This year marked the 78th year of the Annual Berri Exchange between Mount Gambier High School (MGHS) and Berri Regional Secondary College.

The exchange which commenced in 1947 is the longest running public schools exchange in Australia and sees the schools compete for the honours of the Symonds Debating Shield and Carthew Sporting Cup.

The exchange began with the much anticipated virtual debate with the topic of this year’s debate “We should invest more money into space exploration”.

Mount Gambier High School argued as the negative team and the debate provoked a lot of interesting arguments and rebuttals.

The MGHS trio comprised of Callum McIntyre-Gregory, Caitlin Hitchon and Annapurna Anbu ended the debate victorious, but only by a tight, three point margin.

McIntyre-Gregory was awarded the medallion as Most Valuable Speaker.

The following day, both schools’ sporting teams met on mutual grounds in Bordertown to compete for the coveted Carthew Sporting Cup.

The schools played off in a variety of sports over seven matches including Boys and Girls Soccer, Boys and Girls Basketball, Division A and B Netball and Boys Football.

All matches were played in great spirit and the competition was extremely tight.

The Division A Netball and Girls Basketball competitions finished in nail-biters with the Mount Gambier High School girls coming from behind in both games during the last quarters to steal the wins.

Unfortunately overall, Mount Gambier High School fell short, being defeated by Berri 3-4 in the day’s matches.

Mount Gambier High School special sports coordinator Abbey Duncan said throughout the exchange students took great pride in being representatives for their school and thrived in the competitive environment.

“The staff and students involved all have a common purpose, to play in their respective sports in the hopes of being successful and ultimately to come home with the cup, however we hold high value in the opportunity this exchange gives for both school communities to also continue developing strong social connections,” she said.

“We are extremely grateful for the Bordertown community, in particular the basketball and hockey associations and the football and netball clubs for allowing us to use their facilities, as well as contribute towards the organisation of the day.

“This event would not be able to take place if we did not have their help and support.

“All 69 students must be commended for friendly spirit and comradery with the Berri students, staff and the way they represented the school.”