Now that New Zealand and the world are opening up, we can revisit one of our favourite High Achiever features, our International Students.

Year 13 student Louie Sinclair is the first new International Student from overseas in 28 months to attend HBHS. He is set to depart in August after four months here, so we caught up with him in the last week of Term 2 on a cold and wet Tuesday afternoon to find out how this experience has been for him.

Louie comes to us from Finborough School, Stowmarket, near the university town of Cambridge in the south of England. Both Louie’s parents, James and Louise, work at the school, and he has a younger brother, Ollie, who also attends. Finborough is a very different institution than HBHS, as it is a co-educational boarding school for students aged 2 to 18, with around 600 students on its roll. It’s definitely a family affair, with Louie’s cousins also attending the school. He was drawn here by the rugby, with the HBHS Rugby programme recommended by none other than Wayne Smith, and according to Louie, it has more than lived up to its reputation as an awesome rugby school.

Like Smith, Louie plays first-five-eighth, and for the past four months has been boarding with fellow 1st XV backline member Brodie Robinson and his family. He has found it hard being away from his family, but being at the Robinson household has definitely helped him to enjoy the experience, and he is very grateful for their support. The best thing as far as he’s concerned about being in New Zealand has been the people. According to Louie the cultures are pretty similar, he appreciates how relaxed and chilled everyone is here, and he says it’s pretty hard to find an arrogant or unpleasant Kiwi. This is not Louie’s first visit to New Zealand, as he has been here twice before, and follows in his father’s footsteps, with James having studied in Christchurch. He has thoroughly enjoyed all aspects of the experience, including coaching the Year 9 Elite Sports class, being involved in the International Students Rugby Programme, and playing in the 1st XV environment under our coaching staff.

Louie heads back to complete his Year 13 studies in England, and will then look to secure a professional rugby contract. He already plays in the Saracens Academy, so the dream would be to play for the north London club. When asked if he would recommend the International Student experience at HBHS, Louie gave a resounding “yes”, and described the experience as being “once in a lifetime.”

We thank Louie for sharing his experiences with us, and wish him every success as he returns to England to finish his studies and launch his rugby career.