Kevin Hogan (Page, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I would like to congratulate the First 13 from St John's College, Woodlawn, from Lismore, which recently won the prestigious 2017 GIO Trophy. To be a contender for the GIO Trophy, the Woodlawn team had first to win the Country Rugby League cup in which they played schools from country areas and then their city school rivals. In the GIO Trophy final, Woodlawn's First 13 defeated Patrician Brothers, Fairfield, 36-26. The win means that Woodlawn has the best open schoolboy rugby league team in NSW, excluding Sydney's 16 elite sport schools.

With every good team there are good coaches and trainers behind the scenes. I would like to acknowledge the coach, Simon Andrews; the trainers, Bernie McDonald, Nic Jones and Peter Jeffery; and the sports coordinator, Brian Battese. There are some pretty handy ex-players in that lot, too.

Coach Simon Andrews said it was an amazing match, with the entire team playing exceptionally well after a slow start that left the team down 10 points to nil within the first six minutes. But the Woodlawn First 13 showed grim determination to fight their way back with some terrific team work and a few individual standout performances. Dane Pratt's excellent running from dummy half, attacking play and goal kicking saw him receive the man of the match award. Kel Sheather was exceptional in attack and very physical in defence. The Kennedy twins, Aidan and Lachlan, were pillars of strength in the middle, while Justin Bleakley and Jordan Sly added a touch of class on the left edge. Well done to all the boys. You've made your school and our community proud. The team consisted of Jake Petty, Guy Wolton, Jordan Sly, Jordan Lee, Ethan Mumford, Matthew Buttenshaw, Kel Sheather, Jess Gibson, Dane Pratt, Aidan Kennedy, Matt Doyle, Justin Bleakley, Matt Bentley, Angus Spencer, James Durheim, Lachlan Kennedy, Liam Bleakley, Jack Doulgas-Brown, Jared Roder and Mitch Brown. Great effort, boys. Well done.

There is no doubt about the depth of artistic talent in my community, and you need look no further than 25-year-old Lismore local Liam Bellman-Sharpe for evidence of that. Liam has just been accepted into the master of fine arts program at the prestigious Ivy League university Yale University in the United States. What makes this even more amazing is that, out of an international pool of applicants, Liam was the only student selected from outside of the United States. Liam completed his HSC at Trinity Catholic College in Lismore, where he was schooled by some of the best music teachers on the North Coast. During this time, Liam also learnt from Northern Rivers Conservatorium teacher Jeremy White. The musical gene runs in Liam's family. His mother, Anita Bellman, is the Director of the Northern Rivers Conservatorium, and a proud mum she is. Well done and good luck, Liam.