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Saint Kentigern to review policy on sports scholarships, First XV's culture after player-poaching boycott saga

December 18, 2018
Dejected St Kents player Robert Rush and team mates.
St Kentigern College v St Peters. First XV schools semi-final rugby union. Auckland, New Zealand. Saturday 11 August 2018. © Andrew Cornaga / www.Photosport.co.nz

Saint Kentigern College has confirmed they will undergo a review into their policy on sports scholarships and the culture of their First XV rugby team.

Head of St Kentigern, David Hodge, along with chair of the board Dr. John Kernohan said in a letter to parents the review was happening with "some re-balancing required in our approach to our First XV programme".

The review comes after St Kentigern was told two weeks ago it had effectively been kicked out of the Auckland 1A First XV competition after rival schools decided to boycott them over their approach to poaching players - a move that was later backed by other top rugby schools around the country.

After Saint Kentigern's recruiting tactics came under the spotlight, the Breakfast team couldn't help but wonder who it benefits.

However, Hodge added the decision was also driven by negative feedback from fee-paying parents as well.

"We share the concern passed on by a number of you that the issues raised are important and our priority is to ensure our values are firmly embedded in our sports programme, just as they are in the rest of our activities.

"The trust board and senior management will make any changes that are needed to achieve this goal."

St Kentigern confirmed after the boycott was announced they had offered five players from outside Auckland scholarships to their school for 2019 to bolster the First XV which was in the rules but seen as unethical by others.

When approached by the other schools to sign a document they'd created around recruitment quotas, Saint Kentigern refused to sign and thus, 10 schools opted to boycott them for the 2019 season.

Hodge said in the letter Saint Kentigern had changed their approach and were now being more open.

"We have been talking with many of you and know that you share our wish to see the current matters resolved quickly and amicably in the interests of good relationships across all schools and school sports generally," the letter states.

"We are disappointed at the way this matter has evolved, as most commentators seem to agree this is a broader issue in college sports.

"We had scheduled a review of our sports programme as a high priority for early 2019. Recent events have accelerated this review and we have committed to the following steps:

"Early in 2019, we will form a working group from our Community to consult with parents, students, staff and Old Collegians to prepare recommendations for changes to the sports programme to both address the issues that have been raised and ensure they do not recur in the future.

"We will review our approach to sports scholarships at the First XV level and more generally.

"In November we appointed Mr Richard Stead as the new director of sport. Mr Stead will be closely involved with this review and has our full support in moving forward with its recommendations.

"In relation to the current matter we are committed to finding a solution with the other Auckland schools and look forward to working towards this with the Independent Judicial Panel that has been set up by College Sport Auckland.

"What we want to see is that our boys get to enjoy playing rugby with their peers and that all schools have clear rules and transparency for future seasons."

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