PLEASE NOTE:

From May to Thanksgiving, we are an outdoor club playing on public outdoor courts.
Our outdoor permits and all club-hosted outdoor sessions end early October.
From October to April, there may only be limited indoor play offered to members at St Thomas Aquinas Catholic High School (aka STA).

1. Outdoor Club Play

MURDO FRAZER:

During PUBLIC PLAY, quiet paddles are suggested but not required and there are no restrictions on numbers. We’ve left open a lot of times that we know are favoured by members who have their groups.

During PERMIT TIMES (in green) we are required to use quiet equipment and to limit numbers. Therefore quieter afternoon times were chosen for registration-required play for members who typically don’t have other groups to play with. These sessions will begin next week Monday June 9 on courts 1 to 5. Registration opens Thursdays 7-pm. Go to the CALENDAR to sign up.

During HOSTED PUBLIC PLAY (in orange), volunteers will invite everyone, members and non-members, to add their names to the whiteboard for courts 1 to 5. This is intended to make the courts more accessible for everyone and to facilitate the new posted rule: Limit play to 11 points or 15-minutes when others are waiting.

For those who don’t want to join in, please bring your own net for court 6 or come play at non-hosted times.

LITTLE CATES:

Club times are shown in green. At all other times (white) the 4 courts are open for public play.

Go to the CALENDAR to sign up.

Tempe Heights

Hosted Play Basics:

Hosts will write your name on the whiteboard, always trying to balance the games and include everyone.
Players will be invited onto open courts in whiteboard order.
After a warmup and one game, please vacate the court and sign up again!
If the next-up box has 3 names only, no-one goes onto the open courts until that threesome becomes a foursome.
Respect the hosts and your fellow members. Its just for fun!
Respect and comply with on-going covid protocols that are posted on the doors of the court.

2. Indoor Club Play, October to April

At St. Thomas Aquinas School (STA)

Fee of $3.50 plus handling charges. Sorry: No refunds or substitutions.
Limit of 26 players per session on 6 courts.
Registration opens/begins Thursday at 7-pm each week for that weekend.
Enter by the Gym doors on Keith Road. Photo below.
The space behind the badminton court baseline is less than 3 feet. See photo below.
Your help is required to set up and take down nets within the 2-hour session window.
BYO balls. Orange and pink are the best colours.
Do NOT telephone the school.

Beginner/Low Intermediate Play, Sat 9 – 11am or Sun 2 – 4-pm:

Our STA season ends in April! Hope you enjoy it.

High Intermediate/Advanced Play, Sat 9 – 11 am or Sun 2 – 4-pm:

Please review the criteria below. As most players haven’t played enough games to make their DUPR scores valid, this is the benchmark used. The STA organizers reserve the right to remove players who they feel do not meet these standards for high intermediate or advance play.

Serves/Returns: 80% of serves “in” and placed deep. Returns deep/high to give time to get to the NVZ.
Third or 5th shot drop: Consistently attempts drops to get your team to the net.
Dinks: Consistently sustain a dink rally for 7-10 shots under pressure.
Resets: Can hit a midcourt “reset” shot to allow time to get to the kitchen.
Strategic movement: Recognizes when to move forward or backward based on the opponent’s shot, rather than getting stuck in the midcourt.
Transition Zone: Understands how best to move through the transition zone to the kitchen.
Communication: Moves and communicates with partner.
More points won by placement rather than power.

Reaching the 3.5 skill level isn’t just about mastering the mechanics of the game, it’s about consistency, strategy, teamwork, mental focus, and adaptability

Our STA season ends in April ! Hope you enjoy it.