BY JARROD McALEESE
YEAR 7 students in Kambrya College’s Athlete Development Program (ADP) were fortunate recent guests at Whitten Oval, home of the AFL’s Western Bulldogs, mixing with some of their footballing heroes and gaining invaluable knowledge.
The budding athletes were on a guided tour around the base by former Richmond coach and AFL national umpire manager Jeff Gieschen, and attended the squad’s final session before their fixture against the Adelaide Crows.
Despite it being the day prior to an important match, Bulldogs senior coach Luke Beveridge surprised the students with an impromptu private tutorial and Aaron Sawyer, one of the three ADP teachers in attendance, said he was shocked and grateful for Beveridge’s generosity.
“I was blown away that he gave up his time, on the Friday the day before they had their game against Adelaide.
“We were expecting to have Rohan Smith, one of the assistant coaches.
“But for him to give up his valuable time was unbelievable,” Mr Sawyer said.
Mr Sawyer said he was impressed with the time Beveridge took to prepare for the session in order to best engage with the students.
“The biggest thing I took away from it was that he researched the school, the ADP program, our mission statement and values and tried to relay them back to the kids in relation to some of the structures at the Western Bulldogs.
“Their team values and leadership values, respect and professionalism, don’t stray far from our college values of integrity, respect and compassion,” Mr Sawyer said.
The positive experience in an elite sporting environment had an immeasurably positive impact on the group involved, Mr Sawyer said.
“We wanted them to get a look at what a professional organisation looks like, so that they may strive for that, as well as the sacrifices they need to make, and implement that in their own training and schedules,” Mr Sawyer said.
