St David's Newsletter - 15 July 2016

From the desk of the Preparatory Headmaster: Mr Graeme Edwards

Dear Parents, Staff and Boys,
WHEN WINNING ISN’T IMPORTANT
With the exception of certain activities in the Mini Marist and early Foundation Phase years, virtually all other school activities are competitive. This implies that scores are kept and a winner is declared. In as much as boys participate to beat their opponents, and a coach will never train their team to lose, a tension exists regarding the emphasis that is placed on winning. On the one side of the spectrum are those who posit that sport is for enjoyment and winning isn’t important. An alternative perspective, however, and one located on the other side of the spectrum, is that mind-set which contends that winning is of utmost importance. In the latter category, one might hear phrases such as, “winning isn’t everything, it’s the only thing”, or, “he who comes second is the first loser!” One’s perspective of winning will typically be influenced by where one is positioned along this spectrum.
Where, you might ask, is St David’s positioned on this spectrum? This question cannot be answered by identifying and labelling a single static point. Rather, the school’s position is better understood by acknowledging the multiple factors which inform our position. In the first instance, the age of the boy should inform our thinking. An enthusiastic Grade 3 boy driven by the aspirations of his sporting hero, will have a very different perspective to a Grade 10 boy who has developed a far more realistic idea of his abilities. Secondly the level of competition needs to be considered. An inter-house event on the last day of school enjoys much less status than the final of a provincial competition. The higher the stakes, the more competitive the players will be and the greater the emphasis on winning. Thirdly, I believe that perspective is important. This is school boy sport, played by boys and coached by those who are interested in the holistic development of every boy. In short, I argue that as parents and educators, we should train our boys to be the best they can by providing the best possible coaching, preparation and instruction; that we should insist that the boys always try their best; and that win or lose, they are valued for the people they are and how they played the game.

Have a fabulous weekend.

Click here to read: Mini Marist Prattle

PREP SCHOOL NEWS

The Grade 5 Natural Science classes visited College science labs on Monday to do some experiments and were exposed to the practical aspect of science. The boys made ice-cream without the use of a freezer and were rewarded with a tasty treat. It was a fantastic experience for the boys to see what happens in the College labs and enhance their interest in the subject. Thank you to Miss Jones and Mr James for this wonderful opportunity.

PREP Sport

The annual Inter Provincial football tournament for Primary School boys took place from the 2 to 6 July in Pinetown, KZN. Two of our St David’s boys, Matthew Cooper and Matthew Rundle, were selected for the Central Gauteng ‘B’ side (Johannesburg Team). The boys performed admirably over 15 games and can be proud of the fourth place finish their team achieved.

Mr Tony Williams managed/coached the ‘A’ side (Southerns) which won the tournament with 12 wins and 3 draws over the week. A fun and challenging time was had by all involved and our boys were superb ambassadors for their school.

Congratulations to Joshua Botha and Matthew Rundle on being announced soccer captain and vice-captain respectively.

The soccer season began on a superb note on Wednesday with a full fixture vs St John’s Prep. We played 32 matches from under 9-Open, winning 19, drawing 8 and losing only 5. Thank you to all the boys for their excellent efforts as well as to the coaching staff for their hard work and the parents for their support. I hope to see us build on this positive start to the season and to have a fantastic few weeks.

Week Ahead

Saturday	16 July	Football vs St Benedict’s Grade 00 and 0 Dads and Lads Football 17:30 Family Mass
Monday	18 July	Mandela Day (Prep activities will take place on 28 July)
Tuesday	19 July	Old Boys’ Comedy evening
Wednesday	20 July	Football vs St Peter’s Prep
Saturday	23 July	Football vs CBC Boksburg

COLLEGE NEWS

Overseas Cricket Tour to England

Report by Luc Vicente

When Mr Bhinder approached me about going on an overseas tour to the UK with him, I was over the moon with excitement. We took a group of 14 Grade 11 and 10 boys over the half term (and missing one or two days of school before) to play 9 games of Cricket in and around London. We played our first game on the day we arrived and we quickly realised how different conditions were to our hard, fast and bouncy Highveld cricket pitches. Throughout the whole tour the boys continued to grow as cricketers picking up various skills from their English counter parts. As you can see from the results most of the games were really exciting and closely contested. Luckily only two of our games were affected by rain with one being completely rained off.

The boys behaved exceptionally over the course of the tour and were the best advert the school could hope for. One headmaster who actually hosted 4 of our boys in his personal residence said that his wife had told him that she hoped their children would grow up to be like the boys who stayed with them. We were also hosted very well! All staff and boys of the schools we played against were very friendly and put on some excellent meals for us (Salmon Sarmies and Scones not an uncommon sight on the side of a British cricket field). The Trinity School from Croydon are touring South Africa in October and are scheduled to play cricket against St. David’s junior teams. So we can return the favour of their hospitality.

The schools grounds we played at were awe inspiring, it felt like every school we went to had to explain to us that their school wasn’t “a castle”. This coupled with the greenest outfield’s any Joburg boy has ever seen meant that our boys were constantly lifting their game for every venue.

While on tour the boys also took in the sights of Salisbury, London and Windsor. With London being the obvious highlight for the boys. Along with taking in all the sights of London from the London Eye, the boys also attended a West End production of the Lion King and a guided tour of Lords Cricket Stadium while in London. I can however report that for almost all the boys the best thing about London is the shopping on Oxford Street. We also all became masters of the London underground in our two days there, but the busses remain an enigma.

A big thank you to the parents, admin and academic staff who all made this trip an unforgettable experience for the whole tour group.
Results

27 June vs Kings College (Taunton) 20/20
Kings 142/5 in 20
St David's 81/10 in 16
St David's lost by 61 runs

28 June vs Kings College (Taunton)30 overs
Kings 157/7 after 30
Matthews 3/34
St David's 69/4 after 18
Miltz 33* Game abandoned due to rain

30 June vs Trinity School (Croydon, London) 40 overs
St David's 192/10 in 38.4 overs
Lategan 38 / Miltz 33 / Luthuli 37
Trinity 164/8 in 40 overs
St David's won by 28 runs

1 July vs the Oratory School (Reading) 30 overs
Oratory 119/8 in 30 overs
St David's 120/9 in 29.4 overs
Miltz 44
St David's won by 1 wicket

4 July vs Hampton School 45 overs
St David's 243/10 in 45 overs
Lategan 69 /Bridges 91 /Van der Spuy 33

Hampton 245/7 in 45 overs
Van der Spuy 3/51
St David's lost by 3 wickets

5 July vs The Kings School (Parramatta, Sydney)
55 overs Tonbridge festival
St David's 229/10
Lategan 56 /Van der Spuy 39 /Gerson 31

Kings 212/9
Younger 3/40
St David's won by 17 runs

6 July vs Tonbridge School (Tonbridge) - 55 overs Tonbridge festival
Tonbridge 263/5 in 55 overs

St David's 208/10 in 52.5 overs
Luthuli 35 / Van Staden 34 / Gerson 32
St David's lost by 55 runs

7 July vs Millfield School - 55 overs Tonbridge festival
Millfield 300/5 in 55 overs

St David's 279/8 in 55 overs
Miltz 75 /Van Staden 48 /Van der Spuy 37
St David's lost by 21 runs

Rugby: 1^st XV ISRF (Bishops)

Report by Johan Black

The 1^st Rugby team ended off their season with a tour to Cape Town to participate in the Independent Schools Rugby Festival hosted by Bishops.

They came up against some stiff competition on Day 1, St Andrews College, Grahamstown, and Day 3, Kearsney, and lost these two games. On Day 2 they played against Somerset College and we beat them 20-6.

The tour was the end of a tough season for the 1^st Team. But valuable lessons were learned by the youngsters in the team and the Grade 12’s gave 100% in all the games they played.

College: Sports Results

College Week Ahead

GENERAL

The Prodigal Son DVD

If anyone is interested in buying a copy of The Prodigal Son DVD, please email Mr Rose-Reddiar in order to establish the number of parents interested in the DVD. Once numbers are finalised a price can be confirmed.

Please e-mail Mr Rose-Reddiar at: rose-reddiars@stdavids.co.za for orders.

Book your ticket now at Quicket

Buy Tickets Now

Mandela Day 2016
One of our long-standing St David’s Marist Foundation friends is climbing Kilimanjaro next month in aid of the Imbumba Foundation’s #Keeping the Girlchild in School’ campaign. Should you wish to support Peta’s campaign via an sms donation please find details below:

Thank you for your support but tickets are now
SOLD OUT

Reflection

Liturgical
17th July
16th Sunday of the Year

Ps 15, 2-5
Lk 10, 38-42

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