From the Head of Sport

Head of Sport Report

Over the past few weeks we have implemented Google drive links for students travelling to away games for sport. Often BMGS students advise that they are travelling on the bus yet end up getting a lift to the game or not attending.

It is very important that if a confirmation of travel is sent out for your weekend sport that you complete the link. Bus bookings are made based on the information received from players and it is not economical to put on extra buses only to have students not require transport and the extra bus is not needed. 

Last week we arranged buses for the ISA Cross Country only to have a number of students not turn up for this event. An email is an easy option if you unexpectedly cannot make an event. I look forward to your support on this matter.

Congratulations - Hockey

James Reynolds and Flynn Nicholls were both selected in the ISA Hockey team to compete at the NSWCIS Hockey championships recently. This was a bit of déjà vu as these boys played together in the primary school and both were selected in NSWCIS team together 5 years ago. Congratulations to both boys and well done to James who was selected as a member of the NSWCIS team this year.

ISA Cross Country

Last week BMGS took a large team to the ISA Cross Country carnival. Once again it was a beautiful day at the Sydney International Equestrian centre and BMGS students competed well. 

We had a number of runners make the top 10 in their age group. Congratulations to Tarana Stubenrauch, Julian Brischetto, Amelie Hugo, Rose Nicholas, Jessica Harris, Alton Freeman, Ellie Daniels and Keeden Harrison who all qualified to compete at the NSWCIS Cross Country carnival.

A special congratulations to the following runners who received medals on the day:

The best results overall for the BMGS team were as follows:

Intermediate Girls 5th from 11 teams.

Intermediate Boys 7th from 15 teams.

NSWCIS Cross Country

This week BMGS had 7 students compete at the NSWCIS Cross Country carnival. Whilst the weather held out for the duration of the carnival, with a good deal of rain overnight this meant a muddy run for all our athletes. Well done to Tarana Stubenrauch, Julian Brischetto, Amelie Hugo, Rose Nicholas, Jessica Harris, Alton Freeman and Keeden Harrison who all competed well on the day.

Special mention goes to Keeden Harrison who placed first in the 15 years boy’s age group and has now qualified to compete at the NSW All Schools carnival in Term 3. Well done Keeden and good luck at the next level.

Orienteering

Again this year we are running an introduction to Orienteering program. The first event will be on the 7th June and the second on the 14th June. Any students interested are to meet at the roundabout at 3:15 pm. If the weather is not favourable please ensure that you bring wet weather gear. Watch the screens in case of postponement.

Mountain Biking

The mountain biking community at Blue Mountains Grammar continues to grow and the 2024 events calendar is commencing soon. The first of the MTB interschool events, The Rocky Trail events is on Friday 21 June 2024.

Any students who are registering to attend these events, must notify the school if they are attending events that fall on a school day.

https://rockytrailacademy.com/event/wollongong-schools-comp/

Wollongong Schools Comp - Rocky Trail Academy

Come on school riders, Rocky Trail Academy is coming to Cringila Hills Mountain Bike Park and we're ready to absolutely send it! 

DESTINATION WOLLONGONG. 

You’ll find us just 80km south of Sydney. Let’s GO! 

Blazer Embroidery

This term we will be doing the embroidery for Year 12 students only. This will then allow for all 2025 incoming captains to have their blazers embroidered in Term 3. All year 12 students who require embroidery will need to have their blazer dry-cleaned and delivered to the Uniform Shop on Monday 24th June.

For your blazer to be accepted it must be dry-cleaned, in the dry-cleaning plastic and have the receipt stapled to the plastic. This is a WHS requirement from the embroidery company.

All students submitting blazers are required to type a list of the items that are required on their blazer as a double check for our embroidery list. Please put this list in the top pocket of your blazer.

Athletics Carnival

With the postponement of the BMGS Athletics carnival this week an alternate date will be advised in the next newsletter. This is likely to be at the start of Term 3. All students are expected to attend this carnival. 

Parent volunteers are welcome. You can email me to express your interest.

Rotary will once again be running a BBQ on the day so please support them.

Rugby

BMGS will continue to play with SACS and Redlands while our numbers are low and any players who are interested in coming along to training to give rugby a go are always welcome.

The attitude of the BMGS boys since the introduction of the Barbarian teams has been exceptional. They arrive at the game each week eager to catch up with their teammates from SACS and Redlands and find out what has happened since they last saw each other. The Barbarian teams are not about just playing rugby but about building relationships both on and off the field. The positive feedback that has come from players, coaches and parents proves that this has indeed been a worthwhile experiment. Thank you to all the players for your willingness to be flexible where needed and for making the most of this great opportunity.

Match Reports

Barbarian Firsts - Pink Sock Day, Macquarie University - 25th May

This weekend we had a lot of sickness going around so the BMGS players were a bit thin on the ground.

The Firsts had a very competitive game against Riverview. The ball was shared evenly across both teams so it was the team that was able to take the initiative to mix it up on the line that took away the win. A great dummy from Tom Hitchenson saw him go over in the corner to help the Barbarians successfully defeat Riverview 12-7.

The 16’s had a harder game this week against a competitive Cranbrook team. Despite player absence due to injury and illness they were still able to maintain good defence and take home the win 31-17.

The 13B’s continued to show their dominance with a 58-10 win over Cranbrook with BMGS going across the line on many occasions. It is good to see the boys always looking to share the ball around and they are developing some great teamwork. Well done to Thomas Murdoch for putting his hand up to help out the 13A team who were short players this week.

The 14 boys had a weekend off however a couple of the boys came along to watch and fill in where they could. Both boys were able to get a run with the 14A’s where they performed well. All players are encouraged to come along and support or play on their bye weekend.

1st June

Last weekend we were almost back to full strength which was much needed with some harder games than we have seen in some of our age groups.

The Firsts were matched up against a good quality St Pius team in very wet and muddy conditions. A special mention to our Rugby Captain Hamish McLeod who stormed his way down the field and across the line to help with the 31-7 win.

This week the 16’s took on our fellow ISA team in CCGS. Despite the CCGS team being well drilled the Barbarian’s were able to hold them well in defence on many occasions keeping the final score to a tight 31-26 to CCGS. The BMGS players continue to contribute well at this level.

The 14B’s were back up against St Augustine’s this week although this time it was their D side after we successfully defeated the E team a couple of weeks ago. Unfortunately despite there only being one level difference in team names, the ability of the players was far greater with the boys going down 47-22. Well done to all the BMGS boys and congratulations to those who also played in the 14A team to help take home the win 29-28.

With the 13’s boys dominating the pre-season matches, this week they were put to the test against a very athletic and experienced St Pat’s team. Despite their efforts in defence the St Pat’s boys spread the ball well on numerous occasions scoring regularly against a tiring defence to defeat the Barbarians 75-15.

After the long weekend break the official ISA Rugby competition starts on the 15th June with Round 1 against St Stanislaus’ College in Bathurst. Please ensure you complete your travel arrangements on the Google doc sent via email.

Megan Harris

Head of Sport

Hockey Match Report: BMGS Junior Hockey Vs Oxley

The junior hockey team started out on the bus Saturday morning, ready for yet another game against Oxley in the Southern Highlands. After a long bus ride, we arrived at the grounds. We started off down two players, and everyone worked hard to ensure that it didn’t set us back. Neva made a fantastic effort, getting the ball down the field on several occasions, and scoring all three of the game's goals. Working just as hard were Hester and Eadie, who did an excellent job of getting the ball up the pitch and supporting Neva at the goals. Lily also did an incredible job in her first time as goalkeeper, making several incredible saves. The entire team worked incredibly hard, and they won the game 3-0!

Lucy (Co-Captain)

Netball 

BMGS Junior Vs Barker

The Juniors had such a great game on the weekend. Even though it was a loss, losing to Barker 29-4, every single one of them did not stop and persevered to the very end. Even though it was my first time coaching, they listened to everything I told them to do without hesitation. Their passion for the game is there, with great sportsmanship and smiles. They all should be extremely proud of themselves.

Stand in coach: Graciella Olmos

BMGS First' vs Oakhill - 1st June

This past weekend, we played against a newly formed Oakhill Firsts team. Oakhill has played within the Division 1 competition in previous years but has made some changes to their team dynamics this year.

Our aim was to come out strong and ensure we had a fast start. We did that in the first quarter with some good drives through the ball and maintained possession in the majority of our centers. We had some exciting plays showing the high skill level of our girls.

We kept the same seven on the court in our second half to continue the strong momentum and really capitalized on our turnovers. We focused on ensuring our defense was tighter and pushed the passes to be out of reach of our defending players. At halftime, we were a few goals down.

We regrouped and made some changes to allow for fresh legs and new options. We didn't quite deliver on the passing accuracy we wanted, but we continued to fight hard to keep and regain possession.

Unfortunately, the last quarter ran away from us. The shooting accuracy of Oakhill was very high. While we maintained a high level of netball and skill, we weren't able to catch up enough to take the lead.

It was a great fight, as always, with 100% effort and determination from everyone for the full 60 minutes of the game. Well done, girls! Really proud of you all.

Thank you to Libby's grandparents, who came to watch all the way from Parkes.

Coaches: Viki & Mel

BMGS First' vs St Pauls - 25th May

Our games against St Paul’s are always tough. We know one another well and know how each other plays. Both teams always show up ready to tussle on the court - fierce and strong.

This game was no exception. The first quarter saw St Paul’s run away with a lead, and Grammar quickly regrouped, dug in, and worked hard to recover. We made some adjustments to ensure coverage and allow for the best combinations on the court.

Both teams had a large bench to allow for fresh legs throughout. Our third quarter was strong and evened out the scoreline, creating some fantastic netball to wrap up the game. In the end, we went down by a few goals to St Paul’s but fought to the end.

It was a fantastic game and could have been anyone’s. Looking forward to our next match - hopefully with a full team and injury-free :)

Coaches: Viki & Mel

BMGS First' vs Oxley - 18th May

Physicality. Agility. Speed. Teamwork. Discipline. Reactions. All these attributes were present in our game against Oxley at their home ground.

The girls were relentless in their determination in this game - without a doubt, physically the toughest we have experienced so far in this competition. The team played some incredible netball yet again and showed why they belong in the Division 1 competition.

With some unfortunate calls against us, the girls showed great discipline and sportsmanship on and off the court and fought hard for every ball. Our transitions were smooth, defense was fierce, our timing was great, and our shooting was strong. The final quarter showed a hard fight back with momentum, winning the final quarter and allowing us to finish within four goals of one another. This was a high-scoring game, with both teams finishing with over 50 goals! This shows the magnitude of this high performance.

Congratulations, girls - fantastic game.

Coaches: Viki & Mel

BMGS Inter A vs Oxley - 18th May

This game was incredibly even the whole time, with both teams matching one another goal for goal for much of the game.

Every player showed great determination in all positions they played and fought right to the end.

Our defense worked hard, denying possession well and reading the play with precision. Our middies provided the options needed to move the ball around, ensuring we kept to our game and didn't panic. Our shooters all looked for one another well, allowing us to have a mover and a holder seamlessly.

We ended with a very well-deserved win - up by three goals when the final buzzer sounded.

Well done, girls!

Thanks to our supporters on the sideline, cheering on the team!

Coaches: Viki & Mel

Girls Football 

BMGS First XI Girls defeated Oxley (3 - 1) - Round 4, 25th May

On Saturday, we had our first game of the season! We managed to come out victorious against the in-form, undefeated Oxley (and the premiers of last season). The girls played wonderfully; it was as if we had been playing all throughout the off-season.

Special shout-out to Ellie, who got a hat-trick, and Eddie, who played her first game for the Firsts and had some great runs up the wing. We started the game strong, pressuring their defense, and our efforts were rewarded with an early goal. Oxley began to get into the game, but the girls still dominated with possession. Another early goal in the 2nd half meant that the score was 2-0, our way. One goal was then scored by Oxley as a result of a free kick, but we scored shortly after to pull away, with the score 3-1. The defensive line pulled their weight as they prevented Oxley from moving down the wings, and our counterattacks were spot on and had great momentum.

Everyone should be really happy with the way this game went. Hopefully, our future games can contain the same amount of enthusiasm, communication, and determination to have a good time and win.

From Aleesha and Amelie (Girls Football Co-Captains)

Boys Football 

BMGS First XI Boys were defeated by St Patrick’s College (0 - 2) - Round 3, 18th May

Conditions were extremely adverse as the bus came into a windy, cold, and rainy Chifley Sports Reserve in the Eastern suburbs. Warm-ups complete, the boys ran out to a tough St Spyridon’s side who locked heads from minute one. The defensive line of Ben, Zach, Monty, and Jed stayed firm, covering and clearing balls sent over the top with the aid of the wind. Communicating effectively with the midfield of Jem and myself, taking the ball from attack to defense to lay in the forward line of Harry and Flynn, jostling with center halves with far superior size and height advantage on their side. Wide men Jaiden and Jude looked to take the loose balls from the back line and take it themselves through multiple lines of defense, with an aggressive midfield and forward pack to aid. Fill-in keeper Charlie Monks did not look a step out of place; flying punches and composed clearances allowed the difficult transition forward to attack, which allowed the team to get at our opposition. Substitute midfielders Charlie Mannes and Tom alleviated the hard-working wingers to continue the literal uphill battle through to half-time.

Following a formation change to use the downhill and wind, Coach Tom Daniels encouraged the team to push through the 0-0 deadlock, as Nathan and Callum came on to rotate a hardworking defense. A few chances spurred up the Spyridon end and some heated moments of battle followed as the skilled dribbling of the Spyridon forwards led to a goal fifteen minutes out. Determined for some points, the midfield grew ever optimistic, pushing forward to hope to create a lucky chance minutes out. An exhausted and thinly-strung defense could not keep them out, however, as the valiant effort of the whole team fell to a competitive Spyridon team 2-0.

The sportsmanship and determination showed by the whole team was commendable and will serve us well going forward for the season.

From Connor Secker (Boys Football Co-captain)

BMGS 15B Boys drew against by St Spyridon (0 - 0)

The boys played the first game of the season down on player numbers and in blizzard-like conditions. Winning the toss and running into the 200km/h wind in the first half made clearing the ball a tough ask with the boys under pressure most of the half. Resolute defending and magical goalkeeping from Toby kept the score nil all at half-time.

The 2nd half saw the boys create more opportunities to score as they had the wind on their side. It was an end-to-end game and I was so proud of how the boys handled the physical pressure the other team provided, and it was great to see them support each other and play together as a team.

Special shout-out to Silos, Max, Patty, and Milo from Under 14’s who played following their game; without them, it would have been extremely tough and they played so well.

The game ended in a nil-all draw, which in my opinion, was a win for the boys due to the tough conditions.

From Chris Johnson (15B Boys Coach)

BMGS 14B Boys drew against St Spyridon (1 - 1)

The game was tightly contested right the way through. Neither team really dominated. We struggled to get our final passes away to create scoring opportunities. However, a moment of individual flair from Patty set up Thomas to put away the opener, a very well-taken goal. The opposition really stepped up their game, starting to test us more and more. Jenson was valiantly holding down the midfield and winning every single ball. Angus alongside Eligh Spees were controlling the defense from the back. Just towards the end of the first half, the ball bounced kindly their way; we were out of position and they turned in the equalizer.

After half-time, the weather really took a turn for the worse. We were playing against the wind and the rain was coming in sideways. The boys pushed and pushed to try and get a second goal. Ollie was the driving force behind our attacks from the left wing. Javier also was pushing us forward from midfield but our passes were lost in the wind. Spyros started to gain momentum towards the end of the game, really starting to test our defense. However, we held on to grab a draw in our opening game of the season.

From Will Groenewegen (14B Boys Coach)

BMGS First XI Boys were defeated by St Patrick’s College (1 - 3) - Round 4, 25th May

The Boys Football firsts traveled to St Patrick's College in Strathfield on Saturday. Despite our team being low on numbers due to illness, we were ready to give it everything. The game started evenly, with both teams applying pressure and having chances on goal, until St Pat’s managed to score first. They bagged a second goal through a well-placed free kick on the edge of the box to make it 2-0 going into half-time.

Undeterred by the score, the boys went into the second half with confidence, and our keeper, Luke, made some fantastic saves to keep us in the game. After constant pressure from our attackers, a mistake from the opposition’s keeper allowed Flynn to score, bringing the score to 2-1. However, despite the boys’ persistence, our lack of substitutes left the team tired, and we gave up an unfortunate penalty which allowed St Pat’s to score and win the game 3-1. Thank you to Ryan and Luke from the Seconds, who played a fantastic game.

From Callum (Boys Football Co-Captain)

BMGS 15B Boys were defeated by St Patrick’s College (0 - 3)

From the kick-off, we realised this would be a tough game as the opposition looked like they had been playing football together for quite a while, putting some slick passes together and dominated possession. 

Despite the score line, the boys showed their resilience, determination and positive attitude throughout the whole game. The team should be very proud of their effort, especially the boys who are playing football either for the first time or returning to the sport after several years break. As the season goes on, we will develop and grow as a team and the boys should be excited about how we will improve each game.

From Chris Johnson (15 Boys Coach)

BMGS 14B Boys were defeated by St Patrick’s College (1 - 4)

The boys travelled down to play St Patrick's College in Strathfield. St Patrick’s is a school known for their considerable size and investment in sport so we knew it would be a tough game. We also had a fair few absences with illness and had to call up some year 7 students to fill in the slots.

We were without a goalkeeper for the first half and Eligh Spees volunteered to fill in. Many of our players were playing in positions unfamiliar to them, going up against players twice their height but the boys put up a brave fight not shirking any challenges and running their socks off despite not having any subs. Around 5 - 10 minutes in, the St Patrick's left winger picked up the ball and took on three of our defenders, getting very lucky as he charged towards goal to slot it past Eligh in goal. The boys continued to play and push for an equaliser creating good opportunities with Ollie and Audius (Yr 7) down the wings.

However, a challenge from Angus left him without a shoe and out of position, St Patrick’s, allowed to play on, capitalised and scored a second. A very harsh goal to concede. Fatigue was starting to wear in the boys head’s started to drop. 

Ollie won the ball just past half way and drove at the defence, he cut inside and released a shot from just outside the box that flew past the keeper. A wonder goal. Unfortunately one of the St Patrick’s forwards found himself clean through on goal and slotted the ball past Ben. The game finished 4-1. 

I want to commend the boys on the fight, resilience and spirit they showed to take it to them for the entire game. Thank you to Audius, Wilber and Carlyle who stepped up from the 13’s.

From Will Groenewegen (14 Boys Coach)