This term has been packed with energy, enthusiasm, and exceptional achievements in sport, giving us plenty to celebrate across the school.
A major highlight was our stunning victory in the Anglican Cup. Our teams showed skill and tenacity throughout the competition with Max Pudney (boys basketball), Ella Bateman (girls basketball), and Brodie Ralph (boys soccer) each earning Fair Play awards for their outstanding sportsmanship and positive spirit. Their leadership and demeanour have been an inspiration to all.
Our Interschool Cross Country events and the lead-up events saw our students push themselves to their limits, training hard and competing with grit. Special congratulations to Owen Hughes, Violette Smith, Brodie Ralph, and Lucas Mitchell who all finished in the top ten and have the opportunity to represent South Australia at the National Cross Country Championships on the Gold Coast later this year. They’ll likely be joined by Hannah Tourneur, who was unfortunately sidelined due to injury, meaning St John’s could have an incredible five students competing at the national level. We’ll be celebrating this achievement and sharing further news with our community once the squads are finalised.
Building on these individual results, we also had fantastic team success: Riley Naffin, Lucas Mitchell, Leif Mosley, and Dante Ciaramellano came second in the 16 Boys team event; Brodie Ralph, Kieran Collings, Mark Poon, and Mitch Case took second in the Open Boys event; and Violette Smith, Maya Helps, Tilley Behrndt, and Pippa O’Neil earned second in the 14-Year-Old Girls event. Three podium finishes out of ten events marks our best school performance on record, an outstanding accomplishment for all involved.
Knockout sport brought a wave of excitement and tough competition this term. Our teams rose to the challenge and earned some impressive results that showcased their determination and teamwork. Our year 7/8 boys knockout basketball team were declared the Statewide champions as they took out the Grand Final against Xavier College yesterday. The teams consisted of Ollie Armstrong, Aiden Bateman, Antonio Ciaramellano, Charlie Fountain, Cooper Hepworth, Lincoln Jamieson, Patrick Lui, Lenny Mitchell and Josh Thyer. Congratulations boys on an outstanding achievement!
Weekly sport continued to thrive with fantastic participation across all year levels. A total of 27 winter teams with 320 students playing sport is impressive, clearly understanding the outstanding benefits of team sports and physical activity. Thanks to some solid performances, our students have once again proven the value of regular competition and team cohesion.
We are thrilled to share that our school has once again taken out the overall title at the Schools Mountain Biking Championship, marking an incredible third consecutive win! This outstanding achievement is a testament to the dedication, skill, and team spirit of our riders and coaches.
We also saw exceptional leadership from our Winter Sport Captains (Hannah Mules netball, Max Pudeny basketball, Seven Ding soccer and Hamish Watson/Darcy Bielby football) and our dedicated Sport Ambassador (Luke Kennedy) who have led with integrity and inspired their peers throughout the season. A special shout out to Luke who is off to Japan to represent Australia in the U16 baseball team next month, what an amazing achievement, best of luck Luke!
With more Knockout opportunities ahead and the ever-anticipated Intercollegiate Cup just around the corner, Term 3 promises even more moments to make us proud to be part of the sporting program here at St John’s Grammar School.
Brooke Watson
Head of Sport