Sotoniensis

SOTONIENSIS 2019 | 3

Sotoniensis 2019

CONTENTS

04

Editorial

22

Creative Arts

From the Head Introducing the new Head Chaplaincy Chat Staff Farewells

The Allen Grant Competition Sports Day Swimming Gala

Art at KES Dance at KES Drama at KES Music at KES

37

Clubs & Societies

66

Trips & Visits

93

Sport

Astronomy Society Beekeeping Club Byron Society Cactus Club Ceramics Club Character Design Club Charities Commission Chess Club Christian Union Classical Society Cookery Club Debating Society Digital Leaders Economics Society

Aachen Biology trip to Leeson House CERN Charlotte Exchange Cricket tour to India Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Endeavour Florence French trip to Normandy

Boys’ Rugby Boys’ Hockey Boys’ Cricket Boys’ Basketball Boys’ Football Boys’ Tennis

English Society Equality and Diversity Society Eureka Club First Aid Club Geography Society German Club Greek Club Green Team Greenpower Historical Society Interface Japanese Club Linguistics Olympiad Club MedSoc

Mountain Biking Club Music Technology Club Partnerships Photography Club Sailing and Paddle boarding Club Sanskrit Society Scamp Club Sewing Club Shooting Club Spanish Bilingual Club STEM Club Table Tennis Club Wargaming Club Young Enterprise

Geography trip to Slapton Geography trip to Osmington Bay History trip to Battlefields History trip to Berlin Hockey trip to Holland Netball tour to Belfast Second Year Camp Ski trip 2019 South Africa

Spanish trip to Andalucia Spanish trip to Catalonia Spanish trip to Salamanca Summer Camp Tile Barn Tokyo trip Vietnam expedition Watersports trip

Girls’ Hockey Girls’ Netball Girls’ Cricket Girls’ Rounders

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From the Head The academic year 2018/2019 has seen much success for our students, as well as progress with a number of developments to enhance the educational experience for all in the School. We began the year with 950 students on roll and we much enjoyed Prizegiving in The Dobson Theatre with the address given by the well-known scientist and polar explorer, Felicity Aston MBE. The School has continued to invest in its facilities, in particular the reconstruction of the School Library to allow for more space for reading, study and reflection in a bright and contemporary setting. We commemorated the 100th anniversary of the end of the First World War with the creation and dedication of a delightful Memorial Garden surrounding Mr Long’s beautifully sculpted bronze of three former Edwardians who died in the conflict. There has also been much work behind the scenes with enhanced classroom accommodation, improved roofing and a new Duke of Edinburgh centre.

Our students have celebrated another well-deserved set of excellent academic results. At A Level, 20% of all grades achieved were at A*, 52% at A* and A and 82% at A*, A or B. A third of all students achieved at least three A and A* grades. At IGCSE 77% of grades achieved were at A* and A, and 92% at A*, A or B. We were also very pleased with our university admissions - over 90% of our students proceeding to courses at the top 25 universities.

Once more KES students have excelled themselves on the sports field with over two-thirds of the students representing the School at some stage during the course of the year.

The level of boys’ and girls’ hockey continues to impress. As well as very good performances throughout the regular season, the senior girls achieved the greatest success, reaching the regional rounds of the National Cup, as did the U13 team.

In boys’ hockey a number of teams reached the regionals while the 1st XI got to the quarter-finals of both of their National Cup competitions. They missed out on a semi-final place on the chance of a penalty flick!

both the U14 and U16 teams reached the regional stages of the national competition and just missed out on progressing to the national rounds by a single point. The U13 and U15 teams competed well in the National Cup progressing to, and winning, the finals of the plate competition. To hold two national titles in different age groups is a truly great achievement.

The boys’ cricket season was notable for some very good performances across the age range. The U12s reached the county final, the U14s reached the county semi-final and the 1st XI retained the Altham Trophy.

In an innovation for KES sport, cricket became the principal girls’ sport for the summer term. It will be exciting to see how this develops next season and we look forward to fielding a girls’ 1st XI in the near future.

The rugby teams continue to work hard on a very competitive circuit. The senior team found the season challenging but the U14, U15 and U16 age groups all had success, which is encouraging for the future. In addition, the U12 and U13 teams played some good rugby and will benefit with the addition of new players when they reach the Third Year.

In addition to our major sports, many students did well in a variety of other games and activities. The Sixth Form football team competed well in their league and progressed well in the cup competition and we fielded teams in tennis, basketball, table tennis and rounders. A number of our students have had individual success at county, regional, national and international levels in athletics, basketball, cricket, cross country running, diving, hockey, netball, rugby, sailing, squash and swimming.

Netball had its best season for over a decade. The foundations, so carefully laid over the last three years, have created match-winning teams. For the first time,

Our trips and visits programme remains an integral part of what we provide beyond the classroom.

This year has been as busy as ever, with KES pupils

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enjoying visits across the globe from local galleries and tramps across the New Forest and Dartmoor to trekking through the highlands of Vietnam and a visit to high tech industry in Tokyo.

Students have taken part in exchanges with pupils in the USA, done charity work in South Africa, examined particle physics at CERN in Switzerland and improved their language skills in Spain, Italy and France. They have skied in the Alps, played netball in Belfast, hockey in Holland and cricket in India. Closer to home, students have participated in study visits to Berlin, the First and Second World War battlefields in France and trips across the UK from regular theatre, music and art visits to London to geography and biology field trips across the country. Hundreds of our students made use of our facility at Lovaton on Dartmoor for the Duke of Edinburgh Award and for school-run camps, and a host of other Duke of Edinburgh expeditions have taken place in Devon, the New Forest, the Lake District and the Peaks.

The Arts Festival in June was a culmination of a very busy year for the Arts Faculty. High profile events such as the Carol Service at Romsey Abbey and the Service of Thanksgiving at Winchester Cathedral were interspersed with a wide range of musical events including two stunning spring concerts. We were treated to a range of drama productions including a new version of Mr Herklots’s enchanting science musical, ‘Gedanken in your Heart’, Oscar Wilde’s dark comedy ‘Lady Windermere’s Fan’, a gripping première of Dr Schofield’s play, ‘The Secret Battle’ to mark Armistice Day, Junior Drama’s ‘The Wind in the Willows’, a summer production of Steinbeck’s ‘Of Mice and Men’ and Mr Collinson’s mischievous farce, ‘Schoolboy Errors’. #KESFEST itself, was a fabulous showcase of our pupils’ talents and an opportunity for them to experience a huge range of workshops and specialised lessons, as well as the spectacular Street Theatre event on the final day.

Charitable and community work remain at the heart of the School. In the past year a record £45,000 has been raised by the students for a range of different organisations including our Summer Camp for Southampton young carers, the South Africa venture supporting the Goedgedacht Trust’s work for impoverished children near Cape Town and the second outing of our Dartmoor partnership adventure with Sholing Junior School. Our primary school partnerships have prospered through such activities as our regular visiting Science Roadshow, mathematics and language partnerships, reading schemes and philosophy workshops. We were particularly pleased to welcome hundreds of staff and pupils from our partnership schools to take part in our Endeavour programme in July. As well as the usual plethora of charity sales, events and dressing up, perhaps the highlight was hosting the BBC ‘Children in Need’ live in November in the Dobson Theatre. Over sixty KES and Stroud pupils joined choirs from across the county singing in the televised performance conducted by Miss Forsey; an amazing experience for all concerned.

We have been very well served by Evie Wateridge as Head of School over the last year, ably supported by her deputies, Colin McCann, Eve Henley and Rebecca Williams. Our Prepositors and Heads of House, together with the Lower School Prefects, provide excellent leadership across the School.

A number of staff are retiring or moving to positions elsewhere having served the School with distinction.

Particular thanks are owed to Mr Wood, the Reverend Poppleton, Mr Allen, Mr Griffin, Mr Collins and Mrs Thould with over 145 years of service at King Edward’s shared between them. Mr Wood did much to enhance the profile of sport at King Edward’s, particularly in rugby. The Reverend Poppleton, as our chaplain, has become a central figure at the School, developing a full programme of services and assemblies. Mr Allen has transformed our IT provision, beginning with the introduction of the internet and finishing with our very innovative one-to-one iPad programme. Mr Griffin has provided sterling service as our Senior Caretaker and Mr Collins has done much to sustain our excellent reputation in mathematics as Head of Faculty. We have also said farewell to Mr Jennings, Mrs Kairis, Mr Shadbolt and Mrs Roy as they move to other opportunities in education elsewhere and we thank Mr Hill, our IT Support Technician for the past year.

This is also the occasion to record our thanks to Mr Morgan and the governors for their work supporting the School over the past year. Likewise, we are grateful to the KESPTA’s work under the spirited direction of Mr Congreve. Our OEs have enjoyed numerous reunions organised by our Development Officer, Ms Hooper, who also continues to raise the

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profile of our King Edward VI Foundation that provides bursaries to help students applying to King Edward’s from disadvantaged backgrounds.

King Edward’s has had another impressive year.

Students have participated in a bewildering array of activities, visits, sports and cultural opportunities.

Although it is tempting to focus on the more tangible achievements such as IGCSE and A Level results, the real mark of our School’s success continues to be the development of the characters of our students as compassionate, thoughtful, energetic and committed young adults with a strong awareness of the needs of the less fortunate. In my final year as Head of King Edward’s it is our students who continue to make me proud to be an honorary Edwardian!

AJ Thould Head (2002-2019)

Introducing the new Head Since my arrival at King Edward’s at the start of September, I have been overwhelmed by the messages of support; by the warmth of the welcome extended to me by parents, pupils and colleagues; and by the vibrancy and inspiration seen daily in the corridors and classrooms of the school.

King Edward’s is a special place, and I am honoured to have been asked to take up the mantle from Mr Thould as your new Head. As you will see from the pages of this edition of Sotoniensis, there is much to celebrate at our school. For the breadth and quality of provision both within and beyond the classroom, my especial thanks are due to all of my colleagues, who go ‘above and beyond’ on a daily basis to provide our pupils with inspiring opportunities and a richness of experience I believe is unparalleled across our region.

Equally I want to thank our parents and carers: for your commitment and support, but also for your trust in our school to educate and nurture your child.

But most of all I want to thank our students. Curious, engaged, civil and kind - they make our jobs as teachers and non-teaching staff a privilege and a pleasure every day!

As you have read in Mr Thould’s introduction, and will see throughout the rest of Sotoniensis, we have had an extraordinarily busy and productive past year.

Ultimately, academic outcomes are of fundamental importance for every pupil, and we will never lose sight of our mission to ensure that every child meets and exceeds their expectations in this regard. However, I believe that it is equally important that we celebrate and recognise all that happens beyond the classroom - the sporting, artistic, charitable and intellectual

endeavours, as well as the myriad of trips, visits and off-site activities, which provide challenge and fun at the School. Through these pursuits, the children learn about themselves more deeply, and build a strength of character that will serve them well, far beyond school and even university life.

So, I am delighted that last year offered so much for so many. I am truly looking forward in the coming year to serving as your Head, and to another great year for all!

Neal Parker Head from September 2019

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Chaplaincy Chat Colin Dobson, as an orator and performer, loved much about the Church tradition, and although for much of his life he would not have called himself a man of conventional faith, he valued its place.

Working with his successors Tommy Cookson and Peter Hamilton was very stimulating as the School became co-ed throughout. I was briefed to begin a PSHE programme against a quite conservative and reluctant staff body and the language of considering the whole person became overt and legitimate.

Investment was made into the provision of nursing and counselling support and care, with the pastoral teams building on a long tradition of devoted tutoring and supportive staff that had gone before.

It was out of this that the role, first as Lay Chaplain, that ordained School Chaplain grew.

I have been mightily blessed in the encounters I have had as chaplain, sharing some of the high points and the profound low points in the life of the School community. Sadly, we have been touched by tragedy and loss internationally and locally, of students and staff, along with the premature deaths of parents and governors. But it has been a great joy to celebrate the marriages of former pupils, colleagues and in time to baptise the next generation. Charged with finding something for the pupils to mark the 450th Anniversary I was delighted that ‘It’s a Knock out’ came to fruition – I think the single most unalloyed joyful occasion I can remember.

Our God Our help in ages past, our Hope for years to come.

I find myself writing from a new perspective this year as I approach retirement from teaching at KES after thirty years and becoming Chaplain to the School rather than ordained School Chaplain after seventeen years. I am very pleased to have been asked to fulfil this interim role especially to support the School and Neal Parker as he takes up his position as Head.

When I was first in the School under the legendary Colin Dobson, King Edward’s was a very different place. The pattern of assemblies was markedly different; our Tuesdays and Thursdays were either a religious service with hymns, prayers and readings largely organised by the Head of RS alternating with a cultural presentation overseen by the Head of Humanities and there was markedly less religious diversity within the School. In establishing the role of chaplain I was very fortunate to have the support of a number of colleagues who were committed to Christian ministry and witness, both lay and ordained.

I am a passionate advocate for the communal moments in our life as a School – the term services and Leavers’ Services and the whole-school assemblies. It has been a joy to devise the annual carol service for almost all my time in the School and likewise the Thanksgiving Service. I am sad for our loss of physical connection with St Mary’s Church but have been delighted to design and lead our major worship events alongside staff and students in Romsey Abbey and Winchester Cathedral.

Last year I was delighted to have been entrusted with the Sholing Partnership initiative. I very much enjoyed working with Mr Hutchinson at Sholing Junior School along with a team of Lower Sixth in setting up a residential trip to Lovaton in July 2018 for twelve Year 5 pupils. Widening aspiration and access is part of the aim of the exercise and it is good that at least one of the children explored coming to KES. It has great to continue this again this year.

A further high water mark is always the beginning of year service in September, the Ceremony of Admissions, and Prizegiving in the Dobson Theatre.

These are occasions when the foundational values and principles of the School are expressed in prayer, the words of Isaac Watts, reflection and community.

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Evie Wateridge shouldered her responsibilities as Head of School very well along with her strong team of senior students and they were very supportive of the occasions where they have led prayers or read, speaking sensitively and with conviction. This was evident in the very moving Act of Remembrance in November. This service had been long in the planning.

The Memorial Garden, designed by Mrs Peebles, and the bronze statue, by Mr Long, has made a real impact on the fabric of the School and I have enjoyed watching the establishment of the planting.

Finding a way to meet as a School in the Hall for the service and also to incorporate the new space’s dedication and role as a memorial was a liturgical and technical challenge. However, I feel with the imagination and skill of the support staff we overcame these very well for what was a very moving event. For its official inauguration, the names of the fallen were read out by the Heads of House, Jackson Taylor sounded the Last Post and Reveille, the Elgar Cello Concerto Op 85 First movement Adagio was played by Daniel Simojoki and Ed Bence played the organ before the service. I was delighted that the Venerable Stephen Robbins CB former Chaplain-General was able to preach and that the Lord Lieutenant and his wife were able to attend and lay a wreath. Large silhouette figures were placed across the stage and miniatures in each tutor group.

Along with some of the pupils’ art in the Atrium and Memorial Garden it was a powerful occasion.

‘The Secret Battle’ adapted by Dr Schofield and Mr Piggott’s excellent assembly on War and Art concluded the sequence of remembrance that has run through the last four years.

Our annual KES Carol Service was held at Romsey Abbey. Miss Forsey directed the musicians for the first time in a joyful selection of music. At the request of the School’s Charity Commission, our collection was in support of Step by Step, a charity working to prevent homelessness and build selfworth in young people.

The annual Service of Thanksgiving was held in Winchester Cathedral in March. The whole school gathered together and it was a fine occasion. I am grateful to the students who led and the staff who helped make it possible. In the splendid and aweinspiring nave of Winchester Cathedral, we gave thanks to God for our School. Dance, music, words and symbols helped express our recognition of our royal and Christian heritage, our gratitude to all whose vision, generosity and hard work that brought us to enjoy our present good fortune. The tireless work of Mr and Mrs Thould was also remembered with thanks. I was especially pleased to welcome my colleague from the Salisbury diocese, The Revd Canon Robert Titley of Salisbury Cathedral as the preacher.

Term Services focussed on the hope and opportunities for us to live out the message of love, mutual support and care for the world. We

were mindful of the anniversary of Ben Smith’s death in May 2017, a tragic loss and experience the outgoing Upper Sixth shared. It was very good that a charitable rugby match and Sixth Form play remembered him and the work of the CRY charity.

Mr Singleton continues his work with the youngest pupils with Interface and Mr Robinson with the Christian Union. Both are a source of great support for me and the students. The Staff Parent Prayer group met in each half term. The parents are very appreciative of the care and support their children receive and of the ethos the school promotes where religious freedom and tolerance are respected and encouraged. A number of our Muslim colleagues observed the fast during Ramadan this year.

The Assembly programme continues to draw on a good body of staff and children. We have had our annual sequence of reporting of charitable activities, Mrs Costello-Kelly challenged our thinking about confidence, appearance and hair, Mr Shadbolt about adventure and the inherent goodness of most people, Mr Diver continued to help the School reflect

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on War and Remembrance and there was a powerful presentation on Art and War from Mr Piggott.

Mr Collins helped us mark Holocaust Memorial Day and later masterminded a very inclusive and creative event during the Arts Festival, Mr Simm offered a personal presentation on World Cancer Day and I explored the ways we express the idea of love through music and word for Valentine’s Day. Mr Herklots expanded our understanding of Time and Dr Gamblin the boundless possibilities when all people cooperate, as with the Apollo moon landing. There has been a wealth of student led presentations and performances.

I have worked with Mr Tofts on his excellent unit on Reality and Representation in Extended Studies. We have been welcomed by the Central Southampton Mosque, and also visited Winchester Cathedral.

On this year’s Charlotte Exchange, it was a joy to work alongside Mrs Paul as my colleague on the trip.

The Third Year students enjoyed their planning day over one weekend in October and acted as good ambassadors when in Charlotte. The American delegation were kept busy on their return leg in the New Year.

I have been very lucky to be involved at Stroud, working with the children for Harvest, helping shape the Carol Service, marking the key moments in the year, sourcing readings and continuing to work closely with Tanya Fay. The young readers and performers are impressive and take their responsibilities as leaders very seriously. Taking Upper Sixth students to support Forest School on Tuesday afternoons has been invigorating and something that all have very much valued.

As the academic year drew to a close, we had a very positive service to commission the new senior students under the leadership of Sam Thompson and to thank the outgoing team under Evie Wateridge for their first class example of leadership and hard work.

I continue to hold the SMT and Governors in my prayers and for wisdom in their stewardship of the School, especially at a time of change as we await the start of Neal Parker’s tenure as Head. We have had a number of new babies born to staff this year, a source of great hope and joy. The gatherings to celebrate the retirement of Mr and Mrs Thould, the sad and sudden death of former Head of Music, Martin Hall, and also the marriage of Mr and Mrs Blow were powerful statements of the great sense of community and deep affection colleagues, past and present have for each other and the life we share.

Over the years I have been very fortunate to have the support and stimulation of many colleagues and students coming from a great variety of faith positions who have challenged and nourished my own faith and ministry. My fortnightly meetings with the Head have been an important part of our shared ministry to the School and I was greatly touched that he attended my ordination. We have travelled a fascinating and, at times, very demanding journey together, but one that has been a privilege.

Thank you for all you and your predecessors are and have been. I commend the School to God’s unfailing love, our shelter from the stormy blast and our eternal home.

Rev Poppleton School Chaplain

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Staff Farewells Julian Thould Julian Thould started as Head at King Edward’s in April 2002, joining KES from King’s School, Worcester where he was Deputy Head and Director of Studies.

Very early on in his tenure it was clear to staff and Governors that he was going to ensure substantial investment went in to the School and that has indeed happened. These have included the purchase of Lovaton, Wellington Sports Ground and Stroud School, and the developments of the Dobson Theatre, Science and DT block, Art Department, Sixth Form Concourse, Dining Room and Dance Studio, Curriculum Support classrooms, Hospitality Suite, new Music Recital Room and Recording Studio, additional music practice rooms, Fitness Suite, extended Sports Pavilion and recent refurbishment and extension of the Library, to name but a few.

Julian has been a first rate educationalist, a tireless worker and has been a real figurehead for the School. He works late into the evenings in his office, throughout his weekends and during the holidays. However, throughout all of this he has still maintained his calm and composed manner and has truly given everything to King Edward’s.

He has always embraced and engaged in the fun side of life at School including abseiling through the Main Hall ceiling to support a student with their platinum Duke of Edinburgh award and scaling the heights of the mangle during the 450th anniversary celebratory ‘It’s a Knockout’ competition. He has also regularly impressed students with his guitar playing, had wet sponges thrown at him in the stocks during the many Arts and Science festivals and even been licked by a python in Biology.

He has a real passion for history and many First Year pupils will have long lasting memories of spending hours building the most magnificent motte and bailey castles in his annual model making competition with his History classes.

In numerical terms, Julian has appointed all but 25 of the current staff, read and commented on over 17,000 full reports, delivered over 700 assemblies and term services, spent over

600 Saturdays watching sport, admitted 2,244 First Years to the School, consumed somewhere in the region of 2,900 school lunches and given out hundreds of dignioras and dignissimas and even more merit awards.

He will be moving to Cornwall and will spend his time between there and his house in France. He fully deserves to enjoy his retirement and spend some time with his family. He has been a wonderful Head and has given up so much for this school; we are all indebted to him for his unwavering service.

Alan Morgan Chair of Governors

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Bob Allen Bob Allen has been at King Edward’s for the past 29 years.

He was appointed by Colin Dobson in 1990 as an Assistant Master in charge of IT and developed the role becoming Director of Communications and, subsequently, Assistant Head (Digital Strategy) in 2006.

Bob organised the School’s first swimming gala and a number of other initiatives including the KonnEctionS newsletter, school reading scheme and canoeing at Summer Camp. A keen sailor himself, Bob has been on a number of school trips including kayaking in Sweden, numerous watersports excursions to the south of France and scuba diving in Honduras and Indonesia.

He has also been involved in a number of clubs, in particular as an active member of the school sailing club as a sailing and powerboat instructor. He has also been involved in House

bowling, the school Year Book when we had one and he started the OE newsletter, which used to be written by students during Foundation Studies lessons.

Bob has taught ICT, computing and Extended Studies and we have him to thank for all the computers in the School; the first ones being placed in the library over 20 years ago. Since then he has introduced iPads, smart boards and the wifi. Behind the scenes he manages a large team who work hard to keep the wifi and all the school computer systems running.

Under Bob’s leadership, King Edward’s was the first school in the UK to have Leased Line Internet Access (a dedicated internet cable) and in his key role he has been responsible for developments of all school IT systems including the website, management systems and more recently the schools 1 to 1 iPad

John Griffin John Griffin joined the School in 1990 after a career in the Royal Navy and retail. In his role as Head Caretaker, John has been responsible for the smooth running of many hundreds of school events of all types, as well as the normal daily operational functions of King Edward’s.

He has seen the fabric of the School change in many ways over the past three decades including the building of the DT block, the refurbishment of the science laboratories and the transformation of the Dobson Theatre. John has been tireless in his efforts to maintain an excellent standard of service delivery from caretaking through to cleaning and grounds maintenance.

John has lived on site in the Kellett Road gate house for the last 29 years with his family. In most instances, this has been an advantage, although I am sure that John would agree that this was not the case when he found himself in the flooded underground boiler room one Christmas Day bailing out water with a bucket and missing his Christmas Dinner. John and his family are now relocating but he leaves behind him a great legacy and we all wish him the very best for a productive retirement.

Mr Baker

initiative. He regularly speaks at national IT conferences and the HMC IT forum.

There is never a dull moment with Bob and he will be fondly remembered by all staff for his sense of humour, his patience and kindness. After retiring from KES, he will be spending more time on his passions of family, sailing and photography, as well as doing some work as an educational IT consultant. He will be greatly missed.

Mrs Burrows

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Richard Wood Richard Wood first set foot through the doors of King Edward’s in 1983 to be interviewed by the Headmaster at the time, Colin Dobson, as an optimistic young teacher interested in a two term post as Head of Rugby. This was slightly peculiar as the post was for the spring and summer terms during which time there would be no rugby! Expecting a rugby interview, he was little taken aback at being tossed an orange

by Mr Dobson and being asked to show how to bowl a cricket ‘off break’ delivery with the said orange. He must have got it right as he was offered the job to start in January 1984 and a two term post subsequently turned into a 35 year career.

Richard came to the School with a formidable sporting CV. He had been 1st team captain in both rugby and cricket at Plymouth College, played county U19 rugby for Cornwall Schools and county colts cricket for Devon before representing Midlands Colleges whilst an undergraduate at Worcester College of Higher Education. It is, therefore, no surprise that Richard made sport his life and during his early years at King Edward’s he managed to continue to play as he combined his teaching responsibilities with playing club rugby at Trojans RFC, Rosslyn Park RFC, Salisbury RFC, and latterly at Romsey RFC. He also had four successful seasons at Fly Half for Hampshire RFU. He is a fine all-round sportsman, amassing thousands of runs for the Vikings Staff Cricket Club, bowling off spin and happy to field anywhere. His 104 not out on debut against the School’s 2nd XI gave notice of his abilities and he also scored a century against Solent University staff and 94 against Millfield School Staff ‘on tour’ in the late 90s.

A keen golfer too, Richard’s achievements in this field include winning the Staff Viking Pyke Golf competition in 2009.

Over the course of the 35 years at King Edward’s he has held many different roles.

For 20 years he was Head of Rugby, thereafter working with the U16 age groups. His focus has always been that sport is there to be enjoyed, first and foremost, although he works hard to enable students to be as good as they can be. He was not just an excellent school coach but also assisted with the coaching of Hampshire U18 Rugby XV for 8 years enjoying the different challenge of working with those who were more able. Richard also ran the U14 cricket team from 1984-2004 before moving across to U13 hockey from 2005-2019. There were many notable successes but he will certainly remember fondly taking his U13s through to the national hockey finals at Nottingham in 2016. Richard has also played a leading role in the PE Department running Sports Day for over 15 years, leading the Junior House sports programme, looking after Boys’ PE for 18 years before overseeing the whole of the PE programme in his final 6 years.

Richard has many strengths in other areas of school life. He taught First Year maths for many years and has been a valued member of the pastoral team having experience as a tutor in both the Lower and Upper School, where he was acting Head of Fifth Year for a year, before moving into the Sixth Form team where his contribution has been considerable. He has been the tutor of S18 and Richard would always build an outstanding rapport with those in his charge through a mix of high expectation and a good sense of humour instilling in them a feeling of trust and support. In addition he worked within the Careers Department as GAP year Coordinator for a number of years.

Richard is well travelled and he was very much part of the start

of sports tours at KES. He has participated in six rugby tours in total to destinations from Canada and the USA to Australia taking in Ireland and France in between, and a hockey tour to Holland meant he was the perfect person to take on the organisation of the World Tour of 2003. This was organised to celebrate the 450th anniversary of the School and took in South Africa, Australia and New Zealand with boys’ and girls’ hockey teams and the senior netballers.

In addition to this, he has been involved in twenty ski trips.

Richard’s many qualities have made him an excellent member of staff. His compassion for the students, his desire to see them succeed, his patience and good humour, as well as his considerable organisational skills have ensured that many pupils and former pupils have benefited from his guidance.

The School, and the department in particular, will be a very different place without Richard around and we all recognise the considerable service he has given to the School and its students.

Mr Kent

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Reverend Poppleton Rev Popps, Reverend Julian Poppleton, then Julian Poppleton, began his teaching career at KES in 1989 and was originally appointed to the School to teach A Level Geography and RE. He has worked under four Heads and seen a huge amount of change over the course of time. We all know him as the School Chaplain. He trained for ordination at Sarum College (1999-2002) whilst teaching full-time. During that period he was a Lay Chaplain, becoming the School Chaplain in 2002, with the addition of Stroud School Chaplain in 2012, under the Bishop of Winchester licence.

He has been an incredibly effective tutor in the First Year, Lower School and Sixth Form and a source of support for countless KES pupils and staff. He has managed all assemblies and services, Thanksgiving Services held in Winchester Cathedral, Carol Services in Romsey Abbey and at St Mary’s church. He has conducted funerals, memorials, weddings and dedication services. Awarded a sabbatical in 1999, he used this to develop and pioneer the PSHE programme, which he then led from 19992004. He has been part of the Extended Studies team since its inception, presented to Open Forum with the Sixth Form, and through Foundation Studies, has set up various community projects, run film studies, and latterly run the Forest School link with Stroud.

He has been important in many co-curricular projects: the most prolific of which must be the ‘Model Railway Club’, which had a 10-year hiatus from 1989! He is an accomplished musician and conducted the Chamber Choir in late 1990s, was in charge of Speech Day for some time, School Council from 1997-2013, Hospital Visiting for Sixth Formers until 2016, ran the Summer Camp project and recently has been in charge of the

Sholing partnership residential to Lovaton. Impressively, he has been on the Creative Arts student exchange to Charlotte, North Carolina five times since 2012, and will accompany the 2019 trip.

There have been many significant moments in his long time at KES. Sotoniensis bears out his attendance at many an A Level Geography field trip to Wales and minibus journeys with Mr Hunt, Mr Hall, Mr Gilbert and Miss Greenwood. otoniensis 1990: ‘they sprinted S gaily up the 1:7 gradient and did laps of the summit. Meanwhile somewhere near the rear, Mr. Poppleton ambled merrily along, picking sand out of his beard and trying to coax the sheep into a game of I-spy.’ otoniensis 1994 ‘Mr S Poppleton’s enthusiasm for wearing shorts absolutely everywhere waned…’.

He has had support and friendship from his RS colleagues over that time, including the inspiring and much missed Lloyd Kelsey.

He was the lynchpin for getting ‘It’s a Knockout’ off the ground the event for the whole school in the 450th Anniversary year. We shall remember his many years of Speech Day and Prizegiving performances, announcing of names and attempts at humour whilst trying to incorporate gags from whichever musical set was behind him on the Mayflower Stage.

As Chaplain, he has had some painful times to contend with: the open wound that was the disappearance of Dan Nolan; deaths of other students and colleagues all too young; but has spoken at and led funerals and memorial events, including the dedication of trees and spaces within the school – Colton, Twigg, Dobson, and Ben Smith, to name a few. It has been on these occasions that his empathetic and sympathetic abilities have

been most on show. He is a good man to have around in a crisis such as these devastations, and always a source of comfort to the friends and family affected.

You do not work at a school in such an important role without leaving a gaping chasm on your departure. He is greatly loved in the school community and we are all aware of the commitment he has had to us all. We shall miss Rev Popps hugely, but are glad that at least for a short time, he will remain as a visiting chaplain.

Miss Smith

14 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

Jane Thould Jane Thould joined the staff in February 2008 to provide extra tuition in literacy support to a handful of Lower School students. However, her job description quickly morphed into a fully-fledged teacher of curriculum support with responsibilities in investigating potential learning difficulties, helping students with special educational needs or disabilities to access the curriculum, supporting teaching staff, liaising with parents in providing reasonable adjustments for their child, providing study skills and handwriting support, and managing special arrangements in exams.

Suffice to say, Jane has made a huge impact on the department.

Her wily but ceaselessly diplomatic, courteous and empathetic manner have won her many admirers among staff and pupils alike. She is unfailingly kind and calm in a crisis. Her knowledge of students’ difficulties is profound but she has never relinquished the

learning habit and is continually looking to update her knowledge.

But, it is her gentleness and quiet authority with the children under her care that comes over most strongly. In this sense alone she will be leaving a big hole in our department and in the school community in general.

When asked recently about what she has enjoyed most about her role, Jane indicated that it has been her relationship with the pupils that come under her orbit. “I love,” she writes, “to be in a position where I am able to listen to them and put in place measures that might help them. Alongside this I have loved watching the relief as students have gained a greater understanding of what is impacting on their learning, and then gradually come to grips with how to manage it.”

Her meetings with parents have been no less impactful. Dealing with issues relating to SEND can be a sensitive area. Jane reports that she has gained a lot of professional satisfaction

from “managing to persuade particularly resistant parents to book an assessment for their child, and then watching them return with a transformed attitude, and a whole new insight into the difficulties that their child is facing.”

I am not alone in expressing huge admiration for Jane as a colleague.

Teaching staff have been unanimous in their praise. She will be much missed and we wish her well in her new ventures and wherever life happens to take her.

Mr Smart

Peter Collins Peter Collins joined the School as Head of Mathematics in 2009 after crossing over from Portsmouth High School. In his six years in the role, Peter was able to restructure the leadership of the department and introduced visiting speakers to our high achieving students by starting up the Mathematical Society. His monthly puzzles for the Sixth Form mathematicians were always well attempted, if not always successfully solved, given their level of challenge and interest. In the early years, Peter was involved with the Table Tennis Club and in his first year the KES team won the Southampton Senior Schools’

Table Tennis League for the only time in our history.

Since stepping down from the Head of Maths role four years ago, Peter has continued to work part-time and his contribution has been considerable. He has a wealth of knowledge and is more than happy to share his experience on different ways to approach particular topics. He is a lover of quirky mathematics and delights in finding little mathematical gems that he shares with the rest of us. He has most recently also been involved in running the Chess Club.

Peter’s love of the subject is apparent to all who have had the

good fortune to find themselves in his class. He will no doubt continue to engage in the mathematical world along with his interests in cats, gardens and Southampton FC.

Mr Eyssens

SOTONIENSIS 2019 2019||15 15

Lisa Duke Lisa Duke joined KES in September 2010 as a valuable member of the School Nursing team. Lisa was responsible as part of that team in delivering a high quality service of nursing care and health information to pupils and First Aid to all members of the School Community. She was a key member of the nursing team in dealing with pastoral issues and her warmth and empathy meant she always made time for pupils and staff alike. She competently stepped up and managed the Medical Room in 2014 whilst the Senior Nurse was on maternity leave and survived many a wet Saturday covering First Aid at Rugby fixtures.

Lisa was passionate about the pupils learning a crucial life skill of First Aid. She ran the First Aid Club for many years and became a qualified assessor for the 10 week British Red Cross First Aid course. Lisa was also instrumental in ensuring the First Year pupils were taught basic life support within the Extended Studies programme.

Lisa is also a keen member of the New Forest Brass training band, participating in many concerts and competitions.

She has now decided on a change of direction in her career; nursing animals instead of humans and has recently started training to become a fullyfledged Veterinary Nurse.

Lisa will be greatly missed by both pupils and staff, but we wish her all the best in her new venture.

Mrs Cox

Irene Anderson Irene Anderson came to the School in September 2014 from Hampshire Collegiate School, and immediately established herself as a driven, dedicated and talented teacher. She had a huge impact on the Music Department, working, in particular, with the Chamber Choir and the Symphony Orchestra. She was involved with, and organised, the Pro Corda Competition, the National Chamber Music Competition, joint ventures with the Winchester Cathedral Chamber Choir, the Hampshire County Youth Orchestra, the Christmas Tree Festival and Evensong at Worcester College, Oxford and Romsey Abbey.

This was alongside her huge contribution to the annual KES spring concerts, the Arts Festivals, Thanksgiving and Carol Services. The standard of the Chamber Choir grew impressively under her watch.

Irene taught Music and Music Technology to A Level, and pupils admired and respected both her teaching ability and classroom presence. After several terms she then took over the responsibility for the School’s partnership programmes, which flourished under her leadership. She also took on the role of Assistant Director of Studies, ensuring the smooth running of the invigilation schedule (an onerous task) and helping with the creation of the timetable.

Colleagues will remember her as someone selflessly committed to students, relentless in seeking their success and endlessly supportive of her colleagues.

She has a knowledge and passion for the subject, and is a talented yet modest musician.

We wish her the very best in her new role as she leaves us to take up a position at another leading

independent school heading up the Music Department as Subject Leader for Music.

Miss Smith

16 | SOTONIENSIS 2019 2019

Philippa Kirk Philippa Kirk joined King Edward’s in June 2014 as PA to the Assistant Head (Registrar). She quickly made her mark in the Admissions Department and her welcoming and friendly manner have made her the perfect person to be the first point of contact for families thinking of sending their children to us. Philippa knows a colossal amount about all areas of

the School and during her time here has refined and streamlined the admissions paperwork, improved the website and assisted with all aspects of the admission process. Philippa is incredibly organised, efficient and calm even when she is juggling many tasks. She is wonderful to work with and I shall miss her enormously.

Mrs Sheppard

Sarah Longman Sarah Longman joined the HR Department as HR Assistant at King Edward’s and Stroud in January 2016 with several years’ HR experience gained in a number of sectors. Sarah was critical in helping to develop HR processes at both schools and was instrumental in developing a programme of staff development for non-teaching staff.

Sarah’s friendly, helpful and approachable nature was greatly appreciated by staff at both sites and she has progressed into an HR Advisor role at St Swithun’s having developed a passion for HR, training and safeguarding children in the education sector. We wish her all the very best in her new role.

Mrs Sinclair

Niall Mason Niall Mason joined King Edward’s in 2005 as the part-time Theatre and Lighting Technician. He ensured the efficient day-to-day running of the Drama Department’s technical facilities, as well as the storage and maintenance of all the props and set equipment. He was instrumental in assisting with the set-up and

building of sets for various large scale drama productions during his time here. Niall left in October 2018 and we wish him all the best for his retirement.

John Dear John Dear joined King Edward’s in October 2001 after a career in coach building. Over the past eighteen years, John has worked as our Maintenance Technician across the school properties. He has been responsible for the upkeep and presentation of the building fabric and we have thoroughly tested his carpentry skills over the years.

John’s attention to detail helped to create the very positive experience enjoyed by pupils, staff and visitors on all of our sites and he always enjoyed a close working relationship with the Facilities Team. John leaves the School with all of our best wishes for a productive retirement.

Mr Baker

SOTONIENSIS 2019 | 17

Peter Jennings Peter Jennings joined King Edward’s in September 2018 and in that short time has made a very positive impression on both staff and pupils. He has brought his considerable experience to bear in the Debating Society, which has been rejuvenated, and he has taken them to several debating competitions.

He has also started up a KES newspaper, The Bugle, which has given students some valuable journalistic experience. Peter has decided to retire from teaching and we wish him a happy retirement and thank him for all he has done for the School.

Dr Schofield

Rachael Kairis Rachael Kairis joined KES in 2015 as a member of the Religious Studies Department. Rachael’s enthusiasm for the subject was evident from the start and her caring manner was a key part of her teaching. She brought innovation and vibrancy to the department. Rachael soon became involved in the Charities

Commission and was a very valued member of the Summer Camp team, even joining them on camp with her first baby. Rachael has decided to take a career break whilst bringing up her young family and we wish her well.

Mrs Searles

Jamie Shadbolt Jamie Shadbolt joined the Physics Department in 2015, having, with the exception of his interview lesson, never taught a Physics lesson in his life. He quickly established himself as a popular and capable teacher and a gregarious member of the science office. After teaching for two years at the School, in 2017, Jamie cycled from north to south across the entire continent of Africa, suffering a fairly serious bout of illness along the way. He survived the journey and returned to his teaching duties in the autumn term of 2018. Throughout his brief time at the School, he has been keen to involve himself in co-curricular activities including the Running Club and Summer Camp and his contributions have been much appreciated. He is moving to a

teaching job at an international school in Bulgaria in September where he will be the sole physicist amongst the Science Department.

The Physics Department at King Edward’s will miss him greatly, in particular for his natural intellectual curiosity, and the care with which he ensured his students understood his subject. Always one for a good debate, the science office will certainly be a different place without him, and he will always have his extraordinary model of the Solar System from the first Science and Technology festival as a memory to take with him. Naturally, Jamie is cycling from the UK to his new school in Bulgaria and we all wish him the very best of luck.

Mr Simm

18 | SOTONIENSIS 2019 2019

Dameon Garnett Dameon Garnett came to us in September from Merchant Taylors’ School, Northwood and, although his stay with us was brief, we are grateful for the impact he had on drama at King Edward’s in his short time here. He directed a most impressive production of ‘Lady Windermere’s Fan’ in the autumn term which was notable for its

strong emotional performances and striking monochrome design, as well as its slick acting and transitions. As his Head of Faculty for a time, I very much enjoyed working with Dameon and wish him all the best on his return to Hertfordshire.

Miss Smith

Bailey Hill Bailey Hill joined the IT Support team for the 2018-2019 academic year for the sandwich workplacement component of his degree studies at Portsmouth University. He has been an asset to the IT team within his role as Web

and IT Support Technician, and has learnt many valuable skills that he can take forward with him into the workplace upon the completion of his degree.

Mr Rigg

Sarah Songhurst Sarah Songhurst joined the organisation in January 2018 and worked across the two schools as Marketing and Development Officer. Although based primarily at Stroud School in Romsey, where she was responsible for the School’s marketing, PR and production of the annual Review, she also spent time at King Edward’s where she was

instrumental in helping to maintain and develop the new website content and devise a new Marketing Strategy for both schools. Although only here for a relatively short period of time, Sarah made her mark and we wish her all the very best in her new role, closer to home, at Winchester College.

Mrs Sheppard

Janette Roy Janette Roy joined King Edward’s in September 2018 as maternity cover for Mrs Gunton. She has taught English up to IGCSE level, and has done so with energy and enthusiasm. She has embraced the dramatic side of English teaching,

often encouraging students to perform in the classroom. Janette is taking up a post at the Gregg’s School and we wish her the best of luck and thank her for all that she has done for the School.

Dr Schofield

SOTONIENSIS 2019 | 19

The Allen Grant Competition Once again, the six Houses battled it out in the annual Allen Grant competition. The shield is awarded to the winning House that has scored the most points during the year in a series of academic, sporting and cultural competitions.

2019 LAKE 2018 LAKE 2017

LAKE

2016 LAKE 2015

LAKE

2014 LAKE 2013

LAWRENCE

2012

SYLVESTER

2011

SYLVESTER

2010

LAKE

2009 LAKE

All the Houses (other than Lake) were after the top spot, something that has eluded them all for half a decade, and in some cases longer.

The good spirit and sportsmanship of the House system is as strong as ever. As can be seen from the table, there was success across all Houses, but in the end, after a well-contested Sports Day and Swimming Gala to end the year, the victors were LAKE, the overall winner for the sixth year in succession!

Final Results House

Points

Place

Lake

184

1st

Sylvester

171

2nd

Lawrence

170

3rd

Reynolds

155

4th

Watts

153

5th

Capon

124

6th

The winners of the Lower School Cup, with 118 points, was WATTS. The winners of the Upper School Cup, with 37 points, was LAWRENCE. Overall winner for the sixth year in succession was: LAKE, with 184 points.

20 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

Sports Day Individual Cup Winners Mossman Cup for Leading 1st Year Girl

Lucia Poletti

Minns Cup for Leading 1st Year Boy

Rory Kilpatrick & Archie Chapman-Sheath

OEA Cup for Leading 2nd Year Girl

Claudia Hargreaves

Dykes Cup for Leading 2nd Year Boy

Harry McIlroy

Rowthorn Cup for Leading 3rd Year Girl

Ella Danby, Annabel Oddoye & Phoebe Rogers

B Gay OE Cup for Leading 3rd Year Boy

Billy Goodridge & Harry Day

KES Society Cup for Leading 4th Year Girls

Charlotte Dunkley, Ida Goodridge & Alice Kimmance

JH Guilmant for Leading 4th Year Boy

Ree Okitikpi

Victrix Ludorum for Leading Sixth Form Girl

Zoe Henderson

Victor Ludorum for Leading Sixth Form Boy

Harry Pizzey

New Records Ollie Knight

U12 Boys Shot

8.57m

Harry McIlroy

U13 Boys Hurdles

12.15s

Elinor Sharp

U13 Girls Hurdles

13.10s

Claudia Hargreaves

U13 Girls Long Jump

4.73m

Melanie Georgiou

U13 Girls 200m

13.56s

Destiny Annan

U13 Girls Shot

8.47m

Harry McIlroy

U13 Boys 200m

24.60s

Billy Goodridge

U14 Boys Hurdles

12.48s

Charlotte Dunkley

U15 Girls Shot

11.10m

Lawrence House

U15 Boys 4 x 100m

48.68s

Winning Houses 2019 Wright Cup for Winning 1st Year House

REYNOLDS

Cross Cup for Winning 2nd Year House

LAWRENCE

Caddick Cup for Winning 3rd Year House

REYNOLDS

Holt Cup for Winning 4th Year House

LAWRENCE

Chill Cup Winning Sixth Form House

REYNOLDS

Spranger Cup for Overall Winning House

LAWRENCE

SOTONIENSIS SOTONIENSIS 2019 | 21

Swimming Gala

22 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

CREATIVE ARTS

Art at KES The Art Department is a happy and creative place for our students to study and be part of. The open door policy gives our examination classes the opportunity to work outside of lessons, as well as a general space for students to work in the studios or Art library and IT hub.

The GCSE students worked hard and yet again have produced a varied body of work with fine examples of printmaking, painting and general creativity on display both as finished pieces but also in their sketchbooks.

The A Level students in Fine Art and Photography have produced some lovely projects for their coursework and examinations with Aelfred Hillman worthy of mention. His large exuberant canvases, based on the perception of the self and latterly ‘fragmentation’, are very ambitious with his art history underpinning all his work. Throughout his time at KES, Aelfred has led by example and shown his considerable talent in paint, ceramics and printmaking, as well as loving the academic challenges of Art history. Millie Downe’s A Level work is characterised by her exquisite use of line, which typifies her work; her life drawing is wonderful and reminiscent of Picasso in the way that less can be more. By drawing and studying her sister, Millie has also begun to draw herself. Lucy Kernick’s photography is thoughtful and gentle and it was exciting that one of her three exam days was spent in the darkroom printing. Her topics of the River Itchen and bus stops showed her sensitivity in recording the landscape and her work feels and looks remarkably English in the manner of Constable. Iona Howells photographed a fashion portfolio which provided for a rich and varied body of work. Her examination piece, looking at the theme of steps, culminated in her overlapping her imagery and it was very striking especially when seen on a lightbox. Christian Price’s photography was stylish, especially his studies of the Brutalist architecture along London’s Southbank. For his exam, Christian took a cinematic look at isolating petrol stations.

The second Peter Folkes Prep School Exhibition was a huge success with ten schools participating.

There was a wide range of work on display and the Atrium and Art Studios were put to good use showing off their work. The staff, parents and young pupils certainly enjoyed the opportunity to exhibit what they were doing. We were also fortunate and pleased to be able to have Peter’s family support this event and very grateful for a wonderful legacy of two more of his paintings to inspire the next generation of artists.

The Arts Festival saw the Art Department host a lecture by renowned art critic Martin Gayford who talked about the story of pictures from cave to computer. His writings on art are highly recommended to all. We also had our ‘artist in residence’ Mark Spray work with our Fourth Years as a precursor to him visiting us in the autumn term.

We also ran a Renaissance banner competition with the best being painted onto fabric and displayed along the length of the netball courts.

SOTONIENSIS 2019 | 23

Clubs and Societies within the department continue to flourish; our partnership schools have produced some lovely work and they enjoy being treated to a more sophisticated approach to learning about art that has been tailored to fit with their curriculum areas.

The popular and quirky Character Design Club, which allows Lower School students a highly creative outlet for drawing, painting and sculptures, is extremely popular as are the Sixth Form Foundation studies courses in ‘Cultural Understanding and Photography’.

This has utilised the new darkroom space and allowed for trips to see the Leonardo drawings at Southampton Art Gallery. Our students continue to secure good places at art schools but also on the top architectural courses such as the Bartlett.

Mr Piggott Head of Art

24 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

Dance at KES It is such a privilege to once again review another impressive year for the Dance Department here at KES. Our September intake of pupils further added to our talented cohort and they have all enjoyed getting involved in the various clubs and performance opportunities available. Our Dance Studio continues to be a lively hub for pupils rehearsing and taking part in a selection of clubs, including Ballet, Tap and Street Dance. The Dobson Theatre remains at the heart of the department with our pupils flourishing in their outstanding performances at our annual Dance Gala.

In February, KES hosted an inspiring workshop from Birmingham Royal Ballet based on their touring production of ‘Beauty & the Beast’. A number of enthusiastic Lower School dancers began their workshop with some ballet exercises and were soon learning repertoire based on the ballet’s choreography itself. The dancers portrayed woodland animals and were even given the opportunity to choreograph their own sections, which they all particularly enjoyed. In the evening, the pupils visited The Mayflower Theatre to see the company performing the steps they had learnt earlier, in their acclaimed production. The pupils left feeling inspired.

Dance has continued to feature in various aspects of school life and continues to be an important feature of our Endeavour programme, with pupils leading workshops for various partnerships schools. In March,

the School travelled to Winchester Cathedral to hold our annual Thanksgiving Service. As well as some superb musical offerings from the Chamber Choir, School Choir and Adult Choir, a particular highlight was the beautiful First Year ballerinas who performed alongside the massed choirs to Vivaldi’s ‘Gloria’.

The girls danced with professionalism and poise throughout, and did themselves proud. Internally, our dancers have performed at various assemblies and, externally, particular praise must go to Ella McCarthy who earned fourth place in the 13-14 girls’ category at the World Irish Dancing Championships held in North Carolina. Ella was awarded a digniora for her outstanding achievement.

At the end of the Easter term, the Dobson was once again filled with a glittering selection of the School’s finest dancers to perform in the anticipated annual Dance Gala. Bigger than ever before, the evening was an eclectic mix of dances and showcased the talents of our pupils in styles including Tap, Traditional North Indian Dance, Ballet, Irish, Jazz, Contemporary and Street Dance. The fifty strong cast of dancers took to the stage with professionalism, poise and energy. The dancers were also joined by the University of Southampton’s Advanced Ballet Squad who performed their award-winning piece ‘The Huntresses’. It was a dazzling evening and a true pleasure to celebrate the empowerment, freedom and enjoyment that dance brings our students.

SOTONIENSIS 2019 | 25

The summer term saw an exciting return of our vibrant biennial Arts Festival. It was an exhilarating three days of creative workshops and performances, designed to challenge and inspire. Our students took part in various workshops including aerial work, commercial dance with West End performer Omari Bernard, and musical theatre dance where they learnt some of the repertoire from ‘Mary Poppins Returns’ with Leon Cooke who starred in the film. It was a fantastic few days.

The next academic year will see further exciting challenges for the Dance Department as pupils from all years tackle ‘West Side Story’ in their autumn musical production. Rehearsals are well under way and the cast and production team are all very excited to share what will no doubt be a fantastic production of full out choreography and emotion. Dance has continued to have a notable year at KES and we are looking forward to seeing it continue to grow in the next academic year.

Miss Barnett Head of Dance

26 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

Drama at KES The Dobson Theatre is now in its second year and without a doubt it has been used, both internally and externally, to its full capacity. Over the summer holiday the Mayflower Theatre staged their youth theatre production of ‘Les Miserables’ and the BBC made excellent use of the space to broadcast Children in Need live for the South East. The Dobson Theatre is also used for Stagecoach, and we have a busy, ongoing LAMDA programme in the Drama Department. The theatre also has brand new staging facilities for the pupils to use and put together themselves in the lessons, which they have really enjoyed doing. They have also really benefited from our investment in superior lighting facilities, in particular the use of coloured lighting, LEDs. We have also arranged the Dobson to create an even more theatrical feel to the space, using the ‘wing’ curtains in lessons and beyond. The department has also had something of a ‘make-over’ and we have compartmentalised our costumes, make-up and properties in to designated spaces and areas.

A costume space with a rack and shelves has been constructed behind the seating, for this purpose.

We have enjoyed a busy Lower School Drama Club, run every Tuesday lunch-time, and the year began with some excellent GCSE performance pieces that were of a very high standard, both for the Preview Evening, where parents came to watch, and the actual examinations. Both the Twigg and Dobson Theatre spaces were used so pupils are getting a full breadth of experience of how performance spaces are used in context.

The year began with a fantastic musical, ‘Gedanken in your Heart’, written by Mr Herklots, performed in the Twigg Studio. On Remembrance Day, ‘The Secret Battle’, written by Dr Schofield, was performed in the Dobson. It was an excellent and challenging production and really stretched the acting skills of all those involved.

In December, this year’s Senior School play was ‘Lady Windermere’s Fan’. It was a visually very exciting production, starring some of the School’s best performers, and the evenings started by recreating an atmospheric Victorian street, using the students from Drama Club to play the children.

In early February the Sixth Form play, ‘Schoolboy Errors’, written by Mr Collinson, was directed by Evie Wateridge. The script and the performances raised lots of laughs from the audience. Some great comic character creations and a solidly constructed set really fitted the piece.

SOTONIENSIS SOTONIENSIS 2019 | 27

The successful Lower School May production of Kenneth Grahame’s ‘Wind in the Willows’ involved a cast of 45 students from First Year though to the Third Year. There were some exceptional performances notably Toby Ellis as gregarious Toad of Toad Hall. The production engaged and entertained an audience of over 600 over the three performances, including an invited audience of primary school pupils from Springhill and Stroud.

Later in the summer, the Arts Festival provided many opportunities to get involved with drama activities which included a physical theatre workshop. The Lower Sixth students prepared their Component 1 examination pieces for June and enjoyed working with physical theatre practitioner, Luke Brown, in preparation for these. They showcased their work during #KESFEST. We continue to support the LAMDA programme, which saw students performing extremely well in their summer exam with thirty-eight students being entered. There was a 100% pass rate with 14 distinctions and 20 merits awarded. Two students received their Gold grade 8 award (equivalent to an A Level), seven received Silver grade 8 awards (equivalent to an AS Level) and six received a Bronze award grade 6 (equivalent to a GCSE).

Auditions also took place for next year’s musical extravaganza, ‘West Side Story’ which promises to be a spectacular event.

Mrs Gilmour Head of Drama

28 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

Of Mice and Men On the afternoon of Tuesday 25th June, ten members of the Third Year performed John Steinbeck’s novel ‘Of Mice and Men’ in front of their year group as part of the dramatic side of the Arts Festival.

The cast was made up of relative acting novices plus a few big hitters, with the former taking the main parts. Sophie Keeble played George, by far the most demanding part in terms of lines. Sophie hadn’t played a great many main roles before, and it’s fair to say that she found the whole process both stressful and demanding, but in the final performance she was superb, nailing her lines and finding her inner itinerant worker! Rudy Barr, as Lennie, was as brave as I have seen any school actor of any age. Playing a character with a mental age of eight, who has to fight a co-worker and murder his boss’s wife, is not a part that a non-actor should sensibly take, but Rudy was a revelation. Jaina Dhillon, as Candy, managed to find the poignancy of the victim beautifully, and she has a natural stage charm factor that made the shooting of her dog all the more tragic. Our two main big hitters, Ben Thimbleby and Robert Ingram, were their usual charismatic selves, raising the energy of their scenes.

Ben played the super-cool Slim, complete with Toy Story hat, and Robert the embattled and embittered stable-buck, Crooks. Kym Anderson, really going against type, played the nasty, aggressive Curley.

This was a stretch for Kym, but he was aided by the fact that he has done some boxing, which was useful for the fight scene. Mathias Potter was all irritable aggression as Carlson, the dog-shooter, and he did so with energy and verve. It’s certainly not easy to get called a ‘tart’ throughout a play, then get murdered, but Kate Dunn did so with insouciance and maturity.

Annabel Stoneadge, as Whit, was lively and natural, and Anna Morley, with a difficult turn as the Boss, played her part with confidence.

I am immensely proud of all these actors for delivering such a challenging play with such smoothness, veracity and style.

Dr Schofield

The Secret Battle In the summer of 2017, I was given a sabbatical by the Governors, my remit being to write a play about the First World War to be performed as part of the School’s commemoration of the centenary anniversary. It was during my research that I came across ‘The Secret Battle’. The novel, published in 1919, tells the story of Harry Penrose, and the secret battle he fights is ostensibly with his commanding officer, but also with his own demons. In today’s world, Penrose might be diagnosed with low selfesteem or anxiety. He was terrified, not of dying but of being a failure (or the ‘regimental dud’ as he calls it).

Herbert himself knew something of life as a soldier.

Like Penrose, he enlisted in the ranks, then fought in Gallipoli, was injured, then went to Northern France.

Many of the experiences in the novel are inevitably taken from Herbert’s own experiences, but the essence of the story is based on the life of SubLieutenant Edwin Dyatt. Like Penrose, Dyatt also had problems with his commanding officer, and this played a large part in his execution for desertion.

Lloyd George recommended the novel to Winston Churchill, who famously called it ‘one of those cries of pain wrung from the fighting troops… like the poems of Siegfried Sassoon [it] should be read in each generation, so that men and women may rest under no illusions about what war means’. The novel was well received critically but not commercially, and Herbert subsequently concentrated more on light journalism, introducing a humour that is missing from his first piece.

There has never been a stage adaptation of the novel (although it was adapted for the radio in 1957), and given the accolades from Churchill, and the firsthand experience of Herbert, I decided to lean on the shoulders of giants and adapt it for the stage. The problem of adapting a novel is that it generally moves around geographically so much that it’s difficult to pin down to specific scenes, and unless you want to move scenery around every few minutes, you have to reduce the number of settings drastically.

SOTONIENSIS SOTONIENSIS 2019 | 29

The novel also covers three years of Penrose’s life, and it is impossible to dramatically reproduce this and still keep the action flowing. I have therefore introduced a new character into the story: Harry’s wayward sixteen-year-old son. This allows for the older version of Harry’s best friend, George, to tell the story to young Harry and provide dramatic continuity.

In our production George was played with authority and humour by Luke Davies, and the young Harry by the effervescent Hugh Dunlop. In a superb piece of casting (if I say so myself!), Hugh’s big sister, Ellie Dunlop, played Peggy, young Harry’s mother, and she did so with dignity, style and a touch of steel. The younger version of George was played by Edmund Bissett, who gave the character a warmth and urbane charm that was perfect for the hero’s best chum. Gus Berry unwound his considerable height to play the part of the decent Captain Egerton, and Gus’s superb posture must have added another two inches to him! In my experience it’s difficult to find a decent baddy at KES (they’re all so nice!), but Alex Brain, fresh from playing the villainous Hook in ‘Treasure Island’ was devious irritability personified as Lieutenant Burnett. Another tough job was playing the younger Peggy, who in the novel is rather passive, but Beth Ryan invested the role with more strength. Sam Thompson was his affable self as the ukulele-playing Lieutenant Burnett, but we saw a tougher side to him as the Prosecutor later in the play. Lizzie Lotery also doubled up, as Private Twigg and the Defence Lawyer, and she did so with tremendous energy and verve. Several students had hardly done any acting before, and they rose to the occasion brilliantly. Arev Melikyan, Alex Zhou and Ewan Horn all excelled in their parts as Lieutenant Stephenson, Lieutenant Eustace and Colonel Philpott. John Joyce and Grace McNichols came to the party late, John playing Colonel Roberts with bumbling charm, and Grace showing great artistic reach playing the unrelenting Major-General. It’s certainly not easy playing someone of a different gender, and younger students Hannah Smith and Xanthe Thompson did so with great bravery and authenticity. Alex Cone and Toby Ellis, as hardened soldiers on their way back from Gallipoli, also did a great job and Toby rounded off the evening by playing the bagpipes.

Special mention should go the lead, Henry Gwillian, who played Lieutenant Harry Penrose. He invested a huge amount of time and emotional energy into the part, and the result was an unforgettable performance. Henry was concerned that his closing speech would leave the audience a little bored, and I can admit now that I had my worries as well! On the contrary, it was electric, and Henry can really hold an audience’s attention.

I am very grateful to Mrs Arnold for her seamless and professional stage management, and to Mr Consterdine for designing and building a brilliant set, and for his perfect lighting and technical support.

I am also very grateful to all of the cast, who were a reliable, dedicated and, at times, hilarious bunch of performers. As I told them several times, we were all very privileged to be a part of such a special evening, and I feel that we did our bit in commemorating the Great War.

Dr Schofield Beaucourt Revisited

by AP Herbert I wandered up to Beaucourt; I took the river track And saw the lines we lived in before the Boche went back; But Peace was now in Pottage, the front was far ahead, The front had journeyed Eastward, and only left the dead.

And I thought, how long we lay there, and watched across the wire, While guns roared round the valley, and set the skies afire!

But now there are homes in Hamel and tents in the Vale of Hell, And a camp at suicide corner, where half a regiment fell.

The new troops follow after, and tread the land we won, To them ‘tis so much hill-side re-wrested from the Hun We only walk with reverence this sullen mile of mud The shell-holes hold our history, and half of them our blood.

Here, at the head of Peche Street, ‘twas death to show your face, To me it seemed like magic to linger in the place; For me how many spirits hung around the Kentish Caves, But the new men see no spirits-they only see the graves.

I found the half-dug ditches we fashioned for the fight, We lost a score of men there-young James was killed that night, I saw the star shells staring, I heard the bullets hail, But the new troops pass unheeding-they never heard the tale.

I crossed the blood red ribbon, that once was no-man’s land, I saw a misty daybreak and a creeping minute-hand; And here the lads went over, and there was Harmsworth shot, And here was William lying-but the new men know them not.

And I said, “There is still the river, and still the stiff, stark trees, To treasure here our story, but there are only these”; But under the white wood crosses the dead men answered low, “ The new men know not Beaucourt, but we are here-we know.”

Herbert is recalling the losses which his battalion suffered during the attack at Beaucourt in November 1916. Herbert was on leave in February 1917 shortly after his regiment had once again been to Beacourt and it is believed that is when it was written.

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Music at KES The Music Department could not have started the year with a more exciting project than the BBC ‘Children in Need’ live nationwide broadcast! The Lower School Choir hit the ground running with enormous excitement as the sixty-five members attended filmed rehearsals with the BBC in October, alongside a few of our rising stars being interviewed by BBC presenter Anjana Gadgil.

Creating a combined choir with partnership and local primary schools, we showcased a 200 strong choir broadcasting live from the Dobson Theatre. The very memorable evening also included a star turn from our Swing Band performing ‘The Bear Necessities’ live on South Today. The choir reached the biggest audience of the day, watched by seven million viewers, and it was a record night for fundraising as people in the BBC South region donated £4.7m to ‘Children in Need’. We really could not be more delighted and grateful to our young singers for such a moving performance and for making such a huge difference for such a worthwhile cause.

The year’s busy start did not leave our instrumental players behind! In September, our string players had a chance to work side by side with professional musicians, joining forces with the Westminster Chamber Orchestra. A day of workshops and rehearsal culminated in a stunning chamber orchestra concert of the finest string repertoire.

The concert also included soloist Cordelia Williams performing Mozart Piano Concerto in A major.

KES players performed with real passion and commitment, having had just three weeks to perfect the repertoire they rose to the challenge brilliantly setting the benchmark for excellence in orchestral playing. It was wonderful to launch the orchestral year with such an impressive concert.

The Act of Remembrance and Memorial Garden dedication on Friday 9th November featured musical performances from the Chamber Choir,

soloists Jackson Taylor for the Last Post (Trumpet) and Daniel Simojoki performing the Elgar Cello Concerto Op.82 Movement I Adagio. It was a moving occasion and the musicians really impressed with their sensitivity and virtuosic standards. Music enthusiasts headed to Turner Simms to hear Alfred Brendel reflect on his rich and impressive career and the autumn term ended with a heart-warming Carol Service bringing together old friends and new with our Community Choir. The occasion was a truly joyous one with rousing congregational hymns to warm us through the winter evening and a particularly divine rendition of Elgar’s ‘The Snow’.

Uniting around 120 KES musicians filled everyone with Christmas cheer and concluded a term of both unique and memorable events.

January saw the first rounds of the KES Music Competition 2019, adjudicated by Dr Samantha Carrasco. Pupils selected works ranging from Beethoven and Mozart to Kovács and Schönberg to the delight of the audience. The runner-up and winner of the Grade V – VII category, Lucy Walker and Barnaby Saer both displayed sparkling rhythmic energy and confidence on the stage. The Senior category Grade VIII + runner-up Edward Bence, gave us great variety in his interpretation of

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Beethoven’s Rondo from Sonata no. 9 and Senior category winner Aelfred Hillman was mesmerising.

His performance of ‘Shalom Aleichem, Rov Feidman’, rich with characterisation and exemplary technical prowess was a worthy winner. The commitment of every performer and the musicality on show was a delight for friends and family in the audience. The competition was swiftly followed by a performance from our resident band ‘Donny Brook’, who took to the stage of The Mayflower in February as part of a gala concert in support of Wessex Heartbeat. They performed two original songs during the evening to rapturous applause from the 2,000 strong audience.

Music A Level students attended a workshop with Apple Music’s Jono Buchanan exploring and discussing what a music degree can lead to. It provided a valuable insight into the world of the music industry and working in a creative sphere.

It was the turn of our Junior musicians to shine in February with the annual Junior Spring Concert and we were not disappointed! A fantastic array of diverse musical talents delighted a packed Dobson Theatre. This was followed by a mesmerising Senior Spring Concert. KES musicians were outstanding in their professionalism and showmanship, giving us all a night to remember. The spring term finished with a beautiful Thanksgiving Service at Winchester

Cathedral in which our choirs bought a tear to the eye with stunning performances of Fauré and Rutter.

The summer term included trips to the Royal Opera House for a performance of ‘Tosca’ and to the Mayflower for ‘The Magic Flute’. Musicians also managed to pack in three Music While you Lunch concerts and Lower School singers joined forces with local choirs and the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra for a gala concert at the Southampton

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Guildhall celebrating their 125-year anniversary. Dr Carrasco returned to KES adjudicating our younger performers (Grade II – V category). Congratulations to Euan Primrose who won in this category and to Billy Smith, the runner-up.

We finished on an exceptional high with the Arts Festival. This 3-day spectacular celebrated all that is rich, diverse and amazing in the field of creative arts.

A particular highlight included a Jazz Evening with the Paul Jordanous Ensemble playing side by side with our Big Band and Swing Band.

This year’s festival included musical workshops in: African drumming, microphone techniques, song writing with Southampton Academy of Music and Sound, ABRSM examination techniques, steel band, theatre singing, jazz performance and improvisation, film music writing, open studio sessions, DJ-ing, orchestral percussion and a cappella singing with Imperial College’s ‘Techtonics’.

The festival also welcomed over 200 visiting primary school pupils for workshops and performances on its final day. Street theatre marked the end of the celebrations including concerts from our bands alongside premières of composition produced by our talented rising stars. It was a wonderful opportunity for pupils to see creativity in music-making spanning so many disciplines and passions, helping them to see how creativity is embedded in the culture of KES.

Miss Forsey Director of Music and Head of Creative Arts

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String Ensemble The creation of a string orchestral ensemble was a must, as our advanced string players started the year with playing side by side with the Westminster Chamber Orchestra in concert at the Dobson Theatre. In just three weeks, our instrumentalists performed works by Sibelius, Holst and Rawsthorne in a beautiful concert. The repertoire showcased the best that string chamber orchestral playing has to offer and the group set the benchmark for quality performances.

We knew from that moment that a string chamber orchestra had to be part of our KES Music Department! They performed again in the Senior Spring Concert with fantastic pieces by Piazzolla and Jenkins in their own right before accompanying Aelfred Hillman in his stunning performance of Mozart’s Clarinet concerto. I cannot wait to see what treats they have in store for us next year!

Miss Forsey

Lower School Choir What a fabulous start to the academic year for our younger singers – a live BBC broadcast for ‘Children in Need!’ The 65 strong choir could not have given us a more enchanting performance of ‘A Million Dreams’ when they join forces with local schools. This impressive effort continued as they gave their all in the Carol Service in December. Members of the congregation were truly impressed with the quality and enthusiasm of their sound.

Lower School singing filled the Dobson once more in the Junior Spring Concert and as part of the Music While You Lunch series. Our singers have really enjoyed their celebrity status!

Miss Forsey

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Senior Choir

Chamber Choir

The Senior Choir shone in the Carol Service this year as they performed alongside members of our community choir. It was an uplifting and joyous celebration of Christmas song. They mastered the fiendishly hummable ‘The Holly and the Ivy’ round, giving great pleasure to the listening congregation.

They performed again as part of the Thanksgiving Service in Winchester Cathedral. It was exquisite to hear them perform Vivaldi and Fauré in such an exceptional setting.

The reputation of Chamber Choir as an exceptional group has resonated amongst the student community this year. The Carol Service performance of Elgar’s ‘The Snow’ left no doubt that this choir is something special. They continued their outstanding efforts in both the Senior Spring Concert and Thanksgiving Service. It is a joy to hear them perform. They ended the year side by side with the ‘Techtonics’ from Imperial College as part of the Arts Festival workshops and many of the choir members will be delighting us as leading cast members in ‘West Side Story’ next year.

Miss Forsey

Miss Forsey

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Sinfonia Sinfonia is an ensemble in which younger musicians can gain experience and confidence. Rehearsing weekly, our diligent performers displayed excellent dedication to preparing for the Junior Spring Concert. Each week, our wonderful students created an atmosphere of fun and camaraderie as we learned the scores of iconic films such as ‘Star Wars’, ‘The Snowman’ and tackled popular songs such as ‘Rock Around the Clock’. After a stellar performance in the March concert, the Sinfonia continued to enhance their repertoire with a challenging baroque piece by Purcell. Their exemplary performance of the theme from ‘Chariots of Fire’ at their summer lunch concert was a fitting and true testament to the hard work and enjoyment they shared all year.

Miss Hayden

Swing Band Members of the Swing Band have been busier than ever this year, with an itinerary filled with prestigious and high profile events. The ensemble hit the ground running in September, preparing for an exciting, yet demanding, televised appearance live on Children in Need; all players showed their mettle in rehearsals, memorising the music and combining their efforts to achieve a polished and stylish performance under challenging and unfamiliar circumstances. At Easter, the ensemble was a highlight of the Junior Spring Concert, where their performance combined a typical sense of professionalism and slick musicianship, and drew positive comments from many audience members. Energetic rehearsals continued throughout the busy summer exam season, culminating in appearances, in the space of four days, at the Romsey Youth Music Festival, in the #KESFEST Big Top in front of the whole school, and as part of the Jazz Evening where they performed alongside Big Band and the astounding Paul Jordanous Ensemble. With their talent, energy, commitment and general sparkle, this group of musicians has made a real mark on the Music Department this year. We are grateful to them all for their amazing hard work and we are extremely proud of their progress.

Mr Belassie

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Big Band 2018/19 was a unique, exciting, and highlight-filled year with The KES Big Band! The first highlight for me was being able to record and perform some original compositions by our lead alto saxophonist, Ben Carter. His tunes were mature and refined, and the band had a great time putting them together!

Another high point was the grand performance of ‘Brazil’ which featured the Big Band, vocalist Ellie Dunlop and many of the KES string players. It was one of the most exciting performances we have ever had! Finally, to top off a great year, we had a wonderful Jazz Day at the KES Arts Festival in June.

Professional musicians who regularly play with the likes of Olly Murs and Rag’n Bone Man visited KES for an entire afternoon of workshops, rehearsals, master classes and a final evening performance. The students got a variety of high-level tuition, experience and advice from these wonderful musicians!

Musical Theatre Group Musical Theatre Group has continued to bring out a love for all things ‘Jazz Hands’ amongst pupils this year! They have continued to learn repertoire from their favourite musicals (Hairspray, Matilda and The Greatest Showman), while also being introduced to repertoire from lesser-known musicals, such as ‘Once On This Island’. They have further developed their basic vocal technique, and have carried on exploring differing vocal qualities, adding ‘Sob’ to their list after last year’s ‘Twang’! Pupils have also had the opportunity to take part in Musical Theatre Singing Holiday Workshops in school, where they have added staging and choreographed movement to the songs they have learnt!’

Miss Simon

Mr Carrasco

Rock Academy This year’s Rock Academy has continued to be a melting pot of music, talent, hard work and performances, with new bands finding confidence and established bands growing into full blown performers.

‘Battle of the Bands’ saw the bands pushing the boundaries of their personal and group skills in front of hundreds of people.

They also showcased the many songs they have learnt throughout the year at the Arts Festival in July.

The photo shoot was again a highlight with even the shyest student showing a glimmer of the star performer within!

Mr Kotch

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CLUBS AND SOCIETIES

Astronomy Society Astronomy Club has continued this year with observing sessions at school in December.

Unfortunately, we were not able to use the site at Toothill this year due to maintenance work taking place, but hope to get back up there next winter.

Monday sessions for the GCSE qualification have continued throughout and next year is the examination year for those studying.

Mr Simm

Beekeeping Club Following a successful season, a move across to the DT block and a mild winter, the bees emerged without a queen. This signals the end of this colony as although bees can continue to live in the hive for a few months, no more bees are forthcoming.

The strong group of now experienced students representing all age groups in the School will, therefore, have a quiet season and look to rebuild with a new colony next year.

If you think you may be interested in learning about being a beekeeper, or just think you might like to put your head into a hive of bees just once, then get yourself involved.

Mr Robinson

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Byron Society Esteemed Byronists and non-Byronists alike, It is our honour to recount to you what frivolous and scandalous activities the KES Byron Society have partaken of this year. To pay the deference that is due to our Lord Byron, this year began with a jaunt to London where we were lucky enough to visit Byron’s place of residence and retrace his footsteps around the city through his own eyes.

In true Byronic style, we even met a Suliote chieftain along the way who helped us cross a busy road, dashing between some rather scary and bizarre-looking things unlike anything we had ever seen before...‘cars’. Our horse and carriage then dropped us off at Byron’s place of birth where we frolicked outside, reciting Byron’s poems.

Although the weather in London was unfavourable and wet, suns soon graced our skies after a very special visit from Dr Emily Paterson-Morgan, an esteemed Byronist, who gave a very detailed talk on Byron’s affair with the notorious Lady Caroline Lamb entitled, naturally enough, ‘Mad, Bad and Dangerous to Know.’ Dr Paterson-Morgan, the Director of our Parent Byron Society in London gave us the opportunity to learn even more about our designated characters within the social context of Byron’s time. Upon speaking with her afterwards, she hopes to find more of Byron’s artefacts and continue her niche work on Byron and Religion - hopefully a topic that will be discussed by the KES Byron society in the near future.

As a climax to these festivities, we then hosted the infamous ‘Lady Caroline’s Spring Ball’- a titillating and rip-roaring evening including Regency games such as writing down our true feelings about our companions in secret streams of consciousness, Regency Call My Bluff, and even an impromptu sword fight between two of our members, Mavrocordato and Hodgson. It was absolutely delightful to see everyone in their evening wear and, as always, we can assure much more scandal, besides sword fighting, ensued...

Although we are sad to no longer be leading the KES Byron Society we hope to spread our enthusiasm for Byron wherever life may take us. We can only hope to receive an invitation in the future for another outrageously extravagant KES Byron Society event.

Yours fondly, Mrs Constance Spencer-Smith and Prince Alexander Mavrocordato (aka Evie Wateridge and Raul Patel,

Presidents of the KES Byron Society)

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Cactus Club

Fifteen glorious years…

Since its foundation in 2003, Cactus Club has enabled cacti at KES to flourish and to establish themselves as prickly customers whose “ouch” can be heard. 2019 has been another exciting year, and has included a sustained series of lively lectures and demonstrations during the Monday lunchtime meetings. We have also had our annual field trip to Kew Gardens and we have deployed of cacti on the moons of Jupiter - an initiative eagerly embraced by the membership. The enthusiasm, determination and leadership of Tom Mitchell yet again ensured that the club continued to move forward in a purposeful and entertaining way.

The winners of this year’s competition in March were: Category: Succulent Winner: Quintus (Max Bouras) Category: Group Winner: Power of Three (Jamie McManus) Category: Solo Winner: Spikey (Lucy Giles) Category: Space Ready Winner: Jacob (Thomas Mitchell) Category: Refugee Winner: El Matcho (Tobias Hill) Our visit to Kew Gardens in late April was notable for our discovery of the specially commissioned glass cacti installations. The Log Trail too was again very

popular. However, our main focus for the day was the Princess Diana Conservatory and the wonderful cactus collection there. Our next destination, within the 300 acre site was Kew Palace, which provided not only shelter from the gale which howled around us all day, but also a building full of interesting historical documents relating to the development of the site. A number of cacti souvenirs were purchased from the shop before our departure for home.

Following on from the issue of handbooks and prickly pear seeds previously, this year each club member was given a small cactus to nurture. Some students did so well that a number of these appeared in the annual competition, with El Matcho securing success in the ‘refugee’ category. Owner Tobias Hill proved an equal to Monty Don with his diligence and husbandry.

The club was showcased during the October Open Evening with information boards, competitions, an inflatable cactus and, for the first time, Mexican bunting. The latter drew the expected attention to our stand and we had a record number of visitors tackling questions on a wide range of cacti and succulents.

Members prepared and presented a range of talks and demonstrations this year for the education and entertainment of our keen cactus hunters. Lucy Giles showed us slides of pictures by the great Victorian adventurer and cactus artist Marianne North, whose gallery at Kew holds 883 of her pictures. A memorable

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presentation by Colin McCann, won the President’s Prize for inspiring ideas and other topics included “Conkers, Nuts in Cactus Jackets” (a club favourite), the Los Angeles Cactus Society, the Cactus Kahoot Quiz and Cactus Police, Cactus Doctors and Cactus ABC. New for this year was the Festival of Cacti which provided members with the opportunity to bring in their cacti with the emphasis solely on celebration.

Members of the club undertook three challenges this year to keep them sharp. The first, The Goblet of Prickles, provided members with a set of challenges.

The First Task - The Golden Cactus In the first task, designed to test courage and daring, the champions each must try to steal a golden cactus from the former President known today as King James.

The location of King James is known only to our current President. The bestowal of suitable gifts will result in the granting of knowledge. Beware! When the golden cactus is tickled it will emit a screeching, wailing sound. To understand the sound it is necessary to “take a bath” with the cactus. When listening to the sound underwater, it is possible to understand the sound as words. A clue will be given for the second task.

The Second Task - The Lake/Cactus Rescue The second task, which lasts for one hour, requires the champions to rescue cacti who were dear to them from the lake at Kew Gardens. Further details will be given out at the appropriate time beforehand.

The Third Task - The Cactus on the Tube In the third task, the champions have to enter the maze of the London Underground which is filled with dangerous obstacles. The President’s Prize Cactus (Plato) is located in the centre of the tube system,

Ceramics Club Ceramics Club was newly formed in September and has been well-attended by pupils from the Upper School and Sixth Form. A generous donation from the KES PTA has funded some specialist equipment and materials.

Members of the club have experienced producing ceramics by throwing clay using the potters wheels and subsequently glazing their products with the range of glazes available. Regular attendees are enjoying refining their techniques and are progressing remarkably well. Many find working with clay a great way to de-stress.

Mrs Sheridan

protected by a sphinx which poses a riddle. The first champion to bring Plato safely to Kesh at the Paddington Station coffee bar using five different tube lines and calling “Make way” every 30 seconds will receive full marks for the task.

Amazingly, this competition was wonderfully successful, with all candidates completing all three tasks in the three weeks allocated. Afjal’s video of his time in London when tackling task three was a masterpiece of guile and bravery.

Project Seagull followed on. Students researched the great adaptability of cacti to survive in the most inhospitable of climates and their teams provided us with some astonishing and brilliantly investigated presentations on these five moons of Jupiter. Science, cactus care and space blended perfectly.

We finished the year with our third initiative: “Return of the Champions - training day” allowed the winners in the annual competition to bring in their champions again for the benefit of members so that successful cactus rearing ideas could be shared.

We look confidently towards the next school year with our handbooks and compost at the ready. We thank Mr Giles for his continued support and Mrs Wood and Dr Gamblin for so willingly banging the cactus drum in the right quarters, and for all their time and patience in making the Club such a success. Tom Mitchell has been a fantastic President and we wish him well as he sets off to Scotland (to study at the University of St Andrew’s) to bring the message of the wonders of cacti and succulents to those north of the border.

The Cactus Club Team

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Character Design Club There has been a very productive and creative atmosphere in Character Design Club this year. The students have been creating clay busts of their characters, pen and ink illustrations, and are finishing the year by creating their own surreal floating islands which were displayed in the Summer Exhibition.

Miss McGinn

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Charities Commission Charities Commission has had another busy and enjoyable year hosting a variety of events, shows and stalls. We have raised money for a range of charities from local organisations, such as ‘The Honeypot Children’s Charity’, to national campaigns, such as ‘Children in Need’. Turnout to both Upper and Lower School Charities has been fantastic, with lots of new faces getting involved in fundraising.

We began the autumn term with the Toy Appeal Fun Run, in which the whole of the First Year embarked upon a sponsored run around the School dressed as their favourite toy. All money raised went towards purchasing Christmas gifts for local disadvantaged children. The first non-uniform day and Krispy Kreme sale raised money for ‘Clic-Sargent’, a local charity that fights tirelessly to stop cancer destroying young lives. Later that term, the Commission hosted a week of events prior to the BBC filming of the ‘Children in Need’ Choir at the School. These events included Staff V Student Dodge ball, ‘Mr and Mrs’, live music and creative stalls. In December, the Summer Camp team

ran the First Year Christmas Disco, a brilliant evening where much fun was had by both Sixth Form and First Year students. Towards the end of term, the Sixth Form raised money for Save the Children by wearing festive jumpers on top of their usual working attire.

The Commission’s Christmas stalls were once again a big hit with handmade decorations, advent calendars, gingerbread men and presents all pre-wrapped for sale. The new addition of the Christmas Karaoke stand made the whole affair extremely enjoyable watching both students and teachers attempt to sing along to the festive classics.

The spring term opened with a bang with Summer Camp’s Annual ‘Battle of the Bands’ competition in January. Many talented students performed with a range of acts. The annual ‘triathlonathon’ saw pupils manage to keep three exercise machines going constantly for twelve hours raising lots of money and heart rates! The ever-popular ‘Would I lie to You’ event returned for the Fifth Years and Sixth Formers. The traditional pancake sale took place on Shrove Tuesday run by the Lower School Charities Commission.

For Valentine’s Day, we held a range of events in which all proceeds went towards the British Heart Foundation. These events included Chase the Cupid, an obstacle course, scooter racing and the rather ironic sweet sales. For Mothering Sunday bunches of wooden roses were sold and the term ended with the annual Easter stalls where the commission created handmade jars of chocolates, an elaborate Easter egg hunt and other chocolate goods.

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Baking and eating cakes remains a favourite pass time of KES pupils and we had a Krispy Kreme sale to kickstart the summer term in which all donations went towards Abby’s Heroes. This term’s non-uniform day money was donated to the Honeypot Children’s Charity and, in addition, the Commission held an awareness day. This involved face and nail painting, ice cream sales and bees constructed on the School Field out of donated coins.

Bumble, the charity mascot, was even able to visit and take part in the lunchtime events. The Commission also ran the Charities Café at the Arts Festival and finished the year with the annual shoe collection for Sal’s Shoes ‘Toe to Toe’ Campaign. This provided the opportunity for students to donate any shoes they, or their family, may have outgrown to be sent to a child in Africa.

We are once more grateful and humbled by the contributions and work that our pupils put in to fundraising and improving awareness for a number of charities and my thanks to the pupils and staff involved.

Miss McGinn

Chess Club

The Chess Club meet together on four lunch hour slots per week.

This year the stalwarts have been Ed Bence, Duncan Little, Jeremy Hill and Beau Darrer.

This year the House Chess Competition was won by the Sylvester team. In a nail-biting lunchtime two very hard games were fought which both ended in

a draw. The first match ended in stalemate and the other draw was reached by a repetition of moves.

There were some excellent closelyfought matches and it was lovely to see members of staff lending their support to the players. My thanks to Dr Dean for helping me throughout the year.

Mr Collins

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Christian Union Christian Union has met regularly on Tuesday lunchtimes partaking in a variety of activities from listening to talks to engaging in meaningful discussions about the big questions of life – and also eating some cake along the way!

up until Easter. These included a look at the topics of science and faith, prayer and a walk through the bible using the Bible Project Resources. Mr Smart and Mr Aellen both gave us excellent thought-provoking presentations this year.

With members from the Fourth, Fifth, Lower and Upper Sixth, all year groups were represented as we made plans for the year. A variety of talks, discussions and guest speakers were planned over the two terms

As a group we look ahead to the new academic year.

New members and ideas are always welcome.

Mr Robinson

Classical Society It has been an exciting and very busy year at Classical Society with members spanning from Second Years to Sixth Formers. We have had many fun and entertaining activities such as the KES Classics puzzle, the Big Classics Christmas Quiz and even a Classical bake off as well as multiple debates putting the classical civilisations against each other. In addition to these activities, there have been a range of different talks by multiple brilliant Fourth Years, from two informative talks about the Sumerians and Akkadians by Tasmiah Safat-e-Jannat and presentations on Norse mythology, the Kofun

Cookery Club We have had a very busy year with pupils from all year groups and with a number of students participating in the club in order to fulfil part of their Duke of Edinburgh commitments. The KES Bake Off has been strongly fought at the end of each session and particular congratulations go to Matt Dyer for his raspberry and chocolate brownies. We have cooked a variety of dishes from Thai green chicken curry to beautiful scones. We look forward to new culinary masterpieces next term.

Mrs Searles, Mrs Quinn and Mrs Barnes-Wardlaw

period in Japan, and the connections and similarities between different ancient mythology. The Society also had an opinion’s hour with a variety of perspectives on the portrayal of women in Greek mythology including myths such as Helen of Troy, Zeus and Medusa which brought up many intriguing ideas and interesting points about today’s society’s problems.

One of the biggest highlights of the year was Emily Smith’s latin play ‘Tyrannosaurus Rex’ and next year we are planning to bring our version of ‘Antigone’ to the stage.

Sophia Skenderis

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Debating Society The success of the Society this year is largely due to the efforts and abilities of John Joyce, ably supported by Sam Pereira and Abdullah Quraishe. As the new member of staff in charge, I needed time to understand my role and it was several weeks before I stopped trying to hand out information on debating rules, ordered cake and let John and his team get on with running the show. John’s firm and friendly leadership has guided the society into a strong position, with numbers at the weekly after-school meetings now threatening to exceed the capacity even of L1.

The autumn term saw the Society settle into a productive routine, starting the meetings with general conversation over refreshments, followed

by Society business and announcements before the President brought the House to order and opened the formal debate - once the House had scrambled to push desks and chairs into the right positions.

There has been a wide range of motions, providing Society members opportunities to practise presenting an effective argument and also – an important ability – to withstand and refute opposition. In October, there was a lively debate with MedSoc on whether the practice of medicine is more art than science. Despite a spirited argument being put forward to the contrary, the scientists won the day. The term ended with debating games, led by Sam Pereira, and a balloon debate in the Dobson Theatre.

The spring term began with participation in the Debating Matters competition, hosted on this occasion by Solent University. Although we did not win outright, society members were praised individually for their performances, with Tim Ward being recognized as Best Speaker on the day. Another notable achievement at this time, was the revival of Junior Debating, led by Rebecca Chamberlain and Elsa Buerk. There was a presentation in a First Year assembly and Upper School members engaged in a mini-debate on whether schools should allow pupils to dye their hair.

Several First Years spoke in the floor debate and the occasion sparked considerable interest. The last meeting of the term saw the formal vote taken for next year’s President and Vice-Presidents.

In the summer term, twelve society members, accompanied by Mr Jennings and Mrs Hardwick, travelled to the Isle of Wight to compete with teams from Ryde School. Arrangements went smoothly, owing in part to Mr Ayers’s kindness in driving us to the ferry terminal. There were two debates, Junior and Senior, and in each case the judges decided that our teams had presented a more convincing case, with Elsa Buerk declared Best Speaker. The journey home, over sparkling seas under a blue sky, is certainly a pleasant memory to retain of the final Society event of the academic year.

Mr Jennings

46 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

Digital Leaders

The Digital Leaders have continued to work productively through this year at KES. The annual Digital Leader Conference that took place at Stroud brought together groups of Digital Leaders from schools across the south to meet, talk about their roles and work through a series of workshops each using different aspects of technology. Activities at this event ranged from Sphero programming, working with LEGO mindstorms, BBC micro:bits and working with Google Classroom to explore the Big Mac Index, all of which culminated in a presentation from each of the participating schools. Each presentation gave information about the work of other schools giving other students ideas that they may use in the future.

Other projects have been completed since this time - an assembly on the future of computing was given to the First Year as well as two assemblies as part of Safer Internet Day. The Fourth Year members have been working on a project using an Arduino which will allow them to measure CO2 levels in different areas of the School. These same pupils have also continued to offer technical support to the First Year group

bases during their fortnightly visits. The new First Year Digital Leaders worked on creating a helpful document containing revision tools for exams, which was put to good use during the First Year examinations. Members of the Sixth Form Digital Leaders have continued work on the bus monitoring and reporting system, which is soon ready to enter a testing phase.

We have also been working with a number of primary schools in after school sessions when we have been designing a game through Kodu. We have also helped with a partnerships day in which Shirley Junior, Portswood and Mount Pleasant primary schools all came to KES to experience three separate sessions on IT related activities.

Looking to the end of the academic year, an assembly for the Fourth Year is also planned on the subject of Robotics and Artificial Intelligence and during #KESFEST, a session will be run on recreating iconic movie music from a number of classic movies, through the use of the garage band iPad app.

Daniel Miller

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Economics Society Economics Society has once again thrived this year under student leadership; all those involved have put energy and ideas into preparing a varied programme of internal and external speakers for 2018-19.

and the ‘B (Brexit) word’, his role in the Conservative party and his duties as an MP. He also answered a selection of questions put forward by students, concerning issues both past and present.

The season began with a talk on Prospect Theory by Sam Rachman. With economists and non-economists coming together, the crowd reached around fifty. In a first for the Society, we had a father-son double header with Dr Jonathan Rachman kindly coming in to give a fascinating talk on behavioural economics and its application to areas from marketing to diabetes research. It was an excellent turnout, but Sam was keen to claim bragging rights in terms of audience numbers.

The Society also invited back Dr Antonella Ianni from The University of Southampton. A long-time supporter of the Society, Dr Ianni was as engaging as ever, bringing to life the complicated topic of Game Theory, which attracted both economists and mathematicians alike.

Another external speaker was Jonathan Ellis who came to speak regarding his experience as an international campaigns adviser. Currently with contracts from the George Soros Foundation, he gave a capacity crowd an insight into the importance of the use of economic arguments in order to generate change in society. This was swiftly followed

by Co-President, James Harden, who delivered an insightful talk into China’s economic rise. This was part of the extended project qualification and his detailed research addressed threats to China’s recent economic success.

This year, Economics Society also joined with Politics Society to host Royston Smith, MP for the Southampton Itchen constituency. He gave an oversight of his views on the current political climate

The final talk of the year was given by Harry Field, an Old Edwardian and former President of the Society.

Harry, who is just finishing his Economics degree at Nottingham University, gave an excellent talk on why missing out on his Cambridge offer was not the end of the world, and how best to go about securing a job in investment banking. His talk gave some really useful practical tips for those about to head off to university, and those wanting to work in the financial sector.

This was a great year for the Economics Society and hopefully next year will see similar success.

Aditya Rokade (Co-President of Economics Society) Mr Culver adds: Once again, a heartfelt thanks to those who ran the Society, attended the talks, and especially to the speakers themselves. Next year’s Society will be run

by Charles Thomas, Kira Morton and Oliver Showell.

English Society The Booker Prize Challenge took place in the first half of term, and once again students were challenged to read and discuss all six books on the short-list, but this time in even less time: about four and half weeks. It is a tough challenge, and was completed by only one student: Ellie Dunlop, who plans to apply to Oxbridge to read Literature in the coming year. There were some fascinating novels on the list, although the group’s favourite, ‘The Long Take’ (written entirely in verse), did not get the prize.

Newly retired Mr Mason came back to the School to give a talk on World War One poetry, entitled ‘Never Such Innocence’, and Dr Schofield gave a talk on ‘Paradise Lost’. On 14th February the Literature students from the Lower and Upper Sixth visited Dorset for a Valentine’s Thomas Hardy Day (all the students are studying ‘Tess of the D’Urbervilles’). We visited the Hardy family cottage where he was born; Hardy’s house, Max Gate, in Winchester; his local

church in Stinsford; Talbothay’s Dairy, where Tess and Angel Claire fall in love; and Wellbridge, where the lovers honeymoon. Along the way there were several talks at the venues, readings by students, a Hardy quiz, as well as plenty of discussion. The day was topped off with an excellent cream tea at Moreton Tea Rooms.

The Fifth Year visited the Mayflower Theatre on Tuesday 26th February to see ‘Macbeth’, which is an examination text. This National Theatre production ‘propels Shakespeare’s classic title into a postapocalyptic world of anarchy and uncertainty’.

For World Book Day (7th March) we held a series of lunchtime talks on the theme of ‘Telling Stories’, with Graham Greene and Kenneth Grahame on the list, as well as a World Book Day quiz. In the summer, we also had weekly talks for the Lower School on each novel nominated for the Carnegie Book Award.

Dr Schofield

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Equality and Diversity Society Now in its second year, The Equality and Diversity Society is going from strength to strength. We were lucky to have Mads Duffin as our President this year and her cheerfulness, and hard work, were appreciated by all involved.

The first event we celebrated was Black History Month in October, which we marked by making a banner with the words ‘Black History Month’ made of thumb prints from members of the School and giving out free Afro-Caribbean treats such as jollof rice and puff puff. Next we celebrated International Men’s Day on 17th November, with free gingerbread men for all and a selfie frame for photos. Into the New Year, we marked International Women’s Day with an enormous ‘Virgo’ symbol for photos and more free goodies for the students, including decorated ‘genderbread’. The biggest event of the year however was the second

annual KES Pride Day, where we celebrated all aspects of diversity with rainbow themed everything, including more cakes than anyone could eat and a highly successful silent disco that saw over a hundred students dancing their lunch hour away.

Mr Collinson

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Eureka Club Eureka Club is the new and exciting lunchtime club that took off with a few fledgling meetings during the summer term of 2019. It incorporates teaching and learning techniques, some elements of Scamp Club and a little blue sky thinking.

Eureka Club - where ideas grow!

This club is open to all First, Second and Third Years with a special focus on those students who wish to cultivate their fantastic ideas and make them happen…

To develop a quality or skill.

Key topics covered so far are: • Should Xenophon have followed Socrates’ advice to the letter when consulting the oracle at Delphi before joining the ill-fated, yet heroic, forces of Prince Cyrus?

• Dave Keeling’s Thought Grenades as an Aid to Learning • Consistency, Humour and A Sound Set of Notes

Archimedes, the man who said the word.

The club runs on Wednesdays in CL3. Planned future sessions are: • The Secret of Success • Mixed Fruit Salad • I’m a Celebrity, Get Me Teaching Here Sometimes we have special guest students by invitation. All hope to develop experience-based techniques for problem solving, learning, and discovery.

The Principle As with Scamp Club, Eureka has Classical Greek roots.

Archimedes was a Greek mathematician, philosopher and inventor who wrote important works on geometry, arithmetic and mechanics. He is most famous for discovering the law of hydrostatics, sometimes known as ‘Archimedes’ principle’, stating that a body immersed in fluid loses weight equal to the weight of the amount of fluid it displaces. Archimedes is supposed to have made this discovery when stepping into his bath, causing him to exclaim ‘Eureka!’

The Eureka Club Team

First Aid Club So far this year we have run two separate First Aid Clubs and we now have five more newly qualified First Aiders with certificates from the Red Cross Life Live It schools programme.

Our programme includes basics like the recovery position, CPR, keeping yourself safe in emergency situations, bleeding, burns and choking. We also cover a range of medical conditions such as diabetes and epilepsy that the pupils are encouraged to research. They then report back with their research using a variety of media including power point presentations, role plays and even posters.The course also cover topics such as bites and stings, hypo/hyperthermia, sunburn and sunstroke, all topics that are relevant to anyone wanting to do Duke of Edinburgh award and also gain important life skills.

We have a range of equipment in the Medical Room that we can use for demonstrations such as resuscitation, and a choking Charlie and baby mannequins with which we can teach a range of first aid skills. The students have enjoyed using a training defibrillator so that we can equip them with the skills to use these potentially life-saving machines.

Each course lasts 10 weeks and each pupil who successfully completes the programme is awarded a certificate in conjunction with the Red Cross with a qualification that lasts three years.

School Nurses

50 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

Geography Society Alongside a number of talks from students and staff at KES, the society also attended a number of different evening lectures along the south coast.

In Bournemouth, students experienced a night of geopolitics, and learnt about the possible future for the Arctic Ocean. At Turner Sims, members listened to the wise words of Tim Marshall, as he discussed the geography behind the walls which are springing

up around the world. The society also welcomed back the explorer, Charlie Walker, as he discussed several of his past and future trips. In September, a large group of students attended a presentation by Simon Reeve about his travels around the world. These talks have all helped students to see the impact of geography outside of the classroom.

Mr Brown

German Club

Keen Germanists have spent one lunchtime per week this year practising vocabulary through fun and competitive games. Early on in the year, students got involved in promoting the language at the European Day of Languages stalls where there were games to play and German food to try. They prepared for

Christmas in a typical German way; by decorating a gingerbread house before quickly breaking it up and eating it! There is no doubt that the students who have attended the club have broadened their vocabulary.

Mrs Hall

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Greek Club Ancient Greek Club continues to meet at the beginning of every Friday lunchtime with a fantastic group of Third and Fourth Years attending. We have a group of very dedicated students who come every week and bring energy to the clubs with their unique sense of humour which leads to very interesting and educational classical conversations. The newcomers spend the sessions working on learning the alphabet and going through Gorilla Greek. For those of us

Green Team Over the past year, the Green Team has continued to work towards making a big difference by altering the small things we do and consume. Green Team students meet regularly to discuss our most pressing issues. Members have led assemblies to all year groups; particularly focusing on the impact of single-use plastics, and how to reduce the devastating impact they have on our planet. To make environmentally-friendly changes less of a jump, the team ran Christmas stalls where students could buy waste-free presents and hopefully continue this pattern when buying in the future.

As well as simply informing ourselves and our community about the environmental issue that we are facing, we have taken action to reduce plastic in the oceans, by participating in a beach clean at Friar’s Cliff in conjunction with The Marine Conservation Society, and by securing funding from the KESPTA to run our own beach clean in due course.

The Green Team have been working closely with the Sustainability Committee as each work with a different body within the School but reach for the same goals; members of the team sit on the committee and share their concerns as well as listening to their queries. This close association has been maintained by student members being on the Committee and attending their termly meetings; reporting on what has been achieved and contributing with innovative ideas.

During #KESFEST, the team ran workshops for younger members of the School and created a visual representation of the plastic issue we all face. A Level DT students were at the centre of this project and we are very grateful for their efforts which brought the installation to life. We hope that students and staff alike will be able to stick to the pledges that they made in order to make a difference.

Ellie Yonge, Sustainability Prepositor

who are more advanced, our sessions are more focused on studying the ancient Greek sentences and translations from the GCSE Greek book. As well as language, the club is also about discovering more about Ancient Greek culture and we hope to see it continue in the coming school year.

Sophia Skenderis

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Greenpower

With the Greenpower racing season spanning two academic years, the first opportunity for the team in 2018 was the International Kit Car Finals at Rockingham Speedway on Friday 5th October. The KES racing team, led by Alex Everest in the Upper Sixth, made excellent use of the practice time available and delivered a perfectly executed strategy for the race. Being able to fine tune the amount of electrical power to the engine really gave the team an advantage and enabled them to roll over the finish line having used every volt of battery power. The overall result of 21st was the best result to date and the whole team should be very proud of what they achieved in the 2017/18 season.

Taking great confidence from the result at Rockingham, the team turned its attention to preparing the proven race car for the first test session of the new season and also beginning the assembly of the brand new kit car that had been purchased with generous funding from the KESPTA. To secure the money, members of the Greenpower Club attended and talked during the KESPTA AGM. The PTA was suitably impressed with the team’s achievements and ordered the new kit car, which will provide much sought-after driving and pit crew

places at future races. With several girls already involved in the Club, it is hoped that we could put forward a girls’ racing team in the not too distant future.

The next event on the Greenpower calendar was the Goodwood test session on Sunday 3rd March. Storm Freya made for some interesting driving conditions at the pre-season test session. Very cold track temperatures, force 8 wind gusts and heavy rain tested the drivers, pit crew and car to the limit. The team’s waterproofing measures held up well, giving new drivers the valuable opportunity to experience some difficult laps ahead of the new season. The team managed to run for an impressive three hours which was a great achievement in the conditions and provided useful feedback on car setup for the qualifying heats.

It was then back to the workshops to dry off and make sure the car (and the team) were well prepared for the next and final challenge of the school year.

During this short gap in events, several members of the team took the time to travel to Stroud School to take part in their STEAM week. By talking about the race car and the work they have done over the past season, the students hoped to encourage and inspire the next generation of young engineers.

As the weather began to warm up, it was time to travel to Goodwood once again to compete in the regional heats and, with places at the International Kit Car Finals at Silverstone up for grabs, the team hoped to produce a strong performance.

Temperatures hit the mid 30s during the day before these Goodwood heats and team members were understandably a little concerned as electric motor efficiency is notoriously affected by warm weather and heat. On the race morning cloud cover and a milder temperature greeted the team as they arrived very early at a packed Goodwood circuit.

SOTONIENSIS 2019 | 53

The day’s racing consisted of two, 90-minute qualifying heats, which were fiercely contested by a record number of entrants. The KES racing team opted for a conservative strategy for Race 1 which allowed them to finish strongly, gaining four places on the very last lap of the heat, to earn them an excellent 10th place finish in the kit car category.

Seventy-one cars lined up for Race 2 towards the end of the day and by then the clouds had disappeared and track temperatures were creeping up to the mid 20s. With a similar, but slightly more aggressive, strategy the team had a superb final quarter of the race going from 11th to 6th place by the time they passed the chequered flag.

These 10th and 6th places combined, will have earned the team a place in the International Kit Car Finals at Silverstone in October. A massive congratulations to the KES racing team on their best qualifying performance so far. Everyone is now looking forward to Silverstone!

A special thank you and farewell goes to Alex Everest whose contributions to the Greenpower Team during his time at KES cannot be understated. Alex has been a valued member of the team since First Year and his outstanding work on the electronic speed controller and his management of the team in the past few years has been a vital component of the team’s success. Thank you Alex, good luck and we hope to see you again in the future.

Mr Blow

Historical Society 2018/19 has been another full and exciting year for the Historical Society. Under the careful and considerate stewardship of Omar Al-Gholmy and Mihir Thakrar, the Society enjoyed a number of talks ranging across the centuries and, with the introduction of A Level Politics, also addressing some more contemporary issues than before, such as the history and current situation of the Police Force in the UK. Perhaps the highlight of the year was Mr Thould’s farewell presentation. Mr Thould has been a strong supporter of the Society over the years, and to mark his retirement was invited to speak for one last time.

The result was a spellbinding talk on “Robin HoodMyth and Reality” that even included the Headmaster singing a medieval ballad about the famous outlaw to his appreciative audience!

Mr Diver

Interface Every Friday, a group of First, Second and Third Years met in M10 (now S2) to play games, attempt challenges, consider topical issues, compete at quizzes or solve problems. Often the big questions of life were touched upon and all viewpoints were welcome.

During the last year there were plenty of games of chance, pyramids were built, famous artworks considered, people attacked by snakes, death cheated (Romans 6:23), family fortunes won and arguments for the existence of God analysed. Lateral thinking played a part, Bob Dylan and William Cowper quotes were discussed and ambidextrous students and those with the ability to confidently draw on their heads achieved success. There was definitely something for everyone!

Mr Singleton

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Japanese Club Students come to Japanese Club for a variety of different reasons: some of them love Japanese anime or computer games; others are curious to learn a language that is very different from the European languages that they study as a part of the school curriculum. Here are a few key phrases (chosen by the students) that they have learnt this year. こんにちはお元気ですか。(*^ω^*) - Hello, how are you? konnichi wa ogenki desu ka. これは何ですか。- What is this? kore wa nan desu ka. これは猫です。- This is a cat kore wa neko desu. リングバインダーはいくらですか。- How much is the ring binder? ringubainda- wa ikura desu ka.

2,000 ¥ - 2000 yen ni sen yen desu. たかいですね - That’s expensive, isn’t it! takai desu ne. でもかわいいです - But it’s cute. (*´ω`*) demo kawaii desu. 週末に 何をしますか。- What do you do at the weekend? shuumatsu ni nani wo shimasu ka. 私は友達に会います - I meet up with my friends. watashi wa tomodachi ni aimasu.

Emma Appleby, Charlie Bowdidge, Sophie Keeble, Tilly Abraham, Hannah Smith and Poppy Culver

Linguistics Olympiad Club This has been a fantastic year for the Linguistics Olympiad Club. We have met regularly on Friday lunchtimes to look at many different language puzzles, dealing with diverse topics from the German spelling reform to the Georgian alphabet, from Gaelic place names to Scandinavian animals, and from the Elder Futhark runes to the ancient Oscan language of southern Italy. In February, our Fifth Year and Sixth Form students sat the UK Linguistics Olympiad, a competition that brings together the most able linguists from schools across the country.

Our KES pupils performed very well indeed, but a particular mention must go to Jessica Lu, who earned a Bronze certificate, and Charis Saer, who took Silver. We look forward to meeting up again next year, and invite any keen Upper School and Sixth Form pupils to come and join us. No experience is necessary!

Mr Jepson

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MedSoc This past year has again seen a wide range of speakers address MedSoc. From research-based careers to hands-on sessions, every talk further demonstrated the variety in a medical career, never failing to motivate the new batch of aspiring medics.

The year started with a talk from OEs Claudia Tam and Ben Atherton. Hearing students who are currently studying medicine at university speak about their successful experience through the gruelling UCAS process certainly motivated the Lower and Upper Sixth members. The rest of the year was equally as inspiring, and listening to speakers from diverse medical backgrounds continued to stimulate members of MedSoc. Whilst we saw some familiar faces from previous years, like A&E consultant Diana Hulbert and Professor Deborah Mackay, both of whom delivered fascinating talks, the past terms have seen some new speakers give a fresh perspective on medicine. Some of the most notable included Dr Robert Wheeler and Dr Jon Rachman.

Experienced paediatric and neonatal surgeon, Dr Wheeler gave an in-depth talk about medical law and ethics. This gave members a great insight into a very important aspect of medicine, and knowing about principles such as Gillick competency and candour proved invaluable for medical school interviews. Dr Wheeler expertly used examples of cases he had come across whilst studying for his law degree and his experience as a doctor, to demonstrate these medical ethical principles further and this really helped the members to grasp the concepts more effectively.

Another thought-provoking talk came from Dr Rachman, a specialist in diabetes and a senior research fellow at Oxford University. Beginning with a background of his early life in South Africa, and demonstrating his own pathway into medicine, inspired many at the talk to certainty on a medical application. Dr Rachman then continued to discuss his career and interactions with the pharmaceutical industry and specifically the new development of diabetes drugs. Dr Rachman revealed there were now drugs that encourage weight loss whilst still maintaining blood sugar levels. GLP-1 can, with an active weight loss lifestyle in conjunction with the drug, lead to six to nine pounds of weight loss, a remarkable figure. As drug development progresses and medical techniques advance, one may ponder the future of medicine and potential applicants will certainly consider their place in this future.

MedSoc also had the opportunity to attend a ‘School for Surgery’ day at Queen Alexandra Hospital.

Students attended various workstations, which allowed them to insert a needle into the vein of model dummies, practise keyhole surgery using actual instruments, learn how to hold a needle and stitch safely, resuscitate a person and also learn how to

interpret x-rays and CTs like a radiologist. Alongside this learning, students were able to speak to medical students and junior doctors to understand what life is like when training and working in the medical profession.

Last year, in preparation for Section 3 of the challenging BMAT, MedSoc ran a number of essay workshops. Often students who are inclined to a career in medicine decide on science based A Levels and by the time of the BMAT, many students feel underprepared for the essay writing section. Despite both the BMAT and the UCAT examinations evaluating a skill set outside of the A Level curriculum, thorough preparation can ensure good scores and support a candidate’s application.

In the final weeks before the application deadline, more support sessions for the BMAT and Medical Interview Days saw the Lower Sixth safely through their UCAS process. Next year, MedSoc will be back with more talks in the same vein to help and encourage any future medics. Our thanks to Mrs Millar for running the society and for helping to prepare aspiring medics for the medical application process.

Raul Patel and Harmeena Sekhon (MedSoc Presidents)

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Mountain Biking Club We have had twelve active riders this year, The group have participated in regular Sunday rides in the local area (Swinley and the New Forest) and enjoyed termly residential trips. Two of these have been on Dartmoor utilising the Rural Study Centre at Lovaton as our base and the Summer residential for Fourth Years (during Endeavour) to Betws-y-coed in Snowdonia. This change of destination enabled us to visit different trails and also take in a night-time climb of Snowdon to enjoy the sunrise. Whilst there we also took the opportunity to take in ZipWorld in Blaenau Ffestiniog for a ride on the TITAN ZipWires. All riders have shown a solid improvement in their riding skills this year. Well done!

Mr Barnes

Music Technology Club Music Technology Club started well this year with good numbers and has stabilised with some core members.

The club has been supervised by Mr de-Zilva with the help of Sixth Form students who have assisted other younger students using Logic Pro X to create their own music and learn the basics of recording.

Some students used their music compositions for elements of their D of E awards, whilst others for their own music or to consolidate skills.

Mr de-Zilva

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Partnerships Partnerships have again been at the forefront of the School’s co-curricular activities. It has been an exciting time with an ever-wider range of local schools and children making the most of the opportunities and facilities that the School offers.

Our students have benefited enormously through developing their leadership and mentoring skills.

This year has seen the continuation of our popular schemes in Science, Art, Philosophy, Maths, ICT and Literacy where we have worked with a variety of local schools including Springhill, Wordsworth, Highfield and Nursling Primary Schools. Our students have had the chance to forge relationships with the students they have mentored on a weekly basis and we are immensely grateful to them for the energy, commitment and empathy that they show in working with the younger children.

The children took part in a range of exciting activities from dissecting frogs to interpreting Homer’s Odyssey and creating models of survival shelters in Art. We are also indebted to the teachers whose creativity and enthusiasm enable these activities to be such a success. This year we ran a Languages Club for Year 4 students from Springhill, where our gifted and talented Sixth Form linguists delivered lessons with engaging games such as ‘Simon says’ and ‘Pass the parcel’ and even learning the song Baby Shark in German!

There have been a number of events organised by different curriculum areas to complement our work in this area. In November, the School hosted a Classics conference in which children from Beechwood and Wordsworth Schools were invited to join the Roman legion. The students thoroughly enjoyed the experience of marching around the School holding their legion’s standard aloft; the day also provided a fascinating insight into Roman culture and a chance for the students to develop a passion for the classical world.

At the start of the summer term, our Lower School students were able to showcase their dramatic talents in front of an audience of local children as they performed ‘The Wind in the Willows’. The children were unanimous in their approval of an impressively staged production, which brought Kenneth Graham’s classic story and characters to life.

In May, Mount Pleasant, Portswood and Shirley Junior Schools visited the School to participate in our inaugural Computer Science Day. The students took part in three different workshops, which gave them the chance to use iPads, learn how to code and develop their programming skills. In June and July, over 500 local children and six different schools took part in our Endeavour and Arts Festival events. For Endeavour, our Fourth Year students took the lead in organising a range of workshops including drama, dance and public speaking, as well as a Sports Day for Year 4 children.

The year concluded with a group of our Lower Sixth students accompanying a group of students from Sholing Junior School to our Rural Studies Centre in Lovaton. This visit encompasses many of the aims of our Partnership programme and it is extremely rewarding for staff and students to observe the close bonds that are established during this type of activity.

Mr Sinclair

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Photography Club The photography group has been very popular once again this year as we have met on a Thursday lunchtime to engage with a number of different photographic activities.

We have been on numerous photo ‘walks’ in the local area, photographing parts of the common and the cemetery as well as local roads. A number of interesting techniques have been investigated inside, as we have used the studio equipment, photographed miniatures, smoke and painted with light. We have also used the drone to take photos.

There have been two opportunities to showcase these pictures with competitions and shows, each with several categories. Photos taken with DSLRs, phones and iPads have all been entered. We have also had an excellent talk on photo projects led by Roger Buchanan. Photos by members of the group can always be seen on the display board in the Mathematics corridor or on the school website.

Mr Robinson

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Sailing and Paddle boarding Club During the autumn term, Sunday afternoon sailing was very well-attended by members of the School Sailing Club and has now resumed after a break for the colder months. Some students took advantage of the courses run by SWAC over the Easter holidays and gained qualifications up to stage 4.

During the Summer term sailing sessions are available on Sunday afternoons and midweek after school, when pupils also have the opportunity to go paddle boarding. Some pupils are using sailing as part of their Duke of Edinburgh Award in the skills or volunteering sectors.

Pupils can experience sailing a range of dinghies at SWAC, and can opt to sail solo or with other students. We have had fun cruising both up and down river, racing, playing games and have sometimes teamed up with pupils from Stroud.

A number of Sixth Formers have enjoyed learning power boating skills through the Sailing Club and this remains a popular option for Tuesday afternoon Foundation Studies sessions.

Mrs Sheridan

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Sanskrit Society Sanskrit Society continued this year with a small group of the Fourth Year’s classicists and linguists.

We learnt the Sanskrit characters and how to form sounds so that we could start translating the stories and different words. After we had mastered this skill, we began working on separate work at different rates with some of us working on the stories and translating, and others working through the work book. In between the stories, we learnt the grammar

and sentence structuring such as noun declensions, and were introduced to new cases such as the locative and the instrumental, as well as beginning to learn the language. The stories have also taught us about ancient Indian mythology such as the stories about Rama and Sita. This year we enjoyed watching an animated movie about the story of the Warrior Prince Arjuna.

Sophia Skenderis

Scamp Club Curtis Crowley, Rose Blackman, Hazel Webb, Ibrahim Chughtai, Joe Smith, Iona Todd, Tom Edwards, Ben Barr, Tom McCarthy and Lucy Giles.

We remember fondly Joe Smith for winning the Alan Turing Challenge for cracking the code in 12 exciting minutes. Alex Chapman did remarkably well too in identifying John Cairncross as the member of the Ring of Five who worked at Bletchley during the war.

Club Record: Tuesday 1 March 2016: 23 in attendance.

2012 to 2013

Current Membership of the Club (2019): 55.

From Curtis Crowley’s foundation in 2010, through the golden years of Rose Blackman’s inspired direction when the membership blossomed at 40, to our current head who has widened the range of our interests in an educationally broadening way. Hazel Webb weaved an exciting blend of lectures, visits and explorations during 2012 and 2013. Our trips this year took the form of a return to Bletchley Park and to the Science Museum in London. Special exhibitions on Alan Turing at both institutions inspired us to put together a small project on this mathematical genius and at Bletchley we were pleased to visit his office. The year was rounded off by Tom Edwards who gave a bravura performance in his lecture on aerodynamics. Much fun was had in designing the best flying object, identifiable or in some cases not!

The first ten years The first ten Presidents:

The Early Years Scamp Club was formed in 2010 and is named after the dog of its first President, Curtis Crowley. Initially a lunchtime Classical Greek Club, increased appeal and membership caused it to evolve into one of the School’s most esoteric weekly gatherings. Seen by many as the natural successor to the famous Lone Pine Club, immortalised in the novels of Malcolm Saville, and bearing strong Swallows and Amazons tendencies, the club revelled in its sense of adventure, the opportunities provided to budding lecturers who pursued their passions, and the wide range of topics presented. No week was the same. That first season included talks on the Spartan Scytale, odes in the plays of William Shakespeare, Kim Philby’s secret war, Sherlock Holmes and the tale of the Dancing Men, and a four-part lecture series on conspiracy theories.

In July 2010 the Club undertook its first field trip to Bletchley Park.

Over the past ten years the staple of the club has been its Tuesday talks, enhanced by annual visits to the School’s Rural Studies Centre at Lovaton plus film trips which have included ‘The Imitation Game’ and ‘Spectre’. Bletchley Park has become very much our second home. Members have also spent a number of absorbing days at ‘Government Communications Headquarters’ which currently occupies the ‘doughnut’ site on the edge of Cheltenham.

2014 to 2017 Presidents Ibrahim Chughtai, Joe Smith, Iona Todd, Tom Edwards and Ben Barr not only increased membership of the club but also developed our profile at Open Evenings. Club membership came from all year groups and the move to the Dining Hall for clubs and societies on Open Evenings gave us the opportunity to expand and to be more daring. These years also saw our involvement in the CyberCenturion Challenge. Our greatest success was achieving the Bronze Medal in this national event in 2014.

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2017 to 2018 Our annual venture to Dartmoor was prevented in 2018 by the heavy falls of snow which blanketed the UK in the early days of March. A splendid range of students yet again graced CL3 over the course of these years to present lectures on topics both pet and universal. September was the month of the Cyber Security Challenge as teams were formed and practices undertaken in preparation for the three rounds which took place during the winter months.

Ethan Celinski, Blake Margason, Tom McCarthy and Natalie Thompson led our four teams admirably, with the Thompson team narrowly missing out on the finals in London.

Tom McCarthy guided the fortunes of Scamp Club with great style and energy. Not only did members readily come forward at Tom’s call to pass on their

passions in a series of glorious, illustrated lectures but a great many of them made their debuts before an audience at the same time. Attendance each Tuesday filled the classroom. We thank all who come to support and to present, often on more than one occasion, on a breadth of topics.

2019 to 2020 Tom McCarthy and Lucy Giles have taken us forward towards the next decade. Great Detectives, Unsolved Mysteries, Military Aviation, JK Rowling (a digniora winner from Max Bouras), The Crimes of Grindelwald, Fans, Flags and Fashion, plus Jamie McManus’s Aliens - to believe or not to believe, have been performed in CL3 this year. The club also teamed up with The Union on 11th December to explore the Mystery of the Empty Tomb, before a spring field trip to Bletchley.

Members of the Scamp Club

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Sewing Club The sewing bees have all been industrious in their creative pursuits this year and have gained in confidence. Some are now creating their own patterns with which to make summer tops and slip dresses, whilst others are personalising pieces through fabric colour and pattern combinations.

Many have shared their magic through the giving of gifts made by their own fair hands to friends and family; all of which have been gratefully received.

These include bicycle satchels with straps for the handle bars, tote bags, reversible scarves, peg bags and sunglasses cases.

‘Sewing lets me relax and escape from all my stresses and worries. Not only does it boost my confidence but it helps me thrive in lots of aspects of textiles, and teaches valuable life skills. Sewing Club is the perfect opportunity to make gifts for others and little things for yourself.’

‘Going to Sewing Club is like an escape for me. You get to go, relax, catch up with friends, or even make new friends! And this is all while we are all doing what we enjoy. It’s a great experience.’

‘I’ve loved seeing clothes in shops for however much and then making them out of my own fabric with my own design details for less than half the price.

Christmas presents this year were all sewing projects... scarf, leather satchel bag and I’ve been able to make some things for myself! I’m so happy there is Sewing Club!’

One of our long-standing members is emigrating to Canada and whilst we will all miss Grace at Sewing Club each week, we wish her the very best in her forthcoming adventure and hope she continues her sewing exploits.

Mrs Moxon

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Shooting Club Eighteen students have attended at various times this year with monthly practice evenings held at ‘The Bunker’ at Southampton Rifles Club in Bassett. Each month over two hours, pupils attend expert-led tuition from highly experienced instructors.

Learning and progression has been rapid and some are showing a natural talent for rifle shooting.

A day at the home of UK sports shooting, at Bisley, Surrey, is planned for the end of term.

Mr Mapstone

Spanish Bilingual Club The Spanish Bilingual Club meets every Tuesday lunchtime and this year things have become a bit more serious with a view to preparing for the IGCSE next academic year.

The students have worked really hard on their Spanish grammar and writing skills whilst having some fun, all in the target language. In September, they created their own Pi atas to celebrate the European Day of Languages and even more impressive, they’ve done the voice over for some of the questions in the Lower School listening internal exams. All I can say is that these Third Year students have shown more than just excellent linguistic abilities as they have been very dedicated and great fun to work with.

Mrs Ladislao

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STEM Club Work has continued after School every Wednesday and the end is now in sight for the automatic table tennis serving machine. The small but capable team of five pupils, with the help of Mr Walters (ex IBM engineer), have overcome many design and functional problems with resolve. The machine is controlled by an arduino and android app with much of the construction being 3D designed and printed. It is certainly a one-off.

Mr Mapstone

Table Tennis Club As each new season begins there is always anticipation of what might be. Will high standards be maintained? Can the U13 team become City Champions? What will happen now that the older, more experienced players, have moved on? This was particularly important this year as a completely new team needed to be assembled. How would the next group of First Years shape up? Raw talent is important but determination to improve and commitment to high standards, more so.

In the end, a team comprised exclusively of U12 players, narrowly lost the Southampton Schools’ U13 League, coming second to Cantell. The match with Cantell was very tight with KES unfortunately going down 5-3 for the second year in a row after losing one particularly crucial game 16-14. Other matches were much more one-sided as the team comprising Charlie Aspinall, Freddie Collins, George Goodridge, Nathaniel Saer and Raaghav Sharma were often totally dominant.

In the annual Inter-Form competition, there were two stand-out teams - 1/1 and 1/2. With some careful seeding, these two met in the final - Raaghav, Charlie and Nathaniel taking on George, Freddie and Ben Hughes. After two matches it was all-square with everything depending on the outcome of the number one pairing - the best of five games between Raaghav and George. Eventually Raaghav prevailed 3-2, winning the final game 12-10 in a match that will long live in the memory. Congratulations to 1/2 in a final which could easily have gone the other way.

In the official First Year individual competition, Charlie beat Raaghav to take the boys’ title, while Avantika Umranikar defeated Defne Nebol in the girls’ final with Charlie and Avantika triumphing in the Mixed Doubles.

Congratulations to everyone who took part and hopefully next year will be just as exciting.

Mr Singleton

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Wargaming Club The club has gone from strength to strength this year, keeping many of its older veteran members whilst successfully gaining new recruits, and it has been quite usual for numbers to be in double figures and for two rooms to be in use. Few, if any, games have had a war theme but the common thread is one of strategy and the range and complexity of games has been really impressive with new titles such as Cosmic Encounter, San Juan and Seven Wonders vying for attention with established favourites such as Ticket To Ride, Settlers

of Catan and Bang! The mix of pupils is just as broad and it has been great to see the interaction between all year groups with the younger members not shy of giving their elders the occasional thrashing. Special mention should go to regulars Afjal, Travis, Taylor, Maxim, Charlie, Jamie, Ted, Amelie, Alfie, Jake, Emily, Joe and Will who inherits the captaincy of the platoon from Tom McCarthy who is leaving at the end of the Upper Sixth after many years in the ranks.

Dr Gamblin

Young Enterprise In the year 2018/19, the Lower Sixth Young Enterprise participants traded as KES Co, with two different sub sectors under one company. This meant that the two divisions produced different varieties of products, and widened the range that could be produced.

The two teams both decided to produce seasonal products, which was the most popular idea from an array of different ideas. The first team decided to make Christmas Crackers, which were to be sold to staff as well as relatives and students, through order forms and these proved to be highly successful. These crackers were fully customisable, allowing people to choose designs for the crackers, as well as the theme of the contents of the crackers themselves. They were able to provide a range of different crackers, making their products unique to the consumer.

The second team made the decision to delay their product and look towards the Easter market, selling Easter-themed chocolate hampers, once again using order forms as well as stalls during the final weeks of the spring term. The team was able to successfully sell all stock and achieved their aim of providing high quality presents to friends and family.

Overall, the two teams worked well in operating under the same company, and were able to learn a lot about business management, realising that it was a lot harder to run the business than it looked. It helped them appreciate that a lot went on in the operation of the company behind closed doors and was an excellent opportunity to experience this first hand.

The team was able to work together and solve difficult problems, often in high pressure situations, and it gave them very important experience in handling finances and making quick decisions. The Young Enterprise group was ably supported by an external advisor, Alistair Clamp, who gave sound advice and guidance, enabling the students to think about issues from a fresh perspective.

Young Enterprise was a brilliant platform to develop business skills, enabling us to work in business and was a good eye-opener to the reality of business.

The whole team highly recommend experiencing an enterprise programme to anyone interested in running a business in the future.

Will Tall

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TRIPS AND VISITS

Aachen Christmas Market trip

Arriving at KES at 7 am, we took a coach to Aachen via the Eurotunnel. We arrived at our youth hostel in Aachen at 5.30 pm and we started unpacking and making our beds. After this, we went and ate, finding the food to be rather nice: a traditional German sausage! We then watched an emotional film called Das Wunder von Bern, which was in German. This film helped us to prepare our local knowledge for the next day.

The following day, after having breakfast in the hostel, we went to the market. Here, we first began with a quiz to help us learn the history and layout of this old market town. We were then allowed to go out and explore the market for ourselves. Between us all we bought a variety of items. Some of these include T-shirts, presents for family, plastic trumpets, incense burners, traditional German food, sweets and jewellery. Later in the day we also visited the Lindt outlet where some pupils decided to spend

as much as €50 on chocolate. In addition to seeing the market during the day, we also went back after dinner to experience the market lit up at night.

On the final day, we woke up to discover that it was snowing. This led to snowball fights after breakfast before we packed our bags and began our journey home. On the way back we visited the ‘three country point’ where Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands all meet, and also stopped at Bruges in Belgium.

After lunch in the town, we spent any money we still had left over before continuing homewards, arriving back at KES at 9 pm.

This trip was very enjoyable and was a great way to experience using German in a real life situation.

I think we would all recommend this trip to others wanting to improve their German whilst having fun with your friends!

Sam and Harry McIlroy

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Biology field trip to Leeson House During Endeavour in July, the Sixth Form biology cohort spent three days at Leeson House, in and around Swanage, recording various sets of data to support their school studies.

Initially, we arrived at a section of Jurassic coast, which was home to a wide range of periwinkle species; great for gathering data and finally putting theory into practice. We later combatted the hot weather by investigating how the depth of a river can impact on the distribution of species living within.

After long but enjoyable days, classroom work in the evenings was almost appreciated as we consolidated our knowledge of stats tests to determine whether our data was of significance.

Following strictly biologically focused trips to Studland Bay and a section of stunning coast, we designed our own experiments which was great practice in independent study.

The whole trip was a really enjoyable experience of practical learning, only made better by the inexhaustibly enthusiastic staff from both KES and Leeson House.

Ellie Yonge

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CERN

During the May half-term, sixteen Lower Sixth physicists travelled to Switzerland, to visit CERN - the European Organisation for Nuclear Research. We arrived in the country mid-afternoon on the first day, and were given the evening to explore the beautiful city centre of Geneva, before retiring to the hotel to prepare for an early start the next day.

This is a suite of experiments aiming to establish whether there are any differences in the properties of normal matter, that everything around us is made of, and antimatter. Mack was sure to answer any questions we had, which made this part of our trip a fascinating insight into the world of antimatter physics.

In the morning, we got the tram directly to CERN, ready for an action-packed day. We met our guide, Mack, who started the tour with an introductory video and a thought-provoking Q&A session. We then, our minds already having been blown with the scale of the largest particle accelerator in the world, headed to the other side of the campus to arrive at CERN’s computing and data centre, home to an impressively vast underground server and data storage arrays, ready to handle the 30 petabytes of data generated each year! Mack explained to us how experimental data is processed and also showed us the very computer that Sir Tim Berners-Lee used to develop the World Wide Web.

After lunch, we had some time to explore some museum exhibits in CERN’s visitor centre, as well as a truly breathtaking sculpture, “Wandering the Immeasurable”. Inscribed onto this ribbon of steel were some of science’s greatest discoveries and breakthroughs. We then entered the S’Cool lab in CERN, where we got to build our own cloud chambers - small boxes filled with alcohol vapour, which forms a thin suspension of clouds due to dry ice underneath.

They were great fun to build, and allowed us to observe the effects of various particles, such as cosmic radiation from space, with our own eyes!

After this, we headed up the road to CERN’s Antimatter Factory. Here, we split into two groups, to explore various accelerators and experiments, such as the ELENA antiproton decelerator. We got to see this circular piece of kit up close; it’s part of what could be considered the most exotic (and expensive) production line in the world! We also saw parts of ALPHA, or AntiHydrogen Laser PHysics Apparatus (it’s not proper physics if it doesn’t have an acronym!)

After an excellent day at CERN, we took the tram back to the Geneva centre for a bit more free time, before heading back to the hotel for a wonderful group meal together. The next morning we visited Geneva’s Natural History Museum before having time to purchase any last Swiss chocolate or take any final photos. We then headed to the airport and back to KES, content but tired after what had been an exhilarating three days.

Tim Ward

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The Charlotte Exchange In October half-term, eight KES students, Rev. Poppleton and Mrs Paul flew to Charlotte, North Carolina, USA where we stayed for a fortnight with our buddies from Charlotte Country Day School (CCDS).

The exchange is a cultural, arts based trip and was a great opportunity to learn more about arts, culture, the USA and ourselves.

When we arrived, we quickly forgot our tiredness when we saw our ‘buddies’ who we had spent the past few months getting to know by text, email and Facetime.

We headed over to a welcome party where we played ‘soccer’ and had our first taste of American food.

Whilst in Charlotte, we went to some great museums including the Levine Museum (to learn about Charlotte’s history) and the Mint Museum (an art gallery that featured clay, glass and metal artwork that we infuriatingly weren’t allowed to touch however smooth and enticing it seemed). Our favourite museum, however, was the NASCAR Hall of Fame where we used a racing car simulator and tried being a pit stop crew member. Other trips included a very rainy trip to the Knights’ Baseball Stadium and a bowling outing when the scavenger hunt was cancelled due to the rain. We also went on a trip to the stunning Black Mountains and a nature centre, which had 140 animals native to the Appalachians. We did a lot of shopping, during which we bought souvenirs for our families and one of the teachers took us on a street arts tour that gave an insider’s guide to the amazing statues and murals of this incredible city.

One of the unique opportunities with this exchange is the chance to complete a project on Charlotte’s art and culture. We developed projects before, during and after the trip about presidency, dance, photography, architecture, fashion, baseball and literature. We also

attended some of our buddies’ classes which are more laid back than ours in the UK and the students don’t wear a uniform.

I think, perhaps, my favourite bit of the trip was the time at home with my host family. Everyone was so welcoming and I really have made friends for life. At the weekend, we went camping in the Black Mountains and another student went to Virginia. In addition to the official trips, we also went out as a group to an escape room and a trampoline park. Whilst we were there it was Halloween so some of us went to Carowinds (a theme park) for a Halloween special of scares. We also went trick or treating and all came back with loads of American candy. We all tried American food in restaurants, the school cafeteria and the homes of our buddies. We learned that portions are big, you can have waffles as a main course for any meal and donuts are delicious for breakfast.

We were really sad to leave our new friends but soon enough they were here in the UK. During their stay, they visited Stonehenge, Salisbury Cathedral (where they climbed the spire), Oxford (with us), the Southampton walls, Titanic Museum and London where they almost had to stay overnight because of snow. During family time some of us went to see a Saints football match, the KES Battle of the Bands competition, Winchester and other local places of interest. My buddy really enjoyed snow ball fights, reading in front of the fire and walking our dog in the New Forest.

I would definitely recommend this trip because I have made friends for life and now have a second family in America.

Sophie Englyst

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Cricket Tour to India The senior cricket squad tour to India that took place over two weeks of the summer holidays proved to be a great success.

Walking out of the airport in India, we were hit by the anticipated heat and humidity and this proved to be a theme throughout our stay. It was no surprise then that this built up into a storm in the late afternoon that subsequently cut short our useful practice time, not to mention the rain being so heavy that it killed off two mobile phones in just ten minutes of rain!!

The following day our first game took place. Following our welcome by the Head of the Puram Public School, we lost the toss and were put into bat on a damp pitch. This was very much a learning curve for our batters, as few were able to spend much time at the crease. Nevertheless, we posted a competitive total that proved to be a challenge for the local side. Our bowling was good and the players responded well to the conditions to restrict our opponents. We finished winning by 18 runs, in spite of our opponents trying to give their opening batsman a second go!

Whilst still in Delhi, we next played a local club. The ground was interesting as one quarter of the outfield was actually a concrete basketball court with fixed metal basketball posts. Under strict instructions that the posts were not to be tackled, the boys played well.

Keeping the opposition to a manageable total, Charlie Harden and Jovan Dhariwal batted superbly to see KES to the target. The game was won by 8 wickets.

In Agra, we came across a different challenge altogether. We pitted our wits and our skills against an Academy run by the father of two of India’s test players and it was clear that he was ambitious for his players, and committed to winning. Bowling first, we wilted in the heat and their batsmen got away from us.

Their score proved too much and, in all honesty, we did not ever look like getting close.

The final game in Jaipur was a good one at a fantastic new ground. We took early wickets but a lively end to their innings made it competitive. All our batters got a chance to contribute but it was left to the captain to do most of the work to see us home.The matches finished with a 3-1 win record. Unfortunately, the rainy season did deprive us of the other two scheduled games.

Tours such as this are, however, equally memorable for what happens off the pitch, as well as on it. The opportunity for personal and cultural experience and development is the main reason for such trips and this was no different. India is a culturally rich country, with a fantastic history in so many ways, but there was no escaping the visible poverty. Wherever we drove, there were slum camps, temporary shelters, and people making the best of what they could. Any open space was seen as somewhere to set up camp, and the begging that we experienced made every member of the group aware of how fortunate they were.

The value of places such as Deepalaya, a charitable organisation established to support the homeless and those from disadvantaged backgrounds, was evident.

We toured around the school, which has over 600 pupils, and observed lessons in maths, English and learning support. All the children displayed big smiles on their faces that certainly did not betray the very tough conditions in which they were living.

As we went around the country from Delhi to Agra to Jaipur, albeit only a small part of such a large country, we saw a number of impressive places; many that were built over 500 years ago. In Delhi, we saw the iconic Lotus temple, the Red Fort, the impressive Qutab Minar and the Bangla Sahib Sikh temple that feeds thousands of people each day from a huge community kitchen. India Gate showed off more modern architecture and the Presidential buildings highlighted the prosperity that is experienced by only some in this country.

In Agra, we saw the Fort, built in 1573 out of red sandstone as the main residence of the Mughal Emperor Akbar and, of course, the truly magnificent Taj Mahal. The magnificence of places and buildings can often be overstated but this is certainly not the case with the Taj. As beautiful in real life as it is in the pictures, we can all count ourselves fortunate to have seen it in person.

In Jaipur, we took a jeep ride up to the top of the valley to the Amber Fort Palace and marvelled at the ingenuity that enabled them to construct something so large over 500 years ago. We saw some traditional block fabric painting, visited the Palace of the Winds, the Maharaja’s city palace and the Jantar Mantar, which is the world’s largest stone and marble crafted observatory.

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We got out of Jaipur just before the rains closed the city down and the return to the UK was uneventful. I hope that the trip gave the players a bit of insight into a new country and maybe motivated them to go back one day for a little longer. The tour certainly helped all the players understand their cricket and I hope that those staying on at KES will be able to demonstrate what they learned next season.

My thanks to all the parents for their support, to the players for embracing the opportunity and to Mr Penn and Mr Eyssens for joining me on the trip.

Mr Kent

Duke of Edinburgh’s Award For the past seven decades, the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award charity has inspired and transformed the lives of millions of young people. From volunteering to physical activities, life skills to expeditions, achieving a DofE Award is valued by employers and universities.

King Edward’s is the largest registered DofE Award Centre in Southampton and this year has been a bumper year of enrolments in the Fourth Year seeing up to 130 of the year group start their DofE adventure. Many of these are now on their way to completing those awards in readiness for moving on to the next level.

There have been expeditions to the New Forest, Dartmoor and the Lake District as the participants complete their practice and assessment expeditions.

Some have been fortunate to have blue skies and dry weather for the duration of their trips whilst others have made full use of their wet weather gear and waterproof map covers.

Within school, there has been a move of office and storage facilities to give a better layout for students to access their Award Centre.

Mr Barnes

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Endeavour Now in its sixth year, the Endeavour programme, during which the whole school comes off timetable for two days, has brought opportunities galore for development, with each year group focusing in a different area.

The First Year (Independence) had a fantastic time at Fairthorne Manor, near Botley, where they were under canvas and engaged in a host of fun, adventurous and team-building activities. The Second Year (Confidence) were either confident abroad in Normandy, behind the lens with a photography course, on water with water sports at Sandbanks, or with heights on a residential climbing trip in the Peak District. The Third Year (Collaboration) were involved in the Battlefields Trip, a Dragons’ Den task or on a cookery course, or team building at Woodmill and SWAC. The Fourth Year’s focus (Community) had them engaged in a range of partnership activities at school and Wellington with primary schools visiting for workshops in Art, Coding, Dance, Drama, Mathematics, Science and Sport. Many engaged in Duke of Edinburgh expeditions, others went to do conservation work whilst paddleboarding at SWAC. Brownsea Island was the site of yet more conservation work. We also sent a group to Croyde to try their hand at surfing. The Lower Sixth’s focus was on Self-Improvement, and we saw a host of biology and geography field-workers go off to Swanage, others doing charity, volunteering or work experience days, as well as those at Open Days at universities. Many began researching for the Extended Project Qualification. Needless to say, they were all kept busy!

We are very proud of what our pupils achieve, both for themselves and those around them on these days, and we are excited about seeing the programme develop.

Miss Smith

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Florence Italian and Art trip Each February, the Italian and Art Departments combine to take a group of Third and Fourth year students to Italy; rotating between Florence and Milan. This year’s trip saw the group return to Florence to enjoy five days of sunshine, soaking up the art and culture of this wonderful city and finding a love for the Italian way of life.

For the Italian students, it gave the opportunity to live and work for a few days in a bustling, historic Italian city, putting into action all the language skills they have learnt in the classroom and seeing the purpose behind it all. Students are encouraged to speak in the shops and markets, order food, interact with locals and try and negotiate their way round the city. They also take part in nine hours of lessons in a language school. The artists visited various galleries and museums, learning about the paintings, murals and sculptures as well as sketching and making studies of individual pieces.

All students visited sites such as the Uffizi galleries, and the Accademia, to appreciate Michelangelo’s ‘David’, and equally everyone enjoyed the opportunity to make pizza (with the Italian students helping with the translations of our Italian instructions). We also enjoyed a trip to the cinema where the Italian students picked up some interesting new language from the subtitles and were fortunate that our visit coincided with the ‘Calcio Storico’ match (historic football), where the mix of football, rugby, wrestling and stick-in-the-mud had us all enthralled. Peoplewatching was a big hit, as was trying every pizza and gelato flavour possible! I think everyone felt that they would be very happy to return and loved the atmosphere and lifestyle in this gorgeous Italian city.

Roll on Milan 2020!

Mrs Rugge-Price

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French trip to Normandy This year’s Second Year trip to Normandy was an enormous success, with sixty-four pupils and seven members of staff enjoying four days in the beautiful French countryside in the glorious sunshine. We could not have been happier with the behaviour and enthusiasm of the pupils, who were brilliant ambassadors for KES. We travelled out to France on Thursday, the first day of Endeavour, with a short coach ride to Portsmouth and a long ferry ride across the English Channel to Caen.

After a short stop at the serene Pegasus Bridge, to see where the groundwork was laid for the D-Day landings, we travelled on to our base; the Château du Molay, where everyone took the chance to have a short rest before our first activity, an “It’s A Knockout”-style team event.

“It was a very challenging experience but overall it was a fun, successful team-building game. The best bit was running with the ball between our elbows and knees.

It was good to see everyone enjoying it together.”

(Sienna Mandair) Everyone enjoyed our first dinner, a barbecue in the sun, before we all went exhausted to our rooms for a well-earned rest.

On Friday, we had breakfast and took the coach to Arromanches on the north coast. We were truly blessed with the weather, which meant we could spend plenty of time exploring the town. Max Bouras says: “After our short trip through the countryside, we entered the beautiful town of Arromanches, where we digested lots of knowledge about D-Day through the cinema located at the site. We learned about the importance of Gold beach (the beach we visited) and what effect the events there had on the war. To top this off, we had a couple of hours to roam around the town, invading souvenir shops, stuffing our faces with bread and crêpes and admiring the stunning views. While we sat and ate lunch, we watched the beautifully still, vivid, blue sea with its sloshing circular waves and the chalky white cliff tops. You could almost feel like you were part of the action that happened here 75 years ago, seeing it all first hand. Sadly, we had to leave the beautiful town and its history behind, heading back to our château, to await our next adventure.”

We got stuck into the afternoon activities in teams, including a blindfold trail. Then it was our group’s turn in the pool, which provided welcome relief from the heat. We had some dinner and got stuck into the karaoke, with Rajeev Sathyanath giving us a particularly memorable rendition of ‘I Want It That Way’. Before we knew it, it was time again for bed.

On Saturday, we got up early and headed to Bayeux.

Sophie Kileff, Elsa Burke, Charlotte Ackerman and Andrea Solomou had a brilliant time: “It was great to have the freedom to look around the market and practise our French speaking. We walked around the cathedral, which was beautiful, and it was lovely to light a candle of remembrance to show we cared about peace. We then visited the Bayeux Tapestry and it was great to revisit in moving detail something we had studied since First Year. Visiting the British cemetery was also a very moving experience. The number of graves there really made us appreciate the huge sacrifice those people made for our liberty and opportunities. We were lucky enough to be able to pay our respects to an unknown soldier with a flower and a few words and to understand how much needless suffering had happened and is still happening today.

It was heartbreaking but eye-opening. The day ended with a disco, where we danced to questionable songs and an impressive smoke machine! At dinner, we got to try snails and frogs’ legs.” After another long day, we went to bed in Normandy for the last time.

Our final day, Sunday, came around eventually and we got up early to check out. Loaded on to the bus, we set off for a day of history. Lucy Walker and Samantha MacNaughton enjoyed the day: “Today was a tiring day. We woke up an hour early as we had to eat our breakfast. We left the Château du Molay and went to visit the American cemetery. There were almost 9,000 headstones of soldiers who died after D-Day. The cemetery was very well decorated and the visitors’ centre was a highlight, but the rows of gravestones were sobering. Next we went to the Pointe du Hoc where we ate lunch. There were many craters in the earth and stone structures filling up the grass above the beach. As we walked around, it seemed extraordinary that soldiers had once been fighting in this very place. After that, we visited the German cemetery. It was nothing like the British and American ones: on the whole, it had a sombre atmosphere, but people had still paid their respects. It was certainly a unique and different experience. Then we started our journey home.” One last ferry trip, and we were back in Portsmouth and then KES. Thanks to Ms Clement for organising such a great trip and to Mr Ayers, Miss Forsey, Mrs Gilmour, Mr Lawson and Miss Rieuf for all their company and hard work.

Mr Jepson

76 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

Geography trip to Slapton During Endeavour, all sixteen Lower Sixth geographers had a chance to make a start on their chosen coursework investigation titles. Slapton Ley was an ideal location for the trip as it allowed those who planned on collecting data based on physical marine processes, the chance to spend time on the beach, and those who wanted to focus more on the human side, an opportunity to explore deprivation and rebranding issues in Plymouth.

Our first afternoon was spent exploring Plymouth city centre and trialling data collection methods, whilst the following day was spent walking the local coastline with the FSC guide and teachers pointing out various historical sites and evidence of coastal management, both of which helped to provide us with potential questions for our investigation.

The final two days were spent individually refining project ideas and collecting the data we would need to complete our projects. Students split relatively evenly into two groups, one investigating Plymouth to collect data for a human-based project and the other spending the next few days on the beach, measuring rock size and looking at the success of coastal management programmes.

Millie Parsons and Henry Gwilliam

SOTONIENSIS 2019 | 77

Geography trip to Osmington Bay The high pressure weather system that dominated the summer chose the IGCSE trip as the perfect time to end, ensuring that the Fifth Year Geographers had a very damp trip to the Jurassic Coast.

The field trip continues to provide an integral part of the course and students were fully involved with collecting data over the three days. The wet weather also helped to raise some of their river readings and made them consider the health and safety impacts of a rising river! All useful for their examination. Despite the far from ideal conditions, their passion for the subject shone through and all the staff were delighted with their approach to the weekend.

Mr Brown

78 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

History trip to the Battlefields The 2019 Third Year World War One Battlefields trip saw thirty-eight pupils visit the cemeteries and battlegrounds of the Ypres Salient, learning more about the Great War as a whole, and about the experience of Old Edwardians in particular. The group spent time at Essex Farm Cemetery, Langemark German Cemetery and Tyne Cot on the first day, before attending the Menin Gate Last Post Ceremony in the evening. The second day saw visits to the preserved battlefield at Hill 60 and Bedford House cemetery, together with an opportunity to experience the preserved trenches and tunnels of Vimy Ridge on the journey back to Calais. The ‘shattered acres’ of

the Western Front retain absolutely the ability, over a hundred years after the guns fell silent, to fascinate and appal in equal measure. The experience of visiting these places will, I hope, live with the pupils on the trip, and lead them to ask some searching questions of the reality of combat between 1914 and 1918 - what the historian Niall Ferguson has described as the worst thing that has ever happened to the people of Britain. Thank you to Dr Filtness, Dr Gamblin, Mrs Burt and Mrs Searles for volunteering their services.

Without this, the trip could not have happened.

Mr Diver

History trip to Berlin The February half-term holiday saw twenty-nine intrepid IGCSE History students travel to Berlin; the first time the annual trip had visited the German capital following trips to Munich and Krakow in recent years. Berlin really is an ideal venue for such a journey, allowing pupils to develop their understanding of both the Nazi period and the Cold War in truly dramatic style - there really is no substitute for seeing the places where significant events took place if one really wants to understand the past. The group took in many sites of importance relating to 1933-45 and the post-war period such as the Olympic Stadium,

Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp, the Reichstag and the Berlin Wall. The pupils undoubtedly returned with their understanding of these momentous times enhanced - it would be hard not to be moved and unsettled by places such as these, and the pupils were noticeably affected by all that they saw. I would like to thank Mrs Potter, Mrs Searles and Dr Filtness for volunteering their time and thus making the trip possible.

Mr Diver

SOTONIENSIS 2019 | 79

Hockey trip to Holland During October half-term, an U16 and U18 hockey team travelled to The Hague in Holland. Although the trip was a hockey tour, we were also able to explore many cities during our time away.

Our journey began at 4 o’clock on the Sunday morning when we set off on the road to Dover and where we then boarded a ferry over to Calais. After arriving in Calais, we carried on over the border until we arrived in the Belgian city of Bruges. Here we had some free time to explore and we also took part in a chocolate-making experience in one of the local chocolatiers. It’s safe to say we all left with way too much chocolate but it was thoroughly enjoyable for all. That evening we reached our accommodation, ate a much needed dinner and went to bed after a very tiring day of travel.

The next day, after breakfast, we had our first training session at the local hockey club. After this, we travelled to the coastal part of The Hague where we had some lunch and more free time to look around.

In the evening, we had our first fixtures of the tour against Klein Zwitserland HC. The U16s participated in a triangular tournament, drawing their first game 0-0 and being unfortunate to lose their second game 2-0. The U18 team put in a great performance to beat the opposition 8-3.

On the third day, we woke up early and after breakfast set off for our day trip to Amsterdam. On arrival, we had some free time to look around, before a boat tour around the canals of the city. After this we had lunch at Pancakes Amsterdam and then went to the Anne Frank Museum. This was a very touching experience

but also allowed us to gain a better understanding of the horrible treatment of Jews during the Second World War. In the evening, we had our second set of fixtures against Voorne HC, which was played at the former club of Ana, Roos and Julia, all of whom were on the tour. The U16 game ended in a 7-0 defeat whilst the U18 team fought hard, just losing out to a strong side, with a scoreline of 6-5.

On our last full day in Holland we had another training session, although the unpleasant weather slightly dampened our spirits. After training, we returned to our accommodation for a while before setting off to our final match. On the way we stopped off at a hockey shop where everyone was very excited to invest in some new brightly coloured socks. After some successful purchases we carried on to the match. This fixture was most definitely the hardest one we played whilst on tour, with the U16 game ending in heavy defeat and the U18 team losing 2-1. After a match tea of Dominos pizza, pasta and magnum ice cream we returned to the hostel where we had an end of tour quiz.

After an early breakfast on the final day we boarded our coach and began the long journey back to Calais, then over to Dover and then back to school. This tour was without a doubt one of the best sports tours most of us have ever been on, with all of the girls getting to know each other better and definitely improving their abilities in hockey. We would like to thank all of the teachers who were part of the tour, for organising it and ensuring it ran as smoothly as it did.

Otillie Beal and Steph Judd

80 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

Netball tour to Belfast At the end of October, the Second Year girls set off for Belfast. Over the next few days they were to experience a coaching session led by Commonwealth netball players, matches against local clubs and some fun evening activities.

After the girls had landed at Belfast airport, they set off for the Queens PEC where they would have the opportunity to train with two Commonwealth netball players. The session was very exciting for them and they learned some new skills that would be very useful for the upcoming matches. After a very tiring session the girls set off for the hotel for a well needed rest before they set off for their first match.

The first match was against Bangor Netball Club.

Both the A and B team went out on the court and played their hardest and this resulted in both teams winning. On the second day, the girls set off for the Titanic Museum which they found very interesting and enjoyed learning more about the ship. In the afternoon, the group had the opportunity to walk in to town where they had some spare time to shop and explore, before their second match against Holywood Netball Club. They ended up playing in a mini tournament; the teams were split up randomly and one of the KES teams won. The girls then headed back to the hotel to get ready for a very exciting Halloween party.

The next morning, all the girls were excited to use up their energy at Vertigo - a trampoline park in Belfast.

After many flips, games and gladiator duel beam rounds the girls were ready to go into town to grab some lunch. The final fixture of the tour was against Laganside Netball Club. This proved to be the hardest match of the tour and resulted in a win and a lose.

The final evening was an activity that everyone was looking forward to: bowling. Once the games were finished the girls had time to spend some of their leftover change in the arcade before heading back to the hotel to get some rest for the final day.

On day four the teams set off nice and early to visit The Giant’s Causeway, where they enjoyed a tour around the area with its beautiful views. The trip was then finished with lunch at a restaurant with some beautiful views overlooking the Portrush East Strand. There was time for a quick play on the beach and to take some photos, before everyone headed back to the airport to fly home. The trip was a great opportunity for the girls and it was a great start to the coming netball season.

Lucy Robinson

SOTONIENSIS 2019 | 81

Second Year Camp On May bank holiday weekend, we had the pleasure of going to the School’s Rural Studies Centre in Lovaton, Dartmoor. We left KES on Friday afternoon and arrived there at around 6 pm. That evening, we all put up our tents, had a nice cup of hot chocolate and went to bed after an hour of free time. That night the boys slept in the dorms whilst the girls slept in the tents.

The next day, we got up early and made our breakfast and lunch out of our own food which we had brought with us. We then packed our day bags and went down to a local area where we used compasses to learn orienteering skills. We also got to build a wooden life-size catapult and had to see whose catapult threw the tennis ball the furthest.

The final activity was raft building where we built a miniature model to later race down the leat.

During the afternoon, we went on a walk and raced our rafts. Afterwards we went back to Lovaton and made dinner, followed by some activities.

That evening, we learnt how to use the climbing equipment and we did another activity in which, in groups, we all had to walk on the same pair of ‘skis’ in a series of little races. That night half the girls slept in the dorms while the boys took their turn in tents.

On Sunday, we went climbing in the morning and on another walk and played some games before we had ice-cream. In the evening we had an hour to play around and then we had to make our dinner once again. Later we went to the moor at the end of the road and played a game of rounders as the sun set.

On Monday, we were all really sad because we had to go home, but before that we went for a short walk on another moor and played a game to win a pound using our compasses. We visited a nearby village called Princetown where we got some lunch before setting off back home. Overall, it was a really great trip and it was definitely worth coming on.

Ava Neilson, Evelyn Nagy, Charlotte Akerman

82 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

Ski trip This year, KES went to Serre Chevalier for the annual ski trip.

Serre Chevalier is a ski resort in the French Alps but near Italy. As a Second Year, this trip was not only amazing because of all the snow but it was a great chance to bond with the other side of our year because usually we have no lessons together.

I had never skied on snow before but had done quite a lot of skiing on dry slopes; the snow was so much easier to ski on and a lot more fun! For the first two days the snow was a bit icey and slushy but it was such nice weather we could ski in sun glasses instead of goggles. At this point there was no snow in our village. Over the third night there was 70cm of snow! On the mountain, the snow was great and in the village there was snow everywhere and it was so beautiful! The Serre Chevalier ski trip was so amazing and such a great experience, I hope to go again in Fourth Year!

I really recommend this trip whatever level of skier you are. The teachers and lovely ski instructors will make you welcome!

Isla Osman

SOTONIENSIS 2019 | 83

South Africa Cape Town After the long flight, we quickly jumped off the plane, grabbed lunch and met up with our tour guide, Heath.

We were quickly thrown into the excitement of Cape Town as we began to make our way towards the Cape of Good Hope. After the beautiful ocean view drive we found ourselves at the Cape. Climbing a 249m hill was not easy after the flight but the view at the top was undeniably worth it. Afterwards, we gently walked around the area, taking in its natural beauty. Slowly and steadily we made our way back to the bus and drove back to the hotel for some much needed rest before dinner. We ate at the local shopping centre, experiencing some exciting African street performers and some very good food.

Early on our first morning in Cape Town we made our way to the District 6 museum tour, with a great guide, Abu Brown, who described first-hand the effects of the apartheid regime. He sang and gave a very unique talk encouraging us to stand up against any sort of discrimination. Proceeding our tour was a quick rush to make the Robben Island ferry. We leisurely motored our way over to the island, seeing a pod of dolphins along the way. Once on the island, we immediately felt a sense of isolation. The prison was small and hosted horrific living conditions. We learnt about prison life from our tour guide who had spent seven years incarcerated there. He showed us the different sections of the prison and pointed out the cell in which Nelson Mandela had been kept.

At Table Mountain we split off into two groups, those who wanted to get the cable car and those of us who

wanted to climb. The hike was brutal, rocky and steep but we all felt great for doing it. Once at the top, the view was breathtaking and made us forget about the hike we had just completed. After a long and busy day we all ate and slept very well that evening.

On our third day in Cape Town, we woke up early in order to make it to Boulder Beach to see the penguins. Afterwards, we went to a small shopping mall and feasted on waffles. Our bellies full, we drove to Elsie’s Peak, a small mountain on the coast. The hike was easy, compared to Table Mountain, and gave us a beautiful view of the bay and a dip at the nearby beach. We all underestimated the freezing cold temperature of the water but, seeing a whale 30m offshore made it worth going in. Back at Heath’s house we ate BBQ sausages and tried African beef sausages, which were very popular. After lunch, we made our way back to the hotel before dinner. We went to a restaurant called Gold which served thirteen courses and performed traditional African drumming and dancing throughout the night.

On our last day in Cape Town, we went to the famous local botanical gardens and witnessed the natural beauty that Africa hosts. We saw many indigenous plants and walked along what they call the “Boomslang” - a jungle walkway through the treetops.

After our walk through the gardens we spent time at the local mall for shopping and lunch, then made our way back to the hotel. We left Cape Town early the next morning and headed towards the farm.

Mikey Stevens

84 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

The Goedgedacht Trust Upon arrival at the Goedgedacht farm, we were immediately given a warm welcome by the staff who gave us an introduction into how the Path onto Prosperity (POP) programme works. The 25year programme aims to guide rural children born into generational poverty through to adulthood, aiding their journey into their future through four fundamental ideas: education, health, personal development and in caring for the planet. There are approximately twenty projects and eight POP Youth Centres that meet the needs of the children and to enable the cycle of poverty to be broken. Straight after this introduction, we experienced the fast pace of the farm as we participated in dancing and a bonfire to further strengthen us as a team.

The next day, all twelve of us had to take responsibility for a child from one of two POP centres, and provide them with the best day possible. The day mainly consisted of ice skating and visiting the beach, a place which some of the kids had never seen before. Seeing their genuine excitement and hearing their laughs as they ran in the sea was truly amazing.

We then had dinner with the kids on the farm as we reflected on the day and the special bonds we had all formed with the children. The opportunity to make that special day happen for the children produced an unforgettable highlight of the trip for many of us.

The following five days were mainly spent helping out with different activities on the farm in the morning, or in one of the POP centres in the afternoon. One of the activities on the farm involved making seed packages to be sent out into the local community, in the hope of promoting sustainability in the area. Along with this, we also went on a bike ride around the farm, attempted the Goedgedacht obstacle course and visited the olive oil factory. At every POP centre we were amazed by the happy, energetic and lively atmosphere and we all very rapidly became involved with the dancing and singing taking place. We also brought with us a wide range of games and activities including football, loom bands, face painting and hair braiding with which to engage with the kids.

In all of the POP centres we visited, we also went around their local community with items such as toothbrushes. It was extremely overwhelming to see the conditions in which the children live and very much put into perspective how fortunate we are, especially when hearing about the severe hardships that these children and their families have to face on a daily basis. As we left each POP centre, emotions were high as we had to say goodbye to the many friends we had made. One particular POP centre we visited that was especially significant to us was the KES-funded POP 6. It was outstanding to see the use and the importance of the money we had raised throughout the year.

The evenings were spent with the Goedgedacht Youth Construction - a group of young people between the ages of 16-25 that the farms employs, and who are also on the project that seeks to ensure that adulthood is reached. The first few nights were spent playing games and singing whilst another evening comprised of a karaoke competition in the barn. The week concluded with a particularly emotional farewell party. We played games such as apple bobbing and danced, ending the night with a bonfire as we said our sad goodbyes. This included an exchange of gifts: a signed KES t-shirt for the youth, and a signed South African flag for us. The week on the farm had led to the formation of many long-lasting friendships with the staff, the youth and the POP kids and also created very special memories that we will cherish for a lifetime. The next day we said our final goodbye to the farm and headed off to the Garden Route Game Lodge.

Chloe Fong The Safari This was undeniably an experience of a lifetime. I thought the two weeks in South Africa prior to the safari would be difficult to match but it was the perfect ending to an unforgettable two weeks.

From the mighty elephants to the miniature yellow mongoose, Garden Route Game Lodge delivered it all. Every one of the game drives, sunrises and sunsets, were all an experience in themselves.

We were very lucky to see almost every animal on our four game drives over the weekend, with the exception of the kudu. We also had the unique experience of watching a pride of lions stalk an unsuspecting horse rider but thankfully there was a fence in between the two. If the drives themselves didn’t suffice, you could always guarantee the evening grill would do the job. Ostrich, gemsbok and kudu were all on the menu in the South Africa grill; for many of us another great new experience.

Personally I know that I will never forget this trip, but I can also guarantee that no one else will either. I’d never have thought that such an amazing experience would be waiting for me and offered by the School. Thank you to everyone who made this trip possible and so special.

Tom Lockyer

SOTONIENSIS 2019 | 85

Spanish trip to Andalucia Durante las vacaciones de Semana Santa quince estudiantes de tercero fuimos de viaje a Andalucía, en el sur de España. Nos quedamos cuatro días con familias españolas para mejorar nuestro español.

La mayoría del tiempo estuvimos en Córdoba. Por la mañana tuvimos clases de español y por la tarde fuimos a comprar en el centro de la ciudad. También por la tarde hicimos diferentes actividades, por ejemplo, fuimos a comer tapas, hicimos una clase de baile flamenco y visitamos la famosa Mezquita. Por la noche, cuando regresamos a las familias, Sofía y yo nos relajamos antes de cenar. Mi actividad favorita fue comer tapas porque probé cosas que nunca había comido. Todas las familias eran muy lindas.

Izzy Murray El domingo fuimos de excursión a Sevilla y por casualidad vimos una protesta feminista de mujeres (¡pero había un señor muy raro que también estaba bailando con las señoras!) Después todos comimos helados en forma de flor porque hacía mucho calor.

También visitamos la Plaza de España y dimos de comer a los peces en un estanque enorme dentro del Alcázar, que es un palacio de estilo árabe. Por la tarde dimos un paseo por la ciudad y fuimos a ver una

estructura muy decorativa y moderna que se llama “Las Setas” y en mi opinión era preciosa. Lo que más me gustó fue quedarnos en una casa española para ver cómo son y cómo viven las familias españolas.

Sofía Godsland-Ladislao El tercer lugar adonde fuimos se llama Granada.

Llegamos por la tarde y dejamos nuestras cosas en el hotel. Después fuimos a cenar y cuando terminamos, subimos a un mirador enfrente de la Alhambra para verla iluminada. Cuando regresamos al hotel nos fuimos a dormir en los cuartos y cuando nos despertamos fuimos a desayunar para visitar la Alhambra de día. La Alhambra es súper bonita, tiene los techos y los suelos decorados con diferentes piedras de muchos colores y unos jardines muy hermosos, con árboles y flores espectaculares. La Alhambra tenía vistas preciosas que no encuentras en otro lugar del mundo. Por la tarde volvimos al aeropuerto para regresar a Inglaterra y estaba muy triste porque el viaje fue súper divertido. Mi actividad preferida fue visitar la Alhambra porque es preciosa en esta época del año cuando todas las flores están floreciendo.

Ava Weinstein

86 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

Spanish trip to Catalonia A group of bleary-eyed First and Second Years met up at 2 o’clock to begin this year’s adventure to Catalonia. It would be fair to say that the journey was somewhat muted given the early start time.

However, the beautiful seaside resort of Tossa de Mar was soon reached and everyone’s spirits were briefly lifted before a deluge of rain did its best to dampen the atmosphere. The students were not to be deterred though and a significant number ignored the prevailing conditions and took advantage of the hotel pool. The Saturday was an opportunity for the students to visit the wonders of the city of Barcelona and they experienced the sights and sounds of La Rambla and a tour through the Gothic district. In the afternoon, the sun began to shine and the students were able to experience some scintillating views of the city from the pretty surroundings of Antoni Gaudi’s Park Guëll.

Sunday’s visit to Figueres provided the students with a fascinating insight into the mind of one of Spain’s most famous artists, Salvador Dalí, and in the

afternoon, there was an opportunity for the children to spend some time on the beach. The medieval town of Girona was our next destination and we were able to walk along the walls of the city along the famous passeig arqueològic. The students engaged in a very competitive photography competition whilst taking in the magnificent views. Students were then treated to a boat tour where they were able to observe the marine life of Tossa de Mar as well as the multitude of caves where some impressive geological knowledge came to the fore. Our time in Tossa de Mar concluded with a traditional meal of tapas followed by a very energetic disco. The final stop of the tour before our return home was to the Nou Camp where our students were able to follow in the footsteps of some of the legends of FC Barcelona. My thanks go to all of the students who were such a pleasure to spend time with and to Mrs Brown, Mr Breen, Miss Pastor and Miss Rieuf whose hard work made the trip a real success.

Mr Sinclair

SOTONIENSIS 2019 | 87

Spanish trip to Salamanca “ My favourite part of Salamanca was when we did a cooking course and competed (Uppers vs Lowers) for who could make the best Paella and the best Spanish tortilla. It was a great trip to practise your Spanish, especially asking to buy an ice cream (the weather was great) and churros! The city was so pretty and great for photos!”

Amy Tunney

“ The best thing about our trip to Salamanca was the freedom we had to explore the beautiful city, with its fusion of architectural styles and cultures. The weather was lovely throughout and on the Sunday morning, as the language school was closed, we had a few hours of free time which a group of us spent sitting in the sun in the Plaza Mayor drinking coffee.

My host family was particularly wonderful and I can’t wait to see Teresa again next year!”

Ellie Dunlop “ Salamanca is such a great city with so much to see and do. The Plaza is without doubt the nicest in Spain that I’ve been to, definitely better than Madrid.

Among all the activities you get to do, the best thing has to be a café con leche en la Plaza! That said, the highlight of the trip was a Paella masterclass, which saw the Uppers and Lowers go head to head.

Needless to say, the Uppers won.”

Will Wickham “ You learn lots about the culture in Spain as Salamanca has so much history so it is really interesting to see it all in person - the old university buildings, The Art Deco Museum, the cathedral.

The lessons are taught in Spanish and the constant exposure to the language helps with learning new vocabulary and how to speak in a more fluent way.

There are fun ‘Spanish’ activities like cooking typical Spanish food and Salsa dance classes.”

Alice Booth “ Visiting Salamanca was a great experience! It was a way for all of us to improve our speaking fluency whilst exploring the Spanish culture. Despite many activities, one highlight of the trip, for me, would have to be the Salsa class. It was so much fun and definitely entertaining for everyone. Without a doubt, I intend to return next year.”

Ella-Jay Mallon

“ The trip to Salamanca in February half-term was an incredibly fun one. My favourite part was staying with the host family and being able to experience the food typical to Spain. I also enjoyed the dance class and ice cream in the plaza.“

Alice Dyer “ We spent 5 days in Salamanca staying in groups with local host families and exploring the city, as well as having a Salsa lesson! I really enjoyed this trip because it didn’t feel as if we were on a school trip at all, rather a really fun holiday where we could practise and learn Spanish in our own time, I definitely recommend it to anyone taking Spanish in Sixth Form!”

Kira Morton

88 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

Summer Camp Following another busy year filled with countless fundraising events, including the famous Triathlonathon, Battle of the Bands, First Year Disco, ‘University Challenge’ and Sixth Form favourite ‘Would I Lie to You?’, the Summer Camp team travelled down to the New Forest with a group of sixteen young carers. The aim of the trip was to give the group of 8-11 year olds a fun-packed holiday away from their daily responsibilities of caring for a relative. For many this was their first time camping so it is safe to say we arrived at camp with a very excited group of youngsters.

Our time on camp involved trips to the beach, Moors Valley, Lymington Sea Water Baths, Longdown Activity Farm and the New Forest Wildlife Centre.

Everyone thoroughly enjoyed all the activities and it was amazing to see so many of the young carers conquering their fear of heights at ‘Go Ape’ and overcoming any worries they had about going into the water at the Sea Water Baths. The weather was fantastic for the entire trip; after full days out in the sunshine, it was not just the young carers falling asleep on the minibus!

Back at camp, we had great fun painting nails, making loomband bracelets, drawing and playing board games – battleship became a firm favourite. Rounders was another much-loved game amongst everyone but it soon changed to cricket after England’s World Cup success. Evenings were filled with barbecues, games of tag and hot chocolate, ensuring everyone was exhausted and ready for bed at the end of the day.

The final night involved the annual Summer Camp Talent Show, which included singing, dancing, acting and many more wonderful talents. It was amazing to see how much some of the youngsters had grown in confidence over the few days we had known them and the support they showed each other was brilliant.

The final day was, to say the least, emotional. After packing up camp, we headed out to a field in the forest for lunch where we also had ‘circle time’. Everyone reflected on their favourite moment from the trip before jumping back onto the bus for the return trip to school. After spending an amazing five days together and having bonded so much with the kids, farewells were most certainly teary. The young carers left having made some unforgettable memories and the Sixth Formers left feeling privileged to have been given the opportunity to share the experience with such a caring group of kids. It is certainly an experience that none of us will ever forget.

I would like to thank Mrs Hall, Miss McGinn, Miss McGregor, Miss Horn, Mr Shadbolt and Mr Hyder for all of their support during our time away. I would also like to say a massive thank you to Miss Downing for absolutely everything she has done throughout the last school year to ensure Summer Camp went as smoothly as it did. Without her, camp would not have been the same.

Stephanie Judd

SOTONIENSIS 2019 | 89

Tile Barn Tile Barn was a great experience to meet new friends in my class. We went on an obstacle course where we had to help each other to get to the end of the course without touching the ground. It was hard but we got used to it and we completed the course. It took a few tries but we finished it and had a really good time.

That was the highlight of the trip for me! I encourage everyone to go on the trip and have a great time.

Ben Malloch Tile Barn was a great way to meet my new classmates and do lots of fun activities. My favourite activity was rock climbing and abseiling because it was challenging and even if you think you can’t do it, you can push yourself to your limits. Overall, it is a great way to make new friends at KES. I hope next year the First Years have as much fun as we did.

George Goodridge 1/1 went to Tile Barn to get to know each other and have a fun day out. One of the activities we did was team puzzles where we had to solve certain problems to reach the target. We had to each hold a gutter and make a long line to roll the ball down at a constant speed to try and get it into the bucket. We had to communicate and learn each other’s names.

We also learnt what sort of people everyone was and who liked to take the lead. It was a fun day away from school and good for making friends and becoming a great class.

Ben Hughes

90 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

Tokyo trip In October, a group of students participated in the high tech trip to Tokyo.

We all met up at school for an early start, beginning with a coach trip to Heathrow to catch our first flight to Qatar. After the seven hour flight everyone was still in high spirits as we got ready for our next flight to Tokyo. We eventually arrived after a long eleven hour flight, gathered our bags and made our way into Tokyo itself to get some much needed rest at our hotel. The first full day was spent exploring Sony Explora Science. This is a vast building with two floors dedicated to the history of technology and modern science; we were all impressed at the display of robots and artificial intelligence. Afterwards, we went to a science and technology museum filled with hands-on exhibits. At the end of a long day our evening meal was much appreciated, and provided the first chance for us to experience Japanese food culture, which for many of us was far different to what we are used to.

The subsequent days followed the same routine of travelling to a destination or landmark and exploring.

Highlights included the visit to the Tokyo sky tree

and travelling up to the observation deck (which left those with a fear of heights wishing they had stayed at the bottom) and the day we spent in and around Akihabara. This is the epicentre of technology and anime in Japan and many of us spent our time in the three seven-floor arcades on the main street that feature many futuristic games with interesting prizes to be won. We also enjoyed the visit to Shibuya, known for its famous staggered crossing. Our daily stops at one or more temples were fascinating with all of them having different purposes. For example, one temple is frequented by students who want to do well at school.

After a long week filled with interesting technology, food and culture, we were all exhausted but still upset at the thought of such a fulfilling trip coming to an end.

Marcus Webb

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Vietnam expedition Immediately after the end of term, a group of KES students flew to Vietnam for a unique nineteenday expedition. A training trip to Dartmoor during the previous October half-term had provided the team with the skillset needed for the trek, as well as teaching them how to lead and manage in times of stress; almost enough to for a student to lead us confidently through international airports!

Though the trip was principally focused on trekking in the Sapa valleys and the Pu Long province, we spent two acclimatisation days in Hanoi during which time we visited the Ho Chi Minh Museum and The Museum of Fine Art, as well as undertaking the final preparations for the trek ahead. This period enabled everyone to adjust both to the climate, the culture and change of lifestyle.

In an effort to maximise the time we had available and to experience as much as possible, we took an overnight train from Hanoi up to Sapa where we met Vii our local trekking guide. Though the group had varying ability levels, all members did well to remain a tight unit and everyone steadily grew in confidence to gain independence in setting a universal pace.

The landscape throughout the trek ranged from mountain jungle to colourful paddy fields but never

failed to stop us in our tracks. Despite the immense heat, all succeeded with the daily mileage and gained important self-belief from the testing experience.

Accommodation was in Homestays, sleeping on mattresses under mosquito nets and sharing dinner with the owners.

After five fantastic days, we travelled back to Hanoi and shifted our focus to some more traditional tourist experiences. We visited Ha Long Bay and completed a Vietnamese cooking course, which we hope will be appreciated at home, although a perfect professional replication may be unlikely!

It soon became clear that the nineteen days would pass quickly as we were whisked away south to the Pu Long province for a further four-day expedition. This terrain was more hilly but equally as stunning. Whilst in the area, we took the opportunity to explore Ning Bingh; particularly appreciating the temples and the limestone caves of Trang An from a Sampan boat tour.

All in all, the trip allowed members of the group to grow in both individual and team confidence which will ultimately enable us to further nurture our passion for travelling in the future.

Ellie Yonge

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Watersports trip The ever-popular watersports trip took place at the end of August, with forty students making the epic coach journey down to La Rive in the South of France for a fantastic holiday week, filled with water-based activities. The group had glorious weather in which to enjoy sailing, windsurfing, SUPing and kayaking alongside a spot of mountain biking and a visit to Aqualand. They also experienced the beauty of the glorious sunset and the fun of the dune run at the Dune du Pilat – the tallest sand dune in Europe.

Mr Barnes

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BOYS’ SPORT AT KES 2018-2019

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Rugby overview The game of rugby continues to grow at King Edward’s with more boys and girls playing the sport.

With A, B and C teams in many of the year groups, all players are having the opportunity to represent the School. This continued upward trend in the rugby programme seems to be a consistent theme.

The season started for the 1st XV with the traditional pre-season training in August, which culminated in the 16th South Coast Kings Tournament. This was well attended with several schools making their tournament debuts, in addition to an already impressive list of rugby playing schools. Everyone engaged with the ‘free and fast’ ethos of the competition and displayed some great attacking skills throughout the day. The U15 teams were evenly matched with only a few points separating the top four teams. Eventually, Bedford School emerged as Trophy winners with Windsor Boys’ School picking up the Bowl; KES finished a very respectable 5th.

In the U18 tournament there was pace and power

amongst the top four teams. Hampton School were eventually crowned overall winners with Whitchurch High School taking the Bowl and Beechen Cliff School winning the Shield. Special mention must go to Claire Powell who managed all the tournament scheduling before and during the event, Yasmin Paul who coordinated all the administration leading up to the competition and, lastly, the KES teachers who supported and encouraged our players throughout the day.

Rugby at King Edward’s is as much about experience and team work as it is about results.

There was a real improvement in the ‘squad mentality’ this year and our B team coaches are to thank for this continued growth in playing numbers.

Their enthusiasm and organisation in fielding full teams every week was fantastic; Mr Dawson, Mr Aellen, Mr Sinclair, Mr Rosenberg and Mr Nicholls deserve a great deal of thanks for their efforts in building a B/C team culture at KES.

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The autumn term was blessed with perfect rugby playing weather which saw all of our teams participate in the early rounds of their prospective national and county cup competitions. Individual players from several teams were also beginning to create a name for themselves among a variety of representative teams; we had Hampshire County caps for Jamie Dunn and Will Chambers. Henry Gwilliam and Archie Callaghan continue their journey through the Welsh Exiles programme and there are several Second Year boys involved in the DP programme with HSRFU. The senior squads boasted pleasing numbers during this season; 18+ at training. Their hard work throughout the season, typified by players such as James Webb and Oliver Showell, has brought its rewards; wins against Lord Wandsworth College and a strong U18C Bishop Wordsworth School were notable highlights. The First Year players were mostly small but skilful and quick, and as determined as you could hope for.

Mr Kent, Mr Aellen and Mr Nicholls crafted three squads full of energy and skill! The U13 squads made excellent progress throughout the season, growing in skill and speed and performing well in the invitational tournament held at Cokethorpe School. Our U14 teams boasted some of the most competent and ruthless players I have seen at this age group; a big win against MCS was a notable event. Mr Laverty has directed some passionate, industrious and energetic players with real guile throughout the term. They were a pleasure to coach and they were gentlemen off the field after a fixture.

Mr Collinson and Mr Aellen managed the very talented U15 teams. The vast majority of their ten Saturday games were fiercely contested, and they won eight of them. Mr Wood worked hard with the U16 squad. This group of players knuckled down and worked industriously throughout the season. Players such as Jamie Dunn, James Bristowe and Luke Ward represented the 1st XV which speaks volumes of the toughness of many of these young men.

I would like to personally thank the staff and players for their hard work. Coaches demand high standards, which our participants respond to accordingly. The students understand the need to put their heart and soul into representing the School and this is rewarded with the positive experiences that they receive and, in a less direct way, from the results that they are achieving. I look forward to seeing more players representing the School.

I am rarely at a loss for words, but, at this point, I find it hard to verbalise the industry and passion that Mr Wood has employed over the last 35 years at the School. He was Head of Rugby for twenty years (1984-2004) and has been the most integral part of the U16 teams since 2005. He has led a variety of short and long haul rugby tours, has helped his charges achieve county, regional and even international honours and has won a variety of county cups. Whilst at KES, Mr Wood has coached the Hampshire County team and is currently Director of Rugby at Romsey RFC. Rugby at KES, and its reputation throughout the county and way beyond, has all been down to his craft. On a personal note, I could not have done without his guidance and patience and I do not think rugby at KES would be in such a strong and resilient state as it is today, without his input. I will state, unreservedly, that we are unlikely to see coaches, teachers and rugby masters of the kin of Mr Wood ever again. Thank you! I very much hope to see you on the touchline soon, where you will be forever welcome.

Mr Powell Head of Rugby

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Senior Rugby

A strong pre-season camp in August saw the senior players in good shape as they headed into the regular fixture card. Before term started the School hosted the South Coast Kings Tournament at Wellington Sports Grounds and competed well considering the class of opposition we were lucky enough to play.

In the first half of term disaster struck with the loss, through injury, of such an influential player as Ben Pearce. This, as well as the loss of certain players from the School after their U16 season, meant there was a need for many players to play out of position. Sam Thompson, a regular representative for the county at flanker, suddenly found himself at outside half!

The second half of the season brought some terrific opposition but the boys never took a backward step, never needed to depower the scrummage and even managed to steal a few strikes against the head; most notably against a juggernaut pack down at Sherborne School. The KES side consistently outteamed the opposition, which is all down to incredible commitment from all of the senior players.

There must also be a mention to players such as Dom Payne and Oliver Showell who played with nothing less than 100% effort and determination in every game.

Lastly, the mature, motivational leadership of Jake Rowland (C) and Filippo Hall (VC) meant that my job almost became ancillary: they were truly incredible!

Mr Powell

Played: 13 Won: 4 Drew: 0 Lost: 9

Squad members: Jake Rowland*(C), James Webb*, Dom Payne*, Ben Pearce, Andrew Crawford*, Adam Lock*, Robert McFarlane*, Henry Gwilliam*, Angus Armstrong*, Filippo Hall* (VC), Sam Thompson*, Michael Shenouda, Will Barker*, Edward Kellett, Henry Tudor, Ollie Wilson, Charles Thomas, Ollie Showell*, Patrick Keith, Patrick Johnson, Cameron Jesney, Sam Burton and Toby Pugh.

Player of the Season: Jake Rowland *Denotes an awardee of School Colours.

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U16 Rugby When the squad of twenty-three players assembled at the start of term, it immediately became apparent that they had huge potential for the forthcoming season. The boys worked hard to develop a style of play that suited their strengths and allowed them to play free-running and open rugby when the opportunities arose. As with most players of this age group, they had a tendency to do some simple skills really well but put themselves under pressure when they tried to do something complicated.

The season started with a comfortable win at Halliford before losing to a very impressive team from The Oratory School. They then beat Mountbatten School in a Hampshire Cup match before a double header at Bournemouth produced two hard-fought wins including a cup match against HCS. A trip to Dauntsey’s produced the tackle of the season from Will Booth, resulting in another victory for the U16s before half-term. Lord Wandsworth edged a close game of high quality in appalling weather conditions, but the KES team returned to winning ways with two good victories over Churcher’s and PGS. The latter saw our best performance of the season as the team played with style and a ruthlessness that they had not shown before. The squad ran in five unanswered tries and converted them all giving a very professional performance. The team were well-prepared for their cup semi-final against HCS but in terrible weather conditions they conceded an early try and spent much of the half under pressure from an aggressive and committed HCS side. However, the KES side

Played: 11 Won: 8 Drew: 0 Lost: 3

did not buckle, maintaining their shape and keeping the game plan simple, allowing them to claw their way back into the match. A try conversion was enough to win the match but it came with a cost, as players picked up injuries. The Cup Final was held over until January and on this occasion it proved a game too far for the U16s. Nevertheless, they can be immensely proud of their achievements particularly as a number of the squad were playing B team rugby last year and stepped up without any fuss to play a very good standard of rugby throughout the season.

Some players made excellent progress and scored their first ever tries for the School. As a squad they have shown adaptability to cover for injuries and it was sad to see JB and Jamie finish their seasons injured. The boys have been a pleasure to coach and I hope they have learnt that rugby is a simple game!

My thanks to Mr Powell and Mr Rosenberg for their expertise during training sessions and to all the parents for their unstinting support whatever the weather, result or performance.

Mr Wood Squad members: James Bristowe, Jamie Dunn, Alex Georgiou, Nick Damley-Jones, Tom Henley, Noah Cooper, Nathaniel Holland-Wright, William Waring, Luke Ward, Rory Anderson, Charlie Harden, Alex Miles, Will Booth, Jacob Adeniji, Niall Armstrong, Sam Smith, Theo Roberts, Oscar Self, Faisal KekereEkun, Ryan Scott, Adam Woo, Euan Etheridge, Will Brench-Jones and James McIlroy.

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U15A Rugby

The U15 A team enjoyed a very successful season, with some excellent wins against strong opposition. In the pre-season South Coast Kings Competition, they progressed to the semi-finals of the cup before losing to the eventual winners. This led on to an unbeaten run in the first half of term, with the pick of the results a 26-5 away victory at Dauntsey’s in very cold, wintery conditions. Dauntsey’s is always a difficult place to visit and come away with a win, especially after hardhitting back-rower Alistair Howard had to come off the pitch with a broken nose. However, some strong running from front row Kerem Nebol and centre Will Chambers, along with the dancing feet of fly-half Dan Wickes, proved too much for the home side.

The second half of term always has the tougher fixtures and a narrow 12-10 loss to Lord Wandsworth College was the one result that the team felt should really have been a victory. In appalling rain and mud, the result hinged upon a penalty try in the final minutes, a particularly vexing way to end the winning streak. The performance of the season came against a very strong Churcher’s side, with KES coming out on top 17-10. Here, the leadership of Captain Archie Callaghan was key to the U15s getting off to a very strong start, with three unanswered tries in the opening quarter. Just as much grit and determination, as exemplified by hooker Ben Pearce and utility forward/centre Aaron Henderson, were then needed to hang on in the second half as Churcher’s came back into the contest.

Played: 10 Won: 8 Drew: 0 Lost: 2

The final fixture of the season was a blustery away game to Portsmouth Grammar School, whom the U15s were confident of beating, having put 40 points on them in an earlier cup fixture. However, overconfidence from KES, a string of late-season injuries to key players and a boggy pitch all resulted in a real scrap of a game, with the sides level on 17-17 in the final minute. Thankfully though, a kickable penalty was then awarded to KES and, with the final kick of the game, Jack Warrener stepped up and slotted home for a 2017 victory.

A very large number of boys turned out for the U15s this season and it was excellent to see so many enjoying their rugby. If they can keep these numbers of enthusiastic players in the game, this year group could be one to watch.

Mr Collinson Squad members: Kerem Nebol, Ben Pearce, Jack Light, Oscar Groves, Ree Okitikpi, Jack Warrener, Alistair Howard, Aaron Henderson, Archie Callaghan (C), Billy Smith, Eric Bentham, Michael Ma, Caleb Hillier, Harry Stembridge, Benedict Potter, Will Chambers, Dan Wickes (VC), Ben Butson, Jack Wells, Archie Kilpatrick, Finn Leake, Hal Armstrong, Alexander Brain and Cameron Yates.

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U15B Rugby The desire to play rugby appears undimmed within this age group who were able to field a strong side for each fixture, and a total of twenty-eight boys played for the B team over the course of the season.

Of these, seven went on to represent the A team on at least one occasion. Each game was played with good spirit and there were some excellent tries scored; as the B team showed what can be done with spirited defence and continuity in attack. Even in the torrential downpour against Lord Wandsworth College, spirits were high and each of the boys were back again the following Saturday. Cameron Yates, Andrew McFarlane and Charlie Massey played every fixture for the B team and set the tone with their willingness to play.

The first match against Halliford set the pattern for the season with strong running from the centres setting up field position, from which we were able to score. It also included the try of the season, going to the length of the field with two offloads in the tackle and Huw Dunlop getting the glory. There followed a big win against The Oratory School and a great performance (39-5) against Dauntsey’s, both Ree Okitikpi and Cameron Yates scoring hat-tricks.

Played: 7 Won: 4 Drew: 1 Lost: 2

After half-term, two losses and a tense draw followed, before a satisfying (34-15) finale against PGS. Cameron Yates top-scored with eight tries but with seventeen players contributing scores it really was a great team effort. I hope to see them all at U16 level.

Mr Aellen Squad members: Cameron Yates, Andrew McFarlane, Charlie Massey, Alex Brain, Daniel Newman, Ben Deans, Huw Dunlop, Tom Parsons, Will Daniels, Charlie Duffin, Oscar Willsher, Will James, Dan HoustonRobb, Jack Lyne, Robert Evans, Alex England, Caleb Hillier, Ben Hews, Edward Bence, Archie Kilpatrick, Eric Bentham, Max Mehta, Ree Okitikpi, Billy Smith, Daniel Hill, Felix Sinker, Hal Armstrong and Oscar Groves.

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U14A Rugby

Played: 11 Won: 9 Drew: 0 Lost: 2

Squad members: James Tall, Charlie Shannon, Murray Boyle, Ata Yilmaz, James CummingsCandal, Matt Loran, Barnaby Saer, Ethan Woods, Ben Morgan, Sam Golledge, Dom Fernando (C), Bruno Jesney, Hugo Dunkley, Harry Bristowe (VC), Sam McIlroy, Monty Randle, Harry Day, Joe Thompson, Alex Kipps, George Coltart and Seb Mills.

Once again the commitment from the boys was tremendous this season. With regular attendance at training topping thirty, for both the A and B team, we were able to recreate game play scenarios which added enormous value to the sessions and facilitated the development of set patterns of play. My objective for the season was to encourage all players to become decision makers on the pitch and begin finding solutions to the various problems they would encounter during a match.

The team began the campaign well during September when weather conditions favoured a fast, flowing game. Harry Bristowe started to establish himself as both a leader and decision maker on the pitch, setting the standard for the other players in these early matches. The highlight, for me, was the away trip to The Oratory School, during which a slightly weakened KES side came from behind, against a fast, physical opposition, to win the game in the last five minutes.

Monty Randell’s decision making and effective running were instrumental in this victory.

The winning habit continued into October. Of particular note were the performances at The Perrins School ten-a-side competition. Good results in early matches saw the team line up against Lord Wandsworth School in the semi-final; a team that had defeated KES in all of their previous encounters. This time around, the U14 A team, inspired by the running of Harry Day, were too strong and their win set them up for a game against PGS in the final. Unfortunately PGS were once again too strong for KES resulting in a defeat for the side.

As the good weather of the early season started to fade, the team looked to develop their ability to play in wet conditions. They adapted well, showing impressive handling skills meaning they were able to produce some dazzling displays despite the weather.

Joe Thompson was a significant factor in these games, with much improved handling skills meaning he was a threat to the opposition whenever he got his hands on the ball. Two other players also stood out during these matches. Dom Fernandez continued to tackle everything that moved and, in addition, Ben Morgan continued his development as a rugby player making significant contributions in all aspects of the game.

The low point of the season came in the away game at Churcher’s College. The preparation seemed to have gone well for a confrontation that the boys knew would be challenging. However, the team made a bad start and failed to adapt to some very strict refereeing.

Although the team regrouped in the second half, this was to be a heavy defeat and a disappointing performance overall.

A good victory away at Magdalen College, Oxford, saw Barnaby Saer performing well not only on the pitch, demonstrating characteristically strong running, but also afterwards when he entertained everyone with some equally strong piano playing.

The final game of the season was against an unbeaten PGS side. The KES boys put in a solid and committed performance and learnt that even strong teams can start to make mistakes when under pressure. This is what happened to PGS. The U14s were able to capitalise upon this, keeping their discipline when the game started to heat up, and witnessing PGS give away penalties and crucial ground through ill discipline. Unfortunately, KES also learnt that to compete with good teams like PGS, fitness is key and, in the last quarter of the game, PGS put the game to bed with three quick tries.

I would like to say a big thank you to all the players and parents who have supported the team throughout their season with 100% commitment.

Mr Laverty

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U14B Rugby The season began with comfortable victories over Halliford and the Oratory School. It was apparent from the outset that the team featured some very strong runners with ball in hand, and both Jack Williams and Charlie Shannon excelled in the early games due to their direct running and ability to break the gainline. The team showed an appetite for playing a very expansive, attractive style of rugby throughout the season, with many opposition coaches complimenting them on their fluid running and passing. This style of play was embodied by Charlie Hand who was a delight to watch in both the centre and at full back.

As the season progressed, the games became more challenging, although the side did well to defeat a strong Hampshire Collegiate team before securing another resounding victory against Dauntsey’s, with Ata Yilmaz showing his pace and power in a variety of positions. Daani Nayyar also came to the fore in his first match of the season where he showed a bruising physicality and great pace as he ran in a try from the halfway line.

The team finally met their match against a forceful Lord Wandsworth side who made the most of dreadful weather to win by a solitary score. The constant deluge of rain prevented the boys from putting in place their normal game plan, based on quick ball and deft handling, but they showed a positive and competitive spirit throughout the encounter. The fixture against Churcher’s College represented another step up in class and, following a very close first half, injuries took

Played: 8 Won: 6 Drew: 0 Lost: 2

their toll and Churcher’s came away with a convincing victory. Will Armstrong deserves tremendous credit for the leadership qualities and perseverance, which he demonstrated that day and which typified the spirit of the squad throughout the season.

The season ended with two superb performances with the highlight being a definitive victory against PGS, featuring a memorable length-of-the-field try from Will Taylor to score his hat-trick, in addition to superb handling throughout the game in the backs who were ably marshalled at half-back by the ever present pairing of Josh Kent and Oliver Herbert. In summary, it was a pleasure to work with this talented group of individuals and I believe that a significant number of them have the potential to play 1st XV rugby in the future. I would like to thank the boys for their significant commitment and enthusiasm in both training and matches throughout the season.

Mr Sinclair Squad members: Kym Anderson, Will Armstrong, Murray Boyle, Charlie Hand, Oliver Herbert, Josh Kent, Tom Lugton, Wilf Sutton, Jack Williams (C), Nolan Erard, Owen Wiseman, Guy Yates, Ata Yilmaz, Will Taylor, Tom Andrews, Josh Kerr, Tom Norman, Matthew Carrall-Wilcocks, Harry Cotterell, Kamran Dhariwal, Daniel Burrows, Daani Nayyar, Charlie Shannon, Will Giles and Nirujan Baheerathan.

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U13A Rugby This enjoyable season started with a thrilling game against Halliford School, which ended in a 30-30 draw. This was due to an excellent team effort and the team scored a try from the last play of the game after the captain, Rory Duncan, somehow managed to stay in touch!

The highlight of the season followed a couple of weeks later with a well earnt victory over PGS with Harry McIlroy leading the way with his break away tries. In other games, the side did struggle against a few of the teams who were physically much stronger but it was pleasing to see them persevere in these games. Andre Hughes should be given a special mention for the workload he put in, both in terms of his tackles and his carrying.

The matches against St John’s and Lord Wandsworth (both bigger opposition teams) were both close and I was particularly proud of the boys. Next season, and with some calmer heads under pressure, the U13 A side can push these teams even closer. Another defeat followed in the excellent game against Churcher’s College, which went right down to the wire and finished with a dramatic comeback in the second half, started by an excellent kick chase score

by Ollie Daniels.

Played: 14 Won: 4 Drew: 1 Lost: 9

The season ended with the Cokethorpe Tournament and three consecutive wins showing just how far the team have progressed! In these games the pack, consisting of Sam Attfield, Ethan Chapman Heath, Max Bouras, Max Smith, Ryan Moreau and Tim Harris, were able to supply quick balls at times for Kobe Stavonhagen to use. Luca Gualano, Oliver Wilkinson, Sam Tyson and Joe Warrener made lots of ground when finally given space and Jamie Wickes and Freddie Elliot showed that they are evolving into a couple of very effective tacklers.

Mr Mixer Squad members: Ethan Chapman-Sheath, Rory Duncan, Andre Hughes, Kobe Stavonhagen, Jamie Wickes, Freddie Elliot, Joe Warrener, Sam Attfield, Oliver Daniels, Luca Gualano, Archie Bell, Max Smith, Sam Tyson, Tim Harris, Max Bouras, Oliver Wilkinson, Ryan Moreau and Harry McIlroy.

Honours: Cokethorpe Plate semi-finalists

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U13B Rugby

This second season of rugby saw a huge improvement, not only individually but also as a team. The boys demonstrated strength of character even when results were not in their favour.

The season kicked off with a narrow loss to Halliford, with just a one-try score line. Although the organisation, in both attack and defence, was not so evident, the team spirit and sheer grit was an inspiration. After two tough fixtures against The Oratory School and PGS, the first win of the season came against a strong HCS A team. A fast-paced game, with tenacious tackling and scintillating offloading, capped off a 35-5 victory. The players started the next game against Dauntsey’s with the same intent, scoring a wonderfully worked try in the corner with only minutes on the clock. However, the strong KES defensive wall eventually leaked, after a strong siege, and Dauntsey’s found themselves level at the break. This hole in the wall could not be patched up and three early tries in the second half condemned KES to a defeat. However, the team bounced back with an emphatic win over St John’s with great performances from Jamie McManus and Luca Thomas, scoring four tries and three tries respectively. This produced a vital 40-25 win going into the half-term break.

The second half of the season saw KES face immense opposition in Churcher’s College and Lord Wandsworth College, not just in size but in technical ability as well. Despite heavy defeats in both games,

Played: 8 Won: 2 Drew: 0 Lost: 6

the attitude and endeavour was visible to everyone.

Magdalen College travelled to Wellington for the final game of the U13 season in what was to be a gruelling encounter. A resilient KES team battled ferociously, scoring four fantastic tries in a 20-35 defeat.

To pick out individual performers would create a long list as every single person pulled their weight in every single game. However, special mention must go to the captain, Euan Holm, for rallying his troops. Ollie Wilkinson and Sav Ariyawansa both led by example with their fearless tackling, Marcus Wray and Blair Galloway skipped through defensive lines with pure ease.

It has been an absolute pleasure to work with this group of boys and I hope they continue to improve as rugby players, as they have done in these last few months.

Mr Dawson Squad members: Savinu Ariyawansa, James Booth, Dylan Burrows, Joe Culver, Ollie Daniels, Matthew Evans, Blair Galloway, Sam Gavin, Ollie Ginns, Benji Groves, Euan Holm (C), Callum Jacob, Fraser Reynolds, Elias Simojoki, Luca Thomas, Thomas Waggett, Sam Tyson, Ollie Wilkinson, Michael Wong and Marcus Wray.

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U12A Rugby The rugby season started with the annual pre-season training sessions during the last week of the summer holiday. Over fifty boys attended, eager to show what they were capable of, and the levels of enthusiasm were fantastic. The pre-season festival at Millfield was cancelled and so the first Saturday saw an extra training session at Wellington Sports Ground.

The first match day saw the boys travel to the Oratory Prep School. This proved to be a tough test against a side that had clearly been playing together for a number of years. The KES side gave them a real test as they battled hard showing good courage to stay level for much of the game and it was only a late try that gave Oratory the victory 15-10.

The next match was at home to PGS and was a frustrating game in which play descended to the level of the opposition and the game featured many mistakes before ending in an undesirable draw.

Bournemouth School were the next visitors and the boys played with a much better level of skill in this game. After a slow start their superior knowledge showed as they put phases together and scored 4 good tries.

The side then travelled to Dauntsey’s and were taught a lesson in intensity and skill level. The score finished 0-20 and there was certainly a gap in quality. The boys had to learn that this was the level to which they had to aspire. St John’s, Southsea were next, and the KES team were completely dominant against very weak opposition. A final score of 55-5 was a fair reflection of the difference in ability but, nevertheless, some of the scores that we put together were good rugby tries.

The visit of Churcher’s gave another good test. It was an excellent game and the boys battled a team who were very committed, particularly at the breakdown, and had to work very hard to keep the ball. As was the theme all season, the U12s started slowly and conceded the first try, but then got back into the game and some good play led to an excellent try to gain parity. In the second half, the side continued to put together some good moments and had a period of pressure on the KES line from which they would have scored were it not for a clear case of ‘white line fever’. It was harsh to concede from the final play to lose a game that really warranted a draw.

The performance of the season followed at Magdalen College School. It was clear that the KES squad were a little stronger than the opposition, and the passages of play that they put together, along with the ability they showed to keep the ball for long periods of time, demonstrated what the U12s had been working towards for much of the season.

Played: 9 Won: 4 Drew: 0 Lost: 5

A scoreline of 35-5 to KES was perhaps a little generous but the boys deserved credit for putting in an excellent performance.

At the Cokethorpe Festival, the side won three games and drew one in the group stages to finish second and move into the plate. Here, they beat the Crypt school to reach the final where they faced a Royal Latin School sadly lacking in rugby spirit. Having withstood a first half on the defensive, the U12s kept their composure and created a number of chances which they were sadly unable to capitalise upon and it was 0-0 going into the final stages. Unfortunately, the opposition had one last opportunity, which they took, to win with the final play of the game. Our boys kept their heads and accepted the result with good grace.

The final weekend saw a triangular morning with PGS and Churcher’s. The KES side failed to compete physically against PGS but the final game of the season, whilst ending in a 10-5 defeat, finished with the best passage of play witnessed all season.

The boys kept the ball for many phases, showed composure in their decision-making and ended the game with a fantastic pass, floated out to the wing for a sliding try-scoring finish. White line fever had been cured!

Throughout the season I have stressed to the boys that the result is not the most important outcome.

As coaches, we work to improve their skill and ability as rugby players so that they develop into excellent 1st team players in the future. More important than that is their enjoyment of the sport. I believe that we achieved this as there were still over forty players training on damp, dark Wednesday after-school sessions, right up to the end of term, and we always had more than enough boys to field three teams in the year group.

There is undoubted talent in this year and there are a few boys, who had never played the game before joining KES, who have the potential to overtake some current A team players in years to come. I look forward to watching their rugby develop over the next few years.

My thanks go to Mr Rosenburg and Mr Nicholls for their considerable help with the year group in coaching, selecting and fielding teams throughout.

Thanks also to Mr Powell, Mr Wood, Mr Piggott and Mr Dawson for their help with coaching in games lessons. Finally, thank you to the boys and to the parents, all of whom very quickly worked out what was expected of a KES sports team and the positive attitude demonstrated throughout the term was a pleasure to witness.

Mr Kent

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Squad members: Harry Appleton (C), Oliver Chambers, Archie ChapmanSheath, Freddie Collins, Henry Day, Tom Dyer, Cass Fernando, Hamish Hunter, Rory Kilpatrick, Ben Kipps, Tom Marsh, Jack Moores, Jamie Mundy, Raaghav Sharma, Charlie Spanner and Oli Williams.

U12B Rugby This season the U12 B team played a full calendar of fixtures, against a mix of A and B team opponents, and have made a very promising start to rugby at KES. The most pleasing aspects of the season were the fact that the team’s performances improved week on week, the players never stopped trying and that the players’ individual skill levels improved.

The first game of the season, after only a couple of training sessions, saw the team take on a very tough and well-organised Oratory Prep School. The team battled bravely and their never-say-die attitude came to the fore, but they ended up losing 8-2. The next three games were much closer and saw the team achieve victories against PGS (3-2) and Dauntsey’s (5-3) and a well-earned draw against an HCS A team.

The second half of the season proved to be more difficult, both in terms of the quality of the opposition and the injuries suffered by key players.

Played: 9 Won: 3 Drew: 1 Lost: 5

The team suffered defeats in a closely contested match against Lord Wandsworth College and a strong Churcher’s College as well as a muchimproved PGS side. All the matches took place in atrocious weather conditions. The highlight of this half of the season was the hard-earned victory, away to Magdalen College Oxford, where the team held on to win 4-3 with a number of last-ditch tackles.

I would like to thank all the boys who have represented the U12 B team this season and their parents for the positive support that they have given the players and myself. It has been great working with you all, I look forward to working with the boys again next season and helping them to develop their rugby knowledge, and skills further.

Mr Rosenburg

Squad members: Aman Patel, Olly Knight, Noah Vigor-Robertson, Oliver Smith, Max Pemberton, Efe Nebol, Hamish Hunter, Ben Hughes, Harry Gaster, Kit Goodridge, George Davies, Will Atkinson, Finlay Paterson, Will Norman, Charlie Danby, Jack Moores, Paddy Boyd, Joe Lambert, Nathaniel Saer, Daniel Shaw, Oliver Williams and Casper Underwood.

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U12C Rugby Having twenty-four boys to choose from for the final game of the season was testament to the enthusiasm and dedication of this team. Many of the boys had never played rugby before joining the School and approached every training session and match with a desire to learn. The first two competitive matches, against Oratory and PGS, were good experiences and the boys showed they could tackle, ruck and run with the ball when given the chance.

The U12C team won the first game of the season with an excellent performance against Magdalen College School, easily the best of the season, and followed it up with another notable team performance against PGS, winning 5 tries to 2. In both games, the

Played: 6 Won: 2 Drew: 0 Lost: 4

attacking potential shown in training was realised and they scored a number of remarkable team tries.

After a long break over half-term, the boys played a very competitive match against Churcher’s. KES played a good defensive game, with every player making tackles and some very good rucking.

Unfortunately, Churcher’s won in the end but with a bit more composure with the ball in hand, and better linking play along the back line, the result would have been closer.

Well done to all the boys this season and I look forward to watching their continued progress on the rugby pitch next year.

Mr Nichols Squad members: Robin Ali, Patrick Boyd, Harry Channell, Ameer Chowdhary, Ethan Cooper, Nathan Foot, Nicholas Footitt, Kit Goodridge, Daniel Hill, Ben Hughes, Kamran Jamil, Jamie King, Joe Lambert, Junhao Liu, Ben Malloch, Alan Moser, Efe Nebol, Muhammad Omer, Quinn Price, Josh Ranu, Nathaniel Saer, Daniel Shaw, Caspar Underwood and Edward Walker.

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Hockey overview Once again, the hockey at King Edward’s took many steps forward during the 2019 season. There was notable success at all levels as hockey continues to develop, and we become a regular at the South Finals and National Finals. We continue to add more teams and play more fixtures across the board. The numbers at training every week were incredible with U12, U13, U14 and U15 sides having over 45 boys at every session, no matter what the weather produced. The percentage of wins and draws was increased, showing a good balance in fixtures on a strong fixture card. This is a credit to the coaching staff and players and there were over 180 hockey matches played.

The depth of boys’ hockey was shown in the ability to be competitive across a number of different age groups in national qualifying tournaments. The U16 indoor team was outstanding. They topped their south round group, and won the south finals beating Whitgift in the final on penalty flicks. Unfortunately, they lost in the national semi-final against Whitgift in a very heated match and were unlucky not to have made the national finals. The 1st XI team had a successful run in the New Tier 1 England Hockey U18 Cup competition, finishing 9th overall. They were also just one win away from a finals day at

Birmingham University in the Independent Schools’ Hockey Cup losing in the quarter-final.

The high numbers of boys at after school training was a great advert for the popularity of boys’ hockey at the School and the range of levels of hockey on offer; from the high performance sportsmen to the team players in the lower teams.

KES is a high performance centre for England Hockey and we are very pleased to have had a number of boys attend the Monday night sessions and three boys part of the NAGS set up.

I would like to thank the coaching staff for helping put teams out each week, as the term is short and intense which requires many teams per week.

The large number of boys playing is a credit to the coaches who have been positive and have created a culture of hockey amongst the boys.

Mr Crichton

108 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

1st XI Hockey

The 1st XI boys’ hockey team had an early start to the season to help build their preparation for the new England Hockey U18 Cup competition as the Tier 1 competition. The boys started off by playing Kingston Grammar after half-term. They played well to win 2-1 and set a good foundation and style for the season. Next, as part of the pre-Christmas training, the 1st XI played PGS in both a home and away fixture with KES winning both matches. Against Cranleigh, Dean Close, St George’s and St Lawrence the team experienced some good match practice with some of the younger Fifth Year boys getting a chance at senior level.

The block fixtures started as a double header match counting for Tier 1 and the normally block fixture versus Canford. KES unfortunately lost this match but then played Kingston Grammar mid-week and recorded a good 3-1 win. Against St John’s, Leatherhead, the fixture saw both teams having good passage of play and possession of the ball. KES was able to score first with St John’s pushing for the equaliser. KES scored 2 goals late in the match to end 3-0 winners, in a match that could have gone either way. The team then travelled to Oxford to play Magdalen College and the boys showed some great play running out 4-1 winners. Next, the boys played Warminster School (winning 6-0) to finish off a busy first half of term. After half-term they played Churcher’s College winning 4-2 before a tough 1-1 draw away at Seaford. The team lost away to St George’s in a game that saw both teams showing signs of fatigue at the end of the season. In the final match the boys took on an Old Edwardians’ team at

Played: 20 Won: 14 Drew: 1 Lost: 5

Wellington. The 1st XI started strong and managed to hold on to the win even as the OEs gave a good push for the draw in the last few minutes.

The success of the season would not happened without the help of Mr Bassett, whether it be his coaching, video analysis, mentoring, umpiring or just his passion on the side of the field. Sinoxolo Mbekeni, a Trojans overseas player for the year, is also to be thanked for his help. The players have loved learning from his insight into games and seeing hockey played in a different style.

This has been an outstanding season for the 1st XI team and the time and effort given by Mr Bassett and Mr Mbekeni have made a huge impact on their performance as a team and individually. It has been fantastic to watch them play this season and see them grow. The team banter was outstanding from the start and the enthusiasm each member brought to the team was valued. There have been lots of minibus and coach rides where the boys, whether it be a win or lose, have shown great spirit. I view this season as a success, not by the trophies but by seeing the boys play together as friends and as a team and achieve above that which anyone believed that they could.

Mr Crichton Squad members: James Lander, Oliver Kimmance, Nathan Hastings, James Williams, Matthew Bell, James Harden, James Diaper, Jovan Dhariwal, Henry Beardsall, Ned Goodridge, Will Penrose, Sam Rachman, Joe Murphy, Sam Allsop, Ben Fox and William Fleming.

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England Hockey Tier 1 Cup England Hockey changed the structure of schools’ tournaments this year and KES were one of twentyone teams across the country to enter the Tier 1 competition. This would be a big step for KES hockey and a great opportunity for the boys to test themselves against the best in the country. The competition was based on a league from three areas and KES were drawn in the west league, providing a great chance to break away from the normal Surrey and London schools, but face some of the best schools in the West of England.

The first game was against local rival Peter Symonds College. KES dominated the opening and held most of the possession in the opening play. A counter attack saw PSC take the lead but against the run of play the 1st XI remained composed, focused on the process and kept to the structure. They equalised later in the half gaining control of possession as the PSC team had to defend deeper and deeper as the match progressed. Sam Allsop stepped up to make a big tackle on the PSC captain who had been their main player and the team took the opportunity and scored two quick goals running out out 3-1 winners in their first match of the Tier 1. Next up was an away match at Sir William Borlase’s Grammar School. This was a tough match as the playing conditions were slippery. KES survived a few chances early on with Joe Murphy in goal making some great saves. The introduction of Sam Rachman was perfectly timed as with his first touch, he put the ball calmly past the keeper to give KES a 1-0 lead. James Lander worked extremely hard, man marking their England player, which gave the School the opportunity to control the game resulting in a 2-1 win. The third match was against Canford and saw the 1st XI playing without captain Will Penrose. The boys struggled to find any form in front of goal and in the end lost 4-2 to Canford. For the fourth match, the squad travelled to Marlborough College. This was a high intensity match which was very exciting to watch and KES secured a 5-1 win in a match that saw Will Fleming scoring two goals late in the half to secure the win. Next the team travelled up to Dean Close. Will Fleming had a great chance in the first few minutes to put KES in the lead but their keeper made some great saves to keep the ball out the goal. The KES defence was outstanding, limiting every attack. The only penalty corner of the match was a well worked one which found its way around Joe Murphy to give Dean Close the lead 1-0. Dean Close held on for the win, in what was the toughest game of season. In KES’s final game of the Tier 1 the team played Millfield at home needing a win or a draw to have a chance of moving into the quarterfinal stage. Both teams started well, creating chances, but Millfield took theirs and went on to double the score. The 1st XI stepped up for the final 10 minutes and scored one back to make it 2-1. Despite pushing for the equaliser, they were unable to find a way past the Millfield defence and Millfield would hang on for the win. This loss meant KES finished 3rd in the West Tier 1 league, missing out on a quarter-final position

by 1 point and finishing 9th in the country in the Tier 1 competition. This was a disappointing end to the competition for the boys who had shown great potential and would have loved a quarter-final match.

Independent Schools’ U19 Hockey Cup (ISHC) For the first time, the 1st XI team was able to enter the Independent Schools’ Cup (ISHC). The boys travelled to Eastbourne for their first match and both sides started well with the opposition creating a few chances. Eastbourne scored first and this put the KES team under pressure. However, the boys stepped up and went into a 4-1 lead before Eastbourne made a late charge to end the game 4-2. Against Forest School at home, KES started well and looked to have majority of possession and creating chances. Again, the lack of ability to put chances away would create problems. The boys went 1-0 up and looked to have the game wrapped up before Forest School made a counter attack from their own circle to level the score.

One minute later Forest School led another counter attack from deep in their half to take the lead with two minutes remaining. This rattled the KES team but also sparked them into action and the boys pushed for the equaliser with time running out. The KES team won a penalty corner with a minute left. The first one was unsuccessful but with pressure mounting on the team, they rose to the occasion and put the ball into the goal taking the match to strokes. Joe Murphy was to be the KES hero saving two of the three flicks from Forest School to give KES the win and a quarter-final place.

The team was drawn away to St Lawrence in Ramsgate for the ISHC quarter-final. The conditions made it a difficult match for both teams as a strong wind was blowing. KES started the stronger team running into the wind for the first half. They scored first through a deflection by Ben Fox and went into half-time 1-0 up. After the break, St Lawrence levelled the score but the boys stepped up to take the lead again. St Lawrence replied and scored again to level.

With time running out for both teams, KES had a great chance on the far post (with a minute left) to secure the win. However, luck was not on the boys’ side and the ball went just wide of the goal. The match went to flicks to decide the winner and both teams missed one flick to go to sudden death flicks.

KES unfortunately fell short at this stage and were knocked out of the ISHC.

Honors 9th in the England Schools’ U18 Cup (9th in England) Quarter finalist of Independent Schools’ U19 Cup (Top 8 in England Independent Schools)

110 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

2nd XI Hockey

Played: 9 Won: 1 Drew: 4 Lost: 4

This season has been mixed for the 2nd XI. Results have not reflected the passion, quality, commitment and endeavour the boys have displayed each and every week.

distribution, their movements into space was the most complete display of hockey I have seen from a KES side in my four years at the School and the boys deservedly won the game 4-1.

The first and second games of the season were against strong Canford and Kingston Grammar teams. In both matches, the boys had moments of brilliance in both halves but were caught on the counter attack at key moments of the game which led to goals, ultimately leading to 3-0 losses. The following week the boys played some exceptional hockey in the first half. They counter attacked with pace and precision and St John’s had no answer to the quality of hockey being played. In the second half, the tide began to turn and the physicality of the St John’s team started to take control. They scored two unanswered goals in this half to draw the game.

I would like to thank the boys for making this season incredibly enjoyable from start to finish. Many of this team were part of the U15B team I coached to an unbeaten season, and they have all grown into a fantastic group of young adults who obviously enjoy their hockey. I hope that they continue playing wherever they end up next.

This would turn out to be the story of the season for the boys. Some excellent hockey was played which was unrivalled by the opposition, but at times KES were unable to provide the goal scoring touch or final pass to score the number of chances the boys were creating. This was the case against Magdalen College (2-1 loss), Ryde School (1-1), Churcher’s (2-2), Winchester College (1-1) and St George’s (3-2 loss).

The boys saved the best performance of the season until last. They played St John’s Leatherhead away and the 2nd XI really turned up and played their best hockey of the season. They were ruthless with their

Finally, I would like to thank Jack Wergan. Without Jack’s tenacity, enthusiasm and personality, this team would not have been as successful both on the field and off it, not to mention making my life that little bit easier! The signed shirt that the team got for Jack to celebrate his achievements as a leader is testament to the respect he has from his peers and his five years as captain of the B teams.

Mr Penn Squad members: Jackson Taylor (GK), Archie Lawrence, Raul Patel, Tom Lockyer, Max Pumphrey, Seb Harris, Jack Wergan (Captain), Dan Atchley, Aditya Rokade, Henry Gwilliam, Andrew Crawford, Finn McCullagh, Hugh Wilkinson, Alex Hall, Robert McFarlane, Henry Tudor, James Diaper, Sam Allsop, Henry Beardsall and Jovan Dhariwal.

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U16A Hockey The starting match of the season against Canford was delayed, due to the successful run to the Indoor National Finals. Therefore, the boys started their season mid-week in a re-arranged fixture, following the conclusion of the mock exams. They came away with a well earned 6-1 victory. A couple of days later, KES came up against Kingston Grammar School in a tough fixture. In a tight game, with not many chances for either side, KES conceded the only goal of the game to lose 1-0.

The KES National Cup campaign started the following week against local rivals PGS. The preparation for the game was not ideal, with many of the team absent or tired due to their previous day’s match in the final of the Hampshire Cup Rugby competition. With a number of U15 players called up to the squad, KES didn’t quite have enough and succumbed 2-3 to PGS. Going out of the National Cup in the first round was a shame, but the side would have an opportunity in the Plate competition as a result.

The team bounced back strongly with a victory over MCS (6-4) followed by a Hampshire Cup triumph, during which KES got revenge on PGS with a comfortable 3-1 win, combined with a 2-0 win over King’s, Winchester. The next two rounds of the National Plate saw the boys progress to the last sixteen of the competition with wins over Churcher’s (3-3, 3-1 on penalties) and Dr Challoner’s (2-0).

These wins sandwiched a weekend victory against Seaford College U18B (4-1); a match which provided the challenge of a more physical test than their normal U16 opponents.

Played: 13 Won: 8 Drew: 0 Lost: 5

The final three games of the season were a mixed bag. KES put in an impressive display away to St George’s College even with a number of key players absent. Despite losing the game 3-0, the structure and discipline with which the boys played was perhaps the best of the season so far and there were encouraging signs going in to the last sixteen tie with RGS Guildford. Unfortunately, these same elements of discipline were missing against RGS, and KES meandered to a 2-0 loss. Their dreams of making it to finals day at Lee Valley were gone. There was one last opportunity in the last Saturday block fixture of the season against a full strength PGS, who had managed to make it through to the semi-finals of the National Cup after beating KES in the first round.

KES made the most of this opportunity, combining the quality of performance against St George’s with a more potent threat in front of goal. KES came out 3-1 victors to end what had been an up and down season.

There is plenty of potential within the U16 squad as they move up to senior hockey, and hopefully they can take on board the lessons learnt during the season and flourish over the next two years.

Mr Bassett Squad members: Alex Georgiou, Noah Cooper, Charlie Harden, Aaron Henderson, Finn Coleman, Soren Golding, Euan Etheridge, Will Jackson, Torin Atchley, Nick Damley-Jones, Pierre Forster, Rory Penrose, Archie Kilpatrick, Harry Croft-Baker, Tom Henley, Rory Holm, Isaac Chapman-Sheath, Matthew Dyer, Harry Stembridge, Alex England, Alfie Dudson, Sam Smith, James Bristowe, Jamie Dunn and Rufus Taylor.

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U16B Hockey The U16B team started off with a great 7-0 win over Canford before travelling to Kingston Grammar where they suffered a 3-2 defeat. The team was disappointed with the loss, having created many chances in the match. The boys then played Winchester College 2nd team and won comfortably 6-0 with Theo Roberts being the stand out player for the KES team. The team subsequently beat Magdalen College 5-1 and then lost to the PGS U16A/B team 1-2; a result they were disappointed with having had so many chances in the match.

The first half of term finished with a 2-0 win over Warminster School.

After half-term the U16 Bs achieved a cracking 5-5 draw against Churcher’s College. The team then played Ballard School U16A team, a match in which both teams played well but some poor discipline from the KES team gave Ballard chances to score leading to a 0-2 win for the opposition. The boys lost their final game of the season to a strong St George’s side. Overall it was a great season for the team with some great results and some very exciting free flow hockey.

Mr Crichton

Played: 9 Won: 4 Drew: 1 Lost: 4

Squad members: Will Booth, Tom Hand, Noah Inada-Kim, Sam Kendall, Samuel Smith, Anthony Rogers, Pierre Forster, Archie Stokes, Tom Sutton, Benjamin Axton, Josh Williams (C), Harry Webster, Marcus Beresford, Torin Atchley, William Jackson, Daniel Erwig, James Bristowe (C), Soren Golding, Rufus Taylor, Nick Damley-Jones, Theo Roberts, Alex Miles, Daksh Bhatnagar and Aryan Khurana.

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U15A Hockey

Played: 9 Won: 7 Drew: 0 Lost: 2

Whilst enthusiasm for the sport of this group of players has never been in doubt, they have now started to channel this enthusiasm into performance development and the results speak for themselves.

Unfortunately, the game against St George’s ended in a 2-1 defeat but this was frustrating as the game had to be shortened and a second half would have seen some good competition.

A 3-1 win over Canford was an excellent starting point and gave them confidence at an early stage.

Reality was soon to strike, as a strong Churcher’s side outplayed them in the National Cup and they lost 3-0. The subsequent improvements of this team should give them motivation to go on and contest at a regional level at least next year.

The final game of the season was against local rivals Portsmouth Grammar School. Although PGS did have a few opportunities from short corners, the quality of their play was not as good as the KES team and, as the game wore on, more and more opportunities presented themselves. Whilst the short corner success rate was poor, a number from open play were taken and the game finished with a 4-0 victory.

The boys moved on to a good run of victories. The 6-2 win over HCS was every bit as comfortable as the score suggests and the 2-0 win over Magdalen College School, Oxford was an excellent game. The boys took one chance in each half, playing some very good passing hockey and then defended resolutely to restrict the number of opportunities for their opponents.

Patterns of play were starting to develop and more of the players were beginning to trust the simple passing hockey that they were being asked to play.

This became even more evident in the re-match against Churcher’s. The tables certainly were turned and KES impressed a good crowd with a 7-1 victory, tearing apart the opposition.

Seaford were next on the fixture list and, whilst this was a close game, in truth it was a game in which the KES team were in control for much of the time.

Some old habits crept back in, but once these were eliminated some good opportunities were created and the final score of 3-1 was a fair reflection.

I enjoyed working with this group of players this year as they responded well to the game based training sessions and there was clear progress in the quality of their play. Defensively they are very solid with a strong back four who can distribute well and two excellent goal keepers. There are a number of players who can play in the midfield, each of whom brings particular strengths to the team. In the forward line, there is pace that is very disconcerting for any opponent. The key ingredients are there for them to progress into a very good team at the top of the School. They do need to continue to trust basic concepts and aim to play three-touch hockey to make sure they use the possession that will undoubtedly come their way. In front of goal, they need to become more clinical and there is certainly room for improvement in the short corner department. I look forward to watching their progress in years to come.

Mr Kent

Squad members: Theo Beech, Will Chambers, Isaac Chapman-Sheath, Finn Coleman, Freddie Coulson, Flynn Denman, Matt Dyer, Alex England, Aaron Henderson, Archie Kilpatrick, Sam Mediratta, Owen Ramamoorthy, Harry Stembridge, Daniel Wickes and Sam Young.

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U15B Hockey Full of potential and ability, the squad produced some high-quality performances but struggled to do so on a consistent basis. A bright start against Canford in the season opener went unrewarded, finishing goalless, and it looked destined to be the same outcome against Hampshire Collegiate School as we dominated the first half but were repeatedly denied by their goalkeeper. We finally broke the deadlock when Matt Dyer finished the final play before half-time, which we followed up with a controlled second-half performance including two Charlie Massey goals to round off a 3-0 win. A midweek trip to play Winchester College A team followed, but a lethargic, disjointed performance meant we fell to our first defeat.

Our fixture against Magdalen College School proved to be one of the highlights of the season as the boys showed immense endeavour and concentration against a tough opponent. Under the cosh for much of the game, Beau Darrer and Duncan Little shone in defence and Alex England made a number of top saves. As the game wore on, our confidence grew, leading to some swift counter attacks that nearly gave KES the victory. Overall, it was a fantastic backs-tothe-wall performance full of character, and although it ended goalless it felt like a victory.

Three tight games followed, resulting in a victory against Churcher’s sandwiched between draws against Warminster and Seaford. In each match we started brightly before dips in fitness and concentration allowed our opponents back in. Archie Callaghan dominated the midfield against Warminster, Charlie Duffin scored an outrageous lob to defeat Churcher’s, Giles Bailey scored a clinical goal against Seaford and Alex England continued his fine form in goal throughout.

Played: 10 Won: 4 Drew: 4 Lost: 2

We finished the season with two dominant victories in our final three fixtures. Alex Brain and Andy McFarlane were excellent against St George’s, helping us earn an impressive 3-0 victory, and although the midweek blues returned against King’s School we bounced back with a dominant performance against Portsmouth Grammar School. Charlie Massey grabbed an assist and a hat-trick of goals, including finishing some well-worked team moves as we finished the season with a 4-0 victory.

This squad of boys undoubtedly has the potential to become more successful next year and turn some of the draws into wins. Their two main challenges will be to be more clinical in front of goal and to perform consistently throughout a match, avoiding the drops in fitness and concentration that allow the opposition back in. I look forward to seeing how they progress.

Mr Barley Squad members: Oliver Alford-Evans, Giles Bailey, Theo Beech, Sam Boyland, Alexander Brain, Ben Butson, Archie Callaghan, William Daniels, Beau Darrer, Charlie Duffin, Huw Dunlop, Alex England, Robert Evans, Oscar Groves, Duncan Little, Tom Mason, Charlie Massey, Andrew McFarlane, Sam Mediratta, Max Mehta, Owen Ramamoorthy and Jack Warrener.

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U14A Hockey

Played: 8 Won: 5 Drew: 0 Lost: 3

Squad members: Ethan ChapmanSheath, Rory Duncan, William Armstrong, Harry Bristowe, Matthew CarrallWilcocks, George Coltart, Hamish Croft, Kamran Dhariwal, Will Donnison, Dominic Fernando, Charlie Hand, Oliver Herbert, Josh Kent, Fin Kilpatrick, Oliver Lander, Harry Loveridge, Seb Mills and Joe Thompson.

The U14 A team have enjoyed a successful season winning the majority of their games, scoring an impressive 30 goals from their 8 matches. A solid 2-1 win against Canford School started the season off on a positive note with the midfield linking up well to create multiple chances for the forward line. Next up came the test of a well-organised and drilled Kingston Grammar School side. Kingston scored an early goal and, with the majority of the possession in the first half, stretched their lead to 2-0 just before the break. In the second half KES showed some excellent determination and fight, to pull back the deficit to 2-2. However, a penalty stroke caused KES to chase the game and unfortunately ended up the wrong side of a 4-2 result.

During the Hampshire Cup, the boys lacked the clinical touches in front of goal and therefore did not achieve the results to progress. Moving forward from the this disappointment, the team trained hard and worked on their structure and finishing. This determination gave them the edge in their next game against Magdalen College School. It was a cagey first half with chances at both ends. However, a drag flick from Oliver Lander broke the deadlock just before half-time. During the second half, goals from Josh Kent, Oliver Herbert and Kamran Dhariwal helped to push home KES’s advantage, and finally a well worked short corner, finished by Harry Bristowe, sealed the result to make KES convincing winners 6-1. The following game against Sherbourne was cancelled due to bad weather.

Against Warminster School, the team showed off their flair with some excellent passing, skills and short corner routines including four goals from Oliver Lander. Although the game was a rather one-sided affair, with KES winning 11-0, I was impressed with the way the boys upheld the spirit of the game. Next up an away trip to Churcher’s College provided the team with their toughest challenge yet. The boys played

well in the first half, with Harry Bristowe and William Armstrong holding off the Churcher’s attacks and Harry Loveridge producing some outstanding saves in goal. KES unfortunately wasted some clear chances and the team went into half-time 1-0 down. Churcher’s maintained their high standards to win 4-0.

During the game against Seaford College the boys played some of their best hockey of the season. After a quiet first half, the game was in the balance with chances at both ends. However, some excellent play in the midfield between Josh Kent and Charlie Hand eventually broke down the Seaford College defences.

A hard fought last quarter of the game tested our back four but KES held strong to finish 3-0 winners.

The penultimate game of the season was against St George’s. On paper this would be the hardest game of the season and, as expected, St George’s were exceptionally organised and clinical from the start, taking the lead within the first five minutes of the match. However, KES rose to the occasion and, although eventually losing 2-0, competed well throughout the game showing great determination and skill.

Finally, the boys faced Portsmouth Grammar School in their last fixture. Here they displayed some excellent hockey and showed just how far they have come this season. A highlight has to be Matthew Carrall-Wilcocks winning the ball on the halfway line and playing a lovely through ball to Oliver Herbert, who in turn set up Oliver Lander to successfully hammer the ball into the top corner to seal a 6-0 win.

It is clear to see the ability and potential of this squad both individually and as a team. It was a pleasure to coach this talented group of players and I look forward to seeing them succeed in years to come.

Mr Hyder

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U14B Hockey The depth and strength of hockey at U14 level was clearly visible in the U14B team. The team had a successful season, only losing two matches with one of these being to an A team. The boys enjoyed their hockey with high numbers at after school training and fifteen players available for matches; competition for places keeping the standard of play high.

The team started off the season with a tough match against Canford but secured a well earned 1-1 draw away from home. The squad then travelled to Kingston Grammar, which resulted in an excellent 5-0 win, before playing a very strong Winchester U14 A team. KES played well in the first half and had a few chances but Winchester proved too strong for our boys and ran out 5-1 winners. This was a tough result for the boys as they had played so well.

A draw against Magdalen College followed, before a very comfortable win over Warminster School. The boys then beat Churcher’s College 3-1, before a draw and loss against Seaford College and St George’s College respectively. The team have played some great hockey throughout the season and finished in style with a 4-0 win against PGS. Well done to all the players for their commitment and passion throughout the season. It was great to see so many boys pushing for places and constantly wanting to improve.

Mr Crichton

Played: 8 Won: 3 Drew: 3 Lost: 2

Squad members: Bruno Jesney (C), Kym Anderson, Hugo Dunkley, Samuel Golledge, Findlay Bell, Ben Morgan, Hamish Croft, Tom Andrews, Will Donnison, Mickey Johnson, Ivor Berry, Robert McKenzie, Wilf Sutton, Daniel Burrows, Owen Wiseman, Thomas Norman, Dillon Patel, Archie Wright, George Coltart, Seb Mills, Barnaby Hughes and Frank Hancox.

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U14C Hockey

The U14C team regularly had fourteen players to a match and over twenty boys available to play on a Saturday. They enjoyed their hockey and attended after school training regularly with much enthusiasm and passion. The competitiveness at training helped the boys develop and grow in confidence.

They had a good start to the season with a 3-0 win away at Canford before travelling to St John’s, Leatherhead, where they played well against their U14A team but unfortunately could not win the match.

The team then played at home against Magdalen College, winning a tough match 4-0. Away to Ryde, to play their U14A team, the boys performed well but let in a few goals in the last minutes. Two further wins against Churcher’s college and Seaford followed.

The team did well against other sides of similar ability and they rose to the challenge of playing many schools’ A teams and despite the results the team loved the contest and enjoyed being tested. A big credit to Tom Lugton who stepped up to play goalkeeper for a stage before Zakariya Ahmed joined the team from the U13s.

Well done to all the boys who played for the team throughout the season; their enthusiasm and enjoyment in every match was great to see.

Mr Crichton

Played: 5 Won: 4 Drew: 0 Lost: 1

Squad members: Jack Williams, Charlie Shannon, Tom Lugton (C), Will Taylor, Nolan Erard, Mathieu Loran, Tom Jackson, Isaac Haq, Samuel Venable, Tom Collins, Robert McKenzie, Mayan Gupta, Ivor Berry, Wilf Sutton, Dillon Patel, Zakariya Ahmed and Samuel Golledge.

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U13A Hockey

This has been a successful season for the boys’ U13 A team achieving 2nd place in the KES Prep Schools’ Tournament and 2nd place in the County Tournament which qualified the team for the regional finals.

The boys can be proud of their achievements, and the progress they made during the season was very encouraging. When they were prepared to work hard for each other they played excellent hockey and showed an adaptability to try different positions and formations. They moved the ball well, made selfsacrificing runs to make space for other teammates and generally made opportunities in front of goal.

If they have a weakness, it is a tendency to lose concentration at crucial goal scoring moments.

Apart from the performances in the three tournaments there were some outstanding displays during Saturday fixtures, most notably the draws against Kingston Grammar and Churcher’s College.

These were fantastic games of hockey as two good sides attacked and counter-attacked each other with the lead changing hands several times in both games.

The win over Portsmouth Grammar showed just how far this team has progressed. For most of the game KES were the better side and never looked in trouble until their opponents scored a couple of late goals.

Played: 24 Won: 11 Drew: 5 Lost: 8

Those who played are to be thanked for their hard work, commitment to playing and their camaraderie.

They have been good fun to work with and I hope that a few crucial ideas about the game have been learnt this season. Moving the ball early, beating the defender on the right and keeping focus and concentration will be important for success next year at U14 level and in the 11-a-side format. I wish them well in their future hockey careers.

Mr Wood Squad members: Rory Duncan, Sam Attfield, Sam Tyson, Andre Hughes, Tim Harris, Luca Gualano, Ethan Chapman-Sheath, Michael Wong, James Quigley, Marcus Wray, Joseph Warrener, Oliver Daniels, Callum Jacob, Luka Thomas, Matthew Evans, Thomas Waggett, Rory Kilpatrick and Harry Appleton.

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U13B Hockey The U13B team’s hockey season got off to a rough start losing the first two fixtures against strong Churcher’s College and Kingston Grammar School sides. However, after these matches, the season started to pick up, the boys seemed to bond more as a team and the score lines started to reflect their play. They bounced back in their third match beating a good Magdalen College side (4-0) and, in March, played Churcher’s College again. This time they played a much better game narrowly losing 3-2 (having previously lost 7-3 in the first game of the season).

The highlight of the season was giving KES rivals, Portsmouth Grammar School, a 7-3 beating towards the end of the season. The boys played some great hockey in the middle of the pitch and in getting into the D. Unfortunately this was where they struggled to put it in the net, having had multiple short corners in every match but not scoring from them. The defence was strong throughout the season, despite sometimes having to play with no defenders, but the boys adapted and held their own. Callum Jacob joined the team a few weeks into the season and quickly proved himself to solid in defence. Later in the season, Jamie Wickes made an appearance as a forward, having started the season in the U13 D team. Jamie has shown a huge improvement in his play this season.

Played: 9 Won: 3 Drew: 2 Lost: 4

Overall, the boys had a good season and should be proud of how much they have grown as a team. I hope that next year they continue to be as enthusiastic.

Mr Atkinson Squad members: Joseph Warrener, Savinu Ariyawansa, Daniel Burrows, Marcus Wray, Matthew Evans, Euan Holm, James Quigley, Luka Thomas, Callum Jacob, Jamie Wickes, Oliver Daniels and Tom Waggett.

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U13C Hockey The U13 C team trained well across the year but were unfortunate in a few fixtures, in which they suffered narrow defeats. The match against St George’s College, Weybridge, was an exciting fixture in which both sides were resolute in defence. However, a last minute goal saw St George’s walk away with the victory in a match that could have gone either way.

The U13 boys pulled off their biggest success of the season against Lord Wandsworth College which ended in a 4-1 win, with the team showcasing some excellent hockey skills. The boys gained their only clean sheet of the season against Churcher’s in an away fixture that

U13D Hockey The U13 D team trained with great determination across the year. They worked hard in training, with particular attention being placed on solidifying the defence. This proved successful as they recorded four convincing victories, in which they didn’t concede a single goal. They suffered a narrow 2-1 defeat against Kingston Grammar School, as well as a 3-1 loss to Churcher’s College, but their biggest victory came against Magdalen College School in which the boys’ recorded a 6-0 win, showcasing some excellent defensive cohesion as well as a great amount of attacking prowess.

Mr Twum-Barima

Played: 8 Won: 2 Drew: 0 Lost: 6

saw the team achieve a 2-0 victory in a match that displayed a great balance of attack and defence.

Mr Twum-Barima Squad members: Fraser Reynolds, Freddie Elliot, Ollie Ginns, Gabriel Suttie, Max Bouras, Kobe Stavonhagen, Venura Ranmandala, Euan Holm, Jamie Wickes, Elias Simojoki, Zakariya Ahmed, Callum Jacob, Savinu Ariyawansa, William Read, Joseph Warrener, James Booth and Max Smith

Played: 6 Won: 4 Drew: 0 Lost: 2

Squad members: Oliver Wilkinson, Ashwin Arunachalam, Blair Galloway, Max Smith, James Booth, Ryan Moreau, William Read, Charley Lovett, Zakariya Ahmed, Joseph Culver, Theo Shaw, Venura Ranmandala, Prem Raichura, Elias Simojoki, Charlie Spanner, Jamie Wickes and Joseph Warrener.

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U12A Hockey Hockey Club provided plenty of game time in the autumn term and so the boys were well-prepared for the start of the season, which was just as well considering the strength of the Churcher’s team. The U12 A team enjoyed a fiercely competitive match and showed lots of potential in an enjoyable 3-3 away draw. Following a narrow defeat against Kingston Grammar School, the team secured their first win with an impressive 4-3 victory away to Magdalen College School. The boys did not produce their best against Warminster and suffered a disappointing defeat.

Resilient and competitive the team bounced back with some fine hockey towards the end of the season.

Although beaten by a good St George’s team the lads defended well to help goalie, Tom, make a string of fine saves. Passing the ball quickly and accurately they were able to retain possession and attack with some style to test out the defence. It was lovely to see the players’ efforts rewarded with two emphatic victories against Lord Wandsworth College and Portsmouth Grammar School towards the end of the term with Rory Kilpatrick, Harry Appleton and Tom Dyer all scoring hat-tricks.

The boys displayed an excellent understanding of the game and were quick to appreciate the need for width and height in attack. They understood the need to pass the ball on quickly but sometimes lacked the technical skill to achieve this against strong opponents. I was delighted that the side got better at working the ball out of their own ‘D’ calmly and safely to the sides of the pitch as some panicked clearances had cost us goals at the start of the term. Led by Harry Appleton, the team worked hard and put their opponents under pressure. There is a lot of promise

Played: 9 Won: 4 Drew: 1 Lost: 4

in the squad (and genuine competition from boys in the other teams) but the players need to improve their ability to move the ball faster, further and more accurately, especially their hitting. They also need to improve their receiving skills so that they can play on the move against better opponents. Most of the boys carry the ball well but few have the ability to eliminate a defender.

Harry Appleton and Rory Kilpatrick were outstanding performers throughout the season and have enjoyed playing for the Hampshire U13 side. They worked hard in training and will, I hope, become more vocal in leading the team. Cass strikes a good ball but needs to improve his footwork. Aashish has good touch and makes good decisions but would benefit from developing a lower body position. Ben has a good all round game and should not lack confidence in his ability. Tom contributed really well, especially when he channelled his aggression in the right direction. If Archie can improve his technical skill he will compete for a starting position. Jack runs with the ball well but needs to improve his passing. Hamish makes good decisions but needs to develop a shorter backswing when hitting the ball. Aman fitted into the A team well and just needs to speed up his all round game while Nathaniel has the ability to distribute the ball well.

I hope the all the boys in this squad are attending club hockey and wish them well in the Hampshire Development Centres this summer. Such involvement will give the players the chance to develop their skills and further their hockey experience before the start of next season.

Mr Gilbert Squad members: Tom Marsh (GK), Aashish Singh Dasmahapatra, Ben Kipps, Rory Kilpatrick, Harry Appleton, Tom Dyer, Jack Moores, Archie Chapman-Sheath, Hamish Hunter, Cassian Fernando, Aman Patel and Nathaniel Saer.

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U12B Hockey It has been a real pleasure to work with such a lovely group of enthusiastic boys. Regular attendance at hockey club, no matter how cold the weather, has ensured that they have all developed and bonded as a team.

The first game against Churcher’s College set the tone for the season; going 1-0 down the boys dug in and showed their class as a skilful, hardworking and very talented team, to run out victorious by three goals to one. After narrowly losing to Kingston Grammar, due to not being able to finish goal-scoring opportunities, they went on a goal-scoring spree for the next two games. The team notched up an incredible twenty goals without conceding, with Magdalen College and Warminster School seeing the class of this group of boys. After half-term, further big wins saw the team score a fabulous forty-one goals in eight games with further wins against Portsmouth Grammar School and Churcher’s College again.

These are a great group of boys, superbly led by Paddy Boyd, who have huge potential for the future.

If they continue to learn and listen as they have this season, then Second Year looks very promising.

Mr Dellar

Played: 8 Won: 5 Drew: 1 Lost: 2

Squad members: Henry Day (GK), Charlie Spanner (GK), Ollie Knight, Nathan Foot, Max Pemberton, Nathaniel Saer, Paddy Boyd (C), Finlay Paterson, Freddie Collins, Cassian Fernando, Hamish Hunter, Archie Chapman-Sheath, Kit Goodridge, Ben Kipps, Jonah Hughes, Jamie Mundy and Aman Patel.

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U12C Hockey

Right from the start, this was an impressive team, even when suffering a heavy defeat against a strong Churcher’s team in the first match. Although lacking in experience, the lads were positive, focused and well organised. Athletic, and transferring their general game understanding intelligently, they clearly had a lot of potential.

The lads worked hard to improve their basic skills in Games lessons and after school practices. It was a joy to see them succeed in moving the ball accurately and controlling it well. Keeping it simple and moving effectively off the ball they discovered that they could attack successfully and score goals. Against better teams they were able to get the ball wide and attack space. Determined, disciplined and quick to react, the team got good numbers behind the ball and defended well. With growing confidence, the team enjoyed impressive victories against Kingston Grammar, Magdalen College, Warminster and PGS. The improvement was clear and could be quantified by the 1-1 draw towards the end of the season against Churcher’s - a massive swing from the 6-0 curtainraising defeat. Dogged defence earned the team an excellent draw against the Kings’ School A team.

Played: 9 Won: 5 Drew: 2 Lost: 2

The boys clearly enjoyed their hockey and showed significant potential. I really hope that they all play some club hockey this autumn so that they can develop their skills in time for next season.

Well done to Harry Channell for captaining the team so well, and to all the boys for their well- mannered and mature approach, which helped to make this such an enjoyable season.

Mr Gilbert Squad members: Joe Lambert (GK), Jamie Mundy, Ollie Chambers, Max Pemberton, Charlie Danby, Harry Channell (C), Harry Gaster, Ben Hughes, Nathan Foot, George Goodridge and Finlay Patterson.

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U12D Hockey With over forty-five boys regularly coming along for hockey club, choosing teams has always been very tricky but I am pleased to report that all of those boys have played at least one hockey game for KES this season.

With only one training session before the first game, and the vast majority of the boys new to hockey, the start of the season was going to be a huge learning curve. However, two impressive performances saw the team draw with Churcher’s College and narrowly beat Kingston Grammar. Hitting the back of the net has been an area of weakness all season and the next four games saw the side score only once, losing three games narrowly and drawing a fourth.

The team never let their heads drop and persevered, passing the ball well and finding excellent positions to have a shot at goal. The belief that they could score, if they continued to try, paid off in the final Saturday game as they tore through the Portsmouth Grammar School team winning 7-1. I would like to praise the solid performances week in and week out of Casper, Will A, Will N, Raaghav and Ben.

Played: 8 Won: 5 Drew: 1 Lost: 2

The boys need to continue to work on their hockey skills and if they continue to develop as they have over this spring, many will be playing in higher teams next year.

Mr Dellar Squad members: Dan Shaw (GK), Joe Lambert (GK), Casper Underwood, Will Norman, Raaghav Sharma, Ben Malloch (C), Will Atkinson, Noah Vigor-Robertson, Nathan Footitt, Oliver Smith, Charlie Danby, Junhao Lui, Zayd Omer, Oliver Chambers, Aadi Rakhit, Edward Walker, Cosmo Hepworth and Josh Ranu.

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Cricket overview This has been a good summer for cricket at KES with some excellent performances produced across the age groups. This season has seen a record number of eighty-eight fixtures played across twenty-two teams, with 261 students being fully immersed in the cricket programme. This is a fantastic achievement, especially when considering the multitude of other commitments our students face during this busy term, including examinations, trips and study leave, to name but a few.

Girls’ cricket has been integrated into the sports programme this year across four age groups and I am delighted to see that we have had 129 girls playing across these Saturday fixtures. It is really pleasing to see so many girls attending lunchtime skills sessions and staff have been magnificent at nurturing and developing the girls’ passion for the game with their own enthusiasm.

Once again, the junior sections have shone with the U12 age group training exceptionally well and reaching the final of the County Cup as well as having the opportunity to host a touring team from South Africa late in the term. The U14 group have a great deal of potential with three of the A team representing the 1st XI during this season. The U15s have had a mixed season. They have narrowly lost games they could have won, and their victories have been emphatic; in particular the 10 wicket win over Dauntsey’s on the final weekend. As with the U14s, seven of the U15A team have represented the 1st XI this season which is an outstanding achievement and bodes well for the future of cricket at KES. It was excellent to see the 1st XI, at the end of what has been a rather difficult season, dominate the local Sixth Form colleges by convincingly retaining the Altham Trophy for the third successive year.

Whilst there have been many highs this season it has been disappointing that the 2nd XI and U15B teams have had so many fixtures cancelled due to our opposition being unable to fill teams.

Cup competitions have been excellent this term with some notable successes: • U12 boys - County Cup finalists • U12 girls - Plate Winners at the KES U13 Prep School Tournament • 1st XI - Winning the Altham Trophy for the 3rd successive year • U15 boys - County Cup Semi-final • U14 boys - County Cup Semi-final • U13 girls - County Cup Semi-final • U13 boys - County Cup Semi-final There have also been a number of outstanding individual performances this season: • Edward Bence against Dauntsey’s took figures of 6 for 15 • Ella Danby in her first hardball fixture took a hat-trick against Lord Wandsworth College • Rory Kilpatrick against Churcher’s took figures of 5 for 12 • Sophie Kent opened for the U13 girls team anchored our batting innings scoring an unbeaten 30 runs against Durlston Court.

Finally, I would like to extend my gratitude to the countless staff who have worked tirelessly to provide the highest standard of coaching for the students this term. Without their commitment and relentless optimism, cricket at KES would not be able to flourish in the way it does. The ground staff, catering department and Mrs Paul deserve particular thanks for the considerable amount of time they spend ensuring we provide outstanding facilities and experiences for our students.

I hope that the students have enjoyed the provision provided for them during this cricket season and come back next academic year with the same passion, commitment and enthusiasm as this season.

Mr Penn

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1st XI Cricket

The 1st XI have had a mixed season this year.

Examination pressures have played a huge role in player selection, but it has been a great chance for us to introduce some of the future cricket talent to senior sport throughout the season.

The boys started the season positively, with convincing wins against Hampshire Cricket College by 5 wickets on the first weekend and then followed up with a 7 wicket win over Barton Peveril College in the first round of the Altham Trophy. Both games gave Jovan Dhariwal, James Harden and Charlie Harden the chance for some much needed time at the crease and for Nick Damley-Jones, Matthew Bell and Max Pumphrey to get some overs under their belts.

The third fixture was another midweek game against Winchester College in a 20/20 evening game. This was a good chance for the team to test themselves against a strong side. They won the toss and batted first, scoring 127-7, mainly thanks to 67 from Jovan. When it came to defending, Nick Damley-Jones and Jovan Dhariwal bowled with control but, in the latter overs, KES allowed the opposition to score too freely and lost the game by 7 wickets.

At Lancing, Fourth Year pupils, Matt Dyer, Finn Coleman, Flynn Denman and Oscar Groves made their 1st XI debut. Finn Coleman batted beautifully throughout the innings scoring 34 not out. However, the key moment in the innings was the loss of Jovan

Played: 12 Won: 5 Drew: 0 Lost: 7

for 36 and the side did not recover the fluency he played with. Some lusty blows from James Bristowe (31) allowed a competitive total of 129 and although the bowlers showed good control, the boys gave too many scoring deliveries, allowing Lancing to keep the scoreboard ticking over. Ultimately, the 1st XI were 40 runs short and Lancing chased down the total for the loss of only 5 wickets.

Rain then interrupted our momentum with the highly anticipated 20/20 evening fixture against Churcher’s College and the annual MCC fixture both being cancelled. During the second half of the term, the boys returned to playing their best cricket, starting with a convincing victory over Reading Blue Coat School. KES batted first and scored 192-5 with contributions from Jovan (60), Charlie Harden (33) and James Harden (38*). Then the bowlers bowled very economically, restricting Reading to 109-8 from 26 overs, winning by 83 runs.

Canford were the next opponents and KES batted first; the boys showing excellent and sensible batting especially from Will Wickham (34), James (31) and Charlie Harden (64) and posting a very competitive total of 229-7 over 50 overs. The boys took regular wickets at key moments but could not get the Canford captain out which had a huge impact on the result. He went on to score an unbeaten 126 and unfortunately KES came up just short losing by 4 wickets.

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The annual match against the OEs was played with an excellent spirit and it was brilliant for current students to play against Hampshire Cricketer and OE Joe Weatherley with a special well done to Jacob Hampshire, on debut, getting his prized wicket!

The Altham Trophy finals day in late June was where the 1st XI really showed their class. They were simply stunning all day both with the bat and ball and in the field. The side played Farnbrough College in the semifinal and batted first scoring 150-4 from the 20 overs with James Harden top scoring with 48*. Farnbrough were bowled out for 82 with Nick D-J, Jovan Dhariwal, Aryan Khurana and Matthew Bell the pick of the bowlers. This led to a final against Peter Symonds College which the boys won emphatically winning the toss and electing to bowl first. They bowled Peter Symonds out for 81 with Nick D-J taking 3 wickets, ably backed up by Aditya Rokade and Matthew Bell.

KES then chased down the modest total with Jovan Dhariwal (51*) and Charlie Harden (34*) knocking off the runs without being troubled.

This victory gave the 1st XI confidence against Dauntsey’s School. Although they lost the toss and were sent into the field, they toiled away with the ball and did well to restrict Dauntsey’s to 247 for 2 from their 45 overs. Matthew Bell and Aryan Khurana deserve particular praise for their bowling performances. The chase began well with Charlie Harden (98) and Jovan Dhariwal (94) building a superb platform from which to launch the chase.

All went well until the 43rd over when, unfortunately, the side lost Jovan (run out) and Charlie (caught) in quick succession and with 2 overs to go, the chase petered out and ended up with a 9 run defeat.

I would like to thank all the players this season who have been involved with this 1st XI season (40 in total).

In particular, I would like to give a special mention to Jovan Dhariwal who has captained the 1st XI excellently and has been a great asset to myself and Mr Kent in building expectations for the younger players coming through the system. I would like to thank the Upper Sixth for all their efforts over their cricket careers during their time at KES and I hope that they continue to enjoy their cricket in the years to come.

Mr Penn Squad members: Hamish Croft, Finn McCullagh, Kamran Dhariwal, William Tall, Oliver Alford-Evans, Sam Thompson, Edward Bence, Hugh Wilkinson, Finnian Coleman, Oliver Wilson, Flynn Denman, Angus Armstrong, Matthew Dyer, Matthew Bell, Oscar Groves, Jovan Dhariwal (C), Jacob Hampshire, William Fleming, James Bristowe, James Harden, Nick Damley-Jones, James Lander, Soren Golding Max Pumphrey, Charlie Harden, Sam Rachman, Aryan Khurana, Aditya Rokade, Sam Burton, Will Wickham, Matthew Deans, Henry Gwilliam, Alex Hall, Tom Lockyer and Krishdeep Mann.

2nd XI Cricket The 2nd XI team started off well with a win over Bryanston. Sam Rachman did an excellent job recruiting players during the very busy exam period putting together a very experienced and quality batting and bowling line up. With the 1st team match cancelled, Bryanston played a few stronger cricketers, which made it a very competitive fixture.

The match was played at Wellington with Bryanston posting a very good score and the KES bowlers struggling to find their line. KES batted well and would run out winners by 7 wickets with Nathan Hastings and James Lander batting well with 50s.

The next match was against Lancing College, building on from the success the previous week.

KES batted first and scored a very good 136 in their 20 overs. Will Fleming hit a very good 56 seemingly without effort and Nathan chipped in again with a very good 46. Lancing dropped a few catches in the cold weather and this gave the KES team some luck while batting. Lancing fell short with 83/8 after 16 overs, with one batsmen not able to bat due to injury. KES took some very good catches in the field,

Played: 2 Won: 2 Drew: 2 Lost: 0

with Will Fleming taking an exceptional one-handed catch. Will Tall was the stand out bowler with 3/8 and Chris Mann and James Lander both chipped in with 2 wickets each.

Well done to the boys for their enthusiasm at training and for the success in the two matches they played.

Mr Crichton Squad members: Alex Hall, Matthew Deans, Finn McCullagh, Henry Gwilliam, Sam Burton, Nathan Hastings, Oliver Wilson, William Tall, James Lander, Krishdeep Mann, Max Pumphrey, Sam Rachman (C) and Alfie Dudson.

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U15A Cricket

Played: 9 Won: 4 Abandoned: 1 Lost: 4

This is a strong group of cricketers who, on their day, can match it with the best in Hampshire. They have played with great spirit and clearly enjoy playing cricket together. They made the semi-final of the County Cup by bowling Mountbatten School out for 86 and chasing the runs with the loss of only three wickets. Will Porter took three wickets and Finn Coleman top-scored with 36. In the semi-final against PGS, they faced much stronger batting and they conceded a total of 153-2. While Freddie Coulson batted well to make 28, the target was too big and the cup run ended there.

for 68. Will Chambers (19 n.o.) was steady in the chase to guide us home by 6 wickets. Another loss followed against Canford, as the opposition proved too strong in posting an imposing 213-4, and while the KES response of 123 included some good batting performances, the chase was always going to be difficult. The final match proved to be a fabulous end to the season, as Ed Bence bowled with pace and bounce to take 6-15 in the Dauntsey’s total of 26. Jacob Hampshire also took two wickets without conceding a run. Matt Dyer and Finn Coleman easily overtook their total without fuss.

In weekend fixtures, they started the season well with a win against the Hampshire Regional Performance Centre team. The RPC scored a strong 139-8, but the KES boys were able to chase it down to win by 4 wickets. Unfortunately, this was followed by losses on the next two weekends.

Against Bryanston, they only managed to post a total of 56 with Caleb Hillier top-scoring and, while the opposition lost early wickets, they recorded a comfortable win. In the match against Lancing, a number of B team players stepped up and played well to post 100 with Jack Light scoring 20, but again the opposition were able to surpass our total, with Tom Mason taking three wickets. After an abandoned match against Churcher’s, the team came back with an excellent bowling performance against Reading Blue Coats. Ed Bence, Oscar Groves, Matt Dyer and Ben Deans shared the wickets to bowl them out

It has been a pleasure to work with these boys as they have trained well and played with enthusiasm.

In the end, the bowling was consistently strong, but the batting needed to be a bit more reliable to challenge the better teams in the region. I look forward to seeing many of these players in the 1st and 2nd XI squads in the coming years.

Mr Hodgson Squad members: Oliver Alford-Evans, Edward Bence, Alex Brain, Ben Butson, William Chambers, Finn Coleman, Freddie Coulson, Ben Deans, Flynn Denman, Charlie Duffin, Matthew Dyer, Oscar Groves, Jacob Hampshire, Daniel Hill, Caleb Hillier, Archie Kilpatrick, Jack Light, Tom Mason, Sam Mediratta, William Porter, Henry Smith, Rory UrquhartHawkins, Jack Warrener and Daniel Wickes.

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U15B Cricket All through the summer term, this group trained well and showed lots of enthusiasm. It is a real pity, then, that they only managed to play two fixtures as most weeks we would have been able to field a strong team if the weather and the opposition had been more accommodating. An excellent performance against Bryanston started the season positively with Ben Butson bowling well to take three wickets, and others chipping in to bowl them out for 69. Kerem Nebol led the chase well and retired on 28 as the target was chased without the loss of a wicket. It was not until the last week of the season that they played at Dauntsey’s, and again bowled the opposition out cheaply, this time for 67. Chief wicket takers were Alex Brain with four and Theeran Ramanan with three. Huw Dunlop, Charlie Duffin and Henry Smith made the runs without much trouble. There are a number of very good cricketers in this group and I hope that they continue to play the game.

Mr Eyssens

Played: 2 Won: 2 Drew: 0 Lost: 0

Squad members: Eric Bentham, Alex Brain, Ben Butson, Charlie Duffin, Huw Dunlop, Jacob Hampshire, Daniel Hill, Jack Light, Charlie Massey, Kerem Nebol, Theeran Ramanan and Henry Smith

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U14A Cricket

This was another successful season for the team as the number of wins indicates. After a defeat by the Hampshire U14 in the first game of the season, they won 6 in a row with the highlight being a 7 wicket win over a strong Churcher’s side. Wins against Bryanston (Dhariwal 68, Randle 38 not out), PGS (Dhariwal 89, Randle 41 not out), Reading (Croft 56 and 4 for 17, Randle 52 not out) and Dauntsey’s (Thompson 65 not out, Coltart 3 for 14, Randle 4 for 24) followed. There has been a clear improvement in a number of players and the team was well led

by Hamish Croft and Monty Randle. Three defeats at the end of the season demonstrated the need to bowl accurately in the middle overs and to continue the initial pressure built up by the opening attack of Hamish Croft and George Coltart. It will be interesting to see how the boys get on next year when the strongest players will no doubt be called up to the 1st XI. The rest have the capability to respond to the challenge ahead but it will require commitment to training both prior to and during the season.

Mr Mixer

Played: 11 Won: 7 Drew: 0 Lost: 4

Squad members: Harry Bristowe, George Coltart, Hamish Croft, Charlie Hand, Josh Kent, Joseph Thompson, JamesTall, Monty Randle, Archie Wright, Dominic Fernando, Euan Primrose, Dillon Patel, Hugo Dunkley, Oliver Lander and Kamran Dhariwal.

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U14B Cricket The U14B XI enjoyed an exciting season, playing seven matches in total in a competitive spirit and clearly learning some valuable lessons about the game that will stand the players in good stead for the future. The high points of the season were the three early victories against Lancing College, PGS and Churcher’s. These matches saw the team play with verve, adventure and intelligence to deliver pleasing success after a barren run the previous year. The team then had the misfortune, after half-term, to play talented opposition in the form of Reading Blue Coat School, Winchester, Canford and Dauntsey’s.

These matches were all lost but, Winchester aside, the margin of the defeats was narrow and one was left with the rather frustrating feeling that with a little more luck, particularly on the batting side of things, matters might have been different. I would hope that the players would ponder these lost opportunities the dropping of a single catch or the failure to turn a single into two runs might not at the time seem terribly important, but in the context of the match as a whole can make all the difference in the world.

Played: 7 Won: 3 Drew: 0 Lost: 4

It remains only for me to thank all of the players for their efforts. Mayan Gupta and Mathieu Loran captained the team with intelligence and insight whilst at different times Dunkley, Kerr, Jesney and Morgan provided the runs and Morgan, Wright and Primrose impressed with the ball. In truth, however, the successes this year were whole-team efforts and all the more satisfying because of it.

Mr Diver Squad members: Mathieu Loran, Joshua Kerr, Matthew CarrallWilcocks, Kym Anderson, Mayan Gupta (C), Ben Morgan, Thomas Norman, Nirujan Baheerathan, Archie Wright, Robert Ingram, Bruce Jesney, Will Taylor, Findlay Bell, Hugo Dunkley, Samuel Golledge, Euan Primrose, Oliver Lander and Sanya Khurana.

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U13A Cricket

Played: 10 Won: 2 Abandoned: 1 Lost: 7

Squad members: Savinu Ariyawansa, Sam Attfield, Dylan Burrows, Rory Duncan, Freddie Elliot, Luca Gualano, Tim Harris Andre Hughes, Callum Jacob, Shaeel Naqvi, Prem Raichura (C), Venura Ranmandala, Max Smith, Sam Tyson, Joseph Warrener and Marcus Wray.

The season got off to a tough start against three very strong sides. Hampshire RPC was a competitive game with Hampshire posting 149/5 despite a good bowling figure of 2/15 by Shaeel Naqvi. In reply, KES were 104 all out despite 30* by Sav Ariyawansa. The following Saturday fixture was against the strongest side that KES faced all year. In a very disciplined bowling display, KES managed to restrict a gifted RGS batting line up to 157 all out, with Prem Raichura taking 3/8 and Shaeel Naqvi 4/21 off their 5 overs. Unfortunately, the KES reply never got going and fell well short. The following week was another close call with KES losing by 23 runs to PGS with Sav scoring another 30*, along with 23* from Rory Duncan. Callum Jacob took 3/19 as PGS set 148 for KES to win.

The cup campaign got off to a positive start against Mountbatten School, with KES winning comfortably by 8 wickets. Unfortunately for KES, the following weekend’s block fixture was abandoned with KES in a strong position after posting 132/7 and reducing Churcher’s to 85/7 with only a handful of deliveries left to bowl. Sav Ariyawansa again top scored with 25*. The game against Reading Blue Coats School saw KES set a target of 131 but the boys lost wickets at vital times and were bowled out for 85.

The cup semi-final against St Neots was a struggle on a difficult wicket following a week’s constant rain and KES lost the game by 7 wickets. Later in the week, the boys put in a better performance against Winchester College U14B, where KES almost chased 79 to win in a 14 over a side game due to inclement weather. Max Smith took 2/8.

KES finished the year with two fantastic games against Stroud and Dauntsey’s. The U13s won one game on the final ball and lost the other on the final ball! Against Stroud, Freddie Elliot (24*) and Shaeel Navqi (20*) put on a fantastic 8th wicket stand of 43 to chase down a target of 96, with Sam Tyson holding the innings together at number 3. It was a similar theme in the Dauntsey’s game, with KES this time posting 100/5, Sam Attfield (20*) and Shaeel Naqvi (20*) finishing off the innings superbly by putting the fielders under pressure. Venura Ranmandala bowled well in the reply with 2/11 and Callum Jacob with 2/17.

Dauntsey’s needed 2 to win from 6. Prem Raichura bowled 4 dot balls, before Dauntsey’s managed to get bat on ball off the penultimate delivery to bring the scores level. This meant KES needed a dot or a wicket off the final ball to tie the game. Sam Tyson almost took a wonderful catch, low to the left, to deny Dauntsey’s the victory but Dauntseys managed the single that they required.

The final two games capped off the season in positive fashion, with the KES side set a number of areas to continue improving upon for the new season next year. It was an enjoyable season, with an enthusiastic group of boys who enjoy their cricket.

Thanks to Prem Raichura for captaining the side during the season.

Mr Bassett

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U13B Cricket

Played: 5 Won: 1 Drew: 1 Lost: 3

Squad members: Joseph Warrener, Jamie Wickes (C), Dylan Burrows (VC), Joseph Culver, Oliver Daniels, Gabriel Suttie, Ethan ChapmanSheath, Andre Hughes, Oliver Ginns, Rajeev Sathyanath, Michael Wong, Max Bouras, Euan Holm, Joseph Smith, Matthew Evans, James Booth and Marcus Wray.

The U13B boys’ cricket had a tough season but nonetheless showed a never-give-up attitude and strength of character throughout. Despite the results, the boys improved and their main objectives were to pitch the ball up on their bowling (without giving away too many extras), be more efficient in the field and not give away the wicket easily whilst batting.

The first game was a home match against RGS Guildford and saw the KES team put into bat first.

Despite some brave defending to keep out the RGS bowlers in the opening few overs, the wickets soon begun to tumble and the team were bowled out for 48 runs. After tea, there was some great opening bowling from Andre Hughes and Jo Warrener but, despite their best efforts, the RGS batsmen knocked off the runs with overs to spare despite losing 4 wickets themselves.

Despite some early drizzle, the game against PGS went ahead. The U13Bs chose to put PGS into bat and fielded first. The boys had been practising hard at their bowling in the nets and this showed in improved bowling performances. The bowlers made in-roads into the PGS upper order and picked up some early wickets. The middle order batsmen hung around for a little longer but more wickets followed with a runout as well, taken by Captain Jamie Wickes. KES stayed in control of the game bowling PGS out for 68. In bat, the side started promisingly, knocking around the PGS opening bowlers, until a lapse in the running between the wickets saw two quick runouts by PGS from which the boys never fully recovered and the middle order fell quickly with PGS picking off the tail-end.

Against Churcher’s we started by fielding. The bowlers had been continuing to practise well in the nets and bowled really well, forcing the Churcher’s batsmen to play and bowling Churcher’s out for 130 runs. In bat, the boys unfortunately ran out of overs to chase down the 130 runs and made 82 off their 20 overs.

Needing a much needed first victory under their belts the U13Bs travelled to Reading Blue Coat School in search of their first win. Again a good opening partnership by Wickes and Hughes got the team off to a great start before both were bowled out. A short cameo by Chapman-Sheath followed but it wasn’t until Burrows and Warrener came to the crease that the match really got going. Both batted really well putting on a partnership of 80 runs (both not out) and placing KES in a strong position with the Blue Coat School going into bat. Bowling from Hughes, Warrener, Chapman-Sheath and Burrows did the damage to the upper order of the opposition team, bowling with precision and good line and length. This was a much improved all round performance by the team and it paid off as RBCS were bowled out for 87 runs.

The final game was against Dauntsey’s; one the boys unfortunately lost. Despite it being a close match, the boys couldn’t make up the run rate in the allocated overs.

Although this has been frustrating season in terms of wins, the boys have applied themselves really well and worked hard on both their batting and bowling. Their win over the Reading Blue Coat School epitomised the hard work that they have demonstrated in practices.

Keep up the good work next year!

Mr Dodds

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U12A Cricket

Throughout the winter training, this was a year group that clearly had ability in both the batting and the bowling departments and, on a number of occasions, they showed the ability to put this into play.

The first game of the season saw them achieve an excellent 10-wicket win over Great Ballard School from Sussex with good bowling setting up a straight forward run chase. The second game was a much closer affair as the boys took on RGS Guildford. The match was decided in the end by just one run but unfortunately it was KES who were on the wrong side of the score. A good win was gained over PGS and the team put in an excellent performance to beat Churcher’s College by 8 wickets. A tight game against Reading Blue Coat School saw the boys on the losing side again, this time by just 3 runs and the game against Dauntsey’s also ended in defeat.

The team did have an excellent cup run which started with a comfortable win over Salesian College. In the semi-final, they overcame a strong Yateley Manor side by putting a reasonable score on the board and then taking important wickets at key moments. This took them to a final against Twyford. Again, the side reached a competitive total but eventually the quality of the Twyford batting told and they won the cup and progress to the national cup next year.

Played: 10 Won: 7 Drew: 0 Lost: 3

Whilst it was a disappointing note to end on, it should not take away from what had been a very successful season. Although it was a team effort, there are certain individuals whose performances are worthy of note. Rory Kilpatrick impressed with both ball and bat, as did both Ashish Dasmahapatra and Harry Appleton. Charlie Aspinall grew in confidence as the season went on and put together some fine innings with the bat. In addition to this, Ben Kipps, Tom Dyer and Oliver Knight all made valuable contributions with either bat or ball, or indeed both.

I am sure that this team will flourish as they move through the School, as their enthusiasm for the sport is obvious. They are also a group who are keen to learn and it is this willingness to take advice, that will stand them in good stead. I would like to thank them for their efforts and the parents for the fantastic support throughout the term.

Mr Boyles Squad members: Harry Appleton, Charlie Aspinall, Oliver Chambers, George Davies, Tom Dyer, Cassian Fernando, Rory Kilpatrick, Ben Kipps, Oliver Knight, Tom Marsh, Aman Patel, Max Pemberton, Aashish Dasmahapatra and Raaghav Sharma.

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U12B Cricket The season started with a friendly against Stroud Preparatory School, and a chance to see where the boys’ current strengths lay. The second weekend saw them hone their skills in a training session at Wellington.

The great English weather did not find its stride but, that said, somehow between the showers, the fixtures were played, even though at times the wind whipped and the rain lashed down! A close match against PGS saw narrow defeat in the last over, but by the time the boys faced Reading Blue Coat School they had settled and were playing well. Charlie Danby and Archie Chapman-Sheath captained and vice-captained the later games, organising the field and batting line up. Charlie Spanner almost made it to 50 for a superb performance against Reading, whilst the final game against Dauntsey’s School took place on the hottest day of the year so far. The long journey paid off with an easy victory by 5 wickets.

The boys have all shown solid development this year and will make a strong U13 squad next year.

Mr Mapstone

Squad members: Paddy Boyd, Oliver Chambers, Archie Chapman-Sheath, Freddie Collins, Charlie Danby, Henry Day, Kit Goodridge, Harry Channell, Oliver Smith, Nathan Foot, Hamish Hunter, Oliver Williams, Aman Patel, Charlie Spanner, Sophie Kent, Kiran Kaur, Emily Knowles, Ben Hughes, Zayd Omer and Quinn Price.

U12C Cricket After a useful mixed warm-up game with the B team, the C team embarked upon a series of fixtures that saw a lot of growth and development from the players, with very busy training sessions throughout. After a chastening loss to RGS Guildford by 91 runs in the opening fixture, the side produced a dominant display against Churcher’s despite having a man disadvantage.

Freddie Collins produced a grand-standing knock of 36 to really grasp the initiative before being retired as we ran out victors by 51 runs; Junhao Liu also did very well, retiring on 25 after opening the batting and staying in for 14 overs. A narrow loss to Reading Blue Coats in the final fixture rounded off a year of steadily growing confidence and expertise amongst this group of players, with several transitioning between the Cs and the Bs, providing a solid platform for next year. Several girls also did well to mix it up in the boys’ C team, with Emily Egerton-Hou especially impressing with her tidy bowling against RGS Guildford.

Dr Filtness

Played: 4 Won: 2 Drew: 0 Lost: 2

Played: 3 Won: 1 Drew: 0 Lost: 2

Squad members: Harry Channell, Oliver Smith, Aadi Rakhit, Junhao Liu, Jamie Mundy, Jamie King, Devansh Bhachech, Taran Mandair, Josh Ranu, Hamish Hunter, Caspar Underwood, Quinn Price, Freddie Collins, Kit Goodridge, William Atkinson, Nathan Foot, Edward Walker, Cosmo Hepworth, Rhyseren Taylor, Jemima Sullivan, Katie Ardern-Jones, Zayd Omer and Emily Egerton-Hou.

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Basketball Basketball at KES went through something of a metamorphosis this season, with the focus landing mainly on raising the standard of our Lower School pupils. However, a number of friendly games were organised for the senior students, with some pleasing results being secured.

Max Pumphrey and Rory Urquhart-Hawkins were the stars of a convincing display against Richard Taunton’s College in October, with 27 points each.

However, the whole team deserves a mention not least because it comprised only six players with a minimum of training opportunities under their belts.

The final result in this game was Richard Taunton’s 43, King Edward’s 73. Our next game, a rumbustious but, in the end, convincingly victorious affair against Barton Peveril College was capped by excellent performances.

Particular mention should be made of Jack Wiseman (21 points), Rory Urqhuart-Hawkins (22 points) and again, captain, Max Pumphrey (24 points). Finally a plucky effort from an understrength KES team against Winchester College in March resulted in the two sides being neck and neck in the third quarter. However, the game fell away from us in the final straight as the team tired. Jack Wiseman again excelled with 29 of the team’s points, including six three-pointers.

Given these details it should come as no surprise that Wiseman, Urqhuart-Hawkins and Pumphrey have developed their basketball careers beyond the school team. All are, or have been, excellent club players outside School, with Wiseman and Urqhuart-Hawkins having even gone on to receive international recognition. However, the rest of the team deserves a mention as well for providing an excellent platform for our three ‘stars’ with their tenacity and growing confidence and ability.

Mr Smart Squad members: Max Pumphrey (C), Aditya Rokade, Will Sharp, Jack Wiseman, Rory Urqhuart-Hawkins, Jacob Adeniji, Krishdeep Mann and Michael Ha.

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1st XI Football

Played: 18 Won: 13 Drew: 1 Lost: 4

Squad members: Omar Al-Gholmy, Archie Attfield, Alex Chandler, Will Daniels, Matt Diamond, Will Fleming, Ben Fox (C), Mateus Janaway, Alex Lock, Zak Martyn, Harry Pizzey, Sam Thompson, Will Tall, Zach Tidby, Ollie Van Aalst and Will Wickham.

Player of the season: Will Fleming Top scorer: Ben Fox (25)

The 2018/19 football calendar was a stellar season for the Sixth Form team, with KES winning thirteen of their eighteen matches.

The previous campaign had seen the team hang on to their place in Hampshire Colleges League Two, and the Upper Sixth were eager to show that they could perform much better than this. A pre-season friendly against the OEs, saw the team come back from 3-1 down to a 4-3 victory. Training sessions were once again well attended and the emergence of Will Tall and Ollie Van Aalst helped to strengthen the team.

The league campaign started away to Brockenhurst and things did not get off to a good start. The boys attended their lessons in a variety of tracksuits and were left in no doubt that only a good performance would help to get them out of trouble! Thankfully, they stepped up to the mark and won 2-0 in a howling gale. The next match against Fareham College was remarkable. The captain, Ben Fox scored a staggering nine goals! This was the start of a goal-scoring run for Ben, who would eventually finish up with a school record of twenty-five goals in the season. In the next match, the team won 5-1 away to the eventual league winners, Bay House, with Ben Fox scoring just the four goals this time around. A frustrating defeat against Farnborough, followed by hard-fought victories against Bournemouth (5-4) and Richard Taunton (2-0), saw the team up near the top of the table at the halfway stage. Alex Lock and Matt Diamond were outstanding in both of these matches, providing stability and creativity.

During the season, the team went on a cup run and played some exceptional football to reach the County

Cup semi-final. However, it was the quarter-final which provided one of the highlights of the year. First, Omar Al-Gholmy scored his first goal to force penalties, before Will Tall produced a string of outstanding saves to give KES the victory. Up against Portsmouth College the team lost 2-1 but not before giving the opposition a real fright. Will Wickham and Alex Chandler displayed great skill and passion in this match and the whole team can be proud of how they represented the School.

With the spring term, came the usual clash between hockey and football. Defeats against Barton Peveril and Bournemouth School saw the team slip from the top of the table. However, a superb individual display

by Mateus Janaway helped KES beat Fareham College and put KES in the hunt for promotion. There was a superb atmosphere as KES clung on to beat Richard Taunton’s whilst a late Ollie Van Aalst winner against Farnborough sealed a spot in the play-offs.

A rare outing in the summer term saw the team head to Alton College knowing that victory would seal promotion to League 1. Despite dominating much of the match, the scores ended level at 2-2 and it was once again decided by penalties. With memories of England’s victory over Colombia still fresh in the mind, the team dispatched all of their spot kicks, with Zach Tidby scoring the decisive penalty.

I have once again thoroughly enjoyed coaching the team this year and I look forward to the sizable challenges that the 2019/20 season will bring.

A special mention must go to Ben Fox and Will Fleming who managed to juggle hockey and football commitments to represent the School in both.

Mr Brown

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U15 Tennis For the U15s this could perhaps best be described euphemistically as a ‘transition season’. Events and timings conspired against a decent run of play, with a combination of poor weather, public and internal exams, and some player apathy wiping out four of our fixtures and leaving us with just a single competitive fixture in the season. Plaudits go to Beau Darrer and Reuben Donvito, two fine and committed players who were the victims of circumstance in terms of fixtures, although both continue to play good and competitive tennis outside school. The season really belongs to the U13s, and it was good to see Luka Thomas and Michael Wong getting a first and successful outing for the U15s against PGS.

It was a shame to see so few Fourth Years turn up to practice sessions, although the penultimate session, where we combined girls and boys for some good mixed doubles, perhaps points the way to the future.

Mr Culver Players: Beau Darrer, Reuben Donvito, Luka Thomas and Michael Wong

U13 Tennis The U13 boys’ tennis saw excellent numbers this year with plenty of new talent coming through in the First Year. The Second Year contingent also remained strong with the old horde providing depth and wisdom as we navigated the Aegon league. The season started with a friendly against St James’ School and it was pleasing to see all the KES courts being used, with an excellent turnout and all abilities represented.

The league kicked off with our first match against Romsey School. Fielding a strong team, made up of Luka Thomas, Marcus Wray, Olly Wilkinson and Michael Wong we entered the match confident we could compete. Our confidence was not misplaced as we dismantled their attacks and sent them home without a point, 12-0 KES. Outstanding performances by every member of the team put us in a good mental zone to take on Thornden School.

Thornden School demonstrated aggressive play from the outset, but they were not prepared for the strength and depth of our boys, resulting in another 12-0 win to KES as we exploited the low bounce of the astro with devastating slice and drop shots. The next stage of the league looked imminent as we had picked up momentum and were looking to crush Ringwood in our final stage one match. They were a well-drilled

side with great quality throughout their team and with regulars Michael and Olly away, we knew it was going to be tough. A special mention for Tom Garret, Freddie Collins and Nathaniel Saer for stepping into the breach. The new blood fought hard but by the end of the singles matches we were 6-2 down and, with 4 points available in the doubles, we needed to win both matches to force a tie-break. We won the first match and the pressure mounted. Ringwood dug deep and smashed our hopes of the second round with a competent display of high-class doubles. It ended 8-4 to Ringwood; a disappointing finish for the team but a satisfying season overall with some quality tennis.

I cannot finish the report without mentioning Luka Thomas who barely dropped a game in his singles matches over the course of the season. During every match, he put on a fine display of aggressive tennis, that flummoxed and overpowered his opponents, leaving them in disarray.

Mr Lewis Players: Luka Thomas, Marcus Wray, Olly Wilkinson, Michael Wong, Tom Garret, Freddie Collins and Nathaniel Saer

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GIRLS’ SPORT AT KES 2018-2019

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Hockey overview The past twelve months have seen many steps forward for girls’ hockey at KES. The teams have played a record amount of matches for the fifth consecutive year with over 140 games on a tough fixture card. The girls have demonstrated depth across the age groups with many of the B and C teams having successful seasons. The Hampshire Cup competitions did not go our way this year, with only the U18 girls winning. However, next year the foundation has been set for an exciting 2019/2020 season.

I would like to personally thank all of the coaches and players because this success is not down to luck. The staff and girls have all worked incredibly hard. The coaches have set high standards throughout the season and the girls have always been able to rise to their coach’s expectations, achieving some great results.

We had further success in the indoor hockey circuit.

The U16 team did well to win their preliminary rounds and they again took it one step further and qualified for the south finals finishing in 4th place.

Luck was not on their side as so many of the games were decided in the last thirty seconds and the side only needed one more point to have qualified for the nationals. The U18 girls, playing with only six players, qualified from their preliminary rounds

at Hurstpierpoint. The team included two Fourth Year girls. Their south heat was to be a very difficult pool with two teams that qualified from this pool also qualifying for Nationals and both making the national semi-final. Zoe Henderson was a stand out player scoring at least three goals against all teams.

They, unfortunately, did not qualify for south finals but showed a great attitude and fight. We hope to go one step further next year and make it to Nationals.

Girls’ hockey has been incredibly lucky to have excellent coaches working with the U12s through to the 1st XI team. I would like to say a big thank you to the staff for all the work that has gone into putting teams together every week.

Mr Crichton

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1st XI Hockey

The girls’ 1st XI team was without Mrs Kelly for the first time in twelve years and, therefore, Mr Crichton coached the team in her absence. Despite this change, the players responded well and with more responsibility being placed on them as a team, they continued to thrive.

The squad enjoyed their trip to the annual Sherborne Tournament and were keen to win the trophy which they had won two seasons ago. They started off against the host and a late goal gave KES a 1-0 win with Bella Davies-Roche scoring. Against a strong Canford side, KES defended well with Marianne Brabazon and Ottilie Beal the two stand-out defenders, turning the ball over from the many Canford attacks. The match ended 0-0, with Alice Dyer making a few saves in goal to keep a clean sheet. Next, the girls faced King’s Taunton. After a tough start, KES managed to break the deadlock and go 1-0 up.

Needing to score more than two goals to top the pool, the girls pushed forward and found the net two more times to run out 3-0 winners. This was a great result for a team that was mainly comprised of Lower Sixth players, with some Fifty Years and one Fourth Year. In the semi-final, KES came up against a strong Taunton School side and struggled to pass their goalkeeper so that the game remained goalless and went to shuffles.

Both teams missed and scored but the KES team unfortunately missed their sudden death shuffle and were knocked out of the tournament.

Played: 14 Won: 10 Drew: 1 Lost: 3

The girls then took on Southampton University in two friendly matches as part of their pre-season training. Boths games showed the girls their potential and gave them a good test and against much stronger teams.

The first Saturday block fixture was a new one versus Epsom College. The girls struggled in the heat and with the speed of the counter attacks of the Epsom team. KES found themselves down at half-time and although they improved in the second half, they still struggled to make any form of attack count until Zoe Henderson stepped up to be the difference between the sides. She set up Bella to score the winner with minutes left in the match.

The girls finished off the first half the season with a solid 6-2 win over Bryanston at home. They again showed their potential and ability to be ruthless in front of goal. Jenny Pimley and Rebecca Waggett proved to be very effective down the right, with Nyah Clark being a key figure in the middle of the field, running around players at will.

Against Canford, KES started on the back foot with key players away to netball. The Canford girls pressed well and the KES team struggled to get the ball to the forwards. Marianne, Ottilie, Roos and Sarah Macleod defended well to keep the score to 0-0 as the end of the first half approached. Winning a corner on the stroke of half-time, allowed Zoe Henderson to step up

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and put a trade mark strike into the bottom corner of the net to give KES a 1-0 lead at half-time. Canford continued to put KES under pressure and eventually found a way around the KES defence scoring a few more goals as the KES legs tired and more space was made available.

With a further win against Churcher’s (4-0) and a loss to Dauntsey’s, the 1st XI ended the season with a strong finish against PGS and a 7-2 win. The final game was against the OEs with the KES team pulling off a win, scoring goals early in the match.

Hampshire Cup and South Round The KES 1st XI team is one of the youngest that the School has had in quite some years but they proved strong, running out winners against PGS, Churcher’s, LWC and HCS in the Hampshire Cup. The stand out performance was against the runners-up of the tournament Peter Symonds College. Both teams created chances with Fourth Year pupil Isi Murphy making many great saves and the match looking as though it would result in a draw. However, not to be beaten, Bella found some space in the circle and put a trademark reverse stick into the bottom corner to give the KES the win and the Hampshire title.

The south round, hosted at Bradfield, started off with a tough fixture versus St George’s. The 1st XI worked hard but were unable to stop the very organised and quality play from the opposition as they ran out comfortable winners. Against Bradfield, a well worked short corner early in the game looked like a certain goal but was saved by the Bradfield

2nd XI Hockey The 2nd XI girls’ hockey team have been exceptional this season. Unfortunately, the results do not do credit to the performances they have displayed.

Every member of the squad had their week of exceptional performance.

The first match against Ryde School comprised a team made up of girls from four year groups.

The girls dominated the game, with hard work and determination from Katie Smart, Freya Crowley and Sophia Olive, but were unable to score the winning goal. Ryde swept into the ‘D’ in the final seconds of the game to score the decisive goal winning the game 1-0. Next was Epsom College, which was a sterner test for the team. However, they battled hard and kept pushing to the end, the game eventually finishing in a 5-0 defeat.

keeper. With many chances to score a winner, Bradfield had the best chance with eight short corners in a row. However, Marianne was up to the challenge and ran down all their short corners and the game ended in a draw with both teams needing a result in their final pool game. The final pool game against the Middlesex champions started well and by half-time KES had five of the eight goals needed to go through. The girls showed their determination and finished off the match with a total of 13 goals.

Luck was not on their side though as St George’s could not find a way past the Bradfield keeper and KES were knocked out of a very strong south pool.

This has been a fantastic season in terms of team building, and the maturity and passion shown from the team has set a good example for future players.

Special mention must go to Eve Henley - her team talks, motivation and her analysis of the opposition will be remembered for years to come.

Mr Crichton Squad members: Sarah Macleod, Eve Henley (VC), Zoe Henderson, Stephanie Judd, Marianne Brabazon, Ottilie Beal (C), Alice Dyer, Bella Davies-Roche, Roos Schmalz, Jenny Pimley, Nyah Clark, Rebecca Waggett, Elizabeth Beardsall, Isobel Chapman, Iona Howells, Ida Goodridge, Isi Murphy, Indie Chungh, Abigail McCarthy and Abbie Morton.

Honours: Hampshire Cup winners

Played: 10 Won: 1 Drew: 1 Lost: 8

The positive signs returned against Lord Wandsworth College and Bryanston School. Both games were thrilling encounters of end-to-end hockey by both teams with KES ultimately losing games that deserved to be draws. In these fixtures, Emily Procter, Izzy Todd, Fin McKenzie and Gemma Pearson stepped up to the challenge and their determination shone through providing some excellent momentum to face Canford School after half-term. This match was the 2nd XI’s performance of the term and in particular from the ‘Player of the Year’, Millie Parsons, in goal. Others who were exceptional throughout this game were Izzy Holland, Daisy Sarton (Players’ Player of the Year), Indy Chungh and Lena Mills. The side pressured Canford when defending and attacked with speed and accuracy but, once again, found it difficult to score the goal to turn their fortunes around!

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Canford were so impressed by the game that their coach called the School to thank King Edward’s for being the best team they had played all season.

In the match against Churcher’s College, the girls welcomed Hattie Wheeler and Izzy Chapman into their ranks - the game ending in a deserving draw.

The teams were very well matched and neither side had the final pass or shot to win the game. The girls gave another superb performance against Dauntsey’s with notable displays from the tenacious Daisy Sarton, Lucy Tait and Freya Crowley. The blend of youth (from the U16 squad) and the experience (from the Sixth Form) worked together very effectively. The 2nd XI conceded two scrappy goals in each half and were unlucky not to score two or three themselves.

The final game of the season was against Portsmouth Grammar School. The players passed accurately, challenging PGS with their speed and passion to win this final game of the season. Elspeth Hargreaves, on debut for the 2nd XI, scored both of the goals and it was brilliant to see the girls rally round each other for the final ten minutes to ensure that they kept a clean sheet.

Coaching this amazing bunch of ladies this season has been one of the highlights of my time at KES so far. We have managed to put out a team each weekend and, in total, thirty-three girls have been involved with the 2nd XI. I am very proud of the girls for having worked tirelessly each and every week.

A special mention much go to the captain Izzy Holland for all her hard work and dedication in helping to organise teams and get everyone motivated for all the matches. Without her help, dedication and enthusiasm this season would not have been as enjoyable as it has been.

Mr Penn Squad members: Isobel Holland, Fin McKenzie, Indie Chungh, Gemma Pearson, Anna Poller, Megan Green, Iona Howells, Daisy Sarton, Orla Bark, Amy Boyle, Alice Dyer, April Hernandez, Stephanie Judd, Kira Morton, Millie Parsons, Emily Price, Emily Procter, Issy Todd, Eleanor Yonge, Isobel Chapman, Freya Crowley, Elspeth Hargreaves, Lena Mills, Puja Muthalagu, Sophia Olive, Lucy Pumphrey, Roos Schmalz, Lucy Tait and Harriet Wheeler.

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U16 Hockey This hockey season has been thoroughly enjoyable and, despite the rainy days, there had been triumphs, draws and unfortunate losses.

Apart from the first match against Epsom College, the girls got off to a good start against Ballard, Bryanston and Lord Wandsworth. In each of these matches all the players demonstrated improved skills and techniques putting in an incredible amount of effort, leading them to the rewarded with successful triumphs. Their next match was against Canford and although goalie Isi Murphy saved many amazing goals, the team was sadly not strong enough against the dominant opposition resulting in the largest loss of the season. However, the girls then redeemed themselves in their friendly match versus Churcher’s College, which resulted in a 2-2 draw even though they could have triumphed had the dismal weather not got in the way of play.

For their last match, the girls played Dauntsey’s School but the opposition were stronger and more durable, consequently resulting in an unfortunate loss to finish the fixture calendar. Nonetheless, the girls proved their devotion and skill throughout the season and never gave up even when they lost.

Mr Crichton

Played: 7 Won: 2 Drew: 1 Lost: 4

Squad members: Anais Ansari (C), Lizzie Armstrong, Natasha Thompson, Rebekah Davis, Anna Schmalz, Elizabeth Field, Sophia Olive, Abby Taylor, Elspeth Hargreaves, Freya Crowley, Lucy Pumphrey, Lena Mills, Mia Blake, Catherine Thomson, Puja Muthalagu, Jen Bareham, Lucy Tait, Isobel Fleming, Elli Gingell, Anna Morley, Harriet Wheeler, Carol Naoum Ateya, Lucy Howarth, Madeleine Wright, Amelia Harris and Darcey Harber.

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U15A Hockey

The season started with the annual trip to the preseason Sherborne School Tournament, in which the team played against a number of schools from outside the south region. They started off well with a convincing 4-0 win over Wellington School, with Rachel Howarth scoring two well struck penalty corners. The win was followed by a loss to King’s Taunton in the second group game of the day. In the final group game KES needed a win or draw against their namesakes, KES from Bath. The girls defended well to prevent the KES, Bath attacks, Izzy Tam not allowing anyone past her. As a result, the School made its way into a semi-final against hosts, Sherborne.

Unfortunately, the U15s were unable to penetrate the Sherborne defence, whilst Sherborne managed to score twice at the other end. The players had, however, demonstrated some nice hockey to start what looked like a promising season to come. A special mention should go to Mel Georgiou and Elinor Sharp, who both played up an age group at the tournament. Both players made a valuable contribution during the day.

The following week’s game against Epsom was possibly the toughest game of the season, against a well-drilled side. The school side were 2-1 down with five minutes to go and pushing for an equaliser when Epsom scored a counter-attack goal. The high standard of opposition was useful in helping the side develop their tactical understanding, in order to push them to improve. KES followed this loss up with three well-deserved Saturday wins against Seaford (4-0), Bryanston (2-0) and Canford (3-0). The lessons learnt

Played: 13 Won: 6 Drew: 2 Lost: 5

against Epsom and at the Sherborne Tournament had paid off. Unfortunately, the side’s only other loss of the season came away to Churcher’s, in a game in which the KES side could have won by five or six goals. The Churcher’s goalkeeper, combined with some errant finishing, allowed the Churcher’s side to win 1-0 with a break away goal. KES closed out the season with further wins against Kingston (3-2) and Dauntsey’s (2-1) before drawing 1-1 with local rivals PGS in the final game of the season.

The U15 As had a successful season, managing more wins than losses, with every game being a competitive match. The girls developed their pressing, learning the importance of marking tightly and pressurising the ball carrier into making a mistake. They were a pleasure to coach and were always willing to listen and apply what was being asked of them. Thanks to Ida Goodridge for captaining the side during the season, and for playing a key role in central midfield.

Mr Bassett Squad members: Melanie Georgiou, Elinor Sharp, Darcie Burrows, Charlotte Dunkley, Rosalind Dye, Ida Goodridge (C), Rachel Howarth, Claudia Leeming, Grace Loveridge, Abigail McCarthy, Tamsin Morris, Abbie Morton, Isi Murphy, Lucia Rugge-Price, Julia Schmalz, Ellie Small, Katie Smart, Martha Sullivan, Isabella Tam, Olivia Tudor and Emilia Walker.

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U15B Hockey The U15B girls started off their season with a comfortable 4-0 away win on the Isle of Wight against Ryde U15A. The win against Ryde set the tone for what was to follow for the rest of the season.

The girls followed up this result with a well fought 1-1 draw against a strong Epsom College side, before adding another comfortable 7-1 victory against Hampshire Collegiate. The final two Saturday fixtures before half-term saw KES beat Seaford away 4-0, and draw a six goal thriller 3-3 against Bryanston at home. Following half-term, the girls beat Canford 1-0 before the performance of the season, during which the KES side managed to beat Churcher’s College 8-0. Unfortunately, their unbeaten record for the season came to an end at the hands of local rivals PGS, who managed to scrape a 2-1 victory in the last game of the season. The girls had a very successful season, led by Mr Wright who was in charge of the team for the fixtures.

Played: 8 Won: 5 Drew: 2 Lost: 1

Squad members: Anna Aksenova, Sophia Bassi, Darcie Burrows, Lily Cooper, Sophie Diamond, Rosalind Dye, Maddie Gallagher, Thomasina Gibson, Emily Hancock, Sophie Khan, Kate Leask, Alice Leather, Claudia Leeming, Esme Lock, Tamsin Morris, Eve Musson, Nadia Paine, Natasha Pillai, Katie Powell, Bella Roe, Julia Schmalz, Katie Smart, Emily Smith, Xanthe Thompson, Olivia Tilley, Olivia Tudor, Anna Tunney, Emilia Walker, Jasmine Williams, Natalie Williams and Florence Wright.

Mr Wright and Mr Bassett

U14 Hockey

A Team Played: 9 Won: 1 Drew: 1 Lost: 7 B Team Played: 9 Won: 3 Drew: 2 Lost: 4

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The girls have undoubtedly developed as a squad over the 2018 season. Their technique and skill have both improved over the autumn period. With different activities occurring throughout the term, they were often busy with other commitments, making after school training sessions a quiet affair.

Most development took place in games lessons, with hockey staff creating inventive drills to improve understanding and technique. Mr Bassett and Mr Dodds’s energy undoubtedly grasped the girls’ attention and motivated progress.

It was a long and difficult season with few victories to be had by either side. The A team had a tricky first three fixtures against Ryde, Epsom and HCS during which they spent time learning new positions and adjusting to 11-a-side dynamics. The B team also lost to Epsom, their first fixture, but went one better than the A side to draw against HCS. Then came a happy, yet soggy, 1-0 win over Lord Wandsworth College for the A team. Both teams played determinedly against tough Bryanston opposition and should be pleased with their performances in these games. The A team managed a draw against Churcher’s College in the County Cup before losing to them in the normal Saturday fixture later in the term; the Bs drew. The A side continued to have frustrating fixtures against KGS, Dauntsey’s and PGS. There were glimmers of skill from individuals and some lovely phases of play on occasion, but all too often the players’ attention dropped or they were punished by the superior skill and teamwork of the opposition. The B team finished the season more strongly with a very competent and entertaining performance over KGS, which saw the girls win 3-2. This was a particular

highlight as the goal scorers and three forwards came from our U12A team. Playing two age groups up is always impressive and Arden-Jones, Kaur and Kent played their socks off. Dauntsey’s remains a tough match yet the girls returned to winning ways, beating PGS 2-1 on an extremely wet and windy afternoon. The following Thursday, the girls achieved a 3-0 win over King’s Winchester, ending the season on a high with back-to-back wins.

The girls worked well to gel as a group and this will be of real value as they turn their attention to the U15 season. We hope that they will continue to enjoy their hockey and show willingness to improve and succeed.

With many great performances over the season, regardless of the outcome on the scoreboard, it is hard to congratulate individuals. However, Emily ArdernJones impressed with her skill throughout the autumn and Hannah Procter is our choice for most improved player. She is always eager to listen and act on advice and has shown determination in every drill during games and training sessions, and during matches.

Mrs Brown and Mr Dodds Squad members: Emily Ardern-Jones, Lottie Ashton, Emily Buckland, Evie Bulstrode, Ella Danby, Lola Dibden, Kate Dunn, Myah Ganjavian-Connor, Sofia Godsland-Ladislao, Izzy Hall, Megan Maltby, Imogen Miller, Anna Morley, Yzzy Murray, Grace Orton, Orla Paterson, Hannah Procter, April Richards, Charlotte Roberts, Katie Ryan, Catherine Shore, Ruby Slowen, Annabel Stonadge and Alice Turner-Hall.

U13A Hockey This has been another very successful season for the girls’ U13 A team. As the season has progressed, they have gone from strength to strength and are now playing with great maturity and consistency.

Their commitment to training and matches has been commendable and has certainly contributed to their successes.

Particular highlights of the season include wins against Westbourne House, PGS and Dauntsey’s; all matches that the girls either drew or lost last season demonstrating how far they have come.

Eleanor Sharpe and Melanie Georgiou have shown outstanding strength and skill in defence and should be very proud of their performances this season.

Nell Sarton started the season in the B team but was soon moved up to the A team and has continued to improve with every game.

Played: 9 Won: 5 Drew: 4 Lost: 0

Although the girls were performing outstandingly in their Saturday matches, it didn’t all come together in the County Tournament on the day. However, I am confident that as they move up to the next age group they will experience the success that they deserve.

The attitude and positivity from the girls this season has shone through at every opportunity and they have been an absolute pleasure to coach. I wish them every success as they continue on their hockey journey.

Mrs Ferrand

148 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

Squad members: Charlotte Stembridge, Tessa Tomson, Celia Brabazon, Lucy Robinson, Claudia Hargreaves, Nell Sarton, Melanie Georgiou, Georgina Wheeler and Matilde Mathies.

U13 A

U13B Hockey

Played: 11 Won: 9 Drew: 0 Lost: 2

Squad members: Sophie Blaydes, Matilde Mathies, Nell Sarton, Erin Woo, Georgina Wheeler, Annabel Coltart, Daisy Kendall, Eleanor Oakley, Charlotte Akerman, Sophie Carter, Eva Waktare, Lucy Walker, Ava Neilson, Sophie Kileff, Alannah Walker-Webb, Tessa Tomson, Isabelle Nutbourne and Charlotte Wallis.

This was a highly successful season for the girls and a fitting reward for all their hard work and focus during coaching after school and in games lessons.

Some of their victories were away from home, against strong opposition, and this emphasised how skilful and determined the girls were. Particular highlights include the 3-1 win at Epsom College and the 1-0 victories over Westbourne House and Kingston Grammar School. It also revealed a team that were very ably led, often by Daisy Kendall, with a great team spirit.

The two defeats were both very close affairs and, in many ways, should have been victories.

The future looks bright for school hockey in this year group and I would imagine that many of this B team squad will be pushing for selection to the 11-a-side A team next year.

I would like to thank Mr Bassett and Mr Crichton for their advice on coaching methods and for their inexhaustible enthusiasm and good humour.

Mr Cross

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U12A Hockey This has been a fantastic first season together for the U12 girls and I am extremely proud that fortytwo girls have represented the School this season in hockey and have regularly attended after school training. The first weekend of term saw mixed ability teams play against Ryde at Hill Lane. The players all learnt a great deal and I was impressed with the leadership skills of those with more experience and understanding of the game.

The first A team match was against Epsom College.

Although nervous, due to the large numbers of spectators, the girls managed to channel their nerves, working extremely hard, illustrating excellent fight with a high-level end-to-end game. It was a fantastic first match but frustrating to lose in the final thirty seconds. The following weekend the side travelled to St John’s, Leatherhead. Continuing to improve, the girls tackled with strength, chased down every ball, and had numerous shots on goal, only missing by inches. They were 1-0 up for three quarters of the game but unfortunately conceded twice in quick succession. The girls showed fantastic team spirit, working out exactly what they need to do to ensure they did not lose, gaining a short corner and scoring in the last twenty seconds, resulting in a 2-2 draw. The final weekend before half-term, the U12s travelled to a hockey festival at Lord Wandsworth College. This was challenging due to the awful weather conditions and having to play on

Played: 7 Won: 4 Drew: 1 Lost: 2

grass for the first time. Their excellent team spirit ensured they had a great time.

After half-term the squad travelled to Westbourne House to play their U12B team. The KES team moved the ball around the pitch very well, their tackles continued to improve, and they were quick to put pressure on the opposition resulting in a 7-3 win. Against Churcher’s at home, play started slowly but the girls increased their ball speed, putting pressure on the opposition and causing them to make mistakes. The set pieces were a lot sleeker and the side scored some fantastic team goals, winning 3-1. At Kingston Grammar School, the girls struggled with the early start to the day but warmed up well and started strong winning the first half 3-1.

Unfortunately, tiredness caught up with them and the match finished in a 3-5 defeat.

After the first loss since the beginning of the season, the girls were determined to come out strong against Dauntsey’s not allowing them any time on the ball. This pressure ensured they gained turnover after turnover. At the start of the second half, energy levels dropped and the girls allowed Daunstey’s more space. However, in the final ten minutes the KES team spirit shone through with their determination to ensure a win. They moved the ball with speed, created numerous opportunities and finally the goal came, ending with a 2-1 win.

150 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

The final fixture of the season was another exciting game. The girls adapted to the small pitch and defensively made it very hard for PGS to make any successful passes. They created many opportunities, passed the ball effectively and developed their positioning on the post to finish with a 7-0 victory.

It has been a pleasure to coach this talented group of girls this year and witness them grow together as a team. I have been particularly impressed with their resilience, determination and cohesive team spirit.

Over seven games, they scored twenty-five goals and

only conceded fourteen. This group have all captained for the School this season and have developed their leadership skills along with growing in maturity. I hope they will continue to challenge themselves as they move up in the School.

Mrs Penn Squad members: Katie Arden-Jones, Isobel Roberts, Kiran Kaur, Sophie Kent, Jemima Sullivan, Darcy Randle, Millie Boyes, Sabine Potter, Rhyseren Taylor and Emily Knowles.

U12B Hockey This group of girls has made a great start to their school hockey careers. They started the season well and by their third game had secured a good result beating Hampshire Collegiate 8 goals to 2. The team demonstrated great control and patience especially in their movement.

The members of the U12 B team have challenged themselves by playing in a variety of positions, trying new tactics and have supported one another throughout the season, encouraging each other’s confidence and progress. The girls all tried their hardest to apply what they had been asked to do,

Played: 8 Won: 3 Drew: 2 Lost: 3

onto the pitch and into their play, and were always asking questions encouraging self-development. This has been a good season for the team with lots to take forward into their next season of hockey.

Mrs Ferrand Squad members: Ellie Orton, Emily Egerton-Hou, Bella Howell, Sofia Thompson, Emily Knowles, Cara Lea, Allie Bassett, Jemima Sullivan, Emese Frajka-Williams, Millie Boyes, Jessica Dodd, Sasha Sherrin, Josie Salter, Scarlett Moody and Olivia Higenbottam.

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U12C Hockey The girls worked relentlessly throughout the season demonstrating impressive commitment and an eagerness to improve. With high numbers attending training weekly, demonstrating both enthusiasm and the means to learn, it was evident that there are the makings of some true hockey players within this group. The girls thoroughly enjoyed representing the School and are to be commended on their competitive yet ‘fairplay’ approach to games. The results of their hard work were displayed during Saturday fixtures, with a total of five wins. The U12s ended the season with wins against both Portsmouth Grammar School and King’s School, Winchester - an impressive accomplishment of which the girls should be proud.

Miss Lander

Played: 9 Won: 5 Drew: 2 Lost: 2

Squad members: Avantika Umranikar, Gracie O’Brien, Josie Slater, Katie Sloane, Isobel Holliday, Jessica Dodd, Olivia Higenbottam, Nithusha Baheerathan, Scarlett Moody, Allie Bassett, Cara Lea, Millie Hills, Lucia Poletti, Katie Braakenburg, Roisin Allen, Millie Boyes, Bronty Thomas, Poppy Cooper, Defne Nebol, Tas Hossen, Amelia Burdge, Vipusha Kamalarajah and Sasha Sherrin.

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U12D Hockey This has been a fantastic first season for the U12D team. Many of these girls have also played for the C team due to showing excellent improvement throughout the season. Players have regularly attended training, worked hard to improve their skills and shown high levels of determination and competitive spirit. Throughout the course of the season the side played eight games and one mixed ability tournament. It was fantastic to see such a high number of girls representing the School, with over forty-two first years playing this season.

This group has continued to smile and rise to each challenge with which they have been presented.

Unfortunately, they have not always had a goal keeper which means they have come out the wrong side of some games they were dominating. Between them, they scored 15 goals; an excellent start to their KES hockey careers. The girls should be proud of their win over Westbourne House and I look forward to seeing them develop their hockey further.

Mrs Penn

Played: 7 Won: 2 Drew: 1 Lost: 5

Squad members: Tessa Aresca, Defne Nebol, Tamara Haq, Roisin Allen, Sasha Sherrin, Lucia Poletti, Katie Braakenburg, Katie Sloane, Bronty Thomas, Vipusha Kamalarajah, Millie Hills, Josie Salter, Gracie O’Brien, Scarlett Moody, Abigail Thomas, Tas Hossen, Nithusha Baheerathan, Jessica Dodd and Olivia Higenbottam,

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Netball overview Netball has grown again this year with a healthy number of girls training and representing KES throughout Saturday fixtures. This season saw KES compete in 133 matches and many of the age groups were able to get out an A, B and C team on a weekly basis with some achieving impressive numbers and D teams being fielded in a few of the year groups. The new courts at Hill Lane have led to more consistent after school training with the new surface draining the rain well. The girls have also enjoyed using the new sunken netball posts to practise their shooting especially in their lunchtimes!

The standard of netball this year at KES has improved once again, allowing us to compete in a variety of different competitions. The U14, U16 and U18s all entered the county round of the National Schools’ Competition at the start of the academic year.

Following the success at the county round both the U14s and the U16s competed in the regional rounds held at Farnborough School. The teams showed great determination, skill and athleticism against some tough opponents and on occasions made some great comebacks to win matches. The U14s finished 4th in their group which was a huge achievement as they had some very tough competition, and the U16s finished 3rd narrowly missing out on finishing in second place by three points. They scored a fantastic 72 goals during their morning only allowing their opponents to score 34 goals.

This year saw KES enter the Independent National Schools’ Cup for the first time, at both U13 and U15.

Both teams started off in the cup draw. The U13s played Croydon High School away in a match which saw the girls fight hard until the final whistle but they unfortunately lost by 2 goals and went into the Plate competition. In their first match they played Walthamstow Hall winning 24-15 and continued their winning streak beating St Helen and St Katherine by four goals after the game went in to extra time!

The girls then faced St Alban’s High School in the semi-finals. After a very tough match, the girls came away with the win 24-19 meaning they had reached the final of the Independent National Schools’ Plate Competition against Oldham Hulme Grammar at home. The final was the toughest game of the season for the girls, not only physically but psychologically.

The majority of the game was goal to goal with both teams pulling away by a few and the other team working hard to get the interception and pull back to within one goal. The game went right down to the final whistle with KES making a fantastic turn over in defence and scoring to go 31-30 up and take the win – the U13s becoming the Independent National Schools’ Plate Champions!

The U15s also had a very successful run in their cup competition making it through to the 3rd round playing against a challenging Hurstpierpoint College and losing 30-18. This meant they also entered the Plate competition. A winning streak beating Farnborough Hill (27-9) and St Helen and St Katherine (65-19) put them into the quarterfinal competition against Churcher’s. After a very tight first half in this match KES pulled away to achieve a very convincing 66-20 win. The U15s then played Eastbourne College in the semi-final in a home fixture. This was a very tight game but the girls showed some great links all over the court allowing the transition from defence to attack to work smoothly, and taking the win 38-30. And so the U15s also reached the Plate Final which was held in Manchester against a very feisty St Bede’s College. Once again, the girls showed their skills and their drive and took the win 39-25 in a very well contested game that demonstrated some great sportsmanship and high levels of competitiveness.

Congratulations to both the U13s and the U15s for their outstanding achievements. Both teams are groups of very talented netballers who have shown huge levels of skill, teamwork with plenty of support and encouragement for one another, regardless of the outcome of each match.

The end of the netball term saw the annual Staff v Sixth Form match take place. This was held during a lunchtime to raise money for the School’s Charities Commission. After a very tough, high paced game, the staff team was victorious with a 2 goal win over the students. Many thanks to everyone who participated and supported this event.

We have had some very successful tours this year with our U13s heading to Belfast where they played some very exciting games and learnt a lot from some of the Northern Ireland players who played in the Netball World Cup. They were a credit to the School throughout the trip. We look forward to taking the U13s back to Belfast in the New Year with future tours to follow.

The fixture programme for 2020 is already looking strong with some new opposition to play, and we are also looking forward to trying to develop the netball courts at our Wellington Sports Ground. Thank you to all the parents, umpires and staff who give up their time to help train the girls and travel to fixtures with them.

Miss Cole

154 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

1st VII Netball

This has been an exciting and successful season for the 1st team who have impressed throughout the season with their outstanding commitment and performances. The depth of talent in this year’s squad was evident from the start of the year and enabled us to enter the Senior County Tournament for the first time in a few years. When the season began in January, and with the addition of our talented Fifth Year students, it was clear that this was going to be an exciting season; the girls did not disappoint. This was helped by the outstanding leadership of Gemma Pearson who consistently led by example and proved to be a superb role model and captain.

The season started well with two very convincing wins against Churcher’s College and Bryanston School.

Both of these fixtures in the past have been well contested, however, the KES 1st VII were in a different league this year and beat both teams by over 20 goals.

This gave the girls confidence as they went into their triangular with Dauntsey’s and Canford. After beating Dauntsey’s by 7 goals the team then took on Canford.

Canford always put out a strong side and, in recent years, the KES side have only beaten them once. The game was end-to-end and brilliantly contested but the Canford side took the win by only one goal!

The team’s successful run continued as they went on to beat St George’s U16 A team, and to win the Lord

Played: 8 Won: 6 Drew: 0 Lost: 2

Wandsworth College Tournament. Unfortunately, the second loss of the season came to Bradfield College.

The blustery, cold conditions proved too tricky for our girls and we could not find our rhythm on court.

The season ended with a fantastic result against PGS with the KES side winning 26-15 and going down to 6 players in the last half due to an unfortunate injury to Gemma Pearson.

A particular mention to the Player of the Season: Zoe Henderson. Zoe has impressed on court every week without fail, no matter where on the court she was asked to play. She dominated her opponent and lifted her team mates around her, demonstrating exceptional skill throughout the season.

It has been an absolute pleasure to work with such a talented squad and it was great to see some of our younger U15 players having the opportunity to play up on occasion. I am very much looking forward to next year’s season and working with these girls again.

Mrs Ferrand Squad members: Gemma Pearson, Zoe Henderson, Eleanor Dunlop, Steph Judd, Freya Crowley, Millie Parsons, Millie Parsons, Rebecca Waggett, Nyah Clark, Charlotte Dunkerley, Claudia Leeming and Sophie Khan.

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2nd VII Netball This has been a tough season for the 2nd VII team but their tenacity and positivity enabled them to show great improvement as the season progressed.

It was a slightly slow start, due to attendance at training and availability, but after the first few weeks the squad settled well and they began to perform.

The season started with tough matches against a talented Churcher’s U16A team, Bryanston, Canford and Dauntsey’s that all resulted in defeat. Although the results did not go in favour of the KES team, the girls continued to improve every week. The team welcomed back Becky Williams from her ACL injury and Becky certainly added some dynamic court play upon her return.

The players’ efforts at training, and improved cohesion, enabled them to comfortably win their match against St George’s College U16 B team. The girls took confidence from this result and went on to perform outstandingly at the Lord Wandsworth Tournament where they played: Seaford, Kings

Played: 7 Won: 1 Drew: 0 Lost: 6

College, KES Whitley, Pangbourne and Lord Wandsworth. The girls were unlucky to narrowly miss out on first place but they were delighted to have finished as runners-up. Their strong performance at the tournament continued in their last game of the season against PGS. The match was end-to-end excitement but, despite the girls’ best efforts, PGS took the win by only 4 goals.

A particular mention must go to Sophie Roe who was awarded ‘Player of the Season’. Sophie consistently impressed with her commitment, attitude and game play.

Mrs Ferrand and Mrs Anderson Squad members: Fin McKenzie, Catherine Thomson, Isobel Holland, Sophie Roe, Issy Todd, Amy Boyle, Becky Williams, Klaudia Glowacz, Charlotte Young, Lucy Tait, Lucy Howarth, Lena Mills, Sophia Olive and Hannah Elton-Dobbin.

156 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

3rd VII Netball

Much as the playing statistics aren’t flattering, the 3rd VII have faced some tough opposition throughout the course of the season, and have played 2nd VII and U16A sides where they were simply outclassed.

Therefore, what is not reflected is the progress that individual players have made, and how much fun and enthusiasm was apparent, never mind how much good netball was played.

The girls started with a cold Saturday and a heavy defeat to the impressive Churcher’s team, then enjoyed their time indoors at Bryanston, but once again were found wanting. A triangular against Dauntsey’s and Canford showed the team improve through every quarter, and win the last against Dauntsey’s. Thereafter followed a heavy defeat at Bradfield, where their 2nd VII were sharp and skilled.

PGS was the final blow with a heavy defeat (although as I always say, 36-18 would only be 2-1 in hockey, and that sounds quite close!).

I have enjoyed my season with the girls. It has been really hard to play with a different group of people each week, and because the 3rd VII feed up to the top two teams in the School we regularly had to deal with last minute changes. I am grateful to the Upper Sixth and wish them well, and would also like to thank Hannah Elton-Dobbin for being a superb captain and taking the Fifth Years under her wing.

Miss Smith

Played: 6 Won: 0 Drew: 0 Lost: 6

Squad members: Hannah Elton-Dobbin, Klaudia Glowacz, Abby Taylor, Elspeth Hargreaves, Annamaria Shenouda, Puja Muthalagu, Lena Mills, Katie Duff, Lucy Tait, Lucy Howarth, Alice Dyer, Sophia Olive, Natasha Thompson, Lucy Pumphrey, Isobel Holland, Milly Phipps, Amy Tunney and Kira Morton.

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U15A Netball This netball season has seen the girls in the U15 A team mature into a group of very talented and supportive girls. They have shown high levels of commitment and dedication week in week out at training and their availability for Saturday fixtures.

The A team started off their Saturday fixtures with a big win against Bryanston that boosted the confidence of the team and allowed the players to try different combinations. The match against Churcher’s was challenging. There were a few players missing but the group demonstrated versatility and skill as they stepped up. After an end-to-end game, with both attack and defence working hard to transition the ball down the court, the girls dug deep and came away with a two goal win!

The next fixture saw the team playing St George’s, which is always one of the toughest annual fixtures.

Once again, the girls showed great team work, and even with a lot of forced errors, they remained positive. The on court encouragement was great but even trying lots of different tactics it was very difficult to retrieve the ball from their 6ft shooter.

Unfortunately, on this occasion, the game ended in defeat for KES. The final two Saturday fixtures didn’t phase the girls and they took both these games in their stride coming away with two wins against Bradfield College and PGS. As well as the Saturday fixtures this year, the U15 team entered the Independent National Schools’ Cup. The first fixture saw the U15s playing Woldingham in an away match. As always, the girls had a great warm up and stormed the first half of the game. At half-time some changes were made, showing the team’s versatility, After another successful half, the girls took the win 43-12 putting King Edward’s into the next round of the cup. However, unfortunately, in the next round the side lost out narrowly to a well-drilled

Played: 8 Won: 6 Drew: 0 Lost: 2

Hurstpierpoint team. The first round of the Plate competition saw the squad play Farnborough College; a match that the girls won 27-9. At home, the U15s played St Helen and St Katharine School achieving an outstanding 65-19 victory and earning them a place in the quarter-finals. In this round, the side played Churcher’s and after a well fought game finished with a 66-20 win. The girls drew a home fixture against Eastbourne as their semi-final match. This game was one of the most challenging played all season but when the final whistle blew, the scoreboard was in our favour 38-30 for a positive result in a game that could have gone either way at any stage. In the final, we played St Bede’s, Manchester in an away fixture.

The trip to Manchester by mini-bus was full of lots of singing and excitement and on the morning of the final the girls arrived at the venue and were greeted by lots of dedicated parents. During the match, our aims, as a squad, were to remain positive, encourage one another, work hard to get the ball back if we lost it, and most importantly respect the umpires and have fun.

Coming off the first quarter, leading by three goals, the girls realised that this was going to be a long hour but they took the game quarter by quarter aiming to come off with a win each fifteen minutes. The team played absolutely fantastically - the best I had seen them play all season. By the end of the third quarter with a twelve goal lead, this is where once again the girls’ fitness had to kick in to take them all the way to the final whistle. They worked solidly defensively all the way down the court to provide numerous forced errors which they then converted into goals. The final whistle blew for a 39-25 victory making them the U15 National Plate winners!

This group of girls has taken every expectation that was put their way with ease and they have always given 100% when stepping on to the netball court.

As a teacher, I couldn’t have been prouder of a group of girls who have been an absolute pleasure to work alongside this year. I know that in the rest of their KES careers they will provide so much, not only to netball but in everything that they do. Finally, a massive thank you to all the members of staff, and especially the parents, who have been there to support the girls throughout this netball season.

Miss Cole Squad members: Sophia Bassi, Tamsin Morris, Abbie Morton, Claudia Leeming, Jasriah Mandair, Sophie Khan, Charlotte Dunkley, Diba Mansourian, Evie Bulstrode and Grace Loveridge.

158 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

U15B Netball The B team started the season with a tough game against Churcher’s College A side but, whilst the girls lost, there was some good defensive netball played, with Emilia Walker being named Player of the Match.

The team learnt a lot from the experience and worked hard on passing the ball around the D. The girls were then able to put the skills learnt from their first fixture into practice against Bryanston, and Xanthe Thompson and Olivia Tilley worked well in defence to prevent the opposition from being able to feed the ball to the shooters. This resulted in a convincing win with a score of 12-2. At the start of February the team participated in a triangular fixture against Dauntsey’s and Canford. The conditions were cold and windy and, despite a narrow defeat, the girls showed enthusiasm and were versatile on the court. The team then made the most of the home advantage against St George’s with Olivia Tudor and Emily Hancock shooting accurately, and Esme Lock and Darcie Burrows

Played: 9 Won: 3 Drew: 0 Lost: 6 moving the ball effectively around the court to secure an excellent win of 19 goals to 13. The last match was a close fixture against PGS in which the girls came back after losing the first quarter to win the game by just one goal. It was a well-fought match and a thrilling way to end the season.

The girls were committed members of the B team and they showed great determination during each fixture.

Mrs Walls Squad members: Antonia Ruprecht-Smith, Emilia Walker, Olivia Tilley, Katie Smart, Oliva Tudor, Esme Lock, Rachel Howarth, Xanthe Thompson, Darcie Burrows, Thomasina Gibson, Isabella Tam, Florence Wright, Nadia Paine, Anna Aksenova, Emily Hancock and Eve Musson.

U15C Netball The U15C girls put in some excellent performances across the season. Despite some difficulties in defence, the girls showed determination and by their second fixture against Bryanston School, the C team presented vivid improvements to their cohesion and skill, with impressive shooting performances from Eve Musson resulting in a nail-biting 12-12 draw. By the time February half-term arrived, the quality and pace of netball from the whole team had improved dramatically. This was confirmed by their 11-2 win against Canford School. The toughest opponents proved to be Dauntsey’s School, which was the last game of the season. Throughout this fixture I was incredibly impressed with the players’ persistence and tenacity. It was a shame that due to weather constraints the match against PGS was cancelled as

Played: 5 Won: 1 Drew: 1 Lost: 3 this, I am sure, would also have proved to be another testing match. Despite their final game resulting in a loss, the girls finished their season in a joyful and buoyant mood.

Miss Horn Squad members: Rosalind Dye, Eve Musson, Anna Askenova, Martha Sullivan, Lily Cooper, Lizzy Lotery, Natasha Pillai, Anna Tunney, Isabella Tam, Emily Hancock, Maddie Gallagher, Sophie Diamond, Ellie Small, Ida Goodridge, Jasmine Williams, Lucia Rugge-Price, Alice Leather and Bella Davies-Roche.

U15D Netball This year saw the U15D team play a couple of fixtures.

Both of these fixtures were against Churcher’s and the girls knew the matches would be challenging but showed great determination and skill throughout both. All the players had to play in a variety of positions based on availability.

The first game saw the D team come away with a one goal win (18-17) with some great attacking play showing lots of patience to feed the balls in to the shooters. The second time around the game was played with much tighter margins and both teams

Played: 2 Won: 1 Drew: 1 Lost: 0 worked really hard to intercept and score from these opportunities and, after a really tough game, the score was drawn 12-12.

Miss Cole Squad members: Katie Powell, Anna Tunney, Martha Sullivan, Kate Leask, Maddie Gallagher, Isabella Tam, Lizzy Lotery, Emily Bull, Eve Musson, Natasha Pillai, Ellie Small, Bella Roe, Florence Wright and Lily Cooper.

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U14A Netball

The U14 squad have been a very lively and enthusiastic bunch of girls and it has been a pleasure to be selecting 8-9 players for each of the A-C squads throughout the season. The turn-out at training has been pleasing and many of the girls have progressed significantly with both their individual skills and their court play.

The A squad has been consistent throughout the season and many of the girls have worked hard to balance their commitment to school with their commitment to club which has been greatly appreciated. The shooting pairing has had flexibility with Orla Paterson producing high shooting stats throughout the season whether playing at goal shooter or goal attack. Diba or Kate could switch in with her to bring variety of style depending on the opposition. Mid court has generally been led from the centre by Evie Bulstrode who brings speed and a vision of the full court ensuring good flow. Evie has been supported by Lottie, Lola and Grace; all of

Played: 10 Won: 8 Drew: 0 Lost: 2

whom have brought determination in defence and good distribution skill in attack. Defence has rotated around Kate or Ella as goal keeper and Diba or Lottie as goal defence. These combinations have worked together to develop a tight coverage in the circle which was particularly impressive given their ability to switch around depending on the combination.

Highlights of the season included the impressive wins against St George’s and PGS and the levels of determination that the girls brought to the county and regional tournaments. I should also like to take this opportunity to thank the parents who have been particularly supportive and helpful throughout the season.

Mrs Henderson Squad members: Diba Masourian (C), Evie Bulstrode (VC), Lottie Ashton, Ella Danby, Lola Dibden, Kate Dunn, Grace Orton and Orla Paterson.

160 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

U14B Netball

The girls developed their play really well during this season. They attended training regularly and worked hard in these sessions as well as in their Games lessons. We focussed on using the entire court and moving in to, and out of, space as the girls had a habit of playing down one side of the court. They picked this up well and, in their final match against PGS, they could be seen using the entire width of the court and making space effectively. An unfortunate bout of illness meant two very tough games were played against Canford and Dauntsey’s. However, the remaining players gave it their all and encouraged the rest of the team. Ese was a very valuable player in defence and was often awarded Player of the Match and was mentioned by the opposition’s coach. She was able to use her height to her advantage and made some excellent interceptions. The girls became a lot better at communicating with each other as the

Played: 8 Won: 3 Drew: 0 Lost: 5

season progressed and key to this was Amy, who could always be heard from the attacking end of the court.

The team really impressed me with their continued positivity and clear love of the game, despite several losses early on. They never gave up and fully deserve their wins, which were earned through hard work and teamwork. It has been a pleasure to work with the U14B team this year. I hope they continue to train and play with enthusiasm and determination.

Mrs Hall Squad members: Izzy Hall, Sanya Khurana, Yzzy Murray, Annabelle Oddoye, Ese Okitikipi, Amy Oldfield, Charlotte Roberts, Phoebe Rogers, Katie Ryan, Ruby Slowen, Annabel Stonadge, Poppy Hernandez, Neha Syed and Myah Ganjavian-Connor.

U14C Netball The C squad has had a very successful season and I particularly need to thank Emily Buckland and Susie Bence for bringing together the team each week.

Despite the many different players who took part and last minute changes to positions, they did an incredible job. Other girls played regularly and with dedication in the C team. Phoebe Rogers played well in attack, with Myah, Eloise, Sophia and Annabel in the centre, whilst Catherine Shore and Annabelle

Played: 5 Won: 3 Drew: 0 Lost: 2

worked tirelessly in defence to turn the ball over and get it back up court.

Miss Lander Squad members: Emily Buckland (C) Susie Bence (VC), Myah Ganjavian-Connor, Sophia Godsland-Ladislao, Megan Maltby, Eloise Muller, Annabelle Oddoye, Phoebe Rogers, Catherine Shore, Annabel Stonadge and Neha Syed.

SOTONIENSIS 2019 | 161

U13A Netball

What an outstanding term our U13A netball squad have experienced! Not only have we seen over twentyeight girls at every training session but also the quality of players and their attitude have been exemplary.

The athleticism, fitness and team play were amongst the best I have ever seen in any of the netball teams I have coached. Extraordinarily consistent performances from players such as Mel Georgiou, Claudia Hargreaves, Ellie Sharp and Sophie Kileff gave us a real advantage over any opposition, regardless of how big and strong they were.

The National Plate Competition was particularly impressive; the quarter-final win at home, after going into extra time, and the semi-final win at St Alban’s School are two memories I will find hard to forget.

However, the monumental final against Oldham Hulme Grammar School was quite literally an epic.

With an injury to Issie Nutbourne whilst skiing, it meant that Georgie Wheeler and Lucy Walker had to defend the mid court in turn. The whole squad played their part and held on to win 31-30 and become 2019 U13 National Plate champions.

Played: 14 Won: 12 Drew: 0 Lost: 2

I am so proud of the girls; they have been inspirational throughout the entire season and I will miss their energy and singing skills next year.

Mr Powell Squad members: Melanie Georgiou, Claudia Hargreaves, Elinor Sharp, Daisy Kendall, Sophie Kileff (C), Lucy Walker, Erin Woo, Isabelle Nutbourne, Ava Neilson, Lucy Robinson, Sienna Mandair and Georgina Wheeler.

162 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

U13B Netball There has been excellent progression shown in U13 netball this season, despite some very cold and windy weather conditions. The term started with a well-matched fixture against Churcher’s; the girls finished the first quarter 6-3 gaining a confident lead. They lost momentum but were able to keep a good difference, finishing the game 21-13. Lucy Robinson was a well-deserved Player of the Match; there was fabulous shooting from Sienna and Georgie, and some impressive teamwork defending the goal from Nell and Sophie.

The next fixture, against Ryde U13A, was again, very evenly matched. The girls started with a good lead but Ryde managed to make up the difference. The team never gave up though and the score at the end was a close 14-13 to Ryde. I was impressed by the determination shown throughout the match by all the players. Lucy was again awarded Player of the Match, alongside Nell who really came into her own making some incredible interceptions.

The girls looked strong from the start against Dauntsey’s; some excellent mid-court play from Lucy, Emily and Kira, along with some exceptional shooting from Sienna and Georgie meant that the KES side led throughout. The girls finished 28-7, certainly a notable and impressive performance.

St George’s came next and was possibly our most disappointing fixture of the season as we came out

Played: 7 Won: 3 Drew: 0 Lost: 4

with a 4-23 loss. It was fabulous to see a full squad against Gordon’s – the girls played beautifully together showing how much they had grown as a team and resulting in a well-deserved win. There was a change to the defence in the game with Eleanor and Charlotte playing GD and GK. They worked fantastically together and Charlotte should receive particular praise here; defence is not her usual position.

Bradfield College came next, with the U13 B side playing a year up. There was a shuffle with players, meaning that it was quite a different team. Charlotte captained well and I was particularly impressed with Kira’s movement around the court.

The girls finished the season with the fixture against PGS. It was a frustrating game but they managed to keep the score tight, only losing by 20-23 in the end.

Maintaining a level head during play was the key lesson from this game. Both Emily and Lucy played admirably with excellent movement up and down the court.

The girls have been fantastic this season, always keen to throw themselves into fixtures and enthusiastic in training. As captain, Georgie has provided a very confident and mature approach, with excellent communication and encouragement on court. I would like to thank all the girls for a very enjoyable term of netball.

Miss Downing Squad members: Sienna Mandair, Georgie Wheeler (C), Emily Pizzey, Lucy Robinson, Kira Woodd, Nell Sarton, Sophie Blaydes, Charlotte Stembridge, Eleanor Oakley, Adele Congreve, Zofia Osgood, Lucy Walker, Ava Neilson, Eva Waktare, Matilde Mathies and Isabel Smith.

SOTONIENSIS 2019 | 163

U13C Netball

Played: 5 Won: 1 Drew: 0 Lost: 4

It is symptomatic of the number of quality players that we have in the U13 netball squads that so many quality players find themselves representing the School at B, C and D levels.

Notable moments of the season were the convincing win against Churcher’s College and the never-ending enthusiasm, commitment and singing skills that all these ladies brought to the season.

With numbers exceeding twenty-eight at our Monday training sessions it has been both incredible and troublesome in equal measure; any one of these C team regulars could have played for the A team.

Mr Powell Squad members: Annabel Coltart, Sophie Carter, Sophie Hews, Destiny Annan, Isabel Smith, Zofia Osgood, Isla Osman, Matilde Mathies and Adele Congreve.

U13D Netball The season started off well with a convincing win against Churcher’s College where, despite some very last minute team changes, the girls played extremely well together. Isabelle was voted ‘Player of the Match’ in her first representation for the School, largely due to her accurate goal scoring.

This was followed by was a very close fought match against Dauntsey’s and then another win on a very cold day against St George’s. In the final match of the season, it was another close match against PGS where the opposing team just pulled ahead in the

Played: 4 Won: 2 Drew: 0 Lost: 2

final quarter of the match. Well done to the girls for being so flexible in terms of positions and positivity regardless of the result.

Miss Yerbury Squad members: Annie-Cate Boyle, Amanda Mensah, Evelyn Nagy, Charlotte Akerman, Charlotte Wallis, Tessa Tomson, Suraya Hughes, Amelie Pinto, Samantha MacNaughton, Ottilie Saunders, Elsa Buerk, Katharine Cecil, Isla Osman and Isabel Smith.

164 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

U12A Netball

Played: 12 Won: 4 Drew: 1 Lost: 7

The U12s continue to go from strength to the strength and it has been fantastic to see so many girls at training, with forty-one girls representing the School this term. In our first game of the season against Churcher’s, I was impressed to see the girls constantly improving; their movement became quicker and they started to create space and think about how they were driving to maintain possession. Churcher’s had some experienced and reliable shooters who were able to convert more of their chances, but the girls demonstrated excellent determination, defending until the very end.

in a 3-2 defeat. With little time to warm up, the third game also recorded a loss against Churcher’s. With time to warm up before the match against PGS the team played a lot better. Movement was effective and the girls started to make some excellent interceptions to win 3-1. The drama of the weather annoyingly continued and took over with more hail, thunder and lightning resulting in the tournament having to be abandoned. Although this was an abrupt end, the girls illustrated excellent resilience to play through harsh conditions and determination to find solutions to problems they were facing during each game.

The next game of the season was home against Ryde.

Unfortunately, due to illness, the U12s were missing three players. Ryde started strong, moving around the court and passing quickly ensuring them a win overall.

However, the KES girls showed great versatility when asked to play in different positions. The Farleigh match was cancelled due to extreme cold weather and snow and, therefore, the final game before halfterm was against Dauntsey’s. The girls’ hard work in training shone through. Each player reset the court, drove into space, used the different channels and defended extremely well. This was a tough game (due to the 50 mph winds) but all were pleased with their first win of the season.

On another extremely windy Saturday, the side travelled to Gordon’s. Again, the girls made some fantastic interceptions, learning from previous experiences and moving around the circle more successfully, but shooting was hard for both teams and the match ended in a 9-9 draw. A couple of days later, the girls played a Twyford U13s and U12s combined team. This meant they were a lot more dominant than KES but the side maintained determination to do their best throughout. In the final fixture of the season against PGS, the weather was a lot fairer than all previous games. This was an excellent end to the season, a match in which the girls illustrated excellent problem solving skills, teamwork and control finishing with a 17-12 win.

After half-term, the team travelled to St George’s College, Weybridge. It was great to see our set pieces from training being implemented and the girls continuing to develop their teamwork and leadership skills. A few days later, KES travelled to Churcher’s for a tournament. The girls started well against Royal School developing throughout and winning 10-0. The second game against Tormead was close and was certainly affected by the weather. Hail and rain caused the girls to get extremely cold and they struggled to convert shots at goal and even catch the ball, ending

I have thoroughly enjoyed coaching such a wonderful, cheerful and ambitious group of girls. I cannot commend their resilience, determination and teamwork highly enough. All girls have shared the responsibility to captain or vice-captain this season and made excellent progress. I look forward to taking them to Belfast in October 2019 on tour to witness how they continue to develop.

Mrs Penn Squad members: Ellie Orton, Rhyseren Taylor, Sophie Kent, Darcy Randle, Kiran Kaur, Katie Arden Jones, Isobel Holliday, Katie Sloane, Rio Gawne-Cain and Sofia Thompson.

SOTONIENSIS 2019 | 165

U12B Netball The B team had a fantastic season that finished with an incredible final game, displaying all the skills they had developed over the season. The girls’ upbeat demeanour and enthusiasm every Saturday, despite the early morning starts, was amazing. They faced tough opposition and difficult weather conditions for a few of their games, which led to a couple of losses and draws. However, despite the overall scores, it was clear that the girls grew stronger as a team and supported each other’s progress. Although initially the squad members were flexible in the positions they played, they quickly realised the positions they best suited and developed a strong skillset in these positions. All of the players made good progress in their footwork, defending and attacking during

Played: 7 Won: 2 Drew: 2 Lost: 3

training sessions and were able to implement this in their games. The girls’ passing and communication hugely improved, enabling movement of the ball across court to flow. By the final game, we had both a strong defending and attacking team leading to a 17-16 victory against Portsmouth Grammar School. It has been an excellent start to playing senior school netball for the girls.

Miss McGregor Squad members: Bella Howell, Cara Lea, Jemima Sullivan, Emily Egerton-Hou, Isobel Roberts, Sabine Potter, Emily Knowles, Sofia Thompson, Millie Boyes, Tamara Haq and Allie Bassett.

166 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

U12C Netball The majority of the C team had never played netball before, so it was very pleasing to see them show genuine hard work and commitment this season whilst playing in mixed weather conditions, during their six Saturday fixtures.

Our first game was away against Churcher’s College, and unfortunately resulted in a 6-13 loss. Following this first game’s loss the girls dug deep and, with improved efforts and extra practise of footwork and defending themselves more effectively, they achieved an emphatic win 19-5 over Hampshire Collegiate in the following game. The entire team communicated effectively and performed to a high level showing great teamwork throughout. A cancelled match against Farleigh School, due to icy conditions, was followed by a win against Dauntsey’s where Gracie O’Brien scored nearly all of her attempted shots with a superb result of 8-3.

The team were fast on their feet and I am pleased to say they consistently tried and tested their new

Played: 6 Won: 3 Drew: 0 Lost: 3

learned skills from their weekly Tuesday training sessions. They played a strong game against St George’s College and were leading in the first half but, unfortunately, lost after a difficult match with a score of 5-14. The U12s followed this with another disappointing loss in the rain when they played Twyford School, losing 5-11.

The defensive tactics shown by the girls improved week on week. Against Portsmouth Grammar School, the KES side were leading from the start and maintained this lead due to their improved communication, defence and passing skills. Josie Salter and Gracie O’Brien scored fantastic goals resulting in a well-deserved 8-5 win. It was a superb match on which to end the season. I was very proud to umpire and I hope that the girls are equally happy with their successes and dedication shown throughout the season. I would like to thank them all and I wish them good luck for their future games.

Miss Peterson Squad members: Gracie O’Brien, Avantika Umranikar, Jessica Dodd, Scarlett Moody, Josie Salter, Tessa Aresca, Tamara Haq, Abigail Thomas, Lucia Poletti and Nithusha Baheerathan.

U12D Netball The U12 D team has had an exciting and useful season, with players developing their skills over the spring term. The first few matches proved challenging, and it took the girls a few matches to find the positions that suited each of them as individual players.

A highlight of the season was the mid-week match against Tywford School’s mixed U12 and U13 D team.

This fixture provided great experience for the KES girls, helping shooters practise their technique. The term culminated in an exciting match away against

Played: 5 Won: 2 Drew: 0 Lost: 3

local rivals, Portsmouth Grammar School; a game in which the KES side were very pleased to achieve a strong 7-4 win.

Mrs Blow Squad members: Sasha Sherrin, Defne Nebol, Tessa Weinstein, Katie Braakenburg, Bronty Thomas, Vipusha Kamalarajah, Kate Quigley, Phoebe Stanton, Simran Khaira, Olivia Higenbottam, Emese FrajkaWilliams, Abigail Thomas and Millie Hills.

SOTONIENSIS 2019 | 167

Girls’ Cricket

168 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

U15 Cricket

Played: 4 Won: 2 Drew: 0 Lost: 2

This has been an excellent start to girls’ cricket at KES with a few Saturday fixtures as well as mid-week matches. This year group, along with the U14s, were given a choice and the majority chose to do both - a great illustration of how talented and enthusiastic these girls are. Some girls had played previously in our lunchtime cricket session, as well as out of school and this has aided in the success of the group.

The next fixture was against St Swithun’s.

Unfortunately, a few students were unavailable but this allowed some of our youngers students to be challenged by playing up. The girls bowled consistently well but the opposition had a couple of strong batters with excellent decision-making skills.

The U15s batted patiently but unfortunately were unable to reach their 102 total to lose by 37 runs.

The first match was against Lancing College where the girls played a soft ball game. Players with more experience aided their peers and the team’s athleticism in the field prevented the opposition from scoring many runs. All were delighted to win by 69 runs in their first game together. A few days later, the side played an experienced Priestlands team in the cup match. Priestlands had a lot more game awareness and were able to adapt their tactics, but the KES girls should be proud with how they played, especially against some excellent fast bowling from the opposition.

I have been pleased with the girls’ determination to challenge themselves this season as well as seeing so many represent KES within this sport. I look forward to seeing them progress further.

A few weekends later all the girls were looking forward to playing a hard ball game of cricket, 11-a-side. At home, against Lord Wandsworth (again another experienced school) the girls bowled extremely well, sharing the wickets between them.

A special mention has to go to Ella Danby for getting her first hat-trick. The U15s batted patiently, and with great maturity, to win by 6 wickets.

Mrs Penn Squad members: Ellie Small, Tamsin Morris, Charlotte Dunkley, Ida Goodridge, Emilia Walker, Darcie Burrows, Lola Dibden, Bella Davies-Roche, Sophie Khan, Abi McCarthy, Abi Morton, Martha Sullivan, Jasriah Mandair, Rosie Dyer-Slade, Sanya Khurana, Katie Ryan, Sophie Kent, Emily Knowles, Annabel Stonadge, Ella Danby, Grace Orton, Daisy Kendall, Izzy Nutbourne, Eleanor Sharp and Charlotte Stembridge.

SOTONIENSIS 2019 | 169

U14 Cricket

The U14 age group is blessed with a good number of willing and talented cricketers who all made solid contributions across the season. With it being the inaugural year for girls’ cricket, I was impressed by how quickly the players found their feet. Fielding was of an outstanding standard all season with great enthusiasm demonstrated by some, which subsequently raised the level of all.

The first match was a hard ball game in which the girls faced Lord Wandsworth College, with impressive bowling from Sanya, Rosie and Annabel meaning the girls won by six wickets.

The next fixture saw King Edward’s face Portsmouth Grammar School in a soft ball game, this proved to be a more relaxed affair with extraordinary bowling from Lola Dibden resulting in three wickets in just two overs of bowling. The U14s also won this game by 6 wickets.

Unfortunately, the season concluded with a loss against St Swithun’s. All of the U14A players had played up an age group into the U15A hard ball game, which meant the U14Bs combined with the U13Cs to create a team in order for the fixture to go ahead. I was particularly pleased with Katie Ryan’s performance, scoring an exceptional 35 runs off 4 overs, but despite the girls best efforts, the end result meant they lost by 98 runs.

Played: 3 Won: 2 Drew: 0 Lost: 1

Overall, the girls were extremely keen, attended practice sessions on a regular basis and had a great bond between them. I am confident they will grow into a very useful squad of players next year if they continue to practise and play with purpose and enjoyment.

Miss Horn Squad members: Rosie Dyer-Slade, Lola Dibden (VC), Sanya Khurana(C), Katie Ryan, Grace Orton, Ella Danby, Hannah Procter, Annabel Stonadge, Ellie Small, Bella Davies-Roche, Megan Maltby, Yzzy Murray, Maya Ganjavian-Connor, Destiny Annan, Zofia Osgood and Charlotte Wallis.

170 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

U13 Cricket

Played: 2 Won: 1 Drew: 0 Lost: 1

This season has seen this very talented group of girls develop in another area of the sporting life at KES. They have shown great determination in all of their fixtures this season whether it be a soft ball pairs game or a hard ball game. At the start of the season, with most of the girls not having much cricket experience, they worked really hard on developing their bowling techniques in both games and training lessons.

Towards the end of the season, the girls started to compete in the Hampshire hard ball cup in which saw them play Durlston Court in their first game. The girls worked really hard to pull together everything that they had been working on in training and managed to score 102 runs only losing 3 wickets in their 20 overs in bat. They then fielded very strongly and, with some great catching and fielding, managed to keep Durlston quiet and only allowing them to score 69 runs in their 20 overs in which KES took 6 wickets.

U13A

In the semi-final of the cup competition KES played a very strong team from Priestlands which saw them lose by 7 wickets. The girls again fielded really strongly but unfortunately didn’t manage to run as many quick singles as previous games and Priestlands chased down our runs after 14 overs.

In soft ball matches there were numerous fours and sixes scored and the girls started to risk their running more by taking every opportunity to score a single when they could. Once again, the team morale was high which showed some great support in both the fielding and batting during our Saturday fixtures. This has been a great first cricket season from this group of girls and I look forward to seeing how the rest of their cricket will develop during their time at KES in the coming years.

Miss Cole Squad members: Charlotte Stembridge, Georgina Wheeler, Melanie Georgiou, Elinor Sharp, Tessa Tomson, Celia Brabazon, Isla Osman, Isabelle Nutbourne, Erin Woo, Daisy Kendall, Matilde Mathies, Claudia Hargreaves, Charlotte Akerman, Sophie Kent, Emily Knowles and Jemima Sullivan.

U13

SOTONIENSIS 2019 | 171

U12 Cricket

Played: 3 Won: 2 Drew: 1 Lost: 0

It has been a pleasure working with the U12 girls this season and watching their skills develop over the last few months. Sophie, Emily K and Kiran brought experience to the side but for the majority of the girls their cricket knowledge was limited, although their enthusiasm was high.

Attendance at training was fantastic, and many of the girls enjoyed experiencing practices with both soft and hard balls. Competitive games were mainly soft ball pairs and the structure varied, but generally included 20 overs with the outfield rotating every over, so all players were fully involved.

The first outing was in the Prep Schools’ Tournament where the girls had great fun bonding as a team but faced many well practised and strong prep school sides. They remained undaunted throughout and there were some strong individual performances from some of the experienced players which inspired the others.

U12A

The first full game was at PGS on a blustery Saturday morning. PGS batted first and, despite some excellent fielding, set a strong target. The KES girls remained in high spirits and took every opportunity to find the boundary, slowly clawing back the runs to finish victorious.

In the next game the sides were very well matched and the game went to the last ball over the final over before finishing in a tie. This was following by some training games against Stroud in which the A and B sides mixed together to make two teams to take on the Stroud girls. The Stroud girls demonstrated some excellent skills and I am sure would have pushed the full KES U12 A team to an exciting game.

The final match of the season was against St Swithun’s. KES proved the stronger of the two teams setting an outstanding batting target of 250 and then fielding well against the batters and taking a number of wickets to make it very hard for the St Swithun’s team to get into any rhythm.

This has been a very enjoyable season and I have no doubt that the girls will go from strength to strength in the coming years.

Mrs Henderson Squad members: Katie Arden-Jones, Emily Egerton-Hou, Kiran Kaur, Sophie Kent, Emily Knowles, Ellie Orion, Jemima Sullivan, Rhyseren Taylor and Bronty Thomas.

U12B

172 | SOTONIENSIS 2019

Rounders overview The year we have decided to move over to cricket due to the nationwide shift and increase in popularity of girls’ cricket. We have, however, still managed midweek rounders games this season at U14s, U15s, U16s and seniors. It has been great to see the girls keen to represent the School across a variety of sports and take hold of every opportunity they are given. Many of the students have illustrated fantastic fielding skills, as well as excellent teamwork, and should be proud of how they have played, with very little training this year compared to previous years.

The senior girls were unfortunate enough to have a few games affected by awful weather but they have impressed me with their ability to juggle many different commitments. The U15s deserve a mention; all teams were unbeaten this season illustrating the excellent depth of talent in this year group. The U14s have managed to play both rounders and cricket this season, adapting between the two.

Many thanks to the parents who have been to support matches during their busy weeks and wait around for the students to finish. I would also like to thank Mrs Paul who has assisted in the organisation of the matches and Miss Cole and Miss Horn who have taken the students to fixtures and coached them to a high standard.

Mrs Penn

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Senior Rounders Due to numerous other sporting commitments, rounders has now moved back to being played mid-week. Therefore, we were unfortunately unable to travel as far for matches. The season started fantastically, with a well-fought match at home against Churcher’s. The sun was shining and the girls worked hard to field extremely well. They took risks at the right times when batting, ending with a win 23-21.5. A couple of weeks later the scheduled match against PGS was cancelled due to them being unable to field a team and the following match against HCS had the same problem.

Played: 2 Won: 1 Drew: 0 Lost: 1

The girls have been a pleasure to coach and although there has been a lack of fixtures they have worked well together in fantastic spirit and I hope we will be able to get a match in before their examinations next summer.

Mrs Penn Squad members: Issy Todd (C), Zoe Henderson, Sophie Allan-Burns, Ottilie Beal, Fin McKenzie, Isobel Holland, Isabelle de Merode, Millie Parsons, Steph Judd, Amy Ritchie and Annie Darch.

A match against PGS was, however, rescheduled for a few weeks later and through rain showers, the girls managed to fit in an entire game. PGS started particularly well and the squad just took a little while to find their A game. However, the girls rose to the challenge of being behind in the first innings to almost make a comeback. They fielded better and took more risks when appropriate in the field. It was a shame to lose but it was a good game from which to learn.

U15 Rounders

Played: 5 Won: 5 Drew: 0 Lost: 0

This has been another excellent term for a delightful, hardworking and talented group of girls. They have had rounders and cricket fixtures this term, as well as Duke of Edinburgh expeditions and examinations.

It has been fantastic to see them work together illustrating excellent teamwork and skill, which has resulted in some good wins over the course of the season.

A couple of weeks later, the team was unlucky to get a sudden downpour of rain thirty minutes before the fixture against Ryde. Everyone was still keen to play and so therefore the match moved onto the astro.

The girls fought through their annoyance of the rain and cold weather to win by 11 rounders. A couple of weeks later the Churcher’s fixture was also cancelled due to rain.

The first game of the season was against HCS. Unfortunately, due to awful traffic, the girls had no warm up and just went straight into fielding. It was a fantastic display of catching, stumping and bowling.

Our excellent fielding left the opposition feeling a bit downhearted, which allowed us to dominate the batting as well. The girls should be extremely proud of their 9 rounder win, ending 18.5-9.5. The next game of the season was against PGS, and thirty girls signed up to the challenge with all the teams winning their matches. The girls fielded excellently and were quick to make decisions. Their batting wasn’t quite as strong but they risked their rounders at the right opportunities with the A team winning by 18 rounders, the B team winning by 7 rounders and the C team winning by 8 rounders.

This season has not had as many games as previously, but the girls have balanced many different commitments this term, remained unbeaten and have continued to be a pleasure to coach.

Mrs Penn

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Squad members: Sophia Bassi (C), Katie Smart, Lucia Rugge-Price, Tamsin Morris, Abbie Morton, Abigail McCarthy, Sophie Khan, Ida Goodridge, Ellie Small, Rachel Howarth, Claudia Leeming, Jasriah Mandair, Olivia Tudor, Emilia Walker, Xanthe Thompson, Jasmine Williams, Olivia Tilley, Darcie Burrows, Rosalind Dye, Martha Sullivan, Thomasina Gibson, Esme Lock, Izzy Tam, Charlotte Dunkley, Lizzie Lotery, Antonia RuprechtSmith, Anna Tunney, Florence Wright, Alice Leather, Emily Hancock, Anna Aksenova, Lily Cooper and Maddie Gallagher.

U15B&C

U15A

U14 Rounders It has been a great season for the U14 squad, winning all of their fixtures. Throughout the season they have demonstrated their phenomenal batting and fielding skills at the same time as having sound team cohesion. The first game of the season was against Hampshire Collegiate School and the first innings saw the King Edward’s girls leading by just one rounder. Luckily, they pulled it away in the second innings to win the game 13-5.5. There were impressive performances from Lola Dibden on second base and Amy Oldfield bowling. Together they managed to get five people out, along with an outstanding catch from Sanya, which even HCS clapped for! Despite the rain, the following fixture managed to go ahead and we faced Ryde School with Upper Chine. This match

Played: 2 Won: 2 Drew: 0 Lost: 0 was inside due to the great British summer, although playing rounders inside is terribly difficult due to the majority of the balls hitting the wall. We did, however, secure a 11.5-9 win.

The girls have been a pleasure to coach as they have a natural desire to improve and are very dedicated to school sport. I hope their enthusiasm will continue into next year.

Miss Horn Squad members: Charlotte Ashton (VC), Diba Mansourian, Charlottte Roberts, Lola Dibden (C), Orla Paterson, Grace Orton, Sanya Khurana, Neha Syed and Amy Oldfield.

Cover designed by Mr G Piggott.

King Edward VI School Wilton Road . Southampton . Hampshire SO15 5UQ Telephone: 023 8070 4561 www.kes.hants.sch.uk