2019 NSWCCC Blue Awards

On Monday 11 February, St Mary’s Star of the Sea hosted the 22nd Blue Awards Presentation, which celebrates and recognises the best sporting achievements of Catholic secondary students throughout NSW.

Strong sporting talent from the Maitland-Newcastle Diocese was on show with six of our students receiving an award.

Leroy Reid, a talented athlete from St Mary’s Catholic College, Gateshead opened the evening by reading the Acknowledgment to Country before receiving an award. Leroy was named the 2018 U16 age champion at the NSWCCC Athletics and won gold in the 200m and 400m events and silver in the long jump.

Jock Madden from All Saints’ College, Maitland received his award for rugby league. Jock was captain of the NSWCCC National Championship winning team in 2018 and was named Player of the Tournament at the Australian Schools Championships. Jock was also selected in the Australian Schools Team that toured England in late 2018.

Connor Edwards, also from All Saints’ College, received a Blue Award for touch football. As part of the 2018 Open NSWCCC team for the third year in a row, Connor’s sportsmanship and leadership, combined with his fast and intelligent attacking game, saw him score many tries while setting up many for his team mates. Connor earned the respect of his coaches through his commitment to team policy and the manner in which he mentored other members of the team.

Alexander Clinton from St Francis Xavier’s College, Hamilton is a strong basketballer who also received an award on the night. As an integral part of the NSWCCC team, Alex demonstrated an amazing ability to shoot while also showcasing a strong defensive presence on the court. His performance at NSWCCC saw him win selection in the NSW All Schools team.

Two students from the Diocese also received a Bar Award, including Corey Lamb from St Joseph’s College, Lochinvar and Dakota Thomas from St Paul’s Catholic College, Booragul. A Bar Award recognises a student who has previously been awarded a Blue Award and has continued to excel in their sport.

Corey is one of Australia’s best junior golfers. He claimed the School Sports Australia Stroke Play title in 2017 and was a runner up in both the NSWCCC Stroke Play and in the NSW All Schools match in 2018. These achievements cemented Corey’s place in the NSW All Schools team and gained him selection into the School Sport Australia team.

Dakota has been a member of the NSWCCC Open Netball team for two years, as well as a member of the 15’s team in 2016 for both NSWCCC and NSW All Schools. Dakota started her representative pathway back in 2012 as a member of the NSWCPS Polding team. Dakota was named captain of the NSWCCC open team for 2018 and her leadership shone both on and off the court.

A huge congratulations to all students.

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