THE coaching methods which helped establish some of the world’s top tennis stars have finally arrived in Essex.

The wonders of Modern Tennis helped Brazilian Gustavo Kuerten on his way to winning the French Open three times.

And the same fast track method of learning the game is now available at the Invicta Club in Westcliff.

Coach Andy Magrath has introduced the programme at the Westcliff venue in an attempt to rejuvenate the club and to introduce new players to tennis.

“It’s been truly humbling,” said Magrath, who has been overwhelmed by the feedback he has received.

“Since starting in June last year we’ve seen more than 300 coaches in both the UK and abroad, and have had 100 per cent positive feedback. It’s so important for beginners to experience success from early on.”

“We’ve had great success coaching people of all ages and abilities. Modern Tennis just makes the game so simple.”

Magrath, who is from Hockley and his coaching partner John Littleford first heard about Modern Tennis while reading a national newspaper.

That led to endless research on the internet and eventually they found the origin of the methodology.

“They were first devised by a guy called Oscar Wegner,” explained Magrath. “Oscar urges players to play like the professionals do.”

“We managed to get in touch with him, and flew him over to the UK from Florida. Subsequently he trained us and asked us to ‘spread the gospel’ as it were, so now we can get beginner players hitting 20 shot rallies within a short time.

“Intermediate players will find their best game through improved tracking, timing and feel, while advanced players can improve focus on power output.

“It is an innovative, step by step approach that simplifies the game for all standards.”

Together, Andy and John formed Modern Tennis International and run courses detailing the qualities of the Modern Tennis syllabus all over the country.

They have since produced two groundbreaking DVDs to help players and coaches and their services have also recently been snapped up by the David Lloyd Club chain.

Such is the talent of some of the juniors they have taught that they have been interviewed on the BBC and ITV.

But it is not just youngsters making the most of the new techniques as Invicta member Terry Wilson, who is in his late 60s, was on the verge of quitting the game before learning Modern Tennis.

“They say you can’t teach an old dog new tricks — but you can teach them Modern Tennis,” he said.

“It’s been brilliant for me. It’s so simple and logical”

l A free taster session displaying these techniques will be held at the Invicta Tennis Club this Saturday (May 16) and also on other dates.

Anyone aged above five is welcome and should contact Andy to book their place on 07931 899998.

Visit www.playmoderntennis.com or call Andy for more details.

ECHO'S CHRIS TRIES HIS HAND AT TENNIS

BACK in the day, when Take That were first together and curtains were the must-have haircut, I myself was a budding young tennis player.

I played every week at Rayleigh Lawn with Andy as my coach and was therefore intrig-ued to discover these latest techniques for myself.

Subsequently, my racket was dusted down and I found myself back on court, this time at the Invicta Tennis Club.

To begin with though all I needed were my hands as the first exercise was designed to teach me how to time my shots correctly. My feet moved naturally. I didn’t have to think about them once I found the ball with my hands.

I could only make contact with the ball after counting to five following its bounce and then had to palm the ball back over a washing line-esque piece of equipment which made sure my future shots were not in danger of hitting the net.

This I did left-handed to get the feel of a beginner and I found that when I eventually got back to using a racket I was instantly able to top spin the ball on my weaker side.

As part of the new plan, I also had to hold the racket at the very top of the grip while also playing in the service boxes to again help with my timing and technique.

Eventually I progressed to the back of the court.

Once there, I instantly noticed a difference to my game and was able to play a part in some long and often successful rallies against Andy.

These techniques to me seemed quite straightforward and enjoyable too.

It is just a shame that they weren’t introduced a bit earlier in these parts because then maybe I could be dreaming of wowing Wimbledon — and not just writing about it!