Tilly Cup Swim Meet: No signs of Pink, Taylor Swift, or Harry Stiles – But Enough Mayhem To Suggest They Were In The House
It’s all quiet when meandering through the picturesque grounds that decorate the All-Saints Anglican School – a 40-hectare campus tucked away on Queensland’s Gold Coast hinterland.
It’s the September School Holidays with what appears to be just the hard-working gardening and maintenance staff making the most of the absence of the 1850 students.
That is, until you find yourself drawn to a din that is hidden behind the doors of the school’s 25-metre indoor swimming pool complex – a din that erupts when you peep inside, greeted by a deafening cacophony.
No signs of Pink, Taylor Swift, Harry Stiles – but enough mayhem to suggest they were in the house.
MEMBERS OF TEAM MILLS and coach Tom Fraser Holmes. Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wades Photos)
The booming voice of ring master, Queensland’s Coach Director Drew McGregor whipping up a frenzy – the kind of pop concert noise and enthusiasm generated by 72 teenagers from swimming’s premier State and their equally enthused coaches.
A team of hand-picked kids between the ages of 13 and 17, named in the Queensland Development Team cheering on their mates at the State’s premier Age Group teams’ event for the prestigious Tilly Cup – named after the Queensland mascot Tilly the Platypus in honour of three swimming legends.
The brainchild of McGregor, who has divided the Class of 2023 into three smaller teams – for a Duel Meet between Team Henry, Team Mills and Team Trickett.
An annual event in its third year with the teams named after Olympic and World Championship golden girls Jodie Henry, Alice Mills and Libby Trickett.
Future stars, future Olympians creating an impression that “Gen Next” will continue Australia’s great swimming traditions.
No sheep stations up for grabs – just a small cut glass Cup and a platypus mascot – the symbol of swimming excellence in a grass roots program designed by McGregor to test his coaches and to test his swimmers.
Aimed at delivering the best possible outcomes for the Brisbane Olympics 2032 – a program supported by Australian mining magnate, Gina Rinehart, and Swimming Queensland’s major sponsor Hancock Prospecting.
“It’s a credit to all the coaching staff and the athletes themselves for the way they take this meet on,” said McGregor. “The way they buy into the concept and how they execute it is second to none.
“It was an outstanding competition for Swimming Queensland and along with my fellow coaches Brant Best and Barry Prime that’s what we are most proud of.
“Our job is to work around the regions developing camaraderie, working around each other and the supporting each other.
“Two-thirds of the coaching staff are new to the Tilly Cup this year and you would not have known it the way that the experienced coaches took them under their wing and the way they bought in.
“The same with all the athletes with the biggest cohort of new athletes we’ve had in the Tilly Cup and the culture is learnt by others behaviour and that’s another thing we are most proud of is the behaviour of everybody on this team.
“We talk about the Brisbane Olympics in 2032 and the whole idea of this team is to build Olympic gold medallists – not just Olympians.
“I want everyone to have that dream and to have that mindset with that pathway.
“The future looks bright, so the more we do this the more everyone wants to be part of it so we can’t wait for 2032 to roll around, we’ll be ready.”
It’s intense but it’s fun as pool records tumble over odd distances – from 75s, to 150s, 300s, 900s and the grand finale with every swimmer in the 24x25m freestyle relay – four-and-half minutes of pure adrenalin pumping action with centimetres between the three teams.
The finish of the boys 14-15 years 900m freestyle – 36 laps of the short course pool – a race that even had the lap counters confused – but the individual race of the meet – won by Sydney Kito (Team Mills) a kid from Cairns Stingrays in far North Queensland in a photo finish from Riley Burton (Team Henry) from Logan Vikings.
TEAM HENRY led by David Thomas: Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wades Photos)
Just 0.23 separating the pair in an epic stroke-for stroke battle that saw the pool deck erupt.
After some eye-catching record-breaking swims by kids like St Peters Western trio Ainsley Trotter, Kai Gilbert and Randall Ingram; Julia Remington (All Saints), Kane Martin (Gladstone), Lilla Ribot-De- Bresac (Newmarket Racers), Thomas Booth (Southside Aquatics), Elaine Chu (Brisbane Grammar) and Xavier Metcalfe(Fraser Coast) it was Team Mills who won the day with 981 points from Team Trickett (976) and Team Henry (922).
Two-time Olympian in London and Rio, Thomas Fraser-Holmes, now turning his hand to coaching under Michael Bohl and Janelle Pallister in the Gold Coast Hub/Griffith University program was a coach on Team Mills.
“That 900m was a classic example of what this meet is all about… young Sydney Kito was just incredible – definitely in my opinion the swim of the meet…in the last individual event before the relays, ” said Fraser Holmes.
“That’s what the Australian DNA is all about and it’s what the Australian Swim Team is all about…swimming for your mate and the person next to you and the person coming up in the race behind you.
“It’s a different intensity and the concept I really like is that it’s over odd distances and its’ not their main events…it’s just purely about racing….and that’s what swimming is all about…it’s about racing…
“Everyone loves to race, everyone loves to win, what this meet drives home is the concept of winning and having fun and doing it for your team.
“They had 40 people on the side of the pool cheering them on, you are just capable of so much more than what you think….I hope most of the athletes walk away and take that with them…
“It’s a reflection of how much these kids care about their swimming and how much they care about each other and their team.
TEAM TRICKETT led by Luke Stafford and Tim Dilger. Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wades Photos)
“These kids have been challenged, not sleeping in the same environment, different foods, a 25m pool, many are used to just racing long course they have risen to the challenge, it is really good to see the next crop come through, take it on and see how far they can run with it.
“I had never experienced a meet like this, we had duel meets, but not as intense as this, standing up behind the blocks and you’ve got your peers and your coaches cheering you on….it presents a certain amount of pressure you just don’t get at our State or National Age.
“What this meet is designed for is to give these kids an opportunity to come in here and race and now it’s up to them to go away and carry that momentum into the future meets at States and Nationals.
“There is some great young talent here in Queensland and also around Australia and swimming is looking bright over the next eight to nine years leading in to 2032.”
Fraser-Holmes – the World championship and Commonwealth Games gold medallist, has not long started his coaching career and says he is learning something new every day.
“Although I have an extensive background as an athlete….it doesn’t necessarily translate into coaching – I’m so grateful I’ve got the opportunity to be on this Queensland team and opportunities to work with young athletes that are driven and want to go places.
“I’m enjoying it and it’s definitely a career that I’m serious about….and I see myself doing it for a long time, everyone is here to support each other….”
THE RING MASTER: Swimming Queensland Coach Director Drew McGregor. Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wades Photos)
THE POOL at All Saints: Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wades Photos)
THE FLYING START: Photo Courtesy:Wade Brennan (Wades Photos)
THE WINNING COACHES FROM MILLS: (L-R) Brad Hillier, Dan Busch, Lachlan Staples (Head Coach), Thomas Fraser-Holmes, Adam Eiseman and George Harnetty. Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wades Photos).
THE RECOVERY #1:Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wade’s Photos)
LAID BACK: Photo Courtesy: Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wade’s Photos)
THE RECOVERY #2: Photo Courtesy: Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wade’s Photos)
THE CHEER SQUAD: Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wade’s Photos)
THE BACKSTROKE WARMUP: Photo Courtesy: Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wades Photos)
ON THE FLY: Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wades Photos)
THE BREASTSTROKER: Photo Courtesy:Wade Brennan (Wades Photos)
FINAL INSTRUCTIONS from Team Henry coach Paul Crosswell. Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wade’s Photos).
THE PLAN: Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wade’s Photos)
THE RELAY START: Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wades Photos)
OFF THE BLOCKS #1: Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wades Photos)
OFF THE BLOCKS #2: Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wades Photos)
TEAM HENRY: Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wades Photos)
THE TURN: Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wades Photos)
THE PUSH #1: Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wades Photos)
THE PUSH #2: Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wades Photos)
THE BREAKOUT: Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wades Photos)
THE FLYER #1: Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wades Photos)
THE FLYER #2: Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wades Photos)
THE FLYER #3 Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wades Photos)
THE FLYER #4:Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wades Photos)
THE TILLY CUP TROPHY: This is what all the fuss is about. Photo Courtesy: Wade Brennan (Wades Photos)
And thanks to All Saints Coaches Michelle and Ken Sabotic and the volunteer timekeepers too.