Scotch College

‘In time of test, family is best’

Ed Whitelaw reminds us that despite the frantic pace of life, family is the rock on which our lives are built.

As you go through life, you will continually become busier and busier. You will get involved in a number of activities, groups and new relationships. The move from primary school to Scotch College is a perfect example of this. As soon as you arrive at Scotch, activities and groups to join are thrown in your direction.

Getting involved in these new pursuits and making new friends is great, but it’s important that you don’t forget about your family. You should never fall into the trap of prioritising new friends and activities ahead of your family. Everybody should allocate ample time to spend with the family.

It could be as simple as playing a round of golf with Dad, kicking the footy with your brother, or buying some socks and jocks with mum. Family is very important to keep close, because they will be by your side no matter what. Furthermore, your family will tell you things that you don’t want to tell yourself. Perhaps they will tell you things that make you angry. But, in the end, you realise they say these things because they care about you so much. A Burmese proverb says ‘in time of test, family is best’. How true that is.

I began this year by comparing school to a game of football. Each school term symbolised a quarter of the game. I would now like to finish the year by making the same comparison.

It is the end of a long, successful season. The celebrations have begun, and the mood is high. But, underneath all the happiness and celebrations, there is some concern in the club. Many members and supporters are worried about the departure of the head coach.

After 25 seasons as head coach, Dr Donaldson has decided to retire while the club is on top. In addition, many of the senior coaches, and the goal umpire, who were shocked by the departure of Dr Donaldson, have also decided to leave the club. This includes:

Mr Appell – affirmations (team communication) coach
Mr Cracknell – goal umpire Mr Slade – fitness coach
Mr Wells and Mr Humphries – cheer squad leaders
Ms Lacey – historical records
Mr Brown – team spirit/motivational speaker

Furthermore, the captain has been sacked after a post-season indiscretion. The club has kept a lid on the incident, but the media have revealed that a white Toyota Corolla and several McDonald’s ice-cream cones were involved. The senior players showed their disapproval of this sacking by following their captain and leaving the club.

In 2008, the Scotch College line-up will be very different. There is a new head coach, an altered coaching staff, a new senior group of players, and a new batch of young recruits. The modified line-up will be sure to bring about some changes, but one aspect of Scotch College will never change – the Scotch College spirit.

On a more serious note, I would like to thank the class of 2007. I would especially like to thank Vice-Captain Mark Rattray, who made my job much easier this year. It has been another incredibly successful year for Scotch, and in times of adversity, the School rallied together into a very tight unit.

I wish the retiring teachers all the best for the future, and finally, I congratulate Dr Donaldson once more on a fantastic 25 years as Principal of Scotch College – ‘Well played, Scotch!’ GS