The official opening will be on Friday January 20, 2012 and will be attended by the Member for Albury, Greg Aplin.

The refurbishments were recently completed and Henty Park Tennis Club committee treasurer, Melissa Male, said

“We have noticed an increase in interest since the upgrade was completed, it will benefit the community for many years to come.

“School, social and church groups have all been using the courts as well as the Margaret Court Academy coaching program which ran there recently for six weeks.”

In the spirit of the opening of the tennis courts author, June Shanahan, who is the sister of tennis star Margaret Court and whose family hails from the Eastern Riverina area, is planning to attend the opening and award one lucky Eastern Riverina Chronicle reader with a copy of her book “Ancestors of a Wimbledon Champion”. (See entry details on page 19 of today’s Eastern Riverina Chronicle).

In the book June talks about Margaret Court’s early life and her tennis career. She even mentions remembering playing tennis at the courts in Ryan.

Margaret and June have ties to the Henty community with their grandparents still living there. Such ties have encouraged the family to support the celebrations of the opening of the new courts at Henty Park Tennis Club.