Well done to Union High School Grade 7 learners, 𝗧𝗮𝘆𝗹𝗼𝗿 𝗝𝗮𝗰𝗼𝗯𝘀 and 𝗘𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗶𝘀, who have been recognised for their efforts on the tennis court following the selection of the 2027 Eastern Cape Elephants Synergy teams.
Taylor has earned selection for the 𝘂𝟭𝟱 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺, while Emily has been named as a 𝗻𝗼𝗻-𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗲 for the u15 girls’ team.
The teams will participate in the Synergy Cup in Bloemfontein in early 2027, where they will compete against players from other provincial teams.
We’re delighted to share that 𝗠𝗮𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝗧𝗮𝗺, a Grade 6 learner at Union High School, has earned herself a place in the 𝗘𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻 𝗖𝗮𝗽𝗲 𝗘𝗹𝗲𝗽𝗵𝗮𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝘂𝟭𝟯 𝗴𝗶𝗿𝗹𝘀’ 𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗻𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺!
Madison’s selection follows the recent provincial tennis trials and means she’ll be heading to Bloemfontein in January to represent the Eastern Cape at the 𝗦𝗔 𝗦𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹𝘀 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗧𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁, taking place from 4 to 7 January 2027.
It’s always lovely to see our young Union sportsmen and women making their mark beyond the school courts and Madison’s selection is a wonderful achievement.
𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗴𝗿𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀, 𝗠𝗮𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗻! We’re so pleased for you and look forward to following your tennis journey.
𝘌𝘯𝘫𝘰𝘺 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘮𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦!
Union High School U13 tennis players 𝗟𝗶𝘀𝗮 𝗠𝗰𝗘𝘄𝗮𝗻 and 𝗠𝗮𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝗧𝗮𝗺 took part in the 2026 EC Schools Synergy Cup Inter-Provincial Tennis Tournament, which ran from 24 to 26 September.
The tournament sees selected primary school players from across the Eastern Cape competing in singles, doubles and mixed doubles.
Union’s junior U13 tennis teams faced off against Cradock
We are incredibly proud of these boys and girls who gave their utmost best on the courts today.
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄𝘀:
• Union’s 1st Girls’ Junior team drew their singles 3-3 and lost doubles 3-0, and the 2nd team lost 4-2 singles and 2-1 doubles.
• The 1st Boys’ Junior team went up against a strong team losing 6-0 singles and 3-0 doubles
Thank you to every player for the effort and sportsmanship you showed on and off the courts. Days like these are about so much more than the final scores.
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗼𝗳 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲 𝗯𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝘁 𝗨𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗻!
We are thrilled to share that the new floodlights at the Bremner Courts are being put up and will soon illuminate all three courts. 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘥𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘱𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘱𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘴𝘦, 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘦𝘵𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘯𝘫𝘰𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘢𝘺𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴.
This project would not have been possible without the support of our tennis community. A heartfelt 𝗧𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗞 𝗬𝗢𝗨 to our tennis parents for their fundraising efforts and to Montego Pet Nutrition for their valued contribution towards making this vision a reality.
𝘛𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳, 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱𝘦𝘥 𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘢 𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘧𝘪𝘵 𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘜𝘯𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘴 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘺𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦.
Our 𝗝𝗨𝗡𝗜𝗢𝗥 𝗧𝗢𝗣 𝟭𝟮 𝗧𝗘𝗡𝗡𝗜𝗦 𝗚𝗜𝗥𝗟𝗦 took on The Diocesan School for Girls this past Friday afternoon in a series of very competitive and closely contested matches.
𝘞𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘴 𝘥𝘪𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘨𝘰 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘸𝘢𝘺, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘥𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘨𝘪𝘳𝘭𝘴.
Several matches went right down to the wire, with 𝗧𝗮𝘆𝗹𝗼𝗿 𝗝𝗮𝗰𝗼𝗯𝘀, 𝗠𝗮𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝗧𝗮𝗺, 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗮 𝗠𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗮𝘆 and 𝗜𝘀𝗮𝗯𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗲 𝗕𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 all involved in nail-biting encounters that were decided by tie-breaks.
𝗟𝗶𝘀𝗮 𝗠𝗰𝗘𝘄𝗮𝗻 and 𝗘𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗶𝘀 recorded excellent singles victories, while many of the other matches were far closer than the final scores suggest.
Well done to all our players – 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘴𝘶𝘤𝘩 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘧𝘪𝘹𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘰𝘶𝘣𝘵𝘦𝘥𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘪𝘯 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘥.
This afternoon saw Union High School’s Top 4 boys’ and girls’ U13 tennis players take to the court against a visiting Kirkwood side.
𝗪𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝗱𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝗶𝗿𝗹𝘀 on winning their encounter 6 – 0. 𝘕𝘰𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘺, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘪𝘳𝘭𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘰𝘧𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘰𝘤𝘬𝘦𝘺 𝘧𝘪𝘦𝘭𝘥 𝘢𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘵 𝘍𝘳𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘴𝘣𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘪𝘹𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘵 𝘒𝘪𝘳𝘬𝘸𝘰𝘰𝘥 – 𝘢 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘰𝘧 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘪𝘵𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘧𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵.
The boys’ matches were more evenly contested, with Kirkwood taking the section on games (50-44) after drawing the matches 3 – 3.
𝗪𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝗱𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘃𝗲𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗮 𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗱, 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗮𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗼𝗼𝗻 and a special word of thanks to all our visitors from Kirkwood for making the trip!
On Friday, 8 of our senior tennis players travelled to Burgersdorp to take part in the Van Niekerk & Koen tennis tournament, where they competed against Burgersdorp High School, Cradock High School, De Aar High School, and Hoërskool Jim Fouché from Bloemfontein.
Having looked forward to this fixture since the start of term, our players were excited and in good spirit. This translated into magnificent matchplay as the players started off with doubles and then moving into mixed doubles. After an intense day on the courts, Union was in a very good position, claiming victory over Burgersdorp and Jim Fouché, whilst drawing against Cradock. After De Aar High School took the trophy last year, our players knew their fifth round on Saturday would be a tough one. However, their determination and skilful tactics on the court pulled them through, beating De Aar with 6 matches to 2, making Union the winners of the doubles and mixed doubles tournament.
The final round of the tournament was completed with singles matches deciding the overall result. Although the team had shown strong performance in earlier rounds, the players struggled to maintain the same level of competitiveness during the last round. Union ended the tournament with a 3rd place overall.
Despite the disappointing results, the tournament provided a valuable learning opportunity. Improving mental preparation and confidence in individual play will be important areas of focus for future tournaments.
We are incredibly proud of Grade 7 learner 𝗧𝗮𝘆𝗹𝗼𝗿 𝗝𝗮𝗰𝗼𝗯𝘀, who recently represented the Eastern Cape Elephants at the Interprovincial Tennis Tournament held in Bloemfontein from 8 to 11 January.
Competing in her very first IPT for the Eastern Cape Elephants, 𝗧𝗮𝘆𝗹𝗼𝗿 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝗲𝗱 𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝘁𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗼𝗽𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 while playing as the No. 3 seed.
𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘥 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘭𝘦𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘴 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘦𝘦-𝘴𝘦𝘵 𝘵𝘪𝘦-𝘣𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘬𝘴.
Over the four days, Taylor spent an impressive ±13 hours on court in singles alone, playing a total of six singles matches, along with six doubles and six mixed doubles matches.
𝗗𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗹𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵 𝗹𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹 𝗼𝗳 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, Taylor rose to the challenge and gained invaluable experience at provincial level.
The Eastern Cape Elephants finished 12th out of 16 teams, placing ahead of the Eastern Cape Aloes team who came 13th.
𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗚𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗨𝗟𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡𝗦 to our Union High School, Graaff-Reinet u13 tennis girls on their outstanding performances at the recent Eastern Cape tennis trials!
We are incredibly proud of 𝗧𝗮𝘆𝗹𝗼𝗿 𝗝𝗮𝗰𝗼𝗯𝘀, who has been selected to represent the EC Elephants at the SA Interprovincial Tennis Tournament taking place from 7 to 11 January in Bloemfontein.
A huge well done as well to 𝗘𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗶𝘀, who has earned her place in the EC Elephants team competing in the Synergy Cup – the interprovincial fixture between the South (Eastern Cape), Western Province, Boland and Northern Cape – from 27 February to 1 March, also in Bloemfontein.
𝘞𝘦 𝘢𝘭𝘴𝘰 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘶𝘥 𝘔𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘛𝘢𝘮 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘓𝘪𝘴𝘢 𝘔𝘤𝘌𝘸𝘢𝘯 𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘯-𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘚𝘺𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘨𝘺 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘮.
