2016 has well and truly been a year to remember for British tennis.
Andy Murray won Wimbledon, Olympic gold and the World Tour Finals – as well as six other titles – to finish the year as Britain’s first world No1 in the Open era.
On top of that, big brother Jamie Murray ended the year as one half of the world No1 doubles pairing – alongside Bruno Soares.
It’s the sort of calendar year that can surely never be bettered – and many are already wondering where the next Andy or Jamie will be coming from.
Well, thanks to a little-known, state-funded academy in Kent, we may yet see another British superstar in our lifetime.
The Canterbury-based school is run by former British pro Eb Appeti, who competed full-time on the national scene for five years, while living out the back of an old VW camper.
Appeti, 42, has teamed up with The Canterbury Academy to provide a tailored programme of tennis and education to aspiring tennis players between the ages of ten and 18, with ten players currently on the books.
Oliver Richards, Ciaran Brewer, Marta Poriete, Seb McDonnell-Palomares, John-Mark Montague, Toby Froud, Amelia Monteith, Afalina Vinogradova, Ulrich Nienaber and Kai Van-Roon Collins all compete on the county and national circuits.
The stars in the making
Oliver Richards
Ciaran Brewer
Marta Poriete
Seb McDonnell-Palomares
John-Mark Monague
Toby Froud
Amelia Monteith
Afalina Vinogradova
Ulrich Nienaber
Kai Van-Roon Collins
A handful of those youngsters reached the top ten in the country for their age group and are so talented, they are even holding their own against players up to two years older than them; thanks to the age groups going up in increments of two.
The school day starts at 7.45am and runs until 6pm, mixing education with tennis, homemade fresh lunches and - every school-kid's dream - no homework.
If it sounds like nothing you have ever seen, it's because you won't have done, as this is the only place in the entire country dedicated to building a champion.
Most of the day will be spent within the tennis academy, working on strength, stamina and the mental side of the sport - as well as certain subjects such as Geography, French and Spanish.
However, Appeti has teamed up with head of the Canterbury Academy - Phil Karnavas - to ensure the core subjects of English, Maths and Science are all taught in the main school building.
A day in the life...
7.45am - 1 mile run
8am - Tennis practice
8.55am - English
9.55am - Science
10.55am - Break
11.15am - French
12.15pm - Individual tennis
1.15pm - Lunch
2pm - Team tennis
3pm - Practice
4pm - Humanities
5pm - Private study/practice
On starting the programme, Appeti claimed it was to ensure he is building a bright future for young talent who would otherwise slip through the net, with tennis rarely being a feature on state school curriculums.
However with no government or Lawn Tennis Association funding for their £500,000 indoor facility, he has relied on sponsors, donations and of course a big chunk of his own savings to provide for the youngsters.
Appeti said: "A big driver for the school is to be able to offer a quality tennis programme and combine it with education.
"Often kids, if they excel at something outside of the norm, it's very difficult for them to keep it going and maintain their education.
Weekly breakdown
Core subjects - 9 hours
Languages - 4 hours
Humanities - 2 hours
Chosen subjects - 1.5 hours
Tennis/fitness - 16 hours
Tennis (theory) - 2.5 hours
Private study - 6.5 hours
"My experiences having done that myself prior to setting up the tennis school is that it's very hard for a normal 11, 12-year-old to keep up both.
"When Phil [Karnavas] and I sat together what we wanted to be able to do is to offer children that have the potential to be elite athletes the opportunity to thrive at tennis and their education.
"The idea for me is to give kids at a state school the chance they wouldn't normally be given; as a kid, I was at a school like this, my day would end at 3.30pm and by 4.30pm I would be out on the tennis court and stay until 10pm.
"I'd always go home, not do my homework and then do it all over again. That was my only option.
"These guys are here achieving good levels not only in their tennis, but also their education.
"It's not unrealistic to say these guys could be straight-A students as well as county or even national tennis stars at the same time.
"I'm 100 per cent sure, this is only way to go."
Meanwhile, Karnavas agreed, passionately stating that it is imperative schools begin to be more flexible with their curriculum, in order to tend to the needs of the many and not just the few who thrive sitting at a school desk all day.
He added: "Canterbury High School is a sports college who believe that all children are good at something.
"Our tennis programme is unique. Very few state schools in the country have a facility such as this.
"There are no state schools we are aware of with the imagination or inclination to integrate a sport for young children with education.
"Most children in the state system in this country who have got a talent for sport will be forced to train at ridiculously early hours of the morning or ridiculously late in the evening and will either burn out as a sportsperson or crash and burn as a student.
"So the genius of this is to put the two things together and develop a programme for students' academic education that also enables them to progress and excel at sport... And it works.
"If the country is committed to producing great young talent, it has to invest in grassroots in the state sector.
"My only regret, is that we didn't do it earlier."
The school takes on county-level players and aims to make them national - and even international - stars at their age group.
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And they've enjoyed great success thus far, with a number of county No1s already, as well as a former Under-10s national No8.
A high proportion of the students are all within the top 100 in the country, allowing them to compete on national level - or 'grade two' - events, which build up their rankings points in a very similar way to the senior pros, like Muzza or Novak Djokovic.
The work they put in on the court is plain to see; from watching them carry out gruelling fitness circuits, to seeing them sending ferocious forehands and beautiful backhands centimetres over the net cord with great speed and accuracy, I can tell you, these kids are truly special players.
It's not just Appeti himself though developing the kids' future; he has a team of people working alongside him to help produce future stars of the tennis court.
Alongside the man himself is fellow coach - and former student of the scheme - Tim Bean, psychology coach and fitness trainer Faye Robertson and tennis school manager Helen Shattower to name a few.
The team place a high importance on good discipline and manners, as the kids all help out in preparing lunch, smoothies and snacks, as well as clearing up afterwards.
And it appears to be working well, as all the youngsters were friendly, polite, hard-working... With not a mobile phone in sight.
For these kids, it's all about the passion for tennis and learning how to live as a professional from as young as ten-years-old.
It's a mantra Appeti relies on heavily, using 'old school' methods in order to prepare his students for their future; one they hope and truly believe could be in tennis.
Outside of the Monday to Friday school days, the students play tournaments at the weekend in places all over the region in Kent, Essex, Surrey and Sussex - but must do so independently, to learn what it's like in the often lonely life of a travelling tennis star.
One youngster even played on the hallowed courts of Wimbledon last year, while he and one other were hand-picked to travel to former world No1 Juan Carlos Ferrero's academy in Spain to work with some of the world's best.
The academy is also starting to gather momentum too, with the tennis company founded by none other than Boris Becker - Volkl - sponsoring all 11 of the current players on the course.
Each young star is given two £200 racquets as well as a £100 racquet bag to get them on their way, while local sponsors help kit them out in training, donning their trademark orange - which Appeti claims is to buck the stiff upper lip 'white and green' stereotype in tennis, while also develop a welcoming and open atmosphere.
From spending the day there myself, I can for one say they've succeeded.
The school also place a great importance on the non-playing side of tennis... Not only the mental and tactical side, but also the motivational aspect.
Appeti and Co take at least two trips a year - from SW19 to the French Open - in order to show the students the star faces in action and help show them what they are working towards.
As well as that, they are taught from the very beginning of their education at the school that nutrition is important.
The youngsters eat their lunch with the team together at the school, which are all home-cooked, healthy and organic.
Beef chilli wraps and hearty chicken curries are followed by fresh milkshakes and fruit to ensure the budding sport-stars are in peak condition.
The one meal a day they consume on the premises aim to provide all five of their fruit and veg for the day, topped up by smoothies.
Appeti and Co came up with the genius idea of giving the youngsters their own bottle, allowing them to bring fruit from home to blitz in their nutri-bullet and drink on the go to ensure they are fighting fit on the court and in the classroom, as well as keeping healthy.
From their on-court ability, which is truly astounding given their age, to their hard-working and polite nature off it, the future is no doubt bright for not only the kids, The Appeti Tennis School and The Canterbury Academy, but also the nation's prospects in the sport for years to come.
Oliver Richards
Age - 14
U-12 - County No7 & National No76
U-14 - County No1 & National No30
U-16 - County No8 & National No155
Ciaran Brewer
Age - 13
U-9 - County No2
U-10 - County No1
U-12 - County No2 & National No78
U-14 - County No9 & National No157
Marta Poriete
Age - 13
U-10 - County No9
U-12 - County No7 & National No97
U-14 - County No9 & National No148
Seb McDonnell-Palomares
Age - 12
U-9 - County No11
U-10 - County No5
U-12 - County No10 & National No128
John-Mark Montague
Age - 13
U-14 - County No120
Toby Froud
Age - 12
U-12 - County No3 & National No91
Amelia Monteith
Age - 12
U-12 - County No5 & National No63
Afalina Vinogradova
Age - 12
U-12 - County No3 & National No100
Ulrich Nienaber
Age - 10
U-10 - County No1 & National No8
U-12 - County No21 & National No346
Kai Van-Roon Collins
Age - 11
U-12 - County No20 & National No555
For more information about The Appeti Tennis School and The Canterbury Academy, go to their website, check out their YouTube video, or call 01227 767661.
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