St. Gerard's Senior School Summer Newsletter 2020

2020 Edition

Tom Geraghty Headmaster

Dear Parents, Colleagues and Students, Welcome to our Summer Newsletter 2020, which we had expected to be full of a myriad of joyful photographs taken throughout the various annual school events in March, April and in May, celebrating the achievements and exploits of our students. Every year is a unique year defined by both students and staff doing the ordinary in an extraordinary way. The period of school closure since March has redefined forever “doing the ordinary in an extraordinary way”!

First and foremost, we should be eternally grateful for the gift of our health and of our wellbeing. I wish to thank the students for their contribution to what has been a remarkable, unique and enduring year and I look forward to welcoming our students when they return with a renewed energy and enthusiasm in the Autumn, together with our new cohort of 1st Year students.

Congratulations to our Leaving and Junior Certificate students who have been a credit to both themselves and their families over the last number of months and in particular I wish to wish our 6th Year students every success with their Leaving Certificate results and in commencing their inspiring journey to third level. We look forward to welcoming back our 6th Years for their official Graduation Ceremony in the Autumn.

I wish to take this opportunity to acknowledge the immense work of our colleagues throughout the year but in particular over the last three months. As one reflects on the recent educational challenges one can only be inspired by their commitment and by their dedication.

I thank the Board of Directors for their continued vision for the school and in particular for their support to maintaining the highest standards of education.

The global pandemic has taught us many lessons, none more so than the importance of team work and the prioritising the ‘you’ above the ‘me’. Students, parents and colleagues continue to inspire and amaze us through continuing to do the ordinary in an extraordinary way.

I wish you and your family an enjoyable sun-filled Summer and I look forward to welcoming all students, parents and colleagues back to reignite the flames of learning in St. Gerard’s School – the buildings have been a lonely and quiet place without you!!

‘Education is not the filling of a pail but the lighting of a fire.’

William Butler Yeats

Pag e 2

St. Gerard’s S e n io r S c h o o l

Centenary Concert On Monday the 27th January 2020, 100 years of St. Gerard’s School Education was celebrated with a centenary concert in the National Concert Hall. In attendance was a packed crowd of teachers, parents and students both past and present. Indeed all of the performers were either current or former students of St. Gerard’s. From Standard One right up to Grammy Nominated alumni, it was an eclectic and exciting roster.

The concert was a hugely collaborative endeavour, with rigorous involvement both on and off stage from the incredible extended community that has been cultivated by the school.

But the curating of the programme, the teaching of the music, and the producing of the concert was all down to the Herculean efforts of Producer and Musical Directors; Mrs Jackie Olohan and Ms Diane Owens.

As a proud alumnus of St. Gerard’s School, I had the privilege of performing in the National Concert Hall ten years previously when the school celebrated its 90th year. And it was a real honour and pleasure to be asked to return for the centenary concert. There were many performers with who I had shared the corridors of the school, including the incredible Eabha McMahon, the virtuoso McNally brothers, the unstoppable Annabell Sweeney, and of course, the blossoming talent growing within the Junior School Choir. But the biggest excitement of the night for me personally was introducing St. Gerard’s own: Hozier. Andrew and I had performed together in the 90th concert, and indeed at many other music festivals and summer concerts. It was a tremendous joy to see him again and see that, despite his worldwide success, he is still the same humble, kind person that towered over me in school.

However, even more proud I was of my own mother. The St. Gerard’s centenary concert was her vision, and through the wholehearted collaboration of a truly great school community, it was her greatest triumph.

Kevin C. Olohan Class of 2011.

S u mme r Ne ws 2 0 2 0

Pag e 3

Pag e 4

St. Gerard’s S e n io r S c h o o l

S u mme r Ne ws 2 0 2 0

Pag e 5

Pa ge 6

St. Gerard’s S e n io r S c h o o l

Su mme r Ne ws 2 0 2 0

Pag e 7

Wesley College Model United Nations Wesley College MUN took place on the 28th and 29th of February this year. This popular conference involves of schools from all over Ireland, and St. Gerard’s were fortunate to have two delegations participating in the conference, Finland and Iraq. This year WCDMUN not only tested the delegates’ knowledge on their committee topics, but also on how to work together at a time of emergency when they were presented with a global crisis. This crisis required the students to use their imagination to come up with ideas of how to solve it, which were all debated at the General Assembly. The conference gave them an opportunity to showcase their knowledge of current events, and also an opportunity to make new friends, as well as catch up with old ones. The St. Gerard’s delegates were Sam Cummins, Amelia Dolan, Lucy O Connell, Ruanne Whitelaw, Alex Keating, Laoise Kiernan, Amy Ward, Matthew Thornton, Emilia Connolly, Lisa Sutton, Ilana Philips, Michael Gleeson and Bernard Byrne.

Blackrock College Model United Nations The Blackrock MUN Conference (ROCKMUN) took place during the last weekend in January and it was the fourth MUN conference of the academic year. The St. Gerard’s students were representing Algeria and Belgium. The St. Gerard’s delegates comprised Sam Cummins; Laoise Kiernan; Niamh Burke; Evan Dargan Hayes; Matthew Thornton; Lucy O Connell; Amy Ward, Amelia Dolan, Lisa Sutton and Ilana Philips. Some of the topics discussed were the ‘Human Rights Violations in the Palestinian Occupied Territories’ and ‘Water Scarcity and Access to Sanitation in Iraq’. The opening ceremony took place on Friday evening and there was a guest speaker from the Green Party who emphasised the need for more action on climate change from young citizens. For some of the Transition Year students, this was their first MUN conference and it provided them with a wonderful opportunity to develop their communication skills.

Pa ge 8

St. Gerard’s S e n io r S c h o o l

Soroptimists’ Girls Public Speaking Competition Fifth Year student Emilia Connolly represented the school admirably in the regional round of the Soroptimists Girls’ Public Speaking competition in Dungarvan on 9th February. She delivered a powerful and engaging speech on the environment.

Topics debated on the day ranged from women’s rights to health. Candidates also had the added pressure of delivering a one-minute impromptu speech which they had a mere five minutes to prepare for!

This was Emilia’s second time to reach the regional round of the competition. Well done Emilia!

Gillian Lynch Debating Competition.

Following the success of last year’s inaugural Gillian Lynch Debating Competition, we started into the thick of it straight after Christmas. 24 students signed up across First and Second year with teams randomly selected. The first round of debates was fierce. First- time competitors like Conor O’Donnell and Lochlann Sweetman made their debut, while battle-hardened debaters like Adrianna Mulloy and Charlotte Finnegan Quirke returned to attempt to stamp their authority on the competition. A special mention must go to April Fogarty who made a stirring speech in what was her first debate. The first round produced some super debates and set a very high bar for the semi-finals. Unfortunately with the closure of the school, we did not get to see what would have been an exciting semi-final and indeed final. That said, there is always next year! Well done to all who participated in making this a super competition.

St. Gerard’s Debating Club From Christmas to Mid March we continued our Tuesday morning debating club. New members joined while veterans Ben Havenga and Ally Finnegan Quirke continued to debate with great skill. It’s been a truly enjoyable year of debating. What’s been most pleasing has been the number of new faces that continued to join the group as the year progressed. Thank you to all who participated this year making every Tuesday morning enjoyable and entertaining.

Be sure to join the debating next year as we get going again as soon as school opens up!

UCD Junior Debating Finalists The St. Gerard’s debating team enjoyed considerable success this year at the UCD debating competition.

Three pairs entered the competition: Anna Reynalds and Florence Clopin; Ben Malone and Victor Cullen and Eva Harbourne and Isabella Stewart. Eva and Isabella won their quarter-final debate to make it into the semi-final.

This was a great achievement and it is unfortunate that the girls were denied the opportunity to compete in the next round as it was cancelled due to COVID restrictions.

CONCERN Debates The talented senior debating team of Fifth Year students; Bernard Byrne, Lucy Culliton, Alex Keating and Ilana Philips were the worthy winners of the fourth round of the CONCERN debating competition against Educate Together Secondary School, Wicklow Town in January. They argued against the motion that: “To achieve real results, SDG campaigners must engage in civil disobedience”. Each member of the team spoke with passion and conviction, demonstrating their impressive debating skills. Unfortunately, the team did not make it through to the next round of the competition. We look forward to watching them engage in many more debates next year!

Su mme r Ne ws 2 0 2 0

Pag e 9

ISTA Senior Science Quiz The ISTA Senior Science Quiz is an annual nationwide quiz which includes questions from all three sciences at Leaving Certificate Higher level; Biology, Chemistry and Physics. The quiz also tests the participant’s general knowledge of all matters pertaining to science. All regional rounds take place on one evening at different venues throughout the country with the winners progressing to the national final in Dublin.

After a well-contested school competition, three school teams were entered into the Dublin regional section of the Irish Science Teachers Association Senior Quiz. Team A comprised: Ryan Glynn, JP McErlane and Michael Flynn. Team B comprised: Tadhg O’Connell, Oskar Rachwal and Michael Moore. Team C comprised: Ben Hogan, Colin Molloy and Max Merren.

The St. Gerard’s B and C teams performed very well in the regional competition and came First and Third. These Sixth Year students went on to represent their region in the All-Ireland competition in Trinity in December. The team members worked hard practising and spent many lunchtimes looking over questions from previous competitions. Despite a valiant effort, neither team placed in the All-Ireland event.

IMTA Senior Maths Quiz Usually, between Christmas and the summer break, the maths department enters three maths quizzes – the Pangea Maths Olympics for Second Years and Fifth Years, the Pi Quiz for Third Years and the IMTA Senior Maths Quiz for Sixth Years.

Unfortunately, due to COVID 19, only the Sixth year Quiz was held. We fielded two teams in the IMTA Senior Maths Quiz which was held on the last Friday in January in Rathdown School. Team A consisted of Ben Hogan, Michael Flynn, Tadhg O’Connell and Dan Redmond while Ben Moroney, Hugo McCabe, James Kennedy and Oskar Rachwal made up Team B. While both teams acquitted themselves very well and were joint third at half time, they eventually finished unplaced. Both teams must be commended for the extra time which they gave in preparation for this competition.

Student Council The Student Council were busy this year with fortnightly meetings where they discussed upcoming events and looked into ways of improving student lives at St. Gerard’s. In early March some of our student representatives met with the Department of Education inspectors to talk about life for the students in Saint Gerard’s. Following the school lockdown in March, Student Council meetings have continued online with the headmaster and Ms Fanning. Pupils discussed on Google Meet how life has been during the lockdown and the Sixth Year representatives organised a successful online chess tournament for all interested students.

Unfortunately, fundraising proposals have been postponed until we get back to school and our HB ice cream day has now been rescheduled to take place in the autumn. A big thank you to our brilliant Sixth Year representatives who are leaving us. Headboy - Ben Hogan, Headgirl - Lily Kate Hearns, Deputy head boys - Michael Flynn ( chairperson of the council), Paddy Burke, Deputy head girls - Jennifer Corson and Sara Murphy.

Catholic Schools’ Week We were delighted to celebrate Catholic Schools’ Week which this year ran from 26th January to 2nd February. Each year the theme addresses issues of social justice and examines how, as Catholics, we are called to love, respect and protect those who are most vulnerable. The theme this year was, “Living in Harmony with God’s Creation” and through a variety of activities, both liturgical and non-liturgical we explored how the exploitation of natural resources and native people around the world, has led to both environmental and humanitarian crises. We are most grateful to Fr Jamie Twohig from Shankill Parish, Ms Brid Roberts from the Junior School and Ms Karen McArdle from Trocaire, who worked with the students throughout the week to explore the religious and social justice issues facing us today.

Retreats The St. Gerard’s retreats are an opportunity to foster new friendships and to develop a closer relationship with God. Since Christmas, the Second and Fifth Year students were able to enjoy some time away from the classroom and participate in a retreat. With their busy day-to-day lives and the rigours of a full timetable, the retreats provide some space to reflect on their journey and to appreciate all of the blessings that have been bestowed upon them. For their retreat, The Fifth Years travelled to Glenstal Abbey in January and in February, the Second Year students attended the Dominican Priory Institute in Tallaght.

Unfortunately, the Transition Year retreat which was due to take place in May was cancelled due to COVID restrictions.

Pag e 10

St. Gerard’s S e n io r S c h o o l

Bray Lions Youth Ambassador Award Sixth Year student Jonathon Murphy, won the Bray Lions Youth Ambassador Award 2020. This is a great achievement. Jonathon has worked diligently and enthusiastically for the last few years with Bray Lakers and his hard work and selfless dedication was acknowledged with this award.

Congratulations Jonathon.

Co. Wicklow Garda Youth Awards Jonathon also received a Garda Youth Award in appreciation of the fantastic work he has done in the area of social awareness. This is a significant achievement and is a testament to his kindness and empathy for other people.

3D Printed PPE production Congratulations to Transition Year student Evan Dargan Hayes for taking this brilliant initiative during these challenging times.

Evan has used his 3D printer and IT skills to produce much-needed PPE for front line staff in the Wicklow area. He has shown great creativity in his quest to help others.

Evan provided us with some details on how he got involved with this remarkable project...

I started 3D printing face shields when I saw some people online doing it in places like Italy and Germany. There was a lot of concern when people started using 3D printed parts for ventilators and such, but it was soon realised that face shields could easily be printed, as they didn’t have to meet any standards. I used my 3D printer to make protective face- shields for healthcare workers, including my brother who is transporting patients with the Order of Malta. The face shield consists of two parts - a headband and a visor. After looking around online to find the best design available that was ‘open source’, I started printing them, one after the other. It has been getting me up early every morning as I need to have the printer working for about 12 hours each day as it is such a slow process, with each headband taking about two hours to print. To complete the face shields, I use little protrusions on the headband to hold a

Su mme r N e ws 2 0 2 0

clear sheet of acetate in place, before packing five single-use visors and one headband into an envelope for distribution. I even had someone from Blood Bikers come out to my house and collect some for distribution down in Cork.

Pag e 11

Senior Drama Group For the Bray ‘One Act Drama Festival’, the Senior Drama Group (which is comprised of Fifth Year students and a few Second Years) worked together on a comedy called ‘School For Scandal.’ This took place at the Mermaid Theatre on the 28th of January. Stephen O’Connor won Best Actor and ‘School For Scandal’ won Best Production.

Following this successful performance, in February the students got the opportunity to take to the stage again at the St. Andrew’s ‘One Act Drama Festival’. It took place in St. Andrew’s School and for their convincing performances, Sarah Lily Lynch won Best Actress and Louise Sweeney was awarded Best Supporting Actress. Alex Keating and Pippa Devereux also received certificates of excellence.

The St. Gerard’s Drama Festival was due to take place the week after school closed and as a result the students did not get the opportunity to enjoy their performances.

Pag e 12

St. Gerard’s S e n io r S c h o o l

S u mme r Ne ws 2 0 2 0

Pag e 13

Home Economics Trip to Italy Once again the second year Home Economics students packed their bags and headed off on the annual trip to Italy. We were remarkably lucky to travel just a few weeks before the COVID 19 crisis shut the Italian airports and borders and our thoughts and prayers are with the lovely Italian families, hotel staff and businesses that have hosted us each year. The students got the opportunity to explore the beautiful and historical cities of ancient Pompeii. During the visit to Rome, they got to explore the Vatican, the Colosseum, the Spanish Steps,and the Trevi Fountain before moving on to relax and enjoy the delights of the coastal town of Sorrento. While in Sorrento the students attended several food workshops. They visited a coffee processing plant, an olive oil and ice cream factory, a bee farm and also learned how to make gnocchi, pizza and mozzarella.

Pa g e 14

St. Gerard’s S e n io r S c h o o l

Library Visits For the School Library, the new year saw the First Years attend fun-filled workshops with author Debbie Thomas. Debbie is a firm favourite with our First Year groups and this year was no different.

We had booked the spoken word poet Natalya O’Flaherty to perform for the Second Years but unfortunately, it was not to be this year. Hopefully next year will see Natalya visit the group instead.

A huge thanks go to a terrific team of Library Monitors. These Fifth Year students give up their lunchtime once a fortnight so other students can enjoy the room. In particular, the library owes a debt of gratitude to Emilia Connolly, Emily Barret and Roisin Farrell for producing three fantastic newsletters and for all their work; cataloguing and covering new titles.

We read to know we are not alone”, William Nicholson.

European Language Week Plans for European Language Week were in full swing for March 2020. The week was to coincide with the first leg of the French Exchange and a French trip to the Irish Film Institute. One week before the annual celebrations were due to commence the school closure was announced due to COVID. European Language Week was nonetheless acknowledged over Google Meet with games and quizzes; including the Francophone Quiz, virtual “bring your pet to school” day, “google meet newsroom”, French and Spanish recipes, French and Spanish music recommendations, and French and Spanish Netflix recommendations. We are thoroughly looking forward to celebrating this special week when we return to school.

National Gallery Art Programme Placement Congratulations to Transition Year student, Murray Sheehan who was accepted into the National Gallery’s artwork experience programme. Following his application, Murray was one of a few students selected into the programme. This proved to be a fantastic opportunity to learn about art and art history. Murray was looking forward to having a unique opportunity to design and run an exhibition with other people his age. Unfortunately, it was cancelled due to the Coronavirus but it will hopefully be rescheduled.

Wicklow Local Enterprise Schools Competition Congratulations to the Transition Year students Matthew Thornton and pairing Evan Dargan Hayes and Marcus Pippet who represented St. Gerards in the Wicklow Local Enterprise Schools Competition. The judges were impressed by their individual business projects (A ‘drop shipping company’ for pet accessories and a recycling company respectively). Unfortunately, the formal competition and awards ceremony did not take place as it was scheduled for March 26th.

Su mme r N e ws 2 0 2 0

Pag e 15

Benjamin Lambert-Owen

Molly Stening

Parent’s Association Transition Year Art Competition Congratulations to the students who entered the Parents’ Association Transition Year Art Competition.

Particular congratulations go to Jodie Cassidy and Murray Sheehan who finished second and third respectively and of course the overall winner, Katherine O’Flynn with her COVID inspired composition.

Theo Costello

Sarah Murphy

Katherine O’Flynn

Ross Mason

Aaron Corry

Jonathan Huang

Nicola Harmon

Amelia Opperman

Pa g e 16

Oscar Hayes-Restan Muiris Mason

Murray Sheehan

Congratulations to the students who entered the Parent’s Association Photography Competition.

The winners by year were as follows: First Year - Nichola Harmon Second Year - Johnathan Huang Third Year - Arron Corry TY - Theo Costello Fifth Year - Benjamin Lambert Owen Sixth Year - Molly Stening The overall winner was Ross Mason in Transition Year, photograph entitled “March Super Moon During Lockdown”.

Jodie Cassidy

Parent’s Association Photography Competition

St. Gerard’s S e n io r S c h o o l

Tran sit io n Y ear Review

My TY Year Extract of an article by Amy Carter

March 12th 2020, was the day the world as we knew it changed, Leo Varadkar addressed the country putting us all on lockdown due to Covid-19. I don’t think anybody thought back in September that this is what the end of Transition Year would look like. This meant missing out on special occasions such as Difference Day, French exchange and the Camino.

However, that is not to say that we did not pack a lot in before the school was closed...

Starting off Transition Year, there was a rush of excitement and we were all returning to school on a high after finishing the Junior Certificate. After the long months of studying, we felt it was going to be a remarkable year for us. We had all been advised at the beginning to make the absolute most of Transition Year and to do things we have never tried before. Many of us began signing up for the I.T and Newsletter team. Others signed up for Model United Nations and Green Schools. Everyone was thrilled to be back playing team sports.

on in a field.

After Camping, Transition Year really got exciting.

Kairos was one of the most fun activities we did.

Each class came up with brilliant TV show ideas to film and perform.

In my eyes, it was a recipe for amusement.

By November Y.S.I and Gaisce were in full swing and we got the chance to do Martial Arts. We spent two days learning self-defence and whilst not my personal favourite, some of my friends were clearly in their element. We also went scuba diving in the National Aquatic Centre before commencing the

next big milestone; our school musical. After much speculation, we were delighted to be told it was going to be High School Musical.

Despite the excitement there were other priorities at the time such as organising and preparing for our work experience which started in December.

In September, the long-awaited trip to Lough Dan kicked off the year for us. However, this trip was a ‘results trip without results’ because our results got delayed.

Nevertheless, camping was our first overnight trip as an entire year and we all got to experience each other’s company and wit. The early 6:30 am wake-up calls plus the three hours it took to put up a tent, has given us all memories we’ll look back on with fondness.

Despite the length of the daily walks, the roasted marshmallows and pot noodles consumed made up for it. If I learnt anything at all, I realised that yoga mats are for yoga and not for sleeping

Su mme r N e ws 2 0 2 0

Pag e 17

Tran sit io n Y ear Review

For me, I returned to my primary school and got to enjoy a walk down memory lane working alongside some of my old teachers. Other TY students got to work in a variety of places such as Brown Thomas, Guinness or attended a college course. After

Page 18

our work experience, a group of students and myself travelled down to Ballymaloe Cookery School to partake in a three-day course.

Our teacher was the famous chef Rachel Allen and she gave us some super tips and tricks for the kitchen. It’s safe to say none of us

went hungry while we were there!

When we returned to school there was no time to waste and the dance and stage rehearsals for the musical got into full swing. The TY musical is renowned for being a high quality and professional

St. Gerard’s S e n io r S c h o o l

production. The year was made even more special, as St Gerard’s was celebrating its Centenary. To mark the occasion, a handful of TY students including myself, got the wonderful opportunity of performing a few of our dances at the National Concert Hall. This was a taster for what the full production was going to look like. On reflection now, the experience of the National Concert Hall was one for the books.

With the centenary celebrations over, we started rehearsing every day and, before we knew it, opening night had arrived. I will never forget the moments and seconds before we went on stage. The exhilarating atmosphere was incredible and I can’t explain the energy we all had each night as we performed with and for each other. It was fair to say we were all wrecked but I don’t think we were all ready for it to be over. I’m sure if you ask any of us, most would say this was the highlight of Transition Year. For me, without a doubt it was!

There was more to come in terms of our adventures.

At Carlingford, we were thrown into numerous activities such as zip-lining, archery, laser tag, and rock climbing.

Many fears were conquered amongst the year group especially with heights on the high ropes. We also undertook our second week of work experience and this time I organised a week with Lisney Real estate.

Throughout the term, we all faced tough encounters, whether it was making the deadline for blogs or being on time for handing in projects. Everyone came into Transition Year with their own personal challenges and goals. Some faced the challenge of public speaking and organisation while others strived at the goal of winning the hockey or rugby league. Although our time was cut short, TY was still nothing short of remarkable. For me, this year taught me the true meaning of what memory represents in St. Gerard’s. We have become much closer as a year and are all in a positive position for Fifth Year.

S u mme r N e ws 2 0 2 0

Pag e 19

Tran sit io n Y ear Musical

Pag e 20

St. Gerard’s S e n io r S c h o o l

TY Musical The musical, to say the least, was a truly incredible experience. We will never forget the lights, the atmosphere, and the amazing dance routines as everyone took to the stage to perform their heart out. Every person involved made a huge difference, whether it be cast, crew, staff, and of course, the two immensely talented people who helped us to get from auditions to performing seven shows - Director/Choreographer, Aisling Doyle, and Musical Producer, Jackie Olohan.

Auditions began in late September, with everyone becoming very actively involved. It was clear from the very beginning that the talent in the year was incredible. After several rounds of auditions, we were all anxiously waiting to be told just what musical we would be performing. Not long after, we were all on tenterhooks as we learned that our show would, in fact, be, ‘High School Musical,’ a production that we were all very excited to start working on.

Dance rehearsals began straight away with everyone learning the routines in their form classes, and then, in their designated roles. Learning and performing the dance routines was definitely a highlight for many people, and without a doubt one of the most fun parts of the entire show. The dedication and effort put in by each and every person was immense, and it resulted in a truly incredible performance.

In what seemed like no time at all, we were all so grateful to be able to take two musical numbers, ‘Bop To the Top’, and ‘We’re All in This Together’ to the stage of the National Concert Hall. This provided a great opportunity to be able to practice in front of a large audience, as well as bringing us much closer together as a year group.

With just a few short weeks to go until opening night, preparations and rehearsals became all the more intense, yet this just made them much more enjoyable. The show really was starting to come together. In a blink of an eye, it was the opening night and everyone was frantically getting ready. After months of practising and preparation, it almost felt surreal to finally be performing. Everybody gave it their all, ensuring that the show ran without a hitch.

With each performance, the cast only improved, resulting in an epic finale. The musical was such an important part of our TY experience and is certainly not one that we will ever forget. Huge congratulations to everyone who performed and helped put the show together!

S u mme r Ne ws 2 0 2 0

Pag e 21

Sp o r t s Overview - Hock e y

Hockey Our First Years had the majority of their season to play after the Christmas break and were our busiest teams throughout the term. All of these First-Year eight-a-side teams enjoyed success, most notably our A2 and B2 teams who both qualified for their respective league final days.

These were due to be played on the 21st of March and, unfortunately were cancelled due to the COVID restrictions. Our A1 eight-a-side team finished second in their Leinster league group, narrowly missing out on the finals day.

Our B1 team had hard-earned victories against Teresians and Loreto on the Green. The First Year 11-a-side cup side had a great win over Newbridge College in the first round. They then faced Holy Child, Killiney which turned out to be a very exciting game. Our girls fought back from a goal behind to bring the game to a shootout where they narrowly missed out on a place in the next round. All of our first years were starting their transition to the 11-a-side game before the school closure but we look forward to continuing to develop this very talented year group.

For our other teams, the conclusion of their Leinster League matches saw their focus shift to the South Dublin league.

Our SCT and JCT squads had a very successful start to the South Dublin League. The JCT squad enjoyed success in the tail end of their season, beating The High School and Newpark to earn themselves a spot in the South Dublin League final. Despite the cancellation of the final, it should be noted that the JCT squad whose cup campaign ended in early November stayed incredibly motivated and focussed throughout the year and their hard work paid off with their South Dublin League results. Well done to all.

Our SCT team had some notable results since Christmas, beating St. Andrew’s in the Leinster League and The High School in the South Dublin League. The SCT was also in a very good position and had every chance to be in the South Dublin League final, should the season have been completed.

Both our Minor A and B teams beat The High School and our First Years beat both Loreto Foxrock and The High School in their South Dublin League fixtures. It looked like it was going to be a very successful year for St. Gerard’s in the South Dublin League so we are already looking forward to next year’s competition.

Since the school’s closure students have continued to work with coaches to develop their skills, tactical understanding and fitness levels and we are all looking forward to returning to the hockey pitch. A huge well done to all 13 hockey teams this year, it was another very busy and rewarding season.

Pag e 22

Pag e 23

Sp o r t s Overview - Rugby

Rugby

matches.

SCT I - January began very well for

U14 A - The U14 squad also fielded

the SCT squad as they went on to retain the O’Reilly Cup against Glenstal Abbey, in Donnybrook stadium. This helped prepare for the Leinster Senior Cup which saw the squad sail safely by The King’s Hospital into the quarterfinal. Unfortunately, after a hard-fought contest with Clongowes Wood College, that is where their journey ended.

SCT II / III - The Senior seconds had a slow start to their campaign in January and were hoping to rectify that with some late wins from their remaining matches. Sadly, however, the league did not finish! The senior thirds were in a similar position with their Foster Cup campaign. After winning one and losing one, the league was cancelled!

TY - The Transition Year pupils,

following their league qualifying campaign pre-Christmas, now joined the senior rugby squad in January and filled positions on both Senior II and Senior III squads. The TY squad had already qualified for their respective league final against Roscrea College.

The match was scheduled to be played in March, but, sadly could not be played, due to the schools’ closure!

JCT I - The JCT rugby squad had

an eventful season post-Christmas.

Qualifying out of the Leinster Junior League set them up with a first-round meeting with Newbridge College - a team to whom they had lost narrowly earlier in the league. However, a cup match is always on the day, and on that day in January, it was not to be!

Success did come in January, with them retaining the much-coveted McGrath Cup against Glenstal Abbey.

JCT II - The Junior seconds had

begun their Leinster league campaign in January. However, this was cut short, but not before a well-deserved draw against a strong St. Michael’s side! The squad were to finish their year on a high, however, with an emphatic 29-17 win against Clongowes Wood College.

This was to be their last game of the season, and what a game to finish on!

U15 - Our U15 squad fielded two

full teams throughout the year, and between them, collectively played fortytwo matches. The squad developed considerably, and this really showed in January and February with the A squad winning what was to be their four last matches of the season, and the B squad winning two of their last three

Pa g e 24

two full squads throughout the year, and were in a similar situation to the U15’s, with no leagues. With a fixture list covering three provinces, both A and B squads collectively played forty matches. Improvement was very much at the forefront, with the A squad enjoying five wins from their last eight games, and the B squad similarly enjoying three wins from their final five matches.

U14 B - Since Christmas, the U14 B’s

have played four home matches and four away. In the absence of a league, these have been friendly development games. The matches saw an even balance between wins and losses but the highlights included a very solid win over Willow Park in February and indeed another very sound victory away to Glenstal Abbey School in March. No doubt the boys will be itching to get back into training and looking forward to their first match when it comes.

S p o r t s O vervi ew - R u g by

Pag e 25

S port s O vervi ew

Equestrian Our Equestrian squads got off to a flying start after the Christmas break where our Green Novice team of Pippa Bellows, Pippa Devereux, Ali Pratt and Shannon O’Farrell won the novice competition in Killosery Equestrian Centre, Swords. Pippa Bellows also had individual success winning the 90cm competition. Our novice teams continued to have success later in January where Sacha Turner, Pippa Bellows, Pippa Devereux and Charlotte Coffey came third in Wexford Equestrian Centre. Come February, our novice squad were still in second place in the league and were closing the gap with only four points between them and Newbridge College. The final event of the year was in Barnadown Equestrian Centre, Gorey. Our novice blue team of Pippa Devereux, Florence Jackson Pratt, Leah Hogan and Pippa Bellows won the competition beating 16 other teams. Our novice green team also had huge success on the day finishing third overall. Well done to Shannon O’Farrell, Jade Connolly, Charlotte Coffey and Ali Pratt. To have two St. Gerard’s teams in the top three of 17 teams is a massive achievement for all involved. A huge thank you to all the students, parents and helpers involved in our very successful Equestrian program throughout the year.

Pa ge 26

St. Gerard’s S e n io r S c h o o l

Sports

Representative S por t s Honours:

It has been a very different and unique school year. Sport and the many teams we field, in the many different disciplines we enter began in September and ran as normal up to an abrupt end in March. A great disappointment was felt with the unfinished business of rugby and hockey league campaigns. Not to mention the building apprehension of the pupils that were looking forward to representing the school in tennis, athletics and cricket. Sport on the playing fields had to take a position on their respective “benches”! However, with our online platforms, we have been able to continue to engage with the pupils, ensuring that they have access to a variety of exercise and fitness programs. All our rugby and hockey development teams have also been in close virtual contact with our coaching staff, and will hopefully be at a level that they can hit the ground running when the school is allowed to resume training. All our pupils must be commended for their positive engagement with the online fitness programs, and indeed the extensive exercises that they have undertaken with our P.E. department.

Cross-country In January we had the East Leinster Championships in the familiar Avondale House. For this Wicklow event, we had 29 students from St. Gerard’s First, Second and Third year entered. They made up a total of five teams wearing the St Gerard’s singlet.

Second Year student Isobel Lynch had the standout performance on the day, finishing tenth overall. This earned her a spot in the Leinster Cross-country Championships. Isobel faced a big challenge being the only athlete from St. Gerard’s to compete at the Leinsters. The race took place in Santry on a very wet and windy day in February. Isobel worked very hard throughout the race and finished mid-pack. Well done to Isobel on a standout cross- country season.

Caragh Charlton Phelan

Representative Sports Honours: U16 Ireland Pony Show Jumping

Congratulations to Caragh Charlton Phelan who competed for Ireland in the U16 Pony Show Jumping and has qualified to jump at the RDS Horse Show 2019.

U16’s Irish Women’s Soccer

Congratulations to our JCT hockey captain, Abby Tuthill, who was selected for the Irish U16 Women’s’ soccer team.

Freddy Happonen

U19 Leinster Rugby

Congratulations to Freddy Happonen on his selection to the Leinster Schools U19 Summer Program.

U17 Leinster Hockey

Congratulations to Ciara Moroney who represented the Leinster U17 hockey team in the annual HOD international tournament in The Netherlands over the Easter holidays.

U17 Leinster rugby

Congratulations also to our five pupils on their selection to the Leinster Schools U17 Summer Program; they are Ross Keating, Fionán Denver, Dylan Maher, Tim Wilkinson and Jordan Younger.

Ciara Moroney Su mme r Ne ws 2 0 2 0

Pag e 27