Connor Garden-Bachop: How the Highlander summed up the best of school sport

Connor Garden-Bachop (Ngāti Awa) was a poster child for what’s good about school sport and he has left an indelible mark on First XV rugby. There was a great deal of sadness last Tuesday when this Māori All Black, Highlanders and Wellington winger – affable, athletic, handsome and impish – passed away following a “medical event” at the tragically young age of 25. In 2015, when asked by this writer how Scots College could repeat their 2014 National Top Four winning success, Garden-Bachop replied: “Have fun, you never know what could happen.

” And as it happened, Scots nearly repeated their national triumph that season, falling to Rotorua Boys’ High School 27-36 in a breathless final in Rotorua. Garden-Bachop scored 20 tries in 15 matches en route to the decider. A freewheeling Scots team won 20 out of 24 matches and scored 1026 points.



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