 I first started Shotokan Karate in 1986 at the Billericay Shotokan Karate Club. The Chief Instructor of the club was Sensei Terry Nifton then 2nd Dan and the club was affiliated to the Karate Union of Great Britain (KUGB). The training was very hard and the dojo was very strict, this gave me a strong introduction.
In May 1987, a guest instructor was invited to the club for a special training course and kyu grading. The visitor was Sensei Ohta, then 5th Dan. I was succesful in passing my 9th kyu (Orange Belt) and all further kyu gradings before the club was forced to close.
I continued my training with Sensei Paul Efreme, then 1st Dan and the Toyakwai Karate Association (TKA). It was during my time with the TKA that I enjoyed competitive success in both Kata and Kumite at the many regional and national events. It was also during this time that I passed my 1st Dan and opened my own club in Billericay called Essex Shotokan Karate Club.
The club grew to become one of the strongest within the association, with several of my students joining the national squad and competing overseas. I passed my 2nd Dan grading in 1995 and my 3rd Dan in 1998 before starting to question what direction my own Karate was going in.
It was in 1999 that I picked up a copy of Shotokan Karate Magazine and noticed a familiar face on the cover. The article in question featured Sensei Ohta and I decided there and then that I was going to go back to the KUGB, with the primary reason being Sensei Ohta.
 We re-joined the KUGB in the Summer of 1999 and immediately invited Sensei Ohta to the dojo for a training course. The class was brilliant and I knew that I had made the right decision. With my new found enthusiasm, I headed off to Tokyo in 2000 to train at the JKA HQ Dojo. I was only able to stay for one short week, but during this time was fortunate enough to train with some of the JKA greats, visit the SKIF to train with Sensei Kanazawa as well as fit in an early morning session at the Hoitsugan Dojo.
Following the death of Sensei Enoeda in 2003, it was natural that I and my club would follow Sensei Ohta and become members of JKA England. In August 2003, I re--graded to 3rd Dan under Sensei Ueki and the JKA panel as part of a summer course at Crystal Palace in London.
On my most recent trip to Japan (my seventh), I attended the All Japan Spring Course and passed my 4th Dan grading at JKA HQ. This rates as the highlight of my Karate career to date.
I am now teaching Karate professionally, and run the Yushikai Karate Academy in Billericay, Essex.
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