As West Herts Wizards Pickleball Club celebrates its second birthday, Secretary Lyn Epps has called its growth in the first two years “phenomenal and a little mind-blowing!”
Having started in autumn 2019 as a weekly community group set up by Everyone Active at Hemel Hempstead Leisure Centre (which was almost immediately disbanded by Covid-19), the initial handful of players stayed in touch through lockdown and eventually found a permanent home at Berkhamsted Leisure Centre.
That base, with six courts including permanent kitchen markings, laid the foundations for the Wizards to be formed. The club name came from Chair John Wilson, who had 12 polo shirts with a ‘flash’ symbol on them left over from some previous work with a group of magicians. The shirts were given to the first 12 members and, as if by magic, the club was off and running!
It soon grew from a weekly social hit to five sessions per week with a nine-strong committee, over 20 qualified coaches, over 150 members and 24 medallists at last year’s English Open and English Nationals (plus 36 players entering this year’s Open at Telford)!
One of the key aspects to West Herts Wizards’ success has been its approach to inclusion. With some players reaching 4.5+ standard, they have had to ensure players from beginner to advanced level are all catered for and have incorporated wheelchair users into sessions too.
“We try our best not to be too narrow in our outlook and to provide opportunities for players at every level,” Lyn tells Pickleball 52. “Some of our members just want to play for fun, and we mustn’t lose sight of that.”
Alongside Lyn and John, Treasurer Brian Harrison was a third key driver of the Wizards. Kirsty Jones, Community Active Sport’s Development Officer, has also been an important advocate of the club at the leisure centre. Andy Tallyn, a badminton and tennis player who joined initial sessions out of curiosity, has now become one of the club’s lead coaches. “It’s a team effort – we really feed off each other and work together brilliantly,” stresses Lyn.
Lyn – a New Zealander with a background in tennis and table tennis – laughs when asked to sum up the journey so far. “Bewildering is probably a good word!” she says. “The response and positivity coming from people who want to come and play and be a part of it is amazing. There’s a strong will to create something a bit special.”
However, Lyn confesses the Wizards are “probably about halfway” to where they want to be. They have a wonderful relationship with their ‘landlords’ at Berkhamsted Leisure Centre (who accommodate up to 70 hours of court time per week!) but a home of their own is the eventual hope.
Also, 76% of club members are over-55 – and they’re taking steps to try to broaden the age range. Armed with a grant from Dacorum Borough Council, in September 2022 the club purchased equipment and delivered taster sessions to 100 Year 7 pupils in six schools (including 20 pupils in a specialist SEND school) and trained PE staff to deliver sessions themselves.
The club plans to revisit schools soon to help embed pickleball in the PE and sport curriculum and set up lunchtime and after-school clubs. Once pickleball is more established in schools, a weekend junior club is planned to establish a school-to-club pipeline.
With 15 members now holding the Pickleball Leaders Certification and eight having undertaken the IPTPA Level 1 Workshop, new members are given an expert welcome with free introductory coaching. The team of coaches is led by Andy Tallyn and Simon Beddell who, Lyn says, have “taken our coaching to the next level.” Individual, pairs or group coaching sessions are plentiful for players who want to fast-track their progress. A ‘Centre of Excellence’ is the vision and the club is well on its way to that ambition.
Many have climbed aboard this pathway with glee and reaped rewards. The Wizards were winners of the inaugural Hertfordshire County League last year and are helping to organise inter-county matches this year. A haul of eight golds and two silvers by club members at last year’s English Open and 14 at the English Nationals tells its own story.
Amongst the membership is wheelchair user Ella Archer who attends with her husband, mum, dad and brother-in-law. Ella works for WheelPower and has helped the club forge links with the famous Stoke Mandeville – birthplace of the Paralympics. The club delivered a taster session to 50 wheelchair users aged eight to 60 at the Bucks Festival Games at Stoke Mandeville and is helping players find places to play in their own local areas.
The club’s inclusivity recently extended to a player in his 70s with dementia who was brought along by his sister. Lyn explains: “He was an excellent tennis player back in the day, and his natural racquet skills come to the fore all the time. Neither he, nor his sister, would mind me saying he never knows what the score is, but then neither do most of us! We repeat the rules regarding the non-volley-zone over and over, to ensure the game goes well and everyone’s happy!”
West Herts Wizards are such an inspiring club. They seem to be navigatibg the inevitable growing pains exceptionally well. 👏👏👏