WHETHER it’s Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal who lifts the Men’s Champions Trophy tomorrow, one man from Lammack will be on Centre Court to share the moment with them.

Dave Procter has been a full-time member of the ground staff at SW19 for over a year and will take his place among staff and dignitaries to celebrate another successful – and largely bright and sunny – Championship.

For the last two weeks, the 24-year-old former Clitheroe Grammar School pupil, along with fellow groundstaff members, has been frantically preparing the 19 courts on a daily basis at the famous venue.

And when the final point is won, it will signal the end of another job well done.

Procter said: “It’s the build up that’s the most difficult part. Four weeks before it begins we really start gearing up for the Championships, making sure everything is ready.

“Once the tournament begins, the buzz around the place is like nothing I’ve experienced in the world.

“On the first Monday, we were in work for 7.30am ready to start at 8am once the covers were deflated and removed by about 160 court covering staff.

“Having removed the covers, the daily routine begins. Each person completes their given task on their given court and then heads for breakfast.

“At the end of the day’s play, the courts are inspected and the base lines generally cleared of any loose plant material.

“After a decision is made on whether it needs to be watered, the courts are covered, inflated and it’s off to bed.

“At the end, it’s really exciting. You’re standing on court, right next to the players as they’re making their speeches. It makes it all worthwhile.”

Dave spent work experience at Mytton Fold Golf Club before going on to complete a National Diploma in Turf at Myerscough College. As part of the course he worked at Loch Lomond Golf Course, before travelling to the United States to work on other courses in Cleveland, Pennsylvania, Florida and New York.

On returning to Britain, he returned to his studies and qualified from Myres-cough with a BSc (Hons) in Turfgrass Science.

And it was from there that he switched sports from golf to tennis, taking up his role with the All England Club in May last year.

Of course, a vitally important job undertaken by Procter and his colleagues is also one of the most unpopular – rolling out the covers when rain stops play.

And it can be a fairly daunting task for them.

Procter, who is the cousin of Accrington Stanley midfielder Andy, said: “We like running out in front of 15,000 people and getting boo-ed! “We get a warning when it’s about five or 10 minutes before the rain starts and we’re standing in a little area – so we’re all ready.

“At the start of the Championships, the crowd cheer when we come out, but they soon change into boos.”

However, one of the big perks of the post is the power Procter has over the stars before the Championship begins.

He added: “There’s overseas week before the start and it’s a week where there’s nobody in other than the club staff. You get up close and personal with the stars when they come out and practice.

“They get half-an-hour, but quite often they practice together and take the full hour. But it’s our job to go on when the hour’s over and tell them their time’s up.

“You get some who are a bit argumentative because they think we’re just the groundstaff and don’t have any right to tell them what to do, but we’re just taking instructions from the referee.”