For many of us, being able to watch our favourite sports has been a way to momentarily forget about what has been happening around us this year, providing a way to escape from reality and to gain some enjoyment from something that we are familiar with and that can provide us with comfort.

What you may not know is that, while watching these sports, you have been watching some former Orchard Grove students in action.

Kate Eddy graduated from OGPS in 2008. In that year, she was a Mirrabooka house captain and won the Sports award at the graduation ceremony. After playing her junior netball at Blackburn South, she went on to represent Australia at the junior level, being named vice-captain of the team that finished runner-up to New Zealand in the 2017 Netball Youth World Cup.

Last season, Kate made her debut in the Suncorp Super Netball competition as a member of the NSW Swifts. While they went on to win last year’s grand final, Kate unfortunately missed out due to sustaining a season-ending injury a few weeks earlier. However, this season saw her return to her home state to play for the Melbourne Vixens, where she is their starting wing defence, switching to goal defence on occasion. Kate has also just been named in Netball Australia's development squad, which identifies young players with the potential to represent the Diamonds (Australia's national team) in the not-too-distant future. On Sunday October 18, the Vixens will be playing in the grand final against either the Sunshine Coast Lightning or the West Coast Fever; tune in to Channel Nine at 1pm to cheer Kate on.

Jordan Ridley graduated from OGPS in 2010. Like Kate, he was a house captain (of Killara, when it was named Killoura). Jordan won the Academic award at the graduation ceremony (Kate’s sister, Rebecca, won the Sports award that year). After beginning his junior football at East Burwood, he went to the Oakleigh Chargers in the TAC Cup competition. It was from there that he was drafted by Essendon with Pick 22 in the 2016 National Draft.

At the beginning of the recent school holidays, Jordan was awarded the Crichton Medal as Essendon’s best and fairest player for the season. He has played 26 senior games; only three players in the history of the club have won the best and fairest award after playing fewer games (one of them being John Coleman). He was also named in the 2020 All-Australian 40-man squad, which is wonderful recognition for an outstanding season.

For those on staff who were teaching at OGPS when these two were students (some being their teachers during that time) it has been very exciting to see them playing in the country’s top competitions in their chosen sports. To have them achieving such great success is something of which our school community should be proud, and maybe something that inspires the next Kate or Jordan to work hard to achieve a dream, whether that’s in sport or any other chosen field of passion.

Key Dates

OCTOBER