‘Holmwood is not an all-girls school’

When you think of Holmwood Technical High and track and field, their rich history at girls’ Champs (ISSA/GraceKennedy Boys and Girls’ Athletics Championships) comes to mind. However, head coach Dave Anderson says the boys’ team has been growing in quality over the last few years.

Anderson explained that the boys’ team had taken a massive hit during the pandemic, and had seen a massive reduction in their squad size. While it was a difficult task to garner more interest for the team, Anderson confirmed that Holmwood is now close to their normal number of male athletes.

With a new squad on hand, Anderson said that while the team will not be in the title race at Champs, he has seen good performances that suggest that the boys will give a good account of themselves and be counted in the points tally.

“What I can say is that COVID-19 would have played a role in the numbers,” he explained. “Our boys’ team went all the way down to about five or six members. However, in the last two years the number has been getting back in the right direction, we’re close to 30 again. Some of the boys have been putting in good performances at the meets and I see some quality and the boys are putting their foot forward and reminding people that Holmwood is not an all-girls school.”

Anderson said that while he understands that majority of the public attention would be on the girls’ team, he and his coaching staff are committed to ensuring that the boys are given a platform to compete.

“I mean, they are not big in numbers or known for high amount of points at the championships, so our boys might feel a little bit offended knowing that the real interest has been on the girls but they know that they’re not being left behind. The coaching staff is giving them the attention to allow them to perform at the best of their abilities and hope that they can achieve some individual success and some team success,” Anderson said.