Nord Anglia Education
WRITTEN BY
St Andrews Bangkok
27 April, 2017

St. Andrews Flames Tennis Journey

Victoria 6P  Runner Up Consolation Round Tennis 4s Phuket 2017 crop
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Thank you for this amazing opportunity. It changed me the way I never expected. I never wanted to improve my tennis skills this badly before. I learned and experienced many new things. We got to see how good the other schools are and how hard they trained. We made a bunch of new friends as well. We learned a lot from this tournament and it made a lot of us want to train harder as a team. This tournament's result also showed how much we improved since last year and we will try our best to train hard and do our best in the years coming.
Now 10S
Boys U15, Flames Tennis Squad Captain
St. Andrews Flames Tennis Journey We have come a long way from a small group of 4 pioneers to a squad of 20 members from both Primary School and High School. New developments are on the way for 2017-18 to better support our tennis athletes and welcome new players. Have you ever wondered at the symbolic meaning of the Olympic torch and flame?

Flames is an ambitious symbol for Sport Squads at St Andrews. Not only do our young athletes proudly exhibit the powerful flame on their jerseys, fostering their aspiration, will, determination and purpose, but they truly believe in its brilliance to flame up their hearts when adversity strikes on the field.

Flames Tennis Squad is no exception. Alongside with Athletics, Badminton, Basketball, Football, Golf, Swimming, Touch Rugby and Volleyball teams, our players embrace the STA flame with pride, in support of each other and their team.

We have come a long way from a small group of 4 pioneers sitting their IGCSE exams this year (Taisei, Chris, Kristian & Rohan – Good memories!) to a squad of 20 members from both Primary School and High School. The torch has been carried hand-to-hand by relays of enthusiastic players, coaches and parents. The relay route has covered Bangkok, Phuket, Jakarta and Brunei so far, with two major yearly events, FOBISIA Tennis and Tennis 4’s Phuket Tournaments. Despite the huge difference in the depth of training between our squad and opposite teams who play elite-level tennis, we have made a difference in stroke production, playing styles, patterns and tactics over the years. More recently, our performance at BISP Tennis 4's Phuket 2017 has been very encouraging. Well done Victoria 6P, who came back home with Runner Up Trophy in Girls U13 Consolation Round. Well done team! Our flame is not just pretty, but hot and fierce! (see comments from some Flames Tennis Squad members*)

We owe deepest thanks to Coach P, STA Head Coach, and his dedicated team who have rekindled our light in the face of hardship. We thank parents who have been walking along our path, encouraged and supported us. We are grateful to the PE Department, Ms. Aanchal, Activities Coordinator, Ms. Justine, Projects Coordinator, and all Administrative Staff for their continuous advice and assistance. Tennis 10s (ECA), Baseline Tennis (ECA) and Flames Tennis Squad are all one heart. We will keep it burning bigger and brighter!

New developments are on the way for 2017-18 to better support our tennis athletes and welcome new players: regular access to tennis courts, on-site/off-site training opportunities, coaching structure, tournaments, training camps, team lineup, etc. We are looking for:

  1. students who would like to experiment with tennis
  2. casual athletes who want to stay involved with tennis
  3. competitive players who believe they can make a difference

The PE Department will take our students’ interests/abilities into account to finalise STA tennis programme for 2017-18.