This year has been a standout one for our tennis community, filled with growth, teamwork, and incredible progress both on and off the court. In this week’s blog, our Director of Tennis Andy Trott celebrates the highlights, progress and the people that have made it all happen.
Category: Club Sport
Pre-Season: Building Strength, Power and Resilience
This week’s blog post is written by our Strength and Conditioning Coach Ethan Preddy, who joined the Sport, Exercise and Health team at the beginning of pre-season. Starting on 11 August 2025, pre-season is an opportunity for our student clubs to prepare for the BUCS season ahead, through four weeks of training and team building. Ethan tells us how the clubs got on:
New Beginnings at the University of Bristol
It’s been an exciting few weeks stepping into my role as Strength and Conditioning (S&C) Coach at the University of Bristol! Diving straight into pre-season in August with multiple clubs has been intense, busy and exactly the kind of challenge I enjoy.
The 3 Steps to Preparing for the Playoff Finals
With the BUCS season drawing to a close for a lot of teams and 13 Bristol teams having already won their respective leagues, 6 teams have been preparing for their upcoming Playoff Finals, in the hope of being promoted to the next league. Our Lead Strength and Conditioning Coach Calum Conway explains how the University’s Strength and Conditioning team have helped prepare them for the big games.
As coaches, we prepare as much as possible to have the perfect year. Planning around a competition schedule, identifying peaks and troughs in the calendar year and applying basic scientific, technical and tactical principles to the clubs that we have in front of us. One very exciting prospect when planning the perfect year is playoff time. Making sure teams peak for their biggest games is important and we try to reflect that importance in our coaching and programming.
How Tennis Can Increase Life Expectancy More Than Any Other Sport
Ever wondered which sport can help you live the longest? In this week’s blog, our Director of Tennis Andy Trott, discusses the numerous benefits that playing tennis has on your health and wellbeing, as well as record-breaking numbers for our University Tennis department!
The International Tennis Federation (ITF) recently published its Global Tennis Report which, amongst other things, identified that there are now over 100 million people playing tennis around the world. This is the first time the sport has ever reached over 100 million people in one year. The report also highlighted where the greatest growth in the sport is coming from based (per capita) and it’s good news for British Tennis! The report confirmed that 13.4% of the population play tennis, a greater percentage of the population than of any in the world.
University of Bristol Ladies Hockey Club Charity Day at Coombe Dingle
This week’s blog post is written by the University of Bristol Ladies Hockey Club, as they hosted a charity day on 13 November. From taking over the @bristolunisport Instagram stories for the day, to bringing their hockey kit in a microwave, read what else they got up during the day!
The 13 November saw University of Bristol Ladies Hockey Club (UBLHC) takeover of Coombe Dingle, with four teams playing BUCS matches against opposition from Bath, Cardiff and Hartpury. But the fun didn’t stop there. We hosted a charity day alongside our matches, raising money for two Bristol-based charities that we have worked closely with before: Bristol Hygiene Bank and The Bridge, which offers support to individuals after experiencing sexual assault.
How the Strength and Conditioning Team are Supporting Youth Programmes
After a busy summer getting our performance sports clubs prepared for the upcoming BUCS season, our Head of Strength and Conditioning Coach Calum Conway discusses how the University’s Strength and Conditioning team are also supporting our youth programmes.
Pre-season was an incredible opportunity to welcome our performance sports back to Coombe Dingle Sports Complex and provide four weeks of preparation ahead of the 2024/24 BUCS season. However, the Strength and Conditioning (S&C) department were also hard at work preparing a number of other clubs this summer, making use of the facilities and expertise on campus.
The Trio Cycling the Length of Norway in Memory of Their Friend
Ed Watson, fourth year Medicine student and outgoing (2023/24) Club Captain for Men’s Hockey shares his story on how he, along with his brother James Watson and his friend Tommy Davies, are remembering their friend who sadly passed away in December 2022. The trio are cycling 3100km to raise money for The Tom Love Trust; a charity set up in their friend’s name.
The Power of Sport Volunteering in Communities
This week’s blog is from our Development Officer in Sport Inclusion, Joe Leaver, who visited Ghana in 2016 to support a local football club. Hear about Joe’s experience of sports volunteering and the power of sport in communities!Â
Back in 2016, I decided to use my football coaching and playing experience to support a football club just outside of Accra, Ghana. I had long been interested in football development and knew that there were many talented footballers in Africa for whom opportunities to develop themselves in the sport barely exist. I wanted to volunteer and offer my services in a way that would help. (more…)
Hobson Cup – How the University of Bristol Tennis Club is Raising Money for Healthy Minds
On Saturday 8 June, the University of Bristol Tennis Club (UBTC) hosted the annual Hobson Cup at Coombe Dingle Sports Complex, with all money raised going to towards our Healthy Minds programme. Our Director of Tennis Andy Trott explains what the Hobson Cup means to the University’s Tennis Club in this blog.
The Hobson Cup was started in memory of Jack Hobson, a former UBTC member, BUCS player and student coach. Jack’s contribution to UBTC and tennis at the University during his time as a student was outstanding. Jack sadly passed away after he graduated.
Staff Football Has Been an “Absolute Game Changer to My Overall Wellbeing and Fitness”
The theme for this year’s Mental Health Awareness Week (13 – 19 May 2024) is Moving More for our Mental Health. As part of our campaign, we spoke with our Student Wellbeing Manager and Staff Football Club organiser, Jon Jerrome, about how the football club helps University of Bristol staff to move more. The club recently launched its first ever member survey with a view of understanding the impact of Staff Football, particularly on the wellbeing of it’s players. Here is Jon’s summary of the results.