7 of Tyne and Wear top primary schools played for qualification into Britains most prestigious Year 3 & 4 competitions.
Rickleton and Priory just edged the top 2 places, which will see them compete in the Tony Blair Sports Foundation Year 3 Challenge Cup on Friday July 6th in Sunderland.
The 5 additional schools also competing last week were,
Appleytree Gardens, Ashley Primary, East Boldon, Roman Road and Benedict Biscop.
Graham Fowler, Yvonne Setchell, Andrea Field, Steph Eadon and Michaela Bowmaker helped run the main event with a team of volunteers from St Cuthberts, Newcastle. The girls played their matches first with the boys showing off their skills on the tennis factory activities. They then switched over after half time with everything to play for.
The final results were,
1st = Rickleton
2nd = Priory
3rd = Benedict Biscop
4th = Appletree Gardens
5th = Ashley Primary
6th = East Boldon
7th = Roman Road
Graham highlighted,
"This year has seen a lot of changes but we have worked hard in Tyne & Wear to ensure that the young players have the opportunity to be involved in tennis at their school. It was great to see 7 schools at the Tyne & Wear Final and it is worth every effort when you see 56 young players smilling and enjoying playing the game! We wish Rickleton and Priory luck in the Grand Final on July 6th. Thanks to all our helpers and the volunteers from St Cuthberts. We know they are really keen to help next year and we are really looking forward to seeing them again!"
We must also say a huge thank you to the Tony Blair Sports Foundation who continue to provide tennis with a tremendous amount of support linked to the Year 3 competition. This includes providing volunteers, training for coaches / volunteers and helping support our two-way school to club pathway! The Tennis Foundation and LTA have also contributed hugely to help grow our sport and ensure as many young people get a tennis racket in their hands as possible!