Independent Girls' Schools Sporting Association

The Independent Girls' Schools Sporting Association was established in 1922[3] as the Girls Secondary Schools Sports Union.[4] Commencing with just five members,[3] all of them independent, Protestant schools for girls,[4] IGSSA grew rapidly in the 1980s and 90s following the introduction of graded competition for many sports, improving competitions and adding new sports.[1]

Today IGSSA (or the AHIGS Sporting Committee) is a sub–committee of the Association of Heads of Independent Girls' Schools (AHIGS).[1]

The AHIGS Sporting Committee (IGSSA) organises competitions among 29 independent girls' schools in New South Wales. Secondary school girls compete in team and individual sports at school level and may be selected through IGSSA for state teams and other higher competitions. IGSSA works with each member school's physical education and sport programme by providing interschool competition from beginners to elite level.[1]

IGSSA graded competitions are held on Saturday mornings and involve between 5000 and 6300 participants each term.[1] Students may choose one Saturday sport per term:

Kambala tennis players, c. 1890s

Term One

• Softball
• Tennis

Term Two

• Basketball
• [Soccer]

Term Three

• Netball
• Hockey

Term Four

• Waterpolo
• Cricket[1]

In addition to IGSSA Saturday graded competitions, the association holds six annual carnivals in seven sports:

• Rowing
• Swimming and Diving
• Tildesley Tennis
• Cross Country Running
• Athletics
• Gymnastics

Evelyn Mary Tildesley (1882–1976), Founder of the Tildesley Shield Competition

The Tildesley Tennis Shield competition is IGSSA's longest running carnival. It was first held in 1918, with the now defunct Normanhurst School in Ashfield declared the champion school, and Daphne Akhurst (1903–1933) the winner of the singles competition. Akhurst was to become one of the best female tennis players Australia has ever produced. She was a pupil of Normanhurst School,[4] which in 1918 had as its Headmistress, Miss Evelyn Mary Tildesley (1882–1976) from Staffordshire, England.[64] Normanhurst School had a very successful tennis program, and by the 1920s had produced two of Australia's most famous female tennis players, with Rosie Payten in addition to Daphne Akhurst. It was Tildesley who donated "a beautiful oak and bronze shield"[4] for a tennis competition which encouraged team spirit among Sydney's Protestant girls' schools.[4]

The Shield was to be presented to the school which showed the best average score in tennis, with each school sending a tenth of its students over the age of twelve. The idea behind this was that each school would be able to give many of their pupils the chance of playing, rather than just a few very talented students, as was the case with the School Girls' Championships held by the New South Wales Lawn Tennis Association.[4]

Tildesley was inspired by American Tennis Tournaments in determining how her competition would be scored. In such tournaments, a percentage of games won against games played is taken. This system of scoring has often been criticised over the years, particularly by the larger schools, and to this day it remains highly unusual for a large school to win the Tildesley Shield. It is however apparent that the reasoning that prompted Tildesley was that of encouraging more participation in tennis among the 12 Protestant schools operating in 1918, and to have a scoring system which rewarded the school with the best average.[4]

Pymble tennis team, 1917

Until 1922, the competition was managed by the Girls Secondary Schools Lawn Tennis Association, and after this time, the Girls Secondary Schools Sports Union (now IGSSA). From 1922 until 1944, the Tildesley Shield was held, where possible, on three consecutive Saturdays in October at White City Stadium. In 1918 it was held at the Double Bay Courts, as White City was then a fun parlour which was taken over for grass courts circa 1920–21. Matches were the best of eight games, with entries based on a 1:15 ratio for girls 12 years and over on 1 October, with a minimum of 12 (6 singles, 3 doubles) and a maximum of 32 (16 singles, 8 doubles).[4]

From 1944 to 1946, the numbers were modified to 1:25, with a minimum of eight (4 singles, 2 doubles) and a maximum of 20 (10 singles, 5 doubles). In 1947 it reverted to the original scheme until 1971 when the Entry Scheme was redrafted. In 1980, it was again redrafted to a system of a 1:22 ratio, by Miss Patti Dyson, then Headmistress of PLC Sydney. All matches are now one set only, first to 9 games, no advantage. A tie-breaker is used at 7–all in quarter finals, semi-finals and finals only. Games Won, Games Lost, Games Played in all singles and doubles games are totalled for each school, with the final percentage for each school being the number of games won over the number of games played.[4]

The continuous attempts to redraft the conditions of the Shield are largely due to the prestigious place the competition holds in Independent Girls' School Tennis. However, it has remained essential that the conditions stay true to the principles of the donor. If Miss Tildesley had wished the Shield to be reserved for the champions, which would have led to her school winning more often, then the conditions of play would have been much different. However, Tildesley, along with her sister Beatrice and Mr Henry Marsh, who had developed the concept with her, insisted that the school with the best average of games won the Shield.[4] As Marsh explained in his article in the Normanhurst Jubilee Magazine:

It is the most coveted trophy in school tennis because it teaches the girls to play for their school rather than for themselves, its special value lying in the fact that at least 12 girls, with a maximum of 32, according to the number of pupils over 12 years of age, compete for the trophy, thereby giving a number of the younger girls an opportunity of representing their School which they would not otherwise get until much later.[4]

In 1998, Mr Peter Spender donated a trophy for the Most Improved Tildesley Shield Tournament School, in memory of his wife Diane Greaves, an ex–SCEGGS Darlinghurst student. Any school who improves their position from the previous year automatically becomes eligible to win the Spender trophy, and for each place gained points are awarded. Points are then accumulated according to the number of places a school improves.[97]

Today the Tildesley Shield Competition is open to all IGSSA schools, with 24 of them typically choosing to compete, and takes place at Eastwood Thornleigh District Tennis Association courts at Pennant Hills, New South Wales over three consecutive days, usually in April. Entry is accepted according to a ratio of 1:33 secondary enrolments, which may change slightly each year due to changes in enrolment numbers.[97]

• List of non-government schools in New South Wales

• IGSSA Website
• AHIGS Website
• Independent Girls' Schools Sporting Association
• Archdale Debating Competition