Winter Tournament Week – it’s a wrap!
10 Sep 2019
The winter sport season culminated in Winter Tournament Week, from Saturday 31 August–Saturday 7 September. From Hamilton to Dunedin, and other towns in between, there were over one hundred College students and staff involved in the various events.
Cycling
College cycling travelled to Blenheim for the annual two-day tour, which consists of four events over two days. Jack Drage achieved a 6th in the U20 road race and 7th in the hill climb. Michael Audeau claimed College’s only podium finish when, after being 4th in the U17 time trial and 6th in the hill climb, he finished 1st in the road race. This was a great achievement, as he had been involved in a crash early on in the race, but despite this setback, Michael and teammate Fearghus Bratten set about chasing the leaders and managed to join them on the final lap. Michael won the final sprint by a bike length and Fearghus finished amongst the leading bunch of riders.
Football
The 1st XI football team finished 4th in the local premier competition, which qualified them for the national premier tournament in Napier, involving the top 32 teams from across the country. In pool play there were losses to Mount Albert Grammar School and Scots College, and an agonising 1–0 loss to New Plymouth Boys’ High School. The team claimed their first win halfway through the week when they defeated Otago Boys’ High School 3–1. This match was followed by a very good 3–2 win over St Patrick’s College, Silverstream, from Wellington. The team finished 26th overall and, with a large number of the squad returning next year, gained valuable experience from the tournament.
Basketball
Basketball had a very busy week with three teams involved in tournaments.
In Dunedin, the junior team started with three good wins in pool play, before a 96–57 quarter-final win against John McGlashan College. This meant a semi-final against cross town rivals Christchurch Boys’ High School. The team led 31–10 after the first quarter and never relinquished their lead, easily booking a place in the South Island final against King’s High School. A much tighter match saw College lead for the majority of the game, eventually securing a 71–54 win and the South Island title.
The Senior B team were involved in the Southern Cup in Christchurch. At the end of three days play the team finished 5th with only one loss. Wins over Shirley Boys’ High School B and Kaiapoi High School saw the team top their pool, before a loss in the quarter-final to Rolleston College took them out of contention. Playing in the semi-finals, College defeated Hagley College 62–54 before beating SBHS for the second time to claim 5th place.
The Senior A side were in Nelson for the South Island premier tournament. The team had five pool matches, with wins over Waitaki Boys’ High School, Lincoln High School and Papanui High School, and losses to Middleton Grange and St Andrew’s College who both went on to make the tournament final. Finishing third in their pool meant they missed a quarter-final spot, but they rallied to win their last three matches against St Thomas of Canterbury College, CBHS and Rangiora High School to claim 9th place. In the game against St Thomas, the team won 112–109 in overtime, with Josh Book scoring 56 points.
Hockey
College hockey saw the Colts team travel to Hamilton for the Tanner Cup, while the 1st XI stayed in Christchurch for the Rankin Cup.
The Tanner Cup is a 12 team invitational tournament, with a number of the top hockey schools in New Zealand involved. College began the week with a loss to Palmerston North Boys’ High School and a win over Lindisfarne College to make the play-offs from pool play. In the first play-off match College came up against a strong Westlake Boys’ High School, and losses to StAC and King’s College saw the Colts team finish 8th overall.
The Rankin Cup tournament was in Christchurch for the first time in a number of years. College topped their pool, with wins over Hutt International Boys’ School and Taupo College and a draw against Tauranga Boys’ College. In the round of 16, the 1st XI played one of their best matches of the season, eventually losing 2–1 to tournament finalists Timaru Boys’ High School. The team finished the week with a win over Paraparaumu College, an overtime loss to Whangarei Boys’ High School, and a 3–2 victory over Auckland Grammar to finish 11th in the country.
Rugby
Christ’s College played host to the U16 Quad rugby tournament and the U15 South Island Invitational rugby tournament.
The U16 Quad saw College play matches against John McGlashan College, Nelson College and StAC. After three days of tough, competitive matches, College had a 21–10 win over StAC and two 5 point losses to Nelson and JMC.
The U15 team had three pool matches against Marlborough Boys’ College, Waitaki Boys’ High School and Southland Boys’ High School. Two initial wins saw College and SBHS square off to determine top of the pool and a place in the final. In wet conditions, College prevailed 15–12 and went on to play Timaru Boys’ High School in the tournament final. The weather continued to be wet and cold, but College got the better of them to win 17–12 and claim the South Island title for the first time.
On behalf of the College community I would like to thank all staff and coaches for their time and effort over Tournament Week, and all the boys for being such great ambassadors for the school.
