Australian Schools Team Racing Championship final day

by Peter Campbell on 13 Jul 2013 In the final of the Australian schools team racing championship on Hobart’s River Derwent, Port Lincoln sailor Ash Dyer today led the St Joseph’s College team to a hard-fought victory.

In a winning finale before leaving school at the end of this year, Ash and her team shared the top of the leader board after 204 preliminary races, and lost just one race in the semi-finals and finals.

That loss was against Hobart school St Virgil’s/Guilford Young College but the Port Lincoln team proved too strong in the next two races of their semi-final.

St Joseph’s went on to win the final against Perth’s Scotch College 3-0, St Virgils/GYC took out the petit final against fellow Hobart school, Friends Blue team, 2-1, in a close encounter. Earlier Friends Blue went down to Scotch, 2-0.

'We had insufficient wind to complete a final preliminary round this morning, and with only light breezes forecast for the afternoon decided to go straight in semi-finals between the top four school teams', international race officer Nick Hutton said this evening.

'All four teams were most competitive in the finals, but St Joseph’s did a fantastic job in the light winds of just 5 knots. It was certainly a great win for Ash Dyer who has been representing her college in school team racing since she was a 13-year-old.'

Team captain and helm Dyer had Kelsey Allen as her crew, with strong support by fellow team members Joe Kelly (helm) and Georgina Hughes and Mark Barwick (helm) and Marty Wood.

All of the team are regular sailors with their local club, Dyer a prominent sailor in International Cadets before moving into the single-handed Laser Radial class.

Scotch College, the defending Australian schools team racing champions, was represented by Will Boulden (helm) and Alister Young, George Boulden (helm) and Elliot Young and Emerson Carlberg (helm) and Conor McMurtie.

Similarly, the top two top Tasmania crews are successful sailors in single-handed and double-handed youth sailing classes on the Derwent, and have spent many weeks training for these national team racing championship.

The third-placed St Virgil’s/GYC team comprised Johnny Cooper (helm) and Brian Nicholson, Tommy Cooper (helm) and Jack Kennedy and Angus Price (helm) and Josh Eggins.

Friends Blue team also comprised wellknown dinghy sailors Silas Hamilton, Ed Hargreaves and Morgan Davies.

The Australian schools team racing championship involved more than 20 volunteer officials over the past four days, including 10 umpires and six race officers from Sandy Bay Sailing Club, the Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania and Yachting Tasmania with Kingston Beach Sailing Club also assisting.

America’s Cup winning skipper of Australia II John Bertrand and his wife, Rasa, both enthusiastic supporters of the team racing discipline in sailing, presented trophies last night at the RYCT.

Final
216	Scotch College - WA	2	3	6	v	1	4	5	St Josephs - SA
215	Scotch College - WA	3	5	6	v	1	2	4	St Josephs - SA
214	Scotch College - WA	3	5	6	v	1	2	4	St Josephs - SA
GRAND FINAL
213	St Virgils - TAS	1	3	5	v	2	4	6	Friends School Blue - TAS
212	St Virgils - TAS	1	2	4	v	3	5	6	Friends School Blue - TAS
211	St Virgils - TAS	3	5	6	v	1	2	4	Friends School Blue - TAS
PETITE FINAL
210	St Josephs - SA	1	2	5	v	3	4	6	St Virgils - TAS
208	St Josephs - SA	1	2	4	v	3	5	6	St Virgils - TAS
207	Scotch College - WA	1	2	3	v	4	5	6	Friends School Blue - TAS
206	St Josephs - SA	3	4	5	v	1	2	6	St Virgils - TAS
205	Scotch College - WA	1	2	4	v	3	5	6	Friends School Blue - TAS