Collegiate 1st XV taking on Lindisfarne College in June last year.
Wanganui Collegiate School director of sport, Barry Touzel, chats to the Wanganui Chronicle about the evolution of a new wave sport programme on offer to students.
The 2018 year is set to be another 12-months of progress at Wanganui Collegiate School.
Building projects including upgrading the HG Carver Memorial Library into a state of the art learning centre, and the beautiful new administration building set to overlook the No1 rugby and football fields, along with the cricket oval.
These projects are all currently well underway and due to be completed by mid-year.
So too, the renovation of the Izard Sports Centre adding extra sports specialist areas, including a new weights, strength and conditioning gym.
There will be a specialised ERG's area for rowing, a physiotherapy space and a high-performance sports class – set to be completed within the year.
Mr Wayne Brown starts as our 21st headmaster, bringing a wealth of education experience as well as expertise in elite professional sports coaching as he was assistant coach to the NZ Breakers basketball team some seasons ago.
Playing and participating in a sport is essential part of Collegiateas it offers a balance to a very busy school life.
Participation in both a summer and winter sports code, with emphasis on team sports, lays the foundation of what we believe plays an integral part of our holistic education offer.
We cater for many teams from social hockey teams for boys and girls to performance-based rugby teams for boys, netball for girls and rowing squads for both.
WCS sports underwent a major change three seasons ago with a Whanganui College Board of Trustees initiative to resource high profile, highly qualified and experienced coaches for our teams, and implement a structure offering all our students access to this top-quality coaching.
Since then, each season has seen huge improvement in student player development and progress.
With continued support from the board, and buy-in from all stakeholders, including the WCS headmaster and staff, sports at WCS have grown exponentially and 2018 looks to be no different.
The WCS senior cricketers have undertaken a ground-breaking West Indies tour – the first New Zealand school to do so – under the mentorship of WCS Old Boy Waren Marr, who brought all his experiance from being general manager of Northland Cricket.
WCS Director of Cricket Dilan Raj is a well-respected level 3 coach with much technical experience, putting together a team with former New Zealand international Stu Gillespie and junior team and level 3 coach Dave Berry.
These experienced coaches along with others with First Class cricket experience, help cater for all WCS teams, who have taken on a demanding and competitive fixture list.
WCS Rowing has a long and proud history, boasting the most successful record of any NZ school at the prestigious Maadi Cup.
Local personality and administrator Gus Scott recently joined our rowing club in a fulltime capacity and is charged with running all aspects rowing.
Together with the school's support he has put together a coaching team that is highly experienced – including head coach Dave Lindstrong, the 1972-1976 Olympian and national coach who guide's the boy's senior eight as well as overseeing all squads and delivering their training programmes.
Also assisting are Philippa Baker- Hogan – the two-time world champion, 1996 Olympian and Hallberg Award winner – and Collegiate's 1970's Maadi Cup-winner Mark Norman.
Their world class coaching with a well-resourced rowing shed and arguably the best tidal river training water in NZ sees all our rowers well set up.
The third traditional sport is WCS's rugby club, headed up by local legend and experienced coach Guy Lennox.
All rugby teams are blessed to have coaches with a minimum of College 1st XV coaching experience.
The 1st XV are coached by ex-Wanganui representative players Te Ahu Teki and Aaron Chadwick.
The Colts players are fortunate to have Steve Simpson, an ex-Taranaki representative coach and player as their mentor.
All teams play in very competitive competitions with the 1st and 2nd XV in the Central North Island Competition, while the 1st XV play in many longstanding traditional fixtures (such as the century-old rivalry with New Plymouth Boys High) and the 125-year-old annual Quadrangular competition against Nelson College, Wellington College and Christs College.
Collegiate will host the Quadrangular again on June 24-27.
The athletics students are coached by long time WCS schoolmaster and master coach Alec McNab.
He is ably assisted by local throws coach Richard Drabczynski, and together they run some highly professional athletics and cross-country programmes which lead to WCS consistently being among the top athletics and cross-country schools in the country.
The WCS haul of 16 medals at the 2017 National Athletics meet adds to the long history of similar success nationally, unsurpassed by any individual school in New Zealand and is testament to their ability, passion and professionalism.
WCS Foundation Hockey Turf is home venue to six girls teams and five for the boys.
The Boys First XI, coached by Turakina's Jan Dixon and ex-Black Stick Robbie Matthews, and has seen their young squad learn much from their experienced combination.
Anna Symes, also an ex Black Stick, is the Director of Hockey as well as the Girls 1st XI coach.
Under her directorship we have seen an increase in playing numbers and importantly the development of all our players.
Our recently laid hard court offer six tennis courts for our many tennis players and teams.
This structured programme sees close to 100 players coached in a variety of squads suited to their play, ability and development.
The programme is run by professional and No4 ranked national player Leela Beattie.
In the winter, this area becomes the all-weather netball courts for our girls under the guidance of newly appointed Director of Netball Jodie Brunger, the very experienced coach Nicole Dryden and local premier player and teacher Jackie Abraham.
They cater very well for the junior teams through to the seniors.
Football caters to three boys teams and 2 girls squads and this code is shortly due to receive the necessary boost with the employment of their own director to offer the necessary expertise in coaching to all players while upskilling the team coaches.
Football is the latest in the line of sports to benefit from this system and we look forward to the announcement of a high-profile director of coaching shortly.