HBHS Under 16 Rugby Team 'Most Complete Side' on Australian Tour

Interview with John Steel

We left for Australia on Friday of the last day of Term Two.  We were away for 10 days.  The competition involved around 40 schools, mostly Australian schools as well as five New Zealand teams. These were divided into Under 18, Under 16, Under 15 and Under 14 Year teams. 

This is a competition which you apply to become involved in.  We’ve attended the last four; it’s a big part of our Development Squad preparation for the 1st XV. We started eight years ago, taking Trent Renata, Sean Maitland and their crew along.  Every two years we select the top junior rugby boys and take them to this competition as part of their on-going development.  In theory this group could be in the 1st XV for the next two years, so the last group to go included Adam Burns, Fraser Armstrong, Nick Ross and those young men. 
 

Sam Dobbs, Age Grade Gold in Cycling

Sam Dobbs (Year 9) is a very promising junior member of the HBHS cycling squad.  He recently competed in the North Island Cycling Championships, where he beat a field of 40 competitors on a flat course to win a gold medal in his age grade. The race was bitterly contested, as few of the cyclists (apart from the Auckland contingent) had been practicing away from the open road.  Sam performed extremely well, and is now looking forward to the up-coming National competition.  He thanks Mrs Gaze, Mr Hardaker and his team mates for their support and guidance.
 

HBHS Music Fiji Tour

Interview with Daniel Peters

We left on the last Wednesday of the second term; thirty five people went on the trip – 26 students and 9 adults.  We flew into Nadi, and stayed at the Hexagon Hotel.  We played the next day at Nadi College, which is the state high school.  That was awesome.  Selu Fotu attracted many screaming girls.  That evening we performed in the Sheraton Hotel Ballroom, which was the flashest place there.  That was with the International College: we performed with the College and the International College that day.

We had a four and a half hour ferry trip on the Yasawa Flier out to the top of the Yasawa chain of islands.  We stayed for two nights, performing on the second night. We went from there to some amazing limestone caves where the swimming was particularly good.  The acoustics were great, so the choir boys sounded amazing when they sang down there. We did lots of snorkeling, and saw lots of fish.

ART FOR HEALTH OF A HIGH STANDARD

As initiating school of the Transfusion painting competition, it is fitting that Hamilton Boys’ High School took six top prizes in last night’s judging at Waikato Museum.

But it was Hillcrest High School’s Julia King who took out the top prize – the Wintec scholarship and first place position.

Hamilton Boys’ High School won the competition’s overall school prize as well as five highly commended ratings at the opening of the Transfusion exhibition last night.

The full list of top place getters is listed below.

The competition saw a high calibre of judges taking part in Tim Croucher (Wintec School of Media Arts, Visual Arts programme manager), Alison Ewing (KateAlsion Arts Consultants) and Dr Carole Shepherd (former professor of fine arts, Elam School of Art).

1st XI Football Super Eight Champions

Hamilton Boys’ High School’s 1st XI Football team overcame both hostile opposition and weather in Gisborne earlier this week to claim the New Zealand Super Eight Football Shield for the first time since 2002. Gisborne Civil Defence was on full alert as rain pounded the area and threatened to cause the tournament to be abandoned, but by making use of alternative grounds the games were allowed to continue.

Hamilton Boys’ got its Super Eight campaign off to a positive start on Monday morning with a 3:1 win over hosts Gisborne Boys’ High School. Adam Wallis netted twice and new recruit Shane-Lee Jenkins scored his opening goal of the competition. However, by 2.00pm the pitches resembled lakes and the match against Rotorua Boys’ High School was abandoned after 15 minutes, with both teams awarded one point.

Levi Elliot, Junior Black Sox Team Member

Levi Elliot (Year 11) left New Zealand today to take part in the annual Softball Australia Friendship Series in Blacktown, Sydney.  This is the first time a player from the Waikato has reached this level of competition in softball.  The team will play at the venue which hosted the 2000 Olympic competition, and is using this competition to prepare for the Junior Men’s World Championship in 2012, to be held in Argentina.

Ist XV Rugby Perform for HBHS

As a token of their appreciation for the school's support during the recent Japan Tour, the 1st XV Rugby team entertained HBHS with a concert at lunchtime today.  Entry was by gold coin donation, and raised over $500.00 towards the on-going care of Jope Kikau, as student of our school who is in hospital at the Otara Spinal Unit.

Mr James Sutherland MCed the event, which included accounts of the trip, interspersed with songs and a stunning final lipsynch and haka.  Friends, whanau, staff and students all enjoyed the opportunity to watch what has clearly become a tight-knit family, as well as an extraordinarily successful team.

Jope Kikau is Fijian pupil studying at HBHS who recently fought off a life-threatening streptococcal infection. During his treatment, three bones from his spine were removed to reduce pressure on his spinal cord.  He is currently at the Otara Spinal Unit receiving treatment, and waiting to see if the feeling in his lower legs will return.

If you would like to support Jope, and help his parents meet some of the costs associated with this situation, please make a donation to the following HBHS Account:

Bank Account: 03 1556 0085411 00
Particulars: <Your name>
Code: Jope Kikau
Reference: Donation

Please email Karen Way (kway@hbhs.school.nz) for a receipt. 

TV One Sports Live Broadcast from HBHS 23 June 2010

One Network News Sports broadcast live from HBHS foyer on Wednesday evening. Last week was particularly exciting and busy here, as we hosted the All Blacks, the Welsh Rugby Team and their attendant media services.  To support One News we made our foyer available for a live broadcast on Wednesday night. 

The resulting coverage related to HBHS can be viewed here.

Warren Gatland addresses Hamilton Boys' High School

23 June 2010, Middle School Assembly

Mr Gatland and the Welsh Rugby Team were welcomed by HBHS with ‘Bread of Heaven’.  He spoke about his links with Hamilton Boys’ High School and his current responsibilities as Wales’ Head Rugby Coach.

Warren Gatland:

I just want to say ‘thank you’ to Mrs Hassall.  She was my favourite English teacher. 

It’s a great honour for me to be back here at Hamilton Boys’ High School – it has fantastic and fond memories for me, particularly being here in the school hall.  The school is a bit bigger now than when I was here as a student, but I do follow the achievements of the school very closely, in terms of not only the sporting success – the rugby, rowing and at times the cricket, hockey and football successes, but also the academic success.  I noted a little while ago you had a Spelling Bee entrant [Christopher Jury, Year 10, represented New Zealand at the US Spelling Bee in Washington last year] who did very well.

Hamilton High School Centennial March 2011

The Centennial of Hamilton High School (encompassing Hamilton Girls’ and Hamilton Boys’ High Schools) is expected to attract thousands of people to Hamilton in March 2011.

Spokesperson of the Centennial publicity committee Bobbie Jarvis said the Reunion is already attracting a huge amount of interest and will be a major and exciting event for Hamilton City.

The Reunion celebrations have been designed for young and old and will comprise a four day weekend of events to commemorate this momentous occasion in Hamilton’s history. The Reunion will be held on March 17, 18, 19 and 20.

“It will be a very historic and important occasion not only for past and present pupils and teachers of the three schools, but also for the entire Hamilton City,” said Jarvis.

Please click here to view the programme of events

All Blacks Train at HBHS

HBHS hosted an intensive All Blacks training session yesterday from 2.00 – 4.00 pm.  Many students and staff watched the All Blacks being put through their paces in the new gymnasium. There as a significant press contingent present also.

A highlight of the training was an extended session with the 1st XV, in which five All Blacks (Dan Carter, Aaron Cruden, Benson Stanley, Aled DeMalmanche – an HBHS Old Boy, and Adam Thompson) put the boys worked with the boys, and then sat down for a question and answer session with them afterwards.  Coach Nigel Hotham described it as a wonderful experience.  A couple of the HBHS players involved left the session saying that yesterday was the greatest day of their lives.  Mr Hotham noted that it was particularly significant that the Inside Backs got some time to speak with Dan Carter. They had around three quarters of an hour out doing practical work, and then time for discussion later.

HBHS Top School Waikato/BOP Mountain Bike Racing

HBHS has won the ‘Top School’ category in the Waikato/BOP Mountain Bike Cross Country Racing Competition held this weekend.  Sam Dobbs (Year 9) and Sam Gaze (Year 10) both won gold medals in their respective fields, in wet, blustery and unpleasant conditions.

Welsh Rugby Team Train at HBHS Open Invitation

The Welsh rugby team will have an open training session on the HBHS Number One Rugby Field on Wednesday from 10.30 to 12.30.  Please feel free to come along and watch the players in action.

National Secondary Schools Cross Country Championships June 19 2010

For the first time in our school’s history, one of our athletes has gained a 1st placing in the Year 9 race at this year’s National Secondary Schools Cross Country Championships.  Jacob Priddey, the Waikato Bay of Plenty Cross Country Champion, the North Island 3000m Junior Boys title holder and the Waikato Bay of Plenty Junior Duathlon and Waikato Triathlon Champion, can now add a national championship title to his impressive list of sporting achievements.

Leading for the entire 3000m race, over a challenging cross country course, Jacob held a 15metre lead with 100 metres to go.  Coming off the last hurdle into a down hill stretch, Jacob was unaware, (over the roar of the crowd) that a Wellington athlete was rapidly closing in on him.  In a photo finish, Jacob won by 0.1 of a second.  198 boys from schools throughout New Zealand competed for this prestigious title.  To win such an event is an extraordinary accomplishment and testament to Jacob’s talent, tenacity and rigorous training schedule.

Also worthy of mention are four other talented athletes who accompanied Jacob to Waikanae.  Marek Schirnack gained 47th placing in the Year 9 race; a particularly impressive performance given that injury and illness plagued Marek’s build up to this event.

Waikato Region Nga Manu Korero

HBHS is proud to record the achievements of Year 9 Chey Riki-Hamana  and Year 12 Ariki Ormsby.  Chey won the Junior English Prepared Speech and Ariki won the Impromtu Speech in the Senior English division.

The Nga Manu Korero Speech Competition began in 1965, and was first known as the Korimako Contest. It was sponsored by the then Governor-General, Sir Bernard Fergusson – Lord Ballantrae. The aim of the Korimako Contest was to encourage a greater command and fluency of spoken English amongst secondary Maori students.
Today, the Nga Manu Korero Speech Competition comprises of four sections: -
• Korimako (Senior English)
• Pei Te Hurinui Jones (Senior Maori)
• Sir Turi Carroll (Junior English)
• Rawhiti Ihaka (Junior Maori)
For further information, see www.maorieducation.org.nz

Waikato Waterpolo Winners HBHS

The Waikato Secondary School Waterpolo Championship came to a conclusion on Wednesday 9th June, after a long and grueling season. HBHS had a huge, vocal turn out of supporters, which was great for morale. The game started at a frantic pace, and St Johns missed an early opportunity. HBHS then got on a roll and two quick goals later, we were in a controlling position at the end of the first quarter. As confidence grew, we shot out to a 6-2 lead at half time with some excellent play from Rahiti Teokotai-White and Sam Franicevic. St Johns started to claw their way back in the second half and with five minutes to play, the lead was down to two. A frantic last quarter saw both teams giving it everything to take victory, however the deciding moments came when Peter Overmire saved to penalty shots to secure the first Waikato title for HBHS. We would like to thank our supporters for contributing to the great atmosphere on the night.

Four Reelz Barbershop Group win Young Men in Harmony Regional Competition

The HBHS barbershop quartet ‘Four Reelz’, (formed recently by Joshua Fa’agalu, Takiri Southon, Selu Fotu and Taylor Glassie) won the Waikato Young Men in Harmony Competition yesterday. Each of the singers is new to Barbershop as a musical genre, making the achievement particularly impressive.  Taylor Glassie noted that the day was filled with many great performances that provided the group with tough competition. The intensive practices the boys organized paid off, and they have all enjoyed adding a new style of singing to their repertoires.

The group wants to thank Mr Peters and their coach Lynn Jameson for their help.  They are now preparing for Nationals, which will be held in Hamilton at Founders Theatre.

Please click here to watch Four Reelz's winning performance.

HBHS Regional Rock Champions Dinosaur Goes Rawr

14 bands competed in the Waikato Regional Rockquest Finals at Founders Theatre on Saturday night.  The crowd was receptive, the evening was well-run, and Dinosaur Goes Rawr was the clear winner on the night.  The Good Fun (Runners-up) lead singer Leroy Clampitt was full of praise for the performance of Alex Reid (lead singer and keyboard), Kelsen Findlay (guitar and vocals), Ben Smith (bass guitar and vocals) and Brad Parkinson (drums). Clampitt said that it was clear that DGR’s performance was by far the tightest in terms of music and entertainment value.

We are now looking forward to seeing the boys strut their stuff at the Smokefreerockquest national final, which will be held on September 11 in Hamilton, at Founders Theatre. Tickets will go on sale from Ticketek in August. There will be eight top bands playing off for the huge prize pool that makes Smokefreerockquest a spring board into the music industry. Also, there will be a top Kiwi guest band. Put it in your diary now!

Auckland Grammar Exchange

AUCKLAND GRAMMAR EXCHANGE  RESULTS
Wednesday 9th June, 2010

Hamilton BHS Won 8, Lost 8, Drew 1
The Exchange was Drawn

Click here for full results.

New Plymouth Exchange

New Plymouth Boys’ High School Winter Sports Exchange Results Wednesday 2nd June.

Hamilton Boys’ High School won the exchange 8 – 3.  All fixtures were played in New Plymouth.

Click here for full results

HBHS Rocks, Grooves and Plays Jazz Around the Clock

Irrepressible Head of Music Adrian Botting led an enthusiastic group of students, staff and parents through a 24 Hour Musicathon this weekend, to raise cash for a music trip to Fiji in June.  The event began at 6.00pm on Friday and involved musical performances, rehearsals and ‘events’ which attracted audiences of up to seventy people at different times.

The Captain of Arts, Tahi Fu (Year 13) commented:

The idea was to raise money for the trip to Fiji, to have a really good time, and to raise awareness about the idea that Music is a really cool aspect of school culture. We printed out fliers and sent them around, used word of mouth and created a Facebook event which brought people in.

On Friday we had around fifty to sixty people in the room, including quite a lot of parents.  This increased and decreased as the night went on – we had more than a full house at different stages which was really great.  We started off with the Gypsy Pickers last night, then moved on to some single items, then Dinosaur Goes Rawr (an HBHS band), and The Good Fun, featuring Leroy Clampitt.  After that we had smaller items including myself, Tyler Campbell and Leroy by himself.  We had a very cool electronic music demonstration by Jeremy Mayall (HBHS Old Boy and previous member of the Music Faculty) and Mr Peters (current HBHS teacher). I performed at 3.00am – I did a couple of songs and then I think I fell asleep. We got up at 7.00am to do a Choir performance for an hour, and there were more solo and ensemble performances that night.

Moascar Cup Competition: Auckland Grammar vs HBHS 1st XV

The 1st XV faced off Auckland Grammar for the Moascar Cup in mixed conditions at HBHS yesterday.  HBHS won the toss and played into the wind, dominating both possession and territory. AGS showed courage in the face of an exceptionally strong team, but just didn’t get the ball, leading to a score of 22 – 0 to HBHS at half time.

The HBHS forward pack shone during both halves of the game.  In particular Fraser Armstrong and Nick Ross demonstrated that this team are now firmly back on the ground and looking forward to the New Plymouth Boys’ High Exchange next week. The final score of yesterday’s competition was a 41 – 12 win to HBHS. We would like to encourage any of our Old Boys or community members would like to come along and watch our teams in action.  Your support is always welcome and appreciated.
 

Christopher Mo First in New Zealand, Grade 8 Music

1st piece – Prelude and Fugue in F minor composed by John Sebastian Bach – 21 out of 22
2nd piece – Valse Capricieuse composed by Frank Bridge – 22 out of 22
3rd piece – Street Tango composed by Astor Piazzolla – 22 out of 22
Scales and arpeggios, short exercises – 14 out of 14
Sight-Reading – 8 out of 10
Aural – 7 out of 10
 
The Trinity Guildhall music examination is an assessment designed to test an individual’s skill in playing an instrument or singing. It provides a range of grade achievements for all instruments and voice from the initial Grade 1 to 8. These examinations test not only the musician’s ability to perform and play music but also involve technical skills such as Aural, sight-reading and improvisation. It is entered by musicians from all over the world.

Sanix Rugby World Champions on form at St Pauls

The Hamilton Boys’ High School 1st XV Rugby team played their first post-Sanix World Cup winning game in New Zealand yesterday afternoon.  The kick off was at 3.30pm, on a gloomy, damp pitch.  The conditions deteriorated significantly as the game progressed, affecting the visibility and the quality of play.  Hamilton Boys’ High School dominated the first half of the game; Kirtis McNaughten performing particularly well under increasing difficult circumstances.  All 36 of HBHS’ points were scored in the first half. St Paul’s led a spirited come-back in the second forty minutes, but they were only able to score 12 as the weather closed in.

The 1st XV have recovered from their travel to Japan and are now becoming more focused on the grueling season ahead of them.  It was wonderful to be able to use the new gymnasium to welcome them back, and to see their achievements covered by One News, Maori TV and the New Zealand Herald.

Click here to view the video.

Super 8 Cross Country May 2010

For cross country runners, any day is a good day to run but it did help that this year’s Super 8 event in New Plymouth emerged as a magnificent autumnal day.  The Super 8 event is second only to the National Secondary Schools Cross Country  in terms of the quality of competition and many very talented, nationally ranked athletes were on display over the challenging, undulating course.

With a young team, our goal was to improve on our 6th placing of the previous two years.

Our Year 9 team of Jacob Priddey, Marek Schirnack, Finn Maunsell and Hamuera Lee made a superb start to the day placing 3rd in the 3-man team event. Arguably the most exciting race of the day, Jacob Priddey led the field through the first 1500m lap.  He slipped back to second place mid-way through the second lap but, with an impressive and incredibly gutsy sprint to the finish, closed the 10 metre gap to the Tauranga runner, narrowly missing out on first place in a photo finish.

HBHS Rugby Champions

Hamilton BHS 1st XV won the final of the Sanix World Youth Schools Tournament in Fukuoka Japan this afternoon, beating Truro College from England 40-8. Hamilton started well, playing an expansive game that the English struggled to defend. Lock Adam Burn scored after a long period of forward dominance. Hooker Hayden Winsnewski then scored a spectacular try, bursting from a lineout and out-pacing the defence. Winger Jesse Dodunski finished off a fine backline set piece to score in the corner. Grassroots Trust player of the day Bruce Jones then dived over from a ruck to score beneath the posts. 3 of the 4 tries were converted by 1st 5 Josh Smith.Halftime score 26-3.
In the 2nd half outstanding No.8 Kallum Andrews scored another hard running try, which was quickly followed up with a clever run to score from flanker Hugh Blake. Both tries were converted by Russ Parai. Other players to impress included flanker Kane Jacobson, halfback Kurtis McNaughten and fullback Henare Hira. The team celebrated their win in front of a large and appreciative crowd and look forward to returning to NZ on Sunday to their families, school and supporters.

Hamilton BHS into Final

In front of a large crowd. Hamilton BHS defeated Hills Sports High School from Australia 18 -0 to progress to the final of the Sanix World Schools Tournament in Japan.
In a sometimes brutal encounter, Hamilton took on the Australians up front. Playing into the wind in the first half, Hamilton kept possession for long periods of time before winger Jesse Dodunski made a break and fed inside to fullback Henare Hira to score. 1st 5 Josh Smith kicked a penalty to reward a long period of sustained pressure and not long after stepped through a gap to score close to the posts. Going into the 2nd half up 15-0, Hamilton again dominated territory and possession. The huge Australians defended stoutly and kept Hamilton to a single penalty although Hamilton created but failed to finish several strong attacks.
Players to impress included strong running No. 8 Kallum Andrews, who was awarded the Grassroots Trust player of the day. Josh Fa’agalu was always dangerous at 2nd 5 and winger Jesse Dodunski had an excellent all round performance.
Hamilton play Truro College from England in the final tomorrow. Truro beat Marais Viljoen H.S. from South Africa in the other semi-final.

Day 11 Japan - Monday May 3rd

Up for breakfast at 8.00 and we're all pleased to have a rest day today. Free time before team meeting. Jojo turns up with the van and we're off to a nearby mall and games centre. Chance to pick up a few cheap presents (sorry mum) before we meet with the parents for lunch at a traditional Japanese restaurant. It’s Yaki Niku styles which means a kind of fire and grill in the middle of your table to cook the meat they bring you. Great feed and soon we’re all eating, laughing and singing to some old school songs the coaches are playing on the guitar. In groups, we then have to present an item, before we launch into our team songs, much to the surprise of the other Japanese restaurant patrons. Te Weehi, Josh, Ted and Russ are in their element and entertain us with some sweet harmonies. The parents present Jojo with a present for all his help and Jojo replies by shouting the team ice-creams. All except the ‘skinfold boys’ of course, who have to stay back with Mr Hotham and try to explain the midnight ice-cream runs.

Japan Day 10 Sunday May 2nd

Wake early as normal on game day. Boys have a laugh about the high skinfold boys (Hayden, Logan, Fraser and Joe) who sneak out at night to get icecream from the vending machines. They’ve been on a strict no-rubbish diet all tour and the coaches and Nic Gill will hit the roof when they find out. A few of us discuss how we might drop a few hints at a team meeting. Shower, breakfast, and team meeting. Watched the first quarter-final, France against England. No love lost between these two. In an upset England hold on to win 21-20 and put France out of the tourney. We’re a bit disappointed cause we were hoping to play them somewhere but we also understand how they feel being knocked out. Nevermind we’ve got our own game to worry about.
Warm-up, goes very well and we’re out of the sheds and into our haka. All one way traffic as backs and forwards combine in our best display of running rugby on tour.

Game Report.: Hamilton Boys High School vs Kyoto Seisho H.S.

In a tremendous display of running rugby, Hamilton BHS again dominated their opposition to win by a staggering 103-3 against Kyoto Seisho H.S. from Japan. The forward pack, led by captain and Grassroots Trust player of the day Nick Ross, provided a strong platform from scrums and lineouts but it was the forwards ability to run, pass and support that really impressed. Props Chad Leem and Fraser Armstrong made many telling runs and No. 8 Kallum Andrews broke tackles at will. In the backline Josh Smith again dictated play from 1st 5 and kicked particularly well. Centre Joe Webber orchestrated many backline attacks and always looked dangerous. The halftime score was 38-3 but it was later in the 2nd half that Hamilton began to almost score at will, with the final score at 103-3.
Tries were scored by Te Wehi Wright (3), Kallum Andrews (3), Josh Fa’agalu (2), Jesse Dodunski (2), Josh Smith (2), Fraser Armstrong, Bruce Jones, Adam Burn, Isaako Peato, and Henare Hira. Josh Smith kicked 6 conversions and Russ Parai 3.

Game Report Hamilton BHS v Korea (Day 9)

In the final round of pool play, Hamilton BHS 1st XV were too strong for the Korean Schools team winning 58 - 3. Playing against the wind in the first half, Hamilton scored 7 1st half tries to Joe Webber (2), Jesse Dodunski (2), Henare Hira (2) and Hayden Wisnewski. In the 2nd half, the Korean team defended well for long periods of time but still Hamilton put on 3 more tries to Adam Burn, Hugh Blake and Kane Jacobson. 1st 5 Russ Parai added 4 conversions. Bruce Jones was named the Grassroots Trust player of the day, for an excellent all round game at hooker, while Logan Daniels and Joe Webber also impressed. In other games Hills Sports H.S. from Australia got up late in the game against Truro College from England. Both teams qualify for the quarter finals.
Tomorrow the following quarter final games take place:
Dax Landes (France) v Truro College (England)
Marais Viljoen H.S. (Sth Africa) v Toin Gauken H.S. (Japan)
Hamilton BHS (N.Z.) v Kyoto Seisho H.S. (Japan)
Hills Sports H.S. (Australia) v Higashi Fukuoka (Japan)

Photo of the team standing in front of the statue the city of Ngasaki has erected for peace. The statue is 6m tall.

Day 7 from Japan

Game report vs Saga Technical High School (Japan)

Hamilton BHS play very well today to win 65-0. In the forwards, captain Nick Ross made many telling runs and dominated the lineouts. Flanker Bruce Jones and prop Fraser Armstrong also had very strong games. In the backs, the midfield combination of 2nd 5 Josh Fa’agalu and centre Joseph Webber were always dangerous. Tries went to Te Wehi Wright (2), Kane Jacobson, Kallum Andrews, Josh Fa’agalu, Isaako Peato, Fraser Armstrong and Jesse Dodunski was named Grassroots Trust player of the day after grabbing 4 tries and having a tremendous all round performance at fullback. Josh Smith added 5 conversions for a final score of 65-0.  Tomorrow is a well deserved rest day.
 

Photo:  Te Wehi Wright running down sideline for a try.

Day 6 from Japan

Up early but didn`t sleep too well mainly due to Fraser Armstrong`s heavy breathing . Dreamt about today`s game. Breakfast of egg, ham and salad. Thank goodness for cornflakes! 9.15 am walk through moves on the fields. A few untried combinations today and things take a while to gel. The dirty dirties (the players not stripping today) have their name changed to the filthy few. Their job is to help Mrs Clark and Tama with gear and setting up for practice. 11.00am rubs begin with a light snack at 11.30. We start to get strapped by the Doc (Tiwini Hemi) at 11.45. We walk across to the stadium at 12.15 and begin our warm-up. Our game vs Toin Gakuen H.S. kicks off at 1.30 and we are stunned by an early try and conversion from our feisty opposition. A few minutes later they score again but we stay composed and Adam Burn talks about the importance of first up tackles. From the kick off we quickly get back into the game with some telling runs from the big boys – Joe Walsh, Hugh Blake and the Grassroots Trust player of the day Fraser Armstrong, who also scored a 1st half try.

NZ Blood Services visit HBHS

On Friday 19 March, the HBHS School Hall was filled with young men eager to make a difference to the lives of others.  The visit from NZ Blood Services was an opportunity for our seniors to donate blood for the first time, as well as to participate in an aspect of the on-going house competition.

 
Human blood is unique. It can't be manufactured and it can't be replaced by animal blood. Yet statistics show that less than 5% of all possible donors in New Zealand actually roll their sleeves up and give each year. Daniel Madley (a Year 13 Prefect) co-ordinated an innovative booking system this year that allowed over 80 boys to make a donation on Friday. The success and popularity of this approach has convinced NZ Blood Services to stay a second day during the next ‘blood run’.

Day 5 In Japan

Good nights sleep and up to a rainy day and breakfast at 7.00am. Fushimi H.S. arrive for breakfast shortly after us and we stand and clap them in. Both team`s players and coaches are very close now and we look forward to supporting them through the tournament. Yesterday we stood and clapped in Dax Landes from France as reigning world schools champs and are keen for them to take on the favourites label. The Australian team also arrived at breakfast and the stories of how big they are, is definitely true. One monster was over 2m tall and weighed 143 kgs. Hugh Blake and Bruce Jones are doing a great job as sheriffs although it has cost me a small fortune in Yen. Each day they update us on how much we owe and we have until the next day to pay up. Some of the boys are definitely missing their mums to remind, pick up after, and dress properly. Training inside gym at 9.00 and we work hard on the deficiencies noted in our last game. Lunch at noon and a visit by the parents who are here supporting including the Wisnewskis,  the McNaughtens and Mr Smith.

Hamilton BHS 1st XV in Japan

Game report on warm-up game versus Fushimi Technical High School as part of their 50th anniversary celebrations.

Although it was a warm-up game, being part of their anniversary adds an extra importance to the match especially for Fushimi.
Fullback Henare Hira scored early from broken play and then again soon after from slick passing in the backline. No 8 Kallum Andrews showed his powerful running by also scoring twice in the 1st half with 2nd 5 Josh Fa`agalu adding a try. 1st 5 Josh Smith kicked well adding 4 conversions. Fushimi answered with a try of their own from a well worked backline move. Halftime score 33-5.

Condor Sevens Tournament

On the weekend the HBHS Sevens rugby team attended the Condor 7’s tournament in Auckland.  The results were as follows:
Vs Auckland Invitation team won 31 – 24
Vs De La Salle College won 22 – 19
Vs Tauranga Boys’ College won 34 – 5
¼ finals vs Westlake Boys’ High School won 34 – 5
Semi-final vs Mt Albert Grammar lost 10 – 19

Jope Kikau and Kurtis McNaughten were stand-out players for HBHS.  Kallum Andrews (Captain) and Joseph Webber (pictured) were named in the N.Z. Condor Sevens team who hope to play against the Australian Schools’ Sevens team later in the year.

HBHS Student National Tennis Representative

Adam Gage-Brown has been selected for the New Zealand Junior Davis Cup team competing in Malaysia, in April. The team will participate in Asia/Oceania Final Qualifying rounds in Kuching in Malaysia between the 16th and 25th of April,
and will be coached / captained by Alistair Hunt.

The International Team Competition for players aged 16 & Under was launched by the ITF in 1985 as the "World Youth Cup" with NEC as the title sponsor between 1988 and 2001.

Students adopt 3D approach

A TOUR of a big budget Auckland movie set convinced a group of Hamilton Boys' High School movie-makers to shoot their latest production in 3D.

The team, billing themselves as Monumental Media, have already completed a series of works and cut a deal with their school to give them time to complete a 40-minute 3D film by December.

Monumental members Juan Robertson and Robin Kuyper got a start in film-making while at Hamilton Christian School. Juan co-directed Esther with teacher Dennis Stevenson and Robin worked on the sound boom.

Arriving at Boys' High in 2007, Juan and Robin were joined by David Robinson who came on board to help with the 3D animation. The trio entered the 2008 TV2 Mad Movie Challenge with their first combined work titled Thrust - and won. With additional members Nathaniel Watson and Simon Lillis, the team entered agai n in 2009 and won, this time with Havoc.

HBHS Dominate Zone 1 Athletics

Master in Charge of Athletics, Alan Pike, has reported the following results for Hamilton Boys’ High School:  32 first places, 25 second places and 15 third places across a range of events.
 
Hamilton Boys’ High School won all of the 100m, 200m and Relay races at Junior, Intermediate and Senior levels.  Mr Pike was particularly pleased with the clean sweep of first, second and third places taken by the the Senior Boys in the 100 metre sprint, and the Intermediate boys in the 1500m race.
 
We look forward to hearing the results of North Island Competition as they come to hand.

Open Invitation

Hamilton Boys’ High School would like to invite our Old Boys and friends of the school to view our new Gymnasium Complex. The viewing will be held on Friday, February 26 from 5.00 – 6.30 pm. If you would like to attend the event, please contact Sue Roycroft at 853 0440 ext 2031 or email sroycroft@hbhs.school.nz

Update: HBHS Students wins $30,000 Scholarship

Hamilton Boy's High School student Siva Manoharan has been named one of the top eight secondary students in New Zealand. He will soon receive the Premier Scholarship Award, valued at $30,000.00, to cover his tertiary studies. Siva, who was the Hamilton Boy's High School Dux last year, achieved scholarship results in five subjects, including outstanding scholarships in chemistry, mathematics with calculus and statistics and modelling.

2010 PREFECTS

Head Prefect:  Adam Burn

48 Scholarships for HBHS Students

Hamilton Boys’ High School is delighted to congratulate our 20 successful Scholarship examination students. Our most successful student, Siva Manoharan, received Outstanding Scholarships in Chemistry, Mathematics with Calculus, Statistics and Modelling, as well as standard Scholarships in Accounting and Physics. Ben Ingram, Jordan McMahon, Edward Scrimgeour, Sam Waetford and Thomas White were close on his heels with four Scholarship passes each, in a range of subjects. Results in Physics were especially pleasing, with 10 Scholarships (including an Outstanding Scholarship for Boris Pfahringer) for our students. Another Outstanding Scholarship was gained by David Dela Rue in Economics, bringing the total of Outstanding Scholarships to 6.

100+ Level 3 Excellence Credits for HBHS Dux

Siva Mahoharan was the Dux of Hamilton Boys’ High School in 2009. He distinguished himself by attaining Excellence endorsements at each level of the senior school. What is particularly impressive about Siva’s achievements is that the proportion of Excellences he achieved each year consistently increased. 

2009 Finale/2010 Update: HBHS Premier Touch Team National Champions

During the second week of December the HBHS Premier Touch Team won the Secondary School National Touch Tournament. The team beat Rotorua Boys 5-4 in the final, to become National champions for the second consecutive year.

Softball Championships

Our Junior (Years 9 and 10) Softball Team returned on Friday 4th Dec from the North Island Secondary Schools Softball Championships in Palmerston North, held from Monday 30th Nov - Thurs 3rd December as NISS Junior Softball Champions.

In pool play they defeated Napier BHS 6-1, Wellington College 7-1, Hutt Valley High School 16-0 and Wanganui High School 7-2. They won their semi-final against Massey High School 7-2 in the tiebreaker, as it was tied 1-1 after regulation time. They defeated Napier BHS 3-1 in the final.

The 2 stand-out players were Jackson Baird-Gillett (pitcher) and Levi Elliott (batter and Captain of the side).

The team was coached by Cowley Harris, assisted by Eugene Gilbert and managed by June Tauranga, all parents from HBHS.

HBHS wins three categories in Waikato Secondary School Sports Awards

Hamilton Boys’ High School fielded nominations in five different categories of the prestigious Waikato Times Waikato Secondary School Sports Awards, held on 1 December. The finalists were as follows:

 

• Best All Rounder: James Bandahi (Multisport, Surf Lifesaving, Athletics, Flat Water Kayaking), Andrew Muggeridge (Athletics, Cross Country, Clay Target Shooting)
• Junior Sportsman of the Year: Alex Bardoul (Rowing, Water Polo)
• Coach of the Year: Nigel Hotham (Rugby), Chris Kuggeleijn (Cricket), David Thompson (Rowing)
• Sportsman of the Year: Chauncey Edwardson (Rugby), Matthew Cameron (Rowing)
• Team of the Year: 1^st XI Cricket (from Dec 2008), Senior Premier Touch (from Dec 2008), 1^st XV Rugby, Senior U18 Rowing Eight

3rd Place for Budding Web Designers

Congratulations to Steven French, Rory Donovan and Daniel Johnson who came third in the country for a secondary school team website in the "TVNZ6 Netguide School Multimedia Challenge". The team travelled to the TVNZ building in Auckland for the awards ceremony which was a hive of eager finalists. This prestigious event is hotly contested from students around the country, many of whom have been designing website for years. This was the first year these boys had learnt how to code and layout a web site and their entry can be viewed along with the other winners on the www.tvnz6netguidemultimediachallenge.co.nz site. Their website was completed for a Year 10 project in Information Technology where they had to design a site to teach others about an aspect within the school curriculum. This team chose to cover adventure sports from under the Health and Physical Education area of school. Their site delivers a great mix of unique content with easy navigation, an attractive colour scheme and subtle animation.

HBHS Old Boy Stan Walker on Australian Idol

18 year old Stan Walker is currently excelling on Australian Idol. Recordings of his performances to date are available on Youtube, and the official Australian Idol website. Stan attended HBHS as a Year 9, and was identified by Mr Botting (HOF Arts, Music) as a particularly gifted singer. He and his family moved to Australia, where Stan continued to sing – his soulful style has made him a strong contender in Australia’s largest talent show. 

Westpac Rescue Helicopter lands at HBHS

Hundreds of students came out at interval today to watch the Westpac Rescue Helicopter land on the number one rugby field. Three students were selected to fly around the greater Hamilton area and then up to the hospital, under the supervision of Stuart Hakeney.  Matt South - HBHS student photographer, Calum Redpath and Carl Drury were each delighted at the opportunity to fly with the team.

The conditions were superb for a landing and inspection; a crowd of boys remained around the helicopter until the last possible minute, asking questions of the pilot and crew, and taking in the specialist equipment.

We would like to extend our thanks to Westpac Rescue Helicopter service for sharing their time and expertise with us.

The pilot was presented with a cheque from money raised for the Westpac Air Ambulance from a recent mufti-day.

Prefects 3, Staff 0. Soccer was the winner on the day.

A brief, welcome diversion from final internal assessments and exam preparation occurred at HBHS during Friday lunchtime; The Staff versus Prefects soccer match. An intense battle of wits and athleticism played out on the front field, with all the drama and entertainment spectators have been looking forward to since early September. Bad weather (and the absence of some of the strongest staff players) meant the game was postponed twice. It looked at one stage as if the contest would not go ahead at all. Therefore, we were all pleased when the organisers seized the opportunity on Friday to let this clash of the titans unfold.

Clay Target Shooting - National Champions

Congratulations to HBHS Clay Target Shooting Team for their spectacular win during the October break. 

Multisport Motu Challenge

Multisport / Motu Challenge

HBHS Hosts competitors in the Gallagher Great Race

HBHS was proud to host the competitors in the eighth annual Gallagher Great Race on Wednesday 23 September. The race will see the University of Oxford (UK) challenge the University of Waikato on Sunday 27 September 2009. The crews were welcomed to a middle school assembly, and had the opportunity to mingle with staff, student rowers and teachers during lunch.

Books for Fiji

On Tuesday 22 September, another very successful "Books for Fiji" mufti day was held at school, cementing this event as an annual fixture in the school's calendar. Organised by the International Students department, HBHS pupils were invited to donate two suitable books each, in lieu of paying the $2 mufti day fee.

Students from all levels in the school streamed into the Hall during morning registration to deliver their books, and within minutes, the tables were groaning under the weight of hundreds of new and well loved texts. The books ranged from reference books, academic books and the latest novels, to delightful hard-backed children's books. All of these are guaranteed to bring a great deal of pleasure to many students in both primary and secondary schools in Fiji.

HBHS Rugby and Winter Tournament Results

Hamilton Boys’ High School 1^st XV Rugby team are National School Boy Rugby champions. The final competition game (against St Bede’s) was played in Rotorua yesterday, in front of a focused and expectant crowd.

The teams were quite evenly balanced, but HBHS was particularly composed and clinical. It was apparent that the boys had a specific game plan, and understood that they were to adhere to this throughout the game. The St Bede’s players aquitted themselves well, but were starved of the ball. Because of this, in the minutes after HBHS scored, it was clear that St Bede’s were going to struggle to respond. HBHS eliminated any risky play from their game, and were more assured of the win at each encounter. They responded to new moves from the opposition with cool actions and a disciplined approach. The final score, 17 – 0, is a testament to the effectiveness of the strategies employed by the team and coaching staff.

HBHS Hosts Sugar Ray Leonard

Sugar Ray Leonard, named Fighter of the Decade for the 1980s, and widely considered to be one of the best boxers of all time, appeared at Hamilton Boys’ High School on Thursday to speak briefly to the students as an ambassador for boxing. Mr Leonard has won world titles at multiple weights and engaging in contests with such celebrated opponents as Wilfred Benitez, Thomas Hearns, Roberto Duran and Marvin Hagler. The boys welcomed him with an impromptu haka, and paid rapt attention as he explained his current role, and his road to success. A highlight of the encounter was the ‘Question and Answer’ period at the end of the presentation, where Mr Leonard bantered with the boys, and encouraged them to ‘do their homework’ in the pursuit of their dreams.

Click here to view video highlights of the event.

The NZ Post Writers Festival

Six Hamilton Boys’ High School students attended the prestigious NZ Post Writers’ Festival in Wellington during the last weekend in August. Daniel Madley, Calum Redpath, Aditya Vasudevan, Ivan Robertson, Michael Donovan, and Nicholas Oxborrow (supervised by Mr Brown and Mrs Redpath) were instructed and encouraged during several workshops by some of New Zealand’s best authors. 

In the weeks before the festival, the boys worked to produce a number of key pieces of work to be presented for discussion and critique. On Saturday and Sunday morning the boys were divided into small workshop groups, each led by a critically recognized New Zealand author. Our students submitted their work with some trepidation, but all of the boys felt that the specific, constructive criticism was valuable and that they have certainly learned a great deal about the process and mechanics of writing. They had the opportunity to put their developing skills into practice as they worked to produce new work throughout the weekend.

HBHS, Canteen and the Great Head Shave

HBHS student James Wotton and 24 of his school mates had their heads shaved to raise funds for Canteen, in front of a crowd of 300 well wishers and supporters on Thursday lunchtime. Many thanks are due to The Edge, who MC’ed the event, and a squad of hairdressers worked for half an hour to give the boys ‘number ones’. A number of the boys looked serene on the stage as they went from being bushy to bald. We are particularly grateful to Courtney Bell from Morph Hair, William and Judith from 5X Barber Shop and the Rodney Wayne girls for helping our boys during this radical transformation.

While the boys were being shaved, Chris Stacey (an old boy of the school) spoke about his experiences as a teen with cancer, and Aukia (from Canteen) explained to us the ways in which our donations would be used to support teens like Chris, as they battle to get well. 

Hamilton Boys' High School 1st XV Rugby Team Secure Place in Top 4

STOP PRESS!!!

Hamilton Boys’ High School 1^st XV Rugby Team Secure Place in Top 4

Hamilton Boys’ High School hosted a very physical game of rugby against Rotorua Boys’ High on Wednesday 26 August. Hamilton won the game 27-10, which means that HBHS have secured a place in the top four of the 2009 National School Boy Rugby competition.

Rotorua came to play, and caught Hamilton a little by surprise – they didn’t kick the ball as the Wesley side had done, keeping it in hand instead. As a consequence, during the first 10 minutes Rotorua scored two early tries. 

Nine in a Row for HBHS Football

Last Saturday the Hamilton Boys’ High School 1^st XI Football team broke its own record yet again, by winning the Waikato Secondary Schools Football Premier League Championship for the ninth consecutive year. The hard fought 1-0 win over fierce rivals St Paul’s Collegiate was a fitting end to a season that gone right down to the wire.

St Paul’s had the better of the first half, dominating the centre of midfield and growing in confidence as the game continued. Both sides had their share of chances, but St Paul’s coach Mike Groom could sense an upset and must have gone into the break thinking this was St Paul’s year. But HBHS Coach Dave Edmondson put in place a game plan that took the game completely away from the hosts after half time.

HBHS 1st XV beat Wesley

Hamilton Boys’ High School 1^st XV took a significant step towards retaining their Chiefs Secondary Schools championship by beating Wesley College 13-7 at Wesley on Saturday. Nathan George opened the scoring with a penalty early in the first half before the much larger Wesley team replied with a long range try and conversion. Just before halftime, the Hamilton backs went wide to winger Stephen Cullingworth who stepped inside several players before passing onto centre Chauncy Edwardson to score between the posts. George converted for Hamilton to lead 10-7 at the break.

HBHS student amongst World's Top Computer Programmers

The ancient Roman amphitheatre  in Plovdiv, Bulgaria was the scene of another kiwi victory this weekend. Two New Zealanders have proudly taken the stage to receive bronze medals at the world’s  foremost and most prestigious programming contest for high school students. Jamie Mc Closkey from Akaroa and Boris Pfahringer from HBHS are thrilled with their success in the  2009 International Olympiad in Informatics.

“To be one of the medal winners is fantastic.” said Pfahringer who is a Year 13 student at our school.  The competition took place over two five-hour days and the students were given four programming problems each day. “We had to find and implement efficient algorithms to solve the problems, with run-time and memory limitations on the resulting program. The contest was very difficult and it was a nerve-wracking wait for the medal ceremony.” We congratulate Boris on his success in this highly competitive field.

1st XV win Super 8 for 4th Consecutive Time

On Saturday the 1st XV completed their recent dominance of the Secondary Schools’ Super 8 competition and retained the Moascar Cup by defeating Hastings Boys 57 – 8 at Hamilton. Hooker Sefo Setefano scored three tries and was a dominant force in the match. Equally impressive was the kicking and general play of 1st 5 Nathan George who kicked 6 conversions, several from the sideline into the wind. Up 35 -3 at halftime, the young Hamilton side utilized their entire bench in the 2nd half and still managed to score regularly.  Adam Tolua was all aggression at No. 8 and scored twice.

Super 8 Hockey

For the second consecutive year, Hamilton Boys’ High School are Super 8 Hockey champions.  The contest roster was as follows:

Sunday 9 August

   V Gisborne Boys’ High School  won 7-0
   V New Plymouth Boys’ High School  won 5-3

Monday 10 August

   V Napier Boys’ High School   won 2-0
   Semi Final  V Tauranga Boys’ High School  won 4-2

Tuesday 11 August

   Final   V Napier Boys’ High School   won 7-3

Hamilton Boys' High School Business Hall of Fame 2009

The Hamilton Boys’ High School Business Hall of Fame was established in March 2008. The school celebrated the outstanding business success of three former students, each of whom had made a significant contribution to the New Zealand economy.

Nomination Form

Softball a lifelong passion for Corey

Article and photo supplied by Janine Jackson - courtesy of Hamilton This Week

With 12 years playing softball under his mitt it’s no wonder 15-year-old Corey Wilson is making his mark in New Zealand softball.

Making the New Zealand Youth Team earlier this year is all just part of Corey’s game plan; his long term goal to play for the Black Sox may just be around the corner the way things are going for this talented young man. The Hamilton Boys’ High School student took up a bat as a three-year old playing teeball for a junior team.

“The lowest grade was under seven, but my family got me in there early,” he says.

Softball is a family affair on both sides of Corey’s family; his mother still plays, his father used to play and an uncle played for NZ teams.

“It’s kind of just in the genes,” he laughs.

HBHS Performers outstanding at Band of Strangers

For the first time On Wed. 13th May 2009 the Play It Strange Trust presented a Band of Strangers Concert in Hamilton at the Founders Theatre as a Music Month celebration. Hamilton Boys High School was well represented featuring over a third of the 90 young performers from Bay of Plenty and Waikato who performed to an audience of over 800.

 Solo performer Connor McCabe, along with the Choir, Jazz Band and Orchestral musicians were given the  opportunity to perform alongside some of New Zealand’s top performers, and showcase  their talents to some of the most influential people in the business.

1st XV Japan Tour Days 5 - 11

Well...the tour is over and our 1st XV rugby boys are back from Asia. So here are the final entries in the diary of No 16!

HBHS thrashes French team in Japan!

Click "read more" to find out what happened on Day four of the 1st XV tour to Japan. Our boys were up against the Frenchies this time....

1st XV Japan Tour Diary Entry No 1

The 1st XV has arrived in Japan for its assualt on the World Champs. Our anonymous reporter "No 16" will provide us with regular updates about the tour. Here's the first entry....

Boys' High 1st XI Cricket win Senior Men's Champs

Hamilton Boys' High School 1st XI have enhanced the school's reputation for sporting excellence by easily winning the Hamilton club cricket championship final against Melville at Galloway Park on Saturday.

HBHS Oarsome at MAADI

Hamilton Boys' High School has underlined its dominance in New Zealand Secondary School Rowing yet again, with stunning results at the Nationals over the last week. The school has won the MAADI Cup (Coxed Eight) for the third consecutive year and the Springbok Shield (Coxed Four) has been locked away in the HBHS trophy cabinet for an incredible fifth year in a row. As well as winning the two most prized pieces of silverware at the regatta, HBHS has also won the Star Trophy for top overall rowing school in NZ, as well as the Executive Trophy for top sweep oar school. We'll bring you more details from what has been an outstanding week on Lake Karapiro very soon.

Sporting Success

The caliber of the finalists was the strongest we have seen; ‘National Title Holder’ was the minimum criterion to be considered.  40 parents, staff, students and finalists from HBHS were in attendance on the night, and we are delighted to record three category wins: Matthew Cameron is officially the Secondary Schools Sportsman of the Year in the Waikato, Nigel Hotham is the WSS Sports Awards Coach of the Year, and HBHS 1st XI Cricket is the Team of the Year.

This caps of our strongest sporting year to date. In 2009, HBHS won the National Secondary Schools Rugby competition, the Gillette Cup (NZSS Cricket), the National Touch Championship, the Maadi and Springbok Cups plus seven National age-group titles (Rowing), The Moascar Cup (Rugby), the National Secondary Schools Clay Target Shooting competition, and the NZSS Multisport competition. Our 1st XI Football team was runner-up to MAGS in the NZSS Football Tournament, and our 1st XI Hockey team finished 3rd at Rankin Cup, the premier secondary school hockey competition.

Our In-line Hockey team finished second in New Zealand at the 2008 College Games, and our Rugby Sevens and Senior Table Tennis teams both finished third in the country.  Our Senior Squash team finished fifth at the NZSS tournament, while our Senior Softball, Senior Waterpolo and 2nd XI Hockey teams all won NZSS titles in division two of their respective tournaments.  Gerard van der Mark, NZU18 and U85kg wrestling champion, captained the NZSS Wrestling team to Australia.  We also have Jordan Cooper-Peters, NZU16 Kyokushi champion and Donald Rowe, National Champion in Kickboxing in the U16 Open weight division in individual sports.

Hamilton Boys’ High School would like to thank the members of our community, our friends and supporters, who have helped us to meet and exceed the goals we set for ourselves this year.  We look forward to seeing what the New Year will bring us all.