Sport

ACC Cricket

St Patrick’s College v De La Salle College

Round 1 of ACC saw us take on De La Salle at home on the Main Oval. 

The oval was in pristine condition and a special thanks to the maintenance team for their preparation.

Skipper Archie Lalor lost the toss for his fifth straight match and we were bowling first. Archie and Angus Jones opened the bowling. Angus claimed the first wicket in his second over, taking a simple caught and bowled. Connor Weidemann and Jack Jarvis then came into the attack with Connor claiming two quick wickets to reduce De La Salle to 3/37. 

Linc Koliba, James Parkinson, Sam Duggan and Aussie McIlwaine then came on to bowl as their batsman settled in. Darcy Aitken then came on to bowl with the score at 3/66 and the pressure started to build. Aussie claimed a wicket then in each of his next three ovals, 6/79 we were looking to finish off the tailenders with nine overs to go. 

De La Salle managed to bat solidly through until Connor took his third wicket in the 34th over. De La Salle finished 7/121 from their 35 overs. Connor and Aussie both finished with three wickets, whilst Darcy bowled exceptionally well to apply the brakes with only eight runs from his six overs.

Chasing only 122 for victory the boys were very confident with a strong batting lineup.

In front of the lunchtime crowd, Darcy and Linc opened the batting. We started well with 18 from the first three overs, before Linc was bowled for eight. Aussie came in and kept the scoreboard ticking over. A bowling change saw Darcy 25, also get bowled as the pitch was providing plenty of movement for the bowlers. Through the middle stages our batsman struggled as we lost Aussie for 15, then Connor for one, Archie for two and Sam for two, and we slumped to 6/66. 

Will Brand then joined Jack at the crease and they worked about stabilising the innings. Jack was able to turn the strike over and find the gaps to steady the nerves of the team. With a 38-run partnership, we were close to victory when Will was dismissed for 17. 

Jack then took responsibility and with great shot selection hit the winning runs in the 33rd over as he finished 43 not out from only 35 balls. 

— Steve Biggin, 1st XI Coach

2024 Queensland Cricket Tour

On 7 January, a squad of 14 cricketers from Years 8-12 departed Ballarat to represent St Patrick’s College at the Australian Schools Cricket Challenge in Brisbane, previously known as the Christian Brothers Cricket Week. 

St Joseph’s Nudgee College was the host school and we stayed in its boarding facilities. The new competition involved schools from WA, NSW, Tasmania, SA, Victoria and New Zealand joining a number of Brisbane schools in the week-long competition.

This year we competed in Division 2 as the Under 17 National Championships were on in Ballarat at the same time, with Darcy Aitken, Jack Jarvis and Linc Koliba all representing Victoria Country.

The first match was against another EREA school in St Edmund's College from Ipswich at Nudgee. The conditions were a little wet early and the match was delayed slightly. With a temperature of 30C and 80 per cent humidity it was going to take our boys a little time to acclimatise. We lost the toss and were bowling first. 

We were able to dismiss St Edmund's for 127 from 31 overs. James Parkinson took three wickets, Angus Jones, Connor Weidemann and Sam Duggan each claimed two whilst the youngest player Aayush Ahlawat claimed one. 

In response Sam Duggan and Will Brand made short work of the total. Sam was not out on 64, whilst Will was dismissed for 47. Connor Weidemann remained four not out as we reached victory in the 14th over. 

Even though the match was over, we used the remaining overs to get in some batting practice as St Edmund’s were happy to continue. An evening in the pool helped to aid the recovery.

The second match was against Nudgee’s 2nd XI. We again lost the toss and had to bowl first. Nudgee had 45 runs on the board before we claimed five quick wickets (5/59). St Edmund's then formed a solid partnership to reach 106, but again we were able to claim five quick wickets to dismiss them for 120 in the 39th over. 

Angus Jones and Archie Lalor each claimed three wickets, whilst Connor Weidemann and James Parkinson claimed two. In the run chase we lost three early wickets to be 3/28. Connor (36 not out) and Angus (23) put on a 42-run partnership to put us in control. 

Will Brand (14) and Joe Rabbette (seven not out) saw us easily make the runs in the 23rd over.

On the Wednesday we had a rest day so we travelled down to Dreamworld. The weather continued to be very stormy and humid, but the boys were starting to acclimatise better. Lightning shut down the rides, but they were opened shortly after and the boys had a great day on the rides. That evening we travelled back to the GABBA for a BBL match between the Brisbane Heat and Perth Scorchers. Unfortunately, a flat battery on the bus had us sitting outside Dreamworld for close to two hours! 

On Thursday we played our third match at Nudgee against Wesley College, Perth. With constant drizzle blowing in the match was interrupted several times after we won the toss and decided to bat. The match was reduced to 25 overs. Will Brand (45) was the top scorer, while James Parkinson (24) Archie Lalor (18) and Lachy McPhan (16) also made valuable contributions as we scored 7/153. 

In replay, Wesley were under pressure early. A constant loss of wickets saw us dismiss them for 91, a 62-run victory to remain undefeated. Aayush Alawat claimed three wickets, impressive for a Year 8 student. Joe Rabette also claimed three, whilst Angus Jones, Luke Weidemann and James Parkinson each claimed one.

On the final day of the carnival we had our first away game. We travelled to Marist College, Ashgrove. Unfortunately the match was called off as we encountered constant drizzle and after two hours the decision was made to abandon the match. The boys then headed to Westfield Chermside to fill in the afternoon. 

We headed back to Nudgee for the completion of the First Division final and presentations. The trip was a huge success on and off the field. The boys represented the school with distinction and had a very memorable time. Thanks to Nudgee College for organising and hosting us, and special thanks to Luke Corden for his organisation of the Cricket program over many years.

— Steve Biggin 1st XI Coach

Swimming

Some key dates for the 2024 swimming season were incorrect in the last edition of The Crest. The correct dates are as follows:

Wednesday, 28 February: SPC House Swimming Carnival, Eureka Pool (All students)

Years 7 & 8 all day, Years 9 -12 from 11am. Students bussed to and from the pool.

Wednesday, 20 March: BAS (Interschool) Swimming Carnival, Ballarat Aquatic Centre

Swimmers are selected to the BAS team based on their results from the SPC House Swim Carnival

Wednesday, 27 March: ACC Swimming Carnival, MSAC (Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre), 10am-2pm

Swimmers from the BAS team compete at this carnival.

BAS 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 hotter and hotter conditions as the week wore on.

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.

Years 7/8 Cricket Round 1 

SPC Green vs BCC Red (Tuesday, 13 February) 

Well done to the St Pat's 7/8 Green cricket team in their first match for 2024. The game was played at Victoria Park 9 in very hot and windy conditions. Our boys did a great job and were ably led by first time captain Oscar Romeril. In a very tight match, BCC Red made 2/166, just getting past our score of 3/157. 

Notable achievements included Abel Giles 34 retired and 1/5 off 2 overs, Vaughan Cutts 21 retired, Tom Goodson 20 retired and Hamish Mulcahy 1/6 off 2 overs and a catch. 

A great effort guys and we look forward to next round. 

Thanks to all the staff who assisted, and to Mrs Cocomazzo for her precision scoring and team management skills. 

— Mr Peter Stonehouse and Mrs Robyn Cocomazzo

SPC Gold v BCC Black (Tuesday, 13 February)

We travelled to Vic Park and played on grounds 6 and 7. A special mention to Dane La Franchi making himself available as an emergency. This allowed us a full complement as a team with 15 players being the optimum number: good player numbers considering the short notice. Final score: SPC Gold 2/109 def BCC Black 4/108 (15 overs completed)

Highlights for Gold:

Gold Captain: Max Brodie

Vice-Captain: Ben Brodie

Batting: M. Brodie 22 runs retired. N. Perera 18 runs retired. L. Barr 10 runs retired.

Bowling: M. Spurgo 2 wickets and R. Jew 1 wicket. More accurate bowling would see a lot less extras with wides and no balls contributing 31 runs to total.

Fielding: The wicket keeping was solid all game with two lads sharing the duties. The fielding was very good with two catches taken and a difficult chance grassed at slip. Sharp fielding created a run out. Generally, the boys performed well in the field being alert and keen, stopping almost everything. Max Brodie captained very well, organising the batting order, marshalling the bowlers and keepers too.

As our first outing, it was good to see the boys enjoying their cricket and becoming accustomed to the dual pitch format. Congratulations to the players and to have a win was a nice bonus. 

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 (managers)

Coming up

Next week is a busy one with ACC Athletics in Melbourne on Thursday, Sport Leadership and Rowing Assembly on Friday and finishing the week with the Head of the Lake on Sunday. Good luck to all our students participating in these events.

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 the College Shop. Students need to ensure they are in the correct uniform to participate. The general sport uniform is the navy blue polo top, navy shorts and white socks. Certain sports will require very specific clothing. For example, the 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 2024. 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 rich sporting tradition, and you are encouraged to add more chapters to our past endeavours. 

I would like to thank all of the staff at St Patricks that support the Sport Program, it truly is amazing the amount of sporting opportunities that we provide for our students. This is a great school with an incredible history.

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.