A 9-0 thrashing of Dubbo Senior College in the girls’ hockey has given Bathurst High the upper hand going into a relocated second day of their Astley Cup tie.
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At the conclusion of day one, Bathurst held a 260-140 lead.
Playing at home in Bathurst on Wednesday, Bathurst and their rivals both knew that the Cup itself was out of reach with Orange High having already done enough to claim it.
To worsen the situation, the sporting fields of Bathurst have copped so much rain that aside from Carrington Park, all the proposed outdoor venues have been closed by Bathurst Regional Council.
At short notice, Dubbo came to the party and said they were happy to host day two of the tie, which will feature rugby league, and boys’ and girls’ soccer.
It looks likely that the athletics will be deemed a 50-50 draw given than the Dubbo venue is already booked for a separate event.
Like Bathurst's tie against Orange in which the sports were split evenly in terms of wins and losses, Wednesday's sports were shared at two apiece.
The difference came in Bathurst's domination of the tennis and girls’ hockey.
An 11 sets to one win in hockey gave them a 91-9 split, and the 9-0 hockey score became 10-1 under the scoring system, giving Bathurst a 92-8 share.
Dubbo won the netball 62-28 for a 69-31 split, and got a 50-42 win in boys’ basketball for a 54-46 share of the points.
Bathurst High Astley Cup co-ordinator Paul Abbott said it wasn't hard to motivate his students even with the Cup out of reach.
"Really, throughout the history of the Astley Cup, the one thing the kids look forward to more than anything else is playing in front of their peers at home," Abbott said.
"It makes for a good atmosphere, especially in a place like the Bathurst Indoor Stadium where all the students are crammed into one area.
"With day two of the tie being shifted to Dubbo it has added even more motivation. If the students can win in these circumstances where half the sports are being played away from home when they are supposed to be here, it would be a tremendous effort.
"That's a huge driving force for these students and so far they're putting in a good showing. The netball was always going to be tough, but we kept it close enough and did the same in the basketball."
Abbott was quick to thank the opposition for being able to host an unscheduled day of sport on Thursday.
"They have bent over backwards to help us out," he said.
