08/09/2026
This weekend we are hosting the third leg of the ARTA National League competition! It promises to be a big weekend of very competitive tennis and socialising.
Come down to support your favourite club!
📅 Sat. 12 – Sun. 13 September
📍 RMTC (18 Sherwood St, Richmond)
Why do Australian courts feature a monk’s head in the grille?
Real Tennis has its origins in Europe, starting as a form of handball played by monks in monastery cloisters during the 11th century. Legend has it the very first tennis balls were made from discarded monastic robes.
The Australian tradition of displaying a monk in the grille (reminiscent of a monk imprisoned in a cell) began in Hobart during the 1960s. In the early '70s, a visiting RMTC team was presented with Hobart’s monk after a razor-thin victory, displaying it with great pride at the old Exhibition Street court. When we moved to Sherwood Street, Lesley Ronaldson painted a replica to feature on the south court (see slide 4).
Ballarat soon followed suit, Romsey chose 15th-century player Margot of Hainault, while Sydney’s new court has a unique direct view outside (or inside if you are looking the other way).
No monks were harmed in this post - all be it slightly bored.
