- Participation increases to 14 teams and 30 players in the 2016 GB Tennis Girls 8 & Under Mini League
- The leagues saw 61 fixtures take place with 270 matches between the girls!
The LTA, in partnership with GB Tennis Girls (GBTG) and the Wimbledon Junior Tennis Initiative (WJTI) saw participation increase in the events’ 2nd year.
The introduction of the fun, local and competitive league in 2015 aimed to tackle the gender split between those competing against their male counterparts. Following the success in year 1 the organisers were delighted to hear more girls were keen to get involved! Consequently 2016 saw numbers increase to 14 teams with 30 8 & Under girls competing.
Two venues hosted the leagues between January and April and were run by Claire Smith and Alison Cartmell respectively. The Tees Valley events were held at Durham University Queens Campus Sports Centre, Stockton, where Claire welcomed 7 teams and 16 players representing Yarm Tennis Club, David Lloyd Teesside (x 2 teams), Hutton Rudby, Saltburn and Longfield. This was replicated at David Lloyd Newcastle, where further teams competed in their respective league. This included players from Blaydon, Bohemian’s (x 2 teams), Collingwood (x 2 teams) and David Lloyd Newcastle.
The events saw an all-girl affair with players, volunteer umpires and referees all female, with the hopes of encouraging young girls to keep playing through positive role models. This is a key intervention to encourage girls to enjoy being around friends in a fun and relaxed environment and referee Claire Smith was delighted with her respective event in Teesside,
‘It was brilliant to receive more entries in the second year of the GBTG Mini League and importantly the players really enjoyed the experience! It’s rewarding to hear they want to play more and had made new friends over the months!”
The conclusion of the 2016 league saw 5 teams compete at the Regional Final, which took place at Sunderland Tennis Centre on Sunday April 24th.
Teams had qualified through from Tees Valley and Newcastle and included Blaydon Starlets, Bohemian Aces, Collingwood Red 2, Collingwood Red Rockets and Tennis World.
The Final was absolutely fantastic and you could see how much the girls had improved over the months by fully committing to their tennis including practicing and competing regularly.
Parents, grandparents and super fans watched a total of 40 matches across the 2 hour final, with each player playing 8 matches! The girls played with smiles, fast feet and great sportsmanship, which helped provide everyone with some entertaining tennis. Once all the matches had been concluded the final scores were totalled and the final positions are highlighted below,
- Collingwood Red 2 (North Tyneside)
- Tennis World (Middlesbrough)
- Collingwood Red Rockets (North Tyneside)
- Blaydon Starlets (Gateshead)
- Bohemian Aces (Newcastle)
All the girls promised they will keep practicing and enjoying their tennis into the upcoming summer season. Jo Cunliffe (Regional Tennis Participation Manager) was delighted by this year’s event,
“To see the girls enjoying competing and making friends along the way is one of the most rewarding things to witness. The social side of tennis is one of the most important reasons that keeps people playing the game, and we hope the GB Tennis Girls Mini League, with the support of the Wimbledon Junior Tennis Initiative sees them enjoying the sport for the rest of their lives!”