PERHAPS slightly put out at being seeded only 15 for the National Under-15 Tennis Championships in Bournemouth last week, Harpenden's Ed Corrie delivered a determined performance that took him to the last four.

After knocking out second seed Andrew Milne in the last 16 (7-5,6-4 the score), Corrie found himself in dire straits in the quarter-finals, a set and 4-1 down against Scott Dixon.

Like Corrie, Dixon is ranked inside the top three in Britain at Under-14 level, but he had no response when Corrie eventually found his game. The 14-year-old stormed back to win the second set 7-5 before demolishing Dixon 6-1 in the decider.

Without rain on semi-finals day, Corrie might even have gone further in the tournament. Drawn against the big-serving third seed Richard Wire, a 6ft 1ins left-hander, Corrie, as an attacking baseliner, might have fancied his chances on clay.

But when rain forced the match inside onto the hard courts, the odds swung Wire's way and he duly went on to record a 7-5, 6-3 win.

On the back of this form though, Corrie heads off to Nottingham for the National Under-18 Championships, where he will be joined by a list of local players, headed by Guy Thomas, the 17-year-old Wimbledon junior quarter-finalist.

Greg Johnstone and Paul Bishop will also be competing, as will Claire Ricketts and Catherine Baker from the Batchwood club.

Following this event, Corrie is expected to take part in the Herts Closed Championships at Queenswood at the end of August.