History of the AAGPS
The Athletic Association of the Great Public Schools of New South Wales (A.A.G.P.S.) was the outcome of a meeting held at Gunsler’s Café, new Circular Quay, on 30 March 1892.
The Schools represented at the initial meeting were The King’s School, Saint Ignatius’ College, St Joseph’s College, All Saints College, Bathurst, and the North Shore Grammar School (SCEGS) with their purpose to specifically discuss the formation of a sporting association which could organise and relegate inter-school games, “to consider the advisability of concerted action by the Great Public Schools in drawing up regulations in athletic contests”.
On 12 April delegates from Sydney Grammar School, Newington College and Cooerwull Academy (west of Lithgow) joined those who attended the first meeting.
At a third meeting held on 28 April 1892 membership of the AAGPS was clarified and St Patrick’s College Goulburn, St Stanislaus College Bathurst, and The Scots College joined those Schools who attended the earlier meetings.
Sydney Boy’s High School applied for membership in March 1894, but they were not admitted until 14 February, 1906.
The Armidale School, the only current regional school member, entered the Association on 7 May 1897.
- St Patrick’s Goulburn never sent a delegate and thus their membership lapsed early.
- St Stanislaus never entered into competition and in 1893 withdrew from the Association.
- Cooererwull Academy closed in 1916.
- All Saints also closed in 1919 and thus their membership lapsed (although they did reopen in 1922 and readmission into the Association was denied).
Since its inauguration, AAGPS has comprised of two Catholic, three Anglican, a Presbyterian, a United (formerly Methodist), one non-dominational and one non-religious non secular school. At one stage, all but one of the schools catered for boarders, nowadays there are two non-boarding schools, SBHS and SGS.
Always important was that the sports activities offered the opportunity to learn and to be character building – accepting endurance and facing setbacks, coping with defeat, and recognising that one is part of a team.
Over time there has been evolvement to the sporting programs reflecting changing societies in schools, with a move away from a ‘one size fits all’ approach.
Although the associated schools continue to offer the GPS core sports of 1892, the present program now operates a further seven ‘official’ sports for Premierships, a steady movement from 1972 onwards. In addition, there are many in-school sporting programs extending to a diverse range of activities all aiming to offer educational value to all students’ sporting interests and prowess.
On 25 October 2017, the AAGPS of NSW became an incorporated association of New South Wales, to be hence known as Athletic Association of Great Public Schools of New South Wales Incorporated, or AAGPS of NSW Inc.
Current member schools and their abbreviations for fixtures and results:
THE ARMIDALE SCHOOL (A OR TAS)
SHORE (E or SHORE)
SYDNEY GRAMMAR SCHOOL (G or SGS)
SYDNEY BOYS HIGH SCHOOL (H or SBHS)
SAINT IGNATIUS’ COLLEGE, RIVERVIEW (I or SIC)
ST JOSEPH’S COLLEGE (J or SJC)
THE KING’S SCHOOL (K or TKS)
NEWINGTON COLLEGE (N or NC)
THE SCOTS COLLEGE (S or TSC)
The AAGPS utilises two insignia;
- The AAGPS ‘Zeus’ and its connotations to Greece and the Olympic movement of the late 1800s – adoption of the amateur ideal and high ideals of sportsmanship, and the provision of a moral and philosophical basis for schools and athletes to endorse and uphold.
- GPS Monogram (around 1899) – highly sought, the GPS crest, is awarded to the 1st Grade Representative Combined Schools Team for each sport, by way of presentation on the playing uniform as a Combined blazer Badge and official tie; as well as the winning Premiership Team for each sport in the 1st Grade by way of cloth badge and official tie. ’.
The program of games that developed out of that original meeting in 1892 has led to the present-day AAGPS regulating twelve different ‘official’ sports, as well as managing various other ‘unofficial’ sports into other representative and pathway programs.
