Sophie Proctor of Marton, Middlesbrough is continuing to turn heads in the Junior tennis circuit.

Based at the Lawn Tennis Associations Academy in Leeds, Sophie got to the final of the under-14 Grand Prix Winter Series in Gloucester last weekend with the field containing the best players in the U14 age group in the country.

This recent success will help her bid for selection to compete in the European Championships (Tarbes, France) where the likes of Kornikova, Hingis and Henin played in their early years.

Sophie, who is the daughter of former Middlesbrough and Sunderland footballer Mark Proctor, will be playing at the under-14 European Teen Tennis Tournament this weekend in Telford). Kim Clijsters won this renowned junior tournament in her junior years and Sophie is excited by her recent run of good form,

"I have been working hard in Leeds on key aspects of my game and am really pleased that this had paid off.

"I am really excited of the prospect of being selected to compete in the European Championships, but am really going to focus on this weekend to play well and compete with some of the best Juniors in Europe. This will give me more experience at playing at European level."

Results in Gloucester

Round one: Beat Sam Evans 6-7, 7-6, 6-4

Round two: Beat Olivia Smith 6-3, 5-7, 6-1

Semi Final: Beat Naomi Broady 4-6, 6-3, 7-5

Final: Lost to Victoria Brook 4-6, 2-6