Sport

Sports Assembly

On Friday, 21 February we held our first Sport assembly for the year where we presented Summer Sport Leadership badges and acknowledged the SPC rowing crews in the lead up to the Head of the Lake. 

Congratulations to the following students that were awarded Summer Sport Leadership Badges.

Head of the Lake

It was decided that the annual Head of the Lake be moved to Tuesday, 25 February because of the windy conditions on Sunday. The rowing crews were still fired up regardless. Excellent conditions meant for some terrific racing on the picturesque Lake Wendouree. 

In the First V, our crew of SPC boys Coached by David O’Doherty and comprising of James Clark, Oscar Farrington, Henry Reinehr, Lachlan Belleville and Charlie Geddes gave their all but ultimately fell short of a high-quality BCC team. The boys can now begin their preparation for the Nationals Rowing Competition to be held in Tasmania from 24-30.

SPC Head of the Lake Winners:

Year 9 Div 5

Year 9 Div 2

Year 10 Div 5

Year 10 Div 4

Year 10 Div 2

Year 10 Div 1

A special thanks must go to our Head of Rowing Rebecca Gribble and our Rowing High Performance Coach and Boatshed Manager David O’Doherty for their outstanding work with the SPC Rowing program for the 24/25 season. 

2025 Rowing Crews

Year 9

Div 5

Joel Tobin

Max Slater

William Richardson

Jake Debrincat

Oliver Chadwick

Coaches: Will Charles, Tom Stute & Tom O’Loughlin

Div 4

Liam Speechley

Henry Gilbert

Tyson Meek

Taj Boatman

Sam Johns

Coaches: Paddy O’Brien & Nedd Bennett

Div 3

Theo Vanderklay

Julian Stephen

Archer Bolt

Sasha Volz

Harrison Lane

Coaches: Oscar Watkins & Isaac Martin

Div 2

Kade McKay

Jonty Woodburn

Oscar Romeril

Noah Connell

Charlie Farrugia

Coaches: James Hall & James Halsall

Div 1

Jack Stringer

Lawson Goodall

Nicholas Ward

Zachary Galvin

Hudson Craig-Peters

Coach: Rebecca Gribble

Year 10

Div 6

Joshua Canavan

Tom Stevens

James Murfet

Thomas Louden

Jack Braszell

Jack Williamson & Joe Elliott

Div 5

Finn Edwards

Charlie Beechey

Jasper Delaney

Kane McInerney

Harry Valenzuala

Coaches: Mike Bleicher & Elijah Niehus

Div 4

Harrison Bennett

Oscar Florence

Redmond Ward

Lucas Pickles

Callum Seakins

Coach: Gabe Yanes

Div 3

Oscar Sim

Kingston Kydd

Charlie Saw

Lachlan Chiswell

Kai Bellin

Coaches: Oliver Frangos & James Shaw

Div 2

Max Aylward 

Liam Shaw

Hamish Quigley

Lachlan Cowell

Angus Lester

Coaches: Josh Phillips & Stephen Coghlan

Div 1 

Josh Elliott

Oliver Elliott

Patrick Stute

Lachlan Cameron

Blake Roberts

Coaches: Bill Gribble & Sam Hutchinson

Senior Crews

Open Single Scull

William Caldow

Coaches: Stephen Wood & Kadin Long

Div 5

Benjamin Eckel

Kobi Jones

Patrick Buttler

Sebastion Valenzuela

Mathew Zuidland

Coaches: Stephen Wood & Kaiden Long

Div 4

Jarvis McLean

Lachlan Warland

Jett Florence

Flynn Sandlant

Thomas Dubos

Coach: Cameron Farrington

Div 3

Brendan Hackwill

Tristan Coelho

Thomas Cosgriff

Cameron Belleville

Lenny Driscoll

Coaches: Craig Murfett & Dean Kittelty

Div 2 

Luke Severino

Harrison Grant

Joshua Roberts

George Charles

George Muller

Coach: John King

Div 1

James Clark

Oscar Farrington

Henry Reinehr

Lachlan Belleville

Lenny Driscoll

Coach: David O’Doherty

SPC House Athletics

The annual SPC Athletics was held on Monday, 17 February. Not only was the weather perfect, but the grounds looked immaculate with a ‘fast track’ greeting the boys - thanks to our wonderful grounds staff who do an awesome job.

A lot of fun was had on the day, and there were some amazing results that helped contribute to our interschool athletics teams coming up. See below for the House Results on the day.

Age Group Champions

Records

There were 3 records broken on the day:

Year 8 Discus – Nate Hoohey – 35.90m

Year 10 1500m – Mitchell Korosec – 4.20.05

Year 11 4 x 100m Relay - Galvin

BAS Tennis Singles Finals

On Wednesday, 26 February, two SPC Students – Ren Asai and Sam Mitchell travelled to the Ballarat Regional Tennis Centre to compete in the finals of the 2025 BAS Tennis Singles Championships.

Sam competing in the Junior section playing in the semi-finals of the Rob Benoit Cup, came up against a tough opponent from Ballarat Grammar and acquitted himself very well. They played some fantastic tennis across their match before the Grammar student went on to take out the match 8-3. Well done Sam on progressing through the preliminary rounds in your first attempt.

Ren Asai was playing in the Senior McNeil Cup for the first time after winning the Junior Rob Benoit for the past 3 years. He started his semi-final on the back foot finding himself down 1-3, before he kicked into gear and rattled off 7 straight games to take the semi win 8-3. Playing against his Mt Clear College opponent in the best of 3 sets final, Ren was pushed all the way in a great exhibition of tennis. Both boys played at a very high standard and at the end of their two-hour match, Ren found himself the winner taking the match 6-2, 7-5. Ren has now won 4 x straight titles in the BAS competition which is a fantastic achievement.

Congratulations to our four students who represented the College in this tournament – Ren Asai, Lenny Ireland, Sam Mitchell and Kai Gladman Ryan. All boys displayed tremendous sportsmanship and they should all be very proud of their efforts. 

ACC Athletics

The 2025 ACC Athletics season was a remarkable display of athletic talent, teamwork, and school spirit at St Patrick’s College. Our athletes gave their best across all events, showcasing hard work and dedication in a competition that brought together some of the finest young athletes in the ACC.

Team Performance

This year, St Patrick’s College participated with pride and determination in the ACC Athletics Carnival. Our athletes competed across a wide range of events, from sprints and long-distance races to field events like high jump, long jump, and shot put. The team’s effort was unwavering, and we saw strong performances across many age groups.

Overall Results

Overall, SPC placed 3rd in Division 2, narrowly beaten by De La Salle and Mazenod. We were U13 and U16 Age Group Winners, as well as winning the Junior Cup!

Individual Performances

The boys produced some fantastic performance including; 

• Archer Spackman breaking a record in the U13 1500m (running a scintillating 4.42) breaking a 49-year-old record. 
• Cody Torney (team captain) won the Open 800m and was narrowly beaten in the 1500m – showing true spirit and courage that motivated the rest of the SPC team.
• Mitch Korosec leading from start to finish in the under 16 1500m.
• Jackson McInerny also showed great resilience winning his Open 400m whilst not feeling the best.
• A big shout out to all the boys who assisted by competing in events at the last minute due to athlete withdrawals, your contributions to the results are also greatly acknowledged.

The following boys won their events on the day.

• Jack Cleary- Open 3000m, Time: 9:47.41 
• Nate Toohey- U14 Discus, Distance: 32.07 m 
• Archer Spackman- U13 800m, Time: 2:15.23
• Archer Spackman- U13 1500m, Time: 4:41.12 (New Record)
• Archer Spackman- U13 400m, Time: 1:02.24
• Joseph Knobel- U14 Shot Put, Distance: 12.85m
• Cody Torney- Open 800m, Time: 2:02.59 
• Cody Torney- Open 1500m, Time: 4:18.53
• Cooper Hancock- U13 High Jump, Height: 1.41m
• Cooper Hancock- U13 100m, Time: 13.87 
• Jackson Turner- U16 100m, Time: 11.71
• Oliver Ryan- U14 High Jump, Height: 1.56m
• Oliver Ryan- U14 1500m, Time: 4:37.38 
• Shannon Taylor- Open Long Jump, Distance: 5.68m
• James Sheehan- U16 Shot Put, Distance: 11.28m
• Jett Florence- Open Discus, Distance: 30.16m
• Mitchell Korosec- U16 1500m, Time: 4:15.58
• Alfie Carter- U15 400m, Time: 55.88
• Jackson McInerney- Open 400m, Time: 52.10
• U16 4 x 100m Relay, Time: 46.94

Coaching and Support

A big thank you must go to our dedicated staff Amanda Rossato, Shane Hayes, Andrew Chamings, Damian Kinnersly and Simon Dwyer whose expertise and encouragement have been invaluable to the team’s success. Their ability to motivate and guide each athlete, was integral throughout the day.

Looking Ahead

As we reflect on the results of the 2025 ACC Athletics season, we can be extremely proud of the progress made. While there are always areas for improvement, the performances we saw this year promise even greater success in future seasons. The growth in both individual and team performances is a testament to the hard work and dedication shown by our athletes and coaches.

In closing, the 2025 ACC Athletics season was one of significant achievement for St Patrick’s College, and we are confident that with continued effort, determination, and spirit, our athletes will reach even greater heights in the years to come. We now look forward to the BAS Athletics Carnival in Term 2.

A big thank you to Shane Hayes, Amanda Rossato, Damian Kinnersly, Andrew Chamings and Simon Dwyer for their power of work to get the team registered, entered, and prepared for the Championships - thank you team!

SPC House Swimming

St Patricks College will hold its annual House Swimming Sports at Eureka Swimming Pool on Thursday, 6 March. Unfortunately, last year's event was cancelled because of the hot weather. The conditions look much better for this year and the boys are all looking forward to one of our favourite events of the year. 

Football Respect Cup

St Patrick’s College is once again excited to join forces with Loreto College to compete against St Joseph’s College Geelong, and Sacred Heart College Geelong respectively, to play the “Respect Cup” on Wednesday, 19 March at GMHBA Stadium in Geelong. 

The initiative has been timed around International Woman’s Day (IWD) with the event promoting the importance of gender equality and respectful relationships.

The combined scores for both games will determine the overall winner between the Ballarat and Geelong teams. 

Incorporated within the Jumper design are indigenous symbols that signify respectful relationships. Federation University has very kindly sponsored the playing apparel for both schools, whilst the City of Ballarat has very generously supplied the use of Mars Stadium for the day.     

The event promises to be a great afternoon and we invite all in our community to attend and support this most worthy initiative. If you are unable to make it in person, the game will be live streamed. The live stream link will be uploaded to our St Patrick’s College’s Facebook page prior to game.

ACC Cricket

Round 4: SPV v Whitefriars College

After a great start to the season, the boys were looking to continue their unbeaten run. We lost the toss and were sent in to bat. Linc Koliba and Ryder O’Brien looked to continue their early season form. Ryder 8 was the first to go after a steady start. Lachlan Rea, Albie Cheeseman and Armi Wakefield found the pace of the pitch a little difficult to score on and once they were dismissed, we were in a tough position at 4/69. 

Max Bunworth then joined Linc in the middle. Max produced his best innings for the season as they put on a 57-run partnership. Linc, who continues to show his class with the bat was eventually dismissed for 65 from only 63 balls. Cruising along at 5/126 after 26 overs we were looking to post a big score in the last nine overs. However, the constant loss of wickets and the inability to bat out the 35 overs saw us all out for 155. 

Despite not capitalising at the end of our innings, we still had a good score on the board and knew that if we bowled well, we could defend this total. Whitefriars started slowly in their run chase due to some tight bowling from our openers Jack McMahon and Hamish McNamara. Hamish took a sharp catch off his own bowling to claim the first wicket. Jack kept the pressure on as he bowled a tight line to only concede 17 runs from his six overs. 

Despite not claiming a wicket for the next 12 overs, we were able to restrict their scoring as they only added 29 runs. By this stage the required run rate was already over a run a ball. Linc then picked up 2 wickets during a fantastic spell of bowling in tandem with Armi Wakefield. Linc finished with 2/17 and Armi 0/16 from their 6 overs. 

By this stage Whitefriars needed over 8 an over. A run out to Hamish, and then his second wicket had them under pressure. When Harry Sutherland claimed his first and Max struck in the following over, we were in a comfortable position as they were 7/117 with only 11 balls to go. The boys finished the match off well, restricting Whitefriars to 7/132 from their 35 overs as we claimed victory by 23 runs. This result guarantees a top two finish with a home semi-final on Wednesday, 12 March. Next week we play away at De La Salle to finish off the home and away season.

Round 3: SPC v St Joseph's College

Today we returned to main oval to take on St Joseph’s College. Batting first Linc Koliba and Ryder O’Brien looked to build a big score. Ryder was off to a quick start but was dismissed early for 10. Lachlan Rea, who hadn’t been dismissed in the first two games was promoted up the order. 

After some tight bowling Lachlan and Linc then started to build on their innings and put on a 93-run partnership before Linc was dismissed for an effortless 62 from only 64 balls. Lachlan fell in the same over as Armi 11 and Albie 29 looked to accelerate the scoring in the last 10 overs. Lachy McPhan chipped in at the end with 22 to boost our score to 8/181 from the 35 overs. This was our largest score in ACC cricket to date and would prove challenging for St Joseph’s to chase down.

Jack McMahon and Hamish McNamara again opened the bowling. Within the first four overs both had claimed a wicket as we had St Joseph’s 2/16. A steady partnership helped them build their score to 82 after 23 overs, but this had them 40 runs behind our position at the same stage. The top five bowlers all bowled very economically to restrict them and have them well behind the required rate. Armi Wakefield with two wickets bowled well and kept the pressure on. One wicket each to Lachy McPhan, Ryder O’Brien and Max Bunworth restricted St Joseph’s to 7/157 as we ran out comfortable victors by 24 runs to remain undefeated. 

BAS 2nd XI Cricket

SPC Blue 7/86 defeated by Ballarat Grammar Gold 7/97

SPC Blue won the toss and elected to bowl first in what can only be described as perfect conditions. Ballarat Grammar Gold got off to a good start with their openers both turning over the strike and whacking the occasional four before Henry Hopkinson struck in the 6th over to have Ballarat Grammar Gold 1/19. This bought batsmen two and three together, who in essence created the potential match winning partnership, before Ben Buckland was able to remove the second opener in the 15th over. Ballarat Grammar Gold 2/71. Kaianu Landt then struck in the very next over to remove batsman number three, Ballarat Grammar Gold now 3/73. 

SPC Blue with some fantastic fielding then produced three run outs in subsequent overs to have Ballarat Grammar Gold at 6/89. Ben Buckland chipped in with his second wicket and Ballarat Grammar Gold finished their 20 overs 7/97. SPC needed to keep up with their run rate, hang onto wickets and maintain a longer partnership if victory was to be theirs. Unfortunately, both of our openers failed to fire, so SPC Blue were on the back foot early in our innings. Ryan Cook settled in and was looking comfortable until he popped a very difficult catch up to be removed for 16 with SPC Blue now reeling on 3/26 in the ninth over. 

Riley Shearson 27 and Ben Buckland 7 helped to steady the ship to see SPC Blue on 5/65in the 17th over. Henry Hopkinson tried in valiantly to get SPC Blue over the line in the remaining overs making 15 but we had left our run chase a little too late once again going down by nine runs, to see SPC Blue at 7/86 at the end of our 20 overs. 

SPC Blue 3/91 defeated Ballarat Grammar 8/90

SPC Blue get to finally taste the sweetness of victory

In what has been an incredibly close season against all other sides, SPC Blue have finally put both bowling and batting performances together to record their first victory in 2025. After losing the toss and being sent out to bowl, SPC Blue were able break Ballarat Grammar partnerships at very regular intervals despite one Grammar opener remaining up until the very last over! 

Angus Holloway 2/10 off four, Ben Buckland 2/13 off three, Will Steinhuis 2/17 off four and Ujjwal Gambhir 2/13 off two helped to restrict the Grammar score to 8/90 off their 20 overs. Now of course we have faced the losing hoodoo of nine runs short in both previous rounds, but there was a feeling amongst the boys that this would see an SPC Blue victory. 

SPC Blue openers Ben Buckland did a magnificent job consistently turning over the strike to keep Will Steinhuis well supplied with balls to face, and stroke play to make. Will Steinhuis was the first to go after getting SPC Blue into a commanding position, scoring a very solid 37. 

Ben Buckland unfortunately went soon after for 17 and that little flicker of horror started to creep into my stomach as Ballarat Grammar started to pull back our flowing run rate and new batsmen were being forced onto the back foot with some very tight bowling. Ryan Cook made a rapid fire 11 before spooning up a catch and the game was now in the balance. Angus Holloway 9 N/O and Ben Brodie put the required runs into the score book in the second last over to see SPC Blue safely overcoming our previous hoodoo.

Next week we face Ballarat Clarendon College on our Main Oval so I am very much looking forward to SPC Blue continuing their winning ways with the hope being a finals birth despite our opening two losses. In BAS Second XI Cricket, one has come to discover, anything is possible! 

- Mr Busscher, SPC Blue Coach

Communication

The best form of communication we have with parent/guardians is via the Parent Access Module (PAM). Students require permission to participate in all sport. Parent/guardians will receive the information through a PAM activity permission. Please ensure that you read the information prior to giving permission and that you also talk to students about the information. 

The daily messages are one of the best ways we can distribute information to students about sports that are on offer and where sign up meetings will be held. Students should check the daily messages regularly.

Once students have signed up for a sport, we will be adding them into a MS Teams group where they can communicate directly with their coach. Students must communicate with their coach if they are unavailable for a match so we can find a replacement to ensure we have a full team for each match.

If students are unsure of how to sign up for a sport or want more information, they can visit sports staff in the gymnasium. 

SPC Sport Uniform

All sport uniforms can be purchased at Dobsons Uniform Shop, located in Mair St, Ballarat. Students need to ensure they are in the correct uniform to participate in Sport. We have a fantastic uniform, and students should wear the Green, White and Blue with pride. 

The general sport uniform is the navy blue polo top, navy shorts and white socks. Certain sports will require very specific clothing e.g. 1st XI Cricketers require SPC Whites, SPC cricket shirt and SPC cricket cap. Students should check with their coach as to what is required. Also remember to wear sunscreen at all times.

I wish all students and coaches the best in 2025. Always play the game in the right spirit, wear the correct uniform and respect the facilities, home and away. St Patrick’s College is steeped in sporting tradition and 2024 was an historic year for Sport at SPC. 

Please do not hesitate to contact me (jlappin@stpats.vic.edu.au) or our Sports Administrator Mr Simon Dwyer (sdwyer@stpats.vic.edu.au) at the College with any questions.