Illalong Newsletter - 28 November 2025

Year 12 Valedictory Day Celebrations

Year 12 students started their graduation day the best way – a morning filled with memories and milestone moments.

Before heading into the pre-valedictory assembly, our Year 12s shared breakfast, laughter, and stories as they signed their special-edition Banjo Yearbook with friends and teachers.

The day was filled with hugs, smiles, tears and the sweetest goodbyes.

Prep students gifting teddy bears.
Year 1s surprising the Class of 2025 with handmade flowers.
A whole-school guard of honour cheering them into their next chapter.

Performances, memories, and a moment no one will forget.

A beautiful chapter closing. A new one beginning.

Congratulations Class of 2025!

Secondary School APS Season Two Wrap Up

Our Senior School APS Season Two teams wrapped up a highly successful season with 19 teams contesting premierships on the final afternoon of APS Sport for 2025.

The season wrapped up with an impressive haul: 9 premiership titles, 10 runner-up finishes, and 8 additional teams securing top three spots. Across the entire 2025 calendar year, the Brumbies proudly achieved 17 premierships, 16 second-place finishes, and 12 more teams landing in the top three.

As a College, we continue to mix it with the powerhouse schools fighting hard for our piece of the 155 Premiership up for grabs in 2025, finishing we the equal 4th
highest premierships total of the 8 schools.

Congratulations to the following teams and their coaches for their fine efforts.

Premiership Teams

Open A Girls Basketball - Miss Olivia Wilkins & Beau Williams
Open Softball - Mr Michael Culverwell & Ms Hope Foster
Open A Boys Tennis - Mr Andy Sole
Junior Gold Softball - Mrs Amber Aitken
Junior A Girls Tennis - Mr Aaron Dwyer
Junior B Girls Tennis - Mr Aaron Dwyer
Junior B Boys Tennis - Mrs Monica Olivier
Junior C Girls Tennis - Mr Aaron Dwyer
Tier 2 Girls Touch Football – Snr ABP 1 - Mr Emma Gann

Runner’s Up

First XI Cricket - Mr Peter Brookes & Mitchell Parkes
Open A Boys Basketball - Mr Paul Dilkes & BJ Linderman
Open A Boys Touch Football - Mr Anthony Chetter & Luke Clune
Open B Boys Basketball - Mr Paul Dilkes & BJ Linderman
Open B Girls Touch Football - Miss Erin Keogh & Laura Elliott
Int. B Boys Basketball - Mr Leighton Morgan & Sean de Silva
Int. C Girls Basketball - Mrs Kiana Sloane
15 & Under Girls AFL - Mr James King
Junior Red Softball - Mrs Ellen Edwards
Junior C Boys Tennis - Mrs Monica Olivier

Third Place

Open Girls Cricket - Mrs Jasmine Lange & Sam Brookes
Open A Girls Tennis - Mr Jonathan Albertini
Open B Boys Tennis - Mr Andy Sole
Open B Girls Tennis - Mr Jonathan Albertini
Open B Boys Touch Football - Mr Anthony Chetter & Luke Clune
Int. D Girls Basketball - Mrs Kiana Sloane
Year 9B Girls Touch Football - Miss Rose Hand & Callum Shanahan
Year 7B Girls Touch Football - Miss Rebeckah Brodie & Liam Crispe

A huge shout-out to our incredible staff and coaches for the passion, energy, and hard work you have poured into this year! Your commitment is nothing short of inspiring, and we could not be more thankful. To all the parents and friends cheering from the sidelines — thank you for being our biggest supporters! Your encouragement fuels our teams and makes our program truly special.

Sara Eade | Head of Co-Curricular Sport

Bronze Duke of Edinburgh International Award Camp - 21-22 November

Last weekend a group of students took part in a Bronze Duke of Edinburgh International Award camp visiting several of the Gold Coast’s top walking destinations and National Park attractions. All students were completing their qualifying journey.

Two key areas scattered across the Gold Coast region were visited as part of Exploration Orientated projects. Students started their Urban Adventurous Journey by hiking the three hilly and challenging tracks up and around the Burleigh Heads National Park. They climbed the scenic heights and from the lookouts at Tumgun and Jebbribillum were able to see far out to sea on a beautifully clear day, whilst having their morning tea. Despite the relatively small size of Burleigh Park, it contains a rich variety of animals and birdlife.

Next on their busy agenda was a walk within the Federation Walk Coastal Reserve. A narrow footpath, known as Federation Walk, runs parallel to the beach, and ends at the small lighthouse at the Spit. Students walked the route through the natural bush environment and returned via the coastal path along the beach where they stopped for a well-deserved lunch break. After lunch they continued their walk along the beach back to their arrival point at Philip Park.

The students were accompanied by Head of Outdoor Education Andrew Sole, and Mathematics Teacher Monica Olivier.

Andrew Sole | Head of Outdoor Education

Year 9 History Escape the Room Challenge Reflection

This week on Wednesday our Year 9 History students stepped out of the classroom and into F-Block and onto the Peter Sippel Oval for an unforgettable set of experiences, challenges and a large-scale simulation of World War I. They worked on the project-based learning unit for the whole term designed as a set of “Escape the Room”–style challenges the day brought together teamwork, critical thinking and a surprising amount of water.

F-Block housed a series of dioramas, videos, presentations, games, museum exhibits, challenges and even a pure escape from the room experience. The oval was split into two theatres of war, mirroring the major fronts of WWI. On the eastern end, students recreated the Western Front, where Great Britain, France and their allies (including ANZACs, Canada, Italy and eventually the United States) clashed with Germany. On the western end of the oval stood the Eastern Front, where Germany, the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Ottoman Empire fought against Russia. In a moment of historical irony that delighted staff, Russia ended up on the wrong side of the oval… but the results could not have been more accurate!

Students raced between trench lines representing infantry manoeuvers, artillery coordination, codebreaking, medical triage, reconnaissance missions and other wartime roles. Each army attempted to capture the opposing team’s flags, symbolising the collapse of that army. Between the flying flags, reusable water ballon ‘grenades’, and Nerf guns, the oval quickly became a vibrant, muddy and wonderfully chaotic “No Man’s Land.”

What impressed staff the most, beyond the energy, strategy and sheer enthusiasm, was just how historically accurate the F-Block experiences and the simulation were. The F6 medical challenge, the F8 trench navigation challenge, dioramas in F5 and games in F2 were highlights for the students/ teachers. In the WWI simulation, Russia soon demonstrated classic WWI characteristics: large numbers, limited technology, and internal conflict, with students on the Russian side literally turning on each other at many points in that session. This echoed the historical breakdown of the Eastern Front, the Russian Revolution and the collapse of the autocracy in 1917.

Meanwhile, the Great Britain vs Germany battle on the Western Front became a true stalemate, going back and forth repeatedly- again, an intentional, perfectly accurate portrayal of the experiences of soldiers on the trench lines.

Students also showcased impressive creativity, “inventing” new battlefield tactics on the fly. A crowd favourite was the decision to turn the white sports cones into giant water bombs to maximise impact on the opposing army. It was the kind of problem-solving that WWI engineers and soldiers themselves would likely have admired.

Alongside the outdoor simulation, the F-Block challenges and presentations offered a layer of rich, hands-on learning. Students displayed dioramas, digital games, immersive videos, role-play activities, and creative mini experiences that brought the social, cultural and military aspects of the topics they have studied in History to life. These indoor learning stations were highly engaging and allowed students to demonstrate their understanding in innovative and unique ways. The combination of intellectual challenge and creativity made the morning’s F-Block rotation a perfect complement to the high-energy battles on the oval.

The reflections from students captured the spirit of the day perfectly:

“We had so much fun!”
“We got completely soaked — it was so hot but so worth it.”
“It was organised chaos.”
“Trench foot on the wet oval was real — everyone was slipping everywhere.”
“The teamwork was the best part; it was rewarding to actually escape!”

The entire event was a celebration of learning done differently: historically grounded, hands-on and joyfully messy. Congratulations to all Year 9 students for their creativity, enthusiasm, collaboration and engagement in this unit, and thank you to the teachers who supervised throughout the day!

Anthony Chetter | Head of Humanities and Social Sciences

Student achievement in Pickleball - Lachy Donnelly

Lachy Donnelly’s Breakthrough Year in Pickleball

Earlier this year, Lachy Donnelly earned his place at the World Pickleball Championships in Dallas, Texas by capturing multiple PPA Tour Australia gold medals across several divisions. His victories secured him entry into both the invitational 5.0 Champions Division and the U16 Juniors, a remarkable achievement for a rising star.

The World Pickleball Championships stand as the sport’s most prestigious event, drawing over 4,400 competitors and 60,000 attendees from around the globe. For Lachy, it was the trip of a lifetime, an opportunity to measure himself against the very best players in the world.

Invitational Championship Mixed Doubles – Division 5.0

From the outset, Lachy made his presence felt, advancing deep into every division he entered. His breakthrough came in mixed doubles, where he formed a dynamic partnership with Kei Sawaki, Japan’s #1 junior girl. Together, they grew stronger with each round, upsetting several tournament favourites and battling their way into the Championship Division 5.0 final.

In a thrilling contest filled with spectacular rallies, Lachy and Kei narrowly fell to the #1 team, 9–11. Despite the loss, their performance earned them immense respect and a silver medal 🥈 in one of the toughest divisions.

U16 Junior Mixed Doubles – World Champions

The U16 Junior event was a highlight of the tournament, staged on the main show courts before hundreds of spectators and streamed live across the USA. Every match was fiercely contested, but Lachy and Kei’s positive attitude, sportsmanship, and relentless play gradually won over the crowd.

After advancing through the round of 32, they faced a dramatic semi-final against the junior Team USA World Cup pairing. In a gripping three-set battle, they pulled off a stunning upset, a match later hailed by the PPA Tour director as the best of the year across all divisions.

The final drew a packed audience and delivered pickleball of the highest quality. Rising to the occasion, Lachy and Kei triumphed in straight sets to claim the title of U16 Junior Mixed Doubles World Champions and the coveted gold medal. 🥇

PPA Tour Australia Finals – Melbourne

Just days later, Lachy was back on court for the PPA Tour Australia Finals in Melbourne. Despite a challenging season marked by injury setbacks, he was determined to compete, knowing the junior title was on the line.

His efforts paid off:

Winning Gold in the U18 Junior doubles 🥇, secured the Junior PPA Tour Australia Champion title for the second consecutive year and also a PPA Tour Pro Junior Contract
A Bronze in the Open Men’s Doubles, further cementing his reputation as one of Australia’s brightest pickleball talents

Lachy’s journey this year reflects not only his skill and resilience but also his ability to rise to the biggest occasions. From Dallas to Melbourne, he has proven himself on both the world and national stage, setting the foundation for an exciting international career ahead.

Matt Stopel | Acting Head of Co-Curricular Activities