“Teachers have been telling me, if there’s ever a chance, this is the year.”
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Those are the final words of Bathurst High Campus principal Ken Barwick, as excitement builds for the final tie of the 2017 Astley Cup, with his school in pole position to win the title.
The school travels north to face Dubbo College on Wednesday and Thursday, in what is a simple equation for Bathurst – win and become the Astley Cup champion.
A loss will ultimately open the door for Orange High School or, depending on the severity of the loss, Dubbo.
“The travel is difficult. We need to travel well and perform well,” Mr Barwick said.
“Dubbo are strong in their sports. You always need some luck in some of the close sports, such as soccer and hockey.”
This year’s Astley Cup will also be a farewell for teacher Ryan McLuskie, who has spent the past 12 months on exchange from the United Kingdom.
“His level of commitment has been great. He’s put together extra [soccer] training out of class and he’s worked out really quickly what the Astley Cup is all about,” Mr Barwick said.
“He said the kids were lucky to have an incredible competition.”
Passion runs deep for Mr Barwick, as he felt “physically sick” when Bathurst was losing against Orange in the rugby league.
He praised the effort of the competing students and staff.
“I have to acknowledge the staff work of Josh Lawler and the PDHPE team,” he said.
“I take no credit, I just love being a part of it. Credit to the kids and staff.”