Magazine - Shed Raider St Joseph's College

By Simon Kars in Shed Raider on 26th May 2009 6:00

Shed Raider
St Joseph's College - Hunters Hill, NSW

Head Groundsman – Bill Rawling
St Joseph's College has a team of six fully qualified employees.


The prestigious St Joseph's College Catholic School in Hunters Hill Sydney, has educated boys to become confident, intelligent and compassionate young men for the past 125 years. Bill Rawling and his team of ground staff and gardeners have maintained the school grounds to the highest of standards, which is reflected in the quality of sport played and the high number of elite sportsmen produced from the schools sport program. The college's highly acclaimed grounds include eight rugby fields, two football fields, eight great quality tennis courts, indoor and outdoor cricket nets, as well as five turf and six artificial cricket wickets.

Inside the Shed:
1x    John Deere 2653A Triple Mower
2x    Scott Bonnar Super Cut Cricket Wicket Mowers
2x    1100kg Wacker Cricket Wicket Rollers
1x    Old Bessie, 3 wheeled 2 tonne Cricket Wicket Roller (Built in 1919)
2x    Super Turf Line Markers
1x    John Deere 4x2 Petrol Gator
1x    Kubota L4300DT Front End Loader
1x    John Deere 4320 Tractor
1x    Hardi Sprayer
1x    4300Dt Kubota Tractor with Front end loader
1x    John Deere Z Track Rough Cutter
1x    Ransomes 5 Gang Ride on fairway mower

Favourite Machine: Old Bessie, 3 wheeled 2 tonne Cricket Wicket Roller



Bill and his team possess a small, yet organised shed which is all he needs to maintain the first-class Couch ('Santa Ana' and 'Legend'), Kikuyu and Ryegrass surfaces. The fantastic variety of machines and equipment in the shed enables the staff to tackle any task, with some machines certainly reflecting the saying, "Oldies but goodies"!

A handy tip we picked up from the St Joseph's College would be the tidy little containers above the work benches. These are available in most hardware stores and are great for storing spare parts and different screws and nuts.

St Joseph's College is a tribute to taking care of machinery, it just proves that regular services and looking after your equipment after you use it extends its life- or maybe we just don't build things like we used to? You have to wonder with relics like the precious old roller 'Bessie' that takes pride of place in the shed.



St Joseph's Collage Overall Grade: B
A well deserved pass for Bill and his team.

Read more articles in Shed Raider, by Simon Kars or from May 2009.