Associated Independent Colleges


The Associated Independent Colleges, or AIC, is a group of independent secondary schools in south-east Queensland, Australia. With the exception of St Peters Lutheran College, AIC schools are all-boys schools.
The AIC was founded in 1998 as an athletic association for male secondary students. All eight colleges were formerly members of The Associated Schools, founded in 1956. Some colleges were originally members of the Metropolitan Catholic Schools Association, founded in 1934. The most prominent sports contested include rugby union, cricket and football, as well as swimming and track and field.

History

The Associated Independent Colleges was formed in 1998 with the first year of competition being 1999. All AIC members were previously in The Associated Schools. The TAS had expanded to include fifteen schools by the mid 1990s and the standard of competition was falling. The colleges with the strongest athletic programs in the TAS competition's top division moved to form the AIC.
After the AIC was founded, only one all-boys school remained in TAS, the now defunct Marist Brothers College Rosalie. In protest of the departure of the eight AIC schools from TAS competition, all TAS schools with a primary school attached withdrew from the Combined Independent Colleges association for private primary schools in 1998. Six of the Associated Independent Colleges were foundation members of the CIC.
The Combined Independent Colleges association was dissolved in 2013. Primary schools attached to AIC schools had previously competed against their Great Public Schools counterparts within the CIC, but the headmasters of the GPS and AIC associations expanded their respective competitions in 2014 to include primary students from grades 5–7.

Schools

Sports

There are currently ten sports officially contested within the AIC:
Four other sports are also offered:
Water polo is played as a social competition in Term 4. An invitational golf day is also held in Term 4, with the annual Gordon Balharry Shield awarded to the AIC school with the best team score on an adjusted handicap basis. Rugby league and Australian rules football competitions were introduced on a two-year opt-in trial basis for 2019.
Ashgrove, Iona and St Laurence's have traditionally been prominent in the rugby competitions, although Padua has enjoyed recent success. St Peters, Villanova and Padua have tended to field strong soccer teams. St Patrick's has had success in cross country and Ashgrove and Iona have won the most titles in athletics and swimming.
The sporting calendar for the AIC is split into terms:
The championships for swimming, cross country, track and field athletics and golf are held on a single day. The other sports are played in a round-robin format with each school playing all others once. Premierships in each grade, for age divisions from under 13 to open, are won by the teams with most points over the season. The premierships for the schools' first teams in each sport, particularly the First XV rugby, tend to attract the most interest.

Championships

Athletics (track and field)

Winning teams on aggregate points for all age groups:
YearWinner
1999Ashgrove
2000Iona
2001Iona
2002Iona
2003Ashgrove
2004Ashgrove
2005Ashgrove
2006Iona
2007Iona
2008Iona
2009Iona
2010Iona
2011Iona
2012St Edmund's
2013St Edmund's
2014St Edmund's
2015Ashgrove
2016Ashgrove
2017Ashgrove
2018Ashgrove
2019Ashgrove

Championships – Ashgrove, Iona, St Edmund's.

Cross Country

Winning teams on aggregate points for all age groups:
YearWinner
1999Iona
2000Iona
2001Iona
2002Ashgrove
2003St Laurence's
2004St Laurence's
2005Ashgrove
2006Iona
2007Iona
2008Ashgrove
2009Ashgrove
2010St Patrick's
2011Iona St Patrick's
2012Ashgrove St Patrick's
2013St Patrick's
2014Ashgrove St Patrick's
2015Iona
2016Iona
2017Ashgrove
2018Ashgrove
2019Ashgrove

Championships – Ashgrove, Iona, St Patrick's, St Laurence's.
indicates shared championship.

Swimming

Winning teams on aggregate points for all age groups:
YearWinner
1999St Peter's
2000St Peter's
2001Ashgrove
2002Ashgrove
2003Ashgrove Iona
2004Iona
2005Ashgrove
2006Ashgrove
2007Ashgrove
2008Ashgrove
2009Ashgrove
2010Ashgrove
2011Ashgrove
2012St Peter's
2013Ashgrove
2014St Peter's
2015Ashgrove
2016Ashgrove
2017St Peter's
2018St Peter's
2019St Peter's
2020St Peter's

Championships – Ashgrove, St Peters, Iona.
indicates shared championship.

Premierships

First XV Rugby

List of First XV premiers and runners-up:
YearPremiersRunners-up
1999Ashgrove*Padua
2000Iona St Peter'sSt Laurence's
2001Ashgrove St Laurence'sIona
2002Ashgrove*Villanova
2003Ashgrove*St Laurence's
2004Ashgrove*St Laurence's
2005Ashgrove*St Laurence's
2006Ashgrove*St Patrick's
2007Ashgrove*St Laurence's
2008St Laurence's*Ashgrove
2009Ashgrove IonaSt Laurence's Villanova
2010Villanova*Ashgrove St Laurence's
2011Ashgrove Padua St Edmund'sIona
2012St Peter's*Ashgrove
2013Iona*St Edmund's St Peter's
2014St Edmund's*Ashgrove Padua
2015Padua*Ashgrove
2016Padua*St Patrick's
2017Ashgrove*St Patrick's
2018Ashgrove Iona St Patrick'sVillanova
2019Ashgrove*PaduaSt Laurence'sVillanova

Premierships - Ashgrove, Iona, Padua, St Peters, St Laurence's, St Edmund's, St Patrick's, Villanova.
* indicates undefeated season.

indicates shared premiership for the year.

First XI Cricket

List of First XI premiers and runners-up:
YearPremiersRunners-up
1999IonaAshgrove
2000IonaVillanova
2001VillanovaSt Laurence's
2002VillanovaSt Laurence's
2003AshgroveSt Laurence's
2004IonaSt Laurence's
2005AshgrovePadua
2006IonaPadua
2007IonaSt Laurence's
2008St Laurence'sIona
2009AshgrovePadua
2010AshgroveSt Laurence's Villanova
2011AshgroveSt Patrick's
2012Ashgrove Iona Padua VillanovaSt Peter's
2013VillanovaAshgrove
2014Ashgrove*Villanova
2015AshgroveSt Patrick's Villanova
2016IonaSt Laurence's
2017St Laurence's*Ashgrove
2018Ashgrove St Patrick'sVillanova
2019Villanova*Ashgrove
2020St Patrick's*Villanova

Premierships - Ashgrove, Iona, Villanova, St Laurence's, St Patrick's, Padua.
* indicates undefeated season.

indicates shared premiership for the year.

First XI Football

List of First XI premiers and runners-up:
YearPremiersRunners-up
1999PaduaSt Laurence's
2000AshgrovePadua
2001PaduaSt Laurence's
2002St Laurence'sAshgrove
2003AshgrovePadua
2004AshgroveSt Laurence's
2005VillanovaIona
2006St Laurence's*Ashgrove
2007VillanovaSt Laurence's
2008AshgrovePadua
2009AshgroveSt Laurence's
2010AshgrovePadua
2011AshgroveVillanova
2012Villanova*St Laurence's
2013St Patrick's VillanovaPadua
2014St Peter's*
2015IonaSt Patrick'sSt Laurence's
2016St Edmund'sSt Patrick's
2017IonaSt Patrick's
2018IonaSt Patrick's
2019AshgroveSt Laurence's

Premierships - Ashgrove, Villanova, Iona, Padua, St Laurence's, St Patrick's, St Edmund's, St Peters.
* indicates undefeated season.

indicates shared premiership for the year.

First VI Volleyball

List of First VI premiers and runners-up:
YearPremiersRunners-up
1999St Edmund's
2000Villanova
2001Padua
2002Villanova
2003St Edmund'sAshgrovePadua
2004Ashgrove
2005St Edmund'sAshgrove
2006PaduaAshgrove
2007Ashgrove
2008St Edmund's
2009AshgroveSt Patrick's
2010AshgroveSt Edmund's
2011St Edmund'sAshgrove
2012St Laurence's St Peter's Villanova
2013St Peter's
2014St Laurence'sSt Peter's
2015St Patrick's*St Laurence's
2016Padua*St Laurence's
2017Ashgrove*
2018Iona*St Laurence's
2019Iona*Ashgrove
2020St Laurence'sPadua

Premierships - Ashgrove, St Edmund's, Padua, St Peters, Villanova, St Laurence's, Iona, St Patrick's.
* indicates undefeated season.
indicates shared premiership for the year.

First V Basketball

List of First V premiers:
YearPremiersRunners-up
1999Ashgrove
2000Ashgrove
2001St Edmund's
2002Ashgrove Villanova
2003Ashgrove
2004Ashgrove Villanova
2005Ashgrove IonaPadua
2006Ashgrove St Edmund's
2007Iona St Peter'sAshgrove
2008IonaPadua
2009Iona Padua VillanovaSt Laurence's
2010PaduaSt Laurence's
2011St Laurence'sPadua Villanova
2012VillanovaSt Patrick's
2013VillanovaAshgrove
2014Padua*St Patrick's
2015St Patrick's*St Peter's
2016Ashgrove*St Patrick's
2017Ashgrove St Edmund'sSt. Laurence's
2018AshgroveSt Edmund's
2019Villanova*St Edmund's

Premierships - Ashgrove, Villanova, Iona, Padua, St Edmund's, St Laurence's, St Patrick's, St Peters.
* indicates undefeated season.

indicates shared premiership for the year.

First IV Tennis

List of First IV premiers:
YearPremiersRunners-up
1999St Peter's
2000Villanova
2001PaduaAshgrove
2002Villanova
2003AshgrovePadua
2004Villanova
2005St Edmund's Villanova
2006St Patrick'sAshgrove
2007Ashgrove
2008Ashgrove
2009AshgroveSt Peter's
2010AshgroveSt Laurence's
2011AshgrovePadua
2012VillanovaAshgrove
2013St Peter'sVillanova
2014St Peter's
2015St Peter'sVillanova
2016St Peter's
2017St Peter's*Iona
2018St Peter's*Padua
2019St Peter's*Padua

Premierships - St Peters, Ashgrove, Villanova, Padua, St Edmund's, St Patrick's.
* indicates undefeated season.

indicates shared premiership for the year.

First IV Chess

The AIC chess competition began in 2004. List of First IV premiers:
YearPremiersRunners-up
2004Iona
2005St Laurence's
2006St Laurence's
2007PaduaSt Laurence's
2008Padua Villanova
2009St Laurence's
2010Ashgrove
2011St Edmund's
2012Ashgrove
2013Ashgrove
2014AshgrovePadua
2015Padua St Laurence'sAshgrove
2016PaduaSt Laurence's
2017VillanovaPadua
2018PaduaSt Peter's
2019VillanovaSt Peter's

Premierships - Padua, Ashgrove, St Laurence's, Villanova, St Edmund's, Iona.
indicates shared premiership for the year.

Other sports

First XVIII Australian football

The AIC competition was introduced on a trial opt-in basis for 2019. List of Open team winners:
YearWinnersRunners-up
2019St Laurence'sSt Patrick's
St Patrick’sSt Laurence’s

Notes:

First XIII Rugby league

The AIC competition was introduced on a trial opt-in basis for 2019. List of Open team winners:
YearWinnersRunners-up
2019AshgroveIona

Golf

Teams of up to five compete for the Gordon Balharry Shield. List of Open team winners since 2011:
YearWinnersRunners-upRef
2011Iona
2012IonaVillanova
2013Iona
2014St Patrick'sIona
2015Ashgrove
2016Villanova
2017Villanova
2018AshgroveSt. Edmund's
2019St. PetersSt. Laurence's

Water polo

Water polo is played as a social competition on an opt-in basis by AIC schools.

Other events

Aside from athletic competitions, the AIC has formed a community with many other interactions. Member schools participate in the QDU debating competition, various mission and social justice events, the Queensland Catholic Colleges Music Festival and other social functions.
As all AIC schools are of Christian denomination, an Ecumenical service is hosted each year by one of the schools on a rotational basis. It is attended by staff and student leaders representing each school.

Colleges