The Associations Junior League (AJL) is back for another season in 2021!<\/p>\n
The AJL is tennis\u2019 junior association representation competition, where the best players in their age divisions represent their associations against the best players from around Melbourne and Geelong.<\/p>\n
Previously called Junior Pennant, the competition was renamed Associations Junior League in 2017, and brings together the best junior players from ten Victorian associations.<\/p>\n
The competition kicks off this weekend; teams of four across seventeen divisions compete every Sunday morning, with the Grand Final set to be held in December.<\/p>\n
The 18A Mixed division was reinstated for the 2020 competition after a six-year absence. Having claimed victory in the 18A Mixed division last year, Barwon have decided that if it ain\u2019t broke, don\u2019t fix it \u2013 and have entered a nearly identical team to compete in 2021.<\/p>\n
Eastern Region are also looking to have a stellar season in 2021, having entered the most teams of any association! The 16\/u boys and girls divisions also have the most teams in six years, a promising sign for the future of tennis in Victoria.<\/p>\n
Renee Milhuka of the North Suburban Junior Tennis Association is excited for the competition to resume after a tough few months in Victoria.<\/p>\n
“It\u2019s a great chance to play other kids from around Metro Vic in a competitive, fun, teams environment. Everyone is so pumped to get out there and play again.”<\/p>\n
The competition involves four singles rubbers (best of two sets) and two doubles rubbers (8 game set) in each home and away match.<\/p>\n
At the end of the competition, a player in each A division is awarded \u201cPlayer of the Year\u201d. The award considers the player\u2019s performance across both singles and doubles matches.<\/p>\n
You might recognise some of the previous winners with Aaron Addison, Alana Parnaby and Destanee Aiava among the AJL Players of the Year who have gone on to pursue a professional tennis career.<\/p>\n
Tennis Victoria have used ratings as the primary method of grading this season, aligning the competition with TA sanctioned tournaments.<\/p>\n
Good luck to all the teams and players, we can\u2019t wait to see you on court!<\/p>\n