Scotch College

School Captain's Column September 1999

School Captain's Column

We have hit the second half of the year and the end is now in sight, particularly for the Year 12's.

The second round of CAT's are winding up and the focus has switched towards the end of year examinations. Thoughts are also looking forward to next year as the Year 12's ponder their tertiary studies and will soon have to put in their preferences for university. To the Class of '99 I urge you to make the most of these final weeks at school as it will be the last time you will see your mates every day of every week. Next year you will be spread all over the place and you will find it harder to keep in touch. The Year 11's must now start to prepare themselves to take over as the leaders of the school, shortly they will be the eldest boys on campus and the school will look to them to set the example and lead Scotch into 2000.

On the sporting field Scotch has once more excelled. Congratulations must go to the 1st XI hockey team led by Chris Corbett and Mr. Black who shared the APS Premiership with Xavier. The 1st XI soccer team, captained by Peter North and coached by Mr. Fowler, just missed premiership success, going down 1-nil to Brighton in the final round, the winner of this match the APS Premier. Congratulations also to the cross-country team who came very close to another premiership and to the 1st XV rugby side who made the finals for the first time in a number of years.

Unfortunately the 1st XVIII was unable to retain the Cordner-Eggleston Cup. It was a tough, physical match with players constantly under pressure and the low scores reflected the nature of the game. However, full credit to Melbourne Grammar who managed to hang on in the final quarter, despite being held scoreless, to record a 12 point victory. In 11 encounters for this trophy Scotch now lead 8-3. I must thank everyone who turned out at Scotch on the day to support the team, it was greatly appreciated. In particular, thank-you to the huge number of Scotch students who stayed behind after school to watch the game and give their support. As always the spirit and pride of Scotch boys in their school was evident on this big occasion.

Two outstanding musical productions have been performed this term. The Scotch/St. Catherine's musical 'Whistle Down The Wind' and the PLC/Scotch production of 'Pirates of Penzance' were both of an extremely high quality and full credit must be given to the actors, backstage personnel and staff who worked together to put these shows on. The standard of dramatic arts at Scotch is very high and we look forward to seeing these productions staged in the James Forbes Academy in the future.

One of the last major events on the Scotch calendar for term 3 is the Foundation Day Concert. No doubt this will be an outstanding night's entertainment highlighting the quality and talent of the musicians at Scotch. This will be followed by numerous camps and activities during the September holidays, including the annual Cadet Main Camp. The final term will then be upon us and the Scotch chapter for the 1900's will be completed.