Where are the youngsters in Kent [Archive]

Sonic

30th June 2004, 15:05

I think this is a general problem across the country and has been discussed in this forum many times. My experience is that in the local and county club leagues the average age of the competitors is increasing and I agree that the average age must 30+, if not 35+.

The game has always had an image problem in this country (England). It has never been *cool* and now with such emphasis and investment in other sports it's getting harder to make kids want to play.

At the very least I think the senior players at whatever level should be doing their best to encourage young players. Make them welcome at clubs, get their kids playing and get their kids friends playing, offer to help at the local junior club or even set one up, promote the game at every opportunity. Every player could do something. If they (we) don't encourage a new wave of interest then the game will continue it's spiral into obscurity.

DrHonesty

1st July 2004, 11:15

jmj875

1st July 2004, 11:38

I have found several coaching sessions for youngsters in Kent but I must say that the standard of the coaching is VERY poor. Many up and coming players are put off at this early stage.

Does anyone know of a good coach for youngsters (or anyone) in Kent ?

I'm not involved with Kent but I do know that they have a good coaching structure especially with the county junior squad......Mike Burgess is doing a great job there, speak to him and he will help you to find good coaches in that area.

Grover

1st July 2004, 11:47

from the Kent badminton site - http://www.kentbadminton.co.uk/HandBookPage12.htm

full site - http://www.kentbadminton.co.uk/index.htm

rhombus

1st July 2004, 13:18

The players listed from my previous comments have all come from just 2 clubs in the whole of Kent. Peter

Knowles, Richard Doling, Sarah Hardaker and Neil Waterman all coming originally from one club. Are there

more athletes with talent in the Medway Region of Kent or is it to do with the lack of talented coaches from

the other regions. As sonic rightly pointed out, the majority of youngsters that are now developing within

the region are sons and daughters of ex county players. We need to attract young people now or the

league structure that has collapsed over the past 5-10 years will disappear altogether.

DrHonesty

1st July 2004, 13:57

Mike Burgess is doing a great job there

April fools joke?

tango

4th July 2004, 15:51

my two penneth - there are some excellent coaches in kent... there's two gents that i know of - one is called Vance and the other is Peter, and a lady called Julie.

I may not know a lot about the coaching structure within Kent but if the 'restricted' is anything to go by... there's nothing wrong with the coaching!!

rhombus

5th July 2004, 11:03

Dear Tango,

I cannot take issue with you about the two coaches you mentioned. However you must

be from the generation where they think that having 6 ladies and 12 men in the respective

restricted singles is a good turnout. As all of us can remember who are 40 and above,

there used to be a qualifying tournament the weekend before the actual restricted. It

was not uncommon to have to play 4/5 rounds of Singles, doubles and mixed to qualify

for the real tournament. In Kent in those days the real tournament consisted of players

like Ray Sharp, Pau Whetnall, Ray Rofe, Mike Wilkes, Nick Yates and a player called

Chris Back, who had more talent than most of the players mentioned. You would be lucky

to get through a round.

The county junior restricted tournament held at Canterbury University, had under 12, 15 and 18

events. Again in the under 18 boys there would be easily 32 in the draw, with the ladies having

a respectable 20-25 in the draw.

So in conclusion we have a long long long way to go to get back to those days.

PS. Remind me, is there a thriving Ladies / Mens Doubles Kent 1st Division?

Correct me if I am wrong, the Kent divisions disappeared 10 years ago. All

the badminton in Kent now is in regional divisions that were considered as

inferior years ago.

tango

5th July 2004, 19:13

Erm Rhombus... you have raised some good points in your threads. quote: is there a thriving Ladies / Mens Doubles Kent 1st Division? end quote - I'm afraid, I have no idea, I'm not talented enough to play at that level!!!

rhombus

6th July 2004, 16:14

Dear Tango,

" Talent is in the eye of the beholder ", keep practising and you never know?

To all my friends who have berated my exclusion of a Kent legend, Gillian Clark MBE

Commonwealth gold Medallist 1994 ( Mixed ) and the most capped British player ever

(quoted in a recent article on the London youth games ). We used to watch her battle

with Sarah/Mary Leeves in the final of the Kent junior championships every year in the

middle to late 1970's.

My sincerest apologies for the omission

I am over 40 and my memory is not what it used to be

P.S. Any others I've left out ?

Admiral

6th July 2004, 16:17

Neil Waterman, Richard Doling & Ben Hume all played for England during their career!

rhombus

7th July 2004, 13:36

Dear Admiral,

I mentioned Neil and Richard in one of my previous threads. However all three

of the players you mentioned hardly set the world alight. As a former partner

of Neil's I can say that the furtherment in his badminton career was effected

by money, or the severe lack of it. Whether it be through Lottery Grants or

sponsorship, developing players must find it difficult to cope with day to day

issues such as Travelling expenses, accommodation etc etc. Realistic sums

of money must be available to developing young players at the early stages

of their careers..... investment in the future.

Maria Sharapova at 17 winning Wimbledon is expected with Tournament wins

and sponsorship deals to earn 100 million pounds over her career. If you were

a young athlete which sport would you chose. One court church halls playing

to 1-2 in the morning with limited earning potential, or the lavish life style that

accompanies being in the top 50-100 players in a sport like tennis?.

Admiral

7th July 2004, 15:43

Slow down Rhombus, I only mentioned a few players from Kent that played for England. I didn't say they set the world alight but they were all very good players.

Sharapova, Church Halls, 1-2 in the Morning - you need to calm down fella!

So you played with Neil did you....Why use an alias when you are going to reveal yourself like that?

rhombus

12th July 2004, 10:44

Dear Admiral,

Rhombus is the alias I use, but I can be easily identified by looking in the

Public profile. Why is it that the majority of the people posting threads

do not want to be identified ?.

Admiral

12th July 2004, 11:04

Its better that way Neale , I mean Rhombus!

southernmonkey

13th July 2004, 23:19

Thrombus,
I don't want to sound rude geezer but what is your point on this thread ?

I have read your latest masterpieces on this thread and can't work out where you are going with this.

Kent have produced good youngsters recently but every county sustains quiet periods.

kent have been silent since Humey but I thinks it's down to the fact that they have not got a great flagship club in the county.

Look at Castlemain, birds fly around above your head geezer whilst you play.

Your car looses it's wheels and alloys whilst you shower all under the same 1 great power shower.

So when did you play with wide boy then Thrombus ?

rhombus

14th July 2004, 12:22

Dear Southern Monkey,

who are you really ?, put a name to a name !. You obviously don't play

in Kent or are completely ignorant of the fact that we have a severe

lack of players. I am still at 44 years old playing my Badminton in Premier

divisions in Kent where the best players should be...... I don't see any.

As to when I played with " Wide Boy ", 3-4 years in the Hoo team when

he was developing his art. And I can say that at that time he was a lean,

mean,fighting machine. Later when he gave up professional Badders

I played with him for 2-3 seasons at Northfleet Badders Club and in the

County Restricted. That's probably the recent times you are talking

about. Neil was a young player 10 years ago, along with a certain

Richard Doling who I used to play singles with at Swanscombe leisure

centre in the evenings.... that was probably 12 years ago.

As to Castlemaine, it is being revamped over the summer. I agree with

you that it needed updating, but remember it was originally built by

members of the Medway committee/ league at the time...20 years ago.

There are famous pictures of one George Hubbard welding shovel/

pick in the laying of the foundations at that time. So I don't think it's

done badly. As to other Kent venues, ParkLangley Sports Club has

invested and has a good facility. In the late 1970's through to the

late 80's the club was a one court facility. However Nick Yates

trained with us regularly there and Paul Whetnall joined and played

doubles for us for a couple of seasons...... the good old days.

Got the Drift Southern Monkey ? or are you living in never, neverland

Grover

14th July 2004, 12:42

neale, it was established a while ago that souther monkey was stuart waddell. i think he plays in surrey.

pink panther

14th July 2004, 14:02

I actually remember playing the Kent Restricted when there was a qualifying tournament before the main tournament and today I am sure that that does not happen in any county!
It is so sad to not see many juniors coming through as many years ago you would have so many. I am sure this is down to many parents wanting their children to take up sports that have money in them such as Football, Tennis, Golf etc.
It takes many hard years to actually become No 1 in your country at any sport but I may be biased but badminton in my view is one of the toughest sports. In Kent over the years there have been many great talented players and our last two happen to be Peter Knowles and Jo Muggeridge who both made it to No 1 in Great Britain. I am sure these two players would be able to tell you that there has never been great money in badminton even when you have made it to No 1. This is the reason why kids today do not see badminton as a great sport to take up. How many Footballers, Tennis Players, Golfers have you seen that have made it to No 1 have to then go out to find another job to survive? How many parents would want this for their kids to see them become No 1 and then have nothing after they have finished there career?
In Denmark and Germany they have a great club system where all the club players that are in the teams all earn money! These countries governing bodies have worked hard to make this happen. They have had to go out and find sponsors so that they have had the funding for these matches and also for the coaches that run the clubs. Surely, with all of the money that the BA of E receive from the sports lottery and sponsors etc they should be able to start up a club system where parents and children would look at badinton in a very different light. I know the BA of E run junior coaching set ups but it would be so much better if it were to be done in a club set up that the whole family could attend the club like Martin Dew mentioned in his article. It would mean the talented youngsters that we have in Britain would not be taken away from badminton as they would see they could earn some money at club level and it would also be a fun for them as today it seems that these sessions are not fun and they do not learn new shots. Maybe it is the people that have been employed to run these sessions have never been able to play any shots themselves!!!
This club set up would be brilliant for badminton as there would be many more participants and a great amount of talented youngsters.
I have heard that Peter and Jo are now coaching in Kent and if I were to be young again I would definitely give them a call for some coaching. So for those of you out there who want to improve you now have the chance to be coached by two very talented England No 1's.
What are you waiting for?
Look forward to hearing peoples views.

southernmonkey

14th July 2004, 14:42

Grover,
You are such a name dropper geezer.

It makes me wanna cry.

yes the legend is back and as for Thrombus, well as I said earlier counties such as kent are going to have dry periods just like most from time to time.

It's up to the county to employ some decent coaches who will produce talent coz players don't grow on trees.
I would take all your children to Knowles and let him teach your sons and daughters how to smack some players up.

Now both grover and Thrombus put your toys back in your prams and calm down.

The monkey has spoken.

rhombus

14th July 2004, 15:02

Dear Pink Panther,

I agree with alot of your sentiments and I still think money and investment in

facilities is the answer. Of course at an early age young players are

primarily supported by their parents. And as I stated in an earlier thread

alot of the 10-14 year olds in Kent who are progressing are sons and

daughters of past players. Badminton is a tough sport, one of the toughest

in my opinion. When and if you win big what sort of national publicity is their

...none. It was the same years ago, Nick Yates winning the Japan Open in

1988 was one of the big achievements in singles at the time in English

badminton, hardly reported in the newspapers.

I wonder what coverage the olympic badminton will get in comparison to

all the athletics that will be shoved done our throats.

Thanks for a sensible thread, look and learn southern monkey.

kingpin

14th July 2004, 15:54

I think I should just point out that I agree that the Kent juniors at the moment are a load of crap. Half of them find it hard to hit the shuttle. The only one with talent is Craig Spooner. They had such good players before like Peter Knowles but it's like Kent has just been dried up of talented players. Not saying that they can't make a comeback as a county but at the moment they are a poor county at junior level.

southernmonkey

14th July 2004, 16:46

Thrombos,
As you are new on here let me help you out and educate you.

Firstly the word is post not thread.

IE, Thanks for the sensible post.

Let me guess, meadway born and bread !!!!!

secondly,
As the monkey said before use the clubs you have got and get better coaches to teach the kent pikee's how to play the game.

having great halls ain't going to help you get better players geezer, especially in kent !

The Monkeys thoughts are simple Thrombis and sensible to.

The monkey

Admiral

14th July 2004, 17:13

Rhombus....Did I see that Castlemaine is having a revamp? I hope they can do something about the security at that place! There is little wrong with the playing hall itself but you do run the gauntlet entering the building. If you can avoid the stone throwing all there is to worry about is whether your car will be there when you return, and whether the wheels are attached or it's been torched. Not a week goes by without those pikeys smashing a window or jumping on someone's car.

I'm sure Kent will be pleased to welcome all of their opponents for the up and coming season......the Medway massive would also like to welcome you too!!

Be warned!!

kingpin

14th July 2004, 17:53

Does Kent have enough money to get decent badminton facilities. I think someone should create a thread trying to discuss that issue, by the sounds of castlemaine, I think the answer is no. I've heard of castlemaine and how much of a dump it is, could cost millions just to scrape the bird s**t of the courts.

rhombus

15th July 2004, 13:47

Dear southern monkey or is it stuart wardell,

Please note : not born in medway but in Bromley.

Played for a surrey club for a couple of years in the

late 70's/early 80's........ not a very good club at the time

however it was in the surrey 1st Division, you may have

heard of it.... Coulsden and Purley. You had some class

players at that time, Fiona/Mark Elliot, Duncan Bridge,

Karen Bridge etc etc.

If this "post" is correctly addressing Stuart Wardell of

Wimbledon fame, is the lack of depth and talent affecting

surrey senior squads. Sorry I haven't played in the surrey

leagues or county matches for a while. Is Tony Dennis still playing

( another old partner of mine ) or is he retired now ?.

Educate me some more, you obviously have a wealth of

experience to pass on to me.

tango

15th July 2004, 20:00

hello again Rhombus, yes Tony Dennis is still playing badminton and very well I might add. He coached me for a couple of sessions and he is still a mindblowing player and I travelled from Kent to Surrey to get some coaching!!

southernmonkey

15th July 2004, 23:04

Thrombosis,
Of course the monkey has alot of things to teach you.
It's only natural for me to help others as this is how I have got my legend status.

However the monkster has no idea what steffan Dennis is up to these days.

Tango,
Good luck geezer if you were taught by Mr Dennis as you will need all the help you can get if this is the case.
If the monkey don't know of him then you got problems Tango.

As for Surrey Thrombusis the monkster hasn't got a clue about Depth.

The monkey

pink panther

16th July 2004, 13:01

Obviously the southern monkey has no idea about badminton and has never played at a top level so would recommend everyone to ignore southern monkeys comments!!!

Admiral

16th July 2004, 13:34

Mr Pink, you would be surprised - Southern Monkey was an excellent player!

eddykid

16th July 2004, 15:49

Pink P,

What are your views on this subject then ?

Were you a good player or just a look a like of your user name....

pink panther

16th July 2004, 17:11

To Admiral & Eddy Kidd,
If southern monkey was such a good player why does he not put a name to himself. What standard do you call a good player?
Are we talking Top 3 in the country?
Would like to know. Who are you two? Are you the monkeys boys?

kingpin

16th July 2004, 17:16

I know southern monkey very well pink pathetic. He was an excellent player, but if I give away the ranking and the details of the monkey then his indentity will be open, oooh too late Groner has already named him!!!

eddykid

16th July 2004, 17:17

Pinky,
I think that first you should reveal yourself as I keep picturing the cartoon character that has your name every time you post

He was as daft as a brush if I remember....

pink panther

16th July 2004, 17:23

I can't believe the southern monkey is stuart wardell. Is it really or are you all having a laugh? If it is stuart was never a top player. Top player has to be someone that has at least gained some England caps.

kingpin

16th July 2004, 17:27

Stuart Wardell???Who the hell is he, I know the monkey but that aint him. Sorry Pink Pathetic but that aint him. Go scratch your pink head again and think harder but don't strain your brain too much. Someone must be having a laugh.

pink panther

16th July 2004, 17:30

So why did grover say it was stuart wardell then?

Grover

16th July 2004, 17:34

because it is. just like other people on this thread have other names too. shame that all of you can't talk about badminton instead of bigging each other up

southernmonkey

16th July 2004, 17:36

Pandy the panther,

Easy now, we don't want your dummy to come out of your mouth now.

Nice try though, but lets get back to the script.

My legend status does not normally allow me to talk to the likes of you however I don't mind answering post from plonkers from time to time.

You still have not answered eddy's post yet though.

Pandy, leave the big boy stuff to us and run along and play with Groover and the rest of the braidy bunch.

The monkey

kingpin

16th July 2004, 17:38

Groner living up to his name by moaning about others. If you read earlier in the thread then you'll see we talked about badminton. You don't talk about badminton, you just moan like you are doing now. Bigging each other up, we are talking about what makes a top player with a bit of humour. But Groner doesn't like humour!!

eddykid

16th July 2004, 17:42

Pinky,

Groover is the last person on this site that you should listen to.

just look at the name.....

I mean, your name ain't that much better but who's perfect......

Grover

16th July 2004, 17:43

we are talking about what makes a top player with a bit of humour. But Groner doesn't like humour!!ah, that is where i was going wrong. there was me thinking that the thread had to have a funny element in it. let me read again. no. nothing funny.
;)

and again resorting to slagging someone off. nothing changes.

pink panther

16th July 2004, 17:44

If you are so good southern monkey then why not tell us who you are? I believe you are one of those try to have been a good player but failed miserably thats why you like to get on this site and act as if you are some superstar!!!! :D

kingpin

16th July 2004, 17:47

Are groner and pink pathetic joining forces, that could be interesting. Groner, a post doesn't need humour but I think this thread does and I also think that you were just trying to add humour but you fail because you just don't have the wit. Maybe ask your mate pink pathetic for some lessons in humour but his brain power may not help you very much. You are pefect for each other.

eddykid

16th July 2004, 17:50

Ok groover,

You win, I have no idea where the Kent youngsters are.

Maybe they have all gone to the beach because Kent is close to the sea.

Do you know Groover ?

Is that ok.....

kingpin

16th July 2004, 17:50

To take this feud to aside, I think I should mention that Kent juniors are not at their best, actually, far from their best. Maybe castlemaine hiring a bird extirminator might give the kent juniors a place to train and become a good county again.

eddykid

16th July 2004, 17:57

More like burn the whole of that area at Castlemaine down and start a fresh....

I still think it is because of the coaching in Kent that Kent have no youngsters.

Get P knowles to get stuck in with the youngsters and maybe he can turn it around.

I say get Cooper and Redman back at castlemaine as they will do the buisness.

pink panther

16th July 2004, 18:00

Ah so you are a failed player!!! Nevermind southern monkey it must be nice for you to feel good on this site and I know now the real you!!! Never mind better luck next time!!

kingpin

16th July 2004, 18:04

Pink Pathetic, you are going on about people hiding behind alias's like me but you are hiding behind an alias. I bet you are a failed player or a poor standard club player, maybe getting coaching from groner, if you are not even God could save you.

eddykid

16th July 2004, 18:05

Pinky,
I wouldn't diss the monkey if I was you, you won't like him when he is angry.

Look what he did to poor Phil Mcbride....

Be careful Pinky

eddykid

16th July 2004, 18:12

Ok everyboby,

I have now solved it.....

Groover and Pinky are the Kent juniors who failed at club level at castlemain.

They love the birds flying around whilst they play hand in hand.

They have no car to worry about outside as their moms drop them to Castlemain.

They don't mind sharing the only one power shower.

Their relatives are Pikey's.

Hence the hostility.......

pink panther

16th July 2004, 18:18

Thats really funny Kingpin! Your name obviously sums up everything about you! Another failed player. Never mind I know who I am and know that I represented England many times and thats all the info I am willing to give you idiots!!! :p

kingpin

16th July 2004, 18:23

So Pink Pathetic, without any information about me or any idea who I am you came to an assumption that I am a failed player and that I come on here to take the piss out of people to sink my sorrows. You couldn't be further from the truth. Shows out your immense brain power.

eddykid

16th July 2004, 18:24

Yeah we believe you Pinky.

That's why most of the good players on here use their real names.

You have something to hide don't you Pinky.....

You diss the monkey's playing ability and then come out with that old chessnut.

I represented england many times.......Yeah right thanks for that.

Come on you play for kent don't you..

kingpin

16th July 2004, 18:29

You are obviously a Kent junior player who is rubbish and can't hit the shuttle like most of the kent juniors. Why hide your real name if you're that good. You call us idiots but you are the idiot, what person in their right mind would call themselves pink panther.

eddykid

16th July 2004, 19:15

We are waiting Pinky.....

Silence.....................

Actually I am an England player as well so there Pinky.

who are the main coaches in Kent.

does anyone know ?

kingpin

16th July 2004, 19:36

I think it could be the birds in castlemaines rafters who whistle down coaching tips to the players.

Phil McBride

17th July 2004, 09:09

Pinky,
I wouldn't diss the monkey if I was you, you won't like him when he is angry.

Look what he did to poor Phil Mcbride....

Be careful Pinky

Have I missed something ???

Come on Ted, do tell!

pink panther

17th July 2004, 10:48

Dear Phil,
So what did the monkey do to you then?
They are so stupid that they think that if you are an England player you should use your name and then in the next sentense they tell you that they are England players but they don't even use their names! That just about sums them up!!!

badgirl9

17th July 2004, 11:11

Phil McBride

17th July 2004, 11:13

Dear Phil,
So what did the monkey do to you then?

I don't know :confused: the original comment by Ted has gone right over my head :confused: :confused:

mrmagoo

17th July 2004, 11:48

I have been reading this utter rubbish from southernmonkey, Kingpin and Eddykid what the hell is wrong with you all?

Pink Panther some advice just ignore them as they obviously are just on here to wind people up!

I think it was great what you said about we need more clubs like out in Denmark and Germany to encourage more talented youngsters to keep playing the game. I totally agree with that and the fact that the ba of e have all these milions to spend, why dont they start something like this?

the ba of e cannot spend the money on whatever they like.they have to spend it in certain areas as agreed with sport england as it is public money and the public wants to see success at world level.
to start a club system they would need a huge backer/sponsor to put up the money.
then they would need to convince the old farts in the county scene that a club system is the way forward
then they would need to employ people to promote it as they are hopeless at promotion
then they would need to change the format/scoring system as new faces won't sit watching long drawn out games till 1 in the morning.
then they would need to place elite and top junior players in different clubs so matches were competitive and pay them enough money to stop them playing abroad as they need to make a living.
in short-don't hold your breath as who would put huge sums of money into a sport that has so little media coverage?

southernmonkey

17th July 2004, 14:03

Pink,
You have missed the point with regards to the Kids post.

It's called sarcasm.
Something you girls no nothing about clearly.

Badgirl, fitting name. I think you have strayed into the wrong thread.
Who's the fittest guy thread is in the kiddies section.

However back to the scipt and agree with Magoo.

anyone who has played in these teams abroad will know that it's a great idea but we have not got the culture for it here.

We can't even get more than 10 people to watch a county match these days so why not start there and get an already up and running event going first.

As Magoo said, you will have to put players into teams all over the country and them pay them so they would not have to earn money else where. England cannot do this.

Sounds like Kent need some advise from the monkey.

The monkey

kingpin

18th July 2004, 17:59

Pink Pathetic, you say that I said if you're an england don't behind alias's then you say that I said I was an england player. I never said that, well done for trying to read between the lines but you couldn't have read it wrong if you were using brail. I do believe that england needs more clubs but that isn't what this thread is about, it's about Kent, castlemaine is a club in Kent and it's poor and run down in a bad area so open to cusses. Badgirl, it isn't rubbish from us, we are stating points but it's just a debate with some aggression in there which is making it interesting, obviously got your attention.