The term has started with a rather sad aftermath of issues from last term, where we had to deal with bullying, extortion and theft. As a result of investigations, four boys have been asked to leave the College, as this kind of behaviour simply will not be tolerated.

I need to express my real concern over instances where parents have become involved by negotiating with individual boys over the use/abuse of their son's cell phone. Please, could all issues be referred in the first instance to the Housemaster. No boy is allowed to use another boy’s cell phone, under any circumstances. A boy can get a phone slip and go to the telephone exchange and make a call. This is standard procedure and there is absolutely no need to borrow anyone's phone.

The issue of retribution, if a boy exposes wrong doing in the school, also came up. Please, you need to have faith in us, the staff. We will not allow a boy to be victimized because he is doing the right thing by reporting bullying, extortion, or theft. We have to work together on this. Please do not hesitate to talk to the authorities if you know that something untoward is going on.

On the other hand completely, we will not tolerate "tell tales", or young men trying to get rid of someone who is instilling discipline, or upholding the system. There is a fine line between discipline and bullying and we will do all we can to maintain the discipline of the College.

At the end of last term, we had several teams and boys away, so we have made various awards this week:

Hockey Trophies:
The Andrew Westaway Trophy for the most improved senior player - B. Gait

Rugby Trophies:
The Senior Tackling Cup - M. Marais
The Don Hatton Cup for the most valuable Tight Forward - S.T. Musarurwa

Colours Awards:
First Aid Sports Colours are awarded to T. Macheka for his outstanding contribution towards providing First Aid for sportsmen at the College over a number of years.

Honours for Hockey are awarded to:

Gareth Bint who has played for the 1st XI for a number of years and was the Captain of the highly successful 2009 team. He showed commitment and dedication, leading by example both on and off the Hockey field. His talent, skills and leadership qualities were recognized when he was selected as the Captain of both the Matabeleland and Zimbabwe U19 A teams this year.

and

Peter Trethowan, a very shrewd and tactically advanced player. He played a pivotal role in the 1st XI’s success this year. His dedication and hard work, combined with these attributes, led to his classification as one of the best midfielders in the country and it was no surprise when he was selected for both the Matabeleland and Zimbabwe U19 A sides in 2009.

Honours:
Kyle Mullen who has been an exceptional player in 2009, having adapted well to a change of position from scrumhalf (where he was probably the best in the country) to flyhalf. He captained the side with enthusiasm and passion, always leading from the front, and this infected the team that went from strength to strength during the season.

and

Simbarashe Musarurwa who led the pack with strength and enthusiasm. His work rate and ability to carry the ball has improved greatly which encouraged his fellow players and contributed enormously to him become the complete player. He represented the country at U19 level this year

and

Corey van Rensburg who was outstanding in both attack and defence this season. His ability to read the game and initiate attacks from the back made him into a top player, and his consistent success with the boot contributed hugely to many of the team's victories. His talents were recognized when he was selected for the Zimbabwe Schools' team in 2009.