Sports News
We had an incredible start to our Term 1 Cricket season. We were fortunate enough to field three cricket teams this year with a talented intake of Grade 8 cricketers. Although three teams does not seem like a lot, it must be noted that our cricket section over the years took a ‘small knock’ in terms of participation especially after the Covid-19 pandemic.
Mother Nature had the final say on a few occasions this season, however, we were still able to arrange Wednesday and Saturday fixtures throughout the season. The contribution from each and every cricketer, whether at practice or playing a match, has set a strong foundation for us to build on and create a vibrant and exciting cricket program at our school.
In addition to this, our 1st team cricket team recently had a tour of a lifetime to India. This was more than just a cricket tour as each member enjoyed and learnt various life lessons the beautiful country offered. Whilst in India, we were fortunate enough to visit various historical landmarks such as the Lotus Temple (Delhi) and the spectacular Taj Mahal (Agra). After an incredible few days sightseeing and taking in everything India had to offer, it finally came to the cricket side of things. Our 1st XI Cricket team took part in the International Schools Cricket League in Lucknow, India. The tournament consisted of teams from the various cities in India as well as teams from Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, Oman and Nepal. Our boys played a total of 6 games, losing the first 4 games and winning the last 2. Our cricket team continuously learnt from the challenges, conditions, and overall cricketing environment which was evident in the improvement and progress throughout the tournament.
This incredible experience put our boys in good spirit for our own Old Petrian’s T20 Cricket Festival. The team was determined to build on the Bowl Winner’s finish at last year’s tournament. Our 1st team Cricket Team only lost 1 game en route to the Cup-Final of the tournament. Unfortunately, our boys lost in the final and finished overall 2nd. This is still an incredible achievement as it shows the direction our whole cricket section is moving in.
We had an incredible start to our Term 1 Cricket season. We were fortunate to field Three cricket teams this year, with an intake of a talented group of Grade 8 Cricketers. Although three teams does not seem like a lot, however, our cricket section over the years took a ‘small knock’ in terms of participation, especially after the Covid-19 pandemic.
Mother nature had the final say on a few occasions this season, however, we were fortuitous to arrange Wednesday and Saturday fixtures throughout the season. The contribution from each and every cricketer, whether at practice or playing a match, has set a strong foundation for us to build on and create a vibrant and exciting cricket program at our school.
In addition to this, our 1st team cricket team recently had a tour of a lifetime to India. This was more than just a cricket tour as each member enjoyed and learnt from the various life lessons this beautiful country threw at us. Whilst in India, we were fortunate enough to visit various historical landmarks such as the Lotus Temple (Delhi) and the spectacular Taj Mahal (Agra). After an incredible couple of days sight seeing and taking in everything India had to offer, it finally came to the cricket side of things. Our 1st XI Cricket team took part in the International Schools Cricket League in Lucknow, India. The tournament consisted of teams from the various cities in India, as well as teams from Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, Oman and Nepal.
Our boys played a total of 6 games, losing the first 4 games and winning the last 2. Our cricket team continuously learnt from the challenges, conditions, and overall cricketing environment, which was evident in the improvement and progress throughout the tournament.
This incredible experience put our boys in good spirit for our own Old Petrian’s T20 Cricket Festival. The team was determined to build on the Bowl Winners finish at last years tournament. Our 1st team Cricket Team only lost 1 game on route to the Cup-Final of the tournament. Unfortunately our boys lost in the final and finished overall 2nd. This is still an incredible achievement, as it shows the direction our whole cricket section is moving in.
We are extremely proud of each and every cricketer and look forward to the continued growth of the cricket program at our school.
Congratulations on a successful Term 1 cricket season boys. Undoubtedly, our Term 3 season will only be better.
Hockey News
The hockey pre-season started with Friday Night Lights and Thursday Early Mornings which was a bit of an eye-opener for us all. We have had a few pre-season games and tournaments so far; our first team boys were placed 3rd at the St Dunstan's Challenge 2023 and our U16 girls were placed 15th at the St Andrew's U16 festival. The first team and U15 girls and the U15 boys started the season fantastically with wins against Curro Aurora. The U14's, too, provided some real excitement for the rest of the hockey fraternity.
The first team boys have played 5 games so far with 2 losses and 3 draws. The first team girls have played 2 games consisting of a win and a loss. The second team girls lost their first game to Randburg Hoërskool.
Recently, we had the Girls District 9 trials and a huge congratulations goes out to Jaime Meth who made it into the U1 Blue D9 team.
We are all very excited for the season ahead and a trip away to Uplands College.
Water Polo News
The water polo season started in September 2022 and finished in March 2023. Our matriculants continued to participate until they started final exams which, fortunately, meant that they were able to take part in the National Co-Ed Water Polo Tournament in October 2022. We had a total of 9 matriculants (7 in the girls team and 2 in the boys team) on tour which allowed us to achieve some wonderful results.
Our first team boys won all 7 of their games including a 10-3 win in the final, crowning them the champions. Ethan MacLeod and Aidan Davies were selected for the tournament team with Ethan being chosen as “Defender of the Tournament”. The first team girls won 4 of their 7 games with their quarter-final going to a nail-biting penalty shootout and the girls finished victorious. The team was placed 4th in the tournament with Georgia Moralee selected as part of the tournament team.
St Peter’s College was named the “Best Overall School” of the tournament having our girls and boys teams obtaining the highest placings across both sections.
The end of 2022 brought along a new team with the loss of our matric players. The boys’ strength was still prominent but the girls’ lack of Grade 10 and 11 players proved a rebuild was necessary with a lot of Grade 8 and 9 players being part of the senior team. The season has been difficult but they have continued to persevere and strive to become better players with a lot of growth taking place throughout the season.
In 2023, we had an influx of Grade 8 players for our junior section featuring provincial experience that was critical to our program. The boys placed 2nd in their league and played in an U14 Warriors festival winning all 7 of their games. They also had some great results in their triangular against Parktown Boys and St Albans College. The U14 girls were the only team able to field a full team (14 players) across all teams in the water polo sporting code. They won 50% of their games at the same U14 Warriors Festival as the boys, and they learnt a lot playing with and against more experienced players.
The second half of the season saw the teams going the extra mile and traveling to the St Peter’s Girls Prep for more pool time to expand their fitness and knowledge. Our First Team Boys continued to show their strength and placed 3rd in their league with some extra games against some of the best teams in Gauteng. The First Team Girls made the move to the B league as they rebuilt the senior section with a fresh, young and enthusiastic team that are hoping to join the A league soon and play against some of the strongest teams in SA.
It has been a wonderful season for all our players and the future of St Peter’s Water Polo is bright with only 1 matriculant in both the girls and boys first teams. A lot of opportunities and competitive polo awaits our teams and with the help of our experienced coaching staff, success is within reach.
Good luck to all our players for the 2023/2024 season in Term 3.
Rugby News
As the pre-season and post-season rugby program for the 1st XV Squad comes to a close, we are thrilled to report that it has been a tremendous success. Over the past few months, the team has been working hard to improve their physical fitness, tactical skills and mental agility. We have been privileged enough to witness the transformation of our players first-hand and can confidently say that they are now stronger, more confident and better equipped to take on the challenges of the upcoming season.
One of the most significant improvements witnessed is in the players' strength gains. Our training program has focused on building muscular endurance, power and speed and the players have responded brilliantly. Through a combination of weightlifting, plyometric exercises, and high-intensity interval training, our players have increased their strength and power significantly, which has translated into improved performance on the pitch. Some players have even boasted a 4-5kg increase in muscle mass.
The program has also had an extremely positive impact on the players' self-confidence. Rugby is a physically demanding sport that requires players to be mentally tough and resilient. The pre-season program has helped our players develop a sense of self-belief that will be invaluable as they take on tough opponents this season. They are now more aware of their abilities and have a newfound confidence in their skills which will undoubtedly translate into better performances on the pitch.
As the season approaches, there is an undeniable sense of excitement amongst the team. They are eager to put their new skills and strength gains to the test and prove themselves on the field. The camaraderie amongst the players is at an all-time high and the positive energy is palpable. We are confident that this is going to be a fantastic season for our team and cannot wait to see what they will achieve.
A massive thanks needs to go out to our Strength and Conditioning coach, Mr. Ona Manyisa. Without him, none of this would be possible. The pre and post-season rugby program has been a resounding success. The players have made significant improvements in their strength, confidence, and mental toughness. They eagerly anticipate the start of the season. We are beyond proud of the hard work and dedication that the team has put in. There is no doubt that they will continue to impress as the season unfolds.
Tennis News
Term 1 marks the end of another successful tennis season. At St Peter’s College, we have one Boys’ Tennis Team and two Girls’ Tennis Teams. This Season, our boys competed against schools like St David’s, St John’s, Parktown Boys and Helpmekaar. Under the leadership of Bailey Rousseau, the boys ended their season gathering 602 points out of 792 points. The Girls were also greatly successful in their matches against schools like St Mary’s, St Theresa’s and St Andrew’s. Diya Naicker led the girls to a successful third position in their league.
The highlight of the Season was definitely the St Peter’s College Sports and Culture Festival where the boys came second and the girls took the trophy home. The St Dunstan’s Mixed Double Festival also catered for a whole lot of fun and laughter. St Peter’s came second after the KES/St Andrew’s combination.
The year started off with a breath of fresh air with our new Grade 8 intake. Nicola Carver and Oliver Cheng comfortably played their way into the First Teams.
Our Top six girls went to Sun City last year where their skills were tested to the optimum. Regardless of a tough week of great competition and some game viewing, our girls ended second at this Tournament, narrowly losing to Brescia House. We are looking forward to another tournament at Sun City at the start of September. This time, the boys will accompany our girls to see who the real kings and queens of the courts are.
This is, in a nutshell, all the activities that happened on our beautiful courts at St Peter’s College. We thank our matriculants – Bailey Rousseau, Diya Naicker and Liliana Uys – for their unconditional commitment of 5 years to tennis at St Peter’s College. You will be dearly missed.
Swimming News
Swimming at St Peter’s College aims to cater for a wide range of abilities with opportunities being created for swimmers who are developing their skills to those competing at a top level within the sport. The season started off with the ‘All Girls Gala’ where our high school girls teamed up with the Prep School for the day. The event was the start of the successful season and our team won the event overall.
Then, the season consisted of several League Galas as well as Gouge Liga and the St Peter’s College Night Gala. These events are designed to expose swimmers to a variety of racing formats and provide an opportunity for students to be selected for the InterHigh Team. St Peter’s College competes in the co-dd A-League for InterHigh and swam against Redhill, Northcliff High, Helpmekaar and Trinity College. Our team swam brilliantly on the day to secure a second place finish at the event. Swimmers who placed first and second at InterHigh qualify to race at Prestige, which is considered a ‘Best of the Best’ event where individual winners from all the leagues have a chance to compete.
The team excelled on the day securing 12 individual golds, 3 relay golds, 2 relay silvers and 2 individual bronze medals. Special mention to Michaela dal Medico who received Victrix Ludorum for the Prestige Gala, as well as Christine Wessels and the Under-14 relay comprised of Adam Daniels, Gabriella van den Berg, Mackenzie Bone and Michael Brady who broke records on the day. At a club level, we recognise and celebrate Adam Daniels, Gabriella van den Berg, Mackenzie Bone and Michael Brady who qualified to compete in South African Junior Nationals. Gabriella is congratulated on her three gold medals and silver medal. Adam is congratulated on his two silver medals and a bronze medal. The College wishes Michaela dal Medico and Christine Wessels best of luck for the upcoming South African Nationals taking place in April.
In open water events, a number of our swimmers participated in the Midmar Mile Qualifiers held at Prime View as well as the Midmar Mile held in Kwa-Zulu Natal. Michaela dal Medico excelled in the open water events and represented provincial team at Open Water Nationals in the three and five kilometre events. We congratulate all of our swimmers on their achievements in these endurance events and welcome more participation in the Open Water Team.
eSports News
Valorant is an immersive first-person shooter game that puts two teams of five players against each other. The objective is to either eliminate all five opponents or plant a spike at a bomb site to secure a victory of the round. This game is designed to be highly competitive, with numerous tournaments and events taking place worldwide on a daily basis in different countries.
In a recent tournament, our team had the privilege of facing off against Beaulieu College in a standard match that required a total of 13 rounds to win in two games. In this match, we won our first game going 13-2 and our second game going 13-3. This victory was a significant milestone for eSports at St Peter’s College and in our country as a whole as not many educational institutions recognize eSports as a legitimate sport. With this being the first eSports game for our school, it sets the stage for many more exciting competitions to come.
During the match, we experienced some unforgettable moments that will stay with us for a long time. One of our players stood out - Mikeal Davis - earning the title of match MVP with an impressive 23 frags. This first game served as a valuable opportunity for us to assess our team’s skill level, as well as to identify areas where we need to improve our strategies and teamwork.
In conclusion, Valorant is a game that offers a thrilling and intense experience with its competitive nature making it a popular choice for eSports enthusiasts around the world. Our recent victory against Beaulieu College has paved the way for greater recognition and opportunities for eSports at our school and community. We look forward to future tournaments and matches where we can showcase our skills and teamwork at higher levels .