Emma McBride (Dobell, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Mental Health) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On Saturday 12 October, I joined the 100th birthday celebrations for Wyong tennis. As a kid, I grew up in Baker Park, Wyong. On Saturday mornings I rode my bike to the courts to play a few sets in the junior comp before heading across to play netball.

My dad signed me up to play tennis for two reasons: so I could play a sport with my five brothers, and because he believed you could enjoy tennis at any age—and he did. Saturday tennis was a social event for the whole town, kicking off with juniors before lunch and finishing with mixed doubles in the afternoon.

We have Les Warner to thank for the beginnings of the tennis club back in 1919, when he constructed two loam courts on his property, Baker Park. In 1947, the overgrown courts were restored and the Wyong District Tennis Association formed. In 1979, the courts moved to Rose Street to make way for the Baker Park Netball Courts. I was a Wyong shire councillor in 2009, when council took control of the courts. They are now managed by the Wyong District Tennis Association. The Wyong tennis club now has almost 1,000 playing members. The juniors are coached by Nathan Healy, who many of you would know was a former professional and coach to Lleyton Hewitt.

Congratulations to Leoni Baldwin, president of the Wyong District Tennis Association, and to all involved in the celebrations. A special thank you to Mavis 'Tiny' Bailey, a club stalwart who is almost 100, and who did the honours and cut the birthday cake. I give a shout out to my big brother, Will, the 1990 Wyong District Tennis Association junior sportsman, who joined me for the celebrations, playing with a wooden racquet and wearing 1920s clothes. (Time expired)