Toowoomba school crowned best tennis program in Queensland

Tucked away in a quiet leafy suburb a small school with just four courts has been named Queensland’s Most Outstanding Tennis School. Find out why and meet their new stars.

Celebrating their school being named Queensland's Most Outstanding Tennis School are (back left) George Mavoske, Vismaya Gowda, Riley Coutts and Alice Hubbard.

Toowoomba Anglican School hit a baseline winner Roger Federer would be proud of earlier this month.

Perched atop the Toowoomba Range Escarpment TAS is officially Queensland’s Most Outstanding Tennis School.

“Very proud. I think it’s a testament to the focus the school has put on sport and tennis in the last couple of years,” TAS tennis head coach and program manager David Bunn said.

“They bought me in to take the program to the next level and with the support of the school (community), head of school Simon Lees and (school) staff I think we have been able to do that.

“Winning this award is the highlight of my career so far.

“Taking this type of position it (winning the school award) would be the end goal for me, to do it inside two years I think is amazing.

“We’re definitely punching above our weight in terms of being a small regional school.

“Facility-wise we’re not huge, we don’t have 18 to 20 courts but we do things in terms of culture probably better than some massive programs.

“It’s more personal and I think that translates to into pride for the school and players.”

A huge part of Dunn’s focus has been on building from the ground up – focusing on the school’s junior ranks.

TAS tennis head coach and program manager David Bunn was a finalist in Queensland Tennis Awards for Coaching Excellence category.

The program also focuses on providing opportunities for everyone from the ‘casual’ player keen to just get on the court, right through to the competition squad.

“My focus has been on building the junior program – definitely the primary school,” he said.

“We have at least 100 primary school kids playing at least once a week, more often two or three times a week and we’ve built a tournament squad out of those kids.

“In the high school we had some existing players and we worked really hard to bring them through and build their tournament experience.

“Every kid is treated the same though whether they are playing for half an hour in the week or five hours.

“I pretty much train every kid in the program and it’s all about fostering a love for the sport.”

This masthead spoke to four TAS students following the school’s award win.

Here is a brief insight into what each of them loves about tennis.

George Mavoske, 11

“I’ve been playing for about five years. My mum and dad played and I got some lessons.

“After the lessons I just kept playing.

“It’s really good being part of the (TAS) team. I’ve made new friends and it’s fun playing in tournaments.

“Mr Bunn has helped me lot in all the different parts of my game.”

Alice Hubbard, 14

“I’ve been playing since I was in prep after getting a few lessons and I’d love to keep playing for as long as I can.

“I love hitting winners and my favourite shot is my approach forehand.

“I think if you stick the basics, get really good at them in training that’s how you improve your game.”

Riley Coutts, 15

“When I was younger I played a few different sports, mostly footy and tennis.

“When I went into year six here at TAS my mum gave me a choice – footy or tennis.

“I decided to go with tennis because I enjoy so much.

“It’s great being part of the tournament team – travelling to different places and playing against different players.

“I think that is how you get better at the game – testing yourself against players that are better than you.”

Vismaya Gowda, 11

“I started playing in year two because my dad and older sister played.

“Winning games is always fun but I really love just being able to play anytime because if you work hard when you train and play you see the difference.”