Issue no. 15
From the Deputy Principal / Head of Middle School
Flexible Learners in Flexible Spaces
When I speak with prospective parents, new members of staff, or current parents who just haven’t wandered around the campus for a while, I always stress that the need for flexibility has been central to all our thinking when designing new learning spaces. We want to create spaces that can adapt to a variety of learning styles, inspiring collaboration and being a catalyst for effective and varied working practices. This has certainly been the case with the successful redesign of the Middle School and Library, and will continue into the new Science Centre and enlarged Art rooms. However, what we sometimes overlook is how the design and flexibility of one of our older buildings has become central to the way that we function as a busy, vibrant learning community.
It’s been over eight years since the Arts Centre was officially opened, and it’s hard to find an area of school life that hasn’t been touched by it. From the ELC Hat Ceremony, to the Year 12s’ last assembly before they go on study leave, students of all ages regularly use the space for a myriad of things.
It has become a crucial element in the way we build a culture of celebrating success. It’s how we give our students the opportunity of gaining a level of comfort of being ‘on show’ in front of crowds and audiences of varying sizes. But it’s far more than just a venue for assemblies and award ceremonies.
It’s a fully-functioning Dance classroom, a Drama classroom, a venue for the Technical Theatre Club, a meeting room, a lecture theatre, and concert venue. We’ve held Chapel Services, musicals, plays, exhibitions, engineering competitions, information evenings, cinema screenings and Art shows…and that nowhere near exhausts the list. That variety of uses wouldn’t have been possible without the foresight of the designers, and the ability of our staff to see the potential in the space.
This past week, however, has been an especially busy time for the Arts Centre. Last Friday, our SRC expertly turned it into a club/disco for the Year 7/8 Social. We hosted visiting students from St Peter’s College, Prince Alfred College and Rostrevor College for a fun evening, aided by student and staff volunteer supervisors.
On Thursday, it hosted our inaugural STEM Breakfast, being transformed into a conference centre-style set up, enabling our senior students to hear from and mix with over 40 industry mentors, whilst enjoying a breakfast planned and created by the SACE Food Technology class.
Immediately following this, the flexibility of the building was further highlighted as it became a rehearsal space for this evening’s Saints in Style concert. If the quality and diversity of the rehearsals with the visiting performers are anything to go by, then we are in for a treat tonight.
On Monday, the Arts Centre will be used as a performance space for our excellent SACE Stage 2 Dance Performance Night, which I urge you and your family to attend – it’s always a memorable, energetic and exhausting evening! This is a short performance between 6 – 6.45pm where the students showcase their choreographic assessment pieces.
Finally, before being returned to a classroom and Assembly space next Friday, the Arts Centre will enable us to host the South Australian da Vinci Decathlon. Across three days, we’ll once again be welcoming teams of eight bright, flexible and creatively thinking students from over 20 schools each day to pit their wits against each other, and against the nationally-benchmarked and frequently seemingly impossible tasks! Having won the Year 9 competition last year, and the Year 5/6 competition in 2017, we are hoping for another strong showing in 2019!
Richard Lisle
Deputy Principal / Head of Middle School
Women in STEM Breakfast
As a teacher who is passionate about engaging girls in authentic learning, I believe connections with industry are so important. Yesterday, 55 students attended our inaugural Women in STEM Breakfast. They took advantage of the opportunity to connect with over 30 industry mentors and learn about the day-to-day activities in a range of roles. We were inspired by three amazing guest speakers: Sarah Brown, Dr Kristin Alford and Dr Bronwyn Hajek. Students understood how the study of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics could be applied in many different contexts when solving problems. The delicious breakfast was provided by our senior Food Technology classes. Thank you to everyone involved.
Monique Green
Digital Tech Teacher and STEM Coordinator
The Women in STEM Breakfast was an incredible opportunity to speak to a range of inspiring women in various STEM fields and gain insight into different occupations that we may pursue after leaving school. A significant message I left the event with was that the knowledge and understanding gained by studying a degree in STEM can be applied in other fields such as business. The breakfast was a great opportunity to network and I really enjoyed learning from the industry mentors.
Lucy White
Year 11 student
This was an educational event that allowed for insightful discussions about women entering the STEM fields. I really enjoyed the atmosphere, and the mentors opened my eyes to the idea that STEM applies to numerous jobs, and that having women in the STEM fields will create better businesses. It was a great experience that also highlighted our #EMPOWHER wellbeing program.
Isabella Bernardi
Year 11 student
The Addams Family – Tickets on Sale Monday!
The Addams Family is getting excited to make their debut appearance at St Peter’s Girls on 12 June…less than three weeks away! Students have achieved so much in the time we have been rehearsing – learning lines, songs, music and choreography. Not to forget our awesome stage crew who have joined us this term in order to produce a smooth-running performance from behind the scenes.
Tickets will be on sale from 9am Monday 27 May – www.trybooking.com/BCUXH
Kate Burnett
Head of Arts
Democracy Sausage Fundraiser
Last weekend, Saints Girls held a fundraising BBQ as the School hosted an election polling booth, raising $1620 for the Fiji and Cambodia Service Learning trips later this year. All funds will go towards buying medical or building supplies, educational aids and donating money to the schools or orphanages. As well as the sausage sizzle, tickets were sold for a raffle featuring household products, wine, a signed Crows football and other goodies. This raffle will be drawn at the end of term and tickets are still available, so get in quick! Look out for our future fundraisers such as movie nights and Bunnings BBQs in order to support the Service Learning trips.
Matilda Braithwaite
Year 11 student
Big Plus for Old Scholar Maths Achievers
On Wednesday 15 May, two Old Scholars, Alexandra Reade (Kennion ’18) and Charlene Lee (Selwyn ’18), were invited to the prizes and awards ceremony of UniSA’s School of Information Technology and Mathematical Sciences for being selected as Scholarship recipients.
Alexandra received the ‘Hypatia Scholarship for Mathematically Talented Women’ – awarded to students entering their first year of a Mathematical Sciences undergraduate degree program on the basis of academic merit and high achievement in their high school studies.
Charlene received the ‘School of Information Technology and Mathematical Sciences – Commencing Scholarship in Mathematics’ award – eligible to school leavers with impressive achievements in their high school studies and enrolled in the first year of a Bachelor of Mathematical Sciences or Bachelor of Applied Science (Honours)(Industrial and Applied Mathematics).
Such a great achievement!
Mooting Students Do Saints Girls Justice
Our Year 12 Mooting teams recently competed in the National High School Mooting Competition held at Bond University on the Gold Coast.
It’s designed to share Bond Law’s knowledge and skills in advocacy and oral presentation with students who are interested in a career in law and may wish to undertake further legal education at a tertiary level. Participation provides students with the opportunity to gain an insight into the workings of a legal environment. Students submit an argument to a bench of ‘judges’ on behalf of their fictitious client.
We congratulate our participants on their performance in the moot, their diligence in preparation, and the way in which they represented our School. The standard of the competition was outstanding. The judges loved the engagement with our students during their submissions, and the girls now have a better understanding of how the law operates and what it may be like to work as a lawyer. The experience will certainly assist our students in deciding on a career path and their university program choice.
Lynne Spry
History/Legal Studies Teacher
Year 7/8 Social Proves a Hit
On Friday 17 May, the SRC hosted a Year 7/8 Social, which was a resounding success. We had a sellout crowd with boys from Rostrevor, St Peter’s College and Prince Alfred College joining our girls in filling the Arts Centre. The DJ was amazing and, within 15 minutes, everyone was up dancing including some of the older girls and teachers. Thank you to Mrs Alderson, Fiona McGregor and all of the student helpers who made this such a fun and successful night.
Tahlia Towers
SRC Prefect
Car Park – Action Required
Once again, we urge parents of Year 2 – 12 students not to enter the School’s car park for pick up until at least 3.30pm to allow for the smooth and safe early collection of Reception and Year 1 students.
We also reiterate that there is no right turn into or out of the car park.
It is hoped that the Bell Yett car park will re-open on Monday-week.
We thank you for your cooperation in helping to improve safety and traffic flow for all.
Selwyn and Patteson House Charity Day
Next Friday 31 May
Next Friday, the Year 10 Selwyn girls will be running a sausage sizzle to raise money for their House charity, The Smith Family. The Patteson Year 10s will be running a cupcake stall to raise funds for the Little Heroes Foundation.
The Little Heroes Foundation is a not-for-profit organisation that supports seriously ill children. Its mission is to raise funds towards essential equipment and services for these children and their families, ensuring they have access to the very best care, regardless of how rare their diagnosis is. The Smith Family supports children who struggle with their reading by pairing them with a Buddy to read with every week.
- Students in Years 7 – 12 may wear casual clothes and bring a gold coin donation
- Selwyn will be selling sausage sandwiches for $2.50 and drinks for $1
- Patteson will be selling cupcakes for $1 (small) or $2 (large)
Parents of Reception to Year 2 students have received information regarding purchasing sausages and cupcakes via Trybooking, and this link will close at midday on Wednesday 29 May and due to catering restrictions, no late orders are able to be taken. Students in Years 3 – 6 are able to purchase the sausages and cupcakes on the day. Please note the casual day is for Years 7 – 12 students.
Please bring a few dollars to support these worthy causes.
Year 10 Patteson and Selwyn
Hallett Cove Excursion Rocks!
On Friday of Week 3, the Year 8 students went on a trip to Hallett Cove – one of the best-known geological sites in Australia – as part of the rocks topic in Science. Some fascinating areas we visited had rocks up to 600 million years old! As a group, we walked on the beach, examining the different types of rocks and learning about how they formed. We learned about glaciation and how these large areas were once frozen in ice, which carried the rocks now found on South Australian coastlines.
The weather was warm and even though our legs were aching from all of the walking, everyone had a wonderful time.
Samantha Keough
Year 8 student
Year 10 High Performance Put to the Test
Last Wednesday, the Year 10 High Performance students travelled to the Samsung Smart School at UniSA’s Magill Campus to further develop their knowledge on ‘Energy Systems’ with the support of GPS units and heart rate monitors. The excursion allowed the girls to experience how the information captured by these tools can be used to analyse performances. They undertook a number of running and sprinting activities before taking part in some small-sided soccer games. They were able to compare the differences between each of these activities, and witness the changes in distance travelled, speed reached in different zones, and intensity levels (heart rate) as they fatigued. Receiving such detailed, personal data across these variables so quickly after the activity developed the girls’ understanding of the level that Science has reached to analyse performance.
Dan Searle
Head of PE, Health and Outdoor Education
Journey Towards Reconciliation
On Wednesday, our School’s Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) Ambassadors, Lucy Young, Letitia Page, Tara Young and I, attended a meeting at St John’s Grammar School to talk to their senior RAP Ambassador, Ruby. Our School’s Reconciliation Action Plan began at St Peter’s Girls in 2015; it has been offering an increasing number of reconciliation activities and events due to the involvement by student representatives. Through the meeting at St John’s, we learnt the importance of the RAP program being a student-led initiative driven by passion. This year, we aim to expand the influence of the reconciliation program across the entire Saints Girls’ community and get everyone involved. We hope to do this by incorporating student-produced Aboriginal art pieces into the School, facilitating the installation of the flagpoles for the Kaurna and other Aboriginal flags in the ELC, and by promoting events such as the Reconciliation Walk (26 May) and National Reconciliation Week (26 May – 3 June). If you would like to get involved in any aspects of reconciliation, please do not hesitate to contact one of the RAP Ambassadors mentioned above.
We are looking forward to you joining us on our journey towards reconciliation.
Hattie Maerschel
Year 11 student
Old Scholar’s Path STEMs from IB Learnings
One of our outstanding IB Diploma graduates, Vienna Tran (Patteson ’14), has shared her experiences in the programme and her educational journey on the International Baccalaureate website. Currently, Vienna is studying medicine at the University of Adelaide.
Here’s an excerpt from her insightful article:
“When I tell people my academic story, I say that I ‘fell’ into my medical degree. This is because I knew that my heart was in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) and I would have studied astronomy, physics or engineering if I had my way. But I was curious as to how far I could get through the multi-step process of applying for medicine in Australia, and I wanted to keep my options open in a country whose job security in STEM was, to be frank, not looking very bright.
Fast forward to my first year of medicine, and I was already in the Dean’s office, asking him about the prospect of transferring to an Engineering degree. I was just not happy – especially compared to the other enthusiastic, cream-of-the-crop students, for whom medicine had been a lifelong dream. This exacerbated my social anxiety and destroyed my willingness to apply myself fully to my studies.
Now, in my fifth year, I feel only slightly more steadfast in my journey because I have discovered a way to push the norm. My aspirations lie in space medicine and my vision is to conduct research on human physiology in space while providing medical care for past, present and future astronauts. As a backup, I am interested in working in remote communities, expeditions and humanitarian pursuits. I have begun to paint the beginnings of my career with my own brush strokes.
Why did I come full circle, back to the STEM field in such a niche, obscure way? And why did I persist with medicine?
Because the variety, the broad curricula and the relentless rigour of the IB Diploma Programme confirmed to me, with reasonable confidence, that I was suited to both these disciplines. I thoroughly enjoyed every aspect of IB Mathematics, Chemistry and Physics, which form an important part of STEM education. On top of that, the concepts of humanitarianism, social responsibility, global mindedness and critical thinking that I learnt from IB English, Geography and Japanese ignited a desire to help people from all walks of life, even if the study is arduous and never-ending. And I don’t think I would have learned these lessons any other way.”
To read more and leave a comment for Vienna, click here.
Junior School Book Fair
Next week, we will have our annual visit by Scholastic Book Fair in the Junior Library. This pop-up bookshop event is a terrific opportunity for students to purchase books to take home. Girls will browse books in their Library lesson and formulate their wish list. Books and stationery will be for sale at the following times:
Before School
8.10 – 8.30am
Lunch
1.15 – 1.45pm
After School
3.30 – 4pm
The fair will run from Monday lunchtime to Friday lunchtime. All purchases will benefit our Library as Scholastic will donate books to our collection. We look forward to seeing you at the fair!
Helen Smith and the Year 6 Library Leaders
Important Health Message
With the State in the grips of a flu crisis, we must reiterate an important health message to our community.
If your child is showing any signs of illness, please do not bring them to school. This includes if they have a temperature of 37.5 degrees and above, and/or if they’ve received medication such as paracetamol. This also extends to other ailments such as stomach aches and vomiting.
This is not only for your child’s comfort and recovery, but also to protect other children and our staff.
For more information regarding influenza, please click here.
Should you have any queries, please contact the Health Centre via 8155 5762 or healthcentre@stpetersgirls.sa.edu.au. If your daughter will not be attending school due to illness, please notify us via one of the following methods:
Text: 0428 601 957 (save to phone contacts)
Email: attendance@stpetersgirls.sa.edu.au
Phone: 8334 2200
Feel free to also include the Class/Home Group teacher when sending via email.
Saints Girls Now on Instagram!
The School is proud to launch our newest social media offering to celebrate our fantastic community.
We look forward to sharing exciting images and cutting-edge videos showcasing life at Saints Girls. Be a part of the action and follow us via @stpetersgirlsschool
Seat of Encouragement – Style a Tile
Don’t miss out on this fantastic opportunity to make your mark on our new Science Centre.
Purchase and personalise a tile for our ‘Seat of Encouragement’ and leave a legacy for generations of Saints Girls. Many tiles also include inspiring quotes to further empower our girls.
Secure your tile via www.trybooking.com/BARQD.
If you require more information or have any constructive feedback to add value to achieving our collective goal, please contact Melissa Westgate via 8334 2244 or mwestgate@stpetergirls.sa.edu.au.
125 Gala Ball
Our 125th anniversary Gala Ball is shaping up to be a spectacular evening.
Highlights will include a delicious three course meal, premium beverages and fantastic live entertainment by leading party band The Cast, as well as our own talented student performers.
When: 6.30pm, Saturday 19 October 2019
Venue: William Magarey Room, Adelaide Oval
Dress: Black Tie
Tickets: $150 per person; tables of 10
Book via www.trybooking.com/ZZGY or 8334 2225
Become One of Our Saints
It is said that it takes a village to raise a child. Beyond parents or guardians are a host of people who are deeply connected to our girls. Saints Girls is encouraging these loved ones to join our newly-created community group, Our Saints. Our aim is to bring together those people special to our girls who want to participate in and know more about their education at St Peter’s Girls. This could include grandparents, aunts and uncles, Godparents, Old Scholars or friends of the family – anyone who takes an interest in the life and education of a Saints Girl.
Benefits include:
> Every edition of our biannual community magazine Saints Alive
> An invite to our Our Saints Annual Morning Tea
> Invites to other special functions throughout the year
> Members will also have opportunities to make classroom visits (ELC, Junior School and Middle School) to see their girls in action
If you or someone you know is interested in joining Our Saints, please fill out the form here.
Entertainment Book
The St Peter’s Girls’ Parents’ and Friends’ Association is fundraising via Entertainment Book/Digital Membership.
Pre-order the NEW 2019 | 2020 Entertainment Membership and receive bonus offers you can use right away.
Purchase your membership here!
Community Golf Day
St Peter’s Girls’ Community Golf Day will be held on Thursday 14 November.
Do you play golf, have a golf membership or are you interested in golf? We need your expertise and advice!
Please contact Melissa Westgate in the Community Relations office via mwestgate@stpetersgirls.sa.edu.au or 8334 2244.
Code Camp Winter Holidays: Early Bird Discount
Code Camp is returning to St Peter’s Girls these winter holidays. Girls and boys have lots of fun with friends while building important skills including logic, creativity, problem-solving, app and game development.
This camp is from Wednesday 10 July to Friday 12 July, and St Peter’s Girls will be hosting Spark, Web Hackers and Little Heroes.
Book now to take advantage of the $20 Early Bird Discount (automatically applied at check out when booking before 27 May 2019)!
Bookings can be made via www.codecamp.com.au/stpetersgirls
School Shop Online
A reminder to parents that the School Shop has an online facility available for your convenience. To access this service, go to the myLink parent portal or click here.
You can select the products you need and check out with either your PayPal account or credit card. Orders are then sent through to the School Shop for processing on the next available working day.
You will receive an email when your order is ready for collection.
New Director of Rowing
St Peter’s Girls is pleased to announce that Brynley Millward has been appointed Director of Rowing.
Brynley is already a familiar face at Saints Girls, having coached our 1st VIII to their best result at a Head of the River regatta earlier this year. He has been an Assistant Coach with the South Australian Sports Institute’s Rowing Program since 2017 and was Head Coach of the 2019 Pathway Squad State Team. He is also highly experienced working in schools, having acted as Head of Rowing at Walford, among other senior roles.
Brynley starts next week and we look forward to his leadership in propelling Saints Girls’ Rowing to even greater success.
Sports News
ATHLETICS
Eastern Districts Little Athletics recently held their awards presentation where Lauren Disney (Year 3) was named U9-U11 Club Champion; she also claimed two Club records for 60m Hurdles and 100m. Amelia Lucas (Year 7) was named Club Champion in U13 as well as receiving the Most Improved Athlete award.
At the State Metropolitan Athletics Carnival, Amelia Lucas finished 6th in the 100m Final and helped her team finish 2nd in the 4x100m relay. Chloe Richardson (Year 5) won Silver in the 800m and Isla Fahey (Year 4) won bronze medals in the 800m and 1500m events.
BASKETBALL
Well done to Sophie Blight (Year 5) who played in the U12 Girls’ Reserves division in the Junior Basketball State Championships. Her team won all six matches and were announced the U12 Girls’ Reserves State Champions.
NETBALL
Congratulations to Sophie Ricciuto, Charlie Piper, Lilli Bennett and Mathilda Thomas (all Year 7) who have been selected to represent East Adelaide at the State Primary School Netball Championships from 17 – 20 June in Week 8. We wish all four girls the very best of luck.
AUSSIE RULES FOOTBALL
Open A – Saints 1.2-8 defeated by Scotch 7.8-50
Despite the score not being in our favour, the girls played a great match of footy. There was massive improvement from the previous game, highlighting the dedication amongst these players. The girls fought hard and never gave up. Special mention goes to the defence line who persevered throughout. In particular, Millie Wilkin took the lead in full-back and demonstrated some true footy talent. Anda Ceplite must also have a special mention for her hard work, laying some excellent tackles and strong kicks. The girls worked well together to produce a solid footy game and we hope to see further improvement in the next match. – Isabella Bernardi (Captain)
Middle B – Saints 1.1-7 defeated by Scotch 8.9-57
The team had a tough match against Scotch. They did play a much-improved game, exhibiting teamwork and good sportsmanship. The girls have improved their gameplay in weekly trainings and that was reflected on the field. Charlie Fishlock, our Captain, showed Scotch how it’s done. Her amazing tackles and marks wowed spectators and her teammates. Chloe Porter (Year 8) and Emily Bryce (Year 8) played amazingly well. Both girls had a good game with their accurate kicks, marks and athleticism in being able to run through the middle of the ground. Our goalscorer was Indya Dodd who took a strong mark close to goal and made no mistake with the set kick. – Emily Baldwinson (Year 9)
BADMINTON
No Games
HOCKEY
Open A – Saints 2 defeated by Scotch 5
The girls faced a very strong opposition. Although we had a lot of defensive play, we were able to create many scoring opportunities and converted 2 goals. The girls have improved immensely since our first game against Trinity, and the season ahead seems very exciting. Holly Cardone and Bridgette Leach played extremely well in the midfield and were vital players in connections from defence to our strikers. Congratulation to our two goal scorers, Amelie Eaton and Holly Cardone! Despite the result, Saints has a very promising year for hockey and we look forward to seeing the team progress. – Olivia Goldsmith (Captain)
Open B – Saints 3 defeated Scotch 0
The girls played a well-structured game resulting in another fantastic win. Imogen Nienaber scored 2 short corner goals and Tilly McCormack scored her first goal. The team’s defence was strong, making it difficult for Scotch to get beyond the halfway line which was very pleasing. – Will Stapleton (coach)
Year 5/6 – Saints 5 defeated Loreto 1
Friday’s game was the first for the Year 5/6 team. The girls started off slowly but began to play great team hockey in the second half, passing the ball into space and creating some good opportunities. Attacking hockey saw Winnie Vartuli score a hat-trick and Januri Wagaarachchi playing solidly in the back-line, finishing off with 2 goals of her own. – Jacob Evans (Coach)
Year 3/4 – Saints 8 defeated Seymour 0
The girls played very well for their first match together. All used strong basic skills practised at training including strength over the ball when tackling and accurate passing to other players. If we ensure the use of spare space for both ball and player movement, we will end up being a very well-rounded and strong team. Well done to the players who agreed to assist Seymour who were short of players to face Wilderness in a second match. – Carla Lawrence (Coach)
LACROSSE
Under 13 – Saints 14 defeated St Aloysius 1
The girls started off strongly in our first quarter, scoring 5 goals and consistently getting the ball out of the centre. This continued throughout the second quarter. At half-time, we started playing Mercy Rules as SAC had not scored a goal. We continued strongly even with the girls shooting goals left handed and passing three times before going to goal. The final score was 14 – 1 with SAC scoring in the last quarter. – Caitlyn Grayson (Captain)
Under 11 Blue – Saints 3 defeated by East Torrens/Payneham 7
The girls were all very eager to play Round 3 against ETP. Chelsea Francis (Year 3) was a great defender and moved around the goal in attack to a position where she could shoot hard. In attack, Lilly Meo (Year 3) did well at being the next pass and catching the ball. Ruby Kelly (Year 3) also moved well in attack and was our terrific goalie in the second half. Amelia Lively (Year 3) ran fast up the field and threw the ball long for the attackers to run onto. Matilda Birmingham (Year 3) did a great job at bending down and fighting for ground balls. Using her speed, Neela (Year 3) ran up and down the field, intercepting the ball several times. It was a great effort by all. Goal scorers were Ruby (1) and Amelia (2). Best players were Neela and Amelia. – Lucy Martin (Coach)
Under 11 White – Saints 2 defeated by St Dominic’s 4
This was a difficult game against St Dominic’s with the score being relatively close for the majority of the match. Excellent running and speed was shown by all members of the team, with our ability to move the ball quickly down to attack improving. We will need to practise sticking to our players with the one-on-one rule, shifting to defence and goal positioning. With the score being even until the final few minutes of the game, the team did a great job and tried their hardest when placed under pressure! Top players were Claris who scored 2 goals and Anvika Singh who did an excellent job in goals for the second week in a row! Looking forward to coaching the U11s for the next few weeks. – Sophie Auricht (Coach)
NETBALL
Years 7 – 12 – No Games
Year 6 Blue – Saints 13 defeated Pembroke Blue 9
The girls played a very fast moving second game against Pembroke Blue. The defence shone throughout as there were many intercepts and turnovers achieved by being in front of their players. The girls communicated well, and they have managed to play well while building good friendships together. I would like to congratulate all the girls on such a tremendous game, not only because of how they played but also because they pushed themselves out of their comfort zone and tried positions they weren’t as confident in. Two girls who shone were Winnie Vartuli, as she turned over many balls and shot well in GA, and Nellie Ion who was the star player; although she may be the smallest of the team, she held her own in defence, turned over countless balls, and pressured players, throwing them off their game. Well done girls on such an amazing second game. – Chloe Venning (Coach)
Year 6 White – Saints 4 defeated by Pembroke Green 13
The girls played a very good game, using skills learnt in training to improve. Even though they lost, with some improvements in shooting and passing, they will be fierce competitors in the future. Jerri Wu, Emily Bates, Olivia Reynolds and Charlotte Udall put up a very strong defence, getting intercepts and rebounds. Tina Xiao, Arabella W and Sophia Langley played a very fast game in the centre third. Savannah Walls, Grace Jones, Matilda Powell and Alyssa Piantedosi all played shooters, with some of the best shooting so far! Well done girls. – Sivanthi Sivasuthan
Year 5 Blue – Saints 1 defeated by Seymour White 6
The girls are really starting to play as a team, reading each other more effectively as the season is coming along. Our defensive pressure was again very good and our backline throw-ins were fluid. I would like to commend Jiahui Zhang on her performance. She listened to and demonstrated all of the instructions given to her by her coaching team during practice and the match. She took many intercepts and was vital in the backline set up. – Rebecca Scott-Toms (Coach)
SOCCER
Open A – Saints 0 drew with Mercedes 0
The team had a great game against Mercedes. Everyone played with such passion and enthusiasm, and we were exhausted by the end. The game was such an arm-wrestle and resulted in a draw. Lucy Benn and Adele Russell did an excellent job in goals, saving many great shots. We also had Anushka Rajbhoj and Emily Elston playing up in the As this week and they did a top job in fulfilling their roles. Millie Wilkin played left-back for the first time and did amazingly well, staying on her player and stopping the ball from being crossed into the box. Isabella Villani and Olivia Law had several terrific runs up front and some great attempts at goal. Our Coach, Dion, was very pleased with our efforts and our ability to implement the skills we’ve been working on in trainings. In the coming weeks, we will focus on our shooting and will continue to improve our skills! – Ellie Anderson (Captain)
Open B – Saints 0 defeated by Woodcroft 3
The Open Bs had a good game with all girls playing well, particularly as we were one player short. Stella Clark, Sara Peak and Amelie Eaton provided strong defence, with a single communications error leading to a Woodcroft goal. The score at half-time could easily have been more without the work of the girls in defence and some excellent saves from Matilda Braithwaite. Imogen Parkinson had an amazing run, going past several players but, unfortunately, the ball landed on the roof of the net after she tried to chip the goal keeper. An excellent individual goal from one of the Woodcroft girls in the second half made the score 0-2. Saints maintained strong pressure with several shots just drifting either side of the posts; Emily Downie and Louisa Reid were particularly unlucky after good build up play from Molly Bond and Michelle Rupert who began dominating midfield. Shooting practice next week girls. – Steve Benn (Coach)
Middle A – Saints 4 defeated Saints Middle B 0
Due to Seymour forfeiting, the Middle A and Middle B soccer teams played an internal match. The girls showed great improvements from their last game and have already started to demonstrate the skills and tactics we’ve been working on in training. Special mention to Apurva Ichalkaranje who was a valuable player for the team in both midfield and defence. Similarly, Lysiane Franchi worked tirelessly in the forward line and created many opportunities for the team to score. I am looking forward to the next match to see the girls improve again and to hopefully secure another win. – Dom Rigby (Coach)