Academic Year 2017-2018
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Contents Introduction from the Head . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 01 Reflections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 02
Academic Academic Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . College Celebrates Excellence. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Art . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Classics. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Design and Technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Economics and Business Studies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . English. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Geography. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Government and Politics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . History. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . History of Art. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mathematics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Modern Foreign Languages. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Music. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Psychology. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Science. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sports Science . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Theology, Philosophy and Ethics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Theatre Studies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Speech Day Prizes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
05 05 06 10 10 13 13 14 15 15 16 16 16 17 18 18 21 21 22 23
Co-Curricular Activities. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CCF. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Drama. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Duke of Edingburgh’s Award . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Music. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Societies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Third Form Challenge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
25 26 28 29 31 33 34
College Community Archives. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Chapel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Charities. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 Supported Schools. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 Community Action. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 Chatfeild-Roberts Library. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 Internationalism. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Houses Ashmead. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Boyne House. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Chandos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Christowe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . College Lawn. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Hazelwell. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Leconfield. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Newick House. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Queen’s. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Southwood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Westal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
46 48 50 52 54 56 58 60 62 64 66
Sport Athletics. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 Badminton. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70 Basketball . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70 Cricket. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70 Equestrian. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 Footall. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76 Girls Fitnes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77 Golf. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 Hockey. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 Netball. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90 Polo. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95 Rackets. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96 Rowing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97 Rugby. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98 Shooting. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105 Squash. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106 Swimming. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107 Tennis. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108 Water Polo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111 The Cheltonian Society. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112 Creative Writing Prize. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
Valete Our fond farewells. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
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In recent weeks we have celebrated, with our pupils, their excellent examination results and well-deserved places at the universities of their choice. Whilst we have had every cause to celebrate, 2018 is also a time to look back and remember those who sacrificed so much that we could live the lives we live today. As we look back at the centenary events commemorating the end of the First World War, and look forward now to Armistice day, we must never forget that the 702 Old Cheltonians who did not survive the war, probably saw the best days of their lives in this place. We owe it to them to take pride in all that we do. To quote from the Washington memorial to another damaging war, Korea (195053), ‘Freedom is not free’. We are in debt to them and to others. A depth of variety in co-curricular activity has been a treasured facet of Cheltonian life since its foundation. As I follow in the footsteps of some truly great Headmasters of the past, I believe that breadth in education is sacrificed at our peril. There is much evidence to suggest that pursuing a number of different interests in addition to the rigours of academic work, no matter how demanding they are, encourages our young people to be interesting, cultured and versatile. Cheltonians play as hard as they work, set their sights high, and fill every moment with activity, whilst still remaining outward looking and inwardly reflective individuals. You will see more than adequate proof of that here I am sure.
Mrs Nicola Huggett
Head’s Introduction Looking back at the achievements of the past academic year gives me an overwhelming sense of pride and excitement as the challenges of my first year as Head of Cheltenham College await. Whilst I am in no sense anything like a professional athlete, I wonder if I have shared, over these last few months of anticipation, the feelings of those waiting in the Long Room of Lords, the locker room of Wimbledon or the paddock of Aintree. The breadth of opportunity that awaits all those lucky enough to call themselves Cheltonians (which I now count myself amongst their number), is breath-taking.
There is no doubt that the determination, commitment and creativity of our current Cheltonians shines through these pages. It is the Head’s privilege to be able to experience and enjoy all the many activities and challenges that the members of our community set themselves throughout the year. I look forward to experiencing these for myself in the coming months.
I look forward to many happy years in College, and as a community, we will now move forward, as we seek to bring our pupils the confidence to embrace change in a way that ensures they are ready to make their mark on what the future brings. Whilst retaining all the elements that we treasure and are renowned for, warmth, generosity, teamwork and a healthy competitive spirit, I look forward to working to reach new heights. I thank the editorial team for this wonderful magazine and I acknowledge that there is a very evident happiness factor here which stems from the satisfaction of a job well done.
Mrs Nicola Huggett
In these last few months, as I have begun this exciting journey, I have been impressed and inspired by the people I have met, both pupils and staff. Deep within the veins of College is a belief in and commitment to the community. This is certainly evident in the way in which our partnerships have developed both within the College and with our neighbouring schools and charities, especially All Saints’ Academy and St John’s Church of England Primary School. We have many plans afoot to develop these and other links, both here and abroad.
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REFLECTIONS Pupil Editorial
Abby Aitken, Pupil Editor
‘Optima… dies… prima fugit.’ (Virgil) Looking back at my four years at College, every year seems to have gone by faster than the last. Possibly it’s the increasing time that we invest in school work, co-curricular activities, or being with friends. If you wanted to view it analytically, the French philosopher Paul Janet suggested that as we age, years seem to fly by at an escalating rate. As you grow older, each year equates to a smaller fraction of your whole life; while a year for a one year old is 100% of their life, a year at age 18 constitutes just 5.56% of a lifetime. If you wanted to view it sentimentality, perhaps familiarity makes time seem to pass ever faster; an hour of socialising with people you’ve never met before, in the first week of Third Form, can feel longer than an entire weekend spent with your closest friends in the Upper Sixth; a GCSE or A Level exam can feel longer than the two put together. One can also experience the sense of time reaching forward, and into the future. When I was in Third Form (sitting on the front bench, in the block of pews nearest the altar, avoiding eye contact with or, alternately, seeking it out, from the boys across the aisle), I recall holding the crest-embossed hymn book and thinking, ‘I’m gonna have to see this crest almost every day for the next five years.’ Part of the idea filled me with dread – five years? Half a decade? A third of my life so far? But overriding this was the vast sense of lineage. It is overwhelming to think how many thousands of people my age have sat in this chapel, in these pews; how many have belted out Jerusalem, stared up at the crack in the ceiling, and dare I say it, felt their heavy eyelids close (on occasion) during sermons. College has a rich history and wealth of tradition and, sitting there in that front pew, I remember connecting with it. I was now a part of it. Just as important as its heritage and sense of past, perhaps more so, is College’s commitment to progress. With this in mind, I am sure that
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I am not alone in sharing the excitement of living through the historical precedent of the appointment of College’s first female Head, Mrs Huggett. This magazine, The Cheltonian, itself dates back to 1866 and has always been filled with the works and goings-on of our busy community, this year continuing the feat. As we celebrate the academic year of 2017/2018 in these pages, here’s to another year of prosperity and flourishing at Cheltenham College: after all, it’ll be over in the blink of an eye. As Virgil reminds us in his Georgics, ‘the best days of life are the first to fly’.
Winner of the JacksonMatthews Chapel Prize for Best Address Theo Taylor on Regret
spending all that time in the gym with still no results with the ladies! So, what is ‘regret’? It could mean two things: you can regret something that you have done that you feel you shouldn’t have, something you wish you could put right again; or it could be that you regret something you have not done, a missed opportunity. Regrets, by their very nature, are subjective; so much depends on who is looking at the situation. One of the biggest regrets I have in my life so far is not spending more quality time with my mother before she died. Not only this, but I regret not thanking her enough for everything she did for me. Now the reason that this regret in my life is subjective is because if you were to ask anyone who knows me well, they would disagree and argue that I did as much as any 11-year-old could, to make her life happier and easier, and to thank her for how she raised me. Even so, it is still a deep regret of mine… Many of you will have regrets that have a huge effect on you. However, these may well seem insignificant to others. Everyone sees each situation differently from the next - that is just human nature. What is crucial is that you make sure that you prevent these regrets from having a negative impact on your everyday lives. We all make mistakes, have struggles and regret things we did or didn’t do in the past. Don’t let your regrets shape the person you become. Learn from the mistakes, correct them if you can, but most of all, move past them.
Good morning, I want to start this talk by asking everyone in this chapel to think of the biggest regret you have. If you knew that today was your last day at College, what regrets would you have and what would you change if you were able to go back in time and do things differently? The first thing that pops into my head is why on earth did I volunteer to stand up here, on a lectern far too small for me to talk in front of 800 people who would much rather be on half term. However, I hope the majority of you will be able to take something positive, or even helpful, away from this Chapel talk. In preparation for this, I gathered opinions from a few of the Upper Sixth. Let me share just a few of their biggest regrets: not working hard enough for exams; caring too much about what others thought; saying something unnecessary to hurt others; not putting enough effort into something they’ve loved; social media posts;
Now, I want you all to think about some of the things you have achieved in your life and in your time here at College. Whether your achievements are great or small and even if you think they may be insignificant to others, remember this: if they mean something to you, then that is what makes them important and why they should be treasured. I want to urge you all to make the most of the opportunities you have at this school. Don’t leave College regretting that you could have done more or even regretting doing something that you wish you hadn’t. For those in the lower years, try new things as early as possible, have a go at a new sport, take up a new hobby and as you progress through the school, attempt things outside your comfort zone. Be respectful to your peers, thankful to your teachers and parents and make friends with people you have never spoken to before, even, do a Chapel talk! You never know, you may uncover your passion, create a friend for life or achieve something of which you never even thought you were capable. If you do these things, I hope you will be moving on from this great institution to the next stage in your life knowing that you made the most of your opportunities and that you have no regrets.
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Best Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) How is the status of women changing in the conservative culture of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia? Romy Bodington The aim of my EPQ was to demonstrate the extent of the changing status of women in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). Due to restricted access to KSA, we have been reliant on the western media’s portrayal of women as conforming to the strict rules and traditions of their Kingdom. My approach to this project was to research through literature the extent of suppression of women in KSA under four factors: political, religious, social, economic and whether these are combining to enable true gender equality and if so, how. Living in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, I was able to supplement this research with observations as to what extent this is true through interviews. Saudi women continue to be subject to overriding deference to religious beliefs and although not empowered politically, they can be a dominant social force, increasingly contributing to the economy, and fundamentally changing the culture of KSA as it closes in on the year 2030 and King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and Prince Mohammad bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud’s 2030 Vision. The artefact I subsequently produced was made using an array of artistic techniques and processes such as acrylic painting, sponging, powder painting, Arabic calligraphy and printing. The final piece contains as many findings from my research as possible: the growing modernisation and variation of the abaya (the ankle length over-garment that women wear in Saudi Arabia) and hijab (the scarf covering the hair), the beauty of the Arabian woman and the iconic Arabic calligraphy, all combining to form an independent woman displayed in a portrait format. With the careful use of colours, these illustrate my findings on the changing status of women in Saudi Arabia.
The fabrics used for the abaya allowed for a different dimension and thus brought the piece to life. Its presence in the image shows that religion is here to stay and the values of the country will stay the same. However, from my reading of ‘Vision 2013’, the items I rendered on the abaya show some of the changing social norms, aims and new opportunities women will have in the Kingdom, such as being able to drive. The mystical appearance of the background emphasises the fact that this is not a current depiction of the status of Saudi women. This is an amalgamation of the past, present and future statuses of Saudi women and what factors are affecting them. I also included Arabic calligraphy within the background as I learned from my interviewees that this is a common feature in Saudi art. All in all, the EPQ was an enthralling experience, perhaps especially as it was the first time I was able to research a topic of my choice and to develop my skills as a writer and thinker; great preparation for university. I really valued all the opportunities this challenge presented to me and I encourage anyone to complete this qualification to the best of your ability!
The final artefact and its symbolism: watercolour face in black and white. I chose to do this to emphasise the idea of ‘blank expression’. I felt this was necessary as every person within Saudi has contrasting outlooks on equality in the Kingdom. In doing this I am therefore not siding with any view and have kept the painting as a neutral opinion so a wider range of people are able to understand and connect with my work. I chose to do the face in watercolour paints because I believe them to be more elegant, flowing and feminine and are therefore better suited to my title. I also decided to make the eyes of the woman blue, as many of the Saudi women wear coloured contacts adding another relatable aspect for the Saudi Arabian Women. The idea behind the multi-coloured headscarf is to stress the beauty of the Muslim faith, as the true Saudi power is their faith. Their love of and devotion to their religion is amazing and something that has been lost with time in western cultures. I think this is a monumental and applaudable aspect to highlight. In like manner, the use of colour epitomises the way for increased variety and individualism in outfits to come, and not just in their eye make-up which is a current key aspect of their look today.
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ACADEMIC Exam Results A Level 48% of grades awarded were A*-A 76% of grades awarded were A*-B 13 pupils achieved 2 A*s or more 2 pupils achieved 4 A*s
GCSE 38% of grades awarded were A*(or numerical equivalent) 68% of grades awarded were A*-A (or numerical equivalent) One third of pupils gained 5A* or more (or numerical equivalent) 8 pupils achieved straight A* (or numerical equivalent)
The academic opportunities on offer within the holistic context of a 24/7 boarding school are inescapable, though it is the quality of our pupils’ engagement with these opportunities, their work with each other, and with their teachers, that allows for the creation of that individualised, unique environment in which pupils develop the academic habits and routines that will enable them to really thrive as they progress through College. Academic maturity and discipline come about almost naturally given our pupils’ frequent encounters with their teachers, and these positive scholarly features have really allowed for our pupils’ independence to flourish this year. In the year where Computer Science has arrived on our curriculum for the first time, we continue to see the development of academic rigour and autonomy beyond the more traditional elements of our timetable. Our Lower Sixth has really embraced the Extended Project Qualification (EPQ). Through the EPQ, students have developed an invaluable toolkit of skills and attitudes, not least the confidence to be increasingly self-sufficient and to think more for themselves. As a learning opportunity, it is by far one of the most effective and pioneering parts of our Sixth Form curriculum in terms of preparing students for their academic lives in the Upper Sixth and beyond College. This year’s projects represented wide areas of research, dealing, for example, with artificial intelligence, autism, the representation of women in Saudi Arabia, and the role of sport in raising self-esteem.
The theme of the Third Form Head’s prize was Floreat and pupils produced a fantastic array of work from posters to paintings and from poems to plays. Our Third Form pupils are developing some very promising skills of setting and meeting deadlines and reflecting at length on how they manage longer-term projects. This year’s winner was Louise James. In the coming year, we will continue to value independent research and academic investigation as essential strands of our curriculum.
Mr Simon Brian
College Celebrates Excellence Once again, students at College have shown persistence, depth and determination in their relentless pursuit to gain places at the most prestigious institutions for their chosen discipline.
Oxford and Cambridge Success This year we celebrate success across numerous academic Departments and congratulate the following students on their very fine achievement: Anna McIntyre is to read Geography at Newnham College, University of Cambridge. Thomas Maddinson to read History at Trinity Hall, University of Cambridge. Charles O’Bryan to read Human, Social and Political Sciences at Fitzwilliam College, University of Cambridge. Jack McClure to read Law at St Anne’s College, University of Oxford. Benedict Schallamach to read Natural Sciences at Gonville and Caius, University of Cambridge. Mr Chuen Leik Low (2015-2017, Xt) to read Computer Science at Jesus College, University of Cambridge. Miss Theresa Grafin Pachta (OC 2013-2017, W) to read Theology at Regent’s Park College, University of Oxford.
Floreat This year, several initiatives within Floreat deserve special mention. It is very satisfying to observe greater pupil-involvement in the programme; as a response to pupil interest, we have been fortunate in securing some excellent speakers to address pupils on specific topics they requested. Such topics include emotional health, the impacts of drug abuse, sexual health and preparation for life beyond College, to name but a few. Furthermore, pupils have not only shown increased involvement through the range of Chapel addresses they have given, but Heads of Houses have helped to run some of the Floreat
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sessions alongside Tutors. This initiative is likely to continue, as younger pupils appreciated the input of older students, who they feel relate very well to the experiences they are having. During our Open to Opportunities week held towards the end of the Autumn Term, pupils and staff were reminded to take an opportunity every day to do something to support their mental health and wellbeing. Posters with mental health messages were displayed, and green ribbons signifying mental health were worn for the week. Many pupils took the opportunity to learn a new skill, with cooking ranking high on the ‘desirable skills for development’ list! Equality and diversity is another theme that has characterised the year. Most of the year-group programmes have included LGBTQ-related topics. Student leadership has also seen the emergence of a discussion forum called ‘Civ Soc’, a student-led group that discusses a range of topics relating to societal and cultural issues in a respectful and inclusive way. The group’s success is an excellent example of shared leadership and responsibility, and already, leaders are emerging to take it forward into the new year. College was awarded the Gloucestershire Healthy Living and Learning’s ‘Mental Health Champions Award’, an achievement that we are proud of: flourishing is a central aim for each individual.
Dr Mary Plint
ART ‘Creativity is contagious, pass it on,’ Albert Einstein We started the academic year with incredible A Level results in Art for 2016-17: 75% A* and 25% A. One hundred per cent A*-A will be difficult to follow, but I am sure we and our students will always strive our hardest. At GCSE we achieved 78% A*-B, well above the national average of 50%. With these results buoying up the Department, the emphasis of completing excellent coursework was at the forefront of our exam pupils’
minds, and they did so with gusto, inspiring lower years and vice versa in the process. It has been a bumper year for external exhibitions of pupil work. In July/August 2017 we exhibited a selection of Fifth and Sixth Form work at the de Ferrieres Gallery at the Wilson. In January, all Sixth Form students exhibited work Trinity House Modern in Broadway, Worcestershire, the second of our annual partnership with Trinity House art dealers. In April, a selection of Fourth Form and above exhibited sculptures at the Fresh: Contemporary Art Fair at the Racecourse, where we were the only school to be asked to exhibit. Several pupils have sold work to private collectors through these external opportunities, reflecting the high standard of the work artists at College create. We continue to encourage our pupils to explore and develop skills in oil painting; printmaking; observational drawing; Photoshop and digital media; ceramics; glass fusing; and plaster construction to name a few processes and promote these through an exciting programme of exhibitions in the Thirlestaine Long Gallery (TLG) and the White Gallery, two exhibitions per year group, plus the new ‘A6 Show’ as part of Open to Opportunities week. We are delighted with the attitude and level of curiosity our pupils have, and it reaffirms our philosophy that creativity cannot be taught but must be nurtured. Constantly instructing through whole-class direction naturally dims creativity for some, and limits curiosity and innovation for all. Whole-class teaching, used across the country, inevitably develops a reliance upon teacher direction, where pupils are taught something ‘right’ by the teacher’s instruction. In contrast, a major aspect of Art assessment is to create a ‘personal response’ and we insist pupils begin to develop this independence of thought immediately in Third Form. This year’s Third Form theme has been ‘Identity’. For the second-year running, we have successfully lead a foundation course across the three disciplines in Art: ceramics, Fine Art and printmaking. Pupils have worked across the three disciplines in Art, developing and discovering new abilities, experiences and confidence. We collaborated with Modern Foreign Languages (MFL) to develop visual
and verbal communication upon the theme, resulting in many languages being represented in work generated by pupils and which was subsequently exhibited in the MFL foyer in November 2017. The second Third Form exhibition in TLG, in February, combined with the Head’s Project, was especially well attended by pupils and parents and highlights sheer talent in next year’s cohort. Arcadia Spectacular visited us in February to talk to pupils about working as a ‘creative’. The Bristol-based company tours the globe at major music events with its signature animatronic spider that stands 40 metres high, breathes fire, and captures members of the audience. It made its debut at Glastonbury, 10 years ago, and has evolved into a moving pyrotechnical feat complete with acrobats, lighting and theatrical effects. There was something for everyone! Obviously, this was a major coup for the Art Department and continues to be talked about! Recently, we hosted sculptor Ms Sophie Elizabeth Thompson to talk to our pupils. Commissioned and collected globally, she discussed her work and progression to this status since studying Ceramics at university. Her talk covered learning beyond education, self-promotion, self-belief, and making money as an artist. Truly inspiring. March was a busy month of trips for our examination years: Fourth Form groups visited the Pitt Rivers and University Museums in Oxford and were stunned by the variety of anthropological and natural artefacts from around the world. Pupils made observational drawings, photographs and watercolour studies to inform the beginning of their personal project that continues until December. They will focus, to their highest ability, on using mediums of their choice. As part of their exam unit, the Fifth Form visited Tate Britain, where inspiration and ideas in modern and traditional art, sculpture and fine art were sought to progress their work, whilst the Sixth Form visited the Tate Modern and its Switch Tower to develop ideas for their exam unit, too. The visits culminated in a fantastic Summer Show where installations, glass fusing, large-scale oil paintings and lighted sculptures were exhibited. Our departmental philosophy is to enable pupils to be powerful in intellectual inspiration Third Form Fine Art lesson
students with their work at Fresh Art Fair
Jude Bridge, Fresh Art Fair
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as well as technical ability and to encourage independent work in an art-school setting. This premise is, indeed, reflected in the vitality of the Department, and the variety of work in our end-of-year Summer Show at Speech Day. The Private View to the Summer Show with Design and Technology (DT) was launched by our visiting artist from Barcelona, Ms Sophie Elizabeth Thompson, who talked to pupils earlier in the week. She outlined many careers in which creativity is useful, if not essential, providing lots for us all to think about.
As this year draws to a close we celebrate the fact that seven of our nine A Level students are continuing their arts studies at Further or Higher Education levels. We are incredibly proud of Iman Mirza, Phoebe Janes, Kelly Tang and Oliver Smith, who’ve all been offered places at Central St Martins, University of Edinburgh, Camberwell College of Arts and University College London, respectively. Jane Ng beat off stiff competition in her application to the University of Bath for Architecture and Lili Sell is looking forward to pursuing a Foundation in Art before determining
her course for university. Isobel Turner has been awarded a place to study Fashion Marketing at the University of Leeds. All that’s left to say is ‘Good bye and good luck’ to those students moving on from College, and ‘Thank you’ to my team, who always have the pupils’ interests at the forefront of their endeavours, and parents, who have to deal with the creative expressions of their teenagers who study art! Have a great summer break.
Ms Jo Millar Tuesday Roberts
Tilly Wood
Sid Mitchell
Bhavishya Gem
Bridget Fong
Theo Kace
Third Form ceramics
Iman Mirza
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Yuriko Fukuda
Imaan Khyra
Robin Wang
Lili Sell
Iman Mirza
Tomiris Marabayava
Ciara Ward
Phoebe Janes
Georgie Mclaren
Michael Tsang
Molly Corbett
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Fourth Form visit to Oxford University Museum
Mia Naylor
Kit Ely
Matilda Dunkerton-Bennett
Lettie Robinson
Gigi Seetoo
Kimberley Suchonvanich
Marina Pitman
Isobel Turner
Molly Clarke
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Classics It was a year of arrivals for the Classics Department, as the new GCSEs and A Levels kicked off in all three examined subjects. Sanskrit Activity (all years) and the Ancient History Elective (Lower Sixth) were on offer for the first time, and we welcomed Mr Andrew Hollingbury, Mr Alexander Ffinch and Mr Robert Walker to the Department. We are fortunate to have so many robust and ambitious pupils and colleagues, who continue to respond so positively to this period of change and challenge. The previous academic year, 2016-17, was also a terrific exam year for our classicists, as our Greek candidates averaged 97%, our Latinists 93%, and our Classical Civilisation pupils beat 85% in 27 of their 100 papers. The last time one of our Latinists achieved less than an A grade at GCSE was in 2014, and this year’s Fifth Form are determined to maintain the streak! Shakhin Zamani has put an ever-greater emphasis on fun at Classics Society, promoting a number of themed evenings and insisting on games and quizzes for each event. We enjoyed talks ranging from epic to isopsephy, and from Rameses to Ragnarok. It is a pleasure to see staff and pupils from all year groups stepping up to present, with our new ancient historians in particular coming to the fore. I am grateful to dedicated committee members such as Abby Aitken and Georgina Oates for creating posters, rehearsing talks and contributing their ideas. Incoming Presidents Izzy Kemp and Evie Webb have inherited some strong foundations as they look to drive events forward.
Our pupils enjoyed a theatre trip to Worcester to see a dystopian reimagining of Sophocles’ Antigone; the Gloucestershire Classical Association provided seminars on Ovid’s Amores; Sophocles’ Oedipus Rex, ‘Myths Made New’ and ‘Augustan Propaganda’. As ever, we are incredibly fortunate at College to benefit from in-house cross-curricular lectures such as ‘Shakespeare and the Classics’ with Sir Jonathan Bate and ‘The Brilliance of Bernini’ by our own Mr Nick Nelson, as well as sampling Cheltenham Literature Festival talks by Mr Robert Harris, Mr Peter Stothard and Ms Mary Beard on our own doorstep. This year looks set to be another exciting year of change for Classics, as our new Classical Civilisation A Levels and GCSEs both reach their final exams for the first time, and we welcome
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Mr Tom Lambert
Design and Technology, Textiles, and Resistant Materials This year the Design and Technology Department took on many new changes and developments. Mrs Kirstie Naish took on the role of leading the Department, after Mr David Lait stepped down from this role after four years of service. David is still a valued member of the teaching team and has been instrumental this year in leading the new A Level product design specification. We say goodbye to two members of the team this year, Miss Noleen Farmer and Mr Roger Leghorn. Noleen played a pivotal role in the running of the Textiles Department, both as a technician and teacher. Roger has been with Cheltenham College for a total of 24 years, being awarded an honorary Cheltonian tie on the last day of term for his service to College. Both staff members have played important roles in ensuring that pupils under their care and guidance flourish. It is with heavy hearts that we say goodbye to both of them: we wish them every happiness in their futures. Within the curriculum we have put in place substantial changes due to new specifications coming into play this academic year. Third Form have all had the opportunity to make a mini deckchair, including a wide range of materials and processes that will now appear in the new GCSE content. Third Form pupils also sat the very first end of year test, with some superb results.
In Fifth Form and Upper Sixth we completed the final year of the legacy specifications. Pupils created some stunning artefacts that were all displayed in the end of year Design and Technology and Art Show in the Thirlestaine Long Gallery (TLG). In Textiles A Level we saw Iman Mirza create a garment from scratch, designing her own pattern pieces and completing a sketchbook that was of degree standard. Lili Sell also created a dress that was ingeniously made up of three folding wire cubes. At GCSE we saw pupils such as Yuriko Fukuda create a two-piece garment that consisted of a leather jacket and mini skit. She battled with sequin fabric, breaking more needles than we have ever witnessed before! Thomas Chu created another complex garment out of moleskin fabric that had been hand-dyed. He also included his own laser cut wooden buttons to finish off this piece. In Resistant Materials (RM), Joshua Read made a desk lamp for his GCSE project. His product included an LED light and an iPhone charger. This project incorporated a wide range of skills including laminating, metal turning and milling, along with traditional wood working skills. At A Level, Hugo Oglina made a glass coffee table inspired by rowing boats, utilising his skills when forming materials to a very high standard. Edward August made a highly original storage unit incorporating a large tree salvaged from his family’s farm. He mixed resin with this to create a very unique top to his project, including LED strip lights to finish it off. It has been a wonderful year and all the DT pupils should be very proud of their achievements. As the new specifications continue to be followed into the first making stages in the next academic year, we look forward to seeing where the next instalment in the world of Design Technology will take us.
Mrs Kirstie Naish William Stanton
The ‘County Classics’ squad swept up at the Gloucestershire Classical Speaking Competition, with the largest medal haul of any school attending. Duncan Pinchen secured a Bronze as an impassioned Dido in Intermediate Latin while Izzy Kemp and Evie Webb doubled up, scooping two Bronzes and two Silvers between them in the Senior Latin and Greek categories. Minette Tombleson and Molly Krauer boldly went where no Cheltonian had gone before, making the final round and then winning the Junior Latin duologue for the first time ever. Not to be outdone, Sebastian Nihan-Bowen stole the show – and, in his absence, the title from Max Pemberton – with a Gold medal in Senior Latin.
the return of Reverend Dr Adam Dunning to the teaching of our Third Form. As we bid farewell to our 14 Upper Sixth leavers, we wish Genevieve Alltimes, Annabel Merheim-Kealy and Shakhin Zamani every success as they embark on potential Classical degrees, and hope that Izzy Kemp, Sebastian Nihan-Bowen and Evie Webb will meet with similar success as they make their own applications for Classics degrees this autumn.
In Fourth Form we began teaching from the new Design and Technology specification under the Edexcel exam board. Pupils have made some stunning lamps in the timbers area, along with full sized deck chairs in Textiles. The new specification requires pupils to understand and work with a wide variety of materials, outside of their material specialism. This year’s projects were designed to cater for this, in order for students to grasp new content that had not previously been covered. This gave the DT teachers an opportunity to work collaboratively to create projects that were both challenging and innovative. At the end of the Summer Term all Fourth Form DT pupils had a day off-timetable. They learned about electronics and levers, along with looking at product analysis in more depth. The Department was very pleased to run this exciting day and it will now continue on a yearly basis.
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Thomas Kinsella
Joshua Read
Jonathan Chai
Archie Garbutt
James Taylor-Kimmins
Paddy Merheim-Kealy
Timur Guliev
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Ivy Zhu
Yuriko Fukuda
Imogen Williams
Isla Flint
Grace Wackett
Iman Mirza
Imogen Williams
Kelly Tang
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Economics and Business The 2017/18 academic year has seen much excitement surrounding Economics and Business at College, with the Department hosting a number of influential guest speakers, with its bespoke Mini MBA programme going from strength to strength, with students and staff enjoying a number of trips and now looking forward to others planned for the future, and with the addition of Mr Todd Freedman into its teaching ranks. The year started with an enlightening Economics and Business Society meeting in which a panel of students interviewed the guest for the evening, OC Mr Bruce Carnegie-Brown (1968-1977, H), Chairman of Lloyd’s of London and Moneysupermarket Group, and Vice-Chairman of Banco Santander. They explored his views about a range of issues including financial regulation, Brexit and how to forge a successful career in the world of banking. This was followed by a fascinating talk about the ‘market for lemons’ by Professor John Sessions, former Head of the Department of Economics at the University of Bath, who has recently been appointed to the Sir David Dale Chair in Economics at the University of Newcastle; and then by a practical behavioural economics experiment on a sunny evening in May, examining how we respond to probabilistic choices, led by Dr Richard Fairchild, a Senior Lecturer in the School of Management at the University of Bath.
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In its second year, the Department’s expanded Mini MBA, a bespoke introductory course on business management, welcomed three Upper Sixth students from All Saints’ Academy and had a key focus on ethical enterprise running throughout it. This included a visit to Commercial Group’s social foundation at the outset and a mid-course consultative marketing challenge based on what the students had seen there. As in its inaugural year, the programme culminated with the participants working in small groups to pitch their own business ideas to a formidable panel of judges, this year consisting of Mr Carnegie-Brown, Mrs Nicola Huggett and Mr Crispin Dawson, once again in the intimidating setting of the boardroom at Smiths Group PLC in St James’ Square. From amongst the array of exceptionally impressive presentations, Charlotte Burns, Isabella Channing and Violet Robinson were selected as the worthy winners for their pitch launching their idea for ethical mannequins. The Mini MBA has not only continued to enrich business education at College, it has also further raised the profile of the Department nationally, drawing attention from a number of other institutions. The year is being rounded off with a trip to Weston’s Cider in the final week of term for those interested in business-related courses at university, including a guided tour of the production line and a talk about some of the issues being faced by the business, and with exciting plans in place for a return educational trip to Cuba in October. We wish Mr Steve Morton, who has been an absolutely integral and an exceptionally highly-
valued member of the Department for many years now, all the very best as he embarks on his well-earned retirement, and we warmly welcome Mr Adam Kydd who has just joined us.
Dr Graham Mallard
English The year has been an exciting period of transition for the English Department. Initially disrupted by the renovations to the Catering Department, we were temporarily homeless, but once again, staff and pupils have worked tirelessly to produce an array of wonderful pieces of writing on texts as diverse as Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five and established favourites such as George Eliot’s Silas Marner. The English Department has continued to offer Cheltonians a rich and vibrant programme of cocurricular opportunities. In September, 30 of the Sixth Form travelled to Stratford-upon-Avon to watch Angus Jackson’s production of Coriolanus at the Royal Shakespeare Company. The students also took a short pilgrimage to Shakespeare’s grave in Holy Trinity Church and attended a talk with the director before the event. Later in the year, a different group of Sixth Form students braved the ‘Beast from the East’ and made the treacherous journey from Cheltenham to Northampton’s Royal and Derngate Theatre to see Paapa Essiedu in the RSC’s acclaimed touring production of Hamlet.
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The fourth annual A.C Bradley Memorial Shakespeare Lecture was, once again, a great success with Sir Jonathan Bate, Provost of Worcester College, University of Oxford, joining us to deliver a thoroughly engaging address on the bard’s classical education. Over 250 pupils and staff from eight local schools, Cheltenham Ladies’ College, All Saint’s Academy, Pate’s Grammar School, Dean Close School, St Edward’s School, Oxford, and for the first time, Rendcomb College and Wycliffe College, joined us for the event. In a compelling exploration of the texts and culture which formed Shakespeare’s literary imagination, Sir Jonathan gave our students a wealth of material that has been used in subsequent work on our A Level set texts. It was also a vintage year for Dr Luke Davidson’s Literary Society. A committed group of pupils from the Fifth and Sixth Forms met regularly to discuss a diverse range of literary topics. This year’s programme included a visit from Richard Blair, the Patron of The Orwell Society (who spoke in great detail and blessed us with a number of humorous anecdotes about his father’s life), a visit from the author Nicky Browne, and a writing session linked to the work of Jane Austen. Certainly, however, the high point of the year was the event celebrating the 50th meeting of the Society (or Lit Soc ‘L’), a session based on literature inspired by the city of Rome (linked to a research trip taken by Dr Davidson last year). In what was a truly inspiring event, we listened to a reading of Dante’s Inferno (in Italian) from MFL’s PGCE student Miss Marie Ercolani and heard presentations on the work of Percy Bysshe Shelley from Paddy Christopher, Thomas Stanton, Oliver Pritchard, and Joshua Pimlott, John Keats by Abby Aitken and Jilly Woodward, Lord Byron from Jack McClure, and William Shakespeare by George Wells, Euan Bourhill, and Sam Hamilton. We are deeply grateful for all the time and energy Dr Davidson puts into the Literary Society, and would urge all Cheltonians to get involved next year.
in Reykjavik, we visited the Bridge between Continents, which marks the Eurasian and North American plate boundary. We were then on our way to the Blue Lagoon at dusk, where we made the most of the lava scrub and silica-rich facemasks on offer.
Thingvellir National Park was our final stop of the day, before more local swimming pools that evening. The final morning saw the group return to Reykjavik for a quick trip up the tower of Hallgrímskirkja Church before a final exploration of the town and the return to home soil.
Saturday’s highlights included an earthquake simulator, Skogafoss waterfall, a glacier walk on Sólheimajökull glacier (where we became acutely aware of the impacts of global warming) and the black volcanic beach of Reynisfjara, culminating in a glimpse of the Northern Lights over our hotel at Hella.
Back in College, our normal pattern of work continued, with our annual fieldtrips to Sand Bay (Lower Sixth) and the Forest of Dean (Fourth Form) in the Autumn Term, followed by Cadbury World (for all members of the Third Form) and Birmingham (Lower Sixth) in the Spring Term. We benefitted hugely from the weather in the Summer Term for the Fourth Form trip to Cheltenham to study urban environments, as pupils got to grips with the new technology of the Survey123 app. All the Lower Sixth were encouraged to make the most of their residential trip to Nettlecombe, in June in preparation for their Non-Exam Assessments (NEAs).
Sunday was just as busy; everyone began the day perfecting their pronunciation of Eyjafjallajökull as we drove past the sites of the 2010 eruption on our way to the Vestmannaeyjar Islands. This day trip has always been a staff highlight, and it didn’t disappoint. After a brief ferry crossing to Heimaey, we took a driving tour up to Stórhöfði, the windiest manned weather station on the planet, and then to the base of Eldfell. Everyone built up their appetite before lunch with a hike to the top, before a visit to the volcanic eruption museum (complete with ruins of one of the houses that were completely engulfed in 1973). The final stop was the island’s local swimming pools, before we crossed back to the mainland and visited two more impressive waterfalls: Seljalandsfoss and Gljúfrabúi. It’s hard to believe that Monday was busier still, taking in Keriô Volcanic Crater Lake, Geysir and Gullfoss waterfall before we all scrambled into underground lava tubes at Gjábakkahellir Cave.
Another particular highlight for the Geography Department was the news that Anna McIntyre was offered a place at Newnham College, University of Cambridge to read Geography, which is just reward for the incredible hard work she has put in during her two years at College. The Bingen Society is proving to be an excellent forum in which to really extend Geography beyond the confines of the syllabus. Five meetings have taken place this year, with talks from pupils across all year groups on a wide range of topics including: The positives of a sharing economy in China; The Windrush Generation and the comparison with current
Overall, the study of English at College continues to flourish and grow in vibrancy, both in terms of the teaching and learning and in the commitment that students and staff have shown to all the opportunities on offer. With a large group of students applying to read English at University next year, we look forward to all that 2018-19 will bring.
Mr Andrew Straiton
Geography It would be remiss of me to not begin this summary of the academic year with our main departmental highlight: the exceptional Iceland Expedition of October 2017. Mr Fraser Dobney may beg to differ though. Having organised an absolutely brilliant itinerary, the arrival of his son, Idris, meant that rather than leading the adventure, he remained in Cheltenham to celebrate his own personal highlight and handed over the reins to myself, Mr Simon Conner and Mr John Jones. It is testament to Mr Dobney’s hard work that all the pupils remarked that it was ‘the best College trip we have ever been on’. Having landed
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migration issues; updates on volcanic eruptions in Bali and Hawaii; children in Syria’s breadbasket region; and what can be done about Global Food Security? In the Spring Term, the Geography Department was delighted to welcome back Dr Peter Mackie from the University of Cardiff to speak about his work on refugees in urban Ethiopia, and we were also very fortunate to team up with the Careers Department to put on a talk by Old Cheltonian Ken Yeang, an ecologist, architect and sustainable designer who gave an excellent insight into one of the paths along which Geography can take you. Another highlight was the visit from Lewis Pugh, the UN Ambassador for the Oceans, to College at the end of the Spring Term to give an insight in to his accomplishments so far. Both pupils and parents alike were enthralled by his visit and he certainly inspired numerous individuals to ‘achieve the impossible’. We have also been lucky enough to welcome Ms Sarah Hayden to the Geography Department. She started with us in December and has been a huge asset to the team already. We are all hugely looking forward to working with her in the coming years. Mr Dobney will be replacing me as Head of Geography next academic year and I have no doubt that he will take the Department from strength to strength. I would like to take this opportunity to publicly thank him, and my colleagues in the Department, for all of their support, good humour and resilience throughout the past two years; they have been an exceptional team to manage and I believe that our hard work means the future of Geography at College is very bright indeed.
Miss Emily Hartley
Government and Politics This year global political events unfolded at a dramatic pace. President Donald Trump’s first term in office has so far witnessed unexpected negotiations with North Korea and action in the Middle East. Domestic policy decisions were just as farreaching in their consequences. In Britain, Prime Minister Theresa
May’s general election gamble left her government in a weakened position and caused many, including within her own party, to question her leadership. A sense that Brexit negotiations lacked direction and momentum prevailed; the Cabinet certainly seemed divided over their aims. In College, Politics students and staff had an active year keeping up with the twists and turns of these events. In lessons, we questioned and debated what all of this meant for the governmental and representative structures of both the UK and USA. Politics staffing for the academic year 2017-18 remained as last year: Mr Chris Reid, Mr Dominic Nelder, and Mrs Alexandra Eldred (Head of Department). Mr Reid took on a History set, making 2017-18 the first year in a while that all Politics staff firmly belonged to both the History and Politics Departments. In September 2017, we welcomed two new classes of eager Lower Sixth students. Their enthusiasm for and engagement with politics in the UK and beyond was refreshing. A particular highlight was the way in which they ran, in their Houses, the College ballot for the national Youth Parliament election. The most important challenge faced was navigating the new linear A Level course with the Lower Sixth and managing the final year of the modular A Level with the Upper Sixth. Students approached their studies with gusto and the Department has buzzed with activity. This was particularly true of the Upper Sixth in the build up to public exams (the promise of cake might have been an incentive here!). It was lovely to see the same enthusiasm at the Morley (History and Politics) Society Dinner in March. Politics was well represented and the fancy dress was truly excellent and inventive. Overall it has been a year full of scholarship, debate and enthusiasm.
Mrs Alexandra Eldred
Firstly, there featured two crossed swords. These represent Professors Guldi and Armitage’s ‘sword of history’, as mentioned in their piece expressing their concern for a current ‘bonfire of the humanities’ (The History Manifesto, 2014): ‘The sword of History has two edges, one that cuts open new possibilities in the future, and one that cuts through the noise, contradictions, and lies of the past.’ These swords are then overlaid with a heraldic leopard (‘jessant-de-lys’), as featured in the Morley family crest, in the heraldic colours of sable and argent. John Morley (OC 1855 – 1856, Cooper and Clarke) was rather ironically, in fact, the first peer to turn down a coat of arms: a committed Liberal, First Viscount Morley of Blackburn, OM, PC, FRS, FBA was not only an OC, but a journalist, MP, and subsequently Chief Secretary for Ireland, Secretary of State for India and Lord President of the Council. His hero was William Gladstone and, indeed, he himself was a reluctant imperialist, being critical of British involvement in both the Boer War as well as British entry into the First World War, as an ally of Russia. First awards of this illustrious tie were made at the annual Morley Dinner, and three out of the five recipients deservedly won for their service to, and engagement in, Politics, as well as History. Earlier that year, the Society had enjoyed both an Upper Sixth trip to see The Post, as well as a fascinating Literature Festival offering from Yasmin Khan, on the significance of Second World War to The Great Partition of India and Pakistan. The dinner itself was held in the stately setting of the Thirlestaine Long Gallery (TLG) and was easily the best in a number of years in terms of student (and staff) commitment to the dress code: ‘Come as your favourite historical or political event, person or concept’. A Vietnam-era marine, fresh off the beaches of Da Nang, thus hung out with both the first and last Republicans (with President Donald Trump also taking the opportunity to make some overtures towards Kim Jong-un), whilst Marilyn Monroe looked down her (very gorgeous) nose at Betty Freidan’s Feminine Mystique, along with Nancy Astor,
History A significant portion of the History and Politics Morley Society activity this year has been focused on ‘The great matter’ of... the Society tie. The rather wonderfully double-barrelled WatsonSmyth-Bromage-Henry-MeechamJones-Espona-Barbera tie design and selection committee has worked tirelessly to put together, and justify, a fiendishly complex emblem. The Battle of Britain: radar operators based at the tree, Messerschmitts incoming across the Channel from the left
The annual Morley dinner: Marilyn Monroe confronts Betty Friedan’s Feminine Mystique
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Freya Haddon, with hers and Anya James’ research into the life of Captain Minden Francis Badcock, outside his family home, No.1 College Lawn
the Iron Lady and a very cheerful suffragette. Malcom X sniffed loudly as he came across the American Dream, though greeted the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee dungareed ‘Delta cadre’ rather more affably. The British Empire from the East India Company through to the Palestinian mandate showed its controversial face, and Indiana Jones and the Edelweiss Pirates were also there to keep the right, including Theresa May, in line. We look forward to Mr Dominic Nelder’s Third Form Spitfire and Hurricane pilots, as well as his Messerschmitt and radar operators, joining in the dinner with similar gusto, once they, too, reach the Sixth Form.
History of Art
knowledge but also ingenuity.
We began the academic year in copacetic fashion. Our erstwhile Upper Sixth cohort of 2016-17 had attained the pre-requisite results to secure esteemed places to read History of Art at the University of Edinburgh and the Courtauld Institute of Art respectively. The inauguration of Pre-U Art History with a vanguard of 13 in the Lower Sixth set the tone well for our sojourn into pastures new.
At the Senior level, 31 pupils received certificates for creditable performances. Top place in Upper Sixth was achieved by Sherry He and Annie Dai in Lower Sixth. However, Saul Kim, despite being in the Fourth Form beat both of these with an impressive score of 115. Seven pupils (equalling the record for College), gained Gold certificates for being placed in the top 6% nationally. At the Intermediate level a total of 84 pupils achieved recognition with the award of certificates, this is our second-best haul. The number of Gold awards this year was outstanding at 23, the previous best was 14. Particular credit and congratulations must go to Saul Kim and William Gibson, who were placed first in their year groups with scores that put them in the top one quarter per cent nationally; 21 of these pupils (another new College record) were also invited to compete in the follow-up rounds in which they did very well. Special mention must go, again, to Saul Kim who qualified for the British Mathematics Olympiad and also did very well.
We delivered a raft of subject-specific talks on ‘The American Dream’ to the Morley Society, ‘Alienation and Isolation in C.D. Friedrich’ to the Cheltenham German Society, and we hosted the West Mercia Arts Society annual conference at College in October, focusing on Power, Patronage and the Papacy in the Renaissance. In collaboration with the Modern Foreign Languages Department, 23 pupils travelled to the cultural mecca of Paris during the October half term for a dose of artistic and linguistic immersion. As ever, the superlative Musée d’Orsay collection dazzled our charges, amidst obligatory visits to ascend the iron lady and to the artists’ quarter in Montmartre.
Prior to fighting the Battle of Britain in the summer term, the Third Form engaged once again this year in the OC project, researching Cheltonians lost in the First World War, and thus continuing our five-year project into the final year of centenary commemorations. Pupils produced memorial plaques, which we will take out to the battlefields in October, and the whole year group also visited Cheltenham’s Everyman Theatre to experience Ian Hislop’s Wipers Times on stage. Last year, we reported our known number of fallen to have gone beyond 690. Now, thanks to Paddy Steven’s (1967-1971, BH) tireless work at the National Archives in Kew, the final figure is 702, as opposed to the 675 acknowledged in 2014 and as inscribed in the Chapel entrance cloister, which was planned in 1917 and dedicated by the Very Reverend the Dean of Hereford, former Principal of the College, in April 1921. Pupils across six year groups (including recent leavers) have this year also contributed to the ‘Epilogue’ of Paddy’s forthcoming book, College Echoes: An Epitaph to the Great War. In it they offer reflection on their personal experiences of forming and then honouring a connection with this lost generation from within our own College community. One of the most recent contributors, fittingly enough a member of our newest girls’ House, College Lawn, perhaps summed it up most poignantly (without any prompting whatsoever!) when she volunteered that the research was ‘so special. The fact that Captain Minden (Badcock, MC) was from No. 1, College Lawn made it fit that bit more personally for us; that he lived in the house where we now live made it feel that he was even closer to us than the other Cheltonians were. There was a sense he was in our family in a way.’
Miss Jo Doidge-Harrison
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The College Mathematics Society, now in its 11th year, is going extremely well, with talks from pupils, members of staff and external speakers. The highlight of the pupil presentations were the many talks given by this year’s president, Benedict Schallamach. In particular, his talk on Group Theory was superb. I would like to thank Benedict for his leadership of the Society. He has done an excellent job of promoting the Society and Mathematics in general at College. Additional thanks go to Ian Wan who, as deputy President, gave many good talks on a wide variety of topics. Ian was very good at encouraging the younger members of the society and it was pleasing to see some of these pupils giving talks this year. Special mention should go to George Hardy, Eva Lai and Emily Wang, who all made significant contributions. Also, Boudica Yi gave two excellent talks, too. The most entertaining talk this year was given by Rauf Aliyev, who tried to convince us that the Earth is flat! The new president for the coming year will be William Gibson.
Dr Brendan Enright National trips took us to the Tate Britain for ‘Impressionism in London during the FrancPrussian War’ and to the Wallace Collection. A bespoke pre-university study day at the University of Oxford in June provided prospective students of Art History great insight into subject-specific methodology. Plaudits go to Cordelia Shorthouse and Jude Parsons on gaining the History of Art prizes on Speech Day 2018. A hale enlistment for September 2018 is testament to this wonderful subject’s hegemony at College!
MFL Department The Modern Foreign Languages Department has had an action-packed year, with pupils taking part in a huge range of activities, both inside and outside the classroom, to boost their language-learning. As ever, we started the year with the European Day of Languages, which saw lessons in Russian, Italian and a variety of
Mr Nick Nelson
Mathematics The Department continues to enjoy success in national mathematical competitions. Every year we enter the UK Mathematics Trust (UKMT) challenges. These papers are designed to test not only mathematical skills and
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other events including a spread of dishes from different cultures in the Dining Hall. In September, we welcomed a number of local schools to a lecture by Mr Tugdual Denis, a French political journalist for Le Point. Mr Denis gave a compelling talk in French to Fifth and Sixth Form pupils on the recent presidential election, won by Emmanuel Macron and was illuminating in explaining how the system worked, the closeness of his relationships with the politicians and, of course, his opinions on the Far Right. Sixth Form students studying the elections found the talk particularly useful and it was great to see some 100 young linguists attending from a wide range of schools. In October, our Lower Sixth students attended lectures at the University of Bristol, studying: ‘El patrimonio cultural, arquitectura y arte’ and ‘Le bénévolat’. The talks focused neatly on the cultural knowledge required for the new A Level and the students really benefitted from seeing the difference of studying a language in a university environment. In the same month, Sixth Form Spanish students attended a talk from Carmen Kilner, a representative of the Basque Children of ‘37 Organisation, and learnt about the plight of the Basque children who were evacuated from Spain at the start of the Spanish Civil war. This talk helped put our A Level set text El Otro Arbol de Guernica very much into context and meeting Carmen, who has a direct link with the children who came to Britain on ‘La Havana’, really brought the text to life. In November, Lower and Upper Sixth Form fielded teams for French, Spanish and German and took on Cheltenham Ladies’ College, Bournside School, St Edward’s School, Dean Close School, Pate’s Grammar School and Balcarras School in our annual Modern
Languages Debating Evening, which was expanded to include more schools this year. The competition was fierce and the students defended diverse motions, with the highlight, a bizarre French final, in which a debate about whether one should own a pet before having children turned into an argument about Communist values! Jack McClure and Charles Meecham-Jones were runners-up in the German competition, whilst Shakhin Zamani and Thomas Maddinson were runners-up in the French competition. It was fantastic to see some 15 students representing College and we hope to keep seeing this competition grow in the future. Lower Sixth and Fifth Form Spanish pupils were also recently invited to Dean Close to take part in an audio-visual translation workshop. We also welcomed Mr Denis back to College for a second time and enjoyed his presentations to various year groups on his career and the role of languages within journalism. The MFL Society (led this year by Shakhin Zamani) has again had a successful year. In addition to the aforementioned events, we have seen film showings of Un Sac de Billes for Sixth Form, Die Welle for German, El Laberinto del Fauno for Spanish, Intouchables for Third and Fourth Form and a Society evening with pupils from all year groups presenting on individually researched topics. We have also enjoyed welcoming pupils from a wide range of Prep Schools for taster days involving a variety of languages. We have offered a range of different trips this year, starting with the French and History of Art trip to Paris in October half term, in which the pupils enjoyed full-on mornings of language-school lessons, touring the sights, watching a film entirely in French on the Champs-Elysées and practising their French in local shops and macaroon stores!
The Third Form Salamanca trip goes from strength to strength and this year 60 pupils headed to Colegio Delibes to experience all that the town has to offer, excellent language provision, beautiful architecture, padel playing and the all-important chocolate con churros! Additionally, the long-running annual Berlin exchange programme was once again a tremendous success this year, standing assuredly as one of the highlights of the German Department’s busy year. College played host for a week in March, welcoming pupils from the Rosa-Luxemburg Gymnasium for a jam-packed week of activities, proving to be an immensely enriching experience for both the English and German pupils alike. Our guests immersed themselves in College life, attending lessons, games, Chapel and familiarising themselves with alien concepts like baked beans. We are very much looking forward to visiting the RosaLuxemburg Gymnasium during the summer where the pupils will continue the friendship established during the week in March. Over the summer, a number of pupils will be attending language schools and exchanges of their own: we wish them all the very best and look forward to hearing of their adventures on their return. Last but not least, this year has seen one new arrival in the Department, with Miss Beatrice Langford-Powell joining us as teacher of French and German. She has already made a great impact with her infectious enthusiasm and creative approach proving hugely popular with pupils. We also say goodbye to Mr Simon Brian, who leaves us to take up the role of Deputy Head at Charterhouse. Pupils and staff alike will miss his wealth of knowledge and rigorous lessons and we are sure that he will do very well in his new role. Our Spanish Language assistant, Ms Tamar Rodriguez, also leaves us. Tamar has done a fantastic job over the past few years to ensure that pupils have been as prepared as fully as possible for their IGCSE and A Level oral examinations. We wish both Ms Rodriguez and Mr Brian well for the future. All in all, another fantastic year for MFL and we look forward to continuing to promote languages both inside and out of the classroom in 2017.
Mr Ben Page
Music It gives me great pleasure to be writing my first entry for The Cheltonian as the newly-appointed Head of Academic Music. My role within the Music Department is to drive everything that happens in the classroom: the curriculum, teaching and learning, assessment, and examinations. I have very much enjoyed finding my place within the academic life of College as a member of the (HoDs) Committee, and spearheading Music as an academic subject to pupils. The Third Form has continued to have one music lesson each week and these have very much been practical in nature, with topical
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use of musical language. From week one in the Autumn Term, the expectation has been that everybody in the room is a musician and has something to contribute to the class ensemble. Composition through the use of Logic Pro X and GarageBand has been a particular highlight this year. The song of the year has certainly been ‘The Scientist’ by Coldplay, now known backwards by the whole year group! There has been another increase in take up for GCSE, with two sets now established as the norm. The two Fourth Form sets have thrown themselves into the new AQA GCSE course, which has required them to really think about how the musical elements have been manipulated by composers and songwriters. They have especially enjoyed studying songs from The Beatles’ ‘Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’ as part of the course, and creating their own performances of these songs has been great fun. The Fifth Form pupils have honed their listening skills and shown great determination in their studying of Haydn’s ‘Clock’ symphony, another set work on the AQA GCSE course. There were some outstanding performances and compositions submitted as part of coursework this year, with all pupils on track to either achieve, or better, their target grades as a result. There is a strong take-up for A Levels. The Lower Sixth has embarked on the AQA A Level course with great enthusiasm and shown maturity and independence in their work. They have performed several times throughout the year and laid the foundations for successful extended recitals in Upper Sixth. The free composition option has allowed for plenty of exploration and creativity. The new AQA A Level requires a much more synoptic understanding of the history of music and is structured in targeted areas of study, such as Mozart’s operas and Chopin’s romantic piano music, as well as broader optional areas such as pop music, music for theatre and art since 1910, each with named composers for study rather than specific pieces. Upper Sixth students have enjoyed being able to personalise their learning, especially through the Music for Media unit, which saw analyses of music by Bernard Hermann, Thomas Newman, and Hans Zimmer. This was a highly varied and engaging unit that allowed the class to watch some famous film scenes and analyse how the music had been written to heighten the drama or emotion of the on-screen action.
introductory topics, some of which include how attachment affects later friendships and relationships; why we forget and factors affecting eye-witness testimony; explanations of conformity, obedience, resistance and social change; explanations and treatments of phobias, depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder. A major part of the course is the research methods topic, which some students really enjoy but others have a rather different attitude to! They have learned the features of designing good research studies as well as developing skills as practical psychologists and understanding the foundations of statistical testing, a rather challenging but essential skill for anyone carrying out research. This year, Upper Sixth looked in detail at a number of topics including relationship formation and breakdown; explanations of aggression; the structure and function of areas of the brain and explanations and treatments of schizophrenia. Teaching takes a varied and practical approach and students have found themselves as participants in replications of famous research. They have also had a variety of opportunities to collect and analyse their own data. Students are also expected to contribute to small group class presentations as well as using the resources available on the Digital Zone, some of which require the students to develop independent learning skills. The Psychology Society met half termly and students benefitted from some excellent talks from in-house student speakers. The best of these came from Phoebe Williams and Daisy Wildman who gave a very interesting talk about the psychological effects of brain injury. These talks afford students the opportunity to share their passion for Psychology topics beyond the course and I am always impressed at the quality of the talk they produce and how enthusiastically the audience is whenever there is a Kahoot quiz afterwards. As part of the Society events this year, students also watched The Stanford Prison experiment and Suffragette, which was a great way to consolidate their understanding of two of the Lower Sixth course topics. This year saw the return of the popular ‘Brain Day’ in College by visiting speaker Dr Guy Sutton. The event included watching the
dissection of a sheep’s brain. As well as providing some useful revision for the biopsychology aspect of the course, it also gave students the chance to cover some degree-level aspects of neuroscience. This was so well received by the students that it will be repeated in future years, hopefully expanding to overlap with other Departments in College. We say goodbye to our Upper Sixth students, a number of whom are going on to university to study Psychology, and we are delighted to have shared our passion for the subject and enthused so many of them to continue their studies beyond A Level. We wish all our Psychology cohort best wishes for the future.
Dr Tricia Norman
Science Science at College continues to flourish and the Summer of 2017 saw 86% of all Science A Levels being awarded grades between A* - B with a record 20 A* grades. A similar picture was also seen at GCSE level where 83% of all Science entries were graded A*-B. The Science Department celebrated five candidates obtaining places at the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge with OC Dylan Adlard (2015-2017, S) and OC Kexin Koh (2015-2017, Ch) securing places to read Biochemistry at Oxford, Samuel Mendis to read Engineering, also at Oxford, and Aiko Fukuda and Alena Gorb to read Natural Sciences at Cambridge. The Science Department also saw great success with students applying to read Medicine, Dentistry and Veterinary Science and during the 2016-2017 academic year eight students secured places at UK universities. The Department has seen several exciting events take place during the academic year. Science Society continues to flourish, and the pupil-led talks have ranged from: Epidemics to Science in War to Science in the Movies. The new Science
Mr Shaun Pirttijarvi
Psychology Psychology continues to flourish at College with our highest exam results for the academic year 2016-17, since the course started six years ago. One hundred per cent of students achieved an A*-C with 22% of these achieving an A*. Our A Level course provides an excellent foundation for those choosing to study it at university, with about one third of our students choosing to do so. This year, Lower Sixth has studied a range of
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Society Committee took up the reins in the latter half of the Summer Term and is comprised of: Varvara Konayeva, Liza Karpovich, Florence Needham, Gaurav Mediratta, and Boudica Yi. The whole Fifth Form attended the GCSE Science Live! Conference at the University of Warwick during the Autumn Term and the pupils listened to a range of Science talks, with the keynote speaker being Lord Robert Winston. A number of pupils also attended talks and lectures at the Cheltenham Science Festival, and the Department will be hosting a Science Lecture Series during the coming academic year. We also welcomed a number of prep-school visitors for our prep-school open afternoons with visitors attending from both independent and local prep schools. We continue to forge strong links with both The Catholic School of Saint Gregory the Great and All Saints’ Academy and we have welcomed Sixth Form Science students from All Saints’ to attend lectures and workshops. This year saw Mrs Isabella Mech move from the role of Head of Science to Head of Upper College. Mrs Mech oversaw many changes in the Science Department during her five-year tenure, including its major renovations in 2014. She left the Department on an excellent trajectory and I feel privileged to have taken it over. Staffing wise, we welcomed Mr Thomas Wilson in the Chemistry Department, Miss Bethan Evans and Mr Dan Lovell in the Physics Department, and Mrs Amy Lang in the Biology Department. During the academic year we also welcomed back Miss Charlotte Knowles and Miss Lara Beere following maternity leave. From the technical team Mrs Alison Gregory has replaced Mrs Nirmala Kumaran as part-time Science technician.
Biology The year started with the Department celebrating some record A Level results for the academic year 2016-17, with 67% students achieving an A* or A grade. At IGCSE we also had some fabulous results with 65% of pupils achieving an A*or an A grade. In September, the Third Form started the year with the Butterflies project, using the development of their own caterpillars to study butterfly metamorphosis to collect, analyse and present data, before releasing the butterflies in Southwood gardens. This is a fun and imaginative way to develop some key skills that are the foundations of all science courses. Royal Institute of Biology week took place in October and saw our pupils gaining first-hand anatomy experience. The Third and Forth Form dissected pigs’ brains and the Fifth Form, Lower Sixth and Upper Sixth dissected rats. The enthusiasm and curiosity shown by pupils was impressive. All Lower Sixth biologists attended a conference at the University of Warwick in November, with lectures on the ‘Genetics of Superheroes’ and ‘The Aging Immune System’ and were able to watch a semi-synthetic human dissection. In January, the Upper Sixth attended ‘We the Curious’ at Bristol, a centre of scientific learning to undertake gene extraction, sequencing and
DNA analysis, to determine whether they had the gene for tasting glucosinolates, which make sprouts taste bitter. This gave them experience of carrying out technical experimental procedures that are commonplace in biological research. The annual Swanage Biology Field trip will take place in September for the Upper Sixth students, where they gained first-hand experience of sampling techniques and statistical analysis of data, taken from sand dunes, rocky shores, rivers and ponds of different ages. This trip provides essential hands-on experiences of field sites not accessible locally to us. Several pupils achieved outstanding results in national competitions. Special congratulations go to Edward Winstanley, who achieved a Gold medal in the Biology Olympiad. Silver medals were awarded to Jack Gibson, Dasha Romanyuk and Aiden Ali. In the Fourth Form we had significant success in the Biology Challenge with the following six pupils achieving a Gold medal: William Bradley, Sebastian Cornwell, Anna Forde, Simon Oates, Ben Percival, Victoria Brain. This places them within the top 10% of the country. We had an additional 15 pupils achieving Silver medals and 22 pupils achieving Bronze medals. Many of our students earned well-deserved places at top universities that include the University of Bristol, the University of Durham, and University College, London. We wish all our students every continued success in their studies.
Miss Ruth Kramer
We take leave of Mr Ben Rees, Miss Bethan Evans, Mr Steve Rice, Mr Stuart Cooper, and Mrs Sarah Ramsey this year. I thank them for their support, guidance and superb teaching over the years and wish them very well in their future endeavours.
Mr Dan Townley
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Chemistry It has been a busy year in the Chemistry Department with an array of academic trips, competitions, outreach and lectures that were topped off with some excellent academic results in August 2017. The Summer Term of 2017 brought a very favourable showing at both IGCSE (59% A*-A) and A Level (100% A*-B). All medicine, dentistry and veterinary students achieved their required grades for university and our Oxbridge students performed well, with OCs Dylan Adlard (20152017, S), Sam Mendes (2013-2017, Xt), Alena Gorb (2012-2017, A), Aiko Fukuda (2012-2017, Ch) and Kexin Koh (2015-2017, Ch) reaping the rewards for their effort. The Chemistry Department has seen some small staff changes between 2017-2018. Mr Tom Wilson joined us from the University of Bristol as a graduate teacher and having made a significant impact on the enthusiasm our pupils have for the subject, successfully completed his first year
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at College. He began a PGCE in September 2018 based at College, which will add to our already outstanding pedagogy. The Department has had a couple of new additions to the Chemistry family, with Miss Beere welcoming Otis into the world in June 2017 and my second son, Monty, being born in October 2017. We welcomed back Miss Beere to the Department in June 2018 and she will resume teaching at College in September 2018. Outside of the maternity unit, Mr John Jones and Mr Wilson have both suffered leg injuries in one way or another this year, which has precipitated the running joke (excuse the pun) of the ‘curse of the Chemistry Department’ - I can report all are back on their feet! Our regular trips to the University of Bristol Chemistry Department were a resounding success. The Upper Sixth spectroscopy visit showed our students the humungous equipment used to identify compounds made in the laboratory including nuclear magnetic resonance and mass spectrometry. The Lower Sixth caffeine extraction trip was a great opportunity for our students to use bespoke
equipment that we cannot use at College such as high vacuum and Schlenk line techniques as well as rotatory evaporators. All the skills the students were exposed to serve to improve their ability in assessed practical tasks back at College. In January, we were fortunate enough to be visited by the Royal Society of Chemistry’s ‘Spectroscopy in a Suitcase’ workshop where students from the University of Oxford spoke authoritatively about infrared spectroscopy and mass spectrometry. Our students were talked through the method to prepare and run their own ‘IR’ of a series of organic compounds. In outside competitions, our pupils performed well nationally, with Benedict Schallamach and Ian Wan both receiving Gold awards in the Cambridge Chemistry Challenge, and Benedict (Gold), Ian (Silver) and Finbar McConnell (Silver) performing highly in the Chemistry Olympiad. College participated in both the RSC ‘Top of the Bench’ (Rory Pleydell, Georgia Rattigan, Varvara Konyaeva) and ‘Young Analyst’ (Lara Scudamore, Sebastian Cornwell, Gaurav Mediratta, Molly Krauer) competitions. Although we were not placed, a fantastic experience was had and a
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great opportunity was taken to absorb as much Chemistry as possible by both groups at the University of Bristol’s world-class laboratories. Chemistry Spectacular, our exhibition Chemistry lecture, was even bigger and better than before. Broadcasting over Facebook Live, with commentary from Mr Jones on the live feed and a full video being taken of the event, we were able to show College a range of Chemistry that they would not normally see. With a number of Houses broadcasting the event in their Rec rooms and a packed Big Classical, we reached our largest audience ever. New experiments included a chip-pan fire; making super-heated steam; combustion under water; the ethanol whip and the final demonstration - a liquid nitrogen explosion! This year, we were ably helped by Varvara Konyaeva, Dasha Romanyuk and Oliver Ruthven, who helped in a number of ways, but it was in the synthesis of the explosive nitrogen triiodide that they were most helpful. Chemistry Spectacular 2018 has a lot to live up to, so we have already started planning. Watch this space! With 2019 being the ‘Year of the Periodic Table’, the Chemistry Department will be the place to be and watch as we celebrate the 150th anniversary since the discovery of the ‘Periodic System’ by Dmitri Mendeleev.
Mr James Copeland-Jordan
Physics This is my last report about the Physics Department for the Cheltonian as I move on to pastures new. We are very fortunate to have recruited Mr Jeremy Dodd from Radley College who will, no doubt, bring a feast of new ideas to reinvigorate the Department. Also leaving are Mr Stephen Rice and Miss Bethan Evans who will both be much missed by colleagues and pupils alike. Physics continues to be a popular subject at College, bucking national trends by essentially matching the other Sciences for popularity at both IGCSE and A Level. IGCSE Physics results
in the academic year 2016-17 maintained their magnificent 85% A* rate from the year before and the number of A* grades also increased pleasingly at A Level. Pupils coped well with the change to linearity. Sixth Form students have visited the JET facility at Culham Centre for Fusion Energy in Oxfordshire, which houses the world’s largest nuclear-fusion reactor. They also attended a lecture on detecting exoplanets with interested undergraduates at the University of Oxford.
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Entries to the Physics Olympiad reached record levels and we successfully trialled a new competition for the Fourth Form. Ian Wan once again excelled at the Astronomy and Astrophysics competition and three Fifth Form pupils achieved extremely creditable Silver awards at the Physics Challenge (Boudica Yi, William Gibson and Rachel Zhang).
Mr Stuart Cooper
Sports Science This year, has been a challenging and exciting year for the Sports Science Department. Having embarked on a new specification for GCSE and completing the final year of the new linear A Level course, we have had plenty of new experiences to overcome and explore. The new ‘playercam’ assessment for A Level is time consuming but exciting from a student’s perspective. For many, this was the first time they had ever watched themselves, let alone analysed their own performance. This observation gave many a useful insight into their physical and technical strengths and weaknesses. It was rewarding to see how much discussion this provoked about how beneficial the use of ICT can be to improving performance. The A Level students have enjoyed a number of lectures organised, once again, by Mr Henry Davies. We had a very interesting and informative talk from Ms Amy Roberts about the importance of diet and the nutritional needs of an athlete. Pupils were able to make more educated decisions about their menu choices and discuss food suggestions with our catering staff to improve their lunch and dinner options. The highlight was a talk from OC Miss Jamie Chadwick (2011-2016, Ch). Jamie gave a superb talk about her ambitions to be the first female F1 driver. Pupils also enjoyed hearing about her experiences of the schoolwork/sport balance. She certainly delivered the message more successfully than we could have ever done. The new IGCSE course has been gratefully received and the pupils have thoroughly enjoyed the more scientific theory course. The new specification introduces pupils to the more diverse world of Sports Science and includes topics from biomechanics, sports psychology and skill acquisition. This course leads in much more effectively to the A Level course and, hopefully, will have an impact on recruiting more at this level once again. The pupils have also used video footage to support their practical marks. This method of assessment has taught them many IT skills in order to produce a 12-minute edited movie of themselves in a variety of sports. A particular mention must go to Monte Swain Grainger, Jack Cunningham, Abbie Whybrow and Jemima Rees who produced excellent movie projects.
Mrs Rebecca Faulkner
Theology, Philosophy and Ethics In the words of Socrates, ‘Philosophy begins in wonder’; following in his footsteps the TPE Department has aimed to nurture a love of learning for learning’s sake among our pupils. In light of this, we have continued to build upon the departmental focus of the importance of personal engagement and integrity within learning, looking to increase student reflection within the variety of topics they cover. This year, as a team we have introduced a series of Learning Events; launched a mini Extended Philosophy Question (EPQ) run along the lines of the Extended Project Qualification that students undertake in Lower Sixth; focused upon technological advances in order to improve student organisation, engagement and delivery; further developed independent learning, and finally, introduced pupils to the new role Philosophers/Ethicists have within the business world. The Third Form saw the launch of the TPE mini EPQ, which aimed to develop pupils’ research skills, referencing, quoting, and detailing their sources in a bibliography. Pupils were afforded the freedom to explore topics ranging from artificial intelligence to personhood, free will and determinism. Co-curricular Philosophy took the form of a Philosothon (competitive philosophy dealing with real-life practical problems) in the Third Form challenge carousel. Following on from an article in The Guardian entitled ‘I work therefore I am’ pupils adopted the role of philosopher in residence looking at issues with Facebook, Oxfam, and the NHS; making decisions on the dilemmas they were faced with as if they were on the Board of Directors of each company. At GCSE the Fourth and Fifth Forms have been getting to grips with the new linear qualification and the need to have quite detailed knowledge of Christianity, Islam and Philosophy. As part of this, some of the pupils were invited to re-enact an Eid ul Fitr meal, complete with Shahi Tukr and Kheer, as well as traditional Indian sweet treats. As well as negotiating the demands of the new linear A Level syllabus, the Sixth Form has also been able to explore the broader intellectual tradition. Their student-led discussion groups saw topics ranging from ‘What is Knowledge?’, through to the immorality of hypocrisy. Autonomy over learning and personal engagement remained at the heart of this project with a very positive effect. TPE could be described as ‘ancient concepts meet new technologies’ and is delivered through online virtual learning environments and a paperless workspace. Our introduction of One Note to the GCSE and A Level groups has not only simplified content delivery but has offered pupils the potential for greater autonomy over their learning. In a similar vein, we have also set up a Department podcast channel, available on iTunes, for which pupils have been encouraged to create content. This furthers their independence and control over their learning, whilst also helping to increase a
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collegiate mentality, assisting one another with revision resources. Having said that it remains a core departmental priority that pupils develop the basic skills of essay writing and close philosophical reading as well as being fully conversant with more modern methods. In short, the TPE team has looked to build on the theological and philosophical traditions that have gone before, introducing them to pupils in order to increase their awareness of the importance of philosophical thinking in the face of an increasingly technologically orientated world.
Mrs Rebecca Mace
Theatre Studies This year, our pupils at both GCSE and A Level have been getting to grips with the challenges of the new linear qualifications, exploring new set texts and tackling new challenging practical tasks. Both teachers and pupils have enjoyed the new academic rigour of these qualifications, including the
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increased focus on the study of set texts through practical exploration and workshops. The new qualifications provide pupils with an opportunity to approach the text from numerous perspectives including designer, director and performer. It has meant they had to think carefully about how they might costume characters or light scenes, allowing them to think about Drama in a totally new way. Our Upper Sixth relished the challenge of exploring and performing three different texts: Medea and A View from the Bridge and a contemporary play of their choice. During their practical exploration, they were asked to make connections between the two texts, looking particularly at how women through the ages have been depicted in drama. Our Lower Sixth were faced with a brand-new challenge: devising original work using the ideas and theories of a theatre practitioner. This year, they researched the work of practitioner Max Stafford-Clarke founder of the Out of Joint touring theatre company. Stafford-Clarke prides himself
on producing contemporary and politically important work that often utilises verbatim or documentary techniques incorporating the words of real-life people into his work. Using his methods meant the students were faced with the challenge of identifying highly relevant issues to explore, some of the topics chosen this year were gun crime, terrorism, domestic violence and fake news. As always, excellent learning in the classroom has been enriched and developed by an extensive programme of trips. This year, we have seen numerous high-quality live performances and productions broadcast in the cinema, which have served as an invaluable inspiration for our pupils and have allowed them to develop their understanding of how Drama functions in performance. Trips this year have included watching Frantic Assembly’s dynamic physical theatre piece Things I Know to be True and the National Theatre Live broadcast of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, starring Sienna Miller. The highlight of the year was when we took all GCSE and A Level pupils to London to see the National Youth Theatre’s innovative reworking of Shakespeare’s Othello.
Mrs Sian McBride
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Speech Day 2018 - Prizes The Adams Prizes
Johnnie Gunn
Charity
Co-Curricular
Anna McIntyre
Gasson Cup Rose Jones
Bellamy Cup Winners for Charitable Endeavours - Boyne House
Stidworthy Cup (boys): Olly Hill
Sloan Cup (girls): Louise Hall
Games
Duleepsinhji Cup (boys):
Duleepsinhji Cup (girls):
Thomas Stanton
Brittany Sutton-Page
CCF prizes
Academic Excellence
The Army Leadership Prize
The Millennium Trophy
Paddy Christopher
Amber Beachus
All-Round Contribution
The Cadbury Cup
The John Bowes Cup
The Galahad Cup
Jess Steel
Freddie White
Jack McClure
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CO-CURRICULAR Activities Monday Clubs started the year in the traditional way, with the Activities Fair in the Upper College Social, now commonly referred to as Valens. This gave pupils the chance to explore the 30 different clubs that were on offer this year. Pupils from the Third, Fourth and Fifth Forms plus Lower Sixth were given a wide and varied choice of co-curricular activities. Pupils had the opportunity to choose two different activities: one in the Autumn Term and then another in the Spring Term. This system helps pupils to experience depth and variety in their Monday options as well as helping them to gain new experiences and pursue their passions.
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This year, we had a number of Lower Sixth students who helped to lead activities and it was fantastic to see them doing so and engaging with the younger pupils. These students helped to lead Fun Fitness, Film Club, Dance and Build a Song from Scratch. They had to plan their sessions in their own time, so they could deliver a rewarding activity. It showed great dedication and commitment from them and also how hard it can be to deliver a session every week. The Climbing Club, run by Dr Gill Ward, enjoyed two trips to a climbing wall in Gloucester. Mrs Tammy Penny’s Cookery Club created lots of yummy food covering a whole range of cuisines. The Computing Club created games using script commands. Debate Soc had great year in which the pupils debated topical topics every week, and organised two Lower College Soc events: the first, a boxing ring style debate, ‘This House believes girls should be allowed to wear trousers at College’; and
the Lower College Model United Nations (MUN) event in which nations worked together to resolve a threat from Neo-Soviet expansionism! We also sent two delegations representing Iran and Kuwait to the annual MUN event at Bristol Grammar School in February. Great fun was had and much learned by all. On behalf of Debate Soc, Miss Jane Brodigan would like to thank Jack McClure (President) and Terezia Michalikova, who gave of their time and expertise as debaters so willingly and who led the Soc with such great good humour in their last year at College. Honourable Mentions need also to go to George Gardner and Ryan Lam, for services to enthusiastic debating and for their very impressive knowledge of political affairs; past and present. Many of the minor sports such as rackets, squash, water polo, polo and equestrian benefitted by running sessions on a Monday and Duke of Edinburgh’s Award (DoE) also ran a Monday Club to aid route planning in preparation for their summer expeditions.
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Some new clubs proved to be very popular. For the first time ever, the Classics Department provided pupils of all year groups the chance to study Sanskrit. This ancient language is from the same family as Latin and Greek; its grammar, tense and case system provide linguists with a window almost all the way back to one of the oldest mother tongues of the world, Indo‑European. The arrival of Mr Walker, an Oxford graduate with a distinguished career as a linguist at GCHQ, allowed College to join the tiny handful of schools able to offer this exceptionally rich and influential language. The Summer Term saw the Third and Fourth Forms separated into their Houses and experience taster sessions in a number of sports on a carrousel basis. Many pupils experienced a few of the sports for the first time and learned new skills from these opportunities.
Miss Betsy Willey
CCF This has been yet another busy year for the CCF. We have been able to deliver safe, challenging and
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fun training to all sections and we have helped to develop the leadership skills and capability in our senior cadets. This year saw our Biennial CCF Inspection. It was conducted by OC Rear Admiral Robert Tarrant (1969-1979, Xt) and we were very pleased to demonstrate the capabilities and training of the cadets, as well as our excellent logistics and administration behind the scenes. Our Sword of Honour parade took place in April and Brigadier David Southall OBE late RE supported by Lt Col Pat Brown RE, both parents, presented the CCF prizes at a splendid parade on a crisp April afternoon, followed by the traditional annual CCF Dinner. The Upper and Lower Sixth waited on tables to ‘learn the ropes’ for their dining out next year. During the year, we have also had several arrivals and departures. We said goodbye to Major Ben Rees, outgoing Contingent Commander as well as Major Jenny O’Bryan, Major John Cload and Pilot Officer David Hunter, an external volunteer who will be moving away from Cheltenham for his work.
This year also sees a number of new arrivals, including Major Tony Ayres, the incoming Contingent Commander; Mr Dan Lovell into the RAF section; the return of Miss Charlotte Knowles after maternity leave and Corporal Georgina Price, a regular soldier from the Royal Army Logistic Corps who has very kindly been released by her Commanding Officer at the Army Training Regiment, Pirbright, to bolster our skills and capabilities on a Wednesday afternoon. The CCF has managed to complete the vast majority of its planned training this year, although we did lose all of our Fourth Form cadets for seven weeks as part of the Community Action pilot scheme. Next year, we will be moving away from compulsory CCF for the Fourth Form and some pupils will select Community Action or DofE for their Wednesday activity. This will lead to slightly reduced numbers in the Fourth Form, but they will be dedicated full time to the CCF. Major Tony Ayres, the Contingent Commander and Warrant Officer Second Class Jason Gwynne, the School Staff Instructor, would like to personally thank this year’s Head of Corp Cadet Warrant Officer First Class Paddy Christopher,
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Head of Army section Cadet Warrant Officer Second Class Arabella Johnson, Head of Navy section Cadet WO Henry Johnson, and Head of RAF Flight Sergeant Jack McClure and their cadet leadership team for the great work they have all done in developing College CCF and engendering the values and standards of the military to the younger cadets.
Army This year, the Army section had over 90 recruits in the Fourth Form, an above-average intake that stretched the section, but as always, the adults and the Cadet Leadership Team delivered a great cadet experience. This included a tactical exercise overnight at the Caerwent training area in their first term, followed by a visit to Salisbury Plain to visit the Royal Tank Regiment and its Challenger II tanks for the seniors and a military skills day at College for the recruits. The seniors also had a briefing from OC Lt Josh Baldwin (2006-2011, Xt) who left College recently and has been commissioned into the RIFLES from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and is currently serving with 1RIFLES. He opened the cadets’ eyes to the opportunities that the Army has
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to offer for young people. In June, the section had a superb week in Okehampton Camp, Dartmoor. Â The weather was excellent and the section enjoyed a mixture of both military and challenge pursuits which included military skills, shooting, survival skills and adventurous training.
Navy The Navy section had a number of great trips as well as completing a full syllabus during term time including many naval skills. This year, they visited Portsmouth, HMS Excellent, Gosport, and had a sea trip on HMS Medusa; a Second World War Harbour Defence Vessel. In June the section visited the Sea Cadet Training Centre at Weymouth where they learned a number of different water-based skills and in some cases achieved RYA qualifications in power boating, windsurfing and sailing.
programme for the cadets. This year they visited RAF Cosford and Brize Norton, as well as undertaking canoeing and climbing challenges. In June the RAF had a multi activity week, based out of College during which they went rock climbing and canoeing down the upper reaches of the River Wye as well as completing their annual training syllabus.
Major Tony Ayres, Contingent Commander
RAF The RAF section also had a full programme and achieved a challenging and interesting
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Co-curricular Drama It has been another exciting year, with nearly 200 College pupils performing on the Big Classical stage. It has also been a year of exciting firsts, which have been driven by our desire to showcase the many talents of our pupils beyond College. This inspired our first production of the year, which was part of the largest youth drama festival in the world: the Shakespeare Schools Festival. On 15 October our Fourth and Fifth Form pupils performed Much Ado About Nothing at the Hereford Courtyard. This was quickly followed by our first House play of the year: a combined effort between Leconfield and Hazelwell. A talented group of Sixth Formers from both Houses, ably led by Alice Howes and Pablo Espona, put their own spin on The Play That Goes Wrong-genre; entertaining packed-out houses. This was followed in early December by the ever-popular Variety Show. It was particularly pleasing to see so many of our Lower College pupils offering to
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perform, most notably Alexander Knott, who became the first Third Former ever to perform a solo act. This says much about the supportive drama community at College. In January, we kicked off with another first, our Scholar’s Play, performed at the Cheltenham Playhouse Theatre. This saw 11 of the most talented of our Drama award holders tackling Arthur Miller’s classic domestic tragedy A View from the Bridge. The cast admirably brought to life a series of highly complex characters. Jack Mitchell gave a particularly compelling performance as Eddie Carbone and this was recognised on Speech Day when he was awarded the Davenport Drama award. He was ably supported by Chanelle Moller, in her final performance with us at College, as Beatrice, and the rest of our highly skilled scholars. It was wonderful that this new venture gave us the opportunity to show the work we produce to the wider community. Just weeks later, we staged the second House play of the year: a hilarious spoof of the first two Harry Potter books. This entirely peer-directed performance showcased the many talents of Chandos and Southwood pupils as harnessed by
the directors Rob Caesar and Jilly Woodward. Over the past few years, we have begun to establish a tradition of staging large-scale, whole-school musicals every two years and this year our attention turned to West Side Story. The musical retells the story of Romeo and Juliet and charts the doomed romance of Tony and Maria, who are on opposite sides of a race war being fought by teenage gangs on the streets of New York. This was another first as it involved complex choreography, something that was alien to the majority of our 100-strong cast. However, as always, our pupils rose to these challenges and spent hours with our choreographer perfecting seven big dance numbers including the eightminute prologue, where 25 of our boys used dance as a medium to communicate the racial tension and gang violence at the very centre of the musical. Our LAMDA department, which was set up just over two years ago, continues to go from strength to strength, and numbers have quadrupled since we first began. The pupils, who are taught in solo or duo lessons have relished being offered the opportunity to develop their own skills, whether taking the acting, public
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speaking, musical theatre or poetry prose exam. The recent exam results are testament to the talent we have here at College. Seven of the 11 candidates entered, achieved a Distinction, the very highest grade possible, and the other four all received Merits. We were particularly proud of one of our scholars, Oliver Pritchard, who gained a Distinction in his Grade Eight Gold medal in acting, achieving 100% in his practical exam.
Mrs Sian McBride
Duke of Edinburgh’s Award OCs Jemma Robson (2013-2017, W), Georgina Rigg (2012-2017, Q), Sam Mendis (2013-2017, Xt), and Benjamin Wood (2012-2017, NH), and Matthew Burke received their Gold Awards at Buckingham Palace in May: the special culmination of a hard-won Award on a scheme that recognises personal development and service to others. The ceremony was attended by The Earl and Duchess of Wessex and certificates
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were presented by Olympic rower John Collins. Matthew did especially well to attain his Award and Gold presentation in the minimum time, while still at school. At the other end of the scheme, DofE started off again this year with enthusiastic pupils contemplating their Award activities and signing up to eDofE: the online record keeping system. Generally speaking the College Games programme amply enables the boys and girls to address the physical recreation section of both Gold and Bronze. Music, CCF weapons handling and skills at arms, and shooting allow our pupils to fulfil the skills section, with driving being a good option at Gold. In truth we’d like to see our students being more innovative and proactive in their skills and this is something we’ll promote in the year to come. Volunteering, at Bronze level, has, however become much broader in its scope and our boys and girls have been engaged with local schools – including reading and story massage classes – with care homes, in College Library and Chapel, volunteering to develop tennis skills coaching
young children, supporting the Romanian orphanage project at Bradet and getting creative in the Music Department. Both Bronze expeditions were brought forward to Fourth Form this year and this proved to be a great success. Practice was in the Cotwolds and assessment in the Forest of Dean. This year’s participants have been some of the best ever in terms of expedition skills and our assessors commented particularly on their competence, calm and sheer sense of enjoyment. The pollen count in the summer had been the highest for 10 years, and this had its effect on some pupils, but all showed strength, resilience and determination to come for the qualifying event and succeed with flying colours. The Gold expeditions went from some of our iciest trips in the West Brecon Beacons with sub-zero temperatures setting the tone in March for the practice to the searing, dry 30+ days of the summer qualifying expedition in Snowdonia. This tested the stamina of the best, as heavy back packs, clear skies and high afternoon sun made the going tough. As expected our students were amazing and dug deep to keep going, in some cases rising very early, finding
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shade mid-afternoon and continuing their journeys in the late afternoons to keep cool. Wilderness camps proved the highlight of the trip, not just for the cool of the evening afforded by the extra height, but for their wonderful locations underpinning the feeling of solitude from our frantic world and reinforcing the sense of community within each group. Gold Award residential projects have been diverse this year including cookery courses, several CCF central leadership and skills camps, the National Citizen Service, Revitalise (respite care for the disabled), outward bound courses and Biology/Ecology field courses. The residential section can enrich both volunteering and skills sections of DofE by challenging young people to develop in the company of others quickly and effectively, contrasting with the longer term commitment of the mainstream parts of the Award, which require staying power.
Mr John Jones
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Music Another successful and busy year in the Music Department has seen a large variety of performances both in College and in the wider community. The biggest change in September was the start of the Schola Cantorum Chorister Scheme, following a successful round of auditions in May 2017. This saw the formation of two sets of treble choristers; one for boys and one for girls. The vast majority of this year’s trebles come from the Prep School, however, as part of College’s partnership work there are now also pupils from St James’ Church of England Primary School, St John’s Church of England Primary School and Bishop’s Cleeve Primary Academy. The trebles rehearse early in the morning before school, boys on Mondays and Wednesdays and girls on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and they each come together with College’s altos, tenors and basses around once a month to sing choral evensong. In addition to the regular services, they have also joined with the College choirs for major events, which this year included the service on Remembrance Sunday, the Spring Term Choral Concert and the recording of the Music Department’s first commercial CD due for release in July 2018. This ambitious project has exceeded all expectations. This year, all choristers have been learning new repertoire and skills, and as we move into the second year of recruitment, the now-experienced singers will be able to help the new Prep School Year Three probationer choristers as they learn the ropes and become full choristers. The already existing College Schola Cantorum has gone from strength to strength and has performed hugely challenging repertoire to great acclaim on numerous occasions. A particular highlight was the inclusion of Bach’s Cantata ‘Wachet Auf!’ for the Advent Carol Service accompanied by the Chamber Orchestra and featuring pupils Victoria Brain and Verity Peterken as soprano soloists. They toured as a group over the summer to the Menin Gate in Ypres, where they sang at the daily act of
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Remembrance in front of hundreds of people who gather there to pay their respects. In addition to this, they provided the music for the Sunday Mass in Ypres Cathedral and sang Choral Evensong in St George’s English Church. Canticum, under the direction of Mr Shaun Pirttijarvi, has developed its own identity, and members sing at Sunday Chapel services regularly and represent College at special occasions including Remembrance, Christmas, and Speech Day services, both in its own right as well as part of the full Chapel Choir. Canticum draws its repertoire from the English choral music tradition, with a particular focus on contemporary composers such as Howard Goodall, John Rutter, and Will Todd, whose ‘The Call of Wisdom’ is included on the CD recorded by the choirs earlier in the year. The choir has also explored popular arrangements of spirituals and worship songs, ensuring that the broad range of worship styles in College are catered for. The Autumn Concert was a great opportunity to see the breadth of music available at College, and as ever, featured many of the instrumental ensembles on offer here. It was a great way to celebrate and showcase the hard work of the Autumn Term. A wide variety of ensembles performed, from the Chamber Orchestra to the Music Technology Ensemble. The Choral Society was directed by Mr Kit Perona-Wright, Director of Music at the Prep School, and performed Handel’s Messiah. With soloists from the Prep as well as College, and many College instrumentalists involved in the orchestra, the combined choirs of Canticum, Schola Cantorum and the College Choral Society made a magnificent noise in Handel’s well-loved masterpiece. Another most loved, but perhaps most often overlooked treasures of College is the Chapel organ. Its role in leading the daily hymn singing of College can sometimes be taken for granted, however, when it isn’t there it certainly becomes very noticeable indeed. From January to October much of the organ was removed to Durham where it was cleaned, repaired and updated by Harrison & Harrison. This vital
work has to be carried out every 30-40 years, and in doing so College has ensured that this magnificent instrument remains central to College life for the foreseeable future. Its return was celebrated by a spontaneous and heart-felt round of applause from the pupils and more formally by a celebrity organ recital given by the internationally renowned Thomas Trotter. This has been subsequently followed by a monthly lunchtime recital series, including performances by College’s own Mr Alexander Ffinch. The Orchestra Concert took place at the beginning, rather than towards the end, of the Spring Term due to the major whole-school production of West Side Story. The Concert was themed Music for Stage and Screen, and featured a wide range of music from ballet, through opera and music theatre to modern film music. The concert also featured the Wind Band and included a number of opportunities for extended brass and percussion sections, which is not always feasible with more common orchestral repertoire. Following the main orchestral concert, the instrumental focus of the term moved to preparation for the orchestral players for West Side Story. The show has been written about in greater detail elsewhere, however special mention at this point must be made of the phenomenal achievement of all those involved in playing in the orchestra for this show. Leonard Bernstein (whose centenary falls this year) wrote very much in his own unique style, and had major influences from music theatre, opera, jazz and the music of Latin America. All of this becomes apparent in his intoxicated and rhythmically pulsing instrumental writing, which from a pupil’s perspective is very challenging indeed. Our continued partnership with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra allowed for some specialist tuition in woodwind, percussion and string performance and those invited to play did so with huge dedication and commitment and played alongside professional musicians. The orchestra was praised more than once for its professionalism, and for those involved it was certainly an exhilarating performance opportunity not to be forgotten in a hurry.
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College’s first Choral Festival took place in the Spring Term, and in addition to outstanding performances from the College choirs, we were privileged to host world-renowned vocal groups such as the Queen’s Six (who between them make up half of the choir at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle, and were recently seen and heard on television at the Royal Wedding); ORA Singers and Merton College Chapel Choir, Oxford. College will also be making return visits to these esteemed establishments next year and has been invited to sing a joint evensong with Merton College in October. Additionally, they will sing evensong as a visiting choir at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle. Under the leadership of Mrs Gill Mew, Jazz has continued to go from strength to strength, and not only has the Jazz Band given numerous performances to great acclaim, it also reformed in the Summer Term to form a Third and Fourth Form Jazz Band. For the first time it performed at the 24 Hours event in front of an excited crowd of future Cheltonians. It was followed by the ever-popular Jig who generated their usual cheers, dancing and applause, as indeed they have done throughout the year at prestigious events such as the Cheltenham Jazz Festival.
during the Model United Nations meeting, kindly facilitated by Miss Jane Brodigan’s Debate Soc. ‘Lustrous’ College Society would for me, however, best capture the essence of our meetings this year. Special credit goes to Third and Fourth Forms in this regard. Having seen the Fifth Formers take on their leadership role with such panache, they presented an array of superbly crafted studies around body language that covered everything from serial killers to successful behaviours in sport; from the gestures one should adopt upon meeting a bear to the origins of signing. ‘Legendary’ College Society. This is also a chance to thank Mr Jon Mace for his excellent seminar on Finland’s education system (the concept of no assessments kept a wistful look on several pupils’ faces for days afterwards) and to bid farewell to our departed fellows in the Upper Sixth who gave so freely of their time to present the year’s best EPQs. One study, of the Killing Fields in Cambodia, is haunting still. And so, to next year, Pepys. (Quiz answer: Forty).
Mr Dominic Nelder
Upper College Society Upper College Society (UCS) had a full and varied programme this year. It started with a very successful Model United Nations, organised by Zara Qadir, focusing on escalating tensions in Syria. Students representing different nations effectively worked together to propose workable solutions. Another UCS highlight was a legal drama, with lawyers from the Knights 1759 Law Firm acting as judges. Students acted as lawyers and witnesses in an engaging re-enactment of a discrimination case. Another highlight was a debate with Pate’s Grammar School on whether we can evaluate different religions, with Pate’s arguing for the motion and College rejecting the claim that religions can be evaluated one against the other. A second debate was against Cheltenham Ladies’ College on parental access to children’s social media accounts. College’s Jack McClure and Terezia Michalikova gave a powerful defence of the importance of privacy.
The second College Singing Competition took place at the beginning of the Summer Term and saw more outstanding performances in the three different categories of Classical, Music Theatre and Pop. Next year, the final will be combined with the concerto final of the instrumental competition at a gala event celebrating the success of College’s dedicated and talented musicians. The variety and range of music at College continues to grow and the talented team of visiting teachers, combined with College’s fulltime music staff, comprise a well-balanced and versatile team. At the end of the day, however, the success of music is down to the pupils’ own hard work, perseverance and determination. Their talent, ambition and teamwork are a daily inspiration.
Mr David McKee
Academic Societies Lower College Society ‘Lower’ College Society seems quite the misnomer for describing the collected members of this lofty association. ‘Loyal’ College Society, certainly. Fifth Form pupils were a rock throughout 2017-18 and could be relied upon to compile devious quizzes (what whole number has all its letters in alphabetical order when spelled out? Clue: Sleep), debate the great issues of the day (trousers or skirts?) and entertain their confrères with illusions both optical and auditory. Perhaps ‘Low-flying’ College Society would be apt? TLG was reconstituted into the cockpit of the illfated 1990 Avianca flight to explore lessons from airline safety and we were joined that evening by Flight Lieutenant Edward Eldred whose experience and insight were most welcome. ‘Lively’ College Society is an epithet that could have been thrown around the room, together with loosely veiled threats and verbal missiles
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A particularly informative UCS evening involved a series of student presentations on the human brain, with Dasha Romanyuk, Phoebe Williams and Aiden Ali all exploring its function, including the influence of drugs. On another evening, Mr Charles Crawford, a former diplomat, now specialising in public speaking, acted as our judge for papers on the nation’s future post-Brexit. Charles gave helpful advice on how to establish rapport with the audience and important tips on how to make one’s message compelling. Another fascinating evening involved students presenting papers on imperialism; Thomas Maddinson’s paper, for example, demonstrated a really nuanced grasp of the issues, clearly unpacking the complexity of the Empire’s significance both for the rulers and those who were ruled. This year has been a real credit to the student committee who has organised and co-ordinated the programme.
Reverend Dr Adrian Samuel
Third Form Challenge Third Form Challenge takes place on a Wednesday afternoon and covers a huge range of activities. The term began with the annual fitness tests and swimming galas, won by Southwood and College Lawn. This year saw a new round robin that introduced the pupils to dancing, shooting, water polo, personal fitness, climbing, College history, debating, first aid and World Book Day competitions. Interspersed amongst these were talks from the Upper Sixth on travels undertaken after being granted Travel Awards by the Cheltonian Society’s Endowment Trust.
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The House Cross Country was run around Reeves Field and is one of the few events that all pupils can get involved in and was won by Leconfield and Westal. A highlight was the Dragon’s Den day that saw some excellent contributions. The winners were Leo Jamous, Sean Kim, Rory Maddinson, Georgia Morling and Georgia Turner with their proposal of gym equipment that provides energy. They were superb in the regional finals at GCHQ. The Coding Day saw pupils involved with activities ranging from Hacking 101, LEGO Robots, Arduino, Makey Makey, Scriptwriter-Twine, Google Apps Script, Logic Pro X, Construction and Content of Computers, Ultrasonic Theremin, Wire Framing and Photoshop. The final week of term was an off-timetable co-curricular experience and pupils climbed the UK’s Three Peaks; canoed and cycled in the Forest of Dean, visited Thorpe Park; enjoyed an interactive day run by the Bloodhound Society from the University of Swansea; made movies; went on a cricket tour to Stowe or spent a week in Salamanca, Spain. Phew!
Head’s Prize This year’s theme was Floreat and the Third Form produced another fantastic array of work from posters to paintings, poems to plays.
Without fail, all pupils met the deadline and the evaluations were very reflective. The standard was superbly high and this was very noticeable in the display that was put up in the White Gallery. This year’s winner was Louise James, and the runners up were Matthew Albutt, Maria Cowing, Jacob Stanger, Oleander Hall, Louis Power and Isabella Mills. Once again, the project proved to be a huge success and certainly gave the pupils a great opportunity to develop Floreat characteristics!
Mr Simon Conner
Mr Simon Conner
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Tilly Wood
Karishma Patel
Christian Hindmarch
Maria Cowring
Louise James’ winning artefact
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COMMUNITY The College Archive 100 years on: Cheltenham College remembers the Fallen The academic year 2017-18 has been an exciting one for the Archive as we near the successful end of our First World War research project involving pupils, staff and Old Cheltonians. Following a successful bid to the Heritage Lottery Fund, we started work to uncover the stories of the 675 OCs who made the ultimate sacrifice for King and country, which at the time of the application was the number with which we were working. Incredibly, through the hard work of pupils, staff and OCs, we can reveal that an additional 27 men gave their lives in the conflict, bring the final number to 702 OCs and members of staff. Particular mention must be given to the exceptional research undertaken by OC Paddy Stevens (1967-1971, BH) and Mrs Christine Leighton (our former College Archivist) who have worked tirelessly to bring our College’s history to life.
The loss of such a large number was a heavy burden felt by those who remained at College, not least by the Masters who had known and taught the boys since the age of seven, in many cases. With each (then monthly) edition of The Cheltonian containing yet more names of boys who had lost their lives, the war cast a long shadow over schools and colleges across the country. Here are just a few of their stories:
The First Casualty On 3 August Henry Hadley (1877-1880, BH) boarded the Berlin train to Cologne as one of many refugees and British ex-patriots to travel westwards just before the declaration of war. Henry had a brief military career in the late 1880s, but sought a career change and had been working as a language tutor in Berlin for several years. Sadly, at 51 years of age, he became not only the first of the 702 OC casualties, but also the first British fatality of the First World War. After a disagreement on the train and growing suspicion that he was a foreign spy, he was shot by a Prussian military officer, Oberleutant Nicolay, and died two days later at 3:15am on 5 August, just over three hours after the declaration of war.
The Cricket Team In the summer of 1914, with war on the horizon, few could have predicted the dramatic impact the conflict would have on childhood school friends. Of the 1914 Cricket 1st XI, three were wounded and three never made it home, including Cyril Hillier (1911-1914, H) who became the youngest Army officer to be killed on the Western Front in February 1915, aged just 17. The harsh reality of war would never be forgotten by those who survived, but our research also revealed those OCs who, despite the unwelcome interlude, returned to the studies they left behind as teenagers. The 1st XI captain, Geoffrey Brooke-Taylor (1910-1914, Scott and Xt), was awarded a Military Cross and ended the war as a Royal Field Artillery Captain, before heading straight back to cricket and academia at the University of Cambridge.
The Victoria Cross College has proudly celebrated a grand total of 14 OCs who were awarded the Victoria Cross, with six achieved in the First World War alone. OC Lieutenant-Commander Edward Courtney Boyle (January 1897-December 1897, DB) is just one example of the bravery exhibited by our former pupils. On 21 May 1915, aged 32, he commanded the Submarine E14, and dived - at great risk - beneath enemy minefields to enter the Sea of Marmora on 27 April 1915. Skilfully avoiding hostile patrols, he succeeded in sinking two Turkish gunboats and one large military transport (the Gul Djemal), severely hampering the Ottoman naval forces.
‘Over by Christmas’ Our archive is lucky enough to hold the diaries of Sydney Trevenen (1908-1911, DB) stretching from 1914 to his death in June 1918 aged 24, winning a Military Cross along the way. They are a poignant
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reminder that those who entered the war in the first few months could not have known that they were in for four gruelling years in one of the most brutal conflicts of the 20th Century. Touchingly, in Sydney’s case, on receipt of his last pocket diary (which he habitually copied into larger volumes whenever he returned home on leave), his mother recorded his last few entries into the fifth and final volume, along with his final telegram home. From the Western Front to Mesopotamia, whether serving in the Army, Navy or the burgeoning Air Force, our archive and the military records held around the country have revealed the breadth of our OCs’ contribution to the First World War. Like numerous organisations around the country, we look forward to coming together for Remembrance Day on 11 November 2018 in their memory. If you are interested in finding about more about our research, please get in touch. You can contact us via archives@cheltenhamcollege.org
Ms Rachael Merrison
Chapel To accompany the legendary College hymn singing, this year has heard a host of voices from the pulpit. Dr Sam Guglani, (Consultant Clinical Oncologist) from Cheltenham General Hospital, visited Chapel in September. During his interview, Dr Guglani spoke about the interface between Medicine, Art and Spirituality. Mrs Rachel Melville-Thomas (Student Support Service) was interviewed at length in October on the relationship between mental wellbeing and spirituality.
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In November, we were fortunate to welcome the Reverend Canon Guy Treweek as our guest preacher for Remembrance Sunday. In the Spring Term, Dr Marie Owen, consultant paediatrician at The Milestone School (Gloucester), came and spoke passionately about the new Chamwell Centre (a specialist hydrotherapy centre). Her talk was delivered just before College embarked on its sponsored Whole School Walk in aid of this worthwhile cause. On Pentecost Sunday, 24 candidates were confirmed by the Right Reverend Robert Springett, the Bishop of Tewkesbury. The following members of staff preached at the start of each term: Dr Alex Peterken, Mr Crispin Dawson and Mrs Anna Cutts. We have been fortunate to hear sermons from the following visiting preachers: Canon Dr Andrew Braddock (Gloucester Cathedral); Reverend Natalie Burfitt (Cheltenham); Reverend Nick Davies (Cheltenham); Reverend John Horan (former President of Council); Reverend Richard Horner (Rugby School); Reverend Joanna Jepson (Territorial Army); Father David Mills (Cheltenham); Reverand John McHale (Wycliffe College); Reverend Patrick Wheaton (Cheltenham); Reverend John Ash (Dean Close School); Reverend Harry Ching OC (1997-2002, NH) (Dubai). Pupils continue to volunteer to speak in Chapel services, especially on weekday mornings. This thematic approach remains a truly distinctive feature of College life and this year College has heard fantastic talks from the following pupils - Arabella Johnson (giving); Euan Bourhill and Benedict Schallamach (tradition); Georgina Oates, Giuseppe D’Istria and Jaime Carter (Europe); Libby Barnes and Aiden Ali (accepting difference); Oliver Ruthven (accepting difference);
Oliver Pritchard (mental flourishing); Shakhin Zamani (sanctuary and refuge); Aiden Ali and Paddy Christopher (suffering); Sam Hamilton (neighbour); Paddy Christopher (perspective); Freddie White and Oliver Ferris (open to opportunities); Charlotte Burnett and Pablo Espono (race); Max Taylor Baggs and William Cooper (unity); Louise Hill and Theo Taylor (regrets); Ann Kupstova (confession); Dasha Romanyuk and Varvara Konyaeva (kingdom of God); Aiden Ali, Jack McClure and Henry Johnson (offence); Sanaya Gheewala and Arabella Hoodless (Holy Week); Killian Hughes (transcendence); Terezia Michalikova (gentleness); Henry Vivian and Frankie Russell (virtue); Brittany Sutton-Page, Finlay Berry and Georgia JonesPerrot (greatness); Jessica Steel and George Wells (inequality); Oscar Bromage-Henry (mental health awareness); Abigail Aitken, Evie Webb, Jilly Woodward, Hollie Keefe (letting go); Duniya Banda and Bhavishya Gem (blessings); Chloe Degnan and Liza Karpovich (identity). The members of the Common Room who spoke in Chapel this year were Mrs Wandrille Bates, Mr Tim Brewis, Mr Simon Brian, Mrs Anna Cutts, Mr Todd Freeman, Mr Tom Lambert, Mr Stephen McQuitty, Mr Jonathan Mace, Mr Nick Nelson, Dr Mary Plint, Mr Dan Townley and Mr Andrew Straiton. The winner of this year’s Jackson-Matthew’s Prize for the best Chapel talk was Theo Taylor for his very personal and inspiring reflections on the theme of regrets. I continue to remain indebted to my fellow chaplains, Adrian and Kerry Samuel, for all the support they provide during the year.
Reverend Dr Adam Dunning
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Charity Our charity-focused work this year has seen a significant growth. Recognising that fundraising is only a part of ‘charity’ giving, College pupils have shown commitment and dedication to maintaining a more active involvement in the life of local charities. Through this, their aim has been to make a positive impact on strengthening charity relationships even further. This year, with the addition of our new girls’ boarding House, College Lawn, we now have 11 Houses supporting their adopted charities: Ashmead: The Nelson Trust Boyne House: The James Hopkins Trust Chandos: Gloucestershire Young Carers Christowe: WellChild College Lawn: Caring for Communities and People Hazelwell: The Cornerstone Centre Leconfield: The Bike Project Newick: Maggie’s cancer support centres Queen’s: Powerchair Football Southwood: Insight Westal: Future Fertility Trust and Allsorts Gloucestershire The Bellamy Cup was presented for the first time in 2017, in recognition of the greatest House contribution to its chosen charity. This has undoubtedly had a strong motivating influence on all the Houses this year.
Boyne House: The James Hopkins Trust The Charity Committee was unanimous in its choice of the Bellamy Cup winner 2018. Boyne, whose chosen charity was The James Hopkins Trust, made a consistently outstanding contribution. The pupils showed commitment, empathy and ambassadorial spirit, for which the committee highly commends them.
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This year, Boyne decided to build on its understanding of what the Trust is involved in. Pupils were also keen to spend more time with the children, as well as continue in their fundraising. This resulted in at least four visits this year, with time spent engaging in sensory play, painting and parachute games. In addition, pupils have helped with gardening, clearing snow and the construction of wooden furniture. In the Summer Term, Boyne organised a Summer ‘Sensory’ Sports Day for children and families who use the Trust. 23 families and 60 people attended, with activities including music therapy, bean-bag throwing and hand painting, to name a few. This was so successful that it will now be a regular annual calendar event. Special recognition is given to Mr Richard Penny, Housemaster, and pupils, James Drysdale, Charles O’Bryan and Eduardo Capelastegui, who completed the Three Peaks Challenge in just 22 hours! James, Charlie and Euardo said: ‘Finally, what really pushed us on through the difficult times was the knowledge that we were doing it for such a worthy cause, and the prospect of putting a smile on some of the children’s faces was enough to drive us to complete our challenge.’ With the aim of raising awareness of the work of the James Hopkins Trust, Boyne boys were interviewed by BBC Radio Gloucester. Support and fundraising for other charities included: • Weekly volunteering with children who have severe or profound learning disabilities (The Milestone School) • Twice yearly High Tea event (Contact the Elderly) • Refugee Cricket Project, a charitable offshoot of the Refugee Council. It aims to cater for Afghan asylum-seeking minors so that they have a sense of community and identity away from their daily lives of foster families, care homes and appeals. Now an established annual event, Boyne House organises a week of fixtures in Gloucestershire with accommodation in Boyne House.
Ashmead: The Nelson Trust The whole House contributed to a performance evening, offering a host of variety acts. A raffle provided an extra source of fundraising, with every pupil and member of staff donating a prize. Support and fundraising for other charities included: • The Charity Fete (including wet-sponge throwing at teachers) • Mrs Sian McBride’s and Mrs Ester Leach’s children run a twice-termly ‘pick ‘n’ mix’ selection. • Special recognition for individual motivation and commitment to raising charity awareness is given to: • Olivia Elliot (Harambee School, Kenya and Cancer Research) • Izzy Kemp and Sophia Capelastgui (The Nelson Trust) • Romy Bodington (raising awareness for the Welsh Veteran Partnership) • Isla Flint (Cancer Research) • Jaime Carter (Homeless shelter in Birmingham) • One Million Metre Row (The Chamwell Centre)
Chandos: Gloucestershire Young Carers In February, Chandos girls organised a whole House run around the College grounds, involving every member of Chandos. The annual Chandos performance evening in April involved a showcase of different talents, including dance, song and music. Support and fundraising for other charities included: • Chandos Housemistress Mrs Annette Poulain cycled through the night on a 100km bike ride (Cancer Research) • Chaplains Kerry and Adrien Samuel and their family fundraised and donated towels and bed sheets (Cheltenham Animal Centre) • Jilly Woodward taught English at the Mercy Centre Orphanage in Thailand
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• Chloe Degnan and Abby Aitken took part in the One Million Meters Rowing Marathon for the James Wentworth-Stanley memorial fund: a charity that helps to prevent suicide, especially in young men, aged 18 to 24.
Christowe: WellChild In September, Christowe boys hosted and took part in a polo tournament. Encouraged by a large supporting crowd. The success of this event means it will now be included as a regular annual event. The in-House tuck shop and 43 hours of cumulative squash playing all added to Christowe’s charitable endeavours.
Support and fundraising for other charities included: • Bake Sale (Children in Need) • Beach Pardy (Manchester Attack Charity) • One Million Metre Row (The Chamwell Centre) • 10K Run (Mencap)
Leconfield: The Bike Project
Support and fundraising for other charities included:
During the winter months, Leconfield pupils set up a regular ‘hot chocolate’ stand in the Quad.
• A special recognition to Kieran Brown who took part in the London Marathon and raised a staggering £4,200 for Diabetes UK in the sweltering heat of 23C
Support and fundraising for other charities included:
• One Million Metre Row (The Chamwell Centre)
College Lawn: Caring for Communities and People (CCP) The girls have dedicated their charitable activity to the Christmas Hamper Scamper project. They sold sweet cones at the Talent Show and the last rugby match of the season for the 1st XV. They organised their own Cheltenham Challenge running events, with the most recent in June being a 5k run. Day girls, boarders and Matrons participated, with others marshalling and handing out water. Support and fundraising for other charities included: • Numerous cakes and brownies throughout the year have been baked for Macmillan Cancer Care for breaktimes, games sessions and Houses.
Hazelwell: The Cornerstone Centre Pupils made half-termly visits to the centre, helping at meal times and getting to know the visitors and staff. This interaction was overwhelmingly positive. A significant fundraiser
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was ‘Swimming the Channel’ (21 miles) in the College swimming pool. A ‘Comedy night’ and ‘Brave the shave’ completed the major fundraising for the centre.
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• In support of our overseas partnership school in Nepal, the Shamrock School, Oliver Ruthven is volunteering as a teaching assistant throughout Summer 2018. Through Just Giving Oliver has also raised funds for the gifts of stationery, baseball gloves and footballs. • Mrs Rebecca Evans ran the London Marathon for Genetics UK.
for the BBC TV series, Let’s get a good thing going. Jessica Hale said: ‘I really enjoyed volunteering at the powerchair football event. It was amazing to meet all the players and I was touched and humbled by their perseverance and optimism despite their disabilities.’ Support and fundraising for other charities included: • Taking part in the Cheltenham 10K Run in June. • Pupils to be commended for individual charitable support: • Anna McIntyre (The Children’s Society) • Phoebe Barnes (British Heart Foundation and Winston’s Wish) • Charlotte Maddinson and Megan Message (Riding for the Disabled)
Southwood: Insight The House BBQ was a highly successful event in supporting the charity. The College Six Nations ‘Fantasy Six Nations Tournament’ united all Houses in their charitable work Support and fundraising for other charities included: • Rory Pleydell, volunteering (Mencap)
Newick: Maggie’s
• Benjamin Kinsman, volunteering in hospitals in Mongolia and Beijing
Many of the Newick boys took part in the College ‘Fantasy Six Nations Tournament’. At the College Charity Fête, they arranged an inflatable obstacle course with Christowe, which proved a highly successful event.
• Euan Bourhill, volunteering in Shamrock School, Nepal
Support and fundraising for other charities included:
Westal’s key fundraising was their hugely popular ‘roller disco’, while also raising awareness of these smaller local charities.
• Volunteer placement at Winston’s Wish, the childhood bereavement charity
Queen’s: Powerchair Football The girls have worked hard to support the Powerchair Football throughout the year, including a fun football session and BBQ with Southwood for family and friends. A highlight was an invitation for Queen’s to open a powerchair football session, which was filmed
Westal: Future Fertility Trust and Allsorts, Gloucestershire
Support and fundraising for other charities included: • One Million Metre Row (The Chamwell Centre) • Inter-House Football Day (The Organisation for Social Change and Responsibility) Foundation (OSCAR supporting and mentoring children from slum communities in Mumbai, teaching them the value of
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education using football as a tool) • Working with children in South African townships • Volunteering in a Nepalese hospital, Summer 2018
The Prefects’ Charity Throughout each year, College Prefects raise money for their chosen charity; this year they chose The Chamwell Centre at Milestones School in Gloucester. The centre is a new, state-of-the-art therapy facility that, once built, will be available for use by both the children at Milestones and other people with disabilities in Gloucester. It will be equipped with a large hydrotherapy pool, a sports area for all abilities and facilities for physical and rebound therapy. Prefects have far exceeded their target of raising £20,000 this year, for which they deserve exceptional praise. At the time of going to press this figure had topped £24,000 and is expected to rise further. The key fundraising events were:
Rugby at Sixways Stadium The most notable charity event so far was the Radley College rugby fixture at Sixways Stadium in Worcester. The Aviva Premiership ground hosted the match between the College 1st XV and Radley, seeing College win 24-0. The Prefects worked extremely hard to organise fundraising events to coincide with the event. This included selling customised wristbands, match programmes and holding a raffle, which was made up of donated prizes. Some of the Prefects visited outlets in town asking for prizes and were very fortunate to receive many, including cinema tickets, various meal vouchers, a Prosecco Pamper Party and many more. We’re even more glad to say that the event was a huge success and we successfully raised more than £1,500.
One Million Metre Boat Club Sponsored Row The Boat Club organised a charity event in which more than 100 pupils, parents and staff, including Mr Matt Dawson took part. We raised £3,000 for two charities; the first being The Chamwell Centre, Milestone School, and the second for the James Wentworth-Stanley memorial fund (a charity that helps to prevent suicide, especially in young men, aged 18 to 24). We rowed on the rowing machines for a total distance of one million metres. This was symbolic; to represent the estimated one million suicides that happen each year around the world. We managed to complete this distance in just under nine and half hours, which was no mean feat as we thought it would take several hours longer.
Tommy Ladds
Whole School Walk We set off in our Houses from Quad at 10-minute intervals from 09.30. It was a beautiful sunny day and a sea of College pupils made their way up to Leckhampton to start the 11k challenge. The atmosphere was wonderful, with everyone helping each other along the way especially at the more difficult parts of the hill and thereby displaying the College spirit of kindness. However hard some of us found it, it was worth it when we got to Devil’s Chimney at the top of the hill; we all enjoyed the panoramic view of Cheltenham, took photos and tried to identify different locations. It really was a sight to remember. After taking in the glorious view and registering to make sure we had not lost
anyone along the way, everyone began to make their way back down the hill- a breeze compared to the trek up! We all made our way back to Quad where there was a well-earned and thoroughly delicious hog roast waiting for us. Overall, it was a great way to display community spirit by bringing the whole of College together whilst raising money for such a worthy cause; the Chamwell Centre at Milestones School in Gloucester
Anna McIntyre and Paddy Christopher
Whole School Walk: Pupils’ Perspectives ‘Personally, I enjoyed it because the thought of walking 11km for Milestone school and children not as lucky as us was phenomenal. It really brought the school together.’ Will Gilderson ‘I enjoyed the idea and intention of walking for Milestone and the sense of fulfilment when reaching the top was great. Community, fulfilment and friendship led to a great day out!’ Zach French ‘I thought it was a good move away from 24hrs as it meant everyone could get involved.’ Louise Hall
Mrs Belinda Cornwell
Finlay Berry
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Supported Schools
A Visit to Gogar
Gogar Primary School, Kenya
Our time in Kenya will never be forgotten! We had the most amazing trip getting to know the wonderful children who attend Gogar Primary School. They even taught us some of their traditional dances in exchange for us teaching them Maths and English! We were immersed in a rural lifestyle residing in the volunteer house on the picturesque Gogar Farm; a 30-minute walk from the school. The whole trip has inspired us as a group to help the children at Gogar Primary in return for the difference they made in our lives. Kenya is a beautiful country and Gogar is a beautiful school.
College has been supporting Gogar Primary School, near the town of Nakuru in the Rift Valley, since 2004. Over the years many Cheltonians have had the privilege of visiting and working with the children of Gogar. This year, three Lower Sixth students won Cheltonian Endowment Trust Travel Awards to visit Gogar to take up volunteer placements during their summer holiday. Working through the Vanessa Grant Trust, for the past two years College has been sponsoring the education of two under-privileged children, Ernest and Diana, which will continue through to the end of their secondary school education. Ernest is continuing his secondary education at the local boys’ secondary school. A highly conscientious, thoughtful and serious young man, Ernest’s school reports show he is doing really well. He is keen to become a doctor. Diana joined the Vanessa Grant Secondary School for Girls on the Gogar Farm site last year. She is making excellent progress and being set ambitious targets for her academic subjects. She is a delightfully engaging and bright young woman, who, like Ernest, is keen to train as a doctor. On behalf of College, I was lucky enough to visit Gogar in January. Meetings with Vanessa Grant Trust trustee, Johnny Onslow and the incredible Sister Hiltrude ensured the smooth running of current projects. The highlight, was of course, meeting Ernest and Diana. They discussed their schooling, needs and ambitions and the tours they gave of their respective schools were especially enjoyable and informative. College is profoundly grateful to Johnny and the work of the Vanessa Grant Trust, without whom, none of this would have been possible. For more information about the Vanessa Grant Trust and its various inspirational projects, please visit: www.vanessagranttrust.org.
Miss Jane Brodigan
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Gemma Taylor Baggs, Ellie Davies and Lidya Su Oz
Shamrock School, Nepal If you ever have the good fortune to visit the Shamrock School you could be forgiven for missing it altogether. The anonymous looking building, a former hotel, lies behind a high wall in the residential area of Pokhara, Nepal’s second city and the gateway to the beautiful Annapurna Mountains. Once through the gates though, you are assured of the warmest of welcomes and the traditional ‘Namaste’ greeting. Walls are brightly decorated with murals and the tiny classrooms are a hive of industry. The 60 children who board here come from remote mountain villages where there is no secondary education, varying in age from 10 to 16. All of them have a challenging past, not least through economic hardship, while many have lost a parent or were badly affected by the 2015 earthquake. What all the children have in common is academic potential and an impressive work ethic that unites their efforts. The school is oversubscribed 10 times over and a rigorous entrance exam and interview are necessary to secure a place. It is little surprise that exam results are superb and the children who graduate from the school go on to further study, both in Nepal and overseas. There are only a handful of qualified teachers, with the younger years taught by the most able of the older students in a bid to save on costs.
The school is registered as a British charity and relies entirely on donations. It is here that College plays a crucial role, both with financial support and regular visits of staff and Sixth Formers. If you visit Nepal be sure to find the Shamrock School as the experience will have a lasting impact.
Mr Dom Faulkner
Residential School for Children with Special Needs in Bradet, Romania In June, a group of 30 post-GCSE pupils embarked on their trip to Bradet for five challenging and rewarding days of play work, DIY, crafting and the hokey-cokey! This year, the group experienced weather more suited to the Welsh mountains; torrential rain kept the children inside for two full days and for good chunks of three. Yet the group really rose to the challenge; stepping out of their comfort zones and well and truly into their stretch and learning zones! Consequently, the pupils achieved far more with the most challenging children than I have ever seen before. Children with high dependency autism can appear locked in to their own repetitive behaviours. But gentle, persistent and varied efforts from our pupils resulted in profoundly moving moments of awakening in the most vulnerable of children; children who had been previously curled up in a corner, silent and rocking, were now engaging: smiling, singing and holding eye contact. Music this year was a real highlight. Singing and the ukulele from Mary Foster and Annabel Watkin really helped to unlock some of the most hard-to-reach children and Ivy Zhu’s beautiful violin playing was a real source of wonder and fascination for many. Special mention must also go to Jemima Rees, whose quiet and dauntless compassion working with a wide range of the most challenging children was an inspiration to us all and recognised by the pupils in their reflection at the end of the week. As ever, I am indebted to Miss Elizabeth Rawkins, Mrs Kate Hornsby, Mr Todd Freedman, Mr Gavin Johnson, Mrs Fiona Parry, Mr Graham Cutts, and volunteers Miss Charlotte Hornsby and Mr Steve Apps for their work making this trip so successful
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and transformative. Special thanks go to Charlotte for giving so generously of her valuable time while studying to become a Paramedic and to Steve for his fantastic work with our pupils; he facilitated profound development in their ability to reflect on this extraordinary experience and we are all very grateful for this. Huge thanks as ever must go to Razvan Cicorschi, our amazing Romanian counterpart in the Childcare Department of Brasov; it is Razvan’s dedication to the children of Bradet and his patience with and understanding for us that make this trip possible. College is immensely grateful. In addition to the clothing, art and crafts and balls and games taken by the pupils, this year, we managed to purchase the following items for Bradet: • Poly tunnel covering • 30 LED lights • 100 pairs of trainers • A vacuum cleaner • DIY equipment • Timber and materials to build an external staircase for new volunteer accommodation • Bike-repair equipment for the annual servicing of the BMX bikes donated by College pupils more than 10 years ago.
Fifth Form Reflections: ‘I have learned not to be afraid or daunted by people who are different to us but instead, I have learned how to communicate with them and to make them feel comfortable and happy.’ ‘I persevered and managed to teach Alex how to ride a bike which touched me greatly as I feel
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it is such a key moment in childhood and one without me that he may never have had.’ ‘Bradet has given me a unique experience to challenge myself, to develop new skills and to help those who have nothing. The children’s happiness is heart-warming as they have so little. The ‘self-driven’ happiness that they possess is something that I will try to bring back to College.’ ‘This invaluable experience has allowed me to understand the saying ‘don’t judge a book by its cover.’ Those children who seemed more ‘normal’ were often the hardest to get through to, harder even that those children who couldn’t communicate verbally at all. I hope that I have and will continue to be more accepting and less judgmental. I know that I will miss the children of Bradet an infinite amount and I am so thankful to have had the opportunity to meet the amazing and precious children who live there.’ ‘I truly feel that my experience at Bradet was life-changing. It was so rewarding to use my skill set with the children and to see how they became more responsive to music and art. I feel that Steve’s talk about their ‘awakening’ was particularly relevant as I think I also experienced an awakening as a result of my interactions with the children of Bradet.’ ‘I have learned that life, through coincidence or choice, presents you with challenges. I chose this challenge and I see it as one of the most eyeopening experiences I will have in my life. I have learned that small things, such as simply holding someone’s hand, can have such a big impact on you and on others. I feel very privileged to have had the opportunity to spend time with the children of Bradet.’
For further information about Bradet, please do not hesitate to contact me: J.Brodigan@ cheltenhamcollege.org
Miss Jane Brodigan
Community Action College life in the wider Cheltenham community continues to flourish through its Community Action programme. Its vibrancy is a reflection of the drive and commitment of College pupils. Nearly 250 pupils in the Upper Sixth, Lower Sixth and the Fourth Form have taken part in local activities across 20 placement options. These include schools, care homes, charity shops, local parks and Cheltenham General Hospital, to name a few. Pupils have been involved in many different community sectors and are consequently more aware of local issues and need. Above all College pupils have contributed with enthusiasm, in a keen ‘spirit of service’.
A taste of what we’ve been doing In a new placement this year, Upper Sixth students have been volunteering at Cheltenham General Hospital, in the role of a Befriender. This is a ward-based role where they chat with patients and help staff to prepare and serve meals. Lower Sixth students continue to build on their work with the children at Cheltenham’s
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Battledown Centre, which specialises in education for autism and other special needs. Here they help to enhance children’s understanding at story times through using the ‘story massage’ technique. This interaction has been especially positive in encouraging Battledown children in their communication. Our association with six care homes in Cheltenham means we are increasing our understanding of the types of interaction and activities that best suit engaging the elderly. Lower Sixth groups share past stories of peoples’ lives, play games and help in art sessions. Pupil musical recitals at Thirlestaine Park Care Home, have become a firm favourite with the residents. In preparation for Christmas, Lower Sixth volunteered to pack hampers for the Hamper Scamper Project, which provides food and presents for local disadvantaged people. This involvement proved a powerful message in highlighting the reality of how little some people have and cementing this awareness in our pupils.
A new addition to our Community Action programme This year marked the inclusion of our Fourth Form. We believe it’s never too early to encourage a sense of community, hence our aim to nurture a more conscious awareness of ‘giving back’ in our younger pupils. With the support of College staff, in a wide range of local settings, small groups of pupils have gained first-hand experience of the daily realities people face. In this first year, we have achieved our goal of enabling the entire Fourth Form of 145 pupils to participate. One group has been helping at Hop, Skip
and Jump, a centre for children with a wide spectrum of disabilities and special educational needs. Pupils have engaged in soft play, catch, jigsaws, scooter racing, setting up train sets and helping to serve the children at mealtimes. These experiences have shown our Fourth Form what life is like for children of their own age who must cope with challenges all the time. All have said how enriching and humbling the experience has been. ‘During the seven-week community service, I chatted and played endlessly with different children. They could be lovely but sometimes they were emotional. I learned from that how to understand another’s perspective.’ Eva Lai April 2018 saw the start of a new outreach project in stonewalling, based locally on Cleeve Common. Here Fourth Form pupils work with a master stonemason to assist in the re-building of collapsed stone walls to improve the local countryside for public benefit. Undoubtedly character-building, pupils have had the opportunity to learn new skills and work in conditions that challenge them. ‘It’s been really interesting learning how to use the stone hammers and satisfying to shape pieces exactly to fit the wall. A master stonemason can build two feet of stone wall a day but it might take us rather longer!’ Thomas White
Working together This year, we have seen our community involvement consolidate and reach out into new areas. We are especially grateful to the organisations who help facilitate much of our community action activities. In recognition of the
joint work we are able to achieve through our partnerships, College hosted a dinner of thanks in November 2017. This also provided an excellent opportunity for community partners to meet and share views. Many thanks must also go to Mr James Stubbert for all he has done to establish this important aspect of College life.
Mrs Belinda Cornwell
Chatfeild-Roberts Library ‘Libraries are not made. They grow.’ Augustine Birrell. Just what the above quotation means has puzzled me for a number of years; in fact, since arriving at College. It seems obvious: libraries slowly but surely accumulate more resources as time goes on, either through donations or purchases made at the request of Library users or sought out by the Library staff. Certainly, libraries do not simply ‘pop!’ into existence as finished products but are continually changing, expanding, growing. Yet, this still seems a fairly superficial reading. There is something missing in the analysis. A nuance that has not yet been revealed… Staring out of our beautiful north window at a clear-blue sky and green-laden trees moving in a gentle summer’s breeze, the holidays only a short few weeks away, the idea of growth becomes a little easier to contemplate. The parallel between a ‘man-made’ concept such as a library and the rhythms and processes of the natural world become less far-fetched. This year, we have indeed continued to grow, both in the narrow sense mentioned at the beginning of this report, but also in a deeper sense. Root: The Library is now firmly established as a central node in the academic life of College. This idea has been steadily gaining traction amongst our pupils and staff over the last few years. We are now seeing record numbers using the space through the day, over weekends, the eveningprep sessions and during those holidays when we are open. This is a testament to the work ethic of our young Cheltonians and we are proud to be able to offer the facility to them. We never tire of saying how lucky we are to have this space in which to work. It is a privilege but it is still incredibly encouraging that the College community continues to support and value the Library the way it does. My personal thanks also must go to the Library team for the incredible amount of work and care they put into ensuring that the Library continues to go from strength to strength. Trunk: Ensuring the Library space is well-used is one part of the equation. Key to how we continue to grow is in the way we develop our services; making them more user-friendly and accessible and meeting the ever-changing needs of our community, staff and pupils alike. Our new Discovery Service platform has been rolled out over the last couple of terms and will revolutionise the way pupils engage with Library resources and services. Our support of research projects, and the Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) in particular, has meant that we have been able to help develop information literacy
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skills across various academic subjects and year groups; a vital aspect of what the Library is about and central to the way College engenders independent learning. Reading initiatives abound as well and we are supporting the English Department’s new Reading Diploma closely, while continuing to provide Houses, Departments and the Common Room with the latest fiction and non-fiction for their own shelves. Year Eights from the Prep School have once again visited our Library for quiet reading time (and some biscuits) while initiatives such as House reading groups, Jackanory and ‘Readaxation’ are all gaining momentum. Through all of this, the Library continually refines what it is doing to foster a culture of reading and critical independent research within the College; shedding the dead wood and growing stronger all the time… From branch to leaf to fruit: outreach is an important aspect of the Library’s mission, and fun competitions, prize draws, pot-luck recommendations and displays are all products of this. Visitor talks and society meetings in the Library have featured more prominently this year, with LitSoc, in particular, bringing passionate readings of diverse literatures, vibrant debate and more than a little humour to what is usually a more contemplative space; a welcome injection of fervour and fun!
Internationalism We began the academic year with great gusto; inducting an unprecedented number of incoming overseas pupils during International Induction 2017. As ever, I remain indebted to our existing pupils who selflessly relinquished the tail end of their holiday to support our new recruits so admirably. A welcome induction reunion then ensued some two weeks later, allowing the bonds originally forged to strengthen. In late September, two pupils embarked upon our annual exchange programme with Groton School in Massachusetts in the US; a prestigious private school founded in 1884 by Reverend Endicott Peabody (1871-1876, NH). Over the course of one month, Freya Coull and Simon Oates enjoyed a hale blend of academia, sport and socialising in a thriving boarding environment overseas. Further international ties were fostered via the OSCAR Foundation, who enable a visiting team of teenagers from the slums of Mumbai, to take part in a football tour of Great Britain. Hosting such a warm, yet very underprivileged coterie of young men, was a heartening experience.
ever this year to enjoy the obligatory moon cake, and a foiled search for a distant luminary. As is customary, this was followed in February with our recognition of the Chinese New Year, and a veritable banquet of delicious Chinese food for 50 in the Cricket Pavilion. As Chair of Internationalism for academic year 2017-18, Giuseppe d’Istria and I had specifically targeted Chapel as an area for development. Hence, International Mother Language Day was recognised in February with an excellent student address. As ever, the International Dinner in the Spring Term was an ebullient affair, and we enjoyed hearing Giuseppe’s departing words of gratitude and his sage advice for the future.
Mr Nick Nelson
In celebrating the Mid-Autumn Festival for China in October, we amassed larger numbers than
In anticipation of World Book Day, we held our annual Third Form Literature Quiz in Big C. It was again a hotly contested affair, with pupils showing impressive knowledge of ‘the classics’ as well as of contemporary fiction. In the end, Newick triumphed for the second time in the competition’s history; the first House to have done so, and gained themselves £50 worth of books for their House library. Well done, Muglistonites! For World Book Day itself, we asked teachers to share what books had made an impression on them when they were at school. Childhood photographs were included. The result was a wonderful collection of testaments to books and their power to entertain, invigorate, transport and challenge, and to their lasting effects. A wide variety of novels were referenced, from Wilkie Collins’s Woman in White to Paul Auster’s New York Trilogy and AA Milne’s Pooh stories. Our thanks go to those members of staff who contributed. Naturally, there were a few chuckles over the photographs provided, too. Ah… the halcyon days of our youth! At the very tip of the branches, but central to the ‘why’ of what the Library is trying to achieve, we have this notion of the Library as a space that is as much a beautiful convergence of space, resource and service as it is an opportunity. An opportunity to be intellectually curious; academically or creatively inspired and to be connected in one’s focus and ambitions to one’s peers. The pupils and staff who use the Library day in and day out will, I hope, reflect happily on the role it has played in these ambitions this year and think positively about what it will be able to do for them in the future. And there I realise at last: it is, after all, in this hope that we grow.
Mr Beren-Dain Delbrooke-Jones
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ASHMEAD Music
This year the Ashmead girls welcomed the enthusiastic Mrs Leach, accompanied by her lovely family, as our Housemistress and it has truly been both a great and fruitful year for us all.
Sports This year, despite having few victories in House pots, with many eager participants form all years, Ashmead always had a great turnout. House hockey was a real highlight, with the majority of the House coming to support, despite the rain. I’m sure I speak for the whole House when I say that it was disappointing that Sports Day was cancelled, as undoubtedly we would have taken home the victory this time around.
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Ashmead regularly contributes to musical life at College, whether it’s singing in Chapel Choir on Sunday, playing in the orchestra, or giving the boys’ Houses a run for their money on who can sing the loudest. House Singing is often done with gusto in Ashmead. It isn’t always about singing in the most tuneful way, but we are sure to provide entertainment. This year, with our House Song ‘She’s so Lovely’ by Scouting for Girls, was no exception. Many of our girls took part in this year’s musical, Leonard Bernstein’s West Side Story. No matter whether they were performing large or small roles, you could often see an Ashmead girl giving it her all on stage singing and acting.
Charity In December, we kicked off our charity events to raise funds for The Nelson Trust: the Ashmead charity showcase was a highly enjoyable and interesting evening in which we were treated to talent from each year group. It was great to see so many of the girls getting involved and allowed us all to show our unique skills. The Ashmead charity fete was a highlight of the year. Each year group came up with an idea for a stall to make money from. For example, selling sweet bags, homemade
Ashmead cookies, popping balloons with darts and even a bucking bronco which some of the parents tested for themselves! Despite it not being the hottest day that we have enjoyed, we had a great turn out, and thanks to all those who came and supported Ashmead. A special thank you to Mr Leach for providing us with a pizza van, which we see as a ‘Must Have’ in the years to come.
House success • Georgina Hamer got into Private Eye All Star Angels, a national cheerleading team • Jemima Rees got into the Welsh U18 hockey squad • Flora Fletcher was voted the Cheltenham Junior Hockey Club U16s player of the year • Well done to Grace Denning-Smitherman for being selected to row with the 1sts! Next stop: Team GB and the Olympics! • Scholarships for those going into Lower Sixth • Arabella Hoodless received an Academic Scholarship • Jemima Rees received a Sports Scholarship • Olivia Elliot received a Textiles Scholarship • Bridget Fong received a Music Scholarship
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Farewells This year we bade farewell to Miss Rowland as our Resident Tutor. We thank her for everything she has done in her four years with us, and her help in looking after each and every one of us both in and out of House. She will be greatly missed, but fortunately she is not going far and we will still see her on duty in Ashmead. Although Mrs McBride has only been a Resident Tutor for a year, she has been a great asset to the House and without her efforts the Ashmead Charity Showcase, would not have been the success that it was. In our close-knit community, it is always sad to see people leaving. We have three girls in the Fifth Form, Anna Kuptsova, Jenny Carson and Violet Shorthouse and all the Upper Sixth moving on to new places. We wish them all the best with their future endeavors. Each and every one of them has given their most in their time in Ashmead and they will be thoroughly missed. A big well done to our Speech Day Prize Winners and newly appointed Prefects.
Speech Day Prizes: Lower College Attainment: Jessica Pulford , Lara Scudamore, Beth Jenkins The Adams prize (for progress): Sophie Fowler
Upper College Endeavour: Isla Flint
Subject Prizes: Ronald Guthrie Bedford History: Izzy Kemp Theatre Studies: Georgina Grimwade Extended Project Qualification Award: Romy Bodington
Cheltonian Endowment Trust Prizes:
House Editors: Penny Salmond Smith, Gigi Seetoo and Romy Bodington
Art History: Cordelia Shorthouse
Prefects: 2018-19 Head of House: Isabella Barber Deputy Heads of House: Sumaya DowlingMembrado and Georgina Grimwade Head of Third Form: Izzy Kemp Deputy Head of School: Romy Bodington The House editors would like to thank Georgina Grimwade for her help in finalising these pages.
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BOYNE HOUSE Charity
While I can’t speak for the preceding 175year history of Boyne this year has been, from what I have experienced, one of Boyne’s most successful years. We have had huge achievements from individuals across all areas of College life. Ranging from sporting and academic success to excellence in the spheres of music and drama. Our immense contribution to local charities has been so rewarding, and Boyne’s in-House life has flourished.
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This year has been our best year yet on the charity front, with Boyne winning the Bellamy Cup for our charitable endeavours. It was a huge honour to receive it. Throughout the year we sent teams of five or six pupils on a Sunday over to the James Hopkins Trust; a place that provides respite for parents with severely disabled children requiring 24-hour monitoring. On arrival we usually started by cleaning, mopping or mowing the lawn and we tended to finish the day by playing and interacting with the children. Additionally, we organised a week long cricket tour for the Afghan Refugee Cricket Project, and hosted groups from Contact The Elderly; a charity for socially isolated pensioners. We do this every year, and it is always so special to hear their stories from years gone by.
Co-curricular Boyne’s clan system has really excelled this year with the introduction of in-House talks, given by the pupils. Every Thursday evening, we met up to participate in various activities or events.
This included 5-a-side football tournaments and pub games, as well as our talks – the latest one given by Jonnie Gunn about his cricket tour to Sri Lanka and William Blowers on the conservation of wildlife in South Africa. Many weekend events involve competition between clans, including Superstars, whereby each clan gets together in their clan outfit to participate in silly games, which are enjoyed by all. The Green Dragon and Spice Lodge trips are also great fun, especially the hilarious speeches given by Head of House and other Prefects. Weekend activities have been awesome this year, with the new introduction of Zorbing on the College astro, the Mud Runner at Eastnor Castle and trampolining at Airborne. The annual paintballing event also went ahead, and on the first weekend of 2017 our clans made the hike up Leckhampton Hill. Fifth Form, Upper Sixth and Lower Sixth all enjoyed their House Dinners with the inventive themes being Fairies and Genies, Hawaii, Famous Couples and Pub Quiz.
Academic Our Upper Sixth in Boyne applied to universities to start both this year or next, with a number of
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amazing gap years planned too. Everyone got two or more offers from Russell Group universities; the House has performed exceptionally well. Benedict Schallamach and Charles O’Bryan both received offers to study at the University of Cambridge next year, with Boyne House therefore making up two of the five Oxbridge offer holders in College. Benedict will be hoping to study Natural Sciences and Charles, Human, Social, and Political Sciences (HSPS). Massive congratulations go to all the Upper Sixth and the best of luck in getting the grades needed. Lower College also worked hard to win the Hart Shield for boys’ House Academics on Speech Day and Jonnie Gunn was awarded the Adams prize for outstanding progress.
Sports It’s been a good year for sport in Boyne too with Max Taylor-Baggs and Benedict Schallamach both representing the rugby 1st XV, as well as Sebastian Blake playing up. In hockey, Boyne had five players in the 1st XI including both Sebastian Blake and Jude Clayton playing up. This gave us a promising chance in House pots, but we were
sadly defeated in the final of the tournament, albeit after not conceding a single goal in the previous games. We have also had success in House cricket, with four of the 1st hailing from Boyne, including Charlie Davison, who took six wickets for 12 runs on his debut against the University of Bristol University. Including rowers from Upper Sixth all the way to Third Form, the House pots rowing team fought hard. Boyne also had some great achievements outside of the main sports, with Luke Wiles playing polo in Argentina in the second half of the Autumn Term and going on with his team to win the U15 national champions for 2017. Well done to Sebastian Blake who has played up for rugby, hockey and cricket this year.
Music and Drama The year has been extremely eventful on the music front for the boys of Boyne with multiple concerts and plays consisting of a plentiful number of Boyne representatives. A special mention must go to current Head of House,
Max Taylor Baggs, for leading from the front and hosting the Variety Show. Additionally, on the drama front, the year has provided extraordinary opportunities for the pupils West Side Story. Key roles were played by James Taylor-Kimmins and Hugo Bailey. On the other hand, music has been particularly successful, especially House singing. This involved a competitive yet amusing night with all the Houses performing excellently. Boyne was able to seize third place in the main event, as well as coming third in the Part Song (#robbed). James Burden deserves a particular mention for his participation in JIG, which involved him playing at the Jazz Festival in Cheltenham as well as Speech Day and other concerts during school time.
House Editors: Benjamin Southall and Christian Campbell
Speech Day Prizes: Lower College Attainment: George Tomblin Endeavour: Theo Hall, Charlie Davison, Bryn Fair
Upper College SUBJECT PRIZES: Business Studies: Jonnie Gunn Ian Marsden Chemistry: Benedict Schallamach
Cheltonian Endowment Trust Prizes: Mathematics: Benedict Schallamach Head’s Award for Outstanding Commitment: Max Taylor Baggs, Freddie White Dagley-Morris Prize (Chapel Music): Freddie White The Adams prize (for progress): Jonnie Gunn The John Bowes Cup for all-round contribution: Freddie White
Shield Winners! We are proud to say that as a House, Boyne also won The Hart shield for Lower College boys’ House academic achievement and The Bellamy Cup for Charitable Endeavour.
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CHANDOS
Co-curricular One of the highlights of the House’s successes this year was the Chandos and Southwood play, Potter, in early February. The play was a spin off of the Harry Potter book franchise and was also loosely based on the popular YouTube series A Very Potter Musical. This was co-directed by Jilly Woodward and Rob Caesar. The outcome of the cast’s hard work was incredible and provoked colossal amounts of laughter from the audience, filling the room with immeasurable energy. Starring Holly Ellis as a young and arrogant Harry Potter, Tuesday Roberts as the intelligent (and awkward) Hermione Granger,
Speech Day Prizes: Lower College Attainment: Anna Forde Endeavour: Molly Krauer, Minette Tombleson, Frankie Pinchard, Anna Laura Fernandez de las Moras, Emily Heardman Anthony James Art: Kimberly Suchonvanich Hannam Clark Orchestra: Ivy Zhu
Upper College
George Wells (Southwood) as the emotionally befuddled and blunt Ron Weasley, and many more comedic appearances from the Chandos girls, the show was a fantastic achievement for all. Many thanks must go to Mr Gatherer for offering key feedback and for his unbreakable faith in us. Thanks must also go to Abby Aitken, Holly Keefe, Daisy Wildman, Chloe Degnan and Liza Karpovich for their amazing support backstage and their work on the set, and to the other girls who contributed to prop making. The show was altogether an amazing experience and one that demonstrated the talent of the House as a whole.
Speech Day This year’s Speech Day was filled with both successes and sadness as we congratulated a long list of girls who received awards and said goodbye to our Upper Sixth. We had in-House speeches, in which Chandos said goodbye to the Upper Sixth Leavers and Prefect team in Chandos. Whilst warmly congratulating the new Head of House, Jilly Woodward, and Deputy Heads of House, Lanta Thynne and Evie Webb.
Sports This year Chandos has seen many moments of sporting greatness from both the Junior and Senior teams. History has been made with new records being set at the U18 Abingdon Sprint Swimming Gala by Cindy Lai and Rachel Loo and also by our girls who participated in College’s first girls’ football team captained by Eugénie Spencer. Chandos has always thrived on a great team spirit and this was shown by our many successes in this year’s House pots, taking home first place in squash and swimming. Chandos
saw many first team representatives during both the hockey season with Madeline Moorsom and Lucy Oliver, and in the netball season with Katya Jennings and Emily Heardman both playing up. A special mention must be made for both Lucy Oliver, who has gone on to play for the Welsh national team, as well as Katya Jennings, who scored an amazing 51/55 goals for Gloucester netball.
A Newcomer’s Perspective from Josie Grounds I arrived in September and since then I have enjoyed every moment in Chandos. From the moment I stepped in that door, I have felt welcome and at home here. In the first couple of weeks after the Autumn half term holiday, I felt homesick but every time I was given a hug and there was always someone to talk to. The older pupils in the first couple of days were so big and scary and I finally got the meaning of being a little fish in a big pond. After a few corridor encounters and bonding over a shared love for food (as Chandos holds food so close to its heart) we all realised that they are actually lovely people. We have been inundated with activities, food, fun and laughter. I mean, where else would you get random Saturday night dance battles against the Fifth Form? In all honesty, I can’t imagine being anywhere else.
House Editors: Holly Keefe, Eugenie Spencer and Jilly Woodward
SUBJECT PRIZES: Art: Annie Dai Chemistry: Liza Karpovich Design (Textiles): Georgia Mitchell Rea English Literature: Abby Aitken Psychology: Hattie Chung Sir Frederick Page Fellowship of Engineering: Sherry He
Cheltonian Endowment Trust Prizes: Business Studies: Chantal Kittony Politics: Terezia Michalikova Science: Elisabeth Trachtmann Head’s Award for Outstanding Commitment: Zara Qadir
Academic Shield Winners! We are proud to say that our Lower College girls also won The Robertson shield for girls’ House academic achievement.
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CHRISTOWE Charles Meecha-Jones, Boris Pustoshinskiy and Tommy Ladds. In Lower College, Sebastian Cornwell travelled to the University of Bristol to take part in the Top of the Bench chemistry competition, where he represented College. Christowe also has four boys who are taking their Maths GCSE a year early; a great testament to their determination. We would also like to wish Harry Piggott all the best in his study of Neuroscience at Manchester, and Nicholas Siu who has received an offer from Imperial College London to study Civil Engineering.
Sport As the year draws to a close, we reflect on another fantastic year for Christowe. This year we saw great success in every department. The Tutors, Matrons, and House-parents created a welcoming Christowe community; the House really is a home away from home.
Academic We had another strong year in academics. Once again we achieved the best GCSE results compared to other Houses. In fact, four boys achieved straight As or more: Finbar McConnell,
Christowe has had an exceptional year on the sporting front, with many House pots victories and other great achievements both inside and outside College. The year started very positively as four boys from Christowe represented the rugby 1st XV in their unbeaten tour of Japan. In addition to this, Ali Pearce and Charles Tchen were both awarded rugby Half Colours for their excellent performances throughout the season. The Sevens season brought further success as Joseph Maguire, Temwani Banda, Hugo Ladkin and Max Brown won not only the West of England Sevens tournament, but also the much sought-after plate at Rosslyn Park. There was further success for Simon Oates and
Gus Milton who also won the West of England Sevens tournament and came runners-up in the tournament at Merchant Taylors’ School. The U15, under the leadership of our very own Sebastian Cornwell, got to the last 16 of the NatWest Schools Cup alongside Simon Oates, William Hechle and Luke Tappuni, Temwani and Max Brown (the last two played up). There was also plenty of success in the water as Dougal Rees, Gus Roberts, Stanley Anton, Boris Pustoshinskiy, Denis Antonov and Jasper Chiang helped College to win the ESSA National Water Polo Championship. Christowe also won both Junior and Senior House swimming pots. We were in a strong position throughout this year for House pots, as we have four captains of sport: rowing (Hugo Oglina), rackets (Theo Taylor) basketball and badminton (Nicolas Siu). With Hugo Oglina, Tom Buxton, Luke Browning, Nikita Vashchenko and Charlie Shannon, we won House rowing. For the first time in far too many years, Christowe reached the rackets final (Theo Taylor, Alister Pearce and William Dyke) before being stopped in our tracks by a very solid Newick pair. Last but by no means least, Kieran Brown was one of the youngest runners and the only teenager with Type 1 diabetes to run the London marathon this year: a fantastic achievement that he will remember for a long time.
Speech Day Prizes: Lower College Attainment: Sebastian Cornwell Endeavour: Tommy Ladds, Charles Meecham-Jones
Upper College SUBJECT PRIZES: Abbott Mathematics: Finbar McConnell Abbott Mathematics for Science: Kelvin Poon Physics: Finbar McConnell The Jackson-Matthews Chapel Prize (best address): Theo Taylor
Cheltonian Endowment Trust Prizes: Design (Resistant materials): Hugo Oglina Economics: Nicholas Siu
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Music and Drama Christowe produced a unique rendition of ‘Hero’, ‘Breaking Free’ and ‘Broken Strings’ for House music. Robbed again, to say the least. However, there was more success on the stage as Piers Morgan, James Barldrop, Tom Buxton and Charles Meecham-Jones all played major parts in College’s production of West Side Story. Felix Stevens, Oliver Pritchard and most notably, Oscar Bromage-Henry, as a blonde Rodolpho, all played parts in the Scholars’ play, A View from the Bridge at the Cheltenham Playhouse Theatre.
Charity This year, Christowe has made a fantastic contribution to our House charity WellChild. At the start of the year Gus Roberts, Denis Antonov and Edward Walker organised a House charity polo day, raising £1,000. Somehow the Fourth Form managed to beat Lower Sixth in the electric bike polo final! WellChild benefitted
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again when Oscar Bromage-Henry organised a House squash event where Christowe played a total of 43 hours of Squash over a Sunday, raising £650. The Spring Term saw the one-million-metre row organised by Hugo Oglina and Tommy Ladds which raised £1,510 with many Christowe boys putting in the hard yards. The Whole School walk brought even more success as the House walked up Leckhampton Hill, raising £1,230 for the therapy facility; the Chamwell Centre.
Final Notes All in all, it has been another fantastic year for Christowe with phenomenal achievements in all areas. It has been superbly led by a great team of House Prefects and Mr and Mrs Mace, whose support and care have helped to develop such a great community within Christowe. Unfortunately, it is time to say goodbye to the Upper Sixth. We wish them luck for their lives at university and in the future. However, in their place, we look forward to a new year of incoming
Prefects leading and helping the House, and would like to wish Oscar Bromage-Henry the very best in his role of Head of House next year.
House Editor: Felix Watson-Smyth
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COLLEGE LAWN the best it could be. And we can safely say it was!
Stephanie Lau
Thank You
First Impressions There is nothing better than the smell of a new house! New carpets, new wallpaper, and new furniture (although not entirely unpacked). As College Lawn opened for the first time ever, everyone was buzzing to get into the new boarding House. Mrs Wintle took up the role of Housemistress, aided by our two Matrons, who were just as new as us girls. A lot of difficulty unpacking and putting on bedsheets later, we were ready to get to know each other. Every one of us was ready to make new friends and form friendships that would last us through our years at College. The first week or so consisted of attempting to navigate around the House and, on a bigger scale, College. As we (even Mrs Wintle and our Matrons) tried to find our way around, we depended on each other for help! However, there was no doubt that we managed it with a positive outlook. We were all determined to make the year and College Lawn
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Our first year in existence has been a truly exciting one. With 23 Third and Fourth Formers, we would’ve got nowhere without the help and guidance of our Housemistress Mrs Wintle, our Tutors, Mrs Hornsby, Miss Rawkins, Miss Evans and Mr Reid, and our wonderful Matrons, Mrs Dawson and Mrs Paterson. We are excited for next year when we have our first College Prefects taking care of College Lawn: Liza Karpovich and Gemma Taylor Baggs.
A Newcomer’s Perspective from Freya Haddon This year has been an amazing experience for all of us especially as we are the founders of the House. During the first couple of terms we were given the opportunity to form bonds with girls from Lower Sixth in other Houses when they came for Prep duties and during free time in the evenings. This really helped my boarding experience and also with any homesickness. They were all so welcoming and really allowed us the chance to get a sense of College life. Mrs Wintle and the Matrons have helped us create a home in College Lawn with tips about how to be more organised, giving us advice when we need it and that has improved our time-management skills and quality of life
no end. All in all, I have really enjoyed my time at College this year and am really looking forward to Fourth Form and all it will bring.
Sports I have really enjoyed sport at Cheltenham College this year and the added challenge of working as a House in House pots with only two year groups. Other Houses were suitably surprised by our triumphs. However, when you have three sports scholars, (myself, Gabriella Bifulco and Anya James), and everyone else willing to give it their all, it is not hard. This year we won Third Form girls’ House swimming to collect our first ever trophy. In House hockey we came third, and third in House rowing too (after two Westal teams) and House netball … well, we’ll do better next year! We can’t wait to take on all the challenges that the sporting aspect of school will bring next year. Watch out College – we’ll be stronger next year when there are more of us!
Isabella Mills
Co-curricular We may be small but we are mighty and this is especially true when it comes to singing. As a new House, we had never sung in the annual House singing contest before, and as a result we didn’t realise how soon in the year it actually was. We practised religiously as we had heard
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what a great event it was. This was a gruelling but intensely fun experience and we managed to learn ‘Way Back Into Love’ in time for the competition and we were all very proud of the outcome. For the Part Song we sang ‘Can You Feel the Love Tonight’; we sang our hearts out and as a result we came fourth which was a great achievement as it was our first ever attempt. We cannot wait to perform again in the years to come.
Dorothea Peterken
House Events Over the past year we organised many House events for developing fun, friendship and fantastic memories that will stay with us girls during our time at College. We had afternoon teas in Cirencester and in the CL garden, trampolined at Funky Warehouse, played crazy golf and went bowling with Boyne as well socials with the other Houses such as the Westal Fun Day, music quiz night with Leconfield, fajita night with Ashmead and Safari Supper nights. We went to Gifford’s Circus, experienced College’s own Chinese New Year celebrations and had a Christmas meal at Bill’s in town and well as a posh puddings night in House. These were all greatly enjoyable events. We are now excited for what’s to come when the House grows.
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Charity We were all so proud to enter the Cheltenham Challenge as the school year came to a close. With both Matrons running alongside us, we completed 5K while raising money for our House charity Caring for Communities and People (CCP). This was a great event as it really brought the House together as we encouraged each other to keep pushing through the run, even when we felt like giving up. It built a strong sense of House and friendship and we can’t wait to take on more challenges and overcome them as a strong team. We also had a bake sale and sweet cone sale, where we all joined together to make the cakes and cones, and sell them for Macmillan and CCP respectively, which were great fun. We will continue to come together as a House to engage with our wider community and raise money for an important cause.
Festive memories There was one night, the Christmas Dinner, where we all had quite a laugh. With 2017 coming to an end, it was a great way to spend one of our last evenings together. People exchanged gifts, conversed and as never before the two year groups of College Lawn connected on a whole new level. It is sometimes hard to see everyone, and it’s always easy to spend quality time as a House, but that dinner pulled everyone together. No one cared which year group they
were, or the age difference between us; we all bonded together, and that’s what a House is all about.
Julia Gellere
Speech Day Prizes: Lower College Attainment: Dorothea Peterken Endeavour: Louise James
House Editors: Gemma Taylor Baggs and Lizaveta Karpovich ably assisted by the girls of College Lawn.
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HAZELWELL Sport
This year in Hazelwell has been extremely prosperous, and we have had success in all fields, including (but certainly not limited to) academic, sporting, drama and music. With many members of Hazelwell at the forefront of goings-on at College it’s difficult to pinpoint particular areas of excellence this year, since so much has been noteworthy.
Speech Day Prizes: Lower College Elmslie Drama: Alexander Taylor The Adams prize for (for progress): Oscar Chan
Upper College
We have regularly had House members represent the first team for rugby, squash, rackets, shooting, cricket, basketball, football and hockey, and it’s safe to say that Hazelwell has many key players in College sport. Representing Hazelwell was Thomas Stanton as captain of the 1st XV, Paddy Christopher as captain of the 2nd XV, Jordan Pemberton as captain of the Football XI, and Charlie Boyce leading this year’s tennis. Thomas Hartley won High Gun at the Marlborough Challenge for shooting, and in rowing Archie Faskin and Thomas White took part in the National Schools’ Regatta. They were part of the J15 coxed four, who, achieving 11th place in the qualifiers, then went through to the final, in which they came 4th, making them 10th overall in the country! Conditions that day were near perfect: the water was flat and there was little cloud. The boys did well considering that they had only had one previous race in the coxed four.
Skiing from Jack Cunningham Finishing first in two of the recent National Championship races, earlier this year I was selected for the British Ski team for the upcoming season. It was a great honour to
achieve this result and puts me in a good position for next season as I look to qualify for the Youth Olympics. It’s been a great year for skiing and I wouldn’t have been able to do it without the support of my Tutor, Mr Kelway.
Co-curricular In drama we had appearances in the Scholar’s play A View From a Bridge and the whole College production West Side Story, with the lead role of Riff being excellently portrayed by Max Pemberton, and supported by fellow Greenites Oscar Chan, Oliver Coker and Alexander Taylor. In music we were very lucky to have seen the arrival of Mr Pirttijavi (New Resident Tutor and Head of Academic Music at College), who was on hand to help us with the House singing. Our Tears for Fears medley ‘Shout’ really brought the House together. Sadly, we narrowly missed out on the top three positions, but certainly took the moral victory and fun was had by all. We also had many members of the House in Chapel Choir. Academically, once again Saul Kim blew away the competition and to be placed in the top 1% of the country in the UKMT mathematics competition. In CCF we were lucky this year to be led by our Head of House Paddy Christopher who was Head of Corps, and Henry Johnson who was Head of Navy. This tradition is being kept alive as Thomas Hartley has been appointed
SUBJECT PRIZES: Design (Resistant Materials): Oscar Butcher Saville Classics: Paddy Christopher CHELTONIAN ENDOWMENT TRUST PRIZES: Modern languages: Theo Hunt Endeavour: Jordan Pemberton Army Leadership Prize: Paddy Christopher Duleepsinhji Cup (Games): Thomas Stanton
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Head of RAF for the coming year. One of the highlights at the start of the Summer Term was the Upper College Invitational Dinner, with the 80s theme of Tight and Bright. It was a super occasional to ask our friends from girls Houses to have a wonderful three-course meal (Thanks El Toro!) in the Common Room and boogie away to the beats of our infamous resident DJ, Edward August.
Charity Hazelwell has been very active this year and regularly sent pupils to help serve lunch at the Cornerstone Centre in Cheltenham, which provides free meals and a place to chat for people in need. I personally found this experience very eye opening and I very much enjoyed it. Some of the Upper Sixth, led by our House Charity Rep, Thomas Stanton, held a bake sale, in Quad, in aid of Children in Need and raised an impressive £250. In February Tom Creed organised a wonderful Comedy Event as part of his EPQ project. Sixty Lower Sixth Cheltonians were thoroughly entertained by three standup comedians. Over £500 was raised for the House charity.
great effort and commitment from the swimmers, and with music blaring out of the speakers, the boys completed the challenge with six minutes to spare. It was a great event that raised over £1,300 for the superb work the Cornerstone Centre does. Our huge thanks must go to all the staff who gave their time to help count the lengths; and in particular to Mr Walton for organising such a fun, but most importantly, worthwhile event.
James Webb
New Pupils The Third Form have bonded well as a year and have integrated perfectly into the House, contributing well to House activities and for getting Hazelwell boys known around College for being studious and dedicated pupils. We look forward to having them part of the House next year and give a warm welcome to next year’s Third Form to be. Our Upper Sixth has led the House splendidly; always there to help other years and constantly involved in the everyday running of the House. It is sad to see them leave but they will have lasting impact on the House for years to come. We wish them all the very best of luck with the next chapter of their lives
beyond the protective walls of College. We sadly say farewell to Tutors Mr Kelway and Miss Farmer, who have both been fabulous in their support of the House. We wish them great success with their new ventures.
House Editor: Thomas Hartley
Swimming the Channel This year Hazelwell set themselves the difficult challenge of swimming the width of the English Channel to raise money for the Cornerstone Centre and I am pleased to report that we completed the 33km swim in just under an hour! Split into Dragon Teams of seven or eight boys, each team had to swim around 150 lengths. With
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LECONFIELD certainly be a popular way to keep active for the many years to come,’ says Joseph Hughes. The orchard has also been opened to the boys, despite previously only being enjoyed by our guardian angel and former Matron Ms Fiona Warden. Chilling in the orchard has proved to be a perfect way to help the boarders relax. Indeed, as Archie Butler voices, ‘I love looking around this orchard as it clears my head when I’m stressed’. In general, I am sure that all the Porcherites are pleased with Mr Evans bringing in a ‘new feel’ and we are all looking forward to further positive changes to come. This year undeniably marked a year of change in Leconfield. Mr Evans moved in last September to be our Housemaster, while Mr Lovell and Miss Matthews joined as our Resident Tutors. Mrs Bhatt also joined, as our Day Matron with cover by Mrs Osborne. The House has also undergone a refurbishment, of which every single one of us has benefitted. From painting the walls to the renovated Third Form dorms, many facilities are reconditioned as a part of Mr Evans’ intention to modernise the House. New facilities have also been introduced to the Porcherites including a new gym in the basement, with all the essential equipment the boys need to work on their guns. ‘The gym is a fantastic way to relieve stress after a physically and mentally tiring day. It will
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House Events This year, we had various outings to different places to strengthen the bond between the Porcherites. We started this academic year with a treasure hunt around Cheltenham which allowed the newcomers to be more familiar with the town. Later in January, the whole House went to Gloucester for an indoor climbing experience, which we all really enjoyed. We all also went to The Brewery early in the Summer Term for bowling which the whole House enjoyed. ‘It was a great event; bringing the whole House together in a competitive manner,’ says Gaurav Mediratta.
Individual Achievements Leconfield has always been a place full of successful people. William Gibson has been elected to be President of the Maths Society, while Sebastian Nihan-Bowen won the Gloucestershire Latin Speaking competition earlier this year and goes on to be Deputy Head Boy next year. Indeed, on Speech Day Leconfield were only just pipped to the post for the Marsden shield for Upper College boys’ House academic achievement, but over 20 Porcherites went up to receive prizes on the day. Olly Hill was the recipient of the Stidworthy Cup, for all round sporting achievement and last but not the least, Jack McClure, who has an offer to study Law at the University of Oxford, won the prestigious Galahad Cup for Academic Achievement. In House, Ernest Lau received the Housemaster’s Cup, as the ‘most improved’ academically since the Fourth Form and Ethan Harney was the recipient of the Snell Cup given to the most promising Sporting Porcherite in Lower College.
House Achievements ‘Every season is tough,’ so says Premier League manager Antonio Conte and it certainly applied to Leconfield’s sporting year as well. We had rather an unlucky year in sporting events, with our
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swimming team, led by Pablo Espona, just missing out on first place in House pots. It was a great team effort and we came so close. Indeed, as one of our swimmers Taliesin Kauffmann reminds us; José Mourinho’s wise words seem especially apposite here: ‘the best team lost’. However, our Third Form proved their superiority as they clinched Gold in House cross country. Moving onto charity events, Leconfield are proud to be the most generous in College, with the Porcherites donating £2,472.70 in total to Milestone School for their new project. Moreover, Arad Abedini-Abkhare and Ernest Lau organised a hot chocolate sale to assist the House charity, The Bike Project. This proved to be a great success, and they raised £65 in just 25 minutes. ‘It was amazing to see so many people donating to charity with their own pocket money,’ reflects Arad.
Message from the Head of House-elect, Joseph Hughes I am honoured to be the newly appointed Head of House for Leconfield. I have grown up in here and have learned many life lessons as a Porcherite. It is great to see some change happening in the House without traditions being forgotten. This is thanks to our new Housemaster Mr Evans. I, and the members of the Prefect team, have plans to help improve the House in many ways. The House is being refurbished upstairs as well and it will be exciting to see further improvements.
House Editor: Ernest Lau
Speech Day Prizes: Lower College Attainment: William Bradley, Charles Hellens, William Gibson, Gaurav Mediratta Endeavour: Freddie Horlock
Upper College SUBJECT PRIZES: Art History: Jude Parsons Classical Civilisation: Sebastian Nihan-Bowen Politics: Ilija Kirilenko TPE: Taliesin Kauffmann Tanner Biology: Jack Gibson Allen Divinity: Jack McClure Stidworthy Cup (Games): Olly Hill The Galahad Cup for Academic Excellence: Jack McClure
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NEWICK HOUSE Staff
This has been a truly outstanding year for Newick House; stretching from the classroom to the sports field and to the Music Department. The House has seen grand success not only individually but also collectively as a House; Newick has been arguably in its best form for some time now. We have seen the Upper College leading from the front, with a great year of academics and some outstanding solo efforts on the sports field. Special mention must go to Angus Thomson for his superb performance as Tony in the whole school production of West Side Story. The whole House was incredibly proud that our Upper College boys were awarded the Marsden shield for academic achievement in a boys’ House on Speech Day; something that had not been done for a number of years.
Mr Runciman, who joined us back in September, has made a great impact in House and particular on the current Fourth Form who are his tutees. The arrival of Mr Hollingbury as the new Resident Tutor has really added another dimension to the House moving forward. He has shown great passion for the House and this has rubbed off well on the boys. Regarded as extremely talented both musically and academically, he has been able to make his mark on Newick and the music performance evening he organised for parents was of a particularly high standard. The House would also like to publicly thank Mr Cooper who has been with us for five years and moves on to take up a new role at Sir Thomas Rich’s School.
Refurbishments Apart from the changes in House regarding staff, the House has also undergone great renovation over the past year. From the arrival of outside decking, to the refurbishment of the Third Form dormitories, the House certainly seems to be updating in a positive manner. The arrival of the new decking in particular has given the boys a lovely place to be able to socialise, relax and enjoy the many pizzas that have been made in the pizza oven over recent months.
In general, current Muglistonites are enjoying House life and are excited at potential further changes that may take place.
Charities Over the past academic year, Newick decided to support a charity that is only a stone’s throw away from House. Maggie’s allows people with cancer to have a place to gain free practical, emotional and social support. It is a charity which is close to a lot of hearts. We have had a great deal of fundraising events over the year. These have proven to be extremely successful and have helped the charity in many ways. In April we held an event in which all Houses from across College were invited for an afternoon of pizza and various forms of inflatable fun. Next year, Newick will be aspiring to further their charitable links as this is an integral feature of our community here at College.
Prefects This year has seen two members of the Upper Sixth receive the prestigious Cornflower ties: our Head of House Oliver Ferris and House Prefect Shakin Zamani, who have shown great leadership and effort at the top of the House. Led by the hard working and amusing Oliver, the Prefect team has really taken the House through a positive transition and managed the running of it in a magnificent manner. The standard has been set rather high for the incoming Prefects if they are to reach the soaring heights of an exceptional year. Not only have the Prefects made substantial improvements in House, but they have also represented the House up at College too with our very own Aiden Ali as Head of School. The Prefects have taken the initiative to lead many House events such as the launch of the termly Cornflower newsletter (edited by the Lower Sixth) and the relaunch of the House Twitter account. Run by Jack Mitchell and Josh Hughes, this is a great way of informing and updating the wider Muglistonite community. There has also been a significant reshuffle to the House Tribes system led by Shakhin Zamani (Head of Tribes). The benefits of this system continue to be reaped every weak. Finally, it is a pleasure to announce that Alexander Sharam has been fittingly appointed the new Head of House and will no doubt be supported by yet another ‘strong and stable’ team taking on the baton for the coming year.
Sport Sport continues to be at the forefront of Newick’s successes. The rugby season saw Cameron Terry, Aiden Ali, Josh Hughes, Daniel Ward, Alexander Sharam, Oliver Baker and Sebastian Lee all wear the prestigious Colours of the College’s 1st XV with an incredible season ending unbeaten. Unluckily for us, House rugby pots, for which, with a great deal of players in the XV, we were serious contenders to win , was called off. Sam Cook, Daniel Ward, Alexander Sharam and Julian Pople all represented the 1st XI College hockey team.
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Charles Turk and Shakhin Zamani continued to be successful in clay shooting; both playing key parts in the first team and Shakhin captaining the squad. The sporting success of Newick is still on the rise with lots of players from Lower Sixth and Fifth Form pushing for the College top teams next year. This year also saw the introduction of football to the College games list and proudly Josh Hughes and Max Williams represented the first ever 1st XI at College.
House Editors: Yusuf-Ali Perwaz and William Dyke
Speech Day Prizes: Lower College Endeavour: Tom Wackett, Bekzat Amirbay, Guy Beazley
Upper College SUBJECT PRIZES: Borchardt Mathematics: Ian Wan Lionel Wells Physics: Ian Wan Marcan Prize for Music: Oliver Ferris Davenport Drama Award: Jack Mitchell
Academic Shield Winners! We are proud to say that our Upper College boys also won The Marsden shield; to recognise Upper College academic achievement in a boys’ House!
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QUEEN’S
Hello, Goodbye This year we welcomed seven new Third Form members, one new Fourth Form and three new recruits to Lower Sixth. We have also had two new members of staff, Mr Meason, tutoring Fifth Form and Mrs Hale, our part time Matron, who joined our happy team. Sadly, Mrs Godwin (currently Third Form Tutor and former Queen’s Lower Sixth Tutor) is leaving for pastures new and we cannot thank her enough for these amazing last three years. She has been a great comfort to all the girls, has always been there when needed and she has given her heart and soul to all pupils. We know that she will visit lots as we will keep inviting her to our House events, so this is not quite goodbye.
congratulations go to Annabel Watkin and Sophie Morton who have been awarded 16+ scholarships, for music and sport respectively. Academic Half Colours were awarded to Anna McIntyre, Charlotte Burnett, Jess Steel, Georgia Rattigan, Charlotte Maddinson, Maja Matschey, Megan Message and Meg Knight. Academic Full Colours were awarded to Ella Owens and Ellie Davies. Congratulations to everyone on another wonderful academic year: effort brings reward!
The Commendation competition was fierce: individual winners were Annie Finan (Emeralds) and Grace White (Sapphires); Opals received lots of praise but overall, Pearls won the academic challenge. Finally, we had our traditional and much-loved Garden Olympiads led by Lower Sixth. Diamonds won most games, ranging from beer (using water) pong to apple bobbing but the grand winners of the 2018 Family Trophy were Sapphires: well done!
Family Competition
Performance Evening
We started the year with a fantastic charity event where Queen’s girls played football in wheelchairs with disabled people to get to know our local charity, Cheltenham Powerchair Football Club. Teams were organised in Queen’s families so that players could win points for the family cup. Diamonds did well but Sapphires came out on top, thanks to Phoebe Barnes and Megan Message. We then had a joint barbecue with Southwood and enjoyed running or attending charity stalls. Families gathered again for a Hallowe’en quiz, in horror fancy dress! Pearls came second but yet again, Sapphires stole the title thanks to Annabel Merheim-Kealy and Anabelle Wells who nailed the Harry Potter round. Opals won the Easter egg hunt thanks to Sophie Iles who found the golden egg.
As always, our Queen’s Performance Evening was a huge hit. All the girls were involved in one way or another, with parents and friends attending to enjoy the talent (and amusement) that Queen’s had to offer. It was brilliantly hosted by Jess Steel and Charlotte Burnett, who introduced each act, organised games with audience participation and performed songs themselves. The Lower Sixth girls performed a great dance routine in the dark with glow sticks attached to their bodies. This was hugely entertaining and they are planning to repeat the show in College Variety Show next year. A more unusual act was the mighty Fifth Form performing a synchronised swimming act – absolutely hilarious! The Third Form also won the audience’s hearts with their beautiful musical talent, including some
Academic Success Some outstanding achievements have included Anna McIntyre being offered a place at Newnham College, University of Cambridge to read Geography. Anna also received The Adams prize for progress (£1,000!) on Speech Day. Iman Mirza, our future claim to fame, is going on to complete a Foundation Diploma in Art and Design at the prestigious Central Saint Martins in London. Ellie Davies received a highly commended award in a national University of Cambridge essay prize for English. Many
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amazing vocals, piano, guitar and drumming. Next year the baton of hosting will be passed on to Annabelle Rigg and Phoebe Barnes, who will certainly have fun compering this event. However, we will miss Charlotte Burnett’s secret weapon of being able to say any word backwards without even trying - a true skill and what a loss for Queen’s!
Music and Drama A highlight for music and drama this year was the whole College musical West Side Story, involving seven Queen’s girls, with leading parts for Jess Steel as Anita and Annabelle Rigg as Maria. Queen’s also had brilliant success in this year’s College singing competition with Lily Cutts achieving runner up, and Charlotte Burnett and Jess Steel winning their categories. Annie Finan also got through to the final and gave an amazing performance. Further drama achievements include Arabella Finch gaining a place with the National Youth Theatre and Annabelle Rigg a place with the National Youth Musical Theatre. With limited spots available, these are two very impressive achievements beyond College. Congrats also must go to Nina Hindmarch, Taya Suleyman and Arabella Finch for achieving their Grade 6 in Lamda; Izzy Reid for achieving Grade 5 in both flute and singing and to Grace White for achieving Grade 5 in singing. A hugely successful year for Queen’s in both the drama and music departments.
Co-curricular Rewards Well done to our four girls who received a travel award: Ellie Davies is off to Kenya whilst Phoebe Barnes, Georgie Byrd and Lettie Robinson go to Sri Lanka.
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The new ‘pink blazer’ for Co-Curricular achievement has been represented well in Queen’s this year, with Brittany Sutton-Page (sport), Stephanie Symcox (sport), Lois Short (music) and Jess Steel (drama) having all been awarded theirs. The sporting year began successfully for Queen’s at House hockey pots when our Senior team successfully retained the cup, brilliantly captained by Georgie Byrd. Although we may not have been as successful in the netball, tennis or even badminton, we certainly showed a great team spirit and determination. Unfortunately for Queen’s, Sports Day was cancelled this year thanks to the unfailingly disappointing English weather, but we certainly would have won the cup, yet again! As ever, Speech Day was a hugely enjoyable and successful day. Queen’s girls from all year groups (apart from Lower Sixth – better luck next year...) were seen on the stage in the Sports Hall receiving prizes and awards. Whilst the day was filled with much happiness, we are all going to really miss our current Upper Sixth and their outstanding leadership in House.
House Editors: Ellie Davies and Annabelle Rigg
Speech Day Prizes: Lower College
Attainment: Charlotte Maddinson, Maja Matschey Endeavour: Sophie Iles, Grace White, Stephanie Symcox Elmslie Drama: Arabella Finch
Upper College SUBJECT PRIZES: Design (Textiles): Iman Mirza Geography: Anna McIntyre Music: Lois Short Theatre Studies: Jess Steel
Cheltonian Endowment Trust Prizes: Classical Civilisation: Annabel Merheim-Kealy Head’s Award for Outstanding Commitment: Ella Owens Hannam Clark Orchestra Prize: Lois Short Marcan Prize for Music: Jess Steel The Wilson prize (for best travel award): Jess Steel The Adams prize for progress: Anna McIntyre Duleepsinhji Cup (Games): Brittany Sutton-Page Gasson Cup (Co-curricular): Rose Jones The Cadbury Cup (All-round contribution): Jess Steel
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SOUTHWOOD
This year has been remarkable for Southwood in so many aspects of College life. We have has excelled in drama, music, academia and sport, which shows the breadth and depth of abilities we have to offer in Southwood. These talents have been nurtured and supported by the pastoral care provided by Mr and Mrs Coley and their team throughout the year.
Sport With the arrival of 16 Third Formers to Southwood in September they quickly made their mark in College by securing first place in the House swimming gala. The rugby season saw Finlay Berry, Jack Clement, Jacob David-Ward, Louis Hillman-Cooper and Roger Mortimore, all wear the prestigious Colours of the 1st XV. It was an incredible time for all the boys, which resulted in an unbeaten season. The hockey season saw Southwood’s very own Roger Mortimore captain the side into an almost unbeaten season. It must be said that having the captain of hockey proved invaluable in helping Southwood retain the Senior House hockey trophy, with help from a very promising, sporting Fifth Form. The cricket
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season saw three members of Southwood represent the 1st XI, including: James Boyle, Jack Clement and George Wells. Southwood was able to put a very strong six-a-side team out where we dominated on the field, to secure another House pots trophy. Individual excellence must be mentioned: Joshua Poulain is currently competing in national karting events and has previously won the regional championship earlier this year; further congratulations go to Tom O’Bryan who came second in the National Schools’ Equestrian Association (NSEA) national championships dressage team. Sports scholarships were awarded to Tom Peck, Jack Clement and Harvey Edwards.
Music and Drama To complement our sporting achievements, the boys dominated in music competitions and drama performances. The year commenced with the annual House Singing competition, where the musical geniuses of George Wells and Sam Hamilton created a mash up of ‘I Need a Dollar’ and ‘Ain’t No Sunshine’. The melodious vocals of the Southwood boys echoed around Chapel to secure a well-deserved third place on the podium. Alexander Knott took part in College’s very own Variety Show where he performed clever and comical pieces of performance poetry. It is said that comedy is one of the hardest acts to perform; however Alexander certainly excelled in this challenging art form. The Spring Term began with a Southwood and Chandos production of our own interpretation of The Harry Potter books directed by Jilly Woodward and Rob Caesar. Rob’s artistic flare combined with the surprising theatrical talents of some of
the Southwood boys resulted in an extremely amusing and entertaining production. It must be said that hair dye was not needed for George Wells to give an exceptional performance as Ron Weasley. Spurred on by the resounding success of our House play many of the Southwood boys went on to star in the whole school production of West Side Story. Congratulations must go out to Will Buttress for being awarded his Half Colours in drama and Rob Caesar his Full Colours. Tobias Millar was awarded a scholarship for Art, whilst Oliver Smith was awarded his Art Full Colours.
Charity This year we have been working with Insight, a local charity in Gloucester that promotes social inclusion by providing facilities, recreational activities, information and advice to blind and partially sighted people. In total this year we raised the considerable amount of £730 for Insight and a further £1,300 for the College charity The Chamwell Centre at Milestone School. Although this is down to the pupils’ contribution, a huge thank you must go out to Finlay Berry who helped coordinate all the events in Southwood, as well as College charity events. A large amount of the money raised was at the annual Queen’s and Southwood charity barbecue. The barbecue was accompanied with unusually nice weather for a weekend in September and was topped off with the opportunity to immerse Mr Coley in wet, soapy sponges, which I know the boys enjoyed!
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Academic We would like to congratulate Tommy Maddinson who has received an offer from the University of Cambridge, and Ben Kinsman who has received an offer from the University of St Andrews to study medicine, as well as Thomas Anderson and Oliver Message who will also be studying medicine at University. Throughout the year many of the Upper Sixth took their final opportunities to deliver a Chapel talk to the rest of College. The boys who spoke in Chapel were Finlay Berry, Euan Bourhill, Sam Hamilton, Henry Vivian and George Wells. They all delivered very interesting and insightful talks on their particular topics. Academic scholarships were awarded to Rory Maddinson and James Wheeler.
Goodbyes After 16 years of service, it is time to say goodbye to Dr Morton. He has been a part of Southwood for many years and has been a wonderful Tutor for the boys and a great role model. Dr Morton will be remembered for his enthusiasm for music, and we will all remember his iconic duet with George Wells at the Southwood music evening last year. We also had to say goodbye to Mrs Clements-Yapp our much- loved Matron of four years. She was always there to offer support, hot toast and a friendly chat over a cup of tea and
she will be sadly missed by all year groups. Mrs Hutchins has joined Mrs Thomas as part of our new Matron team and they continue to provide fantastic support and care for the boys. Great leadership enables success to be achieved and this could not be more evident with the current Upper Sixth who have done an immense job at leading the House; we wish them all the best in the future.
The Year Ahead We hope to achieve greater success and build upon the achievements of this year in all aspects of the curriculum. We congratulate Rob Caesar on his appointment to Head of House, and we have every faith that Rob will lead Southwood into further success with his abilities and a very strong Prefect team around him. We are all very proud of our very own James Wheeler who has been given the prestigious role of Head of School. This is an amazing achievement considering that he will only be the thirdever day boy to achieve this accolade. We all know that he has not only the skills but also the dedication and commitment to fulfil this role superbly.
House Editor: Harvey Edwards
Speech Day Prizes: Lower College Attainment: Rory Maddinson, George Hardy Endeavour: Charles Drayson Hannam Clark Reading: Alexander Knott
Upper College SUBJECT PRIZES: Ronald Guthrie Bedford Economics: James Wheeler Spanish: James Wheeler Ronald Marsden Classics: Edward Winstanley Hornsby French: Thomas Maddinson
Cheltonian Endowment Trust Prizes: History: Thomas Maddinson Psychology: Thomas Anderson Head’s award for Outstanding Commitment: Oliver Smith Marcan Prize for Music: Sam Hamilton
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WESTAL
A Newcomer’s Perspective from Oleander Hall This was my first time boarding, and it has been amazing. I was really nervous at the beginning of the term since I didn’t know anyone, but there were so many new experiences and activities to do. Everyone in House was so excited to meet each other and make new friends. As we all got to know each other, boarding turned out to be a lot of fun and we all told stories and laughed together. Once settled in and adjusted to life at College, we all began to take advantage of the different activities there were. We all got to pick our clubs on Monday and go to societies in the evenings. In the weekends there were even more fun trips and activities to do. One weekend we even went to an aqua park! In House we are never at a loss of people to talk to and approach; there are pupils in my year, the older years and Tutors and teachers. I can’t wait to start Fourth Form!
Sports This was an amazing year for Westal in terms of sports. Unfortunately, Sports Day was cancelled this year due to the poor British weather, so Westal was not able to prove our great athletic skills during this event. However, our great House athletes proved their strength through the victories in many House pots matches. These wins included Junior and Senior pots for netball, rowing, swimming and Senior tennis pots. Sports has always been a strength and an important part of the Westal community, with many of the girls participating in sporting events outside College and everyone coming together to be part of the teams.
required everyone to dance and sing but it turned out to be an extraordinary experience. I believe that everyone involved enjoyed the outcome. Moreover, Westal always held a large number of House events; a great collaborative effort of the girls. Upper College enjoyed their themed invitational dinners which are always great fun and provide a nice distraction from College life. Westal also organised a charity roller disco, which was a memorable event. At first, everyone struggled to gain their balance on the rollerskates, but once we’d got the hang of it, everyone truly enjoyed themselves, and some people even managed to dance while skating around!
Sad Goodbyes We all wish good luck to our Upper Sixth, who are ready to take the next step into their future. We would like to thank them for their hard work in House; you will be missed by everyone. At Easter, the House said goodbye to Mrs Jackson, who at the time of her departure, was our Matron but who has had a long association with Westal. In its previous life, where Chandos cottages are now, Mrs Jackson was Housemistress of Westal. Then, once we moved to the ‘new’ Westal on our current site, she was Assistant Housemistress for four years. She has also been invaluable as a Third Form Tutor during her tenure. All Westal girls are referred to as Jacksonites for a very good reason; she is the rock on which Westal was built- not once but twice! Her good humour and sage advice will be missed by all and we wish her well in her retirement. We are also saying goodbye to Mrs O’Bryan as the Housemistress of Westal. Mrs O’Bryan took on this position in 2013 as the new Westal House opened. Mrs O’Bryan has been an amazing Housemistress and did everything she could to create the very friendly and supportive atmosphere that everyone values in Westal. She was there for us and supported us through all the happy and challenging moments throughout our time in College. She has made Westal House the amazing
House that it is now! These five years of excellent leadership will definitely be missed by all of us yet we are consoled and delighted to welcome Mrs Lang as the new Housemistress of Westal.
Final Words Westal has an amazing community that is built on friendship, support and happiness. We are home to an enormous range of characters with many excellent musicians, artists, sportswomen and high academic achievers in our midst. No matter what our interests, subjects or background are, everyone feels loved and accepted in Westal. I believe that this is one of the greatest qualities a boarding House can have. We are all looking forward to the next academic year in Westal!
House Editor: Varvara Konyaeva
Co-curricular In regard to co-curricular activities in Westal, we had a great and diverse year. With a very broad range of talents, girls were involved in a huge number of events ranging from the House play, the whole College production of West Side Story and the Variety Show to many of the art and textiles exhibitions, music concerts and House organised events. The Westal and Leconfield production of Peter Pan proved to be a huge success, with the whole audience thoroughly enjoying it, as evidenced by the cheering and laughing! Many girls also took part in West Side Story. This was a very challenging production as it
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Speech Day Prizes: Lower College Attainment: Oleander Hall, Victoria Brain, Boudica Yi Endeavour: Nathalie Kranich, Sanaya Gheewala, Rosie Wiggin, Dasha Romanyuk
Upper College Subject Prizes: Tanner Biology: Varvara Konyaeva Hornsby French: Verity Peterken Bingen Human Geography: Olivia Mitchell Physical Geography (John Morse): Florence Needham Music: Harriet Levin Sports Science: Emily Drysdale Anthony James Art: Phoebe Janes
Cheltonian Endowment Trust Prizes: English Literature: Tusmo Ismail German: Georgina Oates Sports Science: Amber Beachus Spanish: Lola-Lou Torode Marcan Prize for Music: Harriet Levin, Florence Needham, Verity Peterken Millennium Trophy (CCF): Amber Beachus Sloan Cup (Games): Louise Hall
Academic Shield Winners! We are proud to say that Westal’s Upper College also won The Lldarin shield; to recognise Upper College academic achievement in a girls’ House.
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SPORT ‘…promoting a lifetime investment in Sport and Exercise…’ Welcome to the reports and reviews of College’s sporting year: it is, comfortably, one of the busiest and most successful years we have had for some time. Our main games can boast some outstanding achievements: after a Japan tour, there was an unbeaten season for the 1st XV; our Yearlings’ XV also remained unbeaten; captain Thomas Stanton and Cameron Terry secured contracts with Gloucester RFC for this coming year, and Jack Clement represented England U17 XV; rugby sevens also enjoyed huge success with our U18s reaching the semi finals of the Rosslyn Park National School Sevens. After a hugely successful Malaysia tour, Emily Drysdale, Lucy Oliver and Jemima Rees all represented Hockey Wales at national U18/16 level; Brittany Sutton-Page represented English Schools and, as a team, our U18s girls made the West Hockey Association Indoor Finals. Mr George Nash (MBE) spoke at our annual Boat Club dinner inspiring a number of our younger rowers to successes at Blenheim Palace, Bristol & Avon, Bridgnorth and Reading Regattas, as well as rejoicing in a fully opened Boat House! Olivia Mitchell continued to experience success at Team Bath Netball; Monty Graveney continues to rise through the ranks in GB tennis with a new rating of 2:2 at U15 level and India Deakin secured the U19 Ladies’ Real Tennis title at Wellington College. The Rackets’ Club boasted both the girls’ singles and girls’ doubles titles at U18 level at Queen’s, and our polo players did the double in winning both the SUPA National Arena and National Field titles. We were delighted to see Jack Cunningham and Maximilian Pini gain Gold and Silver at the British Alpine Skiing Championships, only to see the positions reversed at the giant slalom at the Ambition Racing Championships; our dressage and eventing team qualified for the nationals at Hickstead with some fine solo performances; Thomas Hartley won the clays High Gun trophy at Barbury after his second season on the Olympic Skeet Talent Pathway and our U18 girls’ swimming relay team continue to break College, district and regional records with victories in every race they entered!
a whole host of other schools, clubs and institutions mean that College remains at the cutting edge of developing sporting partnerships all of which will, ultimately, benefit the pupil, the school and the community.
Mr Karl Cook, Director of Sport
Athletics With close to 50 pupils participating in athletics this term, the season was one of lots of excitement. A jam packed first half of term allowed many pupils the chance to test themselves amongst the best athletes on the circuit. We started extremely well in Oxford at the Achilles Relays with both the U18 girls’ 4x100m and U18 4x400m relay teams making it to the final. Unfortunately, a College record time of 3:31 by the boys in the heats could not be followed up in the final but nonetheless a great first hit out for everyone involved. This then led nicely into our first team event at Rugby School where almost everyone competed in more than two events. With eight schools present it was a hugely competitive field. Notable performances came from Flora Fletcher in the girls’ 300m, Paddy Christopher in the boys’ 400m, Boris Pustoshinskiy in the boys’ javelin and Georgie Byrd in the girls’ triple jump. All were placed. The Third and Fourth Form then had the opportunity to compete at the Prince of Wales Sports Stadium in the English Schools’ Athletic Association (ESAA) Track and Field Cup. It was great to see so many pupils show tremendous endeavour to compete in a number of unfamiliar events. The boys unfortunately just missed out by the smallest of margins to go through to the next round but there were some standout performances from Charlie Davison, Will Gilderson, Flora Fletcher, Annaliese Goff and Leo Jamous all winning their events.
The district athletics competition gave a great opportunity for those not doing athletics as their main games choice to compete in a high quality event. A good number made it through to the county championships with a select few to the South West regionals. The final event before half term was at Bromsgrove School where overall College were placed second. It was a superb day that saw some fantastic races. Rob Caesar’s sprint finish and celebration in the 800m was a fitting way to end the day. Sports Day was unfortunately cancelled due to terrible weather which was a huge shame considering the effort many staff went to in order to make the event a success. However, we look forward to next year, when hopefully there will be clearer skies. The second half of term, with a large number of pupils away on study leave, saw College compete at Abingdon School and Marlborough College. With a largely relaxed feel at both meetings, pupils often competed in three or more events which was a tough challenge. However, as shown throughout the season, the resilience and resolve from many of the pupils was admirable and we finished the season in high spirits. A huge thank you must go to Mr James Coull, Mrs Annette Poulain, Mr Stuart Cooper, Miss Elizabeth Rawkins, Miss Vicki Hawkins, Mr Dan Lovell and Mr Henry Davies for all their guidance and support throughout the season. The atmosphere and environment in which pupils trained and competed was a delight and this was largely down to the coaches, so thank you once again. I wish everyone a restful break and look forward to next season.
Mr Olly Morgan
Football was introduced for the first time this year and both boys and girls enjoyed a competitive fixture list; dance, a Reach Fitness dimension to girls’ gym and basketball all enjoyed their first full season also, as College continues to reflect and develop both traditional and contemporary sports and exercise. Links with Gloucestershire CCC, Gloucester RFC, Cheltenham Hockey Club, Hucclecote Netball Club and Severn Stars Netball together with
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SPORT
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Badminton Coaches: Mr Sol Griffiths and Dr Tricia Norman
So, it is time to draw down the blinds on another successful badminton season. The Club has much to be grateful for: a wonderful coach, Mr Sol Griffiths, a new coach in Dr Tricia Norman, and all the amazing pupils who make it the positive Club it is. There is nothing more enjoyable than getting on to court and seeing the way badminton continues to give pupils of all talents and abilities opportunities to enjoy themselves and develop their game. After saying goodbye to some very good players last year, I was concerned about our ability to compete in the first team boys. I should not have worried. Although we did come second on some occasions, notably against our archrival, Abingdon School, there were memorable performances against Pate’s Grammar School, where we won against a team with three county players. Also, a 5-4 victory against Bromsgrove School at home was thrilling and went to a nailbiting finish. The captaincy and spirit of Nicholas Siu and the performances of Pumi Su-Ngan and Ken Leung have stood out. It has been a treat to watch Nicholas with his power and guile throughout the years and it is sad to say goodbye to him; Pumi and Ken (who both received Full Colours) have goaded each other to great heights and have become fine doubles partners. They have been stalwarts for the Club, with excellent attitudes, and we shall miss them both. Although we have no players to replace them yet, we do
have new blood that is coming up through the ranks: Kai Chun Cheng is growing in skill and maturity and Kelvin Poon has impressed with his vision and speed. It has also been wonderful to watch the girls’ game develop; the Club now enjoys a 50% split between boys and girls. In House pots, each girls’ House team was fully represented by a Club member; in the past, Houses have had to borrow from other sports. Birdie Cheng, Kelly Tang, Agnes Sze, and Annette To (who all received Half Colours) have given a great deal to the Club, contributing, amongst other things, to a fine win against Cheltenham Ladies’ College: a rare event for us.
Dr Luke Davidson
Basketball The Summer Term saw the introduction of basketball at College for both boys and girls. The decision to play basketball proved to be a popular one with over 50 pupils choosing this as their main sport for the term. It was evident from the start that the pupils had a strong knowledge of the game and that being able to train three times a week was going to help them develop their skills further and prepare them for competition. The effort and attitude displayed by all was commendable and it was decided that both squads were ready to play a competitive fixture. This duly happened after half term with both sides just missing out on a win against two strong Wycliffe College teams.
It seems that basketball is here to stay and 2019 will see more fixtures added to the list as well as continued enjoyment for all those involved.
Boys Played 1; won 0; drew: 0 lost 1; Anson Chan, Dustin Chan, Rauf Aliyev, Ansel Ng, Hin Lam Fung, Pei Toh Chung, Naut Rodanant, Ken Leung, Michael Tsang Mr Matt Walton (Coach)
Girls Played 1; won 0; drew 0; lost 1; Abby Aitken, Liza Karpovich, Care Luangvirivar, Varvara Konyaeva, Gigi Seetoo, Dasha Romanyuk, Holly Keefe, Abby Wong, Harriet Levin, Liz Monnington-Tucker
Mr Matt Walton
Cricket Boys 1ST XI
Record: played 20; won 7; lost 7; tie 1; abandoned 5
Jason Soames (Captain), Daniel Ward, Sebastian Blake, James Boyle, Jonnie Gunn, Oscar Butcher, Charlie Davison*, Jack Clement, Olly Hill, James Webb, George Wells, Alexander Sharam, Felix Watson-Smyth, Ali Pearce * Denotes playing up Coach: Mr Mark Briers The 2018 season was certainly one of two contrasting halves with the XI taking a good deal of time to find some form and to produce some cricket that was a more accurate reflection of the talent within the squad. The poor early season weather certainly took its toll and the inability to get any time out in the middle, left the players short of quality practice time as the first matches approached. Pre-season games against Wellington College and St Peter’s School, York were abandoned without a ball being bowled and left us on the back foot going into the Exeter University and Radley College fixtures at the end of the first week of term. Exeter brought a strong side but a good performance with the ball restricted them to 196 from their 40 overs; Felix Watson-Smyth was the pick of our bowlers taking 3 for 31 from his 8 overs. Unfortunately, our batting was not of the same calibre and wickets tumbled quickly
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The Cheltonian 2017-2018
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in reply seeing us lose by 130 runs. A 10 wicket defeat followed against Radley as their openers batted superbly to chase down the target of 199 to win. Jason Soames scored 49 and others got starts but the total was always going to be difficult to defend. A low scoring affair against the Free Foresters CC followed and despite bowling the opposition out for 92, we still fell well short with the bat, succumbing to a 32 run defeat. Despite the early losses and a lack of confidence with the bat, a run of four wins followed against Abingdon School, Rugby School, the Gloucestershire Gipsies and Bristol University. Abingdon were set 196 to win but some excellent seam bowling from Jack Clement and Jonnie Gunn saw them ripping the heart out of the Abingdon side by taking 7 wickets between them to bowl them out for 147. It capped an excellent day for Jonnie who scored 52 with bat before taking 4 wickets. The bowlers continued to take wickets against Rugby; bowling them out for 152. Felix was again the bowler to do the most damage; taking 4 for 30. Jason and Jonnie batted well, scoring 42 and 56 respectively to give us the platform for a 3 wicket win with two overs to spare. A 53 from Olly Hill and 6 for 27 from Felix, enabled the XI to win the Martin Stovold Cup against the Gipsies on Speech Day. This took us into half term with confidence on the up.
Another 5 run T20 win over Charlton Kings CC featured 50s from Daniel Ward and Louis HillmanCooper, who played up once, and set us up for the tough test against St Edward’s School, Oxford. Having won their previous match by over 400 runs we knew we would be in for a challenge but the boys set about the task with genuine positivity. A 67 from James Boyle gave us a platform from the beginning but a flurry of wickets in the middle order meant that we set them a target of 173 to win. Our opening spell with the ball could not have gone better and Jack removed their in-form batsmen in two balls to leave them 3 for 2. The rest of the bowlers stuck to their task and took wickets at regular intervals to give us a famous victory by 51 runs. We followed this up with two further victories in the John Harvey Cup over Marlborough College and Winchester College to leave us third overall: a great achievement after some of the earlier defeats. The XI chased down 243 to beat Marlborough by 8 wickets. Jason scored 89 not out and Sebastian Blake hit a blistering 75 not out off 45 balls to see us home. Oscar Butcher hit 68 against Winchester with Jason hitting another 50 to reach the target of 183 with 5 overs to spare.
The final games of the season saw a tied T20 game against Cheltenham CC and a tough fixture against Rondebosch Boys’ High School from Cape Town. A century from their opening batsmen set up a total of 264 and despite 66 from Jonnie and 44 and 42 from Sebastian and Jack we finished 52 runs short from our 45 overs. The traditional two day finish against Haileybury proved to be a much more exciting game this year. A first innings lead of 101 was established for the XI after 60 from Daniel and 49 not out from James Boyle which was then backed up by 5 for 65 from Jason. 78 from Oscar in the second innings enabled us the declare at lunch with a lead of 260. Haileybury had plenty of time to get the runs and for a while it looked like they would once again settle for a draw but a 175 for 6 partnership developed that kept them on track for the win. We ended up bowling 70 overs at them and they won with 8 balls left of the match. It was disappointing to lose the game but our very positive declaration had made a game of it and if we had held on to few chances in the field, we may well have won the game.
1st XI Batting Averages Batting (150+ runs)
Innings
Not Out
Runs
Highest score
100s
J. C. Soames
15
3
440
89*
36.66
S. Blake
17
1
358
75*
22.37
J. R. J. Gunn
12
0
322
66
26.83
Our first T20 was against Bristol University and the game saw a fantastic debut from Fourth Former Charlie Davison who took 6 for 12 in his 4 overs to lead us home by 5 runs.
O. C. D. Butcher
13
4
261
78
29.00
J. A. S. Boyle
13
2
227
67
20.63
J. A. Clement
10
2
206
78
25.75
A return to our earlier batting woes followed against Bradfield College and 9 catches given before lunch left us having to defend a total of 91. At 51 for 5 Bradfield looked nervous but they steadied themselves to win by 5 wickets.
D. J. Ward
15
1
188
65
13.42
The exam season meant a young team faced an MCC side with five OCs playing. Jonnie once again bowled well upfront taking 4 for 46 as the M.C.C. posted 229 for 9. A great knock from Jack Clement (78) kept us in the hunt but once he fell, the runs dried up and we finished 17 runs short of our target.
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Average
1st XI Bowling Averages Bowling (10+ wickets)
Overs
Maidens
Runs
Wickets
Best bowling
Average
F. G. E. Watson-Smyth
119
23
386
25
6 for 27
15.44
J. C. Soames
91
27
534
21
5 for 65
25.42
J. A. Clement
68
8
248
15
3 for 27
16.53
J. R. J. Gunn
92
6
377
15
4 for 30
25.13
C. J. A. Davison
41
0
209
12
6 for 12
17.41
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All the players must take great credit for the way they battled through some difficult times early in the season and with nine boys returning next year with 1st XI experience this year, it leaves the Club in a positive place for 2019. Huge thanks go to Mr Mark Briers for his time and efforts with coaching all the boys and to Mr Christian Brain and his grounds team for, once again, preparing some amazing tracks on which to play. There were no new additions to the centurions’ board but Felix, Jason and Charlie all made it onto the bowling board.
Notable contributions this season included Ali Pearce 68 v Rugby, Jacob David-Ward 48 v Abingdon School, Oliver Isherwood 50 v St Edward’s, Sam Cook 117 not out v Marlborough College.
Full Colours: Jason Soames, Daniel Ward
Mr Nick Runciman
Half Colours: Jonnie Gunn, Jack Clement, Olly Hill, Felix Watson-Smyth
3rd/4th XI
Mr Matt Coley
Record: played 5; won 4; lost 1
2nd XI
Dougal Rees (Captain), Finlay Berry, Thomas Styler, James Lewin, Ben Southall, William Dyke, Christian Campbell, Joseph Hughes, Tom Kitson, Jude Parsons, Benedict Sutton, Harvey Edwards, George Elliot, Lucas Harrison
Record: played 7; won 3; lost 3; abandoned 1 Jack Mitchell (Captain), Sam Cook, Tom James, James Webb, Jimmy Daly, Kieran Brown, Oscar Butcher, Jacob David-Ward, George Wells, Oliver Isherwood, Yusuf-Ali Perwaz, Oliver Baker, Aryia Patel, Harvey Edwards, Dillon Clarke, William Dyke, Ali Pearce, James Boyle*, Christian Campbell, Max Sutton*, Theo Taylor * Denotes playing up It was to be a thoroughly enjoyable Summer Term of cricket for the team with standout victories against Rugby School (away), St Edward’s School, Oxford (home) and Marlborough College (home). After a rain-affected pre-season, lots of indoor nets, followed by four consecutive away games to start the season, the team were commended for their commitment to the Club and their hunger to play for each other. With involvement from eight Upper Sixth students playing their last term of College sport and a strong depth to Senior cricket, Summer Term unavailability didn’t affect the quality of the sides that took to the field; captain Jack Mitchell did not miss a game.
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Developing their game understanding and tactical awareness, the quality of cricket on show improved greatly throughout the term. The side’s performances in the second half were impressive; just rewards for their tireless effort and commitment.
The Cheltonian 2017-2018
The season for the 3rd/4th combined XI saw a spirited, dynamic and enthusiastic squad have the best season in at least 10 years. A blend of all-round sportsmen and specialist cricketers built upon a strong discipline and tenacity in the field managed to topple all but one opponent. The squad played with flair and attitude, a desire to impress and to assert cricketing prowess at all times. I hope the individual achievements and marginal gains the players have made to their game carries into next season and beyond. The season started with an away fixture at Radley College. A crushing defeat by 9 wickets put into perspective the work that was needed to address our short comings. College responded with a 125-run win against Abingdon School; Thomas Styler (67) and George Elliot (66) getting the runs with Harvey Edwards (6-3-10-5) taking 5 wickets for his sublime spell. On the back of this emphatic victory, a close game against Rugby School followed. College managed a 2-wicket victory against our old rivals; a mini batting collapse followed by a strong recovery in the dying overs gave victory to the XI. The final fixture of the season against Bradfield College saw the XI return to Reeves Field once
more. A victory at home would mean the XI were undefeated at home; the most successful squad in College in 2018 and the most successful 3rd/4th squad in at least 10 yrs. With College winning the toss and electing to bat, the stage was set for a big total on a perfect day. A calamitous start saw Ben Southall receive a diamond duck giving Bradfield a glimmer of hope. However, consistent and dogged batting from Dougal Rees (28), Harvey Edwards (43, 11 balls), Tom Kitson (22), George (32) and Joseph Hughes (55, 20 balls) gave College a total of 239-9 declared. In the field Bradfield were dynamic and strong taking some excellent catches, however, disaster struck when two of their players collided at speed with one of their number sustaining a severely broken nose. Bravely the Bradfield squad chose to continue. Their innings was timid; only amounting to 101 all out. Some excellent bowling from College, Harvey (5-1-26-3) and Christian Campbell (53-8-1) with Ben redeeming himself taking the final Bradfield wicket (0.4-0-9-1), saw a victory by 138 runs. Across the season the team had some standout performances: Harvey (fastest 40, 10 balls, 6 6s), Tom (tenacity under continued and sustained pressure at the stumps as our wicket keeper), Christian (whose bowling improved massively throughout the season giving him the opportunity to play for the 2nds), Joseph (inventive batting giving an unassailable lead against Bradfield) and James Lewin (whose strategy and pressure in the field help guide our bowlers through some stunning overs).
Mr James Copeland-Jordan
Colts A Record: played 3; won 0; lost 3 Harry Jinks (Captain), Louis Hillman-Cooper, Will Buttress, Max Sutton, Kit Ely, Dominic Kelly, James Kirk, Guy Beazley, Sid Mitchell, Gus Milton, Gaurav Mediratta, Abbie Whybrow This was a frustrating season for the players as games were lost to other schools dropping out which resulted in a reduction of their cricket development. What was pleasing though was the opportunity some of the players then had in
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playing for the 1st XI on a Friday evening in T20 matches. This enabled the players to play some more cricket and challenge their skills sets and ultimately to learn and develop. The season started with the usual fixture with Radley College. The weather had restricted the players’ sessions out on the wickets but there was a great sense of confidence by the group led by captain Harry Jinks; he won the toss and put Radley into bat. Unfortunately, this decision did not pay off as catches were dropped at crucial times allowing Radley to post a reasonable score of 183-4 and our captain had to leave the field with a suspected broken thumb. Sport is about momentum and Radley certainly gained this with their opening bowler producing a devasting display in conjunction with some poor batting. This reduced College to 6-3 from which they never recovered and were bowled out for 62. Only Abbie Whybrow offered some resistance with a 22. Next up was Bradfield College (away) and a better bowling performance from the unit saw the opposition restricted to 57-5 but a loss of concentration allowed them to get to 128-7. This was a target well within our reach but some lacklustre batting saw College slump to 26-5. Batting is about spending time at the crease and punishing the bad ball when it is presented; Louis Hillman-Cooper and Abbie put together a stand of 50 and looked like they would get the team over the line only for Louis to fall to a peach of a delivery and once again the batting trudged to a close on 106 -8. The final game of the season was a great opportunity to put all the lessons learned over the term into practice as it was a 50 over match with Marlborough College. It was crucial we batted our 50 overs. The team succeeded through some patience and power hitting once again from Louis, who scored 53, and admirable support once again from Abbie who was unlucky to finish on 49 not out as she deserved a half century. College posted a formidable 268-7. Throughout the Marlborough innings the game fluctuated and College looked to be in the box seat getting the opposition to 157-6. Unfortunately, Marlborough were always ahead of the run rate and had plenty of overs to spare which remained in their favour. This allowed their
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batsmen the time to get to the total with an over to spare as College threw everything at them but were unable to get that final breakthrough.
Junior Colts B
The season was about getting these players ready for Senior cricket and although match play was restricted, a number of these players have demonstrated when they have the right attitude and apply the necessary skill set with intent, they are more than capable cricketers.
Charlie Anton-Smith (Captain), Charlie Heardman, Tigue Torode, Dan Ursell, Rory Southall, Alexander Taylor, Monty Graveney, Ned Hanbury, Munaki Munjanganja, Gus Edwards, William Hechle
Mr Gwyn Williams
Junior Colts A Record: played 12; won 5; lost 7 Charles Davison (Captain), Zach French, William Taylor, William Blowers, Piers Brown, Edward Calder, Edward Hartley, Sebastian Cornwell, Simon Oates, Seb Kimber, Joe Murphy, Monty Graveney, Oliver Walker The 2018 season was a particularly enjoyable one for many reasons. This squad was a delight to coach and work with from start to finish. Each player bought into the team ethos; they worked hard for each other during the matches and all made valuable contributions at different stages during the term. The desire of the team to succeed was infectious and their willingness to learn stood them in good stead. Their goal of a 70% win ratio was an achievable target and it looked at one point that they would reach it. Unfortunately, the last three games on tour in York saw College miss out on attaining the target set. Success should not be measured on results alone; this particular squad enjoyed their season, committed 100% to training and matches and gelled perfectly as a team. As a coach you cannot ask for more than that. A little more cricketing nous would have seen them win the closer games. The boys will have learned a lot from the season. If they can carry this forward into next season, I’m sure they will continue to do well. I wish each member of the squad all the best for the future. Thank you for a fabulous season.
Mr Matthew Walton
Record: Played 6; won 5; lost 1
The season started with a difficult opening fixture against a strong Radley College side. With batting conditions proving extremely difficult we were bowled out cheaply and deservedly lost by 5 wickets. However, we learned a number of valuable lessons about our general approach to batting and the need to build a score. This was followed by a close fixture against Abingdon School that we narrowly won by 26 runs and then a superb win against Rugby School. Charlie Heardman was the pick of the batsmen, scoring 76, and he was followed with some destructive batting from both William Hechle (45) and Charlie Anton-Smith (52). We accumulated an impressive overall score of 266 in just 30 overs and managed to win by 146 runs. The side was unbeaten for the rest of the season with a notable 9 wicket win against Malborough College in the last game of the term. They have been an absolute pleasure to coach over the last two seasons and I look forward to watching them progress throughout the rest of their time at College.
Mr William Bates
Junior Colts C Record: played 5; won 1; lost 4 Charlie Baker (Captain), Ben Percival (Vice Captain), Alexander Sparkes, Krish Patel, Felix Tacey, Deji Adetona, Dekhan Dodo, William Bradley, Tom Beazley, William Kace, Charles Hellens, Felix Taylor-Kimmins, Dan Ursell, Denis Solovyev, Oliver Schallamach, Noah Horan The season started with a tough fixture against Radley College, though spirits were high and training had begun well at the start of the season. We were met by a confident and talented opposition. College took to the field to
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begin a 30 over match and impressed with their resilience and continued support for one another despite Radley scoring a remarkable 302 runs. A special mention to Ben Percival who managed to knock 54 runs to keep the impossible dream alive. The opening weekend in terms of team morale and positive attitude for the game set the tone for the season ahead. Our next fixture again Abingdon School was a nail-biting encounter, with momentum swinging each way as play went on. Deji Adetona, a keen batsman contributed to the runs scoring 48, but unfortunately it was not enough to win. After this game, the squad was determined to make Lower Reeves the new home of cricket – a fortress for College. Next week saw Rugby School welcomed and with another solid week of training and awareness of our home ground the team won by 116 runs. Ben again made 50 runs as did skipper Charlie Baker and Denis Solovyev. Bradfield College and St Edward’s School, Oxford were the remaining fixtures of the season, both were again close encounters. Whilst these matches were lost it was only by 20 runs and 2 runs respectively. Tom Beazley continued to marshal the wicket. Keeping and helping set the field, he was ever present in our bowling attack. Special mentions must go to Felix TaylorKimmins, William Bradley and William Kace for their sharp bowling throughout the season, and to Dekhan Dodo and Charles Hellens for their energy in the field. It goes without saying that the team provided the most dramatic matches for their travelling fans. I am grateful to the hard work and leadership of Charlie Baker who kept the team going all season. Thank you.
Mr Todd Freedman
Yearlings A Record: played 17; won 8; lost 8; abandoned 1 Will Gilderson (Captain), Oliver Elliott, Ross Broughton-Johnson, Eddie Buttress, Joshua Poulain, Max Brown, Finlay Hurst, Anay Shah, Theo Nicholson, Rory Jenkins, Tom Peck, Louis Power, Hugo White, Jackson Joly, Tom Wackett Overall the team had a mixed season of results and it wasn’t really until the latter part of the term when the side started to produce winning team performances. Early on in the season, Will Gilderson made 3 excellent half centuries against Radley College, Abingdon School and Rugby School. Eddie Buttress played a fine unbeaten innings of 88 at Tewkesbury and Max Brown bowled an excellent 4-wicket spell at Rugby. The team also hosted a Hundred Ball cricket festival; one of the first teams to do so in the world of cricket! Despite some disappointing results, the side managed to raise their game for the annual Yearlings’ Cricket Festival, which was this year hosted by Stowe School. Wins against Ardingly College, St Joseph’s College, Ipswich and Stowe meant that College went through the week unbeaten. Noticeable performances came from Tom Peck and Rory Jenkins, who both took 4 wicket hauls, and half centuries on the final day from Oliver Elliott and Ross Broughton-Johnson. The final game of the season saw the side win the county cup with a comfortable win against Pate’s
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The Cheltonian 2017-2018
Grammar School. Finlay Hurst was the star of the show, with his leg spin taking 4 wickets in 4 balls, which restricted the opposition to a low score.
Yearlings C
Will ended the season topping the batting averages with 391 runs and 4 half centuries averaging 43.44. Opening Batsman Ross was the side’s leading run scorer with 468 runs including 3 half centuries. With the ball, the wickets were shared around between the main strike bowlers. Will and Rory both claimed 14 scalps each.
Jaden Somen (Captain), Maximus Thompson, Jacob Stanger, Yuriy Syiek, Arthur Barker, Simon Evlyn-Bufton, Ferdie Borchardt, Hugo Ladkin, Nathan Chancellor, Sean Kim, Fin Wellstead, Austin Karasanandana Taroey, Bobby Hui, Matthew Sun, Archie Thomson
Looking back on the season, it was pleasing to see the side win both the Stowe Festival and the county cup but perhaps it could have been a little better had a few of the close games earlier in the season fallen College’s way. Will captained the team well and both Eddie and Oliver were able deputies when called upon to perform this role. Will and Oliver both represented Gloucestershire U14s and it was pleasing to see Will represent the College XI too. I hope to see some more of the squad graduate to the XI in seasons to come.
Mr Will Packer
Yearlings B Record: played 7; won 1; lost 5; abandoned 1 George Tomblin (Captain), Louis Power, Ned Scudamore, James French, Sacha Kapoor, Zac Marsh, Joseph Maguire, Archie Thomson, Jacob Stanger, Matthew James, Tom Wackett, Hugo White, Jackson Joly The team endured a tough season coming up against some high class opposition. Although the results did not go our way, the boys showed enduring enthusiasm and their batting, bowling and fielding improved a huge amount over the season. Highlights included Jacob Stanger taking 3-22 in the first game against Radley College, Louis Power scoring a run a ball 38 against Marlborough College and a spectacular juggling catch at mid wicket by Hugo White against Abingdon School. The two best performances of the season came firstly against St Edward’s School, Oxford. College restricted Teddies to 124/5 off 20 overs largely due to an excellent spell by Hugo (3 overs 3 for 11). In reply, College look set with Louis scoring a rapid fire 28 off 22 deliveries but quick wickets stalled the process. Archie Thomson almost pulled off the unlikely with an excellent 33 but in the end, College fell 11 runs short.
Record: played 6; lost 5; abandoned 1
Unlike previous years, the season started with some fantastic weather conditions; it was dry and warm. Our first fixture of the season saw us face an extremely talented Radley College side, who won by an incredible 140 runs. We were out batted and out fielded by a well drilled side who went on to win most of their matches. Abingdon School was probably our most competitive fixture of the season. College were in to bat first and scored 91 all out. After a team talk, that Jim Telfer would have been proud of, the team put in an incredible fielding performance and 7 wickets had fallen after 14 overs. However, the rain came in and, unfortunately, the game had to be abandoned. Sadly, the team came second place in many of our fixtures, but I feel a lot of lessons have been learned and I hope they are able to turn many of these results around next year. I hope many of them continue their development within the sport next year and hopefully enjoy more victories.
Mr Fraser Dobney
Girls Record: played 2; lost 2; cancelled 2 It would be fair to say that the squad had a little less experience than in previous years, however, their commitment to learning and improving their cricketing skills was admirable. It was clear to see that all the players attending the practice sessions were enjoying themselves and were working hard to develop their batting, bowling and fielding techniques. Week on week the significant improvement from each player was evident to see. There was definitely a decent amount of talent within the squad which bodes well for future years. The most encouraging
Secondly against Wycliffe College an excellent batting display by Sacha Kapoor (57 off 47 balls) who was well supported by James French, Ned Scudamore, Archie and Louis allowed College to post 138 off 20 overs. Tom Wackett then ripped through the top order taking 3 wickets for 0 runs off his 2 overs. Zac Marsh, Jacob, Jackson Joly and Joseph Maguire all contributed with wickets as Wycliffe were bowled out for 66 and College won by 72 runs. Players’ Player of the Season: Sacha Kapoor (114 runs HS: 57) Coaches’ Player of the Season: Zac Marsh (9 Wickets Best: 2 for 8)
Mr Tom Wilson
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aspect was that the squad was made up of Lower Sixth, Fifth Form, Fourth Form and Third Form, and they gelled superbly as a squad; working together to achieve their desired outcomes. Unfortunately, due to a combination of weather and unavailability from the opposition, we could only play two fixtures. Marlborough College and Charlton Kings CC were our adversaries on these occasions. We narrowly lost out on two close encounters, mainly due to lack of depth in the batting department. However, the girls gave an excellent account of themselves and were a fine example of what College has to offer. I would like to thank all those involved for a very enjoyable season and I wish you all the very best for future seasons.
Mr Matt Walton
Equestrian The highlight of our year is the National Schools Equestrian (NSEA) Championships, which takes place in October over three days at Addington Manor in Buckinghamshire. We spend the year training hard and competing all around the country at qualifiers to try and qualify for the Championships. This year we were thrilled to have more qualifications than ever, with teams in the dressage, jumping with style (arena eventing) and individual qualifications in all three disciplines: dressage, showjumping and jumping with style. Each championship class consists of over 30 teams and 150 individuals with the class running from dawn until dusk. We were very happy to finish fourth as a team in the dressage (Tom O’Bryan, Honor McFarlane, Poppy Pitt) and sixth in the jumping with style, with the great addition of Lucy Pope, on her lovely mare Tamara Bay. Tom was also placed sixth in the individual medium dressage. Poppy had a super time to be placed individually third and ninth in the jumping with style and twelfth and fifteenth in the showjumping. It was lovely to welcome Honor McFarlane back to the College team.
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During the year we qualified as a team and individually for the NSEA Arena Eventing Championships held at the famous All England Hickstead Show Ground in May. Luckily the weather was kind to us for our camping. Lucy’s organisational and leadership skills shone with the preparation of the delicious ‘spag bol’ and brownies for supper. We were extremely happy that the team of Tom, Lucy and Poppy were third in the 1m Arena Eventing Championships, along with Poppy finishing seventh individually and Tom finishing ninth individually. Whilst at Hickstead we managed to gain a team qualification for the jumping with style at the 2018 NSEA champs and also an individual qualification for Poppy. At the NSEA Plate Championships, Poppy was placed Reserve Champion in both the 1m showjumping and 1m jumping with style. Tom cemented his partnership with the impressive DHI du Rouet during the year and was selected to represent Central England in the Under 18 Eventing Championships at Frickley Park in July and the South West in the Inter-Regionals Dressage at the beginning of July where he came second. To achieve a selection in one discipline is a huge achievement but to achieve one in two is remarkable. The NSEA Elmwood one day event proved to be a successful outing for College with a third from Georgia-Lili Robertson in the 90cm and it was great to see a win from Octavia Slatter in the 1m, closely followed by Annabel Slatter in second. We had a large turnout with Molly Corbett, Eleanor Langley, Archie Garbutt, Poppy, Tom and Lucy at Hartpury College for the NSEA qualifier with several pupils showing their sporting commitment to College by rushing back to hockey matches. On an incredibly hot July day at Allenshill Dressage Qualifier, there was a clean sweep for College with prelim being won by Poppy and Georgia-Lili second. Tom won both the novice dressage and the elementary. As such, we all qualified individually and as a team for the next NSEA Championships in October. It was definitely worth the journey and we all managed to get back in time to see the second-half of England’s football victory over Sweden!
A big thank you must go to Mr Tom Rowland who trains College pupils every week at Ampney Knowle. He has incredible patience, knowledge and always finds a way of getting riders to improve their horse’s way of going. In the equestrian world we rely heavily on our parents to drive us for miles around the country and to help keep our horses fit during the very busy term time. The competition hours are very antisocial with 4am starts not unusual. We are extremely grateful to our parents for their endless support and dedication and couldn’t possibly do it without them. This article may make it all sound very easy, but like every sport there are highs and lows along the way, with horses going lame or riders making mistakes. Yet, the lows make the highs all the more special and when it comes together for the team and their horses at the Championships, the adrenaline buzz is like nothing else and creates memories that last forever. We would all like to thank Mrs Jenny O’Bryan for her incredible enthusiasm, energy and commitment to the College equestrian team and the organisation of our weekly training. We strive for better results next year and look forward to welcoming more participants.
Poppy Pitt (Captain of Equestrian)
STOP PRESS - Hickstead The College show jumping team made up of Poppy Pitt, Tom O’Bryan, Georgia-Lili Robertson, and Lucy Pope went to the prestigious Hickstead National Schools Show Jumping Competition in early August. This is a great opportunity to compete where international riders have been only the week before and in the iconic, world renowned ring. In the first round Poppy and Tom went clear and Georgia-Lili rolled just one pole. Sadly, Lucy had some braking issues, so had a few down. We then went into a jump off with 10 other teams for the last three slots for the final round. It was nail-biting stuff! Poppy jumped a great captain’s round but sadly was pipped by ponies that only show jump and had travelled from as far afield as Ireland! This was the first time that College had sent a team and so, with such a young team, we are really hopeful that the experience will pay dividends next year.
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Football It’s incredibly exciting to have been able to field three Senior boys’ XIs and one Senior girls’ XI. It has also been a fantastic effort by both players and coaches to get football up and running and it is fair to say that all expectations have been exceeded. The success of the Club is clear to see: all the players have thoroughly enjoyed their opportunity to play football and have all been 100% committed to improving; both as a team and as individuals. Both boys and girls have enjoyed a good set of competitive fixtures and they should be congratulated on the manner in which they represented College and the Club. A solid foundation has been laid from which CCFC should flourish in future years. Thank you to all those who have given their support to Cheltenham College Football Club this term. A fabulous effort, well done.
Mr Matt Walton
Boys 1st XI Record: Played 6; won 1; drew 2; lost 3 goals for 13; goals against 19; goal difference -6
Jordan Pemberton (Captain), Kieran Brown, Josh Hughes, Max Williams, Oliver Smith, Charlie Boyce, Benedict Sutton, Thomas Styler, William Whittal, Jude Parsons, Tom Kitson, Demilade Edwards, Charles Tchen, Rodrigo Peralta Martin
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The Cheltonian 2017-2018
In the spring of 2018, the beautiful game finally arrived at College. The years of yard football, with its idiosyncratic rules, unforgiving tarmac and worrying proximity to windows, gave way to the green lawns of College and the splendour of Chapel as a backdrop which, despite the best efforts of some of the team, managed the full season with its stained-glass windows unscathed. The opening fixture saw us pitted against Wycliffe College and, after falling two goals behind in the first 10 minutes, the team started to find their feet in their first 11-a-side match for many years. A flowing style of play enabled us to pull the score back to two goals apiece, only to be undone by Wycliffe’s formidable striker’s bicycle kick, which settled the match in their favour. Undaunted by this tough start, the team reacted strongly in their next fixture against Radley College. Goals from Charles Tchen and Josh Hughes, coupled with exceptionally brave and committed defending from Oliver Smith, Benedict Sutton and Charlie Boyce, enabled us to notch up a very credible draw. The following fixture against Malvern College was a less pleasant experience, with two penalties given against us in the first 10 minutes rather setting the tone for the match. The boys played some great passing football, with Max Williams consistently causing them problems, but the goals would not come.
After another close defeat against St Edward’s School, Oxford, the team reacted strongly and started to show the grit that had been lacking. Against a strong team from The Chase, Malvern, exceptional midfield play from Demilade Edwards, Jude Parsons and Tom Kitson meant we led 2-0 at half time through goals from Rodrigo Peralta Martin and William Whittal, only to concede three goals in 10 minutes of the second half. A spirited response saw Thomas Styler take control at the back, and Jordan Pemberton score an excellent captain’s goal to salvage a muchdeserved draw. After a season of near-misses and hard lessons, the team finally got the win they thoroughly
deserved in their final game. Goals from William and Rodrigo were replied to by Abingdon School, and the team were indebted (yet again) to a stunning Kieran Brown save to keep us level going into the final quarter. A long-range volley from Rodrigo sealed the win in some style, and thus drew the season to a very satisfying close.
Mr Jack Kelway
2nd X1 Record: Played 6; won 2; drew 1; lost 3; goals for 10; goals against 20; Goal Difference -10 Giuseppe D’Istria, Tom Maber-Jones, Tom James, Yusuf-Ali Perwaz, Rob Caesar, Joseph Hughes, Aleksei Tikhonov, Benedict Sutton, Charlie Boyce, Finlay Berry, Rory Pleydell, Aram Abedini-Abkhare, James Lewin, Ben AntonSmith, Mikhail Guzhvin, Jimmy Daly It was a pleasure to be part of College’s first season of competitive football. The boys trained well and the improvement in their play from the beginning to the end of the season was remarkable. We started the season with an away visit to Wycliffe College. The boys played well and scored a good goal but Wycliffe came more and more into the game and we lost 2-1. The next two games were tough home games against Radley College and Malvern College and we lost heavily in both games. However, the boys kept going and never gave up. Next was an away visit to St Edward’s School, Oxford where an excellent performance saw the team chalk College’s first ever victory. This was followed by a home against The Chase, Malvern C, where we came out on top; winning comfortably 4-2. The final game of the season was away at a snowy Abingdon. We dominated possession and the tireless Giuseppe D’Istria had a shot cleared off the line but the opposition scored an excellent free kick in the last minute and the final score was 2-2 in a game that we should have won. Special thanks must go to captain Tom James who led the team by example in every respect. Also, two boys stood out in terms of determination and adding to the
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team spirit: Benedict Sutton and Charlie Boyce. This was a very successful first season; the boys were excellent ambassadors for College and they enjoyed the challenge of competitive matches.
Girls
Dr Brendan Enright
Record: played 3, won 0, drew 0, lost 3; goals for 2; goals against 17; goal difference -15
3rd X1
1st XI
Record: payed 4; won 0; drew 1; lost 3; goals for 6; goals against 27; goal difference -21 Arad Abedini-Abkhare, Aram Abedini-Abkhare, Ben Anton-Smith, Archie Butler, Tom Creed, Diben Dodo, Mikhail Guzhvin, Oscar Keene, Ted Kim, Ernest Lau, Finbar McConnell, Charles Meechan-Jones, Lamar Molly, Rory Pleydell, Edward Shaw, Adrian Szeto, Aleksei Tikhonov, Robbie Yan, Jimmy Daly, James Lewin, Rachata Peerapairoj; Oliver Pritchard, Felix Stevens This group of players developed admirably during the course of the season. The initial 14-2 defeat by a well drilled Wycliffe College side, made us all realise that we had a very steep learning curve ahead if we were going to achieve any positive results. But to the credit of all involved, the team did recover and soon became much harder to defeat and quickly beginning to push the 2nd XI hard in training. Aram and Arad Abedini-Abkhare gave much creativity in the midfield and were always a threat in front of goal. At the back Oliver Prichard, Tom Creed and Jimmy Daly defended admirably. Lamar Moller was an excellent captain and showed great leadership as well as consistent class in a right wing back position. The most memorable game of the season will be the 3-3 draw away to St Edward’s School, Oxford. Although we were disappointed not to achieve a win, the game was a genuine six goal thriller. College took the lead each time with three well taken goals from Rachata Peerapairoj, Arad and Rory Pleydell. Due to cancellations because of the poor weather, this proved to be the last game of the season. We wish the Upper Sixth players, who contributed so much, well for next year and we hope that the Lower Sixth, who now have a full season’s football experience, will give us some more reasons to cheer next season.
Mr James Stubbert
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team, the girls were rightly proud themselves. Despite the result (8-1) our goal, coming from an excellent cross and volley, finished by Lanta Thynne, showed real teamwork. The girls have been a pleasure to coach and made such huge improvements from the initial games session to the final match. They have all the makings for an exciting season next year. I would like to thank Mr Matt Walton, Mr Richard Coxon and Mr Dom Meason for their help and advice with coaching the girls.
Mrs Jane McQuitty
Girls Fitness
Eugenie Spencer Captain), Ella Owens, Elisabeth Trachtmann, Tilly Brown, Caroline Daly, Annabel Slatter, Octavia Slatter, Rebecca Smith, Olivia Ladkin, Lanta Thynne, Kaela Wilson, Lidya Su Oz, Gemma Taylor Baggs, Eva Palmer, Izzy Reid Spring Term 2018 saw the formation of the first ever girls’ football squad at College. Fifteen girls arrived for the inaugural training session, with almost all of them having never played football before. The girls threw themselves into it, and with only four weeks until the first fixture, had a lot to take on board in a short space of time. The match arrived and we travelled to Malvern College where we were met with cold and snowy conditions. Despite their lack of match experience, the team, led by captain Eugenie Spencer, gave it their all and came away with a respectable 5-0 defeat. Malvern visited us at home a few weeks later and Ella Owens became the first ever girl to score a goal for College in front of enthusiastic home support. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough against a strong visiting team and the final score was 8-1. The third and final match of the season saw a second match played in the snow, but this time against a new opponent in Bradfield College. The weather conditions at Bradfield were very challenging, and against a more experienced
This was the most popular non-team games option for girls over the course of the year. All members of girls’ fitness, which includes a variety of age groups, once again became familiar and wellversed in aerobic exercise, ranging from use of Watt bikes to high intensity interval training and basic weight training techniques. This year, however, the option developed further to incorporate a new range of activities in addition to the usual visits to College’s balcony gym in the sports centre. Recently qualified coach, Mrs Kirsty Naish, introduced a fortnightly Legs, Bums and Tums class: in groups of 15-20, girls in the Fifth Form, Lower Sixth and Upper Sixth experienced this music-based exercise class. Furthermore, each Saturday, girls were put through their paces by Mr Ollie Hunt who conducted a high-intensity circuit training session. Perhaps the most popular development this year was the weekly session at Reach Fitness in Cheltenham, where Spin, Body Pump, and Yoga classes, completed a fullyrounded fitness experience for the squad. There were a variety of successes over the course of the year: a number of girls, on a longer-term rehabilitation programme in returning to one of College’s team games, found the variety and expertise invaluable; girls also learned how to manage a personal fitness programme overseen by Mrs Ruth Cook, Head of Girls’
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Fitness. All worked hard: some mastered fine technique on all equipment, some impressed with their stamina and determination in the classes and other excelled at Spin down at Reach Fitness. Crucially, not only do the girls learn and develop a comprehensive understanding of the importance of physical activity and healthy, regular exercise – be it as an individual or part of a team - when coursework and exam nerves begin to set in over the course of the Spring and Summer Terms, the girls’ fitness experience ensures that the girls return to College relaxed, energised and certainly fitter.
Mrs Ruth Cook
Golf George Wells, William Cooper, Aryia Patel, James Boyle, Paddy Scudamore, Frankie Russell, Edward Ferris, Gus Milton This was a season of real development with many of the boys in the squad reducing their handicap and learning to play consistently at a much higher level. The opening gambits of the season saw friendly matches against Malvern College and Marlborough College before the boys attended the OC Autumn Meeting, at the wonderful Huntercombe Golf Club. Around 30 OCs gave the boys a real taste of foursomes’ golf and an eye opener into the world of OC golf. It should be worth noting in this report that with a fine crop of young players in the side, the OC Golf Team reached the third round of the prestigious Halford Hewitt 2018 competition. This bodes very well indeed for the years ahead.
doorstep and who are always welcoming to the boys, staff and visiting teams. The new golfing year cannot come soon enough.
Mr Jon Mace
Hockey Hockey continues to evolve and develop in terms of skill level and it is a fantastic avenue for the pupils to showcase their talents. This year we have seen players, both girls and boys, involved in England Hockey Performance Centres: Oliver Walker, Alice Vyvyan-Robinson, Flora Fletcher and Archie Thomson. Jemima Rees made her debut for Wales U18s against Scotland at Easter. Emily Drysdale continues to thrive within the Wales programme as a key member of their U18s and has been selected to be a member of the Senior Wales Women’s’ Development squad. It has not only been pupils extending their talents with hockey outside of College. Mr Henry Davies is part of the Wales U18 Girls coaching team as their Strength & Conditioning coach. Also involved with Wales but the U18 Boys programme is Mr Will Packer as manager. Director of Hockey, Mr Gwyn Williams, continues to coach the Wales U18 Boys programme and in January led the Senior Women Wales Indoor squad to the European championships in Belgium.
In the first round of the HMC foursomes competition, the team unfortunately encountered a very strong Malvern College side at Puckrup Hall Golf Club. This did not dishearten them though and what followed was an excellent run in the Independent Schools Matchplay Competition where they reached the semi finals of the regional competition before succumbing to The King’s School, Worcester in a closely fought contest which went down to the final game.
Hockey at College cannot take place without the desire, passion and energy that the staff demonstrate throughout the year and these traits transfer to the pupils. I would like to thank all staff involved, for their time dedicated to the pupils and their learning in hockey. I would also like to publicly thank Mr Tim Lang who has joined College from Clifton College and with his enthusiasm and dedication to the players’ development, had an instant impact on the provision of hockey here.
The culmination of the Spring Term saw the team travelling to Burnham and Berrow Golf Club to play in the West of England Public Schools Championship. On a typically links day of blustery weather, the side lost in the main competition, following a sudden death playoff to Blundells School. In the subsequent Plate competition, the team fought admirably in a three-way final against Canford School and Monmouth School. The team played with wonderful spirit over the two days and were real ambassadors for College sport.
Mr Gwyn Williams
Boys This was another successful season for the Club building on the foundations of last season with some sterling performances from both teams and some significant individual achievements. Of the 73 matches completed in the Spring Term, 49% were won by College and 60% were a positive result of either a win or draw. As ever, the changing landscape of sport can sometime dictate the number of teams being put out and the 4ths were affected by this, yet College still managed to have around 180 players each week competing. Throughout the season all teams scored a total of 160 goals; averaging two per game and demonstrating how the players had taken onboard the attacking principles of the Club. An encouraging statistic is the consistency of high percentage wins across the age groups. All A teams recorded a score of 62% and the C teams won or drew 50% of their matches. The U14s were county runners up and progressed through to the West Hockey Association preliminary finals. House pots gives the opportunity for boys to represent their House; combining all standards of player and this year, the competition produced a very competitive environment. Southwood won Senior pots with Newick securing the Junior title. In the Independent Schools’ Hockey League (ISHL) competitions, the Junior Colts’ B under the management of Mr James Copeland-Jordan dominated the competition remaining unbeaten, winning their title and only conceding one goal. As a year group they have achieved this same feat two years on the trot; last year as the Yearlings’ B team. The entire year group is strong and promising with the As finishing third in their league. The 2nds, after a torrid start, managed a strong finish; claiming the runners up spot in their respective league. The block fixtures continue to remain very competitive and produced some fine performances; most notably the fixture with Pangbourne College saw all nine games as victories for College. The Kingswood School
With the majority of the team completing public exams in the Summer Term, space in the diary was only available for two friendly fixtures against Marlborough College and Uppingham School. The fine Cotswold Hills Golf Club provided a welcome escape from exams and revision during the busy final term. A number of the boys were sitting GCSEs and thus the side already has a strong nucleus for the next golfing year. Thanks must go to the outgoing captain, George Wells, who has captained the side with real passion and enthusiasm and to Cotswold Hills Golf Club, a Club that we are lucky to have on our
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The Cheltonian 2017-2018
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block saw four victories and a draw in the 10 matches. Notable performances came from the 1sts, Colts’ A team, with a 2-0 win, and the Yearlings’ A team setting their stall out very early by recording a 5-2 win. The fixture with Bradfield College was where the 2nds turned their fortunes around from the previous weekend’s 5-0 loss to winning 4-0. The Colts’ A team again turned in a solid performance and went the first three games unbeaten. Junior Colts’ A demonstrated a ruthlessness with a resounding 5-1 win. Against Wellington College, they were five wins and a draw in the 10 matches with the three Senior teams all recording victories of note. The Junior Colts extended their success with wins of 4-1 for the A team and the B team backed this up with a solid 2-0 win. Yet the performance of the weekend was with the Yearlings’ B team, who managed to snatch a credible away draw with the last play of the game for 2-2. As always Abingdon School is a very competitive fixture and the block was drawn with both schools having four wins and three draws. The Yearlings’ C team managed a great display to come out winners 1-0 and the Junior Colts’ B team continued their dominance with a 4-1 victory away from home. After the disappointment of having to cancel the Marlborough College fixture, all teams looked forward to recommencing hockey with the Radley College block. The 1sts produced a credible draw and then it was the turn of the Colts’ B team to produce a sterling effort to win 1-0. The Junior Colts as a year group continued to demonstrate their potential for the future by all three teams winning: the A team 4-0; the B team 1-0 and the C team 3-1. Our final fixture was St Edward’s School, Oxford and although some games succumbed to the weather, of the seven that went ahead, College teams recorded three victories and two draws. A lovely finish for the Junior Colts’ A team with a clinical and dominant 6-2 performance and for the Yearlings’ B team, who signed off with a 3-1 win.
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1st XI Record: played 7; won 4; drew 2; lost 1 goals; for; 22; goals against 6; goal difference 16
Roger Mortimore (Captain), Jude Clayton*, Julian Pople, Olly Hill, Max Pemberton, Harvey Edwards, Sebastian Blake*, Alexander Sharam, Ali Pearce, Jason Soames, Oscar Butcher, Paddy Christopher, Sam Cook, Daniel Ward, Jonnie Gunn, Eduardo Capelastegui * Denotes playing up
resulted in a brace of penalty corners from Oscar Butcher and we secured a 3-1 opening win. Next up was Bradfield College away and unfortunately the squad under performed in this fixture and gave Bradfield too much respect in the first half and gave themselves too much to do in the second half, resulting in a loss. A sign of a good team is its ability to recognise when mistakes have been made and how they can learn from the experience. Immediately in training the lessons were discussed and errors rectified within the group. The team headed into the final two games before half term with a new sense of purpose. In these games the team scored 16 goals and conceded none, this included the debut of Julian Pople in goal as regular goalkeeper Jude Clayton had sustained concussion. Also, within these two matches Jason Soames saw a return to his goal scoring form with two hat-tricks. In both games the team demonstrated a good sense of purpose and focus in applying their principles and skill set on the astro. To beat Pangbourne College 6-0 was good but to then follow this up with a convincing 9-0 win over Wellington College demonstrated the level of skill this group possessed.
For the second successive season the team only lost one game and remain unbeaten at home. After the success of the previous season and a large part of the squad leaving, under the leadership of Roger Mortimore, who was in his fourth season in the 1sts, the focus was very much on how this group would respond to the challenges that lay ahead. Pre-season was held here at College and was followed by a journey up to Rugby School to train and play some matches with their 1sts. This played an important part in the shaping of the culture of the XI and gave players ample time to showcase themselves for selection.
Coming out of the holiday break can disrupt the flow of a team but they maintained their focus with Abingdon School being the first game back. Over the past few years this fixture had always been a close affair and of a high calibre of hockey. Although the game finished 0-0, both teams played with intent and demonstrated some attacking and fearless hockey going for the win right up until the final whistle. This result still set the guys up for a good finish in the ISHL. Unfortunately, the next match with Marlborough College fell foul to snow and this affected the final position.
First up in the fixture card was Kingswood School at home. This would be a good test for the group and would show how well the boys had adopted the playing principles we had created for the season. The team started the game tentatively and absorbed a lot of pressure before starting to install some form of dominance and assert some pressure on the Kingswood defence. This
Next up was the Radley College match; another tense affair. The team had their chances to go 2-0 and kill the game off, but they missed some clear opportunities and allowed Radley to stay in touch. The game finished 1-1. The last game was St Edward’s School, Oxford (Teddies) away which is always a challenge, not helped by the wintry conditions of snow and ice-cold wind. Throughout the term a lot had been discussed
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about finding ways to win in matches. This was clearly evident here even though the team did not play to their potential and were frustrated by the resolute Teddies’ defence. With the game locked at 1-1 going into the final minute, the team won a penalty corner and it was apt that with the final touch of the game, the winning goal, was scored by captain Roger in his final game. A final league position of fifth did not reflect the successes both on and off the pitch. In reality, the team finished one win off second place and this just goes to show how competitive the ISHL matches have become. This was a great finish for the team and especially so for the leavers who, over the years, have given so much to hockey here at College. For this, I thank them. I also thank the captain, Roger, and his leadership group, for buying in to what we wanted to achieve in the term and for delivering such high level performances with such enjoyment. On this competitive circuit, to remain unbeaten at home over two years is a huge feat but to then also have lost only two games over two years shows the consistency of talent and resilient nature of the Cheltonian hockey player. Colours Re-Award: Roger Mortimore Full Colours: Oscar Butcher, Jason Soames, Olly Hill Half Colours: Paddy Christopher, Harvey Edwards, Ali Pearce Players’ Player: Oscar Butcher Player of the Year: Roger Mortimore Clubman of the Year: Olly Hill
Mr Gwyn Williams
2nd XI Record: played 6; won 4; drew 0; lost 2; goals for 16; goals against 9; goal difference 7
The reaction the following week was quite superb against Bradfield College. With the ISHL league in full flow, the players played some of the best hockey of the season. Killian Hughes and Oliver Isherwood pulled the strings in midfield and Felix Watson-Smyth finished off a number of free flowing moves. This seemed to give the team a spark that continued for the remainder of the season. The next challenge was that of Pangbourne College. The game started at a fast pace and yet again Killian made a number of strong runs into the Pangbourne half. He then fed Dougal Rees and Tommy Birch, who finished superbly, to give Cheltenham a 5-0 lead. More threatening leads from Felix and Harrison Campbell caused havoc in the Pangbourne defence and the game finished 7-0. The next two games were hugely important in the context of the ISHL Table. Wellington College and Abingdon School both provided stern tests but the grit and determination of the group made life very difficult for the opposition. Led superbly by Oliver Ruthven, the back four of Edward Winstanley, Oliver Baker, Oliver Ruthven and William Dyke was a challenge for any team to break. A number of strong counter attacks and superb aerials from Edward put College on the front foot and both victories meant a ‘winner takes all’ clash with Radley College. The final game proved to be a fantastic match. With plenty of physicality and passion it certainly wasn’t a game for the faint hearted, and with Harrison and Oliver Ruthven providing much of the flair, College were unfortunate not to go into the break 1-0 up. A spectacular save from the Radley goalkeeper kept the visitors in the game. Two quick goals however from Radley’s centre forward as well as some sublime attacking play from the midfield, meant the game was a little out of reach and unfortunately finished 2-0 to the visitors. It didn’t deter from what was a fantastic season and finishing the ISHL League in second place was much deserved for the hard work the boys have put in over the team. Well Done!
Mr Olly Morgan
3rd XI Record: played 6; won 2; drew 0; lost 4; goals for 10; goals against 22; goal difference -12 Paddy Merheim-Kealy, Henry Vivian, Tommy Birch, William Dyke, George Wells, Jack Gibson, George Wilford, Dillon Clarke, Ben Southall, Christian Campbell, Eddie Nelson, Aryia Patel Julian Pople, William Dyke, Oliver Ruthven, Oliver Baker, Edward Winstanley, Sebastian Lee, Oliver Isherwood, Harrison Campbell, Killian Hughes, Dougal Rees, Felix WatsonSmyth, Tommy Birch, Henry Vivian With a largely new cohort coming into the team this season, it was an exciting proposition to form a team who went on to play some attractive free flowing hockey. The season didn’t get off to the best start against Kingswood School losing 5-0, however it was a chance to see players in different positions and how they coped with a Kingswood side that possessed a number of 1st XI players.
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The Cheltonian 2017-2018
Unfortunately, we were unable to commence the 2017 season with the same positivity and optimism as the 2016, by falling at the first hurdle in being beaten by Kingswood School. Having faltered also against a robust Bradfield College, replete with dizzying football skills, we marched on with a new attitude and approach as we faced that bastion of maritime Colleges: Pangbourne and Wellington. Having hoisted the flag to half-mast, we were able to carry on up the Khyber in also dispatching Wellington College. Following our tentative renaissance, we were naturally buoyed up with enthusiasm, yet given cancellations against Marlborough College and St Edward’s School, Oxford, the wind
had somewhat gone out of our sails. Admiral Nelson, try as he might, was unable to steer the vessel fully around, given the brace of Oxford skirmishes that lay ahead, and perhaps inevitably we again ran aground in choppy waters. Despite our chequered score card, the team ethos remained perennially eupeptic, with arguably the most ebullient team member emerging as George Wells. Young Jack Gibson was named Players’ Player for his unstinting commitment at all times, and propensity to outlast all other batteries on the field. At the end of the day, maybe football (sic) was the winner this year.
Mr Nick Nelson
Colts A Record: played 7; won 3; drew 0; lost 4; goals for 13; goals against 12; goal difference -1
Gus Milton (Captain), Will Buttress, William Stanton, Harry Jinks, Bryn Fair, Frankie Russell, Harry Stewart, Louis Hillman-Cooper, James Boyle, Sid Mitchell, Edward Ferris, Max Sutton, Paddy Scudamore, Ethan Harney Throughout the season the team showed a tremendous amount of character and unity. There was never a dull moment with a tight knit bunch of boys that enjoyed a laugh, yet they were not afraid to put in the leg work during training. Looking back on the season the results didn’t always go our way however this didn’t stop the high spirits and Cheltonian flair on the field of play. At the start of the season even though many were juggling mock exams and other sporting commitments, we started very well with good team performances against Kingswood School and Pangbourne College. The stand out performance on a very cold winter’s day was away against Bradfield College. Each and every member of the squad worked tirelessly in attack and defence. Going forward the boys were lethal with James Boyle and Louis Hillman-Cooper running rings around the defence. In the midfield Gus Milton and his vice-captain Harry Stewart were threading balls though, distributing well and even tracking back to the base line to help out in defence. It was a truly fantastic team performance and a highlight 3-0 victory. In the remaining games of the season, we came off second best, and whilst the whole country would have enjoyed the same weather, we were particularly hampered with snowy days and frozen pitches. Against Wellington College and Abingdon School, cheap early goals left us too
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much of a mountain to climb and whilst there was a fighting spirt right until the final whistle, we were unable to break down their defences. Our match against Radley College had two of the most spectacular goals I will ever see on the field of hockey. A short corner that came out slightly off target, left quick thinking Harry Stewart to bury it in the top left corner of the next with a superb flick. Later on, the in the second half Frankie Russell pulled off a reverse chip cross (over the keeper), allowing Sid Mitchell to reach up to the heavens and tap the ball in, in what looked like a tennis volley.
Despite this being a relatively short season for the boys, ably captained by Duncan Pinchen, who worked hard to achieve a real team spirit, they really seemed to gel as the term progressed. Key goal scorers included Kit Ely, Paddy Scudamore and Ethan Harney. Paddy MerheimKealy did an awesome job as replacement goalie in the last few games of term, taking over from Edward Hitchins who was determined to join the outfielders. Our best and by far our most memorable game was against Pangbourne College
The final game against St Edward’s School, Oxford, was hard fought in tough conditions. Umpiring the game it felt like -15 degrees and that was with the three jumpers and two extra jackets I’d packed. The boys dealt well with blizzard conditions. Looking back on the season, and perhaps their last competitive hockey fixtures as a single year group, I hope they enjoyed it.
(3-0) which saw the team really work together to enjoy great set play but also superb flair and bravado. Guy Beazley and Freddie Scott also deserve a mention, as they both worked incredibly hard to link the swift passes to the strikers whilst ensuring that they always got back to defend when required. All in all: a good time was had by the boys and solid progress was made.
Mr Todd Freedman
Mr James Coull
Colts B
Junior Colts A
Record: played 5; won 2; drew 1; lost 2; goals for 6; goals against 11; goal difference -5
Paddy Merheim-Kealy, Guy Beazley, Kit Ely, Ethan Harney, Edward Hitchins, Theo Kace, Dominic Kelly, James Kirk, Joshua NaylorHiggs, Duncan Pinchen, Freddie Scott, William Westlake, Paddy Scudamore
Record: played 7; won 5; drew 0; lost 2; goals for 25; goals against 13; goal difference 12
Sebastian Cornwell (Captain), Edward Calder, Charlie Anton-Smith, William Taylor, Gus Edwards, William Hechle, Seb Kimber, Simon Oates, Oliver Walker, Tigue Torode, Munaki Munjanganja, Charlie Davison, Monty Graveney
The season started with a trip to Kingswood School. The boys started strongly to create a number of chances and to go 1-0 up within 15 minutes. Kingswood drew level through a classy deflection just before half time and then went 2-1 up shortly after the resumption. Putting great pressure on the Kingswood goal, College dominated the final 15 minutes but were unable to find the equaliser and the game ended 2-1. The boys returned with a vengeance in their second game; home to Bradfield College. Goals from Charlie Davison and Monty Graveney put College 2-0 ahead at half time. Following the break, they did not let up and put three more goals past Bradfield, scored by Simon Oates, Munaki Munjanganja and Oliver Walker. A consolation goal from Bradfield meant the game finished as a resounding 5-1 victory for College. The next two games away at Pangbourne College and Wellington College were much tougher prospects. In both games lacklustre first half performance threatened to de-rail a good start to the season. However, in both games College rallied coming from 1-0 down to beat Pangbourne 3-1 and Wellington 4-1, showing excellent character and ability to come from behind and win. An away game against Abingdon School was to be the toughest fixture of the season and a 6-2 loss was evidence of this. The team were punished for a slow start, going down 2-0 in the early stages, and they were unable to recover. A combination of poor concentration in defence and clinical finishing from Abingdon gave the squad their heaviest defeat of the season. Sadly, the game against Marlborough College was called off due to snow so the next game was away against Radley College. This was by far the most impressive performance of the season. College dominated all facets and a rampant William Hechle scored a hat trick from right back in what was to be the best performance by an individual player over the season. The score line of 4-0 was befitting of the dominance College showed. A final home game against St Edward’s School, Oxford started well and the team led 4-1 at half time. A fight back at the beginning of the second half threatened to make it a close finish but the team staved off the pressure and eventually ran out a 6-2 winner. This was a hugely enjoyable and successful season on the whole. Mr Nick Runciman and I thank the whole team for their positive attitude and persistent effort during training and matches over the season.
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Players’ Player of the Season: Charlie Anton-Smith Most Improved Player of the Season: Gus Edwards Coaches’ Player of the Season: Seb Kimber
Mr Tom Wilson
Junior Colts B Record: played 8; won 6; drew 1; lost 1; goals for 25; goals against 5; goal difference 20
Piers Brown (Captain), Charlie Heardman, Billy Mayes, William Bradley, William Blowers, Alexander Taylor, Felix Taylor-Kimmins, Deji Adetona, Ben Percival, Oliver Schallamach, Rory Southall, Charlie Baker, Dekhan Dodo, Gus Edwards, Joe Murphy Having sealed victory in the ISHL in 2017 with the Yearlings’ B squad, the desire to emulate this with the Junior Colts’ B team was enormous. The excitement amongst the boys was palpable with the first training session bringing a phenomenal amount of effort and passion for the 2018 season. The squad had changed between seasons with some boys choosing different sports and others out with injuries. Nevertheless, after our first week we took the trip down to Kingswood School. On a bitterly cold January day with the light fading and the frost setting College lost 1-0, with Kingswood scoring in the first minutes. Perhaps 2019 will see victory over this truculent and tenacious adversary.
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Having not played Bradfield College last year and with the boys desperate to open their account in the ISHL, a fired-up side was ready for the challenge. An excellent display of creating space and movement with the ball dismissed Bradfield with a 2-0 win. A midweek trip to Rendcomb College saw a confident College side take a 6-1 win against our local rivals. A new fixture in the calendar was Pangbourne College. After a somewhat rural journey, the boys took away a fantastic 8-1 win. A trip to Wellington College was to be the final match before exeat. Despite narrowly sealing victory in 2017, the boys were determined to make sure the win was emphatic. A dominant College side made easy work of Wellington, dismissing them with a 3-0 victory. The effort in pushing forwards, variation in set pieces and the speed of play undid our opponents. After exeat a trip to Abingdon School saw a solid 4-1 win for College. A heated fixture with tensions rising on a number of occasions, saw play stopped three times, a yellow card and a bully! College’s discipline was excellent in light of these difficult playing conditions. A fixture against our greatest rivals, Marlborough College, was called off due to snow, however, a tough and testing fixture against Radley College had this coach’s heart in his mouth. Some excellent keeping from William Blowers and some sublime defensive work by Charlie Heardman meant our sheet was kept clean. Intense pressure from Piers Brown in midfield, coupled with the dogged and relentless nature of Billy Mayes’ game kept Radley on the ropes. This score simply doesn’t reflect the game. The Radley match meant the team had clinched the ISHL title for the second year in a row. The final fixture of the season was St Edward’s School, Oxford. Having dismissed them in 2017 with a 5-0 thumping, confidence was running high. Disappointingly, we could only muster a 0-0 draw. Perhaps having clinched the ISHL title in the previous week had gone to our heads. On reflection of the season was that this was another strong and purposeful display of hockey. The squad rose to the challenge and demonstrated all the qualities one would expect
of a Cheltonian. Notable performances from the season are from: Charlie Heardman, whose effort in defence saved many an attacking play; Piers, who is without doubt our player of the season; Rory Southall, whose all-round ability meant pressure was always on the opposition and William Blowers, who despite not often having much to do, was crucial when it mattered in maintaining the score line! Bring on 2019!
Mr James Copeland-Jordan
Junior Colts C Record: played 5; won 1; drew 1; lost 3; goals for 5; goals against 7; goal difference -2
Tom Beazley, Charlie Baker, Seb Burden, Ned Hanbury, Charles Hellens, Stanley Mok, Thomas Morris, Charlton Ngan, Karishma Patel, Alexander Sparkes, Bekzat Amirbay, Luke Tappuni, Dan Ursell, Oliver Schallamach, William Kace The team had a mixed season, winning only one fixture but playing some excellent hockey against some strong opposition. We got off to a good start, with a draw against Kingswood School (1-1) and then were overpowered by both Bradfield College (0-1) and Wellington College (0-2). However, the team learned a number of valuable lessons from these defeats and we started looking at our attacking options. We practised using more width and getting the ball out to our wingers and this had a positive result on our structure. As a result, the team started playing with more fluency and this culminated
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in a superb win against Radley College (3-1). The team were led extremely well by Tom Beazley, with Charles Hellens also co-ordinating the defence impressively. Overall this was an enjoyable season and the team worked hard and improved immensely throughout.
Mr Will Bates
Yearlings A Record: played 7; won 4; drew 1; lost 2; goals for 16; goals against 13, goal difference 3
matches however take their foot off the pedal and pay a price for it. The boys will look back on a few fixtures knowing that they could have, and probably should have, turned promising starts into victories. On the whole, this talented group of boys can be proud of their efforts in winning four out of their seven school matches and qualifying for the West Hockey Association regional tournament. There is much potential amongst the squad and I am sure that they will go from strength to strength in the coming years, and I have no doubt that many of the team will feature heavily in the College 1sts in the not too distant future. Well done for a promising start to hockey at College, boys.
Mr Tim Lang
Yearlings B Record: played 8; won 4; drew 2; lost 2; goals for 20; goals against 12; goal difference 8
Archie Thomson (Captain), Fin Wellstead, Rory Jenkins, David Noble, Eddie Buttress, Jack Wheeler, Tom Peck, Finlay Hurst, Oliver Elliott, Will Gilderson, Hugo White, Harry Garbutt, Tom Wackett, Anay Shah The season began with an action-packed match against Kingswood School that showed the entertained crowd what this group of boys could do. After going three goals ahead early in the match, we let Kingswood back into the game through a lack of concentration and intensity. As the game entered into the final 10 minutes, College found themselves in the lead at 3-2 and under huge pressure. From somewhere the team found some energy and desire to repel our opponents and to push for more goals. One more goal would break the game and it was College who managed it. At the final whistle the score line read 5-2 to College. The result, and the manner in which it was achieved, would go a long way in describing the season as a whole. The team would often take an early lead in
defensive shape, retain height and width in attack, and to pass to space wherever possible, they tore apart Rendcomb College in an impressive 6-0 away from home. Two of the tougher fixtures followed against Wellington College and Abingdon School. A last minute winner salvaged a 2-2 draw against Wellington but the inability to put the ball in the back of the net, despite numerous chances, resulted in a 0-0 draw against Abingdon. The predictably inclement weather of the Spring Term resulted in the fixture against Marlborough College being snowed off. Following this enforced break, the team found it hard to hit the ground running again against a superb Radley College side but they did manage to finish the season off with a convincing 3-1 win over St Edward’s School, Oxford. There is no doubt that, on their day, this was a side that could move the ball round the pitch effectively and score goals with relative freedom. This style of hockey did result in the odd goal or two being conceded but to finish the season with a goal difference of +8, and only two losses, is very admirable indeed. In short, a thoroughly enjoyable season and a fabulous group of boys to coach. I shall look forward to watching their progress closely next season.
Mr Jon Mace
Yearlings C Record: played 5; won 1; drew 0; lost 4; goals for 2; goals against 20; goal difference -18 James French, Hugo Ladkin, Rory Maddinson, George Tomblin, Theo Nicholson, Nathan Chancellor, Jaden Somen, Joshua Poulain, Jackson Joly, Zac Marsh, Temwani Banda, Matthew James, Ned Scudamore This was a spirited and entertaining season put together by a close-knit group of boys. The season started promisingly with a 3-0 win over Kingswood School at home. Unfortunately, this was followed within the week with a loss to Bradfield College; an identical score line in reverse. Having learned the need to hold their
Elliot Donnellan-Pasos, Hasan Ismail, Austin Karasanandana Taroey, Simon Evlyn-Bufton, Ferdie Borchardt, Artemii Amelin, Matthew Sun, Arthur Barker, Christian Hindmarch, Shariff Baba-Ahmed, Jacob Stanger, Hoochang Yi, Mark Samonov, Theo Hall, Yuriy Syiek, Sacha Kapoor The season started with a tough away fixture at Kingswood School and, having had very little time training, the boys were defeated by a more polished side. As a team the boys still managed a spirited display and Elliot Donnellan-Pasos put in a superb performance in goal to keep the score lower than it otherwise could have been. The following week saw the first home game of the season against Bradfield College and after some real effort in training, the team put on a strong performance scoring their first goal of the season courtesy of Christian Hindmarch. The first half performance left the boys with a good chance of taking something away from the game, however the second half was less fruitful and Bradfield took the victory with some clinical finishing. The overall feeling in the team was one of good progress and optimism. The next fixture was a tough one away at Wellington College which resulted in another defeat. It wouldn’t be until the fourth fixture, away at Abingdon School, that the side would get their first victory. A single goal was scored by Arthur Barker in the 1-0 win. This score line didn’t do the performance justice and it should have been more comfortable. A win however was richly deserved. Bad weather stopped play the following
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week and the fixture was cancelled. Our next opportunity to step out on to the pitch was away at Radley College and unfortunately Radley were by the far better side in what was to be our heaviest defeat of the season. The very final game of the season was to be cancelled which was a shame as both Sacha Kapoor and Yuriy Syiek had been given their first call up to the team following impressive effort in training. Overall the team showed a real spirit that should be commended.
Mr Dan Lovell
Girls
I would like to thank all the staff involved in hockey for their continued support and commitment to ensuring the hockey programme here at College continues to thrive giving pupils an opportunity to excel at whatever they wish to do.
Mr Gwyn Williams
1st XI Record: played 9; won 5; drew 0; lost 4; goals for 26; goals against 17; goal difference 9
The success and bonds created on the 2017 Malaysia tour in the summer carried through into the girls’ hockey term and laid the foundations for a successful season at 1st XI and throughout the Club. There were 105 matches completed. Unfortunately, the final two fixtures with Bromsgrove School and Bradfield College were affected by frozen pitches thus denying some of the teams their final games of the season. Of these fixtures 53% were either a win or draw for College. The A teams managed to get a positive result in 63% of matches which was nearly bettered by the C teams who had 61%. The future looks well set with the Yearlings having a positive result in 70% of their matches. In terms of block fixtures, it was a good start for the Yearlings with all three teams winning against Rugby School. The Club performed outstandingly against St Edward’s School, Oxford, winning eight out of the 11 matches with wins for all Yearlings teams and the Colts’ A and B teams. In the Malvern College fixture of the five junior games, only the Junior Colts’ B team lost, with wins for all other teams. Further success was achieved when playing Clifton College and of the 11 fixtures, College won five and drew two. Prior Park College gave College seven wins out of the eight matches with the Junior Colts not conceding a goal in their three fixtures. Finally, although the 1st XI game was abandoned against Bromsgrove, the other seven matches saw a draw and four wins for College teams.
ISHL position: Third Brittany Sutton-Page (Captain), Jemima Rees*, Emily Drysdale, Lucy Oliver, Flora Fletcher*, Olivia Mitchell, Louise Hall, Georgie Byrd, Rose Jones, Stephanie Symcox, India Deakin, Romy Bodington, Maddie Moorsom, Amber Beachus, Florence Needham, Martha Elliott * Denotes playing up After a very successful summer tour to Malaysia, a very buoyant group assembled for a pre-season camp held at both College and Rugby School with the intent to better the achievements of the previous XI. The momentum from both the tour and an intense training camp was taken into the first three matches of the term where the girls performed superbly in winning all three. The team was led admirably by Brittany Sutton-Page, who led by example both on and off the pitch, in creating a positive culture.
The team went into the Rugby game with nine new players embedded into the squad but they had a supreme confidence in their abilities and a willingness to play with some intent and freedom. This was an extremely competitive game with both sides really playing at pace. It was a great achievement for the girls to turn around a 4-0 loss from last season into a 3-2 win. This group has been all about its core values; the girls were to be united, committed, take pride in their training, match play and demeanour off pitch, and maintain their integrity at all times. The squad travelled to Wellington College, who are now a regular at national finals, and the girls were able to find consistency in their play to secure a 3-1 win. Next up was a new fixture with Blundell’s School and an opportunity to further stretch this winning streak. Another high-quality game saw College run away with a 4-0 win. A major factor in the success of this group has been their enjoyment factor. There was a nice blend of age groups ranging from Fourth Form to Upper Sixth. The younger players were starting to flourish; Flora Fletcher cemented a spot in midfield, scoring goals, and Jemima Rees showed her class as a goalkeeper which helped her secure a call up to the Wales U18 squad. The last two fixtures before half term were Clifton College and Marlborough College, both highly exciting and competitive games but unfortunately resulted in tight 3-2 losses on both occasions. The Marlborough game was very end to end with College going 2-0 up then 3-2 down but had a goal disallowed right at the end of the match. Both umpires concluded the goal-bound shot had not crossed the line before the whistle had been blown. Clifton was a missed opportunity where the XI played some free-flowing hockey but were not clinical in the final third and got punished for this later in the game. Lessons were learned and the girls managed to get through this disappointment as they entered the County Cup tournament. There they finished runners up and gained qualification to the West Preliminary Finals where they drew with Clifton College and recorded wins over Dauntsey’s School and Hereford Cathedral School. This secured a place at West Finals. To finish the first half of the term, a tired squad travelled to St Edward’s School, Oxford, where a result was needed to reaffirm their
Both the U18 and U14 teams were County runners up and qualified through to West Finals, with the U18 doing the double and also qualifying for West Hockey Association Indoor Finals. In House pots, Queen’s produced a dominant display winning both the Senior and Junior pots. In the Independent Schools Hockey League (ISHL) only the Yearlings’ C team managed to secure a top two placing and were unbeaten going into their last game which they unfortunately lost. In addition to our team successes there have been a number of individual honours achieved with players involved in England Hockey Regional Performance Centres: Georgie Byrd and Flora Fletcher. Whilst Emily Drysdale continues to flourish with Wales, Jemima Rees was selected for the Celtic Jaguars and Lucy Oliver has just joined both Emily and Jemima in the Welsh U18 National Age Groups (NAG) squad. 1st XI captain Brittany Sutton-Page represented one of the England U18 teams at the Sainsbury’s School Games held at Loughborough.
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confidence in their play and training. A scrappy game ensued, but one in which, once they got into it, the girls asserted their dominance and came away with a 4-0 win. A stern test awaited the girls on their return from the break with Malvern College looking to avenge the defeat from the previous year. Malvern started well; causing College problems and asserting themselves with College being punished for errors they made. It was not until the second half that the girls began to have belief in themselves and put Malvern on the back foot, but it was too late and resulted in a defeat. This was not good preparation for the West Finals where the team did not progress out of the group. This was disappointing but in the debrief it was agreed the group could make amends; this had been a missed opportunity and small adjustments were all that was needed. This was certainly the case against Prior Park College where a determined squad blitzed the opposition off the park early on to go up 4-0 in a short space of time and the score line finished at 7-0. The girls were ready for the defence of the Emily Sumaria Memorial Cup against Cheltenham Ladies’ College (CLC). This game was a great showpiece of female sport and played in a terrific atmosphere in front of a large crowd under the lights at College. Two errors on corner defence allowed CLC to take the initiative and although the girls tried everything they possibly could to get back into the game right up until the final whistle, they could not manage to find a win. This loss did not dampen spirits, but unfortunately the match away to Bromsgrove School was abandoned in mid flow with a frozen pitch and then the final game against Bradfield School succumbed once again to the British weather. The XI of 2017 have certainly taken girls’ hockey up another level with their enthusiasm, commitment and style of play. Of the 26 goals scored, there were 10 different scorers with Stephanie Symcox leading the way on seven; a true team effort. It has been an absolute honour to be their coach and seeing these players out on the astro coaching our Junior hockey teams has certainly cemented their legacy and has laid down a challenge for others to follow in their footsteps. I would like
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to thank Brittany and her leadership group of Stephany and Emily for all their support and efforts in making this past hockey term so successful. Brittany as captain has been a tremendous ambassador. Not only has she played every single minute of every game both outdoor and indoor but she has also demonstrated true leadership qualities, creating a prosperous environment of learning, to which the XI have responded. Full Colours: Brittany Sutton-Page, Emily Drysdale, Stephanie Symcox Half Colours: Jemima Rees, Flora Fletcher, Martha Elliott, Amber Beachus, Rose Jones Player of the Year: India Deakin Players’ Player: Jemima Rees Club Players of the Year: Brittany Sutton-Page, Louise Hall
Mr Gwyn Williams
2nd XI Record: played 10; won 4; drew 1, lost 5; goals for 21; goals against 15; goal difference 6
Georgina Grimwade, Jaime Carter, Isla Flint, Paige Baker, Mollie Lyle, Georgie BaillieHamilton, Florence Needham, Elodie Mathews, Tilly Brown, Eugenie Spencer, Verity Peterken, Ellie Davies, Grace Wackett, Phoebe Barnes, Georgie Fowler
formidable opposition (and weather conditions!) for our first two fixtures against Rugby School and Wellington College, which both ended in narrow defeats. This pattern frustratingly continued for the next two fixtures against Blundell’s School (2-1 loss) and Marlborough College (5-3 loss) but showed our goal scoring ability, with Grace Wackett chalking up three and Isla Flint and Florence Needham also on the score sheet. Throughout all of these matches, the girls showed resilience and fighting spirit, despite feeling frustrated by the close games and lack of a victory. The defence did the team proud, playing under considerable pressure at times, but always remaining calm and consistently strong. However, the season turned a corner in Bristol where we held a very strong Clifton College team to a scoreless draw and looked the more likely to score throughout the game. This was the springboard the girls needed to start a successful run, with midfield and forwards working nicely together to create chances in the D. The first win came away at St Edward’s School, Oxford, with the winning goal scored by Georgie Fowler. Georgie’s scoring streak continued over the next three matches where we lost against Malvern College (2-1), beat Prior Park College (6-0) and won against Cheltenham Ladies’ College (5-3). The other goal scorers were Phoebe Barnes, Verity Peterken, Ellie Davies and Georgie BaillieHamilton. These victories set us up nicely for an emphatic win over Bromsgrove School (4-0) where Elodie Mathews added to the list of goal scorers. The poor weather in December meant that Bromsgrove was to be the team’s last fixture meaning the season ended on a high. The girls should take great pride from overcoming some tough early season losses, and for displaying sportsmanship and determination all season. The leavers, Jaime Carter, Isla, Georgie Baillie-Hamilton and Grace Wackett, have contributed a huge amount to College sport and I hope that they will continue to enjoy playing it at university and beyond. I would like to thank the parents for their support on the sidelines and the College Hockey Professionals for their help and advice with coaching.
Mrs Jane McQuitty
It was a season of two halves this year, with a tough start but a strong finish. We faced
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3rd XI Record: played 9; won 2; drew 1; lost 5; cancelled 1, goals for 5; goals against 11; goal difference -6
a breakaway attack and Georgia Mitchell scored a fabulously well struck goal. In the second half Wellington applied more pressure but our defence stood firm and some good saves from Georgina Grimwade kept the score at 1-0.
4th XI Record: played 6; won 2; drew 0; lost 4; goals for 10; goals against 31; goal difference -21
Blundell’s School was our next opponent; a new fixture and an unknown quantity. We started well, moving the ball through the centre of the pitch with Arabella Johnson providing good support in the midfield and Annabella Bilfulco attacking their circle effectively. Our goals were scored by Octavia and Penny Salmond Smith both from long passes into the D.
Caroline Daly, Abby Aitken, Annabella Bifulco, Octavia Slatter, Annabel Slatter, Jilly Woodward, Rose Pearey, Kaela Wilson, Eugenie Spencer, Penny Salmond Smith, Georgia Mitchell, Holly Keefe, Georgie Elliott, Genevieve Alltimes, Lucinder Gardiner, Georgina Pinchard, Georgina Grimwade, Libby Barnes, Arabella Johnson, Phoebe Janes The season started with a tough home match against Rugby School. The weather played a large part in this match. We started well, holding the centre of the pitch and the defence of Abby Aitken and Kaela Wilson did well to keep Rugby’s shots on goal to a minimum along with some agile goalkeeping from Caroline Daly. However, a torrential downpour slowed the speed of the ball on the pitch and during this time Rugby scored two goals, very much against the play. We did not recover from this and despite some good shots on goal from Octavia and Annabel Slatter we could not score. The next match was against Wellington College. This is always a hard fixture and this one was no exception. From the start Wellington applied the pressure but our defence stood strong and played hard to frustrate the Wellington attack. We played the ball well through the pitch, linking defence with attack and Eugenie Spencer controlling the midfield well. Completely against the run of play and just before half time we had
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The match against Marlborough College was a tough one, but we played our best hockey of the season here. We passed the ball effectively and at speed and the defence again were solid and Caroline Daly outstanding in goal. Rose Pearey and Evie Webb played especially well with Evie scoring our goal. The final score was a 1-2 loss. Our next two matches against Clifton College and St Edward’s School, Oxford, were both 0-2 losses. Despite playing well and attacking with purpose we were unable to score. Notable performances came from Libby Barnes and Lucinda Gardiner. The match against Malvern College was closely fought. They were good moving the ball through the pitch and passing the ball, however we were better at stopping them in the D and then counter-attacking. Georgie Elliott and Georgina Pinchard proved to be solid in defence and all together our defence were equal to, if not better than any attack Malvern produced. We just could not get the ball in the goal despite numerous attempts by our strikers. Our match against Cheltenham Ladies’ College (CLC) was to be our last as the final match against Bradfield College was cancelled. This was not our best performance and we lost 2-1. We lost our shape and focus and despite taking the lead could not respond when CLC applied some pressure and scored.
Mrs Kate Hornsby
Lily Cutts*, Phoebe Janes, Libby Barnes, Daisy Wildman, Ronke Adetona, Hattie Prothero, Lottie Burns, Isabella Channing, Yasmin Mayes, Emma Hechle, Eva Palmer, Lola-Lou Torode, Lanta Thynne, Georgie Elliott, Lois Short, Imogen Williams, Olivia Ladkin, Rebecca Smith, Gemma Taylor Baggs, Liz MoningtonTucker, Jemima Piggott*, Genevieve Alltimes * Denotes playing up The team struggled with their first few fixtures. Fitness eluded a few, new positions and roles within the team took a while to embed for others, and a true focus on the task in hand proved difficult for some. As a result, the season started less than strongly with a defeat away at Rugby School, however, in true Floreat style they absorbed their failure as feedback for learning, and some were able to look objectively at what went wrong. Careful focus upon the transition between the defence and attack led to some improvements in their match play, but unfortunately, they were narrowly defeated 3-2 by Wellington College the following week. It was following this that the girls collectively realised that a distinct mindset change was needed and the next few matches were played focussing upon playing as a team rather than in specific positions. This eventually payed off with a strong 5-2 victory against Clifton College, swiftly followed by another win, 2-0 against Malvern
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College. Having overcome some very hard early season loses they learned some important lessons; that a willingness to continue to train hard and focus are key features in success, and that teams are always larger than the sum of their parts as no one person can change the course of its success or failure. These lessons, as always, have a wider application than just in a sporting setting, and will hopefully continue to have purchase for years to come.
Mrs Rebecca Mace
Colts A Record: played 9; won 4; drew 1; lost 4; goals for 24; goals against 18; goal difference 6
Poppy Pitt (Captain), Abbie Whybrow (Vice Captain), Tabby Barnes, Sophie Morton, India Turner, Molly Clarke, Georgie Maclaren, Bella Wilkinson, Honor Skelding, Beth Jenkins, Meg Knight, Izzy Crossland, Megan Message, Katya Jennings, Sanaya Gheewala The season was very much a tale of two halves but undoubtedly saw the girls progress into a skilled and determined squad. The first half of term provided some challenging fixtures which forced the team to shape up quickly. The first test of the season saw a block fixture against Rugby School. The game was evenly matched but a lack of ruthlessness in the D saw missed opportunities whilst Rugby took their chances to win 3-1. The loss spurred the team to refocus in training, and they travelled to Wellington College with a more mature and determined
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approach. Despite losing the game 0-2 to an experienced side, the girls produced a more convincing performance and the defensive line was beginning to unify. Two more challenging fixtures lay ahead against Marlborough College and Clifton College. Despite an improved work ethic in training and a clear development of playing style, the team lost 4-1 to Marlborough after losing focus in the second half. Sadly, College were outclassed by Clifton losing 6-0 in what was a feisty and thrilling encounter. The squad, now searching for that elusive win and in need of a confidence boost, travelled away to St Edward’s School, Oxford, keen to prove themselves. Defence and attack joined together seamlessly, and the attacking line were ruthless in front of goal to produce a convincing 7-0 win. The second half of the term saw a second fixture against St Edward’s and an opportunity for new players to come into the squad. The 4-1 win was solid and the game allowed the team to experiment and tinker with new formations. Training the following week was highly competitive in preparation for a match against Prior Park College 2nd XI. Once against the attacking line took their chances and the game ended 4-1 to College. By now, the team cohesion had become apparent and the squad had settled; confident in their attacking play. The defence was now organised and provided a solid platform to develop an array of offensive patterns and formations upon. A home fixture against Bromsgrove School provided not only a physical test but a psychological one too; the team competed with excellent sportsmanship to win comfortably 5-0. The season ended with a bonus fixture against Cheltenham Ladies’ College. The effects of a long and tiring term were clear to see and inevitably contributed to a 1-1 draw. Despite not finishing on a win, the success rate in the second half of the season was testament to the hard work put in by the girls. They should take great pride in overcoming the early losses in the season and of the progress that they made throughout the term. A fantastic term of hockey, well done!
Colts B Record: played 7; won 3; drew 1; lost 3; goals for 11; goals against 16; goal difference -5
Violet Levinson, Mia Naylor, Amelia Kitson, Yuriko Fukuda, Charlotte Maddinson, Emily Aitken, Georgia Jones-Perrott, Jemima Piggott, Hannah Wood, Olivia Elliot, Boudica Yi, Mary Foster, Ana Laura Fernandez de las Moras, Rosie Wiggin, Emily Fowler The season got off to a shaky start with a loss against Rugby School. This was the team’s first match together and they learned a lot about what was needed. They then committed themselves to training and worked hard to improve both attacking and defensive play. Jemima Piggott played outstandingly as the team’s goalkeeper; consistently stopping goals being scored throughout all the games. They had a fantastic win over St Edward’s School, Oxford, winning 5-0 and managed two other convincing wins over tough competition Bromsgrove School and Cheltenham Ladies’ College. Amelia Kitson became an inspirational player and was a role model to others on and off the pitch throughout the season. As their coach it was a pleasure to see them develop and become a well drilled and successful team.
Mrs Annette Poulain
Mrs Amy Lang and Mr Tom Wilson
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Junior Colts A Record: played 9; won 4; drew 2; lost 3; goals for 9; goals against 11; goal difference -2
her first goal for College and the defence of Emer Hughes, Caitlin Brister, Daisy Hunter and Fionnuala Dowling-Membrado were unbeatable at the back. The girls played excellent hockey and got the results they deserved. Each week they all committed to learning and doing the best they could, and it was a joy to coach them and see them develop as a squad.
Miss Charli Roberts
Junior Colts B Record: played 10, won 2; drew 1; lost 7 goals for 7; goals against 20; goal difference -13
Georgia-Lili Robertson (Captain), Caitlin Brister, Emily Conner, Freya Coull, Rose Dillon, Fionnuala Dowling-Membrado, Izzy England, Annaliese Goff, Emer Hughes, Daisy Hunter, Izzy Reid, Annabelle Wells, Johanna Nesselhauf, Talia Somen The season started really positively; playing away at Rugby School and coming away with a 1-1 draw. It was great to see how the girls set their own standard for the game and the rest of the season, welcoming players from the previous year’s B team. Wellington College, Blundell’s School and Marlborough College were all well fought fixtures with the score lines not reflecting their performance and narrow losses. Captain Georgia-Lili Robertson led the team with passion and determination each week. Freya Coull and Annabelle Wells in goal, dominated their areas of the pitch. The whole team played with true College spirit against Clifton College ending in a 1-1 draw. This spurred the team to continue this tremendous effort in the last four games. In the last friendly against Bromsgrove School, the girls showed patience and played great patterns of play. Johanna Nesselhauf scored
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Imogen Cutts, Francesca Drayson, Arabella Finch, Anna Forde, Jessica Hale, Nathalie Kranich, Victoria Larsen, Aanya Patel, Frankie Pinchard, Alexandra Raphael, Grace White, Poppy Williams, Phina Wilson The team returned after the summer with the same exemplary attitude they displayed throughout last season and were swift to demonstrate the huge progress they had made since the start of Third Form. The season started with two challenging opponents in the form of Rugby School and Wellington College and despite their fantastic efforts, the team lost narrowly to both. An agonising 0-0 draw against Blundell’s School came next, followed by a well-fought fixture against Marlborough College. Despite being without a goalkeeper for a large proportion of the match, and thus
conceding several goals, the team battled on and demonstrated outstanding spirit. On a dreary Saturday in October the girls were finally rewarded for their perseverance with a convincing win over Clifton College; a result which was particularly satisfying given the competitiveness of the opponent. Two frustratingly narrow losses to St Edward’s School, Oxford, and Malvern College followed; the girls’ relentless commitment and determination continued to shine through, nonetheless. The highlight of the season was undoubtedly their successive, convincing 4-0 victory over Prior Park College, in which several girls demonstrated excellent skill, despite playing out of position. The girls then went on to lose narrowly to Bromsgrove School in an aggressively-fought and exciting fixture, learning a valuable lesson about how to balance competitiveness and good sportswomanship, in the process. The season concluded with another exciting fixture against Bradfield College. Although they lost 3-0, the girls played their best hockey of the season, eliciting high praise from the Bradfield coach, who remarked that they were the best team Bradfield had played all season. Despite commencing this fixture at 5pm on a freezing astro in deepest darkest Berkshire, there was not a word of complaint from the team; an overhead remark about the redness of their noses being festive was the closest to a comment on the adverse conditions. Without exception, the girls should be very proud of themselves for all that they have achieved this season. Frankie Pinchard captained the squad brilliantly with her authoritative, yet selfless, leadership. She could not have been so successful, however, without such fantastic support from all of the team members. The entire team are also very grateful to Miss Charli Roberts for all of her brilliant coaching and umpiring this season.
Miss Elizabeth Rawkins
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Junior Colts C Record: played 10; won 4; drew 0; lost 6; goals for 14; goals against 28; goal difference -14
Overall, the season was one of ups and downs in terms of results, but the experience was overwhelmingly positive. I am so proud of the efforts contributed by all the girls. I am also delighted that everyone in the squad represented College in at least one fixture, despite five girls having never played hockey before.
Mrs Alexandra Eldred
Yearlings A Record: played 9; won 4; drew 2; lost 3; goals for 15; goals against 19; goal difference -4
Eloise Harrison (Captain), Tomiris Marabayeva (Vice-Captain), Victoria Brain, Rebecca Cook, Olivia Fisher, Robin Wang, Philippa von Harnier, Lucy Pope, Abby Wong, Praew Jeerawatanawart, Proud Jeerawatanawart, Care Luangviriyar, Molly Harland, Izzy Greenwood, Holly Ellis, Poppy Treasure, Joyce Lam, Hilda Ngai The squad got the season off to an excellent start with a 5-0 win against Rugby School. The girls displayed great attitudes on this day and which was something that they maintained throughout the season; they warmed up independently and showed maturity and professionalism on and off the astro. A string of three tough home matches against Wellington College, Wycliffe College and Marlborough College followed and we had our confidence knocked a little. We persevered and in the week before half term were victorious over Clifton College, however we lost to St Edward’s, Oxford. After the half term break we lost to Wycliffe again but had two resounding victories over Malvern College and Prior Park College. The season ended with a rather heavy defeat to Bradfield College after a long coach journey with what seemed like never ending traffic. Despite the journey and the defeat, the girls were amazing company and positive throughout.
Alice Vyvyan-Robinson (Captain), Duniya Banda, Annie Finan, Annabel Cane, Dorothea Peterken, Hanna Gill, Anya James, Tilly Wood, Minette Tombleson, Gabriella Bifulco, Lizie Birch, Evie Cook, Willa Cook, Aoife McAuliffe . Pre-season training is always a hotbed of energy, and this year saw many a contender for a place in the team throw her hat in the ring. It was clear right from the get-go that we had a talented bunch, all ready to do battle to gain a place. Matches would come thick and fast and before we knew it we were on the bus to Rugby School for our first fixture in the Independent Schools Hockey League (ISHL). A tough away fixture for the first test of the season provided further opportunity for the girls to impress and impress they did! A 3-1 win, and a performance of real grit and determination made for an enjoyable bus ride home. In the weeks ahead however, we
would struggle to reach those dizzy heights of Week 1. Demonstrating some impressive tactical hockey, Wellington College brought the team down to earth with a bump, whilst frustrating draws against Marlborough College and Blundell’s School left the girls underwhelmed and in search of that elusive feel-good factor. Rightfully, they found their mojo and secured impressive wins against St Edward’s School, Oxford, Malvern College, and Prior Park College. The scoreboard took on a more positive appearance and with it the atmosphere in camp was back to its best. The annual Gloucester County Tournament would set the next challenge for the team. The squad put their best foot forward and gained convincing wins over three out of the four schools there, subsequently qualifying for the West Regional Tournament at Clifton College. Regrettably, a tournament drenched in quality was a test too great and having only won two out of four matches, it would be the end of the road for this downcast team. The girls were frustrated and knew they’d missed out on an opportunity. Looking back, they can be really proud of themselves for reaching the regional finals and giving their all for College. It wasn’t their day this time round but it is clear the fire is burning in the belly and it certainly won’t be the last time this bunch impress their skills upon those around them. The season has been a fantastic group effort and it has been an absolute pleasure coaching this multi-talented group of young sportswomen. They have so much pace and purpose about the way they practise and play that I am certain great success is just around the corner. Well done legends!
Mr Tim Lang
Yearlings B Record: played 10; won 4; drew 2; lost 4; goals for 12; goals against 15; goal difference -3
Tinky Nelson (Captain), Imogen Friessner-Day, Alicia Neilson, Lara Scudamore, Molly Krauer, Lily Sutton, Lily Powell, Georgia Morling, Annie Carter, Sofia-Maria Capelastegui, Olivia Piggott, Amber Hoodless, Molly Prothero, Annie Finan, Annabel Cane, Honor Hardie, Maria Cowing, Tamsin Uglow It was a mixed season. We had an excellent win against Rugby School; a brilliant team effort but especially good performances from Lara Scudamore and Annie Finan contributing to the 3-2 victory. At the end of September, we went down to Blundell’s School and had a competitive game that finished in a slightly disappointing
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no score draw. In the first half we managed to get lots of ball into their D but unfortunately couldn’t convert the pressure into goals. In the second half our defence, including Tinky Nelson, Molly Krauer and Annabel Cane did an amazing job at keeping out a resurgent Blundell’s attack. Ultimately it was a good team performance with excellent team spirit. Following fantastic defensive performances in every game from Annie Finan and Annabel Cane, we would lose them both to the A team. In the first game back after half term against Malvern, the team were showing the effects of a two-week break and took a while to get into it. The pace picked up in the second half with Tinky and Alicia Neilson both giving stand out performances. We managed to come away victorious (1-0) but with plenty to work on in training. This was followed by a trip down to Prior Park College where we lost 1-0. It was a slightly frustrating game. We had lots of chances created by Molly Prothero, Annie Carter and Lily Powell and put Prior Park under huge pressure at times but failed to convert it into goals due much to their excellent goalkeeper. In our penultimate game we were slightly depleted in numbers and Honor Hardie, Maria Cowing, and Tamsin Uglow stepped up and put in some determined performances. Our last match of the season was an epic adventure. After terrible traffic on the journey to Bradfield College, we played under floodlight in freezing conditions. The team, despite losing 3-1, probably put in one of their most dogged matches of the season. Going quickly down 2-0, the team responded with some aggressive counter attack and clawed back a goal in the second half. Unfortunately, in the closing minute Bradfield scored their third goal. Credit must go to Imogen Friessner-Day who has been our dependable goalkeeper; ensuring our goals against score remained low. Our player most consistently awarded player of the match was Alicia Neilson, who simply never seemed to stop running and caused endless trouble for the opposing defence. Whilst individuals have been mentioned it has undoubtedly been a fantastic team effort; they have progressed well as a team and have showed resilience and determination throughout the season.
Mrs Sarah Dawson
Yearlings C Record: played 8; won 6; drew 1; lost 1; goals for 29; goals against 5; goal difference 24 Lara Capps, Renee Cheung, Emily Christie, Maria Cowing, Emma Donaldson, Sophie Fowler, Bhavishya Gem, Freya Haddon, Oleander Hall, Georgina Hamer, Honor Hardie, Sophie Iles, Louise James, Sasha Kemp, Waruguru Muchoki, Olivia Negus-Cole, Karishma Patel, Olivia Piggott, Jessica Pulford, Georgina Raphael, Georgia Turner, Tamsin Uglow, Cece Vass, Sophia Vivian It has been an absolute pleasure coaching the team this season. The girls have been committed and keen to improve their hockey skills. Although a big squad, everyone has played an important role in this team being the most successful in
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the Club; narrowly missing out on an unbeaten season with the last match of the season. What has been most pleasing is watching girls who have never played hockey before developing a real joy and passion for the game. I hope this will stay with them for the rest of their College lives and into later life. A highlight for me this season was the fantastic result against Wellington College; their first home game of the season. A large squad was picked to give as many girls an opportunity to represent College as possible. The girls put everything that we had worked on in training into this match and they played some fantastic hockey. Using width, passing in front so that players could move onto the ball and defending low to put pressure on the ball carrier, resulted in a stunning 7-0 victory; a real testament to the girls who played. Despite having a large squad, all girls represented College and with wins against Rugby School, Wycliffe College, Clifton College, St Edward’s School, Oxford, and a draw against Marlborough College, they all did themselves proud. I wish the girls every success in their hockey throughout their College lives.
Miss Betsy Willey
Netball With some new fixtures and superb netball being played at all levels, it has been an exciting netball term this year. Every girl in the Club represented College in a fixture and received expert coaching from their coaches. Thanks must go to Miss Ella Powell-Davies, Severn Stars Netball super league player and Ms Jodie Gibson, England Netball Commonwealth Games Gold medallist for their time, coaching expertise and enthusiasm for the Club during the year. Their coaching has benefitted every girl and the progress from the start of the season to the end has been fantastic! Also, the expertise within the Common Room has been invaluable on match days; knowing that all girls are getting a good experience and netball expertise on match days is very re-assuring as head of sport and that is down to the fantastic staff who take the teams. Individually, girls have been training hard for the Club and also representing on the England Netball pathway. Rose Dillon, Meg Knight and Freya Coull have been part of the Severn Stars Netball NOVA academy, Katya Jennings has been training for the Severn Stars Netball NPL long squad and Olivia Mitchell has been a part of the U17 Team Bath NPL squad, playing against the other Super League franchises and also a Welsh side. Overall, playing just shy of 100 fixtures over the course of the term, the Club has had a very good season. Although we only won 39 of these fixtures, many games were very close and could have gone either way. The girls have trained hard, learned from every fixture and have come to netball sessions with enthusiasm and a great work ethic which has made the Club a thriving environment to be a part of. Congratulations to the Junior Colts’ A team for their fantastic season;
winning eight out of 10 games, made them the team of the season. A truly fantastic season and I cannot wait for the next!
Miss Betsy Willey
1st VII Record: played 9; won 3; drew 0; lost 6
Louise Hall (Captain), Emily Heardman*, Florence Needham, Jemima Rees*, Katya Jennings*, Louise Hall, Megan Knight*, Olivia Mitchell, Mollie Lyle, Paige Baker, Phoebe Janes * Denotes playing up Two days before term started the girls came back to College to start their pre-season. It was a tough 48 hours and one in which the girls fully got involved, pushed themselves and made significant progress. It consisted of fitness, ball skills, through court work, team building, positional workshops and lots of match play. In the evening the girls got together to set out their goals for the season and what they wanted to achieve as a group. After the bubble of pre-season, it was time for the first fixture which was a triangular against Bromsgrove School and Malvern College. This fixture is always good because it gives the coach a chance to try combinations and gives the girls lots of court time. The match against Bromsgrove was a steep learning curve and we were slightly slow off the blocks. The bubble was burst and we suffered a heavy defeat. However, the girls were in high spirits and ready to show the potential that they had. It was a close game against Malvern but the girls came out on top winning 27 – 24. The following week in training we worked on through court and transitioning from attack and defence. This worked much better in the following fixture against Clifton College but the girls appeared to be feeling the pressure. They knew how good they could be but were playing too fast and fancy, resulting in basic errors creeping into the game and on which Clifton capitalised. However, all the girls worked tirelessly and there was a great squad effort from all the girls. The next two games were absolute nail biters and definitely ones for spectators. These games were against St Edward’s School, Oxford (Teddies), and Royal Grammar School Worcester (RGS). Both games were goal for goal. One side would sneak ahead but the other team would then level it up. The girls worked hard and played some fantastic netball; the shooters were
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on fire, the mid-court bringing the ball down through court with speed and accuracy and the defence putting pressure on the shooters. Although we ended up on the wrong side of both matches, losing to Teddies by two goals and RGS by four, the girls gave it everything and due to a couple of unforced errors, they lost the matches. The final match before half term was against Wycliffe College and the game was really a tale of two halves. The girls started strongly and dealt well with the physicality of Wycliffe. I think being in the lead at half time slightly threw the girls as the previous matches the girls had always been chasing the game. It was a disappointing end to the first half of term as the girls deserved to win and were showing real dominance. After half term, the girls were keen to change the results into some wins as they now had the belief that they could do it. The first match back was against Bloxham School and the girls played outstandingly, showing real intent and purpose. They played simple netball but they played it well with few errors and this showed in the emphatic win. Unfortunately, the match against Marlborough College was cancelled due to the ‘Beast from the East’. The following weekend the girls travelled to Lord Wandsworth College to play in their tournament. This was a fantastic occasion as it gave the girls a chance to play schools that they would not normally play. Everyone played their part in the tournament and the squad came second in the A competition, losing out on first place by goal difference. The final game of the season was a triangular against Bradfield College and King Edward VI School (KES), Southampton. The girls played amazingly against KES and it was the best that I have seen them play. The whole team worked together, played with intent and played the ball around the court rather than forcing over heads into the shooters. The final game against Bradfield College was a real nail biter with it going goal for goal the whole match. Unfortunately, Bradfield managed to get a goal right at the end of the game to win by one.
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Although the girls did not reach their goal of trying to win more than they lost, it has been a good season. Most games they lost were within five goals, which is a great result and if a couple of those results had gone our way, the stats would tell a different tale. All the girls have worked exceptionally hard and with most of the squad still here next year, the future is looking bright. I wish good luck to Phoebe Janes and Louise Hall in their endeavours away from College. They have both been fabulous netball ambassadors and we will miss them next year. Overall, a good season and one that I hope the girls have enjoyed as much as I.
Miss Betsy Willey
2nd VII Record: played 13; won 8; drew 1; lost 4
Abby Aitken, Amber Beachus, Jenny Carson*, Holly Keefe, Maddie Moorsom, Poppy Pitt, Annabelle Rigg, Cordelia Shorthouse, Honor Skelding*, Stephanie Symcox * Denotes playing up The season started with an away triangular fixture against Malvern College and Bromsgrove School. The girls got off to a strong start comfortably beating Bromsgrove 17-8. The match against Malvern was a much tighter contest and the teams were very evenly matched. There was some exciting court play but neither side could find the winning edge and the match finished 17-17.
The strong start to the season continued with a comfortable 32-16 win against Clifton College, followed by a 33-25 victory over St Edward’s School, Oxford, and an impressive 42-19 demolition of Royal Grammar School Worcester, where the girls played some of their best netball to date; passes were accurate and they played exciting, fast flowing netball – much to the delight of their coach and the supporting parents. After half term, the team headed to Wycliffe College for a very tense match, which unfortunately ended with the girls losing 31-33. Injuries and the unavailability of key players also resulted in the team losing against Bloxham School, which was very disappointing. The ‘Beast from the East’ put an end to the Marlborough College fixture, but luckily the snow cleared and the girls were able to travel south to compete in the Lord Wandsworth College tournament for the first time. The girls acquitted themselves well, with more exciting court play, coupled with some excellent defending and shooting, which led to the team winning three of their four matches and coming second overall. The final fixture of the season was another triangular fixture, this time away at Bradfield College. The team comfortably beat King Edward VI School, Southampton 18-6, but seemed to lose their rhythm against Bradfield, succumbing to a 11-17 loss. The team had a very successful season overall and the girls should take pride in their strong score lines and their resilient attitude when things were not going according to plan. Coach’s Players: Jenny Carson and Cordelia Shorthouse
Miss Claire Rowland
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3rd VII Record: played 9; won 5; drew 1; lost 3
Romy Bodington (Captain), Isabella Barber, Phoebe Barnes, Megan Message*, Georgie Maclaren*, Verity Peterken, Emma Hechle, Yuriko Fukuda* * Denotes playing up An entirely new selection of players made up the team this season. Most of the girls had played together throughout their time at College, creating a strong sense of team spirit from the first day of training. With Romy Bodington at the helm, every training session was serious and purposeful. As a squad we worked hard to build and improve our core skills, and to reflect on what we could learn from the previous week’s performance. This group of young women was a pleasure to coach and I am certain that some of them will be selected for the 2nd, or maybe even the 1st team, next year. The season commenced with a triangular fixture at Malvern College. We lost to a strong Bromsgrove School side (12-22) and won against Malvern (16-12). A thrillingly high-quality match against Clifton College took place the next weekend. The lead changed hands with almost every centre pass and the score ended tied at 28-28. The squad got into their stride in the three matches that took place before half term. We lost narrowly to St Edward’s School, Oxford (13-19) and had two resounding wins against Royal Grammar School Worcester (28-14) and Wycliffe College (36-19).
We started the new half term as we had finished the last, beating Bloxham School (22-17) away on a chilly but very bright Saturday afternoon. It was a shame that the snow fell the following week, forcing the fixture against Marlborough College to be abandoned. I am sure that we would have given Marlborough a good game and truly tested them; sadly we will never know. The season finished away from home with a triangular fixture at Bradfield College on an absolutely freezing day. The snow was whipping around us, so we resorted to singing West Side Story songs to keep warm. We were victorious against King Edward VI School, Southampton (11-5), but lost against Bradfield College (10-19). Despite the finger-numbing cold, everyone maintained a positive attitude: a successful season overall and one of which to be proud.
Mrs Alexandra Eldred
4th VII Record: played 9; won 1; drew 0; lost 8
and keeping their heads held high. The Malvern game was a more competitive match as the score of 4-7 indicated. The defence pairing of Georgina Grimwade and Hattie Prothero worked tirelessly during the next fixture against Clifton College; consistently hindering the opposition attacking shooters. During the Royal Grammar School Worcester match Mary Foster, Mia Naylor and Olivia Elliot played extremely well in the centre, getting the ball powerfully and swiftly up the court against tough opposition. Violet Levinson, Penny Salmond Smith and Emily Aitken were a force to be reckoned with in attack, scoring from every goal attempt to emerge victorious against Wycliffe College 23 goals to 16. The away fixture against Bloxham School was a closely contested game with each team alternating the lead. Jemima Piggott was notable as wing defence, continually intercepting the ball from Bloxham and passing it up to our attackers. Georgia Jones-Perrott and Oliva played extremely well in centre court positions against a Pangbourne College 3rd VII. The team were commended by opposition players and staff alike on their sportsmanship and commitment to the game. The final fixture, in extremely challenging weather conditions against Bradfield College, was demanding and the team played extremely well but were outclassed by Bradfield’s shooting prowess, leading to an 8-21 defeat.
Emily Aitken*, Georgia Jones-Perrott*, Georgina Grimwade, Hattie Prothero, Jemima Piggott*, Mary Foster*, Mia Naylor*, Olivia Elliot*, Penny Salmond Smith, Violet Levinson* * Denotes playing up Most of the squad had not played together as a team until the first fixture; a triangular, against Bromsgrove School and Malvern College. Bromsgrove had a very strong side and the team played valiantly against the superior opposition; determined until the final whistle
From the outset, the team, led by their captain, Georgina, gelled and team spirit was consistently abundant in both training and matches. They listened to coaching instructions and feedback and all made excellent progress in their skills as the season progressed. The girls should take great pride in their overall performance. They worked with commitment and enthusiasm throughout the season and their team spirit and exemplary attitude is a credit to all of them.
Mrs Phoebe Aitken
5th VII Record: played 4; won 1; drew 0; lost 3
Tusmo Ismail (Captain), Daisy Wildman, Chantal Kittony, Amina Al Kuthubdeen, Lili Sell, Yasmin Mayes, Lettie Robinson, Liz MonningtonTucker, Bibi Lewin-Sanderson*, Emily Aitken*, Molly Sanders* * Denotes playing up The team worked hard throughout the season. Although they only won one match, they
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showed great determination against some tough opponents and excellent progress in their match play and team work. Our first match of the season was against Bromsgrove School and, despite very little training time, the girls put in a good performance, but the opposition were strong and we lost 12 – 24 at full time. Our second fixture was played against St Edward’s School, Oxford at home and, although we had the advantage of a home court, the girls unfortunately lost 2 – 15 in very cold conditions. The team learned a lot from these first two matches and in the next fixture against Bloxham School they brought together everything they had learned and gave an excellent performance. We took the lead in the first half of the match, passing accurately and using space on the court well. However, Bloxham were stronger in the second half of the game and the final result was 13 – 18 to Bloxham. There were many positives to take from this match and the squad approached their final match against Pangbourne College with confidence, hoping for a win. The team put in an excellent all-round performance, demonstrating their perseverance and putting into action the skills they had learned in training. The centre court players showed particular skill around the shooting circle, supporting the shooters well, and the defenders kept the pressure on Pangbourne’s attacking players. The final result was 16 – 2 to College; a fitting and well-deserved end to the season. I would like to thank all of the players for their excellent attitudes and enthusiasm throughout the season. They were all a pleasure to coach and Tusmo Ismail was a reliable and motivated captain of the squad.
Miss Ellen Matthews
Junior Colts A Record: played 10; won 8; drew 0; lost 2
What followed on from the first weekend of the Spring Term was a sensational six-game winning streak. Home matches against Clifton College (19-9), Wycliffe College (38-18), Bloxham School (43-12) and Pangbourne College (36-14) were all excellent examples of fast-pace mid court transfers and accurate execution in the attacking circle to build a goal difference too big for the opposition to chase down. Fundamental to the success of the attacking group was a solid and opportunist defence who were fearless in attempting interceptions and resolute in their one-to-one marking. In training the girls worked hard to develop new defending techniques which pushed them out of their comfort zone, encouraging them to trust each other to do the job. The girls were challenged with difficult zone defence and communication drills but stepped up and it was great to see these begin to be implemented into their game play as the season progressed. The season ended with a glacial triangular fixture at Bradfield College. The sub-zero and snowy conditions were undoubtedly a challenge for everyone yet the girls battled on. A win against King Edward VI School, Southampton (18-8) set the team up for their final contest against a strong Bradfield squad. The close game ended with a frustrating loss 9-15 but with a season total of 268 goals for and a staggering goal difference of 120, the girls have had quite an exceptional season. The girls were tenacious and steadfast in matches and showed a willingness to train hard in the week to improve their game. They were hugely supportive of each other yet determined to push themselves to be the best. They should take great pride in the superb results achieved this season and it will be exciting to see how they progress next year when they enter the Senior teams.
by myself or many of the opposing sides! Phina Wilson emerged as a very able attacking player who elegantly timed her moves and created space for others to move in. Combined with her ability to shoot, Phina proved to be a very able netballer with huge potential for the future. The shooting combination of Izzy Reid and Lucy Pope worked hard to break very tall and determined defenders. Izzy’s shooting statistics were fantastic and her dedication and commitment to the team was first class. She took on all advice given and has developed into a very neat and agile goal attack. In addition to some promising attacking play full credit must go to the defensive wall of Alexandra Raphael, Tomiris Marabayeva and Poppy Williams. These girls showed real commitment and worked tirelessly against some very strong attacking sides. Jessica Hale made her debut in centre court and showed to be a very versatile and competent player; being able to play in the defensive circle and carry the ball in centre court shows promising potential for the future. With fewer victories this season it seemed only right to highlight the girls’ developments and strengths this term rather than focus on weekly losses or successes. The girls have been an absolute pleasure to coach and have gone from strength to strength. They have shown resilience, determination and true sportsmanship throughout the whole term. I have had a thoroughly enjoyable term watching them progress. The highlight of the term was the final game played in the snowstorm against a very tall feisty King Edward VI School, Southampton team wearing mittens!
Mrs Rebecca Faulkner
Junior Colts C Record: played 6; won 2; drew 0; lost 4
Mrs Amy Lang
Junior Colts B Record: played 9; won 1; drew 0; lost 8 Poppy Williams, Tomiris Marabayeva, Alexandra Raphael, Imogen Cutts, Annaliese Goff, Jessica Hale, Izzy Reid, Phina Wilson, Lucy Pope The season was far more successful than the record suggests. Despite only one victory, the girls achieved so much more in terms of their teamwork, individual skill development and their overall ability to play some outstanding netball.
Freya Coull (Captain), Rose Dillon (Vice Captain), Fionnuala Dowling-Membrado, Flora Fletcher, Anna Forde, Eloise Harrison, Victoria Larsen, Nikita Prothero, Anabelle Wells The season commenced with a tough triangular fixture against Bromsgrove School and Malvern College. In their first game against Malvern, the team showed promising patterns of play that would be built on throughout the season and led to a triumphant start with a 29-6 win. Bromsgrove however, would offer a greater challenge, and the tight game ended with a 17-20 loss. This was a fixture the girls felt confident they would win if it were to fall later in the season.
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In so many of the fixtures we were second place by just one or two goals and in all matches we had quarters where we led by numerous goals. The girls’ resilience and determination was fantastic and against many much stronger sides they continued to strive for success. They worked together superbly, carrying the ball through the court and keeping possession with some nicely learned skills and patterns of play. Annaliese Goff and Imogen Cutts worked tirelessly in centre court delivering the ball to the shooting pair and carrying the ball away from our defensive D. Annaliese made some truly exceptional interceptions and was regularly found on the floor after leaping cross court to turn over the ball. Her facial expressions will never be forgotten
Grace White, Rebecca Cook, Proud Jeerawatanawart, Praew Jeerawatanawart, Joyce Lam, Care Luangviriyar, Johanna Nesselhauf, Samantha Wan, Robin Wang, Abby Wong Spirits and team work were always high throughout the season for the squad. The girls worked hard during training and implemented new skills in matches as much as possible. Despite some tough competition, they fought hard during every match and never showed signs of giving up. All girls within the squad were given the opportunity to play at most matches; no one was left on the side line. At the end of the season, the team had won two and lost four matches. They had wins against Malvern College (9-1) and Pangbourne College (17-3). They lost against Bromsgrove School (2-24), Clifton College (9-20), St Edward’s School, Oxford, (3-33) and Wycliffe College (8-19).
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All the girls should be congratulated for their outstanding and relentless effort, however there were some players of particular note. Abby Wong and Johanna Nesselhauf, had never played netball before, and by the end of the season were both picked to play up for the Bs due to the outstanding skills they had developed. Rebecca Cook played goal shooter, and was consistently reliable; getting better and better throughout the season at scoring. Robin Wang enjoyed playing in centre court, and always gave 110%; dodging and sprinting for the ball until the very last second. Joyce Lam, who unfortunately took a serious injury in the very first match and was unable to play for the rest of the season, played so well in that very short space of time. All the girls were incredible, and a real pleasure to coach; I hope they choose netball again next year!
Miss Helen Davies
Yearlings A Record: played 9; won 3; drew 0; lost 6
diverse definitely made them a better team moving forward. After some hard matches, the girls soon started to demonstrate their winning ability. Great wins over Bloxham School (36-12) and Wycliffe College (29-8) gave the team the motivation and confidence for the rest of the season. Tilly Wood demonstrated her high level of skill being able to play consistently for the whole match as a midcourt player without tiring. Dorothea Peterken played a calm and controlled shooter, who could always be relied upon. Anya James and Aoife McAuliffe were able to use their speed to break away from the opposition in all games and became diverse players; happy to play anywhere when needed. The player of the season goes to Tilly. She has developed so much this season and has been a positive influence on the team. The girls should be very proud of their season and it has been a pleasure to coach them.
Mrs Annette Poulain
Yearlings B Record: played 9; won 3; drew 0; lost 6
Gabriella Bifulco (Captain), Duniya Banda, Anya James, Aoife McAuliffe, Isabella Mills, Tilly Brown, Hanna Gill, Willa Cook, Lily Sutton, Dorothea Peterken The season got off to a great start as the girls trained with determination and enthusiasm in all sessions. They demonstrated fantastic teamwork and learned a lot from the first three matches. The first against Malvern College was a tough but victorious one for the team; winning 17-12. Although injuries impacted the positional play it never became an issue for the girls to pick up a different position. Their ability to be
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Lizie Birch, Hanna Gill, Alicia Neilson, Georgina Raphael, Evie Cook, Annie Finan, Sasha Kemp, Molly Krauer, Minnette Tombleson, Tinky Nelson, Amber Hoodless, Lily Sutton, Aoife McAuliffe, Willa Cook The season started with a triangular match against Bromsgrove School and Malvern College. We played Malvern first and made an excellent start leading 6-1 after the first quarter with some great shooting. The next two quarters
saw us ease back a little and not score as many goals but, going into the final quarter, we were six goals in the lead and built on this to finish strongly; winning by eight goals with the final score 16-8. Good performances from Molly Krauer in the middle of the court and some accurate shooting from Aoife McAuliffe saw us secure the win. Player of the match was Aoife who was on loan from the A team. The match against Bromsgrove was much tougher for us and the girls fought hard against a well-drilled and practised opponent. The defence was kept busy trying to keep the shooters out of the circle and both Lizie Birch and Sasha Kemp worked hard to keep the score down. We were stronger through the centre of the court but did not always convert our shooting opportunities. We played better in the final two quarters of the game scoring the more goals, however the final score was 28-6 to Bromsgrove. Player of the Match was Alicia Neilson. Our next match was against Clifton College and again this proved to be a tough but closer game for us. As each quarter went by we improved but could never quite catch up the deficit from the first quarter. An injury in the first quarter meant we had to rearrange the team which inevitably affected our play. In the last two quarters we scored the same number of goals as Clifton which was encouraging for us. The final score was 12-9 with Tinky Nelson voted Player of the Match. Overall this was a good performance with the centre court players controlling the middle of the court and Minette Tombleson linking well with Alicia to move the ball into the D for shooting opportunities. Player of the Match was Tinky. The match against St Edward’s School, Oxford, was an extremely hard fought and tight game from the beginning with only one goal between the teams at the end of each quarter. The difference was our defence of Sasha and Lizie who both played some outstanding netball to keep St Edward’s out of their attacking circle, thus reducing their scoring opportunities. Sasha made some crucial interceptions and turn-overs that then set our attack up nicely who then fed the ball into our shooters, Hanna Gill and Tinky
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who kept calm heads when shooting under some pressure from the St Edward’s defence. The final goal to win the match was scored in the dying seconds of the game: final score 10-9! A great performance from all the players and a very exciting match to watch. Player of the Match was Tinky for the second game running. The next match against Royal Grammar School Worcester (RGS) was another tough one, but the team played some of their best netball of the season. After going down early to some quick goals we rallied and then matched RGS goal for goal as the match progressed. Once again, the defence was solid in the circle and the mid court players of Minette, Georgina Raphael, Molly and Alicia controlled the centre of the court and turned over some of RGS’s centre passes quite successfully. Despite some accurate and effective shooting from Annie Finan and Tinky, we could not quite make up the deficit from the first quarter and we lost the match 16-12. On reflection this is the best netball the team played throughout the season and they were unlucky to lose. Player of the Match was Tinky, completing her hat-trick. Well done. The final match before half term was against Wycliffe College and this proved to be our biggest win of the season. We led the game from start to finish and totally dominated play. Our shooters, Annie, Tinky and Amber Hoodless proved to be too strong and accurate in their shooting for the Wycliffe defence. That combined with some good direct passes from the centre court players of Lizie, Alicia, Molly, Georgina and Evie Cook meant we ended the game with a 25-3 victory. Player of the match was Alicia. The final matches of the season proved to be really tough for us. We came up against a strong and on form team from Bloxham School, who despite some sterling defence from Sasha and Lizie in the circle just kept scoring more than we did. The defence worked hard in that match to keep their score down but Bloxham ran out winners 16-6. Our final match was another triangular game against King Edward VI School, Southampton (KES) and Bradfield College, played in sub-zero temperatures and in the teeth of a gale in Southampton! We had a very tough start with KES totally dominating the play, until we realised that our B team was in fact playing their A team! A quick change was made and we started again. At the end of the first half we were leading by one goal, however a few careless passes leading to turn-overs and some missed shooting opportunities meant that KES capitalised and took the lead; ending up winners 20-7. Player of the Match was Lily Sutton. Our final game against Bradfield College was the toughest the girls had to play. Bradfield played some fast and effective netball and despite the efforts of our defence, Lizie and Sasha could not keep the score down as their shooters did not miss. Our centre court players of Alicia, Willa Cook, Georgina, Molly and Minette worked hard to feed the ball into our shooters, Amber, Tinky and Annie, who found the conditions very difficult to shoot in. Bradfield came out winners 22-5 with Lizie player of the Match.
Mrs Kate Hornsby
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Yearlings C
Yearlings D
Record: played 9; won 3; drew 0; lost 6
Record: played 3; won 0; drew 0; lost 3
Lara Capps (Captain), Annie Carter, Emily Christie, Amber Hoodless, Sophie Iles, Beatrice Leslie, Georgia Morling, Waruguru Muchoki, Olivia Piggott, Molly Prothero, Jessica Pulford, Lara Scudamore, Minette Tombleson, Tamsin Uglow
Emily Christie, Sophie Fowler, Georgina Hamer, Emma Donaldson, Bhavishya Gem, Karishma Patel, Freya Haddon, Georgia Turner, Sophia Vivian, Renee Cheung, Molly Prothero
The season began with a triangular fixture where the girls managed a resounding 14-1 victory against Malvern College swiftly followed by a 3-19 defeat to Bromsgrove School. Amber Hoodless’ shooting impressed to such an extent that she was then moved up to the B team, along with Minette Tombleson who achieved Player of the Match in both games. Lara Capps began a very impressive season as an impenetrable goal keeper, proving to be a very reliable defence consistently throughout the season, as well as an excellent captain. Despite worsening conditions against Clifton College, excellent play resulted in a 10-5 victory, with the recently-promoted Sophie Iles shooting incredibly well and Molly Prothero making her presence well known all over court. We came across tough opposition against St Edward’s School, Oxford, losing a close game 8-13, and even tougher opposition against Royal Grammar School Worcester. This was very much a game of two halves played under very tough conditions and despite an excellent comeback in the third quarter, we lost 8-10. After half term, we enjoyed an excellent victory against Bloxham School at home; Molly and Sophie extended a very impressive lead by half time, and Beatrice Leslie was excellent at intercepting and turning over the ball throughout the game. Olivia Piggott and Georgia Morling showed their true talents at reading the court exceptionally well and the final score read 20-6. Three matches were played in March and the girls did exceptionally well to play given the poor conditions; we lost to Pangbourne College Bs 8-16 in driving rain, and the final triangular fixture saw a flurry of snow along with two defeats of 3-19 against King Edward VI School, Southampton and 1-19 against Bradfield College. Morale was kept high throughout the season and the girls were an absolute delight to coach throughout.
Miss Emily Hartley
It has been an extremely enjoyable season for the team. Their first fixture was away at Bromsgrove School and whilst it was a 20-2 defeat, for a couple of our girls it was their first ever netball match, so it was a steep learning curve against a strong Bromsgrove side. The next match played away at St Edward’s School, Oxford, was a much more evenly matched affair. It took the team a while to settle though and some of the passing was a bit rushed. There were some good individual performances from Georgia Turner, who was dominant in defence, and an energetic and determined Emma Donaldson at centre. Despite losing 5-3 the girls had great fun and I was proud of Renee Cheung, Bhavishya Gem and Freya Haddon for whom it was their first ever competitive netball match. Unfortunately, the Marlborough College game was cancelled and so our final fixture was against Pangbourne College. They had a super tall and effective goal shooter who dominated the first half, but good defence and determination kept us in the game and despite being 8-0 down at half time, we clawed some goals back to finish with a more respectable 9-5 result. The highlight of the season has been the progress that the girls have made and having Ms Jodie Gibson come in to coach most Tuesday and Thursday afternoons. It was fantastic to then see her go on to win Gold in the Commonwealth Games.
Mrs Sarah Dawson and Mrs Sarah Checketts
Polo This season has been exceptionally successful for the College polo team, and they can now look back on what they have achieved as double national champions having not only competed, but also conquered, on the international stage. Following solid pre-season preparations during the Autumn Term, a team consisting of Edward Walker, Monte Swain-Granger and Denis Antonov competed in the Schools and Universities Polo Association (SUPA) National Arena Championships, held in freezing conditions at Longdole Polo Club. Playing in three matches across the day, the team beat Harrow School 3-2 before going on to beat Radley College 2-1 and then Millfield School, the
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team that had started the tournament as firm favourite, 6-0. Each of the boys was excellent, with all of them playing integral roles in what was a brilliant team effort in each match. Denis was so good that he was recognised as SUPA’s Most Valuable Player for the tournament. Following on from this success, College was invited to enter teams into both the prestigious Copenhagen Cup at Guards Polo Club and the Stephen Towler Cup at Kirtlington Park Polo Club. Denis, Edward, Gus Roberts and Luke Wiles took to the field at Guards, beating Eton College 5-3.5 across four chukkas; and Luke, Monte, Edward and Denis were narrowly beaten by the Kirtlington team. With success being built on success, Christowe hosted an Indian Youth team consisting of players from Mayo College and Lady Andal Venkatasubba Rao School, led by Raghav Raj Singh Ranawat OC (1997-1997, Xt), for a week at the start of the second half of the Summer Term. In a warm-up to the international test matches between England, India and Pakistan, a College team of Monte, Gus, Edward and Denis beat the team from India 7-4.5. The season was then wrapped-up on a fittingly high note with another triumph at a SUPA national championship tournament, this time on the field at Longdole Polo Club. Gus, Denis, Luke and Edward drew 2-2 against Stowe School in their first match, beat Rugby School 2-0 in their second and then again beat Millfield in the final, this time with a score of 3-1.
Rackets
Coach: Mr Mark Briers Having had a more stable squad this year, the Club has enjoyed a busy and largely successful season.
Boys Superbly led by captain Theo Taylor, the boys enjoyed much success over the two terms. At First Pair level, Theo and Oscar Butcher, only lost three of our 18 fixtures, securing home and away victories over Harrow School, Marlborough College, Winchester College, and Wellington College to name but four. Theo and Oscar were a settled First Pair, as were Sam Cook and Oliver Baker at Second Pair who also won nine of their 13 fixtures. As with the First Pair, Eton College remained our Achilles heel: and, accordingly, they knocked us out at the semi final stage in both Senior competitions at Queen’s Club before going on to win both tournaments. Our solid performances at Sixth Form level were endorsed as we had eight of the 15 rackets playing schools’ top 24 Senior players in the national singles, where Sam had the longest run, reaching the semi final of the Renny Cup. Our U16s were less settled and perhaps lacked consistency in terms of performance: it was super to see Max Sutton in full enthusiastic throttle and he deserved his placing at Third Pair at Queen’s with Max Pemberton. Sebastian Blake,
Willian Stanton, and Gus Milton all played well at times but results did not go their way. They found themselves being pushed by Junior Colts: William Hechle and Gus Edwards in particular. Gus Milton and William Hechle produced some of their best rackets at Queen’s, however, and must look to compete like this more often next year. The Fourth Form ‘Will and Gus’ (William Hechle and Gus Edwards) provided some fine performances, along with other boys in the year (Tigue Torode, William Taylor, Munaki Munjanganja, Zack French) winning 11 of their 14 fixtures. This is a year group with much potential but they, too, fell to Eton – the eventual winners – at Queen’s. Our Yearlings’ team, largely led by Anay Shah, Oliver Elliott and Will Gilderson secured a 50% success rate and must look to build upon some more effective serving and a little more consistency. I hope they have been inspired to challenge the year above as they become more confident in the court. Domestically, Oscar won the Bridgeman Cup for College singles, Newick House (Sam Cook and Oliver Baker) won the KA Cook House doubles and Gus Edwards won the COAL Plate for Junior singles.
Girls Once again, not to be outdone the girls proved to be the most successful girls’ squad in the country this season. We had more girls
Polo at College continues to thrive, going from strength to strength under the leadership of Mrs Sarah Styler, and is surely the greatest source of sporting success in College’s history. Such a varied and successful season would not have been possible without the players, with further notable performances from Benjamin Kinsman and George Tomblin; the generosity and support of Mr Jon Mace, whose House must have the best House Polo team in the country; and, above all, Sarah. Thank you all.
Dr Graham Mallard
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represented at the national competitions than any other school and we won the U18 and U16 doubles, and the U16 singles. Quite a haul! Captained by Rose Jones, College’s Senior girls competed not only domestically but reached the business end of adult tournaments including the Ladies British Open doubles and singles. India Deakin, Martha Elliott and Georgie BaillieHamilton have done College proud: Martha and Georgie reached the semi finals of either the singles or the doubles competitions at Queen’s Club, having won all but one of their matches in the season. Rose and India, however, beat a strong Wellington College pair to win the national doubles title; they then backed up College dominance by both reaching the final of the national singles, where India secured a 2-0 victory, and the title, in a highly impressive display. Just as encouraging has been the development of the game by our younger players. The U16 national doubles final was an all-College affair with Flora Fletcher and Fionnuala DowlingMembrado beating Abbie Whybrow and Emily Heardman. All four girls had had a super season in a year where we had more girls’ rackets played in the Spring Term than ever. Abbie confirmed her progress with a super showing at the national singles reaching the final of the U16s before falling to a strong Wellingtonian. Jenny Carson also developed excellently making the semi finals of the same competition. Yearlings, Lily Sutton, Annie Carter, Tilly Wood and in particular Alice Vyvyan-Robinson are keeping the College girls’ rackets flame burning: Alice, in particular, played very well to reach the quarter finals of the U16 singles at Queen’s. Within College, the girls’ doubles competition was won by Westal and the girls’ singles was won by India, who added the 2018 national girls’ singles real tennis title to her roll of honour. It has been a most pleasing all-round performance at all age groups in the ‘Black Room.’ Whilst the support of other sports is crucial – for which we thank you – none of this would be possible without the enormous dedication and dulcet tones of College’s professional, Mr Mark Briers: he is at the core of our successes.
Mr Karl Cook
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Rowing With the appointment of Mr George Maitre as Director of Rowing the Boat Club is now entering a new phase. The coaching team is now stronger than ever aided by Mr Julian Scrivener who joined the coaching team from Cheltenham Ladies’ College. Last year Julian coached Steve Cox, the Zimbabwean sculler in preparation for the World Rowing Championships in Florida. Julian has also rowed for Great Britain in the World Championships on a number of occasions in the 1980s and competed with Olympian Steve Redgrave. The Boat House at Tewkesbury has now undergone a radical redevelopment including a new roof and first floor renovation. A second phase will create a new workshop better enabling our Boatman Mr Jed Greenhouse to maintain the fleet. There are also other projects to enhance the Boat House further still. With this investment, a training room will be created at the Boat House so when the River Severn is in flood the pupils will still have a viable training alternative. This new space, which pupils can call the home of the Boat Club, will once again have on show the large amount of historic rowing memorabilia currently in safe keeping in Archives. With a new drive for pupils to learn more in small boats, the focus is now to equip the fleet accordingly. We have purchased four new Wintech single sculls to bolster this part of the fleet which is currently our Achilles heel, and there is a long term plan to continue development in this area. The season started well with two wins at Worcester Rowing Club’s Small Boats Head. All of the current group of pupils were training and competing in singles and doubles before bigger crew boat categories were formed later in the year. Boys’ captain Hugo Oglina in his single scull, and Jago MacInnes and Tommy Haddock in their double scull, both won their events on a particularly tough 4.5km race on a fast flowing section of the River Severn. Others racing were Izzy Kemp and Molly Corbett in a double scull and James Wheeler, James Taylor-Kimmins
and Tommy Ladds also raced in singles, all of whom learned a great deal in what were very tricky conditions. Hugo raced in a single scull at the Vesta Scullers’ Head of the River on the River Thames in early December; following the same course as the Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race from Putney to Mortlake on an incoming flood tide. With over 500 entrants Hugo was placed twelfth out of 18 in his J18 category, a very respectable result considering many of his competitors had the advantage of local knowledge of rowing and racing on that stretch of difficult water. In February the Boat Club raced at Wycliffe Head, a 4,500m race on the Gloucester and Berkeley Canal. The J16 Boys’ VIII came second and the J18 Girls’ IV came fourth. It was a particularly long distance to be tested over so early in the season with both crews displaying some excellent endurance and ability to maintain technical form whilst under pressure. The Boat Club was next in action in March racing on the Thames at the Schools’ Head of the River race from Chiswick to Putney over the Boat Race course in reverse. With a great deal of rain in the lead up to the race which lead to a fast stream and light winds, the conditions were perfect for racing; very different to last year! We had four crews competing, the most we have had entered for some years. Unfortunately, with no prior racing under their belts, due to event cancellations, the crews faced a steep learning curve to handle the event, which they did admirably. With just about every rowing school in the country present our crews performed with some true grit and determination and produced some respectable performances given the challenges they faced.
Results J15 1st VIII: 10th J16 IV: 11th Boys’ Championship IV: 22nd Girls’ Championship IV: 21st At the end of Autumn Term we held the first private fixture at Tewkesbury for many years
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with Cheltenham Ladies’ College. It was labelled ‘a training day with a twist’; some opposition to compete against on our home water. It will hopefully be the first of many and perhaps the seed is sown for the return of a major event in the near future.
they acquitted themselves well for their first race of the season. The Senior girls raced in various combinations and boat formats against really tough opposition, achieving valuable racing experience, proving strong ability and indicating some really promising speed.
In January we welcomed George Nash MBE as our guest speaker to the Boat Club annual dinner. A former Cambridge Blue who had previously been a World Champion at U23 and Junior level George is also a Gold medallist from the International University Sports Federation (FISU) World University Rowing Championships, three times world champion and dual Olympic medal winner. Whilst George’s two Olympic medals were passed around the dining room he spoke about various aspects of his own career and pathway through being a full time athlete and the challenges and determination required to train in very simple terms harder than the opposition were willing to train. With pupils and parents duly inspired and over £3,000 raised to go towards the funding of new equipment, the evening was a great success.
National Schools’ Regatta at Eton College’s Olympic Lake in Dorney is probably our toughest challenge every year. Appearing early in the summer programme, it is a real challenge to get our crews up to speed. With the J16 Boys’ coxed four, the J14 Boys’ octuple and the Girls’ coxed quad getting through the time trail phase to reach their C final, and the Senior Girls’ coxless quad coming 44th, it was a respectable set of results against every other rowing club in the country.
The Boat Club travelled to Soustons in south western France over the Easter break with 30 pupils, five staff and 19 boats doing a 1,400 mile round trip. With pupils from every year group we arrived in torrential rain which led for an anxious and soggy few days as it refused to let up. Gradually the weather improved which brought stunning rowing conditions on the lake. Having achieved the goal of younger year groups learning small boat skills in singles and double sculls, and the senior crews having acquired good quality mileage in larger crew boats, the camp became fantastically productive. With some side by side training with Westminster School who were also there, everyone improved enormously and gained valuable experience in the run into the regatta season.
The J14 Boys’ coxed quad won their event at Blenheim Palace Junior Regatta. The event has a stunning backdrop with the palace overlooking the lake. The J15 Boys’ VIII won two events at Bridgnorth Regatta: the Open Eights against Northwich Rowing Club, and then the 150th anniversary match against Shrewsbury School. This eight was then split into two coxed fours to race at Reading Town Regatta and both managed to reach the final to race against each other: a CCBC A vs CCBC B race, with A narrowly beating B! The final race of the year was Henley Royal Regatta where the Boys’ 1st VIII competed in the Temple Challenge Cup. It was an unusual event choice which enabled the crew to continue competing with captain Hugo, on board. With
Hugo being old for his year group they were prevented from entering the Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup. After a week-long training camp in Tewkesbury the boys produced a strong performance in the qualifying time trial event beating several university and college boats. The crew was over 15 seconds quicker than the previous year, a strong indication that we are heading in the right direction.
Mr George Maitre
RUGBY 1st XV Record: played 15; won 15; points for 483; points against 116; points difference 367 Thomas Stanton (Captain), Aiden Ali, Sebastian Lee, Tom James, Max Taylor Baggs, Finlay Berry, Benedict Schallamach, Jack Clement, Oliver Baker, Charlie Boyce, Ali Pearce, Cameron Terry, Josh Hughes, Alexander Sharam, Olly Hill, Roger Mortimer, James Davies, Charles Tchen, Joshua Pimlott, Daniel Ward, Zeno BurchiKhairy, Louis Hillman-Cooper*, Sebastian Blake*, Angus Thomson, Oliver Ferris, Oliver Ruthven, Jacob David-Ward * Denotes playing up The 1st XV have had a season to remember. With many returning from the previous year, there was a level of expectation on the players to back up the success of 2016.
In February the Club, lead by Hugo, Molly Corbett and Tommy Ladds, staged a One Million Meter indoor rowing machine event which raised in the region of £3,000 for two charities; Milestones School, a school for disabled children in Gloucester and the James WentworthStanley memorial fund, a charity which helps to raise awareness for the 1,000,000 suicides that occur each year around the world. It took 130 participants including pupils, parents, staff and an Olympic Gold medallist Matt Gotrel MBE nine hours to complete on 20 rowing machines. It was an extraordinary achievement with some monumental stints on the machines, and an event of which all concerned can be hugely proud. Coinciding with the near completion of the Boat House refurbishment, the land mark occasion of rowing House pots, or ‘College Regatta’, was reinstated into the calendar having not been held for many years. With coxed quads racing side by side right in front of the Boat House with a large crowd cheering on, Christowe won the boys’ event and Westal won the girls’. The Boat Club next raced at the Bristol Avon Regatta in Saltford, a 1km race. We were racing side by side for the first time this year, but reached seven finals with three wins for the J14 Boys’ coxed quad, J14 Girls’ coxed quad and the J14 Girls’ octuple. It was the first rowing event for many of them and a great deal of hard racing experience was gained. The 1st VIII lost out to Pangbourne College who were an older crew but Unbeaten XV: 1957 and 2018
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It all started on tour to Hong Kong and Japan where both the Lower Sixth and Upper Sixth formed close relationships playing against some resilient Japanese opponents who taught our players a lot about respect and humility.
hope to hear of their successes in the future.
We returned to the UK ready to embark on the new season - for many, the last time they would represent the XV.
Gloucester Academy U18 Captain: Thomas Stanton
In the first few games College showed some fantastic running rugby and finished off a number of great team tries. The most memorable of these being Daniel Ward hitting a fine line from a well worked set piece move against Marlborough College. Already the combinations from tour were beginning to take shape and the belief that they could go into half term with a clean record. Perhaps the best first half of rugby I have witnessed in a long time, was against Rugby School where the power game of Cameron Terry and Max Taylor Baggs coupled with the offloading of Thomas Stanton and Roger Mortimer, allowed for three length-of-the-field tries. This then followed into probably our toughest game of the season against St Edward’s School, Oxford, who were an extremely tough team to break down. With a number of disruptions, including captain Thomas going off injured, the telling differences were two fantastic pieces of play from winger Zeno Burchi-Khairy, who not only scored the winner but also stopped a certain try. College then went into half term for a much-needed rest but also knowing that when they returned, they had the challenge of three games in 8 days.
Ranked Number 1 in the Daily Mail Schools Performance League
The boys returned refreshed and ready to face the next encounters: Clifton College, Radley College and Monmouth School. Mentally and physically it was a tough ask but the resilience and grit the boys showed to get through an exhausting patch was something to be extremely proud of. All the games were fantastic in their own right but the Radley fixture played at Sixways Stadium, Worcester, was a special moment for everyone involved. A great atmosphere in a premiership ground with a number of spectators in the stands was a fitting way to showcase the school. It therefore left the team with two of the top teams in the country in Sherborne School and Blundell’s School. Sherborne played some great rugby and caused the College defence some problems. However, the second half dominance the XV has shown all season came to fruition and they scored 20 unanswered points. The final game was a fitting one in the shape of Blundell’s, who recently got to the final of the National Schools’ Cup and were arguably the ‘in form’ team in the country. With it being the last home game of the season and the final time a number of players would run out on College Field, the emotions were high. College started well in the shape of Joshua Pimlott, who ran in a spectacular try from inside his own half. This set the tone for most of the match. A stop-start game finished with Daniel going over in the corner and the game out of reach for Blundell’s finishing 18-7.
Coaches’ Player: Cameron Terry Players’ Player: Aiden Ali Most Improved: Roger Mortimer
TEAM ACHIEVEMENTS
CLUB STAT Of all 53 A team (U14/U15/U16 and 1st XV) matches played this season, 47 have been victorious
Mr Olly Morgan
2nd XV Record: played 10; won 5; drew 1, lost 4; points for 236; points against 185 points difference 51
Paddy Christopher (Captain), Zeno BurchiKhairy, Jacob David-Ward, Oliver Ferris, Gus Roberts, Finlay Berry, Killian Hughes, Jimmy Daly, Oliver Ruthven, Jordan Pemberton, Henry Vivian, Freddy Horlock, Rodrigo Peralta Martin, Henry Johnson, Ben Southall, Felix WatsonSmyth, Aryia Patel, Oliver Baker, Julian Pople, Alexander Sharam, Max Williams, Charles Tchen, Angus Thomson, Harvey Edwards Overall the season should go down as a successful one with an unbeaten home record. However, there were a number of close losses away that somewhat tainted what could have been a superb season. Hopes at the start of the season were high. Almost the whole of the squad had been part of the very successful summer tour to Hong
Kong and Japan. Hard work on the training field in very hot temperatures meant that the team had a good level of fitness and a very sharp set piece. It was evident that the team had some very exciting backs who were dangerous from all areas of the pitch. The challenge would be securing them enough ball as the young pack lacked size and experience in the front five. Our first opponents of the season had also been on tour and we therefore expected a tough fixture. However, College proved far too strong for Malvern College; a solid platform secured by the forwards gave the backs licence to exploit any space on the field which they duly did running in six tries. The confidence that resulted from this excellent start helped the side overcome a weak Stowe School with centre Gus Roberts having a particularly strong game. A fantastic 45-12 win against Marlborough College resulted in the team going into exeat unbeaten. A sluggish start against Abingdon School followed by some defensive lapses meant that College blew a 7-point lead to record our first defeat of the season in what was arguably our worst performance of the year. Our patchy away form was confirmed in a frustrating game against Rugby School which College lost narrowly 26-29. An inability to tackle effectively meant that Rugby were always in the game and they snatched the win with a late converted try. A comfortable win at home against St Edward’s School, Oxford took us into half term with some of the trickiest fixtures of the season still to play. On the first Saturday back after half term we hosted Clifton College at home. Early mistakes meant we struggled to get a foothold in the game and an overall poor performance resulted in a draw in what should have been a comfortable victory. Sadly, we did not respond positively to this disappointing performance by shipping three early tries when away at Monmouth School the following weekend. Despite a better second half performance, we could not close the deficit. A fantastic game of rugby away at Sherborne School, which could have gone either way, was lost by a point; before the team responded to this setback superbly by recording a fine win against Blundell’s School on a rain sodden afternoon in Cheltenham in the last game of the season. Special mention should go to Paddy Christopher who captained the side superbly and posed a real threat in attack from full back against every side we played.
Mr James Hayden
For many of the group who have been through the Prep and College, an unbeaten season for the XV is an achievement they have been craving for a long time. The hard work and dedication the players have shown is testament to their character and belief as a group. To be one of three teams to achieve this and be a part of history within the school, is very deserving of these payers and I
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3rd XV Record: played 10; won 6; drew 0; lost 4; points for 207; points against 145; points difference 62 Harrison Campbell, Dougal Rees, Hugo Bailey, Kieran Brown, Rob Caesar, Eduardo Capelastegui, Max Chan, Diben Dodo, George Elliot, Jack Gibson, Joseph Hughes, Henry Johnson, Benjamin Kinsman, Tom Kitson, Philip Leenart, James Lewin, Charles Meecham-Jones, Ized Tunku Nasiruddin, Eddie Nelson, Charles O’Bryan, Harry Piggot, Rodrigo Peralta Martin, Oliver Pritchard, Oliver Smith, Felix Stevens, Benedict Sutton, Kieran Thorley This season produced some outstanding performances, with the team winning six of their ten games. Having begun with wins over Malvern College and Stowe School, the boys struggled for form on their approach into half term. Nonetheless, with multiple injuries, they still managed to crack out a sterling performance at home against St Edward’s School, Oxford. The two week half term hiatus clearly refreshed the boys, with the team delivering three more praiseworthy performances against Clifton College, Monmouth School and Blundell’s School. Spectacular individual performances, a necessity in such a tough and prevalently strenuous sport, were plentiful throughout the season. Tom Kitson, as the team’s strategic distance kicker, has presumably slotted a few through the sticks in his career, but perhaps none so sweet as his effort to win the game in the last minute at Stowe. Though you may already have seen it on a Sky Sports’ highlights reel, having been there at the time, we can confirm this was one for the history books, referred to by James Lewin as ‘a story for the grandchildren’. Eduardo Capelastegui was another integral player, leaving his mark on every game, while coming out as this season’s top try scorer. Loyalty played an important part too. Rodrigo Peralta Martin, having impressed the coaching superiors with his incomprehensible evasive abilities on the pitch, managed the same off the pitch as well, fending off the 2nd XV’s
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constant attempts to claim him as their own. This season also saw many ‘step up’ in challenging circumstances, with Lower Sixth especially taking an active role within the team. These included George Elliot, Eddie Nelson, Hugo Bailey and Diben Dodo. The pack deserves a special mention, with tough games against Monmouth, Stowe and Blundell’s decided by outstanding performances from forwards such as Oliver Smith, Henry Johnson, Oliver Pritchard, Benedict Sutton, Charles O’Bryan and Benjamin Kinsman, to name a few. Time and time again, all the boys impressed us with their drive to improve and their hunger for victory, something that is very much at the core of a XV’s rugby doctrine. Well done and best of luck to the team next year.
The huge upside to this of course was the opportunity to give new players early game time, and while the next four fixtures against Stowe School, Marlborough College, Abingdon School and Rugby School all resulted in losses, it was clear to see a real upsurge in team confidence as well as skill over the next few weeks. The next game was a resounding 39-0 victory over Clifton College leading to a real boost in confidence for the team. Following narrow defeats in the following two matches, the final game of the season was our closest; a victory over Blundell’s 24-21. A very enjoyable season, in which a particular highlight was seeing pupils playing rugby for the first time become starting team members as the term progressed.
Report by Harrison Campbell and Dougal Rees
Mr David McKee
4th XV
Record: played 10; won 7; drew 0; lost 3 points for 234; points against 159; points difference 75
Coach: Mr Beren-Dain Delbrooke-Jones
Record: played 8, won 2, drew 0, lost 6; points for 109; points against 247; points difference -138
Colts A
Aram Abedini-Abkhare, Ben Anton-Smith, Hugo Bailey, James Burden, Rob Caesar, Christian Campbell, Tom Creed, William Dyke, Nicholas Hill, Joseph Hughes, Tom MaberJones, Finbar McConnell, Charles MeechamJones, Jude Parsons, Yusuf-Ali Perwaz, Naut Rodanant, Alfie Weston, Robbie Yan, Kieran Brown, James Lewin, Harry Piggott, Tom Smith, Michael Tomlinson, Ized Tunku Nasiruddin, James Webb A season that was mixed in results, nonetheless was very positive indeed in terms of player and squad development. We began the term with a large squad made up of some very experienced players, as well as some new to College who had never played rugby before. Without a game on the first weekend we were unable to be put to the test, and sadly following injuries to other teams, much of our strength was called upon in the second weekend to support the 2nd and XV squads.
Louis Hillman-Cooper (Captain), James Kirk, Charlie Gardiner, Elias Gonzalez Albizuri, Archie Garbutt, Bryn Fair, Tom O’Brien, Cameron Stevens, Harry Jinks, Edward Hitchins, Sebastian Blake, Edward Ferris, Gus Milton, Hamish-James Anderson, Will Buttress, Joshua Naylor-Higgs, Ethan Harney, Harry Stewart, Sid Mitchell, Games Buri With victories against Malvern College (046), Stowe School (26-13) and Marlborough
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College (27-5) in their first three games, the start to the term was one of great quality and endeavour. A fantastic team spirit was coupled with some superb attacking rugby. An exciting rugby season was clearly in prospect.
College boys in the last ten years. The group must now look to help sustain the success of the Club as they make the step up to Senior rugby. They have shown every indication that they will not let anybody down.
The Abingdon School fixture (31-40) was to be the game of the season with two unbeaten teams coming together, 11 tries scored, and the lead changing hands on four occasions. College were desperately unlucky not to come away victorious and showed great humility in defeat, with Abingdon remaining unbeaten for the remainder of the season.
Players’ Player: Louis Hillman-Cooper
Rugby School (15-12) was also a thrilling contest; a thoroughly deserved but extremely hardfought victory, with College showing superb defensive organisation and physical resilience. The strong desire to avenge the losses of the previous years was a driving factor for the team, and a victory was warmly celebrated at the final whistle; a great sight to see! Although two losses either side of half term to St Edward’s School, Oxford, (24-5) and Clifton College (27-10) were uncharacteristic of the group, they were to be vital in the team’s development. An honest reflection spurred the group on to make amends in the remaining games. With their renewed focus, they did just that, with three victories from their last three fixtures; most notably a win against a very strong Sherborne School team (17-12). This final match provided a fitting end to an impressive term and will have given the boys lasting memories of their final season playing together as an age group. In particular, the team were characterised by their rugby intelligence and their ability to play the conditions of a given match and ‘manage’ the game maturely. Praise must go to all involved for their attitude and dedication throughout the season. The manner in which they conducted themselves on and off the field was a credit to College. Consistently outstanding performances beyond their years by captain Sebastian Blake and Louis Hillman-Cooper were rewarded by selection for the 1st XV; a feat only achieved by three other
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Coaches’ Player: Cameron Stevens Most Improved Player: Elias Gonzalez Albizuri
Mr Nick Runciman
Colts B Record: played 9; won 5; drew 0; lost 4; points for 214; points against 131; points difference 83
Oliver Coker, James Kirk, Max Morris, Kamil Khayrov, George Kemp, Charlie Callon Hine, Kit Ely, William Stanton, Will Buttress, Guy Beazley, Dominic Kelly, Freddie Scott, James Whittal, Piers Morgan, Maximilian Pini, Games Buri, Theo Kace, Javier Peralta Martin, Jonathan Chai, Hamish-James Anderson, Sid Mitchell, Monte Swain-Grainger, Frankie Russell The season started off strongly with an away trip to Malvern College and a convincing win, thanks to a dominant forward and expansive back performance. The match was an important one in highlighting the potential of the squad for the forthcoming season. Next, the team showed their resolve in a hard fought, gritty and defensive game against a bigger Stowe School team. A 19-5 victory was secured by a thoroughly impressive defence and a few creative moments by William Stanton.
Although the next games against Marlborough College, Abingdon School and Rugby School ended up in narrow losses, the team were quick to recognise that they had matched and, in some cases, surpassed the opposition in terms of rugby ability but that small mistakes made the difference. Undeniably the matches resulted in the team coming together and building a fantastic spirit that continued through the rest of the season. In one of the best games of the season the squad travelled to St Edward’s School, Oxford. Again, against a bigger team the squad played a fantastic, expansive game provided by quick balls from the forwards and aggressive defence from the entire team. It was great to see the drills worked on during the week being played out in a 31-17 victory. High in confidence the team travelled to Clifton College and again it was great to see a united defensive performance. James Whittal, who was playing out of position and achieved man of the match, set the conditions for some very attacking running rugby and a hard fought 36-21 win against a strong Clifton team. With the team playing some of the best rugby of the season they hosted Sherborne School with a depleted squad. Always a well drilled team, Sherborne just seemed to have the majority of the possession and although there were some moments of quality the team fell a little short of converting the chances but again the unity and spirit of the team was never in doubt in the 5-17 loss. The final game was a convincing win, 73-0, against Blundell’s School. The game, although not particularly competitive, was a snapshot of the season and the type of rugby the team placed all season; terrier-like, quick, united and expansive. At the start of the season the team set the goal of creating moments they would remember; they certainly did that and can be proud of the games they played in both victory and defeat. End of season awards went to the captain Guy Beazley and William Stanton for Players of the Season, Freddie Scott for the Most Improved Player and George Kemp for the Stalwart of the Season.
Mr Ben Rees
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Junior Colts A Record: played 15; won 11; drew 0; lost 4; points for 346, points against 200; points difference 146
to larger packs with a ferocity that bode well. Charlie Anton-Smith, in particular, was immense in defence and a few crucial tackles were the difference in a very close scoreline, against Stowe. Away at Marlborough, College butchered a few chances and only sealed the match in the final minutes to tip an evenly matched game our way. The next match three matches were the total opposite in terms of performance. Away to Abingdon School, the team became distracted and performed well below par losing a match that they should not have. They then beat Rugby School comfortably but without moving out of first gear and then against St Edward’s School, Oxford, we were awful for 65 minutes. St Edward’s should have scored many more points but did not and in five minutes of superb play at the end, we overhauled them for a very unexpected victory.
Sebastian Cornwell (Captain), Dan Ursell, Piers Brown, Luke Tappuni, Ben Percival, Alexander Sparkes, Simon Oates, Munaki Munjanganja, Zach French, Seb Kimber, Edward Calder, Charlie Davison, Charlie Anton-Smith, Tigue Torode, William Hechle The season started with three very physical matches against Malvern College, Stowe School and Marlborough College. The boys stood up
The quality then picked up and in the final quarter of the season; there was a narrow loss at Clifton College, a loss to Sherborne School at home and good wins against Radley College and Blundell’s School. In amongst all these games, the team also entered the national U15 competition and had a great run getting to the last 16; a superb effort for a one term rugby school. Along the way, the team defeated Chosen Hill School, Dean Close School,
and Clifton College. In the last 16 match against Millfield School, after stout defence in the first half, College led 3-0 with five minutes to go. Unfortunately, two late penalties from Millfield saw them scrape past us into the quarter-finals. The team were a pleasure to coach and were prepared to play flowing rugby. Piers Brown was the most improved player and became a real defensive force around the pitch, Alex Sparkes made a crucial turn-over on our line to win the Dean Close match, Sebastian Cornwell was a dedicated leader, Munaki Munjanganja made many yards over the season with strong runs, Simon Oates was superb at the break-down, Charlie Davison’s boot regularly got the team out of danger and into strong field positions, whilst William Hechle was able to play in many positions when called upon and tackled with conviction.
Mr Simon Conner
Junior Colts B Record: played 11; won 4; drew 0, lost 7; points for 178; points against 275; points difference -97
Charles Hellens (Captain), Charlie Heardman, William Blowers, Denis Solovyev, William Bradley, William Taylor, Rory Southall, Alexander Taylor, Charlie Redvers, Joe Murphy, Deji Adetona, Dekhan Dodo, Tom Beazley, Felix Taylor-Kimmins, Nikita Vashchenko, Billy Mayes, William Kace, Charlie Baker, Luke Browning, Thomas White, Stanley Mok, Tom Buxton, Julian To, Sebastian Mak, Rory Southall, Oliver Walker, Jack Szeto, Gus Edwards Having made a slow start to the season, the team eventually found themselves and discovered the importance of playing as a team. At first glance, the playing record implies that they have endured a tough season, however, what is does not show is the quality of the rugby that was played, those champagne moments that will be remembered for years to come and the spirit in which the boys played the game. Admittedly, it took a while for the squad to really gel and come together as a team. This was often made difficult as a result of team changes brought on by A-team call-ups and injuries. This is nothing new for any College B team, which is why I think that playing for such a team is often more challenging, as boys regularly have to adapt to playing in a position which is not always that familiar to them. Having secured a win over Malvern College in the first week of the season, the team went on to lose their next three games. Then came
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Rugby School. Such historical fixtures often bring out the best in College boys and this fixture saw them raise their game and secure a memorable win, beating Rugby 26–12. This was probably the turning point for the season as the remaining fixtures were close competitions (with the exception of St Edward’s School, Oxford, and Sherborne School). Here most games were decided by a try and it was in these games that the team played some of their best rugby. Most notable was the fixture against Radley College where College were down 26–0 with 10 minutes remaining. The game ended 26–21. I can only dream what the scoreline might have been if they had played the whole game in the same spirit as they had played those last ten minutes! The future is bright for this enthusiastic bunch of boys. I look forward to seeing how they develop as a squad in the 2018 season. Most Valuable Player: Alexander Taylor
The first of the two wins came against Rugby School (44-0), which was all the more impressive in that it followed two big losses. A hat-trick of tries from Julian To was the showstopper and the team clearly gained hugely in confidence. Following this game, every match was within a few scores and we would score two tries in every match. The highlight was a winning performance away at Clifton College, which included a fiveminute defensive stand on our own touchline before breaking the length of the pitch and going through three phrases for Jack Szeto to score the winning try in the corner. I won’t name all the players, but it’s rare to have a C team where five or so players regularly email to ask to be selected because they haven’t made the bench of five in this rotation. They improved massively, were hugely enthusiastic and played the game in the right spirit. I am sure they will continue to get better and better.
Man of Steel: Nikita Vashchenko
Mr Ben Page
Champagne Moment: The team performance against Clifton College
Yearlings A
Most Improved Player: Tom Buxton
Record: played 11; won 11; drew 0; lost 0; points for 391; points against 28; points difference 363
Most minutes played: Charlie Heardman (only player to play every minute of every game)
Mr Fraser Dobney and Mr Todd Freedman
Junior Colts C Record: played 8; won 2; drew 0; lost 6 points for 100; points against 191; points difference -91
Leo Jamous (Captain), Will Gilderson, Eddie Buttress, David Noble, Max Brown, Archie Thomson, Hugo Ladkin, Oliver Elliott, Temwani Banda, Tom Peck, Finlay Hurst, Arthur Barker, James French, Ross Broughton-Johnson, Jack Wheeler, Rory Maddinson, Matthew Albutt, Theo Nicholson, Joseph Maguire, Harry Garbutt, Alvaro Bertran Marco Colombo, Peter Marstrand, Vladimir Afanasyev, Andre Zamora Morales, George Hardy, Jude Bridge, Seb Burden, Bekzat Amirbay, Felix Tacey, Oliver Schallamach, Alex Chan, Jack Szeto, Benedict Lam, Charlie Baker, Ethan Tsang, Thomas Morris, Archie Faskin, Charlton Ngan, Sebastian Mak, Omaan Khyra, Krish Patel, Dustin Chan, Julian To, Ned Hanbury, Jin Saul Kim, John Chan It says a lot about a team when having asked them to vote on end of season awards, for the Best Try, they chose one scored in training, nobody could agree on which person was the most injured, their favourite moment was us conceding a try, and that their choice for Best Win of the Season was the wrong answer out of two! Needless to say, it was a very eventful and amusing term and we saw so much improvement from so many players. On a tough fixture list, most games were competitive and roughly 40 boys were involved over the course of the season, including many new to the sport.
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The team had a superb Michaelmas term, winning all 11 of their fixtures. The squad scored an impressive 64 tries with 10 different players finding themselves on the score sheet during the season. Perhaps the most impressive statistic was that they only conceded 28 points. At less than three points a game on average, this defensive record was bettered by no other yearlings’ team in the country. The season started with a comfortable home win against Malvern College. Wins then followed against Old Patesians RFC, Marlborough College, Abingdon School, Rugby School and St Edward’s School, Oxford. Although the players and coaching team were content with the first half of term, all of them were well aware that tougher challenges lay ahead. The side’s toughest fixture of the season came against Clifton College. Tries by Max Brown and David Noble were enough to seal a narrow 10 - 5 victory against an impressive opposition team. In fact, this was the only fixture which Clifton lost all season. Only after a gritty encounter in
the rain against Monmouth School and then a clinical second half display at Radley College, did the side start to think about the possibility of a much-coveted unbeaten season. After a poor performance away at Sherborne School, but one that was enough to yield success, the season concluded with an excellent home win against Blundell’s School. Despite the icy conditions, which saw the game moved to Lower Reeves Field, the team played some fantastic free flowing rugby. This resulted in them scoring some eye catching tries; the last of which came in the closing minutes of the game courtesy of debutant second row Alvaro Bertran. The front row trio of Ross Broughton-Johnson, James French and Temwani Banda proved a formidable force both in the scrum and in the loose. It was a shame that Rory Maddinson’s injury prevented him from featuring in the latter half of the season after some excellent work at the breakdown in the games that he did play. In the second row, Arthur Barker and Max Brown formed a feisty partnership. Arthur was one of the chief organisers of our defensive shape and Max ran the show at the lineout as well as scoring some important tries. The back row had a balanced look to it all season long and indeed was a unit, which was admired by many opposition coaches. Finlay Hurst was the side’s top ‘jackler’ and his hard work in this area was complemented well by the fantastic support play of Leo Jamous and ball carrying ability of Number 8 David Noble. Half backs Oliver Elliott and Tom Peck supplied good ball all season and were instrumental in giving the side excellent attacking structure. This duo was very much the glue of the side and provided the invaluable link between a dominant pack and exciting three quarter line. Centres Will Gilderson and Eddie Buttress gave the team excellent go forward and scored a total of 31 tries between them. Will provided a creative spark and a highly skilled kicking game whilst Eddie made numerous outside line breaks many of which led to tries. They were certainly a pair which many opponent teams feared. The back three all shone at various times during the season. Hugo Ladkin showed his excellent pace whilst scoring a brace against St Edward’s, whilst Archie Thomson produced an outstanding counter attacking display in a man of the match performance against Radley. Full back Jack Wheeler not only demonstrated excellent positional skills but also played what was in front of him: his cross field kick against Blundell’s being a prime example of this. The side suffered very few injuries throughout the season and 11 players appeared in every fixture. When there were injuries, the players who stepped up from the B team slotted in well. This was especially true Matthew Albutt, who made his presence known both in attack and defence. Leo Jamous also captained the team excellently and a total of seven players represented the Junior Colts’ in their Schools’ Cup campaign. Will Gilderson ended the season topping both the try and points scoring charts with his 17 tries, 34 conversions and a penalty goal seeing him score 156 points.
Mr Will Packer and Mr Matthew Walton
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Yearlings B Record: played 11; won 6; drew 0; lost 5 points for 249; points against 191; points difference 58
excellent play by captain Joshua Poulain, our misdemeanours forced a heart-breaking penalty try in a 12-19 loss to Radley. Then, four feverish knock-ons within five metres of the try line undercut some spectacular physical dominance, as we blew a 5-0 lead in a narrow loss to Sherborne School. This shouldn’t be the final memory of the season, as a Joseph Maguire hat-trick helped us to a resounding 46-22 win over Malvern College, which featured a number of players from the promising C team in key positions. This team were athletically as talented as any I have coached: if they can use the ‘top two inches’ more profitably, there is no reason they can’t improve on this year’s record.
Mr Tom Lambert James French (Captain), Matthew Albutt, Christopher Au, Alvaro Bertran, Joe Blanchfield, Oliver Callon Hine, Conor Calvert, Nathan Chancellor, Toby Emerson, Simon Evlyn-Bufton, Harry Garbutt, Harry Hamer, Christian Hindmarch, Hasan Ismail, Austin Karasanandana Taroey, Rory Jenkins, Jackson Joly, Rory Maddinson, Joseph Maguire, Zac Marsh, Tobias Millar, Theo Nicholson, Joshua Poulain, Louis Power, Anay Shah, George Tomblin, Maximus Thompson, Tom Wackett, Finn Wellstead, Hugo White, Hoochang Yi We began the year strongly with a 43-12 win over Malvern College, doing well to rise above some apocalyptic weather. Oliver Callon Hine galloped in for one of our several long range tries, captain James French made hard yards through the middle, and player of the season Matthew Albutt provided a lightning-fast hat-trick as he began a seven-game scoring streak. A hard-fought win over Old Patesians RFC was a good early sign that this team were prepared to battle, with Tom Wackett sneaking over in the corner in the last play to put some gloss on a 17-5 victory. Despite this great start, Marlborough College away looked daunting. Sure enough, early inroads by Matthew and some great handling to put Anay Shah away for a trademark try were not enough to prevent a 10-5 deficit at the break, and the years of pain inflicted on this coach by Marlborough seemed set to continue. Enter Alvaro Bertran, a total beginner, plucked out of a C practice for a controversial debut, he struck fear into the hearts of the opposition, repeatedly battering his way through the heart of their defence with his trademark Maori sidestep, to lead a four-try second half rally in which Marlborough failed to get out of their own half. 27-10. Is the curse lifted? Sadly, we could not quite live up to this early form, as Abingdon School, Rugby School and Clifton College showed us how to start strongly and stay mentally sharp. Still, the talent in the side meant that when we did win, it was comfortable: Harry Garbutt, the ubiquitous Conor Calvert and Theo Nicholson ran and offloaded strongly, as we dispatched St Edward’s School, Oxford, 26-0. Antarctic conditions couldn’t prevent Alvaro bludgeoning his way to four tries in a 47-12 demolition of Monmouth School. The worst week of the season saw us lose two winnable away games. First, despite some
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Yearlings C Record: played 9; won 2; drew 0; lost 7 points for 120; points against 266; points difference -146 Jackson Joly (Co-Captain), Ferdie Borchardt (Co-Captain), Simon Evlyn-Bufton, Tom Wackett, Nathan Chancellor, Anay Shah, Leonid Zhuravlev, Sean Kim, Hoochang Yi, Arkady Chan , Zac Marsh, Maximus Thompson, Hasan Ismail, Yuriy Syiek, Christian Hindmarch, Mark Samonov, Milan Macdonald-Bradley, Fin Wellstead, Elliot Donnellan-Pasos, Harry Hamer, Jacob Stanger, Christopher Au, Jaden Somen, Ned Scudamore, Hin Lam Fung, Alexander Knott, Matthew Sun, Joe Blanchfield, Rory Jenkins, Shariff BabaAhmed, Bobby Hui, Tobias Millar, Matthew James, Austin Karasanandana Taroey, George Tomblin, Hugo White This team will be remembered for its grit, perseverance and willingness to improve by approaching each game with a positive mindset. Early defeats against Marlbourgh College, Rugby School and St Edward’s School, Oxford would have threatened to damage the spirits of most teams. But to their credit, they rose to the challenge and recorded a pleasing win over Clifton College. During the game, Jackson Joly played very well at scrum half, constantly being a threat to the opposition by making some excellent runs direct from the scrum. Christian Hindmarch played very well at fly-half and Ferdie Borchardt led by example as captain and number 8. Indeed, all players involved with the team and squad deserve congratulations for a successful season. I am confident that many will progress through to the higher teams in College in future years.
Mr James Stubbert
Rosslyn Park-Round Up The College sides went into the 2018 Rosslyn Park Sevens full of confidence with the U18s having won both the Shiplake Sevens and West of England Sevens, the U16s getting to the final of both Merchant Taylor Sevens and West of England as well as the U14s winning the West of England tournament.
Played 48; won 42; lost 6
Under 18s Played 20; won 19; lost 1 Thomas Stanton (Captain), Aiden Ali, Josh Pimlott, Alexander Sharam, Josh Hughes, James Davies, Charlie Boyce, Oliver Ferris, Tom James, Charles Tchen, Ali Pearce, Roger Mortimer, Cameron Terry, Olly Hill, Jack Clement For many pupils, the Rosslyn Park Sevens U18 was the last time they would represent the school in a national tournament. With a successful start to the season winning both the Shiplake Sevens and West of England Sevens, the team travelled down with high expectations of progressing through to the knock out stages. The opening day however didn’t get off to the best start with XV stalwart and captain Thomas Stanton receiving what turned out to be a serious knee injury. The team, nonetheless, continued with the opening group matches in successful fashion and showcased their ability with ball in hand. Some cracking performances against Lancaster Grammar School, Bassaleg School and Shebbear College meant the final group match with Trent College was a winner takes all. It was probably the performance of the day typified by our defence and the pressure we put on Trent from the likes of Charlie Boyce and James Davies. With a 43-0 victory we faced Monmouth School in the knock out stage. This was a tense affair, with both teams knowing each other very well from the XV season. Charles Tchen however opened the scoring with another of his soaring breaks down the wing. College kept their foot on the pedal and continued with another score from Aiden Ali. The game was out of reach for Monmouth and with a consolation score at the end, it finished 28-7 to College. A superb opening day conceding only one try, meant the team went into the ‘group of death’ quarter final full of confidence. Durham School and Blundell’s School, two of the best sides in the competition were the next challenges. The first game against Durham was a fantastic spectacle and was fittingly showcased on the main pitch and streamed live. College moved the ball with width and pace and the Durham side couldn’t cope. Two first half tries from Ali Pearce was a superb start. Durham, who possessed the England U18 scrum half, came back into the game with a strong surge from their physical ball carriers and closed the gap to just 7 points. A fine break from James who offloaded superbly to Aiden put the game out of reach for Durham and set up a mouth-watering match with Blundell’s. College did however lose Charles to another knee injury, which was a significant loss as he had been superb throughout the tournament. Having been the only team to beat Blundell’s this season, we went into the match full of confidence. Both teams knew that whoever went onto win the game, would have a strong chance of winning the tournament. College started the better of the two and kept the ball for large periods of play, withstanding the Blundell’s press. We opened the scoring first through slick hands with Josh Hughes and Aiden and went into half time 7-0. However, the power of the Blundell’s came storming back who scored three tries in quick succession. With three minutes left College had to score from in their own half and
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did superbly through a Josh Pimlott break which brought the score to 14-15. With the last play of the game, College had to regather the restart and although Jack Clement did well to force a Blundell’s knock on, the referee blew for full time and College agonisingly lost by 1 point.
sending them into the semi final.
It was unfortunately the end for a group of players that have given so much to College rugby. The season has been one of many highs and fond memories that will last a lifetime. I would like to thank all players for their commitment in all matches and training, and Mr Duncan Simpson and Mr Matt Coley for their help throughout the term.
Under 14s
Under 16s Played 17; won 13; lost 4 Louis Hillman-Cooper (Captain), Sebastian Blake, Simon Oates, Cameron Stevens, Munaki Munjanganja, Charlie Gardiner, Archie Garbutt, Charlie Anton-Smith, Charlie Davison, Harry Stewart, Joshua Naylor-Higgs, Gus Milton, Seb Kimber, Ethan Harney The team was playing some fantastic rugby in the build-up to this tournament and knew that a solid performance in the group would set them up nicely into the knock out stages. It was however a tough group with the likes of Bristol Grammar School and Brynteg School to contend with. The boys got off to great start beating local rivals Bristol Grammar School 17-0 and this followed into a close fought victory over The Cathedral School, Llandaff. The game of the group however was against Brynteg, who have produced a number of Welsh internationals and showcased some fantastic defence, were a tough team to break down. Some superb interlinking between Charlie Davison and Louis Hillman-Cooper opened the scoring however but only to be cancelled out by a length of the field score from their winger. The second half power game proved too much for the Welsh side and some great handling from Simon Oates fed Harry Stewart to score in the corner. College had won the group and now faced Eton College in the knock out stage. This match was arguably ‘game of the day’ across the whole tournament. With both sides wanting to play expansive rugby, the pace of Eton caused College some problems initially, however the grit and determination of Sebastian Blake to get a turnover and then feed Charlie Davison to go the length showed how dangerous College were. With both teams tied at full time 17-17, the match then went into extra time and golden try. A tense and fatigued opening two minutes then turned into life when a Louis break down the wing almost finished the game off but for a great tackle from the Eton sweeper. Charlie AntonSmith was however not to be denied a few minutes later and sent College into the quarter finals. A quite remarkable opening day. Day two was again going to be tough with Bromsgrove School our opponents in the quarter final. A fantastic opening score from College in the opening four minutes showed the quality of the group and gave huge confidence at half time. A nasty cut to Louis though meant his day was over and College had to dig deep to finish the game off. It was however not to be as Bromsgrove scored with two minutes remaining
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Well done to all players for their effort and a special mention to Mr Nick Runciman and Mr Stuart Cooper for all their hard work throughout the season.
Played 17; won 16; lost 1 Will Gilderson (Captain), Max Brown, Temwani Banda, David Noble, Leo Jamous, Hugo Ladkin, Eddie Buttress, Finlay Hurst, Oliver Elliott, Archie Thomson, Matthew Albutt, Jack Wheeler, Tom Peck, Joseph Maguire After a fantastic XV season, the team continued their success into the sevens season. For many involved it was their first taste of Rosslyn Park and the tournament certainly showcased why it is so special. The group stages certainly possessed some difficult opposition and the first game against Ysgol Gyfun Cwm Rhymni was a good way to blow off the cobwebs. The second game was a tougher test against a quick Campion School side that caused College some problems however the playmaking ability of Will Gilderson and finishing prowess of Eddie Buttress showed how good this side could be with the game finishing 17-7. The next two matches against Leicester Grammar School and Welland Park Academy were fairly dominant and highlighted the strength of the whole squad who progressed to the second day. With an early start it was important the team started well against a strong Bishop’s Stortford High School. With plenty of opportunities created by College, the final pass just didn’t stick. A well organised and resilient Bishop’s team scored two quick tries and College really had to find their form. Time unfortunately ran out and whilst the boys lost the game they progressed into the plate competition where they would face some tough competition. Eltham College and Cardiff High School were their next opponents in the group quarter final. In both matches College put together some fantastic passages of play and having played seven games already, the players showed no signs of fatigue winning both games. The semi final was against local rivals Bromsgrove School who also had a strong reputation on the circuit. College started the game superbly and scored two quick tries through Will and David Noble. Bromsgrove however didn’t give in and responded with a score just before half time. The introduction of Leo Jamous in the second half added some fire power and his next score put the game to bed with College progressing to the final.
try. This then paved the way for Will to score in the corner and College finished the game 17-12 winners. A fantastic achievement for this particular group who showed character and resolve to come back from a close loss and put together some superb performances in the latter stage of the competition. A huge thankyou to Mr Matt Kelly and Mr Will Packer for their time throughout the season but also for their guidance with an extremely talented group.
Mr Olly Morgan
Shooting Shooting Coach: Mr Davie Smeaton Clays Coach: Major Tony Ayres and Major Stephen Friling.
With Shooting now established as a sport available in all three terms both sections of the Club entered the year with optimism. Clays tends to take centre stage for the Autumn and Spring Terms while the rifle section are quietly practising in the background for their big moment in the Summer Term. The first competition of the clays season saw College field a strong side to compete in the Marlborough Shield. The team shot really well and came a fantastic second out of 32. Thomas Hartley was High Gun with 37/40. The Millfield School invitational was the next contest and one that has been somewhat of a bogey competition for College but on this occasion the hoodoo was well and truly put to flight with the A team winning the Flush and coming runners up in the sporting target competition. Charles O’Bryan came second in the boys’ competition with 32/40. The B team was in support with a very respectable fifteenth in the Flush out of 25 teams and Lera Popeta came third in the girls’ competition with 24/40. Following a successful start to the season and an influx of new members after Christmas the team
The final against Kirkham Grammar School certainly didn’t disappoint and was a game of two halves. As had been the case throughout the tournament, College started extremely well and a superb score from Eddie on the left wing eased the early nerves. Kirkham, who had also had a very good season, showed their quality and responded with a score after some fantastic offloading. Hugo Ladkin however produced the tackle of the day tracking back from one end of the pitch to the other and prevented a certain
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went into the Harrow School Fido May Shield confident of defending their title. However, a cold and blustery day combined with a testing course meant that we were not able to hold onto the Shield coming a creditable sixth. The B team shot really well and pipped the A team to an excellent fifth place with Lera continuing her excellent progress to become ladies’ High Gun. The C team in its first outing shot well in difficult conditions to come a respectable fourteenth from a field of 27. The final shoot before the nationals is the traditional Warwick Challenge; a challenging day with wind and rain and broken traps seeing many obstacles to be overcome. Things looked bright for the A team until some high crows put pay to any challenge that we might have. Still a solid fourth place was gained. The B team shot with much determination and showed that the Club is in safe hands achieving a worthy seventh. Lera continued her run of trophies coming third in the ladies’ competition The British Schools and Young Shots was held once again at Sporting Targets in Milton Keynes; with entries from schools all over the country as well as individuals from the top shooting clubs in the country. As ever it was going to be a challenging event for both the teams and individuals. Just as the crows had done for us at Warwick the High tower did for us in the nationals; both driven and crossing birds proving difficult to hit. However, the A team came a seventh on the red course and the B team a pleasing sixth on the blue course. Thomas Hartley came 39/100 entries and Lera 9/27 entries. The inaugural Cheltenham College Combined Shooting Shield competition was held on in May against Millfield School. The shoot comprised of 25 Down the Line targets and 30 English Sporting targets. In a very tense and well fought competition College emerged triumphant with a combined score of 232-226 with Henry Johnson being the High Gun on the English Sporting with a fantastic score of 37/40. At the final practice of term, the clays section held its award ceremony as well as having a Sporting Flush and 410 Challenge. The Flush was won by the team consisting of Shakin Zamani, Charles O’Bryan, Edward Hitchens, Jack McClure and Jago Skelding. The 410 Challenge was won by Charles Turk. The Club High Gun was won by
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Thomas Hartley with Charles O’Bryan coming second and Shakhin and Charles Turk coming third; the girls’ High Gun was won by Lera and the Novice Gun was won by Philippa von Harnier. Half Colours were awarded to Charles Turk, Lera, Charles O’Bryan, James Drysdale, Jack and Jago with Shakhin being awarded his Full Colours. The section is only as good as its coach and we are very lucky to have the best in Mr Davie Smeaton. From little acorns, mighty oaks grow; this is certainly an apt phrase for the rifle section of the Club. There has been a hiatus for the last couple of seasons that has seen the future of cadet target shooting in doubt. This has been due to a lack of an MOD service contract for the maintenance of the rifles as well as the cancellation of two Army run competitions due to lack of staff. These provide vital practice for the schools in the run up to Bisley. Even so, it was very pleasing indeed to see the number of shots that attended the Schools’ meeting at Bisley increase by 50% so that we were able to enter the Cadet Pair as well as the Ashburton Four. Of the six that were in the team, only Charles O’Bryan and Thomas Hartley had shot previously in the competition. The bulk of the team William Blowers, Theodore Cheung, Seb Burden and Edward Hartley were all shooting at Bisley for the first time. It was also amazing to see just how much goes into such a competition behind the scenes and the renaissance would certainly have not been possible without the expert coaching of CCF Contingent Commander Major Tony Ayres as well as the expert technical assistance of Major Stephen Friling. It was always going to be a tough ask with such a young and inexperienced team and yet the squad performed really well over the course of the competition. The Pair of Edward and William came a respectable eighteenth with a score of 124.10; the Four came a very creditable ninth with a score of 323.10. Thomas Hartley secured a place in the top 100 shots and was awarded his medal by Martin Adams of Heckler and Koch. Thomas also went on to represent College in the Spencer Mellish; the traditional shoot that marks the end of the Schools meeting.
Squash Boys 1ST V
Record: played 14; won 9; drew 0; lost 5; Freddie White (Captain), Oscar Butcher, Theo Taylor, Sam Cook, Pei Toh Chung, Lucas Harrison, Gaurav Mediratta Coach: Mr Rob Shepherd College squash had a busy time of it! The domestic season included all our regular fixtures, home and away, against St Edward’s School, Oxford (Teddies), Marlborough College, Radley College, Wellington College and Malvern College and the boys competed in the prestigious Surrey Schools’ Invitational squash tournament in Guildford. The Boys 1st V out performed most schools and, given its steady nature and racket-handling expertise, a strong team could be selected without huge disruption to the rugby and hockey programmes. Freddie White captained the outfit and was ever-present (excepting a minor break for the removal of an appendix); his commitment was exemplary. Together with Oscar Butcher, Theo Taylor, Sam Cook and Pei Toh Chung, having dispatched Radley, Marlborough, Teddies and Wellington during term time, the V fell at the final hurdle in the Surrey competition where we reached the semi finals losing to Winchester College, but beating Radley once again to secure third place. They peaked just about at the right time. Lucas Harrison and Guarav Mediratta stepped up admirably when required and will
Many thanks go to Mr Reid, for all he does for the Club.
Shakin Zamani (Captain of Shooting)
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provide the backbone of next year’s 1st V. Just as encouragingly was how there was such interest lower down the year groups so that we were able to give players of less experience the opportunity to play Marlborough, St Edward’s and Radley where a number of promising Fifth Form and Lower Sixth players came on in leaps and bounds and ensured that 2nd V and 3rd V squash was as keenly fought as ever. Two 3rd V victories out of three was excellent to see. Full Colours: Freddie White, Oscar Butcher Half Colours: Sam Cook, Theo Taylor
Mr Karl Cook
Girls 1ST V
Record: played 8; won 3; drew 0; lost 5;
previously elusive silverware in the Warwick 100s gala, the Abingdon Sprints Gala and the Webb Relay (an event hosted by Cheltenham Ladies’ College as part of their regional Schools Competition). In addition to this, the girls have notched up an impressive nine new College records in a variety of events, so this too is a mark of their calibre.
Where internal competition is concerned, congratulations were due to College Lawn and Southwood for their victories in the Third Form swimming gala at the beginning of the academic year and to Chandos for winning Senior girls’ House pots and Westal for Junior girls’ House pots and to Christowe who scooped the double win in the Senior and Junior boys’ competitions.
Elsewhere our Senior boys have enjoyed victories in the district relays back in September, they beat Monmouth School 22 points to 20 points in a friendly gala and also secured 5th places in both the Abingdon Sprints and the Warwick 100s. The Senior boys also broke the long course 4 x 50m medley relay record, doing so in style at the national schools’ competition at the Aquatic Centre in the Olympic Park in London.
We continue to benefit from having a loyal and hardworking group of squad swimmers as well as increasing numbers of those opting to swim as their games options, with credit for this going to our coach Mr Andy Osborne, whose dedication and expertise is aiding our improvement and success.
Mrs Zoe la Valette-Cooper
Georgina Oates (Captain), Evie Webb, Liza Karpovich, Sumaya Dowling-Membrado, Georgia Mitchell, Phoebe Williams, Emily Heardman Coach: Mr Rob Shepherd Girls’ squash thrived: we had more girls than ever playing full time and all teams improved markedly in terms of their understanding of the game, their movement when not in possession of the shot and their determination to build a score. Great to see! Evie Webb, Liza Karpovich, Sumaya Dowling-Membrado, Georgina Oates and Georgia Mitchell provided the core to the girls’ 1st V and victories over all schools apart from Wellington College and Marlborough College ensued. Similarly, it was super to see that more than a team’s worth of girls was keen enough to play their first ever match over the course of the season. This bodes extremely well for the future, with debuts against Cheltenham Ladies’ College and St Edward’s School, Oxford. Players wanted to get better, progress up the ladder and look to change to a higher group; it seemed that ‘recreational’ was a dirty word… Obviously, the fantastic courts with their glass doors and even temperatures ensure that squash can thrive and develop, as did the watchful eye of our coach, Mr Rob Shepherd, whose competitiveness and nose for tactical detail, meant that the players benefitted enormously. Having the healthy numbers allowed the pupils to feed off each other with enthusiasm which, in turn, helped them to become more confident players. Full Colours: Georgina Oates Half Colours: Evie Webb, Liza Karpovich
Mr Karl Cook
Swimming Coach: Mr Andy Osborne
It becomes very easy to describe every season as a ‘fantastic one’ when there is success aplenty in the pool, however this really has been a vintage season and one that may never be replicated. Special praise needs to be given to our Senior girls’ squad of Sam Rowland, Rachel Loo, Cindy Lai and Electra McErlean who have won some
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Tennis Coach: Mr Chris Warner
Senior Boys 1ST VI
Record: played 5; won 3; lost 2;
Charlie Boyce (Captain), Rodrigo Peralta Martin, Freddie White, Guiseppe D’Istria, William Stanton, Javier Peralta Martin, Ian Wan, Theo Hunt, Lucas Harrison, Harvey Edwards The team were able to build upon some fine foundations that the majority of the boys established last year when they were in Lower Sixth. Captained by Charlie Boyce, we got off to winning ways with a fine performance over a fairly tepid St Edward’s School, Oxford, at home with a victory of 6-3. This was followed by taking on an impressive Magdalen College School (MCS) on the delights of MCS grass. This again produced a fine victory (5-4). Even with some enforced changing of pairs taking place, against Dean Close School the following week, all pairs managed to win the close sets (6-3). This fixture also saw our Fifth Form pair of William Stanton and Javier Peralta Martin come of age as tennis players; securing all three points. This all bodes very well for the future. Arguably our most frustrating match was against Malvern College, themselves a strong, unbeaten VI, where the match went down to the last set which we squandered 4-6; our first defeat, alas, 4-5. Had we secured victory, we would have gone into the final game of term against Bromsgrove School perhaps with our tails up rather more. This fixture saw us fall 3-6 with a slightly depleted team. Guiseppe D’Istria and Freddie White emerged as the most consistent pair over the course of the term, with our Fifth Form playing some of the most exciting tennis. Charlie’s explosive partnership with Rodrigo Peralta Martin had its moments and as a pair could be counted on for a safe two sets out of three. The whole team, who were a delight to work with, were kept on their toes by some very handy 2nd VI players, Ian Wan and Theo Hunt, one of College’s taller and quieter pairs, and who deputised superbly when not spearheading the 2nd VI. Above all, the whole squad played and trained with discipline and good spirits; that the vast majority of our top 2nd VIs was made up of Upper Sixth is testimony to the boys’ excellent commitment. What fun.
2ND VI Record: played 5; won 5; Killian Hughes, Roger Mortimore, Oliver Smith, Henry Vivian, Edward Winstanley, Demilade Edwards, Harvey Edwards, Max Pemberton Winning all of their matches handily, the 2nd VI have had an outstanding season, with the highlights being a close victory on the grass away at Magdalen College School and a resounding 8-1 victory in the derby game with Dean Close School. More than this, though, it’s been great to see the boys’ excellent spirit. They trained brilliantly and the qualities that came shining through every game were their enthusiasm and competitive nature; somewhat of a coach’s dream! Particular mention has to go to the pair of Roger Mortimore and Edward Winstanley, who won every set they played as a pair, whilst Oliver Smith and Max Pemberton also finished the season with some really important, gutsy wins. Above all, though, it’s the outstanding enthusiasm and sense of fun (coupled with a hatred of losing) that they’ve brought to every session that we’ll miss the most.
Mr Ben Page
Junior Boys AS Monty Graveney (Captain), Joe Murphy, Gus Edwards, William Hechle, Anay Shah, Seb Kimber BS Piers Brown, Simon Oates, Hugo White, Jaden Somen, Lucas Wastlund, George Tomblin Third and Fourth Form tennis struggled a little with boys (and coaches) unable to find a great deal of practice time. That said, a Thursday in June saw a scorching day in the foothills of Malvern for a hotly awaited Junior tennis fixture utilising both Third and Fourth Form pupils respectively. They collectively comprised the Junior A and B squads, and indeed the As played as such, leading from the front with Monty Graveney, with some stunning power shots. A close-run thing at this level, but we went down 5-4 with our As and our B team fared less well against a solid opposition who dispatched our Third Form cohort in a more pragmatic fashion, 8-1. We were not down-hearted, however: it was good to see a number of these boys on the Winter Tennis programme and their commitment to training is beginning to pay dividends. We build for the future, inevitably, whilst we must also realise that our Junior tennis is organised around those who are, ostensibly, full-time cricketers.
Mr Nick Nelson
Girls 1ST VI
Record: played 10; won 4; drew 0; lost 5;
Martha Elliott (Captain), India Deakin, Georgie Baillie-Hamilton, Rose Jones, Mollie Lyle, Sascha Taylor The team, comprising of four players who represented the top team last year, began the year with a strong performance against St Edward’s School, Oxford, whereby they got their noses in front in the first round of rubbers, and managed to keep ahead to secure the victory winning 5-4. From there on in the team came up against a mixture of standards that allowed us to play around with pairings and work on different combinations in search of the best way to unleash our talented girls. It was important to deploy our Upper Sixth players in their final year to give them every opportunity to represent the school and in some cases earn their Full Colours. Martha Elliott as captain drove the team forwards with her unique style at training, and on match day her ability to motivate the group provided a steady foundation for them to go out and perform. India Deakin continues to play at the highest level and is very comfortable going toe-to-toe with the very best that other schools have to offer. She can look forward to next year where she will no doubt undertake a leadership role which will give her the chance to use all the valuable experiences she has absorbed throughout the two years that she has played for the 1st VI. Rose Jones and Georgie Baillie-Hamilton can look back at their time representing the team with pride after committing whole-heartedly to racket sports here at College. Sascha Taylor, who also sadly left us at the end of the year, showed some lovely stroke play throughout the season and her partnership with Mollie Lyle went from strength to strength. Both did all they could to maintain the high standards of the Club and although four girls out of the six will be departing College this year, we are very lucky to be retaining two very committed and talented girls that will no doubt spearhead the Club next year.
Full Colours: Charlie Boyce, Rodrigo Peralta Martin, Freddie White, Guiseppe D’Istria Half Colours: Ian Wan
Mr Karl Cook
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Looking back at the season as a whole, it is important to look at the number of individual games we won against how many we lost (32/37) and this will tell the accurate story of the season. Many of the matches went to the wire with College narrowly losing matches which on a different day we may have won. When you then consider nine out of the 10 matches were away from home it wouldn’t be amiss to suggest many of the tighter games would have ended in victory for the girls. Fundamentally, College should be extremely proud of this group of girls that have offered so very much of their time to wear the badge with pride and push the level of girls’ sport here at College to higher levels. Well done, and thank you for your efforts, girls.
Fifth Form pairing of Emily Heardman and Jenny Carson demonstrated a brilliant work ethic and pushed all the pairings above them as they continue to stake their claim for a place in the higher teams. Well done, and thank you for all your efforts, girls.
Mr Tim Lang
3rd VI Record: played 4; won 3; drew 0; lost 1
Full Colours: Martha Elliott, India Deakin
Isabella Barber, Amber Beachus, Jenny Carson, Molly Clarke, Emily Heardman, Poppy Pitt, Tilly Brown, Isabella Channing, Sumaya DowlingMembrado, Caroline Daly, Olivia Ladkin
Half Colours: Georgie Baillie-Hamilton, Rose Jones, Mollie Lyle
4th VI
Mr Tim Lang
Record: played 3; won 2;drew 0; lost 1
2nd VI Record: played 7; won 3; drew 1; lost 2; Elodie Mathews (Captain), Romy Bodington, Kaela Wilson, Rose Pearey, Emily Heardman, Jenny Carson This season had a lovely balance to it with a blend of Fifth Form, Lower Sixth, and Upper Sixth all pulling in the same direction. Captained by Elodie Mathews, the team were prepared to push themselves in training and to really get their teeth stuck into the busy and competitive fixture list. Much like the 1st VI, six out of the seven matches were away from home. Devoting large amounts of travel time and playing time on Saturdays was a great undertaking and to come away having only lost two matches is a fantastic achievement that they can all be proud of. Romy Bodington went from strength to strength this season and has improved in almost every area on the tennis court. Kaela Wilson demonstrated on a weekly basis her ability to hit big from the back of the court where she has met the opposition face-to-face and battled hard for the cause. Rose Pearey quietly got on with her business of chasing down every ball and committing to each individual point. Our
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Sumaya Dowling-Membrado, Caroline Daly, Olivia Ladkin, Gemma Taylor Baggs, Megan Message, Taya Suleyman, Sanaya Gheewala, Beth Jenkins, Lidya Su Oz, Georgina Grimwade The 3rd VI started their season with an emphatic 9-0 victory over St Edward’s School, Oxford. The girls dominated the fixture, playing some lovely tennis as the pairs quickly found their rhythm on the courts. The fixture against Tudor Hall School was unfortunately cancelled due to inclement weather, so next up was another home fixture, this time against Cheltenham Ladies’ College (CLC). This is always a competitive and hotly contested fixture and this year proved to be no different. Once again, the standard of play was excellent and all three pairs worked extremely hard on court. However, the CLC team proved to be too strong and they won the fixture 6-3. The girls bounced back from this with another closely contested fixture against our other local rivals Dean Close School, which the girls edged 5-4. The weather again interceded during the matches against Clifton College, leading the fixture to be abandoned. The final match of the season was against Malvern College, which the girls won commandingly 8-1.
Disappointingly due to the weather, the 4th VI only played three fixtures this term. Their first two fixtures against St Edward’s School, Oxford and Cheltenham Ladies’ College respectively, were closely contested but the girls held their nerve and won both fixtures 5-4. Their final game of the season was against Dean Close School and although the girls played some excellent tennis, their opposition was too strong and they lost the fixture 3-6. The girls have been a pleasure to coach this season. They have played some super tennis over the course of the season and have been keen to develop their all round games during coaching sessions. There is real strength and depth in the squad, which bodes extremely well for next season, and I hope the girls will continue their winning ways next summer.
Miss Claire Rowland
Junior Colts A and Junior Colts B JUNIOR COLTS A
Record: played 6; won 2; lost 4; Alexandra Raphael (Captain), Annabelle Wells, Eloise Harrison, Freya Coull, Fionnuala Dowling-Membrado, Izzy Reid, Izzy England JUNIOR COLTS B
Record: played 7; won 5; lost 2; Nathalie Kranich, Victoria Larsen, Rose Dillon, Aanya Patel, Frankie Pinchard, Praew Jeerawatanawart, Johanna Nesselhauf, Daisy Hunter, Arabella Finch It has been a pleasure coaching these girls and I feel very fortunate to have brought them through the last two years. It has been a much tougher season for the girls but the improvement from the start of the season has been incredible and the standard of tennis being played has been very high. The first fixture against St Edward’s School, Oxford, was tough for both teams and they never really came off the bus which was a real shame as it was a winnable fixture for both teams. However, it taught the girls that at away matches we need to hit the ground running to be in the
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mix to win a fixture; rather than waiting until the second or final round of matches to be playing our best tennis. The following fixture was Dean Close School at home. It was a better and very convincing win over our local rivals with wins for both the A and B teams. The next challenge was Wellington College away. It was a long away trip and the girls did very well from learning from their first fixture and hit the ground running. This match produced some of the best tennis of the season and the final match was an awesome display from Alexandra Raphael and Freya Coull to win against their First Pair. Unfortunately, both teams lost, but put on impressive displays and really made Wellington work for every point and game. The Thursday before half term we played Clifton College and for the A team it was a nail biter of a fixture; going into the final rubber it was 3-3 so all the girls needed to do was to win two out of the three final games to take the win. Unfortunately, Clifton hung on and managed to beat us 5-4 but the girls were hitting some fantastic volleys, making the most of gaps in the court. This was also the fixture that I started to notice the improvement in all of the girls’ serving; not just their accuracy but also their power. The B team however came out victorious beating Clifton 6-3. After half term the first challenge was Malvern College who the A and B teams beat comfortably with some outstanding tennis. The A team beating them 8-1 and the Bs winning 9-0. The final match of the season was against Rugby School, who are always strong opposition. Going into the final round of matches it was 3-3. However, Rugby managed to win all of the final matches, giving them a 6-3 win. The B team were also in a close match ending in a 5-4 win to the girls. Overall it has been an outstanding season and I will miss coaching these girls next season. I hope that they enjoy Senior tennis and I have no doubt that many of these girls will be in the 1st and 2nd team as they have the skill, attitude and work ethic to continue building on the fantastic foundations that they have built.
Miss Betsy Willey
Junior Colts C Record: played 6; won 5; drew 0; lost 1 Praew Jeerawatanawart, Phina Wilson, Arabella Finch, Talia Somen, Tomiris Marabayeva, Poppy Williams, Proud Jeerawatanawart, Aanya Patel, Frankie Pinchard, Robin Wang, Johanna Nesselhauf, Philippa von Harnier It has been a very successful season with five out of six matches won. A great record. The first match was against St Edward’s School, Oxford, and proved to be a tough one for the team who lost 2-7. All of the girls played well but we lost the important points in the match, which subsequently resulted in a loss that did not really reflect the game. A lot of the rubbers were close with many games going to deuce. Talia Somen, Poppy Williams and Tomiris Marabeyeva played especially well, showing determination in their rallies and some good volleys at the net. The next match was against Tudor Hall School and this proved to be a close game with the overall
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result being decided in the final round of games. All the girls served well and our play at the net had improved allowing the team to win many points with decisive and clean volleys. Aanya Patel and Phina Wilson dominated with their effective groundstrokes and their reliable and effective serving to secure the win. The third game of the season was against Dean Close School and this was a more comfortable win in the end although it did not look that way at the beginning. The team had learned from the previous matches and they started strongly with good performances from Frankie Pinchard and Proud Jeerawatanawart, who managed to confuse the opposition with her very low yet effective serves and groundstrokes. Good consistent play from the whole team secured the match 7 games to 2. The team were growing in confidence. A long trip to Wellington College on a hot day with the Royal Wedding too, provided our next fixture. Again, the girls all played with commitment against Wellington. We were a player down, so Wellington kindly lent us a player. Good performances from Praew Jeerawatanawart and Arabella Finch saw us dominate all the games and win comfortably 8-1. We were especially good serving and moving around the court, chasing all the shots down until the rallies were completed. Our next match against Malvern College was to be our best of the season. We totally dominated the play and did not allow Malvern to get into the games at all. We dominated in all areas of play, our serving was accurate and consistent, the movement around the court quick and very little got past the players at the net who secured some effective, and accurate volleys to win rallies. Johanna Nesselhauf and Robin Wang both proved to be good, solid players, with Robin playing especially well at the net, not allowing anything past her, and winning most of the interceptions that came her way. The final result of 9-0 was to be our best win of the season. The final match was against Rugby School who always provide us with tough opposition. This match was no exception. We started very well winning all of the matches in the first rotation with Philippa von Harnier playing some solid groundstrokes and following these up with some good volleys and net play. Rugby came back at us in the second set of games playing some good tennis which was not really reflected in the match scores: most of the games went to deuce showing just how close it was. Going into the final round we had built a comfortable lead which, despite some good long baseline rallies Rugby could not break down. College won the tie 7-2 but the individual games were much closer than the overall score suggested. The area of play most improved over the term had to be our net play with all of the girls becoming more confident and assertive at the net and showing great determination to win the rallies.
Mrs Kate Hornsby
Junior Colts D Record: played 1; won 1 Poppy Williams, Tomiris Marabayeva, Johanna Nesselhauf, Robin Wang, Rebecca Cook, Olivia Fisher
The team only had the one fixture against Tudor Hall School. They all played well despite their opponents finding it difficult to show consistency in their play. This did not put our players off: they kept their focus and played some good rallies. They dominated with their serves winning a majority of the points from their serves. Both Rebecca Cook and Olivia Fisher showed they could maintain rallies with good solid groundstrokes and some points were won with volleys at the net. A very solid performance with College winning 8-1. Robin Wang showed that she could move quickly around the court chasing every shot down and refusing to give up. She also demonstrated some very effective net play winning many points with well struck volleys and interceptions.
Mrs Kate Hornsby
Yearlings A and B A Record: played 5; won 1; drew 0; lost 4; points difference B Record: played 5; won 2; drew 0, lost 3; Annie Carter, Evie Cook, Annie Finan, Lily Sutton, Tilly Wood, Georgina Raphael, Georgia Morling, Sophie Iles, Freya Haddon, Bhavishya Gem, Imogen Friessner-Day, Tamsin Uglow, Willa Cook, Anya James, Emily Christie, Aoife McAuliffe, Georgia Turner, Minette Tombleson In many ways the summative results do not accurately reflect the season for the girls. We have had an excellent core of players who have shown plenty of progress, competitive spirit and a willingness to learn throughout the season. Much of this has been engendered by Mr Chris Warner through his coaching of them both during the Summer Term and through the winter. Many of the matches such as those against Dean Close School and St Edward’s School, Oxford, were tightly fought affairs, where games were lost in tie break situations. There were convincing wins for the As against Tudor Hall School and for the Bs against St Edward’s and Clifton College. Annie Carter and Evie Cook as First Pair won the majority of their matches, but at times, such as in the County Championship, they came up against some extremely impressive players. In the final game against Rugby School, several C team players stepped up, due to a number of injuries, and played with great spirit challenging themselves to win a few more points each game. The girls have both played well and trained well. The highlights have definitely been Tilly Wood at the net, Georgia Morling’s and Sophie Iles’s commitment and coachability and Freya Haddon’s desire to finish points. But overall, and perhaps most importantly, the girls seem to have enjoyed their tennis, whilst developing as players.
Mrs Sarah Dawson
Yearlings C and D Record: played 5; won 3; drew 0; lost 2; Minette Tombleson, Tamsin Uglow, Aoife McAuliffe, Emily Christie, Sasha Kemp, Beatrice Leslie, Gabriella Bifulco, Duniya Banda, Hanna Gill, Willa Cook, Lara Scudamore, Georgia Turner, Lara Capps, Isabella Mills, Dorothea Peterken, Renee Cheung, Olivia Piggott The two teams can be extremely proud of
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their efforts in a season where they won three out their five matches. Many a girl has had the chance to represent College and the exposure and experience gained from such an exercise stands the year group in good stead moving forwards. To end with a positive game difference is always a plus; just reward for the efforts they have put in. Looking ahead to next year, the Club can be pleased with the way it is developing and really pushing the girls both at training and on match days. We can expect these girls to keep the A and B teams on their toes as many of them have a realistic chance of pushing for places in the higher teams in years to come. To have such a healthy and vibrant Junior section puts the Club as a whole in great stead and moving forward we can expect positive performances and ultimately good results in future matches. Well done girls!
Julian Pople, Jasper Chiang, Sebastian Cornwell and Louis Power. College was in control throughout the match, enabling newer players to mix in with veterans of the team and even make it on to the score sheet. In the first round of the English Schools National Competition, College drew a tough group, including Northampton School for Boys, Bedford School, Bedford Modern School, Eton College and Brentwood School. College performed well against some experienced opposition and managed to qualify to the finals of the Plate Competition.
Daniel Ward (Captain), Denis Antonov, Hugo Bailey, Amber Beachus, Jasper Chiang, Sebastian Cornwell, Electra McErlean, James Lewin, Stanley Mok, Julian Pople, Louis Power, Boris Pustoshinskiy, Gus Roberts, Dougal Rees
The Finals of the Plate Competition was hosted by Eton, with College competing in a round robin tournament against both the home team and Colfe’s School. At the finals, College were down a few key players, due to last minute changes to the date and venue because of the rather unseasonable snow, but managed a strong result against Colfe’s; beating them 5-0 before going into the Gold medal match against Eton, who College lost to earlier in the season. In this key match, College dug deep. Boris Pustoshinskiy and Julian were working well together in attack, taking Eton by surprise with some powerful shooting, and Dougal Rees and James Lewin
The team started the season on a high with a solid 10-6 win against Marlborough College away, with debuts from new players Electra McErlean,
controlled the defence and stopped Eton’s main pit attacker from ever really finding his feet. After a tight first half, College managed to step up the pace and surpass the odds to beat Eton, 4-3, to
Mr Tim Lang
Water Polo U18 Team
walk away with the Gold medal, and finish the season on a real high. Special mention must go to Gus Roberts and Denis Antonov, who stepped in to the team at the last moment, as well as Stanley Mok and Jasper, who are playing well outside their age group. In particular, Gus had an outstanding match as goalkeeper and managed to shut out many of Eton’s last ditch attempts on goal in the final minutes of the game. Throughout the season, College have also competed in a number of friendly matches against Marlborough College, St Edward’s School, Oxford and Cheltenham Swimming and Water Polo Club, which have provided the team with excellent opportunities to develop playing together against some stiff opposition. The U18 team was captained by Daniel Ward, who has been instrumental in driving the water polo team forward over the last two years. We also say goodbye to James, Dougal and Amber Beachus, all of whom will be sorely missed from the first team and leave big shoes to fill. We wish them well and will be sad to see them depart but look forward to welcoming new members next year. Full Colours: Daniel Ward (re-award), Boris Pustoshinskiy, Amber Beachus Half Colours: Hugo Bailey, Julian Pople, Dougal Rees The Baldwin Trophy for U18 Top Scorer: Boris Pustoshinskiy The Edwards Cup for Most Valued Player: Daniel Ward. The Most Improved Player: Julian Pople.
Top Goalscorers
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Player
Goals scored
Boris Pustoshinskiy
32
Julian Pople
7
Daniel Ward
7
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THE CHELTONIAN SOCIETY The Cheltonian Society was founded on 30 June 1868 with a mission to aid and encourage the interests of Cheltenham College and to form a bond of union between past and present Cheltonians. Today, 150 years on, this is still our aim although now we include all those who have had an association with College and so current and past parents, current and past staff as well as current and past pupils are all members. The Cheltonian Society provides a range of opportunities for members to meet up, keep in touch with each other and stay up to date with life at College. We do this through our online network, social media, events programme, annual magazine - Floreat Cheltonia, post College careers help, OC Sports and our merchandise range.
Mrs Rebecca Creed
Sunday 26th November
10.00am - 4.00pm
at
CHELTENHAM COLLEGE Ticket Price £5 (Under 16s free), purchase your ticket in advance for a free glass of ‘Fizz’. Call 01242 265694 to book.
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Supporting
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Invites you to aCollege performance of
WEST SIDE STORY Friday 16th March 2018 Big Classical, Cheltenham College
Card Payments: 01242 265694 Cheques Payable to: Cheltenham College Post to: Rebecca Creed Cheltenham College Bath Road Cheltenham Gloucestershire GL53 7LD
Price: £10pp for Refreshments Welcome Drink: 6.45pm Upper College Common Room Curtain Up: 7.30pm Interval Drinks: c 8.45pm Upper College common Room Curtain Down: 10.30pm
r.creed@cheltenhamcollege.org
Invites you to join our Private Marquee on CHAMPION’S DAY AT THE CHELTENHAM FESTIVAL Tuesday 13th March 2018 To Book Card Payments: 01242 265694 Cheques Payable to: Cheltenham College Post to: Rebecca Creed Cheltenham College Bath Road Cheltenham Gloucestershire GL53 7LD r.creed@cheltenhamcollege.org
Cheltenham Racecourse
Ticket Prices £140 for Non Members £65 for Racecourse Members or those with entrance tickets £12 Parking Ticket Included in the Marquee Cash Bar Private Tote Racing Coverage
Invites Invites you you toto
THE HE B BREWIN REWIN D DOLPHIN OLPHIN T CHELTENHAM HELTENHAM C CRICKET RICKET F FESTIVAL ESTIVAL C Gloucestershire v v Durham Durham Gloucestershire The The Specsavers Specsavers County County Championship Championship Game Game on on
Sunday 22nd 22nd July July 2018 2018 Sunday
To Book To Book Card Payments: 01242 265694 Card Payments: 265694 Online Booking:01242 cheltoniansociety.org Online Booking: Cheques Payable cheltoniansociety.org to: Cheltenham College Cheques PayableCreed, to: Cheltenham College Post to: Rebecca Society Manager Post to: Rebecca Creed, Society Manager Cheltenham College Cheltenham Bath Road College Bath Road Cheltenham Cheltenham Gloucestershire, GL53 7LD Gloucestershire, GL53 7LD r.creed@cheltenhamcollege.org r.creed@cheltenhamcollege.org
Price: £60pp or £50 for under 16s Price: £60pp or £50 for under 16s Programme Programme 10.30am - 6.00pm Cash Bar Open 10.30am - 6.00pm 11.00am Play Starts Cash Bar Open 11.00am Play StartsDrink 12 noon Welcome 12 noon(approx) WelcomeBuffet DrinkLuncheon 1.00pm 1.00pm (approx) Luncheon 3.40pm (approx) Buffet Afternoon Tea 3.40pm (approx) Afternoon Tea
Invites you to
THROUGHAM COURT GARDEN on
Thursday 5th July 2018 Througham Court, Througham, Gloucestershire, GL6 7HG To Book Card Payments: 01242 265694 Online Booking: cheltoniansociety.org Cheques Payable to: Cheltenham College Post to: Rebecca Creed, Society Manager Cheltenham College Bath Road Cheltenham Gloucestershire, GL53 7LD r.creed@cheltenhamcollege.org
2.30pm - 5.00pm Price: £30pp Programme 2.30pm Garden Tour with Dr Christine Facer 4.00pm Tea in The Garden Room
Keep in touch!
Online Network – www.cheltoniansociety.org Facebook - @CheltonianSociety Twitter - @CheltonianSoc Instagram - @CheltonianSociety BACK TO CONTENTS
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WINNERS OF THE CREATIVE WRITING PRIZE Crow’s Nest
Knowledge is not necessarily power. Intelligence is power but Knowledge, Knowledge is a curse. Yet it’s Knowledge that’s the intent, Scrawled across that distant cloud, The raison d’être, the goal, the golden slip we all yearn to grasp. Knowledge is a desire with a promise, The promise of power over any man made. This is the lie that provides the glint in the light of opportunity, The outwitting key to the self-made manacles of oblivion, This is the synthetic promise of elevation, That swears with crossed fingers, To banish the darkening shadows of waning hope. But Knowledge has a smile with darkened teeth, Its lips sealed till your gift unwrapped and absorbed. It’s only then, with blurred eyes that its game becomes clear, Only now do you feel the brace of disempowerment tighten, as it suffocates and squeezes, entwines its inseparable self into all that you do, Knowing all that you cannot. This is the beast, that looms and taunts, The figure, that haunts even the closed lid, The incessantly recalcitrant animal, That shreds apart all you thought that was, Leaving only the chronic sting of what is.
The slow, melodic sound of the waves breaking against the swaying ship like a thousand pounding, watery hands, was broken by an almighty snap: a weather-worn rope giving, and the sails it had held billowing and thrashing manically. She emerged from her cozy cabin below, starchy twine in hand, to attempt to repair the damage before the ship was dragged under. Her damp boots hastily thrown on and her hair swept into a tangled knot, she advanced, throwing red hot glares at any thick-skulled shipmates that turned to watch her pass. They turned their grim, sodden faces away when they met her scowl.
by Mimi Ashmead-Bartlett (Lower College Winner)
High above, light seeps in through the emerging four corners, And there those corners trap it. You are aware of the brightness swirling behind, You know of the space that flows eternally beyond. Yet here is where you silently remain, Slumped in the empty yet claustrophobic black, Without the intelligence needed to get there.
by Annabel Merheim-Kealy (Upper College Winner)
She reached the main mast and began to climb the slick post with its haphazard and clumsy footholds that writhed under her weight. She paused for a moment half way up, catching her crystalline breath and easing her limbs. She towered above the sea-stained deck: she saw the sea dogs heaving and scurrying like the harbour rats at the docks. She saw the salty wind tearing the grey sea into great, frothing waves that jostled the old ship, yielding groans and creaks from the timber. From her vantage point, the vastness of the sea hit her with a battering ram of her own insignificance and vulnerability: one unlucky wave or a breach of the rotting keel would send her and each of these men to their deaths. She wondered where that damned cabin boy, Jonathan, was, failing to see him on the deck. She hoped he was freezing his fingers off somewhere as punishment for unravelling her from her cocoon of solitude and forcing her out onto the frigid deck because of his own timidity, the deck where her panted breath sparkled in crystalline puffs, where the sea-spray kissed her stinging cheeks, where her fingers felt numb and waxy like a dead man’s. But no, ‘Young lad’s too ’fraid,’ Bill had reported. ‘And you’s the next smallest…’ She had rolled her eyes and snatched the twine from Bill’s hand, cursing Jonathan for fearing the chaotic stakes he himself had knocked into the mast.
Dasha Romanyuk - ‘Priest’
Having reached the crow’s nest and vaulted herself into it, she turned and found herself eye to eye with Jonathan, his knees tucked to his chin, quivering and sniffing in his sodden clothes. He glanced up at her, eyes wide. A tide of anger surged through her: ‘What,’ she seethed through gritted teeth, ‘are you doing here?’ He made no reply, so she gave him one molten-hot glower and set to work. She snatched the billowing corner of the sail and, after many near misses, had fastened it back to the timber when she noticed the old rope. She was taken aback when she saw not a frayed, weather-worn rope, but one that had been sliced clean in two. ‘Jonathan,’ she said warily, ‘this rope had been…‘ A flash of sliver to her left and she saw Jonathan
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Kelly Tang - ‘Seascape’
The Fraudulent Hope
lunge. She spun and drove the heel of her hand into his nose, his own motion adding force to the blow. Crying out, he stumbled backwards, fumbling with the small knife in his hand. He swung blindly through his tears, but she caught his arm and knocked the blade flying. She only just snatched it from the air as it pitched over the side and turned to find that Jonathan had sunk to the floor, holding his gushing nose. She stood above him, blade in hand. ‘Who set you up to this?’ she demanded. Jonathan only shook his head, tears streaming down his bloodied face. She advanced. ‘Who,’ one step, ‘set,’ another, ‘you,’ she crouched in front of him, ‘up to this?’ She levelled the blade to his face. Still Jonathan didn’t answer, the blood from his nose was now smeared everywhere. Clearly he would need more persuading. ‘Tell me or I will slit your throat,’ she threatened, now resting the point of the blade on his skin. His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed, beginning to babble: ‘Well Ol’ Legless Tim was sayin’ to the lads how yous always gets the- the best of the…” ‘Who?’ she insisted, becoming impatient and considering digging the knife in further. ‘It were Legless Tim and Bill - I swear - it weren’t me, on me life!’ he said frantically (she had decided to encourage him with a little more pressure). ‘Why?’ He winced. ‘They was all sayin’ it’s ‘cause Captain Leathertoe always favours yous and don’t make yous do nothing. They, they hate you,’ he stammered. She let the blade fall and stood while Jonathan exhaled, shakily wiping the blood that had trickled onto his lips. She dared glance over the edge of the nest. Below, everything seemed to carry on as normal, the crew still scurried and heaved but a few glanced upwards, possibly hoping to see her blood running down the mast by now, mingling with the sea spray as it dripped from the nest. Leathertoe was nowhere to be found. From her height, the feeling of vulnerability washed over her again, but this time her blood ran cold: she was alone on the vast ocean and with an entire crew below her that wanted her dead.
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OUR FOND FAREWELLS Dr Alex Peterken It would be almost impossible to overstate Alex’s enormous contribution to College during his 10 years in Cheltenham. When Alex joined us from Charterhouse as Deputy Head in September 2009, little did we know that just a year later Council’s visionary decision to make him one of the youngest Headmasters in the independent sector would herald the start of some of the most far-reaching and positive changes in College history. A passionate and inspirational leader, Alex’s first task as Headmaster was to appoint two outstanding new Deputy Heads. Alongside them he set about driving-up academic results whilst simultaneously improving the pastoral care provided for all Cheltonians, as well as developing a vision for College’s future. Since those appointments in 2010, and the subsequent appointments of Crispin Dawson and Simon Brian, academic results have improved greatly, with 2017 seeing some of the best A Level results ever, as well as outstanding pastoral provision with pupils’ mental health as much a priority as their physical wellbeing. Alex’s ability to move seamlessly between the strategic vision and the detailed operations required to deliver it, set him apart. His passion for the highest standards from every member of staff, alongside his care and empathy, made him an outstanding leader of College. His legacy will be developing a group of staff who would not want to let College deviate from delivering a first class modern education. His mantra of always putting pupils at the heart of decision making will continue long after his departure. Alex’s tenure as Head has also seen important developments of the College estate; the refurbishment of the original 1843 building including redevelopment of the ChatfeildRoberts Library, the complete refurbishment of the Science Block, two new girls’ boarding Houses, Westal and College Lawn; a new Estates building, and the refurbishment of some important sports facilities to name but a few. He also worked tirelessly to encourage Old Cheltonians, and others, to give something back to the College; for example by helping us to deliver capital projects and improved bursary provision. His vision for the future and his ability to communicate it to those around him has been a crucial part of that. Whilst delivering all of these developments and projects, Alex has still found time to continue teaching, sharing his love of Theology, Philosophy and Ethics with many Cheltonians through the years. Alex will also be remembered for his other interests. As a keen musician we’ve seen him
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perform Handel’s Messiah with College Choir, take to the keyboard upon the arrival of the new Steinway piano fleet and, as an equally keen sports fan, enjoy many hours watching Gloucestershire during the Cheltenham Cricket Festival. More recently, following the purchase of a home in Cornwall, Alex has become a keen gardener and visitors often finding themselves put to work! It was no surprise to hear that Charterhouse had appointed him as their new Head; the governors there could not have found a more inspirational, hard-working, dedicated and passionate leader to head the school at a time of change. Alex will be greatly missed at Cheltenham but, nevertheless we wish him, Henny and their family, every happiness and success for the future.
John Champion and Bill Straker-Nesbit
Sue Baxter Sue joined College in 2005 with previous experience both as a Registrar and Head’s Secretary in two other independent schools. She very quickly established a reputation for phenomenal efficiency and an infectious laugh which she is unable to control - particularly in the most serious of situations! Sue thrives in high pressure environments, maintaining her calm long after everyone else has lost perspective and she relishes the pace of a fast-moving office and the challenge of ensuring that everything runs smoothly all of the time, without exception. Sue is a highly intelligent woman who has startling attention to detail and is a very talented communicator, administrator, proof-reader and writer in her own right. Her assistance to me during my time as Head has been immense. Without fail, I can tell her in passing of something I need to remember to do three months down the line which, without any further prompting, miraculously appears on my daily to do list on the day in question - if only I was able to organise my life outside work that well! I am very fortunate indeed that Sue’s grandchildren live in Surrey and she has chosen to continue to work with me for a few more years. On behalf of everyone at College, I’d like to thank her for all her brilliant work and wish her well for the future.
Alex Peterken
Debbie Beames Debbie arrived at College at the beginning of the year, taking on the role of Archive and Library Assistant. From the very start, Debbie set about her work with real positivity, personability and a can‑do attitude. In her role within the Archive department, Debbie immediately proposed new ways to reach out to our community. As well as conducting research on behalf of numerous Old Cheltonians and families, she was always ready to delve into the stores in the hope of digging out some obscure, uncatalogued box of records! She was a great asset to the Archive and even though she moved across to work exclusively in the Library in the Spring Term, her impact in Archives was hugely appreciated. In the Library, Debbie’s background in creative media was incredibly beneficial in developing fantastic marketing of Library services and stock, making for a vibrant, stimulating and informative Library space. Debbie also transformed the Evening Prep sessions with her engaging and helpful approach. A firm favourite with pupils, the numbers in the evening session reached record-breaking highs, a testament to the way Debbie fostered an environment that was relaxed and yet focussed and conducive to study. Debbie has been an approachable, engaging and thoughtful member of the team who has made a hugely positive impact in her short time here at College. We would like to thank her for all her hard work and wish her the very best for the future.
Beren-Dain Delbrooke-Jones
Simon Brian Simon joined College in September 2011 as Head of Modern Foreign Languages (MFL), from Dulwich College, London. With him he brought a surfeit of ideas and energy and lost no time applying these within the Department. His leadership potential was soon recognised and he was promoted to Director of Studies, which enabled him to enthuse a wider range of staff about teaching and learning in the same way as he had the teachers of MFL. Upon his appointment as Deputy Head (Academic) in April 2016, Simon quickly realised that a major challenge would be to ensure that College planned, proactively, for changes in
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our approach to teaching and learning in Sixth Form with the advent of linear A Levels. He drove forward a carefully considered emphasis on learning, and effectively communicated the importance of revisiting material previously covered to ensure that our students were as well prepared as possible for linear exams. College’s record results last summer were a vindication of that vision and approach. Where many schools appear to have struggled with the return to linearity, College students were able to achieve record results, due in no small part to the interventions Simon put in place. Simon also understood the need to ensure that the pastoral and academic aspects of College life were working closely together; if there was an academic issue, we needed to ensure that the pupil was being supported as well as possible; equally, if there was a pastoral issue, he valued the need for teachers to be empathetic. As a senior manager, Simon always understood the breadth of his role to ensure that College as a whole thrived, not just some aspects of College, and that all elements of an individual’s experience were considered. Simon’s sensitivity to others motivated him to try to find ways of ensuring that colleagues could thrive in this environment. This and his dry sense of humour was not always seen by all but was always welcomed by those who knew him well. Many colleagues will miss his fierce competitiveness in cycling and running and his ability to make others feel athletically challenged as he notched up yet another feat, seemingly without effort. Simon has the ability to see both the granular detail and the wide strategic picture. He has the ability to demand the best from those around him, but also the ability to laugh at himself. Having only experienced day schools before coming to College, there is no doubt that the community at College will always be special to Simon; equally, College has a lot to thank Simon for. Simon’s drive and determination will have huge benefits at Charterhouse and we wish him every success there.
Crispin Dawson and Mary Plint
Stuart Cooper Stuart joined the Physics Department at College in the January of 2012 joining us from Dean Close School. As a true school master, it was no surprise that Stuart was quickly appointed to the role of Head of Physics as successor to the redoubtable Tom Adams. Stuart has been a superb leader and the examination results have gone from strength to strength with a record 37% of entries graded A*s at A Level in 2015 and similar figures in following years. His natural flair for numbers allows him to deftly and adeptly correctly predict pupil outcome based upon baseline ability and he is correct 99% of the time! The reforms to both A Levels
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and GCSE have not phased Stuart and he has successfully integrated the new curriculum, and style of assessment of both theoretical and practical skills. As well as delivering thought provoking INSET, he has been an outstanding mentor to several newly qualified teachers over his five-year tenure; his mentees have gone on to become outstanding teachers themselves in no small part due to Stuart’s tireless efforts. An engineer by trade Stuart has played a key role in increasing the number of girls taking Physics for A Level, and he leaves a Department which is significantly ahead of the national average for female A Level physicists. There is never a dull moment in Stuart’s laboratory; those who walk past will be treated to excitement; from 5kg masses swinging toward the nose of an innocent Fourth Former, to finding Stuart hovering across the room on his home-made hovercraft to playing Texas Hold’em during his last Upper Sixth lesson; using poker to teach them probability. As Stuart disappears into the haze I say with all seriousness that the Science Department loses a true educator. Outside of the classroom Stuart is an exemplary schoolmaster. His involvement in College sport has been tireless and over the years he has coached the Colts A’ XV, the 2nd XV, and attended the Rugby Club’s tour to South Africa in 2014. As an active rugby player retiring only recently due to a nasty neck injury Stuart has also led teams to success in Rugby 7s and numerous teams have benefitted from his coaching at Rosslyn Park. Alongside rugby Stuart is passionate about athletics with a particular forte for the long jump and triple jump having coached all year groups on the field. Stuart has been an excellent Tutor to a number of pupils during his time at College. Initially in Leconfield and latterly in Newick House, Stuart has tutored generations of Fourth and Fifth Form boys and has, more recently, been a Sixth Form Tutor. Stuart’s tutees appreciate his straight talking, no nonsense approach; safe in the knowledge that Mr Cooper is looking out for them. Stuart leaves College after a fantastic five years to cross the golden valley to assume the role of Head of Physics at Sir Thomas Rich’s School in Gloucester. As a colleague, and as a friend he will be greatly missed, but I do have just a glimmer of hope he will visit College in the future to give one of his legendary Physics evening lectures; those students who remember Stuart will certainly celebrate with a pint of Hokum Stomp.
Dan Townley
Bethan Evans Bethan joined College in record breaking fashion as the ‘quickest appointment ever’. Within three days of a speculative email from her asking if we needed a Physics teacher, she had been appointed. We were not to be disappointed in our judgement that she was too good to let get away. She arrived via the University of Cambridge, where she had studied Natural Sciences, and the University of Durham where she completed her PGCE.
Bethan immediately threw herself in to life at College, teaching exceptionally good Physics lessons, tutoring in the newly formed College Lawn, and coaching rowing. This being College, she also ran a coding club, staffed Lower College Physics clinics and helped out on numerous other trips and activities. All of these tasks were completed with a professionalism and enthusiasm that were impressive to behold. Bethan is an extremely intelligent individual, but also has the humility, work ethic and the instinct to foster potential. This resulted in her very quickly becoming a source of inspiration to her many pupils, and a source of invaluable advice and ideas for her colleagues. I know that she has made a huge impression on College in her time here, and I will miss her insights into the pupils at College, College life in general, and the wider world of education and beyond. Her new school in Newcastle is very fortunate to be benefitting from her many talents in the years ahead, and I know she will be remembered for longer than her brief time here might suggest, such was her impact.
Stuart Cooper
Noleen Farmer Noleen has been a fundamental member of the Design and Technology team for the past three years. Throughout this time, she has supported the Textiles Department when designing and delivering new specification content to pupils. Her strengths have been her meticulous attention to detail when teaching and marking both GCSE and A Level coursework. This has resulted in nearly all of her pupils achieving 100% each academic year. She has brought her practical textiles skills into the classroom, from foil printing to dyeing fabrics using rusting objects! All of which have truly inspired the pupils within her care. With the new Design and Technology specification this year, Noleen has been keen to get back into the workshop, utilising the skills she learnt at PGCE level. She has been able to deliver a brand new scheme of work to a group of Third Form pupils, using her skills in accuracy to help pupils flourish when using challenging tools and machinery. This year we had our most successful end of year show yet. Noleen was instrumental in designing and presenting this display of work to staff, pupils and parents. It is with a very heavy heart that we say goodbye to such a fantastic teacher, colleague and friend. We wish her the very best of luck in the next exciting chapter in her life.
Kirstie Naish
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Allyson Godwin
Jack Kelway
Allyson joined College three years ago, after 19 years at Cheltenham Bournside School. She has loved working with College pupils in Learning Support and tutoring two fantastic Lower College year groups in Queen’s. Her ex tutees who are now in Lower Sixth still turn up to her office for a chat and to pick her up for lunch, which says a lot about how much they love her.
It was in late January, in my final A Level options presentation to the current Fifth Form, that it dawned on me what sort of teacher we would be losing to St John’s School, Leatherhead this summer. For the third time that evening, at the point where I paused expectantly for questions about the shape of the course, or indeed the inevitable inquiry about whether English is suitable for someone who doesn’t like reading, I heard a familiar refrain: ‘Will Mr Kelway be teaching us next year?’ Simultaneously conscious of the risk of dwindling recruitment figures and the Trade Descriptions Act of 1968, it was with an equivocal sidestep that I was forced to reply: ‘I don’t think so.’ I think I might have even blamed Mr Morton and the timetable.
Riggy says: ‘you have helped me go from an E to a B in History, even though we both struggled to understand the Tudors - you’re an angel.’ Mollie says: ‘thanks for questioning my sketching skills when you looked at my plant cell drawing in Fifth Form and thought it was a bread and butter pudding.’ Hattie says: ‘I came quite wild into Fourth Form and you have almost managed to tame me. You are like a mum to us all and you’d better keep your promise to come out with us after our Upper Sixth leavers’ ball.’ Her current Third Form will also miss her dearly but have already planned to invite her back for concerts, House plays, dinners and Speech Day, so this is not a final goodbye. We have also noticed that she has created a Twitter account in the last few weeks, which means she will check on the girls’ most up to date achievements! Georgia says: ‘you are always so calm and understanding – what are we going to do without you? Please visit lots.’ Sophia says: ‘thank you for helping me through the lows, also thanks for the cake and Floreat.’ Evie says: ‘you have been so comforting when I needed it. I will miss you beyond words.’ Now, the girls have said it all, but on a personal note, I also would like to express my sincere thanks to the most wonderful, humble, kind hearted Tutor I could have ever wished for. Allyson has loved the buzz of House life, being part of the girls’ ups and downs and attending many House events, often with Peter, her husband. She has now chosen to redress her work life balance and we know that she is going to be very happy in Cranford House School, near Oxford. It might be hard to move away from Cheltenham, from tutees, from friends, from the Salem Baptist Church Brownies where she has been Tawny Owl for more than 20 years, but we know that she is really looking forward to more time with her family, undertaking some cherished granny duties with Henry and hopefully having many more grandchildren to come. We love you. We will miss you but we are so happy for you and we will meet again!
Wandrille Bates
This mostly truthful anecdote demonstrates what is clearly evident when you speak to the pupils with whom Jack works. They love his lessons. The culture he establishes in his classroom not only prepares them well for A Level, but also develops in them a desire to take the subject further. For example, of the 22 students in our outgoing Upper Sixth classes who were also here in the Fifth Form, 14 came from Jack’s class, a feat even more impressive given there were only 20 in that group. We won’t just miss Jack’s contribution to A Level numbers; I know I’m not alone in the Department and the Common Room when I say I will miss Jack’s willingness to collaborate, his creative vision for developing new initiatives (the creative writing magazine, the reading diploma to name but two), and his friendship. With both of us being relatively new fathers, swapping stories about sleepless nights and unusual locations to discover vomit has been a great comfort. I wish Jack, Tanya, and Leo all the best for the move to Surrey. You’ll be greatly missed.
Andrew Straiton
Roger Leghorn Behind any successful Design and Technology department there is a skilled and dedicated technician and Roger Leghorn has been that man at Cheltenham College for almost 25 years. It is very rare to find someone who is not only a skilled craftsman and knowledgeable in wood, metal and plastic, but who is also a competent computer technician and engineer, able to service and repair machines. Any job that has been asked of him has been completed to the highest of standards, whether that is preparing materials for pupils, making the Department look better or even making furniture for College. For example, the tables in the Cadbury Room are a lasting testament to the quality of his work. He runs a tight ship and expects high standard of both staff and pupils. The thought of having
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to explain mistakes to him has, I am sure, made pupils ‘measure at least twice to cut once’. That said, those pupils who did take time to get to know him, will know how skilled and patient he is and there are many who would not have achieved such a high quality of work without his guidance. He is certainly the best technician I have worked with and I have learnt a great deal from him. He has left some big shoes to fill. We all wish him well and many happy hours of riding his beloved Triumph motorbike.
Graham Cutts
Beki Mace Beki joined College in September 2015 and immediately made an impact on the Theology, Philosophy and Ethics (TPE) Department. Taking on a Department of middle aged men was never going to be for the faint hearted, but Beki brought life and vibrancy to the Department helping us to develop new pedagogical techniques and approaches to pupil learning. So successful was she that she was promptly promoted to Head of Department after one year at College. The make-up of the TPE Department is not easy as every member of the team had a major responsibility outside the Department, but Beki pulled us together and ensured that the pupil learning experience was at the heart of all our schemes of work. She supported every member of the Department to develop their teaching with resources and approaches. It is not just in the TPE Department where Beki has worked her magic, but also as a Tutor in Christowe, where she has provided the boys with the guidance and direction they need alongside a warm and caring approach. Beki has also been an excellent hockey coach to Junior and Senior teams. She has an infectious enthusiasm which she was able to transmit to the girls to ensure they enjoyed their sport. She was an excellent addition to the management team on the recent hockey tour of Malaysia. Despite Beki leaving teaching at College to continue her PhD and concentrate on her training for the Great Britain Age-Group Biathlon (wow!) we know she will remain an integral part of the Christowe team, and we look forward to her continued involvement in the College community. Beki has added an enormous amount to the TPE Department in her time with us, and she will be much missed. We wish her well for all her endeavours in the future.
Crispin Dawson
Annalouise McQuilkin Annalouise joined College in January 2012 as Registrar and consistently demonstrated great dedication to her role and to providing an exceptional level of personal service to our prospective parents. She has played a pivotal role as part of a close-knit team which has consistently recruited high quality pupils,
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increasing and expanding our numbers as College grows. Highly personable, well-liked by colleagues and an excellent communicator, Annalouise demonstrated high levels of personal and professional integrity. She took time to be an active part in the wider life of College and was a much-appreciated Tutor. With her excellent academic background and boundless empathy, she continually demonstrated dedication and sensitivity in this role. Her commitment and high level of expertise are sorely missed and we wish her the best of luck in the future.
Sam Palmer
Steve Morton Since joining College in 2002, Steve has, at one time or another, taken on the roles of Head of the Economics Department, Head of Critical Thinking, Tutor in Hazelwell and Southwood, and Head of the Rock Band, which he launched as a new activity for pupils across College; in addition to being the ATL and NEU Trade Union Representative and a teacher of Economics. Steve has contributed an incalculable amount to College in all these facets of College life and his departure is a great loss for our academic, pastoral and co curricular provision. Steve is a truly inspiring teacher, for both his pupils and us as colleagues. Thinking about all those I have worked with during my career, Steve’s subject knowledge stands out as being second-to-none and is a continual challenge to me, both inadvertently when I have the pleasure of listening to him in action and more directly when he picks me up on the various errors he’s noticed. The enthusiasm for macroeconomics he instils is often palpable along the Wilson Block corridor, with pupils clamouring to learn more and to get themselves put up on his wall of honour: for many the pinnacle of their time at College. Steve’s door is ceaselessly open, which pupils eagerly take advantage of, many having extra sessions first thing in the morning to go through their most recent essays or to explore in more depth something that piqued their interest in class. This is just one example of the tremendous amount of support Steve gives to each and every one of his pupils: it really is no wonder they go on to perform so well in their examinations! As a Tutor, Steve is absolutely exemplary. The generosity he shows his tutees is almost unlimited, both in terms of the time and care he shows them individually and in the many thoughtful things he does for them as a group. Every year Steve gets personalised mugs produced for each of his tutees to use when they have tea and coffee together whilst discussing the Floreat topic of the day, and he never fails to buy a cake for the group whenever there’s a birthday to celebrate amongst them. Steve is unwavering in his prioritisation of his tutees’ wellbeing, leaving no stone unturned in his effort
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to ensure they are fully cared for during their time at College and always taking immediate action whenever a pastoral concern arises, however small it may be. His tutees should be envied for the wisdom and guidance they receive from their Tutor! I know that each of us in the Wilson Block feels very lucky to be able to count Steve as a colleague and friend. The concern Steve shows his tutees is unfailingly widened to encompass us all in the Business and Economics, and EAL, Departments: a better listener, more caring friend and wise counsellor would be exceptionally difficult to find! And we have all been enriched by Steve’s passion for prog rock and his sense of humour, although I feel my personality has been at least slightly corrupted by this over the past four years! Going to a music concert for his leaving do is certainly a fitting way for us to mark his retirement. Steve will be greatly missed and the Common Room will inevitably be diminished as he moves into his retirement, for which we all wish him the very best: he certainly deserves a rest!
Graham Mallard
Amanda Naylor Amanda joined College in January 2015 as Director of Admissions and Marketing. She quickly demonstrated great dedication to her role and to welcoming and supporting our prospective parents through the admissions process. In particular Amanda showed a strong sense of empathy and understanding about the issues on parents’ minds when they make the important decision about investing in private education. Amanda brought a good deal of professional knowledge and experience to the role from her broad career background in the educational and commercial sectors and during her time she helped recruit many high quality pupils, playing a key part in the expansion of College. She also took an active part in the wider life of College; both as a member of the senior team and as a parent herself. We wish her the very best of luck in the future.
Alex Peterken
Sarah Ramsay Sarah joined College in September 2000 as a teacher of Biology. She was a stalwart in the Biology Department, having an unbridled passion for the subject. Her commitment to the pupils was unsurpassed and nothing was ever too much to ask of Sarah. She was an extremely supportive and collegiate colleague, always willing to give freely of her time. Her particular fondness lay with the younger pupils where she was a mentor to them, providing many of them with excellent foundations for life at College and for some, their first exposure to life in the UK. Over the course of many years she was an excellent tutor to Upper College students, providing them with invaluable guidance and support with the university application process, believing in them and offering invaluable support.
She was Housemistress of Chandos and Chandos Cottages from 2002-2010. Sarah’s caring nature and concern for the girls in her care came strongly to the fore. She often regaled us with stories of looking after, in excess of 100 girls. Sarah played an important role in communicating the needs of Chandos girls to others. She had a keen interest in supporting all pupils with whom she came into contact, not just the girls. Being encouraging towards all pupils, and especially caring towards those who experienced difficulties was fundamental to the way in which Sarah worked at College. Pupils found her to be approachable and understanding. In her roles as Housemistress and as Tutor, she took a close interest in each individual and in their families and circumstances. Sarah developed a good rapport with young people and they shared openly with her. She combined being an attentive and discreet listener with giving sound practical advice and knowing when a firm line was needed. Sarah had a natural flair for pastoral support and will be fondly remembered by many. Sarah designed and developed the Peer Mentor Training Scheme which has now become well established throughout College. This was done with huge thought and care and the result is that this scheme now permeates throughout each boarding House and across each year group; a huge testament to Sarah’s wisdom and vision. More recently Sarah was a Tutor in Westal and had a natural way with the girls, working alongside them and fathoming through issues together. She had the knack of spotting those who were a little shy and enabling them to shine. Her jewellerymaking evenings were a Westal legend and she solved many a gift conundrum. From her involvement on the netball pitches to her role as the staff listener, Sarah had a vital and pivotal role in College. OCs who have left College often return with very fond memories of the guidance and support given by Sarah. Her legacy to College is the positive influence she had on many pupils, both from an academic and a pastoral perspective. She was a joy to work with; eternally positive, an excellent colleague, good friend and mentor. Her gregarious nature and warm smile are sorely missed. We wish her all the very best for her new ventures.
Ruth Kramer and Isabella Mech
Ben Rees Ben joined College in 2015 having recently left the Royal Artillery after a number of operational tours. He quickly established himself as a well respected, all round school master, who was as comfortable teaching across the three sciences as he was coaching sports teams or getting involved in the co-curricular life of College. As a Resident Tutor in Boyne House for two years he always made time for the boys and immersed himself fully in House life, with paint balling being a highlight on the calendar, ably assisted by Monty the spaniel who had a nose for mischief!
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As Contingent Commander of the CCF he ran a challenging and enjoyable programme that regularly produced Army Sixth Form Scholars and was rated as being in the top 10% of CCFs nationally, whilst also overseeing College receiving as MOD Employer Engagement Silver Award. In the summer of 2016 he helped organise the Coast to College 200 mile run in aid of the Afghan Connection charity, demonstrating determination, typical good humour and a previously undiscovered flair for sleep talking! Ben’s diligence, patience, attention to detail and pastoral proactivity will be sorely missed.
Richard Penny
Steve Rice Steve leaves College after six years of distinguished service. He embodied what every parent wants from a teacher: knowledgeable, caring, enthusiastic, and ambitious for every pupil. He is such a humble man that I suspect few outside of the Physics Department realised his quality. The exception would be his Housemaster who reported that ‘If there were a level above a first-class degree in tutoring he would get it’. Before ill health struck, Steve ran the squash programme at College and was no mean player himself, regularly running rings around boys one third his age. Having arrived in teaching relatively late in life, Steve really appreciated the fantastic experiences that being around young people brings, especially in an exceptional environment such as at Cheltenham College. He helped us all
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remember how lucky we are to be part of such a fine community. As a colleague he was a dream. Utterly reliable, reflective, able to turn his hand to any part of the syllabus, and always willing to help out with those extra tasks that need doing. Although the senior member of the Department by age, he was definitely the most innovative, and was the source of knowledge and advice for anything IT related. This old dog routinely mastered new tricks. He has thoroughly deserved his retirement and I know he has lots of plans to keep himself busy. He will be missed by colleagues for his calmness and wisdom and by the pupils for similar reasons.
Stuart Cooper
Kirk Steel Kirk joined us in early 2012 to take on what I reckon is one the toughest jobs in College. Being an Estates Bursar with a limited budget (in his case a very limited budget) guarantees that you’ll regularly find yourself disappointing many more hopeful colleagues than you’ll ever be able to please. It’s a challenge that Kirk has taken in his stride, and to his great credit he has managed to come through it as one of our best known and well-liked senior support team members. Educated at the Duke of York’s Royal Military School (where his Housemaster was recently retired Council member, Bob Acheson) and then at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, the first 20 years of Kirk’s career were spent serving with the British Army. He saw active service in Northern Ireland, the Balkans and in Afghanistan; perfect preparation for just about anything that
College was likely to throw in his direction! Kirk’s training and experience as an Army officer clearly equipped him well for leadership in ‘Civvy Street’ too. I asked one of his team here in College for his impressions of their boss and amongst other things, I heard that ‘Kirk is a good man to report to… he lets you get on with it, without interfering but always with an opendoor policy… he’s always there for those who need his support and I will genuinely miss him’. But of course, asking for feedback about a colleague is bound to bring a mixed bag of responses and I also heard about our Works Manager regularly needing to warn his team ‘not to let Kirk anywhere near your toolboxes’! Apparently, Kirk’s strengths lie well away from the DIY coalface. Security is perhaps not his forte either; it was after all, Kirk who was ‘on the door’ at an event several years ago when someone had arranged for a male stripper to attend. The gentleman in question was a rather large chap dressed in dinner suit etc. Kirk let him in without too much questioning but later observed that he had thought it ‘rather strange’ that the man didn’t have any socks on. He had a lot less on, a few minutes later! He may not be a DIY expert, and a career as a ‘bouncer’ looks doomed to fail, but Kirk has been a superb Estates Bursar and a brilliant friend and colleague to so many of us. On a personal level I’m enormously grateful for the unstinting support that Kirk gave me as Bursar and I’m sure I speak for us all when I say that he (and his bike, which has become his calling card) will be sorely missed by all of us who’ve enjoyed his unfailing good humour, his loyalty and his wonderful companionship.
John Champion
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Editorial note Apostrophe: please note that when a noun acts as a determiner rather than a possessive, the apostrophe has not been used. For example: The Yearlings A team, singles championship, Chatfeild-Roberts Library, Pallister Library
Acknowledgements The editors would like to thank the following for allowing the use of their photographs in this publication: Andy Banks The Cheltonian Association Cheltenham College Archives Childcare Department, Brasov, Romania Rebecca Crowther First Class images Gillman & Soame UK Ltd* Rob Hall Vanessa Grant Trust Shamrock School, Nepal Jenny O’Bryan Emily Hartley- cover image John Jones *Note: the photographs on the Speech Day Prizes page have been reproduced by kind permission of Gillman & Soame UK Ltd and can be ordered by contacting Gillman & Soame on 01869 - 328200
Our thanks Too many to list here, but many thanks go to the great number of pupils, teachers, support staff , House Masters and House Mistresses who have kindly provided articles, information and high-resolution photographs for this edition. On behalf of Cheltenham College, the editor, Miss Jane Brodigan, would like to express the school’s gratitude to Mr Mat Jolly of Jolly Good Design for his excellent graphic design and endless patience! The editor would like to thank: Mrs Laurette Thomas for her exhaustive technical editing, proof-reading, patience and moral support; and also Dr Mary Plint.
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