La Manga 2008

Our party of 10, which included two teachers, was really excited to be visiting La Manga, even those for whom it was not the first visit. The weather forecast was poor however we were welcomed by blue sky and the awakening aroma of Spanish air.

After viewing our lovely villas and visiting the local market where the smells of the fresh food was wonderful, our thoughts turned to tennis. We had a welcome hour of tennis, a warm up and a chance to meet the coaches. We were being trained by professional Spanish coaches who are so keen on their job that they can not imagine life without tennis. We had a great chance to play on tricky clay courts that are rare in the UK, where ball bounces are not as you would expect.

The second day had us all striving for consistency on the court. There was tennis in the morning, another session in the afternoon and than an hour of fitness which was an assorted circuit of exercises aimed at improving our agility.

We started to learn how to work as a team during both the tennis and fitness sessions and as the week progressed, our objectives changed and our mentality hardened as we fought through the heat and sunshine which left us all a little red at the end of the day.

The evenings were spent with a home made bowl of pasta and a chance to soak up the Spanish atmosphere whilst we rested our aching limbs.

On our last day in the tennis resort the coaches surprised us by organizing a Davis Cup style competition. We were divided into two teams and each of us played our matches trying to get as many points for our team as possible. The winning team was rewarded with souvenir T-shirts displaying the La Manga logo.

When the week was over we were very sad to say goodbye to our coaches, the new friends that we had made and the red clay courts. The skills that we learnt and the experience gained during the week, both on and off the tennis courts, will stay with us all for many years to come.

Sam Cailler