Independent Girls' Schools Sporting Association

Infobox Organization
name= Independent Girls' Schools Sporting Association
image_border= IGSSALogo.png‎size=120px
headquarters=North Ryde, New South Wales, Australia flagicon|Australia
membership=29 member schools
language= English
general= Mrs Carol Bowern (Tara)cite web |url=http://igssa.ahigs.nsw.edu.au/DeskTopDefault.aspx?tabid=291 |title=Standing Committee |accessdate=2007-09-14 |work=Member Schools |publisher=Independent Girls' Schools Sporting Association]
formation= 1922cite web |url=http://igssa.ahigs.nsw.edu.au/DeskTopDefault.aspx?tabid=1 |title=Welome to IGSSA |accessdate=2007-09-14 |work=Introduction |publisher=Independent Girls' Schools Sporting Association]
website= [http://igssa.ahigs.nsw.edu.au/ igssa.ahigs.nsw.edu.au]

The Independent Girls' Schools Sporting Association (commonly known as IGSSA), was established in 1922 with five founding members,cite web
url = http://www.plc.nsw.edu.au/public2/index.html|title = Specialities - Sport |accessdate = 2007-09-14 |work=Cocurricular |publisher = Presbyterian Ladies' College, Sydney] all of them independent Protestant girls' schools.

Today, the 29 member schools of the Association of Heads of Independent Girls' Schools (AHIGS), both Catholic and independent schools, compete against each other in a number of sporting carnivals and termly sports through the association. Secondary school girls compete in team and individual sports at school level and can be selected through IGSSA for state representative teams and higher competitions.

History

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

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

chools

Current member schools

wimming and diving

The IGSSA Swimming and Diving carnival has been held annually since 1925. Today it is typically held in March at the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre.cite web
url =http://igssa.ahigs.nsw.edu.au/uploads/Diving%20Handbook.doc |title =Diving Handbook 2008 |accessdate = 2008-03-02 |year = 2008 |format= doc |work = Carnivals |publisher =Independent Girls' Schools Sporting Association ]

In both sports, schools compete in divisions (three for swimming and two for diving) based on their results from the previous year. Both divisions have the same point score and the highest total point score within each division is deemed the Division Champion and presented with a shield.cite web
url =http://igssa.ahigs.nsw.edu.au/uploads/swimming.doc |title =Swimming Handbook 2008 |accessdate = 2008-03-02 |year = 2008 |format= doc |work = Carnivals |publisher =Independent Girls' Schools Sporting Association ] The winning school from each of the first divisions is awarded the carnival champion.

Tildesley Tennis

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, which in 1918 had as its Headmistress, Miss Evelyn Mary Tildesley (1882–1976) from Staffordshire, England. 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" for a tennis competition which encouraged team spirit amongst Sydney's Protestant girls' schools.

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.

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 amongst the 12 Protestant schools operating in 1918, and to have a scoring system which rewarded the school with the best average.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).

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.

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. As Marsh explained in his article in the Normanhurst Jubilee Magazine:

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. Today the Tildesley Shield Competition is open to all IGSSA schools, with 24 of them typically choosing to compete, and takes place at the Thornleigh Tennis Centre in Eastwood 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.cite web|url= http://igssa.ahigs.nsw.edu.au/uploads/Tildesley%20Rules%20&%20Guidelines.doc|title= Annual Tildesley Shield Tennis Tournament 2008 |accessdate= 2008-03-02|year= 2008|format= doc|work= Tildesley|publisher= Independent Girls' Schools Sporting Association]

Tildesley Shield winners

Notable IGSSA sportswomen

;Athletics
*Melinda Gainsford-Taylor (St Vincents)

;Cricket
*Margaret Elizabeth Maynard Peden (Abbotsleigh)cite encyclopedia| last = Stell| first = Marion K | encyclopedia = Australian Dictionary of Biography| title = Peden, Margaret Elizabeth Maynard (1905 - 1981)| url = http://www.adb.online.anu.edu.au/biogs/A110196b.htm| accessdate = 2008-03-14 | edition = Online| year = 1988| publisher = Melbourne University Press| volume = 11| location = Melbourne|pages = pp.192-193]
*Ellyse Perry (Pymble)

;Cycling
*Kate Bates (Tara and PLC Sydney)

;Diving
*Kathyrn Blackshaw (Meriden)
*Nicole Ng (PLC Sydney)

;Gymnastics
*Penelope Blackmore - Commonwealth Games Rhythmic Gymnast (MLC School)
*Danielle LeRay - Olympic Rhythmic Gymnast (Meriden)
*Amelia McVeigh- Rhythmic Gymnast (PLC Sydney)cite web
url = http://www.gymnastics.org.au/gymsports/rg/mcveighprofile.htm
title = Amelia McVeigh - NSW |accessdate = 2007-09-14 |year = 2002 |work = Athlete Profile |publisher = Gymnastics Australia]

;Netball
*Liz Ellis (Abbotsleigh)

;Rowing
* Jennifer Emerson (PLC Sydney)cite web|url = http://www.rowinghistory-aus.info/world-championships/australian-medallists.html|title = Australia's World Championship Medallists|accessdate = 2007-09-14|last = Guerin|first = Andrew |year = 2005|work = History of Australian Rowing|publisher = Guerin-Foster]
* Elizabeth Kell (MLC School)
* Julia Veness-Collins (PLC Sydney)cite news| first = Jane| last = Igoe| title = Three times a champion | url = http://www.mosmandaily.com.au/article/2006/10/13/683_sports.html| work = Sport| publisher = The Mosman Daily | date = 2006-10-13| accessdate = 2007-09-14 ]

;Soccer
*Ellyse Perry (Pymble)

;Skiing
* Cynthia Mitchell (Santa Sabina)cite web|url= http://www.meningococcal-violet.org.au/html/cynthia_mitchell.html|title= Cynthia Mitchell|accessdate= 2008-01-17 |year= 2007|work= Stories|publisher= Violet Foundation Supporting Meningococcal]
*Zali Steggall (Queenwood)

;Swimming
*Natasha Bowron (PLC Sydney)Citation | title= | newspaper=Aurora Australis: The Magazine of the Presbyterian Ladies' College, Sydney | pages= | year=2000 | date=February 2000] cite news| first = Rob| last = Woodhouse| title = Rising Aussies| url = http://65.110.72.225/SPIPDF/ThorpeJune97.pdf| format = PDF| publisher = Swimming World and Junior Swimmer| date = 1997-06| accessdate = 2007-11-20]
* Lorraine Crapp (MLC School)
*Margaret Elaine Dovey (SCEGGS)
*Nanette Duncan (PLC Sydney)JDOatesAquaticInstitute(2006). [http://www.plc.nsw.edu.au/public2/index.html] ]
*Elizabeth Fraser (PLC Sydney)
* Felicity Galvez (MLC School)
*Emma Johnson (PLC Sydney)
*Melissa Mitchell (Pymble)
*Ming Xiu Ong (Pymble)
*Annabelle Williams (PLC Sydney)

;Tennis
*Daphne Akhurst (Normanhurst School)
*Sophie Ferguson (Pymble)
*Nicole Kriz (PLC Sydney)Citation | title= | newspaper=Aurora Australis: The Magazine of the Presbyterian Ladies' College, Sydney | pages= | year=1999 | date=February 1999.] cite web|url= http://www.itftennis.com/womens/players/player.asp?player=35011886|title= KRIZ, Nicole (AUS)|accessdate= 2008-05-31|year= 2008|work= Women's Circuit - Player Biography|publisher= ITF Tennis]

References

See also

* List of non-government schools in New South Wales

External links

* [http://igssa.ahigs.nsw.edu.au/DeskTopDefault.aspx?tabid=1 IGSSA Website]
* [http://www.ahigs.nsw.edu.au/ AHIGS Website]
* [http://igssa.ahigs.nsw.edu.au Independent Girls' Schools Sporting Association]
* [http://archdale.info/ Archdale Debating Competition]