Sport
3 September, 2024
Highview College makes school history by reaching Herald Sun Shield for the first time
It’s history in the making for Highview College, who will be attacking the Herald Sun Shield for the first time in program history.
The school has progressed through to the second division of the senior girls competition, where they will be looking for glory against Our Lady of Sion College, St Paul’s Anglican Grammar School and the Catholic Regional College Sydenham in Pool B tomorrow morning at Cranbourne’s Casey Fields.
While it is a long trip to the south-east of Melbourne, it is a small price to pay for the chance to make history for Highview, according to sports co-ordinator Luke Treacy.
“It’s the first time, and we are stoked, over the moon, and looking forward to the opportunity and exposing these kids to an elite level of sport,” he said.
“We went through the ICCES (Independent Country Co-Educational Schools) network, and competed in that. We were able to win that competition, which qualified us for the next level.
“When you look at the prestigious schools that are winning their divisions and qualifying, it’s been an awesome effort by our kids.”
How the Herald Sun Shield works consists of a fast-paced morning of football.
The games will start at 10 am tomorrow, with three round-robin games featuring two 15-minute halves.
The first game will see Highview taking on Sydenham at 10 am tomorrow morning, before moving immediately into a clash with St Paul’s at 10.55 am, before finishing off with a clash against Our Lady of Sion at 11.50 am.
Should Highview win through to the grand final of Pool B, they would compete at 1 pm tomorrow after-noon.
If Highview win that, they would progress through to the grand final of division two the following Thursday, competing for the overall premiership, with Ivanhoe Grammar, Donvale Christian College, John Paul College and Westbourne Grammar School making up Pool A.
It won’t be a normal preparation for Highview, according to Treacy, with the bus needing to make a stopover in the city to pick up year 10 girls currently on their City Experience camp.
“We will bus down there, and we actually have our year 10 kids on camp, so we will have to swing through and pick them up, as it probably makes up half our team,” he said.
“It’s positive for the future that we can keep them for two more years, and we can build a bit of a program.
“They’re in the city for their City Experience camp, and we’ll go get them and head out to Casey Fields.”
Treacy expects a full team effort from the girls, but was also happy to outline some of Highview’s key players he expects will play a role tomorrow.
“We have Ella Gourley, who is a good young player and is in the Bendigo Pioneers. She is really serious about her footy and playing really well,” he said.
“We have a young girl who I said is an athlete and can play, so I got around to Carisbrook women’s footy earlier this year, and spoke to Whitney Kennedy (Bendigo Pioneers coach) and said this girl can play. Chloe Wyatt is her name, and she is playing good footy.
“Lacey Broad is our ruck, and they make up three of our biggest up-and-comers. Sienna Mark is another one who is really young, but has shown huge ability and potential. There’s a few that are really exciting, which is lovely.”
Overall, however, Treacy is keen to showcase that there are talented women’s footballers coming through the system that may have the opportunity to be drafted further down the line.
“We’re excited for the opportunity and women’s football in the area, and it’s great that we can expose so many girls to a new sport, but we are doing our bit to promote the growth of women’s football,” he said.
“It will be live-streamed with live statistics, so it will be great to expose these country kids to these opportunities. If we can get a girl, in time, drafted, and exposing them to footy, it is exciting and we are pleased to be a part of it. We’re proud of our girls for how well they’ve gone.”
Considering the enrolment of 450 students, Treacy is just enjoying the ride at the moment, and says whatever happens from here is a bonus.
“There are some prestigious schools, and even in our ICCES competition, we played the likes of Ballarat Grammar, Girton Grammar, some pretty big schools,” he said.
“Our enrolment is about 450, so when you weigh it up, we are a smaller school, we will have to travel a long way, but it’s an amazing effort to come this far.
“These are things you reflect on — they’ll come back for reunions in life. It’s pretty rare to get to elite levels with different things, but these are memories they will make and the connections they will make for the local community. It is a bit of history, and I will remind the girls of that.
“I guess part of my role in sport and life is to empower those girls to believe they are as good as anyone else.
“I love working at a school for that very reason, and coaching country footy.
“You can tell people they can be something, and every now and again, people will take that next step. I love that.”