After my comments last week, I have been taken to task for allegedly inferring that none of the work done by the National Coaches in the days of the AAA scheme is covered today.

That was not my intention, nor is it true. What is my impression, however, is that there is a gap in coaching provision at club level.

Promising athletes are well catered for in regional and national squads. The Specialist Clubs have always given ex-internationals, current internationals and those who aspire to that level, opportunities to meet, compete and keep up to date with developments in their events.

Certainly the British Milers Club and the Hammer Circle are both very active in this area. Coaching of ordinary club athletes, beginners and youngsters - that means the vast majority of all track and field participants - is in the hands of club enthusiasts.

In the brave new world of athletics which is currently under construction the clubs are not given any direct financial assistance.

In fact, when Blackburn Harriers needed someone to complete their team of coaches by covering pole vault, they had to buy someone in from the ruling body. Others can debate the justice of that.

What I do know is that most athletics clubs could not afford to do it very often, and will want to have a full complement of coaches of their own.

They will need to recruit interested people to cover all events and put them through the official qualifying procedure. Then they will learn the real skills of coaching.

The only way to do this is by actually doing the job - making mistakes and correcting them, watching other coaches at work, discussing points with them and with athletes themselves - a process which never stops because there is no end to something which is perpetually growing and changing.

Seeing athletes succeed is reward enough for the time and effort involved.

Clubs who put together a full coaching team will also achieve a measure of independence which soon could be more than useful indeed!