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Off Court

She can't afford to hear a teenagery screech of 'Just one more minute!' The world's live television schedules depend on split-second timing. "Maria Sharapova is always ready ahead of time. She's wonderfully prepared, and Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin are very organized," she says. Blood pressure rises very slightly with the Spanish players, who are known to hold to their national creed of 'manana'.

It is not just the umpire who gets to say, 'Time please!' As there are three women's dressing rooms - the Member's changing facilities for the seeds, and the North and South dressing rooms where the other girls bagsy themselves a locker - Jane spends a lot of time running up and down stairs. Today, she will be rounding up Kim Clijsters from the top, Vera Zvonereva from South and Petra Kvitova from North.

Then there is the subtle protocol to consider. For the clash between Venus Williams and Tsvetana Pironkova, for example, Jane will first collect the Bulgarian and then go to wait for Venus. "There is a hierarchy - you couldn't have a top seed waiting for an unseeded player," says Jane.

Her sensitivity is legendary. She won't chat, unless chatted to: "It would be very inappropriate to start a conversation, although some will talk, and you realise they want to. Otherwise it's all quite quiet."

The walk in the tunnel to No 1 Court can be three minutes of silence, just the chinking of racket bags on shoulders, until the gladiator moment when Jane and players pop up onto the court. Or the girls might chat to calm each other's nervies. "Serena was talking to her opponent earlier this week, because the girl had never played on a big show court here before."

The tunnel has eased one worry for Jane, who is petite. "I used to escort them across the grounds praying not too many people would notice these mega-stars walking through the crowd. Steffi Graf always walked very fast. Once, accompanying Pat Rafter, we were mobbed and Pat, in a wonderful moment, turned the tables and said: 'Don't worry Jane, we'll look after you!'."

This will be the last year Jane takes the women finalists on to Centre Court and watches them return inside where the new champion's name is already painted on the Rollcall of Champions. In 15 years she has seen the Venus Rosewater Dish held aloft by Steffi Graf, Martina Hingis, Jana Novotna, Lindsay Davenport, Venus and Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova and Amelie Mauresmo.

"I will totter out with the trophy and pop it on the table and hope I'm not going to trip on the carpet, then go to where the umpire is to watch the prize-giving. The view is amazing. To be part of all of that, has been a wonderful privilege," she says.