News from Patchell's House, Glenalmond College

Lent 2012 Newsletter #2

With the second half of term now upon us, you would be forgiven for thinking that it was a time to wind down and relax so we can get revising in the Easter holidays, but for those of us in Patchell's it has been anything but. As you will find out throughout the rest of this newsletter Patchell's teams have been competing for honours both on and off the sports field, from House Drama to Inter-House Football, Patchell's continues to show it is a house of diverse talents.

However, I also feel it is important to mention some individual successes, as soon as we receive Angus Littleford back from Brooks, we wish Ali Johnson well after he was chosen to go on exchange to Australia. We have also seen some very good results in our January modules and the all-Patchellian duo of Marcus Buist and I managed to get to the semi-final of the Donald Dewar debating tournament, but we were unfortunately unable to get through to repeat our final appearance of last year.

The message of this, however, is not to rest on our laurels, we have achieved a lot this term, not just as Patchellians, but as members of Coll, but we will need to repeat it next term. So with hard work over Easter we will hopefully see success in our results, and hopefully we will be able to retain and challenge for trophies in all aspects of Glenalmond life.

From all in Patchell's have a happy and relaxing Easter break!

Dinner Party

On the Saturday before half term Hamish Cameron, Moses Hoffman, Will Jack and I from the Patchells 5th form hosted a dinner party in Mr and Mrs Thomas' house.

We spent the day preparing our food after going to Tesco with Mrs Thomas to buy our ingredients. We were serving sweet chilli prawns as a starter, Thai green curry as the main course and homemade brownies and ice cream as pudding. At around seven o'clock the girls arrived for a reception in the sitting room and some of us had to go and prepare the starter. Supper was served at seven thirty and everyone loved the food, cooked by Moses and myself and the decorations, set up by Hamish and Will.

It was a great night overall and the girls left at nine o'clock while the boys got stuck in with the washing up, after all those dishes won't wash themselves!

Freddy Leader

Brooks Exchange

For a month, I was fortunate enough to go on exchange to Brooks School in Massachusetts. Brooks has the same number of pupils as Glenalmond (around 500), but the campus was very different as it was very spread out over a considerable area, unlike Glenalmond. The school is located only forty minutes away from the centre of Boston, this was great as it was easy to spend most afternoons in the city.

The first week was tough, as I was flooded with names and unfamiliar faces, however after ten days or so I really settled in and managed to gain a good crowd of friends. Making friends was not hard as everybody was very friendly and hospitable. The teachers were also very helpful and took me to some extracurricular activities such as going to see a play in Boston. Whilst I was there I stayed in a boarding house called Whitney (which had a housemaster very similar to Mr Thomas), this was great because I managed to get to know the boys in my dorm a lot better. The sport they played at this time of year was Ice Hockey and Basketball . I was fortunate to play a few matches for their thirds basketball team , which was a great laugh and I even managed to score a few points. The lessons and the style of teaching is very different with the one that I am used to, but I managed to get used to it and I took some of it back with me which I can hopefully use in my work back at Glenalmond.

I spent most weekends in Boston with friends and with teachers. Boston has a great atmosphere and has a very interesting history especially as it was the birthplace of the American War of Independence. The weather whilst I was there was unseasonably mild and sunny, this was great as I managed to get out and about seeing the sights.

On my last full weekend, I went down to the capital of the USA, Washington DC. Here I saw many of the iconic American sights such as the White House (which looks bigger on TV by the way), the US capitol, the Smithsonian institute as well as the National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia. In Arlington, I manage to see JFK's tomb as well as the tomb of the unknown soldiers. The museums were excellent especially the air and space museum as it had proper sections of planes and certain spacecraft.

Thus, my month spent in the US was a fantastic experience and strongly encourage any future Patchellians to go for it as It is definitely a once in a lifetime experience.

Angus Littleford

Junior Inter-House Football Champions

On a very wet and windy day up at the Cairnies Football pitches, Patchell's junior team took to the field against Skrine's, with a helpful own goal to get us going and a goal from our centre forward Blair Goodfellow we won our first game 2-1.

With conditions getting worse as the day went on and the pitches getting ever muddier we then went on to play against Matheson's which we won with a comfortable 2-0 win finding Blair on the score sheet again and Will Porter netting for his first time in the afternoon. Reid's turned out to be a tight game with a cross from Blair Goodfellow into Will Porter we won with a 1-0 victory with some great saves from Dougal Forsyth, which took us to the top of the table.

With our team coaches getting ever wetter and colder we went onto play a shortened game against Goodacre's, which we won 2-1 after some intense and well fought out football, our Captain Gordon Porter and Will Porter netting again. With a 100% record and Reid's choosing to abandon their final game, Patchell's took home the silverware.

Tom Stodart

House Drama - Second Place

The theme for this year's House Drama Competition was Condensed Shakespeare. Jake Craig led Patchell's merry band of brothers unto the breach; Craig Meikle, Simon Boendermaker, Simon Carmichael, Hector McKenzie, Tom Stodart, Will Porter, Johnny Bing, Ed Shannon, Ruaraidh Leader myself.

Given the task of dramatising Shakespeare's Julius Caesar  into a 10 minute performance, the team chose to modernise to the Jazz Age of the 1920s, donning their finest spats and braces to become the Mafia Crime Lords their interpretation required. Certainly no comedy of errors, the performance went smoothly and, despite technical difficulties, strove on with true Patchellian vigour. After a fantastic evening of Shakespearean jollity, Patchell's were placed 2nd, so all's well that ends well…

Lewis Holliday

Scotland Hockey Selection

Ross Davies and I have both been attending weekly Tayside and Fife performance squad session this term. These sessions are for the Boys and Girls who represent Scotland at age grade level from within Tayside and Fife. Each Wednesday we have been heading off and working mainly on fitness. This has helped us to secure our places in the Scotland U18 side.

There are test matches against Wales over the Easter weekend, a series against Ireland in June and a Four nations tournament in July which we will hopefully all be competing in. It is very satisfying for the two of us to represent Scotland at this level and I hope we can play as well as possible when the matches eventually come around.

Simon Carmichael

Scholarship Success

It is great news to hear that seven of the new pupils coming into Patchell's next year have been awarded scholarships. These awards are not easily won as talent and a huge amount of hard work is put in to even attempt to earn one. The academic scholars have to take part in three challenging days of exams and interviews before the decision is made.

There are also other awards like the outstanding talent and the all-rounder award where you must show other skills outside of the classroom. This shows that there will be a large group of motivated, talented third formers joining Patchell's next year. Hopefully the addition of two academic scholars, one art scholar, three sports scholars and an all-round scholar will see the house continue to improve in both inter-house and whole school fields.

Johnny Bing

Scottish Champions

Congratulations to the boys' hockey 1st XI who were crowned Scottish champions last week. Seven Patchellians took to the Peffermill astro to help beat Loretto 4-0.

Scotland Trial

Gordon Porter recently attended a trial for the Scotland U15 cricket squad - we wish him the best of luck as he awaits the outcome.

Lent 2012 Newsletter #1

The Lent term is always frantically busy for the house and as you will read Patchellians have been involved in a great number of events this term such as top school level hockey, the house initiatives and the Lower Sixth Form program which all have been focuses for the house in the past weeks.

Out of the two house sporting competitions this term it was pleasing to see Patchell's securing first place in both; the Steeple Chase and also the Junior Inter-house Hockey competition. The House Music contest was yet more proof of what can be achieved through the combination of talent and hard work.

Shortly Patchell's will welcome back Angus Littleford who is returning from four weeks on the Brooks exchange. With the exam season beginning to loom, the work ethic in Patchell's is increasingly serious as the house is knuckling down for the remaining weeks of term.

Hamish Prestige, Co-Editor, Lower VI^th Patchell's

Despite our rugger-bugger credentials, Patchells has a vibrant debating scene. As a house we currently hold both the captaincy and the two available positions on the senior A-team. Simon and I are personally hoping for another shot in the final of the Donald Dewar Competition; the semi-finals for which shall be held in late March. Beyond our successes in formal debating, we are fortunate to have a lively internal debating scene. On every corridor, and at all times of day and night, Patchells is alive with argument. From discussing which football team is most likely to win the premier or league, to the rights and wrongs of the categorical imperative, there is a real sense in which free and robust argument is something to be encourage. The importance of conviction and independent thought cannot be overstated. If my own altercations with the 3rd form are anything to go by, then I can only say that I have utmost confidence that Patchells shall remain the premier debating house.

Marcus Buist L6th Form

In Patchell's we are always looking to expand in what we do, this term we have decided to look at some initiatives which will be year group based activities to involve the house in.

The Third Form have opted for the role of improving recycling facilities and making the house much more eco-friendly, they are doing this by obtaining bins to place on each corridor so we can separate the different materials for recycling.

The Fourth Form are in charge of finding ways of raising money for the upcoming charity event give gig and we are currently deciding on some of the best ways to raise money for a worthy cause.

The Fifth Form have been put in control of improving our social online media, so that parents and maybe prospective pupils/parents from far afield will be able to see what exciting events have been going on recently in Patchell's. This will hopefully end up in the form of a web page or blog.

The Sixth Form are to organise a stimulating debate which will consider a motion related to a topical issue. This will be an opportunity for the whole house to not only listen to some fist class debating but also to broaden our understanding in current affairs.

Blair Goodfellow, IVth Form

You would have thought that after last year's performance there would be very little for Patchell's to improve upon in the steeplechase. However a number of absent juniors due to illness and a new course was something that the runners would have to overcome and this added a little bit of spice to one of the biggest and most inclusive sporting events in the calendar. Due to the icy weather the usual internal course had become too dangerous and so we relocated on the golf course.

The course was split into three sections. For those of you who are familiar with the College golf course: the first section was a small loop that started on the 9th hole fairway and ran down the 1st hole to the start of the 2nd hole where it crossed over onto the 7th green, along the 8th fairway and back up the hill to the start. The second loop started the same but ran to halfway down the 3rd hole before crossing over to midway down the 7th hole and then followed the first route back to the start. The third loop was simply a complete lap of the golf course.  

Next it was the senior boys and we had to complete all three of the loops covering a total of about five thousand five hundred metres altogether. Although this is actually slightly shorter than the usual school internal there is a lot more uphill track and the 9th hole fairway was a real struggle the third time round.

It was an impressive display by all, Fergus Skinner finishing as the first third former was a notable performance but, yet again, the performance of the day must certainly be awarded to Patrick Galbraith - Upper VIth Form - who after a disappointing 7th place finish last year stole the show with a fantastic first place finish, smashing any nearby competitors. With Patchell's coming first in the junior and the senior race, it was a no contest for the overall position and once again Patchell's retained the steeplechase cup. This victory was certainly a brilliant start to the Inter House sports season and a great day out for the house.

Finlay MacLeod, Upper VIth Form

This year a new scheme has been put in place to occupy the junior years during Thursday afternoons after games has finished. It was decided that the Lower Sixth would in turn make a presentation to the Third and Fourth Forms about a topic of their choice, perhaps on an interest or a hobby they had or a subject that that they thought the Third and Fourth form would find interesting.

For my presentation I decided to talk about the Silver Duke of Edinburgh Award as the Fourth Form would soon make the decision whether or not they wanted to take part in it. We covered all the types of expedition - canoeing, walking and the One Hundred Mile Walk - I explained about what they needed to do in order to to achieve this and gave an explanation about the walking expeditions telling them how long it was and how far they had to walk as well as providing a number of ideas to make it a little easier for them should they decide to do it, before answering any questions they had. It was good to see that almost all of them wanted to do DofE even after hearing some of the tales about it from friends and older siblings and that a fair few of them wanted to do the One Hundred Mile Walk, an expedition that combines the Duke of Edinburgh expedition with charity fund raising. All in all it was a really pleasant experience to spend time with the Third and Fourth form and answer any questions that they wished to ask me.

Thomas Thornton-Kemsley, Lower VIth Form

I recently performed in the school's senior musical production of the musical Godspell. Playing the role of Judas Iscariot, I really enjoyed the performances after all the hard work and effort that we put in throughout the rehearsals. Despite the occasional setback the cast pulled through and we received great acclaim for all four productions, I hope this is a sign of the continuing growth and success of Drama at Glenalmond.

Lewis Holliday, LVIth Form

Happy Hour benefits the house as it gives us the opportunity to bond with our seniors. It allows the Upper and Lowers Sixth to take responsibility as leaders and to improve their leadership skills. In Happy Hour we often take a topic and expand upon it until we grasp the idea. At the end we look back and marvel at how much we have learnt. We often start with ideas like How To Revise or How To Be The Best At Football or even How To Fly Fish. All of which were extremely interesting and the sixth form in charge made the whole experience very enjoyable for us all. We explored many topics and decided Happy Hour needs to stay, it is a key part of the week for the Third and Fourth Form and we all really enjoy it.

Reiff Gaskell, IIIrd Form

The team combined their talents and managed to prepare a piece of their own composition; an electric blues piece combining the informal elements of a jamming session with riff-work inspired by musicians such as Jimi Hendrix, David Gilmour, Stevie Ray Vaughn and Frank Zappa. The Patchell's Pipers integrated some quick-step marches into the beat of the blues piece which made for some audibly interesting and unusual music. 

The group had the difficult job of being the opening act of the evening, but rose to the challenge and gave a performance that set the standard for the other acts to follow.

Lewis Holiday, Lower VIth Form

The 1st XI hockey team has been quite successful this term, a sizeable proportion of the team was made up from Patchells boys, those being Ross Davies, Simon Carmichael, Will Jack, Gordon Porter, Archie Stover and Andy Richardson. We have played four matches so far this term and won two of them. We had a very narrow defeat to Fettes only a couple of days ago. With many matches to look forward to we are hoping for some strong performances with the talent that we have in the squad this season.

Simon Carmichael, Lower VIth Form

This year in the junior inter-house hockey competition, Patchells had a very comfortable win. We had a strong team with many school A team players on our side. In the first game we showed determination and skill to beat Skrines, 6-0. In the second game Tom Stodart played extremely well and scored two out of the six goals available as the rules prevented more. When we played against the Mathesons team, Patchells won 6-0. We showed great team work and it was great to have 5 different players scoring. In the final game with the team tiring, we were to play against Goodacres and we won 3-0. Overall it was a fantastic day with many Patchellians either on the pitch or watching and all displaying plenty of house spirit.

Gordon Porter, IVth Form

A letter from the Editors

As we look forward to seeing our captains of hockey next term at the school level, the Patchell's newsletter has also seen a changing of the guard, so to speak. Hamish Prestige and I will now be joint editors of the newsletter after William Reynold's sterling tenure, whilst Elliot Birch works the gremlins to make sure everything is out in time. We hope you will enjoy this latest edition and have a fine festive period. (Simon Boendermaker LVIth )

We are now drawing to the end of what has been another great term for Patchell's. Our impressive third form have been fantastic in getting involved in all aspects of Patchell's life. Simon Boendermaker along with myself are now taking on the role of collaborating and editing the house newsletter and we will enjoy bringing you articles written from boys of all year groups throughout the house about recent events in which Patchellians have taken part. We hope you enjoy this newsletter and trust you will all have a fantastic Christmas holiday.(Hamish Prestige LVIth)

Happy Christmas from all in Patchell's!

IIIrd Form Skiing

The BSA or British Skiing Academy is a school in France where skiing is the priority with intense ski training in the morning and academia in the afternoon. It is also where I am looking forward to going next term from January to March. This is a very big opportunity that the school has awarded and I feel very lucky and privileged to have been given it. I hope to work hard in the next term so that I am able to contribute to the school's ski team and race at a higher level. Hopefully this will fulfil my ambition of representing Glenalmond at a sport that I really enjoy and will strive to be successful at.

Felix Schaebicke, IIIrd Form

University Offers

There has been recent success on the Oxbridge front with our very own Patrick Galbraith receiving an interview at Homerton College Cambridge to read English Literature. We wish him all the best and hope he is successful. I hope that this can be the start of the rest of the Upper Sixth getting places at their desired universities too, with the hope of going on to getting fantastic degrees, continuing the great Patchellian name as OGs "beyond front ave."

Andrew Richardson, UVIth

The Patchell's Revue

A revue, according to the definition cited in The Oxford English Dictionary, is a "miscellany of skits, songs, and dances often satirising current events, trends and personalities".

The Patchell's Revue came together spectacularly. No one would deny that it takes an unprecedented amount of time, thought and crafty innuendo - the former being rather laborious, the latter being thoroughly enjoyed by most. Fin Macleod wrote most of it, acted in a good half of it and made the costumes for some of it, he was wonderfully good at the writing, equally good at the acting and the less said about the costumes the better. A particular highlight was our Baywatch video as Fin's homemade Speedos failed to contain that which Speedos should. It was then left to Henry Ambler to "black box" where appropriate, this alone took some eighteen hours, and thus huge thanks must also go to him. Lewis Holiday's cover of Ed Sheeran's "The A Team" and the hilarious Third Form to dance to that lesser known song "I'm Sexy and I Know It" by LMFAO is another testament to the diversity and strength in all fields that Patchell's has.

Lastly Blair Nimmo gave me two mince pies on the condition that I gave him "a big mention", and thus; Blair performed wonderfully in many roles and contributed to much of the prior planning.

I do hope that the Revue, a sixth form event which provides fantastic banter for the whole school continues in the wonderful spirit that it always has.

Patrick Galbraith, UVIth Form

Patchell's Debating

Patchell's is going through something of an intellectual renaissance. Unsurprisingly debating leads the charge, and we were proud to make it to the junior semi-final and senior final in this year's inter-house competition. Sadly however, and for the first time since 2007, we did not come home with a trophy to show for our efforts. In a close final with Matheson's Patrick and I failed to do our best and so came a sorry second. Despite this setback, Simon and I were very proud of our performance against Skrine's in the previous round which was perhaps a better example of Patchell's debating at its best. Next year we look forward to the opportunity to win back both trophies for Patchell's, and with a little more consistency this should be no challenge at all.

In the senior inter-school debating Patchell's makes its mark. Both members of the senior A team are in Patchell's, and we look to replicate last year's result where we made it all the way to the national final. The in-house banter and pub arguments are truly the best possible training ground one could imagine. In the first round of the Law Society debates Simon and I both put in more than competent performances, in spite of no prior preparation, and were relieved to win over two Dollar teams and the team from Wallace High School. We hope to keep up this success over the coming year and to help foster good public speaking within the house in the hope of returning two of the more intellectual trophies to a cabinet heaving under the strain of achievement on the sports field, but not off it.

Marcus Buist, LVIth Form

Godspell Senior School Play

I recently performed in the school's senior musical production of the musical Godspell. Playing in the role of Judas Iscariot, I really enjoyed the performances after all the hard work and effort that we put in throughout the rehearsal periods. Despite the occasional setback the cast pulled through and we received great acclaim for all four productions, I hope this is a sign of the continuing growth and success of Drama at Glenalmond.

Lewis Holliday, LVIth Form

Happy Hour

A new addition to the Patchell's routine is Happy Hour. During the long afternoons on a Thursday, we have introduced a rolling programme of activities for the juniors, led by the seniors. Happy Hour benefits the house as it gives us the opportunity to bond with our seniors. It allows the Upper and Lowers Sixth to take responsibility as leaders and to improve their leadership skills. In Happy Hour we often take a topic and expand upon it until we grasp the idea. At the end we look back and marvel at how much we have learnt. We often start with ideas like 'How To Revise' or 'How To Be The Best At Football' or even 'How To Fly Fish'. All of which were extremely interesting and the sixth form in charge made the whole experience very enjoyable for us all. We explored many topics and decided Happy Hour needs to stay, it is a key part of the week for the Third and Fourth Form and we all really enjoy it.

Reiff Gaskell, IIIrd Form

Patchell's House Swimming

We Patchellians believe we are, with some proof, the best sporting house. Therefore when the house swimming is announced there is always a bit of a excitement around the house. Also this year we were the only house to compete with no permanent swimming team members, this meant we had to pull our socks up and ensure that everyone who was chosen performed to the best of their ability. We managed to secure third in a very hotly contested junior event with excellent races from James Renouf (2^nd) and our junior team relay was very successful coming in third behind relay teams full of Swim team members. We also managed to make third in the senior event. This was mainly down to an excellent all around senior effort, with great performances by all swimmers. Again our senior relay teams were surprisingly fast with the B relay coming third along with our A relay coming in at fourth.

Fergus Booker V^th Form

The Brooks exchange programme.

Every year, lower 6^th pupils have the chance to apply for the Brooks exchange where two of them head off to Brooks School, Boston, Massachusetts for a month of the Lent term. It is always fiercely contested as it is very much a once in a lifetime opportunity. This year, there were four Patchellians out of the nine boys who applied for the exchange, Simon Boendermaker, Simon Carmichael, Hamish Prestige and Angus Littleford. We had to write an essay explaining why we wanted to go and why we should be selected. We were then interviewed by a group of staff including the Warden about various aspects of American history, culture and politics. In the end, Angus Littleford was selected for the exchange. Congratulations to him and we all wish him the best for his time in the USA.

Simon Carmichael, LVIth Form

Piping in Patchell's

This term has been very busy for piping with the internal piping and drumming competition held on the first Sunday back after half-term. Ross Davies came second in the drumming, Hector Prestige first in the junior piping and myself, Alistair Johnson coming first in intermediate piping.

We have recently had the CCF Quartets and Trios Competition, this year held at Dollar Academy. Fin MacLeod and Hamish Prestige were playing in the B Quartet and I was playing in the A Trio.

Several Patchellian pipers along with myself played at Scone Palace one Sunday afternoon raising money for Marie Curie, this was a very enjoyable event. There has also been a mass band performance at the choral day which was great, having the A and B bands playing together with a healthy number of Patchellians playing in both sections of the band.

Alistair Johnson, IVth Form

Rugby

A huge congratulation and shout out to many First XV players this term, among them Simon Carmichael, Lochlann Roberston, Charlie Winton and William Reynold's for receiving full colours. William Reynolds for being announced player of the year and Charlie Winton for being the most improved player

Patchell's Ready for the St Andrews Ball

A Letter from the Editor

Without meaning to sound like lighting has struck twice, two new additions have come to Patchell's over the summer. The first of these is a group of eleven new third form boys who have already started their Glenalmond careers with much enthusiasm and vibrancy, by throwing themselves into all aspects of life at 'Coll'.

The other lucky, or rather, fortunate newcomer to the house is the long awaited opening of the Maxwell corridor, initiated and tried out by all within the house but home to thirteen sixth formers. After a few minor teething problems the corridor is up and running, and now is placed in the centre of the Patchell's mantelpiece.

However, arguably more importantly, I would like to mention, applaud and celebrate Patchell's very own Mr. Shelley who is currently celebrating his 100^th term of teaching at this school. A phenomenal record for an outstanding centurion.

Rafting

For as long as any Patchellian can remember the two words "House Outing" have meant only one thing - bowling; indeed the annual trip to the Stirling bowling alley. From prior experience and what I can glean from older Patchellians the trip has always taken the same format. Wander in, exchange your nice shoes which fit well for a pair of monstrous red and white ones - one of which is a couple of sizes too small and the other of which has a few bits of chewing gum stuck inside it. Then proceed to ask the bowling alley staff to announce ridiculous things over the loud speaker. However this year differed. Glenalmond is keen to be a school which retains the security of tradition (i.e. the annual trip to "Stirling world of bowling") whilst at the same time being pragmatic and constantly evolving. Thus the aforementioned trip has been replaced by the new white water rafting trip; to my mind a far better idea.

As we donned our sopping cold wetsuits and were herded into inflatable boats by various outdoor enthusiasts, the sun began to set and Mr. Thomas retired to the chip shop. It was really quite good fun. Being in a boat with boys from different year groups allowed us to get to know one another before the academic year properly commenced and teaching and learning took a grip. White water rafting is an activity involving great cold and in this case an aggressive group of "Young Farmers" intent on splashing us, These adversities made it all the more wonderful to see everybody taking part and getting to know each other, thus furthering a tradition a little dearer than the bowling trip - the tradition of closeness and familiarity which Patchell's holds to be of utmost importance.

Breaking News: House Music Success

Once again, the annual House Singing Competition has come and gone. Divided into two sections; part-song and shout, it gives an opportunity for houses to sing sweetly and shout boisterously. The latter being generally preferred by the House, Lewis Holliday, our resident music man, chose the song 'Hooked on a Feeling' by Blue Swede as the choice for house shout, giving the opportunity for those who don't usually sing to do so raucously and passionately, with pure Patchellian Spirit! For part-song, where more delicate harmonies are emphasised, the team; Jake & Ivan Craig, Blair Nimmo, Craig Meikle, Charlie Winton, Ross Davies, Simon Carmichael, Reiff Gaskell, and Lewis Holliday; decided upon the piece 'Embers' by Just Jack. The boys put in a sterling effort and everyone performed enthusiastically on the night.

House Golf and Barbecue

The annual house barbeque was again an overwhelming success. There was a great turnout from adults and pupils for some healthy competition. The golf course was in great condition and thankfully the weather was kind meaning that wellies were not as much of a necessity as years gone passed.

There were three competitions, longest drive, closest to the pin and the best overall father and son score. David Gaffney hit an enormous drive that sailed past competitors and his partner Simon Carmichael winning a dual award with the worst score in the house but the closest to the pin on the second hole with a magnificent iron shot. The overall best score was won by the Nimmo father and son combination.

The kitchen staff had provided an excellent barbeque and the upper-sixth parents provided delicious and extravagant puddings. It all made for an excellent evening. Bring on next year!

Blair Nimmo, UVIth

House Prefects

There are currently five house prefects in Patchell's, Lochlann Robertson, William Reynolds, Andrew Richardson, Patrick Galbraith and myself, Henry Ambler. We are responsible for helping Mr. Thomas run the house. We each have a corridor of boys that we look after, I have the third form, Patrick the IVth form, Andrew the Vth form and Will the L6th form. We make sure the rooms are tidy, the boys get to bed on time and most important of all, sort out any questions or problems. Every night there is a duty prefect who checks that the duties are completed to the appropriate standard, they take the roll calls and make sure the boys go to bed on time.

Henry Ambler, UVIth

College Prefects

This year Patchell's has three College Prefects in the house (the most out of any boys house) with Lochlann Robertson who is Head of House, William Reynolds who is Deputy Head of House and myself, Andrew Richardson. As College Prefects we are part of a 16 member strong group that helps to keep the College running smoothly and we are looking forward to the challenges that it may pose.

Andrew Richardson, UVIth

Debating

Simon Boendemaker and I were privileged to take part in the national final of the Donald Dewar memorial debating competition. Of the 128 teams who entered the competition, only four made it to the final. That Simon and I were both in Patchell's, makes this improbable feat all the more remarkable. It was a real achievement for both of us, conscious as we were that no Glenalmond team had ever made past the second round before.

Over many rounds we were able to hone our skills; in particular we found that a pithy line or sharp retort can be crucial to the winning of any debate. Thinking on your feet can also be quite useful if you are as routinely underprepared as I was.

The whole occasion was made by the setting; debating in the main chamber of the Scottish parliament is a terrific thrill. The motion we were given the task of opposing was 'This house would put youth before experience'. A few more facts would have helped; however we both felt that we gave impressive performances. I was personally touched by the number of people who came to commend us. We were disappointed to lose out to Braes High school, but in spite of the result we knew that we had much to be proud of. I am grateful to Mr. Thomas for his support and I hope he is right to say that we will both be back in the parliament for a second go next year.

Marcus Buist, LVIth

100 Mile Walk

In late June, two days after my last GCSE exam, fourteen Glenalmond pupils, myself included, set off to Cromdale, a village east of Grantown-on-Spey. From here we started our one hundred mile charity walk back to Glenalmond.

We started out by walking along the Speyside Way to Loch Morlich through the beautiful postcard picture countryside of Strathspey.

We then started on the impressive Lairig Ghru path, which translates from Gaelic to mean 'the foreboding hill pass'. Fortunately the weather was on our side and we worked our way up into the heather in sunshine.

Despite a brief encounter with rain as we were passing between the imposing Ben Macdui and Cairn Toul, it remained for the majority of the walk and most importantly while we made our own perilous way down to the Linn of Dee.

The hiking continued through the famous Glen Tilt. As a shadow was cast down upon us, of a circling golden eagle high above, we followed the river down to Blair Atholl were the Tilt joins the river Garry at one of Scotland's more picturesque confluences.

Pitlochry was the next milestone on our route, and we walked through the woods to Aberfeldy and then onto Amulree before crossing the hills back to school.

The pupil nominated charities this year were Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland and The Royal Autistic Society.

We raised £3675 for the cause on the 'Just Giving' website, through family and friends, or just people who were glad they weren't going.

Despite the odd blister, uncomfortable tent or annoying midgies, it was a fantastic way to help these charities and also great fun to see the Spey, Dee and Tay in five days.

The route was walked and well organised by Mrs. and Mr. Erdal and also Patchell's tutor Mr. Shelley.

Choir Tour

Tom Bentley OG, Lewis Holliday (Lower Sixth) and I were Patchell's representatives on Glenalmond's inaugural Chamber Choir trip, as the school visited the north of Italy in what I am sure was an unforgettable trip for all. Our journey began the day after Commem at Edinburgh Airport with an imminent trip to Milan, it would be the start of a week of fun, adventure and a maybe a bit of singing too!

We witnessed some unforgettable sights from the very start as we began our set of concerts on a site that will never leave my memory. 3,000 feet up, carved into a cliff face, we found ourselves inside a marble chapel, the beauty of which was only matched by the power of our singing.

The other highlights of the trip were of course the fine Italian cuisine, the majestic cultural sights, especially the houses of Romeo and Juliet in Verona.  Not only that, but we were also allowed to soak up the culture in Venice, with a brilliant gondola ride throughout the canals, an experience which you will always remember. As well as this we were able to bask in the beauty of Venetian culture especially St. Marks Square, a beautiful part of Venice and yet another one of the countless unforgettable sights I was privileged enough to experience.

As the trip drew to an end we did, regrettably, have to leave and it was with a heavy heart that I boarded the plane to return to Scotland, and the rest of my summer holidays.

Simon Boendemaker, LVIth

Academic Results

Last term the work ethic throughout the house was remarkable, there was very much the feel of there being a sprint finish whilst heading into the public examinations. With everyone intent on achieving results that reflected the very best of their ability, the corridors were quiet for the majority of the time with boys putting in those extra hours of revision. The term flew past, and the exams were over as suddenly as they had begun. Relief flooded throughout everyone's body and the summer had truly started for everyone. This was until the nervous emotion and sense of trepidation crept in, in the weeks leading up to the results. Thankfully, nearly everyone came out at the end with satisfying grades. The A-Level results in the house were good on the whole and our congratulations go to James Bradley for securing straight A's and to Robin Holiday who go on to read economics and medicine respectively. Angus Rankin and Hugh MacPhail were other notable performers. The AS results were also pleasing with Andrew Richardson a stand out, with four A grades. The GCSE results in the house were however outstanding with the boys achieving 72% A*-A grades. Simon Carmichael, Thomas TK, Marcus Buist and Hamish Prestige in particular securing a string of A* grades. Congratulations to all, and we are hoping for bigger and better things in the future.

Maxwell Corridor

Patchell's usually kicks off a new year with a good start but this year has been different. The start has been exceptional because of our brand new sixth form corridor, in which the money came from a generous donation by Hamish Maxwell (OG). The Maxwell corridor is an excellent new asset to the house. There are 11 new rooms, along with a state of the art shower block and a spacious brew room. This adds the quality of Patchell's life as the new rooms have their own relaxing flavour, which also doubles as the perfect working environment.

The new corridor has increased the capacity of the house, and has allowed the third and form corridors to expand, giving each of them a study cube as well as a desk space in the prep room.

As mentioned we are hugely thankful to Hamish Maxwell (OG) and also to the various members of staff that made the donation into the perfect pastoral model.

School Pipers

This year there are a total of ten pipers in both 'A' and 'B' bands, driven by the expertise of a Patchell's core with piping scholar Finlay McLeod being accompanied by Hamish Prestige and myself, Jake Craig. This includes the duo of snare drummers Simon Carmichael and Ross Davies, in one of school's most prestigious and traditional activities.

The equally aspiring 'B' band consists of seven of Patchell's finest pipers and two snare drummers. This group of talented musicians have shown progress since arriving at Glenalmond, and now demonstrate potential to fill the shoes of the 'A' band in the years to come.

Through lengthy practices, the schools pipers are a showpiece for the school's level of excellence, and having had ten pipers and three drummers perfuming during Commem's finale.

In order to build on such impressive performances, both pipe bands are going to bigger and better places this year. With events such as a St. Johnstone Scottish cup tie, the Edinburgh retreat and other national competitions throughout the year then the school's tartan will have a certain black and gold glint to it.

Jake Craig, UVIth

Rugby Tour

On the recent tour to Argentina there were ten 6^th form Patchellian representatives making us the largest contributing house to the touring party. This combined with the appointments of Charlie Winton and William Reynolds as the 1^st XV Vice-captains meant that the house was well represented and had a huge influence over the great rugby that was played. We played five games over 3 weeks and many new players got a taste of top-level school and club rugby. The Argentineans created tough opposition to the young and inexperienced Glenalmond teams but some great victories were produced. A development tour was always going to mean weaker teams being put out to blood players and potentially coming up across much tougher opposition. However these loses were met with impressive reactions and victories followed with Patchellians leading from the front.

This tour however was not just about rugby. Experiencing the culture of the country and meeting new people played a huge part in bonding the team together and making the tour as enjoyable as possible. The hospitality at North Hills School and Los Cardos RFC were second to none and the people we met whilst staying with opposition team member's families were incredibly friendly and welcoming. We also made the trek up to Iguazu Falls, a three day rugby free trip, which was a fantastic experience. The falls are something I strongly advise going to see as the views from the 'Devils throat' down into the waterfall and the experience as a whole is simply incredible. We also went to Mount Calvary in Tandil, the Boca Juniors stadium in Buenos Aries and many more unforgettable places along the way. The tour was a great success with amazing memories both on and off the pitch and puts us in a very convincing position for both the 1^st and 2^nd XV seasons that lie ahead. With 8 Patchellians in the 1^st XV squad it looks as though this is going to be another successful year for Patchell's on the rugby pitch.

Rugby Representation

What a brilliant start to the new season for our Patchellians! With 31 of the 75 players taking part in the first round of fixtures, the Patchellian dominance is obvious. This is a real credit to the hard work and the commitment that this house and I know that every player here in the house has, whether on the bench or starting, for the 1^st XV or the U14 Bs, they wouldn't let the school down. The house also has two captains and two vice captains for the representative sides of the college. With a very successful start for the 1^st XV (having 8 of the starting side as members of Patchell's) some notable performances have come from the first two matches. William Reynolds (UVI) has been his usual determined self from his position of vice-captain, Kai Horne and Ross Davies (both LVI) have had brilliant debuts, Finlay Macleod (UVI) had a scoring start to this season and an impressive hat trick in the final game of tour in Argentina, and these are only a few of the Patchellian success stories so far this term with Simon Carmichael (LVI) and Lochlann Robertson (UVI Head of House) both starting the season extremely well. Long may it continue. Rugby in the house is on a high and this season could be very successful and we all hope it will be.

Charlie Winton, UVIth

Patchellian takes on the world

Ex-Patchellian and OG Ander Monro (Captain of Coll 1999-2000) has recently been flying the black and gold flag at the Rugby World Cup in New Zealand. Representing an over performing Canadian side in their recent win over Tonga, the loss to France (slotting two impressive drop goals) and most recently the last minute draw against Japan in which he scored a brilliant try and nailed a penalty well past 80 minutes for the draw. Ander, alongside current Scotland hooker Dougie Hall, was part of one of the best Glenalmond 1^st XVs produced whilst only in his 5^th form in 1997. Ander played another two seasons in the 1^st XV at fly half, captaining the side in his final year in 1999. He then went on to study at Edinburgh University before being scouted by Edinburgh Rugby, picking up 14 caps and 44 points. Ander then moved to Canada to pursue an international career and was chosen to play for Canada at the 2007 World Cup in France as a reserve fly half. Ander finished the event by playing in Canada's final World Cup game against New Zealand in Wellington on Sunday 2^nd October.

Cricket Success

Last term was a very successful term for junior cricket; in particular the IIIrd form had a very strong term with six of the team coming from Patchell's.

We also had all the three captains for A team cricket, Gordon Porter, James Renouf and myself, Fergus Booker.

We had a very successful combined U14 and U15 end of season tour, in which six Patchellians were involved. We went on to win the national 20/20 championship with this team batting and bowling at their finest.

In our first fixture Gordon Porter had a great innings scoring 46 not out, and there was a expert fielding lessons to be learnt from Ruairidh Davidson who got a direct hit to run out the oppositions best batsman.

The next game on our tour was a visit to Merchiston, once again the majority of the team consisted of Patchell's. Our first match here was most memorable as the excellent strike bowling of Gordon Porter and Blair Goodfellow helped the team win in very clinical fashion.

Unfortunately the next two games were harder for 'Coll' to perform, however the highlight of Ruairidh Davidson hitting an amazing 36 against his personal old school, who had their own bowling threat that caused our top batsman issues.

Even though the overall ranking wasn't in our favour, we enjoyed the ethos of tour, and the way our two separate teams bonded together over such a short time shows real strength of character within our ranks. This shows great future for Glenalmond cricket both at school and house level.

Fergus Booker, Vth form