7 December 2023 | Tennis Victoria

Over the past two months the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup and Norman Brookes Challenge Cup have been making their way through regional Victoria, supporting communities who have been impacted by natural disasters in the last few years, including the flooding of October 2022.

The AO on the Road has been supported by Visit Victoria and the Australian Tennis Foundation through the Rally As One events, which has provided funding to allow clubs to host a community event, bringing together the local community at the tennis club and providing opportunities for future participation within tennis by removing barriers such as cost of coaching.

With events in Bright, Mildura, Rochester, Echuca, Wahgunyah & Shepparton, ‘Norm and Daphne’ have managed to see plenty of regional Victoria, stopping off at other locations along the way, with people getting the opportunity to see them up-close and personal.

The trophies’ next destination is the 68^th Inter-Regional Country Championships held in Benalla in early January before they make their way back to Melbourne Park for the 2024 Australian Open. At the end of the three weeks of the Australian Open, they’ll have new owners to hold them aloft in victory.