Dear Parents and Guardians

As the term draws to an end I have had time to reflect on what has been a busy and productive period during which so much has happened that we have been prevented from doing for so long. While I remain extremely grateful for the myriad of opportunities that have allowed our boys to engage with each other and our opposition and enjoy a range of activities, I caution that we may be overcompensating in our desire to recapture what was before. I worry that the pressure we are putting on boys and staff to take part is having its toll, and not only are people not used to the freneticism of a first term but that we are ignoring the lessons Covid taught us about time and how best to make use of our time. I have asked staff to be wary of this and not to pile pressure on themselves and our boys but to ensure we keep a balance in all we do.

We are awaiting directions from government for the remaining Covid protocols such as mask-wearing and hope to be able to rid our community of these, at least officially outdoors, as this seems to be the way to go.

We held a number of very successful events last week. The Robert Gray Medal Award ceremony was a wonderful occasion at which we acknowledged two very different ODs who contributed so much to our society, each in their own unique way. Mr Geoff Burton and Prof Hugh Corder were deeply touched by the recognition they so rightly received and the boys enjoyed their addresses.

The Founder’s Day Assembly was a very special moment where the entire school from Grade N to Grade 12 as well as all staff, who gathered on the Astro to celebrate our founding. Very special tributes were made by four different members of the school, three boys and a staff member who is also a proud OD and the day followed with the usual activities which the boys enjoyed.

The Carnival was a great success and while there were challenges with entry to the event due to the large number of attendees, a very good evening was enjoyed by all with rides, food and great music on show. My very grateful thanks go to the PAs from both schools, the OD Union and all those who made the event possible.

Our summer sports programme wound down and our teams ended their season very well. I was fortunate to attend the SA Rowing Championships at which our boys did us proud as well as three water polo tournaments in which our U14 team was unbeaten and the U18 team ended 3rd. Our U15s did very well to get to their quarter-final. Our cricket teams ended well against old friends and rivals Bosch, with the U14A recording a spectacular victory and our First XI bouncing back from two earlier losses to their opponents to record a draw in which both teams had a chance to snatch victory – an exciting Saturday indeed!  

Our musical collaboration with Herschel started this week and I will report on that after attending on Thursday night. I know how much effort has gone into this production and I thank all those, staff and boys, who have made it happen.

In the middle of all this, we held our first Evensong in two years and what a special and significant moment it was with singing like I have not heard before! My thanks to all involved and those parents who managed to attend for be part of this momentous occasion.

Staff News

We bid farewell to two members of staff shortly. Mr John Knight was supposed to retire last year after a distinguished and lengthy time at Bishops but agreed to remain for the first term to help us out. He leaves at the end of the term and we wish him all the very best for a well-deserved retirement with lots of time on the golf course!

Ms Nella Freund, our Librarian, leaves us at the end of April to take up a new career opportunity in desktop publishing and proofreading and we thank her for her service to our school over many years.

Diversity, Equity and Belonging

A number of our staff attended the recent International Boys Schools Coalition regional conference hosted by Rondebosch Boys at which “The Elephant in the Room” was the theme. Difficult issues around difference such as race and racism, homophobia and gender were debated, discussed and much was learned that can help us in our own journey forward.

The Transformation Committee of Council has finalized a draft Anti-Racism Statement that is now being shared for comment. To access this very important document in which we highlight our intention of addressing this scourge that still remains an issue to address, please click here. You are invited to comment on the draft, with comments sent to transformation@bishops.org.za and if comments can reach us by the start of next term, Monday 11 April, we will be able to finalise the statement. It is our intention to translate the statement into the three languages of the Western Cape and to actively apply its contents as we seek to create a space where racism is eradicated in all forms.

This week, we acknowledged Human Rights Day at a special assembly devoted to the memory of those who sacrificed their lives in the pursuit of freedom. This significant occasion, which we celebrate with a public holiday on Monday 21 March, will hopefully be of meaning to the boys as we try to make it relevant to them in today’s world. We also used this opportunity to celebrate the life of one of the greatest sons of our country and an ardent human rights activist, Archbishop Desmond Tutu. He played such a vital part of our country for so long and his influence will be felt for many years still. 

I wish you well for the final week. School will close with a final assembly and Eucharist on Friday 25 March and reopen on Monday 11 April at the start of Holy Week.  

Kind regards

Antony Reeler
Principal

Quadrangular

The Quadrangular Tie is awarded to Bishops athletes who have represented Bishops a minimum of three years at the annual Quadrangular (formerly the Triangular), two of which should be in senior years. The absence of a full athletics season last year was taken into account. 

Congratulations to the following athletes on receiving their Quadrangular ties:
Ben Derman
Adam de Waal
Zimvo Joxo
Abdul-Kareem Kerbelker
Shariq Davids
Max Olbrich
Dylan Krause
Storm Lanfear
Luca Broggian
Connor Todd
Werner Koster
Fiekie Petersen 

Athletics Trophies

Congratulations to these teams for winning team trophies:
Relay sports: White House 
Heats week: Founders House
Sports day: Gray House

The following boys represented Bishops in interschool athletics and qualified to represent the Table Bay Zone:
Alexander Newton 
Danny Newton 
Daniel von der Heyden
Shariq Davids
Dylan Krause
Reece Quin
Danny went a step further and has achieved WP colours with hurdles being his main event. 

Cricket Awards

Congratulations to these boys on their cricket milestones:

James Robb-Quinlan receives a bat for scoring 136* (126) for the U15A team against St Alban’s College
The following receive a mounted cricket ball for achieving 5 or more wickets in a match:
Nicholas Bradfield 4-0-13-5 for the 6th X1 against SACS
James Raubenheimer 6-3-10-6 for the 3rd X1 against SACS
Nicholas Axten 9-0-39-5 for the U14A against Grey College
Tiaan Louw 6-2-10-6 (incl. a hat-trick) for the 2nd X1 against Pinelands
Ismail Bhorat 5-0-313-5 for the 3rd X1 against Curro Durbanville
Troy Stockdale 4-1-10-5 for the U14B against Parel Vallei
Michael Kotze 22-11-24-7 for the 1st X1 against Pinelands High
Jack Campbell 3.2-1-12-6 for the 5th X1 against Rondebosch

All Rounders Tie

Max Molyneux and Nashe Chahwahwa are to be congratulated on being awarded an All Rounder's Tie.

GIN Ties

Four GIN ties have been awarded to these gentlemen for their outstanding contributions.
Ronaq Sayed in Gr12 (O) for him spearheading the CANSA Shav-a-thon fundraiser.
Jaeseo Hyun (M) for his ongoing contribution to GIN over the past three years, serving as a committee member in 2021.
Zac Heyns (G) for his project, and implementation of his project where he worked with Prep school learners making the SDG’s easier to understand and to engage with.
Nikolaos Augoustatos (K) and Jack Whitaker (K) for their drive in starting up the Sustainable Agricultural Society (SAS) gardens that now sees the produce from the gardens supporting various soup kitchens and the VUSA feeding scheme.

SA National Karate Championship

Zuhayr Mohamood ended 3rd in the Karate National Championship representing the Western Cape, which was held in Durban. He was selected to represent SA in the National Karate Team. Congratulations, Zuhayr!

Water Polo Tours

The 1st Water polo team had a very successful and enjoyable weekend playing in the KES Waterpolo Tournament in Johannesburg. It is the most significant tournament for top Water polo playing schools in the country.

The Team and coaching staff can be very pleased with their bronze medal performance, and take pride in their conduct in the pool, winning the Fair Play Trophy.

Congratulations to Nicholas Steinhagen and Dean Sneddon on being selected for the tournament team.

The U15A team participated in the Indigo Water Polo Tournament hosted by Parktown. The team had some challenging matches in the pool stages, but managed to qualify for the Quarter finals to unfortunately go down to St John’s College. Although a tough tournament, the boys continued to improve, showing heart and Bishops pride in every match. They finished 6th out of 22 teams.

The U14A team had a very successful time at the Jeppe Ken Short Festival, where they remained unbeaten through the course of the festival – winning all 6 of their games. The team showed Grit – overturning 3 deficits at half time to win some tight games.
Some notable results:
Michael House 5-4
Clifton 5-2
St Davids 3-2
Rondebosch 4-3

Water Polo – WP Selection

Congratulations to the follows boys on their selection to team WP for the Junior National Water Polo Championships to be held in East London from 25 to 27 March 2022.

U18A – Dean Sneddon and Jack Moyle
U18B – Benjamin Hatty and Jordan De Sousa

Bishops 1st Water polo team had a very successful and enjoyable weekend playing in the KES Water polo Tournament  in Johannesburg. It is the most significant tournament for top Water polo playing schools in the country.

The Bishops team won all their pool games against the likes of Westville, Pretoria Boys and St Stithians College, before progressing to the quarter-finals against Rondebosch. Bishops pulled away in the 3rd quarter leaving Rondebosch too much to chase. It was a tough match played in great spirit. The next game was against St John’s College in the semi-final. St John’s were in admirable form and ran away with a solid lead in the first quarter. Despite a valid effort to wrestle back from the slow start, it was too much. The 3rd/4th playoff was another close encounter with the Bishops team showing grit to claim victory over Clifton. 

The Team and coaching staff can be very proud of their bronze medal performance, and take pride in Nicholas Steinhagen and Dean Sneddon being selected for the tournament team while also being honoured for their conduct in the pool, winning the Fair Play Trophy.

Water Polo - League Knockout Competition

The 1st team went down to Rondebosch in their Semi-final in a close encounter.
The u15A team beat SACS in their Semi-final and put in a huge effort in the final against Rondebosch, ultimately going down 5-7. The team brought home a silver medal.

The u14A team beat Wynberg in their Semi-final and proceeded to move to the main pool to play Paul Roos in the final. They had the better of PRG winning the final 5-3 and claiming the gold medal and the Davies Cup.

Congratulations to all three teams on a very good season!

Rowing

The South African National Rowing Championship was the climax of what has been a tumultuous season for the Bishops Rowing Club. Barrier upon barrier has been presented in different manifestations for each of our age groups. Covid outbreaks within the open age group, a mass exodus in the U16s were nothing short of handbrakes to the momentum that athletes and coaches attempted to maintain. However, the BRC was in high spirits come race the three race days which constitute SA Champs. Well done to all the gents on a determined and successful season.

Below are the crews, with only the stroke name, who reached and placed in the A-final. An incredible feat in itself in light of the competition. 

South African National Rowing Championship 2022 - Results
U14
2x (Double): Theodore Forsyth & Luke Ratcliffe - 5th Place

U15
1x (Scull): Jack Breslin - 6th Place & John Van Der Watt - 8th Place
4x+ (Coxed Quad): Jack Breslin, Cameron Redfern, John Van Der Watt & Matthew Maurel - 6th Place
8x+ (Octuple): John Van Der Watt, Jack Breslin, Cameron Redfern, Matthew Maurel, Isaac Miller, Matthew Earle, Veer Daya, Viggo Du Plessis & Oliver Frankel - 4th Place

Open
1st 4+ (Coxed Four): Noah du Randt, Enrico Dundulachis, Thomas Mason, Lukas Barnard & Thomas Barton - 6th Place
1st 8: Jett Bacher, Didier Marx, Enrico Dundulachis, Noah Du Randt, Thomas Barton, Jonathan Bennett, Lance Brilus, Thomas Mason, Lukas Barnard - 8th Place

U16
4- (Coxless Four): Sebastian Cheminais, Matthew Le Roux, Zac Miller & Jack Hartman - 4th Place.

Cricket

Bishops' Cricketers On Tour

The Bishops' 1st XI and 15A cricket sides travelled to Pretoria and Makhanda, respectively, during the final week of February, to participate in the annual Independent Schools' Cricket Festival (ISCF). The 1st XI had matches scheduled v Woodridge; St Stithian's; St Alban's; St Andrew's College and St John's, whilst on tour, unfortunately four of the five matches having to be abandoned before their conclusion due to highveld thunderstorms. The game that did end in a result, v St Andrew's College, saw the 1st XI chase, successfully, 248 with three balls to spare to win by two wickets in a 50-overs-a-side contest. Special mention to Kashief Joseph and Adam Constant who both registered fifties in the run-chase. The 15As recorded 223-run and 20-run victories v St Alban's and St Benedict's respectively whilst losing to St Stithian's and Hilton. The highlight of the tour, from an individual point of view, was James Robb Quinlan's 136* off 126 balls in a 50-overs-side contest v St Alban's: a feat made more extraordinary by the fact that James was at the crease for all 50 overs of the Bishops'

Western Cape u15 Boys' Cricket Side Selection

Congratulations to Bishops' 14A cricketers, Litha Mbiko and Waco Bassick, on their selection to the Western Cape u15 boys' cricket side to compete in the National Schools' Sport Championship (NSSC) in Gauteng from 18th to the 23rd March.

Rugby

The 1st XV Capping Ceremony and official opening of the 2022 rugby season - hosted by the newly re-launched Bishops Rugby Supporter’s Club - took place on Wednesday evening at the Heatlie Pavilion. It was great to see all the College and Prep U13 rugby players, many parents, and ODs in attendance. Mr John Dobson (OD and current Stormers Coach) addressed the 1st XV, imploring them to squeeze every drop out of their season, because it will be over in the blink of an eye,  saying also, that they have the chance to make memories that will last a life time. While directed at the 1st XV, Dobson's message was also exceptionally well received by all in attendance. Following the Capping Ceremony, the boys were treated to burgers, while parents, ODs and past parents moved into the Heatlie for the Supporters Club cocktail function where Mr Angus Firth (TiC Rugby) and Mr Wes Chetty (1st XV Coach and Manager of coaching) spoke about their plans for rugby at Bishops, both for this season, and into the future. It was a fantastic kick-off to the season, enjoyed by all. A very special thanks to the Bishops Rugby Supporters Club for putting the event together.

Our 1st XV are in action this weekend as they kick off their 2022 season at the Wynberg Festival. Good luck to coach Chetty and his young charges as the boys in blue run out for the first time this year!
Click on the link for the live games. https://bit.ly/WBHS-RugbyFestival22

Interact

Last weekend, The Bishops Interact Club walked down to the Liesbeek River Garden site for a short but productive session of weeding, raking and tidying before stopping to mark the official opening of The Hyslop Garden.

The garden is named in honour of Mr Peter Hyslop, the previous head of the visual arts department and teacher in charge of The Interact Club. Mr Hyslop has given and, in his retirement, continues to give of his precious time and effort towards the benefit of Interact Society and Bishops as a whole. He is the person responsible for the establishment of The Liesbeek River Clean-up Initiative at Bishops which has become such a great success.

The boys welcomed Mr Hyslop with great pride as he ceremoniously cut the red ribbon to officially open The Hyslop Garden. A specially-made sign was put up at each entrance which contained a bible verse chosen by Mr Hyslop: “So it was: the earth yielded fresh growth. Plants bearing seed according to their kind and trees bearing fruit each with seed according to its kind: and god saw that it was good.”

Genesis 1:12

SAS and Interact

On Saturday 12 March our SAS and Interact societies participated in an interschool Beach clean up on Hout Bay Beach. We are so proud that these young men fill their Saturday’s with making our city a better, more beautiful place!

Blue Pages

Our Blue Pages is a Bishops online interactive magazine, aimed at supporting our immediate community. We invite you to advertise in the next Bishops Blue pages. Please email queries and bookings directly to bluepages@mdhtrading.com

Hockey

Join us at 18h00 at the Woodlands Friday 18th March to kick off our 2022 Hockey season when our 1st team will play against the ODs!
Players to watch: Dayaan Cassiem (50 SA caps), Mustapha Cassiem (20 SA Caps), Ali Stewart (SA International), Idrees Abdullah (SA U21).

Enjoy our 2nd XI hockey boys live this weekend at the Milnerton High Hockey Festival. All games will be streamed on the SuperSport School APP. Log in and register to enjoy the games. https://supersportschools.com/
18th March: vs Fairmont Invitational at Edgemead High at 17:10 
19th March: vs The Settlers at Edgemead High at 17:10 
20th March: vs Somerset College at Milnerton High at 8:50 and vs Milnerton High at Milnerton High at 14:40 

Go-Karting

Joseph Oelz was awarded his SA colours for go-karting at the end of last year, but due to the Covid restrictions that were implemented during the December holidays, he and his team mates were unfortunately not able to compete in the go-karting World Champs in Bahrain.

At the recent Western Province award ceremony, Joseph received the Victor ludorum for best overall driver of the year, the trophy for winning the WP championship as well as being awarded his senior provincial colours. Well done!

Our boys paid tribute to a day that has paved the way for their future. Enjoy your Human Rights Day!

Click here to view their video.

Thank you to the organisers of the Community Week Carnival for including VUSA in the event. VUSA held a ‘guess how many sweets in the jar ‘ competition, and the winning number was 1228 sweets.  Nobody guessed the exact number, but two lucky Prep boys came close. Congratulations, Lukho Kunene and Tom Pearce. These boys also got to pick a number in a draw which meant that a few ecstatic VUSA children also won a jar of sweets. (Lukho Mzingaye, Tinashe Nkumanda and Mikhulu Gwiliza). Thank you to everyone who participated and donated.