The sheer isolation the 22 rising stars experience on a daily basis in Alice Springs makes coming to the Border for the Margaret Court Cup a priceless opportunity. 

“If they want a game of tennis against someone different, it’s a fair way,” Northern Territory coach Matt Roberts said.

“It’s not like down here where you can bring your afternoon tea and go to the next club 10 or 15 minutes down the road.

“Mount Isa in Queensland is actually the closest club to us, followed by Katherine in the Northern Territory, while Port Augusta is the closest in the south.”

Roberts said while the group of players, aged 12 to 20, is strong in numbers, it’s a relatively inexperienced squad overall.

“We have 22 in our team and we probably haven’t had this much sheer excitement for many years,” he said.

“It’s our 12^th visit here and I think its arguably the best tournament in Australia.

“When you try to produce stars there needs to be a big base of juniors to build from and this is the perfect venue.”

Among the touring squad is Kylan Bishop, 16, who heads off to a prestigious Evonne Gooloogong Indigenous camp after his stint on the Border.

Roberts added 15-year-old Brianna Smith has been Northern Territory’s biggest improver this year.

However, the youngest member of the team, Trephina Campbell, at just 12 years of age, has impressed in the region before, performing well at the Bruce Cup in Albury last year.

“She’s come back from that full of confidence and looking the goods as well,” Roberts said.

Roberts also praised 14-year-old Talen Andrews, who has adapted well to grass court tennis.

“It’s foreign to him, but he has a game that suits this surface and he could be a danger to any opponent,” he said.

The Alice Springs-based club has triple the numbers of the next biggest in the Northern Territory, but only has the ability to maintain hard courts.

“For many of them, it’s not only their first tournament on grass, it’s their first time away for tennis,” he said.

“We consider this a very special and important part of our tennis development and journey for the kids, both on and off the court.”

The Northern Territory team is on the road for 16 days, with all of the players backing-up for the Victorian Junior Grasscourt Championships at Wodonga next weekend, before finishing with two days of live action at the Australian Open.

“We certainly couldn’t speak highly enough of the tournaments they run here,” Roberts added.