DAVID Lloyd Southend’s new head tennis coach Jon Lee is determined to make the club the very best in the county.

Lee has stepped up into the role at the impressive Snakes Lane venue and is determined to make a big impression.

“Our aim is to be the best club in the county and I think that’s something we can achieve within the next year to 18 months,” said Lee.

“We already have a great programme, but we’re adding an enormous amount to it.

“We will make sure we provide the very best programme inclusive of all ages and standards from tots to those in their 80s, whether a beginner or a professional standard player.”

Lee is one of seven full-time coaches already at the club, but he is keen to recruit more as part of the new plans.

“We have seven full-time coaches plus various assistants but we’re looking for more pro coaches now,” said Lee.

“We’re also trying to get a real club environment going as David Lloyd has evolved a lot over many years.

“Glenn Earlam, who is CEO of David Lloyds, has a vision and realises the importance of tennis within the clubs and now have a philosophy of creating the very best in club environments.

“With that in mind we will be running day trips and we will also be having masterclasses with world class professionals.

“We also have Mark Wellington coming over, who has worked with some of the world’s best players like Maria Sharapova and James Blake. He believes he can make any player move faster and he will be passing on those tips to our members.”

David Lloyd Southend now boasts close to 1,500 racket members as well as a variation of courts. But Lee - who is a LTA level five Master Club coach - is keen to build on that number.

“Jo Miller is an exceptional general manager and is fully supportive in what can be created in our densely populated area of tennis clubs,” said Lee.

“I will be driving to be the best in the county, then aim to help others in what we achieve leading the way in UK standards.”

And Tim Collett is also keen to develop the club’s young players.

“We provide an all stars programme from tots to teenagers that offers all children areas of sport to be part of and excel in while having fun, whether it be our fantastic holiday camps or weekly programme,” said Collett.

“We have one of the very strongest coaching teams. Our team have over 100 years of coaching experience between them, with qualifications stronger than anywhere else in the county.

“We will be putting this to good use in our developments over the coming months. Jon and I have played in the same teams before and look forward to seeing what is possible in the programme progressions and developments we make together.”