Sport

House Points Tally

Equestrian

Mrs Janet Price

North West Equestrian Expo

Four riders from O’Connor braved the cold and rain to compete in 5 days of equestrian activities in Coonabarabran last week. Arriving Thursday night, the showground and racecourse was packed with 700 horses, 500 riders and more than 800 parents and teachers. Some schools had teams of more than 20 riders. All came prepared with everything form firewood to entertainment. THe organisation of this event is amazing. Everything from merchandise to timetables and judges went like clockwork – even heavy rain overnight brought with it a plan B and it worked really well. 

Our students performed beautifully. Dominic and Cameron Magann competed in the 3 Phase One Day Event.

1st phase was dressage – a test of obedience and communication between horse and rider. Both riders and mounts completed without fault.

2nd phase was showjumping – a test of horse obedience and agility and rider direction. Again both riders worked well with their horses although both pulled a couple of rails.

VIDEO: Cameron Magann on Jellybean

3rd phase  was Cross Country – a 1.6 km canter through the bush and negotiating a series of obstacles under optimum time. Cameron and Jellybean completed without faults although Dominic had some time penalties applied. After scores were tallied Cameron Magann and his horse Jellybean were 6th in  his division, a great result under difficult conditions.

Dominic and Cameron followed up with show jumping, sporting and gymkhana with Dominic and his mount Black Muscat coming 2nd in Bareback and 5 th in Mount Suited to Expo.

PHOTO: The gymkhana team.

PHOTO: Anna McClelland and Davey

Anna McClelland and Delilah Layton competed in dressage, combined training, sporting and show riding. Both girls and their mounts performed very well which was a credit to their training regime in the weeks prior. Delilah and Chesney rode Novice Dressage - a complex set of movements committed to memory over a 5 minute period. Anna was placed 5th in her pleasure hack with her mount Davey. Delilah and her horse Chesney were 5th in pairs and 3rd in hack.

Congratulations to Cameron, Dominic, Delilah and Anna on a very successful week. Expo ribbons are very hard to get and treasured by all riders. Thank you to all the mums, dads and nans who helped to make the 5 days a great learning experience and heaps of fun.

PHOTO: The team at the end of five long days.

Girls 9 Rugby

Last Tuesday 15 O'Connor students traveled to Tamworth for the Katrina Fanning Rugby League day.  The girls played with tremendous O’Connor  spirit, scored plenty of tries and came away with one win.  Stand outs of the day were Ella Vidler, Zoe Walters and Molly Franklin. The girls played and showed great respect to their opponants during the day.  Plenty of these girls also played at the League tag day in Moree last Thursday. 

Cochrane Cup Rugby League

Mr Mark Honeysett

Our U14'sBoys Cochrane Cup team departed Armidale for Moree last Thursday and played 4 games winning all. They accounted for St Mary's, Gunnedah, 16-6, St Philomena's, Moree, 16-6, Holy Trinity, Inverell, 20-12 and McCarthy, Tamworth, 18-0.

All boys played well, improving with each game. and gaol kicking will be the area of the game which they will focus on in training. They'll now progress through to a Finals Day next Term. 

Our students should be commended on their dedication to sport, travelling long distances  for their chosen sports. Some had competed in Tamworth or Sydney earlier in the week before the trip to Moree last Thursday.

Diocesan Soccer

Mr Mark Honeysett

On Friday 3 June, O'Connor  played host to McCarthy in the Diocesan Soccer Day,  at Sport UNE. Our Junior Boys were the first game on and played well against a much bigger, more physical opponent. McCarthy scored a couple of late goals to run out winners 3-0.

Next to take to the pitch were our Junior Girls, who, with a fantastic long-range goal from Indiana Ramage, took an early 1-0 lead. McCarthy levelled the game just before the break, and scored again shortly after to win 2-1.

As the temperature plummeted, our Senior Boys took to the field against the Tamworth side. The friendly rivalry had staff and spectators excited for the match to commence. Our O'Connor  boys came out and played some great football, combining well as a team. Rafe McAuley scored midway through the first half to send us 1-0 up at half-time. McCarthy seemed to step it up a gear in the second half and had a number of scoring opportunities. With a glut of possession, they eventually tied the game up deep in the half. As the full-time whistle blew, and after some words of inspiration from Coach Mr James Healy, we were off to a penalty shootout. Unfortunately our first kick sailed over the crossbar, meaning our goalie, Joe Schmude, would have to save one, or a miss from McCarthy. Fortunately the latter, so after 5 goal attempts, the game was all tied up at 4-4. Next up was Ben Harris who hammered the ball into the back of the net, but unfortunately McCarthy did as well. Fletcher Schultz then stepped up and scored, putting the pressure back on Joe to save the day, which he sensationally did. We’d won 6-5 in the penalty shootout!! Our Senior Boys and Girls will now compete in the Inter-Diocesan Soccer Finals Day, in Coffs Harbour, on June 23. All students should be commended on their efforts and behaviour, being were great ambassadors for the College. Thanks to Miss Trigwell-Lindley, Mr Healy and Mr Conlon for coaching, officiating and helping the day run so smoothly.

League Tag

Ms Camilla Clydsdale

O'Connor's Year 7/8 and Year 9/10 League Tag teams took on each of the Catholic High Schools across our Diocese last Thursday. Both teams played 5 x 20 minutes games. The girls played well and improved with every game. With the Junior Girls winning 4 of their 5 games. Stand outs on the day were Ella Vidler - Captain of the Year 7/8 Team, Lily McFarlane - Year 7/8 Team, Brooke Newberry - the try scoring machine for the Year 9/10 team and Sophie Mitchell - she not only played well in all games, but backed up in between each game as a volunteer referee! Well done to all those involved.

TAG TEAM: Year 7/8 Team at Moree last week

EXPERIENCE BRINGS RESULTS: The Year 9/10 team played well on the day with Brooke Newberry scoring the most tries. 

CCC State Cross Country 

Mr Mark Honeysett

Last Tuesday, Tom Bible, Lily McFarlane, John Harris, Tynan Bull, Hannah Friedman, Shanae Wark, Marisa Suluma, Jarius Webster and Isabel Kenny, all represented the Armidale Diocese, at the NSWCCC Cross Country Championships, in Sydney. Our students ran extremely well in very windy, cold conditions. Congratulations to all runners, especially Tom Bible,  who came away with a Bronze Medal in the 18+ Boys 8km! Tom has been training hard and getting as much race experience as he can and will next compete in the NSW All Schools Championships, in Sydney, on July 22. We wish him all the best.