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Otago Daily Times
3 days ago
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
St Hilda's keep legacy going
The St Hilda's rugby team prepare for the South Island secondary schoolgirls final against Christchurch Girls' tomorrow. PHOTO: GERARD O'BRIEN You never know where life can take you. In the early 1990s, St Hilda's Collegiate teacher John Bradfield was looking for an assistant coach to help him out with the school's First XV when he rang the physical education department at the University of Otago to see if anyone was interested. A young woman by the name of Farah Palmer answered the call, and made the trip up to St Hilda's to lend a hand to a bunch of fresh-faced teenagers wanting to get stuck in. Palmer, who was playing for Otago at the time, went on to be one of the most recognisable faces in women's rugby, captaining the Black Ferns before being appointed to the New Zealand Rugby board. Black Ferns great Farah Palmer (front row, third from the left) with the 1996 St Hilda's First XV she helped coach while playing for Otago. PHOTOS: ST HILDA'S The national provincial women's competition is aptly named the Farah Palmer Cup after the trailblazer. It was a "happy accident" for the school — but one that remains invaluable for them today. Palmer stayed on with the team for a couple of years after Bradfield — who is now back at St Hilda's as teacher in charge of rugby — moved on, and she paved the way for future generations of rugby at the school. That opened the door for St Hilda's to produce some of the Otago Spirit's finest, including current back Sheree Hume and hooker Hannah Lithgow. Rugby has grown massively at the school across the past three decades. More players were arriving from rural areas, having already played in boys' teams, and the interest had grown with 55 girls involved in the sport — including 20 year 9s — this season. Several players Palmer helped coach now have daughters at the Dunedin school, which is gearing up for its biggest battle yet. The St Hilda's team had a hard-fought 33-27 win over Central Southland College in Invercargill last week to win the Highlanders secondary schoolgirls' final. They now head to Christchurch tomorrow to play powerhouses Christchurch Girls' in the South Island final; the winner will qualify for the top four. It is a big occasion for the team, who are coached by James O'Brien and Lucy Holmes-Crombie. Bradfield is proud of the St Hilda's girls, who have a hard-working forward pack and exciting backs, and of how far rugby has come at the school. Maybe the next Farah Palmer will be out on the pitch tomorrow.
Otago Daily Times
16-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Otago Daily Times
St Hilda's first with ‘Freaky Friday'
The cast of St Hilda's Collegiate School's production of Freaky Friday bust some moves during rehearsals for the musical being staged next week. PHOTO: CASS PICKERING A large cohort of St Hilda's Collegiate School students have been hard at work during the school holidays, putting the finishing touches on their musical production of Based on the novel by Mary Rodgers and the hit Disney films, the show is being performed for the first time in Dunedin and will run from next Wednesday to Friday at Mosgiel Coronation Hall. Freaky Friday follows the story of an overworked mother and her teenage daughter, played by St Hilda's students Amelia Baxter and Sylvie Harper, who magically swap bodies and have 24 hours to put things right. By spending a day in each other's shoes, the pair come to appreciate one another and strengthen their bond. Director Beth Waite said the production featured a 26-strong all-female cast, including male-presenting roles, along with a 16-strong band comprising mostly St Hilda's students, a 20-strong sets and props team, and a 10-member stage management, sound and lighting, costume, makeup and hair crew. "All up, we have about 70 students from across the school involved in bringing Freaky Friday to the stage, it has been a whole-school effort," Waite said. "We have been having a lot of fun with the weird events at the centre of the story — there are definitely a lot of high-jinks, as well as plenty of singing and dancing." The cast had worked closely with musical director Kane Welsh and choreographer Ariana Gepte to pull the "tricky" score and energetic dance sequences together and were doing a great job, she said. Alongside Baxter and Harper, principal Freaky Friday cast members include Chloe Forde, Evie Bennison, Yana Dewey, Olivia Harwood, Alex Barkman, Meisha Smith and Sophie Wagner. "Putting the show together has been a major effort for everyone, so it will be exciting to finally bring it to the stage next week," Waite said. St Hilda's production of Freaky Friday will be staged at Mosgiel Coronation Hall from Wednesday to Friday, at 7pm. Tickets via humanitix
Straits Times
22-04-2025
- Sport
- Straits Times
St Hilda's late-night crisis meeting helps seal record 20th B Div volleyball title
SINGAPORE – In the run-up to the National School Games B Division boys' volleyball final, powerhouses St Hilda's Secondary School were the overwhelming favourites, having gone the entire season unbeaten without conceding a single set. But things had not gone well during training, heightening their anxiety as they prepared to defend their crown against Xinmin Secondary School on April 22. At the request of coach Teo Siew Lan, captain Matthew Wee called a late-night crisis meeting via Zoom on the eve of the final to calm nerves and iron out their strategy. The move worked wonders, as St Hilda's romped past Xinmin 25-19, 25-11 at Our Tampines Hub to claim their 20th B boys' volleyball crown. Matthew, 16, said: 'Leading up to (the final), there were a lot of doubts and fears. There were a lot of individual mistakes during training, and we all agreed we must stay patient and work together as one.' That strategy worked well, as St Hilda's stayed composed in the tight first set before finding their groove to take it 25-19. The boys then showed their attacking prowess in the second set, blowing away Xinmin 25-11 to claim the title. Teo, who has been at the helm of St Hilda's volleyball for almost 30 years, was happy her boys adapted to Xinmin's attack after the close first set to run away with the match. She said: 'First set we had a hard time blocking them. But towards the end of the first set, they started to get used to the way they spike, the direction and things like that.' St Hilda's captain Matthew Wee diving for a loose ball. ST PHOTO: TARYN NG Key player Jayvier Ang, 16 attributed the win to the trust the players have for each other. 'When I hear them (my teammates) calling, I can really trust them and just give them the ball and know that they will do their best to handle the ball. 'I think we played more as a team (in the second set). We adapted to the loud noises and communicated better.' St Hilda's Jayvier Ang celebrating a point won by his team. ST PHOTO: TARYN NG There was more agony for Xinmin when their girls' team succumbed 25-17, 25-21 in the B Division final to Nanyang Girls' High School, who reclaimed the title they lost to Bukit Panjang Government High School in 2024. 'I didn't think there was a lot of pressure,' said Nanyang captain Theng Jia Qi, 16, when asked if expectations were higher after their loss last season. 'We were really calm today and mentally stable.' Nanyang Girls' High School showed great camaraderie during their B Division Girls' volleyball final. ST PHOTO: TARYN NG Despite the double defeat, Xinmin were proud of reaching both finals. Elias Loo, teacher-in-charge for the boys' team, said: 'The girls have never been in the final before. The last time the boys were in the final was in 2009. It's historic. 'It also means that whatever hard work we have been putting in is paying off and that comes as a team effort, as a school. 'Despite losing in the finals, I think we have won in many ways. I'm really, really proud.' Boys' captain Timothy Lim, 16, said: 'I think this is the best that we (Xinmin) have ever played, and I'm very proud of my team for making it this far.' Girls' captain Jamie Sim, 15, added: 'They (future batches) will definitely look up to our batch and definitely strive to do better and come back and make history again.' More on this Topic Volleyball-Zhao charged with taking China's women back to Olympic podium Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
