Rowing

‘on water training time’ was quickly making an impact with their rowing technique. Also getting selection right is always challenging in the sport of rowing and it’s important to present a fair and transparent process to the boys competing for a seat in a higher crew. I believe as the season progressed all the boys in Year groups (10 to 12) at least understood what was required to reach the performance targets to move up to a higher crew.

RACE SEASON

The weather for the 2014 GPS racing season was once again changeable at best. No-one could predict which side of the course the wind would impact on the most from one week to the next. Everyone is aware Kawana is not a fair rowing course and usually the wind had an impact on the overall set of race results.

At the Junior Head of the River TSS finished up with the unofficial title of ‘GPS Junior Rowing Champions’. In the top seven races TSS did not finish outside the top two places, winning three races and coming second in the other four races. This was a credit to coaching staff and the excellent management skills of the two Junior Coordinators, Daisy Stubberfield and Kim Day.

The Year 8s’ regatta took place on the week before the Head of the River and TSS took a large number of crews up to Kawana for their first competitive race of the season. Everyone was surprised by the high quality of the technique demonstrated by the youngest rowers from TSS. Every crew from TSS went through the Year 8 regatta undefeated, often winning by large margins. Well done to Head Coach Charles Robinson and his Year 8 coaching team, I look forward to watching this age group progress in 2015.

The traditional Old Boys Dinner was once again well attended and the stories from young and old TSS rowers circulated the dinning room on the night. Bruce Wright, an Old Boy First VIII rower, was the Master of Ceremonies and Islay Lee gave the speech to the Open crews on the night. There was great expectation leading into the Head of the River as TSS had gone through the season with a number of wins and looked well placed to be in contention for a top three finish in both the Old Boys Cup and the First VIII race.

HEAD OF THE RIVER

On the big day at Kawana TSS started the regatta with some strong performances in the highly competitive Year 10 age group. There is a feeling that some boys do struggle at first with the significant rise in GPS competition from the Year 9 race program to the more challenging Year 10 regatta season. The results from the top six divisions go towards the Old Boys Cup, so it was pleasing to see four of the Year 10 crews finish in the top three places, with the Second TSS Quad and the Fourth Quad winning their races on the day.

Year 10 Quad Race 1 1500m Div 8: TSS 3rd Div 7: TSS 5th Div 5: TSS 2nd

Div 4: TSS 1st Div 3: TSS 6th Div 2: TSS 1st Div 1: TSS 4th

In the Year 11 race program TSS performed really well, just missing out on a 1st place, and all three crews finishing in medal positions. Year 11 Eight Race 1 2000m Div 3: TSS 2nd Div 2: TSS 2nd Div 1: TSS 3rd

In the Open series TSS went into the Head of the River ranked ‘number one’ and allocated the middle lane at the start line. Nudgee had just come through a disrupted season, but still looked like the ones to beat with a strong and physical crew. The TSS Third VIII rowed really well and were pleased with their second place at the Head of River. The Second VIII timed their run perfectly and were thrilled to row so well on the day to win a great race. Each year for all First VIII rowers there is considerable pressure to perform well and put in a peak performance. The word had been circulated to go hard at the start, but unfortunately taking the lead early and setting such a fast pace was too difficult to sustain. In the end the First VIII left nothing in the tank and gave it everything, just slipping back the order as the race reached the finish tower. A great season, but not the result the boys had dreamt of back in December 2013.

Open Eight Race 1 2000m Div 3: TSS 2nd Div 2: TSS 1st Div 1: TSS 5th

In the end TSS finished a handful of points just behind Nudgee to claim a creditable second in the Old Boys cup. It was close-fought encounter and after a big six months of training the rowers, coaches and parents all drove back to the TSS to enjoy a very entertaining presentation dinner on the banks of the Nerang River. In conclusion I would like to thank all the coaches for their many hours of expertise spent helping the boys on the local Gold Coast waterways. I could not have led the program without the considerable support from the executive team of Daniel Trollope, Greg Christian, Bruce Wright, Iain Smith and Dave Hamilton. All these men put in the long hours (equipment, administration, coordination, set-up and coaching) behind the scenes to give the boys the best possible opportunity to produce a peak performance on each and every race day. I would also like to thank Stephen Scotchmer in his role as President of the rowing support and his team of parents who helped throughout the season. The increased staff involvement from members of the senior boarding community also added a level of support to the program we have not had in the past. I think the boys appreciated seeing so many teachers supporting their efforts and giving some valuable advice throughout the season.

Finally a big thank you to the leaders of the sport, Liam and Phillip, for all their support through-out the season. They are two very mature young men who made a big impact across the whole Shed. There was a great spirit among all the boys and the cohesion shown at the Shed highlighted the special teamwork required to perform in this sport. For most of the seniors this will be their last season of rowing in TSS colours and for many it will have been their fourth or fifth season on the water. I would like to wish them every success in the future and thank you all for representing TSS Rowing so well. I look forward to seeing some of you back as ‘Old Boys’ at the Head of River in 2015.

OPEN FIRST VIII

LEFT TO RIGHT: MR G. CHRISTIAN (COACH), L. CLIFTON, J. HARDY, P. BARBERA, J. BRANCH, J. DARCY, B. LUND, P. CIALDELLA, C. JOSS, S. PARKES

OPEN THIRD VIII

LEFT TO RIGHT: MR I. HAWLEY (COACH), C. CAMPBELL, C. BARRELL, T. GREENUP, C. PELS, J. WHATMORE, C. UPTON, B.WILLIAMS, C. CLOSE, A. STEPHENSON

YEAR 11 SECOND VIII

LEFT TO RIGHT: M. UNDERWOOD, C. WELLS, D. RADEL, H. MAYSON, C. DALTON, J. CURTIS, J. NEALE, B. BOWEN ABSENT: B. WALLACE, MR. J. KING (COACH)

YEAR 10 SECOND QUAD OPEN SECOND VIII – GPS CHAMPIONS

LEFT TO RIGHT: MR B WRIGHT, J. HENWOOD, M. CLOSE, P.J. VAN DEN BERG, C. WALKER, S. BEAR, J. PARKER, M. BROWNE, S. GOUDY, E. SHIELDS

YEAR 11 FIRST VIII

LEFT TO RIGHT: J. BRICKNELL, S. SCOTT, M. SIMMONS, L. FINLAY, J. GILES, J. KLEMENTSEN, C. BETTLES, Z. MCFARLANE, S. SANDEMAN ABSENT: MR. R. COOPER (COACH)

YEAR 10 FIRST QUAD

LEFT TO RIGHT: J. MIBUS, L. MAXWELL, L. UPFIELD, L. MYATT ABSENT: W. ALEXANDER, MR. D. HAMILTON (COACH)

YEAR 10 THIRD QUAD

YEAR 10 QUADS

LEFT TO RIGHT: B. GALLAGHER, P. GEE, T. WALSH, A. HALSTEAD, J.H. MIN, J. LAYT, D. HOPKINS, T. LACEY ABSENT: Z. BALTUS, A. MURRAY, T. AITCHISON, V. NIKITIN, J. CLOUGH, D. CONNOLLY, R. WOOD, R. BUREY, J. RASHEED, L. OXENFORD, E. CHEN, T. STUART, N. POTTER, T. BEASLEY, S. CURRAN, F. CHEN, D. O’NEILL, A. JANE

FIRST QUAD

LEFT TO RIGHT: F. MARONEY-VITA, O. MORRIS, J. GRAY (FRONT), H. SMITH, C. KENNEDY, MR E. WALKER (COACH) YEAR 8 FIRST QUAD

LEFT TO RIGHT: T. WRIGHT, T. VAN DER SCHYFF, F. BAILDON, H. COX ABSENT: T. EDMUNDS, MR. C. ROBINSON (COACH)

SECOND QUAD

LEFT TO RIGHT: R. HAGBECK, J. HUTCHISON, E. CHEN J. THORNBURGH, K. LOWE, MR E. WALKER (COACH)

THIRD QUAD

LEFT TO RIGHT: H. MCSORRILEY, W. BROWNING, K. BARRY, J. ROTHERAM, A. GILES, MR C. KAFRITSAS (COACH)

FIFTH QUAD FOURTH QUAD

LEFT TO RIGHT: O. SHERRAH, T. MEO, E. SETCHELL, L. GILLETT, MR C. KAFRITSAS (COACH) ABSENT: F. CHEN

SIXTH QUAD

SEVENTH QUAD

LEFT TO RIGHT: MS K. DAY (COACH), H. CUFFE, K. JO, W. DOBRENOV, J. HICKMAN, J. CASKEY EIGHTH QUAD

LEFT TO RIGHT: S. PAYNE, MS K. DAY (COACH), W. CUFFE, J. RUTHERFORD, K. RUTHERFORD, D. CONNOLLY

TENTH QUAD

LEFT TO RIGHT: L. NONA, R. GALL, W. KEMP, C. WHAP, S. MOFFAT, MR B. EFRON (COACH)

ALEX KELLEY

Junior Rugby Coordinator

JUNIOR RUGBY

This year we entered 15 teams in the Gold Coast competition, with more than 160 TSS Prep boys participating. Under 6 (5 teams) Under 7 (3 teams) Under 8 (3 teams) Under 9 (2 teams) Under 10 (2 teams)

All teams performed extremely well and showed significant improvement across the 2014 season. The season was extended by four weeks, providing the boys with 20 weekends of Rugby games. This year we continued with a formalised training structure focusing on developing the key skills at each age level, and also featuring a component that developed the coaching skills of our parent coaches. GPS coaches and teachers were involved during the first half of the season supporting the development of coaches and teaching the TSS way. The new Junior Rugby structure, each age group training together, also supported the notion of playing for TSS as opposed to individual teams as boys progress through the age levels in Junior Rugby. Each year the boys will move into different teams, giving them the opportunity to play with a large number of their peers and experience the wisdom and knowledge of a variety of team coaches. I congratulate all boys on their involvement and commitment this year. The level of participation and enjoyment was clear to see when travelling to the different club grounds and watching the boys play. They played to the best of their ability and showed great sportsmanship throughout the season.

The Junior Rugby program would not run without the support of our parent volunteers who have given up Wednesday afternoons and Saturday mornings to assist each team. I sincerely thank you for your involvement. The following dedicated and enthusiastic parents must be acknowledged:

UNDER 6 Red...................................Amy Stapleton Black ..........Sean Babbage, Alana Beattie White .......... Kent Leicester, Tim Powell Blue.................................. Joe Ghoussain Maroon:.....Libby Howard, Ben Skubris

UNDER 7

White .......................Ian James, Tony Sly Blue.......... Denis Ivory, Michael Furnell Maroon..........David Nye, Sarah Massey

UNDER 8

Maroon.............................. John Stuckey Blue................. Ben Illes, Justin Nickalls White .....Dean Evans, Max Christensen

UNDER 9

Blue...... Fergus Trevethan, Ross Jurisich, Jonathan Grasso Maroon................. Lindsay Close, Austin Whittaker, Justin Nickalls

UNDER 10

Maroon................Spencer Attoe, George Geldenhuys Blue............... Remwell Melia, Ian Faber

Thank you also to Vanessa Behan and Karen Boston for getting the Prep Pavilion operating each weekend. Their efforts were huge and providing a great service to the Gold Coast Rugby community. The support of parents, grandparents and TSS supporters is also greatly appreciated. The transporting of boys to games and support from the sidelines is such an important part of the boys’ sporting experience.

In 2015 we hope to enter more teams into the Gold Coast competition and continue to develop the skills of our coaches and players.