Hello and welcome back to the Irish Tennis Updates Podcast. This week I’m chatting to Rob Leahy. Rob has a huge amount of experience in the racket restringing business and has worked as a stringer at several professional events over the years in addition to working in shops in Cork for many years and more recently Doha where he now lives and works. As well as discussing some of his own journey in tennis and how he started stringing, Rob also shares a huge amount of advice for those interested in...
May 30, 2021•58 min•Season 3Ep. 9
We are in the final week of the US college tennis season so tune in to hear how the Irish players have fared in the National Championships over the last 2-3 weeks. Also find out which players have been recognised by their conference as having had outstanding seasons. There are visuals that accompany this episode, so I’d recommend watching on YouTube if you can, to see the images and draws that Mark is discussing. A big well done to all the players for a great season and many thanks to Mark for h...
May 27, 2021•30 min
Georgia Drummy is currently competing at the NCAA national championships and has won her opening two matches to reach the last 16. Fergus O’Rourke, also an Irish college tennis player has been on the campus for the tournament and yesterday he caught up with Georgia to get her thoughts on the tournament so far. Many thanks to both Fergus and Georgia for taking the time to do this, and best of luck to Georgia for the rest of the tournament. She plays her next match at 6:30pm Irish time today, May ...
May 25, 2021•8 min
With the regular season now finished, Mark Finnegan takes us through what the remainder looks like. From NCAA D1, D2, NAIA and Junior Colleges, team, singles and doubles, tune in to learn all about it and hear about which Irish players are competing over the course of May. The very best of luck to all players. With thanks to the NCAA where all the draws used in this episode are taken from. See https://www.ncaa.com/sports/tennis-women/d1 and https://www.ncaa.com/sports/tennis-men/d1 for more info...
May 06, 2021•30 min
Hello and welcome back to the Irish Tennis Updates Podcast. This week I’ve got a really special episode with Liam O’Donoghue, the founder of Enjoy Tennis. Liam gives a brilliant insight into what Enjoy Tennis does, how it has grown and is continuing to do so, and the impact that it has had on so many people all around the country. This is without a doubt one of the most moving and uplifting chats that I’ve had on the podcast. As we say during the episode, if you have any questions or would like ...
Apr 25, 2021•29 min•Season 3Ep. 8
As the US College tennis season nears an end and we reach the Conference championships this week, tune in to catch up on all the action from the last two weeks. Thanks as always to Mark Finnegan for the updates and make sure to listen again as the National Championships are fast approaching.
Apr 21, 2021•27 min
Hello and welcome back to the Irish Tennis Updates Podcast. I’m really excited to have Gina Niland on the podcast this week. Gina has had a really great tennis journey, including being Ireland’s most successful Fed Cup player over 12 years, and she has career high rankings in the top 500 for singles and doubles. During the chat we talk about her early tennis development and progress, both in England and after her family moved back to Ireland. We talk about Fed Cup, the not-so-glamorous life on t...
Apr 11, 2021•42 min•Season 3Ep. 7
On this episode I’m talking with Mark Finnegan about all of the Irish players playing college tennis in the US at the moment. There are a lot of players doing amazingly well over there and this is a chance to give them some of the recognition they deserve. Enjoy this update and tune in again in two weeks to see how the season is progressing.
Apr 07, 2021•27 min
Welcome to episode five, the final part, of “The History of Irish Tennis”, my series with Tom Higgins, author and expert. Over the course of the series, we have looked back at various areas of the history of the sport in this country. Join us for this fascinating journey and learn something new. In the fifth and final episode, Tom discusses various topics, including the Fed Cup, US tennis scholarships, and the not-so-easy question of the oldest tennis club in Ireland. There are also some other a...
Apr 04, 2021•25 min•Season 3Ep. 6
Welcome to episode four of “The History of Irish Tennis”, my series with Tom Higgins, author and expert. Over the course of the series, we will be looking back at various areas of the history of the sport in this country. Join us for this fascinating journey and learn something new. In the fourth episode, Tom discusses the Olympics and the Davis Cup; the origins of these competitions, how they have developed and progressed, and of course Irish successes over the years, from Olympic medals won al...
Mar 28, 2021•32 min•Season 3Ep. 5
On this episode I’m talking with Mark Finnegan about all of the Irish players playing college tennis in the US at the moment. There are a lot of players doing amazingly well over there and this is a chance to give them some of the recognition they deserve. Enjoy this update and tune in again in two weeks to see how the season is progressing. And also in this episode I’ve caught up with Dave Mullins for some more explanation of the competition structure, and the structure of the college tennis se...
Mar 24, 2021•33 min
Hello and welcome back to the Irish Tennis Updates Podcast. This week on the podcast is Garrett Barry. Garrett is the National Performance Coordinator at Tennis Ireland and has been part of the team developing a new national performance strategy. The plan is ready to go as soon as Covid allows and Garrett takes us through all the main details here. As Garrett mentions towards the end of the episode, he is more than happy to receive any feedback, queries or advice on the plan, and you can reach h...
Mar 21, 2021•1 hr 9 min•Season 3Ep. 4
Welcome to episode three of “The History of Irish Tennis”, my new series with Tom Higgins, author and expert. Over the course of the series, we will be looking back at various areas of the history of the sport in this country. Join us for this fascinating journey and learn something new. In the third episode Tom discusses some of the individuals and families that have shaped Irish tennis over the years – from the top players of the early and mid-1900s, to more recent families such as the Nilands...
Mar 14, 2021•36 min•Season 3Ep. 3
On this episode I’m talking with Mark Finnegan about all of the Irish players playing college tennis in the US at the moment. There are a lot of players doing amazingly well over there and this is a chance to give them some of the recognition they deserve. Enjoy this update and tune in again in two weeks to see how the season is progressing.
Mar 09, 2021•22 min
Welcome to episode two of “The History of Irish Tennis”, my new series with Tom Higgins, author and expert. Over the course of the series, we will be looking back at various areas of the history of the sport in this country. Join us for this fascinating journey and learn something new. In this second episode, Tom discusses the Golden Age of tennis in Ireland, the success of the Irish at the major championships, as well as touching on other issues such as what caused Ireland to lose its grip on t...
Mar 07, 2021•28 min•Season 3Ep. 2
Welcome to the first episode of “The History of Irish Tennis”, my new series with Tom Higgins, author and expert. Over the course of the series, we will be looking back at various areas of the history of the sport in this country. Join us for this fascinating journey and learn something new. In this first episode, Tom discusses the origins of the sport of tennis, how it first came to Ireland, the inaugural Irish Championships in 1879 and why they were such a big success. Tom’s three volume book,...
Feb 28, 2021•24 min•Season 3Ep. 1
On this episode I’m talking with Mark Finnegan about all of the Irish players playing college tennis in the US at the moment. There are a lot of players doing amazingly well over there and this is a chance to give them some of the recognition they deserve. Enjoy this update and tune in again in two weeks to see how the season is progressing.
Feb 23, 2021•20 min
Hello and welcome back to the Irish Tennis Updates Podcast. This week I’m talking to Elsa O’Riain. Elsa played pro tennis for two years and achieved a top 400 singles ranking in that time. She’s represented Ireland in the Fed Cup, competed at three of the four junior grand slams and had a very successful time playing tennis at Harvard University. I really enjoyed talking to Elsa and hearing her tennis story. As well as discussing the highs and lows of her journey, we also talk about the wider be...
Feb 21, 2021•38 min•Season 2Ep. 17
Hello and welcome back to the Irish Tennis Updates Podcast. This week I’m talking to the wonderful Rosa Stephens. Anyone who’s been involved in tournaments or leagues in Leinster over the last number of years definitely knows Rosa and what a great job she does. During her time working for Leinster Tennis Rosa has been involved in bringing in Tournament Software, organising junior leagues, introducing Phoenix draws and a lot more. Rosa has done amazing things for Irish tennis and you’re not going...
Feb 14, 2021•55 min•Season 2Ep. 16
On this episode I’m talking with Mark Finnegan about all of the Irish players playing college tennis in the US at the moment. There are a lot of players doing amazingly well over there and this is a chance to give them some of the recognition they deserve. Enjoy this update and tune in again in two weeks to see how the season is progressing.
Feb 11, 2021•29 min
Hello and welcome back to the Irish Tennis Updates Podcast. This week I’m delighted to be chatting to Mike Cation. Mike is a legend of pro tennis commentary, working primarily on ATP Challenger level tennis on the USTA Pro Circuit. And he’s also worked at the Australian and US Opens. We talk about where this started for Mike, what he loves about the job and some of his best memories. In the second half of the episode, we talk about Mike’s experiences and memories of some of the best Irish player...
Jan 31, 2021•1 hr•Season 2Ep. 15
Hello and welcome back to the Irish Tennis Updates Podcast. This week I’m talking to Mark Carpenter. Mark has been around tennis his whole life and has a lot to offer to tennis in Ireland. As a junior he grew up in Switzerland and got to experience the tennis system over there. We touch on what we can learn from the Swiss when it comes to competitions. We also discuss other issues in Irish tennis as well as Mark’s time working on the committee for the Irish Open and what that experience taught h...
Jan 24, 2021•42 min•Season 2Ep. 14
Hello and welcome back to the Irish Tennis Updates Podcast. This week I’m chatting to David Wilson. David is an expert in coach education, and how we best learn. He has presented at various ITF and Tennis Europe conferences on topics like these. We chat about where this started for David, as well as discussing the coach education system in Ireland and where he sees room for improvement. Later on we discuss other aspects of Irish tennis, including tournaments, and spreading the word. I found this...
Jan 10, 2021•59 min•Season 2Ep. 13
Hello and welcome back to the Irish Tennis Updates Podcast. This week I have a great episode to start the new year with Dave Miley. Dave has worked in the administration side of the sport for many years, most notably as the Head of Development in the ITF for over 25 years. A job in which he achieved a lot of good for the sport. Since leaving that role, Dave has run for presidency of the ITF in 2019 and is now the national director for tennis in Kazakhstan. As well as all this, we discuss some of...
Jan 03, 2021•59 min•Season 2Ep. 12
Hello and welcome back to the Irish Tennis Updates Podcast. This week I’m chatting to Barry King. Barry had a successful junior career in Ireland before spending four years in the University of Notre Dame. As a pro, Barry reached a career high of 600 in singles, and 431 in doubles. He had great success in Davis Cup and has stayed involved in tennis since retiring from the game in 2011. We chat about the Casey Camps, life in college, Davis Cup, what he has done since retiring and much more. I hop...
Dec 20, 2020•47 min•Season 2Ep. 11
Hello, and welcome back to the Irish Tennis Updates Podcast. This week I’m chatting to Dearbhaile Roe, who is currently among the top ten women in the country, and has had great success as a junior and a senior. She grew up playing tennis in Claremorris Tennis Club in County Mayo. We talk about her experiences playing tennis in Connacht, the pros and cons that go with that, and her thoughts on the present, and future of Connacht tennis as well. On that, we also talk about playing Interpros and h...
Nov 08, 2020•33 min•Season 2Ep. 10
Hello and welcome back to the Irish Tennis Updates Podcast. This week I’m chatting to John Morrissey who shares some stories and insights from his great tennis journey. John had a stellar junior career, with a career high ranking of 30 in the world ITF. He reached the QF of the Youth Olympics in Singapore in 2010, he played all four junior grand slams twice, and was a practice partner for Nadal at the French Open and the Bryan Brothers at Wimbledon. While at college in the US, he was an All Amer...
Oct 25, 2020•36 min•Season 2Ep. 9
Hello, and welcome to the Irish Tennis Updates Podcast. This week I’m excited to bring you part 2 of my chat with Tristan Farron Mahon. If you haven’t yet listened to part 1, I’d recommend that you do so before listening to this episode. This week Tristan discusses his experiences with Davis Cup, his thesis on tennis, its effects and the changes that still need to take place in the structure of professional tennis, his current job and how his background in tennis has helped him, and more. If you...
Oct 18, 2020•33 min•Season 2Ep. 8
Hello, and welcome back to the Irish Tennis Updates Podcast. This week I’ve got a great episode with Tristan Farron Mahon. I really enjoyed getting into Tristan’s tennis journey and what he’s learned along the way. I’ve split this episode into two parts and this week it’s part one. Tristan talks about moving to the Hopman Academy in Florida aged just 10, his junior success and relationship with Marin Cilic, his struggles and success on the pro tour, the importance and role of decision making, an...
Oct 11, 2020•43 min•Season 2Ep. 8
Hello and welcome back to the Irish Tennis Updates Podcast. This week I’m chatting to the brilliant Ross Niland. Ross is currently the CEO of Queen’s Club in London. We talk about how this role came about, how the time has gone so far and Ross’ visions and plans for the future. We also talk about his earlier days in tennis, his experiences representing Munster and Ireland, the similarities between tennis and banking and more. I really enjoyed talking to Ross and I hope you find this episode inte...
Oct 04, 2020•37 min•Season 2Ep. 7
