Sport News

Mr Derek Lennon

With the year winding down we are getting ready for term 1 sports. Trials are up and running for all term 1 sport now. Our firsts cricketers are off to Sydney in the holidays for the Marist Schools Australia Cricket Carnival, our firsts AFL have a practice match this week and our firsts volleyball team are on the Gold Coast in December for the Australian Volleyball Schools Cup. Good luck to all these sides as they take part in vital preparation for their upcoming AIC seasons. We have also brought back some January training opportunities for boys. This is something we want to increase opportunity for in the future.

Spectating

One of the great things about school sport is that we are all heavily invested. Unlike club sport where our only engagement with the club is at training and games, in a school we are we live (literally for our boarders) here together five, six or seven days a week. We (the boys, the staff and the community) care about the place and take great pride in how we do in sport. First-team schoolboy matches can draw bigger crowds than many premier state competition matches in the same sport.

The positive to this is that we get tremendous buy-in, and apathy is certainly not a concern. There is a real opportunity for sport to teach us many valuable lessons for life. The concern is that passion and enthusiasm can be misdirected at times and cause embarrassment or harm to players, officials and other spectators. Fortunately, in the two years I have been here there have been very, very few issues and by and large as a community we get spectating. That does not mean we do not discuss what that should look like. It is much easier to keep highlighting the expectations and our values while we are doing the right things already than try and correct a negative culture.

I would hate to see managing behaviour at school sport ever be an issue. At the end of the day, for 99% of us playing sport is going to be about being healthy, learning skills and enjoying playing with their mates.

For Boys

Make sure your dress code meets the school expectations- college uniform worn correctly. If you play earlier in the day, get changed out of your playing kit. If we all dress the same we look like a tribe, together, unified and strong. No thongs, slides, Birkenstocks at any time please. Whether it be at sporting events, on the bus or at the shopping centre, every boy is a post card out there in the community. For many people the only interaction they have with Marist College Ashgrove will be seeing you and they will judge all of us on how you look, how you speak and how you behave. Sport is even more obvious because you are in large groups.

Direct your passion positively to help the team. Clap and cheer good play, ignore our mistakes. You would be surprised but if one of our players makes a mistake on the field or court and a few of us say something negative or remonstrate they see that and it affects their performance.

In an ideal world as Christian gentlemen we would congratulate our opponent for positive play with a clap and ignore their mistakes. I would love to see that happen. We can support our team and still be respectful of our opponent. At a minimum I expect that we ignore the opposition players totally: no comments, no banter or signals when they make a mistake, no anger or frustrated gestures when they do something well or score; polite, respectful and gracious at all times.

Know the war cries, get involved in making a positive difference for our players. Nothing lifts a team more than a couple of hundred boys sending out a stirring rendition of one of our anthems.

For spectators

As spectators, it’s a sports parent’s job to do what spectators do best, just cheer. This can sometimes be hard to do, especially if you feel like you could do a better job than your child’s actual coach. Coaching from the sideline undermines the authority of the coach and could upset the dynamic of the team.

It’s important that sports spectators remember the old adage, “If you can’t say something nice don’t say anything at all.” You never know who you are sitting next to in the stands, or who can overhear your conversations, so just avoid trash-talking in general. Remember, sports parents set the example for the boys.

Not every game is going to be your child’s best. It’s important that parents stay positive no matter how things may be going for your youth athlete or their team. Players beat themselves up enough for the mistakes they make on the field, so try to cheer them up and help them focus on what went right, as opposed to fixating on what went wrong.

You never want to be that sports parent or spectator. We all know the one — the one that yells, criticizes, picks arguments on the sideline. Try to remember that this is schoolboy sport, it’s about the boys and having fun.

It is not your job to question the official’s ruling. If anyone needs to talk with the referee or umpire let the coach handle it. Again, it’s all about acting the way we would want the kids to behave. Most of our officials are school students or young people themselves. They make mistakes, we all do.

Sport - Basic Expectations for All Players

The expectations of the players are broken into two categories- training and match day. All players should be aware of these expectations and ensure they are meeting or exceeding them.

Training

Upon selection in an AIC team players required to train at least twice per week, In-season activities always take precedence over pre-season or development training.

MOTTO FOR TRAINING: “ON TIME, DRESSED CORRECTLY, READY TO GO”

ARRIVAL	Start times for training sessions are just that; not arrival times. If training starts at 3:30pm that means you are on the field ready to go, not just arriving.
ATTITUDE	Training is work time not social time. To play at your best you need to train at your best.
ATTENDANCE	All players are expected to be at all team training sessions. If you are going to miss training you need to contact your coach and year coordinator direct to explain why. In the Primary this will need to be from a parent.
EQUIPMENT	All training sessions require the wearing of safety equipment such as boots, mouthguards, shinpads. Essentially, if you need it for a game, you need it for training. Boys will not be allowed to participate in training sessions without these.
UNIFORM	Players must be in the Marist blue training shirt and shorts for all training sessions, unless otherwise directed by the coach.

Match Day

PLAYING	All players are expected to be available for all matches. You have made a commitment to the college and your team. If you are unavailable for a match contact your coach and year coordinator as soon as possible explaining the reason why.
ARRIVAL TIME	Unless otherwise directed, players are to arrive at the venue not less than 30 minutes before kick-off and report to your team coach or manager.
DRESS CODE	All players are to turn up to matches in their playing kit or tracksuit. No player is to turn up wearing non-Marist items. All boys must change into your college uniform to watch later games. First team players are required to wear your formal uniform.
EQUIPMENT	Boys will also require equipment for the sport, such as mouthguards, boots, shinpads, etc. All players must have a Marist playing jersey, shorts and socks.
HYDRATION	Each boy must bring their own full water bottle with them. Team coaches and managers will encourage the boys to drink water but ultimately players are responsible for their hydration.
SHAKING HANDS	All players are to shake hands with their opponents at the completion of the match. This is to occur before any war cry or team celebrations occur.
RESPECT	At all times on match days Marist athletes must ensure that their actions and conduct is respectful to their opposition, officials, themselves, their teammates, coaches, and the College.
FIRSTS SUPPORT	All players are strongly encouraged to stay behind and support the first team.

Student Achievements

Water Polo

Congratulations to Joey Cervetto, Sean Bright, Dylan Jennison and Gus Cope who recently represented Queensland at the U17 National state Championships. Queensland won the carnival, defeating NSW in the final.

Joey, Sean and Dylan were selected in the U18 National Age Group Program squad which is an outstanding achievement.

On the back of our defence of the AIC Open Water Polo trophy, congratulations to these young men on their outstanding achievements.

Cricket

Mr Andrew Catton (Coordinator)

Cricket Pre-Season at Marist is underway in preparation for the 2025 AIC season. It has been fantastic to see so many boys at training sessions last week for the first sessions of the year. The attendance and effort from the boys has been outstanding.

Expectations

This week all boys at training have been aware of some expectations that will be within place in the cricket program this season.

PUNCTUALITY

Boys are expected to be at training on time and be dressed and ready to start at 3:30pm.

COMMUNICATION

Boys are expected to communicate to myself or their relevant coordinator (not their coach) if they have any issues in relation to attendance at training or games.

UNIFORM

All cricketers will be expected to wear the correct uniform to training. This includes Marist Training shirt, Training Shorts and blue or white Marist socks. Boys who are not wearing the correct uniform will not be permitted to participate.

RESPECT

All boys are expected to demonstrate high levels of respect for their coaches and their peers at all times.

Sign On

2025 Cricket Season Sign On is now available on Parent Lounge or Student Cafe.

All students interested in playing Cricket in 2025 are encouraged to Sign On ASAP.

Thank you to those who have already done so. There were some boys are sessions this week who had not yet signed on and will need to do so prior to the next session.

Coaching Positions

We are currently in a very healthy position in relation to Coaching appointments for 2025 and expect them to be announced in the next week. We do have some vacancies available for anyone interested in coaching. To receive more information, please click the link below and complete the form.

https://forms.office.com/r/114dmuXh0k

Holiday Clinics

Keep an eye on Parent Lounge and Student Café. We are looking forward to releasing information in relation to our upcoming Cricket camps set to take place in the Christmas holidays soon.

Year 6 Training

Year 6 Training commences next week on Tuesday morning and will take place for Week 5 and 6 this term.

Term 4 Training Schedule

Term 1 Cricket Schedule

The Term 1 Training Schedule has now been finalised. We will be adding on some additional specialist sessions.

Track and Field

Mr Richard Graham – Director of Rugby / Track and Field

Mr Rob Martin – Head Coach, Track and Field

Queensland Athletics All Schools

The representative season for Track and Field continues this weekend with the Queensland Athletics All Schools here in Brisbane. We wish all the Marist students competing in the Queensland Athletics All Schools all our best.

The Queensland Athletics All Schools is an important part of the selection process for the Australian All Schools Championships and Australian National Schools Challenge. We will follow up next week with the results of the competing students.

Sunday Sessions

For all students wanting to continue with their Track and Field training, Mr Rob Martin will continue to run his usual Sunday sessions. Please see below details -

WHEN: Sunday afternoons

WHERE: Hayden Oval

TIME: 3:15pm-4:45pm

DRESS: Marist sport shirt, Marist sports shorts, white or blue socks.

Marist Track and Field – Social Media

@marist_ashgrove_sports

Marist College has continued to showcase incredible moments in Track and Field again this year, from Year 5 victories to exceptional feats by our Year 12 students, all vividly captured on our social media pages.

Rugby Union

Mr Richard Graham – Director of Rugby / Track and Field

Scrum Ready Program - Years 5-10

Aligned with our Scrum Ready objectives, last week’s session marked another small step forward in the program's progression. It was fantastic to see many returning faces, and equally exciting to welcome a few new ones to Week 2. The continued commitment and enthusiasm from all participants are great signs for our front-row depth and safety as we move forward.

Any students who plays in the front row are invited to the Scrum Ready Program. The sessions are run by Mr Doug Perrers and Mr James Trebbin. The aim of the training sessions is to educate students on key strengthening exercises, correct technique and the ability to maintain a safe, strong and stable body position.

WHEN: Wednesday 16/23/30 October, 6/13 November

TIME: 3:30-4:45pm

WHERE: Des Connor Park, Field 5

DRESS: MCA sports shirt, Marist sports shorts, blue / white / or Marist rugby socks.

OTHER GEAR: Rugby boots and a drink bottle

The five weeks will consist of:

Core and body strengthening exercises
Solo with no opposition – on knees
Solo with no opposition – on feet
Solo against a machine / tackle bag
1 v 1 / 3 v 3 body shape.

Students should complete the program with knowledge that will allow them to continue their own training across the remainder of Term 4 and into the school holidays.

Term 4 – Preseason Training

We are now in the fourth week of our optional five-week preseason rugby union training block for current Years 9-11 students. Attendance has been impressive, and the student’s enthusiasm for the sessions and their desire to improve has been great to see. Their willingness to compete and build connections across year levels reflects the program’s strength.

For this week and next, Year 9 students have the chance to attend Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings.

Thank you to all the students for pushing themselves during these early morning sessions. Field sessions are led by Mr Richard Graham, Mr Chris Daykin, Mr Charlie Taylor, Mr Paddy Conn, and Mr James Trebbin, with athletic development under Mr Adam Earnshaw, our Strength and Conditioning Coordinator.

NOTE: Students preparing for Term 1 sports trials should attend the Friday morning session only.

Marist Rugby Union – Social Media

@marist_ashgrove_rugby

In 2024, the College continues to deliver some wonderful rugby memories through our social media pages. From the smallest bumblebees in Year 5 through to the biggest bumblebees in Year 12, all of it is captured in wonderful colour.

To stay connected with Marist Rugby and with all the program’s achievements, please follow our Instagram page @marist_ashgrove_rugby