President's Report - Season 2012

I am pleased to report that 2012 has been a remarkably successful year at Old Collegians both on an off the field. At the 75th Dinner I recited a number of different ways in which a club might consider itself a success, and I revisit those remarks here.

1. Size
We remain one of the biggest clubs in South Australia. Our registrations in 2012 were up by approximately 35% across the board. I defer to the reports of the Senior and Junior Registrars to tell the full story in that regard.

2. Inclusion and Diversity
Unlike many other clubs, we continue to maintain teams for all types of rugby players.
With men's teams in every grade, a women's team, colts and six junior squads we have a place for rugby players of both genders and all ages, levels of experience, fitness and commitment.
We also continue to have a broadly multicultural player base, with our home grown players joined by others from New Zealand, South Africa, England, Ireland, Wales, Scotland, France, Argentina, Fiji, Hong Kong, the Pacific Islands, PNG, Malaysia and beyond.

3. On the Field
We saw excellent on-field results in 2012. I defer to the reports of the Director of Rugby and Junior Director of Rugby to tell you more about that success, but in a snapshot:

• We won the Coopers Cup for Championship Club
• 2nd XV were Minor Premiers and Premiers, barely defeated all year
• 3rd XV were Minor Premiers and Premiers, barely defeated all year
• 1st XV and U14s were: XV Grand Finalists
• Women's XV were Semi Finalists
• 1st XV won the Bartercard Cup, ANZAC Cup and East Suburbs Cup
  And on the broader stage, we proudly lay claim to Liam Gill (Wallabies), d'Arcy Sadler (Australian Women's 7s), Alex Rokobaro (Stade Français and the Melbourne Rebels) and Brock James (Clermont).

4. Financially
It has been a very healthy year financially for the club. We currently have a healthy balance in the bank and very few bills to pay.
I will leave the Treasurer's Report to tell the full story but, in summary:
- the 75th Dinner raised a large sum, thanks to the efforts of the 75th Committee and notably Justin Elder and Ollie Porter;
- the Merchandise sales turned a reasonable profit, under the guidance of Amanda Porteous;
- the Bar made more than usual thanks largely to the efforts of Justin Elder in cutting costs; and
- Sponsorship was increased for 2012/2013, thanks to the hard work of Sandy Taylor.

Further sponsorship arrangements which were negotiated by Sandy for 2013 and 2014, and a new arrangement proposed by Burnside Council (described further below) suggest that the next few years should also be comfortable ones in their own right.
In addition, this year we established the Old Collegians Trust which is separately and independently raised and administered, and exists to support Old Collegians" recruitment and development. That fund currently holds further monies, thanks largely to a substantial contribution from the ever generous Mr Mark Pickard.
Applications for inaugural grants from that fund are currently being invited.

5. State Contribution
We have continued to pull our weight at a state level, as sponsors, volunteers, administrators, referees, coaches, managers and players.
Mark Pickard is on the Board of SA Rugby and Geoff Holdich this year stepped down after 12 years of services as its President.
We had numerous state representative players in the men's, women's, and juniors" state teams (see the reports of the Director of Rugby and Director of Junior Rugby for their names).
We also provided state coaches, trainers and managers for the State Teams in the form of Peet Arnold, Kath Cherry, Graham Copson, the staff of Physio Direct and myself.
We are the single largest club supporter of the SA Rugby Union Referees Association, including five Referees and two Assistant Referees in the 2012 Finals (Chester Armstrong, Tony Bird, Kath Cherry, Tom Litchfield, Mark Pickard, Richard Waddicor and Tim Wall).
In summary of the above, by any gauge it has been a pleasingly successful year!

Survey

The apparent "on paper" success of the club is reinforced by the recent club survey of our members, which recorded positive ratings on nearly every front. The survey has proved a useful tool for understanding what we are doing well and what we could do better.

Club Coaches, Managers, Captains and Administrators all received pleasingly positive ratings and we recorded very strong levels of satisfaction with our facilities, social events, merchandise, and communications.
The only identified area for concern was in relation to communication from coaches and selectors. Accordingly, we will be actively addressing that issue in 2013.

75th Anniversary
I can"t go any further without mentioning our wonderful 75th anniversary celebrations.
We began with the Heritage Day in May, with our 1st XV playing in Heritage Colours and resoundingly defeating Burnside, followed by a fun evening at our 'speakeasy" with everyone dressed in 30s styles in acknowledgement of our 1937 founding year.
Throughout the year we offered a range of 75th anniversary merchandise (polo, jersey, hoody, cap and tie) this year, and the number of orders exceeded all our expectations. It was gratifying to see so many of our supporters on the sidelines in red and blue all year.
Thanks again to the generosity of Mark Pickard, we played Rugby Under Lights on Friday 13 July in front of a big crowd, many of whom had travelled from far and wide to join us for the dinner the next night. The joy and camaraderie on the sidelines and in the packed clubrooms that evening was palpable and heart-warming.

Last but by no means least, we had the 75th Anniversary Dinner which was a spectacularly polished, enjoyable and successful event. My thanks and congratulations to Justin Elder and his 75th Dinner Sub-Committee, and to Ollie Porter for all his help. Highlights included Peter FitzSimons" after-dinner speech, the induction of Cyril Campion into our Roll of Life Members (and his speech and Woodpecker song), the highly profitable auction, and, simply, the 540 friendly faces in the room. It was night never to be forgotten.

The Clubhouse & Tregenza
Maintenance of the Clubhouse and its facilities remains a constant chore and expense, and I thank everyone who has been involved, but particularly:

• Justin Elder for taking general responsibility for House and Grounds, and also for line-marking
• Stewart Douglas, Denzil Church and everyone else who helped with maintenance issues
• Everyone who helped with clean up over the summer

I must again thank Mark Pickard who is in the process of orchestrating substantial improvements to our field and clubrooms, and we hope you might start to see some of those within the next year or so.
As mentioned obliquely above, we are in the middle of renegotiating our tenure of Tregenza and the clubrooms. It would be premature to report in detail on matters which are not yet finalised, but I am pleased to be summarise that Burnside Council has offered Old Collegians a new model of tenure under which we would have greater security, greater control and less cost. It will take time to settle the fine details, and the Council will need to go through a number of formal protocols first. In the meantime, we have entered into an interim arrangement which embodies the Council's offer on a trial basis. In essence, we will be charged significantly less for the licence of the oval, while at the same time we will be given control over who else uses it and be entitled to the fees paid by such users.

Sponsors

As always, we could not do what we do without our sponsors, and due to the hard work of Sandy Taylor this year as Sponsorship Coordinator, I have more of them to thank than usual!

• Feathers Hotel, for cash sponsorship and support of our bar
• Physio Direct, for provision of much valued sideline medical support
• Finlaysons, for sponsorship of the 1st XV jerseys
• Roofseal, for sponsorship of the 3rd XV and Colts jerseys
• Monroe Australia, for sponsorship of the 2nd XV, training balls and new goal-post pads
• Elder Fine Art, for sponsorship of the 75th Anniversary Dinner
• Argo on the Parade, for cash sponsorship
• Thrifty, for cash sponsorship
• Vicki Chapman, for cash sponsorship
• Powerhouse Sports, for in-kind sponsorship
• Coopers, for free beer!

Volunteers
We were, as usual, dependant on a small group of dedicated volunteers who provided canteen services, line marking, ground set up and take down, cleaning and the many other jobs that provide an enjoyable environment for our players and supporters. We are always light on volunteers and although we saw more volunteers from the playing ranks in 2012, it could still bear to improve.
My thanks to my Senior Committee:

• Justin Elder, Vice President
• Sue Thewlis, Secretary
• Danny McCartan, Director of Rugby
• Amanda Porteous, Treasurer
• Richard Waddicor, Registrar
• Sandy Taylor, Sponsorship Co-ordinator
• Daniella Di Girolamo, Social Director
• Nadia Di Girolamo, Newsletter Editor
• Committee Members: Simon Allport, Richard Czeglik, Stewart Douglas, Paull Francis, Tiana Hume

My thanks also to:

• the Junior Committee. I defer to the Report of the Junior Director for further detail; and
• the Selectors, Coaches and Managers. I defer to the Report of the Director of Rugby for further detail.

...and my particular thanks to the hardworking volunteers who do the "boring stuff":

• Sue Thewlis, of course!
• All those who from time to time were responsible for ground set up and take down, particularly the junior committee and Tom Secker
• Paul Horne for his management of the website
• Everyone who worked in the canteen or on the BBQ this year
• Peter Allen for helping with keeping our grounds tidy
• For first aid and physiotherapy support
• Kate Denley, Tiana Hume and the staff from Physio Direct, Vic Ferguson and Bridget Sugden and the of course Michael Lowe himself
• The club's paid "volunteers": Alyce Brewis, Vin Davies and others behind the bar, and Anne Bradley for cleaning

My particular thanks also go to a number of our volunteers who are stepping down today:

• Justin Elder is retiring as Vice President after an enormous year, but is already looking forward to other ways of contributing in 2013;
  
• Sue Thewlis is giving up her role as Secretary after 10 years. However, you may not notice a difference because the official duties of Secretary are only a small portion of what Sue does, and she will be staying on the Committee and keeping the balance of those chores!
  
• David and Simone Linder-Patton are retiring after many years of hard work in their roles as the Director and Registrar of the Juniors but will continue to be around and to volunteer in less structured ways; and
  
• Tiana Hume is stepping down from the Senior Committee but will remain as Senior Trainer.
  

I congratulate them for all they have achieved and look forward to their continued involvement.

This year has been a magnificent one at Old Collegians on all fronts. We had thought that 2012 would largely be spent reminiscing about the last 75 years, but in fact we spent it forging grand new memories which we will keep for decades to come. I am sure you will join me in saying that it has been a privilege and a delight to be a part of Old Collegians in 2012.
Onwards and upwards!

Kim Evans, President

Director of Rugby

Any year that our Club wins a senior premiership makes for a successful year but to win two makes it special. I wrote in last year's report that there was a feeling the club was about to enter into a special period where all the hard work was going to pay off and we would convert finals appearances into Premierships.

To have the First, Second and Third XV teams playing on Grand Final day was just reward for the enormous amount of work put in by the coaching and playing group over the last few years and reward also for our dedicated volunteers and loyal supporter base.Team Reports:

The First XV may not have won the premiership this year, unfortunately losing to Brighton in the Grand Final for the second consecutive year, but they had a good year and did extremely well to make it into the Grand Final.

The team started strongly winning the Bartercard Cup against Brighton in great fashion and then beating Brighton again at Brighton to win the Anzac Trophy. We hadn"t beaten Brighton in the 1st XV for three years so to beat them twice within a month gave us great confidence for the year ahead.Unfortunately from that point on season-ending injuries to key backs, and continued unavailability of other players on a regular basis combined to slow the early season momentum.

Coach Michael McCrea and his assistant Peet Arnold did a great job in getting the team through to the finals as it was very hard to maintain any continuity with the weekly changes particularly in the backs. The team showed tremendous heart to win both finals games to get into the Grand Final, having to come from behind in both games. This effort may have taken its toll as we struggled to match Brighton when it mattered in the Grand Final.

Tom Secker once again managed the side well and thanks must go to Hamish and Harry who stepped into the role for several weeks while Tom was overseas.

With several key players returning from injuries next year and the younger players in the team having had a full season under their belts, this team can win the Premiership in 2013. To make this a reality all the players have to show the same commitment to training and game preparation as the coaching team, otherwise we will again be left to lament what might have been.

The Second XV was coached again by Stew Douglas and had a wonderful year winning the Premiership. This team dominated the completion to the extent that it had secured the minor premiership with still six games to go in the season. It was about this time when Stew and the team were seriously challenged for the first time losing two games in succession. The reaction from Stew and his assistant James Irving and the players was to get back to basics immediately and they set about winning ugly for the next few weeks. The defence they showed in these games was such that no team could cross their line and this approach reset the standard that marched them into the finals winning the second semi comfortably against Brighton. The club had not won the Second XV Premiership for 21 years but had been in a position to do so many times, so the pressure was on and many of this group had been in the run-on team from the year before. Unlike other years where the Second XV lacked continuity as a result of losing players to First XV or injury, this year the Seconds side was the most stable team in the club and with a great blend of young and experienced players which had been together all year. The Grand Final against Brighton was a cracker with the intensity more in keeping with an A Grade game, but it Didn't matter as the defensive action so engrained in this side held sway even when it looked like the opposition had to score. Congratulations to Stew and James and all the team on a wonderful season. Thanks must also go to Doug Mein who once again did a tremendous job managing the team.

The Third XV coached by Graham Raymond and Barry Hickman had an outstanding year winning the Premiership. Graham and Barry teamed up this year after having individually coaching the Thirds in recent years. Much like the Seconds, the Thirds dominated the opposition during the season losing only one game and drawing one other. What makes the Thirds achievement of winning the Premiership so outstanding is that they did it in a competition where three teams have their First XV teams playing, as they are not in the Premier Division (Barossa Rams, Adelaide University and Elizabeth). Old Collegians was the only team to make the finals with a true Thirds team. The Thirds won the Minor Premiership and beat the Rams comfortably in the Semi Final to go into the Grand Final. The scrum was totally dominant and the backs were finishing off brilliantly. Credit must go to Graham and Barry for the way the side had come together during the season especially as the team had to endure many changes with player movements up and down. The Thirds played University in the Final and controlled the game from the outset to be comfortable winners. The pace of the Grand Final was the quickest it had been all year but credit must go to the players as they just stepped up when it mattered most. Well done once again to the Thirds on a magnificent year!Ian Walker once again did a tremendous job as Manager of this team. Unlike the 1st and 2nd XV teams the Thirds team is often not settled until Saturday mornings so there is a lot of work done by Ian from Thursday night until game time to ensure the team gets on the park....great job, Ian!

Our Fourth XV team again provided an opportunity to blood new players into the Club and together with a number of our more senior players enjoy a game of rugby in a grade with less intensity.The 4ths were a good blend this year and were more than competitive when we managed to put a team on the park. The side was coached initially by Steve Stanway and then by Tony Herve and I thank them both for their efforts throughout the year, as it is by far the hardest team to coach as you never know what you going to get to work with each week, or if you have a team at all.As much as it seems like hard work to maintain a 4th XV I believe its worth the effort, as the number of new players (not only to our club but to the game of rugby) that came through the grade this year is vital in keeping that ripple affect going within the club.
Three 4th grade regulars made it into the Thirds 22 for the Grand Final and contributed strongly to the victory. Many of the 4th Grade players reserved for the 3rds throughout the year and steadily improved as the season went on.Ian Walker was the unofficial Manager of this team and did a great job on many occasions, often doing the ring around to get a team on the park or getting new players registered.

The Women's XV coached by Will Sadler and assisted by Kath Cherry and Andy Marshallsay had a great year with many new players representing the club. The team had some memorable wins during the year and played with tremendous spirit but unfortunately were out muscled in the finals this year. This team as usual had the best attendance at training all year of our senior teams, from pre-season through the cold nights of winter right up to the finals. The Women's team also found it hard to get any consistency this year but not for the same reasons as the other teams, but more so from the stop-start draw which often has them not playing on a weekly basis. The Women's team are an important piece of the club fabric with the team members driving many areas of club management and always strong contributors socially. With Will resuming his playing career and Kath's refereeing commitments increasing we will need to concentrate on strengthening the Women's coaching team to ensure they reach their full potential in 2013.Thanks also to Phil Turvey and Bec Derbyshire-Lloyd for their help as Team Managers.

The Junior Club is to be congratulated once again on their efforts in preparing our young players. The quality of the players that came up from the U18's this year into the seniors is a testament to all the hard work and dedication of David Linder-Patton and his tireless Committee, Coaches and helpers.

Adelaide University players were warmly welcomed to the club this year following Uni's decision to drop out of the Premier Division. Seven players registered at the start of the season and all made major contributions to First XV throughout the year, with several receiving playing awards at the Presentation Dinner.

My sincere thanks go to the all Coaches and Managers for their hard work and commitment throughout the season.

Thanks to Ian Walker and Doug Mein who were the club selectors this year and who spent many extra hours ensuring the paperwork was done and keeping me sane.

Also a huge thank you to Tiana Hume, Bridget Sugden, Victoria Ferguson and Kate Denley for the many hours they put in during the year in keeping the guys on the park week in week out, and also to Michael Lowe of Physio Direct for his continued support.

State Representation:
The club is proud again to have had the following senior state representatives:
Adelaide Black Falcons XV: Chris Bartlett, Jon Collins, Gary Mann, Henry Nutt. Adelaide Black Falcons
Sevens: Will Sadler
Junior Falcons: Tim Dawes, Mitch Sallis, George Bretag-Norris, Nat Linder Patton
Southern Warriors XV: d'Arcy Sadler, Eloise Birch, Nadia Di Girolamo, Sarah Mitchelson, Nadia Blake
Southern Warriors Sevens: d'Arcy Sadler, Eloise Birch, Nadia Di Girolamo.

Danny McCartan
Director of Rugby

 

Director of Junior Rugby Report

The 2012 season has again been a very successful one for Old Collegians junior rugby, with significant success both on the field and off the field with our incredible parents' support, committed volunteers, hard working committee members and the whole of the coaching staff.

Looking at the whole junior club, it has, from my perspective, been a year which has seen the skills, determination and sportsmanship of our playing group grow throughout the season. This is a strong and important part of the OC's junior culture and is at the heart of how we play the game, conduct ourselves and help to influence the conduct and values of the playing group.

To our on-field success:

Under 7s, 8s and 10s:
This year we have seen a significant change to the format of the competition and whilst the zone part of this format may need to be reviewed I can only reflect on how successful the Gala day format has been. Thanks to all the coaching staff involved.

Under 12s and Under 14s:
A very competitive season from both sides with the U14s making the grand final this year and narrowly losing. Again this year we have had excellent representations in the state squads and for all players involved this is an excellent achievement and one the club is very proud of.

Under 18s: This year we had significantly better numbers than any year I can remember, and on paper a very strong squad. Unfortunately, the Under 18s had a significant eight week period with as many as eight players injured or on state duties.

We had three players selected for the Schoolboys competition, at which SA won Div 2, and two players (Chris Steel and Stewart Nutt) were selected for the Combined States Team. Congratulations to all the boys for an excellent and enjoyable season.

This season OC has achieved more players than ever gaining State representation.
They are:
Schoolboys: Matt Bautz, Stewart Nutt, Lachlan Riley, Chris Steel.
U15s: George Campbell, Charlie Pickford.
U14s: George Campbell, Rhys Frew, Charles Pickford
U13s: Eamonn Lambert, Oliver Horne, Charlie Dubois.
U12s: Thomas Copson, James Dalzell, George Pepper

We also claim a number of 2012 senior representative players who were coached through the Juniors at OCs:

• Junior Black Falcons (Under 20s): Mitch Sallis, George Bretag-Norris, Nat Linder Patton
• Black Falcons: Henry Nutt
• SA Women's 7s and XVs teams & the Australian Women's 7s team: d'Arcy Sadler
• SA Schoolgirls 7s team & Australian Schoolgirls Development Squad: Mackenzie Sadler

Special congratulations go to George Campbell who has been selected to join the SA Rugby Academy. The Academy is a part of the "Junior Gold Program", a nationally facilitated long term talent development program coordinated by the Australian Rugby Union High Performance Unit and based out of 23 centres across the country.

Some words of thanks to the committee, coaches, managers, coaching assistants, canteen & BBQ volunteers, parents, Joyce Spry and all our supporters.
If we did not have your help OC's juniors would not be what it is.

In last year's report I mentioned the success of our retention policy from juniors to seniors. It was with so much pride that I watched the senior finals day with so many old juniors in all grades that are now having a significant effect on the strength and depth of the talent pool in the senior club, this ensures that Old Collegians has a strong and very bright future in senior rugby and that this policy must be maintained at all costs.

On a final note, given that this will be my final year as Junior Director of Rugby, I would like to wish the new committee good luck in the challenges that are ahead. I would also like to thank all of you for your support, help and advice over the last couple of years.

David Linder-Patton
Director of Junior Rugby

Summary of Junior Committee Annual Meeting 2012

Registered Players

We had 128 registered players in the 2012 season, 13 new to the club.

Teams for 2012 Season

U7s and U8s: 25 players
U10s: 21 players
U12s: 29 players
U14s: 26 players
U18s: 27 players

New for 2012

The U7s, U8s and U10s played a separate competition where unregistered players were encouraged to come and try. The union did not have an organised approach to registrations and some players were not registered even after the come and try sessions had finished. If the format is to continue the registrar will have to take action to register and track new players.

Presentation Evening

The format for presentation night was altered due to the early season finish for the U7s, U8s and U10s. We had 2 Juniors Presentation Nights, one for the U7s, U8s and U10s and one for the U12s and U14s. The U18s joined the Senior Presentation Dinner.

2012 Junior Committee

Director of Junior Rugby - David Linder-Patton
Assistant-Director of Junior Rugby - Graham Copson
Juniors Registrar - Simone Linder-Patton
Juniors Committee Members - Tim Colwell, Fraser Bell

2013 Junior Committee

Director of Junior Rugby - Stewart Frew
Deputy-Director of Junior Rugby - Graham Copson
Juniors Registrar - Trudy Armstrong/Tamara Illman
Junior Secretary (Acting) - Jane Richards
Juniors Committee Members - Michael Westerik, Peter Dubois, Denzil Church, Chris Barry, Ian Horne, Simon Pickford, Sam Gomersall
Juniors Social Director - Sarah Monfries

I would like to thank all of the committee members, coaches, managers, volunteers, supporters, parents and players for all of their hard work on and off the field.

Simone Linder-Patton
Juniors' Registrar

oldcollegiansrugby.org.au

Booth Avenue, Linden Park, SA, 5065, Australia

P.O. Box 164, Glenside SA 5065

Phone: (61 8) 8379 4770