President’s Welcome

Hello and welcome to the autumn edition of the magazine! As the mid-point in my presidency is almost here, I am delighted with what we have been able to achieve so far, yet it has passed so quickly I am conscious of how much I would like to still complete before I pass the baton across to Chris Wilson (97-02). So I will start with a quick rundown of what has happened in the last few months.

July saw us make an appearance at RGS day where current and Old Novocastrians along with parents stopped by to say hello, see what we have planned and also to buy some merchandise!

As for merchandise, we have been working closely with our new suppliers to produce what everyone has been asking for, high quality items. Please see on page 3 our new range of silk ties, bow ties, enamel gilt plated cufflinks, scarves and socks. We are always keen to hear any ideas for women’s ON merchandise too, so please get in touch.

As Rugby World Cup fever builds in the coming months, the Webb Ellis Trophy made an appearance in school and soon we will welcome the Scottish RFU to use the new sports facilities in school as a training base. You may remember the recent sad passing of our former rugby coach John Elders (57-82 and 92-96). We have been working closely with Novos RFC to reforge the old links with the club, so we are delighted to present a memorial game in honour of John on 2 October between the Novos Veterans and ONA. We would love this to be an annual fixture, so please get behind this by either playing or coming along to support!

The rugby theme continues with our 90th Annual Dinner on 16 October where we are joined by Jonathan Webb (74-81), orthopaedic surgeon and former England international who played in the 1991 World Cup Final, and we invite all former rugby players to assemble their teams once again and book a table at the dinner. There is some extremely generous discounts available to very recent school leavers as we hope once again for a sell-out.

Finally, I urge you all to join our Facebook page to see the latest news and event updates, such as our monthly lunches or drinks gatherings. I was also delighted to hear that my brief plea last time generated considerable interest in the Bursary Campaign (and donations) so, if you were thinking of giving, please do so as it all makes a difference!

Chris Rutter (92-02) ONA President