2nd and 3rd team whilst completing her degree. This experience allowed Helen to work on the Junior programme and team players supporting them on game day.  Alongside her studies Helen coached at the university and Barnsley Tennis Club. 

Helen has been playing since she was 4 years old and started competing at club level at the Mini Red stage. Having developed her tennis in a club setting Helen is keen to get players into competitions whether that’s socially or in a league. She enjoys seeing the improvement players make and their enjoyment with the sport. Her main goal is for players to learn in a fun, and hard working environment no matter what age or ability the player is. Helen is excited to come back to the club to see the club continue to grow and develop. 



Sara Robson - Lead Coach
LTA Level 2– Private Lessons £20* 



   Sara is an LTA Accredited Level 2 Coach. She is currently on her Level 3 Course. She has been coaching for over 7 years working at Wickham Tennis Club and The Avenue Lawn Tennis & Fitness Club. Sara has over 30 years of playing experience. During this time, she has had coaching herself and worked hard to develop her game by competing regularly. 

Sara has a lot of experience running tournaments within her voluntary roles as Junior Secretary and Ladies Captain. She organised the Junior Open tournament and the Club Championships catering for over 100 players for over 5 years. She has also worked with junior players, developing them from beginners to competing regularly. The knowledge and experience she has had from being a 'tennis mum' has meant that she has been able to relate to parents easily; giving support and empathy. In addition, Sara enjoys coaching adult beginners / improvers and is looking forward to doing more adult coaching.

Sara is a very enthusiastic coach. She is motivated by seeing the progress that her players make, and watching their passion and love for the game grow.




Anton Want - Lead Coach
LTA Level 2 – Hitting Lesson £20*

Anton was introduced to tennis by his Mum, Judith at the age of
6. Watching British player Virginia Wade lift the Wimbledon title
in 1977 began a lifetime love of the sport. Anton was coached
from a young age at Hallamshire Lawn Tennis Club by John
Howarth and John Gledden. He regularly trained and competed
with county players and represented junior and adult teams.

Inspired by action imagery in newspapers and Tennis World
agazine, Anton’s passion for photography led to an award
winning career in photojournalism. Covering international sport
and working closely with elite athletes and multiple World and Olympic Champions
was a dream come true for Anton, and one which he draws on in is approach to coaching. ‘I hope my experiences in working at the highest levels in sport translates into my attitude to tennis coaching. Tennis, and sport in general, can be a huge positive in people’s lives and I hope through coaching I can bring as much enjoyment, development and fulfilment to a player’s experience as possible, regardless of age or ability.'


 

Paul Dunn - Lead Coach
LTA Level 2 – Hitting Lesson £20*



                                                      Paul has been coaching since 2022 in both leading and assisting roles. Paul has been playing tennis for over 20 years. He has competed at club level representing Barnsley since 2005. He has also competed in LTA events and has always wanted to improve his  game.

 Paul played main tour professional snooker from 2001 - 2003 and top-level amateur snooker all over the country and abroad. In addition to this he played semi-professional football for AFC Emley from 2004 - 2008. He has reflected on this experience of competing at a higher level and states that in any sport the difference becomes having a great attitude to practice/training, good temperament and composed mentality in competition.

In his experience the psychology of a player plays a more important role. As a player starts to compete at a higher level, it allows them to try and advance themselves more technically & tactically in training and also deal with advanced opposition & pressure situations better. His aim as a coach is to inspire players to improve their tennis game and skills whilst maintaining and elevating their passion for the game - whether it be for social or competition tennis.