From the Principal
Let us determine that the liberties so costly won by their deeds are not lost by our own indifference.
Welcome back and I hope you found my Term 2 letter helpful. This week much of our attention was centred around ANZAC Day. School Captain, Finlay Cameron delivered a wonderful address at Melville Park and I share her speech to help our entire community appreciate why we are so very fortunate to be part of this ‘connected community’. Please enjoy.
Today, as a community, we honour the ANZAC spirit and commemorate those occasions when young men and women of Australia, by their deeds and sacrifice, demonstrated to the world that Australia was truly a Nation.
The ANZACs certainly enriched our nation’s history when they landed at Gallipoli 107 years ago; yet WW1 came at an enormous cost with a total of 416,809 young Australians enlisted to serve their country between 1914 and 1918. 1 in 5 Australians who served were killed and nearly half were wounded.
In 1939, the sons and daughters of ANZACs came forward again and without question discharged their responsibilities in World War II, then Korea, Malaya, Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan - serving in times of conflict and also facing dangers as peace-keepers in a variety of places across the globe.
At my school, in our 150th year, we recall that over 300 Old Collegians served in conflicts. Sadly 30 of our own never returned and like so many schools from across the district we lost a generation of brave men and women, who played sport on our fields, attended our classes and who developed lifelong friendships with fellow classmates.
One such student was Joseph Alan Cordner or Alan as he was called. He was a Coleraine boy who came to College in 1902 with his younger brother Clem. Alan was a promising footballer and the old College magazines describe his football talent and the fact that “Alan could kick a mighty ‘drop’ and how few, if any, could hope to compete with his steel-like wrists of those arms, which soared skywards, and baffled all opposition in quest of a ball.”
Not surprisingly, after leaving school Alan played VFL football, first with Geelong, and then with Collingwood. At 6 foot and a 1/2 inches in socks he played full back or in the back pocket. I mention Alan today as he was one of the first VFL footballers to have enlisted when Australia joined WWI. He signed up on a Saturday morning in August 1914, enlisting in the 6th Battalion and on that same day Alan played his last match for Collingwood. A year later, on the night before the ANZACs would land at Gallipoli, Collingwood started its 1915 season with a win over Essendon. The next day, at about 8am on 25th April, Alan landed at the Gallipoli Peninsula and was last seen at about noon “charging over the hills”. With the chaos of the day, the 6th Battalion was split up and he was cut off by the Turks about 4 miles inland. He was posted as “wounded and missing”. Sadly, some weeks later, Alan’s family were notified that in fact he was killed in action. He was only 24 – only 6 years older than my peers in Year 12.
Alan Cordner was one of at least six VFL footballers known to have been killed on that first day of the Gallipoli campaign and in 1916 Collingwood players wore black arm bands when they played Essendon in his honour. This tradition has carried on and this afternoon, much of the nation will stop to watch a game of footy where the focus was about the honour and courage of one of our own, a boy from up the road in Coleraine.
So please remember that the story of ANZAC is not someone else’s story but a rich part of our history and this day will always be revered and respected. The Greater Hamilton community honours all Australian service men and women who have gone before, who stood firm in the face of aggression and defended the freedom and democracy that we enjoy today.
Let us ensure that the liberties so costly won by their deeds are not lost by our own indifference. May we prove worthy of the ANZACs sacrifice.
Lest we forget.
To celebrate our connected community, I hope you will join me during the Sesquicentenary celebrations 20 – 22 May. The Gala Ball is going to be an incredible event. Please note ticket sales close on 10 May. For more information about the weekend events please visit https://hamiltoncollege.vic.edu.au/about-college/150-events/
Dr Andrew Hirst
Principal