SPORT NEWS
Rugby League: Conor, Will, Jayden and Archie travelled to Canberra last week to play for the Canberra Goulburn team. Will made the possible, probables game but was injured. A great achievement. Congratulations to Conor Herbert-Scott who has been selected in the MacKillop Under 12 Rugby League team, he will now go on to play all schools for a place in the NSW side. Well done Conor!
Cross Country: Good luck to our cross-country runners who are competing in Canberra today, we look forward to hearing how they go.
Sporting Pathways: How do they work?
Already this year we have had two school carnivals, for swimming and cross country. Athletics is the third carnival and will be held towards the end of this term. School carnival days are where everyone is encouraged to have a go, and a fun element is included. From these carnivals the pathway begins for the more capable athletes. Swimming and athletics are straight forward. At St Patrick’s we are given a number of entrants allowed per event who MUST have competitive times. This is why at times a third placed student might not make the ‘next’ level. Once we move past the school carnival it loses the having-a-go element and becomes real competition. The other Southern Region schools become involved and a new team evolves from this with limited numbers of competitors and even more competitive times needing to be met. Travel and commitment now come into the equation. At this level the students are working towards MacKillop and state representation.
Cross country is a little different, this one is an endurance event. At the school level there are many students who struggle to run the distance, but all are encouraged to at least walk the course. We have to consider things like, did the child have to walk a lot of the way? Has the child been to the challenging Wolumla track before? How were they at the finish? Did they fall over? Did they go the wrong way and run extra distance? The final number included for each age group is decided by looking at all these things and other factors that arise. Also, the time difference between first and those who come after eg if 4th and 5th were close in times they would both go. In another race 5th may be a minute behind fourth. 3rd may be 2 mins behind 1st, this isn't termed ‘competitive.’ Some children become highly distressed at the more competitive levels and it may turn them off having a go at all sports. Some children will actually choose not to go to the next level event, particularly the cross country, even when they have placed.
If at any time for any sporting event you feel your child should have been included in the next level please email or come and see me. These pathways are in place to provide the best opportunities for our able and gifted athletes.
Next week I'll endeavour to explain the pathways process for individual sports.
Jannene Harnett