Letter on Globe Lawn Tennis Club

I have just read the article in the Ham & High about the Globe Lawn Tennis Club. For the record, I am one of the older members of the club having been there for over 50 years. I would like to present the true version of the proceedings as voted for by over 70% of the membership.

It is true that the coaches have been there for a long time. However, it is also true that as time has gone by members have been getting less and less from them.

The members were getting fed up because the coaches stopped training the teams, they charge for playing in the first team and no member could get coaching time. Worst still, in the winter on club nights, 20-30 members were waiting in the cold for London Tennis Academy (the coaches) to finish at 7pm on three of the four lighted courts.

Former Globe coach Damian Nzekwu (Image: Damian Nzekwu)

The members felt more and more that the club was being taken over by LTA and the tail was wagging the dog. A motion was put up at the AGM to appoint a sub-committee to research the facts and give recommendations as to how the club should go forward. Against the old committees, 70% of the club voted for the motion. In the history of the club, there had never been so many members attending an AGM. This should give an idea of how the membership felt.

The sub-committee’s report shows that we came the bottom of the league of all other nearby tennis clubs, and our coaches were contributing at least five times less than the others. The new committee then spent several months trying to negotiate a new deal with the coaches. When the coaches turned down every offer, the committee had no choice but to terminate their contract and, after the correct period, advertised for tenders from any interested coaches. The committee also offered our coaches the right to submit a tender. What more could the club do?

The Globe is a democratic club and the members have the right to control their own future, 70% is a huge majority so let the griping stop.