Sport

Term 1 Sport

We had our BAS Term 1 competitions start this week. Great work by all of the staff involved in preparing, coaching and managing our teams. There were some terrific performances in hot conditions this week.

Students need to ensure that they listen to the morning messages and attend meetings so that they are organised. Always communicate with your coaches if you are unavailable or for general inquiries. Students can communicate with their coach via email or MS Teams.

ACC Cricket

Round 1: SPC v St Bernard's College

ACC cricket commenced with us hosting St Bernard’s College on the magnificent main oval. As always, the pitch and outfield were in excellent condition. Armi Wakefield was the stand in skipper whilst Linc was in Kyneton getting his licence. Winning the toss, we bowled first knowing Linc would be back for the second innings.

The boys bowled a really tight line and gave their batsman nothing lose. An early wicket to Jack McMahon helped build the pressure. Armi then claimed his first wicket with another LBW decision, at 2/55 after 17 overs. By the time Max Bunworth had claimed two quick wickets, St Bernard’s were well held at 4/76 after 25 overs. The game then swung their way as their batsmen started to go for their shots, piling on 81 runs from the last 10 overs, including 38 from the last three. The boys had taken a bit of a beating and came in knowing they needed to bat well to chase down 157. Armi, Jack and Max were the pick of the bowlers.

In reply, Linc—celebrating his 18th birthday—looked very shaky, and was dropped twice before being bowled for three. Harry Scardamaglia was anchored down at one end as Ryder O’Brien joined him. Harry was dismissed followed quickly by Lachy McPhan. At 3/18 we were in a bit of trouble, however Ryder and Armi then steadied the innings and put on 74 runs. The pair was then dismissed within a few balls of one another, and we slumped to 5/94. 

New boarders Albie Cheeseman, Lachlan Rea and Harry Hoffman showed their class and kept us on pace. When Harry was dismissed, we were 7/150 with eight required from the last two overs. With three to Lachlan Rea from the first two balls, we need five to win from 10 balls. But then Max and Hamish McNamara were dismissed in the space of three balls—both LBW—and we were in trouble at 9/153. The match came down to the last over with Lachlan on strike. A four from the first ball had us level and he sealed the win with another boundary the following ball. A great level-headed innings to seal the victory with four balls to spare.

Next week we travel to St Bede’s in Mentone. St Bede’s have knocked us out in the semi- final the previous two years, so we’ll be keen for a victory.

Round 2: St Bede's College v SPC

On Wednesday, we travelled down to St Bede’s College Mentone on Beach Rd. A great view across the bay welcomed the boys and a slight breeze off the bay kept the temp down to 31C. 

We lost the toss and were bowling first. Some tight early bowling kept the run rate down. A run out by Lincoln Koliba had St Bede’s nervous with their running between wickets.  Hamish McNamara clean bowled the new batsman, and Linc dismissed the other opener. When Max Bunworth completed a second run out, St Bede’s had slipped to 4/49 after 19 overs. Ryder O’Brien then claimed two wickets in two overs, with a third run out in between, to reduce St Bede’s to 7/76 after 27 overs. 

The bowling at this stage had really restricted them and we were hoping to keep them under 100. Hamish, Linc and Armi had superb figures going for less than two per over. A couple of big hits towards the end resulted in 2 lost balls, as St Bede’s managed to make 9/118 from their 35 overs.

In reply Linc and Harry Scardamaglia opened the batting. Harry played the anchor role, whilst Linc feasted on the short bowling. We were cruising along until Linc fell in the 9th over, for a quick fire 45 from only 28 balls. Harry was then dismissed the next over. At 2/56 we had the chase well under control with plenty of batting to come. Armi was next to go for 6, and at 3/74 after 14 overs we only needed 45. 

Ryder continued his good form and cruised to 22 before being dismissed, Lachy McPhan was then dismissed the following over for 14. 5/104 after 22 overs. Lachlan Rea and Albie Cheeseman then worked the ball around the field and turned the strike over, as they cruised to victory.

Lachlan Rea remained not out and for the second week in a row hit the winning runs. A very convincing victory against a side that has beaten us in the semi-final the past two seasons. Next week we are back on Main Oval against St Joseph’s Geelong.

BAS Cricket

In the first round of the BAS Second XI 2024/2025 season, SPC Blue came up against a newly formed Ballarat Clarendon College side. Winning the toss, we elected to bowl on what was a slow wicket with the threat of rain ever present. 

BCC posted a creditable 8/92 off their 20 overs based on a solid 35 from their captain. Ethan Bartlett 3/8 off four overs was our chief wicket taker and he was assisted by Kolby Haley 1/1, Ollie Davis 2/19, Paddy Price 1/9 and Kaianu Landt 1/7. 

With previous wins batting second through the first half of the season, the SPC Blue side held much confidence in chasing down the required total, but BCC had other ideas! With extremely fast and tight bowling from their opening four bowlers SPC Blue were already behind on run rate but doing their best not to lose wickets, hoping to see this new attack off. 

Will Steenhuis 12, Kolby Haley 12, Ethan Bartlett 15 and Lachlan Lloyd 19, provided SPC Blue with increased hope of success but with partnerships being broken too regularly and the wickets finally beginning to fall, SPC found themselves 10/83 just 10 runs short of a win. In time much can be learnt from close defeats, and I believe that SPC Blue will do all that it can to bounce back next week against Ballarat Grammar.

Final Score: SPC Blue 10/83 defeated by BCC 8/92.

Mr Busscher, SPC Blue Coach

Junior Cricket

Round 1: SPC Gold 10/111 def by BCC Black 9/120

Gold Captain: Jack Costigan

Manager(s) Mr. Kent/Mr. Morris

We travelled to Vic Park and played on grounds 9 and 10. A special mention to Ryder Featherstone and Kaianu Landt. The boys weren’t selected but came to the game as emergencies. As it turned out they weren’t required as we had 16 players, thanks lads. We had excellent player numbers considering the short notice. 

Highlights for Gold

Batting: L, Anderson 20 runs, W James 22 runs.

Bowling: P. Davey 3 for 1 including a hat trick, J Costigan 2 for 1, M Wheelahan 1 for 9, W James 1 for 2, B Molloy 1 for 18, E Mason 1 for 16.

22 Sundries

Fielding: The wicket keeping was solid all game with two lads sharing the duties. The fielding was very good with three catches taken by E Mason, M Spurgo and F Bennett. The ground fielding was very good for our first outing.

BCC started very well with the bat and our bowling was too short early. One of their openers hit five sixes.  We pegged them right back when we pitched the ball up and at the stumps. Six of the eight dismissals were bowled, evidence that the bowling really improved later in the innings. Also, the field was lightening fast, and the boundary cones were close the pitch.

A highlight of the match was both bowling sides had a player take a hat trick. Unusual to say the least. Well done to Patrick Davey, a rare achievement.

It was good to see the boys enjoying their cricket and becoming accustomed to the dual pitch format. Congratulations to the players and it appears that we have some handy players coming through the SPC cricket program ranks.

With all players contributing in some way - with bat, ball, wicketkeeping and fielding, participation was well and truly accomplished.

Thanks to Mr. Morris for his presence and taking care of the umpiring duties for the afternoon.

Good cricketing,

Mr Kent and Mr Morris

Round 1: SPC Green vs BCC Red  

Tuesday night saw the clash of old rivals SPC Green and Blue at Main Oval and Hill Oval, in a split ground T20 clash. Blue batted on Main Oval while Green batted on Hill Oval. After a very close tussle, SPC Green were the winners by five runs with a score of 8/97, beating Blue with a score of 4/92.

For SPC Green, Rafter Castles top scored with 26, Lachlan Hill made 17, Caius Bull 13 and Harry Clark 12. For the SPC Green bowlers, Xavier Deane took 2/26, Mitch Kane 1/4 and Zach Hose 1/7.

For SPC Blue, Jake Irvin made 12 retired, Zephyr Niehus 12 not out and someone called Extras contributed a lazy 51! For SPC Blue in the bowling, Morgan Oates, Lachie Barr, Grover Haines and Xavier Kersley all took one wicket each.

Well done to all the boys who played the match in a very positive and enthusiastic manner in very warm conditions. Thanks to Mr Tim Delaney and Mr Brett Barfoot for their assistance with scoring, umpiring and team management.

Mr Peter Stonehouse, SPC Green Junior Coach

Coming up

Next week is a busy one with the SPC House Athletics on Monday and all Term 1 BAS sports up and running. There is also a Sport Leadership and Rowing Assembly on Friday.

SPC House Athletics

Our annual SPC House Athletics is happening on Monday, 17 February. Students are encouraged to wear House Colours to school. It is important that all students attend and have a go to help their House get as many points as possible.

Head of the Lake

The annual Head of the Lake rowing event will be held on Sunday, February 23. All the best to all of those boys competing as we try and go back-to-back for the first time since 2017/2018. If you can't make it to the lake to support our crews on Sunday, you can watch all the action via a live stream. Check out the Quick Bites section of today's newsletter for the link.

Communication

The best form of communication we have with parent/guardians is via the Parent Access Module (PAM). Students require permission to participate in all sport. Parent/guardians will receive the information through a PAM activity permission. Please ensure that you read the information prior to giving permission and that you also talk to students about the information. 

The daily messages are one of the best ways we can distribute information to students about sports that are on offer and where sign up meetings will be held. Students should check the daily messages regularly.

Once students have signed up for a sport, we will be adding them into a MS Teams group where they can communicate directly with their coach. Students must communicate with their coach if they are unavailable for a match so we can find a replacement to ensure we have a full team for each match.

If students are unsure of how to sign up for a sport or want more information, they can visit sports staff in the gymnasium. 

SPC Sport Uniform

All sport uniforms can be purchased at Dobsons Uniform Shop, located in Mair St, Ballarat. Students need to ensure they are in the correct uniform to participate in Sport. We have a fantastic uniform, and students should wear the Green, White and Blue with pride. 

The general sport uniform is the navy blue polo top, navy shorts and white socks. Certain sports will require very specific clothing e.g. 1st XI Cricketers require SPC Whites, SPC cricket shirt and SPC cricket cap. Students should check with their coach as to what is required. Also remember to wear sunscreen at all times.

I wish all students and coaches the best in 2025. Always play the game in the right spirit, wear the correct uniform and respect the facilities, home and away. St Patrick’s College is steeped in sporting tradition and 2024 was an historic year for Sport at SPC. 

Please do not hesitate to contact me (jlappin@stpats.vic.edu.au) or our Sports Administrator Mr Simon Dwyer (sdwyer@stpats.vic.edu.au) at the College with any questions.