THE QUADRANGLE 1st XV Reunions
50 Years On
25 Years On
From as far afield as London, 10 of the 1965 team met for drinks the evening before the annual CC v CBHS rugby match. Most were recognisable, once the ageing process and ravages of time had been taken into account. Sharing the occasion with our opposition of the day was made even more memorable by reminding them, ever so gently, of the result (13-9 in our favour) especially as we were the under dogs. The next morning, we gathered for morning tea and a photo (delayed for a while to allow Euan Harkness (7428) to extricate himself from a meeting with civic leaders) followed by a tour of the school. This was of great interest and the Headmaster showed us, with justifiable pride, some of the many improvements made since the earthquakes and the impressive new buildings. Don Hamilton and Zane Dalzell joined us. It was great to see them again, looking so well, they reminded us of our strengths and weaknesses. We were honoured to sit at the top table in the Dining Hall, before making our way to Straven Road. There followed a masterful display of schoolboy rugby, with CBHS walloping College convincingly. Finally, our better halves joined us for drinks and dinner, rounding off a memorable 24 hours full of rekindled friendships; we should have another get together soon was the concerted opinion. My thanks go to Justine of CCOBA for her excellent detective work in tracking down and contacting our members and also to Neil Porter for his welcome and hospitality at School House.
Fending a wolf off with your forearm after jumping out of a helicopter was a great story and they only got better as the night wore on with a few of the boys after 25 years. There were plenty of other good stories and bravado shared over the couple of nights around the Christ’s College - Boys High 1st XV Reunion recently. Great to see comrades from all over the country and a big effort from Edd coming from Africa! It was like just yesterday that we were pulling our boots on back in 1990 to take on Boys’ High at Straven Road where we spanked them 11-4. Back in the here and now of 2015, the hype of the pre- match bravado, pomp and ceremony with the traditional big game antics was quite quickly undone by a classy display of skill and precise rugby by Boys’ High to hand College and all its supporters a humiliating loss. It was hard as a proud Old Boy surrounded by a group of other Old Boys from not only our team but other generations to witness this loss and the 15 years that now precede it. As the Boys’ High supporters kept letting us know: 80-0. The support from the Old Boys is there and I believe this is an untapped resource that needs to be utilised. It’s great to see the appointment of some key rugby development positions at College and the scholarships now being offered. I look forward to following the progress of rugby at College in the future. Good luck. Always a great time catching up with old mates and looking forward to the next time. Hope we can celebrate some good College rugby as well.
David Murchison (7198)
Grier Fuller (10569)
Back Row: Richard Morten, Willie Grey, Tom Dawson, Euan Harkness, Garth Williams Front Row: Pip Hall, Don Pickering, David Murchison, Dave Black, Drumond Thompson, Mr Don Hamilton
Back Row: Edd Bennetto, Benjamin Winters, Matt Johnson, Mr Brian Le Vaillant Front Row: Sam Zino, Tim Hutchinson, Grier Fuller, Marcus Nurse, Mr John Mills
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College Issue 30 2016
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