SPORT
Celebrating
Rugby
On 22 August 2018 the Guildford Grammar
School rugby community gathered together
in the Senior School Dining Hall to celebrate
the achievements and contributions of its
members.
The evening was opened by our hosts James
Ford (12St) and Nick Wright (12Wb) after
which Director of Rugby, Mr Doug Fawcett,
welcomed the players, coaches, guests and
parents. The evening commenced with
Captain of Rugby, James Ford, taking to the
stage to reflect on the 2018 season.
Later on in the evening Marcel Brache, who
plays for the Western Force and in the USA,
talked to us about the opportunities rugby
had provided for him. He started off by
talking about his childhood growing up in
both Los Angeles and Cape Town. Marcel
told us that cricket was his first career goal
but that he ended up with a career in rugby.
He then went on to talk about playing for
the Western Force and the opportunities
he had been presented with at the club. He
finished by talking about his disappointment
in the decision of Rugby Australia to banish
the Western Force from the Super Rugby
competition. Marcel Brache’s speech was
inspiring and I hope to see him play well at
the Rugby World Cup in 2019.
The evening was finished with the farewell
for Mr Budler. He was presented with a
lovingly prepared arm chair covered with
a patchwork of rugby jerseys from PSA,
International, Club, and Super Rugby and
also from Dale College, where he taught
in South Africa. Mr Budler first came to
Guildford Grammar School 20 years ago and
has been the Preparatory School rugby coach
for this duration. In his farewell speech he
shared with the audience that rugby allows
him to express his “true inner-self”.
Fortunately, I had Mr Budler as a Walla Rugby
coach in Years 2 and 3 and as a Preparatory
School 1st Team coach for Years 5 and 6.
He had a very disciplined approach to rugby
training, for example he was very vocal at
encouraging the ruck inspectors to stop
observing and to do their job. However, after
many trainings he would describe his hard
training methods as “tough love”. I learnt a
lot from Mr Budler and he is a great man. A
sincere thank you, Mr Budler.
It was enjoyable playing some games for
the 1st XV. Our goal for the season was to
finish third in the PSA. We ended up coming
fourth, but every player learnt so much.
I would like to thank Mr Watt, Mr Lubbe,
Mr McKellar, Mr Evans, Mr Turner and Mr
Cooke for the season. I also wish the 2018
Leavers all the best for their future.
The Rugby Dinner was a great night and was
one of the best that I have attended so far.
Thomas Mascall-Browne
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