L. Crankshaw – Page 5 – Union Schools

U13 Cricket – Knysna Bound

Union High School’s U13A cricket team will be setting off bright and early tomorrow morning for their tour to Knysna.

Ahead of their departure, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗳𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗮 𝘀𝗺𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗳𝘂𝗻𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗸 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗼𝗿𝘀 whose generous support has helped make the tour possible.

Captains 𝗘𝗱𝘄𝗶𝗻 𝗛𝗼𝗹𝗺𝗲𝘀 and 𝗞𝗮𝗿𝗶 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻 delivered the vote of thanks on behalf of the team, expressing their appreciation to those who have supported them along the way.

𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘬𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘢 𝘧𝘦𝘸 𝘥𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘤𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘬𝘦𝘵, 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘰𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘮 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘜𝘯𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘩𝘰𝘮𝘦.

Safe travels to the players, coaches and families making the trip. 𝗘𝗻𝗷𝗼𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗸𝗲𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝘂𝗿!

Sport Results

Interhouse Cross-Country – Results

Union High School’s 𝗜𝗡𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗛𝗢𝗨𝗦𝗘 𝗖𝗥𝗢𝗦𝗦-𝗖𝗢𝗨𝗡𝗧𝗥𝗬 took place on Monday, 21 September, with beautiful weather setting the scene for a morning out on the course.

Only at Union could our cross-country runners share the road with a tortoise! What a lovely way to bring the term to a close!

There was plenty of enthusiasm from our runners and just as much from those watching and encouraging from the sidelines. It was such fun seeing the different age groups head off, each determined to do their best and earn a few points for their house along the way.

𝘈 𝘧𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘴𝘩 𝘵𝘰 𝘢 𝘣𝘶𝘴𝘺 𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘮!

Daly – 138 points • Arnott – 115 points

Bulletin

OUA Induction For Class Of 2026

There are certain moments in a matric year that quietly remind you that school is coming to an end and today’s Old Unionite Association induction was one of them.

Union High School’s 𝗖𝗟𝗔𝗦𝗦 𝗢𝗙 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲 gathered with members of the OUA committee as they were formally welcomed into the Association – 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘦𝘹𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘭.

OUA Chairman 𝗠𝗿 𝗥𝗵𝗲𝘁𝘁 𝗡𝗲𝘄𝘁𝗼𝗻 spoke to the matrics about something quite simple, but important: 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗼𝘂𝗰𝗵. He encouraged them to hold onto the friendships they have made at Union, to keep up with their classmates as life takes them in different directions and to remain connected to the school that has been such a big part of their lives.

𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳, 𝘵𝘰𝘰, 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘥𝘢𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘔𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘢 𝘢𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘥. 𝘐𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘥𝘦 𝘢 𝘮𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘜𝘯𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘺 𝘧𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨.

As part of their induction, each matric was also gifted a beautiful leather Class of 2026 keyring by the OUA – 𝗮 𝘀𝗺𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗸𝗲𝗲𝗽𝘀𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 from Union learners to Old Unionites.

Once the formalities were over, the OUA treated the Grade 12s to lunch – a chance simply to sit together, chat and enjoy one another’s company during these last few weeks of school.

Their time as Union learners may be drawing to a close, but today was a gentle reminder that 𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗨𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀𝗻’𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗲𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝘀𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹.

Bulletin, Cultural

Primary Department Speech Competition

There was plenty to listen to – and quite a bit to think about – at the Union High School Primary Department’s annual 𝗦𝗣𝗘𝗘𝗖𝗛 𝗖𝗢𝗠𝗣𝗘𝗧𝗜𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 today, as 17 young speakers from Grades 5, 6 and 7 took their turn on the stage.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝗽𝗶𝗰𝘀 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝘃𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗱.

Learners spoke about everything from kindness, friendship and bullying to protecting animals, working hard for your future and the realities of social media.

There were some lighter subjects too, including weird and dangerous hobbies, whether people really need dogs and even 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘚𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘤 𝘈𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘋𝘢𝘺𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨.

Between the speeches, the Grade 6 choral verse groups provided some lovely entertainment and gave the programme a different rhythm.

At the end of the competition, 𝗚𝗶𝗮 𝗗𝘂 𝗣𝗿𝗲𝗲𝘇 was named the Grade 5 winner, with 𝗔𝗺𝗶𝗮 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗲𝗻𝗸𝗮𝗺𝗽 runner-up. In Grade 6, 𝗟𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗱𝗶 𝗠𝗽𝗵𝗮𝗵𝗹𝗲𝗹𝗲 took first place, followed by 𝗦𝗮𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗮 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝘆𝗱𝗼𝗺, while 𝗘𝗺𝗺𝗮 𝗕𝘂𝗿𝗴𝗲𝗿 won the Grade 7 section, with 𝗟𝗮𝘆𝗹𝗮 𝗢𝘁𝘁 as runner-up.

Congratulations to our winners and to all the young speakers who took part.

𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘶𝘱 𝘪𝘯 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘷𝘰𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘪𝘴 𝘢 𝘴𝘬𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘪𝘯 𝘪𝘵𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘢𝘴 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘦.

Bulletin

Thank You To Our Generous Sport Sponsors

On Monday evening, Union High School’s 𝗦𝗣𝗢𝗥𝗧𝗦 𝗗𝗘𝗣𝗔𝗥𝗧𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗧 had the pleasure of spending some time with a number of the businesses and individuals who so generously support sport at our school.

Beautifully hosted at The Coldstream Restaurant, the evening was an opportunity to step away from the usual rush of fixtures and school life, enjoy some lovely food and refreshments and simply connect with the people who play such an important role in making many of our sporting opportunities possible.

The evening was initiated by our Head of Sport, Mr Calvin Beck, specifically as an opportunity to engage with Union’s existing sports sponsors.

𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝘀𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝘆 𝘀𝗮𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗸 𝘆𝗼𝘂, the hope was to start conversations about what sponsorship at Union could look like going forward – to better understand where our sponsors’ interests lie and, ultimately, to build stronger, more meaningful partnerships around our various sporting codes, teams, tours and initiatives.

𝗔 𝗳𝗲𝘄 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗴𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝘂𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀, but more importantly, there was time for genuine conversation around the tables.

We are incredibly grateful to everyone who joined us and, indeed, to all those who continue to support sport at Union in so many different ways.

𝘐𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘭𝘺 𝘦𝘯𝘫𝘰𝘺𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥, 𝘸𝘦 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘧 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘥.

Bulletin, Student Life

UHS Represented At The Youth Parliament

Union High School, Graaff-Reinet is proud to acknowledge 2027 prefects 𝗝𝗮𝘀𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗔𝗯𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗿𝗼𝗺𝗯𝗶𝗲 and 𝗦𝗶𝘅𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗦𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗶, who recently represented our school at the Youth Parliament, presented as part of the 𝘙𝘰𝘣𝘦𝘳𝘵 𝘚𝘰𝘣𝘶𝘬𝘸𝘦 𝘛𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘊𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘋𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘱𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘶𝘮’𝘴 𝘏𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘨𝘦, 𝘔𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘛𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘗𝘳𝘰𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘮𝘮𝘦.

The gathering brought young people together to engage in thoughtful discussion around education and local government, encouraging them to consider their own place and voice within their community.

𝗪𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗴𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗳𝘂𝗹 𝘁𝗼 𝗝𝗮𝘀𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗦𝗶𝘅𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘂𝗽 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗲, 𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻, 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗯𝘂𝘁𝗲 and broaden their understanding of the issues shaping the community around them.

Sport Results

White Cap For Nathanael

A special congratulations to 𝗡𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗲𝗹 𝗣𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗽𝘀, who recently received his 1st XI white cap and marked the occasion with an excellent debut performance against Muir College.

Stepping up to senior cricket in a 50-over encounter, Nathaniel showed great composure, contributing 37 runs with the bat and taking two wickets with the ball.

𝘈 𝘮𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘪𝘴 1𝘴𝘵 𝘟𝘐 𝘫𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘺. 𝘞𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘥𝘰𝘯𝘦, 𝘕𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘦𝘭!

Sport Results

Senior Cricket vs Pearson – Results

U15A Cricket
Pearson High School vs Union High School

T20

Union High School batted first and were bowled out for 32 runs. Pearson High School comfortably chased down the target within 10 overs, winning the T20 by 10 wickets.

50-Over Match

Pearson High School U15A: 244/7 (50 overs)
Union High School U15A: 73 all out (36.3 overs)
Pearson won by 171 runs.

Pearson won the toss and elected to bat, posting a strong total of 244/7 from their 50 overs.

UHS Bowling – Positives

Our bowlers started well and kept things tight in the opening stages.

Thimna: Outstanding spell of 10 overs, 4 wickets for 29 runs. Economy rate of 2.9.
Khwezi: Very economical spell of 10 overs, including 2 maidens, taking 1 wicket for 32 runs. Economy rate of 3.2.

UHS Batting

It was a tough day with the bat, as we were bowled out for 73 in 36.3 overs.

R. Collett: Top scored with 24 runs off 77 balls

First Team
Union High School vs Pearson High School

Pearson High School won both fixtures in the T20 and 50-over formats.

T20

Union High School batted first and were bowled out for 81 runs. Pearson comfortably chased down the target, winning the match by 8 wickets.

50-Over Match

Union High School won the toss and elected to field.

Pearson found themselves in early trouble at 40/5, but they showed good resilience and recovered to post 218 all out in the 44th over.

Union struggled in reply and were dismissed for 39, with Pearson winning the match by 179 runs.

Final Thoughts

It was a tough weekend of cricket, and unfortunately, things did not go our way. However, every difficult day is an opportunity to learn, improve and come back stronger.

Stay positive, keep fighting and keep showing up. It is very easy to give up when things are not going your way, but the real challenge is to keep going, and we will learn from it and move forward.

Sport Results

Junior Tennis Compete In CLS Spar Tennis Tournament

Union High School’s Top 6 boys’ and girls’ junior tennis players recently travelled to Cradock to compete in the annual CLS Spar Tennis Tournament, held from 26 to 29 August.

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿’𝘀 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁’𝘀 𝗵𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆, 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝟭𝟮 𝗯𝗼𝘆𝘀’ 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝟭𝟮 𝗴𝗶𝗿𝗹𝘀’ 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺𝘀 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁.

Over three busy days of tennis, our players faced strong opposition from schools including Stirling, Summerwood, Volkskool, Fichardtpark, DSG, Clarendon Park and Selborne.

We are proud of our boys’ team, who competed with a lot of heart in a particularly competitive boys’ section and represented Union admirably throughout the tournament.

𝗢𝘂𝗿 𝗴𝗶𝗿𝗹𝘀 𝗲𝗻𝗷𝗼𝘆𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻 𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁, securing 4th place overall from the 12 participating teams.

Along the way, they recorded some excellent results, finishing ahead of strong sides including DSG, Volkskool, Jeffreys Bay and Clarendon Park.

𝗔 𝘄𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗳𝘂𝗹 𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗯𝘆 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗻𝗶𝘀 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗿𝘀 and a valuable opportunity to test themselves against some of the best junior school tennis talent around.

Well done, Union!

Bulletin

Parents’ Chess Challenge

On Monday eveing, 31 August, we revived our annual 𝗣𝗔𝗥𝗘𝗡𝗧𝗦’ 𝗖𝗛𝗘𝗦𝗦 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗟𝗟𝗘𝗡𝗚𝗘 in the Tony Burrell Union, with our young Union Preparatory School and Union High School chess players taking on parents, family friends, coaches and teachers across the chessboards.

𝗜𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝘀𝘂𝗰𝗵 𝗮 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹𝘆, 𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗮𝘅𝗲𝗱 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 – a chance for our chess players to share something they enjoy with the grown-ups in their lives, followed by a warm bowl of soup and good conversation.

A huge thank you to our chess coaches, Mrs Natasha Burger and Miss Shayna Japhta, for organising such a fun and memorable evening for our chess players!

Author: L. Crankshaw

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Junior Tennis Compete In CLS Spar Tennis Tournament

Well done, Union!

Parents’ Chess Challenge

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