Girls Sport Victoria

Girls' Sport Victoria

Abbreviation| GSV
Formation| 2001; 24 years ago (2001)
Headquarters| Sports House
Albert Park, Victoria, Australia
Location|

* Melbourne, Victoria

Membership| 24 member schools
(~21,000 students collectively)

Official language

| English

Executive Officer

| Michelle Barry
Website| gsv.vic.edu.au

Girls' Sport Victoria (GSV) was established in 2001, and is one of the largest independent school sporting associations in Victoria, Australia, with 24 member schools from around Melbourne.[1]

GSV provides approximately 16,500 girls, from years seven to twelve, with the opportunity to be involved in over 20 sports through weekly competitions, carnivals, tournaments and skill development programs.[2]

## Schools

[edit]

### Current member schools

[edit]

Member School[3] | Location  | Enrolment  | Founded  | Denomination  | Principal  | Day/
Boarding  | Year Entered
Competition  | School Colours

|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|

Camberwell Girls Grammar School | Canterbury | 761  | 1920  | Anglican | Debbie Dunwoody  | Day  | 2000  |
Fintona Girls' School | Balwyn | 503  | 1896  | Non-Denominational | Rachael Falloon  | Day  | 2000  |
Firbank Grammar School | Brighton | 1,033  | 1909  | Anglican | Jenny Williams  | Day & Boarding  | 2000  |
Genazzano FCJ College | Kew | 701  | 1889  | Roman Catholic | Loretta Wholley  | Day & Boarding  | 2000  |
Ivanhoe Girls' Grammar School | Ivanhoe | 863  | 1903  | Anglican | Narelle Umbers  | Day  | 2000  |
Korowa Anglican Girls' School | Glen Iris | 747  | 1890  | Anglican | Frances Booth  | Day  | 2000  |
Lauriston Girls' School | Armadale | 906  | 1901[4] | Non-Denominational | Susan Just  | Day  | 2000  |
Loreto Mandeville Hall | Toorak | 1,229  | 1924  | Roman Catholic | Angela O'Dwyer  | Day  | 2000  |
Lowther Hall Anglican Grammar School | Essendon | 874  | 1920  | Anglican | Elisabeth Rhodes  | Day  | 2000  |
Melbourne Girls Grammar School | South Yarra | 1,048  | 1893  | Anglican | Toni Meath  | Day & Boarding  | 2000  |
Mentone Girls' Grammar School | Mentone | 614  | 1899  | Anglican | Natalie Charles  | Day  | 2000  |
Methodist Ladies' College | Kew | 2,126  | 1882  | Uniting Church | Julia Shea  | Day & Boarding  | 2000  |
Our Lady of Mercy College | Heidelberg | 1,178  | 1910  | Roman Catholic | Judith Weir  | Day  | 2000  |
Our Lady of Sion College | Box Hill | 914  | 1928  | Roman Catholic | Tina Apostolopoulos  | Day  | 2015  |
Presbyterian Ladies' College | Burwood | 1,549  | 1875  | Presbyterian | Cheryl Penberthy  | Day & Boarding  | 2000  |
Ruyton Girls' School | Kew | 860  | 1878  | Non-denominational | Linda Douglas  | Day  | 2000  |
Sacré Cœur | Glen Iris | 677  | 1888  | Roman Catholic | Adelina Melia-Douvos  | Day  | 2000  |
St Catherine's School | Toorak | 681  | 1896  | Non-Denominational | Michelle Carroll  | Day & Boarding  | 2000  |
St Margaret's Berwick Grammar School | Berwick | 876 (535 Girls)  | 1926  | Non-Denominational | Annette Rome  | Day  | 2000  |
Siena College | Camberwell | 733  | 1940  | Roman Catholic | Elizabeth Hanney  | Day  | 2010  |
Star of the Sea College | Brighton | 1,189  | 1883  | Roman Catholic | Mary O'Connor  | Day  | 2000  |
Strathcona Girls' Grammar School | Canterbury | 792  | 1924  | Baptist | Marise McConaghy  | Day  | 2000  |
Toorak College | Mount Eliza | 860  | 1874  | Anglican | Kristy Kendall  | Day & Boarding  | 2000  |

### Former member schools

[edit]

School  | Location  | Founded  | Years
Competed  | Denomination  | Day/
Boarding  | School Colours

|
|
|
|
|
|

Kilvington Grammar | Ormond | 1923  | 2000–2011  | Baptist | Day  |
Shelford Girls' Grammar | Caulfield | 1898  | 2000–2024  | Anglican | Day  |
Tintern Grammar | Ringwood | 1877  | 2000–2009  | Anglican | Day & Boarding  |

## History

[edit]

In 1999, the principal of Melbourne Girls Grammar School, Christine Briggs, held a meeting of principals of girls' schools at the Lyceum Club. She felt the need to organise the meeting after receiving a letter of invitation from the Associated Public Schools of Victoria (APS) inviting her school to join their association.[5] The other schools invited included Firbank Grammar School, Genazzano FCJ College, Loreto Mandeville Hall, Presbyterian Ladies' College and Toorak College.

Many APS boys' schools had introduced co-education and were finding it difficult to provide adequate inter-school sports experiences for their female students. As the oldest schools association, APS felt it was in a strong position to convince independent girls' schools to become members. Briggs was concerned that the APS saw girls' schools as the solution to their problem, and was aware that girls' schools were fragmented into so many sporting associations, that the approach might be successful for the APS, but harming girls' schools.[5]

Briggs put the issue of girls' sport to the principals at the meeting, and it was agreed that it was time to consider the idea of a new sports organisation catering for the needs of all-female schools. It was stressed by many that the heritage of girls' sport built over more than a century by the involved schools could not be abandoned or seriously affected.

Following this meeting, a forum was led by Diana Bowman, the former principal of SCEGGS Darlinghurst in New South Wales, who had much experience with the successful and foremost girls' sporting association in her State, the Independent Girls' Schools Sporting Association (the sporting arm of the Association of Heads of Independent Girls' Schools). It was at this forum that the decision was made to create a new sports organisation to which the 24 girls' schools could belong, and that existing Associations would then cease to exist. In the same year, the name "Girls Sport Victoria" was selected for the new organisation. Further, it was acknowledged that creating "Girls Sport Victoria" would take time, and therefore a Project Officer was needed to undertake the task. Fiona Preston was the person selected, and began work immediately in order to complete preparations for the commencement of the sports program in 2001. She was supported by a Committee of Principals, a Committee of Heads of Sport, and working committees for each sport.[5]

Preston, along with the first executive officer, Meredith Prime, and a small group of staff, created a program of sports and three major carnivals, track and field, swimming and diving, and cross country in three Divisions. Zoned groups of schools were established for weekly interschool competitions in netball, basketball, softball, tennis, indoor cricket, hockey, water polo, soccer, volleyball, and badminton. In addition, Saturday morning sport, which was especially attractive to boarding schools, offered golf, Australian rules football, taekwondo, and triathlon. Also organised were seasonal competitions in cricket and Surf League, and 'fun days' for students in Years 7 and 8.[5]

Many challenges were met by the organisers, such as the vast geographic spread of the schools; the varying size of schools, ranging from 300 to almost 2000 students; the differences in quality and number of sports facilities within and outside schools; the difference in strength between schools and within sports; the cost to schools to meet their responsibilities; concern about potential loss of academic time through travel to venues; the determination of GSV rules and regulations; talent identification; promotion of leadership opportunities; and the availability of quality umpiring.[5]

## Previous associations

[edit]

Prior to the establishment of Girls' Sport Victoria,[6] there were seven girls' schools sporting associations catering to the sporting needs of the 24 GSV schools, and a small number of other schools. These associations were subsequently disbanded in 2001.[5]

### Associated Anglican Girls’ Grammar Schools (1920–2000)

[edit]

Church Secondary Schools Sports Association, later the Associated Anglican Girls’ Grammar Schools (AAGGS), was created in 1920 and conducted the first combined girls’ schools sports day in Victoria on 30 April 1920, at Toorak Park, Armadale.[7] The first cultural event held by the Associated Church of England Girls’ Grammar Schools was a Combined Choir Festival at the St Kilda Town Hall on Thursday 9 October 1941, in aid of Red Cross Funds with the guest of honour being Miss Una Bourne.[8]

School  | Years
Competed

|

Camberwell Girls Grammar School | 1944–2000
Firbank Girls' Grammar School | 1920–2000
Ivanhoe Girls' Grammar School | 1925–2000
Korowa Anglican Girls' School | 1920–2000
Lowther Hall Anglican Grammar School | 1921–2000
Melbourne Girls Grammar | 1960–2000
Mentone Girls' Grammar School | 1964–2000
Shelford Girls' Grammar | 1944–2000
St Michael's Grammar School | 1920–1980s
Tintern Girls Grammar School | 1920–1951

### Girls' Schools Association (1920–2000)

[edit]

The Girls' Secondary Schools Sports Association (GSSSA), later the Girls' Schools Sports Association (GSSA) was formed in 1920. In the early 1990s, it changed its name to the Girls Schools Association (GSA).[5]

School  | Years
Competed

|

Fintona Girls' School | 1920–2000
Korowa Girls' School | 1963–2000
Lauriston Girls' School | 1920–2000
Ruyton Girls' School | 1920–2000
St Catherine's School | 1920–2000
Tintern Girls Grammar^  | 1967–2000

^Tintern participated in the Swimming Carnivals from at least 1949 – 1953 and the Athletics Carnivals from 1956 – 1958

### Zone Sports Association (1968–2000)

[edit]

School  | Years
Competed

|

Firbank Girls' Grammar School | 1968–2000
Loreto Mandeville Hall | 1980–2000
Mentone Girls' Grammar School | 1968–2000
Sacré Cœur | 1991–2000
Shelford Girls' Grammar | 1968–2000
St Michael's Grammar School | 1968–1994
Cato College (later Wesley College – Cato Campus)  | 1968–1989
Wesley College, Prahran Campus  | 1988–1989

### Girls’ Schools Sports Association (1975–2000)

[edit]

The "Girls’ Schools Sports Association", formerly the Eastern Suburbs Association and later the Eastern Sports Association (ESA), was formed in 1975. In 1984, Loreto Toorak was invited to participate as a non-voting member and in 1988, the girls at Wesley College were also invited to participate as a non-voting member. In 1993, Carey Grammar was asked to re-consider its membership of the new GSSA, as it was the only co-educational school in the ESA. Genazzano was invited to participate as a non-voting member in 1993 before becoming a full member the following year following the departure of Carey Grammar. Athletics and swimming carnivals were conducted and students competed in baseball, basketball, cricket, hockey, netball and tennis competitions throughout the year.[5]

School  | Years
Competed

|

Camberwell Girls Grammar | 1975–2000
Carey Grammar | 1984–1993
Genazzano | 1994–2000
Ivanhoe Girls Grammar | 1975–2000
Melbourne Girls Grammar | 1975–2000
MLC | 1975–2000
PLC | 1975–2000
Strathcona Girls Grammar | 1975–2000

### Public Schools Sports Association (1904–2000)

[edit]

The Public Schools Association, later known as the Girls’ Private Schools Victorian Sports Association, was created in 1904 and conducted their first tennis competition soon thereafter.[9]

School  | Years
Competed

|

Geelong Girls' Grammar School | 1916–1975
Loreto Mandeville Hall | 1991–2000
Melbourne Girls Grammar | 1904–2000
Methodist Ladies' College | 1904–2000
Presbyterian Ladies' College | 1904–2000
Tintern Girls Grammar School | 1991–2000
Toorak College | 1991–2000

### Catholic Girls Sports Association of Victoria (established 1980)

[edit]

The Catholic Girls Sports Association of Victoria (CGSAV), formerly the Secondary Catholic Sports Association (SCSA) is a sporting body that promotes and provides sporting carnivals for a group of Catholic girls schools in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia[10] established in 1980. Membership of the SCSA is restricted to metropolitan and country Catholic Secondary Schools, upon payment of the annual affiliation fee. Membership is open either to girls’ schools or coeducational Catholic Colleges, however events cater only for girls.[10]

* Academy of Mary Immaculate, Fitzroy
* Ave Maria College, Aberfeldie
* Avila College, Mount Waverley
* Catholic Ladies' College, Eltham
* Clonard College, Geelong
* Harkaway Hills College, Narre Warren North
* Kilbreda College, Mentone

* Killester College, Springvale
* Marian College, Sunshine West
* Mater Christi College, Belgrave
* Mercy Diocesan College, Coburg
* Mount St Joseph Girls' College, Altona
* Our Lady of Mercy College, Heidelberg
* Our Lady of Sion College, Box Hill

* Our Lady of the Sacred Heart College, Bentleigh
* Sacred Heart College, Geelong
* Sacred Heart Girls' College, Oakleigh
* Santa Maria College, Northcote
* St Aloysius College, North Melbourne
* St Columbas College, Essendon
* St Mary's College, St Kilda

|
|
|

#### Former member schools

[edit]

* Genazzano FCJ College, Kew
* Kildara College, Malvern
* Kilbride College, Albert Park
* Kilmaire College, Hawthorn

* Loreto College, Ballarat
* Loreto Mandeville Hall, Toorak
* Mount Lilydale Mercy College, Lilydale
* Presentation College, Windsor

* Sacré Cœur, Glen Iris
* Siena College, Camberwell
* Star of the Sea College, Gardenvale

|
|
|

### Southern District Sports Association (? – 2000)

[edit]

School  | Years
Competed

|

Assumption College | ?–2000
Kilvington Girls' Grammar | ?–2000
Lowther Hall Anglican Grammar School | ?–2000
Mentone Girls' Grammar School | ?–2000
Penleigh and Essendon Grammar School | ?–2000
St Leonard's College | ?–2000
St Margaret's School | ?–2000
Toorak College | ?–2000

NB: For a brief period, two Associations existed with the name "Girls' Schools Sports Association".

## Presidents of the Association

[edit]

Term[11] | President[11] | School[11]

|
|

1999–2001  | Christine Briggs  | Melbourne Girls Grammar
2001–2002  | Anne Hunt  | Loreto Mandeville Hall
2002  | Rosa Storelli  | Methodist Ladies' College
2002–2003  | Jane Munro  | Firbank Grammar School
2003–2006  | Margaret Webb  | Toorak College
2007–2012  | Susan Stevens  | Loreto Mandeville Hall
2013–2015  | Christine Jenkins  | Korowa Anglican Girls' School
2016–2018  | Linda Douglas  | Ruyton Girls' School
2019 – 2022  | Kristy Kendall  | Toorak College
2023 – present  | Elisabeth Rhodes  | Lowther Hall

## Sports

[edit]

Students from Girls Sport Victoria member schools participate in a wide range of sporting activities including:

Weekly Sports

* Australian Football
* Badminton
* Basketball
* Cricket
* Indoor Cricket
* Hockey
* Netball
* Soccer
* Softball
* Tennis
* Volleyball
* Waterpolo

Carnivals

* Cross Country
* Diving
* Swimming
* Track and Field (2023 the GSV conducted its first Years 5 & 6 Track & Field event over two days in August)

Sport Skills Program

* Cycle sport
* Diving
* Fencing

Other Events

* Basketball Tournament
* Five a side Soccer Tournament
* Golf Tournament
* Triathlon
* Year 7 Sports Expo

Representative Sport

* Cross Country
* Netball
* Soccer
* Swimming
* Volleyball
* Water Polo

Head of the Schoolgirls Regatta

Further information: Head of the River (Victoria)

## See also

[edit]

* List of schools in Victoria
* List of high schools in Victoria

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Partners". About. Mentone Girls Grammar School. 2007. Retrieved 2 October 2007.
2. ^ "Sport". Girls Grammar. Tintern Schools. 2007. Retrieved 2 October 2007.
3. ^ Mawkes, Leonie (2005). "Member Schools". Profile. Girls Sport Victoria. Archived from the original on 7 October 2007. Retrieved 2 October 2007.
4. ^ Butler, Jan (2007). "womenleading@global.edu" (PDF). The Alliance of Girls' Schools Annual Conference. Melbourne, Vic.: The Alliance of Girls' Schools (published 15 June 2007). p. 2\. Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 August 2007. Retrieved 2 October 2007..
5. ^ a b c d e f g h Otzen, Roslyn (2005). "Girls' Schools Sport & Girls Sport Victoria – a History" (PDF). Profile. Girls Sport Victoria. pp. 4–5\. Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 October 2007. Retrieved 2 October 2007.4-5&rft.date=2005&rft.aulast=Otzen&rft.aufirst=Roslyn&rft_id=http://www.gsv.vic.edu.au/profile/history.pdf&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:Girls+Sport+Victoria" class="Z3988">
6. ^ Women's Sports: New Association Formed, The Argus, (Saturday, 29 October 1932), p.27.
7. ^ Combined Girls' Sports: New Association Formed, The Argus, (Friday, 30 April 1920), p.7.
8. ^ Records of the AAGGS held in the State Library of Victoria.
9. ^ Girls' Sports Association: New Association Formed, The Age, (Saturday, 26 March 1904), p.12.
10. ^ a b "About". www.scsa.org.au.
11. ^ a b c Mawkes, Leonie (2005). "Acknowledgements". History. Girls Sport Victoria. Retrieved 2 October 2007.

## External links

[edit]

* Girls Sport Victoria

* v
* t
* e

Members of Girls Sport Victoria

Current members|

* Camberwell
* Fintona
* Firbank
* Genazzano
* Ivanhoe
* Korowa
* Lauriston
* Loreto Toorak
* Lowther Hall
* Melbourne
* Mentone
* MLC
* Our Lady of Mercy
* Our Lady of Sion
* PLC
* Ruyton
* Sacré Cœur
* Siena
* St Catherine's
* St Margaret's
* Star of the Sea
* Strathcona
* Toorak

Former members|

* Kilvington
* Shelford
* Tintern

Possible future members|

* CLC
* St Columba's

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