Image via Wikipedia
Image via WikipediaI attended the Rainey School in Magherafelt for a total of 6 years. I arrived there after passing the 11+ as my parents could not afford to send me to the Catholic boarding school at St Patricks Armagh. Pupils at the Rainey were predominantly Protestant. Every morning while the rest of the school had assembly the Catholic pupils ( about 20) attended the classroom of maths teacher Dr Gwilliam for religious education. The remainder of the school day religion did not crop up much as a topic of conversation. The Rainey school was not only academically successful but had athletics and rugby teams of a high standard.
During PE lessons we sometime went for long runs around the local streets and roads and I think it was during the first year at school that we had a cross country race (round the streets). I can still remember at the finishing line in the school yard being the first finisher in the 1st year pupils. I finished third behind Derrick Crothers (he was good at nearly everything) and John Bole both of whom were in the second year.
The school had a large playground at the front of the school. During the dinner break someone started throwing a small rubber ball in the air covering about thirty yards. ( A bit like the invention of rugby at Rugby school). The idea was to catch the ball in the air and throw it back. So 2 groups developed mostly the same individuals. I remember Henry Diamond, John Brennan, myself and other Gaelic football players being in the forefront of this 'game'. There was a highly competitive spirit engendered from this activity, could have contributed to the sporting success of some of these students in future years.
There was a grocers shop at the lower end of Rainey street opposite the side entrance to the Rainey school. Ever since I started at the school pupils used to cross to this shop during morning break to buy cakes etc especially snowballs which were very popular at the time. I believe the school was not in favour of this practice.
The last year I was at the Rainey I was made a prefect and we were allotted use of a room overlooking this shop. One wintry morning there had been a heavy snowfall and coincidentally a delivery of bread to the shop. The van had the bread arranged on pull out drawers and while these were being emptied someone, allegedly a pupil, had thrown snowballs into the breadvan.
When the head read out at the morning assembly that someone had 'thrown snowballs in the bread mans drawers' this was greeted with howls of laughter. I cannot remember anyone being caught for this offence. Such was life in the fifties and as prefects only the occasional pupil smoking behind the music room created a stir.
During PE lessons we sometime went for long runs around the local streets and roads and I think it was during the first year at school that we had a cross country race (round the streets). I can still remember at the finishing line in the school yard being the first finisher in the 1st year pupils. I finished third behind Derrick Crothers (he was good at nearly everything) and John Bole both of whom were in the second year.
The school had a large playground at the front of the school. During the dinner break someone started throwing a small rubber ball in the air covering about thirty yards. ( A bit like the invention of rugby at Rugby school). The idea was to catch the ball in the air and throw it back. So 2 groups developed mostly the same individuals. I remember Henry Diamond, John Brennan, myself and other Gaelic football players being in the forefront of this 'game'. There was a highly competitive spirit engendered from this activity, could have contributed to the sporting success of some of these students in future years.
There was a grocers shop at the lower end of Rainey street opposite the side entrance to the Rainey school. Ever since I started at the school pupils used to cross to this shop during morning break to buy cakes etc especially snowballs which were very popular at the time. I believe the school was not in favour of this practice.
The last year I was at the Rainey I was made a prefect and we were allotted use of a room overlooking this shop. One wintry morning there had been a heavy snowfall and coincidentally a delivery of bread to the shop. The van had the bread arranged on pull out drawers and while these were being emptied someone, allegedly a pupil, had thrown snowballs into the breadvan.
When the head read out at the morning assembly that someone had 'thrown snowballs in the bread mans drawers' this was greeted with howls of laughter. I cannot remember anyone being caught for this offence. Such was life in the fifties and as prefects only the occasional pupil smoking behind the music room created a stir.
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