“Whether it was the haka or a case of us playing sublime running rugby, we managed to put on a masterful display for the crowd and won 71-nil,’’ says Mr Nicholson. “It was hard to single any one
player out, as the boys performed extremely well as a team.’’ On Sunday, in the final, College played Wanganui Collegiate, the only other New Zealand team, after they scraped through their semi-final. Both teams provided the pre-match entertainment, performing their respective hakas, which held the crowd in stunned silence. The boys managed to play some good rugby and came away the winners of the tournament, having closed out Wanganui 17-12. It proved to be an interesting day, with many ex-Kiwis and Old Boys, such as Sam Lindsay and a few from the 1950s, coming out to support the team.
Matt McKellar was awarded the CK Russell Medal for the player of the Tournament. CK Russell, an Old Melbournian from 1903 was a prominent Melbourne rugby player and was killed in action in 1918. As it was an ANZAC carnival, the boys attended a number of ANZAC services with prominent members of the Melbourne community, including both current and former State Premiers, current serving soldiers and former College Headmaster, Mr Nigel Creese. Mr Nicholson says, “It was very pleasing to hear feedback from our hosting families, about just how impressed they were with our young men. They were a credit to the College and both Chris Sellars, and I were proud to be involved with the team in Australia.’’ Ngatungane says, “We did well and played some really good rugby. Some of the younger guys really stepped up and we worked really well as a team. As it was a tournament, we played a lot of rugby in a short time, and were pretty exhausted by the end. But it was good for team bonding and created a really good culture. Everyone came back feeling really positive.”
College Issue 29 2015
77
Made with FlippingBook Online newsletter maker