Andy Murray learned to play tennis at Dunblane Sports Club (Andy Buchanan)
In a quiet corner of the peaceful town of Dunblane in central Scotland stands the modest tennis club that launched Andy Murray to Wimbledon success.
Pictures of the British star, preparing for his final appearance at the All England Club, are on display in a corner of the modest Dunblane Sports Club clubhouse and his name is engraved on several trophies.
Andy’s brother Jamie, a doubles specialist, is also in attendance and his mother, Judy, sits on the honor council along with his grandparents, Roy and Shirley Erskine.
Monuments to Murray in the city itself are modest: there is a gold postbox commemorating his 2012 Olympic singles victory, next to a wooden bench commemorating his first Wimbledon title the following year.
It suits the low-key character of a man who took on Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer in perhaps the greatest ever era of men’s tennis and won three Grand Slams.
But as he prepares for his final Wimbledon, where he is a two-time champion, those at the club cannot rave enough about their most famous export.
“He’s just a movie star here, everyone loves him,” head coach Mark Walker told AFP. ‘When he comes here it’s always so busy. And all the places are full and they follow him everywhere.
“There was an example of a time when he came to our summer camp. He was obviously visiting grandma down the road.
“And he just came down and wandered down and then came on the field and just said ‘I’m here to hit with all the kids.’ And he made sure he hit with all the kids.”
– Dunblane links –
Murray, 37, left Dunblane, a town of about 9,000 people, as a teenager to pursue his career in Spain but has never severed ties with his home town, which is about 40 miles from Edinburgh.
He was married in Dunblane Cathedral and owns a hotel just around the corner. His grandparents still live a stone’s throw from the tennis club.
“The family has been involved with the club for 50 years. There has always been a bond with the club, and that is very nice,” said Sandy Fleming, one of the coaches at the club.
The club, which has four artificial grass courts and two mini courts, has approximately 500 members, half of whom are young people.
One of the more recent players to join the band is Ali Collins, who played doubles at Wimbledon last year.
“You walk here and you don’t think this is a place for champions,” Fleming admits.
Emma Morson, membership secretary, said Murray’s success has changed the narrative about Dunblane. Dunblane made headlines around the world in 1996 when a gunman shot dead 16 children and a teacher at Murray and his brother’s school.
“Dunblane used to only be known for one thing and it wasn’t something positive. It’s great to be able to represent something so hugely positive,” she said.
Morson’s 12-year-old son Alex, who has the same initials as Murray, wants to follow in the footsteps of his ‘icon’.
“They (Andy and Jamie) come quite regularly,” he said. “They come and play with all the kids and everyone surrounds Andy, everyone knows him, even the little ones.”
Alex says he will miss Murray when he hangs up his racket as the Scot finally targets the Paris Olympics and a third singles gold medal.
“When you go to watch a Grand Slam, you don’t have the excitement that you feel knowing that you’re watching someone who grew up and played where you’re playing now,” he said.
“That will probably be the worst.”
-Murray Legacy-
Fleming agrees that the former world number one’s departure will leave a big hole.
“After he won the Olympics (in 2012) he did a tour of Dunblane,” he said. “It was pouring rain but thousands of people came. He must have spent about five hours walking down the main street in Dunblane and then he came here.
‘We are really proud of him here. He left a legacy. If you go and talk to any of the kids here, they know when he’s playing, who he’s playing against, when he’s won.
“He is someone who is at the end of his career, but he is still relevant. I am completely devastated because it seems like he has been around forever.”
Murray, who has been plagued by injuries in recent years, underwent surgery last week to repair a cyst in his spine. This has put his participation in Wimbledon, which starts on Monday, in serious doubt.
But he is in the draw, because in the first round he has to face the Czech player Tomas Machac. In doubles he will team up with his brother Jamie, who has won a two-time men’s Grand Slam tournament.
Members of his former Dunblane club will be watching closely, hoping and praying he can make them proud one last time.
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