Coach cleared of rape admits underage sex

A tennis coach was today cleared of raping a pupil - but it can be revealed for the first time that he has pleaded guilty to underage sex with another girl.

Former national coach of the year Marc Lewis was found not guilty of raping the 15-year-old, but the Old Bailey jury did not know that Lewis had already pleaded guilty to two charges of having unlawful sex with another schoolgirl.

Since his arrest Lewis, 26, from Edgware, has been diagnosed as suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.

Lewis told the court he had been trying to help the girl after she argued with her parents and denied any sexual contact.

Now aged 17, the girl told the jury how she had arranged to meet her mentor in August 2002 and he had taken her for a meal at the Grosvenor casino in the Edgware Road.

She said he plied her with alcohol before luring her back to the house, stripping her and raping her before giving her two £20 notes to go home.

She withdrew her complaint to police four days after the alleged attack but the case was reopened when a second girl came forward.

He was suspended by the LTA pending the outcome of the trial. It was today expected to confirm he has been banned from coaching children.