Senior School Sport & Extra-Curricula Activities
- Weekly Fixtures
- 'An Act of Reconciliation'
- Senior Rugby
- Senior Football
- ISA Tennis
- CSDA Debating
- Chess
- Winter Squash
- Cross Country
- Interschool Snowsports Competition
Weekly Fixtures
Mr Matt Stearn - Senior Sports Master
'An Act of Reconciliation'
At Monday’s whole school assembly, an important presentation was made in preparation for the Reconciliation Ceremony held after recess. To that end Sam Bewley was invited to the podium.
For those of you who don’t know Sam, amongst many things he is a fantastic artist. Sam has a particular talent for drawing bird life.
In 2014, when our reconciliation jersey was first commissioned, combining various totems that are significant to the College, one of the primary totems was the Eucalyptus paniculata (the Big Tree) which has a place on the front and back of each jersey.
In 2015 in a ceremony run by Indigenous Leader, Caleb, the big tree became the main staging area for a flock of sulphur-crested cockatoos that decided to dive bomb the assembly as the haunting sounds of the didgeridoo were played.
The sulphur-crested cockatoo happens to be an iconic totem of the Cammeraygal people – custodians of the land we stand on each day.
The cockatoo signifies the spirits of family members who have died. Quite fitting then that 15 of them decided to join us on Coopers Flat – the old cemetery that the college is built on!
Roll forward to 2022 and a meeting with Professor Foley – Indigenous Elder of the Cammeraygal people - where we got to ask him how we would go about getting permission to use the sulphur-crested cockatoo on our reconciliation jersey.
The very simple answer was that we had to ask an Indigenous Elder from the Cammeraygal people for permission. So that is what we did. Professor Foley gave us his blessing.
This is where Sam Bewley comes into the story. Through a recommendation from Ms Doyle (Visual Arts Coordinator), Sam was asked to draw some designs of cockatoos in flight and perching. The College will be eternally grateful to Ms Doyle for her professional advice and assistance in this.
The designs were perfect. So much so, that they now have pride of place amongst the branches of the Big Tree on the back of the 1st XV Rugby Jersey. In future, they will appear on all future iterations for our other touring team strips.
They have been written into the legacy that is the reconciliation jersey. They are now part of the ‘conversation’.
Mr Ronchetti presented Sam, with the first of the new design jerseys. Sam was then asked to lead our ‘Ambassadors’ out in the Reconciliation Ceremony.
Sam deserves a huge vote of thanks as he has used his God-given talents for the betterment of the College.
Mr Matt Stearn - Senior Sports Master
Senior Rugby
Results 27 May
Dates for the diary
- Saturday 10 June – JUNE LONG WEEKEND – NO GAMES
- Saturday 17 June – ISA Round 2 – SPX vs ST PATRICK'S - HOME
SPX Fiji U15/U16 2024 Tour Information Evening
Due to increased interest, the 2024 Fiji Tour information evening will be held on Thursday 1 June (tomorrow night) commencing at 6:00 pm in the college gym. Even if you have not registered you are welcome to attend.
Mr Martin Gillogly - Rugby Convenor
SPX Rugby Club – Gala Dinner
Save the Date - Saturday, 22 July, Kirribilli Club.
6:30 pm - 11:30 pm
Ticket Sales - a link to purchase your tickets will be sent to the SPX Rugby WhatsApp and email groups later this week.
Ticket numbers will be limited so get in quick.
SPX Rugby WhatsApp Group
Scan the QR Code below to be part of the Rugby WhatsApp group and receive key club information and event details.
Please direct any enquiries to spxrugby@gmail.com.
SPX Rugby Committee
Senior Football
Results 27 May
CIS Cup Semi-Final
On Monday 5 June the 1st XI Football will compete in the NSWCIS Cup Semi Final against Newington College. Pius has along held tradition of supporting in numbers and we hope that this continues. Supporters buses will take students to and from Valentine Park departing the College at 5:15 pm. Permission notes have been distributed to interested students and can also be collected from the Student Reception and must be returned by 9:00 am Friday 2 June at the latest.
As mentioned in the permission note, students need to be in full winter uniform and travel and from the venue by the buses provided.
There will be no football training on this day to allow students and staff to attend.
Parents are also welcome to come along and support the team.
This weekend sees predominantly home games against a variety of opposition. We are now in the second half of the season. Draft times and venues for future rounds can be found on the Football CANVAS page but families are asked to check back each week for confirmed times.
Good luck to all teams this weekend.
COERVER Football Camp
COERVER Football camp is on again during the holidays, from 26 – 28 June. We encourage footballers to take this opportunity to participate in this intensive football training during the school holidays. A bendy bus has been booked to assist with travel needs. We urge anyone wishing to book a place on the bus, to book and secure their place promptly. Active Kids vouchers can be used. See the flyer below and book by the link: https://coerver.com.au/holiday-camps.
Mr Simon Yue - Football Convenor
SPX College Football Supporter's Day Saturday 3 June at Oxford Falls
Please sign on to the volunteer roster today (click the link):
https://signup.zone/gsJSyYippYGkA3wgB
We’ll need lots of volunteer support in the BBQ Shed and on the Bake Sale. It is good fun, a great way to meet other football families and it helps to raise more money for our young men’s football coaching.
Please consider committing an hour or two of your time on Saturday.
From the SPX Football Supporters Club Committee
ISA Tennis
Our talented players were able to demonstrate their skills and achieved remarkable victories in several divisions this week. Division 1, 2, 5 & 8 displayed wonderful sportsmanship and emerged victorious against St Andrew’s College and Division 10 continued their winning streak from last week with an outstanding victory against St Spyridon’s College.
We would like to extend our thanks to all the students who played up last weekend. Your willingness to step up and contribute to the team's success is truly appreciated.
This week students will be playing at the following locations:
Divisions 1, 3, 5, 8, 10 – Away at Oakhill College (School Courts) – Castle Hill
Division 7 – Away at Chevalier College (School Courts) – Burradoo
Division 2, 4, 6, 9, 11 – Home at Talus St
Looking forward to a sunny weekend!
Mrs Veronica Bamber - ISA Tennis Coordinator
CSDA Debating
The CSDA debating rounds are coming to an end, and the eliminations are just starting to ramp up. The teams which have progressed through will be informed as soon as these are made available, but please make sure to keep all the below dates free until you find out if your team has made it through.
The CSDA Debating Competition Round 6 continues THIS WEEK AT LORETO NORMANHUST. Coin toss will be at 5:45 pm, debates start at 6:45 pm and we will be finished by 8:15 pm. Further details will be sent out on Canvas announcements.
Our draw for the remaining weeks is as follows:
Round 6: SPX vs Loreto Normanhurst
A reminder that all debating students are to meet at the clock after Sports Assembly every Friday morning.
Mrs Leigha Zervakos - Debating & Public Speaking Convenor
Senior School Chess
Ms Janelle Dempsey - Chess Convenor
Squash
Round 4 Results
A special mention to SPX 3 team of Michael Krizan and Max Spurr who are improving with each round and achieving great results.
Fixtures:
The fixtures information can be found at the start of this sports page, and all details for the competition can be found at the following link:
https://squashaustralia.sportyhq.com/league/view/2023-Winter-Junior-Pennant
Mr Justin Varjavandi - Winter Squash Convenor
Cross Country
ISA Cross Country
On Wednesday 24 May, our Cross-Country Squad ventured out to the Sydney International Equestrian Centre to compete in the ISA Cross Country Championship. Despite a few drawbacks, our team ended the day with some outstanding results, coming fifth with the Junior and Intermediate Division and second with the Senior Division, making third place overall.
Well done to the following boys, Luca McCarthy, Ben Hair, Niall Jaffrey and Sean O’Donnell for demonstrating excellent sportsmanship and support for our team. These boys readily took on the challenge of competing above their age group even when it required running an extra 1-2 kilometres.
Congratulations to the following boys who made it through to the CIS Cross Country Championship:
Special thanks to Mr Gibson for stepping in and driving us to the venue after unforeseen travel issues. Thanks to Mr Steinman for his continued support with the team, Mr Stearn and Mr Lacey for their contributions with the running of the event, and finally to our coaches and old boys Matthew North and Dominic Panozzo for their hard work with training our boys.
Cross Country training continues this week. All students wanting to prepare for the Athletics season next term are encouraged to join, especially those interested in track events.
When: Monday, Wednesday and Thursday mornings
Where: Beauchamp Park, Chatswood
Time: 7:15 am – 8:15 am
Who: All Senior and Junior School students welcome
Ms Leanne Lee - Cross Country and Athletics Convenor
Interschool Snowsports Competition
The 2023 Interschool Snowsports competition will be held at Perisher Ski Resort from Tuesday 4 July to Friday 7 July.
The college has approved for students to enter this competition representing St Pius X College. All participants enter this competition at their own cost and parents are required to sign a liability waiver form.
Parents will also be required to attend the event and meet volunteering requirements of the competition. Further details of the competition are in the attached document.
Please contact Mrs Cathy Thomson on cathythomson7@gmail.com if your son (and family) is interested in participating in this competition.