The longstanding SunSmart Schools Tennis Classic competition wrapped up at the State Tennis Centre last week, with more than 1600 students from 61 schools entering 269 teams competing for the prestigious Academy Plate, Slazenger Cup and Herbert Edwards Cup titles.
The month long competition series facilitated by School Sport WA and Tennis West saw 960 metropolitan and 650 regional primary and secondary school students compete in local play-off teams based events with the regional competitions held across the Great Southern, Upper Great Southern, Central Districts, Eastern Districts and South West zones.
The Country Academy Plate and Metropolitan Academy Plate titles were contested by mixed primary school teams, whilst the Slazenger Cup and Herbert Edwards Cup competitions offered both male and female titles for secondary students.
SunSmart Schools Tennis Classic results
| Winners | Runners-Up | |
| Herbert Edwards Boys | Trinity College | Wesley College |
| Herbert Edwards Girls | Applecross Senior High School 1 | Applecross Senior High School 2 |
| Slazenger Cup Boys | Applecross Senior High School 1 | Applecross Senior High School 2 |
| Mursell Shield Boys
(Div. 2 Slazenger Cup) |
Shenton College | Applecross Senior High School 4 |
| Slazenger Cup Girls | Applecross Senior High School 1 | Perth Modern |
| Mursell Shield Girls
(Div. 2 Slazenger Cup) |
Applecross Senior High School 2 | Applecross Senior High School 3 |
| Academy Plate Metro Boys | International School of Western Australia | Rosalie Primary School |
| Academy Plate Metro Girls | Noranda Primary School | Wembley Primary School |
| Academy Plate Country Mixed | Dunsborough Primary School | Geographe Primary School |
Tennis West Head of Tennis Development, Brooke Koenig, says that tennis continues to be the number one preferred sport in schools with the SunSmart Schools Tennis Classic teams event a key step in the pathway to lifelong participation in the sport.
“The latest national Sporting Schools data shows that tennis is the number one sport requested by and delivered in schools both in Western Australia and right across the country,”
“Thanks to the ongoing support from SunSmart and School Sport, Tennis West are able to continue the SunSmart Schools Tennis Classic across metropolitan and regional WA,”
“Events like the Tennis Classic not only introduce children to the sport and team based competitions but work to provide a pathway for continued exposure to match play, social tennis and club involvement which hopefully carries through to adulthood,”
“Tennis is truly a sport for life which is amplified in the 2019 Mayo Clinic study finding tennis players live an extra 9.7 years longer when compared to participants of other sports and recreation activities.” Keonig said.
The SunSmart Schools Tennis Classic tournament series boasts as the largest participation tennis tournament in Western Australia.
The SunSmart Schools Tennis Classic Academy Plate Country Final, which was first awarded in 1963, is made possible through the ongoing generosity and support of Healthway and the D’Arcy Slater Foundation.
The Slazenger Cup stands as Western Australia’s longest running secondary schools competition, with the historic cup dating back to 1913, whilst the Herbert Edwards Cup for lower secondary school students was first contested in 1944.
For more information on Sporting Schools, please head to https://www.sportaus.gov.au/schools.
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