Stockings, Hats and Gloves – The History of Tennis at Brigidine

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Stockings, Hats and Gloves – The History of Tennis at Brigidine

On 9 February 1954, Brigidine College St Ives opened with nine girls, classrooms for teaching and science, nuns’ quarters and shortly after, two tennis courts.

Mother Romuald Walz, our founding Principal, strongly believed in the benefits of physical exercise and had a keen interest in sport. So, despite the small number of enrolled students, she quickly implemented a sports program of tennis and vigoro, making use of the onsite tennis courts and limited equipment required.

As the College developed, so did the student’s interest in tennis. Many will remember staff and students playing regular tennis matches after school, this quickly led to a coach Henry Lindo being employed and girls being entered into the Catholic Girls Schools Tennis Competition, eventually winning the Doubles Cup for the first time in 1966.

As a past student recalled ‘Mr Lindo was the only lay teacher and a real gentleman. The only external sport was tennis and we competed against other diocesan girls’ schools for The Cardinal’s, Monsignor and Father Pearce Cups’.

Our first tennis uniforms reached the girls’ knees and senior girls had to wear fawn coloured stockings with their tennis socks over the top. They were also required to wear their hats and gloves when travelling to games, making them the only known school competing under such uniform constraints in the heat of a Sydney summer.

During the 1970s and 1980s Principal Sr Anita, renowned for her support and promotion of all sport but particularly tennis, had an additional court built on the western end of the existing facilities in 1977, and along with Mr Lindo, led the College to increased competitiveness and success in interschool competitions. For three successive years, 1978–1980, the senior tennis team won The Cardinal Cup – a first for any team in the history of the competition.

When Henry Lindo retired in 1989 after 35 years of service to the College a tribute was written in the Yearbook calling Brigidine a ‘tennis school’ and noting that Lindo’s hard work, perseverance and dedication had put the school ‘on the map’.

Though our campus has expanded and we have increased the number of cocurricular activities offered, the strong tradition of participation and success on the tennis court has remained with our teams continuing to compete in the IGSSA and Tildesley Tennis competitions.

JACKIE ROSSINGTON ARCHIVIST

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