Head of Junior School 

Welcome back to Term 2

What a wonderful start we have had to Term 2, welcomed by a week of beautiful weather and the smiling faces of our boys returning to school. It has been lovely to see the enthusiasm and energy around the campus as students settled back into routines for the new term.

This term, we warmly welcome Mr Ben Farrell to Prep as class teacher for the remainder of the year. We are delighted to have him join the Prep team.

Miss Daun is currently on long service leave and will return in Week 5. During this time, we are pleased to welcome Mrs Caroline Conallin as our Year 3 class teacher. Mrs Conallin has previously taught at our campus, and both of her sons attended St Virgil’s College, making her return to our community especially meaningful.

Junior School Mother’s Day Breakfast Celebration

More than 300 mums, grandmothers, sons, siblings and family members attended our spectacular pink-inspired Mother’s Day Breakfast this morning, creating a wonderful atmosphere of celebration and community.

Guests enjoyed delicious egg and bacon rolls prepared by our amazing volunteer dads and staff, who were up at the crack of dawn — some even earlier — setting up for the event and cooking the barbecue. Fruit platters and trays of muffins were also enjoyed by all throughout the morning.

A huge thank you to everyone who attended and helped make the morning so special. 

We also extend our thanks to our VET Hospitality boys, under the guidance of Mr Lucas, for their fantastic work whipping up delicious coffees and hot chocolates.

Thank you to our school community for helping create such a memorable Mother’s Day celebration.

Our bumper Mother’s Day raffle was another highlight of the event. Congratulations to the winners of the 25 raffle prizes, see list of winners below, that were generously donated by any members of our school community. 

Celebrating the Life of Edmund Rice

The Junior Campus was filled with energy and Irish spirit as we celebrated Edmund Rice Day. Boys and staff embraced the occasion by dressing head-to-toe in green, creating a wonderful atmosphere of fun and community.

Prizes were awarded for the “greenest” and most creative outfits, with everyone enthusiastically joining in the celebrations. Days like these are a wonderful reminder of the strong sense of community we share, while also recognising and celebrating the values of Edmund Rice. Well done to everyone who participated and helped make the day so memorable.

Running with House Pride: Years 3–6 Take on the Cross Country Course

Our Years 3–6 boys participated in the annual House Cross Country event held last week. While running may not be everyone’s cup of tea, the day was all about participation, perseverance and House spirit. Boys ran, walked, and some even hobbled across the finish line in exhaustion, exemplifying their dedication and commitment to their House teams.

Ribbons for the top four placegetters, along with the Shield for the Winning House, will be officially presented at Monday’s Assembly.

Overall House Results

1st – Doyle House: 277 points

2nd – Dwyer House: 274 points

3rd – Hessian House: 252 points

4th – Joyce House: 192 points

Congratulations to Doyle House on being crowned the Overall Winners for 2026!

Here are the top 10 runners in the order that they crossed the line, commencing with 1st place.

Year 3: Teddy Johns, Freddie Tennick, Mason Chandler, William Midson, Finn Johnstone, Fletcher Males, Arlo Klonaris, Jaxon Wignell, Jacob Hill and Jake Allred.

Year 4: Oliver Cunliffe, Sonny Britten, Levi Briggs, Sebastian Gillie, Bryan Wara, Flynn Cunliffe, Sullivan Stride, Theodore Kline, Samuel Young and Jake Disanto.

Year 5: Jett Cox, Ari Young, Isaac Whitfield, Alfie Wojcik, Lukas Reggett, Alexander Hill, Gabby Knaj, Oskar Klasen, Alby Thrift and Ian Mazimpaka.

Year 6: Winston Whittle, Jack Kilgour, Hugo Helmers, Panayioti Hiras, Harvey Gilmore, Rafe Glenn, Harry Stanton, Max Free, Angus Hardaker and Hurley McKenzie.

Year 6 Canberra Trip

This week, our Year 6 students travelled to our  nation’s capital, Canberra, for a four-day educational tour. It was an early start at Hobart Airport at 4.30am on Tiesday, Day One was a long one for them all, but they managed to visit the Australian War Memorial and the Reptile Zoo. Day Two involved Canberra Zoo and the National Museum.

The trip promises to be a wonderful and enriching experience, providing the boys with many opportunities to deepen their understanding of Australia’s history, government, and national identity.

We wish the boys and all staff attending — Miss Pugsley, Mr Hine, Mr Arkley and Mrs McCullagh — a safe and enjoyable trip. We look forward to hearing all about their adventures and receiving daily updates when they return next week.

Term Two Sport

On Friday night and Saturday, our winter sport teams commenced their season. Our water polo team played South Hobart primary, not coming away with a win but with valuable experience under their belt as it was the first game for most of the boys. 

The team consists of: Alex Sherriff, Harrison Siddall, Archie Bugg, Christopher Xavier, Panayioti Hiras, Hugo Helmers, Binayak Shestha, Ruben D’Amico, Nate Mapley, Alex Mackenzie and Charlie Cowling.

Encouragement Awards: Ruben D’Amico and Charlie Cowling

Player of the Week: Panayioti Hiras

Soccer Season Gets Underway

On Saturday, I was able to get along to watch some of our Prep and Kinder soccer teams take to the field for their first game of soccer for 2026 and, for some, for the first time ever. What I witnessed was the pure joy of not only playing soccer but our boys playing alongside one another, representing team sVc. 

Thank you to all parents who have volunteered to coach or manage a team this year. Your support of the boys on and off the team is wonderful, we couldn't do it without you. Thank you also to Mr Franzin and Mrs McCullagh who were seen on the sidelines supporting the boys as well.