Every great tennis journey starts with Hot Shots. Our year-round programs are designed for kids aged 4–12, building skills, confidence and a love of the game through fun, age-based classes. As players progress, they'll move into Yellow Ball Groups and Squad Development, with private coaching available to accelerate their development.
JUNIOR COACHING
SHEPPARTON LAWN TENNIS CLUB
Hot Shot Stages outlined below
RED STAGE OVERVIEW
AGES 5-8+
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The perfect launchpad for young players to transition from catching to real rallying!
Our Red Ball program is intentionally structured around the absolute fundamentals of learning how to play real tennis. Instead of just standing in lines, kids are immediately immersed in a game-based environment that prioritises the exact skills they need to successfully track, strike, and sustain exciting rallies over our custom mini-nets.
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Core Focus: Interactive, fun themed games combined with an introduction to technique.
Physical Mastery: Development of primary motor skills including running, balancing, hopping, and throwing alongside core hand-eye tracking.
Technical Growth: Progressive development of both forehand and backhand groundstrokes.
Court Mechanics: Learning to successfully hit over a lowered mini-net.
Ball Control: Building initial sending and receiving techniques to establish basic rally paths.
Social Growth: Encouraging peer interaction, instruction following, and early confidence building.
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Core Focus: Dynamic games and structured training drills incorporating early scoring formats.
Court Mechanics: Increased engagement with the mini-net to develop spatial awareness.
Consistency: Focused development on sustained rallying, stroke consistency, and target accuracy.
Serving Basics: Initial introduction to serving mechanics utilizing an overarm throwing motion.
Social Growth: Cultivating peer friendships, collaborative teamwork, on-court sportsmanship, and personal growth.
Equipment: Uses scaled-down equipment and oversized, low-compression Red tennis balls designed for early success. [3, 4, 5]
ORANGE STAGE OVERVIEW
AGES 5-8+
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(Transition to Mid-Court))
Stepping up to a bigger court with a focus on tactical control and court coverage!
Our Orange Ball program is structured to help young players seamlessly transition from the mini-net onto a larger, three-quarter-sized court with small yet still low compression balls allowing for lower bounce and more success. This stage shifts the focus from simply hitting the ball over the net to learning how to direct the ball, manipulate space, and construct points just like the pros.
Equipment: Uses standard-sized, mid-compression Orange tennis balls played across a designated three-quarter size court.
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Core Focus: Development of basic technique paired with movement.
Technical Growth: Refinement of standard groundstrokes, introductory net volleys, and basic serve development.
Tactical Control: Enhancing rally lengths, positional consistency, and directional ball striking.
Match Simulation: Supervised integration into real game environments and competitive scenarios.
Social Growth: Embedding core principles of teamwork, on-court sportsmanship, and mutual respect.
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Core Focus: Topspin for ball control. Dynamic drills designed to explore movement.
Enhanced Technique: Introduction to more dynamic biomechanics to facilitate topspin.
Agility: Introduction to specific movement patterns and positional requirements.
Quality & Variety: Upgrading stroke mechanics, execution quality, and shot selection variety.
Competition: Expanded match play exposure to prepare players for eventual graduation to the green ball tier.
Equipment: Uses scaled-down equipment and oversized, low-compression Red tennis balls designed for early success. [3, 4, 5]
GREEN STAGE & TEEN TIER
AGES 5-8+
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(Full Court Progression)
The final stepping stone to the full-size court and competitive match play!
Our Green Ball tier prepares older juniors for the ultimate transition to standard yellow-ball tennis. Played across the full-size court, this program focuses heavily on physical movement, advanced stroke variety, and the mental resilience required to compete confidently in real match scenarios. Balls are slightly lower compression than standard to help slow conditions down to maximise rally length potential.
Equipment: Uses full-court boundaries and Green dot balls (engineered to be 25% softer and lower-bouncing than a standard yellow ball).
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Core Focus: Adapting physical positioning and timing to the increased speed, bounce, and dimensions of a full-size court.
Technical Growth: Consistently hitting topspin from different positions of the court.
Shot Refinement: Continuous elevation of individual stroke technique, contact quality, and shot variety.
Tactical Exploration: Introduction to structural court strategies, court positioning, and situational awareness.
Competition: Increased integration into match play and full sets of tennis
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Core Focus: Designed for players who can confidently serve, rally, score, and move effectively across the entire full-size court.
Technical Growth: Advancing the core competencies taught in Green beginner into more complex technical execution.
Tactical Control: Deepening tactical awareness, point construction, and strategic decision-making.
Social Growth: Building personal on-court resilience, mental focus, and high-level sportsmanship.
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Prerequisite: Students will be selected for this level who display higher skill and movement capabilities with a drive to improve and play more competition/tournaments.
Core Focus: Advanced technical consolidation allowing for multiple shot variation based on the shot situation.
Competition: High-frequency exposure to competitive match-play simulations and high-pressure tactical drills.
Tennis IQ: Maximising strategic placement, counter-play abilities, and advanced match-play intelligence.
Graduation: Final refinement of all skills to seamlessly transition toward the standard Yellow ball.
Equipment: Uses scaled-down equipment and oversized, low-compression Red tennis balls designed for early success. [3, 4, 5]
“The Ben O’Brien Method has exceeded my expectations in teaching me the true natural way each individual should play tennis. Throughout my tennis journey, I was often confused by coaches offering different opinions on technique and tactics. The Ben O’Brien Method answered many questions and concerns I had accumulated over the years and has now become a fundamental part of both my coaching and my own game.
One of the most valuable lessons I learned is that coaching must be highly individualized. Every player moves differently, processes information differently, and has their own natural movement patterns. The Ben O’Brien Method provides a clear system for identifying these differences and determining the most effective technique and tactics for each player.
As a tennis coach in San Diego, California, I have seen excellent results by implementing the Ben O’Brien Method with my students. It has given me a deeper understanding of player development and has helped me coach with greater clarity and confidence. I also apply these principles to my own game every day. For anyone looking to better understand how players naturally move and perform, I highly recommend the Ben O’Brien Method.”
— Gabriele BoccacciniTERM TWO
Movement Assessment
Player Type Profiling
Learning Modules
Coach Education
COMING SOON
The next evolution of the Ben O’Brien Method is currently in development. A digital assessment and education platform designed to help athletes, parents and coaches better understand movement patterns, players profiles and performance development.
WINTER HOLIDAY PROGRAM
Be the first to access the platform and learning modules when they launch.
THE BEN O’BRIEN METHOD
From first-time players to aspiring competitors, our private coaching and performance squads provide athlete-specific development tailored to your goals. Combining movement intelligence, technical coaching and competitive training, we help every player develop the confidence, skills and game awareness to continue progressing.
Contact us to discuss the coaching pathway that's right for you.
20+ YEARS OF EXPERIENCE
1000+ ATHLETES COACHED
ACROSS MULTIPLE COUNTRIES
