HAWKESBURY ’ S FINEST ...
John May loves nothing better than catching up with old mates and talking sport . Here he is having a cuppa in Windsor Mall with lifetime friend , Paul Wayling .
by Greg Martin
So , I lobbed over to link up with John May at his McGraths Hill home of 40 years , gave him a backhand compliment about his daggy ( but comfortable ) tracksuit pants , he then served me a cup of coffee and we settled down for a chat .
The net result was a good yarn about the 73-year-old ’ s long and successful career in tennis .
Ok , that ’ s got all the tennis terms out of the way ( I couldn ’ t help myself )!
That career spans 61 years and began when he took up the game as a 12-yearold after giving rugby league the flick due to continuously injuring his knees .
“ I was a skinny kid playing junior footy with Windsor but just had to give the game away because I was sick and tired of having aching knees for the week after each match ,” John laughed .
League ’ s loss was tennis ’ gain because John went on the establish a career in the game which became his passion and bread winner .
“ I ’ ve had my romances down the years but never tied the knot – you could say that I was married to tennis ,” said the happy bachelor .
John was a more than handy tennis player and competed as an amateur with distinction on the NSW Satellite Tournament circuit against the likes of tennis luminaries John Newcombe , John Alexander , Phil Dent , Tony Roach and Mark Edmondson .
“ I ’ d like to say that I had a win or two
against that company but would be telling a fib , but I didn ’ t disgrace myself all the same ,” John said .
He is long regarded as one of the best players produced in the Hawkesbury , winning three successive Hawkesbury District singles titles , ( 1969-71 ), the 1978 Australian Catholic Championships singles , and a swag of titles in the always competitive over 35 years tournaments .
But it is as a coach that John May made his mark !
He has been imparting knowledge and skills of the game , predominantly to youngsters , for just shy of 40 years , kicking off as manager-coach at Whalan Reserve Tennis Complex in 1983 .
“ I was at Whalan until 1989 when I was asked by a couple of committee members at the huge Parramatta District Tennis Centre at North Parramatta to come on board as coach ,” John said .
“ I accepted the role but let them know I also wanted to manage the centre , however I had to bide my time until 1992 when I also took on that responsibility .”
John resigned as manager-full-time coach in 2016 but he still maintains a strong relationship with the 17-court complex , conducting lessons there several days a week .
“ I have coached players from six years to nonagenarians but teaching the kids and watching them develop their games gave me the most fulfillment ,” John said .
“ I gained much enjoyment watching the little kids go from having trouble just putting racquet to ball , to hitting the ball
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6 ISSUE 150 // NOVEMBER 2022 theindependentmagazine . com . au THE HAWKESBURY INDEPENDENT