‘Team of the Year’ for Girls Tennis Team!
The girls tennis squad have won the ‘School Team of the Year’ award during the annual Tennis Sussex Awards.
Tennis Sussex 2019 Awards ceremony held at the AMEX stadium 2nd February 2020.
The celebrated awards event took place on Sunday 2 February at the American Express Community Stadium.
The Tennis Sussex Awards celebrate the achievements of tennis in Sussex and the College side were shortlisted for achievements including:
- Top four schools for girls tennis for the past three years
- Gaining direct entry to the national schools finals since 2017 and reaching the quarter final or better in each year
- Semi-finalists, Independent Schools LTA U19 Girls National Final
- Quarter finalists, Independent Schools LTA U15 National Finals
- Quarter Finalists, British Schools LTA Girls National Finals
- 3rd place, LTA Senior Students Mixed Doubles National Finals
- 5th place, LTA Senior Students Girls National Finals
- South East Regional winners of U15 LTA Girls League division 2
- U18 Girls Sussex Champions
- The girls B team reached the semi-final of the South East regional stage of the National Schools Championships and came close to joining the A team in the national finals
- Captain of Tennis 2019, Phoebe Watton, was selected for the Independent Schools Representative team that played against the AELTC at Wimbledon in July
- Winner of Sussex Ladies Winter League division 4… and the list goes on!
Are you the next top tennis player?
If so, Eastbourne College could be the school for you.
Year-round Elite tennis programme
Eastbourne College runs a top squad for talented players who train daily and play regional and national level tournaments. These players aspire to gain tennis scholarships to US universities (two gained awards in 2019 and two in 2018).
The success of the programme means there is significant interest for pupils to join Eastbourne College to play tennis alongside their academic studies.
Players this year include Sussex and Kent county-level players, and pupils from as far as Liverpool and South Wales, plus Germany, Spain and China. Staff accompany players to tournaments in term and holidays as well as for school events.
Each year, in December, the team spend a week training at the Tenerife Tennis Academy. This is a great opportunity to train while the weather back home is less than ideal. When they aren’t soaking up the sun in Tenerife, squad members can train on the outdoor hard courts, astro courts, the indoor court in the College’s large sports hall, and have regular access to the nearby David Lloyd Club.
Working on sport-related fitness is a regular part of any top sportsperson’s training regime and tennis players are no exception. The College’s fitness suite is state-of-the-art and the on-site strength and conditioning expert works with players to optimise their physical ability, while ensuring correct technique.
Linking with the international tennis scene
The College has increased its links with the Nature Valley International Tennis Championship at Devonshire Park, providing the following for the tournament week:
- 20-30 pupils are trained-up for the ball crew
- players and their coaches enjoy exclusive use of the College’s state-of-the-art gym and dance studio (for physiotherapy)
- the College caters for all tournament officials and ball crew in the alfresco-feel dining hall
The College has also hosted the WTCA (Women’s Tennis Coaches Association) annual conference in the summer and the finals of the Road to Eastbourne Schools Competition.
Former Davis Cup professional, Luke Milligan, is the Head Tennis Pro, and the College enjoys close links with Devonshire Park LTC, situated over the road from the school; this link facilitates opportunities to train on the international-standard grass courts.
