The Stubbings family have always had a passion for tennis. They have devoted a large part of their lives to the sport, and still find enjoyment during holidays playing matches with their extended family members. For Matt Stubbings (2016) and his mum Barbara (nee Penrose 1989), their love of the game has resulted in a strong and meaningful commitment to the development of tennis in PNG and the Pacific region. Barbara is currently the President of the PNG Tennis Association and a member of the Executive Board of the Oceania Tennis Federation. In these roles, Barbara’s primary objective is to increase participation numbers as well as increase the number of coaches, by offering player and coach development opportunities. Matt regularly helps his mum in this pursuit, as well as progressing his own career aspirations. He is currently at a tennis academy in Germany in order to increase his tennis training and playing intensity to enter the Pro Tour.
Matt started junior tennis at Chapel Hill State School in 2003 with Andrew Grocott. In 2007, the family moved back to PNG where Matt came under the coaching of the late Kwalam Apisah, who guided Matt until he left PNG for St Peters in 2011. At St Peters, Matt was coached by Mark Lewis (current St Peters Head Tennis coach), who has been his mentor and coach ever since. Impressively, Matt was a member of the St Peters First IV Team from Years 8 – 12 (2012 – 2016). Mark has been one of the most influential male role models in Matt’s life, particularly given Matt was a boarding student. Both Matt and the St Peters Tennis program have been fortunate to have Mark at the helm, resulting in tennis being one of the most successful sports in the College.
Matt was Boys Boarding Captain in his senior year at St Peters, and after graduating in 2016, he studied a Bachelor of Commerce in Finance and Accounting at the University of Qld. He continued to train with Mark and play tennis in Qld, while also assisting Mark in coaching school tennis teams, and working as a Junior Master and Tutor in Boys Boarding. Matt made his debut for the PNG Mens Tennis Team in 2014 at the Oceania Championships in Cairns. Since then, Matt has competed in a number of countries, including Vanuatu, Vietnam, Samoa, and Amman Jordan. In March, he was a part of the Pacific Oceania Davis Cup Team that lost to Estonia in a Group II playoff in Estonia. Matt will compete for PNG at the Saipan Mini Pacific Games in June. In August, he hopes to again represent Pacific Oceania in the Group III Davis Cup playoffs in Vietnam. Matt aims to have some time off in Brisbane, reconnect with Mark and assist with some coaching in September before returning overseas.
Matt and Barbara share a number of similarities. They both love a challenge, as well as having a great appreciation for the physical and mental sides of tennis, and they both love being part of a team. The tennis teams they have been involved with in St Peters, PNG, and Davis Cup, has fostered a drive to do their best for their team mates in all areas of the sport, including training, fitness, and nutrition. Matt and Barbara work very well together, with Matt delivering Junior School holiday clinics for PNG Tennis, and sharing his love of the sport working with some of the Junior elite development squad players. While Barbara has not played competitive tennis, she is a dual National Representative for PNG in the sports of Netball and Squash. Barbara represented PNG at the 1995 Netball World Championships in Birmingham, and the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Dehli, India, where she competed in the sport of squash and was also the opening ceremony flag bearer.
Both Barbara and Matt have worked extensively with Mark Lewis, which has definitely played a large part in their impressive professional achievements. Mark is Matt’s coach and mentor, while Barbara is Matt’s manager, although as Barbara says, Matt knows that is always second to her most important role as Mum. Tennis has been good to the Stubbings family. It has taken them to the Pacific Games in PNG, Vanuatu, Samoa and Saipan, as well as two Youth Commonwealth Games in Samoa and the Bahamas. Tennis has introduced Barbara and Matt to many people around the world and they have formed strong, life long friendships as a result.
Looking forward, the Stubbings dynamic duo are excited to continue their work together in order to grow and promote tennis in PNG and the Pacific Region. It is a testament to their characters that they find helping others so rewarding. They are very grateful to St Peters and the opportunities it has provided to Matt and PNG Tennis:
“I would like to take this opportunity to express our sincere gratitude to St Peters Lutheran College for being an integral part of not only Matt’s tennis, but PNG Tennis also. We have been fortunate to have hosted a few elite training camps on site, utilizing the boarding house, café, tennis courts and recovery centre. Much of our PNG Team success is a result of the preparation at these camps, which allowed us to train and compete in Brisbane prior to our major events. So thank you St Peters from PNG Tennis!” (Barbara Penrose)
