San Andrea School has once again completed another part of its building projects. This time it is its multi-purpose sports grounds as part of the sports facilities.
The area has been developed to include several sports for the students and the public to practise and compete in. The following facilities are available:
¤ two synthetic five-a-side football pitches or one seven-a-side synthetic football pitch;
¤ a four-lane rubber athletics track;
¤ two mini basketball rubber courts;
¤ two full-size rubber volleyball courts;
¤ one concrete tennis court;
¤ one concrete full-size basketball court;
¤ a sand pit area; and
¤ a shot put area.
All include canteen and shower facilities. The grounds will be made use for a number of different sports as part of the PE programme.
The following sports will be covered: basketball, football, volleyball, handball, and athletics. A four-week programme will be tackled for each sport with a fifth week for assessments.
House colour tournaments for football, basketball and handball will also be practised in the new facilities for both boys and girls. These tournaments are very popular with the pupils as points are awarded for the respective colour.
For the first time the school's annual sports day will be held there. All athletic events will be practised in both heats and finals.
The school is involved in several school competitions for both boys and girls of different age categories. This year, now that San Andrea has excellent sports facilities, several tournaments and matches will be hosted there.
The school got several positive results in last year's tournaments and hopefully we will repeat the same success this year.
During the year each school team has several training sessions after school. These are taken very seriously by the students who try and fight for a place in the team they represent. All sessions will be held after school on the school's pitches.
A number of matches both for female and male teachers will be held during the year against the students in basketball and football. These matches are very competitive and fun to watch.
A PE camp will be held for grade 11 students of PE options in May. This camp is based on a three-day programme covering several lessons from the PE syllabus for their 'O' level. Once again all sessions will be held at school with the exception of swimming.
San Andrea School offers a variety of extracurricular sports activities. These activities are optional for anyone to chose and practise all year round. A total number of 20 sessions will be given in a year, covering basic skills and game strategies of that particular sport.
For the first time an athletics club has been formed. Students joining the club will be offered two after-school sessions a week.
Students can choose from sprint events, middle/long distance runs, throwing and jumping events.
Students will take part in the national cross country races and also the track and field events that are organised by the Malta Amateur Athletics Association (MAAA). These competitions start in October and finish in May.
Other sports practised during the year are rugby, cricket and hockey, all of which can be practised on the school's synthetic turf.