Sports and Activities

Sport and Activities

MR TONY TREGASKIS, HEAD OF SPORT AND ACTIVITIES

Well, what a tumultuous year we have had! Who would have thought in 2019 that the world would be turned upside down by a pandemic? Borders shut, places in lockdown, shortages of toilet paper, restrictions on gatherings, people standing a minimum of 1.5 meters apart and the sporting world thrown into chaos with historic events being cancelled, like Wimbledon, and postponed, like the Tokyo Summer Olympics and the Tour de France.

It wasn't just the big-ticket sporting events; a number of local, Regional, Queensland and Australian School Sport events were also axed. Community sport suffered, with some seasons failing to make it through to finals while other sports cancelled entire seasons and some sports came up with revised competitions, with significant restrictions on numbers at events, social distancing, regular use of hand sanitiser and disinfecting of equipment.

Our girls agonised with all of these but still they craved the physical activity, competition and friendly social interaction that sport supplies. The Interhouse sporting calendar that Fairholme College supplies yearly has been significant in developing in our students a strong culture based on participation, loyalty to their House and often fierce rivalry. The energy and passion from a March Past, Boarders verse Day Girls or a Tug ‘o’ War is something that needs to be seen to be believed; even bottled.

Given the disruption to the Fairholme College sporting calendar, our sport staff and the school believed that it was highly important for our girls to still be involved in these activities in a COVID-safe environment. The continuation of Fairholme's strong culture was evident in our COVID Cup Virtual Cross Country and then the COVID Cup Athletics Carnival. There were no records, no age champions, no staff-versus-student relays and, unfortunately, no parents or spectators. What we did have was passion, gusto, heaps of participation, energy, House loyalty and a fierce rivalry for the 2020 COVID Cup; hopefully for the one and only year. Fairholme College set the tone for another outstanding year of achievements in Sport, including being named Sports Darling Downs Secondary School of the Year for 2019. Unfortunately, within two months a significant number of our athletes' hopes were dashed. The number of School Sport representative players dropped significantly from previous years, as many sports simply had no pathway in which to compete. For those that did have an opportunity, they represented Fairholme proudly. Remarkably, 53 girls represented the Darling Downs and 8 were selected in Queensland teams.

TEAM HIGHLIGHTS AND ACHIEVEMENTS

• Senior and Junior Vicki Wilson number 1 teams were invited to State finals. The Junior team finishing 9th . • Queensland All Schools Touch Football – U13 and Open teams made the finals. • Toowoomba Secondary School Sport Swimming Champions

INDIVIDUAL HIGHLIGHTS AND ACHIEVEMENTS

• Basketball: 3 Darling Downs Representatives • Cricket: 5 Darling Downs Representatives • Equestrian: 4 Queensland Representatives • Golf: 1 Darling Downs Representative • Hockey: 2 Darling Downs Representatives • Netball: 6 Darling Downs Representatives • Rugby Union 7s: 4 Representatives • Swimming: 9 Darling Downs Representatives • Tennis: 1 Darling Downs Representative • Touch: 7 Darling Downs Representatives • Triathlon: 11 Darling Downs and 3 Queensland Representatives • Track and Field: 1 Queensland Representative • Volleyball: 3 Darling Downs Representatives • Water Polo: 2 Darling Downs Representatives • Medals at Darling Downs Swimming: 20 Gold, 12 Silver, 5 Bronze • Medals at National Track and Field Championships: 1 Bronze

AFL

• AFL Queensland Schools Cup competition cancelled

BASKETBALL

• 3 Friday Night TSSS teams – competition was cancelled at Semi-Finals. All 3 teams (Yr 7/8, Yr 9/10 and Yr 11/12) made it through to Semi-Finals. • U18 Darling Downs Armstrong Automotive Basketball Challenge Champions • Year 7/8 and Year 10 Darling Downs Armstrong Automotive Basketball Challenge cancelled. • Darling Downs Representatives: 1 in 10-12yrs and 1 in 13-15yrs competitions

CHESS

• Teams and individuals competing at Toowoomba schools tournament

CRICKET

• StreetSmart Secondary Schools T20 Queensland cancelled • 5 Darling Downs Representatives

CROSS COUNTRY

• Interhouse Carnival: Cancelled. Virtual Cross Country run from home. Champions: Black House • Toowoomba Secondary School and Darling Downs events cancelled

EQUESTRIAN

• Convenors of Fairholme IQ Show Jumping, Pittsworth • Darling Downs Championships cancelled • 4 Queensland Certificate of Merit members (no official Queensland Team) – Phoebe Riordan, Kaida MacDonald, Charlotte Ostwald, Torra MacDonald • Queensland Interschool results for Fairholme - Champion Secondary Show Jumping School, Champion Primary Show Jumping School, The Harry Lebherz Trophy for Champion Primary School and Reserve Champion Show Horse Team

FUTSAL

• 3 Association Teams • 2 SWQ Futsal Teams • 3 Term 4 Competition Teams

GOLF

• 1 Darling Downs Representative

HOCKEY

• 1 Association Team – School Club link with North’s Hockey Club • 2 Darling Downs Representatives • Darling Downs Schools Cup and Queensland All Schools Cup cancelled

NETBALL

• 27 Association Teams – Saturday and Wednesday nights – 6 Association Teams Grand Finalists in respective divisions, 4 Teams Premiers. • Junior Vicki Wilson and Senior Vicki Wilson Regionals cancelled • Senior Vicki Wilson Team 16th in Queensland finals • Junior Vicki Wilson Team 9th in Queensland finals • Laura Geitz Shield Competition – Champions • 6 Darling Downs Representatives

ORIENTEERING

• Darling Downs and Queensland Championships cancelled

RUGBY LEAGUE

• Darling Downs Trials cancelled

RUGBY UNION 7s

• Over 50 girls training and playing in U13, U15 and U18 • Scots PGC 7s - U15 Champions and U18 Runners Up • South West 7s Competition – U13 Champions, U15 – Runners Up, U18 – Semi-Finalists

SOFTBALL

• Golden Glove Darling Downs cancelled

SWIMMING

• Interhouse Carnival Champions – Black House • Toowoomba Secondary School Sport Swimming Trophies – Overall Champion School, Age Champions 13s, 14s, 16s, U19 and Open, and 3rd in 15s and Relay Champions (winning every relay) • 9 Darling Downs Representatives • Medals – Darling Downs – 20 x Gold, 12 x Silver, 5 x Bronze • Naia Anderson announced Darling Downs Swimming Captain • Senior, Middle and Junior School Swimming Tournaments

TENNIS

• Knowles Cup Tournament • Sacre Coeur Tournament cancelled • 1 Darling Downs Representative • Queensland Secondary School Cup – Regional Champions, 7th in State

TOUCH

• 61 players participating in Queensland Performance Academy at Fairholme • 7 Association Teams – competition cancelled • 5 Summer Touch Teams • 7 Darling Downs Representatives • Queensland All Schools Tournament – 3 teams, U13 top eight, U15 narrowly missing round of 16 and Open top-16 finish • SWQ Tournament cancelled • All Hallows’ Tournament cancelled • A Grade Summer Competition semi-finalists

TRACK AND FIELD

• COVID Interhouse Champions – Black House • Toowoomba Secondary School Sport Athletics cancelled • Darling Downs School Sport Athletics cancelled • 1 Queensland Representative – Layn Arnold 3rd in National Triple Jump (December 2019) • Nitro Athletics (previous Knockout competition) cancelled

TRIATHLON

• 11 Darling Downs Representatives • 3 Queensland Representatives – Celeste Pratt, Hannah Pollock and Georgia Sloss • Queensland School Sport Triathlon Championships cancelled

VOLLEYBALL

• 4 Association Teams • 3 Darling Downs Representative • Semester 2 TVA Women’s Reserve competition - 1st place, Women’s B - 3rd place • Semester 1 TVA competition cancelled • Queensland Schools Cup participation in Senior (7th in State) • Darling Downs Senior Schools Cup cancelled

WATER POLO

• 1 Association Team • 2 Darling Downs Representatives

OLYMPIC CHANGE MAKER AWARD 2020

Awarded by Queensland Olympic Council for outstanding sporting achievements, commendable sporting behaviour and exemplary leadership to: Paige Carpenter.

INTERHOUSE OVERALL CHAMPION HOUSE:

Black House