Presentation Secondary School, Castleisland celebrated the return of its fun-fest recently and it did not disappoint – by all accounts.
Having been unable to stage this event over the last couple of years for obvious reasons, both staff and students were delighted to get the whole school community back up to the Castleisland Desmonds GAA field for some wholehearted fun and competition.
“We knew we were in luck with the day, seeing sun cream bottles being passed around and it really was an occasion to savour,” said a school spokesperson.
Iconic Egg and Spoon Races
“The fun-fest included an array of athletics events, starting with the 100 and 400 metre sprints. Keeping with tradition, the iconic egg and spoon, wheelbarrow and three-legged races also made appearances.
“There was a number of carnival-like games throughout the field where students had chances to win prizes. From welly throwing to the shot put, as well as kicking a ball through a suspended tyre, a huge array of activities were going on simultaneously.
“Pres art teacher Katie O’Reilly was kind enough to set up a face painting station.
And Ms. O’Reilly’s skills were in great demand and her station proved to be the busiest area of all on the day.
A Constant Queue
She had a constant queue of students excited to avail of the service before they fled to partake in another event.
“There’s nothing like a teacher versus student event to get the competitive juices flowing and the fun-fest had a number of them. Beginning with the 4 x 100 metre relay, students and teachers were free to enter their own teams of four, with huge bragging rights up for grabs.
“Having entered two strong teams into this event, the teachers were confident of their chances. “However, little did they know that the first year team of Edel O’ Donoghue, Bríd Curtin, Laura McShane and Ellie Curtin would steal their limelight and ‘run’ out comfortable winners.
An Array of Acrobatic Saves
“Teacher versus student balloon tossing followed before a competitive game of rounders. As the Fun-fest came to an end, a whole school penalty shootout took place.
“To the surprise of all the students, our Principal Pierce Dargan was announced as the guest goalkeeper.
“With everyone excited to have the rare opportunity of taking a penalty and getting one over on their principal, jaws were soon dropped when Mr. Dargan pulled off an array of acrobatic saves.
“Little did they know their principal was in fact a star goalie back in his native county of Kilkenny.
An Exciting and Busy Year
“Saoirse Daly in first year ran out the eventual winner in this one, maintaining her year group’s dominant performance on the day.
“We finished the day with a medal presentation for all the winners. It was a thoroughly enjoyable event, and one we cannot wait to stage even bigger and better next year.
A huge thanks goes out to the Transition Year students who helped with organising and running the event, a great final act in their exciting and busy year,” said the impressed spokesperson.
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