Chairmans's Monday Musings

This Monday's musings are from the pen of Club Chairman, Lourdaiz Ah Chong...

With a number of our teams playing at home on Saturday - the area of Kilbirnie was a hive of activity buoyed on perhaps by the Kosmos coffee cart which has become a popular addition to the match day experience at Marist St Pats this season.

The constant drizzle in the morning did not dampen the mood of spectators with a big crowd showing up to fill the sidelines of Evans Bay Park as our Premier Men went to battle against the current Swindale Shield holders and last year’s Jubilee Cup finalists, Paremata-Plimmerton. In a tight game where the score was tied at 25-all with 10 minutes to play, our side went on to concede two late penalties losing this fixture by 25-31. In a similar vein, our Premier Reserves were leading Paremata-Plimmerton until the final 20 minutes eventually going down by 29-37.

There were some much improved facets of our game and these two teams should be commended for their efforts and spirit displayed on the field. This first round is an example of ‘The Perfect Storm’ where we have been without or lost multiple players to injury. Sean and I continue to remain confident, focused and determined despite our injury situation. We are learning as a club to grind through it and this is the beginning of what we are going to do at Marist St Pats. Building character and resilience is difficult. If it were easy, everyone would be able to do it.

Our culture at MSP in 2024 places importance on commitment, accountability and developing leaders. Each one of them is making sure that they’re ready to play and create value for themselves when they get the opportunity. Players are expected to focus everyday on being a complete competitor in their position by working hard at trainings and understanding what needs to be done to mentally/physically prepare for games.


Photo: Caroline Lewis

Our Colts who played the curtain raiser on Evans Bay Park continue their fine form with a 38-21 victory over Paremata-Plimmerton to now sit second in the John E Kelly Cup competition. Congratulations to our Reserve Grade ‘Internationals’ who took out the Division 2 first round title and remain unbeaten with six consecutive wins after the OBU ‘Teddy Bears’ defaulted. Later in the day, the Under 85s and Presidents lost to Paremata-Plimmerton.

Most senior grades have King's Birthday weekend off. However, our Premier Men (Horan-Millar Trophy) and Premier Reserves are across the road at Kilbirnie Park to play Poneke. Please note that senior games kick off 30 minutes earlier than normal due to the Hurricanes home game at 4:35pm on Saturday.

Michael 'Soody' Sood and his organising committee are gearing up for the J6 and Reserve 3 Reunion with a number of activities planned over the long weekend. One of the famous social teams of the 1980s and 90s was the Junior 6 side, which later became the Reserve 3 side. It has been 40 years since the first J6 team, so Marist St Pats is hosting a get-together for players, and management who were involved with these grades over the years. All of our supporters are invited to come along to the clubrooms from 6pm on Friday and Saturday night where there will be some great stories told and laughs shared.

Be sure to follow us on our Facebook and Instagram pages, as well as our website for all the latest news & updates. There is a lot of planning behind the scenes, and we expect to publicise some more important event dates soon to note in your diaries.

We are One Club. Go the Red Machine.

Previous editions of the Monday Musings


This weekend's action - 1 June 2024

Grade Opposition Location
Premier Men
Poneke
Kilbirnie Park at 2.45pm
Premier 2 Men
Poneke
Kilbirnie Park at 1pm
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