Great Scot - The Scotch Family Magazine - Issue 149 December 2016 Great Scot - The Scotch Family magazine issue 149 | Page 50

Senior School

Sport

Camping,
cooking and
kayaking —
‘all great stuff!’

Soccer, culture and
history all part of a
successful tour
The soccer tour to Germany and Austria over
the Term 3 holiday break was a great success.
During the two-week tour we played three games
against very strong opposition. Two of the under
16 clubs we played are attached to Bundesliga
Clubs, hence their strength. Having said this, the
boys acquitted themselves very well and will all be
better off for the experience.
We toured a number of the major soccer
stadiums in Germany, and attended and enjoyed
the wonderful atmosphere associated with
Bundesliga soccer – we watched four games.
The boys were also lucky enough to participate in
a private coaching clinic held by ex-professional
Bundesliga player and coach, Rainer Zobel.
Intermingled with all the soccer activities, the
boys were able to sample German culture via city
walking tours and the delights of the German and
Austrian cuisine. Among the cultural/historical
highlights were visiting the Berlin Wall, Checkpoint
Charlie and the Brandenberg Gate; and in Austria,
taking The Sound of Music tour and visiting the
Hallein Salt Mine and the city of Vienna.
As tour leader I would like to thank my fellow
staff member, Mr Steve De Domenico for all
his assistance on tour, as well as our coach,
Zed Mihajlovic for assisting when required and
coaching the boys on tour.
MARK ZANNONI — TIC SOCCER

A small number of people at Scotch hold the
belief that whitewater kayaking can still be offered
to our boys in the school context, and bring them
worthwhile challenges and experiences.
In the words of one Scotch parent recently:
‘There is a lot of value for boys in going into
the outdoors and facing challenging situations.
Camping, cooking, kayaking and the risk-taking
involved are all great stuff’.
Mr Tony Martinson and I are two such people,
and we got as much out of our recent camp as
any of the boys! We do try to bring the boys all
those experiences, and add a touch of the good
old stories and conundrums around the campfire
on each of the three nights.
Taking two minibuses and two trailers allows
us to paddle downriver each day, but to return to

a comfortable base camp (with grass, trees and
a pit toilet, but not much else) where, after a day
of adrenaline-charged paddling, boys can slow
down, cook themselves a good hot meal and then
yarn about their exploits under a canopy of stars.
For safety and to assist us to entertain a dozen
or so Year 10 boys, we take along three qualified
river guides and four Year 11 kayak leaders. The
Year 11s have experienced the program the
previous year and have come back for more,
and they provide that extra dimension that a
staff member cannot. This year they were Sam
Champion, Jackson Evans, Charles Keilar and
Oliver Simpson, and they were brilliant.
The river guides are amazing whitewater
kayakers and experts in the leading of young men
in outdoor pursuits. Thankfully they seem to like

our boys, and each year, as we shake hands,
eagerly enquire, ‘When is next year’s camp?’
Always the best part of our program, for me,
is watching the change in the boys’ faces as they
tentatively approach a daunting rapid, but find a
minute or so later that they can manage it, and
then want to go back and run it again and again.
The slalom rapid on the Big River near Jamieson
provided such a challenge this year, and our boys
even surprised themselves at the alacrity with
which they paddled it on the last day.
GEOFF WEMYSS — HEAD OF FIELD HOUSE
AND PART-TIME KAYAKER

Will Sutherland to captain
Cricket Australia XI
Will Sutherland (Year 11) has been named as
Captain of the Cricket Australia XI at this year’s
under 19 National Championships in Adelaide.
The 14-player Cricket Australia XI squad to be
captained by Will comprises the best players at the
2016/17 under 17 National Championships, and
includes Austin Waugh, son of former Test captain
Stephen Waugh.
Will Sutherland said to be named as Captain of
the talented Cricket Australia team was ‘an honour
– and a surprise’. He said it was an ‘awesome
feeling’.
‘I was a bit surprised, to be honest, with
Victoria Metro finishing as we did (in the National

Championships), but I guess I did enough leading
the boys, so I’m very happy,’ he said.
‘They seem like a good bunch of blokes.
I came across most of them during the week,
so I’ve seen a bit of what they can do. I’m really
looking forward to Adelaide. It’s going to be a
big challenge, so I’m going to have to do a lot of
training and preparation for the tournament, but I’m
looking forward to that challenge,’ Will said.
National Talent Manager, Greg Chappell said
the players selected in the Cricket Australia XI
had received ‘a great reward for some fantastic
individual performances across the two weeks at
the Under 17 National Championships’.

ABOVE, TOP: THE TOUR GROUP IN FRONT OF THE ALLIANZ ARENA IN MUNICH.
BELOW: BOYS AND STAFF IN FRONT OF THE BRANDENBURG GATE, BERLIN.

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Great Scot Number 149 – December 2016

www.scotch.vic.edu.au Great Scot

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