Game, set, match: Goolagong Cawley honoured at Melbourne school
Emirates, in partnership with the Australian Tennis Foundation, has unveiled a permanent mural celebrating seven-time Grand Slam champion Evonne Goolagong Cawley at MacKillop Education’s Maidstone school in Melbourne, creating a lasting on-campus tribute to one of Australia’s greatest sporting icons.
Designed by Melbourne-based artist Hayden Dewar, the mural was commissioned as part of the Emirates Force for Good program, a AU$2.25 million, five-year commitment to inspire brighter futures for young Australians through tennis.
Alongside the mural, a purpose-built hitting wall now gives students the opportunity to engage with tennis independently throughout the school day, including at lunchtime, with ATF providing and maintaining all on-site equipment for ongoing use.
“Tennis has given me so much throughout my life, and I love seeing it used as a way to bring young people together. If this mural and wall encourage students to feel confident, proud of who they are, and happy to give tennis a go, then that’s something really special,” Ms Goolagong Cawley said.
Madison Keys receives the the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup from Evonne Goolagong Cawley after defeating Aryna Sabalenka in the women’s singles final at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne last year. (AAP)
A lasting legacy at MacKillop Maidstone
MacKillop Maidstone is a specialist school supporting young people navigating neurodiversity, trauma backgrounds and school refusal, students for whom mainstream education has not always felt accessible or welcoming. The school joined the Move. Breathe. Belong. program at the outset of the Force for Good initiative and has since received four terms of structured weekly tennis coaching delivered by trained ATF coaches.
What began as a structured program quickly became something more. Teachers observed students who had previously struggled to engage finding calm and building confidence on court. With the installation of the hitting wall, students began organising their own games at lunchtime independently.
Resilience and cultural pride
Evonne Goolagong Cawley was chosen as the focal point of the mural to honour and inspire the school’s strong cohort of First Nations students, a celebration of excellence, resilience and cultural pride through one of Australia’s most beloved sporting figures.
“MacKillop Maidstone is exactly the kind of community we had in mind when we launched Force for Good,” Dean Cleaver, Regional Sales Manager at Emirates, said.
“These are young people who deserve every opportunity to thrive, and tennis, through the ATF’s expertise and dedication, has given them a space to do just that.
“Seeing students who once found it difficult to engage now independently organising their own games at lunchtime is a powerful reminder of what this program is really about. This mural is a permanent part of this school’s story, and we are proud to have played a role in that.”
