Contested by grade three and four students across a doubles and mixed doubles format, the Mater Dei accounted for defending champions Telopea Park 5-3 in the semis, before accounting for St Xavier's of Gunnedah by the same scoreline in the decider.

Each tie is played over six minutes to determine a winner, with Mater Dei booking their place on the final day by winning the Riverina zone event at Wagga in September.

The event began as a Riverina initiative in 2015 before expanding to a statewide event the next year, with over 6000 players competing across NSW this year.

Tennis NSW school development coordinator and Wagga tennis identity, John Ferguson, said the event was introduced to help keep youngsters in the sport.

"I had Todd in a primary school team maybe 40 years ago. I approached him and asked if we could call the tournament after him, and to my surprise he said yes," Ferguson said.

"By the time kids get to nine, unless they're playing a competitive sport they lose interest. That's a big reason why we brought it in, the kids were losing interest because all they were doing was hitting the ball backwards and forwards.

"It's all part of the plan for Tennis NSW and Tennis Australia to win back the hearts and minds of young kids to play tennis.

"There's a lot of other sports being put in front of kids these days as options."

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