LIAM PHILLIPS
IMMANUEL Lutheran School student
Will Cochrane says he has never
been a competitive runner, but that
didn’t stop him from taking a bronze
medal at this month’s SA School Sport
Cross Country Championship at Oakbank.
Will is the son of Central District great
Richard Cochrane, and while his running
prowess has definitely been bolstered by
his love of football, he has some impressive
athletic genes to back it up.
“I think I have good genes – my mum
was a state runner, my dad played SANFL
for the Doggies and my uncle (Stuart
Cochrane) played AFL for Port Adelaide,”
Will said.
“My dad, who is also my sports teacher
at Immanuel Lutheran Gawler, organised
some training sessions leading up to the
Oakbank race.
“During those training sessions we all
pushed each other and I am proud the other
Immanuel kids also ran amazing races – we
had 11 students from Immanuel who got to
run at Oakbank.”
Incredibly, the big race at Oakbank was
only the second race Cochrane had ever
competed in.
“The first race I ran was at Gawler
where the first six kids from each age
group got to go to Oakbank – I won that
race,” he said.
“I was feeling good about my chances
once I reached the top of the hill halfway
through the race… I might try it again next
year, but I just love playing footy at the
moment.”