T H I S T L E D OW N CENTENARY EDITION
SEPTEMBER 2017
THISTLEDOWN MAKES A COMEBACK 100 Years on... LIZZIE STEVENSON (Y13)
100 years ago, in 1917, the students of St Andrew’s College distributed a magazine: Thistledown – written by students, for students. As quoted in the first 1917 edition, “… the College Magazine is a school activity which exists for the boys, and if it is to sail under true colours, it must be maintained wholly by them. It is founded to record their doings and to ventilate matters of school interest.” “… we hope that as the down wafts the seed to spots where it may germinate and live anew, so our ‘Thistledown’ may carry seed that will be evidence of our quickening power and bear fruit, even to sixty and a hundredfold.” The tradition of printing this magazine was lost for many years, and now we are bringing it back for a special Centenary Edition as a prefects’ initiative, recording the happenings of the student body in 2017, as we progress into the next St Andrew’s College century. We hope you enjoy reading it. STROWAN HOUSE 1940
ROWING M I TC H E L L W H I T E ( Y 1 3 )
The 2016/2017 rowing season was the best season StAC has ever witnessed with several different accomplishments coming throughout the year. This year had the biggest participation we’ve ever seen in StAC rowing with 26 girls and 36 boys involved, who all took part in reclaiming the Bell Trophy at the South Island Secondary Schools Regatta for the top rowing school in the South Island, for the second year in a row. At the Maadi Cup National Regatta, the boys took away the Springbok Shield (U18 four), and for the first time in StAC history, StAC won the Maadi Cup (U18 eight) by beating Christ’s College by just under a second, closely followed by Hamilton Boys’ High. Hamish Veitch, bow-seat of the crew, said, “It was an unreal moment to have with the boys and I will remember it forever.” Other medals came in the Boys’ U18 pairs where we achieved a silver and a bronze, the Boys’ U15 four who managed to get a bronze medal, the Boys’ lightweight double who won silver, along with the U16 four and eight both winning silver also. The successful season was topped off with Ben Taylor and Thomas Russel making the New Zealand Junior team who competed in Lithuania at the World Rowing Junior Champs in August, and managed to claim a silver medal behind a strong Great Britain crew.
CENTENARY HIGHLIGHTS A N G U S SY M E ( Y 1 3 )
The Centenary Weekend was a highlight for many students across all years at StAC. Having Old Collegians coming back to talk about what school was like when they were there, whether it was five years ago or seventy, was a real eye-opener and a lot of laughs were shared. The Centenary Fête brought a lot of people together, while students performed in musical items and the Old Collegians enjoyed quality made products from many StAC families and students. There was pony riding, candy floss and ‘dunk a teacher’! To finish off the day there was a massed Pipe Band that consisted of current and past students. The whole celebration was thoroughly enjoyed by the current students of StAC and will be a weekend they will never forget.
STROWAN PRIDE SEBASTIAN GIESEN (Y11)
The cross soars in the bitter wind. The pride never fades. Strength as strong as granite cliffs. Not the buildings, turfs or fields but the thistle. As strong as an ox yet as delicate as a babe. The students leave, the teachers come and go, But the spirit, the spirit remains. Always.
A DAY IN THE LIFE OF...
A Physics Teacher
Hamish MacLeod Y9
Bryn Rumble Y11
B R Y N PA R I S H ( Y 1 3 )
MR CAMERON PICKERING G E O G R A P H Y , H I S TO R Y A N D S O C I A L S T U D I E S T E A C H E R
BRYN RUMBLE (Y11)
Jumping out of primary school straight into high school in Year 9 can be quite a big leap. However, Hamish MacLeod has welcomed this change into a much bigger and scarier school. He enjoys the fact that he has a different teacher for each subject compared to primary school having the same teacher all day. At the start of the year, all the Year 9s travelled to Castle Hill for their first camp in high school, which Hamish thoroughly enjoyed, making it one of his highlights. Another highlight for him this year is being selected into the Boys’ Second XI hockey team and has enjoyed a very successful season. Hamish is looking forward to his next four years at StAC.
One of the things I enjoy about Year 11 is the amount of internals allowing you to achieve Excellence endorsement purely just off internals. Luckily there is nothing I don’t enjoy about the year which is good. The people in Year 11 are awesome: they are a great bunch of people with plenty of good banter. It is also a very diverse and inclusive year group. There is nothing so far that I would have done differently, it’s been a great year thus far. I am excited for next year because of the detail and wide choices of subjects and topics.
Jenna Turner Y10 J E SS A L L A N ( Y 1 3 )
JESS I hope you have really enjoyed your time at StAC. If you had to pick one thing that was your best experience, what would it be?
JESS What’s life like in Australia in comparison to here in New Zealand?
Cameron Miles Y12 JACK BALLARD (Y13)
PLC Sydney Exchange Student
JESS Have you enjoyed your time on exchange? Are you happy you spent half of your year to come and experience this?
Pickering: Cricketer, Educator, Loyal Servant of the Queen
JENNA I would definitely have to say when I got to go on the Year 10 school camp – that was really good going up to Castle Hill.
Cameron Miles, is a Year 12 student who leads a busy life. He manages to fit Calculus, Business, Economics, Graphics, English, and his favourite subject Physics into his routine. After school on Monday and Tuesday he has football training with the First XI. Sadly, due to a massive spinal injury (a minor tweak of a back muscle), he can only watch the team from the sideline at the moment. When not injured, he likes to splash 3’s playing basketball in the Gymnasium at lunchtime. This is the general day in the life of ‘Milsy’, a Year 12 student at St Andrew’s College.
Rosaria Marsh Y13
JENNA So, life in Australia, I go to boarding school, whereas life in New Zealand I have lived in a homestay family, which has been a lot different!
JESS And I know you have been to New Zealand a couple of times, how does this experience compare?
JENNA Yes definitely! It has been awesome and I rate it 110% out of 100.
JENNA Well, I just loved going to school here, it’s awesome.
ROSARIA MARSH (Y13)
Year 13 – the last year of high school! NCEA Level 3 is a huge step up from Levels 1 and 2. With internals in every subject, it is hard to balance school life with social life. Since I am a boarder I attend prep every night for two hours. This helps me complete my homework so I still get time to take part in other extracurricular activities, such as basketball. With the end of the year looming, I am starting to make decisions about university. Year 13 is an extremely busy and fun year, but I am looking forward to the future!
RNZ National: Ata mārie it’s 6.00am. Deo Gratias – Pat wife, kiss dog? Shower, cups (and saucers) two cups of tea. Don tweed, stride it out man, stride it out… never forget the brolly – always, always carry a brolly, essential in driving off dragons and goblins on the heroic quest. Into the dining room “Morning Jude.” a banana, through the door, cup of tea (the third). Read paper? No, a PE teacher will fill me in, reading age appropriate. Bell, Tutor Group. Notices: 1: Lost Smiggle pencil case. 2: Convoluted grammar hinting at a rugby meeting somewhere. 3: Request students to bring money for something (possibly rugby). Bell. P1 Terrorism. P2 Hurricanes. P3+4 World War II – have mercy! Feeling like the harbinger of doom. Lunch, plan weekend, plan other people’s weekends, plan anything but the next lesson. Bell. P5+6 Essay composition – student says, “Thanks for the help” aww. Bell. Consider walking dog… nap. Back for House Duty. 10.30 – lock up, off to Homefordshire and a welcome last cup of tea. Deo Gratias.
BOARDING REPORT MRS DIANNE MACDONALD, D I R E CTO R O F B O A R D I N G
MR BRENT CUMMACK PHYSICS TEACHER
3.00AM: Wide awake. Brain going flat out … thinking “I wonder what I can do to help my Year 12 Physics Class achieve at the end of the year… I know, a Physics Streak… Brilliant… Can’t wait for tomorrow… oh no… now I can’t get back to sleep.” 3.05AM: Sound asleep. 5.30AM: Alarm goes off “Don’t push sleep, don’t push sleep,” don’t, and up. Spend 45 minutes on cycle wind trainer. Imagine I am leading the Tour de France up a long climb in the Pyrenees. 6.30AM: Breakfast, make lunches, iron shirt, try to co-ordinate shirt and tie, fail more often than succeed. 7.25AM: Off to work hoping for a park in the staff carpark. Miss out again. Find one near Rangiora and walk to work. 8.15AM: First meeting. Neuroscientists say the brain only has five short-term memory slots. Mine full within 15 seconds so I have no idea what is talked about for the next 14½ minutes. 8.30AM: First class on electricity. Try to make topic interesting by electrocuting students… fail on both counts.
Boarding is at the heart of St Andrew’s College. There is a real sense of community built around long-lasting friendships, which have been created over the years.
9.30AM: Tutor Group: Yahoo its AC/DC Thunderstruck Thursday. Also find out that speakers in my room don’t play things very loud. “How can you play soft Acca Dacca?”
There are 170 Boarders at St Andrew’s College and their educational experience is enriched by being a boarder.
10.30AM: Morning Tea. Yahoo… sausage rolls… Today just got a whole lot better.
The house staff, who are constantly visible, available and approachable, with the support of day staff, can deliver a high level of Pastoral Care, as they are responsible for the welfare, personal and academic directions of every student in their care. Students are prepared to enjoy life and be of good influence after they leave school. Contrasts over the years include co-ed boarding, wonderful new boarding houses and facilities, and computerised leave systems. The catering crew is a top team who deliver and cater for all, and the food is exceptional. Gone are the long tables and ‘pig buckets’ for leftover food – replaced with round tables, tablecloths and flowers.
“We delight in the experiences when Old Cols attend reunions and share their stories of boarding school days. Every day is a gift when you are associated with boarders at StAC,” says Mrs Mac.
10.50AM: Year 12 class. Outline 3.00am plan. Greeted with some acceptance. Decide idea is still brilliant. 12.35PM: Yahoo lunchtime: even the leftovers from last night are looking good. 1.00PM: Duty: put resting grumpy face on and patrol the grounds. 2.20PM: Last class of the day. Decide electrocuting students is not good for career prospects so decide not to do this. End up burning myself on hot nail. Class thinks this was hilarious. Need new strategy for tomorrow. 3.20PM: End of school day. 3.30PM: Basketball practice.
A BLAST FROM THE PAST Quotes from past Thistledown Magazines C O L L AT E D B Y L I Z Z I E S T E V E N S O N
First Editorial
Editorial
Trials of an Exam Candidate
Dangerous Beasts
“What’s in a name? We hasten to assure our readers that we have not chosen the title of our magazine in a spirit of unspeakably Scottish exclusiveness, though, of course, we must be pardoned for making some concession to national bias in our selection of a name…”
“As in every other school activity, a vigorous spirit of co-operation is essential to success, and boys should realise that if the boat is to go, each must pull his own weight.”
“A number of us entered for examinations, and so for the last month or two we have been floundering out of our depth in the deep dark abyss of ‘swat’ in the distant hope of being in a fit condition to ‘make a decent hash of it,’ as one of our masters termed it.”
“The teacher had been telling the class about the rhinoceros family. “Now, name some things,” said she, “that are very dangerous to get near to and that have horns.” “Motor cars,” replied little Jimmy Jones promptly.”
– 1917 THISTLEDOWN –
– 1917 THISTLEDOWN –
(Things haven’t changed!)
– 1919 THISTLEDOWN –
(Very fitting in StAC’s Maadi Cup winning year!)
– 1919 THISTLEDOWN –
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THISTLEDOWN | CENTENARY EDITION | SEPTEMBER 2017
5.00PM: Home for tea. 7.30PM: Preparation for tomorrow. Better look at internal to make sure that it makes sense. 9.30PM: Need early night as am really enjoying book. 3.00AM: Wide awake. Think “Instead of trying to electrocute students why don’t I electrocute myself?”… Brilliant… Bother now I cannot get back to sleep.
THISTLEDOWN | CENTENARY EDITION | SEPTEMBER 2017
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RUGBY
THE EYE The Eye is a deep pool. You can never swim to the edge. A journey into nothingness. It sees all. Knows all. Tells all. It is a gateway. To a person’s soul. A black abyss to thought. A coloured ring to emotion. A sea of milk which can be read. A majestic desert of coloured lines. The face’s book. To read or be read. More detailed than any piece of art. Each is unique. It is melted flame. Yet it is dowsed in water. It has seen all of time. The snow on the tallest mountain. The sand at bottom of the deepest ocean. It has seen the largest bird. It has seen the smallest insect. It has seen the wildest storm. It has found the most peaceful meadow. It has seen the flames of destruction. It has seen the snow of peace. It will see the End. And the day after. It will witness a new beginning.
FOOTBALL
Rugby at St Andrew’s has seen huge development over the last three years. Since the appointment of Mr Rod McIntosh, the College has seen many systems implemented in order to get the best out of our players from all year groups. Across the high school, there are eight teams from junior to senior rugby. This year the First XV has had a great season, including wins over Christ’s College and Nelson. The team had a great win against St Peter’s College 81–7, which has allowed them to progress to the National Co-ed Top 4 Tournament to be held in Palmerston North. The junior teams in the College have also enjoyed success this year, with most making it all the way to semi-finals. It has been a great centennial year of rugby, and it was special to celebrate with 200 Old Cols who attended the 100 years of StAC rugby event.
The Girls’ First XI have done exceptionally well this winter, only losing a couple games the whole season. It has been a bit of a grind losing key player Lily Bray to injury, but the girls have pulled through regardless, making history by qualifying for the Premier Grade final against Cashmere High School, which they unfortunately lost, but were very proud to be runners-up. The Boys’ First XI have had a very successful season, progressing into the Premier Grade Schools Competitions final also, after beating Cashmere in the semi 1–0. They had a very close game in the finals against St Thomas’s of Canterbury College, and after being 3–3 at full time, went on to win in a nail-biting penalty shootout. Both teams have trained well for their respective competitions in Tournament Week, with the girls’ national competition in Taupo and the boys’ in Napier.
DOUGAL SHEPHERD (Y12)
Dear New Zealand Herald,
NETBALL S A M A N T H A M O L LO Y ( Y 1 3 )
StAC netball has had a very successful season so far and as the season comes to a finish, we have seen many teams qualify for semi-finals and finals. The Year 9A netball team has to be the most successful team to date this season, after taking on St Hilda’s Collegiate School at the Junior South Island Secondary School Netball Tournament and leaving with the win of 33–11. Recently the girls have also been crowned winners of their Wednesday competition.
DANCE AT StAC SOPHIE TYRRELL (Y13)
St Andrew’s College Dance has really developed over the years. Many styles of dance are taught at StAC including jazz, contemporary, hip hop and ballet. Dance Revue each year is a highly anticipated event, with a three-night show in the 2017 centennial year, which was very successful. Dancers at StAC also get a chance to perform in other events such as Cultural showcase, Cultural Assembly and Style at StAC. Dance at StAC will continue to grow and develop in the future with new additions such as the new and improved dance studio renovated in 2016.
S A M A N T H A K I R K N E SS ( Y 1 3 )
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ON THE NEWS FRONT Letter to NZ Herald – 2017
S C OT T R E E S ( Y 1 3 )
H A R R Y W A D D I N GTO N ( Y 9 )
CULTURE IN OUR CENTENARY YEAR G R A C E D E P H O F F A N D A N N A B E N N E T TO ( Y 1 3 )
Culture at StAC in 2017 has been very successful with a variety of events for all kinds of people. Starting off in Term 1, the senior production cast worked extremely hard to put on a spectacular show ‘Encore!’ for the Centenary Gala. Along with this came the school’s first ever cultural showcase, organised by students in order to expose school work that is not usually seen in a setting outside the classroom. Term 2 was a busy time for many students with the Senior College production, a second showcase and RockQuest in which River Moon got through to the regional finals. Term 3 has proven to be the busiest term yet with Middle School production on its way, as well as Film Fest and Dance Revue being huge successes enjoyed by many. Along with this was the school’s first time entering TheatreFest, in which Paris Porter’s original piece won best overall and won a place for a performance at the prestigious national event to be held in September. The Jazz students have also been very busy and successful this term, with Christchurch’s JazzQuest Competition and Southern Jam in Blenheim. In these competitions, the students took away many awards, including the Soul Band receiving the title of Best Ensemble at JazzQuest, and the Big Band being the Overall Festival Winners at Southern Jam. Along with this was the Singer-Songwriters’ evening and the Jazz Club as part of the Winter Music Festival which showcased the students’ talents for original songs and love of music. Cultural Assembly was also a real highlight where these people were recognised, and a superb showcase of talent demonstrated the special culture here at StAC.
THISTLEDOWN | CENTENARY EDITION | SEPTEMBER 2017
Finally, the Senior A netball team have completed many of their goals for the season, having qualified for the Premier 2 Grade. The girls have also been named winners of the 2017 Supernet Competition after a convincing win of 37–30 against St Margaret’s College. The girls have been preparing well to compete at South Islands which are held in Christchurch this year, and look forward to the challenges ahead.
VOLLEYBALL ROSIE JERRAM (Y13)
Girls’ volleyball at St Andrew’s has had one of its most successful years on record in 2017. Participation is at an all-time high, with volleyball now being one of the College’s most played girls’ sport. Because of the timely arrival of Mr Mikae Tuu’u in 2016, the volleyball programme was given a new lease of life. For our Senior A teams, momentum was gathered during the winter terms and Term 4 2016 in order to have the best shot at succeeding in the 2017 season. An incredible team spirit saw the Girls’ Senior A move up into the Premier Division 1 competition on Monday nights, beating out usual suspects such as Rangi Ruru Girls’ School for their spot. The girls went from strength to strength, coming second place at the Canterbury Champs, earning them a spot in the Honours Division at Nationals.
I am writing about a concern for your ‘news website’. I have been reading your paper every day for the last four years and I think I have been informed very well; but I am afraid I can’t say that any more. I have lately been trying out your online website. Having the news online is a great idea instead of the traditional paper copies. I have tried converting but have been really disappointed by the quality of stories. Over the last two weeks I have opened up your website and I have been swamped with titles like these: ‘You’re saying these food names wrong’ and ‘You’re using false eyelashes wrong’. I don’t know about you, but when I go onto a news website, I am usually going to read the news. Now when I go to my previously favourite news company, you guys, I have to fight to find some news. It takes me a good five minutes of scrolling to find a real story. A non-‘clickbait’ story. A story that actually matters. A story that’s not about Richie McCaw’s Instagram posts. An actual news story! It seems that everywhere on the vast internet is becoming greedier and more money orientated; but I see exactly why you are doing it. As the digital age grows, more and more people are on the internet. My parents and even their parents have the latest technology and with more things now available with the click of a mouse, it means less things that we have to do. In today’s age, I could not even have to leave my house; I can order my food, clothing and now news all online. With this brings money; so now when I wake up and read your ‘news’ I am filling your pockets and getting something that is not of a very high quality. Instead of paying three dollars for a whole paper full of good news stories that would inform me of issues that matter, I am now not being charged, but not receiving much news. I understand that going digital saves you and the public a lot of money but instead of earning money now by selling good news stories, you fill the social media sites and your website with clickbait titles. A study done by ‘Business.com’ states that 79 per cent of clickbait titles have an element of shock. Following that, 67 per cent of titles contained a new or unknown concept, 63 per cent contained references to trending topics, another 63 per cent contained references to pop culture or food and 29 per cent contained ‘You’ or ‘I’ or some personal story. Now you might be saying, but that’s not us; we don’t clickbait. Well, I’ve done a bit of researching and found these titles on your page: ‘Pokémon Go player hit and killed’ – this is an example of a trending topic as Pokémon Go is a popular game and also an element of shock because people are in shock as someone was killed. After further looking into this story, I found she was killed ‘just after she played Pokémon Go’. So, she wasn’t killed playing Pokémon Go but actually after she had played. That’s like saying ‘Man killed eating a pie’; when he actually ate a pie, then died driving home from the pie shop. Not relevant to the stories at all. ‘A Christchurch mother shed 20kg by slashing one simple thing from her diet. Now she wants to help others’ – this shows a new or unknown concept because it’s a simple thing and people want to know what it is. It also contains a personal story which makes people more interested. After reading the story it turns out to be sugar which is not a simple thing to take away from your diet! ‘8 things you need to know right now’ – this is the best title of them all. It contains only one clickbait technique, which is a personal statement. This is proved by using ‘you’ which directs it at you personally. This attracts views as people feel it is targeting them; however, it is actually everyone. After reading the story I found that three of the ‘things I need to know right now’ were about American politics and one was about the Duke of York crashing his $80,000 Range Rover. I think the stories that you are putting out on your website are stupid. What about the 470,000 people who have died in the Syrian Civil War? More than one in ten Syrians have been injured or killed since 2011… and you report about some duke crashing his car? It really annoys me when you inform us of these stupid stories when there are hundreds of people dying from wars and civil fighting. What is more important, a man crashing his car or over four million people being forced to leave their homes? These four examples show how you, the New Zealand Herald, are beginning to add clickbait titles and irrelevant news titles to gain views and fill your pockets. In conclusion, I am sick of seeing your clickbait and irrelevant ‘news stories’, that have no place on an online news page. New Zealand deserves better than this. There are many major issues going on at the moment and I think you are taking the easy option by not reporting them but simply trying to get people to click the link and read your silly news stories. You were started in 1863 and were one of the first news companies in New Zealand, but since starting an online page, I think your quality has been going down. Although I think it is great that news is going online, saving paper and money for us New Zealanders, I am seriously concerned. For now, and until you fix your content, you will not have my daily view. I’ll be heading to a real news page. Yours sincerely, Dougal Shepherd
THISTLEDOWN | CENTENARY EDITION | SEPTEMBER 2017
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ST ANDREW’S CROSSWORD
NIC’S DOODLES
B R A D Y S W A N N A N D E D W A R D B AT T ( Y 1 3 )
NIC CAIN (Y13)
LIFE IN THE PREPARATORY SCHOOL
THE WISE WORDS OF WALTON Where do Memes come from?
H E N R I E T TA U L L R I C H ( Y 8 )
In the Preparatory School there have been many great achievements in 2017 including the netball 8A team making it to the finals in their division, as well as the Preparatory Boys’ First XV rugby team placing second in the U13s division, and the Preparatory Future Problem Solving team making it to internationals in America this year! The Year 7 and 8’s production that we wrote and performed is ‘The F.A.W.E Elements’. The juniors performed ‘Strum, Strike, Blow’, a musical festival at the Horncastle Arena, which looked like a lot of fun. Book Week this year celebrated the theme of ‘Fairy Tales and Fables’. Some of you have probably noticed the new Junior School building coming along well and hopefully will be opening early November this year. As you can see the Preparatory School has great facilities and are achieving well in their academic, sport and cultural activities. Life in the Preparatory School continues to be cool!
S T E V E N W A LTO N ( Y 1 3 )
The rise of online social media in the last decade has allowed dank, unaesthetic and zesty memes to become an easily recognisable hallmark of millennial culture. CAN’T RESIST, CAFE COOKIE... “ O H H E L LO M R R U G E ! ”
Y E S S I R , I C O M P L E T E LY U N D E R S TA N D . . .
These simple photos have become such a phenomenon that ‘Internet Memes’ is actually a subject you can major in at Chicago’s Northwestern University.... But did you know that memes outdate the internet itself? The term was actually first coined by an English ethologist in 1976, who theorised that memes follow the same idea as genes, but instead of passing physical characteristics through a society, memes refers to the passing of an idea, behaviour or style.
W O R T H I T FO R A WIN OVER CHRIST’S COLLEGE.
ACROSS
DOWN
3 Year females started at St Andrew’s College 4 Namesake of Science block 8 Head of Secondary School’s heritage 10 Faith followed at St Andrew’s College 12 Name of former Chapel 13 St Andrew’s College Motto 15 Title of Yearbook 16 St Andrew’s College Founder 17 Name of Cup won by first XV in 2015 18 Shield won by StAC rowing in 2017
1 Name of scholar visiting from Scotland annually 2 Year College was founded 5 Title of Rectors Magazine 6 Name of Senior Boys’ boarding house 7 Name of new Chapel 9 Name of StAC Castle Hill Mountain Lodge 11 Head of Secondary School who retired in 2017 14 Building named after the land it was built on
DON’T BE RUBBISH, DEAL WITH YOUR RUBBISH.
Unfortunately, not everybody is a believer, some have criticised the theory, sighting the lack of exploration and development 35 years after ‘memetic theory’ was first presented.
DANCE LIKE NO ONE IS W ATC H I N G , B E C A U S E T H E Y A R E N ’ T.
I T S O K AY TO M A K E M I S TA K E S – D O N ’ T B E AT Y O U R S E L F U P.
FINE ARTS AT StAC RECREATION: 100 YEARS ON J U L I E T R O B E R T S O N ( Y 1 3 ) | P H OTO S TA K E N B Y R O S A M C G U N N I G L E ( Y 1 3 )
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Simplistically speaking, ‘memetic theory’ states that ideas, behaviours and styles search for hosts to reproduce, in the same way that germs and bacteria do. This is a primary explanation for why humans have immense difficulty keeping secrets.
LAUREN CARR (Y13)
Art within the College is currently thriving. In 2016 there were four scholarships between Painting and Photography, and 2017 appears to be heading in the same way. With Design, Painting and Photography on offer, there is something for everyone to enjoy. As a Year 13 Painting student, I can confidently say that it is my most challenging subject due to the time and effort that is put into each work and the amount of planning required in order to show progress on a board. We have two amazing teachers/mentors between the three subjects who assist in helping us to achieve our full potential under their guidance. It is a thoroughly enjoyable subject and is at the heart of StAC culture. This drawing is the work of Nina Jones.
THISTLEDOWN | CENTENARY EDITION | SEPTEMBER 2017
Funnily enough, memes actually existed way before ‘memetic theory’ was ever thought up. ‘Kilroy was here’ – a simple ominous drawing US soldiers used to mark their territory in World War II is thought to be the first ever meme. The image became so culturally significant it has even been etched into rock at the WWII Memorial in Washington DC.
BASKETBALL LIAM MCBREEN-SMITH (Y13)
The sense of competitiveness which has developed within StAC’s social basketball scene has been forefronted by none other than the unbeaten StAC Black, a Year 13 social team. Though the team has faced many struggles in the past two seasons, including sharing of mouthguards, and minor brawls on the court – the passion has never withered. The team would like to honour their fierce nature to the ‘Goat’ – LeBron James – who continuously motivates the side. Usually, social basketball consists of a relaxed, fun nature. However, not in this team. The team has been very productive, and have cohesion which is unmatched in the NBA. Overall StAC social basketball cannot be defined by one team but by the overall spirit. PLAYER PROFILES
• • • • • •
Tom ‘Travel’ Selbie Nic ‘Never Shoots’ Ross Oscar ‘Seth’ Wilson Thomas ‘Sauce’ McDonald Seb ‘Always gets fouled’ Schacht Fletcher ‘College’ Edmond
• • • • •
Jake ‘Get a haircut’ Neill Fraser ‘Calm down it’s just lunchtime’ McKay Ihsuan ‘Blocked by everyone’ Chou Angus ‘Headboy’ Syme Bertie ‘Botanical’ Ruscoe
LEAGUE OF LEGENDS (COMPUTER ‘SPORT’)
Theories believe this meme started with a shipyard inspector in WWII called James J. Kilroy; he would write his name on the bulkhead of new US Army ships and the phrase began to fascinate the troops as ‘Kilroy’ was a complete stranger to them.
M AT I SS E M A K O N I ( Y 1 3 )
So, I guess what I’m trying to say is that spicy designer unaesthetic memes didn’t start with a Facebook page, but with a cheeky shipyard inspector from Massachusetts.
THIS CONSPICUOUS IMAGE OF A MAN PEEPING OVER A W A L L I S T H O U G H T TO B E T H E F I R S T E V E R M E M E IN THE 1940s
The StAC League of Legends First V team was a revolutionary team that made strides into the flourishing field of high school e-Sports. The team was captained by Oisin Roberts, followed by Toby van Woerkom, Jooyoung Kim, Matisse Makoni and Harrison Ball (all Year 13). When we saw that there was a league starting up, we wanted to go and see what was up, as a joke, with no intention of playing. However, through a series of (un)fortunate events we ended up representing the school. The first game was a huge failure seeing us lose to the Burnside High School Firsts with a standout performance by Milin Babu John going 0/5/0 … he was promptly kicked off the team and replaced by Harrison Ball. This helped the team a little but wasn’t enough, losing to Christ’s College Firsts and Burnside’s Seconds. The next two games were a great success with victories against Kavanagh College and Cashmere High School Firsts, only to have the seemingly endless winning streak halted by by a loss to Otago Boys’ High School. Despite this hit, the Thistle was still being flown proudly as Heretaunga College was decimated by the team, cast to a huge audience of people online (5 people). The team went through ups and downs in the season with a 37.5% win rate. The team didn’t make it into the finals or even the semi-finals but enjoyed the after school Maccas runs and camaraderie that came from the team. The team is disbanded now, but we hope the next generation of students can carry on this proud tradition of the StAC League of Legends First V.
THISTLEDOWN | CENTENARY EDITION | SEPTEMBER 2017
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HAIKU POEMS
BOARDERS’ ASSEMBLY ‘A Wild Ride!’
The cycle of life One end always meets the other Then it starts again
S A M A N T H A M O L LO Y ( Y 1 3 )
DEIRBHILE ROBERTS (Y9)
Days getting longer Leaves dropping snow is falling Winter been and gone H A R R Y LO U W ( Y 9 )
Just like at a rodeo, Boarders’ Assembly this year was one crazy ride. We had many ups and down along the way but despite the challenging moments, when it all came together on the Friday morning of 18 August, it was definitely worth it. We chose the theme of a ‘StAC Rodeo’, as we figured that it was an awesome way to incorporate the animals, home-towns and backgrounds of the boarders, and most importantly it gave us a reason to hire out a mechanical bull! We also found that, like many of the riders on a rodeo circuit, boarding requires being away from home for a very long time, however it’s the friends and relationships that you create along the way that makes being away from home all worthwhile in the end.
When she smiles the snow all melts YOUYU ZHANG (Y11)
2017 PREFECT TEAM LIZZIE STEVENSON (Y13)
The 2017 prefect team have been a brilliant group of cohesive leaders who have revelled in working together in this Centenary year.
HOCKEY JOSEPH YOON (Y13)
This year St Andrew’s hockey has had a very successful season with all teams playing for various top positions on the points table during the season. This year saw huge success for the Girls’ First XI hockey team who have improved immensely, where Bella Ambrosius has been a key scoring machine. The team narrowly lost to Rangi Ruru Girls’ School in the SPL semifinals in a penalty shootout, but the team are to be feared by the opposition in their national tournament in Dunedin. The Boys’ First XI hockey team have left it quite late to show their peak performance, however Mitchell Davis has been fizzing with the large number of penalty corners that have been gained this season so far. Unfortunately, a loss to Christ’s College in the Canterbury Secondary School Premier final was tough for the boys, but they are looking forward to putting their best foot forward for the prestigious Rankin Cup held in Hamilton this year. A number of other StAC teams also found success this year with the Boys’ Second XI hockey team in the semi-finals this year, the Boys’ Third XI currently second on the points table, Girls’ Second XI placed fourth and the Girls’ Third XI hockey team second on the points table currently. It has been a great season for StAC hockey.
Projects that we have focused on have been the annual Prefects’ Assembly performed to Secondary and Preparatory School (this year based upon our own spin on ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’), bringing back the Senior College Common Room Cup Challenge, and bringing in a Senior College Good Sort Award. We have also enjoyed connecting with the students through: Friday morning food for the school; pizza lunches with the Preparatory School prefects and Middle School leaders; weekly treasure hunts; teddy bear picnic with the Junior School; and Friday lunchtime activities. We loved being involved in the various wonderful Centenary events throughout the year, and are planning a whole school ‘StAC100’ formation photo in Term 4 as our final project as a snapshot of StAC in 2017. The 2017 prefect team have all enjoyed brainstorming, creating, collecting and editing the content to make this Centenary edition of Thistledown magazine possible, and hope that it is something to be treasured for many years to come as a record of the student body in this special year.
JUNIOR SCHOOL ART (YEAR 2) ANGELA DENG (Y13)
The Junior department has been very busy throughout the year with various projects and activities undertaken. Recently I noticed an interactive screen that students played on. These included games like ‘4 Pic 1 Word’. This amazes me how much technology has changed the way of life and helping with our learning. This rewritten story of ‘The Cat in the Hat’ was an assignment that the Year 2’s completed. Lucy Fraser took her own approach with this story, and with her talented mind, made the story very entertaining to read.
THANKS TO... 2 0 1 7 P R E F E CT T E A M , J A C Q G I L B E R T , J O H N R U G E , C O M M U N I C AT I O N S D E PA R T M E N T ( A N J H A W K I N S , RACHELLE JOILIN) AND ALL THE TEACHERS A N D S T U D E N T S W H O C O N T R I B U T E D TO T H E THISTLEDOWN.
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E D I TO R S : LIZZIE STEVENSON ANGELA DENG
THISTLEDOWN | CENTENARY EDITION | SEPTEMBER 2017