Senior School News Issue 20 2014

Cross Country
MGS Cross Country ‐ APS Round 5 Open Team:
MGS 6pts defeats Brighton Grammar 4pts
Intermediate Team: 1st
Junior Team:
8th
The penultimate round of the APS Cross Country season was conducted at a soggy Norton's Park,
Wantirna South on a typically cool and slightly damp July Saturday. The Senior team was up against
Brighton Grammar, a round of relative respite for the team, as Brighton lacked depth in their top six
runners and were unable to trifle the MGS squad.
In a new initiative for this year, and in light of the slightly easier competition this week, the team named the
race as the 'Sunglasses Round.' This new initiative was conducted enthusiastically by the team despite the
grey Melbourne winter, and the absence of any apparent reason or sun. Most succeeded in looking
suitably intimidating and ridiculous at the same time, with special mention to Lachlan Brown for donning
the 'cyclops' glasses!
As usual, the Junior/ Intermediate team kicked off proceedings for MGS, and Wez Lovegrove continued a
tradition of intermediate wins at Norton's Park, finishing first across the line of the 4.2 kilometre double
circuit. Wez ran a tactically sound race and finished with a certain finesse perhaps only he can manage,
crossing the line seemingly unexhausted, but victorious. The remainder of the MGS Intermediate/ Junior
team lifted to match Wez's outstanding run, with Callum McCrae finishing an admirable 8th, despite injury.
Jonathan Sahhar and Matthew March helped to put MGS only one point behind Xavier in the Intermediate
standings, with Matthew again winning the Most Improved Intermediate Award, finishing 18th, with another
PB placing for the third week straight! The depth of the team became apparent as CJ Li, Michael Cheung
and Kelvin Chang powered home to finish 56th, 60th and 70th respectively. Fred Hayward proved himself
again to be the most proficient MGS Junior Runner, and a solid run from Lachlan McCurdy rounded out
the top 90 for the race. Imran Aykol also performed well in the damp conditions, finishing 115th.
The Senior team then took to the 5.3 kilometre track, completing 3 revolutions. Unperturbed by the rather
unconventional 'hooter' provided by the hosts of the round instead of the starting gun, Henry Kiellerup set
himself up well in the first hundred metres blazing to the front, before the course narrowed and
circumnavigated some trees on a sweeping right-hander with spring-laden poles marking the course
catching some runners off guard with a smack in the face. Henry raced well to finish 8th despite the soft
conditions better suited to the lighter runners (with smaller calves). The top 20 was still a strong field
despite the absence of Jack van Stekelenburg who had bigger fish to fry, namely training for the World
Youth Olympics Triathlon! Alex Gruen nursed a tender hamstring and therefore took the race slightly
easier than he otherwise would have, but to his credit finished an uninjured 22nd, sealing a MGS defeat of
BGS. Montgomery Bell Academy super star Cole Jones enjoyed his first hit out on Australian soil, despite
never having raced an APS Cross Country race before and it still being his off-season in the US, finished
39th for MGS. His contribution to the team is much appreciated! The stand-out performance in the Senior
team however was Huw Gatford, with a superb PB place of 43rd. Bailey March and Campbell Edmonds
also had good races, finishing 47th and 51st respectively. Andrew Pan looked good too, finishing 82nd,
and although the heavy conditions may not have suited the big man Will Sanderson, his courageous spirit
and ability to push himself were on show as he finished a commendable 90th in the strong field.
...cont’d/..
Next week is the last APS Round for the season, and last full round ever for the year 12s, and the season
will officially conclude on Saturday evening with the annual Dinner.
Sincere thanks go to Mr Coull for organising the team and logistics on the day as flawlessly as usual, and
Rich Polkinghorne for his ongoing energy, drive and enthusiasm.
Fred Smithers (12 Rn)
Cross Country Co-Vice Captain
Runners World Weekly Awards:
Most Improved Junior:
Imran Aykol
Most Improved Intermediate:
Matthew March
Most Improved Open:
Huw Gatford
Best Junior:
Fred Hayward
Best Intermediate:
Wez Lovegrove
Best Open:
Henry Kiellerup
MGS Open team with a SunSmart approach Intermediate team is off and racing Huw Gatford, Kevin Liu and Bailey March
combining for a strong performance APS Round 4 ‐ The Premiership Showdown Open Team:
Intermediate Team:
Junior Team:
Haileybury 6pts defeats MGS 4pts defeats Wesley 2pts
2nd
7th
Saturday saw Melbourne Grammar’s Cross Country team face Haileybury and Wesley in what ultimately
would determine premiership standings. It was our round to host and Mr Coull was in charge of course
design, and yes it was designed towards our strengths. Thank you to all the parents who helped out
marshalling the course and keeping everyone on the track, providing plenty of positive feedback for the
runners.
The Junior and Intermediate runners stormed through the course with ease and plenty of speed. Frequent
Award winners Freddy Hayward and Imran Aykol won the Best Junior and Most Improved Juniors
respectively. Other notable mentions go to the two boys from Grimwade who secured 53rd and 91st to help
the junior team stay in 7th place. The intermediates saw an abundance of superb runs with Jonathan
Sahhar finishing just inside the top 20, Matthew March in 25th and Nick Villaluz in 56th but the awards went
to Callum McCrea for best intermediate and Matthew March for most improved. The boys finished very well
to secure an overall 2nd place.
The senior team were faced with a massive task, one which was possible but we needed to have a good
day as a team and Haileybury a bad day. A pre-race pump up by Henry Kiellerup set our heads in the right
place as he outlined the best way for the team to approach the race. And when the gun went off, Henry’s
wise words came into action as the whole team set out chasing glory. Unfortunately it was not to be, we
came so close but got beaten by 2 points (the equivalent to 1 point in AFL) by Haileybury but comfortably in
front of Wesley.
It was a very well-run race by the whole team and everyone ought to be proud of what we have achieved
this season. Now we aim to win our final two rounds and finish the season on a high note. Awards of the
day went to Jack van Stekelenburg as the best Senior and the birthday boy Wez Lovegrove with most
improved. A special mention goes to Nick Foster who, despite medical complications, decided to go against
the doctor’s word to help the team out for his last time this season. A top run for everyone, considering the
3 week break was not ideal. 6 runners in the top 30 is still another amazing achievement and we will
continue to better our best.
Jack van Stekelenburg (12 Py)
Captain of Cross Country

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