GWR Athletics

On Thursday 10th of October, Harry Welsh competed at the Greater Western Region Athletics, at Llanberris, aiming to secure a spot in the State Finals. With myself (Mr Webb), self-appointed as coach, the Triple Jump was the first of two events Harry would face. A nervous Harry was eager to complete his jumps, and jumped an extraordinary distance for his second jump, which saw him take out Third Place.

With a two hour wait until his next event, the 400m Sprint, Harry’s nerves again built. Although not confident, Harry knew he could secure a solid start, but struggled to maintain his speed. During training sessions, we had practiced some visualisation techniques, reeling off some super-fast things that Harry could impersonate during his run i.e. a plane, cheetah or motorbike. With this in the back of his mind, Harry lined up for his race and ran just like he envisioned, smashing out the first 300m, before slowing down. However, a competitor was fast approaching, edging closer and closer, and despite my rambunctious cheers from the sidelines, Harry quickly realised that his competitor was closing the gap. Even though Harry sped up, the final 30 metres was anyone’s race. At the last moment, Harry’s extra effort paid off, seeing him sneak the win and qualify for State Finals.

Year 7 and 8 Cricket

GIRLS

On Tuesday 22nd October, our Year 8 Girls’ Cricket Team embarked on an exciting day of competition, participating in the modified Super 8s format against three schools; Ballarat High, Phoenix, and Mt. Clear. With a spirited team of 13 players, including 7 enthusiastic Year 7s, the girls showcased their skills and sportsmanship throughout the day.

The first match was against Ballarat High. Despite a valiant effort, our team faced a tough challenge, with Ballarat High winning the game; 95 to our 65. Standout performances included Hazel, who took two wickets, and Maddie and Millie, each scoring 9 runs. Macey topped the batting with a solid 13 runs, demonstrating great promise.

In the second match against Phoenix, our girls continued to show resilience. Although we lost a few wickets, Skye shone with 14 runs, and Milly excelled with a further 10. The team’s fielding and batting skills were noticeably improving, showing their determination to learn and grow throughout the day.

The final match was against Mt. Clear. The girls put in a commendable effort, with Skye taking two wickets, while Macie and Zaihret led the batting with 10 and 9 runs, respectively. Mt. Clear emerged victorious with a final score of 86 to our 68.

Despite the outcomes, our girls showed enormous respect, teamwork, and perseverance. They encouraged their teammates and displayed great sportsmanship on and off the field. A huge thank you to Mr. Webb for organising the day and making it possible. The experience not only fostered cricket skills but also built lasting memories. We look forward to more opportunities for our girls to shine in future competitions!

BOYS

On Tuesday the 22nd of October, the Year 7/8 Boys’ Cricket Team headed into Ballarat to compete in the Eureka Division cricket. Although we had a largely inexperienced team with an average age far younger than the other teams, our optimistic mindset held us in good stead.

In our first game we came up against Phoenix. Stepping straight up to bowl first, we had some impressive pace from Tom Arvidson, who, after taking a big wicket, left the opposition thinking Mitchell Johnson from the 2013/14 Ashes series was steaming in. Some great catches along the way helped keep Phoenix to a respectable 70 runs at the innings break and some brick wall batting from our opening batters, limited Phoenixs’ wicket taking ability. However, despite an admirable effort, we had too many runs to chase down.

Our next game saw us play against Mt Clear. Once again bowling first, we chipped away, limiting their runs. Jonah Burrill and Bailey McPhan displayed some consistent line and length, enticing Mt Clear into playing some shots. Holding them to just 52 runs at the change, our game plan to ‘score some runs’ encouraged the likes of Lachie Doherty and Kaylum Vella to take some risks. However, it wasn’t enough, as one last wicket saw Rhys Allen stranded 10 runs short of a final over victory.

Our final game, against Ballarat High, allowed us to bat first and try to set a challenging score for the eventual champions to chase down. An early collapse and a Peter Siddle like hat-trick left us in trouble. When a heroic Harvey Grant came to the crease, crunching boundaries in an on-side dominant display, we thought we were in with a shot. That was until Ballarat High stepped up to the crease. Dropping 3 catches in the opening 2 overs made things difficult for BSC and while Louis Welsh and Baxter White challenged the batters, unfortunately it wasn’t enough, and our score was chased down in just a handful of overs.

Thanks to all students who participated on the day, displaying great sportsmanship throughout. Thanks also to Mr Webb for the organisation and training sessions leading up to the day, and Mr Sev for sharing his “Sevball” style of coaching, and taking his school coaching record to 0 and 24.

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