St Clare’s Athletics Championships

It was an outstanding return to a full school Athletics event.  Overcast conditions greeted the students, making for a cool start to the day.  Students were able to participate in a full range of track and field events to earn points for their house.  The overall champion will be confirmed once results are finalised.  A combination of highly competitive relay events rounded out the day of competition with great excitement created from the staff team entries.

Students were vocal throughout the day as they supported their peers.  Year 11 Sports Captains were once again leading the students in their houses to encourage each member of their house to participate in many events, keeping the participation rates high and making for an enjoyable day for both students and staff.  The leadership shown continues to create a house culture that is unique to our event.

Thank you to the Taree Little Athletics Club for the preparation of the track including line marking and the ground preparation.  Thank you to the staff who assisted in the set up and pack up and all staff on the day that made the event a great experience for the students of St Clare’s.  Thank you also to Mr Hobbes and the SRC who assisted with the running of the canteen who did a great job of fuelling the hungry competitors and spectators.  Thank you also to Mr Howard who captured some of the athletics action through the lens.

We were very grateful to be able to welcome parent/carers and families in a full capacity back to the event this year.  A significant sense of community on the day is created by the support of parents/carers and families.  It is great to be able to welcome new families each year and, for those who continue to support the event, we extend a big thank you.

Once all results have been finalised the final house standings, Age Champions, and record breakers will be informed, and the details listed in an upcoming newsletter.

Luke Rowe
School & Representative Sport Coordinator

Diocesan Cross Country 2023

The weather at this year’s event was picture perfect with the dam nearly at full capacity.  Students represented St Clare’s at the Diocesan Cross Country Championship with enthusiasm throughout the day at Lake Glenbawn on Thursday, 4 May.  Students who represented displayed terrific effort and a willingness to compete and do their best in their event.  

From this event, students who finished in the top 6 will qualify for the NSWCCC Cross Country Championship to be held in Sydney.

Thank you to the parents who made the trip to Lake Glenbawn.  Also, thank you to the staff, Mrs Dunn and Mrs McCann, who assisted on the day as officials on checkpoints and accompanied the students on the team bus with an early start to the day.

Once all results have been finalised the students will be informed, and the details listed in an upcoming Newsletter.

Luke Rowe
School & Representative Sport Coordinator

NSWCCC Hockey

Big congratulations to Mason Doel and Alexander Hartup on their selection in the 16 and Open's NSWCCC Hockey sides.

Mason will go on to play NSW All School selection 15 and 16 June in Bathurst and Alex will compete at the NSW Tri Series 18 and 19 July in Newcastle.  We wish the young men all the best in their upcoming competitions!

Nicole Lovern
Year 11 Leader of Wellbeing & Engagement

13’s, 15’s Country Cup Rugby League

Congratulations to our 13’s & 15’s boys Rugby League teams, who travelled to Harry Elliott Oval in Tuncurry to compete in the opening round of the Country Cup on Thursday, 4 May.  The boys played with terrific skill, toughness and sportsmanship throughout all their matches with some excellent and highly entertaining Rugby League played.

In their opening match St Clare’s 13’s side came up against Wingham High School.  The boys laid a strong platform early with some well-structured attacking team plays, which saw them cross the line for two early tries.  St Clare’s dominated in defence and field position throughout the entire game, displaying great athleticism, skill and flair in attack.  St Clare’s ran away with a comprehensive 48-4 victory.

St Clare’s second round encounter was against perennial heavy weights Taree High School.  The boys started where they left off in their opening match, displaying strong defensive efforts coupled with sustained ball possession in their attacking half.  Taree High eventually succumbed to the constant pressure on their try line conceding multiple tries late in the game with St Clare’s winning the match 20-4.

St Clare’s third and final match was against the undefeated Great Lakes College. In what was a bruising and seesawing encounter, St Clare’s held out numerous attacking raids early on their try line.  However, poor discipline, fatigue and ball handling errors crept into the St Clare’s game which saw Great Lakes capitalise, scoring 3 quick tries.  St Clare’s regained their composure towards the end of the match and were rewarded with a try of their own.  Great Lakes proved too strong in the end, winning the match 22-6.

13’s Rugby League
Back Row (L-R):  Ryder Williams, Finn McNeil, Jaxon Whyte-Butler, Jacobi Hobden, Tyler Saunders, Archie Hanley, Noel Saunders, Blake Stewart & Xavier Wilkes
Front Row (L-R):  Bailey Furze, Jacob Hogan, Jay-Jay Clarke, Asher Mathew, Lachlan Polson, Koen Paff & Mason Kesby

The St Clare’s 15’s team also played Wingham High School in their opening fixture.  The boys dominated the game from the start with strong ball carrying and line running, which resulted in multiple well-structured team tries.  St Clare’s defensive structure and efforts were strong throughout the game, keeping Wingham High scoreless.  St Clare’s winning the match 28-0.

St Clare’s came up against a well drilled and physical Taree High team in their second-round fixture.  St Clare’s displayed great defensive efforts under fatigue and athleticism and skill in attack, however Taree High, through a myriad of ball possession, ground their way to a 24-10 victory.

St Clare’s third and final match was against Great Lakes College.  St Clare’s conceded an early try; however, they didn’t let this rattle them, coming up with two well-structured tries of their own to take the lead late in the match.  However, a ball handling error on fulltime proved costly, with Great Lakes scoring a match winning try with the last play of the game to take the match 10-8.

Lastly, a big thank you to Mrs Parvin as well as Lucas Monks, Ruby Polson, Sara Harris, Marley Brown and Samuel Schilt who contributed as trainers and water runners for their time and dedication in training, coaching and supporting our team, without their outstanding and tireless efforts events such as this would not be possible.

Matthew Collier
Rugby League Coordinator

Manning Valley Netball Association (Secondary) - Gala Day

On Tuesday, 9 May, St Clare's High School took part in the NSW Schools Netball Cup Gala Day at Manning Valley Netball association.  This year we entered four teams in the competition.  Each student played extremely well throughout the day and represented the school in high esteem. 

Junior Boys

This was our Junior Boy squads first carnival.  For many of these boys it was their first time competing in netball.  They are to be commended on how quickly they learnt the rules of the game and ensured that the junior boys were well represented by St Clare’s.  The boys demonstrated progressive improvement as they played each game throughout the day.  They all showed a high level of enthusiasm and represented the school well. 

The team consisted of the following players:  Samuel Stephens, Dallas Agnew, Mason Kesby, Cade Van Ewyk-Campbell, Archer Lambert, Angus Moore, Triston Brody, Cameron Ford and Jacob Hogan

Junior Girls

This was also our Junior Girl squads first carnival.  The Junior Girls division consisted of two pools of teams on the day.  The girls were undefeated throughout the day convincingly winning all four of their matches.  They went through to compete in a knockout crossover game with the top team from the other pool on the day.  This was a hotly contested game, and our girls deservedly came away with the win.  They will now advance to the finals in Port Macquarie.  The girls showed much enthusiasm and impressively represented the school on the day. 

The team consisted of the following players:  Miller Morrissey, Gemma Paulin, Charlotte Cooper, Abby Moelker, Tiffany Nguyen, Addison Hogan, Charlotte Andrews, Yasmin Cassidy, Lucy Millard and Annabelle Johnson

Intermediate Boys

Our intermediate boys played well against some strong competition.  For many of them they were unfamiliar with the game of netball but were able to transfer their skills from other sports into the game.  The boys learnt skills quickly and played some impressive games throughout the day.

The side consisted of the following students:  Lucas Monks, Kobi Critchley, James Rodgers, Ryan Box, Rory Clarke, Kody Zahra, Hayden Robertson, Thomas Priddle and Ben Wright

Intermediate Girls

Our Intermediate girls played some impressive netball against some fierce and tough competition.  They worked well as a team, never gave up and persisted in displaying some great netball skills throughout the entire day. 

The team consisted of the following players:  Ashlee Brabant, Sophie Pratten, Mikayla O’Brien, Jocelin Martinez-Lesson, Jessica Foley, Charlotte Mackie, Poppy Yates, Marley Brown, Marley Marriott, Miley Cox and Island Rosamond 

Our Junior Girls will progress to the next stage of the NSW Schools Netball Cup, which will be held in Port Macquarie on Tuesday, 29 August 2023. 

A big thank you goes to our Year 11 assistants:  Madison Paine, Sienna Agnew, Hannah Dignam, Savannah Murray, Charli Morrissey and Jaynie O’Neal - they did an amazing job in organisation of teams as well as umpiring throughout the day.

Mrs Amanda Brooks and Mrs Nicole Lovern
Netball Gala Day Coordinators