Merchistonian Newsletter
30.06.23
June 2023
June marks the end of our Academic Year at Merchiston. With our Graduation ceremony taking place tomorrow, we will be saying goodbye to our graduating class of 2023. The last few weeks have been punctuated by many End of Year events including Prize Giving, Game Days and the Sportsman's Dinner.
These events are incredibly important occasions in the School’s Calendar as we celebrate all of the successes and achievements of our pupils and staff throughout the current Academic Year. And there has been much success to celebrate indeed. From historic sporting wins to academic prizes –from industry awards to charitable activities; our boys have had an incredible year and that extends far beyond the student body to include our staff, parents and Alumni as they have all played a role in supporting, inspiring and guiding the boys towards their achievements.
[continues on next column]
As we prepare to draw this year to a close, we would like to thank everyone who has kindly supported us throughout the last few months and continue to do so year on year to allow us to offer our boys an outstanding education and a great place to grow into Young Men of Integrity.
British Weight Lifting
British Weight Lifting (BWL) have recently announced the team who will be representing Great Britain at the next European Weightlifting Federation (EWF) Junior & Under 23 Championships in Bucharest in July.
We were delighted to hear that amongst the selected group is one of our own Merchistonians, Henry Axon (MCS 20182021). Henry will be competing in the M96 Junior category and is the only Scottish weightlifter in this GB team.
Huge congratulations to Henry and we are looking forward to watching his talent bloom, as he approaches the international stage.
Good luck Henry with your training and competition!
Reunion - Class of 1993
The last Reunion of this Academic Year took place on Saturday 25th June as we welcomed back to the School the graduating Class of 1993. As they gathered into the Old Library for some refreshments, it was brilliant to hear the enthusiasm and chatter in the room – a long overdue catch-up for some and a chance to reminisce over their time together at School.
Old photographs made their way out of the archives, courtesy of Mr Rossiter, covering all their years at Merchiston – even some brilliant early photographs of their time as Juniors in Pringle.
The visit continued with a tour of the old stomping ground and moved offsite for a much-deserved pint (touring the entire School on the hottest day of the year, deserves a reward) and some delicious lunch!
It was a pleasure having them back and we look forward to the next Reunion in the Autumn for the Class of 1973
Merchistonians in Tennis
With Wimbledon now close, there will be many tennis fans out there getting excited about the big event.
Obituaries
We were very saddened to hear of the passing of the following Merchistonians:
Mr David W Mitchell1933-2023
At Merchiston: 1945-1951
Earlier this month, the Merchiston community certainly got excited about the prospect of two of our Alumni playing in the men's double at one of the hottest Tennis appointments of the year.
Jacob Fearnley & Johannus Monday, respectively Merchiston class of 2019 and 2020, recently lifted their first ATP Challenger trophy at the Rothesay Open in Nottingham. The pair, who won the men’s doubles, defeated the Lexus Surbiton Trophy champions Liam Broady and Jonny O’Mara 6-3, 67(6), 10-7 in the final.
Jacob and Johannus have been playing partners since their time at Merchiston and they have both recently finished the US collegiate season in the top 20 rankings Their hard work and ambition, as well as their love for the sport, have been evident since their Merchiston days and we are delighted to see their success and have no doubt it will continue to grow
Winning at ATP Challenger title is no mean feat, and we are delighted to hear they have been given a Wild Card to Wimbledon We look forward to seeing them on court – best of luck gents!
b of RA 1943, s of WB 1911; Jun Prefect, VI, Duffus Medal, xi, cols., CSM; RSF, att. Nigeria Regt , 1952-54, Lieut ; Dir , Hunter Timber, Scot , 1990-92; Jt Man Dir , M&N Norman (Timber) Ltd , 1992-96; Board of Craighalbert Centre for Children with Motor Impairment, 1992-96; Cncl. Member, CBI Scot , 1979-85; Exec Member, Scot Cncl (Devt and Industry), 1979-84, Council 1984-95; Pres., Scot. Timber Trade Assoc., 1980-82; Exec. Member, Inst. of Dirs. in Scot , 1983-88; Pres , Scot Cons and Unionist Assoc , 1980-82; Treas , Scot Cons Party, 1990-93 and 1998-01; Chair, Cumbernauld Devt. Corp., 1987-97; Chair, Scot Cons Party, 2001-04, Hon Pres
2004-
Mr Ronald H Lamb
1942-2023
At Merchiston: 1956-1961
b of MD 1953, s of JH 1923; School Captain, VI, Rogerson Prize, xv, 4 yrs , capt , 2 yrs , xi, 4 yrs , capt , R , 3 yrs , cols , Cadet Officer; St Edmund Hall Oxford 1961-65 MA, Dip. Public and Social Admin., OU xv, 196264, capt., 1964, 0 & C RFC tours to Africa, 1963 and Argentina, 1965, capt , Scot Trial, 1963, Scot Districts xv v S Africa, 1965; Man Dir., Doulton Glass Industries, 1971-78; Man. Dir., Doulton & Co., 1978-81; Dir., S. Pearson, 1979-81; Man Dir , Solaglas, 198195; Chair, Highway Glass Ltd , 1996-07; Chair, Fulmer Parish Council, 1992-; Chair, Fusion Glass Designs Ltd., 2006-; RFU Representative for Oxford Univ on RFU Council, 2006-
Mr Angus D Cowie
1971-2023
At Merchiston: 1980-1986
Agric Coll 1992
1XI wins Scottish School Cup
There is no doubt that 2022-23 has been a year of incredible sporting successes for Merchiston. Across the board, all our sporting teams and individuals have put in some incredible performances on countless fields, courts, courses, tracks.
The latest sporting feat came earlier this month as we witnessed our 1XI Cricket win a historic Scottish Schools Cup final against Stewart Melville. This incredible achievement is made all the more special considering that it was won against Schools of a much larger size in both the semi-final and final games.
With some excellent batting and bowling the boys manage to pull through a narrow game against Strathallan in the semi-final and played an excellent and consistent game in the final. Much credit is to be given to all the hard work these young men have put in in the last months of training together alongside what was for a lot of them a very busy exam schedule. A huge thank you to Mr Raikes and Mr Evans also for their expertise and coaching skills, which have paved the way and supported these boys throughout their journey to this historic victory The 1XI was also awarded the ‘Team of the Year’ at our Sportsman’s dinner last week
Last Friday evening Memorial Hall was the centre stage of our annual Sportsman’s Dinner. This event aims at celebrating all of the sporting successes across the cohort and the various disciplines that the School offers. In a variation on the usual format this year’s event started with the Junior School nominations and awards. Hosted by Mr Aitchison, the evening started off with a Q&A featuring some of the senior boys who shared their experience and advice with our younger pupils. Teamwork, commitment to community and the courage to try new things and learning from mistakes were all recurrent themes which, we hope, will inspire the younger generation of Merchistonians, not only on the sporting field, but also as they move through their school career and beyond.
Following the Junior awards, it was then the turn of the Senior School. Many successes indeed were mentioned including the Schools Cup victory for the Cricket 1XI, the Rugby 1XV and our Tennis Academy –alongside athletics medals & records, and incredible performances of our Golf Academy, throughout the entire season
[continues on next column]
The celebrations continued in the Dining Hall, were pupils had the opportunity to sit together with some of our Merchistonians who are now pursuing their sporting careers across the globe It was a very inspiring night and our warmest congratulations to all the nominees and prize recipients who worked hard throughout the year and represented Merchiston exemplarily
Merchistonian Golf Club
In the golfing world, our Merchistonian Golf Club has recently been on the course at Muirfield with a Team of 8, which included:
Iain Brechin (MCS 1979-84)
Gavin Thain (MCS 1979-85)
David Boswell (MCS 1983-89)
Stuart Riddell (MCS 1976-81)
Graham Fisher (MCS 1976-82)
John Mitchell (MCS 1983-88)
Colin Pratt (MCS 1982-88)
Donald McIntyre (MCS 1972-77)
The team had a glorious day out in East Lothian, encompassing bacon rolls, golf, lunch and yet more golf. This was a tightly fought match with scores all square at lunchtime, but Merchistonians managed to get their nose in front on the very last game in and won by a mere (but important!) half point
Mr Brechin, who organised the event, extends his thanks to all who took part, especially those that came from far and wide
Summer Opportunities
To the entire Merchistonian Network: Mr Charles Barber (MCS 2009-2019) is about to complete his undergraduate degree at Durham University and looking for some Summer Opportunities ahead of the start of his Master’s Degree in Business Management in the Autumn Term. If anyone has any internship opportunities or suggestions, please feel free to contact Mr Barber directly at charlesbarber75@gmail.com