The Catholic Weekly 20 November 2022

SPORT ON A picturesque Sunday morning students from a va- riety of Catholic schools gath- ered at the St George Rowing Club to row their boats - but not gently down the stream. Instead, spectators were treated to lighting speed, phe- nomenal displays of power, and races too close to call at the Sydney Catholic Schools’ (SCS) Rowing Mini-Regatta. In the leadup to the Regatta, students were offered a newop- portunity to learn and develop their skills in the sport through a five-week Rowing Foundation Program. Participants became early risers, athletes, teammates - andmembers of the St George Rowing Club. The partnership between the club and SCS has opened up possibilities for students like Robert Ollivier fromDe La Salle College Caringbah who wants to continue his pursuit of the sport. “My Dad rowed in high school and he was competi- tive, so when this [opportunity] came out, my best mate and I ¾ Tasmyn Haynes SCHOOL SPORTS wanted to do it,” said the Year 10 student. “I’ve been enjoying it the whole time - so who knows where I’ll land in the future? “But I want to represent my school and rowwith the club.” The route Robert wants to take is also the one encouraged by the Director and Vice Cap- tain of St George Rowing Club, Mark Featherstone. “These kids could join in with my rowing group at the club right now,” he said. “That’s how we’ve done the program, so when they finish they have the membership and No room for prima donnas: students learn that when it comes to rowing everyone has to be in sync - all the time and no matter what the option to continue after- wards.” With the first Rowing Foun- dation Program voted a suc- cess, SCS is offering two more identical sessions open to new participants, including those who may have missed out on the initial program due to its SYDNEY CATHOLIC Schools (SCS) have all bases loaded and are headed for a grand slam with the launch of their Unified All-Abilities Tee-Ball Competition. The competition promotes the notion that “sport is for everyone” as it encompass- es children with and without physical and non-physical disabilities. After Week One of the tour- nament was unfortunately a wash out due to weather, play- ers arrived at Kelso Park North full of excitement and antici- pation for play to commence. The aim of the competi- tion is to “provide all kids the opportunity to play sport” as described by SCS’s All Abilities Education Officer for Pre to Post Sport, Anna-Kate Turn- bull. Among the main benefits are a boost in the feelings of “social connectedness and self NewTee-Ballers swing big and run hard ¾ Tasmyn Haynes confidence,” for competitors, she said. Uniting nine participating schools, with some entering more than one team, the Tee- Ball Competition runs paral- lel to mainstream sport and is seen as “just another sport SCS offers.” With catchers’ mitts on and bats at the ready, teams battled it out for the best of 7 innings. The 8 batter line-up gave students the opportuni- Rowers power through the water during the Sydney Catholic Schools Rowing Mini-Regatta. PHOTOS: SUPPLIED Scullers unleash the power WHILEGRANDfinal are usual- ly theplace tobe, Round4of the Sydney Catholic Schools (SCS) Interschool Cricket stole the showwith three of the four Sen- ior Boys matches coming down to the last ball. The air thick with contest, cricket pitches around Sydney were almost worn out by bat- ting and bowling displays from the Years 10 to 12 boys. Marist Catholic College North Shore narrowly took victory from Marist College Eastwood by 1 run. The Holy Cross College Ryde matchwas an internal battlebe- tween the school’s two teams. The intensity of the match was evidencedas Ryde’sA teamalso defeated theirBteambyasingle run. When Marist Catholic Col- lege Penshurst met Marcellin College Randwick on the pitch it was the first time the schools have facedeachother incricket, beginning what seems sure to be a beautiful rivalry. With Penshurst’s Senior side made up of only Year 10 boys, the young team had their work cut out for them and set the target of 3/106. As the game progressed it was clear that Randwick were not going down without a fight, giving Penshurst a serious shockwhen they closed the gap at the last minute, scoring 19 runs off the 18th over. Penshurst Coach, Michael Young, described the final two overs to be “very tight. There were big hits, a few run outs, and they ended up at 102.” “We were two very evenly matched teams, both did their schools proud” said Michael after emerging victorious by 4 runs. The intensity and excitement generated by the Round 4 SCS Interschool Cricket matches has heightened hopes for what the season’s final matches could hold. - TASMYNHAYNES Epic matches generate high hopes for finals SCS Interschool Cricket North Shore 5/115 defeated Eastwood 7/114 Ryde (A) 1/68 defeated Ryde (B) 10/67 Penshurst 3/106 defeated Randwick 8/102 popularity. The Regatta gave athletes the chance to show- case what they’d learnt over the five weeks through a number of races. Supporters lined the dock to watch, with sausage sizzle in hand and music in the background creating theperfect rowing festival atmosphere. ty to swing big and run hard. Competition saw epic catch- es, close calls, and the signa- ture slides to home base. Clancy College West Hox- ton proved themselves as the school to beat as all three of their teams took out a win. La Salle College Bank- stown’s second team and the combined team of Pa- trician Brothers Fairfield and Mary MacKillop Col- lege Wakeley also claimed victories over opponents. “You can tell how engaged the children were by the laughter and cheering, the camarade- rie that was happening, and I think that’s the most impor- tant thing for kids in sport is to have that connectedness,” said Anna-Kate. The successful commence- ment of the Unified All-Abil- ities Tee-Ball Competition showed that teams were play- ing for keeps and have their eyes on those shiny gold, sil- ver and bronze medals. Aquinas Catholic College student bats, left, while Mary MacKillop Team goes for a home run, above. PHOTOS: SUPPLIED