Inter-Seminary Soccer Tournament 2010

On the weekend of 6th to the 8th of August, seminaries from across Australia converged upon the city of Wagga Wagga, to participate in the 11th annual Inter-Seminary Soccer Competition, which was hosted by Vianney College. In total seven seminaries participated in this year’s tournament. Vianney College Wagga Wagga, Good Shepherd Sydney, Redemptoris Mater Sydney, Corpus Christi Melbourne, Holy Spirit Parramatta, Missionaries of God’s Love and Holy Spirit Seminary Brisbane. Over 200 seminarians were present. The tournament started on Friday 6th of August, with the drawing of the teams and Saturday was the game day. The round robin matches were played throughout the day, with the top two teams progressing to the finals.

The competition was intense with players not holding back, when representing their respective seminaries. Players struggled with poor pitch conditions playing on large patches of mud, which took a lot of toll on the players, and resulted in serious injuries and many tired legs by the end of the day. The Seminary of the Good Shepherd played hard and eventually finished third.

Eventually the top two teams were Redemptoris Mater Sydney, and Missionaries of God’s Love. I had the pleasure of refereeing the Final match. The two teams played hard but the spectacular skills and patience of the Redemptoris Mater Sydney eventually won them the match 5-0. The final goal came in the final minute, and scenes of wild celebration erupted from the Redemptoris Mater crowd at the full time whistle.

This tournament was not only about the soccer, but the fraternity that is shared between those who are in religious formation. It is the highlight of the year for the seminarians, where they can get together and meet others who are also travelling on the same journey, and to see the diversities of the Church in Australia, which is reflected in those in religious formation.
By: Duc Mac, Third year seminarian for the Canberra & Goulburn Archdiocese.