School day memories

10:32am Thursday 7th February 2008

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I WAS interested to see the article about Poacher, the country and western group.

One of the members, Allan Crookes, went to Boteler Grammar School with me One day when the class was performing particularly badly in our education, our form master Mr Phoenix, went around the class generally giving us all a civilised roasting for being basically bone idle at school.

He asked us what did we think we would do as jobs when we left school. I told him I wanted to be a professional cyclist. He then noticed Allan looking at a piece of music and not listening to him. "And you Crookes, will never be a musician!" he shouted. Well I never became a professional cyclist but Allan made it as a musician.

I later met that form master when I was 45 and told him about Allan. He was not too surprised and said he wanted us all to do well and that was why he had pushed us on occasion.

The only good thing I suppose is that I am semi retired at 55 and did make something out of my education, even though I could have done better if I had listened to our form master Mr Phoenix.

GEORGE F McKIE Great Sankey