AUTHORS: ABI MCINTOSH & CATE SINCLAIR
Hailing from the town of Wombat, NSW, Abbey Hall is a Year 11 Boarder who also happens to be the school swimming captain. She lives on a cherry farm on the outskirts of Wombat, where she spends the majority of her days working on the family farm. This may consist of packing and selling cherries, sheep work or looking after the trees. We decided to ask Abbey some questions about her average day.
Abbey wakes up at around four-thirty in the morning and gets up to start her rigorous day. “It’s quite early but I am used to it now, as I have been doing it for a while,” she laughs. After getting ready for swimming, she uses her early-morning swipe card to make her way out of the boarding house. Abbey’s coach, Les, meets her on the steps of the boarding house and accompanies her to the school pool facility. At this point, it’s five o’clock, and she is ready to start her strokes. Abbey’s strongest race is the one hundred metre backstroke, and she constantly strives and trains to improve her time and form.
After a heartbeat-raising set, she pulls herself out of the pool and back up to the boarding house. And it’s only seven! Everyone else is now waking up, whereas Abbey has already been up and about for over three hours. She has a morning shower, before getting dressed and heading down to breakfast. If Chartwells have whipped up something particularly delicious, she will stray from the norm, but Abbey normally enjoys a classic piece of toast with butter and jam.
The last steps in her morning routine have been fulfilled, leaving her a bit of time to relax and enjoy herself before school starts. At 8:40, Abbey heads off to pursue her various academic endeavours. Her school day looks similar to that of a day student’s, except that she returns to the boarding house dining hall to collect her recess and lunch.
Once school finishes, Abbey signs back into the boarding house and heads to afternoon tea. Tea, cakes, and biscuits are usually on the menu. From here, Abbey gets changed and ready for the gym, which she will walk to with her fellow boarders from various years. She has a specific training program designed to tie in with her rugby and swimming training. Once completed, Abbey and her peers take the short walk back to school, where she will once again get changed, in time for rugby training, at Rivett oval. The boarding house bus will transport her there, where she trains with the Royals Junior Rugby Union Women’s Under Eighteen’s team. This training lasts an hour and a half, in which she will work on the fundamental skills of the game.
The boarding house bus will once again take her back just in time for dinner. Each year group has their own table, where they will socialise and chat about their days. The dining hall is a raucous place, particularly around six o’clock, when energy is high and good food is provided.
Unfortunately, after dinner comes prep, a set time when all boarders must be in designated areas for two hours of study. Here, Abbey will complete any homework or assignments she has, in a peaceful and quiet area. Finally, at nine pm, Abbey has time to call her parents, chat with friends, or simply catch up on the latest episode of Married at First Sight. At ten, Abbey hands in her devices and retires to bed for an early night. Her jam-packed day complete!