Sport News

Mr Derek Lennon, Head of Sport

Last weekend saw Marist travel to St Laurence’s College in a whole round of action at Runcorn. Results across the board were pleasing with chess having a strong showing on Friday night, winning the opens and drawing the senior A and senior B matches. In football, Marist dominated the primary matches and more than held our own against the new football powerhouse, backed by Manchester City Soccer School, across the board. The firsts lost 3-2 in a game the boys will feel like they can win. The rugby results were very strong throughout and the firsts finished 4 tries each, with goalkicking being the difference for Lauries.

This weekend we are home to Villanova with the seniors (Year 9-12) at Ashgrove and the juniors (Year 5-8) at Villa Park. Please check the draw carefully as we will have many supp matches which could be at any of the schools.

Good luck to all teams this weekend!

Sports Office

We have had some changes in the sports office over the last few weeks. Both Mr Mitch Reid and Mr Corey Lucas have concluded their time here at Marist. We have been very fortunate to have had such dedicated professionals working for us and we wish them both well as they advance their careers.

We welcome Mr Matt Millward to Marist as he takes over the important Sports Administrator role and welcome Mr Corey Robinson into sport after a year working in the HPE department. Both gentlemen have settled into their new roles well and are looking forward to making positive contributions to the Marist sport program.

Spectating

Boys coming along to watch matches are required to wear their winter uniform. Boys who have played earlier in the day and are staying behind to watch matches are required to change into their winter uniform. All boys should be in the correct school uniform.

Team selections- Rugby and Football

I thought it important to share with you the challenge our coaches and co-ordinators are facing in try to organise boys into teams in the short turnaround from Term 1. Marist fields between 4 and 8 teams in every year level in rugby and football. This is between 70 and 130 boys to be selected into positions and teams in each sport. This is a huge task for the staff, all of whom are either teachers coaching on top of teaching duties, external coaches with full-time jobs to manage and young old boys with limited coaching experience.

I can assure the Marist community that all our coaches are doing their best to sort out our teams and prepare the players for Round 1. Interestingly many AIC are still adding and deleting teams from the competition this week, suggesting everyone is in the same position, and we are by far the largest sporting program in the AIC.

Playing Uniform

All players must be in the correct Marist playing uniform for the sport. Other Marist apparel, including training shirts, are not acceptable. The Uniform Shop has all the items required for sale. If the shop is sold out of a required size please contact the relevant year co-ordinator in advance to request permission to play. Coaches will not let players play in the wrong uniform unless approved in advance.

Absences from Training and Matches

When committing to play a sport for a season it is the college expectation that the activity will be given the highest priority. Absences from training and games lets down your coaches, your teammates and your college. From time to time absences are unavoidable with illness and significant family events and we understand these. However, clear communication, with as much notice as possible is required. Boys in Years 8-12 should take responsibility for communicating this themselves by emailing their coach and year co-ordinator explaining why they are absent from training or a game.

Wet Weather Procedure

The college manages our fields. This is different to many club sports, where the local council manages the facilities and is conscious of wear and tear with fewer resources to manage and more teams using the fields for longer periods of time than schools. Our aim is to train wherever possible and we will only cancel training and games if it is dangerous, such as lightning or water pooling on fields, or if it has been consistently raining and the fields are showing significant wear and tear.

Cancellations are communicated using the college app. It is important that families have notifications turned on to receive notices around changes to training, especially morning sessions where time is of the essence.

Sportsmanship

The mission of the AIC is to provide well-organised competitions in sport and other activities that foster participant engagement and pride in communities in a holistic Christian context. Our students, staff and families (both past and present) will nurture spiritual, moral, emotional, intellectual, physical, and social development through respectful and compassionate relationships in a safe environment. It is important that staff, players and spectators are aware of their obligations to maintain a positive environment through healthy friendly competition.

All Marist players and coaches are expected to maintain the values and expectations of the college. This includes but is not limited to:

Following the instructions and decisions of officials without question or contempt.
Respecting opponents and officials, and shaking hands at the conclusion of the match, regardless of the result.
Wearing our Marist uniform correctly and with pride.

Operational

Communication, team lists, staff and coach contacts, training times and weekly draws are available on the College App each week.

Student Achievements

Will Banner (Triathlon)

We have our next national representative as Will has been selected to represent Australia at the World Triathlon Championships in August in Duathlon (run, ride, run). Will joins an exclusive club of Marist students who have represented their country and we all wish him well in this prestigious event.

Oliver Peregrina (Touch)

Congratulations to Oliver who has made the Met North U18 Touch team to compete in the Queensland State Titles later in the year.

He has also been selected to play in the Touch World Cup held in Nottingham, England in July for the Philippines Mixed Open team.

Callum Scramm (Baseball)

Callum competed for Brisbane Metro Baseball in the Junior League Div 2 (under 14s ) at the Baseball State Titles recently. Callum and his team had an awesome tournament, winning 4 out of the 5 games they played over the three-day weekend to make it to the Grand Final. After a hard-fought game, his team took home the Silver Medal. Callum’s contribution in all games assisted his team with this medal, especially batting, stealing bases and pitching.

Football

Mr Derek Lennon (Football Coordinator)

Football enjoyed a full trial round against St Laurence’s College last Saturday. The 1st XI played out a competitive fixture, finishing in a two-all draw. After a quality pre-season including term 4 fitness, 8 pre-season matches and a tournament on the Gold Coast in the holidays the team are well-prepared and excited about the challenge ahead. Thank you to Mr Blair Whitlock, who has stepped up from assistant coach, and Mr Willem Baines, who comes into the firsts program from the seconds, for your efforts, especially in recent weeks, in preparing the team for the upcoming season. I would like to acknowledge and thank Mr Corey Lucas for his commitment to the program over a number of years coaching in the primary school, assisting the firsts and for the last 2 years coaching the firsts. We will miss Corey’s knowledge about football, positive attitude and his relational nature with the boys.

Overall our preparation has been significantly improved on last year with our A teams picked early, two rounds of trial matches and pre-season training all teams are almost settled now and raring to go. Saturday was a challenging day for many of our teams against St Laurence’s who have been an improving program for a number of years now. Two weeks of tough matches against Terrace and St Laurence’s will prepare our teams well for the season ahead.

This Saturday sees us welcome Villanova to Marist in the seniors, with the junior teams away. Villa are a strong football program so this will challenge our teams again this week. As a program we are looking forward to the challenge and also the collegiality involved in our two schools playing each other. If you can, come along and support the 1st XI at 12:15 on Cameron Oval.

Hockey

Ms Kathryn Badini (Hockey Coordinator)

On Friday afternoon, our Hockey team faced Francis Douglas Memorial College from New Plymouth in New Zealand for a special once-off game. It was a great experience for all involved and was also a lovely reminder about what is great about Marist – boys just getting involved and supporting each other. We had students from 7 – 12 both on the field and in the crowd of supporters.

The game started with a traditional haka from the NZ side, which was so impressive to see in person. Whilst our team is mainly composed of club boys, we had to top it up with some very eager Year 12s, including our goalkeeper, Hugh Irwin. A special thank you to these boys; hockey is not an easy sport to pick up, especially not against an international side, in front of a large crowd.

Despite this game falling well before our season, the team showed great promise. Most impressive was a goal coming from a combo of new players - Luke Keir in Year 7 who was assisted by Frank Piper in Year 12. The game really belonged to our captains, however, Isaac Pratt and Oliver Shinkel, who put their full hearts into it.

A special thanks to our staff and student supporters as well as our wonderful media team who came along. Many lessons learnt there as well – no offside in hockey, what a short corner is and that there’s a lot of running. We are hoping to have a second team for amateur players in Term 3. Watch this space.

Here are some comments made by the staff at FDMC, which are always nice to hear -

“We totally share your sentiments about the great game on Friday. Your team certainly pushed our lads’ hockey skills and they welcomed that!

[…] In fact, in the section in their journal “we need more of…” they completed this as needing more supporters like those with Marist College! To be honest your supporters added a lot to the game with their passionate chanting etc., but just something our lads haven’t come across before. It’s all been part of the making of great memories.”

Rugby Union

Mr Richard Graham – Director of Rugby / Track and Field

Trial Day vs St Laurence’s

What a fantastic day of rugby across both Ashgrove and Runcorn playing fields!

There was plenty of action here at the College. Seeing all the movement and colour along Des Connor Park with our newest bumblebees playing our old rivals St Laurence’s College, and then up to McMahon Oval where our 7th XV and 8th XV were competing against Ormiston College.

Congratulations to the Year 5 group for a clean sweep of St Laurence’s. It was a stunning day for running rugby on Des Connor Park and a big group of supporters were present to watch lots of ball movement and a heap of energy from the A’s to the D’s.

Well done to the Year 6 students for their efforts also. Some good rugby and some valuable lessons as they head into Round 1.

Hayden Oval also had plenty of activity with the Year 7 cohort facing stiff competition against a very competitive St Laurence’s outfit.

Out at Runcorn, competitive games for every team in preparation for the week’s first round of the AIC competition. Marist teams played some outstanding rugby and watching from the sidelines you could see the training transferring to on-field performance. Well done to all the students for the manner in which they embraced the trial games. Marist teams are known for their willingness to compete, their effort upon effort, and the physical attacking rugby they play.

Thanks to the wonderful coaching staff we have in preparing the students well. It was a rushed four-day week with team selection, training and games, however, our coaches did a superb job.

Marist Rugby vs Villanova

AIC Round 1 starts this week at home to Villanova College.

Please make sure you check the Marist app for this weekend’s schedule. The Year 5-8 cohorts will play away at Villanova College whilst the Year 9-12 levels will be here at Ashgrove. Please note there are some exceptions to this.

Thanks to Mr Matt Millward in the Sports Admin Department for his work in ensuring every student plays a game. The College is scheduled to play against five different schools!

Please note that all students are to arrive at least 45 minutes before their games unless instructed otherwise by your coach. Arrive in Marist rugby playing gear (no thongs or Birkenstocks).

Teams for Round 1 will be announced Friday morning.

All students are to arrive at least 45 minutes before their games unless instructed otherwise by your coach. Arrive in Marist rugby playing gear (no thongs or Birkenstocks).

Teams for the trials will be announced Friday morning.

Rugby Union Training – Term 2

Please ensure you check the Marist app for the Year level training sessions scheduled in Term 2.

This week (Week 2) is a logistical challenge with the Anzac Day celebration and the Parent Teacher interviews, however, the coaches are offering alternatives to ensure the teams are prepared for the weekend.

Note, the next schedule remains consistent for Weeks 3-8.

Additionally, refer to the Rugby Union Key Dates Calendar and AIC Draw in the Marist app for information on all games throughout the season.

Thank you to the GPS Rugby Union club for generously allowing our Year 10 cohort to train on their grounds. This has provided us with more field space, enhancing the overall training experience for our students. We are grateful for our strong connection with Jeeps and appreciate the opportunity to be part of the wider rugby community.

Marist Rugby Union – Social Media

@marist_ashgrove_rugby

In 2023 the College delivered 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 was 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

Track and Field

Mr Richard Graham – Director of Rugby / Track and Field

Mr Rob Martin – Head Coach, Track and Field

Marist Track and Field – Sunday Sessions

This year, Marist College with be looking to win its 10th successive AIC Track and Field Championship. To be successful, a lot of planning, commitment and effort goes into the program across the calendar year.

For all students wanting to train, Mr Rob Martin will continue to run his usual Sunday sessions. Please see below details -

INCLUDED: Running – sprints and jumps / Throws – early pre-season fitness and cross training, along with throwing.

WHEN: Sunday afternoons

WHERE: Hayden Oval

TIME: 3:15-4:45pm

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.