Tennis in Schools seeks to net support

Even over the phone, when Reilly Quirk speaks about the Tennis in Schools programme, it is obvious that a smile frames his words. A mention of Jade Otway amps up his expression.

Reilly coaches players of all ages, but young people hold a special place in his heart and work. He was there at the start of Tennis in Schools, which is in its 16th year introducing students to the sport – and also for the start of a generational success story.

As many Marlburians know, Jade is one of the best in New Zealand to pick up a racquet. She parlayed championships as a teenager into a full scholarship at Texas Christian University, one of the premier athletics institutions in the States, where she won All-American honours. She now plays professionally.

Her first taste of tennis, Reilly relayed last week, came a dozen years ago at Renwick School during one of these scholastic sessions.

He coached her at that juncture. “Very early on,” he observed, “you could tell there was something special there.”

The Marlborough Tennis Association has caught other lightning in the bottle via this programme which it organises.

Reilly – MTA’s regional tennis coach and owner of Inspire Tennis, offering private instruction – noted that for “pretty much every single child in one of our after-school coaching programs, you can trace their lineage back to our initial Tennis in Schools visit.”

Cost for benefit
For all the triumphs, Tennis in Schools likewise has travails. Securing funding to run the programme, which feeds other MTA youth programmes, grows increasingly more challenging as charitable organisations everywhere feel pinched.

“Rising costs have made it difficult to sustain the Tennis in Schools programme using regular income alone,” MTA Chairperson Helen Redshaw elaborated.

“Rather than reduce the scope or quality of the programme, MTA is seeking active fundraising solutions to ensure its continuation.”

One such solution is a family-friendly bingo night at Woodbourne Tavern on 2 May.

“The Tennis in Schools programme aspires to visit every primary school in Marlborough annually,” she continued; it reached 20 schools this season. By supplying equipment and coaches, “MTA ensures that schools and students face minimal financial barriers, enabling broad participation.”

In visiting schools from Blenheim to Picton to Canvastown, even Kaikoura, Reilly and a coaching colleague spend a half-hour with each participating class, usually 25 to 30 pupils.

“We have a racquet in their hands in the first two minutes,” he said, “and do some fundamental drills, then slowly progress up to the point where they’re able to rally.

“Instead of competing to beat each other like in a typical tennis match, we do a scenario where they’re working cooperatively so hopefully all the children are getting something from it.”

Visit mtatennis.co.nz for more on the organisation.