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The
Packwoodian 2011-2012
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The
Packwoodian 2011-2012 Head Boy Head Girl Monitors Tia Barlow Harriet Bibby Emily Cooper Rory Davies Chanida Dhooghe Christopher Dorrell Ella Downey Scott Hatton
Captain of Football Captain of Netball Captain of Hockey Captain of Lacrosse Captain of Rugby Captain of Cricket Captain of Rounders Captain of Fencing Captain of Swimming Captain of Tennis Heads of Choir Leader of the Orchestra
Simon Waterhouse Ella Downey
Chan Kathuria Maya Leavey Esther McLaughlin Theo Penney Thomas Simpson Andrew Tudor Thomas Tulloch Simon Waterhouse Alexander Wythe Edward Beard Poppy Carver Tia Barlow Florence Wade-Smith Freddie Beharrell Chan Kathuria Tara Beasley Ella Downey Jack Ashworth Jonty Hall Chan Kathuria Sacha Robertson Andrew Tudor
Packwood Haugh School Ruyton XI Towns, Shrewsbury SY4 1HX Telephone 01939 260217 Fax 01939 262077 enquiries@packwood-haugh.co.uk www.packwood-haugh.co.uk
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CONTENTS
Review of the Year The Headmaster Salvete Valete Subject Prizes
3 7 7 8
Sixes Competition Star Prizes Industry Awards Packwood Acorns
8 9 9 10
Boys’ boarding Girls’ boarding
11 12
13 14 14 15 15
ICT Geography Maths Physical Education History
15 16 17 17 18
Science Craft, Design & Technology Music
19 19 20
22 22 23 24 24
Visiting authors 25 Meet the animals 26 History Day 26 Old Swinford Hospital Summer Festival 26 Lectures 27
Hindu workshop Fun Run Jubilee and Olympic celebrations Weekend events and activities
27 27 28 29
30 31 32 32 32 32 33 33 33
Derby Mosque and Hindu Temple Manchester Jewish Museum Pageant of Power Mulberry Alpacas Montgomery Great Escape Liverpool Football Club Trip to Warwick Castle National League Hockey
34 34 34 35 35 35 36 36 37
Geocaching Zorbing Lichfield Cathedral Twenty20 cricket History trip to Manchester and Chester Midlands Game Fair Chirk Castle 3s trip to France Packwood ski trip
37 37 38 38 38 39 39 40 40
42 42 42 42 42 43 43 44 44 44 44 44 44 45
Pizza and pudding tea Cookie club International film club Squash Mandarin club Touch rugby Cupcake making Drama Badminton Jewellery club Judo Mixed hockey Textiles Sewing and knitting
46 46 46 46 46 46 47 47 47 47 48 48 49 49
Quiz club Scuba diving Table tennis Model club Planet Packwood Zumba Stage lighting Trampolining Wheelchair sports Girls’ cricket Mini tennis Pottery club
49 49 49 50 50 50 50 50 51 51 51 51
52 57 62 65 68 71
Rounders Riding Rifle Shooting Sixes Athletics 2011 Biathlon Cross Country
76 80 80 81 81 82
Fencing Swimming Aquathlon Golf Tennis
82 84 85 85 86
Deaths
88
News of Old Packwoodians
88
Subjects Art Classics English Religious Studies Modern Foreign Languages
Events Cinderella – The Truth! Christmas feast and entertainment Packwood Sporting Experience Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Packwood quiz night
Trips Boys’ leavers trip – North Wales Girls’ leavers trip – Pembrokeshire Alton Towers Ice skating Trip to RAF Cosford Camping trip to Y Garn Theatre trips Birmingham Symphony Hall Aladdin
Clubs & Activities Canoe club Boys’ hockey Basketball Aussie Rules Football Ballet Ballroom dancing Archery Chess Clay pigeon shooting Fly Tying Croquet Debating Science and Astronomy Gardening
Sports Football Rugby Hockey Netball Lacrosse Cricket
Old Packwoodians Dinner for 2007 Leavers
88
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REVIEW OF THE YEAR
The Headmaster Extracts from the Headmaster’s Speech on Speech Day Mr Chairman, Mr Dorrell, parents, friends of the school, members of staff and children… As I was making preparations to write this speech, I decided, since this is the last Speech Day speech that I shall make as Headmaster of Packwood Haugh School, to take a few moments to read through the 11 previous speeches that I have made on this occasion during my time as Head of Packwood. The main thing that I noted, slightly to my horror, was that the length of my speeches has grown steadily longer. In 2001, the script was eight pages, in 2005 it had increased to 15 pages, and by last year, 2011, the script had reached a mind-numbing 20 pages in length. I really should have paid more attention to the opening paragraph of my very first speech in 2001: “I was sitting at the Monitors’ table the other day,” it began, “and I asked them what I should put in my first major speech as Headmaster of Packwood. “Nothing,” they said, “just keep it short and tell a funny story.” “But I don’t know any funny stories,” I said. “Yes, you do,” they said, “tell the one about the WC.” “I’m not sure that would be very suitable,” I said. “So?” they said. “At least it will be funny.” Interestingly, when I asked this year’s Monitors the same question, Harriet Bibby simply said that I should come to my final Packwood Speech Day dressed as a chicken. So, Ladies, Gentleman and Children, choosing to ignore Harriet Bibby, but with a nod of appreciation towards those Monitors of 2001, I started writing this speech determined to keep it short. And then, as I wrote, I began to wonder.
Perhaps there is another reason why the speeches, essentially summaries of each year’s events and achievements, have grown steadily longer. Perhaps I have simply had more events and more achievements year on year to report. Certainly this year has been as busy, if not busier, than ever and once again the children of Packwood have excelled themselves in countless areas of school life. 21 scholarships and awards to senior schools, for a start – with Alexander Wythe’s tremendous academic scholarship to Winchester and Thomas Tulloch’s top scholarship to Shrewsbury being particularly notable. And, as ever, alongside academic success, there were music scholarships (and one of the most moving moments in the school year must have been Uppingham music scholar, Gideon Turner’s, sensitive and note-perfect performance of The Last Post, echoing around the school during the minute’s silence on Remembrance Day), art scholarships to Cheltenham Ladies’and Malvern for Ella Downey and Cassie Bedford, sports scholarships, and all-rounder scholarships, reflecting once again the breadth of opportunity and excellence at Packwood. And these scholarships, and this is one of the factors that distinguishes Packwood from many schools for miles around, were awarded by a wide range of schools across the Midlands and beyond: Cheltenham Ladies’, Rugby, Uppingham, Malvern, Winchester and, of course, closer to home, Shrewsbury, Moreton Hall and Ellesmere. And it’s also worth mentioning Rory Carter-Motley’s Distinction in the Eton Academic Scholarship – not quite a scholarship award, but nevertheless a very fine performance in a very demanding exam from a boy who has had more than his fair share of personal challenges over recent years.
The Common Entrance candidates, meanwhile, once again all passed to their senior school of choice, and once again the grades, nearly 30% As, were first-rate for a non-selective school. All worked well – indeed the one and only benefit of the ghastly weather that we have experienced this term has been the fact that one glance outside at the pouring rain has been enough to persuade the CE candidates to just carry on revising…
Gideon Turner
But academic success is naturally not limited to CE and Scholarship. In the national Townsend Warner History Prize, with over 800 entries, Packwood’s team received special mention from the organisers as fifth equal in the country. And this followed one of our best results for many years in a national prep school General Knowledge quiz with our Under 11 team in the top 13 of 95 schools and the Page 3
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REVIEW OF THE YEAR Under 13 team just 4 points off fifth place out of 64 schools, Rory Carter-Motley excelling with tenth place out of 350 entries. Selecting the team for the quiz was not easy, though one child made the task easier by responding to a question about whether a tree was deciduous by saying that he wasn’t sure, he hadn’t tasted it…
parent relatively new to Packwood was kind enough to write: “We loved the energy and fizz of all the Packwood children who really were a credit to their school and teachers throughout.”
• But perhaps the most popular innovation of this year, certainly amongst the boarders, has been the introduction of ‘Sloppy And then there were the national Maths Sundays’ – a lie-in, breakfast in pyjamas, Challenges, with Alexander Wythe and watching a bit of TV or chatting in dorms, Andrew Tudor achieving remarkable Golds before slowly rising in time for an 11am in the Intermediate Challenge for Under 16 church service shared with the village. year olds, and seven talented mathematicians Demands for a ‘Sloppy Monday’, ‘Sloppy achieving Golds in the Junior Maths Challenge. Tuesday’ etc have thus far been resisted… This year we have seen the introduction of English Speaking Board assessments for Form 3, with nine children achieving Distinctions. And then the same English speaking children from Form 3 became French speaking children as they and their year group spent five wonderful days in Paris, returning with a new-found enthusiasm and understanding of all things French, and with parents discovering a new-found enthusiasm for Twitter and ‘Le blog de Packwood’ through which Jerome Nogues kept one and all informed through photos and updates. The children of Packwood Acorns, of course, are already receiving an impressive introduction to modern languages, with Spanish and Italian experienced in their first two years. And the popularity of Packwood Acorns is such that we are adding a second form to Acorns 1 next year. As all you Acorns and former Packwood Acorns parents know, these are very special years – make the most of them, for Acorns children grow up remarkably quickly. Even so, it was something of a shock, during a tour with prospective parents this term, to read in the diary of one of our six year olds that over the weekend she had, and I quote: “kissed the boys and gone to the pub”. And Packwood continues to move forward. Alongside the ESB exams and the Paris trip, we have seen the introduction this year of: • Royal College of Church Music medals for the choir, and the choir’s wonderful Evensong performances at St Chad’s and Lichfield Cathedral • LAMDA acting exams • Mandarin lessons • We’ve enjoyed an inspirational ‘History Day’, full of historical re-enactments and stories as the children travelled through time to the Roman conquest of Britain, Mediaeval England and Agincourt, the Civil War and the Battle of Blenheim • We’ve seen the new junior play area complete with Space Hoppers and skipping ropes, • We’ve seen 10 new clubs and activities – the total on offer now exceeding 70 • And we’ve seen a return of the hugely popular Packwood ski trip, about which a Page 4
Recently, of course, the boarding at Packwood has come under the scrutiny of the Independent Schools’ Inspectorate. The inspection involved questionnaires to both parents and children, a word-by-word examination of all our paperwork, meetings and informal discussions with pupils and staff, inspection of the boarding environment, observation of boarding practice, and firsthand experience of school meals. I’m pleased to report that we satisfied all the Standards, but sadly, as this was a ‘Regulatory Compliance’ inspection, the inspectors are not allowed to make any official qualitative judgements. Fortunately the inspectors made a number of comments ‘off the record’ during the three days that they were here, comments that we immediately wrote down as soon as the inspectors were out of sight…including:
Statements receiving over 90% support included: “I am pleased with the progress that my child makes at school.” “My child is well looked after at school” “I would recommend this school to another parent.” “The staff treat my child as an individual.” “My child is happy and feels safe at school.” And from the children there was over 90% support for: “I am making good progress in my work.” “I am encouraged to do things myself and to work independently.” “I enjoy boarding.” “I feel safe in my boarding house.” “I like being at this school.” And specific comments from the pupils included: “You don’t have time to get bored” and “The school lets me be the person I want to be”. OK – so, where are we? Ah yes, I have reached page 8 and, at this point in 2001, I would have been concluding my speech and the children would be breathing a sigh of relief. Well, I’m sorry, I know that the carpet is not too comfortable, but there are still some things that need to be said.
“You have a very strong school here.” “The children are clearly so happy in the dorms.” “The cleanest school we have ever seen.” “The quality of grounds and gardens contribute to making the boarding special.” “There is a buzz and real happiness in the boarding environment.” “Boarders did not feel bullying was an issue.” “There is first-rate support for overseas pupils.” “We have formed an impression of a strong and supportive team of staff who get on well together and who enjoy working with children.” And “I’d send my granddaughters here… if I could afford it.” The responses to both the children’s questionnaire and the parents’ questionnaire were overwhelmingly positive, and my thanks to the parents who took the trouble to respond. In the parents’ questionnaire, the level of support for all statements averaged 92%.
Packwood sport, for example, remains a real strength of the school and cannot pass without a mention. As ever, there have been regular tournament victories – lacrosse (a stunning victory for our Under 13s against many of the top southern lacrosse schools), rugby, cricket (victory, for example, in the Under 11 Malvern College tournament for the third year running, with Daniel Humes uniquely having played on all three occasions, and double success at the Shrewsbury Under 13 and Under 11 cricket tournaments – how our local rivals love us!) , fencing, football, riding, netball – indeed, it’s easy to start taking these for granted until you realise that many schools view tournament success as a very rare cherry perched precariously atop the icing on the cake.
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REVIEW OF THE YEAR More recent contributors to Packwood’s sporting achievements include swimming, with training taking place weekly in Shrewsbury School’s full-size pool, with the likes of Alfred Hughes, Freya Cox and Zara Vickers leaving competitors literally trailing in their wake. And cross country, of course, has already hit incredible heights. The Under 13 runners, led by the extraordinary Freddie Fielding, have been unbeatable this season, winning the inaugural Royal Shrewsbury Hunt Prep Schools’ Cross Country Championships; winning the Shropshire Under 13 league, and winning the National Prep Schools’ Cross Country Championships at Malvern College. The Packwood fencers continue to impress, with our first national (by which I mean the entire country – prep schools, state schools, fencing clubs, the lot) podium place, achieved by Issy Wythe with her bronze medal in the British Fencing Nationals; whilst William Holcroft, meanwhile, at just 11 years of age, beat all the Packwood fencers to win the coveted ‘Duel in the Sun’ competition. With Edward Don, only 10 years old, reaching the semi-finals, the future of Packwood fencing is healthy indeed. But what about those children who are not the sporting stars, I hear you cry? Well, yes, we do genuinely try equally hard to develop the talents of and provide match opportunities for those who are perhaps less naturally gifted, and in that context it’s interesting to note that, back in my 2001 speech, I proudly reported that, and I quote: “over 80% of the boys have represented the school in matches this year, and nearly 90% of the girls in the main school have played in at least one school team.” Well, Ladies and Gentlemen, in 2012 I am confidently informed by our games staff that this year 100% of main school boys and 100% of main school girls have represented Packwood in a school team. And I include the remarkable Tom Baines is this statistic too, for Tom, as well as introducing Packwood children to a raft of wheelchair sports, has become an enormously efficient cricket scorer. Using his iPad and a sophisticated cricket scoring app, he has made a valuable contribution to the success of the first and second XI players, by logging countless runs and statistics, so that every player has immediate information on their averages and, for the cricketing cognoscenti amongst you, the players’ wagon wheels and their manhattans too. And certainly I cannot finish my speech without a reference to this year’s school plays – the wonderfully energetic Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs from the Junior School; the hugely entertaining Form 3 One Act plays, with Freddy Williams’ disturbingly accurate portrayal of a headmaster; and the outstanding senior production: Cinderella – The Truth, widely regarded as one of Packwood’s best ever productions, with very special performances from so many children: Ella Downey, Rory Carter-Motley, Luke Williams, Guy Morris, Jamie Chambers, Jess Hunt,
Chan Kathuria, Harriet Bibby and Jemima Price to name but a few. But perhaps one of the most memorable moments of this year took place this term – the Packwood Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and London 2012 Olympic celebrations. What a great day that was – picture, if you will, the entire school dressed in an outfit representative of a decade in the Queen’s sixty year reign – we had yuppie businessmen, mods, rockers, glam-rockers , Beatles, goths, punks, disco dancers, miniskirted Twiggies, flower power people, Princess Dianas, Red Arrow pilots, Abba girls, a 1966 World Cup winner, astronauts, a pair of 118 118 runners, and even the Queen herself – absolutely brilliant. This was followed by a Jubilee and Olympics Sixes Quiz, each team made up of four pupils and one member of staff from each Six. The pupils had the option of passing a question on to the member of staff by raising a ‘joker’ card, but soon came to realise that they were better off answering themselves – great fun. And then the ‘street party’ outside on the lawn followed by a brief break and then a Packwood Olympics, with every child in the school – from Acorns to Form 1, divided into teams. The day finished with a presentation of prizes in the theatre, with special Gold, Silver and Bronze medals produced by our DT department to the winning design of Scott Nicholson, who was himself presented with all three medals specially mounted in a frame.
in the year – the Humanities trip to Iceland – surely one of the most inspirational trips arranged by any prep school in the country. As ever, it was a great success, and I was particularly pleased to hear of such positive comments about the children themselves:
From the tour guide: “By far the best group I have taken – and I’ve seen quite a few!” From a member of the public at Manchester Airport: “I would just like to say that I have been on both flights with your pupils and they have been an absolute delight.” From Passport control: “Your children have been so polite and well-behaved – they are a credit to you.” And from an Icelandic swimming pool supervisor: “Your children are fantastic ambassadors for your country.” With these comments in mind, perhaps this is the moment to pay tribute to this year’s leavers. We, the members of staff at Packwood, are quite simply enormously proud of them. It is a widely held view amongst the staff that this has been one of the most co-operative, team-spirited, public-spirited, positive, cheerful, mutually-supportive and kindly top years that we can remember. They have had their ups and downs over the years, of course, every year group does, but they, and Packwood, should be judged by the end product. And this year’s end product, the 2012 leavers, is once again a very fine group. Indeed, in my final year as Head, it fleetingly crossed my mind that perhaps I should dispense with concerns about setting awkward precedents and simply appoint the whole lot of them as Monitors – certainly a good case for such a promotion could be made for any one of them. Those that have been appointed as Monitors have, of course, been a first-rate team, and they have been led admirably by a very fine Head Boy, Simon Waterhouse, and a very fine Head Girl, Ella Downey.
As I say, it was a great day, and there are two particular observations that I’d like to make on the back of it. First, it was yet another example of the commitment, sense of fun and determination to do their very best for the children that I witness regularly from the entire staff community at Packwood. And second, it was another example of the Packwood children making the very most of the opportunities presented to them in the very best of ways. During the ‘street party’, for example, I was standing next to a senior member of staff who has been at Packwood a good many years more than I have, and he observed that, though they were full of excitement, he and I could both stand there absolutely confident that the children of Packwood, your children Ladies and Gentlemen, would continue to enjoy themselves without the slightest hint of misbehaviour or nonsense during the It’s perhaps not surprising, therefore, that party…”and,” he added, “I doubt that there are the Allan Cup for Character this year is to be many schools in the country that can say that.” awarded to a member of the top year. As ever, there were many strong candidates: we Perhaps another example of the benefits of this considered, for example, Thomas Tulloch, team spirit and sense of co-operation between an all-round good egg, who had a fairly low staff and pupils can be seen in an experience Packwood profile during his early years, but the top year, our 2012 leavers, enjoyed earlier
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REVIEW OF THE YEAR who has timed his run perfectly and enjoyed a final year full of achievement; we considered Chanida Dhooghe, sadly unable to be here today due to illness, who arrived here in the 3s from Belgium, intending to remain for just two terms to improve her English, but who entered so wholeheartedly into the spirit of Packwood that she decided to stay on, and it is Chanida who can be seen at the end of the Packwood video on our website saying, simply, that “Packwood is perfect, just perfect”; we considered Cassie Bedford, Poppy Carver, Freddie Fielding, Simon Waterhouse, Theo Penney, Bea Mostyn-Owen, Emily Cooper, Ella Downey, Jonty Hall and many others, all first-rate girls and boys whose qualities of character have been much appreciated. But in the end we decided to award the Cup to a boy who has really blossomed in the last year, a boy who can always be relied upon when you need something to be done, a boy who has developed from a quiet, self-conscious individual to the boy who more or less organised all of his year at the recent ‘Packwood Leavers Got Talent’, who tidied up after them and who made a confident, articulate speech at the end to thank all who had played a part…this year the Allan Cup for Character will go to Thomas Simpson.
Laura Goulding, too, sadly leaves us after four years as a Form 6 teacher, an English teacher and a director of the junior plays. Laura’s gentle nurturing of the youngest pupils in the main school has been much appreciated by all her charges, and her junior school plays have always been a wonderful showcase for burgeoning acting talent. She is moving to a school in the south – why would anyone want to do that? We thank her for all that she has done for Packwood and we wish her every success in the future. There have been some departing governors this year, too: Simon Davies, and Andrew Wright, and, as we have heard, Josh Dixey stands down as chairman of governors. At a time when government regulations (not this government, I hasten to add, the last one mainly)…at a time when government regulations have imposed more and more responsibilities on the wholly unremunerated governing bodies of schools, I’d like to thank Josh, Simon, Andrew and indeed all the governors for their wisdom, advice and commitment to Packwood over the years.
And a certain Jo Westlake is leaving too, after nine years’ involvement in the music department at Packwood, seven of them as Director of Music. Some of you will still And, the Clarke Cup, voted for by the children remember the transformation that Jo wrought themselves for the pupil they most respect and in the music department during her time as admire, goes to a boy who is another all-round its Director and perhaps will remember with good egg. He’s a music scholar, the captain of particular pleasure her astonishing concerts, cricket, a member of 1Class, a very fine actor, culminating always in a standing ovation for and perhaps most crucially, is the very cool, the outstanding, 40-piece, concert band. Jo, shade-wearing drummer in the band formed of course, stepped down from her role as by the children themselves, Anonymous… Director of Music for an even greater challenge yes, the Clarke Cup this year, a very fine choice, when two little boys came along, but she has goes to Chan Kathuria. continued her involvement in Packwood music through the teaching of Packwood Acorns, and, as was clear from the wonderful singing and playing at yesterday’s Acorns Final Assembly, she is still inspiring the very best of musical performances from the children she teaches. And in the end, of course, it is all about the Packwood children, and whilst they can have their moments, for the most part they continue to be the source of great pride, professional fulfilment and, indeed, entertainment to all of us at the school. Chan Kathuria
Time now, for some thanks and for the farewells… Farewell, first, to Frances Wood, who has helped looked after the girls in Park House for 17 years with constant good humour and warmth. And farewell to Elwyn Price, our catering and services manager, who has been with the school for 15 years, and who is responsible as much as anyone for the ‘cleanest school we have ever seen’ accolade from the inspectors, and who is also responsible, alongside his team of very fine cooks, for my ever-widening waistline. Elwyn, thank you. Page 6
Take the seven year old, for example, who, on learning in my Headmaster’s lessons that the bleeping at pedestrian crossings was for blind people, suddenly became rather anxious: “Sir,” he said, “blind people drive cars?” Also in Headmaster’s lessons, I recall talking to a form of nine year olds on the subject of heatstroke and the benefits of shade. “If you’re in the sun and feeling very hot,” I had explained, “you must move somewhere cool. Now where could you go,” I asked , “that is cool?”. The reply came immediately: “Poland.” And you have to admire the quick-thinking of another boy, caught misbehaving after lights out by a teacher:
“So” said the teacher, “…why did you join in with the dorm raid?” “Well Sir, I couldn’t get to sleep and so I thought a dorm raid would help tire me out.” Then there was the Acorns child, during Nativity rehearsals who was a little confused: “Mrs Crawley,” he said, “I know that I’m one of the three wise men, but am I Frank or Merv?” Or the little girl in the pre-prep who, when asked where she had learnt to swim so well, said, “In the water.” And of course, it’s difficult to forget that moment early in the school year, when one of the new seven year olds was breaking a school rule by running down the link corridor straight towards me, his Headmaster. I held out the flat of my headmasterly hand to slow him down, but he did not slow down. Instead he smiled, gave me a ‘high-five’, and skipped happily and speedily on his way. So, thank you, children of Packwood, for all the commitment, team spirit, enthusiasm, good humour, energy and loyalty that you have shown to your school over the last 14 years. And thank you for providing me with so many good stories for my speeches. But enough…I’m on page 18, and it’s time to stop. And it’s time to move on. I will look back at my 14 years at Packwood with great pride and with a host of very happy memories. I have been blessed, and continue to be blessed, with some first-rate staff over the years, and would like to thank them all for their massive contribution to the success of the school, for their support and for their friendship. I believe that the teachers currently at Packwood are as strong a team as any that the school has enjoyed in the last 14 years, and in Nick Jones and Sue Rigby the school has two outstanding Deputy Heads who will provide wonderful support to my successor, Clive SmithLangridge, as they have to me. I have come to know Clive Smith-Langridge pretty well in recent weeks and he is an impressive, intelligent man. I have no doubt that the school will continue to flourish under his headship and that there will be many exciting developments ahead. Indeed, it’s no surprise that the September intake, around 55 pupils, nearly 40% of whom are girls, with more in the pipeline, is as strong as it has been for many years. Finally, my thanks to you, the parents of Packwood. You have placed your faith in the school and you have placed your faith in me as Headmaster to your children…and that is humbling. A number of you have been kind enough to write some generous letters and e-mails, a number of you have left gifts in my office, and many of you have been kind enough to make a contribution towards the Westlakes’ parting gift. Jo and I would like to take this opportunity to thank you all very much indeed, and to wish you and your children, every success and happiness in the years to come. Thank you.
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REVIEW OF THE YEAR
Salvete Autumn 2011 Jago Ainslie
Oliver Edwards
Joe Holton
Rachata Peerapairoj
William Tate
Amelia Ashworth
Alicia Ferrandez Cros
Annabel Jarvis
Ramita Peerapairoj
Keita Umetani
Edward Bayliss
Pedro Ferrandez Cros
Tom Kiel
Montgomery Pemberton
Harry Wasdell
Oliver Bing
Fred Furnival
Sebastian Marmont
Hugo Rees-Pullman
Phoebe Wasdell
Finn Bowdler
Javier Garcia
Amelia Maunder
Todd Rees-Pullman
William Waterhouse
Scarlett Britten
Arthur Gell
Thomas Mercer
Marina Resines
Freddy Williams
Natasha Carter-Motley
Eliott Gilling-Smith
Finlay Montgomery
Millie Shaw
Orlando Williams
Freddie Cox
Francisco Gomez
Catherine Morton-Willetts
Thomas Shaw
Jack Yeoward
Freya Cox
Suguru Gotoh
Scott Nicholson
Bertie Shute
Elena Cros
Daisy Harker-Weston
Patrick Norman
Claudia Tate
April 2012
January 2012 Oliver Keeling-Paglia
Freddie Timmis
Patrick Crowe
Olivia Holt
Andrew MacKinlay
Valete Scholarships Alexander Wythe Thomas Tulloch Guy Morris Rory Davies Andrew Tudor Chan Kathuria Gideon Turner Olivia Hughes Chan Kathuria Ella Downey
Academic Scholarship Academic Scholarship Academic Scholarship Academic Scholarship Academic Scholarship (Science) Music Scholarship Music Scholarship Music Exhibition Music Exhibition Art Scholarship
Winchester Shrewsbury Shrewsbury Shrewsbury Malvern Uppingham Uppingham Ellesmere Shrewsbury Cheltenham Ladies’
Cassie Bedford Flo Wade-Smith Tara Beasley Edward Beard George Hargrave Freddie Fielding Tia Barlow Flo Wade-Smith Eddie Thomson Jonty Hall Jacob Rand
Art Scholarship All-Rounder Scholarship All-Rounder Scholarship Sports Scholarship Sports Scholarship Sports Scholarship Sports Scholarship Sports Scholarship Sports Exhibition Sports Exhibition House Foundation
Malvern Moreton Hall Moreton Hall Rugby Shrewsbury Shrewsbury Moreton Hall Moreton Hall Malvern Malvern Shrewsbury
Passsed on Scholarship Papers Cassie Bedford Rory Carter-Motley Christopher Dorrell Ella Downey George Hargrave
Malvern Eton (Distinction) Uppingham Cheltenham Ladies’ Shrewsbury
Scott Hatton Bertie Jenkinson Chan Kathuria James Long
Shrewsbury Oundle Uppingham Shrewsbury
Adams’ Grammar Cheltenham Ellesmere Haileybury
Patrick Ashall Jamie Chambers, Ollie Clarke, Fergus David, Hugh Davies, Rory Fergusson, Freddie Fielding, Harri Holroyd, Jack Lock, Harry Marshall, Bentley Moss, Ben Ricks, Timmy Robinson-Boulton, Jonty Schofield Jemima Price Sacha Robertson Jack Ashworth, Freddie Beharrell, Gideon Turner
Sedbergh
Common (or School) Entrance Exam Louis Martin Theo Penney Tom Baxter, Olivia Hughes Maya Leavey Jonty Hall, Edward Myddelton, Thomas Simpson, Eddie Thomson Tia Barlow, Tara Beasley, Emily Cooper, Juliana Hinwood Hermione Bathurst, Edward Beard, Harriet Bibby, Poppy Carver, Freddie Houlker, Esther McLaughlin, Bea Mostyn-Owen, Alice Rees, Simon Waterhouse
Malvern Moreton Hall
Shrewsbury Shrewsbury High Tudor Hall Uppingham
Rugby
Non-CE leavers Edred Clutton Elena Cros Chanida Dhooghe
Sophie Edwards Francisco Gomez Honor Grocott
Olivia Holt Jess Hunt Charlie Jackson
Luke Jackson Elizabeth Mellor Thomas Mellor
Piers Nyhan Oliver Slater Marina Resines William Williamson Murray Robinson-Boulton Page 7
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REVIEW OF THE YEAR
Prizes Subject Prizes
Junior School
Middle School
Subject Prizes
Senior School
Mathematics
George Clowes
Jamie Channon
Mathematics
Rory Davies
English
Sophia Bureau
Luke Williams
Wonnacott English
Alexander Wythe
French
Sophia Bureau
Amelia Tennant
Ollier French
Thomas Tulloch
Science
Gregor Montgomery
Jude Bedford
Science
Alexander Wythe
Biology
-
Amber Gibbins
Harcourt Clarke Classics
Guy Morris
History
Robert Vick
Isabella Wythe
Headley Latin
Bertie Jenkinson
Geography
Edward Barry
Isabella Wythe
History
Christopher Dorrell
Religious Studies
Anna Cowan
Jamie Channon
Geography
Alexander Wythe
ICT
-
Amber Gibbins
Religious Studies
Harriet Bibby
Music
Nathan Mielczarek
Sophia Price
Biology
Andrew Tudor
Art
Jack Goodall
Marina Resines
Music
Gideon Turner
Latin
Olivia Moir
Archie Waterworth
Daler-Rowney Cup for Art Ella Downey
CDT
Alfred Hughes
Kim Peerapairoj
CDT
Cassie Bedford
PE
Eliza Blackham
Ellie Mason
PE
Tia Barlow
Form 6G prize
Angus Hill-Trevor
Form 6H prize
Thomas Mellor
Ormsby-Gore Drama
Rory Carter-Motley
Smith Drama
Ella Downey
Allan Cup for Character
Thomas Simpson
Bruno Bowl
2nd Rugby XV
Croydon Cup for Shooting
Ned Warburton-Lee
Antonia Lock Most Improved Netballer
Maya Leavey
Dunning Prize (Rugby candidates)
Alice Rees
Rugby CE Biology Prize
Alice Rees
Special Common Entrance Prize
Alice Rees
Old Boys’ Memorial English Prize
Rory Carter-Motley
Allott Cup
Jonty Hall
Clarke Cup
Chan Kathuria
Justin Davies Memorial Prize
Simon Waterhouse, Ella Downey
Autumn
Spring
Summer
Robertson Cup (highest number of Greens)
Daisy Harker-Weston, Ralph Furse
Owen Carroll
Alice Shone
Allen Cup (highest number of Sixes Points)
Amelia Tennant
Chloe Edwards
Harriet Haynes
Sixes Competitions Autumn Term Football Junior (Burnham Cup) Football Overall (Cooper Cup) Hockey (Barling Cup) Music Fencing (Bibby Bowl) Quellyn-Roberts Cup Sixes Shield
Summer Term Bradshaw/Boyces Harcourt/Clarkes Harcourt/Clarkes Harcourt/Clarkes Mannings/Sodens Harcourt/Clarkes Harcourt/Clarkes
Spring Term Rugby (Hannay Cup) Netball (Boyes Cup) Lacrosse (Morrey Shield) Quellyn-Roberts Cup Sixes Shield Page 8
Harcourt/Clarkes Bradshaw/Boyces Harcourt/Clarkes Bradshaw/Boyces Mannings/Sodens
Cricket (Cowan Cup) Cross Country Girls’ cricket (Wilkinson Cup) Rounders (Skempton Cup) Athletics (Miriam Heard Cup) Swimming (Prosser Cup) Sports Quellyn-Roberts Cup Sixes Shield
McFerran/Wilsons Bradshaw/Boyces Mannings/Sodens Harcourt/Clarkes Bradshaw/Boyces McFerran/Wilsons McFerran/Wilsons Mannings/Sodens McFerran/Wilsons
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REVIEW OF THE YEAR
Star Prizes Autumn Term
Summer Term
Jamie Channon Rosie Clarke Bea Mostyn-Owen Annabel Robertson Sacha Robertson Alice Shone Thomas Tulloch Robert Vick
Amelia Ashworth Jack Ashworth Sophie Barlow Tia Barlow Edward Bayliss Edward Beard Cassie Bedford Natasha Carter-Motley Rory Carter-Motley Anna Cowan
Spring Term
Hugo Davies Rory Davies Amber Gibbins Harry Griffiths Linden Grigg George Hargrave Harriet Haynes Harri Holroyd Freddie Houlker Alice Hughes
Jacob Jones Archie Mobbs Olivia Moir Gregor Montgomery Frank Morris Guy Morris Isabel Morris Bentley Moss Georgiana Nicholas Scott Nicholson
Freddie Oakley Alice Rees Ben Ricks Timmy Robinson-Boulton Poppy Stephens Andrew Tudor Isabella Wythe
Eliza Beckett Harriet Bibby George Compston Charlie Jackson Harry Marshall Sophia Price Marcus Woodhead Alexander Wythe
2012 Scholars
Industry Awards 6G 6H 5F 5C 4R 4L 4C 3R 3P 3W 3C 2D 2L 2C 1R 1W 1CB 1CA
Autumn Term Poppy Stephens Will Tate Honor Grocott Georgiana Nicholas Freya Cox Harriet Haynes Gregor Montgomery George Compston Amelia Ashworth, Lottie Clarke Ali Davies, Annabel Robertson Piers Merison Amber Gibbins Beth Cooper, Thomas Shaw Isabella Wythe Tia Barlow Juliana Hinwood Alice Rees Alexander Wythe
Spring/Summer Term Poppy Stephens Isabel Morris Tommy Jarvis, Oliver Holcroft Edward Bayliss, Alice Hughes, Georgiana Nicholas Jack Goodall, Zara Vickers Robert Vick Edward Barry George Compston Amelia Ashworth Annabel Robertson Piers Merison Amber Gibbins Alice Shone, Thomas Shaw Sophia Price Tia Barlow Jack Ashworth Alice Rees, Simon Waterhouse Alexander Wythe Page 9
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REVIEW OF THE YEAR
Packwood Acorns One of the parents of a child in Acorns 3 said to me in the final week of the summer term, “I can’t believe it’s July already.” The school year did seem to pass quickly, but maybe her remark came from the fact that she was looking out of the window and the rain was bucketing down: quite frankly it looked more like March than the start of the summer holidays. It’s certainly true that for the whole of the autumn and spring terms we didn’t once have to have the dreaded ‘Wet Play’ (too wet to go outside, instead we all have to let off steam indoors), but in the summer we lost count of the times when even the staff in all conscience, couldn’t fool the children into thinking it was just drizzling and that if they did up their coats and put their hoods on they wouldn’t really get wet. However, for all the important occasions the sun shone, bar one: Sports Day, which had to take place in the sports hall. Thanks to the meticulous planning of Mrs Parry, it ran like a dream, with many parents saying they preferred it to the Wykey field, because they felt closer to the action! We had perfect weather for our first outing of the year, to find out about harvest in the past at Acton Scott, and learnt about cutting and gathering the wheat, threshing and milling it, and discovering how it was made into bread. Our spring term trip took us to Techniquest to try out their experiments, learn all about materials and to attempt to solve the challenge of getting Humpty Dumpty down from his wall without breaking. At the end of the summer term we went to Attingham Park for a day of creativity and play. Using recycled and found materials, the children chose to make windsocks, dreamcatchers, woodland animals or rainsticks. We played games, walked around the woodlands, got just It is very easy in these articles to write only about the high days and a tiny bit wet, and had fun in the play area. holidays, but of course the day-to-day learning gives everyone an equal The children were as well behaved as ever on these outings: a credit to glow of achievement and enjoyment. It is heartening to see how Packwood and their parents. Father Christmas must have heard about eagerly the children come into school in the mornings, and amazing to how good the Acorns always are, as he visited with gifts on the day after see how their energy is recharged as they wave us goodbye at the end of the children’s triumph in ‘The Innkeeper’s Christmas’, a Nativity play the afternoon. (This is a mystery: surely they should look as their that must go down in memory as needing the most props ever. Usually teachers do: wan and drained, after a hard day’s work?) we get by with three gifts, a doll and possibly a donkey… This year’s crop of Acorns has been a lovely one, and will be remembered as a very musical lot. They sang twelve songs in their end of year Open Assembly without flagging – fantastic! Mrs Westlake has taught the Acorns for as long as she has been at Packwood, and we have all come to love our Tuesday morning sessions. (Apart, perhaps from the little boy in Acorns 3 who struggled with them as they took place in the lesson that comes after PE but before lunch). We will miss Jo and her wonderful musicianship. The Acorns will also miss Mr Westlake and his weekly visits to our Assembly for ‘showing’. Throughout his headship, the children have taken it in turns to choose a piece of work to show him, and each Thursday he would interpret the earliest attempts at joined up writing or the We had our Book Week (all about reading, with dressing up), Science interesting lumps of Week (all about bodies – no need to dress up), Maths Days (sadly, no clay with which he opportunity to dress up here either)History Day (back to Ancient was presented, reduce Greece – flowing vestments obligatory) and our once in a lifetime the children to helpless celebration of the Diamond Jubilee and Olympics (more dressing up). laughter and make The ‘Jubilympics’, as it became known, was fun for all: the Acorns loved them feel that they the costume parade and the street party lunch; they learnt the national knew more than he anthem and sang it with gusto; they had a ‘jewels in the crown’ outdoor did, and generally encourage them to understand that the headmaster treasure hunt and had their photos taken. But what everyone liked best is a person you can go to: he is on your side, and he appreciates your of all was the Packwood Olympics, when the children raced, threw, slid, efforts. We will miss Jo and Nigel greatly and I would like to take this bounced and rolled their hardest along with everyone else in the school. opportunity to thank them for all their support of and interest in the I don’t know who enjoys these events most: the Acorns who love getting department. to know the older children; the older children who enjoy making a fuss And so ends another whistle-stop overview of last year: by the time you of their younger peers, or the staff who take such pleasure in seeing the current Acorns being looked after by those who don’t seem so long gone read this, we will be well into the new academic year. We will have an from the Acorns themselves, and marvelling at how quickly our charges additional classroom to accommodate the expanded Acorns 1 which Mrs Tomlins and Mrs Swain will be teaching together. Acorns 2 will be grow up when they leave us. It was a fabulous day, with wholehearted all grown up and Acorns 3 will have settled down to life at school. EC participation from the entire school community. Page 10
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REVIEW OF THE YEAR
Boys’ boarding It is a truth universally acknowledged that: • There is always one sock left, however well you tidy a dorm. • At some point in a film – a boy will utter “That wouldn’t happen like that!” – No, hobbits aren’t real! • Trainers kept in a bedside cabinet smell pretty bad (it would be unkind to mention any names – you know who you are!) • Top Gear rules. • Any boy called Rory will always be loud. Fact. • Packwood boy boarders are some of the funniest, friendliest, loveliest boys houseparents could wish to look after! The boarding house at Packwood is a great place to live and work (good thing too!) On any given evening there can be games of backgammon, battleships, quizzes, talent shows, karaoke and, if all of this sounds too energetic, there are of course spaces for ‘downtime’, chatting, reading, and drawing. Weekends are equally busy, with trips off site such as the popular tour of Anfield, T20 cricket and cinema outings as well as visiting attractions such as the hugely popular ‘animal man’ who brings all sorts of exciting and exotic creatures to Packwood. Cooking activities have also been popular on Sundays, from sausage making to cupcake baking to pizza making and eating. If that wasn’t enough then there’s also the art room, or the CDT room, or the table tennis room, or the golf course, or the pool table, or the impromptu game of soccer that has started on the fields, or the spinney, or the squash court, or the arranged swim, or the sports hall, or the gardens, or the adventure playground – the list goes on. There really is something for everyone.
Our great thanks goes to our boarding tutors Jo Lambkin, Ken Webster, James Mullock and Paul Donaldson who tirelessly arrange exciting evening activities for the boys – their boundless enthusiasm is appreciated greatly. We are looking forward to Roy Chambers joining the boarding team in September as well. We have also been very lucky this year to have such an enthusiastic and keen gap student, Richard Jenkins. His energy would
put Tigger to shame! The boys in the 1s in particular have really enjoyed his presence on their landing. What with all the fun and games, it’s a good thing that the Matrons are around to ensure all the boys are freshly laundered, showered, smelling sweet and looking presentable for everyday life, as well as looking after them when they’re under the weather. Thank you! A new idea on the 1s landing this year has been the appointment of ‘boarding captains’ as a way of introducing a bit more responsibility to the boarding house. It is entirely voluntary, and a pleasing number of boys put themselves up for jobs and have carried out their role diligently. The decorating of dorms and landings continues, and the boarding house is looking brighter and more cheerful than ever before. We have introduced noticeboards brimming with boarding information as well as photos reflecting the fun things we do in
boarding. We are also keen that the boys should take ownership of their space, after all it is their boarding house, and so we have termly boarding questionnaires to find out what they like and what they might like to see in the future. We always say that we can’t promise anything, but will do our best. As a result, the boys now have hot chocolate on a Sunday evening, they have helped choose the type of posters they would like to see on
landings, and have had an input on the games they would like to see in the boarding house. Also new is the Packwood boarders’ newsletter, packed with photos and articles about what happens in boarding. Nightly Newsround has been a popular addition for the Juniors – thankfully George Clowes has been on hand for any technical advice…We hope next year to roll this out to the 3s as well. There is also First News for the boys to read and The Week available for the 1s to keep abreast of global goings-on. The school year does seem to have raced by: it seems only yesterday that it was the first night back in September (and a return to Packwood after four years running a boarding house in Hertfordshire) when, as a sea of faces swam past us, we thought “Will we ever know all these boys and their names?” Now, of course, it seems as though we have known them forever – we wish the 1s in particular much success as they move on from Packwood: we have thoroughly enjoyed getting to know them, and looking after them in boarding. As we write this they are preparing for the ‘film marathon’ which will be their last night (ever!) at Packwood. Who will have the stamina to make it through the whole night of films? I suspect with it being the end of a busy term, snug in the common room on mattresses and wrapped in duvets, surrounded by friends that sleep will sneak up on even the most dedicated film enthusiast! As the motto on Jack and Simon’s boarding crest proudly proclaims ‘Play hard, sleep hard!’ We have really enjoyed our first year back at Packwood – and taking over the houseparenting role. Boarding is very much a way of life, rather than a job, and what a busy, enjoyable, sometimes frustrating and invigorating one it is! We wouldn’t have it any other way! AO and JO Page 11
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REVIEW OF THE YEAR
Girls’ boarding I’m often asked what it’s like being a houseparent, and I say it’s lovely, (the girls), exhausting (the hours), stressful (the Inspection) but also fun, challenging and crazy at times: always enjoyable and ultimately very rewarding. And this is why: The girls are great fun, there’s plenty going on, and with a couple of notable exceptions we mostly enjoyed a healthy year. In fact, when asked what her greatest achievement in boarding was, one of the 2s answered “I didn’t get nits.” She was lucky: in spite of the way Matron Sarah regularly holes herself up in the surgery armed with a box of nit combs having announced “I’m doing the nit checks. I may be some time,” we just can’t manage to eradicate them entirely. Another response to the question was “I have made friends with everyone in my year”, something which gets easier for the girls as they get older and more of their friends become boarders. It seems to be in the 3s that most friendship issues raise their ugly head: by the following year the girls are either too busy to fret, or have matured enough to deal with any natural ups and downs in their relationships. The 3s have Friendship Club on Wednesday evenings, an opportunity to talk through problems and issues in an unthreatening way. Being given the chance to air their feelings and to hear that everyone wants to be a good friend helps the girls to resolve their difficulties as soon as they arise, and this year the 3s have been a delightful group. The biggest success of the year must be the Sloppy Sundays we’ve enjoyed each term. In the autumn, Sarah and I gave the girls breakfast in bed. A real treat, but funnily enough, none of them seemed keen to reciprocate the following weekend, when we suggested that it was our turn! In the spring term, the girls watched television as they nibbled their croissants and in the summer it was warm enough to have breakfast outside on the patio. There is nothing like a relaxed start to the day to give you that proper Sunday feeling, and the girls really enjoyed it. The craziest occasion was our Easter egg hunt relay in the dorms. The girls were split into four teams, and searched for colour-coded eggs hidden by Mr Ford. As it was a relay, they had to wait for the girl before them to come back with the right coloured egg, before they could set off for their turn. All but one was found, and we’re sure that the screaming, shouting and pounding feet only added to the fun. Perhaps dorm decorating gave us the most impressive moment. These girls don’t just decorate, they put on a performance and each bedroom becomes a themed grotto. Pity the poor judge who has to decide between an oriental family Christmas, an elves’ workshop, Christmas
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around the world and a musical party complete with festive songs. Each dorm was so different last year, and each reflected the character of those who slept there. And talking about who sleeps in dorms… Sarah and I spend ages trying to get the right combination of friends into the right rooms. We know how important this is to everyone, and we take it seriously. In the autumn term we allocate the bedrooms ourselves, but in the other terms we ask the girls to write down the names of one or two people they’d like to share with. But no matter how long we take over it or whichever way we do it, somehow we can’t get it quite right. However, as we always tell them, it’s only for Whisper Time and sleep that you have to be in your own dorm: at any other time you can be with other people. And so I would ask you all to give it a bit of time. Most people settle down pretty quickly, given the space and support to do so and indeed, one of the huge advantages of being a boarder is the opportunity it gives you to learn to get on with everybody, and it's amazing to see how quickly the girls manage this. We are sad to say goodbye to Mr Westlake who has been part of the Park House team, helping to put the girls to bed on Tuesday evenings, and to Frances Wood, who has worked in the girls’ house for 17 years, covering evenings off for the full-time staff. We wish them well and thank them for their contribution to making Park House the happy, settled and comfortable place it is. EC
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SUBJECTS
Art It has been a very good year for the Art Department at Packwood again, not just because of the scholarships gained and prizes won but also because of the high quality work produced at every level in the school. We began the year well with the annual whole school event that always motivates the children – the Christmas Hat Competition. Next came an art afternoon at Moreton Hall which was fascinating for the children as it enabled them to see how a department was run at senior school level. There was also an array of inspiring activities which children of prep school age from a number of different schools took part in. Included in these was the chance to make a collage and mixed media piece based on drawings of some fresh mackerel. Some of the senior children were able to include their large, creative pieces in their scholarship portfolios. There has been some colourful, exciting work done by the 6s on the theme of the history of flight focusing on colour. The 4s and 5s entered the Millicent Kaye Art competition which this year was on the theme of the Olympics. There were some excellent pieces produced and Freya Beasley won second prize for her painting of a swimmer, with her work being selected from over 300 entries. Jack Goodall and Olivia Holt gained highly commended certificates, as did Anna Cowan for her sculpture of runners. The 2s also produced some outstanding African masks, the best of which were by Keita Umetani, Scott Walker and Ken Peerapairoj. We had some excellent results in art scholarships this year.
Freya Beasley
Ella Downey won an award to Cheltenham Ladies’ College, and Cassie Bedford to Malvern. Esther McLaughlin got an A grade in her scholarship attempt to Rugby and Maya Leavey did well in her exam at Moreton Hall. As well as these achievements, the prize for the overall winner of the Wrekin Emerging Talent competition went to Anna Cowan for her superb drawing of an elephant. Marina Resines also came top in her age group for her excellent tonal drawing of a mask, with Seb Rathbone a very creditable third in his age group for his object painted in the pointillist style. It will be interesting to see if next year’s talent and enthusiasm will be able to match the great achievements mentioned above, or perhaps even exceed them. PRD
Cassie Bedford
Zak Nicholas
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SUBJECTS
Classics “What would your super power be, Sir?” “Be quiet and finish your test, Carter-Motley!” Interesting question, though. Flying, healing, invisibility…which to choose? None of the obvious. The power I covet is that of the redtop headline writer – to be a Front PageArchitect, a Wordsmith, a Pun-Lord. I just can’t do it – I find word play hard. If it ever happens, it’s entirely accidental and I never notice anyway. That doesn’t mean I don’t try. I’ve been subtly explaining throughout the year that Latin Isn’t Dead… with various tags …It’s Still Said; …EG, IE, ETC; …It’s Immortal. And I’ve been asking pupils to add to the tags. Theirs are better than mine – …It’s Legendary; …It’s Dead Hard; and …It’s Still Torturing Children. There were extra points for humour. It is humour, isn’t it…?
And how about the excellent Scholarship and Common Entrance results? Alexander the Great. SupA+ SachA+. A is for Alice. Head Boy AAces Latin. Bene-tley Moss-t Deserving. TT Races To Top Scholarship. Ash-Worth An A. Ouch. I need to thank two people in particular for sterling efforts in the Classics department. Mrs Lee does wonders with the 4s as they start their Latin journey. In fact she does it Superb-Lee well. And for two terms I was ably assisted by Old Packwoodian Peter Lehmann who spent some of his gap year in the Latin/Greek classroom. Latin Gap-in! Enough punnery. Here’s a poem about Achilles by Alexander Wythe. He titled it “Achilles”. I call it “Achilles’ Deal”. You see? – I can’t do puns. Or poems. JO
But let’s pretend I can do puns. How would I headline the Wroxeter trip being rained off? Classical Summer Weather Washes Out Wroxeter? Yuk.
Achilles was by some feared, By others revered. By Achilles’ head, He could not be made dead. But when shot in the heel, The wound did not heal. For he was immortal, Except for that portal. And there on that bit, By an arrow was hit. And to his death fell, Into heaven or hell. And this is the story, Though a little less gory, Of what happened to Achilles at Troy.
English It is always interesting to keep an ear tuned to the latest government noises on education: More rigour! More grammar! More spelling! More learning poetry by heart! Such soundings would perhaps provide a snapshot of what most of us expect from an independent school English curriculum. Why would Mr Gove have us all do more of these things? Well Packwood does already make children learn poems by heart, as much to make them more confident speakers as to make them appreciate ‘grown-up’ poetry. We do plenty of grammar also, but I hope in order for them to say intelligent things about books and compare with their Latin and French, rather than loving grammar like some cherished heirloom. And yes we do plenty of spelling (as well as break the rules by sometimes starting sentences with ‘And’) as children want and enjoy the challenge of writing increasingly difficult words correctly. Of course, we also do Common Entrance papers. This year’s was one of the more challenging ones and I was delighted that every single child in the year passed successfully whilst having to attempt the harder, level 2 option. A good exam should give all the pupils the chance to show what they can comprehend and write, and the choice of a piece of American writing for the first paper was certainly one which even the best candidates struggled on. Despite this, we had a fair number of As amongst a wide spread of results: well done in particular to Alice Rees for her two As to Rugby, and to Jonty Schofield for his two As to Shrewsbury. We also enjoyed a number of successful scholarships: Alex Wythe’s A to Winchester and Guy Morris’ double-α to Shrewsbury worthy of particular mention. It is worth remembering the level of difficulty with which these would-be scholars are presented: the unseen passages are certainly comparable to what A level candidates might be expected to comment on, albeit at a deeper level. Throughout the school pupils have continued to be involved in a wide range of English activities. The 3s One Act Plays are always very well-
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received, and teachers work particularly hard in the spring term (as well as holidays) at preparing pupils for this. This year all of 3W and 3R also successfully completed our first batch of ESB (English Speaking Board) exams. Although too many to list here, particular mention must go to those awarded a distinction in this rigorous assessment of their ability to speak and respond clearly: Ali Davies, Amelia Maunder, Scott Nicholson, Annabel Robertson, Lexi Samuel, Rosie Simpson, Phoebe Wasdell and Freddy Williams. Lots of work has also gone on in other English competitions through the year, including Creative Writing, Handwriting and Elocution. Well done to Luke Williams for his commanding performance of Jabberwocky in the latter, although we expect a more challenging poem next year! Final mention must go to Laura Goulding who has taught English to the 5s and 6s over the last four years with great dedication. We will miss your patient, friendly manner Laura as well as your creativity. Thank you for all your efforts and enjoy the bright lights of London! RAC
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SUBJECTS
Religious Studies Do you know what the children at Packwood do in their RS lessons? It is my pleasure, as Head of RS, to let you know: In Form 6 we have performed miracles! In Form 5 we have been friends. In Form 4 we have been to a Hindu wedding. In Form 3 we have celebrated Shabbat in a synagogue. In Form 2 we have sinned. In Form 1 we have repented and been forgiven! All this in two lessons a week!
Our Scholarship candidates achieved some excellent results, many congratulations to them. The Religious Studies Common Entrance Exam is just as demanding. For example, can you answer these questions? 1. “There have never been any truly Christian people” Discuss. 2. “We do not need to look after the world anymore.” Discuss. 3. “Today’s world leaders need prophets.” Discuss 4. “We should not always help the weakest members of society first.” Discuss.
On a more serious note it is quite amazing what the children at Packwood are expected to achieve to succeed in the scholarship and CE external exams.
I am extremely pleased to say that our CE candidates must have been able to discuss very successfully because this year 82% of Packwood candidates achieved A or B grades in their CE Religious Studies exam. Many congratulations to them all.
Let me give you some examples of Scholarship questions:
RS lessons should enable the children to:
1. “Should religion have a part to play in modern medicine?” (Shrewsbury) 2. “Christian teaching has little to say that is relevant to the environment.” Discuss (Eton) 3. “Pacifists are selfish cowards; they expect others to fight on their behalf.” Discuss (Common Academic Scholarship) 4. “Do his miracles or his parables tell us more about Jesus?” (Moreton Hall)
• Think • Relate to other people’s ideas • Question If at the end of a school year you have been allowed to think, relate to others and to question, you have been given a worthwhile educational experience. I think it also helps if, during that educational experience, you have been able to dress up, act, laugh and eat something too – and that is just the staff! RE
Modern Foreign Languages I cannot believe how fast time has flown. I have just completed my sixth year at Packwood and it feels like I only started in September! It's been a very good year in the MFL Department. Spanish and Italian have gone from strength to strength in Acorns and French has continued to be taught to the highest standard. The pupils have done well at scholarship level and our Common Entrance results have been superb with a staggering 17 As and 7 Bs – one of our best ever sets of results. We have continued to work closely with ICT and video technology throughout the year with various projects such as the creation of superheroes, the weather forecast in French and also our own cooking programme with 1Class A. The Mon Français website has been a source of revision work during the holidays for the top three years. Some improvements will be made during the summer to make it more accessible for Mac users. The French trip to Paris was a huge success. All of the 3s had a superb time and we hope to do it again next year. September will bring us some new challenges, one of them being an elocution competition in French at Moreton Hall! This should be great fun. JN
ICT So what have we been up to this year? The 1s went to Iceland and used the information gained to produce their geography fieldwork projects. They also filmed a TV advert and had lessons on Internet safety and cyberbullying. The 2s recorded a podcast using Audacity and produced some excellent work between them – some of the
best ever. The 3s once again learnt the SMART rules for keeping safe in the digital world. The 4s created slideshows about the Tudors or the castles of Edward I. The 5s learnt how to email, and the 6s started their online life by researching on the Internet. It has been a good year. SAR
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SUBJECTS
Geography There has been a lot of change in the Geography Department this year – not only a new head of department, but also the addition of James Mullock and Jean Herzog in the autumn term, to work alongside myself and Laura Goulding. The transition has gone smoothly thanks in no small part to their commitment, hard work and support for which I have been very grateful. It has been a year of new challenges for all of us and my first one was to take the top year to Iceland. The trip was a resounding success. We were blessed with good weather and an excellent tour guide. Our days were actionpacked with one wow factor after another including geysers, glaciers, waterfalls, geothermal pools, stunning coastlines, volcanoes and the North Atlantic Ridge. Being the only member of staff in the group to have visited the country before, I was able to enjoy the delight and amazement on the faces of the children and my colleagues alike. The fantastic sights of Iceland provided us with data for our geography projects and a huge gallery of photographs to share with parents and friends on our return. The next challenge, then, was to make sure sixty-one geography projects were completed, marked and sent to the future schools of all the top year children. I was impressed with the standard of these projects and it was clear that our unforgettable trip had inspired the children to produce some very good work. On to the third challenge which was to prepare the children for their exams to various senior schools. Firstly the scholars and particular congratulations should go to Alexander Wythe (Winchester) and Thomas Tulloch (Shrewsbury) for achieving high grades in their respective scholarship exams. Then came the big push to be thoroughly prepared for Common Entrance in June. Here again, the children did very well, a third of them achieving A grades and the vast majority passing with A, B or C. Well done to all the 1s. Our next challenge as a department was to prepare the children in the 2s and below for their school exams and to agree a syllabus for the coming year which is engaging, enjoyable and interesting to all. It has been a busy and, at times, demanding year but ultimately, hugely rewarding. GW
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SUBJECTS
Maths It has been a busy time for the Maths Department. We have been bedding down the revised curriculum at Key Stage 2, and the changes have gone well. At the end of the year, the junior school children took some national tests, and the results were very encouraging. In the lower part of the school, times tables are considered all important, and the certificate system organized by Mrs Cumpston has been working very well. We have been trialing the Mathletics software in the 4s, and will be extending the use of this package to both the 3s and 4s next year. In the spring we sent a team of our best mathematicians from the 4s: George Clowes, Gregor Montgomery, Edward Barry and Robert Vick to Wrekin College for a maths competition and finished in the top six out of 30 teams competing. Packwood was also represented at the 14+ West Midlands maths team finals by Alex Wythe, Guy Morris, Rory Davies and Thomas Tulloch. We didn’t win a place for the national finals but worked out many mind-boggling problems in quick time! As happened last year, the top sets in the 3s sat the National 11+‘Primary’ Challenge and gained some excellent scores. The top set were taught programming as part of their algebra module, and some horse racing programs were written including betting – and then bias was secretly added! In the top two years of the school we have been trying out the package Manga High as a revision tool for the topics covered during the year. It is an on-line website and has the advantage that it can be used at home. It became a craze briefly and we were at one stage rated second in the country! In reality it is a useful resource and back up to our curriculum. Our top pupils in the 1s and 2s took the UKMT 13+ Junior National Challenge as usual, and the results were encouraging this year as so many gained certificates. In the UKMT 16+ Challenge, I was delighted that both Alex Wythe and Andrew Tudor received a gold certificate and both qualified for the ‘Kangaroo’ European Competition. Andrew Tudor, at only 13, went on to receive a merit by coming in the top 25% of this prestigious entry. Finally congratulations to the scholarship winners, and to Rory Davies who won the Mathematics Prize. RHC
UKMT Under 16 Maths Challenge entrants
Primary Maths Challenge (11+) Gold:
Max Horler, Oscar Holt
Silver:
Archie Mobbs, Ben Cowley, Ned Moreau, Arthur Gell
Bronze:
Natasha Carter-Motley, Phoebe Wasdell, Chloe Edwards, Louisa Jarvis, Anna Cowan
UKMT Maths Challenge (13+) Gold:
Andrew Tudor, Rory Davies, Alexander Wythe, Rory Carter-Motley, James Long, Guy Morris
Silver:
Thomas Tulloch, Chan Kathuria, Cassie Bedford, George Hargrave, Bertie Jenkinson, Chris Dorrell, Louis Martin, Jamie Channon, Harry Wasdell, Kim Peerapairoj, Edward Peterson, Sam Bayliss, David Schofield, Isabella Wythe, Dominic Ainslie
Bronze:
Scott Hatton, Flo Wade-Smith, Simon Waterhouse, Olivia Hughes, Caspar Massey, Linden Grigg, Amelia Tennant, Llyr Heyward-Jones
UKMT Maths Challenge (16+) Gold:
Alex Wythe, Andrew Tudor (both qualified for UKMT European Final)
Silver:
Rory Carter-Motley
Bronze:
Rory Davies, Guy Morris, Chris Dorrell, Bertie Jenkinson, James Long
UKMT European Kangaroo Final (16+) Credit (top 25%): Andrew Tudor
Physical Education With this being the Olympic year the PE department has been busy laying on Olympic themed activities, the biggest of which was the whole school Olympic celebrations afternoon. Every child aged from 4 through to 13 took part in a ten team event. Activities included the Olympic flame torch relay, wheelchair racing and curling. The Acorns also held a Greek Day and we re-enacted some traditional Greek games and learnt about Olympia's importance to the Olympics. Elsewhere we've introduced golf to the curriculum and Form 6 and the Acorns have been busy trying their hand with the new equipment. The new iPad has allowed us to digitally record the children in action, both in video and in still photographs. This helps the children to analyse their performances and improve their techniques. The sports hall continues to be a hive of activity with clubs, activities, free time usage and dual use with outside clubs – how blessed we are to have this fantastic space. Finally, we say goodbye to Mrs Hutchings who has been such a wonderful junior teacher to the Acorns children guiding them through their gymnastics and swimming. We wish her luck for the future. KLP Page 17
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SUBJECTS
History Children you must tell the truth. Behave. Don’t fight. Don’t be greedy. Now listen to the History teacher: some adults lie; misbehave; fight each other; sometimes in the name of their god. Adults do all sorts of wicked things and they’ve been doing them for a very long time. Not only that, but when adults say something, they are likely to be biased, have ulterior motives, and may even mean something completely different from what they are saying. It’s great being a History teacher. Almost twenty years ago I was lucky enough to be working in New York. I was introduced to an American who remarked: “West-on, that’s an interesting name, tell me a bit about yourself Nick…” A few minutes of selfindulgence later and I was chatting to another American, who said and asked exactly the same thing. At first it was impressive, but slowly as I was introduced to the great and the good, even I grew weary of telling them about myself. The penny had dropped. While West Point was drilling the US Army, Harvard was clearly busy drilling their businessmen and women. Don’t get me wrong, they were slick, they were impressive. Whilst we Brits were in the pub, they were preparing Powerpoint presentations, they understood the ‘power of three’, they knew about the ‘two minute elevator pitch’… But my mind wandered to the story of Sir Robert Alexander WatsonWatt. Ten points if you knew that it was he, who in an English field in 1935, first successfully tested what was to be named (by the Americans…) RADAR. The Americans had hundreds of scientists and an annual budget running to millions of dollars, but the Brits got there first, in a field, with a pushbike and a sheet of lead. The drill is impressive, great in fact, but sometimes a creative mind is so much better. It’s great being a History teacher. The rule of three for Packwood’s History Department is Gail Wilkinson, Cath Hammond and the ‘bloke’ that makes all
Townsend Warner History Prize team
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that racket. Our job is to open the door to an amazing subject, the rest is up to the talented children that we have the pleasure to teach. They have written and produced History plays and puppet shows; they’ve researched characters like Jack Ketch, Admiral Benbow and the delightful Sarah Churchill; they’ve gone on trips and met visitors to the school in the termly History Days and they’ve produced outstanding, ‘creative’ work. Our scholars produced scholarship work (special mention to King-of-context-Dorrell, Churchillian-essayist-T A Tulloch and Townsend Warner Prize winner Rory CarterMotley). Our CE candidates were rewarded for all of their work and enthusiasm with really outstanding grades (special mention to History Quiz winner Patrick Ashall, “Mr Evidence” Harry Marshall, History gurus Jack Ashworth, Tom Baxter, Harriet Bibby,
Fergus David, Louis Martin, Esther McLaughlin, Bentley Moss, Bea MostynOwn, Alice Rees, Ben Ricks, Sacha Robertson, Simon Waterhouse, to Olivia Hughes and Eddie Thomson for their A*s and to every child that worked hard, joined in debates and discussions and worked their socks off!). It’s great being a History teacher. As the smoke clears from our explosive expert’s display and the sound of musket fire re-enactment dissipates, we look forward to next year and our planned trip to the Blenheim battlefield in Bavaria. If anyone tells you that History isn’t the BEST subject, remember what we taught you about people having ulterior motives… NW
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SUBJECTS
Science The only person I really envy at Packwood is Geoff the gardener; his is obviously the best job in the school. The second best job at Packwood has to be being Head of Science. The enthusiasm of the children for the subject and the willingness with which they work, the quality of the staff working in the department and the facilities and support provided by the school all contribute to making the job so satisfying. The greatest privilege is teaching 1Class and this year’s lot was a particularly good group to work with. There are few teachers fortunate enough to have the opportunity to work with a group of highly motivated and capable children where one is able to push them on to a really high level. Alexander Wythe’s A grade in the Winchester Scholarship represents the highest level of achievement in prep school science and to teach a pupil of his ability is a rare opportunity. Andrew Tudor, Bertie Jenkinson, Rory Davies and Thomas Tulloch also did outstandingly well this year and achieved top grades in their scholarship exams. Of course after scholarships there are quite a few weeks of the summer term left. This is a chance to do some science which is not on the dreaded syllabus and whether this involves incubating hens’ eggs or exploring the role of nitrogen in explosives it is an opportunity which I hope is recognised by both pupils and teachers.
Waterhouse, Jack Lock, Juliana Hinwood, Theo Penney, Ella Downey and Tara Beasley. In addition to these, Alice Rees achieved an AA in Biology and Maya Leavey A* in chemistry. But exam results are only a very limited measure of the success of science teaching. Far more important is the ability to get children to understand, appreciate and marvel at the way the world around them works and to use their understanding to think about how problems can be solved. These results can of course only be achieved by outstanding and inspiring teaching. I am incredibly lucky to work with such a dedicated and capable team in the department. Nick Jones maintains a consistently high standard on the biology side while Paul Phillips and Sam Hughes do a fantastic job with the junior science, building their pupils’ enthusiasm and giving them just the right grounding to prepare them for work at the top of the school. Sadly Sam is leaving the department at the end of this year. Apart from her excellent teaching, Sam has brought qualities to the Science Department which none of the remaining three of us could ever really equal. She will be greatly missed but I hope that the English Department realize that she is only out on loan and I expect her back soon! FRH
Although CE is less demanding than scholarship, the papers are still challenging and to achieve A grades in all three papers is a notable achievement. So congratulations go to Freddie Beharrell, Simon
Craft, Design & Technology Well, it certainly has been a very busy year taking over the department! Some topics have stayed the same with a few alterations and there have been new projects added too. The 6s have been introduced to acrylic (plastics), making a hand-held game with ball bearings and they made the packaging for it too, so ‘graphics’ has also been introduced here. They used a CAD (Computer Aided Design) programme to design their game and packaging. The 5s made a gadget case or iTouch case using textiles and had a go at sponge stencilling. 3Class have had a taster of ‘food technology’ with a ‘muffin mania’ project which, as you can imagine, tickled their taste buds! Early in the summer term the winning design for the Packwood Olympic medals was chosen and the 75 gold, silver and bronze medals were all home-made at Packwood. It proved to be quite a challenge to get them all finished in time for the Jubilee and Olympics day of celebrations and plenty of blood, sweat and tears went into the process, especially as the cutting machine was being temperamental! However everyone, including medal designer Scott Nicholson, agreed they looked great in the end so it was definitely worth the effort. CDT is a subject that is about problem solving and how to improve our lives creatively and intelligently. As Sir James Dyson has said, “It’s a subject that allows young people to learn with their hands and their brains. We’ll need these practical, problem-solving people to address the challenges that face us. ‘Hands’, in that they can solve problems, have no fear of failure, and follow their theories through into practice by actually making things. ‘Brains’, in that our best engineers and scientists have the theoretical and scientific foundations to inform their work and the intelligence and creativity to follow a logical course of development.” The young people we have in our school are the key to the future – they are the ones that need to be guided and encouraged to solve problems and who may turn out to be the next important designer, inventor or engineer.
This year’s senior CDT prize has been awarded to Cassie Bedford for her final year work on an item of storage. The junior school prize was won by Alfred Hughes who grasped the concept of the project immediately and had ‘no fear of failure’. The middle school prize went to Kim Peerapairoj. All of these children used their hands and brains to approach things differently, innovatively and attentively. EN
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SUBJECTS
Music The new academic year brought some exciting changes to the Music Department. However, the first musical event of the school year, the Sixes Music Competition, remained, as always, an evening for the whole school, tension mounting as each Six performed the set songs and solo items. The theme was ‘50s Rock ‘n’ Roll’, with even the Form 6s competently getting their tongues around the bebop lyrics of We Go Together from Grease. Every performance was competent and polished, but the eventual winning Six was Harcourt/Clarkes, as all particularly impressed the adjudicator with their rendition of Blue Suede Shoes. The Christmas Concert – beautifully compered by Simon Waterhouse as a perhaps incongruous but nonetheless entertaining Santa Claus – gave the several new ensembles a chance for a premiere public performance. From September, all instrumentalists were allocated to various groups according to ability and grades reached. Beginners now take part in small ensembles during Junior Activities; players from Prep Test up to at least Grade 2 play in either the TOPS (Training Orchestra of Packwood School) or the Sax Pack; the top musicians become members of the COPS (Chamber Orchestra of Packwood School) or the Big Band. Ensembles are now smaller than the previously allencompassing Concert Orchestra, but those in them are more closely matched in ability and the music can be chosen to challenge all players, with repertoire appropriate to the specific instruments. The following term brought many more events to the Music Department. Scholarships were deservedly won by Chan Kathuria, Gideon Turner and Olivia Hughes, not to mention those who gained All-Rounder Scholarships which included music. More Associated Board and Trinity instrumental exams were held successfully. Organ pupils spent evenings at different schools – Shrewsbury, Ellesmere and Wrekin – comparing the dinner with that of Packwood as well as playing the ‘real’ organs there; usually as loudly as possible! Finally, a Junior Concert finished the term, with at least 50 children playing and singing, both as soloists and ensemble players. As soon as we had returned to school for the summer term, rehearsals began in earnest for the Junior Play, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. More or less every pupil from Forms 4 to 6 was involved, so a lot of time was spent in learning the songs. Several younger pupils emerged as really promising soloists too, including Edward Bayliss as the Huntsman. A very hard-working band added to the music with a professional-sounding accompaniment: Gideon Turner (trumpet), Chan Kathuria (saxophone), Llyr Heyward-Jones (percussion) and Miss McEntee (piano). Towards the end of term, Forms 5 and 6
enjoyed a trip to Birmingham Symphony Hall for a schools’ concert. And, of course, work was well underway for two sets of music exams and, primarily, the Summer Concert – more of that later. I feel that the choir deserves a paragraph to itself in this report. Dividing the choir into Packwood Girls’ Choir and Packwood Boys’ Choir has enabled more children to become involved, although competition is still very strong for a relatively limited number of places, with waiting lists for both boys and girls. Each choir practises separately, twice a week, but the two have been very successfully combined for bigger occasions, often singing in two- or three-part harmony. In September, Packwood affiliated to the Royal School of Church Music, so all choristers now wear robes to church services and work towards a series of nationally recognised awards, represented by medals with coloured ribbons. The choirs have learnt a vast amount of new repertoire this year, including previously unknown genres such as psalms and responses. In the autumn term, the challenge for both choirs was to learn the music for not only the Carol Service, but also the Evensong at St Chad’s, Shrewsbury, which had been booked for November. Both services went extremely well, providing a promising sign of things to come. One of the ultimate goals for any ‘church’ choir must surely be to sing at a cathedral, and we achieved this at our annual choir trip on 2nd July. Following a morning at Waterworld in Stoke, the choristers spent the afternoon rehearsing for and singing Evensong at Lichfield Cathedral. This was a fabulous and highly successful experience for all, including the many parents who attended, and the service was made more special by the presentation of the Bronze Awards to the 14 choristers who had successfully taken this exam earlier in the term (including nine with Distinction and three with Merit). So, there have been many successes in the Music Department this year. The excellent Summer Concert provided a final showcase for the 14 or so ensembles which had practised regularly throughout the year, as well as giving the three Form 1 scholars a solo send-off, and everyone seemed to enjoy the light-hearted encore performed by Anonymous (better known as Chris Dorrell, Chan Kathuria, Harri Holroyd and Ella Downey), who had created this band unassisted in their own time. Of course we will miss the many Form 1 musicians who contributed such a lot in many ways, but I feel confident that many younger players and singers are ready to move up enthusiastically to take their places and to keep the Music Department going from strength to strength. SCB
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SUBJECTS MUSIC EXAMS AUTUMN TERM Linden Grigg Sam Bayliss Olivia Hughes Gideon Turner Gideon Turner Linden Grigg Sam Bayliss Guy Morris Andrew Tudor Amelia Tennant Beth Cooper Dominic Ainslie Romy Grigg Freya Cox Ella Downey Freddie Fielding Adam Pattenden Annabel Robertson Zak Nicholas Felix Jebb Florence Wade-Smith Annabel Robertson Millie Shaw George Compston Zara Vickers James Long Jacob Jones Harriet Haynes Alice Shone Sophia Price
Grade 5 Grade 5 Grade 5 Grade 5 Grade 5 Grade 4 Grade 4 Grade 3 Grade 3 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 1 Grade 1 Grade 1 Grade 1 Grade 1 Grade 1 Grade 1 Grade 1 Grade 1 Prep Test
Theory Theory Theory Trumpet Piano Piano Cornet Violin Violin Piano Piano Violin Violin Violin Saxophone Saxophone Tuba Singing Cornet Trombone Piano Piano Piano Violin Violin Saxophone Oboe Clarinet Trumpet Trumpet
Merit Merit Pass Merit Pass Merit Pass Pass Pass Pass Pass Pass Pass Pass Merit Merit Merit Pass Pass Pass Merit Merit Pass Merit Pass Distinction Merit Merit Merit
Singing Piano Piano Singing Singing Clarinet Saxophone Saxophone Clarinet Piano Viola Piano Piano Trombone Trumpet Piano Piano Piano Piano Trumpet
Pass Merit Pass Pass Pass Pass Merit Pass Merit Pass Pass Distinction Pass Merit Merit
Drums Saxophone Singing Flute
Merit Merit Merit Merit
MUSIC EXAMS SPRING TERM Sophia Price Sophia Price Jemima Price Theodora Jarvis Alice Shone Thomas Shaw Alice Rees Rory Fergusson Roly Hancock Ella Downey Isabella Wythe Amelia Peterson Alexander Ainslie Ned Moreau Bentley Moss Patrick Norman Isabel Morris Sacha Sandbach Edward Barry Alfred Hughes
Grade 5 Grade 4 Grade 4 Grade 4 Grade 4 Grade 4 Grade 3 Grade 3 Grade 3 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 1 Grade 1 Grade 1 Grade 1 Prep Test Prep Test Prep Test Prep Test Prep Test
MUSIC EXAMS SUMMER TERM Chan Kathuria Chan Kathuria Alice Rees Sophia Price
Grade 6 Grade 5 Grade 5 Grade 5
Sophia Price Gideon Turner Llyr Heyward-Jones Beth Cooper Juliana Hinwood Juliana Hinwood Ellie Mason Linden Grigg Molly Bruce David Schofield Juliana Hinwood Bertie Jenkinson Llyr Heyward-Jones Louis Martin Ella Downey Alexander Wythe Amelia Peterson Freddie Houlker Thomas Mercer Jacob Jones Alexander Davies Isabella Wythe Olivia Moir Tia Barlow Hermione Bathurst Suguru Gotoh Anna Cowan Amelia Peterson Freya Beasley James Long Amber Gibbins Linden Grigg Alice Shone Jamie Chambers Sophia Bureau Romy Grigg Freya Cox Tommy Jarvis Scott Nicholson Isabel Morris Alice Shone Edward Bayliss Eliza Beckett Sophia Bureau George Clowes Freddy Williams Francisco Gomez Sebastian Rathbone Georgiana Nicholas Christopher Dorrell Daisy Harker-Weston Thomas Dix William Stanford-Davis Natasha Carter-Motley Poppy Stephens Frankie McLaughlin Thomas Dix
Grade 5 Grade 5 Grade 5 Grade 5 Grade 5 Grade 4 Grade 4 Grade 4 Grade 4 Grade 4 Grade 4 Grade 4 Grade 3 Grade 3 Grade 3 Grade 3 Grade 3 Grade 3 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 2 Grade 1 Grade 1 Grade 1 Grade 1 Grade 1 Grade 1 Grade 1 Grade 1 Grade 1 Grade 1 Grade 1 Grade 1 Grade 1 Grade 1 Grade 1 Grade 1 Grade 1 Prep Test Prep Test Prep Test Prep Test Prep Test Prep Test
Theory Theory Theory Theory Theory Singing Singing Singing Singing Saxophone Piano Clarinet Saxophone Saxophone Saxophone Cello Flute Trumpet Piano Piano Piano Piano Flute Flute Flute Violin Violin Singing Singing Saxophone Clarinet Organ Trumpet Drums Singing Singing Singing Singing Singing Piano Piano Piano Piano Piano Oboe Oboe Drums Drums Flute Double Bass Clarinet Piano Piano Piano Piano Trumpet Guitar
Merit Pass Pass Pass Pass Merit Pass Pass Pass Pass Pass Pass Distinction Merit Pass Pass Pass Pass Pass Pass Pass Pass Merit Pass Pass Merit Merit Merit Merit Pass Pass Distinction Merit Pass Merit Merit Merit Pass Pass Merit Merit Merit Pass Pass Merit Merit Pass Pass Merit Merit Pass
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EVENTS
Cinderella – The Truth!
The last weekend of the spring term saw the theatre filled to capacity for the performances of this year’s excellent Senior Play. It was a real team effort. The play was directed by Mr Cowley, expertly supported by Mrs Downey. It also benefited from the guiding hand of musical director Mrs Boutwood, and the regular creative input of Mr Chambers, Sir Anthony Rigby and Bea Kenworthy. The play was a reworking of the familiar traditional fairy tale that gave plenty of scope for humour, song and dance. It was an impressive production in every way brought alive by the spectacular, colourful costumes produced by the ever-resourceful Mrs Jones who excelled herself again. The play opened with a fantastically choreographed dance (to the Austin Powers theme tune) at a party in the royal palace. Luke Williams was superb as Prince Pompous, a fun loving dilettante with
ambitions to be a poet. He had real presence on stage and could deliver his lines with wonderful relish. His fearsome mother, the Queen, brilliantly brought to life by Jessie Hunt, was having none of it, determined that her son should marry or lose his inheritance. To help in the search for an appropriate bride the prince decides to hold a ball. Next the audience meets Cinderella, with Ella Downey playing the part with confidence and pace. We find her living in predictably deprived circumstances scrubbing the floor and working through a long list of household chores for her outrageous ugly sisters, Petal and Blossom. The sisters, played with scene-stealing confidence by Jemima Price and Harriet Bibby, are terrifying, man-eating party animals on a quest to find husbands, even if it meant trying their luck and seducing a member of the audience! Cinderella’s life is
made a little easier by the affectionate attention of Spanners, the sisters’ chauffeur, played by Chan Kathuria, who had the confidence to ad-lib wonderfully on the last night. Postman Pat (Jamie Chambers), was also rebuffed in love by Cinderella, and he was able to get loud vocal sympathy from the audience. Mention must also be made of doddery old butler, Manners, convincingly played by Scott Hatton and the wildly eccentric professor (Cinderella’s father), a part which gave Guy Morris the opportunity to indulge in some fantastic physical comedy. Cinderella hears of the forthcoming ball on a trip to the market, peopled with a wonderful array of village characters, including a very obliging cow (Mollie Bruce and Georgia Bibby) and a sneering, acerbic witch (Issy Wythe), cracking jokes as she awaits her fate tied to a stake atop a pile of wood. Cinderella undergoes some ill-advised dental work
Christmas feast and entertainment evening’s entertainment continued. First on stage were the dynamic young rockers Chris Dorrell, Chan Kathuria, Harri Holroyd and Ella Downey, collectively known by the rather selfeffacing band name Anonymous. The audience was soon whipped into a frenzy of appreciation and everyone danced, clapped and cheered their way through the band’s repertoire. Not surprisingly, the comedian, who was officially top of the bill for the evening, was somewhat intimidated by having to follow such an amazing performance. However his joke-filled Once the feast was over, the judging finished, routine soon had everyone laughing (especially the crackers pulled – and the mess cleaned up – Mrs Lee) and he kept us all entertained until we headed over to the theatre where the it was time to go home. CEH Tables laden with food, fairy lights twinkling, colourful, glittery hats in all shapes and sizes… it could all only mean one thing – the Packwood Christmas Feast. Every year the hats get bigger and better, more imaginative and more skilfully produced and the creativity on display this year was dazzling. While we all got down to the serious business of enjoying our food Mr and Mrs Dougan, Mrs Nogues and Mrs Shaw judged the magnificent headgear and selected this year’s hat competition winners.
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EVENTS performed by the ridiculously cheerful Den Ture (Sam Bayliss) and his assistant, Floss (Beth Cooper) but emerges with sparkling new teeth. A well-played pompous policeman (Harry Wasdell) kept up the pace of this excellent village scene. The Godmother, was played by Alice Rees as a tough but witty leader of the Mafiosi-style henchmen. Cinderella loses her false teeth rather than the traditional slipper at the ball. This meant that Tara Beasley as the second Cinderella (the part was split into two) had the audience in fits, as she tried to make sense of her predicament without her teeth. The key to the play’s atmosphere and humour revolved around Italics (Rory Carter-Motley) who, as the narrator, delivered his directions and observations with irony and humour – his excellent deadpan style reminiscent of Jack Dee at his best. There were some memorable songs, particularly a wonderful wistful duet by Chan Kathuria and Ella Downey, and a warm rendition of You’ve Got a Friend by Alice Rees as the Godmother. The dances were a real feature of this production. The Prince’s friends stunned us not only with the opening dance, but with a dramatic version of Pump It in the ballroom scene. The closing number Fireworks was an amazing climax to the show with the whole cast of over 60 children on the stage. It was led by the confident soloist, Ella Downey, and then the song burst into a glorious celebration; the children vibrant, dancing and singing – and clearly just loving it. It was a fitting end to a great production! CEH/RHC
Packwood Sporting Experience On a beautiful Sunday in May we welcomed a group of sporty youngsters to Packwood to enjoy a fun-filled sporting experience. The children enjoyed a day of unbroken sunshine and were able to make the most of our magnificent grounds and sports facilities. Packwood’s Head of PE, Mrs Parry, and other members of the games staff provided expert coaching in a range of different sports and activities including lacrosse, fencing, judo, golf, tennis, rugby, netball, football, hockey and dance. There was also the opportunity to watch and enjoy the excitement of the annual Packwood Gymkhana which took place on the same day.
Accompanying adults were able to play golf, tour the school, visit our state-of-the-art theatre and sports hall and enjoy a picnic in the grounds. As Mrs Parry said, "Inspiration, inclusivity and excitement were the order of the day and I think we achieved that and more. The day could not have gone better with lots of laughter and adrenalin flowing. Being able to share Packwood's wonderful facilities with the local community is something that we are passionate about and we will certainly run a similar event in the future." CEH
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EVENTS
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs The juniors’ tremendous production of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in the summer term was an extravaganza of colour, music and dance. It was a visually stunning production with spectacular costumes produced by Mrs Jones (and mum!), lively songs and vibrant dance routines. Music came from a talented band of musicians including music scholars Gideon Turner and Chan Kathuria with Llyr HeywardJones on drums and Miss McEntee at the piano. Mrs Boutwood, as Musical Director, brought out the very best in the children whose singing throughout the production (individual performers and chorus alike) was wonderful. Mrs Hughes and Miss Willis were responsible for the excellent choreography, with a little bit of help from the children themselves who clearly relished their opportunity to perform. The huge cast was comprised of almost every child in the 6s, 5s and 4s and their performances were a triumph of organisation and teamwork brought together expertly by the energetic Director, Miss Goulding, and her team of helpers. The musical recounts the familiar fairy story of Snow White through song and rhyme. It is based on Roald Dahl’s poem which showcases his characteristic sense of humour and is full of child-pleasing nasty bits! Georgie Nicholas, Anna Cowan and Sophia Bureau were the confident narrators of the show and they delivered their lines flawlessly. Olivia Moir gave an excellent, chilling performance as the vain and merciless queen who demands the murder of Snow White. Fortunately, the huntsman charged with this gruesome task, played with great self-assurance (and a lovely singing voice) by Edward Bayliss, proves to have a kind heart and allows Snow White to escape into the forest. The enchanted forest itself was quite a showstealer made up of cleverly costumed trees. They created a really effective menacing atmosphere on stage as Snow White tried to hide from the huntsman.
Packwood quiz night A very encouraging response this year saw over 100 parents and children take part in the quiz. Once again there was a wide range of questions appropriate for both the younger members of the audience as well as the more ‘hardened’ quizzers, though by no means was the occasion destined to be anything but convivial and informal. The evening got off to a most inauspicious start with the brand new microphone deciding that it did not want to perform properly and giving up the ghost midway through the first round! The prospect of the quizmaster having to shout at the top of his voice for the rest of the evening was a daunting one, but thankfully, the problem was solved with a replacement battery. With subjects ranging from ‘Simpsons characters’ through ‘Historical Figures’ and ‘Countries and Currencies’ to the decidedly lowbrow
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‘Football Gaps’, there was something to suit everybody, and at the interval a strong performance from the bookmakers’ ante-post favourites ,The Prittinghams (the Price and Whittingham families), saw them race into what was to prove an unassailable lead. An excellent curry was soon digested, and with several more rounds still to come, including one from Mr Jones who managed to baffle most of us with his ever-popular ‘Country Pursuits’, the evening finished with the ‘Heads and Tails’ game, the £20 prize being pocketed by Tom Hughes. Well done to the Prittinghams, many thanks to all those who attended, and a particular thanks to Mrs Jones for all her sensible advice and suggestions, as well as to the staff (and Jamie Chambers) who volunteered to help. KJW
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EVENTS
Snow White was played by Sacha Sandbach who had mastered her performance perfectly. On stage in nearly every scene, she was poised and confident – undoubtedly someone to look out for in future Packwood productions. Equally self-assured and at ease was Louisa Jarvis as the magic mirror. The choreography of her scenes was very impressive as the children mirrored each other’s movements. In Dahl’s version of the story, Snow White finds refuge with seven diminutive jockeys. This storyline leads to the best scenes of the play as virtually the whole cast appear as punters at the races. Their brilliant singing conveyed excitement, tension, despair and (eventually) delight. Harry Waterworth and Toby Turpin were superb as shiftylooking bookmakers and Ed Barry and Nathan Mielczarek were outstanding, word perfect race commentators. Appearing earlier in the play as potential queens (before the discerning king, Alfie Hughes, opts to marry evil Olivia) and then showing up again amongst the crowd of race-goers were three very brave boys who deserve special mention for embracing the opportunity to appear in drag. George Weston, Jacob Jones and George Clowes, resplendent in wigs, tights and dresses, were fantastic!
The fabulous songs and sense of fun and enjoyment were paramount in this production. It was clear that the adults and children alike had put in a huge amount of effort and worked with great enthusiasm to produce such a spectacular show. Lucky audience! CEH
Visiting authors Tom Palmer came to talk to all the pupils about his latest series of children’s books on rugby, just in time for the World Cup back in September. Although he is most well-known for his books based on football and detectives, Tom was keen to reach a new audience of rugby fans. The author read expressively from some of his fast-moving new titles, but his ‘drop-goal quiz’ will surely last longest in the memory. Pupils who had answered rugby or English-related questions correctly had the chance to come and kick a miniature rugby ball over some portable goal posts to win. Needless to say, some of the children could hardly contain themselves at seeing this take place at the front of the theatre!
Sita Brahmachari treated us to another engaging session on her life and her India-inspired book series, with a talk around her new book Jasmine Skies. As well as being a prize-winning author, Sita has the rare knack of talking to large audiences at a personal level. She spoke to the older children about the challenges of growing up, identity and living between different cultures. Similarly at lunch Sita very much enjoyed talking to Packwood children about being an author and the experience of being at school. It was great to hear that one of the current pupils, Chanida Dhooghe, had inspired Sita with an idea for her new book on her last visit to Packwood! RAC Page 25
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EVENTS
Meet the animals Packwood boarders enjoyed an up close and personal experience with a wonderful variety of exotic animals when the ‘animal man’ returned to school one Sunday in the spring term. There was a gentle introduction with some furry chinchillas and prickly hedgehogs but then came out the beasts of which nightmares are made. Enormous rats, shiny beetles, scorpions and terrifyingly huge spiders were passed around amongst the braver participants. Frogs, lizards, tortoises, giant millipedes and snails also put in an appearance … and then there were the snakes including a four metre long boa constrictor which managed to wrap itself around four slightly apprehensive children. This was a wonderful afternoon’s entertainment and a great opportunity for the children to learn a little more about some of the diverse and fascinating creatures that share our planet. CEH
History Day about terror arrows that whistled through the air alerting the enemy to what was coming. We saw different types of arrow head – some that could pierce armour and some with barbs that had to be pushed all the way through a wound The morning began with the Roman conquest because they couldn’t be pulled out. Equipped of Britain. We learnt from a legionary soldier by bowmen, arrowsmiths and fletchers and about his weapons – gladius, pilum and pugio – dressed in their lord’s colours, the archers and and about his armour, helmet and shield. We their longbows stood as the first line of attack at found out how the discipline and organisation Agincourt unleashing a torrent of arrows on the of the Roman soldiers was the key to their French. Out of arrows, they joined the melee success and we learnt that they were builders as with swords, daggers and axes and hacked well as warriors. And that they built to last …. through wave after wave of enemy soldiers we can still see roads, aqueducts and viaducts, until the French army was destroyed and the defensive walls and towns that were built by day was won. the Romans. We also found out about other What a morning – time for lunch! The crucial parts of the legionary’s kit – any Packwood pupil from Acorns, 6s and 5s would excitement continued in the afternoon when we found ourselves immersed in the be happy to tell you what the sponge on a stick seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries and was for – but you might not want to hear the lives of soldiers who would have fought in the answer! the English Civil War and, 50 years or so later, A quick change, a jump in the time machine the Battle of Blenheim. We learnt about their and we were transported to the fifteenth weapons – matchlock and flintlock muskets. century and Mediaeval England. Our guide We heard the story of a woman who followed through this period was an archer, a veteran of her press-ganged husband to war and fought the Battle of Shrewsbury now fighting again at alongside the other male soldiers undiscovered, Agincourt. A demonstration showed us what a until, she was injured in the chest… We learnt powerful weapon the longbow was – a skilled what life was like for ordinary people who lived archer could shoot with devastating accuracy through the upheaval of such a catastrophic over a range of over 300 metres. We learnt time of unrest. At the beginning of the spring term we enjoyed a day of drama, historical re-enactment and stories as we travelled through time to some momentous points in Britain’s past.
Our guide was Kevin Hicks of the History Squad, a true enthusiast with a great talent for bringing History to life with a perspective distilled through his experiences as a former soldier. He enthralled us all with his stories; costumes; weapons; with his archery and musketry skills; and with just the right amount of blood, gore and unpleasant details. A perfect day! CEH
Old Swinford Hospital Summer Festival 3Class has been going to this event for a few years now. This year two teams of four entered the science challenge, Alex Ainslie and Natasha Carter-Motley did the drama activity while Oscar Holt, Amelia Peterson and Thomas Mercer opted for music. The scientists started with some exciting chemistry experiments, then went on to do a bridge building activity and some microscope work ending with a Page 26
quiz in which we were just beaten in the final round. Meanwhile, the musicians and drama group had been practising for their performances in the hall at the end of the day. As usual this was an excellent day in which the children worked together well and had the opportunity to participate in a variety of activities. FRH
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EVENTS
Lectures The two standout lectures this year were on very different topics. The first in February was delivered by Peter Watson of the Deer Initiative. He runs an organisation devoted to the management of deer in the UK. It was a fascinating lecture which opened the eyes of the children to a world they know very little about. Even those children lucky enough to tag along with mum and dad on the annual stalking trip to the Highlands probably don’t appreciate the full context of the sport they are engaged in. Mr Watson’s rapport with the children was
remarkable, he pitched the delivery at exactly the right level and his photos and other artefacts wowed the audience. The second lecture came a month later and was on the topic of life in Mediaeval England. Our speaker was James Birch from Uppingham School and his subject matter was interesting, lively and brilliantly delivered. The audience received a real insight into what life was like for people from the different social strata which made up Olde England... I’m not sure Kevin Costner would have survived! NRJ
Hindu workshop A lady called Krishna came to talk to all the children in the 4s about Hinduism. She began by talking about clothing and the face paints that Hindus use to decorate their skin. She also introduced us to all of the main gods including Vishnu, Brahman, Shiva, Ganesh and the god she is named after, Krishna. She told us that when Hindus go to the temple they give food to the gods as an offering and then get given it back to eat themselves. Later, some of us dressed up as the three main gods, Brahman, Vishnu and Shiva, and then we all tried a Hindu dance. The dance told the story of 108 cowherd girls and the god Krishna who wanted to dance with all of them. The god used his power to turn himself into 108 Krishnas and so was able to dance with every girl. It was a really fun day and we all enjoyed ourselves a lot! Sophia Bureau
Fun Run Just before the summer half term every child at Packwood took part in a charity fun run to raise money for Severn Hospice. The theme of the afternoon’s event was Superheroes and the children revealed their usual creativity and resourcefulness in coming up with some amazing costumes. Alongside the familiar Batman, Superman and Spiderman outfits were some more ‘home-made’ styles, many featuring towels doubling up as capes and pants worn over the top of trousers.
As well as the weird and wonderful attire the children also chose different ways of completing the course. We had several pairs of three-legged runners, some who went round as wheelbarrows and some who ran backwards or who piggy-backed on a friend. The event was a great success and we collected well over £1000 in sponsorship for the Hospice. CEH
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EVENTS
Jubilee and Olympic celebrations
Packwood’s summer half term holiday began with a bang as we enjoyed a day of celebration to mark the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and the 2012 London Olympics. Children and staff came to school dressed up in clothes from the past six decades and a “fashion” parade in the theatre gave every child in the school, from the youngest Acorn to the seniors, the chance to show off their wonderful costumes – the predominance of flower children, hippies, rockers and punks revealing the enduring appeal of the fashions of the 60s and 70s. A University Challenge style quiz followed with representatives from each of the Sixes pitted against one another. Harcourt/Clarkes stormed to a convincing victory with Rory Carter-Motley, Rory Davies, Linden Grigg and Georgie Bibby showing their impressive general knowledge and an aptitude for anticipating the question verging on clairvoyance. After lunch the fun continued as the children were divided up into ten teams to compete in a variety of games and sporting challenges. The events included space hopper racing, torch relay and Highland fling alongside more familiar Olympic events such as long jump and (foam) javelin. The points earned by the teams in each event were totted up and the afternoon culminated in an award ceremony in which special edition Packwood Olympic bronze, silver and gold medals, designed by Scott Nicholson, were awarded to the top three teams. The day was a great success, due largely to the organisational efforts of Mrs Rigby and Mrs Parry but in no small measure to the children themselves who entered into the spirit of the occasion with such enthusiasm. CEH
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EVENTS
Weekend events and activities Autumn Term
Spring Term
Summer Term
New boarders’ barbecue and treasure hunt
West Midlands fencing competitions
Geocaching
Equestrian One Day Event
Packwood fencing championship
Drama activity
Trip to the Midlands Game Fair
Ice skating trip
Pom pom workshop
Pom pom workshop
Cookery activity
Trip to PGL activity centre
Great Escape activity camping weekend
Art activity
Trip to PGL activity centre
Trip to Shrewsbury School Sporting Experience
Boules tournament
Trip to Liverpool Football Club
Fencing Nationals at Sheffield
Cupcake baking and decorating
Trip to Mulberry Alpacas
Shrewsbury School Aquathlon
Hillwalking weekend
Clay pigeon shooting
Great Escape activity camping weekend
NSEA horse riding championships at Addington Manor
Biathlon semi-finals
Picnic on the Cliffe
Cinema trip
Cupcake baking and decorating
High Ropes activity day at Concord College
Cupcake baking and decorating
Wrekin College Aquathlon
Cinema trip
Trip to CBSO concert, Birrmingham
Packwood Gymkhana
Cookery activity
Trip to National League Hockey
Pizza and pudding tea
Cross Country Championships
Shooting gallery activity
Cinema trip
Art activity
Sausage making activity
Packwood Sporting Experience
Indoor games competition
Meet the Animal Man
Fun golf tournament
Clay pigeon shooting
Art activity
Barbecue Sunday
Packwood Leon Paul fencing competition
Indoor games competition
Trip to Cholmondeley Pageant of Power
Music and movement activity
Music activity
Trip to Twenty20 cricket at Worcester
Pizza and pudding tea
Cookery activity
Zorbing adventure activity
Leavers’ parents matches – cricket, rounders, tennis
Easter egg hunt
Shooting activity
National Rugby Sevens tournaments
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TRIPS
Boys’leavers trip – North Wales
‘Survival of the Fittest’, a new TV series presented by a person similar to Bear Grylls. Contestants try to survive the adventures of the boys’ leavers trip. The challenges include: raft building, orienteering, rock climbing, gorge walking, mountain biking, paintballing, high ropes, and climbing Cadair Idris. If they overcome these, they then have the added task of performing a sketch from Little Britain. Some contestants fail to make the start; some may crick their neck in bed and need an ambulance to take them to hospital; others may fall off a mountain bike; still more will have a dodgy knee that means they
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cannot scale the heights of Cadair Idris, and for some the pressure gets too much and they get a temperature and need to stay in bed. For the plucky survivors, a week of terrific enjoyment awaits. The winners come away with fantastic memories and a bond which will hopefully last a lifetime. Production thanks go to Guy and David at King’s Youth Hostel; Rich and his team from Snowdonia Adventures; Jon ‘Pies’ Smith and his team from GetWet and finally Steve from Beics Brenin. SAR
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TRIPS
Girls’ leavers trip – Pembrokeshire Well it happened – the sun actually came out! Not for long but enough to get a healthy ‘glow’ and what better time for it to do so than on our girls’ leavers trip to Pembrokeshire. In glorious weather we made the trek down to St David’s and had surfing lessons at Whitesands Bay. There were various levels of competence and, if anything, the weather was actually a little too nice, as the surf wasn’t as high as some would have liked but there were no complaints. Off to the Youth Hostel for the traditional ‘spag bol’ (do you know how much some of your daughters can tuck away?) and a walk to the headland to watch the setting sun. Day two again greeted us with beautiful weather and we had a rib boat ride around Ramsey Island for two hours where we saw porpoises, puffins, seals (don’t point at them!) and seabirds of all shapes and sizes. We also whizzed about at high speed around the bay. The afternoon was spent on the beach with the girls swimming and getting some serious R & R whilst Mrs Jones kept vigil on every lifeguard that passed her windbreaker! A fantastic sunset in the evening and a barbeque on the patio – what better way to end the day? Wednesday was the most hectic. Oakwood Theme Park in the morning which is great ‘out of season’ when there are no queues for any ride, followed by a quick trip over to Nolton Stables for a two and a half hour hack through the woods and the surf and then, to complete the day a fish and chip supper. 18 teenage girls actually put themselves to bed early! Thursday – rain! However, we were inside, karting in the morning and then at a leisure pool in the afternoon. We enjoyed Ella’s birthday meal in the evening followed by an impressive talent show. Some horrible weather on the way home and an orderly queue outside the Headmaster’s study for the CE results! The girls were absolutely fantastic throughout, they all ‘mucked in’, never had to be reminded to do anything and were, in Mrs Jones’s words probably the best group that she had ever been with on a leavers trip – and she’s been on a few! MAF
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TRIPS
Alton Towers
Ice skating
All the 1s had their usual fill of fun in the last week of the summer term with a day trip to Alton Towers. The weather was not perfect, but the rain stayed off long enough for the children to stay dry until the favourite last water ride before meeting up to go home. Amongst the accompanying staff, young whippersnapper Mr Donaldson was quick enough on his feet to rack up an impressive number of rides, but for most a comfortable café sofa was the best vantage point for watching the day go by. Some of the children preferred the high thrills of big name rides such as Rita and Nemesis, whereas others were content with less exhilarating but no less enjoyable attractions. RAC
One cold Sunday in January a group of largely 1s and 2s boarders took a trip to Telford Rink for some ice skating. The children managed well amongst the weekend crowds and it was good to see some winter sports skills in evidence in advance of the school ski trip! Alice Rees and Jemima Price were obvious examples, as well as young Toby Turpin who has clearly skated a lot before. All were helpful when it came to giving me assistance on the rink. RAC
Trip to RAF Cosford According to Rachata Peerapairoj, who joined Packwood this year, one of the best things about living in this part of Shropshire is its proximity to RAF Cosford. Twelve year old Rachata is an aeroplane enthusiast who has picked up an encyclopaedic knowledge through books and television programmes, so he was delighted to have the chance to see the planes up close and in real life at Cosford’s Royal Air Force Museum. The children toured the hangars where they saw a Spitfire, Hurricane, Mustang, Hercules and Vulcan bomber among others. They also enjoyed the interactive exhibits particularly the flight simulator and the machine that allowed them to pretend to control a plane in windy conditions keeping it level and straight. CEH
Camping trip toYGarn
We had a clear run over to Capel Curig on Saturday night, and stayed at Dolgam campsite. The light was quickly fading by the time we arrived but the race to pitch the tents was just won, and the boys prepared their sleeping mats and sleeping bags by the light of their head-torches. Whilst they were sorting out who was to sleep in which tent, we organised the hot chocolate. There was much debate about what the best hot chocolate is and how much sugar gives the best taste, which kept everybody occupied until bedtime. Most of the boys managed to sleep well, and so appeared rested on Sunday, ready for the walk ahead. After breakfast we broke camp, and managed to shoehorn all the kit back into the minibus. A quick drive up the Ogwen valley saw us at the base of our intended peak, Y Garn. The Ogwen valley is absolutely fantastic, and crammed with most of the highest summits in Wales. Page 32
The weather was not quite as good as we would have liked, but kitted out in waterproofs, we set off up the path to our first way point, Llyn Idwal – a lovely spot which gives panoramic views of the Glyder Range. From here the real climb started. With plenty of stops to enjoy the views, we made our way up the shoulder of Y Garn. The workman’s hut half way up prompted a lot of questions. They are improving the path up here, and so there is a need for cover, when the weather turns, which it did for us. As we reached the summit, the wind picked up and the rain came. We made a very quick photo stop before dashing to the leeward side of the mountain and out of the worst of the weather. After a stop for lunch we carefully made our way down the Devil’s Kitchen, back to Llyn Idwal. We had a short stop to look at some of the climbers on the Idwal Slabs, and then it was back to the minibus, and home. SAR
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TRIPS
Theatre trips 1Class enjoyed a trip to Theatre Severn earlier this year for a particularly bloody version of Macbeth, which they had been discussing in preparation for scholarship. It was pleasing to see some Shakespeare come up at our very well-appointed local theatre. The pupils were typically enthusiastic about an evening out, and it was generally agreed that Macbeth and Lady Macbeth were particularly outstanding at bringing out the play’s horror. Later in the year 1Class enjoyed a post-scholarship excursion to Stratford-upon-Avon. The class was given an introduction to Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar through an excellent drama workshop run by the RSC. We then attended the evening performance of the same play, a bloodthirsty tragedy which had been set in modern day Nigeria. Afterwards the class had the good fortune to stumble across stars of the screen Kenneth Branagh and Brian Blessed, both of whom were more than happy to be photographed by teenage admirers. Although our pupils were admittedly more familiar with Branagh’s work on Harry Potter than Shakespeare, they did impress the stars by summoning up some wellremembered lines from Henry V: “Cry God for Harry, England, and Saint George!” RAC
Birmingham Symphony Hall The nature of live music is such that Music trips are relatively hard to come by. History, Religious Studies and Geography trips, for example, have the advantage that castles, cathedrals and land formations are generally static enough that the busy Packwood timetable can fit around visits to such places. So, having taken a group of boarders to a Sunday afternoon concert at Birmingham Symphony Hall in the spring term, I was delighted to discover that the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra was putting on a concert in June specifically for schools. This was a fabulous opportunity to show Form 5 and 6 pupils a live orchestra in a splendid setting, a new experience for almost all of them. The concert was entitled ‘World in Harmony’, and the music broadly used the Olympic theme with composers and pieces of music from around the world. We spent some lesson time beforehand finding out some background information; we identified some well-known film music by John Williams, listened to parts of Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker Suite, learnt to recognise and dance the waltz (Will Shaw was an absolute natural at this, if any girls are looking for a future dancing
partner!), and played musical relay and rhythm games with instruments. The concert also included a song which everyone would sing together in the Symphony Hall, I’ve got the power in me, which proved a real hit with everyone from Forms 5 and 6. Arriving in Birmingham on the day, we discovered that we had been allocated the seats at the very top of the hall, so we had an excellent view and the acoustics were such that we could still hear every word and note. A cheerful narrator – in a vivid, lime-green shirt – took us through the varied programme, which included Mozart’s Rondo Alla Turca, The Blue Danube Waltz, Londonderry Air, and the theme tune from The Simpsons. Of course, there was plenty of audience participation; particularly effective was the instruction to shout ‘STOP!’ to bring Johann Strauss II’s eternal Perpetuum Mobile to an end. Much as we had all enjoyed singing I’ve got the power in class Music lessons, it was hard to beat singing it with several hundred others accompanied by a full professional orchestra. So, a very successful trip, both fun and educational. I will certainly be looking out for future CBSO events for Packwood pupils to attend. SCB
Aladdin At the end of the autumn term Mrs Rigby and Mr and Mrs Herzog took Form 4 to see the pantomime of Aladdin at Theatre Severn. The show was full of singing and dancing and jokes and we all really enjoyed it. The story started with the evil Abanazar trying to open the cave so that he could steal the magic lamp. He couldn’t do it, so he went to find Aladdin to help him. Aladdin was supposed to be working in his mum’s laundry but he actually spent all his time daydreaming about the princess who he was in love with. Aladdin knew he was too poor to marry the princess but when Abanazar came he told him about the cave full of gold and jewels that would make him rich. So Aladdin agreed to help Abanazar. When the cave was opened Abanazar sent
Aladdin inside but suddenly the cave entrance closed and Aladdin was trapped. Aladdin found the magic lamp, rubbed it and the genie appeared and offered him three wishes. He wished to be rich so that he would be able to marry the princess. Later Abanazar stole the lamp off him and Aladdin became poor again but the king allowed him to marry the princess anyway and they lived happily ever after. The genie was freed from the lamp and Abanazar was punished for his wicked ways by being turned into a little boy. It was a really good pantomime and got us all in the mood for Christmas. Anna Cowan
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Derby Mosque and Hindu Temple In June the 4s went to Derby to visit a mosque and a Hindu temple. Some Muslim people took us to the mosque where we had to cover our heads and take off our shoes before entering. We learnt that Muslims keep it very clean and the flooring was one big carpet with lots of individual ‘prayer mats’ designed on the pattern. There were lots of copies of the Quran wrapped in cloth to keep them clean on the shelves. The Quran has to go above the other books on the shelf and must never be put underneath. We learnt that Muslims pray five times every day and we saw the five clocks on the wall telling them the times that they should pray. Then we walked to the Hindu temple nearby and again, we had to take our shoes off but we didn’t need to cover our heads this time. Unlike the mosque the Hindu temple was very colourful and had lots of pictures on the wall. The most striking thing was the number of quite big, life-size statues of the Hindu gods and goddesses on the altar including Rama and Sita, Vishnu, Brahma, Lakshmi (goddess of wealth and good fortune), Durga (warrior god) and Shiva (her husband), Saraswati (goddess of learning) and my favourite, Ganesh, the elephant god. They were all the gods that we had learnt about at school this year. After the visit to the mosque and the temple we went back to the Open Centre and we had our picnic lunch. Then we dressed up in Indian clothes and we pretended to be guests at an Indian wedding ceremony and we had great fun.
Thanks to Mrs Lee for organising the trip and to Mrs Edwards and Mr Herzog for coming with us. It was a really fun trip and I wish we could do it again. Sophia Bureau
Manchester Jewish Museum When we got to the Jewish Museum, it didn’t look very exciting from the outside but we were in for a surprise! When we walked in I looked around, taking in my surroundings. On the right hand side of the door post was a mezuzah, a small Jewish scroll. Jewish people have it on their door to bless their homes or synagogues. It reminds them of God’s presence. The Holy Ark was beautiful and very elaborately decorated. We were told to sit down on pews that were in rows around the synagogue. A man called Mr Michaelson told us about Jewish life and the history of the synagogue. It was very interesting. We then went off in classes to go and study different parts of the synagogue. 3Class went to the Bimah (the platform that holds the Torah). Then we went up to the Ladies’ Gallery, to the Holy Ark and finally the Holocaust Exhibition about “The Windermere Boys”. When we had all had a chance to see everything we sat down again on the pews. Mr Michaelson explained all about Shabbat. Shabbat is the Jewish sabbath and it is celebrated every Friday at sunset. It ends at sundown on Saturday. Romy, Alex, Amelia and William acted out the Shabbat blessings. We then tasted a type of sweet bread called Challah. It reminded me of the taste of hot cross buns! Natasha Carter- Motley
Pageant of Power At the end of the summer term Mr Mullock and I took thirty boys to the Pageant of Power, an event which is held annually at Cholmondeley Castle. There was no stereotyping here – the girls just did not want to come. And wow did they miss out! Despite the rain, we were treated to an astonishing collection of sports cars, stunt planes, motor boats, tanks and (slightly incongruously) knights on horseback, well I suppose they were the Ferraris of their day. The boys had a fantastic time and they are already talking about going next year.
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Many thanks to the ever-patient, ever-positive and ludicrously hardworking Mr and Mrs James Hall who kindly gave us tickets to the event. And finally a tip for you all, jokes aimed at the Halls along the lines of suggesting they should arrange the Pageant in drought-stricken, sub-Saharan Africa are wearing thin…even if they are funny. NRJ
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Mulberry Alpacas It was a bright but cold Sunday afternoon in January and Mrs Edwards collected the children from school to come and visit her alpaca herd, just 10 minutes down the road in Knockin Heath. We were cold but the alpacas were fluffy and warm in their soft fleeces. We began by feeding the baby girls. All last year’s cria (babies) had names beginning with ‘E’: Evie, Ellie and Eliza. Marina and Elena loved these bundles of fluff. They are now six months old and they have been weaned from their mothers. We then fed the young boys: Crispus, Daniel, Darius, Tom Thumb and Germanicus. Daniel was a favourite as he is so gentle and soft with his blue eyes. Kim and Ken were quick to feed these friendly boys. Finally we fed the seven impatient mothers and Claudio and Mr Biggles, the two stud males. Chloe had made an agility arena for the children and the alpacas to perform in. Tom Thumb was haltered and each of us had a go at leading him around the obstacles. The funniest part was when we had to walk on the overturned buckets as we led the alpaca along in a straight line. We all managed to do it and we all got a rosette!
We then went inside and had hot chocolate and some cake. After we had warmed up we started to make pom poms. This was great fun and we all managed to make different sized woollen balls. Amber was impressively fast and managed to make at least six pom poms! RE
Montgomery The 2s History trip to Montgomery began with a gentle climb in the hills to a vantage point from where we were able to gaze across the Shropshire Marches into Wales while Mr Weston gave us a potted history of the different people who had settled, lived, fought and died there over the centuries. From the Romans, to the Normans, to the Civil War, the Marches has been a historically significant area. In the afternoon we made our way down to Montgomery and explored the remains of the castle that was fought over during the Civil War Battle of Montgomery in September 1644. We stood on the battlements and imagined ourselves under siege by the Royalist forces before Parliamentarian reinforcements arrived from the north and routed the king’s supporters on the fields laid out before us in the valley below.
Montgomery also boasts a perfect little museum, The Old Bell, which is full of fascinating treasures and eclectic curiosities from the town’s past. We enjoyed a wonderful hour discovering all sorts of amazing things, many bringing back happy childhood memories for Mr Webster (although sadly the pig’s bladder football was no longer on display) but completely unfamiliar to most of the children. There was a civil war pike and helmet, an intricately detailed scale model of the castle, handcranked machines for making butter and cheese, clog making tools, pattens, sweet jars, medicine bottles and much more. Definitely a place to be revisited and thoroughly explored – I’m looking forward to going back as soon as possible. CEH
Great Escape The law states that we all have a duty of care to the children whether we are parents or teachers. But what is the nature of this care? Does it mean protecting children from every conceivable harm or possible hardship? If it does, then certainly children will enter adolescence free from injury or hurt but sadly also completely incapable of assessing risk for themselves. In a world where children never get the chance to assess risk or contemplate outcomes, the first time they are asked to do so may be when they are handed the keys to their shiny new car, with the all too frequent and horrible results. Enter the Great Escape Company. On the surface what’s not to like? Two weekends and two groups of twenty-five Packweeds of all ages and both sexes spend a night under canvas in beautiful Shropshire countryside. They raft, scramble, build and think their way through numerous tasks and challenges. During the course of events the pupils suffer minor falls, bumps and abrasions and each time they do so they learn about the consequences of taking risks and what happens if you mess with gravity. It’s a brilliantly run event, staffed by incredibly caring and skilled professionals. The children also learn about the benefits of teamwork and get ample opportunities to demonstrate their leadership skills. NRJ
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Liverpool Football Club An excited and football-mad group of boys enjoyed a fantastic trip to Anfield to visit the home of Liverpool Football Club. All round the Fields of Anfield Road Where once we watched the King Kenny play and he could play We had Heighway on the wing We had dreams and songs to sing Of the glory round the Fields of Anfield Road The famous Liverpool song was playing on the TV as we entered the hallowed ground of Anfield, walking through the club’s reception rooms, where the great and the good meet on match day. The boys had already paid their respects at the Hillsborough memorial, commemorating the 96 fans who lost their lives so tragically. After welcoming us to the club, our guide gave us time to look at the photos of famous Liverpool players that lined the walls. We then went into the press room, and were told how match day interviews are carried out. The boys got a chance to sit in the interview chair and pretend to answer questions from the surrounding media. From here we went to the changing rooms, and sat where all the players sit on match day, beneath their named shirts. One of the guides did impressions, and we were royally entertained by Rafa Benitez, Jamie Carragher, Steven Gerrard and even David Beckham. After a good laugh, we went through to the away team dressing room. We then saw where all the post-match interviews take place, which is just a corner of the corridor next to the tunnel. After touching the
famous Anfield sign for good luck, we went to sit in the team dugout of the stadium itself. Here we were told some of the history of the stadium, including the fact that originally Anfield was home to Everton FC! Our last port of call was the world famous Kop, or Spion Kop as it should be called. We learnt how it got its name, and some of the history of the stand. We also went round the club museum and
saw all the trophies that had been won, including the Champions League trophy which was awarded to the club after their fifth victory in the competition. We watched a video of the famous night in Istanbul, when the last of those five trophies was won. A quick visit to the club shop and a couple of purchases later saw us at the end of our tour of Anfield, the home of Liverpool FC. SAR
Trip to Warwick Castle In the summer term the children in the 4s spent a day exploring the wonders of Warwick Castle and learning about its long history.
the marker flag they had placed earlier. It was an amazing sight and clearly showed what a terrifying weapon the trebuchet was.
We timed our arrival perfectly to be able to watch the impressive spectacle of the trebuchet being fired. Essentially an enormous catapult, the trebuchet was a siege weapon used to great effect in the Wars of the Roses. The team at Warwick, all dressed in authentic fifteenth century costumes, demonstrated how it was operated and flung a huge rock through the air to land with pinpoint accuracy next to
Lunch followed before our exploration of the castle began in earnest. We scaled all 530 steps of the battlements and towers looking out for arrow loops and murder holes as we did so. We enjoyed the exhibition showing what everyday life in the castle in the 1460s was like – the blacksmith in his forge producing armour and weapons, the fletcher making arrows, the wheelsmith at work, seamstresses spinning and sewing, knights preparing for battle, and much more. We looked around the Great Hall admiring the amazing displays of weapons and armour, the enormous fireplaces and the sheer size of the room before continuing our tour through the opulent state rooms richly decorated and full of ornate objects, art works and items of furniture. Our tour continued with a visit upstairs where we jumped forward in history to a late-Victorian weekend house party. The period was vividly recreated amidst authentic furniture and furnishings where wax figures and sound recordings brought the event to life. Our day ended with half an hour to let off steam in the Pageant Playground and a chance to chat about all we had seen and our favourite parts of what we all agreed had been an excellent History trip. CEH
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National League Hockey Every year we take a trip to Cannock to watch a national league hockey match. It is a popular trip as it coincides with the school’s mixed hockey club season. This year, for the first time in a while, the weather was good – a pleasant change as on our previous two visits we had encountered torrential rain and snow! We arrived early and managed to watch an ‘Olympic star-studded’ Reading women’s team thrash Cannock in the curtain-raiser game. The children really got
the chance to see hockey of the highest standard close up. They appreciated the speed, the level of fitness and the skills needed to succeed at such a high level. It reminded me of myself in my heyday – although I am now more suited to the old adage “The older I get, the better I used to be!” A good day was had by all and appetites were whetted for the grand sport. MAF
Geocaching Geocaching is a real-world outdoor treasure hunting game. Players try to locate hidden containers, called geocaches, using GPS-enabled devices and then share their experiences online. I went onto www.Geocaching.com, downloaded the app onto my phone and searched for the closest caches to school. There are a remarkable number within a couple of miles. After looking at the map, I knew roughly where to look, but not the exact location. Our group of Ed Bayliss, Gorge Clowes, Ed Barry, George Weston, Ed Don, Jacob Jones, Amber Gibbins, Marina Resines and Elena Cros set off from school with a map and the coordinates programmed into the phone. It wasn’t long before we found the first cache, which was about the size of a pack of cards. We signed the log to say we had found it, put it back carefully and set off for the second location. Sadly, the area where it was meant to be was heavily overgrown with nettles, and without a strimmer we were thwarted. Again we had no luck with the final cache, but much enjoyment looking. We headed back to school pleased that we had at least found one. Next year, I hope to take a group up onto the Cliffe and have a search round there. SAR
Zorbing
This activity was so good we went twice! Unfortunately the first time was a wasted journey to the Albert Docks in Liverpool as the strong winds prevented us from having a go. So second time round we hoped for calmer weather. We were lucky and at last the children were let loose on the water. The activity involved the pupils being individually encased in a massive plastic ball. They then had to rock and run frantically to keep the zorb moving. Edward Myddelton got the hang of
it early on, and then everyone seemed to be up and running. Then came zorb wars – over a manic 10 minutes the children tried to charge, barge and bang into each other. Gideon Turner and Jamie Chambers were rather adept at this. It was a brilliant activity for a Sunday and even better that our backdrop was the River Mersey, the Echo Arena Ferris wheel and of course The Beatles story museum. KLP
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Lichfield Cathedral Twenty20 cricket At the end of the autumn term the 3s enjoyed an inspiring and educational visit to Lichfield Cathedral. The enthusiasm of our tour guide was infectious as he regaled us with stories of the history of the cathedral. We learnt how during the Civil War, local Royalist, Dumb Dyott, took a lucky shot from the tower and managed to kill Lord Brooke, the commander of the Parliamentary army in Staffordshire, who was standing over 100m away; we noticed evidence of musket balls and cannon fire in the pockmarked sandstone walls; we saw how the cathedral was constructed in an excellent defensive position on higher ground with water all around; we admired the craftsmanship of the builders, masons and carpenters as we gazed up at the West Front and the three magnificent spires. And all of this before we had even stepped inside! The stories continued as we explored the majestic building learning of its humble beginnings in the time of St Chad, the seventh century Bishop of Mercia, and the building’s history through Norman and Mediaeval times, the Civil War and beyond. We discovered statues, gargoyles, misericords, the Lady Chapel and the Chapter House, the font and stained glass windows among many other treasures. It was an excellent trip enjoyed by all who were lucky enough to go along. CEH
A group of die-hard cricket fans took the minibus to Worcester for a rare sunny afternoon of cricket this summer. The Worcestershire players were in commanding form, hitting over 200 off their 20 overs, including against the famous spinner Muttiah Muralitharan. Gloucestershire did not come so close in reply, despite a huge six hit out of the ground. We all enjoyed the carnival atmosphere: music between boundaries, blow-up plastic hammers to hit each other on the head with, as well as cricket… who could fail to have enjoyed it? RAC
History trip to Manchester and Chester First we went to the Manchester Museum and began our visit by looking round some of the galleries. It was fascinating. Then we did an activity with Kerry (our guide). We watched a film of Dr Digby, who was the actual Horrible Histories presenter, Terry Deary, and then we did a Trainee Archaeologist’s record card. We had to describe some modern objects and draw them before looking for the ancient Egyptian version in the display cases. Then we went to a non-public part of the museum. We first did a drama activity where we acted out what people made in ancient Egypt and the teachers had to guess what we were making. After that we did a mini dig – there were three objects in a box of sand and we had to excavate them. We used three different tools – a big brush, a small brush and a trowel. Then Kerry set out some ancient artefacts on three tables and we looked at them. In the afternoon we went to Dewa Roman Experience in Chester. We first stood outside a Roman galley and Vincent, our tour guide, said we had to shout “Hail Caesar” to get in. The door opened and there was a dummy playing a drum and we had to pretend to row in time to the beat. We went through another door and it smelled a lot because we were outside the city walls which is where Romans went to the toilet; in their times it was called a latrine. There was a Roman soldier on top of the wall and he said we could go in. When we were in there we looked at Roman shops and I got fed a Roman treat called a glis glis (it was a plastic dormouse). Then we went to a room where there were Roman baths. The slave had to get his master’s clothes off him and then use a strigil to scrape off the olive oil which they used to clean themselves before going in the baths. Page 38
We looked at a real archaeological dig where people had done excavations and we saw where the ground would have been 2000 years ago! After that we went to a place where we could play with a catapult and try Roman armour on and lots of other things. Then it was finally time to go home. We had a great day! Alice Hughes and Ed Bayliss
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Midlands Game Fair We have been taking groups of children to the game fair at Weston Park every year for many years and the fair gets bigger and better every year. It is a great day out for children with an interest in the sports and traditions of the countryside. This year’s group was as enthusiastic as ever and made the most of the numerous opportunities to see
demonstrations and visit trade stands. Falconry, shooting and ferret racing were especially popular this year and the jousting demonstration in the main arena was both exciting and very entertaining. So another enjoyable and successful trip which I hope will continue for many years to come. FRH
Chirk Castle
On Friday 11th May we went to Chirk Castle. When we got there two ladies took us to get changed into servants’ costumes. The first thing we did was go to the Servants’ Hall and then we made some biscuits out of dough with lots of salt so we couldn’t eat it. Then we went upstairs to a bathroom with a really tiny bath called a hip bath. The next room was the King’s bedroom. It was really big and at the end of his bed instead of having wood there was metal with shiny gold. We went in the Long Gallery where there were lots of chests and pictures. It was where children played and promenaded. We got
changed into rich Tudor costumes and Mrs Hammond took a picture of us. Afterwards we made lavender bags. When I had finished it smelled really lovely and I kept it in my pocket. Then we went down to the dungeon. There were 41 steps to get down to the dungeon floor and it was very dark at the bottom. You can only see sunlight through the little windows. When we came back up we tried on really heavy armour and chain mail and we pretended to fire the cannon. Last of all we had a go in the stocks before we went home. Jago Ainslie
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3s trip to France Matron woke us up at five to two in the morning. We had hardly got any sleep because we were so excited but most of us slept on the coach so the journey did not feel as long as we thought it would. The ferry was more fun than the coach by far because we could stretch our legs and walk around. It was another few hours before we got to PGL and since we were all up, we watched two movies on the coach. When we arrived we unpacked and met our PGL staff who helped a lot during the trip. We then had a tour and found out which dormitory we were in. After that we had dinner which everyone was looking forward to and then played ‘Capture the Flag’ – the first of the activities which we had every evening.
Afterwards we looked around the famous Notre Dame cathedral, the stained glass windows were beautiful and it was packed inside. Everything was so amazing and even the ceiling was carved with a pretty pattern! After lunch in the gardens we went on a boat tour where we floated down the River Seine listening to all the history of Paris. When we got back to the château we got changed for the activities after tea and some of us bought a few souvenirs with the money Mr Weston gave us (although some of us bought sweets). After tea we split into teams for the mini Olympics – which I would personally say was the best activity of the whole week.
On Sunday in the morning we went up the Eiffel Tower. It was amazing. We could see the whole of Paris. We got an amazing view of Notre Dame, Sacré Coeur and the River Seine. None of us wanted to come down. In the afternoon we did activities at the château including abseiling, rock climbing, team building and orienteering. All of them were really fun. The next day we went to Provins which is a mediaeval village. We watched a show there, I barely understood a word though as it was all in French! Afterwards we went to Fontainebleau which is the château that Napoleon Bonaparte lived in. It’s amazing to
The next day we went on a coach tour and took photos of Les Champs Elysees and the Eiffel Tower. The view was amazing and the weather was not that bad! As we passed Les Champs Elysees, which had most of the designer shops like Louis Vuitton, all the girls screamed. Then we went to the Modern Art museum where we split into our groups and looked at all the interesting paintings and statues. My favourite artists were Marc Chagall and Picasso.
Packwood ski trip A party of over 40 Packwood parents, staff and pupils enjoyed some fantastic skiing in Saas Fee, Switzerland during the Easter holidays. The school returned, after a gap of three years, to the same chalet hotel with exclusive use of its piste-side position and fantastic food.
The Packwood tradition of ‘The Fool on the Hill’ was also revived: the silliest skiing antics of the day were voted for each night, and the winners included a happy mixture of pupils, parents and even a member of staff!
The children all made great progress at improving their skiing through the week, in small groups with the friendly Eskimos ski school. The sun shone each day but was never too much for the large amounts of snow that Saas Fee enjoys even late in the season.
The week culminated in ski races for all the children (won by Esther McLaughlin), presentations from the ski school and some crazy evening entertainments in which the 1s all showed off their acting talents. We do hope that the Packwood ski trip will again become a regular event on the school calendar. RAC
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think that possibly the most famous French man in history stood on those steps. The inside was beautifully painted in the most extravagant colours you could think of. We wanted more! When we got back to PGL all of us were very tired and couldn’t wait to get to bed. On Tuesday everyone was very excited as it was market day! We had our breakfast and drove to the market. We were handed out sheets with quizzes on. We had to walk around the market to answer the questions. After that we were allowed to spend our money. There was a competition to see who could buy the tackiest object. We bought some plastic hair clips with fake plastic gems on. They looked really tacky at the time but since none of the teachers voted for it, it was a waste of money. In the afternoon we went to Sacré Coeur, a very beautiful church. We looked around there and then went to Montmartre which is the artists’ quarter. All the artists went there with their stalls and offered to paint people for a small price. Sadly I didn’t have enough money left. When we got back to the château we were all downhearted as we had to leave the next day but we tried to make the most of it. We made crepes that night and tried to build the Eiffel Tower out of a cardboard box, two straws and a rubber band. To cut a long story short, it didn’t go well. In the morning we got on the coach and said goodbye to PGL. When we got to the ferry we had to say goodbye to France too. We had had some great times and those great times are now great memories. Goodbye Paris. Natasha Carter-Motley and Amelia Maunder
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Canoe club
Boys’ hockey
They came, they saw, they got wet – ‘they’ being Bentley Moss, Jonty Schofield, Harry Marshall, Patrick Ashall and Theo Penney who all had a go at canoeing in the swimming pool on Wednesday evenings in the autumn term. We had lots of fun again this year. Falling in the water, learning the not-falling-in strokes (high and low brace), trying to stop our boat bashing into the side by using sweep strokes, and having a go at the T rescue. This year sees the Olympics, and I have tickets for the canoe finals. Can’t wait. SAR
Our merry little band of hockey boys met every Monday afternoon. For most sessions we split up into two teams – selection criteria constantly changing: England v The Rest of the World, 3s v 4s and 5s and so on. I would play a nomadic role and switch from side to side to try to even things up which meant that the majority of games ended with the call of “Next goal wins!” We had some thrillers and some entertainment although the skills on display were not always family viewing – well done all. MAF
Basketball Basketball club was made up of a group of boys from Forms 5 and 6. We began with a focus on general ball skills, highlighting the best way to keep control of the ball whilst evading opponents and changing direction. After the boys had developed the skills to keep hold of the ball we then worked on ways to deliver a pass to our team-mates. Having got to grips with the skills to attack, we moved on to how to defend when we were not in possession of the ball. We added all our
newly acquired skills together to play many different forms of basketball. During small-sided and possession games the boys’ skills progressed and there were many competitive encounters. While playing the games the boys picked up on the rules and began to understand the game better. The rule of no contact was a difficult one to get to grips with! William Stanford-Davis, Joe Pattenden and Oliver Holcroft are some of the MVPs to look out for in the future. JM
Aussie Rules football This winter Packwood has again enjoyed the wonderful game that is Australian Rules football. Playing under the lights of the astroturf, the seniors enjoyed learning skills such as the handball, the drop punt and the bounce. It has obviously been a very steep learning curve and it has been great to see the enjoyment of all of the players increase as their understanding of the game improved. The work of Freddie Fielding was brilliant throughout each session, using his speed to great effect
through the midfield and passing the ball to his forwards with great accuracy. Keita Umetani and Ken Peerapairoj also proved to be adept and their enjoyment of the new game was a constant source of inspiration for all. It has been a thoroughly enjoyable experience introducing this wonderful game to such enthusiastic young Packwood pupils. I hope the children have enjoyed it as much as I have! PD
Ballet There have been two ballet classes running this year – one for a group in the main school and the other for Acorns children. The older girls, Anna Cowan, Honor Grigg, Poppy Stephens and Eliza Blackham, arrived in the theatre at five o'clock on Fridays, full of cheerful, bubbling enthusiasm. Their technique improved steadily and impressively, thanks to the Royal Academy of Dancing syllabus exercises with which we always commence our classes. The girls were then able to employ their skills in some wonderful short story adaptations, using ballet steps and mime accompanied by music from various ballets. It was delightful to see their interpretive abilities develop so well. The Acorns ballet class at four o'clock on Fridays has been a constant delight! Georgina Kenyon, Catherine Morton-Willets, Lulu Bright, Lucy Mielczarek, Claudia Tate and Freddie Thompson tumbling through the theatre doors with excited squeals set the tone for all our classes. Their technical standard is now excellent, and their mime and interpretive skills are very impressive indeed. The children work very well together and although our classes normally follow the same structure as
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the senior group, I have, on several occasions, been treated to wonderful performances, thought up, planned, and rehearsed by the children during the preceding week, to be shown as a complete surprise! Magic! I look forward to seeing them all again next year. Annie Moody
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Ballroom dancing So what exactly is ballroom dancing? One thing that can be said is that no one can really agree on a specific definition. There are those who try to confine it to several specific steps and patterns, but for the true ballroom connoisseur, the beauty lies in its constant change and development. New dances and variations continue to be added. This is the key to the success of The Packwood Ballroom Dancing Club. Each autumn term the Form 1 and Form 2 children spend their Thursday evenings learning and practising a variety of ballroom and Latin dances in preparation for the Christmas Ball. Each year a new energy and a new combination of personalities create their own interpretations of the traditional and modern dances they are taught. We learnt, the waltz which came about in the early nineteenth century, the tango which was introduced in the early twentieth century and the cha cha cha and jive which emerged in the 50s, along with new variations of the swing and, of course, rock-n-roll. The 90s saw a renewed interest in country line dancing and that is also something the children enjoy learning to the sounds of Cotton Eye Joe and 5, 6, 7, 8.
keen to impress in the hope of winning a medal and as individuals with the same incentive and they also enjoy the treat of a finger buffet complete with fizzy drinks. Medals and prizes are won and fond memories are made for all concerned.
The Packwood Ball is a wonderful affair. The girls dress in beautiful gowns and the boys in waistcoats and bow ties and proudly pose for Matron Caron’s camera for their place in the Hall of Fame! The children dance as couples
This year has been particularly memorable thanks to Marcus and Amy, the incredibly vibrant gap students who went beyond their duties and totally immersed themselves in all that was Packwood. The ballroom dancing club was particularly fortunate and the passion and enthusiasm they brought each week made the whole experience so special and unique for everyone. LW
Archery
For many years now Packwood has offered its pupils a chance to have a go at archery and 2012 was no exception. 15 pupils signed up for seven sessions. The pupils shot once a week after school on Wednesday evenings and were divided into three groups according to age. We concentrated on making the sessions fun although safety was strictly enforced at all times. As a variation from simply shooting at a standard target face we sometimes put balloons on the target and shot at those. During week six we held a competition to find the best archers in each group while during the final week we 'hunted' a number of life size foam animal targets. Dick Hilton Competition results Group 1: 1st Toby Turpin 2nd Will Tate
Group 3: 1st Harry Marshall 2nd Ralph Furse
Group 2: 1st Nick Yeoward
Overall highest score: Toby Turpin
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Chess
Clay pigeon shooting
This was a popular activity for younger children on a Tuesday afternoon. Most knew the rudiments of the game, and some were pretty skilled. They were all learning fast. We talked about strategies and tactics, and these ideas were quickly shown on the chequered boards, though some still found the joy of turning a modest pawn into a queen better than checkmate itself. Among many improving players Fred Stephens was probably the best, and few beat him. RHC
Clay pigeon shooting has gone really well this year. We have shot regularly throughout each term and the quality of the shooting continues to get better and better. For the first time I could have entered a top quality team into the Moor Park Tournament, but sadly we were unable to attend this year. If I were putting a team together it would have featured Ned Warburton-Lee, Keita Umetani, Ralph Furse, Harry Marshall, Morton Moss, Scott Walker, Eliott Gilling-Smith, Jude Bedford and Sam Bayliss. Not only are these boys becoming very competent shots, they are learning to shoot safely, which must surely be the most important thing of all. NRJ
Fly tying I wonder how many schools teach fly tying. Probably not very many, which is a shame because it is a useful skill to learn involving a degree of manual dexterity combined with imagination and of course an opportunity to use some of those feathers left over from pheasant plucking in January. An enthusiastic group of lads from the 1s, 2s and 3s spent some happy evenings in the spring term at their vices and found that things which at first seemed difficult or even impossible soon became relatively easy. Some interesting creations were produced some of which resembled insects and some of which did not. Even if we did not manage to produce anything which would fool a wily old trout, I hope that some of those who took part in this club will continue to enjoy and develop their interest in the future. FRH
Croquet Despite the dreadful weather, many pupils enjoyed the croquet season as much as ever. The competition again drew around 100 entries, and I allowed for less handicapping in the draw of partners this year to make the tournament more competitive. A good standard resulted in the final, with Chris Dorrell and Jess Hunt beating Thomas Tulloch and Tia Barlow. This event drew a decent crowd and it was great to see young players learn from the tactics of the finalists. Once the children know the rules and have been given a bit of general strategy (‘balls together’ being a favourite) the best fly around the course using croquets at every opportunity. Although only once an Olympic sport, the children clearly enjoy the relaxing, tactical nature of the game and it was fun to test their knowledge of it in an assembly. The junior activity again showed some good young players for the future and is always a pleasant way to spend an afternoon session. We are very fortunate to have two fine lawns to play on. RAC
Debating There was only time for two debates this year, although several forms have also had a go at making speeches in class as well as the evening club. There were plenty of topics to discuss, including the proposed HS2 rail link and forthcoming Olympics during the club time.
from the opposition – useful perhaps in the future!
Our first school debate was on the topic of overpopulation, as Esther McLaughlin, Jacob Rand and Rory Davies argued that the world’s population is becoming too big. This generated some interesting debate about money, the environment and people’s right to have children. As usual some of the most amusing remarks came from the younger children during questions from the floor.
The year’s other main debate was in honour of the Queen’s jubilee: a balloon debate entitled ‘Great Britons’. A final eight whittled down from all the members of 1Class included such great British figures as Isambard Kingdom Brunel, Eric Liddle and Sir Jimmy Saville. Jemima Price as popular choice, Adele, and Scott Hatton as a hilarious Jimmy Saville made the final but were beaten by Alex Wythe’s The Unknown Soldier. This shrewd choice attracted a lot of votes despite Alex’s quiet delivery as he was able to argue successfully that we should all be grateful for the sacrifices made in the past by such servicemen.
The motion was opposed by Chris Dorrell, Harriet Bibby and Ella Downey, two of whom were new to school debates and nevertheless impressed with their confidence and ability to respond on their feet. Chris Dorrell is, of course, a debating veteran and fine young speaker with a valuable knack of using humour to deflect awkward questions
There are some strong debaters coming through next year and we hope for more lively debates which expand the children’s horizons and develop their speaking skills. I remain on the lookout for national competitions to enter; sadly we were not able to enter Malvern’s competition this year because of a clash with the jubilee. RAC
Science and Astronomy The children in this year’s science club were the most enthusiastic group I have had for a number of years with quite a few who were returning for their second or even third year. The activities included making rockets, hot air balloons, fireworks, glass divers and vehicles from Lego. Some of the activities involved a
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certain amount of danger and there were some anxious moments when our hot air balloons got caught in trees and threatened to set them on fire. However, more by luck than management, no serious damage was done. We were lucky to have two suitable evenings for astronomy in the autumn term and a
number of occasions in the spring term when the skies were clear and it wasn’t too cold. The appearance of the moon, Jupiter and Venus in a straight line in the eastern sky gave us a great opportunity to study all three through the telescope and to really get an understanding of the way the solar system works. FRH
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Gardening There is always a frisson of excitement as soon as I put up the notice for the garden allocations, usually held on the first Sunday of the summer term, which has become known in the Packwood lingo as ‘Garden Plotters Sunday’. The season got off to a poor start as I had to cancel ‘Garden Plotters Sunday’, for the first time ever, due to the horrendous weather conditions. Sadly, that set the weather pattern for the rest of the term but did not deter those sixty or so determined young gardeners keen to get their plots cleared and planted. The positive side of the unending rainfall has
meant that the plants have enjoyed more than their fair share of water and the gardens, although soggy underfoot, still looked fresh and colourful in July when they would normally start to look a bit dusty and tired. Unfortunately, the weeds also loved the rain but it has meant no need for the endless watering and refilling of the dreaded tank.
‘ponds’ in evidence hoping to attract the odd frog or two, and an abundance of herbs. We also had a gigantic ‘Jack-in-the-Beanstalk’ fennel bush which caused much amusement – it loved the rain and took over the rose garden as it grew to about three feet in height.
This season’s gardeners are to be congratulated on being the best behaved and most cooperative bunch that I have known in The theme this year has been the Queen’s Jubilee and many of the gardens reflected this my time at Packwood. in their planting with red, white and blue Congratulations to the winners. GML dominating and, despite the bizarre weather conditions, the gardens were amazingly Seniors: colourful. As usual, there were several First prize: ‘The Kitchen Garden’
Ned Warburton-Lee, Harry Myddelton, Morton Moss and Eliott Gilling-Smith Second Prize: Garden No. 3 ‘Middle Garden’ Jude Bedford, Robert Ford, Tom and Alfred Hughes Third Prize: ‘The Jubilee Garden’ Sophie Barlow, Amelia Ashworth, Phoebe Wasdell, Talullah Blackham, Natasha CarterMotley and Amelia Maunder Juniors: First prize: Garden No. 5 Murray Robinson-Boulton, Suguru Gotoh, George Weston, Jack Goodall, Patrick Norman, George Clowes, Frankie McLaughlin and Harry Waterworth Second Prize: Garden No. 6 Harriet Haynes, Georgia Kannreuther, Zara Vickers and Sophia Bureau Third Prize : ‘The Red, White and Blue Garden’ Eliza Blackham and Poppy Stephens
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Pizza and pudding tea This has been a very popular addition to the boarders’ Sunday activity list and the children have relished the opportunity to prepare their own tea. To make the main course of pizza the children mixed and kneaded the dough for the base and then carefully added a huge variety of toppings – tomatoes, cheese, ham, mushrooms, salami, pineapple, sweetcorn – according to individual taste. While the pizzas were
cooking, they put together their puddings of meringue, fruit and cream. Then both courses were taken through to the Junior Common Room where the children had laid the table complete with cloth, cutlery, cups and napkins. The best bit of all, needless to say, was the eating which was enjoyed by all and, unsurprisingly, didn’t take long! Many thanks from me, and the children, to gap students, Bea and Brooke for all their help. GW
Cookie club I have tried to encourage the pupils to maintain a healthy, balanced diet and so we have cooked such delicacies as chocolate crispies, brownies, flapjacks, rocky roads, chocolate chip cookies and pancakes! My excuse is that the pupils burn up so much energy doing sport and exercising their brains in the classroom that they need a good sugar boost. Tossing the pancakes is always entertaining, with invariably an overzealous toss resulting in a sad looking pancake landing on the floor. The group of Form 1 children I had were an enthusiastic bunch and most of their produce looked good and was edible! This year the award for the most helpful person when it came to tidying and washing up went to Bea Mostyn-Owen. EAC
International film club
Squash
The global village, first mentioned in the 1960s, is alive and well in the Packwood International Film Club. The latter’s recent season has made its not inconsiderable contribution to international awareness through watching and enjoying a carefully chosen, child-friendly selection of international cinema. Of particular interest was Kubrick’s masterpiece 2001: A Space Odyssey which cleverly places man in a cosmic perspective and Dark Star which nicely satirises man’s futuristic pretensions. Additionally, Le Ballon Rouge and Crin Blanc well illustrated the importance of childhood innocence and imagination. Other films enjoyed by club members including Chanida Dhooghe, Ralph Furse, Amber Gibbins, Bea Mostyn-Owen, Johnnie Peel, Hugh Davies, Eliott Gilling-Smith, Zak Nicholas and Theo Penney were Life is Beautiful, Gandhi, Singing in the Rain, Galaxy Quest and It’s a Wonderful Life. Packwood’s International Film Club continues to be an easily accessible tool to global appreciation. JL
Squash clubs and activities have been running for a small number of skilled athletes throughout the winter months. With the rules quickly grasped the boys got straight into playing what is not only fast and furious but also an incredibly technical sport. Some of the best games played were the epic duels between Eddie Thomson and Jonty Hall whilst it is fair to say that all the children involved in squash proved they all had the making to be fine players. PL
Mandarin club
Touch rugby
Mandarin Club began in the summer term with students first learning some basic greetings in Chinese and the four tones – demonstrated very well by Llyr Heyward-Jones and Roly Hancock. Then we moved on to the bigger challenge of writing characters! Claudia Tate took to this very well despite being the youngest student of all. We ended the term with a session on Chinese music with students playing the guzheng (or Chinese harp) and performing the Chinese they had learnt from the term in the style of Peking Opera. Some excellent performances came from Sacha Sandbach and Ken Peerapairoj. Zhongwen xuesheng, jiayou! Keep going everyone! Barney Martin
The seniors’ touch rugby took place on a Monday evening on the AWS. The aim of each training session was to develop basic organisation, ball handling skills, communication and fitness. The boys, mostly members of the Under 13 VII squad, played with vigour and to their credit at the end of each physically arduous session they pleaded for even more time to play. Eddie Thomson, Rory Fergusson, Tom Baxter, Ed Beard, Freddie Beharrell, Hugh Davies, Rory Davies, Christopher Dorrell, Jonty Hall, Caspar Massey, Jacob Rand, Jonty Schofield, Thomas Tulloch and Harry Wasdell all ensured that each evening was highly competitive, played in good spirit and was thoroughly enjoyable to coach. CL
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Cupcake making Mixing delicious ingredients for our cupcakes, the warm smell of baking and then decorating the finished product with chocolate fudge icing, chocolate chips, hundreds and thousands and myriad other toppings kept the happy bakers Alice Rees, Theo Penney, Tara Beasley, Chanida Dhooghe, Sacha Roberston and Llyr Heyward-Jones, amongst others, sweet during this very popular Sunday activity. The children made half a dozen cupcakes each and it is rumoured that one of them ate all six in one evening! EN
Drama
Badminton
In Drama throughout the year we have had a lot of fun in many ways. We have had a go at mime, improvisation, charades, small plays and drama games. Each session was always finished off with the old favourite, Sleeping Lions. The aim of the activity has been to enable the younger children in particular to grow in confidence and perform in front of a small group of people. Also, enjoyment by doing was high on the agenda! GW
I have been impressed with the improvement in those players that have been members of the badminton activity for two terms this year. George Clowes and Frankie McLaughlin have really come on and are now playing good games with long, varied rallies. Alf Hughes is now one of the stronger players and is a regular winner of the ‘Round the World’ games that we usually finish with. We also have a group of younger players who are very determined and have a natural eye for the shuttlecock. This group includes Georgie Nicholas, Isabel Morris and Jack Yeoward. They too have played at a good level and have had some exciting rallies. It has been a good year for the activity and I hope to see some of the more experienced players again next year. EAC
Jewellery club Jewellery club was well attended and very successful. My club regulars were Maya Leavey, Chanida Dhooghe, Jessie Hunt, Phoebe Wasdell, Sacha Roberston, Elena Cros, Marina Resines, Lexi Samuel, Rosie Simpson and Sacha Sandbach. Once they had become more familiar with using the special jewellery making pliers and cutting tools, the items the girls produced looked very professional. They made bracelets with ‘magic string’ using all sorts of materials including buttons and beads. They made necklaces and earrings where they learnt how to cut, bend and loop the wire. We even made rings using memory wire and seed beads which were very effective. The mix and match of glass beads and pearl beads was very popular. Our room really looked like a bead shop – an awe-inspiring sight for the girls and the wide choice made selecting what to use quite a challenge for some of them! The most popular item to be made was earrings, especially for Chanida who couldn’t resist wearing them when she left the room. EN
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Judo Acorns This term the Acorns have grown again into the biggest number I have had in one term, 20 players and every one of those players is a pleasure to coach. Both boys and girls attend full of energy and eager to learn about judo. Each term some new children join the group as some move up to the juniors and it is great to see how the more experienced ones help the beginners. Each term I find that one or two individuals stand out from the group and this term Will Williamson and Lucy Oakley seemed to shine. Results of this year’s Judo tournament: Gold
Silver
Bronze
Frank Morris Timmy Robinson-Boulton Ned Moreau Will Stanford-Davis Lawrence Rathbone Nicholas Yeoward Kit Warburton-Lee Will Shaw Tommy Jarvis Talullah Blackham Harry Wasdell Guy Morris Luke Williams
Zara Vickers Lawrence Rathbone Imogen Downey Edward Barry Ellie Mason Jude Bedford Jonty Bright Max Horler Olivia Moir Guy Morris Oliver Griffiths Freddie Cox Edred Clutton Isabel Morris Ali Davies Ned Warburton-Lee Isabella Wythe Edward Peterson
Lottie Clarke Morton Moss Alex Wythe Sebastian Rathbone Murray Robinson-Boulton Louis Martin Jude Bedford Daisy Harker-Weston Lottie Hill-Trevor Lottie Clarke Euan Montgomery Jago Ainslie Freddie Oakley AJ MacKinlay Daniel Richardson Edward Don Robert Vick Francis McLaughlin
Throw of the tournament Jonty Bright
Junior School With the start of each term some of the Acorns group move up into the juniors. They always fit in quite quickly as they bring their knowledge with them and this session is the most lively of the day – due to the players’ ages and the fact that it takes place just before tea! Some of the players in this session are members of the British Judo Association and have trained with me for quite a while so their grades are of a higher level. In this group Sebastian Marmont, Tommy Jarvis, Isabel Morris and Freddie Oakley have undoubtedly given a good account of themselves during the term. Middle School Some of the best school judo comes out of this session, they could all be club players not only school players. By the time they have reached middle school their knowledge of the techniques and understanding of the BJA rules are more developed which means I can coach at a higher level and get the best out of the pupils. Top players this term have been Francis McLauglin, Nick Yeoward, Lottie Clarke and Ali Davies, and I’d like to say a special thank you to Francis for helping me with the mats.
‘Spirit of Judo’ award Euan Montgomery
Senior School It’s this session that also shows how keen Packwood judokas are. By now some, if not most, of the seniors have been with me for maybe eight or nine years having started as Acorns and continued as they’ve moved up the school gaining many grades and medals over that time. For me it can be a sad time as I know I will lose some of them at the end of each year. I hope the next schools they go to offer judo and they can keep it up. Harry Wasdell and Edward Peterson were my new players during this term and, along with Isabella Wythe, they have shown a great understanding of the sport. I wish all the school leavers the very best and maybe one day I will see them again on a judo mat. Roger Houston BJA 6th Dan
Mixed hockey Monday evening, 7pm – dark, cold, wet … Every week I would make my way down to the Astroturf, thinking “I could do without this!” as I turned on the lights and opened the shed in readiness for the mixed hockey club.
(probably helped by the rule that ‘Sir’ could only play for the losing side) and the end of series result is still the cause of much heated debate. I believe it was a respectable 5-5 draw but there are others who beg to differ!
Monday evening, 8pm – darker, wetter and colder… and a complete change of mood having thoroughly enjoyed myself, such was the infectious enthusiasm of the group. It is fair to say that the quality of hockey at times was some way below Olympic standard but the spirit was certainly Corinthian. The most popular and requested match-up for teams was to play boys against girls where finesse, silky skills and good team work challenged brawn, sweat and, dare I say, slightly more agricultural stick work! It always seemed to go down to the wire
It never ceased to amaze me that even in the most inclement weather there was always full attendance and even injured individuals would turn up to umpire. Also the spirit in which each game was played was always very admirable. Well done ‘The Monday Club’ for lifting me out of those winter blues! MAF
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Textiles
Sewing and knitting
This junior activity has been very popular and very much enjoyed by the girls who have taken part. Each term they have had a different theme or project to work on. The children used all sorts of materials – fabrics, buttons, sequins, ribbons, fabric pens and paints – to make and decorate bags, pencil cases, cushions, bunting and wall hangings amongst other things. Olivia Moir, Anna Cowan, Harriet Haynes, Alice Hughes, Poppy Stephens, Eliza Blackham, Honor Grigg and Isabel Morris became the regulars of this ‘hands on’ fluffy and fun activity which became a bit like the Women’s Institute where they all sit and sew and have a chat! EN
This year we focused on the sewing part of our club. We had a project to work on which was a hand-made cushion. First we had to learn how to cross stitch and then we had to be able to follow the pattern. We had many different coloured embroidery threads and spent a long time untangling them! It was a relaxed, chilled out time and every week we could chat and stitch. Chanida, Maya, Georgie, Amber, Romy, Chloe, Ellie, Daisy and Juliana all had fun trying to make a friendship pillow. RE
Scuba diving
Quiz club We began Quiz Club every week by watching the BBC children’s current affairs programme, Newsround. Then we tested our knowledge with quizzes covering a wide variety of topics of interest ranging from popular films and TV shows to the world around us, animals and wildlife, and much more. Oliver Bureau was particularly strong on overall general knowledge. He was so inspired that he even made up some quizzes for us to use, thank you Oliver. We also introduced some lateral thinking quizzes and some clever “Dingbat” quizzes where you had to say what you see. Sophia Price, Amber Gibbins, Amelia Tennant and Alice Shone had fun having a go at these new quizzes. Well done girls! RE
I had thought about doing some scuba diving in school, but needed an instructor to come and help. This year we were fortunate enough to get in touch with Paul and Jane Phillips from Wanadive in Whitchurch. They were fantastic. They came over on Wednesday evenings to do try dive sessions, and were ably assisted by Richard Burdekin and Paul’s son, Jack. The try dive lasted about an hour. The children all had a go with a snorkel and mask, learning how to keep their mask clean and how to put it on properly. They then donned Scuba kit. They were taught about the basic safety skills they would need and then slowly got used to breathing underwater. They practised taking their regulator in and out, just in case it was knocked out whilst underwater, and they learnt how to control their buoyancy using their BCD (buoyancy control device). The children absolutely loved it. Many wanted to come again and have another go. The smiles on their faces made setting this up so worthwhile. In the end over 50 children had a try dive, and hopefully a few of those will take up the sport in the future. SAR
Table tennis The table tennis club has proved again to be a popular way to spend part of those long dark winter nights. There has been a good mix of ages and abilities ranging from complete novices to those with a good combination of experience and skill, and the practice sessions seemed to evolve naturally so that all the boys were matched well in their games. Inevitably, various internal ‘challenges’ began to occupy the evenings, and despite maintaining a relaxed and light-hearted approach, it was interesting to note how all the players developed their skill levels and became more competitive as the weeks progressed.
A table tennis tournament was organised for the whole school in the autumn term, and it was good to see so many boys and girls of all abilities signing up to play. Eventually, Francisco Gomez emerged as the overall winner, which was the correct outcome, as he had proved to be virtually unbeatable during club evenings with his impenetrable defence and attacking guile. My thanks to all those who turned out regularly – Bertie Jenkinson, Jude Bedford, Scott Hatton, Francisco Gomez, Louis Martin, Guy Morris, Seb Rathbone and Scott Nicholson. KJW
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Model club Airfix models, glue, paint and enthusiastic boys – what a combination! Some of the boys had never made models before and so they began with the starter kits which included the Red Arrows’ Gnat. There were relatively few parts to glue together and the paint was thankfully, water based. Having successfully completed their first model, they went on to join the more experienced model makers to paint and construct Battle of Britain aircraft, including the Hurricane, Spitfire and Messerschmitt. Tom Hughes and Roly Hancock made a tank, which took a lot of patience but the end result was impressive. EAC
Planet Packwood
Zumba
I came up with the name of this club before I gave any thought to what it would involve...it just sounded such a good title! I suppose the idea was to get together an assortment of like-minded chaps and each week do something which would make Packwood a better place for us all to share and hence go forth and save the planet. We did do a bit of this stuff, we had an evening when we trawled through the spinney collecting rubbish which ranged in size from crisp packets to kitchen doors which we burnt on an impressive bonfire! Not very eco-friendly, but boy was it fun.
Zumba is an extremely popular Colombian dance fitness craze which has swept through the nation and seemed to be a perfect new junior activity to replace the previous ‘Exercise to Music’. With the help of my trusted partner, Zumba Wii Fit, I was able to bring a Zumba Fitness Party to life each Thursday afternoon! We used the Learn the Steps training, plus Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced routines. As the girls followed each move in rhythm with the on-screen Zumba instructor, the stage transformed into a high voltage party atmosphere with special effects and additional crowd dancers.
Inevitably, a club which boasted Robert Ford as a member was bound to become obsessed with food and so we also home smoked some cheese and eggs and we also skinned and cooked some pheasants. (All recipes available from the House Gauleiter). NRJ
During the year we have practised nine different dance styles and the girls thoroughly enjoyed the dance and aerobic elements. Zumba’s choreography incorporates hip-hop, soca, samba, salsa, merengue, mambo, martial arts and some Bollywood and belly dance moves.
Stage lighting This year’s Stage lighting Club consisted of Alex Wythe, Tom Simpson, Oliver Bureau and Edward Peterson. In the club time we have learnt how to manually control and program the lighting board; also the direction, focus, colouring and patching of the lights into the lighting board, how to cut the beam and control it, the level of light needed to illuminate the stage without dazzling and how to check for
It has been such a fun activity to be involved in – from watching the girls dance their little socks off, to dancing alongside them and to listening to them trying to sing along to the Latin tunes – I just hope the girls enjoyed it as much as I did! LW
coverage. We also learnt how to patch the various equipment used by the school into the sound board to generate sound effects and record sound, how to set up wired and wireless microphones and the patching of the theatre Tannoy system for backstage to control booth communication. For the school plays, Cinderella – The Truth! and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, we used the sound board and computer to
generate special effects and installed wired and wireless microphones. We positioned the lights between rehearsals and programmed the lighting board to automate the scene changes. The lunchtime and summer concerts involved positioning lights so that everybody on stage could be clearly seen but also taking into consideration the ability to read their sheet music without being dazzled. JB
Trampolining Some 30 to 40 different pupils have had the chance to take part in Trampolining this year, whether it has been in activities, junior boarders’ activities or senior boarders’ clubs. All of the pupils are able to perform a seat landing and come up to their feet, while some have progressed onto a seat landing with a half turn to their feet or a swivel hips (seat landing, half turn to seat landing, to feet). Page 50
All of the pupils are now able to put together a short routine including seat landings, shapes and turns. We have also been introducing the front and back landings and, for some, how to link a front landing into a seat landing. The pupils have taken part in small competitions during the sessions, for example, how many seat drops they could do one after the other and how many straight
jumps they could do whilst remaining in the centre of the trampoline. Everyone has achieved and developed new skills this year, from learning how to get onto the trampoline without help to more advanced drops,turns and jumps. Well done to everyone who has participated. JH
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Wheelchair sports This is a new activity aimed at introducing the children to sports played by wheelchair users. The main teacher has been Packwood pupil Tom Baines, a wheelchair user himself, who has helped to devise the activities and teach the skills. Over the term the children were taught how to use a chair independently and safely. Early activities included wheelchair circuits incorporating 180 and 360 degree turns. The children soon learnt that it is not as easy as it looks and that you need good upper body strength. Once the basics were in place we were then able to try our hands at basketball, new age kurling, boccia, fencing, wheelchair circuits, polybat, sprints and endurance pushes. These inclusive sports have allowed able-bodied children the opportunity to see things from a wheelchair user’s perspective. With the London 2012 Paralympics this year the children will have a better understanding of the techniques used and more appreciation for the skill and fitness levels required. KLP
Girls’cricket The girls’ cricket activity suffered greatly from interruptions this year due to wet weather and royal celebrations but on the days when we finally got going there was no end to the talent on display. There were some interesting bowling actions – some orthodox, some definitely not! The batting, also, may not have been text-book but it did prove to be effective. Again playing the ‘gets-out-goes-in-gets-the-ball-bowls’ format of the game meant that everybody was fully involved all of the time and we certainly had our fair share of laughs throughout the term. Well done all! MAF
Pottery club Mini tennis Lendl watched Murray, his protégé, with an impassive face which spoke of tension and anxiety about performance at the highest level. I watched our mini tennis games with no sign of impassivity or equanimity. This year was another one of exuberant interest for me witnessing young people playing with enjoyment and excitement at the thrill of co-ordinating a racquet with a ball across a net with success. This is not tennis, it is mini tennis and one day small people from Packwood and elsewhere will engage in long rallies at a Wimbledon mini tennis tournament that will raise gasps of surprise and awe from the entranced audience. Another brilliant year for mini tennis at Packwood, rain notwithstanding. JL
This term the members of the pottery club have been mainly working on the theme of the poem The Owl and the Pussycat by Edward Lear. Edward Barry seemed to know the poem quite well, and Arthur Gell enjoyed the sense of the absurd that Lear so excelled in. The source enabled us to use all of the methods that the old hands had picked up previously, and it gave me an opportunity to introduce new techniques to the novices. We began with the Beautiful Pea Green boat by using the slab pot method engraved with a pottery tool to give the clinker built effect. George Compston was good at using the thumb pot method to model his owl, and Harry Griffiths (one of the old hands) modelled an excellent cat using, in part, the coil method. Other embellishments were added such as the guitar that the owl was holding, a tiller, oars and even a sail. When glazed the effect was, in the words of James Hinwood, quite amazing. (Or did he say, amusing?) Other models made this term have been on a similar literary theme: Smaug the dragon wrapped around an orb to represent the treasure that he guarded in JRR Tolkien’s The Hobbit, and Lewis Carroll’s Jabberwocky, inspiring some more imaginative ceramic creations. PRD
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S P O R T: F O O T B A L L
Football 1st XI
A season of very competitive matches for the 1st XI produced an excellent set of results despite conceding 32 goals in the 12 games played. Against most of the opposition we struggled physically against bigger and stronger players. Defensively the back four of Jonty Hall, Jonty Schofield, David Schofield and Oliver Clarke all worked heroically to combat the pace and power of many sides we came across. Special mention at this point must go to our goalkeeper Andrew Tudor who had a terrific season between the sticks. Andrew pulled off many spectacular saves to keep us in contention in matches. His positional sense and distribution improved significantly throughout the season. The major factor in the success of the 1st XI is that all the squad members are technically proficient and comfortable on the ball. Add to this a terrific work ethic and a striker who can be relied upon to convert most of the chances created, then we have a team who is always likely to score more goals than the opposition.
He contributed much to our flowing style of football and was rewarded with some important goals. His two against Abberley were particularly memorable with a couple of terrific left foot strikes.
Played 12 Won 8 Drawn 1 Lost 3 For 41 Against 32 v Shrewsbury High v Prestfelde v Foremarke v Shrewsbury U14C v Wrekin College v Foremarke v Birchfield v Moor Park v Abberley v Shrewbury High v Abberley v Ellesmere
(H) (A) (A) (H) (A) (H) (A) (H) (A) (H) (H) (H)
Won Won Lost Won Drawn Lost Won Lost Won Won Won Won
4-1 4-3 1-7 3-1 3-3 0-6 4-3 0-1 4-2 8-1 4-2 6-2
The 2011/12 season will bring back many fond memories for me and provides further Shrewsbury 6-a-side tournament evidence that v Lockers Park Won 3 - 1 The team was built around the central midfield pairing of Freddie Packwood produces v Foremarke Won 2 - 1 Fielding and Archie Waterworth working hard to win the ball then using excellent footballing v Beech Hall Won 6 - 0 it intelligently to release our forwards and wide players. At times the teams. I thoroughly Quarter Final boys played brilliantly, particularly when we passed the ball around enjoyed coaching the v St John’s Lost 3 - 2 quickly and used the width of the field. As coach, I feel everyone in the team this year on my (after extra time) squad gave total commitment to the season and worked very hard on personal return to their individual skills. It was also very encouraging that three regular senior football. It was a IAPS North and Midlands Region members of the squad will be playing for the first team next season. difficult season at 6-a-side tournament The captain, Edward Beard, was our top scorer with 17 goals. Edward times, particularly the v Birchfield Won 1 - 0 got three hat tricks with two of them against Shrewsbury High Prep. matches against a very v St Olave’s Lost 0 - 2 Lost 2 - 4 I particularly rated his trio against Prestfelde as the most important for strong Foremarke team v St John’s v Westbourne Won 4 - 1 the team and an impressive lesson in clinical finishing. Also both Archie who overpowered us Waterworth and Caspar Massey (both in the 2s) chipped in with 15 goals in both games. The between them from their midfield positions. And Caspar gave a strong boys always responded very well and improved significantly in their hint for next season with four goals in our final game against Ellesmere performances and competitiveness on the pitch. A big thank you from when he finally got the chance to play up front. the team and coach for all the tremendous support from the parents – it makes such a difference, particularly in the away matches. In terms of footballing ability, I feel that this is one of the best sides Packwood has produced. The boys kept possession very well, working Squad : Edward Beard*(Capt), Andrew Tudor*, Oliver Clarke*, chances to score by passing the ball in to feet and displaying good David Schofield, Jonty Hall*, Jonty Schofield*, Caspar Massey, individual skill to beat opponents. Very rarely did they resort to Harry Wasdell, Freddie Fielding*, Archie Waterworth, optimistically hitting long balls up the field. Edward Thomson certainly Edward Thomson*, Freddie Beharrell, Thomas Tulloch, deserves much credit particularly during the second half of the season. Christopher Dorrell, George Hargrave, Pedro Cros. PJP Page 52
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S P O R T: F O O T B A L L
2nd XI Played 7 Won 2 Drawn 3 Lost 2 For 15 Against 13 v Prestfelde v Foremarke v Foremarke v The Ryleys 1st XI v Abberley v Abberley v Ellesmere
(H) (H) (A) (H) (A) (H) (H)
Won Won Lost Drawn Lost Drawn Drawn
6-1 3-2 2-3 1-1 1-4 1-1 1-1
For a side to change coaches halfway through the season was always going to be difficult. Having had a respectable start to the season registering a win against Foremarke at home as well as a close away fixture, was encouraging. After returning to playing with the ball on the floor after the Christmas break, the 2nd XI was faced with Abberley away. With not a great deal of preparation the team fought hard against a very direct Abberley side that played the ‘hit it long’ game to perfection. A few early lapses in defence cost the team as one of Abberley’s Spanish boys took his chances well. Freddie Beharrell rallied the troops with a well taken finish but it had taken the side too long to work out the opposition’s ploys. A result that was hard to take, but a big learning curve for the team. For the return leg the boys were ready. A few positional changes and a lot of work dealing with long balls, the side was much better prepared. After an early blunder, keeper Jamie
Chambers was a brick wall growing in confidence with every minute. A much better team performance and one that the Packwood boys deserved to get more from, after keeping the Abberley attackers at bay. The final game came against Ellesmere – a very end-to-end fixture, with Chan Kathuria and George Hargrave pulling the strings in the middle of the pitch. Ivor Fetherstonhaugh ran his lungs out for the whole game and quashed the Ellesmere attacks. Hugh Davies terrorised the left back all day and caused mayhem in the opposition’s half. The pick of the players was
Javier Garcia though, who scored Packwood’s goal and dominated as a lone striker! It was a positive finish to a season that chopped and changed. A number of the boys should fare well next year as they push for first team places! Squad: Chan Kathuria (Capt), Edward Peterson, Rory Davies, Ivor Fetherstonhaugh, Samuel Bayliss, Freddie Beharrell, George Hargrave, Louis Martin, Javier Garcia, Hugh Davies, Jamie Chambers. JM
3rd XI Played 7 Won 5 Drawn 1 Lost 1 For 29 Against 8 v Prestfelde v Foremarke v Moffats v Wrekin 2nd XI v Foremarke v Abberley v Abberley
(H) (A) (A) (H) (H) (H) (A)
Won Lost Won Won Drawn Won Won
4-1 3-2 4-0 4-3 2-2 6-0 6-0
Had it not been for the two Foremarke matches – in the first of which we played well and dominated, only to let a 2-0 lead evaporate through sloppy defending – this season’s playing record could have been even better. Sound defensive displays in all our other matches meant that few goals were conceded yet there was always an attacking threat, particularly from Linden Grigg (who grabbed a hat trick against Abberley), Scott Hatton and Charlie Jackson. Surely the highlight of the term, however, was the excellent 4-3 victory against Wrekin 2nd XI played on a very warm afternoon, in which we came from behind to grab a victory which had looked unlikely for much of the match, thanks to a Charlie Jackson hat trick. Only a magnificent performance from debutant goalkeeper, Patrick Ashall, kept our
opponents at bay and sent the huge home crowd away happy. Both coaches agreed afterwards that it had been a great advert for the game at this level. A special word of thanks goes to Timmy Robinson-Boulton for being such an effective captain. He has been a steadying influence in defence all season, and though a man of few words, his example has been there for all to see and follow. Finally, many thanks to all the boys for their hard work and positive attitude this season. Squad: Timmy Robinson-Boulton (Capt), Linden Grigg, Charlie Jackson, Scott Hatton, Freddie Houlker, Rory Davies, Francisco Gomez, Fergus David, Guy Morris, Rory Carter-Motley, Bertie Jenkinson, Patrick Ashall, Dominic Ainslie, Jamie Chambers, Luke Williams, Tom Baxter, Robert Ford, Zak Nicholas, Harri Holroyd, Edward Myddelton. KJW Page 53
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S P O R T: F O O T B A L L
4th XI
Played 6 Won 6 Drawn 0 Lost 0 For 29 Against 3 v Foremarke v Foremarke v Birchfield v Moor Park 2nd XI v Abberley v Abberley
The 4th XI enjoyed a terrific season with six games evenly spaced across the two half terms. The results speak for themselves: we were almost without exception fitter, more physical and better at concentrating on the game than our opponents. What we sometimes lacked in skill we certainly made up for in enthusiasm!
(H) (A) (H) (A) (H) (A)
Won Won Won Won Won Won
5-0 4-0 4-2 4-0 5-0 7-1
stood-still strike into the goal from beyond the penalty box.
Later on in the season we were too strong for a committed Moor Park 2nd XI and also took a good number of goals off Abberley. Robert Ford continued the theme of scoring goals from all different positions having handed over the goalkeeping gloves, including one from right back. Rory The opening double-header against Foremarke set the tone for the rest of Fergusson and Gideon Turner were now finding their range and scored a the season. We created numerous chances which over time were always number of goals between them, whilst Zak Nicholas scored a very going to take us into the lead. At home Linden Grigg deftly bagged a hat impressive hat trick at Abberley. Edward Myddelton also impressed throughout the season with his good pace and hard work in midfield, trick before being poached for higher honours. Away, Captain Harri and Luke Williams stood out in a strong defence. Well done to the whole Holroyd scored from a terrific free kick having just missed a penalty. squad for a well-deserved unbeaten season. Our only genuine test came early in the season, at home against Team: Harri Holroyd (Capt), Robert Ford, Luke Williams, Scott Walker, Birchfield. Having gone 2-0 down by half-time, a rousing half-time talk Jude Bedford, Tom Baxter, Tom Hughes, Gideon Turner, Rory Fergusson, combined with a happy alignment of the planets resulted in a Zak Nicholas, Ben Ricks, Linden Grigg, Jack Ashworth. RAC magnificent comeback, the highlight being Tom Hughes’ thunderous,
5th XI ‘Lock and Long’ and ‘The Played 5 Won 3 Drawn 1 Lost 1 Poacher’, they sound like For 22 Against 5 movies, and as the season v Foremarke (H) Won 3-0 rolled on, it felt like a movie v Prestfelde (A) Won 9-0 plot unfolding (Moffats 1st XI v Wrekin 3rd XI (H) Drawn 2-2 clearly hadn’t read the script!) v Foremarke (A) Won 6-0 Truth be known, word went v Moffats 1st XI (A) Lost 2-3 out across the land that eleven men good and true were required to give their all, play with enthusiasm and rebuild the reputation of the ‘beautiful game’ so tarnished by the so-called professionals. The goals from Channon, Rand and Moss came thick and fast. The defence was the rock upon which the victories were built. Tom Shaw possesses not only a phenomenal knowledge of the game, but can curve a ball and place it right at the feet of his strikers. Squad: Ben Ricks (Capt), Thomas Simpson, Alexander Wythe, Bentley Moss, Keita Umetani, Thomas Shaw, Simon Waterhouse, Jack Lock, James Long, Jamie Channon, Jacob Rand, Theo Penney, Harry Marshall, Johnnie Peel, Jack Ashworth. NW Page 54
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Under 11A The omens for the season were good. We went to Shrewsbury School for their annual 6-a-side tournament and played some excellent early season football, making it to the final but just falling short against Arnold Lodge. Runners-up, I would have settled for that, as they say, prior to the tournament. It was evident that the squad would not be changing too much throughout the season. It had a good balance with Messrs Furnival and Humes controlling the midfield, Holt and Morris refusing to let anything or anyone pass without them first leaving their ‘mark’ and Mobbs snapping away at the opposition’s defenders ankles like a crazed Jack Russell! Alex Ainslie would prove to be a reliable goalkeeper (although we won’t mention his throwing!) and Harry Swinburne a competent replacement for anyone on the left hand side. Nick Yeoward was to prove the ‘utility man’ and could happily (or not so) slot in to any position, even goalkeeper! With rolling substitutes at this level it would be quite easy to maximize the team’s potential. Having
said that we almost came unstuck against Prestfelde when we were suffering from ‘post traumatic tournament disorder’! A fantastic display in the Wrekin 7-a-side tournament – most memorable for Daniel Humes’ Beckhamesque goal from inside his own half – saw us winning the final on penalties against Old Hall, a team we never managed to beat in normal time in several meetings during the season. We had struck a rich vein of form and continued to play some beautiful football for the rest of the season but no matter how good you think you are there is always someone better around the corner. Old Hall was to prove to be that someone and deservedly showed us what was required to step up to the next level. Nonetheless, an excellent season and one in which the boys should be proud of their efforts – I am!
Played 8 Won 6 Drawn 1 Lost 1 For 45 Against 14 v Shrewsbury High v Foremarke v Moor Park v Prestfelde v Old Hall v Abberley v Shrewsbury High v Foremarke
(H) (A) (H) (A) (H) (H) (A) (H)
Won Won Won Drawn Lost Won Won Won
4-1 5-1 12 - 0 1-1 2-6 6-2 6-0 9-3
Team: Daniel Humes, Alex Ainslie, Oscar Holt, Fred Furnival, Nick Yeoward, Frank Morris, Archie Mobbs, Harry Swinburne. MAF
Under 11B The Colts A and B squad trained as a unit this Played 4 Won 3 Drawn 0 Lost 1 season, which proved to be a massive benefit For 23 Against 9 for our B team. Having the option of training v Foremarke (A) Won 7-2 and working alongside the talented A team (A) Lost 3-5 helped to lift our skills to a new level. Our match v Foremarke v Moor Park (H) Won 8 -1 play improved dramatically over the course of v Abberley (H) Won 5-1 the season and it was great to see the boys playing some quality football towards the end of the season. Some highlights included the combination of Ben Cowley and Tom Mercer at the back (together called 'The Bash Brothers'), whose endeavour in defence was a major contributor to the success of the side this season. The work of Ollie Hall and Rowan Pickstock on the wings was also brilliant, providing strikers William Holcroft and Harry Waterworth with ample opportunities to put Packwood on the scoreboard. Overall a very promising season, the future looks bright for Packwood! Team: William Holcroft (Capt), Felix Jebb, Harry Waterworth, Rowan Pickstock, Ollie Hall, Jack Goodall, Ben Cowley, Thomas Mercer. PD
Under 11C Played 8 Won 2 Drawn 2 Lost 4 For 20 Against 28 v Prestfelde v Old Hall v Abberley v Shrewsbury High A v Foremarke U10A v The Ryleys U11A v Foremarke U11B v St Winefride’s U11A
(H) (A) (A) (H) (H) (H) (H) (H)
Drawn Won Won Drawn Lost Lost Lost Lost
1-1 6-1 3-1 0-0 0-5 4-5 1-6 5-9
This was a great bunch of enthusiastic footballers, always ready to learn, and keen to improve their skills. Competing against other C teams, we proved to be a strong team. Mr Phillips was able to get us other fixtures, as there weren’t enough schools in the district that could raise a C side. Against these other A and B sides we had mixed fortunes, but thoroughly enjoyed the experience.
James Hinwood was clearly the best player. We couldn’t believe our luck that he wasn’t wanted in the mighty Bs, and he ran the show with great confidence and intelligence in midfield. Our defenders, Nat McAllister and Alfred Hughes showed excellent positional sense and were highly dependable in front of a steady Ned Moreau as goalkeeper. They were only undone by some whippersnapper A team strikers! In midfield James played centre, but there was a healthy competition for the centre forward spot and the other two midfield places. Arthur Gell and Patrick Norman were like little dynamos, running their socks off and showing great positional sense. Owen Carroll was a stylish, controlled player, and if he can find some acceleration as he grows, he could become a very useful footballer. Young Toby Turpin had skill spilling out of him, but now needs to develop urgency and a sense of position, as he will still be an Under 11 player next year. Up front Max Horler finally proved he was the right choice. He was like a terrier as a centre forward, always getting himself into good positions, and scoring vital goals. Team: Nat McAllister (Capt), James Hinwood, Alfred Hughes, Ned Moreau, Max Horler, Arthur Gell, Patrick Norman, Owen Carroll, Toby Turpin. RHC Page 55
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Under 11D This was a strange season: we competed against some teams far more skilful and able than us, and some other teams against whom we found the going rather easier – a genuine competition was rare, but was found in the shadow of the Wrekin. However, given all that the Under 11D team confronted this season, it can be said that the team never gave up in the face of adversity, and never became boastful in victory.
Played 8 Won 3 Drawn 1 Lost 4 For 21 Against 19 v Prestfelde v Foremarke v The Ryleys U10A v Foremarke v Moffatts U11A v Old Hall v Abberley v St Winefride’s U11B
(H) (A) (H) (H) (H) (A) (A) (H)
Lost Lost Lost Lost Won Drawn Won Won
2-4 1-4 0-4 2-4 6-1 1-1 6-0 3-1
When against strong teams such as Prestfelde and The Ryleys, naive defending from goal kicks failed to help our cause, but there were some excellent performances in goal from Ali Davies to keep some of the better strikers at bay. It was a disappointment not to score against The Ryleys. The improvement in the two results against Foremarke demonstrated that the team was coming together in the space of a few weeks. Steely determination transformed into defensive surety at the back, and there was a more ruthless streak in attack, led by Seb Rathbone and Owen Carroll, which was reflected in the improved goal tally in the second half of the season. The tightest, and most exciting, game was against Old Hall – a match played on a cold, windy day on a large pitch. Packwood was the better team, but we were unable to take control, and even fell behind which was against the run of play. Owen scored a wonderful solo goal to equalise, but the more we tried to gain a winner, the more Old Hall’s defenders and goalkeeper remained firm.
Squad: Ali Davies, Edward Barry, Adam Pattenden, Marcus Woodhead, Jonty Bright, Toby Turpin, Arthur Gell, Ned Moreau, Seb Rathbone, Owen Carroll. JO
Under 9A This year, the Under 9As have had some ups Played 4 Won 1 Drawn 0 Lost 3 and downs but there are two performances that For 8 Against 15 we ought to keep in mind. Firstly the fabulous v Prestfelde (H) Lost 2-5 game against Abberley at home which we won v Abberley (A) Lost 3 -7 2-1 just a few days after losing away 3-7. And of v Abberley (H) Won 2-1 course, the highlight of the term, the second v Birchfield (H) Lost 1-2 place in the Plate Tournament at Prestfelde which showed the high level of determination the team had as well as the ability to play some great football. Well done all for that grand finale. It is very difficult to single out the best player throughout the season as they have all sharpened their skills considerably. I have been impressed with their superb team spirit. Team: Thomas Dix, Jack Yeoward, William Stanford-Davis, Jacob Jones, Edward Bayliss, Joe Pattenden, Oliver Holcroft. JN
Under 9B, C and D The results don’t really reflect how well we did this year. I feel the real winner was the number of boys who played in the matches. We played a rotation system, which meant that we had two very similar teams who played in alternate matches. All the boys gave their all, and were a credit to the school. Squad: Will Shaw, Oliver Griffiths, Luke Jackson, Lawrence Rathbone, Freddie Cox, Jago Ainslie, Seb Marmont, Tom Kiel, Orlando Williams, Piers Nyhan, William Tate, Oliver Holcroft, Fred Stephens. SAR
Under 9C: Played 2 Won 0 Drawn 0 Lost 2 For 1 Against 11 Under 9B: Played 11 Won 2 Drawn 5 Lost 4 For 10 Against 18 v St Winefride’s U9A v Moor Park U9B v Abberley U9B v Abberley U8A v Moreton Hall v Prestfelde
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(H) (H) (A) (A) (A) (H)
Lost Drawn Lost Drawn Drawn Lost
2-5 0-0 0-2 1-1 2-2 0-5
Birchfield U9B festival v Prestfelde v Birchfield C v Abberley v Hallfield v Birchfield
v St Winefride’s U9B v Birchfield U9B Drawn Drawn Won Won Lost
1-1 0-0 2-0 1-0 1-2
(H) (H)
Lost Lost
1-5 0-6
Under 9D: Played 1 Won 0 Drawn 0 Lost 1 For 1 Against 3 v St Winefride’s U9C
(H)
Lost
1-3
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S P O R T: R U G B Y
Rugby 1st XV Oh dear…the statistics don’t look good, do they? But what’s the old saying: “lies, damned lies, and statistics”? Certainly the statistics this year tell only a very small part of the story… As my memory has conveniently blocked out most of the defeats, particularly the one at Ellesmere which was certainly our nadir, I shall focus on my main recollections of this season, and they are of the absolutely terrific games sessions that took place outside match days. Most years there have been a few large, powerful players who have dominated such occasions and given the smaller, less experienced players little chance to shine. This year, however, we had the perfect combination: a 1st XV that was struggling to win a school match and a 2nd XV that could not lose. What’s more, virtually all the players were, by normal Game 1 standards, ‘small’. But they were talented and they loved the game of rugby. As a result, whatever combination of players we put together for practice matches, the performances and the passion were fantastic – indeed, as enjoyable to watch and coach as any in my time at Packwood. I will remember this season for Jonty Schofield’s jinky runs, for Luke Williams’ emergence as a gritty, pacey forward, for Fergus David’s simple ‘run fast, run straight’ philosophy, for Ben Ricks’ moments when he really got fired up, for Bentley Moss’ wild bursts through the pack, for Thomas Tulloch steaming down the wing, for Harry Wasdell tackling monsters, for Bertie Jenkinson’s delicate off-loads, for Jacob Rand’s battering of the St Mary’s Hall try-line, for Ed Beard’s instinctively brilliant chip and chase try, for Hugh Davies’ sudden bursts of acceleration, for Rory Davies’ brief but belligerent performance against St John’s, for Scott Hatton’s deceptive speed, for Jonty Hall’s countless last-ditch tackles, for Tom Baxter emerging last once again from the bottom of a pile of bodies, for Freddie Beharrell’s brilliant try-scoring pass to Andrew Tudor against Sedbergh, for Andrew Tudor’s perfect
timing when he took the pass from Freddie, and for Christopher Dorrell’s dawning realisation that he was actually a rugby player.
Played 7 Won 1 Drawn 0 Lost 6 For 65 Against 214 v St John’ s-on-the-Hill(A) v St Mary’s Hall (H) v Bromsgrove (A) v Moor Park (A) v Sedbergh (H) v Abberley (A) v Ellesmere (A)
Lost 0 - 52 Lost 5 - 17 Lost 0 - 53 Won 24 - 10 Lost 12 - 15 Lost 7 - 43 Lost 17 - 24
My thanks to all the parents for their support even when the going was getting tough, to Mr Chris Leese for his invaluable assistance with the coaching, to the ground staff who have prepared so many first-rate rugby pitches for my teams over the years, to my fellow Game 1 coach, Mr Ken Webster, who has been a splendid colleague with whom to work, to all the ‘backroom staff’ who have fed and clothed the rugby teams, and to all this year’s Game 1 boys who were simply excellent. Squad: Freddie Beharrell* (Capt), Luke Williams, Fergus David, Ben Ricks, Bentley Moss, Thomas Tulloch, Harry Wasdell, Bertie Jenkinson, Jacob Rand, Jonty Schofield*, Hugh Davies, Andrew Tudor, Scott Hatton, Christopher Dorrell, Jonty Hall, Rory Davies*, Tom Baxter, Ed Beard*, Harry Wasdell. NTW
2nd XV Played 7 Won 7 Drawn 0 Lost 0 For 325 Against 22 v St Mary’s Hall (H) v Bromsgrove (A) v Moor Park (H) v King William’s, Isle of Man (H) v Sedbergh (A) v Abberley (H) v Shrewsbury High 1st XV (H)
Won 28 - 0 Won 60 - 15 Won 54 - 0 Won 29 - 0 Won 62 - 0 Won 47 - 7 Won 45 - 0
Given the results, it is easy to assume that this season has been a ‘walk in the park’ but this would not be a true reflection of the facts and takes away from the quality which the boys have displayed in most of their games. Yes, there have been some fixtures in which the opposition has provided a less than stern test, but in Bromsgrove, St Mary’s Hall and Sedbergh the team faced traditionally strong sides, and simply played better than them.
borne out by the fact that there have been nineteen different try scorers which points very firmly towards a team effort.
It is very pleasing to note that almost half of the preferred selection is available again next year – all the front row and the very influential half-backs being Under 12s – and this should form a very solid and experienced core upon which to base next year’s 1st XV.
The boys have been exciting and entertaining to watch all season and, despite their lack of bulk, resolute in defence. The handling has been perhaps the most pleasing aspect of all, and some of the tries against Bromsgrove appeared almost to go through every pair of hands before the final pass.
It is true to say that the side has possessed no ‘star’ individuals and this would seem to be
Well done on a fantastically entertaining season.
Squad: Ollie Clarke (Capt), Jude Bedford, Sam Bayliss, Edward Peterson, Rory Fergusson, Gideon Turner, Guy Morris, Patrick Ashall, Ivor Fetherstonhaugh, David Schofield, Archie Waterworth, Freddie Fielding, Jack Ashworth, Caspar Massey, Freddie Houlker, Eddie Thomson, Timmy Robinson-Boulton, Harry Wasdell, Hugh Davies, Luke Williams, Harri Holroyd. KJW
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3rd and 4th XV It’s quite an odd thing but the most memorable games that you play as a sportsman are often those that you win or lose narrowly – probably because you have had to work so hard and the teams are often closely matched. And so it was this season when the ‘stand out’ fixture was against Bromsgrove. The rugby season is a long one, stretching out over two terms and, as would prove to be a similar story throughout the year, was very much weather-affected. The squad was rich in talent and ability with players who, at some other schools, would certainly be regulars in the first team. We had power in the likes of Scott Walker, Alex Wythe, Robert Ford and Thomas Simpson, speed of hand and fleet of foot in Edward Myddelton, Louis Martin and Johnnie Peel and tenacious tackling from Ned Warburton-Lee and Rory Carter-Motley to name just some of the boys.
3rd XV
When ‘on song’ the 3rd XV would be a match for most others and we had two good wins against Abberley and St Mary’s Hall but the best game of the season, as I’ve said, was against Bromsgrove. The contrast between the two teams was marked. Our opponents were very well drilled and used to winning and we were meeting them towards the end of their season. What we lacked in finesse we made up for with sheer determination but we started poorly, made mistakes and were punished for them. At half-time things looked bleak but whether it was the inspirational team talk, or more likely the increase in self-belief we 4th XV took the game to them in the second half. We punched holes in their ranks time and time again and had our chance to share the spoils at the end but alas didn’t quite make it. We had given them a run for their money, if only we had started like we’d finished, if only we had made fewer mistakes, if only Scott hadn’t left his boots at Packwood and not played the entire game in his school shoes! 3rd XV team: Alex Wythe (Capt), Rory Carter-Motley, James Long, Jack Lock, Louis Martin, Jack Ashworth, Harri Holroyd, Charlie Jackson, Edward Myddelton, Thomas Simpson, Dominic Ainslie, Oliver Bureau, Robert Ford, Johnnie Peel, Scott Walker, Ned Warburton-Lee, Chan Kathuria. 4th XV team: Llyr Heyward-Jones, Roly Hancock, Eliott Gilling-Smith, George Hargrave, Ralph Furse, Harry Marshall, Simon Waterhouse, Morton Moss, Zak Nicholas, Jamie Chambers, Jamie Channon, Francisco Gomez, Keita Umetani, Linden Grigg, Javier Garcia. MAF/NRJ
Under 11A XII the shackles came off and the team showed what they could do if given space. The Abberley game was a different story. Against a very aggressive side that was hungry for the win, it was, nevertheless, Packwood who scored in the first minute. Nick Yeoward who had captained the side admirably all season, a player who has a very good rugby brain and The first fixture against St John’s was the combines power and finesse, broke clean wake-up call the team needed. Our opponents through for a 30 metre gallop under the posts. capitalised on our poor start and the day looked That was the last time Packwood would be like it was going to be a tough one. The given anything on a plate. The forwards who Packwood side started to gain possession and were dwarfed by the Abberley heavies fought ran their socks off to get back in it. Their hard but lacked the experience and bulk to character showed and Packwood took the out- muscle their second half 7-0. The St Mary’s Hall game was a opponents. The final tight affair with all the play around the half way result was one the team line. The team were unlucky to go down to a didn’t quite deserve, but a solo try from a rehearsed move, but lessons hard lesson and were learnt. Bromsgrove came with their size motivation for next year! and power and played a very direct game with a team of individuals. The Colts kept possession Overall, I want to thank the boys for making this a for long periods showing superb patience and very enjoyable first confidence in their ability. Jack Goodall controlled the game beautifully at 9, putting in a season in charge of the Colts’ rugby. It was great performance that will be the benchmark for next year! The midfield of Humes, Yeoward and working with a group that in every practice Furnival all shut the door on the Bromsgrove attackers in defence and created space and time were committed, out wide with ball in hand. Against Moor Park hardworking and most On paper the season looked as though the Colts had come up short. With only five fixtures instead of the scheduled eight the elements had taken their toll. This wasn’t quite the case though, this group of boys gave 100% whenever they crossed the whitewash and worked exceptionally hard for each other.
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3rd XV Played 3 Won 2 Drawn 0 Lost 1 For 75 Against 32 v Abberley v St Mary’s Hall v Bromsgrove
(H) (H) (A)
Won Won Lost
31 - 12 34 - 5 10 - 15
4th XV Played 1 Won 0 Drawn 0 Lost 1 For 7 Against 50 v Bromsgrove
(A)
Lost
7 - 50
Played 5 Won 2 Drawn 0 Lost 3 For 98 Against 96 v St John’s-on-the-Hill v St Mary’s Hall v Bromsgrove v Moor Park v Abberley
(A) (H) (H) (H) (A)
Lost Lost Won Won Lost
7 - 26 0-7 35 - 28 49 - 0 7 - 35
important of all, willing to learn and improve. Team: Nick Yeoward (Capt), Alfred Hughes, Alex Ainslie, Jonty Bright, Felix Jebb, Oscar Holt, Robert Vick, Jack Goodall, Daniel Humes, Freddie Furnival, Frank Morris, Harry Swinburne, Marcus Woodhead, Ollie Hall. JM
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Under 11B XII “I get knocked down, but I get up again.” Chumbawamba Experts of the odd shaped ball game and regular followers of the Packwood Haugh school Under 11B rugby team will know three things. The team with the ball wins. The team without the ball needs to get it. Mr Weston’s team never kicks. The scrum half is the key role in Under 11 rugby. Sorry four… Experts of the odd shaped ball game and regular followers of the Packwood Haugh school Under 11B rugby team will know four things. The team with the ball wins. The team without the ball needs to get it. Mr Weston’s team never kicks. The scrum half is the key role in Under 11 rugby. It is everyone’s job to tackle. Oops five… Anyway… you played as a ‘proper’ team – well done to you all and a big thank you to Bromsgrove for teaching us how to tackle. Team: James Hinwood (Capt), Ned Moreau, Piers Merison, Nat McAllister, Robert Vick, Adam Pattenden, Patrick Norman, Maxwell Horler, Ben Cowley, Archie Mobbs, Rowan Pickstock, Ali Davies, William Holcroft, Freddy Williams, Harry Waterworth. NW
Under 11C XII I have just checked back in my Played 3 Won 2 Drawn 0 Lost 1 records, and this is the fewest For 49 Against 62 matches played by the Under v St Mary’s Hall (H) Won 35 - 15 11C for at least six years. v Bromsgrove U10A (H) Lost 0 - 42 Unfortunately the weather v Abberley (H) Won 14 - 5 after Christmas was so bad that all the fixtures ended up being cancelled. What a shame. The boys in this game try so hard, and their rate of progression is probably only bettered by the Under 9s. The season got off to a good start with a cracking match. Both teams gave their all on a very small pitch, and everyone gained massively from the experience. The second game was a mismatch against Bromsgrove, and so the game was no contest. This doesn’t mean the boys gave up, far from it. Even against heavy odds they kept tackling, kept rucking and kept running hard. They were a credit to the school and themselves for their attitude under such conditions. The final match was fantastic, a true contest. This could have gone either way, and in many ways a draw would have been the right result, as both teams battled hard to gain the upper hand. Fortunately for us we just edged it, and ended the season with a winning record. Well done boys. Squad: Nat McAllister, Edward Barry, Edward Don, Nathan Mielczarek, Gregor Montgomery, Harry Myddelton, Arthur Gell, William Holcroft, Scott Nicholson, Harry Waterworth, Owen Carroll, Toby Turpin, Seb Rathbone, Frankie McLaughlin. SAR
Played 5 Won 4 Drawn 0 Lost 1 For 153 Against 45 v Bromsgrove B v Moor Park B v Abberley B v Shrewsbury High A v Ellesmere A
(H) (A) (A) (H) (H)
Lost Won Won Won Won
0 - 45 56 - 0 21 - 0 28 - 0 48 - 0
Under 11D XII It has been a successful Played 2 Won 1 Drawn 0 Lost 1 season for the Under 11Ds For 25 Against 50 this year largely due to the v Bromsgrove U10B (H) Lost 0 - 40 development that the side v Abberley (H) Won 25 - 10 has made. The majority of training sessions have involved working alongside the C team and have focused mainly on developing a solid skills base and the basics of the game. It has been an enjoyable ride. The boys being well aware that their natural abilities as rugby players aren't enough to turn them into first team contenders, playing with a smile on their faces was always going to be the key to success this season. Scott Nicholson proved to be a talented player, and his speed and strength through traffic was a major contributor to the side’s only triumph. Our front row, led by Murray Robinson-Boulton was strong, rarely being beaten and giving scrum half, George Clowes, plenty of opportunities to feed the ball out to our backs. It has been a fast learning experience for all the boys this season, well done to all! Team: Suguru Gotoh, George Weston, Kit Warburton-Lee, George Clowes, Murray Robinson-Boulton, Scott Nicholson, Nathan Mielczarek, Harry Griffiths, Gregor Montgomery, George Compston. PD
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Under 9A
The Under 9s worked with lots Played 3 Won 2 Drawn 0 Lost 1 of enthusiasm to improve on For 45 Against 40 their rugby skills and certainly v Moor Park (H) Won 15 - 10 gained quite a reputation as a v St Mary’s Hall U9B (A) Won 25 - 0 tough tackling bunch with no (A) Abandoned fear at all of the physical side of v St Mary’s Hall v Abberley (A) Lost 5 - 30 the game. This aspect of our play helped with early victories against Moor Park and in the St Mary’s Hall quadrangular, until the weather intervened. Sadly, our progress was further stifled by a frosty February where all the matches before half term were cancelled. The group rapidly improved on their basic skills of passing, catching and running with the ball. However, our lack of matches contributed to a disappointing end to the season in the final game against a strong Abberley team. The boys were unable to get quick ball from rucks and pass out to our dangerous backs, so we struggled to compete. Oliver Holcroft and Ed Bayliss were our half-back combination whilst captain Will Stanford-Davis and Joe Pattenden were very dynamic centres. Jack Yeoward, Lawrence Rathbone and Will Tate were our skilful and hard tackling wings. Fred Stephens, Jacob Jones and Will Shaw were very effective as our forwards responsible for setting up good ball for the backs to use. Three of the squad were selected for the Under 10 tournament at Shrewsbury School where they won the Plate competition. This was reward indeed for Will, Joe and Lawrence for working hard throughout the season. Well done. Team: William Stanford-Davis (Capt), Joe Pattenden, Edward Bayliss, Oliver Holcroft, Jacob Jones, Fred Stephens, William Shaw, Jack Yeoward, Lawrence Rathbone, William Tate. PJP
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Under 9B
The Under 9Bs had Played 1 Won 0 Drawn 0 Lost 1 been waiting so long For 15 Against 40 for a proper match v Abberley (A) Lost 15 - 40 that when it came the intensity really took them by surprise! Abberley was a big and well-organised team; we were largely made up of Under 8s who will certainly have learnt a lot in preparation for another go at this age group next year. Well done to those three who managed to score tries in a high-scoring game on a wide Abberley pitch: captain Oliver Griffiths, young star Will Tate and fearless Sebastian Marmont – all well-deserved for your efforts throughout the long season. It has been great to see the enthusiasm of these boys, many of them completely new to rugby, and the way their ball skills, tackling and understanding of the game have improved hugely. The backs were well supported by a strong scrum of Orlando Williams, Edred Cluttton and Freddie Oakley. I will remember Edred’s trademark running with the ball and stopping several times to pick up his mouthguard for a long time! I look forward to seeing further progress from the whole group next year. Team: Oliver Griffiths (Capt), Orlando Williams, Edred Clutton, Freddie Oakley, Sebastian Marmont, William Tate, Jago Ainslie, Angus Hill-Trevor, Euan Montgomery. RAC
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1st VII
Rosslyn Park National Sevens All Hallows Shrewsbury House Terrington Hall Knock out stage Danes Hill
The 2012 season culminated in the National Sevens Tournament at Rosslyn Park. With the weight limit set at just over ten stone it was slightly alarming to find a number of our players weighing in at little more than half that! However the boys really did punch above their weight, convincingly winning their group stage. This was an excellent team effort combining some great defensive work and attacking spirit. During the tournament the team were lucky to be given a team talk from none other than retired England full-back, and Rugby World Cup winning medallist, Jason Robinson. Robinson appeared impressed after Luke Williams explained that his brother had completed a GCSE project on him! Throughout the season the boys worked hard on their organisation and fitness. Their attitude was excellent and they were an absolute pleasure to coach.
Won Won Won
24 - 17 38 - 5 22 - 12
Lost
0 - 38
Packwood Tournament Semi-finalists St Bede's Won Ellesmere Won Adam’s Grammar Won Prestfelde Won Semi-final Bromsgrove Lost Moulsford Tournament Moulsford Cothill St John’s Farleigh
Lost Lost Lost Won
34 - 7 41 - 0 5-0 17 - 14 7 - 27 0 - 15 0 - 10 5 - 26 10 - 7
Team: Thomas Tulloch, Rory Davies, Luke Williams, Jonty Schofield, Freddie Beharrell, Archie Waterworth, Andrew Tudor, Hugh Davies, Bertie Jenkinson, Caspar Massey, Scott Hatton, Jonty Hall. CL
2nd VII Our only tournament Packwood Tournament Plate Semi-finalists was with the ‘big boys’ at Packwood in the main competition. Drawn in a very tough-looking group, the afternoon got off to a predictably difficult start with straight defeats against Abberley as well as the big and powerful Wisbech Grammar School side. The last group game was against our overnight visitors, King William’s, Isle of Man, and in a close game, tries from David Schofield and a determined run from Christopher Dorrell saw us through to a narrow victory and third place in the group.
In the quarter-final of the Plate competition we played probably our best sevens of the afternoon and emerged with a 17-5 victory over Wrekin with Ivor Fetherstonhaugh, Jonty Hall and Harry Wasdell providing the points. In the semi-final of the Plate, St Olave’s looked to be a strong side and so it proved, as we lost 26-5, with Freddie Fielding providing the consolation score. The squad, despite lacking size, acquitted themselves extremely well in difficult circumstances and never gave up, which is to their great credit. Well done to them all. Squad: Ollie Clark (Capt), David Schofield, Christopher Dorrell, Ivor Fetherstonhaugh, Jonty Hall, Harry Wasdell, Hugh Davies, Jack Ashworth, Freddie Fielding, Rory Fergusson. KJW
Under 11 VII This was my first year in charge of the Under 11 VII and what an enjoyable one it was. The first tournament was at Rugby, the hallowed turf where it all began. The boys started brightly with Humes and Furnival dazzling their way past opposition defenders. The group stage was tough and sadly we let a comfortable lead slip in the final group game to come second and head into the plate. The plate final was to be the first encounter of the season with Moulsford and we took the spoils scoring five unanswered tries. Unfortunately, at our home tournament the team had an off day – glimpses of their potential were evident but it didn’t click and in the quarter-finals Moulsford got their revenge, playing a very direct brand of sevens.
Harry Swinburne put in a mammoth performance, leading the team forward. A spectacle of superb sevens and a great day!
Caldicott and Moulsford tournaments were back to back in one weekend, a very enjoyable couple of days away. Our hosts for the Saturday evening, Moulsford, were to knock us out of the Caldicott tournament in the quarters after we had worked hard to win the group. The Sunday Next was the Downs tournament which was tournament brought out some delightful a real rollercoaster ride for everyone involved! sevens from the boys which they were It started badly, a loss and a draw. Then complimented on by a number of referees. something happened and the boys began to The team made it all the way to the final where play. Wins in the last two group games, with we faced Moulsford yet again and came out Yeoward putting in a captain’s performance, second best, but the boys could not be faulted meant we had somehow got through. The boys for their efforts. They are a talented bunch of had got up a head of steam now and were boys who for most of the term played sevens playing some slick sevens. The Dragon was the way it should be played. Captain Yeoward beaten comfortably and we met The Downs in and vice Humes were leading figures in what the final. Two tries from the first two re-starts was a very enjoyable season. and the game was Packwood’s from then on.
Tournaments Rugby Tournament Packwood Tournament The Downs Tournament Caldicott Tournament Moulsford Tournament
Plate winners Quarter-finalists Winners Quarter-finalists Runners-up
Squad: Nick Yeoward (Capt), Daniel Humes, Freddie Furnival, Harry Swinburne, Frank Morris, Oscar Holt, Alex Ainslie, Felix Jebb, Marcus Woodhead, Jack Goodall, Ollie Hall. JM
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S P O R T: H O C K E Y
Hockey 1st XI Played 6 Won 2 Drawn 2 Lost 2 For 18 Against 17 v Foremarke (A) Lost 0 - 11 v Moor Park (H) Drawn 2 - 2 v Ellesmere College (H) Won 2 - 0 v Queen’s, Chester (H) Drawn 2 - 2 v Abberley (H) Lost 5 - 2 v Moreton Hall (A) Won 7-0 Packwood 7s Tournament
Semi-finals
Bromsgrove 7s Tournament
2nd in group
As the results show, we have had a very mixed season. This was always going to be the case with the Form two girls experiencing their first taste of senior hockey – the ball moved faster, got hit harder and the opponents were much bigger; this was so true in our first match against Foremarke. As ever they proved to be formidable opposition and of course they return to school in late August so they’d had more preparation. This result proved a catalyst for the rest of the season and opened the girls’ eyes to what lay ahead. The Moor Park team came full of beans as usual and the match was a scrap to the end. Tia Barlow marshalled her troops well and worked hard in defence and up into midfield. Flo Wade-Smith showed some nifty stickwork and Ella Downey kept goal incredibly well. A draw was a fair result. Our next match against Ellesmere College was our only 11a-side game. It allowed me to field some second team players and they didn’t disappoint. Alice Rees and Sacha Robertson were the pick of the bunch demonstrating good runs off the ball and working back to defend. The Ellesmere girls were strong opponents and the result could have gone either way but a win was very well received. A run of tournaments found us playing against some new and experienced teams. At last we could see all our training paying off as
2nd XI
Played 7 Won 1 Drawn 1 Lost 5 For 11 Against 21
The seconds tried really hard in (A) Lost 1 - 4 their matches during the hockey v Foremarke v Bromsgrove (H) Lost 1 - 3 season, however they came up v Moor Park (H) Drawn 1 - 1 against some very strong v Ellesmere (H) Lost 0 - 6 opposition. This did not stop v Queen’s, Chester (H) Lost 2 - 3 them from battling for the ball v Abberley (H) Lost 1 - 3 and playing their best. Issy v Moreton Hall (A) Won 5 - 1 Wythe in goal played with great determination and saved many more than she let in. Bea MostynOwen, Beth Cooper, Jess Hunt and Alice Shone did not give up in defence when under pressure. Sacha Robertson held the centre and Alice Rees and Sophia Price gave their all on the wings. Poppy Carver and Millie Shaw tried to take every opportunity presented to them in order to score a goal. In some matches, the goal margins we lost by were not great and it was good to win the last match so convincingly which gave everybody a boost. Well done girls. Team: Alice Rees (Capt), Sacha Robertson, Poppy Carver, Isabella Wythe, Beth Cooper, Jess Hunt, Sophia Price, Alice Shone, Millie Shaw, Bea Mostyn-Owen. GW
the girls gelled together and performed consistently. I was delighted with the 2-2 draw against Queen’s, Chester who had won our tournament weeks earlier. It was in this match that the juniors started to show flair and perhaps had at last become more confident in their abilities – well done Amelia Tennant, Jess Hunt, Sophia Price, Millie Shaw and Georgie Bibby. Our final match against Moreton Hall saw us produce our best hockey of the season. The Bibby cheerleading party lifted the mood and the girls played some ‘champagne’ hockey. As the match concluded I found myself feeling lucky to have had the privilege to coach such determined and hardworking girls. It was a long season but I think we all learnt lots along the way and had fun doing so. Squad: Tia Barlow*(Capt), Jemima Price, Flo Wade-Smith*, Tara Beasley, Ella Downey*, Bea Mostyn-Owen, Poppy Carver, Jess Hunt, Sophia Price, Amelia Tennant, Georgie Bibby. KLP
3rd VII The thirds played with great commitment during the hockey season and learned a lot from their experience. Many of the matches they played were very close and they could have gone either way.
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v Foremarke v Bromsgrove v Moor Park v Ellesmere v Queen’s, Chester v Abberley v Moreton Hall
(A) (H) (H) (H) (H) (H) (A)
Lost Lost Drawn Lost Lost Lost Won
1-3 1-3 1-1 0-1 1-2 0-2 5-1
Cassie Bedford in goal saved the day on many occasions as well as reserve keeper, Juliana Hinwood. Esther McLaughlin, Chanida Dhooghe and Olivia Hughes fought hard in defence, as did Maya Leavey at centre forward. Emily Cooper always tried her best at centre half, ably assisted by Molly Bruce and Harriet Bibby on the wings. As the season progressed all the players grew in confidence and started to gel as a team. It was also good to finish the season with a win. Well tried girls. Team: Esther McLaughlin (Capt), Cassie Bedford, Juliana Hinwood, Chanida Dhooghe, Emily Cooper, Maya Leavey, Harriet Bibby, Olivia Hughes, Molly Bruce. GW
4th VII Everybody in girls’ Game 2 had a chance to represent the school at hockey in the winter term. What they lacked in skill they more than made up for in enthusiasm and willingness to have a go. The make-up of the fourth team changed several times in order to give everybody a chance to play. Representatives included Rosie Clarke in goal, Laura Whittingham, Chanida Dhooghe and Amber Gibbins in defence, Pip Vickers and Hermione Bathurst as centre halves, Eliza Beckett and Kim Peerapairoj on the wings and Marina Resines as centre forward. Alicia Ferrandez Cros and Elena Cros also contributed at times. At least four members of the fourth team were completely new to hockey at the
Played 7 Won 1 Drawn 1 Lost 5 For 9 Against 13
beginning of the season. Needless to say, they and many others in the group made a lot of progress throughout the term, regardless of the results. You can be proud of yourselves girls!
Played 4 Won 0 Drawn 1 Lost 3 For 1 Against 13 v Foremarke v Bromsgrove v Ellesmere v Queen’s, Chester
(A) (H) (H) (H)
Lost Drawn Lost Lost
0-7 0-0 1-2 0-4
Team: Chanida Dhooghe (Capt), Hermione Bathurst, Pip Vickers, Kim Peerapairoj, Amber Gibbins, Eliza Beckett, Rosie Clarke, Laura Whittingham, Marina Resines, Alicia Ferrandez Cros, Elena Cros. GW
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S P O R T: H O C K E Y
Under 11A Played 7 Won 7 Drawn 0 Lost 0 For 42 Against 1 v Shrewsbury High v Terra Nova v Moor Park v Ellesmere v Lyndon Prep v Abberley v Moreton Hall
(H) (A) (H) (H) (A) (A) (H)
Rugby U11 Tournament
Won Won Won Won Won Won Won
5-0 4-0 7-0 7-0 6-0 4-1 9-0
Bowl Winners
Foremarke U11 Tournament 3rd in group Bromsgrove U11 Tournament 3rd in group
The season started with two tournaments. At Rugby we had a tough start against two very strong teams and came third in our group which meant we went through to the Bowl competition. This turned out to work in our favour because it allowed us the time and space on the ball to really put into practice all that we had been doing in training. The team played brilliantly in the opening games scoring goal after goal (including five for Amelia Maunder) and fought hard in a closely contested final to win the trophy. Three days later came the Foremarke Tournament where the girls played some outstanding hockey and only narrowly missed out on the semi-final. By now the team had grown in confidence as they showed in their match against Shrewsbury High. Rosie Simpson, Lexi Samuel and Freya Beasley were strong in defence and there were three more goals for Amelia Maunder and two for Lottie Clarke. The girls’ first ever match on a grass pitch followed at Terra Nova. Goalkeeper, Annabel Robertson, made some brilliant saves despite some strong attacking play from Terra Nova and as the match went on we began to adapt to the unfamiliar surface and eventually forged ahead scoring four goals. It was a great way to end the first half of the season. SM
After half-term I took over the reins as the Under 11 coach with high hopes of continued success. As is often the case, a fresh set of eyes, a different coaching approach, can lead to tweaks and changes in the team selection and allocated positions. Annabel had secured her place as goalkeeper through her outstanding performances in training. In matches however she was barely tested as the scorelines show so she often had the opportunity to play out in defence. Amelia Maunder was without doubt a fantastic attacking player but I saw a strength and tenacity in her which I believed would stand her apart from many opposing defenders and she proved me right. The reason we conceded a mere one goal all season is down, in part, to her forbidding the ball to pass her by! Freya now moved out from the defensive line onto the right wing where she flourished, scoring an incredible three goals on her debut. Amelia Ashworth took on the demanding role of centre half and made the position her own. Finally, Ellie moved to centre forward which, as the 7-0, 6-0, and 9-0 scorelines show, proved to be a great success. Add to this the fabulous left winger, Lottie Clarke, and defender Rosie Simpson and the dream team was complete. The girls continued as they had begun and completed the season with a further five outstanding wins and the highest standard of junior hockey I have ever been involved with at Packwood. It has been a pleasure coaching this squad – they are fantastic girls and I thank them for their enthusiasm and unquestionable commitment. Team: Annabel Robertson, Rosie Simpson, Amelia Maunder, Amelia Ashworth, Lottie Clarke, Freya Beasley, Ellie Mason, Talullah Blackham, Imogen Downey, Lexi Samuel, Sophie Barlow. LW
Under 11B From the outset the Under 11Bs showed great enthusiasm and teamwork. They listened well in games lessons and put what they had learnt into practice during matches. In the game against Shrewsbury High, Romy Grigg, Daisy Harker-Weston and Lottie HillTrevor were tight in defence giving our midfield, in particular Phoebe Wasdell and Natasha Carter-Motley, the chance to support Imogen Downey up front who scored a hat trick. They were a pleasure to coach. SM As with the Under 11A squad, I embraced the opportunity to work with the equally motivated Under 11B team. As the statistics show this has been a very positive and rewarding season for the girls. Terra Nova was a tricky match as it was played on an unfamiliar grass pitch. The girls rose to the challenge and thanks to Imogen Downey’s goal, we secured a satisfying draw. Lyndon Prep also provided us with a challenging match. It was a game packed with many opportunities shared equally between both sides and the 0-0 scoreline was a fair
result for all Played 5 Won 3 Drawn 2 Lost 0 involved. The For 11 Against 3 highlights of the v Shrewsbury High (H) Won 3-0 season were the v Terra Nova (A) Drawn 1-1 tremendous v Moor Park (H) Won 4-0 performances v Lyndon Prep (A) Drawn 0-0 against Moor Park v Abberley (A) Won 3-2 and Abberley, both highly skilled, competitive teams who traditionally punish us on the pitch. The results were testament to all the hard work the girls had put in during the season. Well done girls! Team: Chloe Edwards, Lottie Hill-Trevor, Imogen Downey, Talullah Blackham, Daisy Harker-Weston, Romy Grigg, Phoebe Wasdell, Theodora Jarvis, Natasha Carter-Motley, Amelia Peterson. LW Page 63
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S P O R T: H O C K E Y
Under 10A The Under 10 team started the term with a close match against Birchfield. Their hockey skills were just a bit quicker than ours on the day and they managed to get the ball past our players and up to their goal scoring several times. However, this match showed us what we had to work on and it was also the wakeup call our girls needed before they went to play Bromsgrove who are always tough opponents. This was a challenging game with both teams wanting to win. However, our defence, especially Olivia Moir, was superb and we fought for every ball in sight. The score reflected the match play and ended in a draw. Then it was Birchfield again and this time our girls were there to win! The game was very close, as before, but our defensive play was much stronger and the girls fought a bit harder. Harriet Haynes played a fantastic game going for every ball and never giving up. The next match was several weeks later which allowed the girls to get in lots of stick work practice and game practice. Consequently, they played fantastically against Ellesmere – especially Sophia Bureau, who had a superb game – and won convincingly. Despite this amazing victory the matches that followed against Queen’s, Chester and Abberley were tough and very tense for all who were watching. The opposition was strong and quick on the pitch and although we tried very hard to get to the goal, it was just not meant to be during these matches. Our defence was very strong
Under 10B Played 9 Won 3 Drawn 3 Lost 3 For 16 Against 15 v Birchfield v Bromsgrove v Birchfield v Ellesmere v Lyndon Prep v Queen’s, Chester v Abberley v Shrewsbury High v Moreton Hall
(H) (A) (A) (H) (A) (H) (A) (H) (H)
Lost Drawn Drawn Won Drawn Lost Lost Won Won
Played 1 Won 1 Drawn 0 Lost 0 For 6 Against 1 2-4 0-0 1-1 7-0 0-0 0-4 0-6 2-0 4-0
though, with Louisa Jarvis playing an outstanding goalkeeper and saving many shots. After exeat the girls had their last two matches. They were clearly refreshed and ready to finish the hockey season on a high, and that is what they did! During both matches against Shrewsbury High and Moreton Hall all of them played some fantastic hockey. Anna Cowan was an outstanding defender during the match against Shrewsbury High and, despite having a bad knock to her knee she got up and carried on playing! By this point in the term the girls were playing well together as a team and their ball skills and movement around the pitch were all much improved. Well done to all of the girls in the Under 10 hockey squad this season!
v Shrewsbury High
(H)
Won
6-1
Unfortunately there was only one fixture for the Under10B hockey team this season, but what a super match it was! The side was made up of Under 10 and Under 9 girls and they worked well as a team, especially as they had not practised much together before. They defended well throughout but the real strength came from the attacks, led by Freya Cox, who played a fantastic game scoring time after time. Freya was awarded player of the match for her superb performance. Squad: Freya Cox, Seren Pattinson, Sophia Bureau, Alice Hughes, Honor Grocott, Georgiana Nicholas, Tommy Jarvis, Isabel Morris. CS
Squad: Sophia Bureau, Anna Cowan, Harriet Haynes, Freya Cox, Louisa Jarvis, Georgia Kannreuther, Olivia Moir, Seren Pattinson, Sacha Sandbach, Zara Vickers. CS
Under 9 We started the term learning the basics of hockey and trying to understand the game. Games sessions were filled with the girls working hard to master the skills of dribbling and accurate passing and with me trying to get them to go the right way down the pitch towards goal. I needn’t have worried! In their first match the girls pulled out a fantastic performance against Birchfield with some great dribbling and passing skills put in to play by Georgiana Nicholas and Honor Grocott, along with some confident shooting too. We faced Birchfield again in the next match and maintained a strong performance but this time our opponents came back fighting with a strong defence and outfield which tested the defending skills of Eliza Blackham, Alice Hughes and Sophie Edwards who all did a great job. Our next match saw Tommy Jarvis follow in her sister’s footsteps and pad up in the goalkeeper’s kit. This meant lots of shooting practice for the outfield players and lots of goalkeeping practice for Tommy. In the match against Moor Park we saw that all the practice had paid off and Tommy made some fantastic saves not only with her feet but with her knees as well. This match also saw Isabel Morris and Poppy Stephens play brilliantly down the wings, keeping up well with the fast pace of the game. The last match of the season was away at Lyndon Prep and being near the end of term, the girls were all tired and some, including Tommy, were coming down with bugs. Despite being ill on the journey, Tommy still managed to start the match and all the girls pulled together and did a fantastic job, not only scoring some great goals but helping to defend our goal. The second half saw Tommy having to retire and support the team from the sidelines. The girls work had just got a lot harder but this didn’t faze them at all – Alice Hughes played really well along the wing and Honor Grigg rose to the challenge and scored the final goal of the season.
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Throughout the season the girls showed great teamwork and determination – well done and good luck for next year. Team: Georgiana Nicholas, Alice Hughes, Honor Grocott, Tommy Jarvis, Isabel Morris, Eliza Blackham, Poppy Stephens, Honor Grigg. KE
Played 4 Won 3 Drawn 1 Lost 0 For 13 Against 3 v Birchfield v Birchfield v Moor Park v Lyndon Prep
(H) (A) (H) (A)
Won Drawn Won Won
4-0 1-1 3-1 5-1
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S P O R T: N E T B A L L
Netball 1st VII Played 7 Won 5 Drawn 1 Lost 1 For 87 Against 67 v Abberley v Terra Nova v Moor Park v Wrekin
(A) (H) (H) (A)
Won Won Won Won
13 - 11 14 - 7 13 - 11 19 - 12
v Foremarke (H) Lost 9 - 10 v Moreton Hall (A) Won 10 - 7 v Ellesmere (A) Drawn 9 - 9
Sedbergh Tournament 2nd in group Shropshire Under 13 County Tournament 4th
This year’s first VII had the unenviable position of living in the enormous shadow left by last year’s squad. I approached the season with an open mind and a realistic outlook. It is with enormous pleasure that I declare; “Well done girls, a great season! I am really proud of all your efforts. You showed enthusiasm for drills, keenness to play and determination to win. You have been a super group to coach and accompany to matches.” Our first outing was the Sedbergh Netball Tournament in November. As reigning champions there was a great deal of expectation and pressure on the girls which did nothing for their nerves or confidence. I use this tournament as a platform to select promising players for my senior squad the following term. It also gives the girls an opportunity to participate in an excellent tournament and enjoy a really pleasant day. This year it was another school’s chance to enjoy being champions but… we’ll be back! Fast forward to January and the season started as enthusiastically as last year’s ended. I selected a core seven players for this year’s squad and they fast became a strong, impressive and determined team. The girls took part in some tough, closely contested matches and had to dig deep at times to clinch the win. Abberley, Moor Park and Moreton Hall were such examples and produced performances of the highest quality. In particular, the shooting partnership of Bea and Poppy at times proved too challenging for the opposing defence. Bea in particular has enjoyed an incredible journey this season and has flourished into one of my finest goal shooters. Tara was also a valuable member of the attacking formation with her fast, well-placed feeds into the circle. Only two victories eluded us and both brought frustration and bitter disappointment. Drawing with Ellesmere really shook our foundations. There is no explanation for our poor performance that day, we were outplayed by a weaker team and it hurt! The match against Foremarke was really disappointing for all concerned – except Foremarke of course! I must congratulate both teams though as it was one of the finest, most competitive games I have ever witnessed at such a junior level. Tia and Harriet, as goal defence and goalkeeper, worked tirelessly and were just phenomenal. Sadly, our shooting was not on form that day and we could have been beaten very badly had it not
been for our incredible defence, which also included Ella at wing defence. Flo was also outstanding as centre playing a crucial defending role in the centre court. This was the fourth year that Packwood organised the Shropshire Under 13 County Netball Tournament at the Sundorne Sports Village. Gail Wilkinson and former Packwood pupil, Hanna Cadwallader, generously gave their time to ensure the day ran smoothly and allowed me to focus on being the first VII coach. The trophy competition was made up of competitive schools who gave us challenging matches to play. Nerves were a problem initially for our girls but when they began to settle they played well as a team with great passes and moves between all players and some super shooting and defending. We deservedly made it through to the semi-finals, finishing fourth overall. The girls were disappointed but I was pleased with this accomplishment. This has been a really good season. The girls have done themselves a great deal of credit and represented the school very well in every respect. I thank them all for their efforts and good company and wish them all a lot of happiness and success for the future. Team: Poppy Carver (Capt)*, Bea Mostyn-Owen*, Tara Beasley*, Flo Wade-Smith*,Ella Downey*, Tia Barlow*, Harriet Bibby*. LW
2nd VII The seconds had a mixed season of results and they certainly did not lose through lack of effort. In terms of matches, we got off to a hesitant start against Abberley and Foremarke as we were still trying to gel as a team. Against Prestfelde A team we had to work hard in order to achieve a draw, but this gave us more confidence when we faced Shrewsbury High in our next match. This is where our play started to flow more and we were really pleased with the win. The Ellesmere match that followed was very close but in the end they were the victors. In our last match against Wrekin our play began to show how much our netball had progressed and we were worthy winners. This game gave us a really positive end to the season. The girls became a very cohesive unit during the term with Issy Wythe and Jess Hunt being stalwarts in defence, Georgia Bibby, Sacha Robertson and Jemima Price linking up well in the centre court and
Amelia Tennant and Played 6 Won 2 Drawn 1 Lost 3 Alice Rees becoming For 53 Against 60 extremely accurate v Abberley (A) Lost 2-9 shooters. We also had v Foremarke (H) Lost 5 - 15 the added bonus of v Prestfelde (H) Drawn 11 - 11 Sophia Price being v Shrewsbury High (H) Won 16 - 11 able to play in v Ellesmere (A) Lost 7-9 defence and as a v Wrekin (A) Won 12 - 5 shooter – though not Under 12 Packwood Tournament 3rd at the same time, I might add! Jemima Price proved to be a determined and reliable captain as well. Team: Jemima Price (Capt), Alice Rees, Sacha Robertson, Jess Hunt, Georgia Bibby, Amelia Tennant, Isabella Wythe, Sophia Price. GW
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S P O R T: N E T B A L L
3rd VII The third VII netball team has Played 8 Won 6 Drawn 0 Lost 2 had a great season, having won For 70 Against 31 the majority of their matches. v Abberley (H) Won 6-2 This year gave a lot of v Foremarke (H) Lost 3-9 opportunity to rotate players v Bromsgrove (H) Lost 6 - 10 between teams so many represented the second VII too. v Shrewsbury High (H) Won 9 - 3 v Moreton Hall (A) Won 11 - 4 The team’s performance was v Moor Park (H) Won 16 - 3 consistent with strong victories v Ellesmere (A) Won 7-0 over opponents such as v Wrekin (A) Won 12 - 0 Moreton Hall, Moor Park, Ellesmere College and Wrekin College. However, they also faced tough opposition and challenging matches against Foremarke and Bromsgrove. The girls played high standard netball and made great progress as the term went on. Rosie Clarke was a key player in creating space in the attacking circle to allow us to maximise scoring opportunities. Captains Olivia Hughes and Millie Shaw, along with Alice Shone, were indispensable in the centre court. They showed great determination and persistence in trying to pressure opponents. Esther McLaughlin and Juliana Hinwood formed a vital defensive unit forcing opponents to lose the ball and playing well to intercept passes and regain possession.
Squad: Olivia Hughes, Millie Shaw (Capts), Esther McLaughlin, Juliana Hinwood, Alice Shone, Emily Cooper, Rosie Clarke, Cassie Bedford, Laura Whittingham, Jess Hunt, Maya Leavey, Sophia Price, Sacha Robertson, Jemima Price, Emily Cooper, Alice Rees, Chanida Dhooghe, Hermione Bathurst, Isabella Wythe, Amelia Tennant, Molly Bruce, Pip Vickers. AP
4th VII This has been a thoroughly enjoyable netball season. It has been lovely to see the girls working well during lessons, trying hard to learn and improve their netball skills, and representing the school in matches. All the girls should feel very happy with their own achievements and performances. Our first fixture was at home against Bromsgrove. It was a highly competitive game with many opportunities won and lost by both sides. This was an exciting and closely fought match but unfortunately Bromsgrove proved too much of a challenge and clinched the victory.
It was a disappointing result but the girls were gracious in defeat and vowed to do better next time! We travelled to Wrekin College for our second fixture and a far more positive experience was had by all! A tremendous performance from Packwood secured a fantastic 8-0 win against a highly respected school.
and don’t forget the skills you have been taught, keep practising them so that you are ready for the next netball season be it at Packwood or your senior school.
Netball is very much a team sport and I am pleased with the way the girls supported and encouraged one another to achieve their best. Thank you for all your hard work this term
Team: Chanida Dhooghe, Eliza Beckett, Pip Vickers, Hermione Bathurst, Molly Bruce, Beth Cooper, Amber Gibbins, Marina Resines, Kim Peerapairoj, Elena Cros. LW
Under 11A I was delighted in the netball term to find myself working with the junior girls as so much of my time is spent with the seniors. This group of girls have kept me thoroughly entertained and I always looked forward to our sessions together. Our first match against Abberley was a very close affair and perhaps a draw would have been a fairer result. Positions were still being decided and it was clear some were out of position. Foremarke again proved tough opponents but we looked more coherent as a team. Ellie Mason shot confidently as goal attack and at the other end Amelia Maunder made some timely interceptions in defence. I’ll have to mention the Shrewsbury High match but really don’t want to! Shrewsbury played some outstanding netball, those that watched all agreed that they played like a first VII and Miss Willis said they’d give our seniors a run for their money. This could have crushed everyone’s confidence but instead the defeat fuelled the girls’ determination and as this season progressed we were to meet them again… Page 66
Played 2 Won 1 Drawn 0 Lost 1 For 13 Against 9
The Prestfelde Tournament followed and we went with the knowledge that we’d improved and we were just going to take it match by match. To everyone’s surprise some sharp shooting from Ellie, Freya and Amelia Peterson and excellent centre court play from Amelia Ashworth and Lottie Clarke, coupled with solid defending by Talullah and Amelia Maunder saw us finish top of our group. We met Hallfield in the semi-finals and again some brave performances from Rosie Simpson, Annabel Robertson and Lexi Samuel secured passage into the final. Here we faced Shrewsbury High Prep who’d beaten us 20-3 weeks earlier. In reality everyone thought Shrewsbury had it in the bag – but not my girls! It was an end-to-end final that saw goals go in aplenty but still no outright winner. We had to play an extra five minutes – the longest five minutes of my life. The girls kept calm and we scored the goal to get the lead. We had to defend heroically and finally the whistle went. We followed this up with another excellent tournament win at S. Anselm’s beating Foremarke in the final, who we’d also lost to earlier in the season.
v Bromsgrove v Wrekin
(H) (A)
Lost Won
5-9 8-0
Played 6 Won 2 Drawn 0 Lost 4 For 33 Against 44 v Abberley v Foremarke v Terra Nova v Shrewsbury High v Moor Park v Old Hall
(H) (H) (A) (H) (A) (A)
Lost Lost Lost Lost Won Won
Prestfelde Under 11 Tournament S. Anselm’s Tournament
3-4 4-5 2-6 3 - 20 14 - 4 7-5 Winners Winners
I am so proud of all the girls’ achievements this term. They have had their setbacks yet these proved to make them more determined and they have built solid foundations for next year. They are exceptionally talented and will I’m sure already be looking forward to their promotion to the senior squads next year. Sqaud: Freya Beasley, Ellie Mason, Amelia Peterson, Amelia Maunder, Annabel Robertson, Lexi Samuel, Amelia Ashworth, Lottie Clarke, Talullah Blackham, Rosie Simpson. KLP
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S P O R T: N E T B A L L
Under 11B The girls trained alongside the Under 11A team, received the same coaching and had practice matches against them and, at times, against the second, third and fourth teams. This all combined to help raise their skill levels and my expectations of them as a team. Our first match was against a very strong team from Abberley. After a tentative start we found our passing rhythm. Tash Carter-Motley held centre court whilst Phoebe Wasdell held her nerve to shoot accurately. Next was Foremarke who are always tough opponents and we were surprised to have the upper hand for most of the match. Daisy Harker-Weston, Lottie HillTrevor, Romy Grigg and Chloe Edwards defended well – a 10-2 win was a fine result.
Terra Nova proved a difficult task; our combined Under 11A/B had an uphill struggle and never really got a chance to get going .
Played 7 Won 3 Drawn 2 Lost 2 For 46 Against 31 v Abberley v Foremarke v Terra Nova U11A v Shrewsbury High v Old Hall v Lyndon Prep U11A v Prestfelde U11A
(H) (H) (A) (H) (A) (H) (A)
Drawn Won Lost Drawn Won Won Lost
6-6 10 - 2 5-1 4-4 10 - 2 5-3 6 - 13
Imogen Downey and Theodora Jarvis held their nerve well against a good Shrewsbury High. Imogen made some fine interceptions and Theodora timed her runs better. A draw was a very respectable result. Wins against Old Hall and Lyndon Prep followed. It was disappointing to lose our final match but we were up against a strong Prestfelde Under 11A.
games weren’t lost. I’ve enjoyed being part of their season and I wish them luck in next year’s senior squads.
To conclude, this is a skilful bunch of girls who worked incredibly hard for each other. It is this determination and passion that saw them achieve the wins and made sure the drawn
Squad: Natasha Carter-Motley, Imogen Downey, Chloe Edwards, Romy Grigg, Lottie Hill-Trevor, Daisy Harker-Weston, Theodora Jarvis, Phoebe Wasdell. KLP
Under 10 This has been an extremely positive and rewarding season for the Under 10 netball players.With every match, the girls improved significantly and by the end of the season were on an unstoppable winning streak, finishing the term on a high!
Played 12 Won 7 Drawn 0 Lost 5 For 36 Against 21 v Abberley v Foremarke v Shrewsbury High v Moor Park v Old Hall v Lyndon Prep v Birchfield v Prestfelde
(H) (H) (H) (A) (A) (H) (H) (A)
Lost Won Lost Won Won Won Won Won
0-2 3-2 0-3 6-4 5-2 6-2 8-0 5-0
However, our first match was a difficult one against Bromsgrove Tournament Abberley which highlighted v Bilton Grange Lost 0-1 the skills we needed to v Bromsgrove Lost 0-2 practise. A few days later the v The Elms Won 2-1 v Abberley Lost 1-2 girls played with much more focus and determination against Foremarke. Their ball skills were better and the shooting, led by Georgia Kannreuther, was much improved resulting in a good win. The Bromsgrove Tournament always provides some tough matches against schools we rarely play. This year was no different and despite the cold, our girls rose to the challenge and played some very good netball. Our defence was very tight throughout and worked hard at keeping the opposition from scoring many goals. The players of the tournament were Zara Vickers and Sacha Sandbach for their sheer determination to get every ball in all of the matches - they never stopped running until the final whistle.
Under 9 The girls have been non-stop this term, since their match against Abberley in the second week which meant that they had to get to grips with the game and with their positions very quickly. They showed just how well they’d managed to do so and the game was extremely close. The following week saw a really tough game against Terra Nova. Georgiana Nicholas must have run miles as centre, defending then switching to attacking, along with Poppy Stephens and Honor Grigg, who switched positions every quarter. Sophie Edwards showed some great goalkeeping, jumping high for rebounds and making sure she marked her player as closely as possible. She was backed up by Tommy Jarvis who, as goal defence, made some brilliant moves into space for Sophie to pass to. The team from Shrewsbury High was outstanding and although our girls tried their hardest they struggled to make their efforts count and were unable to score. This, however, made the shooters more determined and they put in lots of practice which paid off as the girls beat Moor Park. A narrow loss against Lyndon Prep followed before our last match against Ellesmere U10B team. The girls worked hard, kept up well with the high
The next match was against a very strong team from Shrewsbury High. The game was close throughout but our opponents were a little quicker around the court and their shooters were extremely good on the day. For our match against Moor Park I decided to shuffle the team around a bit and the result was amazing! The girls seemed to play better than they had done all term. Freya Cox played a quick centre which enabled the team to get the ball to our two fantastic shooters Georgia and Sacha. From this point on, the team went from strength to strength, winning all of their remaining matches of the season. The girls have played some excellent netball and should be very proud of their success. Well done! Squad: Sophia Bureau, Anna Cowan, Harriet Haynes, Freya Cox, Louisa Jarvis, Georgia Kannreuther, Olivia Moir, Sacha Sandbach, Zara Vickers. CS Played 6 Won 2 Drawn 0 Lost 4 For 17 Against 29
level of play and Eliza v Abberley (H) and Alice managed to v Terra Nova (A) score three great goals. v Shrewsbury High (H) At the Under 9 v Moor Park (A) Birchfield Tournament v Lyndon Prep (H) the team earned a third v Ellesmere U10B (A) place play-off against Abberley - a really close Birchfield Tournament and exciting match but we were just beaten, and finished fourth overall.
Lost Won Lost Won Lost Lost
1-2 5-4 0-5 4-2 4-5 3 - 11 4th
It has been an up and down season for the girls but every time they have lost they have learnt from the experience and continued to practise hard – I couldn’t have asked for more in terms of effort and determination. Well done girls and good luck for next year. Team: Alice Hughes, Georgiana Nicholas, Honor Grocott, Tommy Jarvis, Isabel Morris, Eliza Blackham, Sophie Edwards, Honor Grigg, Poppy Stephens. KE Page 67
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S P O R T: L A C R O S S E
Lacrosse Under 13
Played 21 Won 15 Drawn 1 Lost 5 For 110 Against 49 v Withington Girls’ (H) Won 12 - 4 v Berkhamsted (A) Lost 7-8 v Bedford School (A) Lost 5-7 v Withington Girls U14 (H) Won 9-1 v Queen’s, Chester (A) Won 6-3 v Cheltenham Ladies’ (A) Lost 3-4 v St Helen & St Katharine Bs (A) Won 10 - 0 v Moreton Hall (H) Won 10 - 2 v Moreton Hall (A) Won 12 - 0 v Queen’s, Chester (A) Won 9-1 Berkhamsted London Tournament Winners v Guildford High Drawn 1 - 1 v St Swithun’s Won 3-2 v Benenden Won 1-0 v Lady Eleanor Holles Won 4-2 v St Albans 1 Won 2-0 v Queen Anne’s Won 2-0 v Bedford High Won 4-0 v North London Collegiate Won 2-1 v Godstowe Lost 0-2 v Guildford High Won 3-2 U13B v Moreton Hall
We had a great start to the season, with a very good win against Withington Girls’. Play was exactly where we had left off at the end of last season – full of confidence, good ball handling and sharing. Only a few weaknesses showed which we would put right before our tour. It was certainly time to take on the London schools. The London Tournament took place in Berkhamsted where we warmed up on Saturday with two close matches against strong teams from Bedford School and Berkhamsted. Despite narrowly losing both games, I was very pleased with how the girls had played. We had just not quite stood up to the pressure! The best was yet to come and Sunday’s London Tournament was a day that I shall never forget. In 8-a-side play we had more space, but there was no room for mistakes. Flo managed to win the centre draws every time, which gave us a huge advantage. Then only a few more passes were needed to score, with Tia’s power to drive in, Poppy’s elegant stick work, Harriet’s speed, Ella and Jemima’s tenacity, and Cassie’s vastly improved play, it meant we could exert plenty of pressure at the other end too. We were winners in our section and went into the top group for play offs. Here we only lost to Godstowe, but won the other four games convincingly. This was a huge achievement. Having to play uphill in every game but one, and in 30°C temperatures, we had beaten teams from the strongest lacrosse playing schools in the country to be the overall winners out of 18 teams. As the season progressed we continued to seek tough opposition. Withington’s U14s however, were easily harnessed by our double-teaming strategy. Our less confident Page 68
players were also raising their game, supporting the dominant players very well. Queen’s gave us a tougher test and then at Cheltenham we played two very different games. The first was virtually no contest against St Helen & St Katharine Bs. The other was a tight, good game against Cheltenham Ladies’ which we narrowly lost. In December and January we played Moreton Hall, confidently winning both games. In the second game the potential sports scholars were particularly impressive with fantastic changes of hand around the goal. Our B team had played this same Moreton squad in November, and put in a valiant effort. They had lots of testing times in defence in the first half, but missed opportunities with pick-ups and catches, to trail 0 - 7. Things got much better in the second half when Moreton only scored twice more, but we were ecstatic to up our tally to five! The Midlands Tournament had been our target all year. Immense and dumb disappointment followed when it was frozen off. After their success in London, the girls so wanted to prove themselves again, but alas it was not to be. Finally there was just one more job to do – beat those very strong Queen’s girls again! And yes we did, but the score (9 - 1) belies how tough a game it was. We had prepared for their defensive strategies and developed so many more skills – timing, communication, positioning, speed, drive and trust in each other. It was indeed really impressive play and thrilling to watch! The match showed just how far this squad had come since a year earlier when they had struggled and lost the trophy at our U12s tournament. Sacha, Juliana, Esther and Olivia were now really solid and confident
(A) Lost
5-9
defenders, and Bea and Alice were strong and reliable around the goal. The girls have played some superb lacrosse and worked hard to achieve it, making me very proud. Well done! We have been cheered on by so many parents, thank you for being there and sharing our memorable moments. And grateful thanks too must go to all those at school, the matrons, laundry ladies, kitchen and grounds staff who, week in, week out, reliably support us. Finally, my congratulations go to the girls (Cassie Bedford, Harriet Bibby, Ella Downey, Flo Wade-Smith, Tia Barlow, Tara Beasley and Poppy Carver) who were selected to play for Shropshire’s U13s. Under 13A team: Flo Wade-Smith (Capt)*, Cassie Bedford*, Sacha Robertson, Esther McLaughlin, Olivia Hughes, Juliana Hinwood, Ella Downey*, Jemima Price, Harriet Bibby*, Tara Beasley*, Poppy Carver*, Tia Barlow*, Alice Rees, Bea Mostyn-Owen, Maya Leavey. Under 13B team: Chanida Dhooghe, Cassie Bedford, Juliana Hinwood, Esther McLaughlin, Issy Wythe, Sacha Robertson, Harriet Bibby, Alice Rees, Maya Leavey, Hermione Bathurst, Alicia Ferrandez-Cros, Emily Cooper, Poppy Carver. SD
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S P O R T: L A C R O S S E
Under 12
Played 15 Won 14 Drawn 1 Lost 0 For 94 Against 15 v Withington Girls’ v Prestfelde v Withington Girls’ U13 v St Helen & St Katharine A v St Helen & St Katharine B v Cheltenham Ladies’ v Moreton Hall v Moreton Hall v Queen’s, Chester Packwood Tournament v Cheltenham Ladies’ v Moreton Hall v Prestfelde v Withington Girls’ v Queen’s, Chester v Packwood B
There is always a mountain to climb when girls get to this level, and it is important to lay strong foundations with every player ready for next year. Step by step, the girls rose to the challenge, and even managed an unbeaten season – well done girls! We started with an easy win against Withington but the match showed there was a lot more work to be done. The team was heavily reliant upon Georgie Bibby and they ALL needed to raise their game – considerably. There were great weaknesses in our game strategies against Prestfelde, and our reluctance to move for the ball enabled them to anticipate and intercept passes. They almost had us beaten, but luckily we levelled to earn a 4-4 draw. The girls had a tough match against Withington’s Under 13 side. They found, for the first time, the confidence to drive for goal, the need for good stick work, and realized how tight their marking had to be around the goal. Further improvements in play were evident at Cheltenham when we played Cheltenham Ladies’ and St Helen & St Katharine A and B
teams. The girls, after a bit of a shaky start, began working better in their zones, creating more space for themselves and linking passes together well. Pip Vickers defended very well in goal. It was a good afternoon’s play, by all, although inaccurate shooting let us down. We had plenty of practice at the attacking end in our two fixtures against Moreton but we still needed to share the ball around more, particularly in attack, so that everyone could play their part. The penny had dropped at our Packwood tournament, and everyone, at last, trusted each other to pass. Such impressive play resulted in the A team being powerful tournament winners. Superb stick work was a joy to see at both ends of the field. They scored a massive total of 30 goals, and only conceded one, all day! The Under 12 Bs came very close to winning a few of their games that day, with the score only 1-0, or 2-0 against them in half of their matches. It was a terrific effort by many very young players, whose play improved after each game.
(H) (A) (H) (A) (A) (H) (H) (A) (A)
Won 8-0 Drawn 4-4 Won 4-3 Won 2-0 Won 8-2 Won 9-2 Won 11 - 3 Won 12 - 0 Won 6-0 Winners Won 4-0 Won 5-0 Won 5-1 Won 7-0 Won 3-0 Won 6-0
The season was rounded off, away at Queen’s. They made us work hard, but in the end we outshone them. Amelia Tennant, Georgie Bibby, Jessie Hunt, Ellie Mason and Millie Shaw worked smoothly and confidently in attack. Sophia Price, Issy Wythe and Molly Bruce were secure in midfield. Next season we shall be ready to move up a gear, with sharper stick work and minds, greater speed and strength. Things are looking good! Under 12A team: Pip Vickers, Beth Cooper, Molly Bruce, Issy Wythe, Laura Whittingham, Sophia Price, Georgie Bibby, Jessie Hunt, Millie Shaw, Rosie Clarke, Alice Shone, Kim Peerapairoj, Amber Gibbins, Amelia Peterson, Lexi Samuel, Phoebe Wasdell, Ellie Mason. Under 12B team: Chloe Edwards, Eliza Beckett, Lottie Hill-Trevor, Amelia Peterson, Amelia Maunder, Lexi Samuel, Phoebe Wasdell, Talullah Blackham, Freya Beasley, Lottie Clarke, Marina Resines, Elena Cros, Amber Gibbins. SD
Under 11 We welcomed lots of new girls into our group this year none of whom had played lacrosse before. Rather than plunge them into the deep end, we worked steadily and repetitively through all the attacking and defending skills, then increased the challenges of pace and speed. They were most certainly a talented and hugely enthusiastic bunch, who even managed controlled stick checks once we introduced tackling! It was just as well that they were quick learners, as all the Under 11s match playing experience was against Under 12 teams. Several newcomers had their debut playing for our Under 12 squad at Cheltenham. Their ability to contribute massively was due to their tenacity and speed. Competition for 12 places was tough in this big and very able group, so a large squad went to play against Moreton’s Under 12 team. It was a big day to learn the importance of game strategies, most importantly marking in the fan area for defence, and not crowding this area for attack. The girls’ play was impressive, and it was unbelievable that this was the first term of lacrosse for many of them. The prospect of playing for the Under 12B team at our Packwood tournament gave further incentive for the girls to improve. I had no worries choosing nine girls for this challenge. They were up against strong opposition, but played very well indeed, and almost won some of their games, with the score only 1-0 or 2-0 in half of them. This opportunity to play gave them great experience for next season.
Whilst Ellie Mason looks certain to play for the Under 13s next year, there are many more strong players to drive the squad, all with great potential!
Played 1 Won 1 Drawn 0 Lost 0 For 8 Against 1 v Moreton Hall U12 (A) Won
8-1
Team: Chloe Edwards, Immy Downey, Rosie Simpson, Lottie Hill-Trevor, Phoebe Wasdell, Lexi Samuel, Amelia Maunder, Amelia Peterson, Ellie Mason, Annabel Robertson, Freya Beasley, Talullah Blackham, Amelia Ashworth, Sophie Barlow, Lottie Clarke. SD
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S P O R T: L A C R O S S E
Under 10 So much success, at this level, Played 1 Won 1 Drawn 0 Lost 0 depends on being first to the For 10 Against 3 ball and picking it up v Prestfelde (H) Won 10 - 3 decisively and confidently… at the first attempt! That’s how we won possession in our very good game against Prestfelde. We were only leading by 5-2 at half time and the Prestfelde girls were strong, with two particularly good attacks. They had to be doubleteamed when they had the ball, or we were in trouble! Two on one was an excellent way to close them down and Georgia Kannreuther did some superb body checking in the midfield area. We played without goalkeepers, but to score, we had to “spat the mat” with the ball on a canvas sheet. This encouraged strong shots, rather than tediously gentle balls trickling over the line. This certainly wasn’t as easy as it looked but Georgiana Nicholas, Freya Cox, Sophia Bureau and Zara Vickers shared the ten goals between them. A lot was learnt from a fast game. Team: Anna Cowan, Seren Pattinson, Louisa Jarvis, Harriet Haynes, The rest of the season was spent improving our stick control, and cradling ready for when stick checking is introduced next season – a few Olivia Moir, Georgia Kannreuther, Zara Vickers, Sacha Sandbach, Freya Cox, Sophia Bureau, Georgiana Nicholas. SD shocks are in store I think!
Under 9 It is important to note that half of our squad was made up with Under 8 girls, who were never for a moment worried about their opponents being older and who more than made up for their shortfall in size, strength, speed and skill with mighty determination and huge effort. When our As played Prestfelde we were quickly 1-3 down, and under lots of pressure but we clawed the score back to level 6-6 by half time. It continued neck and neck until, luckily, we scored again just before the final whistle. It was a very close game, and although we were good at times, it also exposed lots of weaknesses to work on. Unfortunately Prestfelde put out the same squad to play our Bs. Not an ideal situation, but our girls worked very hard. Sophie Edwards kept her cool. Eliza Blackham defended well, and Poppy Stephens nearly scored several times! In the meantime lots of practice went on at school, and in March we were back at Prestfelde. The standard of play was much higher all round, with great stick work and confidence. Thanks to Isabel Morris’ good defending, Alice Hughes’ super shooting and Georgiana Nicholas’ great all round play we once again won by just one (very important) goal! Honor Grocott was a great supporter in attack, Honor Grigg’s concentration much improved and Tommy Jarvis worked steadily and reliably in defence. Our pop lacrosse matches were all nail-biting games and a great foundation for playing field lacrosse next year, when Prestfelde will continue to give us plenty of tough challenges! Under 9A team: Tommy Jarvis, Isabel Morris, Georgiana Nicholas, Alice Hughes, Honor Grocott.
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Under 9B team: Sophie Edwards, Eliza Blackham, Honor Grigg, Poppy Stephens, Tommy Jarvis, Isabel Morris. SD
Played 3 Won 2 Drawn 0 Lost 1 For 25 Against 34 Under 9A v Prestfelde U9A (A) Won Under 9B v Prestfelde U9A (A) Lost Under 9 v Prestfelde U9 (A) Won
11 - 10 0 - 11 14 - 13
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S P O R T: C R I C K E T
Cricket 1st XI Played 6 Won 2 Drawn 1 Lost 2 Abandoned1 v Birchfield Packwood
(H) 14 for 0 105 for 5
v Abberley Packwood
(H) 100 for 8 156 for 6 dec Drawn
Abandoned
Jet Competition 2nd round v Prestfelde (A) 96 all out Packwood 140 for 5
Won by 44 run
v Prestfelde Packwood
(H) 80 for 3 78 all out
Lost by 7 wkts
3rd round v Foremarke Packwood
(A) 154 for 3 148 for 9
Lost by 6 runs
v Sedbergh Packwood
(A) 161 for 4 165 for 2
Won by 8 wkts
Shrewsbury U1320/20 Tournament Winners
2012 proved to be a successful season despite the poor weather which seriously affected practice sessions and most matches we were able to play. This certainly was the most frustrating summer term I can remember and the boys deserve credit for the way they adapted to the damp conditions to play some excellent cricket at times. As with previous Packwood teams the 2012 version continued our amazing success in tournaments. Winning the Shrewsbury 20/20 and the Wrekin 6-a-side in style and the Under 12s proving very competitive in the Repton tournament were probably the high points of the season. Sadly we were denied the opportunity to defend the Malvern 8-a-side and the boys were very disappointed not to get the chance to play in what I consider the best tournament on the circuit. Our low point was the loss to Foremarke in the JET. After an excellent performance to beat Prestfelde in the previous round, a combination of inspired fielding by the Foremarke team and poor decision making by our top batsmen led to the very narrow defeat. In a season in which we struggled to get out and work on batting, bowling and fielding skills, I was very impressed that with limited opportunities so many of the squad made important contributions with bat and ball. Archie Waterworth claimed the most wickets (15 at a cost of 10.5 runs each) followed by Jonty Hall who claimed 10 wickets – five of which were taken in a terrific spell against St John’s in the Shrewsbury 20/20 semi-final. Lots of batsmen made excellent
Wrekin 6-a-side Tournament
Winners
Repton U12 8-a-side Tournament
Runners up
contributions with three boys making at least one half century during the season. Ed Beard hit our highest score with a superb matchwinning 73 not out against Sedbergh. George Hargrave was definitely our star performer with the bat, added to his excellent wicket keeping. He scored three 50s at an average of 66. This was a terrific effort as George had his technique examined in what were bowler-friendly pitch conditions most of the time. Captain Chan Kathuria’s considered and unselfish approach got the whole team playing purposeful, positive cricket in all the games. Sadly for Chan the conditions this season did not suit his wrist spin at all. He bowled very well on many occasions with no luck at all. There were many highlights during the term but the moment I enjoyed most was watching Beard, Hargrave and Fielding knocking off 161 runs against Sedbergh. It was an excellent run chase with two overs to spare. Another highlight would have to be Andrew Tudor’s amazing catch on the boundary edge in the final of the Wrekin 6-a-side. It has been a frustrating season but has still given teachers and parents lots of wonderful memories. I wish the leavers future successes and some decent weather on the cricket field at their new schools. Squad: Chan Kathuria* (Capt), George Hargrave*, Edward Beard*, Freddie Fielding*, Freddie Beharrell, Jonty Hall*, Edward Thomson*, Andrew Tudor*, Archie Waterworth*, David Schofield, Edward Myddelton, Oliver Clarke, Jonty Schofield, Thomas Tulloch, Robert Ford. PJP
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2nd XI This season will be remembered for the weather which put paid to half of our fixtures. When the rain did relent though, the team did manage to win three matches against a decent standard of opposition. We had a nicely balanced side this year, with a good mixture of top and second year boys; watchful and aggressive batsmen and pace as well as slower bowlers. We were, moreover, an athletic fielding side who took a number of superb catches which really stunned the opposition: Thomas Tulloch and Ivor Fetherstonhaugh should be mentioned in particular here. In our first match we put Abberley into bat on a typically slow pitch, kept the pressure on and bowled them out for a low score. Chris Dorrell bowled particularly well, as he in fact did all season opening the bowling. Our batsmen had some jittery moments in pursuit before the ship was stabilised by a sensible innings from Jamie Channon, flown in for the day from the 3rd XI. Harry Wasdell also batted well before Louis Martin came in to bludgeon the winning runs. Our best performance was reserved for Prestfelde on an unusually hot day. Jonty Schofield starred here with a well-paced 50 against his old school, while Robert Ford was also starting to find form, and the boundary, with his big-hitting style. The opposition never looked like reaching their target, as Jamie Chambers and the promising young leg-spin of Ivor Fetherstonhaugh restricted them well. Later on in the term we also came out on top in an enjoyable trip to Shrewsbury High Prep. With parts of the outfield still boggy, Robert
Ford took a liking to the distinctly short boundary and was well supported by opener and captain Thomas Tulloch’s best innings of the season. Harry Wasdell and Caspar Massey hit more useful runs at the end. Both these young players made great strides this season.
improved their cricketing ability inbetween the distinctly heavy rain showers. Squad: Thomas Tulloch (Capt), Jonty Schofield, Ollie Clarke, Chris Dorrell, Dominic Ainslie, Robert Ford, Harry Wasdell, Fergus David, Caspar Massey, Louis Martin, Guy Morris, Ivor Fetherstonhaugh, Jamie Chambers. RAC
We met our match though in a new double fixture against Oswestry 1st XI. We should have made more of the chance at home, when having Played 5 Won 3 Drawn 0 Lost 1 Abandoned 1 restricted them to only 68 off their 20 overs on the large 1st v Abberley (A) 77 all out 78-5 Won by 5 wkts XI square, we were bowled out Packwood for 65 in response. This v Prestfelde (A) 84-9 revealed a vulnerability against Packwood 151-5 (Schofield 50) Won by 67 runs some good quality spin, which v Oswestry 1st XI (H) 68-4 we were perhaps fortunate in Packwood 65 all out Lost by 6 wkts not having to meet again away v Shrewsbury High 1st XI (A) 61-7 when the rain intervened. Packwood 123-4 Won by 62 runs Well done to the 2nd XI for a good season in which all
v Oswestry 1st XI Packwood
(A) 94-1 Abandoned
3rd XI With a strong group of boys to choose from and a good number of fixtures spread out through the term surely nothing could get in the way of a glorious summer of cricket on the imaginatively named ‘Big Tree Pitch’. Unfortunately the weather did rather get in the way and to only manage three fixtures was a disappointment. Nevertheless the team played some excellent cricket in the right spirit and there were some notable individual performances. Bertie Jenkinson proved to be an inspiring captain who combined his efficient wicket keeping skills with some elegant batting. Notable on the batting front were scores of 77 from Patrick Ashall, and 33 from Bertie Jenkinson but many others chipped in as well with scores in the twenties by Rory Fergusson, Zak Nicholas and Timmy RobinsonBoulton. The policy of trying to get everyone to bowl meant that the wickets were spread out fairly evenly amongst the team. The results of the matches were not very close with two solid victories against Abberley and Prestfelde which were followed by a rather heavy defeat by a strong Sedbergh Under 12 team who played the game in a rather more ‘professional’ way than perhaps we are used to at third eleven level. So although the weather played a big part in the season we did enjoy three glorious afternoons where the sun shone, parents and grandparents came and watched and supported (and made kind comments about my hat) and we enjoyed wonderful tea and cakes between innings. Nobody could reasonably ask for more.
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Team: Played 3 Won 2 Drawn 0 Lost 1 Bertie Jenkinson (Capt), v Abberley (H) 58 all out Patrick Ashall, Packwood 130 all out Won by 72 runs Rory Fergusson, Zak Nicholas, v Prestfelde (H) 32 all out Timmy RobinsonPackwood 201 for 6 Won by 169 runs Boulton, v Sedbergh (H) 99 for 1 Jamie Channon, Packwood 98 all out Lost by 9 wkts Rory Davies, Scott Hatton, Tom Baxter, Harri Holroyd, Freddie Houlker, Luke Williams, Alexander Wythe, Ben Ricks. FRH
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4th and 5th XI This was a term of cancelled matches and disappointed boys. The 4th XI had a number of competent batsmen, with a good blend of defensive and attacking players. This was complemented by a strong bowling unit that could take wickets. Against Abberley a rather mixed side travelled away with a number of players unavailable due to 3rd team promotion and others away on The Great Escape weekend. The team performed well with notable bowling performances from Gideon Turner, Tom Hughes, Jack Lock and Linden Grigg. The highlight of the match was Jude Bedford’s innings to steer the team to victory, putting the bad balls away and running quick singles. For the match away at Birchfield Mr Weston took the team and reported a slight batting collapse, only setting the home side 44 to win. The 5th XI played against a Moffats 1st XI. Credit to the Packwood boys, they stuck to the task but were outgunned by the visiting side. A captain’s knock from Thomas Simpson led the way for a big run chase but sadly it wasn’t to be.
Played 3 Won 1 Drawn 0 Lost 2 v Abberley Packwood 4th XI
(A) 86 all out (Lock 2 for 8) 88 for 5
Won by 5 wkts
v Birchfield 2nd XI Packwood 4th XI
(A) 44 for 2 43 all out
Lost by 8 wkts
v Moffats 1st XI Packwood 5th XI
(H) 192 for 2 121 all out (Simpson 20)
Lost by 71 runs
This term will be remembered for soft wickets, uneven bounce, ice rinks for outfields and some of the muddiest whites you will ever see. 4th XI: Gideon Turner (Capt), Sam Bayliss, Jude Bedford, Linden Grigg, Edward Peterson, James Long, Tom Hughes, Simon Waterhouse, Hugh Davies, Bentley Moss, Jack Lock, Javier Garcia. 5th XI: Thomas Simpson (Capt), Oliver Bureau, Ned Warbuton-Lee, Johnnie Peel, Thomas Shaw, Llyr Heyward-Jones, Francisco Gomez, Eliott Gilling-Smith, Morton Moss, Keita Umetani, Scott Walker, Ralph Furse. JM
Under 11A After a tremendously successful season last year and with the majority of that squad still available, the boys had high hopes for the term. Often a weight of expectation such as that can come at a cost, but due to plenty of raw talent, tremendously hard work in training and a real self-belief amongst the group we were able to surpass the success that the group had achieved in the previous season. After two brilliant first up bowling performances where the likes of Humes, Mobbs, Holcroft and the new addition to the group, Furnival, all shone, it became a case of making sure everyone had opportunities to show their worth to the side. Oscar Holt, the skipper of the team was brilliant all season. His tactical and thoughtful captaincy played a major role in the ruthlessness and respectfulness that the side carried all term. His batting was also excellent, and his 30 not out against Prestfelde was followed up by an excellent, match winning captain’s knock of 50 not out against Old Hall. In the tournaments it was another aspect of our game that shone through the most, our fielding. In shortened formats of the game where every player is involved in every delivery, fielding is often what wins or loses you a game of cricket. Led by the ever impressive Frank Morris and Freddie Furnival our fielding reached new heights. The two together produced countless run outs for Packwood and provided a source of inspiration for the rest of the players who willingly raised their own standards to new levels. The fact that at every tournament I received comments about the side’s fielding is a true credit to the efforts that the boys had put in in training, and their ability to produce outstanding performances on match days. Technically, for all of the boys there is still a long way to go before they maximise their potential, but that is what is so exciting about this group. As they learn the different aspects of their individual games, and improve on some of these technical glitches, then the sky is the limit as they move through their final years at Packwood. Individual moments of brilliance? Dominating our first game after minimal training due to the weather; Holt’s assured 50 not out against Old Hall; the brilliance of Frank Morris in the field at tournaments; Nick Yeoward’s ever improving wicket keeping, displayed by his leg side catch at Malvern; Freddie Furnival’s expert catching at short mid-off and brilliant run out against Whitgift at the Nationals; Archie Mobbs 51 not out and 4 for 9 against Moor Park – what a game!; Daniel Humes’ 51 not out off just 21 balls in the opening fixture of the Wrekin tournament; Felix Jebb smashing 30 not out off 11 balls against Old Hall – wow!; William Holcroft’s bowling against Millfield at the nationals; Jack Goodall’s direct hit against Hereford Cathedral at the National semi-finals; the list could go on and on and on.
Played 5 Won 4 Drawn 1 Lost 0 v Birchfield Packwood
(H) 21 all out 24 for 0 (Holt 12 not out)
Won by 10 wkts
v Abberley Packwood
(H) 48 all out 50 for 2 (Humes 22)
Won by 8 wkts
v Prestfelde Packwood
(H) 64 for 9 127 for 6 dec (Holt 30 not out, Humes 20, Hall 20) Drawn
v Old Hall Packwood
(A) 85 all out 157 for 4 (Holt 50 ret, Yeoward 43 not out, Jebb 30 not out)
Won by 72 runs
(H) 94 for 9 dec (Mobbs 4 for 9) 95 for 1 (Mobbs 51)
Won by 9 wkts
v Moor Park Packwood
Wrekin Tournament (6-a-side)
Winners
Malvern Tournament (8-a-side)
Winners
Shrewsbury Super 12 Tournament (8-a-side)
Winners
Solihull West Midlands Hardball Tournament (8-a-side)
Winners
Hardball Tournament National Finals at Oakham (8-a-side) Runners-up
What an amazing group of boys these were to coach. Always enthusiastic and willing to learn, their thirst for improvement was a major highlight for Team: Oscar Holt (Capt), Freddie Furnival, Daniel Humes, Nick Yeoward, Jack Goodall, Frank Morris, Felix Jebb, Archie Mobbs, me all season. I have had a truly fantastic time coaching them and wish Ollie Hall, William Holcroft, Alex Ainslie. PD them all the best for the seasons to come! I will cherish these memories.
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S P O R T: C R I C K E T
Under 11B It rained for forty days and forty nights…and then some more! It has to be the most memorable cricket season that I can recall at Packwood, for all of the wrong reasons. In 12 weeks we only managed to complete four fixtures with just one of these not being rain-affected. Cricket is very much a form game and this ‘form’ is achieved through regular practice and time out on the square, neither of which we could do with any consistency. This was a great pity as the squad had a lot of potential. We did, however, have one glorious week and we travelled to Prestfelde where we bowled well, fielded poorly and batted as one would expect following such poor weather conditions and notched up a nice win. Our bowling would prove to be our strength this season and good line and length would earn us many wickets. Harry Swinburne and Rowan Pickstock provided pace and swing whilst Ben Cowley, James Hinwood and Nat McAllister followed suit with some accurate seam. A second victory against Old Hall looks straightforward on paper but was a terrific game in which we managed to win in the final over of the day – timed cricket at its best! What sadly turned out to be our last two games were against stronger opposition. A loss at the hands of Yarlet A would have been a much closer affair had we held onto our six dropped catches! And versus Sedbergh A/B we thought that we had the game ‘in the bag’ having dismissed the opponents for just 54 on a very, very wet wicket only to collapse and end up four runs short. Who said that cricket was boring? The Under 11 boys do deserve special credit though because throughout the season, despite the appalling conditions, they always worked with tremendous enthusiasm and adopted an attitude of ‘let’s just make the most of it’ with a perpetual smile upon their faces – well done!
Played 4 Won 2 Drawn 0 Lost 2 v Old Hall Packwood
(H) 141 for 6 dec (Cowley 32 not out) 80 all out (Hinwood 2 for 3)
v Prestfelde Packwood
(A) 101 all out (Hinwood 3 for 20, Cowley 2 for 8) 124 for 4 dec (Swinburne 20 not out) Won by 23 runs
v Yarlet A Packwood
(H) 118 for 3 116 all out (Swinburne 37)
v Sedbergh A/B Packwood
(H) 55 all out (Swinburne 4 for 7, Hinwood 3 for 3) 50 all out Lost by 5 runs
Won by 61 runs
Lost by 7 wkts
Squad: Harry Swinburne (Capt), Marcus Woodhead, Owen Carroll, Rowan Pickstock, Ben Cowley, James Hinwood. Harry Myddelton, Ali Davies, Nat McAllister, Toby Turpin, Alfred Hughes, Harry Waterworth, Maxwell Horler. MAF
Under 11C Played 4 Won 2 Drawn 1 Lost 1 Abandoned 1 v Abberley Packwood
(H) 67 all out 180 for 3 (Moreau 52 not out) Won by 113 runs
v Oswestry School U11A (H) 63 all out Packwood 65 for 3
Won by 7 wkts
v Moor Park U11B Packwood
Drawn
(H) 112 for 9 114 all out
v Shrewsbury High U11A(A) 87 for 5 Packwood 84 for 5
Lost by 5 wkts
v Oswestry School U11A (A) 84 for 5 Packwood 8 for 1
Abandoned
The only winner this season has been the appalling weather. Ironically, even though the away fixture against Oswestry was abandoned, only one other match was lost to the rain. Practice time, however, has been drastically reduced with the result that there has never been any continuity and the pitch has been out of use for days at a time. The first match against Abberley demonstrated our ability to score runs, though sadly any further opportunity to do so was limited, but Ned Moreau’s 53 was one of the highlights of the season, perhaps matched only by the nail-biting last over draw against Moor Park. Throughout it all the boys have continued to apply themselves and remained cheerful as well as grasping with relish any opportunity to play. There has been an improvement in standards as well, particularly in the away match against Oswestry in which, despite difficult conditions in the outfield, there was a better standard of fielding and an outstandingly good catch to brighten up a thoroughly miserable and grey day.
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I would like to thank Ned Moreau for his quiet yet authoritative captaincy and all the rest of the boys in the squad for persevering in such trying conditions. Well done. Team: Ned Moreau (Capt), Gregor Montgomery, Thomas Mercer, Freddy Williams, Patrick Norman, Marcus Woodhead, Maxwell Horler, Scott Nicholson, Edward Barry, Arthur Gell, Alfred Hughes, Sebastian Rathbone. KJW
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S P O R T: C R I C K E T
Under 9A It was enormous fun Played 4 Won 4 Drawn 0 Lost 0 seeing these able boys v Birchfield (H) 180 develop their Packwood 268 Won by 88 runs cricketing skills. The (A) 241 pair format works very v Abberley 331 Won by 90 runs well at this level giving Packwood v Presfelde (A) 292 all boys an equal Packwood 300 Won by 8 runs opportunity to bowl and bat when we play v Sedbergh (H) 203 Packwood 408 Won by 205 runs a game. I was really pleased to see how often the boys would be in the nets at break times working at their technique. They won all four of their matches, and particularly impressed with their fielding. There was considerable talent in the team. William Stanford-Davis was a real all-round star whether batting, bowling or wicket keeping. Joe Pattenden, our captain, was hugely knowledgeable and when we were fielding kept the rest of the team on their toes. Thomas Dix and Oliver Holcroft were our stylish bowlers; Thomas was our best bowler, fast and accurate, while Oliver was becoming a confident batsman. However Fred Stephens was hitting more sixes than anyone else by the end of the season. Jack Yeoward was the pick of the youngsters, while Angus Hill-Trevor, Jago Ainslie, and Freddie Cox were improving at an incredible rate. Finally, the most
improved player of the team with both bat and ball was the magnificent Edward Bayliss. They were great fun to coach, and thanks to all members of the family who practised with the boys at home. Team: Joe Pattenden (Capt), William Stanford-Davis, Thomas Dix, Oliver Holcroft, Fred Stephens, Jack Yeoward, Edward Bayliss, Angus Hill-Trevor, Jago Ainslie, William Shaw, Lawrence Rathbone, Freddie Cox, Orlando Williams, Jacob Jones. RHC
Under 9B This was pairs cricket: a pair of batsmen faces four overs; five pairs bat in all; usually everyone bowls at least one over; runs are taken away when a wicket is taken; six balls are bowled in an over, with no extra delivery for a bad ball. Two matches of differing quality have been added to the sporting fixtures to allow more boys of this age some match experience. There were some good all-round displays and certainly areas for improvement and praise were identified, but the overall impression is one of enjoyment to have played for the school, whatever the result.
Played 2 Won 1 Drawn 0 Lost 1 v Birchfield Packwood
(A) 241 243
Won by 2 runs
v Shrewsbury High (H) 316 Packwood 231
Lost by 85 runs
Team: Orlando Williams, Jacob Jones, Freddie Cox, Edred Clutton, Sebastian Marmont, Oliver Griffiths, Tom Kiel, Will Tate, Freddie Oakley, Euan Montgomery, AJ MacKinlay. JO
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S P O R T: R O U N D E R S
Rounders 1st IX The unforgiving Played 6 Won 3 Drawn 0 Lost 3 British summer For 981⁄2 Against 321⁄2 meant we didn’t play v Bromsgrove School (A) Won as many matches as v Denstone College (Rd 1 JET) (A) Lost usual. The rain v Oswestry School (H) Won hampered practice v Moreton Hall (H) Won after practice and v Moor Park (H) Lost fixtures were v Foremarke Hall (A) Lost cancelled. The momentum never really got going; such a shame after last year’s appearance at the JET finals.
16 - 81⁄2 21 - 12 10 - 1 17 - 2 161⁄2 - 6 18 - 3
Our first match was against Bromsgrove School. From the outset our triangle of backstop, Tara Beasley, bowler, Jemima Price and first post, Tia Barlow caused them many problems and we accounted for most of their batters this way. Flo Wade-Smith was outstanding with the bat and scored two whole rounders as our last remaining batter. Next we played Denstone College in the JET. Other commitments meant a few of our usual players were unavailable and the school ‘bug’ meant we played well below par. This is taking nothing away from Denstone who played exceptionally well and deserved their win. Two easy wins against Oswestry School and Moreton Hall followed. Everyone played well especially Poppy Carver with the bat and Sophia Price’s left handers caught their fielders out on many occasions. Then we have Packwood’s answer to Usain Bolt – Harriet Bibby, who scorched the circuit with her runs around the posts. Against Moor Park I was again unable to field my full squad and our visitors exposed us in the field with the bat. Although a disappointing loss I was pleased with our replacement bowler, Maya Leavey, who stepped into the team for this
match. Our last opponents, from Foremarke Hall, are always strong opposition and they were unlucky not to make it through to this year’s JET finals. We batted first and soon found their quick bowling and slick backstop to first post pair meant many of our players were either out at first post or caught – not a great start. They had some great batters too who could hit it anywhere in the field. As disappointed as we were, their play was outstanding and they deserved to win. So it was a mixed season for the first IX but lots has been learnt along the way. Squad: Tara Beasley (Capt)*, Jemima Price, Tia Barlow*, Sophia Price, Bea Mostyn-Owen, Ella Downey, Harriet Bibby, Jess Hunt, Flo Wade-Smith*, Poppy Carver. KLP
2nd IX Played 5 Won 3 Drawn 0 Lost 2 For 47 Against 361⁄2 v Bromsgrove v Moreton Hall v Moor Park v Terra Nova U13A v Foremarke (*+ innings)
(A) (H) (H) (H) (A)
Won Won Won Lost Lost
11 - 71⁄2 111⁄2* - 21⁄2 91⁄2 - 5 9 - 141⁄2 6-7
Due to the infuriating British weather, match fixtures and valuable games lessons were lost this term. We were left with only a handful of fixtures to challenge us but despite the disappointment the girls were determined to make the most of every opportunity and it was this positive attitude that produced the satisfying results you see above. After four weeks of rain and soggy pitches we finally boarded the bus for Bromsgrove and our first match! We really didn’t know what to expect with our lack of match practice but, despite some errors in the field, I was very pleased with the girls’ performance, particularly the strength of our batting. Alice Rees, Amelia Tennant and Emily Cooper all stamped their authority on the score sheet with Alice Shone not far behind. Next we hosted Moreton Hall and enjoyed an excellent match. It was a fantastic opportunity for the girls to hone their individual skills out in the field and also to gel as a formidable unit. Amelia shone Page 76
at second post and her pitches to fourth post were inch perfect. Once again our batting was outstanding. The heroines this time were Maya and Sacha who between them scored more than half the final score! We were well into June before we could enjoy another home fixture, this time against Moor Park. The dynamic duo of Alice Shone at backstop and Millie Shaw at first post put six of Moor Park’s batters out, as did Georgie Bibby at fourth post. Olivia also put in a fine performance as bowler giving away no penalty half rounders. Another fine batting performance secured us the victory and it is fair to say the girls were thrilled! Unfortunately we didn’t end the season quite as we had started. The next match was against Terra Nova and our team was made up of Under 12s as many of our regulars were away on the leavers’ trip. However they put in an admirable performance and showed great potential for next year. Finally we headed to Foremarke. After a long and stuffy bus ride the girls struggled to get going initially but in the
end all played well. Maya, Alice and Millie were exceptional as bowler, backstop and first post and our batting performance was again solid with Millie, Beth and Georgie batting particularly well. Apart from the dismal weather it has been an enjoyable season. The 2nd IX have been a real pleasure to work with and I am thoroughly proud of them both individually and as a squad. Sacha and Alice Rees were both super captains and great ambassadors. So I say goodbye and good luck to this year’s leavers and wish them a very happy and successful future. Team: Sacha Robertson, Alice Rees (Capts), Alice Shone, Maya Leavey, Millie Shaw, Amelia Tennant, Georgie Bibby, Emily Cooper, Beth Cooper. LW
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S P O R T: R O U N D E R S
3rd IX Unfortunately the 3rd XI rounders term was Played 5 Won 1 Drawn 1 Lost 3 marred by bad For 30 Against 40 weather and some of v Bromsgrove (A) Drawn 6-6 the matches had to be v Moreton Hall (A) Won 10 - 9 cancelled. However, v Adcote A (A) Lost 21⁄2 - 9 we managed to play v Bedstone College (A) Lost 3-5 five matches with a v Foremarke (A) Lost 81⁄2 - 11 mixture of results. We found all our matches to be tough with the majority of results being very close indeed. We also played against one or two A teams where the girls persevered to their credit. Our usual line up was Laura Whittingham at back stop throwing, with increasing accuracy over the term, to Cassie Bedford at first post. Chanida Dhooghe, and later in the season, Pip Vickers, tried hard at second post. Esther McLaughlin played reliably at third post, and Molly Bruce, Hermione Bathurst and Eliza Beckett shared the responsibility at fourth post in different matches. The deep fielding of Issy Wythe, Kim Peerapairoj, Rosie Clarke and Juliana Hinwood became more consistent as the season progressed. This was topped off by the very accurate bowling of Amber Gibbins. We also had reserves to call on if necessary including Elena Cros and Marina Resines. The team was ably captained by Cassie Bedford who led by example. Well done and thank you.
Team: Cassie Bedford (Capt), Chanida Dhooghe, Esther McLaughlin, Juliana Hinwood, Hermione Bathurst, Laura Whittingham, Amber Gibbins, Molly Bruce, Pip Vickers, Isabella Wythe, Kim Peerapairoj, Rosie Clarke, Eliza Beckett, Marina Resines, Elena Cros. GW
Under 11A Played 7 Won 5 Drawn 0 Lost 2 For 60 Against 451⁄2 v Bromsgrove v Shrewsbury High v Abberley v Moor Park v Terra Nova v Old Hall Triangular v Foremarke
(H) (H) (A) (A) (H) (H) (A)
Lost Won Won Won Won Won Lost
11 - 11½ 14½ - 9 7-5 12 - 8 4 - 1½ 5½ - 1 6 - 9½
Bad weather meant a dismal start to the season with several matches and tournaments cancelled. On a positive note, this gave extra time for the new players to learn tactics and skills and how to apply them in a game situation. Amelia Ashworth, Amelia Peterson and Marina Resines had previously played very little rounders and they were quick learners which helped maximise the team’s performance. All the girls had an excellent season and they show great potential for next year. A deserved victory was snatched from the girls’ grasp in their first match of the season when, despite being the better team, they lost out against Bromsgrove. Lottie Clarke, Marina Resines, Annabel Robertson and Amelia Ashworth all batted well and Annabel continued in the same vein during the second match against Shrewsbury High when she scored an outstanding four and a half rounders. Strong bowling from Ellie Mason made it difficult for the Shrewsbury batters, and Talullah Blackham and Amelia Ashworth were attentive in the field to catch players out. Against Abberley, the girls’ tight fielding and strong batting performance were key to their victory. Again the variety of pace and height of Ellie Mason’s bowling posed a problem to the opposition which allowed
Freya Beasley and Lottie Clarke to stump out many players at first post. Against Moor Park, great fielding prevented any full rounders being scored, and once again the team’s batting performance was strong with everyone contributing to the final score. Despite having short innings, the triangular match against Terra Nova and Old Hall allowed the girls to show their strong skills and versatility. Excellent fielding kept the oppositions’ scores low and Freya Beasley and Talullah Blackham, in particular, were superb, both batting and fielding extremely well. The last game of the season against Foremarke was the toughest, but it also
showed the magnificent fielding ability of the team. Had everyone batted to their full potential, the result would have been a perfect end to the season. Nevertheless, this was a great game to watch and an excellent, challenging experience for the girls. Team: Ellie Mason (Capt), Lottie Clarke, Annabel Robertson, Amelia Ashworth, Amelia Peterson, Marina Resines, Talullah Blackham, Freya Beasley, Rosie Simpson and Lottie Hill-Trevor. AP
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S P O R T: R O U N D E R S
Under 11B Unfortunately, several fixtures had to be cancelled this season due to bad weather. However, the girls won the majority of their matches and they were all given the opportunity to represent the team in every match. Amelia Maunder, Natasha CarterMotley and Phoebe Wasdell had previously played very little rounders but they all learnt to apply skills and tactics in the game very quickly and they became strong, key players within the team. The girls narrowly lost their first game against Bromsgrove, however they managed to set a high score as a target to improve their batting over the season. Consistent fielding and good decision making was apparent in the triangular tournament against Shrewsbury High School and Oswestry School. The team kept focused and prevented the opposition from scoring many rounders in each game. The team’s greatest victory came against Oswestry School. Excellent fielding forced Oswestry to an early end of innings, and the girls made the most of their opportunity by scoring several half rounders and seven full rounders. Against Abberley, the girls made a slow start but to their credit, a rather tentative batting innings was transformed into a positive performance. Daisy Harker-Weston had an
exceptional game and Imogen Downey put much determination into stumping out the opposition at second post. Against Foremarke, Natasha Carter-Motley bowled well and was quick to react to make many catches. The girls showed great determination, particularly Lexi Samuel, and they should all be proud of their performance. Throughout the season, the confidence of the girls has improved, they have developed consistency in their fielding and batting and they have all demonstrated that they are capable players. Amelia Maunder’s bowling, Sophie Barlow’s throwing and Phoebe Wasdell’s catching skills have all been key to the team’s success.
Played 5 Won 3 Drawn 0 Lost 2 For 481⁄2 Against 38 v Bromsgrove v Shrewsbury High v Oswestry School v Abberley v Foremarke
(H) (H) (H) (A) (A)
Lost Won Won Won Lost
11 - 11½ 6-3 9-1 13½ - 10 9 - 12½
Team: Sophie Barlow (Capt), Amelia Maunder, Phoebe Wasdell, Natasha Carter-Motley, Imogen Downey, Lexi Samuel, Chloe Edwards, Romy Grigg, Theodora Jarvis. AP
Under 10 Sadly, as a result of the awful weather we have all been experiencing this summer, the Under 10 rounders team had many matches cancelled. However, despite the tiresome rain and at times rather chilly temperatures, they got on with the matter in hand which was to play good rounders! The term started with intense ball skills practices. The girls worked on throwing accurately and catching. These much improved ball skills were clearly evident when the girls played against Bromsgrove. Early on in the term Georgia Kannreuther shone out as a superb player who can play several positions on the pitch extremely well. On this occasion she played a particularly quick second post. Sacha Sandbach also had a great match playing a fantastic deep fielder. However, the batting let our team down and Bromsgrove deservedly won the match. Batting was one skill all of the girls needed to practise and that is what they did from the Bromsgrove match until the end of the term. The results were seen during their match against Shrewsbury High. The girls’ hitting was much better – Harriet Haynes and Olivia Holt were particularly good and both girls scored several rounders. A few weeks later the girls went to play a difficult match against Moor Park and, despite their best efforts, were defeated. However, by this time of the term it was clear to me that the girls’ batting and fielding skills were significantly improving and, as a team they were thinking about match tactics more. Against Old Hall the team played the best rounders of the term. Their fielding skills were quick and their batting was fantastic with many rounders being scored, by Zara Vickers and Olivia Moir in particular. Sophia Bureau was a quick backstop, throwing the ball to Zara who got many people out at first post. A week later and nearing the end of our very busy term the team took on the infamous Foremarke girls. For once the weather was hot and sunny! The match was close with exceptional hitting and fielding from both teams. Louisa Jarvis bowled consistently well giving away very few half rounders. Freya Cox received player of the match for her excellent deep fielding, always throwing the ball accurately to either second or fourth post. Anna Cowan who had shown great maturity throughout the term was a great team captain for this match. Page 78
The Under 10 girls Played 5 Won 2 Drawn 0 Lost 3 should be very proud For 491⁄2 Against 511⁄2 of what they have v Bromsgrove (H) Lost 81⁄2 - 15 achieved this season. v Shrewsbury High (H) Won 17 - 51⁄2 With many, many v Moor Park (A) Lost 7 - 14 hours of practice and a v Old Hall (H) Won 101⁄2 - 51⁄2 lot of determination v Foremarke (A) Lost 61⁄2 - 111⁄2 their skills improved immensely throughout the term. Well done girls! Team: Sophia Bureau, Anna Cowan, Harriet Haynes, Freya Cox, Louisa Jarvis, Georgia Kannreuther, Olivia Moir, Sacha Sandbach, Zara Vickers, Olivia Holt. CS
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S P O R T: R O U N D E R S
Under 9 Played 3 Won 3 Drawn 0 Lost 0 For 431⁄2 Against 22 v Birchfield v Shrewsbury High v Terra Nova U10
(A) (H) (H)
Won 111⁄2 - 2 Won 141⁄2 - 41⁄2 Won 171⁄2 - 151⁄2
After a busy hockey and netball term, the girls looked set to have a busy rounders term as well, with five matches planned. Unfortunately, the weather intervened and two of these were cancelled but, on a positive note, this allowed time for more practice! The girls, including Lucy Clarke and Genevieve Bright who were drafted in from the Acorns (and what an impression they made!), got straight to work learning the rules and tactics of the game and practising their skills. The match against Birchfield saw some fantastic fast and accurate bowling from Isabel Morris which was backed up by quick thinking and accurate throwing from Georgiana Nicholas. Our batting was improving too and Alice Hughes and Tommy Jarvis were starting to make contact with the ball. That same week the girls played their second match against Shrewsbury High and this was where Lucy and Genevieve made their brilliant debut. The Shrewsbury players were hitting the ball well and really testing Genevieve and Tommy in the deeps, when one of the girls hit a ball high in the air and Lucy made a fantastic catch – what a brilliant start for her and the team! The batting in this match had improved immensely with
Georgiana, Alice and Isabel scoring whole rounders and Poppy and Eliza scoring halves. The girls had a long wait before their final match during which they continued with their hitting and fielding practice. The last game was a tough one against Terra Nova Under 10s. The girls held their own in the first innings thanks to brilliant, calm bowling from Isabel and great teamwork between backstop, Georgiana, and second base, Alice, who managed to get out an impressive number of batters. The girls went into the second innings of the game knowing that they had to bat as well as they had ever done, and that is just what they did! Every girl came away from the
match having scored and contributed towards the end result. This was a fantastic way to end the rounders season and showed the progression the girls had made over the term. The Under 9s this year should be proud of what they have achieved, not only an undefeated season but also showing Lucy and Genevieve what they need to know and how it should be done ready for next year. Well done girls! Team: Georgiana Nicholas, Alice Hughes, Tommy Jarvis, Isabel Morris, Eliza Blackham, Poppy Stephens, Honor Grigg, Lucy Clarke, Genevieve Bright. KE
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S P O R T: R I D I N G / R I F L E S H O O T I N G
Riding The first Sunday of the autumn term saw nineteen riders take part in our annual One Day Event. It was a glorious autumn day and everyone enjoyed the sound going. Sophie Barlow convincingly won the Open 2’9”class with Simon Waterhouse the only other double clear in the jumping sections. The Novice 2’3” class winner was Freya Beasley with Georgie Bibby and Loris Pattinson taking the next two places. The Beginners 18” class was won by Lottie Hill-Trevor, with Gregor Montgomery second. There were also enough entries to make a competitive Lead Rein class which was won by Ollie Griffiths. Our particular thanks go to Trish Bridge for judging the Dressage at extremely short notice and of course to Matron Banks, our most important First Aid presence, who generously also helps with the running of the day. Autumn half term saw five of our riders making the long trek to Addington Manor in Buckinghamshire for the National Schools Riding Championships, having qualified at Southview during the summer term. Sophie Barlow rode as an individual in the 75cm class in both the Arena Eventing and Show Jumping classes. She qualified for the Show
Jumping jump-off and finished in seventh place. Thea Holt-Smith, Jack Ashworth, Simon Waterhouse and Scott Walker qualified as a team in both classes at 85 cm and came home with sixth place in the Arena Eventing. A surprise bonus was to discover that Packwood was the winning school from the North West so our five riders lined up to receive the certificate on behalf of all who had represented the school over the year.
Handy Pony has seldom been so busy! The day followed its usual format of Show Jumping and Games. The day’s informal and relaxed atmosphere is enjoyed by all, with all the main ring classes stewarded and judged by an enthusiastic and efficient group of 2s girls. Sophie Barlow was awarded the Green Hollow Trophy, closely followed by Jonty Bright. AJR
We again managed to put out teams at all three heights in the May bank holiday Inter Schools Competition at Southview this summer. Jonty Bright won his warm-up class but sadly that was our only rosette of the day. However it was good to see new riders coming in to the teams. We are looking forward to going back to Southview in September for the regional qualifiers and hope that we may do enough to have a presence at the Nationals in October. Later in May was the Gymkhana. It is difficult at the time of writing to remember that this summer had some hot days but that Sunday was most certainly one of them! There was another good turnout, particularly of new and younger riders, and Matron Banks running the
Rifle Shooting At the beginning of each week a fresh booking sheet goes into the doorway of the lab and children book a time in break or rest on Wednesday or Saturday. That the sheet is usually filled up by lunchtime shows the enthusiasm that a lot of children have for this activity. I am delighted that so many children are enjoying their shooting and by the number who have improved their aim and won certificates during the year. I have certainly enjoyed helping them to learn to shoot safely and improve their technique. The 2s have been particularly keen and a number of really good shots have emerged. Page 80
23 second class certificates and 15 first class certificates were awarded during the year. Particular congratulations go to Johnnie Peel, Ned Warburton-Lee, Alexander Wythe, Scott Walker, Dominic Ainslie, Morton Moss and Louisa Jarvis who won marksman certificates this year (150 out of 200). There is currently nobody in the school who has won a master marksman shield (255 out of 300) but I have the shields and I am confident that I will be giving some out next year. I have hugely enjoyed the time I have spent in the range this year and look forward to developing the shooting further during the next few years. FRH
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S P O R T : S I X E S A T H L E T I C S 2 0 11 / B I A T H L O N
Sixes Athletics 2011 The earlier May dates for the Sixes Athletics at senior and Under 11 levels proved to be a great success this year. In addition to all the boys and girls having the opportunity to take part in track and field events, a 4x100m relay was included for the first time in a while. The early hosting of the events also helped with the selection of the team which represented Packwood at the IAPS Athletics at Radley School later in the term. Both the senior and Under 11 athletics saw some fantastic performances in the field events. Harry Myddelton and Lottie Clarke showed lots of promise in the Under 11 boys’ and girls’ long jump. Alexander Wythe dominated the boys’ shot event with a 9m throw and Patrick Ashall threw an excellent 22m to win the boys’ javelin in style. Other good performances in the field events came in the senior long jump events. Edward Myddelton and Florence Wade-Smith produced the jumps of the day to win. On the track, all events were highly competitive and there were excellent winning times. In the boys’ races Freddie Fielding won convincingly once again, by 20 seconds, in the 800m and Caspar Massey destroyed a strong field in the 100m final. Georgia Bibby produced an impressive performance to win the senior girls’ 100m after her sister Harriet tragically tripped and fell when ahead of the field. Tia Barlow overcame Juliana Hinwood in a repeat performance of last year to claim victory in the senior girls’ 800m. Possibly the highlight of both events Bradshaw/Boyces won the senior Sixes Athletics with 37 points and was the relays. The most memorable performance came in the senior boys’ 4x100m final. The McFerran/Wilsons team claimed an impressive McFerran/Wilsons and Bradshaw/Boyces tied the Under 11 event with 24 points. These results meant the overall winners were Bradshaw/ victory. Well done! Boyces who won the Miriam Heard Cup for the first time in 12 years. The future of athletics at Packwood looks promising with lots of good Finally, congratulations to all who represented the school in the IAPS performances coming out of the Under 11 age group. Ellie Mason Athletics at Radley and particularly to Freddie Fielding and Caspar claimed a first and second place in the girls’ ball throw and 800m Massey who qualified, in the 1500m and 100m respectively, for the events and Fred Furnival won both the 200m and boys’ ball throw Nationals in Birmingham. PJP events comfortably.
Biathlon For the second year running Packwood entered the GB Schools Biathlon competition. There was no preliminary round at Solihull this year, instead Miss Evans, our super swimming coach, and I had to time our competitors at school and send in our results. The 3s and the 2s had to swim 50m and run 500m while the 1s had to swim 100m and run 1000m. Packwood did well in the qualifying round and we were able to send a good number of pupils to compete at Macclesfield. Amelia Ashworth, the only girl present on the day, was accompanied by Frank Morris, Nick Yeoward and Freddy Williams representing the 3s, Harry Wasdell and Edward Peterson from the 2s and, finally, Harri Holroyd and Simon Waterhouse from the 1s.
As we noticed last year, the level of competition was very high in both disciplines. The Packwood team did remarkably well with plenty of our competitors achieving a personal best in either the swim or the run. The performance of the day came from Simon who ran in a very competitive heat and got the sixth best time in the 1000m. Despite everybody’s efforts, the competition was too strong and none of the Packwood athletes went through to the finals. However, it was a fantastic experience and all the 2s and 3s are looking forward to taking part again next year. JN
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S P O R T: C R O S S C O U N T R Y / F E N C I N G
Cross Country
This year has been exceptional for the cross country team. We have entered nine races and achieved eight individual wins and seven as a team. The success is due to Freddie Fielding’s fantastic ability but also to the incredible depth of talent in the team which boasts some excellent runners. The trophy cabinet had to be doubled in size as the boys won the Young Athletes’ Shropshire League for which we had to run four races (all won individually and by the team), the Royal Shrewsbury Prep Schools’ Hunt, the Shrewsbury High Prep Cross Country and finally the Nationals at Malvern College which was the climax of the season. The course at Malvern was a challenging 3400m long, very hilly and very muddy in places – all in all, perfect! The boys were a bit nervous to be competing against teams from 36 schools from all over the country and after a mouthful of bagel (my secret weapon!), a good warm up, and a few start practices in the tiny pens allocated, they waited apprehensively for the starter’s whistle. Even the Packwood supporters, who were deployed strategically around the course to give encouragement, were feeling the pressure.
At the sound of the whistle Freddie, followed closely by Simon, made a very good start. Guy, Ollie and newcomer, Luke settled quickly into a good pace too. I made my way to the finish line hoping that all would go well for them. Mr Phillips updated me a few times via mobile on the progress of our athletes and especially Freddie who was leading the race. The end of the course was heaving with hundreds of excited parents, grandparents, teachers, brothers and sisters waiting eagerly for the runners on their last hundred metres. Freddie appeared in first position, relaxed, 100 metres in front of the second runner. Simon, who probably had his best performance of the season, was not far behind in 11th position. Guy finished in a solid 41st, Luke was 47th and Ollie 100th. Everybody was very pleased with their performance, and we were, of course, impressed with Freddie’s win but when I handed in the results I had no idea that the team as a whole had done so well. At the prize giving ceremony, we cheered Freddie for his outstanding achievement and we were delighted to win the Small Schools trophy but, what a surprise to hear our name again as Packwood was announced as the overall winner of the Under 13 boys’ competition!
Fencing In early November a lorry drove along the A5. Nothing unusual in that, many of us see them all the time on our journeys. But this lorry was delivering an aluminium sectional piste to a Shropshire prep school. That morning the driver had delivered six of the same pistes to the ExCel centre in London in preparation for a sporting event in the summer of 2012. The Shropshire prep school continues on its fencing journey. A second podium finish at the British Teams in London, our first podium finish at the British Individuals in Sheffield and several podium finishes at the ‘Packwood’ and the ‘Warwick’, the two largest ‘open’ competitions in the country. We provide the sport with over 50 paid-up members and a venue used for regional and national events. The sport gives us back, not quite ‘blood, sweat and tears’, but certainly the Page 82
latter two and plenty of frustration, near misses and broken dreams. But that is the secret of fencing and fencers. Every member of Packwood’s fencing junior activities, senior club, the squad and team, along with all of the 118 who signed up for the Duel-inthe-Sun have learnt how to lose. You can always spot the best fencers in a sports hall, they’re the calm ones. They shake hands, they watch and they learn how not to lose again. Is there a better sport for today’s competitive world?
Team British Schools Team Championships Bronze (U11 Boys Epee) 5th (U13 Girls Epee) Team: William Holcroft, James Hinwood, Ben Cowley, Edward Don†, Ella Downey, Issy Wythe†, Georgia Bibby†, Jessie Hunt† Packwood Epee Cup Bronze Wrexham/Packwood Shield (H) Lost 3-4 (A) Drawn 4-4 Bibby Bowl Sixes trophy: Mannings/Sodens
So long then Ella, Jessie, Tia, Olivia, Harriet, [† year young] Freddies Houlker, Beharrell and Fielding, Timmy and Murray, Rory, Patrick, Tom, Bentley, James, Alex and Simon. Thanks for all the memories and pizza. Packwood’s fencers have gone on to fence in Italy and France; for Japan; and have captained Millfield and Shrewsbury Schools. Maybe one day we’ll see one of you fencing on one of those other Olympic pistes… NW
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S P O R T: C R O S S C O U N T R Y / F E N C I N G Having Freddie as an individual National Cross Country champion is already fantastic, but winning the National Championship as a team is a tremendous achievement. It’s been a dream season for a dream team! Well done boys and a huge thank you to the parents for supporting these talented runners. JN
Freddie Fielding Young Athletes’ Shropshire League Adams’ Grammar Freddie Fielding 1st Jonty Schofield 8th Simon Waterhouse 9th Jack Ashworth 17th
Winners Winners 11.10 12.28 12.35 13.35
Oswestry School Freddie Fielding Jonty Schofield Simon Waterhouse Ollie Clarke
1st 5th 6th 11th
Winners 11.02 12.12 12.18 13.22
William Brookes School Freddie Fielding Jonty Schofield Simon Waterhouse Ollie Clarke
1st 5th 7th 16th
Winners 11.36 12.43 12.44 14.12
Bridgnorth Freddie Fielding Simon Waterhouse Jack Ashworth Ollie Clarke
1st 5th 11th 15th
Winners 10.54 12.06 13.13 13.29
Royal Shrewsbury Prep Schools’ Hunt Freddie Fielding 1st Simon Waterhouse 6th Guy Morris 9th Jack Ashworth 21st Ollie Clarke 25th
Winners 12.04 13.31 13.45 14.48 14.56
Shropshire County Cross Country Championships Freddie Fielding 1st Simon Waterhouse 9th Ollie Clarke 37th
3rd 9.20 10.10 12.18
Shropshire Schools County Cross Country Championships Freddie Fielding 2nd Simon Waterhouse 13th Jonty Schofield 18th Jack Ashworth 21st Guy Morris 38th Ollie Clarke 46th
3rd 11.52 13.22 13.50 14.00 14.47 15.02
Malvern National Prep Schools’ Cross Country Championships Freddie Fielding 1st Simon Waterhouse 11th Guy Morris 41st Luke Williams 49th Ollie Clarke 100th
Winners 13.47 15.00 15.55 16.05 17.02
Shrewsbury High Prep Cross Country Competition Freddie Fielding 1st Simon Waterhouse 3rd Guy Morris 4th Luke Williams 5th Ollie Clarke 9th
Winners 7.41 8.18 8.36 9.03 9.23
Individual British Epee Championships Issy Wythe Bronze William Holcroft 13th West Midlands Under 12 Epee Issy Wythe Gold William Holcroft Silver (Seven selected to represent West Midlands – five at Under 12, two at Under 14) LPJS Packwood Open Lousia Jarvis† Silver William Holcroft Silver Issy Wythe Bronze Alfred Hughes† Bronze LPJS Warwick Open Adam Pattenden Bronze ‘Spirit of Fencing’ Houlker Trophy Freddie Houlker Duel-in-the-Sun All School Champion William Holcroft [† year young]
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S P O R T: S W I M M I N G
Swimming Bell Cup for swimming standards
Mannings/Sodens
Prosser Cup for Sixes swimming
McFerran/Wilsons
This year has been a very busy one for the swimmers of Packwood. We have been extremely lucky to have the use of Shrewsbury School swimming pool for our training, giving us the chance to work on swimming in a 25m pool (and not slowing down half way) and diving off the blocks. We started off the year training for the schools Biathlon, which proved to be as successful as last year with a good number of children qualifying to go through to the semi-finals at Macclesfield. We then had three galas to train for. Our first was against Abberley which was an extremely close fixture. Throughout the individual races the Packwood swimmers showed that all the training was paying off and were leading the way, but Abberley just pipped us to the post during the relays and won by three points (Abberley 150 – Packwood 147). Our next gala was a triangular against Moreton Hall and Oswestry School. Again the swimmers did Packwood proud and showed that no 25m pool could scare them now. There were fantastic swims across all the age groups, but special mention must be made of Alfred Hughes who despite only being in the 4s stepped up to the challenge and raced not only in one age group above him, but two! Alfred held his own and created a brilliant lead in the relays for these teams helping Packwood came out as winners of the fixture. Our last competition of the season was the County Prep Schools gala where we came third out of six schools, with only two points between us and second place. Later in the year Packwood entered the Shrewsbury Aquathlon and Wrekin Aquathlon, so the dedicated swimmers continued with their training in the pool – and added to it by jumping out of the water, slipping on trainers and running round Shrewsbury School’s fields with Mr Nogues! The fresh faces of Will Shaw, William Tate and Freddie Cox were introduced to the sport and joined the Aquathlon squad. The future of Packwood’s swimming team is looking brilliant. The children have shown how well they can compete against other schools but also the competition between them has become very strong, as we saw in the Sixes swimming finals and relays this term. Congratulations to everyone who qualified for the finals as it was a very high standard this year and, in particular, very well done to Alfred Hughes who set a new school record in the Under 10 Breaststroke – a fantastic 33.9 seconds. None of this would have been possible without the help and dedication of the other members of staff, so a big thank you to you to Mrs Onions, Mr Weston and Mrs Hutchings and also to Mr Mold (the swim team bus driver) who took us week after week to Shrewsbury School. Well done swimmers! KE
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Long Freestyle
Breaststroke
Sprint Freestyle
Under 8 William Tate
Isabel Morris
William Tate
Under 9 Will Shaw
Will Shaw
Will Shaw
Under 10 Alfred Hughes
Alfred Hughes*
Alfred Hughes
Under 11 Amelia Ashworth
Rosie Simpson
Frank Morris
Under 12 Keita Umetani
Millie Shaw
Pip Vickers
Under 13 Gideon Turner
Jack Ashworth (Capt) Gideon Turner
*setting a new Packwood record
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S P O R T: A Q U AT H L O N / G O L F
Aquathlon Shrewsbury Aquathlon results Tristar 1 Boys Ed Bayliss Will Shaw
6th 11th
Tristar 1 Girls Freya Cox
4th
Tristar 2 Boys Alfred Hughes
4th
Tristar 2 Girls Millie Shaw Amelia Ashworth Ellie Mason
7th 10th 15th
Tristar 3 Boys Simon Waterhouse 4th Jack Ashworth 8th Wrekin College Aquathlon Tristar Start Will Tate Freddie Cox
3rd 7th=
Tristar 1 Boys Will Shaw Freya Cox
5th 9th
Tristar 2 Boys Freddy Williams
14th
Tristar 2 Girls Millie Shaw Imogen Downey
13th 18th
Tristar 3
After success in the Wrekin College Aquathlon last summer, Packwood entered teams in two events this year. The Wrekin and Shrewsbury Aquathlons took place on the two exeats before half-term so we were very grateful to the children and parents who gave up their weekends off to participate. The response was brilliant and we entered 10 children, picked from the swimming and cross country teams, in each event. The Shrewsbury Aquathlon was first and there were fantastic swims from Alfred Hughes, who left the pool first in his heat, and Freya Cox who was joint second in her heat. Ellie Mason and Amelia Ashworth had a great swim after lots of practice and nerves beforehand. They stuck together and came out of the pool at the same time before they went off on their run. The transition was hard for everyone, putting on trainers and T shirts when wet before starting the run, but they all kept their cool and did well. Will Shaw had a brilliant run, overtaking people who had left the pool before him and Jack Ashworth kept up a good steady pace. Special mention must be made of Simon Waterhouse who, despite
Simon Waterhouse 11th
being last out of the pool in his heat, caught up, one by one, with all of the others in the run. Not only did he end up first in his heat but he also came away with the second fastest run in his age group!
Shropshire Aquathlon Championships Tristar start Will Tate 3rd
The Wrekin College Aquathlon was next, where those children who had also competed in the Shrewsbury event had the chance to qualify for a county position. This time we also had a few new faces representing Packwood. William Tate and Freddie Cox, full of energy and eager to have a go, came out of the pool joint third and fifth respectively and then both had great runs with Will finishing third and Freddie eleventh. Freya Cox and Millie Shaw performed well in their heats – Freya came fourth in the swim with an impressive time of 2.23. We also had Imogen Downey and Freddy Williams taking part in their first Aquathlon and showing great promise for the future. After the event had finished, the points were added up to find individual positions in the county and Packwood’s position in the
Tristar 1
Will Shaw
3rd
Tristar 1
Freya Cox
5th
Tristar 2
Millie Shaw
4th=
Tristar 3
Simon Waterhouse 4th
Primary schools Aquathlon challenge – Packwood Tristar 1 Boys 2nd Tristar 2 Boys
2nd
Tristar 2 Girls
3rd
schools’ Aquathlon challenge. The results were outstanding and congratulations in particular to Will Shaw and Will Tate who, despite this being their first attempt at Aquathlons, came third in the county in their age groups. Well done boys! Finally, a huge thank you to all of the children, parents and Mr Nogues for giving up their exeats to compete and for all the training you have done. The standard has now been set even higher for next year, and maybe we will be able to take part in a few more events. Well done everyone! KE
Golf This term the unseasonable weather really took its toll on the school golf. The parent/pupil golf was sadly rained off, when we were guaranteed a new champion this year. However, at the end of term we did manage to hold the school golf competition. Freddie Beharrell and Scott Hatton were the two outstanding players. Sadly – or maybe not, from his point of view – Scott had to leave early to go paintballing at Rednal for the monitors’ treat. Even after only playing three holes, he managed to accumulate enough points to come second. This left the way open for Freddie. He played some great golf and ended up with 17 Stableford points from the six holes we played. A deserving winner. Well done. SAR Woosnam Cup (Senior Boys)
Freddie Beharrell
Junior Cup
Thomas Mercer Page 93 Page 85
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S P O R T: T E N N I S
Tennis Under 13 Boys Rather than cancel, we played Moor Park in the rain. Conditions were rather cold, but playable. The boys dominated well, playing good solid strokes, with an easy win in nearly all sets.
Played 5 Won 3 Drawn 0 Lost 2 For 15 Against 13 v Moor Park v Shrewsbury School v Birchfield v Prestfelde v Shrewsbury School
(H) (A) (H) (A) (H)
Won Lost Lost Won Won
4-0 1-7 1-3 3-1 6-2
The next fixture was against Shrewsbury School and we were slightly overawed by our older opponents. Play was a little tense, stressed and rushed and the windy conditions also made ball control tricky. As the match went on, however, our play settled down, then became more consistent and intelligent and by the end, there did not appear to be such a difference between the two sides. Birchfield’s two very good couples gave us a tough challenge. Ed Beard and Guy Morris did manage a good win against their pair – competitive determination, raised adrenalin level, and self-belief were key to their success. By the time we took on Prestfelde, our play was becoming stronger with both pairs attacking when the right moment came. Our boys had a greater will to win, and were more cool-headed and confident. Shrewsbury School returned with a slightly different mix of players, for the last fixture. Captain Jonty Hall and Rory Fergusson played some very accomplished tennis. Our third and fourth couples, after a few frustrating moments, developed strong, brave and positive play. They attacked more and exerted pressure. The 6-2 win was the result of us taking control of the game, playing confidently… and having the right mindset. Team: Jonty Hall (Capt), Rory Fergusson, Ed Beard, Guy Morris, Eddie Thomson, Francisco Gomez, Jonty Scofield, Luke Williams, Louis Martin, Harri Holroyd. SD
Under 11 Boys Our first match against Played 3 Won 2 Drawn 1 Lost 0 Moor Park enabled us For 15 Against 2 to make a confident v Moor Park (H) Won 4-0 start to the season. (H) Won 9-0 Daniel Humes, Freddie v Birchfield (A) Drawn 2-2 Furnival, Frank Morris v Prestfelde and Ollie Hall were all very competitive, only allowing their opponents to win three games all afternoon! The team continued in much the same vein against Birchfield when our three couples only gave away one game each. The mixture of both steady and attacking play and sound technique was backed up with good concentration. Will Holcroft and Alex Ainslie were particularly consistent. All the winter tennis coaching seemed to be paying off! The last match was a much closer contest against Prestfelde whose first pair had just won the Repton Tournament. The pressure was on to win both matches against their second pair and it made for some very good tennis. Frank and Ollie made a great comeback from 0-3 down to win 6-3. Dan and Freddie also rallied to win their second match, resulting in a very well deserved draw. Well done boys. Team: Daniel Humes, Freddie Furnival, Frank Morris, Ollie Hall, Will Holcroft, Alex Ainslie. SD
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S P O R T: T E N N I S
Under 13 Girls The girls were a bit ‘wobbly’ playing against Moor Park, and not yet sure about their accuracy. They also suffered from stoppages in play and the cold conditions. However, a draw would have been the outcome, but for unforced errors. At Rydal, it was very windy on their high terraced courts and playing powerfully against the wind, or accurately with it, made our girls cautious and tense. They minimized on backswings and allowed the ball to be controlled by the wind. Despite these difficult conditions, the girls managed a narrow win by 5 sets to 4. At Abberley both teams looked well matched during the knock-up. However, our lack of match experience showed, and Abberley dominated to win by 6 sets to 3. It was a lesson learnt of how we need to take greater control of the game situation and to be more assertive, physically and mentally – tennis is a tricky game and sound technique and a positive winning mentality are crucial to success. Alice and Flo were, however, a great partnership, being cool-headed, steady and reliable. Played 3 Won 1 Drawn 0 Lost 2 For 9 Against 13 v Moor Park v Rydal v Abberley
(H) (A) (A)
Lost Won Lost
1-3 5-4 3-6
Team: Poppy Carver, Tia Barlow, Alice Rees, Flo Wade-Smith, Sacha Roberston, Jemima Price, Maya Leavey. SD
Under 12 Girls
Under 11 Girls
Played 1 Won 1 Drawn 0 Lost 0 For 9 Against 0
Played 4 Won 3 Drawn 1 Lost 0 For 10 Against 4
v Rydal
(A)
Won
9-0
Out of the wind on some sheltered courts at Rydal we played some good, reliable tennis, with some lovely rallies, and kept steady heads – most of the time! There were a few bent elbows in our groundstrokes, but good net play gave us confidence and the upper hand, to win by 27 games to their 7. Unfortunately the summer monsoon weather meant the cancellation of the Moreton Hall fixture, putting an end to further match experience. Team: Amelia Tennant, Jess Hunt, Sophia Price, Alice Shone, Marina Resines, Rosie Clarke. SD
v Moor Park v Birchfield v Shrewsbury High v Abberley
(H) (H) (H) (A)
Won Won Drawn Won
1-0 1-0 4-4 4-0
In the first two matches we put out one pair, Annabel and Freya, who played very confidently against Moor Park and repeated their success against Birchfield. Good, deep strokes from both girls were pleasing to see. Four couples played against Shrewsbury High Prep. The A pairs each had some very challenging games, and, although they lost by three matches to one, the rallies were often very well played and our girls gained some great experience. Our B pairs played good, steady tennis. Tash and Amelia were full of wonderful surprises and dispatched their opponents very quickly. The overall result was a 4-4 draw in matches (but we just inched ahead in games 35-33!)Finally, two pairs took the upper hand at Abberley, and were definitely in control! Whilst the girls felt rather pleased with themselves for their unbeaten season, I was already looking forward to next year! Team: Annabel Robertson, Freya Beasley, Ellie Mason, Marina Resines, Lottie Clarke, Rosie Simpson, Tash Carter-Motley, Amelia Maunder. SD
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O L D PA C K W O O D I A N S
Old Packwoodian News Dinner for 2007 Leavers
How time flies – and how much children change in five years! Our 2007 leavers, now all looking very grown up, came back to school at the beginning of July for their Old Packwoodian reunion.It has become a Packwood tradition for former pupils to return, some for the first time since leaving, to celebrate the end of their A levels and catch up with old friends and teachers. The reunion is
a great opportunity to reminisce about the old days, have a good laugh at the slide show of old photos selected from Matron Caron’s extensive archive and enjoy a relaxed dinner in the company of friends. What a perfect way to spend an evening! This year, we were delighted to welcome back Freddie Anderson, Harry Bozman, Amelia Brine, Jake Cooper, Katie Corfield, Barnaby
Curran, Michael Davies, Sophie Davies, Ricardo Fishbourne, Elliot Garnell, Georgie Greenway, Chris Hardman, William Haszard, Grace Hockenhull, George Holt, Chloe Insall-Jones, James Kennaway, Patrick Kynaston, Hamish McAllister, Hugo Owen, Oliver Owen, Tabitha Price, Jack Stacey, Alex Thorn, Sam Welti, Chris Williams and Edwin Wilton-Morgan. CEH
Deaths Rt Hon Sir David Cozens-Hardy Hirst, retired Lord Justice of Appeal 1925-2011 In his obituary in The Daily Telegraph he was described as an “ebullient and fearless advocate and also very economical, having a sharp eye for the detail that mattered”. He left Packwood (then still in Warwickshire) for Eton at the start of the Second World War as a King’s Scholar and, after a spell in Singapore as an intelligence officer, he went on to read History at Trinity College, Cambridge.
John Bampfield (1932-2011) John Bampfield arrived at Packwood in 1968 having just retired from his army career as a Major in the Royal Artillery. At first, John was appointed as a teacher of Geography and Junior Maths and also as a games coach of the first XI cricket, the Under 11 rugby, some football and a good deal of squash. He also involved himself in a multitude of other school activities. Little by little, John spent less time in the classroom and more time working on the grounds and helping with the administration of the growing school. He continued to coach, referee and umpire many teams; but he also
spent countless hours cutting wickets, marking boundaries, and helping to keep the grounds looking magnificent. When the school bought the farm and extended the playing fields and buildings, John was amongst those who worked incredibly hard to achieve a huge step forward in the size and facilities of the school. He later became the school's first Bursar. John was always a reliable and hardworking member of staff, and was greatly missed when he retired as Bursar in 1992; but he remained in regular touch with the school and was, for many years, the secretary of the Barker Memorial and Pease-Watkin Bursary Trusts.
News of Old Packwoodians 1997 Tom James won a second Olympic gold medal at London 2012 in the coxless fours rowing team following up his success in the same event at the Beijing Olympics in 2008. After the victory, Tom said "I can't describe what this atmosphere is like. It's beyond words, it's epic, it's magic… the crowd is phenomenal. I'm so excited to be here and so proud." 2001 Alexandra Bennett graduated in Business Administration from Bath in 2011. She is now
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working on the Graduate Recruitment Team at L'Oreal, recruiting graduates and interns onto their relevant schemes. Gemma Cap graduated from Bath in 2010 in Business Administration with BSc Hons. She is completing a diploma in Professional Banking at the moment and is a business bank manager for Lloyds Banking Group in Central London, “which is all very ironic given how much I used to hate finance and accounting!”
Alice Davies completed a primary PGCE with modern languages specialism at the University of Manchester in June. She has a job as a primary school teacher in central Sheffield starting in September. Dave Moore Dutton is a Royal Engineer Officer, serving in Germany and loving it! Grace Eardley graduated from Manchester Metropolitan University in 2010 with a degree in English and History and is about to graduate after doing a PGCE to become an English teacher.
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O L D PA C K W O O D I A N S Nicko Field graduated from Oxford Brookes in 2011 and is now down in London working for an accountancy firm in the music industry. He is currently training as well and will qualify in about two years..! Harriet Fisher graduated from the University of Manchester in 2009 (BSc in Social Anthropology). She did an MSc at SOAS in 2011 (Violence, Conflict and Development) and is now working for an NGO in Ghana until December, as Enterprise Manager to two small agro businesses which help run a free senior High School. Olivia Fisher graduated from Exeter in 2010 and is currently training to become an accountant with PricewaterhouseCoopers. She will qualify in September 2013. Jonny Groome is now a doctor starting at University College London Hospital in July 2012. Alicia Houlker graduated from Manchester University in 2009 with a first. She’s working in London at Ernst & Young and qualifies as a CA this October. Henry Johnson graduated in Spanish and Economics from Durham in 2011. He is working as a Management Consultant at Accenture and playing rugby for the Law Society. Holly Kennedy is currently living and working in London having graduated in 2009 with a degree in Architecture. She sidestepped into the digital design industry and is now a User Experience Designer for Europe's largest experience design agency. In short, she makes technology easy to use by crafting how it works, what it looks like and the key human interactions. Fergus Macleod is finishing up a two year Masters in Conducting in Zürich before heading up north to Glasgow to be the fellow in conducting at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. Lydia Tay graduated from Durham in 2010 with a degree in French and Spanish and is living in Vancouver, working as an executive level recruiter. 2006 Charlie Boutflower has just completed his first year doing interior design at Glasgow which he really enjoys. Charles Dodson-Wells is at Reading University and very much involved with the Navy and the Army (ORNU and the OTC). He has just been on a Royal Navy trip round the Baltic. Will Hutchinson-Smith spent the winter working in Val Thorens and is looking forward to starting Business Studies at UWE in September. Peter Lehmann spent two terms as a gap student at Packwood over the winter before
going to Fiji to work in a school for a charity and on to New Zealand. It was great to have him here – particularly with his help on the rugby field. 2007 Harry Bozman took Ceramics, Photography, Business and PE for A Levels and is going on to do an Art Foundation course.
Alex Thorn took Maths, Further Maths, Physics and Biology for A Levels. He has done work experience with engineering companies and has won an engineering competition, an Arkwright Scholarship and an Academic Scholarship. He is planning to spend a gap year working in Gloucestershire before reapplying to Cambridge to read Engineering.
Ricardo Fishbourne did German, Economics, Spanish and Geography at Shrewsbury for A Levels. He was a school Praeposter, Head of House, and played 1st XV rugby for the last two years, 3rd XI football and A team tennis. He is hoping to go to Edinburgh to study International Business Management with Spanish and German and hopefully plans to work in South America in his gap year.
Edwin Wilton-Morgan took French, Spanish, Latin and English for A Levels at Repton. He got a distinction for Grade 8 singing and was Head Chorister, Head of the MFL Society, Head of the Literary Society, House Charity Coordinator, Head of the Opera Society, Head of the Science Society, Head of the Music Society, and Senior Prefect. He is planning to read French, Spanish and Italian at St Andrews.
Elliot Garnell took A Levels in Business, Chemistry and Music Technology at King’s Chester. He played first XV rugby and is going on to take a degree in Entrepreneurship and Innovation at Greenwich University. He is in the process of starting his own clothing label.
2008 Matthew Lehmann, together with his brother Peter, swept the board at Sedbergh with the school awards for shooting last year.
Georgie Greenway was her house captain at Uppingham, and chosen to be the first team girls’ hockey captain for the South Africa Tour. Alicia Hanmer was a prefect in her final year at Cheltenham Ladies’ College. Grace Hockenhull was a prefect at Uppingham School as well as captain of lacrosse. Georgie Howard-Baker moved to Bradfield for A Levels where she took Art, History of Art and Psychology. She is planning to do an Art Foundation course next year. Chloe Insall-Jones took French, Textiles and English Language for A Levels and is hoping to go to the University for Creative Arts in Epsom to study Fashion Promotion and Imaging. Sophie Martin has had continued success in British Eventing and is taking a gap year to progress her eventing. Max Mason took Geography, Economics, Latin and Physics for A Levels. He played 1st XV rugby for the final two years at Shrewsbury, 5th XI football, and was in the first swimming team as well as the Tiddlywinks team. He is planning to read for a BSc in Real Estate Management at Reading University. Oliver Owen is doing a BTEC in Agriculture Level 3 and is going on to Harper Adams to study Agriculture. He shot at Bisley three times.
2009 Oliver Brown played football for the 1st XI at Shrewsbury and is also in the 1st XV. William Dodson-Wells has just returned from a trip to the States with the Shrewsbury School rowing team which he thoroughly enjoyed. Ben Hughes enjoyed Ellesmere College and looks forward to starting sixth form at Adams' Grammar. Brooke Lovegrove-Fielden was part of the Under 16 A rugby team at Eton. As part of his GCSE Russian course he spent a fantastic few days in St Petersburg and Moscow (where he was able to meet up with his brother, Jos (2002 – who is spending a year there as part of his Russian degree at Bristol University). William Mackereth enjoyed playing rugby with North Wales and is moving from Llanfyllin to Adams' Grammar for sixth form. Harry Tomkinson was part of the Under 16 A teams for rugby, football and tennis at Shrewsbury. Charlie White played for the Under 16 A team in football and fives, and captained the As cricket team at Shrewsbury 2010 Freddie Earlam regularly features in school newsletters and recently in The Cricketer with his cricketing successes. He was lucky enough to go on cricket tour to Australia when he first arrived at Shrewsbury which was a brilliant experience.
Tabitha Price has an offer at Exeter College, Oxford to study French and Spanish.
Edward Graves, Freddie Thomson, Will Schofield and Freddie Earlam all represented Shrewsbury at squash last year.
Freddie Shanagher has taken History, Maths, RS and Physics for A Levels at Eton. He was Secretary of both the Aikido club and the Law Society and played for the 4th XV. He is hoping to go on to Durham to study Law.
Patrick Phillips warranted a full length feature on his batting and bowling performances for Sedbergh in the Lord’s Taverners Colts Trophy in The Cricketer. He was also part of a very successful Under 15A rugby team.
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Governors & Staff Governors Dr J Dixey MD FRCP Chairman Mrs F J Humphreys A S Davies BSc Est Man FRICS Mrs L Lewis LLB W A Johnston
Mrs C Mostyn-Owen MA D R Stacey R G Tovey Cert Ed (Oxon) Mrs M T Price J J Knight
Teaching Staff Nigel Westlake LLB, PGCE – Headmaster Nick Jones BEd, Cert Ed – Deputy Head, Biology Sarah Boutwood BA, PGCE – Director of Music Roy Chambers BA, PGCE – Head of English Richard Cowley BA, PGCE – Head of Maths Elizabeth Crawley BA, PGCE – Head of Packwood Acorns, Girls’ Housemistress Elspeth Cumpston BSc, PGCE – Maths Elizabeth Dobson MA – Assistant to Director of Music Paul Donaldson BSc, Dip PHE – Maths Paul Dougan MA – Head of Art Sue Draper BEd – Lacrosse, Athletics Roz Edwards BEd – Head of RS Kelly Evans – Teaching Assistant, Swimming Coach Martin Ford BEd – Maths, Geography, New Children Laura Goulding BA – Form 6 Catherine Hammond BA – History, Librarian Richard Herzog BEd – Head of Science Jean Herzog BA, PGCE, Dip SpLD – Form 6, LS Sam Hughes MA, BEd – Girls' Games, Science, English Jane Jones – Cookery, New Uniform, Hospitality Jo Lambkin BA, MCIL – French Geraldine Lee Cert Ed – French, Latin, RS, Second Hand Uniform Emma Middlemiss BEd – Acorns James Mullock BA, PGCE – Geography Helen Nogues BA, PGCE – Head of CDT, French, Spanish Jerome Nogues BA – Head of Modern Languages, i/c Day and Foreign Pupils Alison Onions – Boys’ Houseparent Jonathan Onions BA, PCGE – Head of Classics, Boys’ Housemaster Kate Parry BEd – Head of PE Paul Phillips BSc, PGCE – Head of Boys' Games, Science Anthony Rigby – CDT Stephen Rigby BA, PGCE – Head of IT, i/c Timetables Chantal Swain – Girls' Games, Acorns Teaching Assistant Nicola Tomlins BEd – Acorns Ken Webster Cert Ed – English Nick Weston MA, PGCE – Head of History Gail Wilkinson BA, PGCE – Head of Geography Leanne Willis – PE, Games, Teaching Assistant
Matrons Ali Banks RGN – Head Matron Sarah Barton – Girls' Head Matron Caron Lane – Deputy Head Matron Sue Heath Sue Perry Frances Wood
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A M Wright BA J M Ollier M Turner MA Mrs SA Rosser BEd
Learning Support Staff Sue Rigby BA, PGCE, Dip SpLD – Head of LS, Deputy Head, English Tina Simms BA, PGCE, RSA Cert SpLD Jane Cooke BA, RSA Cert SpLD Etsuko Koshika BA, JFL Jo Kapella BSc, PGCE, Dip SpLD Helen Cooper – Teaching Assistant, Secretarial Support
Visiting Staff Edward Roberts-Malpass – Trumpet, Trombone Olga Lewis – Piano Harry Percy – Percussion Roy Johnson – Saxophone, Clarinet Jan Lumley – Flute, Clarinet Jane Hadwick BA, PGCE – Music John Arran – Guitar Dawn Jaffray – Singing Roselinde Glossop – Piano Katherine Joyce – Percussion, Piano Bethan Roberts – Oboe, Clarinet, Bassoon Jane Magee – Cello, Double Bass Jayne Robinson – Violin Steve Welti – Tennis Mike Markham – Tennis Rod Jones – Football/Cricket Dick Hilton – Archery Scott Carpenter – Golf Martine Jones – Drama Roger Houston – Judo Jo Hutchings – Trampoline Annie Moody – Ballet Christopher Leese – Boys' Games Richard Jenkins – Gap Student Bea Kenworthy – Gap Student Brooke Chudleigh – Gap Student
Administrative Staff Brian Welti – Bursar & Clerk to the Governors Natalie Shaw ACCA – Assistant Bursar Linda Champion – Payroll Caroline Dougan – Headmaster’s Secretary Fiona Bridge – Assistant Secretary and OP Society Secretary Jeremy Bayliss – IT Technician
Back row: Hugh Davies, George Hargrave, Oliver Clarke, Freddie Houlker, Patrick Ashall, Edward Thomson, Jonty Hall, Edward Beard, Freddie Fielding, Freddie Beharrell, Chan Kathuria, Francisco Gomez Row 2: Louis Martin, Harri Holroyd, Bertie Jenkinson, Tom Baxter, Hermione Bathurst, Florence Wade-Smith, Jemima Price, Tara Beasley, Timmy Robinson-Boulton, Jamie Chambers, Fergus David, Rory Carter-Motley Row 3: Guy Morris, Andrew Tudor, Bentley Moss, Maya Leavey, Beatrice Mostyn-Owen, Harriet Bibby, Alice Rees, Sacha Robertson, Rory Fergusson, Thomas Tulloch, Theo Penney Row 4: Scott Hatton, Gideon Turner, Ben Ricks, Christopher Dorrell, Poppy Carver, Chanida Dhooghe, Juliana Hinwood, Esther McLaughlin, Alexander Wythe, James Long, Jack Lock, Rory Davies Front row: Cassie Bedford, Jack Ashworth, Emily Cooper, Edward Myddelton, Ella Downey, Headmaster, Simon Waterhouse, Tia Barlow, Jonty Schofield, Olivia Hughes, Thomas Simpson
Left to Right from back row down
The 2012 Leavers
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This photograph has been reproduced by kind permission of Gillman & Soame photographers and can be re-ordered by visiting www.gsarchive.co.uk or telephone 01869 328200
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Packwood Haugh School Ruyton XI Towns, Shrewsbury Shropshire SY4 1HX Telephone 01939 260217 Fax 01939 262077 www.packwood-haugh.co.uk