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‘Phil Speaks’

The ‘Phil Speaks’ Debating Competition 20th /21st January

Harry Oke-Osanyintolu reports:

The Phil Speaks competition 2017 was nothing close to what we imagined; it was much better. We arrived at Trinity College, Dublin at around 9:00 am before the first round. We had to register our names and our school’s name and then came the hard part, we had to talk to other people or else we would stand out as being socially awkward individuals. This was easier for some of the members of the team because they knew some people but for me, it was harder than the debates. They announced the first topic which saved me from embarrassing myself in front of strangers which was ”  this house would abolish monarchism”. This was an unfamiliar topic to me but not for my better half, Jack Stokes who knew exactly what he was saying. There was a twist in this round because we had to go against our other team made up of Sophie Matthews and Marie-Pauline Bleyl. Both of them were capable opponents and lived up to expectation. I felt we debated this topic well by mentioning how monarchism led to patriotism and also mentioning aspects of monarchism that led to our present civilization. We mentioned the Oyo kingdom as a form of monarchism that brought music, art, architecture and other aspects of development into Nigeria and other countries in Africa.

Our opponents mentioned King Nero as a form of bad monarchism but we were able to use the fact that King Nero closed the Amphitheater for 10 years to ensure the safety of the people of Pompeii. We came second and our other team came third. This was a great first round outcome especially for our third team made up of Emily Devereux and Abraham Lozano who came out on top even though they thought they were supporting the motion while they were opposing it for the first minutes of the debate which I found outstanding.

The next round took it up a level, we were against people who were at our standard and the topic of “this house believes that  feminist icons such as Beyonce and Taylor Swift and others like them have contributed positively to the feminist movement”. The moment we saw this topic our jaws dropped and we knew we had to bring out our inner feminist to ensure our victory in supporting the motion. This was very difficult but  we used our fire and ice approach which was Jack would be calm and I would heat the place up by show of enthusiasm. We came second again but our other  teams both came fourth which was a surprise because they thought they performed  better.

As an event we were invited to, we felt it would be of a low standard but the truth is that it was far from it, We were served pizza which we all loved and also enjoyed spending time with different people who shared our love of debating. This concludes our first day.

We felt confident after our first day and our other teams were ready to rumble and our topic was that “this house believes that we should not trade with countries that have bad humanitarian records”  This was a closed debate therefore, we don’t get our results but we felt confident that our fire and ice approach worked its magic. The next round was an,other closed debate but the first  two debates on this day would dictate whether we earn a spot in the semi finals. after this round they served us nice warm crepes which were delicious and after this was the qualifying round. The topic was “this house would remove social media as a news source for younger people” We were in support of this motion but we felt we didn’t reach our fool potential but we kept our faith. We had our diner which was a burger and fries which was also great. After this was the moment we all had been waiting for, they announced the teams but when they said our college it sounded like they were saying something completely different but we did it but sadly only we made it, not our other teams. We knew that the level would be raised even higher. Our topic was that ” this house would ban politicians who don’t believe in climate change from seeking office”. We were against this and we tried our best to win it  but our best was not enough when we found out we didn’t make  the finals.

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Debating final

Ciara Murray reviews last Saturday’s debating final.

Saturday nights riveting Senior House Debating final ended in victory for Gwynn’s Douglas Boyd-Crotty, Henry Carroll and Ivan Moffit. Hollypark is delighted to have made it to the final and, despite being understandably disappointed with our loss, recognise that Gwynn was deserving of their win. Unlike last year’s house singing competition, we are not claiming to have been “robbed”.

Douglas’ engaging, humorous and powerful speech earned him best speaker. His teammates Henry and Ivan gave similar deliveries, ruthless in their evaluation of Obama’s presidency and bold in their statements, such as that he was the ‘worst ever American president’. While this may be true, it’s no secret that Dr Banister has a soft spot for Russia, making it likely that Gwynn’s references to the improvement in American/Russian relations may have won them a few extra points?

The Hollypark team were equally as strong in their performance, questioning the reliability of Gwynn’s sources and quick to retort to points of order. As mentioned by the Hollypark team of Ciara Gumsheimer, Courtney McKee and Ciara Dempsey, unlike Obama, Trump has the advantage of becoming president during a period of economic growth. Being an American and a loyal supporter of Barack Obama, Courtney was particularly passionate in her opposition to the motion that ‘Donald Trump will introduce better policies than Barack Obama did’.

There was a clear divide in the audience, with evident loyalty from the girls and boys houses. Points of order were heated and when questions were taken from the floor junior pupils were keen to participate; there were even a few questions strategically planted in the audience! As Hollypark’s team was composed solely of sixth years, we would encourage younger students to take part in debating next year as it is a really enjoyable and beneficial experience. Mr Brett was critical of those who read directly from their scripts, pointing out that it is essential for debaters to engage with the audience; bear this in mind future debaters!

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First Form Public Speaking Competition

The annual First Form public speaking competition took place today, and Ms Smith writes:

“We are grateful to Cathy Boobbyer who judged this year’s speeches. Eight courageous finalists spoke on topics as various as tropical animals, Syrian refugees, robots, the dangers of gaming, and the importance of failure.
There were four winners: 4th place went to Peter Taylor with his brave speech about Anxiety. In joint 2nd place were Guy Fitzgibbon and Tom Casey. Guy made an arresting address about robot invasions, and Tom Casey spoke about forms of discrimination in our world.
First place went to Emma Hinde for her engaging, carefully constructed speech about artificial intelligence (AI). She certainly made us all think. Something robots could be doing very soon… “
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Marshall Viscount Beresford’s silver

‘Getting a buzz out of history; the mysterious story of Marshal Viscount Beresford’s silver. 

A tale of courage, love, theft, and deceit across 200 years.’

While researching the military history of his relative the Marshall Viscount Beresford, Marcus Beresford (OC and fellow of the College) came across mention of a collection of magnificent silver. Marshall Viscount Beresford fought in the Napoleonic Wars in the early 19th century and was rewarded for his exploits by donations of silverware bearing his coat of arms. Tracing the path of this collection over the past two centuries was the topic of Marcus’ talk to the upper school last night. Of the original 176 pieces of silver donated to and stored in the British embassy in Warsaw before World War 2, only about 20 have been found or reclaimed. As recently as 2015, information has come to light giving clues as to the whereabouts of more pieces of this fabulous collection. The hunt goes on….

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The Submarine, January 2017

The latest edition of the Library magazine, The Submarine, is out, and it is a special one, since our Librarian, Mr McConville, moves to pastures new next month. His creation and editing of this excellent magazine has been one of the highlights of his time here, especially his elegant and amusing editorials. Read it via Issuu on SCC English here (click on the arrows to navigate, and again to zoom in).

The edition includes ‘A Russian Christmas’ by Anastasia Danilova,  a review of Isaac Asimov’s Foundation Trilogy by Nevin McCone, another by Catherine Butt of Lauren Gruff’s Fates and Furies, an account of Olive Mooney’s recent launch of her book The Curse of Helbizia in the BSR by Avi Johnston, a short story by Daisy McKeever, a version of Isabelle Townshend’s TY House Speech on 9/11, another session of ‘What’s Reading Me’, and the major part of the production, the completion of John Somerville-Large’s series of articles on the architectural development of the College (including, of course, the Library itself, which he designed).

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Staff v Pupil debate

Jiwoo Park writes: The pupil versus staff Christmas debate took place in the BSR on Monday 12thDecember. The staff, represented by Ms. Smith, Mr. Jones and Reverend Owen proposed the motion ‘This house believes in Santa’. Opposing the motion was Harry Oke, Freddie de Montfort and me. The debate was introduced and chaired by Ms. Duggan and Maria Weinrautner was the time keeper. Happily, quite a few spectators came along to join in the festive spirit of the debate.

There were some excellent arguments presented about the human need to suspend disbelief in the bleak mid-winter and make merry with the idea of a benevolent benefactor. The chaplain was given a run for his money by Harry Oke, who quoted liberally from the Bible. In short, there many great speeches, but the emotive arguments –coupled with a dollop of bribery and the appearance from the man in the red suit himself – won out in the end. Minced pies and sweets were shared by all and the debate was settled: St Columba’s does believe in Santa! It was an enjoyable event, and I hope it becomes a permanent fixture on the debating calendar.

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Debating

The second round of the Senior House Debating Competition took place on Saturday night, 12th November.  The motion for debate was ‘this house believes that the refugee crisis is eroding Europe’s humanitarian values’. There were some very strong performances on the evening; speeches which were well researched and confidently delivered, but in the end there had to be some winners and runners up.

Glen’s Julius Reblin, Ryan Gumsheimer and Jack Stokes lost out to Hollypark’s Ciara Murray, Sophie Matthews and Catherine Butt. Stackalllan’s Henry zu Rantzau, Casper von Schulenburg and Sebastian Fitzgibbon were defeated by Beresford & Tibradden ‘s Daniel Koethe, Helena von Brauchitsch  and Eleonore Mueller. Gwynn’s Ross Magill, Toby Green and Joel Taylor were able to oust Iona’s Anna Laurenceau, Nicole Dickerson and Helen Crampton. This means that Hollypark and Gwynn, each with two wins under their belts, go forward to the final.

Awards for best speakers went to Ross Magill, Ciara Murray and Daniel Koethe. Well done to all those who participated. We look forward to the final in January.

A special word of thanks from Ms Duggan to Dr Bannister and Mr Brett for joining her to judge the debates.

Not to be outdone by their elders, the Juniors also got together on Saturday evening to debate the motion ‘this House would restrict advertising aimed at children’.

Matt Keavney, Ailbhe Matthews and Raphaela Ihuoma proposed and

Eile Ni Chainain, Emma Hinde, Ellen Homan opposed.  The best speaker spot was shared by Eile Ni Chanain and Ailbhe Matthews but there was much potential on display on Saturday.

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St. Columba’s SCT & JCT Rugby Teams Lose Tight Cup Matches

Both the JCT and SCT Rugby teams played their first round cup matches this week. On Monday, the JCT took on St. Conleth’s at Wanders RFC in the first round of the Duff Cup. St. Conleth’s had lost out to SCC after a replay last year – two fantastic games – and revenge was on the cards and, as they say, it’s best served cold.

St. Conleth’s started the game with intent and soon were on the scoreboard. Their outside centre was a pacey and elusive runner and he bamboozled the SCC defence. He sailed past some despairing Columba’s tackling, outrunning them on the outside, and then converted his own try – there was barely a minute on the clock. To their credit St. Columba’s regrouped and resorted to keeping the game tight – their pack on the ascendancy. The pressure told and St. Columba’s were soon on the scoreboard through Jose Fominaya. Captain Thady McKeever couldn’t convert the try but it mattered little (or so we thought) as Jose dotted down again shortly afterwards for SCC’s second score. This time Thady added the extras and they were leading 12-7 at half time.

St. Conleths changed their tack in the second half, also keeping it tight, and soon their forwards were rewarded with a try of their own. It wasn’t converted and the game was on a knife edge at 12-12. But St. Columba’s regrouped again and soon started the dominate up front again. Sam Lawrence finished off some good forward work smashing over the line to score. Unfortunately, Thady couldn’t add the vital extras and the game was still up for grabs. After the try St. Columba’s remained dominant and were camped firmly in Conleth’s half as the end of the match approached. All they needed to do was hold on to possession and the game was theirs. Sadly, Conleth’s turned the ball over with a minute on the clock and it made it’s way to their outside centre who simply had too much gas. He was not going to be stopped. With the game at 17-17 and the clock up, St. Conleth’s had an easy conversion to win the game. They scored it and celebrated. St. Columba’s were left dejected. The JCT will now enter the plate competition with a chance of silverware still on the cards.

The SCT Squad after their cup match, with their coaches Corey McCarthy and Andrew Mitchell.

The SCT Squad travelled to Gorey RFC on Wednesday to take on Coláiste Bríd from Carnew  – a team SCC had never faced before in a competitive fixture. With confidence high after a relatively good start to the season (and despite a recent drubbing by Wilson’s Hospital) the squad left SCC in a determined mood. It has been a number of years since St. Columba’s have managed to win a McMullen Cup fixture and this group of players, led by Max Hillary, were eager to end that losing run.

With the wind at their backs St. Columba’s began intent on keeping the ball in hand and backing their skills. However, they tried to play too much rugby in their own half, never really playing the possession game well throughout, and basic errors allowed Carnew easy and continuous possession in opposition territory. A penalty from Carnew pushed them to a slim 3-0 lead before Captain Max Hillery suffered a knee injury just before the half time whistle. It was a big blow and  forced the game to be moved to another pitch. The second half continued along similar lines as the first with St. Columba’s still pitched in their own half. They really struggled to string phases together and adapt to the referee. Eventually Carnew’s pressure told and they scored an opportunistic try from a basic defensive error at a line out. They failed to convert. The score was 8-0. SCC lost Freddie Johnson to a shoulder injury and all seemed lost. But finally, with 10 minutes left on the clock, St. Columba’s began to play territory, kicking the ball behind the Carnew defence and putting themselves in field positions to attack. Sustained possession and pressure told and St. Columba’s were awarded a kickable penalty – Hector Wright slotting it over to bring it to 8-3. With 5 minutes to go the momentum had swung in SCC’s favour and they were camped in Carnew’s 22 for this period. However, a lack of composure and some basic errors let them down and they never got over the line. Carnew won a relieving penalty close to their try line (for “squeeze ball” – an offence punished a number of times for both teams throughout the game – we should have adapted) and held out to win.

St. Columba’s returned home licking their wounds and wondering what happened. They too enter a plate competition next term but will need to learn to show composure in big knock out games if they are to progress.

Two narrow losses but lots of potential. Cup rugby never fails to deliver drama.

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World schools debating competition

Three pupils from St Columba’s, Catherine Butt, Jiwoo Park and Harry Oke-Osanyintolu participated in the Leinster trials for the Irish World Schools Debating Team in University College Dublin last weekend. While they didn’t get through to the next stage of the competition, they performed extremely well and enjoyed some excellent coaching in argumentation, analysis, critical thinking, research, oratory, and rhetoric.  Well done Catherine, Jiwoo and Harry!

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US election 2016

Before the shock election of Donald Trump as the 45th president of the United States St Columba’ s College held its own mock election on Tuesday the 8th of November. In stark contrast to the actual presidential election the school voted in favour of Hillary Clinton to take residence in the White House. She got 67% of the vote. The controversial businessman, Donald Trump, received 29% of the vote.

Given that the school’s population is much smaller than that of the United States, we opted for a ‘one man, one vote’ or first past the post electoral system, rather than the Electoral College system used in the United States. This obviously had a major impact on the outcome. Another key factor in people’s decisions were the two candidates speeches in school assembly. Fifth formers Joseph Gernon and Tiernan Mullane explained Clinton’s and Trump’s policies to the whole school.

I enjoyed taking part in this mock election because the whole school community has taken a keen interest in this Presidential Election and it was an interesting insight into what people in the school thought of each candidate. There have been many animated political discussions since! Many thanks for Ms Duggan for organising.

Hector Wright

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Latest Rugby News – Seniors on Tour, Ducks in Form

Last week the Senior Rugby Squad travelled north to take on Methody College in two friendly fixtures. The First XV took on Methody 3rds and they were well matched, although St. Columba’s probably felt that it was a game they should have won. Tries from Aifo Ebeleghe and Hector Wright (one conversion from Callum Pery Knox Gore) weren’t enough as the home sided edged out the game. The Second XV took on Methody 4ths and sadly lost heavily. The full squad then went onto to Ravelhill to see Ulster edge out a narrow victory against Exeter Chiefs in the European Rugby Champions Cup – our boys kicking off ‘The Fields’ in a fitting tribute to Anthony Foley.

On the same day the JCT took on Clongowes J3’s in a friendly game at home. Despite their best efforts, a couple of individual tries from the visitors’ star player saw victory to the boys in purple and white. SCC scored a couple of good tries through Thady Mckeever and Andrew Pollock (Thady converting one) but the game ended 27-12 to Clongowes Wood. Many thanks to the Warden, Mr. Mark Boobbyer for refereeing the game.

The Leps welcomed Belevdere College’s U14 C’s to Kilmashogue Lane but they couldn’t prevent the day’s unfortunate trend and they too lost 29-7, with Daniel Swift scoring a good try, which was converted by Patrick Hare. But the Ducks saved the day when also taking on Belvedere’s U13 E’s. In a game of four quarters, where Belvo fielded two teams, SCC won handsomely scoring a plethora of tries in the process. The game ended 40-8 with two tries from Jurre Khumalo, Jack Hayes, Tom Larke and Denis Cully. Henry Johnson added three conversions and Cully adding another two.

The Ducks and Leps combined (The Lucks) on Monday last as we welcomed a touring side from Taverham Hall School, Norwich. It was a cracking game and St. Columba’s scored four great tries through Jack Hayes, Ollie Townsend, Julio Perez and Tom Larke, all converted by Henry Johnson, but eventually lost on a scoreline of 42-28 to the visitors.

Then on Wednesday last our Senior Development side travelled to Kings Hospital to take on their Transition Year team. Sadly it was another loss of St. Columba’s, in a difficult week over for all our sides, with KH winning 31-14. St. Columba’s tries came through Henry Carroll and Callum Pery Knox Gore with Callum’s boot adding another 4 points.

So, as we head into our half term break for a well earned rest we can reflect on a busy fixture period for all sides. Despite the recent losses all teams have shown great promise and can be encouraged going into the business end of the season, particularly with cup campaigns around the corner.

Many thanks for the coaches, teachers and referees for all their work on the pitch so far this term.

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Team Hope

Mr Paul Cron leads the appeal for Team Hope and he writes:

“Every year we support the Christmas Shoebox Appeal run by Team Hope. Last year we sent 231 gift filled shoeboxes to needy children in Africa and parts of Eastern Europe. Over the half term we would greatly appreciate if you could please make up a few boxes or collect some fillers for the boxes and bring them back to school after the break. All completed boxes or fillers can be brought to the collection point in Gwynn.

5 simple steps to follow:

1. Get a shoebox, wrap the box and lid separately with Christmas paper (we have already wrapped 150 boxes, so if if this is too much hassle fill one of our boxes)

2. Decide to whom you want to give your gift (boy or girl) and what age: 2-4, 5-9, or 10-14.

3. Fill the box- Use our 4 W’s as a guide (Wash, Write, Wear, Wow – more details below)

4. Close the box with an elastic band – please don’t seal with tape as the contents of each box have to be checked to comply with regulations.
Please include the €4 for transport in your leaflet envelope either on top of the gifts or taped to the inside of the lid.

The 4 W’s
What can I put in my box?
Please put in a selection of small gifts from the options below: (but out of respect for the children we ask that all items be new, or as good as new)

TO WRITE – Items for school – like a pen, pencil, copy book, paper, colouring book, felt pens, sharpener, eraser, solar calculator.

TO WASH – Some hygiene items – toothbrush and toothpaste, soap (wrapped please), facecloth, hairbrush, comb.

TO WEAR – Small clothing items – a hat, scarf, gloves, socks or underwear

WOW ! – A treat – sunglasses, game, small Irish gift, a photo of yourself, sweets (must be in date for 6 months on), make up, a small musical instrument, toys like a doll, a car, cuddly toy, skipping rope, yo-yo, a finger puppet.

Please don’t put in …
Food (apart from sweets), chocolate, medicines of any kind,  war related items, large clothing items, anything breakable, any liquids that could spill or freeze, sharp items, scary things or books with words.

A child will receive the appropriate shoebox.

Thank you for your continued support.”

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Christmas cards for sale

This year we are making our St Columba’s College Christmas cards available for purchase.

There are three different images to choose from and each pack contains five cards of the same image. To view the cards click here.  The cost is €7.50 per pack or €20 for three packs.  Postage, if required, will be extra.

Cards will be on sale at various functions and events at the College from now until the end of term and will be available to purchase at the Parents’ Association AGM which will take place in Blackburn classroom on Friday, 28th October, at 10am, prior to the Parent/Teacher meeting at 11am.

Alternatively, if you wish to place an order, please contact Alice Luce directly by phone on +353 86 367 0374 or by email to luceah1@gmail.com stating your name, postal address, which image you would like, and the number of packs required.

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Senior & Junior Rugby Teams Building Momentum

The rugby pitches in St. Columba’s have been seening a lot of action lately, with boys from every Form in competitive action. The extended Senior Rugby squads have been very busy over the past week with the Seconds playing three games in a week, against a CUS Transition Year team, Wesley TY’s and a Terenure Social team. The Firsts were also in action against Mount Temple, who have been struggling in the league above SCC.

Unfortunately the Seconds lost both games against CUS (59-14 to the visitors with two good tries form Joel Taylor and George Guinness, converted well by Henry Carroll) and Wesley (26-12 to Wesley – tries from Rupert Murphy and George Guinness, again converted by Henry Carroll who had a good game overall). While the results were disappointing the performances were very encouraging and they were quitely confident going into their game yesterday against a Terenure social team. They performed well and were thoroughly deserving of their 31-8 win. Henry Carroll continued his good form with two tries and three conversions while Gabriel Ejase Tobrise, Adam Murphy and Marc – Philipp Eichorn also passed the try line. Many of the Seconds squad have just taken up rugby so the signs are very good.

The Senior First XV were also in action yesterday against Mount Temple, a team in the league above them, but who have struggled. It was a good chance for SCC to assess their own standard as the cup approaches and it proved a good exercise. Some individuals excelled, particularly Max Hopkins and Callum Pery Knox Gore. Callum scored all of SCC’s points (two tries and their conversions) as his team won 14-7. Saying that, there were a lot of unforced handling errors and missed opportunities which the coaching team will be eager to address. The Senior Squad travels to Northern Ireland this Saturday to play a game against Methody College and will also take in Ulster’s Champions Cup game against the Exeter Chiefs in Ravenhill.

In the Junior Forms, our Form I boys (The Ducks) were also in action in the past week, playing in a 10 aside round robin competition at our near neighbours De la Salle Churchtown. SCC were represented by two teams and each won one game and lost one game. Tom Larke, Henry Johnson, Jack Hayes, Marcus O’Connor and Pavlo Shvalov were among the try scorers in a very useful exercise. Their game yesterday, against East Glendalough School, was unfortunately cancelled but they can look forward to an epic fixture against arch (Duck) rivals Headfort on Thursday next! Our youngest players are showing great promise.

The Leps (Form II boys) were also kept busy lately two, with three games in recent weeks. First up were Blackrock U14 E’s last Saturday but arguable Ireland’s best rugby school were too strong for us. Mikhail Sukachev scored a good try, which was converted by Patrick Hare, but that was SCC’s only score with the game finishing 33-7 to the visitors.

On Wednesday last the Leps visited Castleknock College U14 D’s. It was a very high scoring game with SCC scoring four tries through Sergio Hampshire, William Torkington, Titien Lauron and Julio Perez Cervera. Unfortunately they lost 43-26 (despite being 26-12 ahead at half time) but they were always going to struggle with some of their better 2nd years playing with the J’s against EGS at the same time. They played their second game in 24 hours yesterday against St. Mary’s C’s, with some of the JCT subs participating. It was a super game and St. Columba’s were deserved winners 19-12, with tries coming from Daniel Swift (also two conversions), Javier Ledo San Nicolas and (try machine) Mikhail Sukachev.

The Junior Squad have been going extremely well in their league so far, winning one and drawing the other. On Wednesday last they faced East Glendalough School in the league but unfortunately lost on a scoreline of 40-24 to the visitors. St. Columba’s came out of the blocks at the start of the game putting real pressure on the visitors when in possession. They scored first, through Killian Morrell in his first start of the season, off a well worked move from the back of a scrum. Sam Lawrence, at number 8, picked the ball at the back of a scrum, fed Killian who stepped the last defender for a dream start for SCC.

EGS came back but St. Columba’s scored again in the corner from Mikhail Sukhachev in his JCT debut (his Leps form being rewarded). But EGS came back and levelled the game at 12-12 after 20 minutes. Then SCC lost their shape and began to throw the ball around in our own half too much and gave away some silly penalties. They also started falling off tackles and dropping the ball in mid field and EGS built momentum and reaped the rewards scoring four unanswered tries in a significanr purple patch. But SCC came back well towards the end of the game and scored two more tries to get a bonus point through Jose Fominaya and Sam Lawrence (conversions by Thady McKeever and Marcus Russell). Sakhile Khumalo again put in a great performance with some big aggressive carriers and tackles.

Finally, a big thank you to all the referees in the recent games, especially Mr. Stevenson, Mr. Cron, Mr. Swift, Pat Tipper and Mike Elliot Murray.

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Bullying Awareness Week

Lots of activities are taking place this week to raise awareness about issues surrounding bullying. A report will appear here in due course. Meanwhile, check out photos in our album here (being updated as the week progresses)

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Pupils’ Council 2016-17

The following have been elected to the Pupils’ Council for the coming year, after this morning’s elections:

VI: Ralph Sweetman-Sutton, Courtney McKee

V: Sean Cooper, Kitty Morris

IV: Toby Green, Isabelle Townsend

III: Daniel Ayoade, Calina Sacolax

II: Harry Petch, Charlotte Moffitt

I/P: Charlee Maher-Jones, Nikolai Foster

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House Debating

The first round of the House Debating competition took place last Saturday.
Senior House Debating Competition
Motion: This House believes in the death penalty
Glen’s Ji Woo Park, Harry Oke-Osanyintolu and Alexander Russell narrowly defeated Iona’s Mona Lamotte O’Carroll, Claire Schuijt and Elena Sirazetdinova.
Hollypark’s Courtney McKee, Anna Janssen and Aisha Burke came out on top over Stackallan’s Rupert Murphy, Henry Armstrong and Callum Pery Knox-Gore.
Gwynn’s Richard Gao, Henry Carroll and Ivan Moffitt  were successul against the combined forces of Tibradden’s & Beresford’s Adaeze Mbanefo, Rafael Mendes and Niklas Wehner.
Junior Debating 
In Junior Debating Charlotte Moffitt (Form II), Eile Ni Chainain (Form II), Emma Hinde (Form I ), Avi Johnston (Form I) Maybelle Rainey (From II) Maria Dergal Issa (Form II), Alannah Hassett (Form II) performed exceptionally well in front of a full house of their peers in Forms I, II and III.  Congratulations to all of those involved, there were some very passionate speakers and some very crisply delivered arguments.
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Weekend Activities

Great activity this past weekend! On Saturday we had our Open Day which was very well attended despite the inclement weather in the morning. That evening we had the first round of the house debating competition and last night there were the TY House Speeches, won by Anna Laureanceau. Early on Sunday morning a group of hikers, led by Mr O’Shaughnessy and Mr Coldrick, walked the small Sugar Loaf before chapel. On Sunday afternoon Mr Redmond and Mr Patterson took a select group clay-pigeon shooting in north Co.Dublin. Many thanks to all who organised and participated in these various events and helped to make them so successful.

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