LARGS Tennis Club is hoping to serve up something special through an ace plan to restore Douglas Park tennis courts.

The club has been in discussions with North Ayrshire Council to secure a long-term lease to upgrade the seven tennis courts and bring them back to life as a community space.

Club bosses say they are keen to return to their 'spiritual home' after a surge in numbers.

Secretary Barney Cowin said: "We relocated to Inverclyde Sports Centre in 2018 due to the relatively small amount of members we had at that time.

"The decision was taken to protect these numbers and provide an option to play throughout the winter, something which wasn’t available at that time due to condition of Douglas Park.

"Whilst the club has benefitted greatly from the resources at Inverclyde and membership has more than doubled, the burgeoning club is keen to return to its former home and commit to developing all seven courts. This would provide a sporting and social hub for the wider community.

"We have already made inroads weeding the courts but they desperately need a thorough makeover. We are confident that within a short space of time the club would be able to bring the courts up to a suitable playing condition, however this would not be the end of it.

"We would then seek funding to further develop them and look to provide an all-weather surface to allow people to stay active throughout the year."

Barney says the ambitious plan shows the club are looking to nurture the next generation of local stars, while also looking after existing members.

He added: "Community involvement and promotion of tennis to the young and not-so-young has always been very important to the club, and the recent explosion in membership provides a huge opportunity."

The club intend to reach out to Largs Campus and other local schools, groups and individuals to promote tennis, and to continue running coaching events that have proved a boom in recent years.

Barney added: "Largs is already very lucky to be so well equipped with many groups providing fantastic opportunities for local residents, with club for football, bowling, golf, community gardens and singing already well established.

"Perhaps a developed and inclusive tennis club at Douglas Park will be game, set and match for what the area has to offer."

More details are available at Largs Tennis Club's Facebook page by visiting https://www.facebook.com/LargsTennisClub or by email at largstennisclub@gmail.com