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Thank you Todd!!

Team Tennis for Kids

Written by Rosemary Goodwin, Southwest Regional Chair of the OTA.

Playing tennis can be a lonely experience for a young person. Sometimes this is because there aren’t players “like me” with whom to play on a regular basis. It’s difficult to gather a group with matching age, gender and playing level. And sometimes it’s because we’re all alone on the court. We learn to deal with it, but it’s not easy. All that “character building” can wear us down.

Team Tennis introduces a wonderful change for the better. Adult players love playing on teams in interclub leagues. Professional players love playing on teams to represent their country. But it’s not easy for kids to find team tennis.

Todd Orrett has been working to change that for over 15 years. As Junior Chair for the ICTA, he orchestrates interclub team tennis throughout the GTA (and beyond) each year in May and June. And through the summer, he organizes one-day team events under the banner TENNIS ROCKS!

This summer there were five such events : at Ajax TC, Unionville TC, North York TC, Burlington TC, Brampton TC. Teams are made up of four players in each of two categories : Superstars (Under 12) and All-Stars (Under 14 and Under 18). The top teams from each regional event qualified for a one-day championship at Sobey’s Tennis Centre on September 28-29.

At the finals on Saturday, there were eight teams in the Under 12 division, and on Sunday nine teams in the U14/U18 category. They enjoyed a lot of tennis, with four rounds of 8-game pro matches. The atmosphere was outstanding, the players eager but relaxed. This was Happy Tennis.

Todd has been doing this for so long that nothing seems to faze him. He has systems for everything and just the right amount of help to keep things running smoothly. The players loved having pizza for lunch, as well as a never-ending supply of snacks and treats. The medals are over- the-top … a perfect match for the energy and enthusiasm at the heart of Tennis Rocks.

Here in SouthWest Region, the Tennis Rocks experience has been profound. Thanks to the initiative and hosting by the Burlington TC, teams were put together from Niagara … one of those areas in which it’s difficult to get a critical-mass of evenly-matched players in one spot at any given time. Two teams were put together from across the area, first for the regional event, then for some continued practice together, and finally for the championship round at Sobeys.

It’s been a great experience and we hope it will be the start of more such collaborations and connections throughout SouthWest Region.

The Superstars : Rosie Kowalewski, Rafa Ramirez, Arjun Gill, Landon Cruz, Jeremy Pukhkalo.
The All-Stars : Nathan Gabriel, Kendra Nayanka, Vaida Ankersmit, Gabriel Ramirez
One more team deserves special mention, it being a crossover including players from both SouthWest and West Regions. Their common ground is the Royal City Academy in Guelph, which attracts players from a wide radius.
From the left : Kayla Williams, Stefan Ruff (captain), Fidel Ruff, Sidan Ruff, Kayana Williams, Yutong (Cindy) Li.
Todd invited three accomplished juniors to support the Tennis Rocks championship as volunteers. From the left : David Brustur, Isabella Marton, Aidan Biss- Mantziounis. Many thanks to these fine players, sharing their time to provide a great experience for younger players.

The mastermind : Todd Orrett. Thank you!