Radleian Sports October 2015

THE

M I C H A E L M A S 2015

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ATHLETICS This has been yet another solid season for Radley athletics. The senior Radley athletics team has been our most successful team this year. At the Harrow fixture, they came second to a strong Harrow team, but they then won the Radley home fixture. At this fixture, Radley were particularly dominant in the throws, with Milo Morgan winning the shot and discus and James Mocatta winning the javelin.

We have also seen a great number of fine individual performances, as was demonstrated at the recent

Master in Charge: JW Schofield Captain: OW Moffat

county championships. Radley secured six county victories, thanks to performances from Theo Strutt in the High Jump, Tom Jewell in the 800m, Sam Way in both the Shot Putt and Long Jump, Milo Morgan in the Discus and myself in the 400m. Particularly impressive was Sam Way’s jump of 6.49m in the long jump which is a new school record, following on from a school record in the javelin he set earlier in the year.

Radley’s badminton season 201415 brought unprecedented triumph for our competitive players. New captain Yannis Gidopoulos wasted no time implementing his vision for an inspired and disciplined squad. His expert handling was bolstered by pro coaching from county and university trainer Larry Ng, an invaluable aid in moving the boys towards technical improvement and refinement.

The results were clear to see, the season starting magnificently with a 12-1 win over Bradfield. The Group B pairs – Elliott Wood & Tom Hradecky, Tom Whitbread & Oli Crole, Alex Dernie & CharlieClifton-Brown – won all 12 games

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Ollie Moffat, c

It was also great this year to see people going way out of their

BADMINTON P7 W6 L1

comfort zone and trying events which they were completely unfamiliar with, as was shown by Angus Stahelin and Henry Soundy who, in their search for maximum points for the team, both took part in six events at an event at Harrow, encompassing all disciplines. All in all, an encouraging season for the club, in preparation for great things in the future.

in their nine sets (particularly impressive for the ASP Vths), whilst Group A – Gidopoulos & James Sheppard, George Love & Damian Lumley – had a fiercer time of it, nevertheless prevailing 3-1.

The next match, against Bloxham, saw an even greater victory of 14-2, for four pairs boosted by the return of Joshua Dernie, senior stalwart of the club. Further wins against Rugby and Bloxham again (where ASP novices Ivo Prest and William Getley acquitted themselves marvellously) helped round out an unbroken run.

A difficult Bradfield return fixture followed, where an untried bestof-three format for every set proved too gruelling for Radley’s

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Master in Charge: JM Ambrose Captain: IN Gidopoulos

three pairs so soon after the exeat weekend. Alas, with a cancellation to follow, the term ended on a defeat, but all were buoyant about the overall score sheet.

The new calendar year saw new fixtures against visitors Cheltenham College and Oratory, and a return to earlier form.

Sheppard continued to prove highly dangerous in the first pair, whilst Remove newcomer James Chelton showed courage and promise, and Hugh Bowen ably supported the seniors. Radley won both matches 6-3.

JMA

BEAGLES I have no idea where the 2014/15 hunting season has gone. It only seemed like last week that we were just starting the season at Longworth, on the banks of the serene river Thames; what a day it was, and it certainly set a rather high bar for the rest of the season. Now, is perhaps a good time to take stock of what has happened over the season, and the last few months: over 50 days’ hunting have been had, over 500 miles have been run by the combined huntsmen (and the hounds somewhere in the mid to high 1,000s), reeling parties, farmers’ supper, hound show training and a General Election have also happened somewhere along the way.

The most notable aspect of the early season before the opening meet, other than the astoundingly good hunting in our country, was the grandly billed “Tour de North”. This consisted of four days’ hunting back to back on terrain quite unlike anything in our somewhat tame country. The Tour started midway through the Michaelmas Leave Away at Whelprigg House by kind permission of Mr. Henry Bowring. The wide and open country was a joy to hunt in, and the

Master in Charge: TM Morris Joint Masters: HJA Ross, AR Clifton-Brown

steep valleys and fells made hard work for both hounds and huntsman - as did the inclement weather and the winds of Hurricane Catrina. On the second day we travelled up to hunt at near Floors Castle by invitation of the Duke and Duchess of Roxburghe (parents of George Innes-Ker, Belhaven Hill and H) for another good day’s hunting.

The third day was with Mr and Mrs James Vestey near Harwick (who also kennelled hounds and boys). For the final day we travelled south (relatively) to near Morpeth, for probably the best day’s hunting of the trip at Ritton Farm with Mr and Mrs Orde.

On returning to Oxfordshire both hounds and staff were well entered and the season proper started with the Opening Meet on Saturday 8th November at Friar’s Court, Clanfield.

Hounds continued to hunt two days a week up to the Christmas holidays. A notably good day was held at Pidnell Farm, Thrupp (hosted by Richard Boulter OR), where a trail was picked up at 14:00 and given best in the dark at 17:30 after 3 ½ hours of fast hunting on the river meadows with incredibly good scent.

During the Christmas holidays hounds met (by permission of the Dummer Beagles) at Eyford House by invitation of Mr and Mrs Prest (Ivo Prest, Cothill House and D), where the weather was glorious and the hounds behaved well on a trying day. The Boxing Day meet was held at Hatton Farm and a lawn meet was given by Mr and Mrs Bell (Jamie Bell, St Hugh’s and C) before another good day on the Thrupp meadows.

In the New Year hounds were taken to the Master’s home in Suffolk for a day at the Thurlow Hunt kennels by invitation of Mr R. Vestey where again some very good hunting was had, culminating in a dash through the gardens of Little Thurlow and onto the village green. On the second day hounds met at Little Bradley Hall and Mr and Mrs Clifton-Brown (Archie Clifton-Brown, Maidwell Hall and A) hosted a sumptuous meet (although somewhat shortened by the heavy rain). Good fields were achieved on both days and the masters of the De Burgh and North Essex Basset Hounds and the Thurlow Foxhounds must be thanked for their support.

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The beginning of the Lent Term is always hard with the early nights and frosts. However, this season not one day was lost to frost or bad weather.

It was strange to note that two of the fastest hunting days of the season were had whilst snow was on the ground (although thawing, it has to be said).

Lent Leave Away saw the hounds on tour again, this time to Leicestershire for one day with the Chatfeild-Roberts (Tom Chatfeild-Roberts OR (2006, A), former master of the RCB was whipping in). The second day was given by the Duke and Duchess of Rutland at Belvoir Castle with perhaps the grandest meet of the season and certainly one of the nicest beagling teas. We were greatly helped by the whips and supporters of the Oakley Foot Beagles who allowed us to hunt their superb country.

The last quarter of the season was now upon us and the days began to draw out. The most notable day was had at Sands Farm, Shellingford, where hounds ran three quick circuits (one out to near Baulking) before a very successful conclusion in front of the meet. The final day of the season was held at Cassington by invitation of Mr and Mrs Linnell (Mr Linnell has been

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RCB Treasurer for over 40 years), with another sumptuous meet. It seemed more like feeding the 5,000 than a meet of the RCB, due to the field of over fifty followers counted at the meet and a good day’s hunt was achieved under dry and trying conditions.

At the beginning of the summer term the Farmers’ Supper was held in Hall and the Warden delivered a cracking speech. Next year’s entry are being prepared for the Puppy Show on 14th June at the Mansion and hounds have been entered for the Wales and Border Counties Hound Show and the festival of Hunting at Peterborough where they will be shown by the Masters. I must of course thank Simon Timbrell (Kennel Huntsman) for all his hard work this season; whether in kennels, in the hunting field, or organising the Farmers’ Supper he is always happy to give advice and lead by example. The whippers-in, Sebastian Aldous (Cothill House, E), William Pockney (Horris Hill, H) and Freddie Thackray (Pilgrims’, A) have worked hard this season and it would be impossible to hunt without them. Dr Morris remains as supportive and helpful as ever (now in his 17th season as Don in Charge and whipperin).

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On a final note, as the dust settles on what has been perhaps the most extraordinary General Election in living memory it is important to reflect that the future of hunting in the wider world is looking bright. The Conservative government has pledged to repeal the Hunting Act of 2004 and this goal seems now closer than ever, but we cannot of course stop campaigning until this is achieved. The numbers of boys following the RCB this season was very healthy, as were the number of boys coming down to kennels. We are so lucky that Radley is one of only three school packs to still be hunting ten years after the Blair administration tried to destroy a tradition and a way of life; this is all due to the continued support shown by the College and we look forward to celebrating our 75th season next year.

Archie Clifton-Brown, a

CRICKET

1ST

P14 W1 L12 A1 The bare statistics tell the tale of a tough season for the 1st XI. It started brightly in preseason games against a Bristol University XI and a strong touring side from New Zealand. A young batting line-up took advantage of stunning conditions for early April and compiled scores of 246 against Bristol, with Rory Betley announcing himself on this stage with a powerful knock of 56 on debut, and we then made 256 against Christ’s College. Mungo Fawcett starting his 3rd year in the side made a classy 75.

However, both games exposed a certain lack of control in the field and the inability to contain sides in the middle overs of games became something of an Achilles heel as the season progressed.

The season proper started away at Charterhouse and the hosts made hay in the sunshine and racked up 267 from 55 overs despite the efforts of Charlie Purton. He took 3-25 from 10 overs and this was the first of many wholehearted performance with the ball from a cricketer who grew in stature as the season wore on. Our reply never really got going and James Todd was a lone figure in the resistance scoring a gutsy 62.

XI

Coaches: AR Wagner, SH Dalrymple Captain: JMI Todd

The first home game of the season followed a similar pattern unfortunately, as Cheltenham batted sensibly in making 240 before a fairly meek collapse saw Radley bowled out for 109. Things got no easier the following weekend as Eton arrived in confident mood. Captain Todd finally won a toss and elected for first use of the Radley pitch, but at 27-3 after 11 overs the outlook was bleak. Oliver MartynHemphill and Rory Betley (a Fifth former and Remove respectively then calmly went about the job of rebuilding the innings and we could breathe again as we approached lunch on a score of 90-3.

Unfortunately the momentum shifted decisively back in Eton’s favour, as first Betley for an impressive 46 and then Martyn-Hemphill, were dismissed just before lunch. A lot was being asked of the lower order and a total of 150 was never going to be enough.

There followed the visit of the MCC and a relatively inexperienced attack depleted by exams made regular breakthroughs in the morning and dismissed a talented batting side for just 148. Purton again led the way with 6-40 and there were promising appearances from Alex House and Tom Eden. At 66 without loss the

reply seemed to be on course and a much needed win was almost within our grasp, but a very disciplined spell of leg spin, some astute fields and the nefarious influence of that most unwelcome intruder, pressure, conspired to see the side dismissed for 143. A 5 run loss in a game like this was a bitter pill to swallow. A win would have been a great shot in the arm at that point but instead we travelled to Wellington hoping to put in a quality performance.

There was much more discipline in the bowling and fielding display and the boys did very well to limit a muchvaunted batting side to 242-8. It was particularly pleasing to see the energy and effort maintained throughout the 55 over stint in the field which is not an easy task.

Unfortunately the reply was undermined by some good swing and seam bowling from Wellington and things could have been ugly, were it not for the efforts of Charlie Purton who stood up in the face of the onslaught and scored a combative 54 including two sweetly struck sixes. Charlie was awarded his colours in the aftermath of the game for the quality of his performances up to that point and the way he had led by example. There

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followed a string of games that the side had targeted to get the momentum of the season going. Bradfield is a beautiful place to play cricket and the team rose to the occasion producing another controlled display with the ball.

James Todd picked up three wickets bowling medium pacers and Oliver Martyn-Hemphill’s two stumpings were evidence of the fact that his keeping was developing nicely. Bradfield gifted us four run outs during the innings and with Mungo Fawcett playing the role of leg spinner at the death we dismissed Bradfield for 207. A gettable target on a pitch that had more life than some surfaces on their square. At 78-1 with Boscawen and Fawcett in, things looked well placed. However, a familiar feel to the middle overs developed as spinners first tied us down and then dismissed us. It was left to Rory Hanna who has a great eye and can strike the ball cleanly on his day and James Cunningham to rekindle some hope, as they put on 50 runs in quick time for the 7th wicket; but unfortunately it was a case of too little, too late as the required rate climbed and we ended up 17 runs short.

well-paced 64. Archie Wilson had been promoted to add some athleticism and positivity to the lower order and his 18 from 11 balls helped give the innings impetus, but 211 felt a few short of par on a very good batting surface. However, at tea with Marlborough on 66-5 things looked rosy, but we could not convert this dominant position and a 124 run partnership between their numbers 4 and 7 took the game away gradually.

This made the match away at Winchester absolutely crucial and Charlie Purton again led the attack. taking 4-28 in 10 overs that included some very hostile bowling to dismiss their tail. Mungo Fawcett bowled well to pick up 3-36 and the most remarkable feature of the fielding display was the catching at slip by Jamie Cunningham who took two great catches off Purton and then the skipper, who produced a stunning one-handed effort off Cunningham to wrap up the innings for 117.

The following day St Edward’s arrived and on winning the toss captain Todd elected to bat. Mungo Fawcett endured a tough opening before gritting his teeth and batting for almost three hours.

He fell agonisingly short of three figures but his 91 underpinned another slightly stuttering display with the willow that saw us to a total of 207. Again spinners had played a large part in the side’s downfall, as batsmen could not strike the right balance between attack and defence. A very disciplined opening in the field saw the required rate start to climb and as St Edward’s reached 74-1 after 24 overs. However, their skipper came in at number 3 and played a match turning knock. He scored 41 off 29 balls to get them back ahead of the required rate and the late wickets were not enough to turn the game in our favour.

Surely this was to be the day. 28 for 1 became 50 for 4 and then 59 for 5. A sense of dread crept around the dressing room and the team were indebted to a lusty 28 from Cunningham and a gutsy 24 from Martyn-Hemphill. That it took 46 overs and 8 wickets to chase 120 told something of the agony that those present felt. However, a win had been secured and it was hoped that the tide might turn. Marlborough exposed some by now familiar frailties in our batting as six players made it into double figures but only Rory Betley went on to pass 50 and he held the innings together with a

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The Harrow game was the one afternoon when the boys looked out of their depth. A very strong side played some exceptional cricket in a match shortened by rain and won at a canter.

This left just three fixtures before the end and the game against Abingdon was set up beautifully. They made 255-8 having been 113-5 and our reply was going smoothly as James Todd had looked fantastic in scoring a run a ball 44 before the rain set in. James had a tough series of decisions and dismissals earlier in the season and it somehow typified his luck that he should be cut off in his prime as he was timing the ball effortlessly.

The final game of the season was at home to Tonbridge who were determined to avenge their defeat last year. At 120-6 at lunch the team was again firmly in the driving seat but we failed to press home the advantage once again. The effect of the momentum swinging so far back in the

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opposition’s favour as they amassed 285-9 was huge. Still only just over five an over were needed in perfect batting conditions and the chase started well.

Fawcett and Todd put on 82 before Mungo fell just before tea, well held by the bowler. When James was out just after the interval pulling a long hop to mid-wicket it felt that the game was up and there was a little clatter of wickets as scrambled thinking contributed to our demise. Rory Hanna made a defiant 53 off just 37 balls in partnership with James Cunningham and then Tom Carr, but unfortunately we ran out of wickets.

The boys have to be congratulated on maintaining their levels of effort and enthusiasm through a tough year. They carved out some very good positions in games but did not manage to deliver the killer blow on too many occasions and there were a few Saturdays that will go down as opportunities missed. I am sure that those involved will have learnt lessons as a result of their involvement whether sporting or personal and would like to thank them for their efforts.

I would also like to take the opportunity to thank PJD and her team for the fantastic hospitality offered in the Round Pavilion and in on Bigside on match days. The facilities we play and train on are also genuinely first class.

Adam King and his team work tirelessly to ensure that every detail is spot on.

To be able to train on the square and to play in fantastic batting strips is an incredible privilege and we are all hugely in Adam’s debt. My final vote of thanks goes to Andy Wagner who is a Radley cricket institution. Starting his 31st year in charge he would be forgiven for easing off, but he is keen to find new areas of the school day to exploit so that more boys can benefit from his cricketing wisdom. He can hide it well at times but he cares deeply about the boys’ development and is already planning how to move forwards in 2016.

SHD

CRICKET 2ND XI Coaches: CE Scott-Malden, CA San Jose Captain: ES Biggart P10 W4 D1 T1 A1 L3 Players: Biggart (c), T.Carr, Wilson, InnesKer, Manners, Sayer, De Uphaugh, Mills, Morland, Bartlett, L.Stalder, Bowman, Boscawen, O.Farr, Payne, Oliver, Bruce, Varney, Waller, Eden, Hoddinott, J.Farr.

Three players averaged over 50 (Stalder, Innes-Ker, Carr); two scored unbeaten hundreds and unbeaten fifties in consecutive games (Innes-Ker and Stalder); two more scored unbeaten fifties (Morland and Carr); one bowler took consecutive five-fors (Payne). Yet it was the moments when individuals came together and rallied collectively that impressed most: the hundred partnerships between Stalder & Carr against Cheltenham, Innes-Ker & Stalder against Marlborough and Eden & Hoddinott against Tonbridge were all truly memorable, regardless of the results being a win, draw and loss in those respective games. The blossoming new ball partnership between Carr and Oliver; Sayer showing great skill standing up to Manners, as the two worked in tandem to exert pressure on increasingly intrepid batsmen; after Cheltenham, superlative catching to back up bowlers throughout the rest of the season. The list goes on.

Yet far more pertinent than these examples was the fact that every time the 2nd XI took to the field, be it to practise or play a match, they invariably did so with a smile on their faces, and this is certainly largely down to the excellent captaincy of Ed Biggart and the positive collaboration between the different year groups he and the other 6.2s so successfully encouraged. So, from Mr San Jose and I, an emphatic well done to the players and hearty thanks to the parental supporters for providing such an enjoyable and successful season.

CESM, CASJ

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CRICKET

3RD

P9 W7 L1 A1 The 3rd XI enjoyed one of its best seasons in recent history, securing comfortable victories in seven out of the nine fixtures, with rain saving Eton from a relatively straightforward Radley victory in our second game and a classy Tonbridge side ruining our chance of an unbeaten season.

Despite the fact that the team rarely consisted of the same 11 players, all who played contributed in each of our resounding victories.

The tone was set for the season with an impressive team performance against Cheltenham, in which with the help of James Lee’s 48*, we reached 160-7, having recovered from 19-4. Our bowlers made short work of the Cheltenham batsmen, powering through with wickets shared amongst the majority of the bowlers, reducing Cheltenham to just 55. However, we knew the hard work had only just started, which is why we made sure that this victory was followed up by an impressive performance against Eton. They had arrived with the thought of surpassing at least 200, but we restricted them to 123 all out, with tight bowling from both Davis and Hargreaves who picked up valuable wickets. Having seen off Eton’s opening bowlers, our openers had set a platform that left us 40-1 looking for an easy victory. However, the rain came to be Eton’s saviour and we were left looking despairingly into the skies until the umpires frustratingly decided to call it a day.

An unfortunate end to another good day at the office.

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XI

Coaches: HD Hammond, KA Mosedale Captain: LP Perkins

Despite this poor luck, we did not let it get us down and came back with an easy seven wicket victory over Wellington. Special mention has to go to Maxim McGrigor, who having stepped in last minute, proved his worth with a brilliant one-handed diving catch to remove their best batsmen. Having bowled first due to the overcast conditions that favoured our swing bowlers, we made short work of their 106 total, with Ben Mills passing 50 in quick time to secure victory. Our good batting form continued against Bradfield with Harry Bartlett’s 74* ensuring a 138 run victory, and once again our bowlers joined the party restricting Bradfield to just 55. Having been reminded we were the only unbeaten team in the school at the halfway mark of the season, our dedicated coaches HDH and KAM ensured that training intensified, as the prospect of an unbeaten season was in our sights.

Perkins (52) and Leech (41), and a quick-fire 26 from Alexander Bibby took us to a challenging total. In the field a stunning spell from Benji Waller with the ball (5-30) - with a bit of assistance from the pitch helped us to a 16 run victory in one of our closest encounters. In his last game for Radley, our captain Luke Perkins (player of the season) bowed out in cracking fashion with an outstanding 96 against Harrow, and with slick fielding and another five wickets for Waller, we sent Harrow home with a defeat; after they had put us in to bat on a damp afternoon, hoping to bowl us out quickly.

Having returned from Leave Away, we set our sights on Winchester with an all 6.1 team, with Harri Guy’s quickfire 43 helping us to yet another seven wicket victory. Sloppy Radley fielding saved Winchester’s blushes to an extent, but it was another resounding win. Team changes after Leave Away included the loss of Archie Sparks, our valuable allrounder, but that allowed space for the likes of Tristan Kleinwort, who came in and made an immediate impact with both bat and gloves. The next week we knew Marlborough would offer slightly more resistance, but a solid opening partnership from

This was a fine group of cricketers with an excellent blend of talent and teamwork. Everyone in the squad played their part but a special mention for the skipper, Luke Perkins, who batted sublimely and set absolutely the right tone and a big thank you to Matt Leech for the write-up, in which he failed to mention his classy 65 against Tonbridge, when he became captain for the day. Thanks to all the boys for their great company and really enjoyable displays.

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Despite an unfortunate loss to Tonbridge on the final day of the season, it was a fantastic season for the team.

Matt Leech, d

HDH

CRICKET

4TH

P6 W4 L2 The 4ths season started well, with Radley hitting 186 off 30 overs against a very skillful Eton side. The large outfield meant that a lot of running was required between the wickets to keep the scoreboard ticking; this was done

by Alex Bruce who hit a very quick 61, followed by Tristan Kleinwort who also timed the ball very well, scoring 59 not out which held the innings together after a collapse of the middle order, finishing up 186/6.

A quick changeover was required due to the awful weather and Eton were put straight under pressure by a great bowling attack from Harry Varney and Benji Waller. Eton pushed on and kept the field alert. The fall of the key batsmen enabled us to counter and made the game come down to the final over. Eton 189/9 won by one wicket with two balls to spare.

A journey to Harrow after such a narrow defeat to Eton ensured that each and every player was going to perform at their highest level. After winning the toss and choosing to bowl, the opening bowlers bowled very tight, not letting many runs slip; however, only two wickets were taken for all their efforts. This excellent attack continued to threaten the Harrow stumps and a fantastic spell from Will Maddock saw him pick up a great 5-18, which eventually ended the Harrow innings.

After a decent fielding attempt, batting was now a case of not getting carried away too early. The loss of an early wicket allowed the two Radley batmen to have time to get their eye in. The bowling slipped for Harrow and this was shown by consecutive boundaries for the batsman. Harri Guy hitting 53 not out, countered on the bowling which led to a quick innings, backed up by Finn Fordham who hit some very nice shots, ending up on 23 not out. It was a great performance by the team and it got us started on winning terms.

XI

Coach: TC Jackson Captain: HOM Guy

Marlborough were our next opponents and unfortunately we went into this game with a bit too much confidence from our previous win against Harrow.

Very poor batting against a very average bowling attack put us 6/4 after six overs and under a lot of pressure. A few boundaries from Jack Winter in the lower order helped us to try and increase our score; however this didn’t last long as Radley were all bowled out for 58.

Harrow’s batting quality soon decreased quite rapidly after three wickets were down. Alex McGee nevertheless bowled extremely well, taking 4-15 and a final wicket from Ben Fisher ended their innings on 57 all out.

Marlborough were very eager to get batting and we were soon trying to put some pressure on their openers.

However, one big hitter ensured that this innings wasn’t going to last more than eight overs and two late wickets from Benji Waller showed us how, if we batted well, we would have had a great match. Marlborough finished the innings ending up on 61/2 winning by eight wickets.

Tonbridge was the finale and having travelled a fair distance, they won the toss and elected to bat first. Their two openers made a solid start, before Ben Fisher broke the partnership and ending up with two wickets. Tonbridge then had a middle order slump, with Tom Binks getting three wickets including two in two balls and Thomas Heptinstall also ended up with three wickets. With Tonbridge looking in a precarious position their 8 and 9th batsmen put up a good fight with quick runs, before Ben Fisher got the crucial wicket. Tom Binks got the final wicket to end up with four wickets and Tonbridge were left with 108 off 28 overs.

South Oxford Amateurs, more commonly known as SOA, was our next fixture. A team made up of players from all walks of life, including Radley teachers TCJ, TCL, KAM and IKC, produced a very different outfit to what we were used to. A tight field and a great bowling attack allowed Radley to force a couple of wickets, and before long a target of 165 was set off 35 overs by the batting side, with the wickets being taken by Benji Waller.

The batting commenced for the Radley side and the loss of an early wicket put pressure on the next batsmen to produce a solid innings. A magnificent knock from Alex Bruce of 64 not out saw him hitting boundary after boundary which gave us a very healthy position which inevitably led to a great win.

Another visit to Harrow one month later, hopeful to ensure that a better match would be on the cards. Radley started very well with Jack Winter and Rafe Thornhill putting Harrow under immediate pressure, with both of them taking a wicket or two. However,

A quick 40 not out off 19 balls by Harri Guy and 14 not out from Finn Fordham allowed the innings to end swiftly after 5.2 overs and 61/0. It was a great all round effort by the team.

Radley started very strongly, with Alex McGee and Will Maddock putting together a strong opening stand before Will got out. This left Alex McGee who scored a fantastic 50 not out to chase down the target with plenty of the overs left, helped by Freddie Campion and Jack Winter, to finish the season and the match in style on 108/2.

Overall, it was a fantastic season for the 4th XI. The large number of boys who contributed to the overall scores and the humour off the pitch, but etiquette on it, made the season particularly enjoyable to be part of.

Harri Guy, c

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CRICKET

5TH

P4 W3 L1

XI

This season’s cricket for the 5th XI has been successful, winning three out of the four matches played this season.

his turn to bat. We ended up with a score of 106, but it was no match for Wellington. Jojo Kelly managed to take three wickets from his four overs bowled; however Wellington won with two wickets to spare.

The first match of the season was against Marlborough; Max Wiggin scored the highest runs, putting 34 on the board without being out. A solid effort from Fred Campion also put 24 more runs towards the final total of 121 runs. Marlborough’s batting was strong, until Tom Heptinstall’s spin managed to take the final three wickets with only four runs to spare.

Our third match was against Winchester; bowling first, Rafe Thornhill had a double wicket maiden in his first over. Ben Fisher bowled well to take three wickets, only conceding nine runs. We bowled Winchester out for 31 runs in total. We decided to bat all of our 25 overs: Alex McGee and Finn Fordham both scoring over 50 runs before declaring, taking our final score up to 196 runs.

We then took on Wellington, Joe Ellis once again being a strong opener, hit 16 runs. Max Wiggin managed to run out four people in

Our final match was against St Edwards; we won the toss and chose to bat. Nick Bennet hit two sixes to score 29 runs in total.

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Coach: JM Sparks Captain: RM Dove

Our final score was 119 runs all out. The first wicket fell in the 9th over bowled by Tom Binks, who proceeded to take three more later on in the game. Hector Chamberlain took three vital wickets in the last few overs of the game with Monty Dove taking the winning catch. We won with 34 runs to spare, concluding a great season coached by JMS and TCJ.

Monty Dove, f

CRICKET COLTS 1 P7 W5 L2 Tom Eden and Jack Folkestone were racing along in pursuit of the 150 Abingdon had set us to win in our final match, when the heavens opened and the match was abandoned. It was a completely anti-climactic way to end what had been an excellent season, which was filled with close matches and outstanding individual and team performances.

We could not have wished for a more exciting start to the season than our opening two fixtures which resulted in final over victories against Cheltenham and Eton. The 194 we scored batting first against Cheltenham, thanks to an outstanding 93 not out by Eden and useful contributions by Jamie Farr and Charlie Williams, is usually enough to win and it was… . . just. We didn’t bowl well, they were always up with the required rate and with just 19 needed off the final three overs with seven wickets in hand, it looked like we were heading to defeat. However, two of those overs were bowled by Alex House who was outstanding. He conceded just seven runs in those two overs and it was enough to ensure victory by three runs.

We made it two wins from two with another final over victory against Eton. We were asked to bowl first and 35 overs of extraordinary cricket followed. In what must be a record for Colts 1, we conceded a staggering 57 extras, including 28 wides and eight no balls! Fortunately Hugo Eyre (4-30) and Jack Folkestone (3-20) were in fine form and we limited Eton to 172. A watchful 41 runs from Tom Eden laid the platform for our run chase, but by the time Jamie Farr departed for a gritty 22, we still needed 105 runs off 14 overs and Eton

Coach: GR King Captain: S Hoddinott

looked set for victory. However, Rufus Wallis had other ideas and he dispatched their attack to all parts of the ground on his way to a match winning 58 not out off just 46 balls.

We were brought down to earth with defeat to a very good Wellington team the following week. Again, we didn’t bowl well enough and the 155 they scored in tough batting conditions was more than we should have allowed. Our captain, Sam Hoddinott, batted well as he made a watchful 36 at the top of the order and Rufus Wallis threatened to snatch the victory with a belligerent 48 off 37 balls, but our tail crumbled, losing our final five wickets for a pitiful eight runs.

We beat Bradfield in our most dominant display of the season.

They elected to bat and for the first time in the season, all of our bowlers bowled tightly but none more than Ed Agnew. As was the case throughout the season, he was miserly with the new ball.

The fact that he returned an economy rate of less than three runs per over for the season was exceptional, especially when you consider that all of our matches were limited overs. We restricted them to 89 and with Rufus Wallis in form, this is never going to be enough. He smashed 37 of 16 balls as we romped home in just 13 overs.

Some sloppy batting at the top of the order meant we were in trouble with four wickets down for just 60 runs against Marlborough. However Jack Folkestone and Jamie Farr, both of whom scored half centuries, put on the partnership of the season which allowed us to reach an imposing 199 for 7. The run chase never got going and we eventually dismissed them for 160 to secure our fifth victory of the season.

Harrow were a good side but we probably showed them too much respect. They batted first and we pegged them back with some fine new ball bowling by House (2 for 25) at the top of the innings and an excellent spell at “the death”

by Tom Wildblood (2 for 16).

However, they still managed to score 155 in 30 overs. Our reply was positive and we were always ahead of the required run rate, but some suicidal runouts and some soft dismissals cost us dearly.

Jamie Farr and Freddie Marshall batted beautifully and threatened to take the game away from them but once they fell, our lower order were rolled over as we succumbed to a 30 run loss.

In all, it was a successful season, especially when one considers that as many as four Colts players played in the 1st XI. To have only lost two matches is quite an achievement and the 2015 Colts 1 team should feel proud.

We made heavy weather of chasing down Winchester’s 131.

Eden batted well for 32, but when he departed wickets began to tumble (losing 6 wickets for just 36 runs) and the result was far from certain. However, it was Wallis again who came to the rescue. His 32 not out, including a vital 8th wicket partnership with Agnew saw us home with three wickets to spare.

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GRK

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CRICKET COLTS 2

CRICKET CO

Coach: IK Campbell Captain: GA Greville Williams

P4 W2 L2

P4, W3, L1 This was possibly the nicest team I’ve had in 14 years of doing Colts 2, and there is some stiff competition for that accolade. They were also very good cricketers, and mostly allrounders, meaning that in every game several decent batters kindly agreed to join the tail, and several proper bowlers hardly got an over. They were also very short of games, not least as Cheltenham scratched on the first weekend, leaving Eton away as the first fixture. This turned out to be a great day - we posted the solid score of 197- 3 off our 35 overs, largely thanks to a brutal 67 from Will Womersley in the middle order and a classy 38 from Charlie Milner. In response Eton were pegged back by lots of tight bowling, and captain George Greville Williams set a decent field, and they finished on 182 all out. A great win.

remarkable figures of 5-14 off 6 overs, as the hosts collapsed to 76 all out. There were three double wicket maidens.

Unfortunately, Harrow rained on our parade in June, scoring 203-5 and then containing us to 147 all out. Milner’s 40 at (nobly) number 11 ensured some sort of respectability.

It would have been lovely to see more action from impressive seam bowlers like Rupert Evans and Sam Turner, from spinners Jack Beattie and the skipper, from the ever-cheerful James Gosling who walked off uncomplainingly after a terrible LBW decision against Wellington, from Tom Fenwick, ‘keeper Hedge Austen - really from the whole squad. I hope they continue to enjoy the game in such a positive way in the sixth form, and wish them every success for their cricketing futures.

An unchanged side took on Wellington at home the following week, and produced the great escape. Wellington set a modest 157-6 off their 30, George Gent having taken 4-39, and then everything went wrong with our batting. We had staggered to 90-8 when James Sloan came in at 10, but he proceeded to whack a chanceless 48 and we chased the total down with number 11 at the crease in the last over. That shut the Wellington fielders up.

Against Bradfield we were masterful, setting 221-6 off 30, with excellent knocks from Greville Williams, Geordie Gordon-Lennox and Tom Bracey, and another brutal 50 from Womersley. The Bradfield openers were competent and got them to 59 without loss, but then Gent and Sloan both returned the

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IKC

Our traditional opener for the season, against Eton, is always a tough fixture and so it proved again this year, although we acquitted ourselves well in defeat (by 55 runs) – restricting Eton to a total of 172-5 from 30 overs, with Freddie Grant, the pick of the Radley bowlers, taking 2-10. In reply, Radley were dismissed for 117; Tom Carter top-scored with 38 and Charles Henry also batted well against some strong Eton bowling, to make 35.

The match away at Marlborough was certainly one for the spectators and went right down to the wire. Radley saw through all 30 overs to finish 210-7 with some outstanding batting displays from Kane (72 off 72),

OLTS 3 Carter (43 off 49), Henry (31 off 26) and Horton (26 off 10). With Marlborough in to bat, Radley seamer Freddie Grant put the opposition under huge pressure taking 3-25. Marlborough’s levelheaded middle order steadied the ship but following two wickets each from Henry and Berhanu, the home side were all out for 200 with two balls of the innings remaining. Berhanu’s elated reaction to taking his wicket simply summed up the day. What a fantastic match it was.

With tails up and spirits riding high, the boys took on Stowe’s 2nd team the following week at home on a sunny day. With Stowe in to bat, Radley bowled well with Grant taking another four wickets for only 27 runs and Marlar pulling off what was

Coaches: A Cunningham, MG Glendon-Doyle Captain: J Elvn perhaps the most impressive catch of the season. Game on.

However, concentration levels slipped significantly as Radley went in to bat, as the boys forgot how to defend straight balls and lost their composure.

Disappointingly, the boys were all out for 27 - despite a cracking four from Wood, it was not a happy day to remember but hopefully the players learnt from the experience.

It took a couple of practice matches and some work in the nets to recover from the Stowe match. However, the players vented their frustration against a visiting Winchester side. With some outstanding bowling from Carter (4-8) and some great wickets from Maidment, Beare, Henry, Ryan and Grant, Winchester

were all out for 70, thanks to intense fielding from the likes of Southgate and Levinson. Radley’s innings was spear-headed by the absolutely superb Carter who hit 54 off 37 balls and the match was won as Radley finished 71-1.

It was a very enjoyable season overall. The coaches would like to thank captain Jack Elvin for his positive and assertive leadership.

The boys struck a great balance between having fun and working hard in training sessions. We wish the players the best for senior cricket.

AC / MGGD

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CRICKET JC1 P12 W4 L6 A2 Team: V Brooke (Capt), W Todd, C Muir, T Spreckley (Wk), L Neville, H Anderson, M Martin-Zackheim, M Greene, D AnwylJones, P Hayes, L Curtis, D Bishop, N Greville Williams, B Weldon, W Kaye With the elevation of Rory Betley to the 1st XI at the very start of the season, there was always a suspicion that the JC1 batting line up might struggle to make competitive scores consistently, and it was also clear that there would be an added weight bearing down on the shoulders of the Captain when it came to taking the game to the opposition with the bat.

Val Brooke rose to this challenge (after a slightly sticky start trying to cut straightish balls off the top of his off bail) with two outstanding centuries against Winchester (111) and St Edward’s (149*), scored in very rapid time – both hundreds coming from fewer than 70 balls apiece. He also led the way in trying to build partnerships with his colleagues – the highlight being a forceful 107 in 14 overs with Caspar Muir at St Edward’s – and in showing how decisive footwork could blunt even the sharpest tools in the opposition’s box of bowling tricks.

When the dust settled after the 12th game, it was clear that without Val’s 439 runs at an average of a nudge under 49, JC1’s run count would have been pretty thin.

Val was often well supported by the

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sweet timing of Will Todd (who made a particularly good start to the season – he averaged 30 up to Leave Away), and by the enterprising and positive Theo Spreckley, who played especially well at Charterhouse. Caspar Muir took on the opening role with Will shortly before half term, and it was noticeable how purposefully they played and ran as a pair. The rest of the batting line up (sadly Benedict Weldon’s back injury deprived us of his services before he had found form) was broadly made up of mighty smiters from the Edwin Boaler Alletson school of building an innings. Certainly they all practised picking the right ball and hitting straight down the ground on Tuesdays and Thursdays, but often the shrubbery beckoned come Saturday, and innings flared only briefly to life.

Each had his day in the sun: Lachie Neville forced the Harrow bowlers to rethink their attack, thundering an enormous six almost as far as the startled outfielders of Midgets 2, Monty Martin-Zackheim did much the same at Wellington, Henry Anderson hit and ran hard against Winchester and Dom Anwyl-Jones struck hard at Cheltenham, Wellington and Bradfield, but all too often wickets would be going down regularly at the other end and the man in form was left stranded. The totals scored during the season underline the fragility of the batting: only twice did we go past 200, and just two further scores were achieved over 150 (although it would be reasonable to argue that only the rain prevented similar scores against Eton and Abingdon). At Harrow, 174

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for 9 represented the most consistent performance through the card, but it was a shame on that occasion that no one managed to cash in on a bright start to play a match-turning innings.

As mentioned above, all the batsmen made purposeful and productive use of practice sessions to improve their technique and their running between the wickets, and the same could be said of the bowlers, although in their case the bowling unit started from a position of greater strength. In the nets all the seam bowlers, from established members of the side such as Patrick Hayes and Dom Anwyl-Jones, to less experienced practitioners such as Ludo Curtis, Ned Greville Williams and Dan Bishop, bowled with nip and zip, and worked hard to improve the consistency of their line and length. Of these Hayes was the most threatening (until he injured himself going for an evening run – fast bowlers NEVER used to do that and for good reason), Anwyl-Jones was the quickest and Curtis the tightest of line.

None, perhaps, took quite the number of wickets that seemed likely (although a number of catches did go down off their bowling), but equally they did not allow the opposition to get off to a fast start and that created a certain amount of pressure which allowed later bowlers to take wickets, as batsmen began to chance their arm.

Of all the front line seamers, two performances from Ludo Curtis stood out: 7 overs 1 for 11 against Abingdon,

Coach: JRW Beasley, KM WIllis-Stovold Captain: DV Brooke

followed by 7 overs 0 for 16 against a good Tonbridge side, and both matches showed how far he had come in developing the rhythm and consistency of a good opening bowler.

Such miserliness did give the spinners, Monty Martin-Zackheim and Caspar Muir, and the final seamer, Miles Greene, chances to pick up wickets as the game opened up. Monty ended up as the leading wicket taker for the season – 16 wickets at 21 apiece – and both he and Caspar bowled well when they found the rhythm of their run up. Both occasionally bowled too many variations, allowing batsmen to score more freely than was ideal, but both had an inviting flight and turned the ball enough to catch batsmen unawares.

Miles Greene was the most improved bowler of the season: not quick, I’m sure he wouldn’t mind my saying, but the man who moved the ball in the air and off the pitch to the greatest effect, and a bowler who had a naturally awkward length which left the batsman unsure of whether to drive, defend or nurdle. Some bowlers just have this knack: the knack of bowling the most irritating length at the most irritating speed, in much the same way that some bowlers have the ability to persuade batsmen to get out to them no matter how help-yourself the bowling might seem. Miles had the first of these qualities and Monty had the second – in Monty’s case he seemed to get far more wickets with his occasional bad balls than with his much more

frequent good ones – and it helped Miles to lead the bowling averages with 15 wickets at just over 11 runs a scalp. Of all the teams we played, Miles would have liked to have wrapped up St Edward’s and carried them around with him: in two matches against them, his figures were 8.3 overs, 2 maidens, 9 for 28. As he might have said, they can come again.

In addition to these fine performances with the ball, both Ned Greville Williams and Dan Bishop also more than did their bit; but what we needed above all were some scurrying and scampering fielders with hands like fly paper to back up the bowlers. Sadly we were a bit short of these. I don’t think any of our regular and loyal supporters would disagree when I say that the fielding was the great letdown of the season: so many catches went down, some of the easiest kind, and so many low balls trundled past fielders in failed giraffe-at-waterhole attempts to bend long backs and stiff legs to stop said trundling ball, that the bowlers must have wondered how many mirrors they must have broken over the heads of a calamity of black cats to deserve such profligacy in the field. Too often throws came sniping in at the toes of wicketkeeper Spreckley, who did his best to make this scruffy stuff look something close to neat and tidy. Certainly Neville, Anderson and Anwyl-Jones prowled the outfield to good effect much of the time and some cracking catches were taken - Val Brooke’s slip catch off Hayes (a real opening bowler’s wicket that) and a couple of sizzlers in close from Martin-Zackheim and Anderson - and

some great run outs made, with Brooke and Todd the champions of the direct hit; but the balance always seemed to be in the red, and in one or two matches the fielding was the crucial difference between winning or losing.

So…in the final analysis JC1 fell short of being truly competitive with the bat and in the field. Hefty victories were achieved against St Edward’s (twice) by five wickets and 120 runs, and against Winchester by 110 runs, and a very satisfying 43 run win was achieved against Charterhouse. However, matches were lost when they should not have been, and too often we crumbled in the face of strong play from the opposition.

Only against Harrow did we hold our own against tough opponents, albeit in a losing cause.

That said Val and his fellow travellers were excellent company, genuine triers and determined practisers, and both KMWS and I thoroughly enjoyed working with them. They have plenty to build on for next year in the Colts, especially if they can play some club cricket over the summer and make good use of the winter, and there is no reason at all that they should not produce a winning record in 2016.

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JRWB

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CRICKET JC2 P10 W5 L4 A1 In the first match of season, JC2 faced a Cheltenham side not played previously due to rain in the Midgets fixture. In the 35 overs game, all the bowlers chipped in and restricted Cheltenham to just 132 on a very small pitch. This was chased down in just over 24 overs with Myles Browne (25*) ensuring we got over the line comfortably.

Next up were the formidable Eton who posted a seemingly impossible to chase 223, despite four wickets from Myles Browne. However, a bright start from Radley and an excellent partnership from Edward Mair (30) and Lachie Neville (74) made a famous run chase appear to be on the cards. Sadly the rain ended the match with neither side having a clear upper hand.

A trip to Wellington followed after Trinity weekend but sadly we couldn’t produce as scintillating a batting display, with Ben Broughton (22) providing the only real resistance.

We were looking to bounce back quickly and a home match against Bradfield provided the opportunity.

The opposition couldn’t deal with our bowling attack, as all seven bowlers took a wicket with two each for Archie Valentine, Benedict Yorston and Charlie Pemberton (who conceded just seven runs in his five overs). Their score of 75 was comfortably chased down for the loss of just one wicket by James InnisKer (30*) and Myles Browne (36*).

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Sadly MCS proved just too strong as they scored 136 and we fell just short on 113 despite a spirited chase.

An away match on a bizarre pitch at Marlborough followed leave-away and excellent bowling from Charlie Pemberton (three wickets) and Will Lennon (two wickets for seven runs) in particular helped bowl them out for 116. After a couple of mini-collapses including three wickets for just six runs, Will Morgan (35) and Benedict Yorston (18) shared a 46 run partnership, leaving the no. 11 (Charlie P) to complete the victory with one wicket in hand.

A tough match at Harrow was next and they posted an impressive 240 despite three wickets for Giles Elmhirst and four for Theo Lowe. A chase similar to the Eton game could not be replicated however and only Rufus Darwall (24) and Theo Lowe (36) looked comfortable as Harrow won by 127.

The local derby was at home and it was a good start to our batting innings.

Theo Lowe made 45 but the first wicket triggered a dramatic collapse, with none of the middle order making double figures. With numbers 8 and 11 in on 92 for 9, a low score looked certain. However, a heroic last wicket partnership from Benedict Yorston (58*) and Will Lennon (17*) took Radley to 166 off 30 overs and left Abingdon red-faced. An impressive opening spell from Charlie Pemberton reduced the opposition to 33/3 before the rain, but a 23 run win can be claimed via

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Coaches: Mr REP Hughes TC Lawson Captain: BMJ Yorston Duckworth-Lewis.

Close-by school St. Edward’s were our next opponents and a sparkling batting display including 50* for James Innis-Ker and 26 off just 11 balls for Theo Lowe meant an imposing 168.

Bowling at an inexperienced opposition, nine of our 11 players bowled and all except the stand-out bowler from most matches, Charlie Pemberton, took a wicket.

To finish off an exceptional season, we faced Tonbridge with an early start. A fantastic bowling performance, especially from the opening duo of Pemberton and Greville-Williams who took three wickets apiece, resulted in Tonbridge, who had scored 248 in their previous game, scoring 131.

A fantastic 47 from Rufus Darwall was backed up by Myles Browne, who went from one off his first 22 balls, to 34 off 39, as we won by four wickets. A fantastic way to end the season.

A final mention must go to Edward Mair and Murdo Blythe who both kept brilliantly behind the stumps, taking catches and stumping throughout the season. Not mentioned above, Jacob Tregear also played in two matches.

All in all, it was a hugely successful season thanks to the efforts of Mr Hughes and Mr Lawson and everyone who played in the team, always giving their all. It was great fun to be part of.

Benedict Yorston, b

CRICKET JC3 P6 W4 L2 We opened the season against a weak Cheltenham side. We won the toss and bowled first with Tom Johnston, Ed Newell, Oliver Friend and Giles Elmhirst. The first three overs saw them make three runs. We managed to keep them to 99 runs off 30 overs. We then did not bat to our full potential, but made the runs with ease.

After a convincing win over Cheltenham, we hoped to continue our unbeaten run against Eton. The bowling attack was not as strong as the week before but we struggled onwards. Our weak bowling against such good batsmen meant they managed to make a lot of runs. Radley batting was not quite at the level we hoped but with Harry Christopherson keeping the team together we managed to make a few runs but still fell well short of the target.

After a heavy defeat to Eton, JC3 were ready to get back on track: Wellington opted to bat which meant we could get them out quickly and be on the road home. After getting two early wickets, it was looking good for us: with Tom Johnston and Ed Newell bowling some good wickets and Ed Newell bowling the first maiden of the season. But they fought back and made a total of 122. We got off to a great start thanks to Will Morgan and James Innes Kerr, who ended up getting 46 before running himself out, the runs then flowed more slowly and they started to pick up wickets. Until it got to the point where five people got ducks. With Elmhirst and Johnston in for the final three overs, the runs were tight. However a nice swift leg side sweep from Elmhirst JC3 won the game with two wickets and an over left.

Historically the match has been an easy ride for Radley teams but Bradfield threatened to turn the tables as they found themselves 29-0 from five overs. Ed Newall and Tom Johnston got the crucial wickets of the Bradfield openers. The new batsmen looked un confident and Ollie Friend and Julius de Watteville took advantage, with

Coaches: MCF Brown, GHS May Captain: GC Elmhirst, TPS Johnston

Friend picking up superb figures of three wickets for one run from three overs, and de Watteville doing a fine job at the other end with figures of 2-8 from three overs. With Radley doing well to get Bradfield to 55-4, they crumbled from there, with Tom Lennon and Fergus Wilson picking up wickets as well, as they fell to 61 all out. Radley had a steady start, but the loss of de Watteville and Wilson in the same over left us in a precarious position at 23-2 from seven overs, Despite these losses, Will Morgan steadied the ship and saw Radley home comfortably with an unbeaten 32 (39) to win by eight wickets.

Last year Marlborough pushed us all the way so we were expecting another test of our ability. We were put in to bat, and quickly lost Jacob Tregear and Murdo Blythe who fell victim to the tricky bounce on the pitch. Harry Christopherson and Fergus Wilson started the rebuilding process and laid the foundations to push on with a partnership of 36, before Christopherson was caught on 13. After Wilson was out for 29 (28) we were stuttering at 84-4 from 17 overs. Rufus Darwall and Tom Johnston put on a quick 30, but then both got out. Darwall played well for his 32. Manny Berhanu scored a quick few runs before he was out. Artie Diamandis and Harry Fitzpatrick, both on debut, put on 25, helped a lot by extras (which finished on 32; our joint highest scorer) to get our total up to a respectable 144-8 from 25 overs. We had hit 59 off our last seven overs.

Still, on a pitch that had lost its initial variation of bounce, and with Radley not being offered a new ball, 144 looked a gettable target for Marlborough. Captain Tom Johnston ripped through their top order with figures 5-10 from four overs, with Ed Newall bowling accurately at the other end and unlucky not to pick up a wicket. Wilson and Berhanu struck in consecutive overs to set them back further. Our spinners finished the job nicely, with Diamandis impressing with a double wicket maiden in his only over and George Seagrave picking up a wicket on debut as well. In the end,

Marlborough lost their last five wickets for two runs as they collapsed to 36 all out, handing Radley a comfortable victory by 108 runs.

Last year Harrow was strong and we knew we were in for a tough match. It was hard when we lost Harry Christopherson early on. Archie Valentine and Ben Broughton, both on debut for JC3, consolidated for a while, before Valentine (10) top edged to square leg. Broughton and Fergus Wilson added some runs together, but when Broughton received a beauty from the Harrow seamer to be bowled for 15, we were left stuttering a bit at 54-3 from 12 overs. The tidy knocks laid the foundations for a fantastic partnership of 81 between Wilson and Murdo Blythe. Some powerful hitting from each of them pushed the run rate to over six an over. Blythe was eventually bowled for a superb 34 off 31 balls. Wilson added a few more runs with George Seagrave before he was finally out, nicking an inside edge through to the keeper to depart for a wonderful 57 off just 51 balls. The pressure was on George Seagrave to keep the runs flowing, and he did just that, timing the ball sweetly on his way to 12, before he was caught in the deep attempting to smash one in the last over. After a slow start, we had put on 152-7 from 25 overs.

After a quick restart, our opening pair of Tom Johnston and Ed Newall (3-10) once again wreaked havoc in the opposition top order to reduce them to 24-5 from nine overs. With wickets from Valentine, Wilson and Artie Diamandis they were reduced to 54-8, but then they put up a fight. Harrow’s 9th wicket partnership consisted of 46 runs and suddenly they were in a position where they did potentially have a slender chance of winning, needing 52 from five overs. Tom Johnston came back on for his final over and finished them off in three balls, finishing with figures of 4-14. A good all round performance from JC3.

Tom Johnston, d, Giles Elmhirst, h

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CRICKET JC4 P8 W7 L1 Coached by Mr Roques and Dr Bedford, JC4 had an almost unbeaten season apart from the first match of the season, against Eton. Captained

by George Seagrave and without a full-strength team, we were unable to win the match unfortunately. The following players have graced us with their presence this season: George Seagrave. He was moved up shortly after taking three wickets against Stowe and stayed in JC3 for the rest of the season. Tom Novis.

Opening batsman for the whole season and in the last match against Tonbridge batted for 71 not out. The very consistent opener got mostly between 15 and 20 in most matches to set the tone for the match. He also produced the moment of the season, when bowling at Marlborough.

After Tom had bowled, the ball was driven hard straight back at him.

Tom stuck out his hand and held the ball, all in a split second. Freddy Campbell-Gray. Came in at number five against St Edward’s Oxford and batted with James Strain to receive a 126 partnership and made 72 runs himself, ending on 72 not out. Freddy also came very close to another halfcentury against Marlborough where he was caught on 45. James Strain.

Batting at number two and bowling two for most of the season taking a total of 14 wickets, he was the main wicket-taker in the team for the first few matches until other bowlers then outclassed him. He also achieved a great partnership of 126 with Freddy Campbell-Gray against St Edwards Oxford and fell short of a century on 89, his best batting performance of the season by 62 runs. James proved himself the most reliable of captains.

Angus Corrie-Deane. Playing only the first match against Eton, he did not have much impact this season as he had many equestrian events to take part in. Tom Daniel. Playing

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the majority of the season in JC3, it was a pleasure to have him play in the team. The left arm spinner, who took close to six wickets in the last three games, was a very successful wicket-taker. However he only got one batting opportunity against Harrow where he was 12 not out.

Tom Lennon. Having moved down from JC3 in the last two matches he took the last two wickets of the season against Tonbridge and in the last two matches received 11 not out and 19 at number four batsman.

Angad Srinivasan. He was a quality fine leg who stopped many runs this season. Unfortunately, he neither bowled nor batted this season and swiftly changed to golf. Tom Warner.

Originally playing golf, he came into the side as a twelfth man. Against St Edwards he took six wickets and became a regular in the side. Rufus Darwall. Playing only two matches in JC4 as wicket keeper he swiftly moved up to JC3 and stayed there for a successful season until the end. Artie Diamandis. The spinner played only one match in JC4 and took five wickets due to some solid catching in the field. Artie had a successful season with JC3 for the rest of the season. Miles Yeoman.

Another member of the team who joined late, having played another sport before changing to cricket. An unorthodox bowler who only picked up a couple of wickets this season but a very successful third man, who stopped plenty of fours this season.

Inigo Maciejewski. A quality fielder this season as he was not able to bat or bowl much. Usually playing at long off, he was very successful in his boundary stopping and made our matches a lot easier than they would have been. Jonty Barlow.

Playing in only a few matches he was a very able player of cricket; unfortunately his batting skills were not shown in matches, as at number 6-7 he did not go onto the field, even though his batting in the nets

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Coaches: DWS Roques, CM Bedford Captain: GH Seagrave was from the top drawer. William Pockney. The opening bowler for the whole season and a very successful wicket-taker throughout the season.

He batted often at number five but unfortunately without success. He took five wickets however against Stowe at home. Rocco Chu. A very fast bowler who only occasionally bowled due to the sheer speed of his bowling. The highlight of his season was against St Edward’s Oxford where he bowled an out swinging beauty, for the final wicket, in the end clipping the top of the off stump. Charlie Maunder. Esteemed all-rounder who can both bat and bowl very well, however we did not see the best of his batting abilities this season. However, his bowling this season was very good but he was unfortunately struck by an injury to the back in the middle of the season. Jacob Tregear. A batsman who originally started in JC3 who was quite inconsistent throughout the season. However against Harrow we were chasing 180 off 25 overs and Jacob stepped up to the plate to make a very convincing 91 not out, the best score for JC4 this whole season. Harry Fitzpatrick. A left arm spinner who took many wickets in both JC3 and JC4 and a so-called “slogger” of the ball when batting, achieving 45 not out.

Overall JC4 had a very successful season this year with eight wins and only one loss. I would also like to thank DWSR and CMB on behalf of the team for a fantastic season this year and we hope that we will have another successful season next year in Colts.

James Strain, k

CRICKET MIDGETS 1 Team from: Freddie Horler, Henry Chapman, Harry Purton, Bertie Southgate, Will Carr, Rory Marshall, George Marshall, Charlie Robertson, Will Barker, Will Duncan, Louis Needham, George Redmayne, John Peers, Matthew Chapman and Will Nicholson.

P11 W7 L2 T1 A1 Leading run scorers: Freddie Horler (336 at 33.6 - 3 x 5o) and Will Carr (306 at 43.7 - 3 x 50) Leading wicket takers: Harry Purton (16 at 12.4) & Freddie Horler (16 at 13.7) and Will Carr (13 at 12.5) For the first time in over 20 years, the Radley Shells did not invade the Normandy beaches en masse on the first weekend of the summer term.

Instead, we welcomed the hordes

Coaches: OH Langton, TCH Norton Captain: FJR Horler

of Cheltenham to our infinitely less murderous battlefield. On that first day in April, Cheltenham batted first and after excellent bowling from Will Barker and spinners Freddie Horler and Harry Purton, could only muster 126-9. Batting first is a huge advantage in these Under 14 games though, and some early season nerves saw us totter our way to 58-5 before Will Carr (53*) batted with impressive maturity and found support from Rory Marshall and then Will Duncan to see us home with one over and three wickets to spare.

Against Eton, we batted first and good batting from Will Carr and Marshall ensured that our excellent opening partnership of 85 between Horler (58) and Bertie Southgate was not frittered away despite a mid-innings collapse. During the Eton reply wickets fell steadily as everyone bowled with

control and Horler captained astutely.

Their number nine then came in and smashed us to all parts before Will Barker was able to hold his nerve and bowl out the last over - we won by two runs in a thrilling encounter.

An hour and a half into the game at Wellington, we left the field having bowled them out for 59, Carr adding to his all-round reputation by taking 4-6 from five overs and a couple of run outs and brilliant catches adding to the feeling that this side was developing an impressive momentum. The early loss of Horler and Southgate, followed not long afterwards by Henry Chapman, left us in tatters - but again, the team showed its strength in depth with newly promoted George Marshall and Barker calmly batting us out of trouble before Charlie Robertson provided the coup de grace by smashing their leg spinner into

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the hedge to win the game with five wickets in hand.

Our match against Bradfield proved to be the Freddie Horler show - opening the batting, he scored 64 and shared an excellent opening partnership of 90 with an increasingly confident Chapman. Again, however, we failed to press home the advantage of a good opening stand and collapsed against some excellent left arm spin from their captain. Still, a total of 179 proved to be too many for Bradfield, despite their opening batsmen getting off to a flier thanks to some ill-disciplined bowling and fielding in the first eight overs. A freak dismissal followed by an excellent run out allowed us back into the game and then Freddie the bowler took over, taking 5-22 in his seven overs and snuffing out the threat of a Bradfield come back.

Just before Leave Away, we made the return journey to Cheltenham and were excited to find ourselves on their beautiful College ground, home of the Cheltenham festival. They won the toss and batted but we controlled the first half of their innings with some excellent bowling and fielding, restricting them to 45-1 from 15 overs.

We then made the mistake of taking several wickets, however, which brought the mighty Ward to the crease. 49 balls later, he hit the final ball of his innings to the cover boundary to end up 98*, and Cheltenham had posted 190 in 30 overs. This would be a great chase, we decided at tea... Horler (83) and Chapman (62) then showed their immense class and maturity by putting on 129 for the first wicket from just 127 balls. When Horler was out, however, we still needed 62 to win at over six - no easy task. Each batsman who came out knew the situation, played positively and with the muscular Robertson able to find the boundary when it mattered and the impressive Carr again to the fore, we managed to cruise past the target with seven balls to spare, with Harry Purton timing his first ball sweetly to the boundary to seal a remarkable triumph.

After Leave Away we demolished a weak Winchester side by 10 wickets and played with real authority against Marlborough, Carr scoring 91 in our imposing total of 217-7 before Duncan

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ripped through their lower order to take 5-16 from six overs, including three wickets in four balls. A special mention must go to Rory Marshall at this point, because I could have eulogised about his wicket-keeping during every match report – in this game alone he took a stunning diving catch down the leg side followed by the sharpest of legside stumpings standing up to Duncan’s medium pace: in every game he was the heartbeat of the side, meticulous in his glovework and relentless in his chirpiness, like all of the best of his kind.

These two comprehensive victories were followed by victory in a thrilling T20 tournament at Cheltenham: this was all the more impressive as our victory over the three sides involved came courtesy of a side shorn of four regulars due to the Shell play rehearsal.

We then travelled to Harrow. We came up against an opening bowling partnership in good form and really struggled early on, but sensible rebuilding from Chapman and Purton set a platform for late acceleration from Robertson, Marshall and Barker to score 150 from our 35 overs. They had some good players throughout as well, and despite Horler dismissing the dangerous Dicketts with an extraordinary catch off his own bowling, Harrow knew that if they could keep wickets in hand then they should cruise to victory on a fast scoring ground.

As so often, a brilliant run out got us back into the game and superb ‘death’ bowling from Carr and Chapman saw the game swing back in our favour.

Having needed 24 from 30 balls with three wickets in hand, Harrow started the final over requiring ten to win with two wickets left. That was reduced to two from two by some excellent batting.

Carr took a brilliant one handed catch off his own bowling and suddenly their number 11 had to score two from the final delivery. A short pitched ball was fended away from his face, down to third man for a single and so a brilliant match had ended in a tie.

With an unbeaten season becoming temptingly possible, we collapsed to 36-7 chasing St. Edward’s meagre 100 all out. Harry Purton had taken 5-12 in their innings and we should have cruised home, but you are only ever a bad half hour away from defeat at this level and despite a brave attempt from

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Robertson and Southgate, we fell six runs short. Despite our best efforts to raise the spirits, a long term and yet another long bus journey took their toll on the final day of the season and we batted poorly in the early stages of our last match against Tonbridge – again, we collapsed to 36-6. Patient consolidation from Barker and Rory Marshall, followed by an excellent acceleration in the closing overs saw us wrest back the initiative as we posted 127-7, with Rory falling to the final ball of the innings and Will finishing on an excellent 57*. We reduced Tonbridge to 22-4 courtesy of some excellent bowling and fielding, but we came up against the best player on our circuit in imperious form – O’Reardon had bowled a brilliant spell of seven overs for just seven runs and he then batted beautifully, scoring 81 and ensuring Tonbridge were able to secure victory with four wickets and three overs in hand.

Thus ended a memorable season. The boys played cricket in a positive and mature fashion, taking responsibility when called upon and enjoying one another’s successes and company.

Captain Freddie Horler must take much credit for the way in which he created such a positive atmosphere. It was very considerate of him to ask my opinion about his bowling changes when the boys were out in the field, but he did not need to – invariably he got things right and he always encouraged and supported his team, marking him out as a leader of enormous potential. It has been an absolute pleasure for Mr. Norton and I to coach this side – we ended the season with encouragement to work hard over the winter and look to improve on a fantastic start to their five years here. A final thank you to the parents for their unstinting support and to AJK and his team for all of the time spent in preparing such wonderful wickets on which the boys can express their talent.

OHL

CRICKET MIDGETS 2 Daly (c), Robson (wk), Chapman, Peers, Nicholson, Redmayne, Armstrong, Needham, Hamilton Russell, Rogers Coltman, Bertie, Dobby, Terry, Gilliat Smith P10 W7 L2 A1 The season began with a comfortable victory against Cheltenham. A partnership of 127 between Southgate and Marshall helped Radley to 204 – 6 off just 30 overs and ultimately led to their promotion to Midgets 1. Cheltenham did not get close – they were rolled over for 74. The wickets were shared around the bowlers with Rogers Coltman taking 3-10.

A tough match away at Eton followed and the hosts posted a formidable 186. Redmayne bowled well in this game and HamiltonRussell returned to clean up the tail taking 4-32. Radley chased this total down brilliantly with Marshall and Chapman both hitting half centuries, before Daly and Dobby combined well to see us over the line.

We went to Wellington therefore with great confidence, but were soon on the back foot as Timberlake smashed 134 off 93 balls. He was clearly in the wrong team. In reply we battled hard and despite Chapman (49), Nicholson and Redmayne all making a positive contribution with the bat we closed on 164, 60 runs short of our target.

Coach: M Hills Captain: MP Daly

but were still too good for a poor Winchester side. Rogers Coltman, with another 3-10 and Redmayne 4-15, bowled our hosts out for 92.

Daly then narrowly missed out on a half century finishing on 47*.

Marlborough at home was a real disappointment for us. We never recovered from 13-3 setting Marlborough 118 to win. They duly obliged losing six wickets in the process, though a dropped catch at 10-2 could have been a game changer.

Another stiff test awaited us at Harrow. After deciding to bat first it looked like a great decision, as we raced to 62-1 after 11 overs. Though Harrow fought back, an excellent run a ball 65 from Chapman threatened to take us to a huge score on what was an extremely large outfield.

Then the collapse happened.

Chapman was run out off a no ball, Armstrong top edged to square leg and Hamilton Russsell was run out after only facing one delivery.

Fortunately Needham batted sensibly to take our total up to 166-8.

Hosting Bradfield in the next game, we soon had the opposition in trouble at 76-6 before restricting them to 119. This should have been an easy chase, but as batsmen found ways to get out we found ourselves 84-6. Sensible batting by Hamilton Russell and Armstrong followed taking us close to the line before Peers won the game.

Fortunately in the field we were excellent throughout and all the bowlers bowled a decent line and length. Terry bowled nicely on debut, Gilliat Smith made the important initial breakthrough but it was the economical bowling of Peers, Rogers Coltman and Nicholson that won this game. As the runs per over required soared, Nicholson produced a devastating spell of bowling taking 6-19 off his six overs. With catches being taken all around the field and Robson behind the stumps producing a fine fielding display, Harrow eventually fell 11 runs short of their target. What was extremely pleasing was the excellent quality of the cricket that was being played throughout the game.

After a return fixture against Cheltenham and another easy win we went to Winchester after Leave Away. We bowled and fielded rustily

We travelled to Abingdon for our ninth game of the season and were playing an unbeaten team on their own patch. This did not

prove to be much of a problem to us, as Peers (55) and Chapman (68) smashed their bowling to all parts as we scored 175-8 in 30 overs.

Outrageously a monsoon denied us victory as the game was called off with Abingdon teetering on the brink at 32-8. A fine spell of bowling from Rogers–Coltman (5-2) brought this about. Indeed his third over was a quadruple wicket maiden clean bowling three batsmen after Robson had taken an excellent low catch diving forward.

The season finished in glorious sunshine away (again ARW!) at Tonbridge. Electing to bat first on a very cracked pitch looked like a mistake, as 18-0 became 35-5 and then 93 all out. Peers the only man into double figures made a patient and very important 27. We need not have worried. Every bowler took at least one wicket, every potential catch was taken and there was some excellent ground fielding.

Whereas Radley dug in, Tonbridge grew impatient as the dot balls piled up and began playing across the line. Soon they were 62-9 before a cunning, though not greatly disguised, slower ball from Nicholson clattered into the stumps.

It was a great effort from the team and a lovely high point on which to finish the season. This season has been a very successful and enjoyable one. The cricket has been of a decent standard but some further work needs to be done on running between the wickets. We have lost 15 wickets out of 64 to run outs. A special mention must go to John Peers who has opened the bowling and at times the batting this season and was named player of the season.

Rogers Coltman was the leading wicket taker with 17 and Chapman the highest run scorer with 278 runs.

THE RADLEIAN SPORTS SUPPLEMENT

MH

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CRICKET MIDGETS 3

CRICKET M

Coaches: ME Walker, PR Wallace Captain: EOK Cockcroft

P8 W3 L5

P7 W3 L3 A1 The spirit of this year’s Midget 3 cricket team is best summed up by their match against Marlborough. As the sun beat down upon Radley whites, Marlborough’s opening bowler had a similar effect upon our batsmen, and by the end of the third over the team had amassed a paltry 6 runs for 3 wickets, and it seemed to the Radley don standing at square leg that his team were merely a couple of overs away from a humiliating collapse.

However, the square leg don’s expectations (and Marlborough’s) were confounded by Rory Henry and Theo Bantoft, whose stabilising partnership of 56 turned the match around.

Radley finally totalled 157-9, and beat Marlborough by 21 runs. Another fine performance came against Wellington, who managed to score only 95 thanks to some mean bowling from Jake Terry and Hugo Bertie with Marcus Stalder, bowling Malinga-esque, doing the damage in terms of wickets with 4-14.

Some sensible batting saw a six wicket win that could have been far more dominating had they chased hard from the gun.

A week later some fine weather, the beautiful backdrop of Bradfield, and a superb bowling performance helped engender a confidence which toppled our opponents for a meagre 46 runs, whilst the tiny outfield enabled that total to be achieved in a mere 8.2 overs. Winning the toss and opting to

bat at Abingdon always seemed to be a sensible choice, and Rory Henry set about destroying the attack with 70 from 48 balls, before being retired. Only to unleash Marcus Stalder who smashed 46 from 27, only being denied his 50 by an over-zealous declaration. This came too late, and the ensuing downpour washed out a game Radley were destined to win.

The team did not always have its own way, however. Defeats against Eton and Harrow were disappointing, despite the quality of the opposition, particularly as the late afternoon drizzle and a wet ball contributed to two dropped catches that would have secured a memorable victory against the former. And the final match of the season away at the costa-del-sol that is Tonbridge saw some poor batting, as much due to Tonbridge’s verbal attack, as their bowling attack. Radley managed only 90, and on what looked to be a tough wicket, 20 more would have made a game of it. Some good bowling from Jude Dobby and newly found slow leg-spinning William Cox brought the game closer than perhaps they deserved, Tonbridge winning by only four wickets in the end.

All in all it was a good season for the team who played some hard cricket, captained excellently by Eddie Cockcroft, supported solidly by opening partner Angus Tufnell, and chivvied along by the always chippy Sam Tucker. Both coaches hope they all continue to push for higher teams next season.

MEW, PRW

Just two practice sessions preceded our opening fixture at home to Cheltenham. With an April northeasterly breeze keeping sweaters on and everyone alert, this proved to be a wonderfully tight and exciting game. Radley’s first innings tally of 186-8 could (and possibly should?) have secured a first victory. The fact that our top scorer was opener Ethan Russell with 23 suggests that ‘everyone chipped in’ - and this was indeed the case. When three clean bowled dismissals had Cheltenham at 10-3 (two wickets in his very first over for Alexander Hughes), few would have invested on the visitors taking the victory, but a combination of an unbeaten 73 by a doughty no. 4 batsman and some generosity in our play, meant that we lost the home leg of this fixture on the very final ball.

In terms of cricketing excitement, this game really delivered, even if Radley trooped off the field confused about how the game had slipped away.

Eton is always going to be a difficult match especially when it comes at the start of the season. The day felt like an early summer match with a slight cool breeze, light cloud and the odd appearance of sunshine. The batting of Eton looked very strong but they were flattered by our laidback fielding. Harry Walther-Kaine was the pick of the bowlers taking four wickets. However, Gent and Holbech are worth a mention for a good demonstration of bowling. He had a decent opening innings of 133 with Jonty Stubbs scoring 29 and Ivo Holbech, one of our frontline bowlers, scored 26. Ethan Russell, who scored 16, gave early glimpses that he was a steady opening batsman.

We were always confident that we would have a good showing against Bradfield. The team was beginning to cement together and the warm weather made a more pleasurable feel to the whole proceedings. We had a good opening with the bat: Wesley Brolly scored 23 and Harry Gent achieved 14. However, the man

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THE RADLEIAN SPORTS SUPPLEMENT

MIDGETS 4 of the match was the swashbuckling Ben Moss who came and attained a very quick 43 runs – hitting fours and sixes. Overall we achieved a very reasonable 146 and then put the opposition into bat. The bowling and fielding was now beginning to up a gear and the team was becoming less forgiving – they wanted to win.

We managed to restrict them for 105 with Harry Gent being the pick of the bowlers, taking three wickets.

The final act before the leaveaway break saw our return trip to Cheltenham. We firmly grasped this chance to gain sporting revenge for the defeat in the home fixture. Or rather, we grasped the chance once we had given the early initiative to the home side. Finding ourselves at 47-5 after what can only be described as charitable batting, the pressure was firmly on captain Freddie Stone and his deputy Harry Gent to arrest the slide and stage a recovery. This they did in fine style, Freddie (52) showing belligerence and Harry (36) much common sense in his batting.

With some useful late runs from Thomas Boulton and Harry WaltherKaine, we repaired the damage of the poor start. So, after looking likely losers, Radley took the field with confidence and – despite another good innings from our nemesis of the home fixture – the result rarely seemed in doubt. Tight bowling from all seven bowlers used and no fewer than four run outs took us to the win.

Buoyed by the win at Cheltenham, the trip to Winchester was eagerly anticipated. We certainly started the game confidently, with an outstanding diving catch by Harry Salter off Thomas Boulton’s bowling getting us off to an exciting start. With the hosts at 53-4 and confidence in the field all looked well set, but inexplicably we ‘took our foot off the gas’ and allowed Winchester to fight back strongly. All credit should be given to their numbers 5 and 6, who got them to a defendable score of 145, but this was a game where we failed to press home an obvious advantage. Our three most

Coach: PW Gamble, D Wilson Captain: FHA Stone economical bowlers were not fully utilised, which quite possibly ‘gifted’ Winchester an unnecessary 20 runs or so. At any rate, we rarely looked to be in the hunt for a win. Offering up a slack run out in the opening over seemed to unsettle successive batsman and we did not seem able to mount the sort of counter-attack that Winchester had managed. Bright spots were a quickfire 27 by Wesley Brolly, a confident 25 by Will Cox and a tenacious 18 not out by new recruit Harry Salter, but around them was a lack of grit on this particular day.

We knew Marlborough would be a difficult fixture and we needed a game plan to make the best of our qualities and to make a real fight of the match. Our two opening batsman were instructed by the captain, Freddie Stone, to stick around and to build up a steady total – we did not want to lose wickets quickly.

Our opening batsmen, Russell and Salter, responded in the right sort of way. Russell scored 30 before being caught and Salter attained an unbeaten 46 before being bowled.

We, therefore, set Marlborough a challenging 130 for the loss of three wickets. It was with great delight that we managed to bowl out the opposition for 93. Wicket after wicket fell – the bowling and fielding was tremendous and far better than we had previously achieved. All our bowlers did well but Holbech is worth noting, taking four wickets.

The day I was most proud of Midget 4 cricket team was the day we faced Harrow. We always knew Harrow were going to be a tough opposition but we were determined to face the Harovians without fear. The sheer concentration of each of our batsman was a delight to witness and each player scored and made their contribution to the team. The opening batsmen scored 19 and faced many a difficult ball. Hugo Bennett then walked to the crease to stroke the ball without fear, scoring 36, before being caught. Our bowlers and fielders gave their all – Cox showing a good example in the

field and taking a couple of wickets.

But in the end the quality of their batsmen came through and they reached our total with eight overs remaining. The quality of Harrow was beyond question but so to was our determination to put up a strong fight.

Our final game of the season was the long trip to Tonbridge. On a properly warm summer’s day, playing on a batsman’s strip and with the boundary set in the far distance, both teams were going to have to work hard in the field. And so it proved, for our hosts in the first part of the day.

Ethan Russell played very positively in the opening phase, finding holes in the field seemingly at will. After initial good support from Harry Salter, Hugo Bennett came in and played a crisp innings, with one flick off the legs to the boundary being a contender for “shot of the season”. Sadly he couldn’t build on his foundation to register the big score that might have taken the game away from Tonbridge. This was the story of our innings – a series of good starts were not capitalised upon as all would have wished. Henry Carson weighed in with some quick runs at the end, but 156 accrued over 30 overs never seemed quite enough in the prevailing conditions. With a good batting line up facing us, this was not the day for our bowling to misfire: we needed to tie Tonbridge down early to put them under pressure and didn’t manage this. Despite a flurry of wickets in the middle overs, with the belated introduction of Hugo Bennett’s spin causing something of a wobble, Tonbridge prevailed, largely through an impressive 78 from their captain.

PWG, DW

THE RADLEIAN SPORTS SUPPLEMENT

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CRICKET MIDGETS 5 & 6 Midgets 5: P6 W3 L3 M5 specialised in nail-biting matches this season. We lost by five runs to a strong Eton side. We lost by just the one run to Bradfield. We lost by two wickets to Marlborough, the same team we also beat by four wickets.

There have been many highlights.

Against Marlborough on Death Row we managed to amass 138-5. Toby Crawford (57 n.o.) carried his bat through the innings and adopted the most mature outlook, defending patiently and then hammering ten fours and a six. He was nobly supported by Alex Hughes (28) and Fergus Mosedale (18 n.o.) who added nine more fours between them. We were just outclassed by two Marlborough batsmen who contributed over 100 runs between them.

Against Bradfield, Jess Beardsworth powered to an outstanding 38 with four sixes and three fours. George Batty smashed 41 in 28 balls, hitting seven fours and a six. This was a veritable exhibition in power play and what a pity our lower order froze, gripped by the tension of requiring two runs from the last over. It turned out to be a wicket maiden.

Will Goodman top scored at Eton (25) and held the faltering reply together.

We fielded remarkably well to restrict the home side to 105-5. M5 seasons tend to be defined by the Harrow match.

This year saw a close and competitive game played out on a damp surface which created the most exciting of outcomes. Harrow batted well for their 126 all out. However M5 batted better and overhauled the total for the loss of six wickets, with an over to spare. M5 showed great character. New cap Henry Carson batted with great control and Toby Crawford hammered a quick-fire 20. Fergus Mosedale’s two wickets in three balls turned the tide our way, after some weighty blows from Harrow’s third and fourth batsmen. Ee-thern Ship bowled with a genuine head of steam.

challenge and a half for M5, playing as we do their U13 As year on year. Three stars emerged on a humid and cheery afternoon. Elliott Makin bowled five accurate and feisty overs, reining in very effectively an alarming home side run rate. Then he smashed the ball to all parts of the ground in a fabulous 10th wicket stand of 45 runs, compiled with the meticulous Alex Hughes. And Fergus Mosedale plucked a catch literally out of thin air, hammered hard to mid wicket.

The fixture at Tonbridge is always a tough challenge. This season proved to be no exception. However this hot day saw the best team performance of the season. Jess Beardsworth smashed 63 in just 40 balls faced and the initiative was well and truly seized. Jonty Stubbs played elegantly and patiently for his 48, and Ee-thern Ship (captain) led by example, pounding 39 off just 25 balls. Over the lunch time BBQ, 215-6 seemed a lofty score and despite some fine batting from the Tonbridge XI, M5 ran out eventual winners by 91 runs.

Elliott Makin troubled the batsmen with some of the fastest bowling seen in recent years in M5, and Olly Brown, always at the centre of things, bowled with great control, deserving more than his two wickets. Special mention ought to be made of two other team men: Jo McDermott, always reliable, enthusiastic and a great team player; and Marcus Stuart-Bourne who has been a fine vicecaptain, organising the field, batting order and playing a central role. It feels like a winning season with victories over Harrow and Tonbridge, despite playing seven, winning three and losing four.

This squad has vast talent and I would like to commend them for their impressive conduct and good spirit, while encouraging them to continue to play cricket. Warm thanks to EOH who has been tireless in the nets, umpiring and coaching.

The Abingdon match is usually a

SAH

Coaches: SA Hall, EO Holt Captains: OCA Brown, E Ship, RVJ Matthewson

Midgets 6: P3 W2 L1 The boys are to be commended for keeping their heads high throughout the term, not only through continual application in training, but also in the face of a number of cancelled fixtures, no doubt the opposition hearing of M6’s fearsome reputation.

The season started at Eton, after Cheltenham had to withdraw, and M6 posted a bold total of 130 with a fine 58 from Will Cox before his steady ascendancy to M3, and a tenacious 27 from James Watters. It took Eton till their 23rd of 25 overs to reach Radley’s total, even then winning by just two wickets, one of the closer Eton-Radley M6 fixtures for a while.

There followed a memorable day in May when ISY kindly offered to take the team to Stowe, only to find that Stowe had travelled to Radley. Match tea was eventually enjoyed, a lengthy wait endured, and Radley at last made their way home on the Stowe bus that had now returned.

After Leave Away M6 secured their first victory of the term with an away game at Winchester, playing till the very end of both innings and being the last of all the away teams to finish. Radley posted a stout target of 162, with healthy contributions from Makin (24), Davidson (32), Watters (32) and Mathewson (18), before steadily pinning back Winchester to 4-an-over, with wickets from Mathewson (3), Makin, Wiggin, and notably two from Tristan Wilkinson and one from Andrew Liu, both in their first term as cricketers, demonstrating just how quickly they had progressed by their own hard work and perseverance.

Following the cancelled Wellington fixture in early June, a close win against Harrow followed, with excellent captaincy from Robin Mathewson as always, with Radley scoring 92-4, and keeping Harrow to just 89-5 in reply. With the return Stowe fixture and the Tonbridge match both then being cancelled by the opposition, Harrow proved the final game of the season, leaving M6 happily winning more than they’d lost.

EOH 24

THE RADLEIAN SPORTS SUPPLEMENT

CROSS COUNTRY

Master in Charge: AJA Williams Captain: CE Stone

With our Cross Country Captain injured and only three full-time senior runners, it was always going to be a challenging term, but a number of part-time runners enthusiastically contributed and we were able to turn out Senior and Junior teams for most matches.

Hugely encouraging for the future was the number of Shells running, the U15s finishing first in the Vale Championships against tough opposition (State and Independent schools). Freddie Thackray finished in third place individually.

AJAW

FIVES Fives at Radley has experienced something of a renaissance this season, as both courts have been fully refurbished and are fit to play on once again. An influx of new kit as well as coaching expertise in the form of NWM has seen a much improved take-up of the game among the younger years. The senior group for this season has comprised Felix Barbour (F Social), who brought his experience through from previous years, together with Arthur Woyka (A Social, captain) and Charlie Rothbarth (H Social), both new to the game this year, and Hugo Halford-Harrison (D Social), ably playing a couple of year groups above his level.

The enthusiasm these boys have generated has been infectious, and

Master in Charge: DL Cox Captain: AJdelaF Woyka

their encouragement of the junior players has been fantastic to see.

The Shell Fives tournament in the Lent term was very well attended, with John Peers (A Social) bringing his Eton Fives experience to the fore in a strong victory.

While the standard of playing within Radley has improved greatly, matches against other schools have served to remind us that there is no substitute for real, on-court experience.

A squad of eight Shells played against Winchester early on in the season, and found the opposition to be quite a handful, recording only one victory for T. Boulton (H Social) and J. Walker (K Social).

The seniors and Shells then played Tonbridge and put up a

worthy fight, but were beaten by 14 games to 6 – notable singles victories for us included C. Rothbarth (H Social) and F. Barbour (F Social) in the seniors, and F. Horler (B Social) and R. Curtis (B Social) for the Shells.

The final match of the season was against St Paul’s, with the more experienced side once again coming away with the spoils. However, the individual improvements made by each of the boys this year has been superb, and lays the foundation for future success.

THE RADLEIAN SPORTS SUPPLEMENT

DLC

25

FOOTBALL P 125 W 36 D 25 L 64 F 217 A 358 It has been a very busy year for RCAFC and as you will see below in the individual team reports, whilst it has been a difficult year in terms of results, every team has acquitted themselves well, playing with pride, skill and determination.

This year we played a record breaking 125 matches and with over 230 boys playing some sort of competitive fixture, the season should be deemed a success even though there were some tough days. The 1st XI, 2nd XI, Colts 1 and JC 1 continued to ply their trade in the Lent Term League, facing up to the strongest schools in the southern independent circuit. Schools such as St Paul’s and Harrow who benefit from their size, London location, and the freedom of choice will always be a hard challenge for our boys. St John’s and Haileybury pose different threats, with a historical culture of excellent football throughout. Tonbridge more closely mirror our structure, and we do well to hold our own against them. Oratory too have always been strong opponents,

26

Master In Charge: PR Wallace Captain: HPJ Tregear

yet this year we did very well in the block against them. Wellington, perhaps the easiest challenge in the league, are played as part of a doubleheader against Bedford, so we again give ourselves harder fixtures than we could.

Should we be aiming to move to an easier fixture card? I think not, the boys enjoy competitive fixtures, far more than the easy walk-overs of old. Can we improve? I hope so. In the crucible of a Harrow away game stronger footballers are forged. Time and energy are being put into training boys in a more intelligent way. Clearly, however, the situation with our Junior Colts sides is an issue, but unless some clever thought is put forward, our twin goals of improving the boys as footballers and getting each and every boy the chance to represent the College on a regular basis are going to be at odds.

On a personal note, I have thoroughly enjoyed my five years as MiC Football, and as I look back, I am delighted to see how the sides have improved, both in terms of skills, but also attitudes.

THE RADLEIAN SPORTS SUPPLEMENT

In my first year of coaching football I took a 5th XI who were very much a “gentleman’s” side. The 5th XI today are serious bunch of talented footballers with the 8th XI (or even 9th XI, who played their first ever fixture this year) taking on the more genteel approach.

The same could be said for Colts 3 who now are seriously competitive, whereas before may have been seen to be the place where the thoroughly un-athletic went to keep out of the way. As I move on, I will miss the high spirits on the pitches and the sight of every boy given the chance to represent his school on a Saturday in a competitive way.

A review of the season then? Much to be proud and happy about (as you will read below about the individual squads) but RCAFC must not rest on its laurels and must continue to break ground and look for improvements wherever they can be found.

PRW

FOOTBALL 1ST XI

Coaches: AMH Hakimi, CA San José Captain: HPJ Tregear

STST

P12 W1 D1 L10 F9 A28 It is a truth universally acknowledged, that Dons in charge of a first eleven, must be in want of a well-prepared team. And so it was that RCAFC began the year with a highly successful and sun-blessed pre-season return to CF Villareal in Spain. The boys managed to get RCAFCs first ever tour win with a very disciplined performance. Goals from Jamie Adams, Jack Winter and Ben Thompson gave Radley a much deserved 3-1 win over local side UD Torresport. This was a great way to end the tour fixture list given the boys had had a difficult time against a very talented Indonesian under 18s side earlier in the week.

A 4-0 loss against such skilled opposition was deflating yet the boys took it well and learnt from their experience. The customary certificate and medal ceremony held by our Spanish coaches at the end of our final training season also heralded the birth of a new set of ‘comedy’ nicknames for the squad let’s just say that surnames such as Tross-Youle and Jewell are not that common south of Dover.

The first league game of the season away at the ever-strong and competitive Tonbridge was to epitomise the season. Radley fought hard for the ball but struggled to hold onto possession when they got it. The class that Tonbridge possessed in the middle of the park eventually told and they eased to a 4-1 win.

The league fixture against St Paul’s the following week was equally frustrating with Radley failing to convert a handful of chances before conceding goals either side of half time and succumbing to a 2-0 defeat at home.

In recent years the LB Cup has been a source of success for Radley and so the squad and coaches were confident about their 1st round fixture away at an unknown entity

in St Edmund’s in Ware (a source of great entertainment when asked where St Edmund’s actually was).

As well as being England’s oldest catholic school, it is also a strong footballing school. Once again, chances beckoned as Radley enjoyed a lively opening half. However, St Edmund’s attacked with flair and eventually broke the deadlock with a scrappy tap-in from one yard out. A rather dull second half ensued with Radley having a glorious opportunity to equalise. Charlie Stone went agonisingly close to scoring after a beautiful piece of work down the right hand flank from Charlie Le Grice. Unfortunately, it was not to be and Radley were sadly knocked out of the cup, the defeat made less painful with the knowledge that St Edmund’s did later go on to win the tournament!

Now three competitive games in and without a win there was no better time to face local rivals Abingdon. A talented and skillful Abingdon front line was dealt with superbly by a solid back four of Charles Craven, skipper Jamie Adams, Tom Oliver and Henry Tregear. George Marlar pulled off a string of excellent saves including a terrific double save from the penalty spot. The re-introduction of Harry Lloyd to partner Ed Loftus up front was hugely effective.

The two combined beautifully on numerous occasions and culminated in two wonderfully worked goals. A well-deserved 2-0 win was exactly what the doctor ordered before the trip to Harrow.

Sadly the confidence gained from the impressive win over Abingdon was quickly extinguished by a superior Harrow side. Radley worked extremely hard to compete, but couldn’t keep up as they went down 4-0 at the full-time whistle.

Four more narrow and, perhaps, undeserved losses followed against Rugby (1-3), Haileybury (1-2),

Wellington (1-2) and St Johns’ (0-3), but both the squad and coaches came away feeling that they had given 100% to the cause. The boys managed to play some of their best football in these games but things just didn’t fall their way. The introduction of Thor Winkler von Stiernhelm up from the 2nd team bolstered the back four and Jamie Adams pushed up into a midfield three playing with more freedom.

Mungo Fenwick was steady at the base of the midfield and provided a calmness on the ball that allowed the team to play out from the back.

The new look 4-3-3 formation seemed to suit full-back Henry Tregear as he chose to motor forward on numerous occasions, causing havoc down the right flank. The season managed to end on a high note, as the boys managed their first point of the league season with a 2-2 draw against Oratory.

In sum, this was undoubtedly a tough season. Unstinting commitment and dedication to training and match day performance was not always enough to match the superior quality of some of our regular league opponents.

Unfortunately, the record books don’t record the missed chances or the might-have-been shots on goal; many of the games were much more closely-fought than scorelines suggest. Dr Ali Hakimi, one half of the coaching team, sadly departs for new horizons at the end of the year - Marlborough Malaysia’s gain is certainly RCAFC’s loss. He has done so much to inspire boys and pass on his experience of football played at University and Club level and I am sure the squad will want to thank him and wish him well for the future.

AMHH, CASJ

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FOOTBALL 2ND XI STST

P9 W0 D3 L6 F7 A20 Although our results on paper may have not looked too flattering, they do our performances this season no justice. The season started unfortunately with a 3-1 loss to Tonbridge which was thoroughly undeserved. We started very brightly with Harry (Kane) Lloyd (f) chipping the keeper with a delightful effort; however our hard work was cancelled out with a few questionable decisions. Will Targett–Parker (f) performed admirably picking up the Man-of-the-Match (MOTM) performance after impressing PRW with his no nonsense slide-tackling.

Abingdon was up next. The local derby. And it was a fierce encounter, like that of Millwall vs West Ham, and yet again we took an early lead through Christian White (c) heading home. This lead was sadly taken with almost the last kick of the match,

and the game finished 1-1. Harrow were up next, a game always feared

by Radlieans, but after a shaky start we performed with guts losing 2-0 to a physically strong and fit side.

Mungo Fenwick (f) picking up MOTM for his non-stop midfield badgering.

We moved on to the MCS 1st XI, a step up to the Premier League, but we lost a game which we dominated: 4-2. George Bolitho (f) scoring two poachers’ efforts and Fenwick again picking up the MOTM award for his cultured running of the midfield three.

Haileybury was a cracking game of football and having conceded early we scored late on with Matt Isles (a) scoring an absolute screamer from 25 yards out to draw the game 1-1.

1-1 was also the score line against a very good St John’s 2nd XI. Robert Cockcroft (c) scored early after chipping the keeper with a cultured finish. However, like Chelsea, we had

FOOTBALL 3RD XI P9 W3 D2 L4 F11 A14 The 3rd XI’s season started, as every other Radley football team’s did, with one of the trickiest fixtures on the calendar - away at Tonbridge. Lacking a few players who went on to become key starters and the tactical geniuses that are Les and Nino, the team gave it everything, but ultimately a late goal from get-your-kneesdirty midfielder Will Greed was not enough to stop a 3-1 defeat.

We were in the game for large parts, with right-back Ollie Atkins putting in a particularly solid display, but unfortunately, as is

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often the case, Tonbridge were simply too good.

Next up was St. Paul’s at home - a much more appetizing fixture for “Lino’s” red army. The first 10 or so minutes of this game were arguably the best 10 of the whole season. Nearly scoring from a Barcelona-esque move straight from the kick-off, the 3rds dominated the opening exchanges. The worry, however, was that the pressure would not be turned into a concrete scoreboard advantage. Jack Hewitt, who looked dangerous all game, put these fears to rest by slotting

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Coaches: SJA Perkins, PR Wallace Captain: JSD D’Uphaugh

to park the bus for the remainder of the game as St John’s poured forward. Sadly we conceded in the dying minutes, with Matt “The Terrier” Isles picking up MOTM for his nonstop work. Oratory was the last game of the season and sadly our worst performance of the season, with the game finishing as a 0-2 loss.

Despite the results, which could have gone so differently but for a bit of luck in the first game at a windy Tonbridge, all-in-all the season was thoroughly enjoyable mainly due to the excellent team spirit, top-notch work ethic and our two fantastic coaches. SJAP and PRW.

Jake D’Uphaugh, b

Coaches: LP Newall, NR Merola Captain: WGW Walker

home from close range after Jack Winter had produced one of the misses of the century (he was still named man of the match for a dazzling display down the right hand side). At half-time, Radley were 1-0 up and playing well, with Thor Winkler marshalling the back four well, and the midfield rotation of Paterson, Greed and Biggart working nicely. However, Radley sat off in the second half, and when Paul’s forced Anderson into making a wonderful save, the ball unfortunately fell to their striker and the game was tied up at 1-1.

Both sides huffed and puffed to get the winner, but the game

ended even, with Radley feeling slightly frustrated at this missed opportunity for a win.

Abingdon were up next Saturday, and this proved an easier game for Radley, as the two Jacks - Winter and Hewitt - notched a goal each in a relatively easy 2-1 win for Radley. This was the first game for free-transfer signing Ed Sayer, who showed just why he was in the 2nds for two weeks with some moments of real quality. However, it was in fact goalkeeper Alex “the cat” Anderson who picked up the man-of-the-match for producing some crucial saves.

Hoping for the best but expecting the worst, the 3rds then travelled to Harrow for the Tuesday afternoon fixture which always proves to be a tough one. All throughout the season, this team’s spirit was apparent, and it was no more evident anywhere else than in this match. The now established pairing of Greed and Paterson in midfield worked tirelessly, as did the whole back four, to keep out the waves of Harrow attacks.

Tom Carr, whose meteoric rise from 5ths to 2nds had landed him eventually in the left-back spot for the 3rds, was unlucky to mistime his challenge in the box, and once the penalty was slotted, the battle was always a difficult one. We went down 3-0 losers, but in the right way - not giving up until the final whistle.

Rugby followed - a windy away day from which no-one quite knew what to expect. The game started evenly, before a move befitting of any Premier League team ripped through the Rugby defence - Hewitt eventually laying the ball on a plate for Chris White to tap home. This was a goal of such quality that it sent Les into hysteria on the touchline - the 3rds’ effervescent coach having to be told that flares weren’t allowed at schoolboy football matches as the incisive quality of his team’s play nearly got the better of him.

Rugby managed to get themselves

back into the game against the run of play, but Chris White capitalised on another counter-attack to put Radley back in front. As the clock ran down, Ed Biggart, whose move from midfield to centre-back had earned him comparisons to Javier Mascherano, had a great game at the heart of the defence, picking up the man-of-the-match award.

about what followed, the better.

Suffice to say, after 10 second-half minutes, Radley went from in the game at 0-0, to completely shot at 3-0 down. A short period of defensive calamity cost us dearly, and although that man Hewitt scored again to cut the deficit, it was a case of too little too late, and St. John’s ran out 3-1 winners.

Another big name on the calendar, Haileybury, followed this victory, and Radley acquitted themselves very well once again. Jack Hewitt notched his third of the season, as Radley took the game to Haileybury. Unfortunately, as the game was there for the taking, we let them back into it, and even Archie “Xavi” Paterson’s omnipresent performance in midfield was not enough to gain us the win.

Two crushing losses in a row, and the final game against Oratory suddenly looked far more daunting. With what was now a fairly established, tight-knit squad, we really wanted to end the season on a high, and we certainly looked as though we were going to do that from the outset of this game. Radley pressed the Oratory and were playing by far the superior football all throughout the first half. However, the opening goal proved elusive and the first-half ended goalless. The introduction of mercurial talent Bertie Maher changed the game.

With the balance of Messi and flair of Ronaldinho, the wide playmaker provided the key quality needed to overwhelm the Oratory defence. It was not him who scored, though.

Ed Sayer’s “intentional” freekick was a goal of the season contender - in fact, it was only challenged by Will Greed’s absurd direct corner goal which followed.

Radley 3rds ran out 3-0 winners, with White’s strike capping the most convincing team display of an up-and-down season. We were far from the most talented group of players on the circuit, but our team spirit was second to none, and the coaching of Les and Nino certainly improved us all as footballers.

After leave away, we faced Wellington’s 2nds, who we knew would be a good footballing team.

The game was on a knife-edge for so long, with Henry Roberts putting in a very good shift down the left wing, and Charlie Seddon looking dangerous up top. We defended brilliantly, probably the best all season, as a unit, and Tristian Kleinwort was particularly effective in midfield. However, one moment of misfortune cost us, as the Wellington striker ghosted between keeper and centre-back to slot into an empty net. It was a crushing blow which really took the wind out of our sails - not an easy thing to do.

The match finished at 1-0, and the disappointment was clear on everyone’s face after what was such a close match.

After this disappointment, the team wanted nothing more than to bounce against St. John’s. Given two weeks to prepare, everyone was raring to go when the whistle blew, and some good-looking attacks were backed up by some very solid defending from the entrenched back six. The game was very even at half-time, with Radley perhaps shading it. The less said

LPN, NRM

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FOOTBALL 4TH XI P9 W5 D1 L3 F17 A13 After a slow start to the campaign the boys went on to play some tremendous stuff, being unbeaten in their final six matches. The opening three games, against Tonbridge, Harrow and St. John’s, were played with no training completed on grass. This did not allow sufficient preparation on team structure and some very sloppy goals were lost as a result.

Once the weather improved in early February, the boys clicked into gear and the wins starting flowing. A hard fought 2-1 victory over MCS 2nd XI proved to be the catalyst required.

Undeservedly 1-0 down at halftime, some sage words at half time from coach KJR, a huge performance from stand-out performer Tristan Kleinwort in the second half and some tough tackling from Perry Beckett made all the difference.

FOOTBALL P7 W2 D1 L4 F9 A20 Truly, it was a swashbuckling, postmodern mother of a season for the 5th XI. Knowing the reputation of the club rested on their shoulders, the team set about training with the kind of grit that the RCAFC requires of its footballers. The awful weather, which deprived the team of both training time, and training space, meant that the start of the season was a struggle. But did this stop the band of brothers of the 5th XI? Did this hinder the enthusiasm of their coaches, RJ and PM? No! The 5th XI won two of their first away

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The jubilation at full time will be remembered for a very long time.

The following weekend saw the arrival of (a very competent) Marlborough 2nd XI and the boys again rose to the occasion. It would be fair to say that the football played

by Radley on this occasion was, at times, breath-taking. Kleinwort was again outstanding in midfield, Craven stretched the opposition defence at will and Von Simson and Wakefield dealt well with some robust centreforward play. The 3-1 scoreline was a fair reflection of the play and included a double from man-of-themoment Kleinwort (one direct from a corner).

The season finished with another massive flourish. The boys were determined to end the campaign with a win after being denied a last minute penalty in the penultimate match. From the first whistle Oratory

5TH

XI

matches, with an absolutely beautiful – artistic, even – goal by Matthew Budd, the short and sweet striker, who would stubbornly refuse to stop scoring throughout the season.

In what was a very short season, Matthew mercilessly sent six balls to taunt the back of our oppositions’ nets. Excellent stuff. In fact, as many as nine goals were scored by the 5th XI across their matches, with, admittedly, considerably more goals conceded. But such was the spirit of the players, and of the supporting parents, that not once did the side lose its optimism. Notable

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Coach: KJ Reid Captain: DR Davis

barely got a kick. Fordham was playing his second match at centreforward and put in a real shift. This opened space for the Wayne Rooney of the side – 6.2 Ollie Gamble – who filled his boots with a quality hattrick. His first was a crushing half volley into the top corner from 18 yards out, the second a superbly struck left footed effort across the goalkeeper into the bottom corner and the third a beautifully taken through ball and dispatched into the corner again. Oratory could not handle the imagination or intensity of our play.

It was a hugely enjoyable season and the boys were thrilled to end up at the top of the Radley league table.

With a team largely filled with 6.1s, next year promises to be another successful one.

KJR

Coaches: R Johnson, P Miron Captain: IN Gidopoulos

performances were also given by Thomas Carr, who was later stolen by the 3rd XI; Charlie Bracken, who, with Gus Woollett, proved to be a formidable force in midfield: these two were the engine of the 5th XI Lamborghini. And just like a Lamborghini, the 5th XI were not reliable, but magical. There came disappointments, and defeats, but amidst all of this, there were moments of true, Italian finesse visible in the style of Radley’s mighty 5th XI. A vintage season.

Yannis Gidopoulos, e

FOOTBALL P7 W2 D1 L4 F18 A24 Rarely, if ever, has a more delightful group of gentlemen footballers congregated on those hallowed far pitches ‘beyond the hedge’. No strangers to travel, their season started with an emphatic 4-0 win away against Tonbridge with Hugh Scrope at the helm, goals coming for Matt Leech, Rafe Thornhill and Charlie Craven (two), before his well-deserved promotion to the 5ths.

6TH

XI

Coach: EO Holt Captain: AJA Sparks

and the boys in relaxed mood in the balmy afternoon sunshine. Perhaps lulled into a false sense of complacency, they were subsequently put to the test by a resolute Marlborough eleven, but nevertheless held them to 2-2 until half time. After the break however floodgates opened wide, with four more Marlborough goals sealing an emphatic defeat for our boys despite the tireless efforts of all involved, including man of the match Tom Heptinstall, the indefatigable captain Sparks and a series of impressive late attempts spearheaded by

Rafe Thornhill and top-scorer Matt Leach.

They soon put the result behind them however, sampling some memorable post-match hospitality at a country estate just outside Hungerford, and then at another estate, of the more industrial type, with golden arches, just outside Didcot: a fitting way to end a most enjoyable season together.

EOH

Stiffer contests lay ahead however, and the boys were unlucky to lose 4-1 away at Teddies, with a saved home penalty being retaken (and scored) for infringement of the D, two Matt Leech goals ruled offside and another attempt of his rebounding thunderously off the crossbar.

Nonetheless a gourmet Teddies tea and bespoke leather Tappins ride soon made the actual result a distant memory.

And so with characteristic optimism they trooped off to Harrow the following week, only to be thumped 7-1 by a talented and admittedly much fitter 18-man squad, Damien Lumley’s goal the one ray of sunshine on a dark and rainy afternoon.

Their first Marlborough encounter of the season looked to be going the same way with Radley trailing 3-1 at half time.

However some heroic tackling in defence from Fordham, Kelly, Sims-Hilditch and captain Archie Sparks, plus two late goals from newcomer Robbie Cleave in the dying minutes of injury time, snatched a somewhat fortuitous 4-4 draw, setting up nicely the rematch later in the term.

A confident Bedford team then secured a deserved 3-1 victory over our boys at home in late February, under the watchful eye of the former Bedford headmaster.

Greater successes were had on a nearweekly basis against higher internal teams, with midfielders like Max Wiggin and Louis Wood reigning supreme, though sadly for the 6ths formal history records them not.

The Marlborough rematch began in some style, with the pristine Marlborough first team pitch reserved for our exclusive use

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FOOTBALL 7TH XI P6 W2 D2 L2 F12 A12 The 7th XI enjoyed an unforgettable season this year. With the brilliance of Luke Wild, Jack Jermyn, Macdara Fahy and James Sheppard in attack, many great goals were scored. However, the real heart of the team came from the goalmouth, with Henry ‘Da Zoot’ De Groot keeping out many of the penalties that were conceded by the strength of the defence. However, for the amount of penalties that were conceded, there must be credit given to James Mathewson, who was not put

down and managed to give away two penalties against Wellington. Alfred Spreckley was one of the greatest defenders that has graced Smithson’s 1 for many years, and I’m sure AMHH and CASJ will be looking at him for left back after their disastrous season.

Charlie Kidd, the super sub of the team, managed to keep his place in the very competitive team sheet, whilst Rory Neville used his pace and guile to score one of the best own goals I have ever seen against Harrow.

Coaches: RA King, Dr K Halliday Captain: JHC Jermyn

including a 5-0 mauling of Tonbridge, a last gasp equaliser against Abingdon

by Max Benson and Luke Wild actually running; but it also had its downs, most notably the 5-2 loss to Harrow and the 4-0 loss to Wellington, which I am told Henry De Groot still has nightmares about. However, this quality season in the RCAFC could not have been done without the tactical masterminds and motivational speakers that were RAK and KH.

Jack Jermyn, j

In truth, the season had its ups,

FOOTBALL 8TH XI

Coach: EJ Tolputt Captain: FME Light

P5 W1 D1 L3 F12 A17

8th XI on the circuit, PRW).

able to keep up.

Skill. Yes. Yes we had skill. Skills in abundance. Centre-forward extraordinaire Caspar Lumley has been known to eat four Big Macs in a night, owing to the fact that he thought supper and dinner were two separate affairs. Daniel Chirita can solve a Rubik’s Cube with his toes in under a minute and Charlie Rothbarth can recount entire Churchill speeches on demand.

He’s even been known to do it naked at dinner parties. So why with this talent and a leader in EJT a man who wears a wooden bow tie could we not seem to finish off some of the biggest 8th XI talent on the circuit (you are the only

We then realised that despite all the talent and charisma off the pitch we couldn’t quite seem to translate it on the pitch. We had skill, just very little footballing skill. We suddenly realised that this could be a problem when we were faced with an U16 side from Harrow who came at us with speed and agility, only for us to leave out a leg in hope. Safe to say that on four occasions we committed fouls only aggravating the blustering and slightly impatient referee. A quick word with the lads and we moved on until the opposition’s next goal, as we all stood at the halfway line with red faces and panting not being

The player of the season was undoubtedly Hughie Jamieson: a man able to smack it in the back of the next from outside the five yard box. Conor Mosedale proved a rock in goal with Ed Wiggin, Ben Rees and Harry Bartlett keeping us safe for moments at the back. Results don’t matter and to be honest I can’t actually remember any of them but that isn’t important. I am fairly sure it was an unbeaten season. A thank you to EJT for a great season and it looks like there is some talent coming up through the ranks.

FOOTBALL 9TH XI P1 W0 D0 L1 F0 A4 When Daniel Chirita led out Radley’s first ever 9th XI against Harrow’s Colts D, there was a great sense of history resting upon his shoulders. PMF was recalled as specialist ref and with normal coach Mourinho out taking oral exams stand-in gaffer GHSM gave the lads a stirring pre-game lecture 32

on positioning (down-stage left then exeunt). Nevertheless, a goal was not forthcoming, so neither was the win.

However, it is hoped that this milestone will mean that each and every one of the 140 senior boys who opt for football will have competitive fixtures throughout the 2016 season. Adam Hargreaves, who normally shared the 5th XI goal with Hamish Wreay won

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Freddie Light, h

Captain: D Chirita

the man-of-the-match award (perhaps unsurprisingly) and upon detailed questioning from MiC PRW it was discovered that the entire side had a great experience, despite the result.

Here’s to more 9th XI fixtures next year…

An interested bystander

FOOTBALL COLTS 1 P9 W4 D2 L3 F17 A12 This was an extraordinary turnaround for a group of Radley footballers who had toiled manfully as JCs in the highly competitive ISFA League, managing just one win and six defeats last season.

Remarkably, this season we approached the final match against Oratory needing a win to reach equal second in the ISFA League and top PRW’s unofficial league table of Radley football team results (opposite end in both last season). The addition of the wonderfully gifted Tom Eden (Radley’s ‘Glenn Hoddle’) certainly helped, along with Tom Wildblood and Charlie Pritchard, but the core of the side remained constant and progressed very well into a highly attractive and effective team. They fought tenaciously for each other and worked hard to improve their skills in training. But it was lovely for me and the sizeable crew of regular parent supporters to see how this squad grew in confidence, once they realized they were capable of beating any of our opponents.

Our first match against Tonbridge was as tough as ever and we started tentatively in windy conditions at home.

Tonbridge won 4-1 but Tom Eden scored a consolation penalty and Ed Agnew (our ‘John Terry’) led his defence with determination as we put in a much better second half performance.

Next up was a confident St Paul’s side, who threatened to dominate on Smithson’s. However, this was the vital moment that Colts 1 dug in and showed new mettle. A wonderful allround performance saw the defence hold firm, with new keeper Charlie Pritchard exuding confidence, and George (‘Michael Carrick’) Bracken and Tom Eden establishing a grip on central midfield before a glorious ‘tick-a-tack’ move sliced through St Paul’s and drew a penalty, which Eden calmly converted: 1-0. Our first ISFA victory against ‘one of the big boys’.

We drew a competitive home match against Abingdon, thanks to a sharply taken equaliser from Jack (‘ginger fury’)

Coach: MR Jewell Captain: TPJ Eden

Elvin, now the established attacking focal point for our 4-5-1 formation which required him to run tirelessly, and a glorious save from Pritchard. This set us up for the challenge of Harrow, who had beaten us 8-1 as JCs last year and who were to go on and clinch the ISFA League this season…. Cue another stirring team performance.This time we thoroughly deserved our 1-1 draw, with some wonderful passages of team play and another Eden goal.

In our fifth successive home match, we deservedly beat Rugby 2-0 thanks to a dominant first half display that saw many chances fall to Elvin. He slotted the one from an excellent defence-splitting through-ball from Bracken; but the game was still in the balance at half time, following the referee’s astonishing failure to award us a penalty over a clear handball on the line. This was evened out by his decision not to award a penalty or send off Pritchard following his kamikaze rush to bring down their centre forward ‘near’ the edge of the penalty area.

Rugby were coming back into the game when good work from Monty Browne led to a cultured chip finish from Ollie Donaldson (Radley’s ‘Chris Waddle’).

Game over. But this one could have been 1-1 or 6-0.

So we travelled to ISFA rivals Haileybury hoping to push up the League in which all the top teams seemed to be dropping points to each other. Against the run of play on a bumpy pitch, Eden seized on a loose ball in the box to give us a short-lived first half lead. We then conceded a sloppy goal at a corner, with Tom Ogilvie having a ‘Suarez moment’ (handling a goal-bound shot, not eating someone’s ear). Lucky to stay on, he watched the penalty converted. In the second half we defended heroically: Ogilvie, Agnew, Jake Sloan and Toby Ryan doing just enough to keep out their speedy attack. Then with five minutes remaining, Pritchard pulled off a stunning double save …… then they broke and scored … then (in the

final minute) Eden shot from distance and the ball was spilled to our right winger…. Final score: 1-2. But we could have stolen a draw.

We bounced back in fine form to dominate at Wellington. This was another marvelous team effort in which we raced to a 3-0 lead (clinical Eden hat-trick) in 30 minutes. But we contained a Wellington revival and ran out 4-1 winners thanks to a glorious move up the left with Donaldson back-heeling for Elvin to bury his shot past the advancing keeper. The ‘away end’ of Radley parents were suitably impressed. This was followed by a demolition of St John’s away (watched

by St John’s parent and snooker legend, Jimmy White) through another battling performance: 5-0 winners, thanks to goals from Eden, Donaldson, Elvin, Fergus Ryan and Bracken, whose 25 yard screamer was the pick of the bunch.

And so to Oratory….. rather like Arsenal v Monaco in the Champions League (final 16) first leg, Radley (Arsenal) started slowly and were soon behind to a sharply taken goal from a narrow angle. This prompted a much more spirited second half. However, we were soon two behind thanks to a comedy penalty, we should never have conceded, when failing to clear. Then, as Oratory visibly tired, we created chance after chance, missing three really good ones with Eden, Jewell and Elvin all narrowly missing (although Eden did convert a penalty). Chasing a result and looking the likelier to score, like Arsenal, we conceded a needless goal near the end. A disappointing result to finish on. But a second half display to echo the majority of the term’s rousing football.

Colts 1 - you can all be very proud.

THE RADLEIAN SPORTS SUPPLEMENT

MRJ

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FOOTBALL COLTS 2 P8 W4 D3 L1 F18 A9 Colts 2 seemed to be in a comfortable position as we faced Tonbridge armed with a few Colts 1 players, James Sloan the starting captain to name but one.

For our first match against Tonbridge: it seemed that we were in for a physical match. The opening minutes saw some intense Radley play, we looked comfortable on the ball it was apparent that we were cruising for a win. This would not have been the case if it wasn’t for the exceptional performances of certain players.

James Sloan put in a real captain’s performance, pulling all the strings in the midfield and even bagging a goal for himself (after taking a major deflection off the opposition). Toby Ryan and Charlie Pritchard made sure the defence was sturdy and they were keen not to let a goal go past them.

After the first win of the season our confidence was on a high, but it could only last so long as a mass exodus of players left for Colts 1. Not surprisingly James Sloan, Toby Ryan and Charlie Pritchard all departed. However three players came down from Colts 1. Ben Collins, who was a perfect replacement for what we believed was the irreplaceable Toby Ryan. Next was Ollie Martyn-Hemphill who had his good days and bad days and always put on the right gloves on the big occasion.

Finally, Tom Rutherford to replace James Sloan in the holding midfield role and also to take over captaincy.

The next match was Abingdon, one of the local derbies. After weeks of preparation, due to the cancellation of our St Paul’s match, the time had come to put our practice on the main stage. We took the lead early on from a sublime one-on-one chip over the keeper from Tom Carter. Shortly after though, Abingdon grabbed one back from a scrappy bit of play in the box.

Just before half time a corner comes our way: it was headed out of the box only to find Tom Rutherford and from 25 yards out he hit it first time -an absolutely audacious effort and it rockets into the top hand corner. 2-1 to Colts 2 at half time. The second half was not our finest hour as we conceded two goals and ruined our 34

winning position on three occasions.

The tirade from the coaches began and a 3-3 draw was not a fair reflection of how we played.

Up next was Harrow. The first half dragged, a perfect example of defence then catch them on the counter attack - but in the first half we did not pose a threat in goal. 15 minutes into the second half we won a free kick on the half way line: an excellent delivery from Jack Folkestone ended in a scrappy toe-poke goal. 20 minutes left to defend, defend, defend. With five minutes to go Harrow looked through to go on goal and then on a one-on-one Lysander Sandberg (an unlikely source) comes sliding in out of nowhere to poke the ball away for a corner. The final whistle blew and if it wasn’t for the performance of our back four we would not have won. Lysander Sandberg deserves special notice after a series of goal stopping blocks and tackles, a performance that secured his position in Colts 2.

It was a gloomy Saturday when we took on MCS Colts 1; the pitch was wet and muddy something we weren’t used to as the standards of Radley pitches were exceptional. We dominated the match but for some reason we could not realise our chances with many missed opportunities, until a moment of brilliance from Charlie Williams. From the throw-in the ball bounces perfectly for a shot from him, but sadly he seemed an impossible distance away. However, he decided to shoot and with the wind the ball lobs the keeper and flies straight into the net without a bounce. Not once did he pull this off but twice. After two outstanding shots from Charlie Williams and a few others we finished 6-0. A perfect result.

The second half of the term was at Haileybury. Tom Carter scored his first early on which was levelled out when Jack Folkestone gave away a silly challenge and Martyn-Hemphill was left helpless on the penalty.

Nevertheless, the team battled on to get a penalty from Arthur Dingemans, but unfortunately Freddie White stood up and missed. Haileybury scored again with 15 minutes to go. We thought our unbeaten streak was over

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Coach: GHS May Captains: TW Rutherford, J Folkestone until Tom Carter bagged a second for a brilliant comeback. A great game from not only Tom Carter but also to Martyn-Hemphill who made some top saves throughout the game. A welldeserved man-of-the-match goes to to the skipper, Tom Rutherford, who got stuck in.

We then headed for Bedford to take on their Colts 1 in a tricky fixture. It started badly and within 20 minutes we were two down. However, a 30 yard free kick from Jack Folkestone looked like it could rekindle something after half time. Although we tried our hardest, it was a deserved win for Bedford, which ended the unbeaten run albeit against a higher ranked team.

Next match was St John’s and coming into the game we seemed all too confident. Monty Browne rejoined the team, a huge advantage, and although we were dominant in the first half, nothing became of it and it was goalless at half time. We slipped one goal down and after tirelessly trying, a goal didn’t seem to come until Arthur Dingemans sneaked one in. It was a game we should have won.

For our final match against Oratory we needed to impress. We had Browne still in the team to help the midfield region and after a goal-less first half, we needed to push a bit harder. We went in front from a rather lucky goal from Charlie Williams. We stayed on top for the rest of the match and were relieved and rather proud of our season’s achievement.

We were named the RCAFC team of the season for our efforts. A great performance from all the players in most of the matches (excluding St John’s). A big thank you has to go to GHSM who has been a great coach and kept us motivated throughout the season and to Mark and Zac Eadle who helped us with keeping it simple and helping us work on our game and we now know that “we can play.”

Most improved player: Lysander Sandberg. Best attitude: Ben Collins.

Top goal scorer: Tom Carter.

Tom Rutherford, g & Jack Folkestone, e

FOOTBALL COLTS 3 P8 W3 D3 L2 F40 A17 This season Colts 3 were something of a goal machine.

They scored 40 goals in eight games, most notably beating MCS

Coach: ME Walker Captain: H Eyre

14-1, and St. John’s 9-0. At times, they played some good football, keeping it on the deck and firing the ball wide as often as possible.

Although this was very much a team effort, it is notable that

FOOTBALL COLTS 4 P7 W3 D3 L1 F15 A12 This was another good season for Colts 4 and their enthusiasm and work rate led to a number of games that could have slipped away being drawn or won.

Harrow (away) was just such a game and playing against their JC 3 team meant that we spent a fair part of the game on the back foot. We made the most of our physical advantage and kept our tactics simple, so that with a few minutes to go, we were only down by a single goal. A long ball then gave Manny Berhanu the chance to level the score at 1-1 and he made a one on one with the keeper look easy, thus bringing the team due reward for a tenacious performance.

the top three goal scorers in RFC (Davies, Eyre, Horton) all played for Colts 3.

MEW

Coach: KA Mosedale

Marlborough away was another strong performance, where the opposition despite being considerably weaker and less committed than Radley, contrived to be 2-0 up after 20 minutes. Eventually, after lots (and lots.....) of wasted clear-cut chances, Sam Hoddinot put one away and then a Toby Sallitt free kick led to Berhanu levelling the scores.

Another Berhanu goal took us into the lead and fine work from Gent in goal kept Marlborough at bay for a well-deserved win. Special mention must also go to Alex House whose long range kicking ability allowed us to clear our lines very effectively when under pressure and also made goal kicks into an offensive weapon.

Bedford away was our only loss and playing against their Colts 2 team

FOOTBALL COLTS 5

certainly made life tricky. From 2-0 down however, we kept battling and goals from Charles Henry (after a House goal kick) followed by a long range effort from Ignacio Urzaiz saw us level with only a few minutes to play.

Sadly, Bedford were not to be denied and in the dying seconds scored the winner.

In the RCAFC season’s league table, Colts 4 were third and in the standing based on results from 2008-2015 we are second just a whisker behind the 4th XI. Berhanu was the top scorer of the season with four goals and Messrs Berhanu, Alex Beare, Ed Vaughan, Henry (twice), Seb Hill and Ivo Kleinwort won man of the match awards.

KAM

Coaches: JW Schofield, MCF Brown Captain: FFTA Grant

P6 W3 D0 L3 F18 A14

hands of a superior Wellington team.

The highlight of the Colts 5 football season was certainly the 11-0 win over St John’s, in which, following Will Pike’s opener, Rob Fleming scored three goals (two from 30 yards out), Oliver Southgate contributed another three, Will Masterton scored two, and Freddie Grant scored two. The victory was particularly satisfying, coming immediately after a 5-1 loss at the

Other highpoints included the game against the Abingdon JC 3, when goalkeeper Aubrey Wood saved a penalty to secure victory, together with the hard-fought win over Tonbridge in which Southgate scored the only goal of the game.

Under the capable captaincy of Grant the squad played with tremendous enthusiasm throughout the season.

Notable contributions came from Will Pike in midfield, James Langguth on the wing (special mention must be made of his long-range throwins), Cameron Makin and Will Masterton. Goalkeeper Wood was undoubtedly the find of the season and I hope to see him in one of the top senior sides before he decides to hang up his gloves.

Freddie Grant, h

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FOOTBALL JC1 P9 W0 D1 L8 F3 A61 The JC 1 football season is arguably the greatest challenge that a sporting Radleian currently faces: the eligibility rules for JC games players in the context of a fierce interschool league competition almost guarantees a harrowing experience, if judged only by the results sheet.

Thankfully sport is not all about the balance sheet, so don’t give up now…. and read a little about the honest endeavours and undimmed enthusiasm of the regularly defeated JC 1 of 2015.

The season started with the customary high hopes and we faced Tonbridge after just a couple of days of training and team selection.

Unsurprisingly, Tonbridge’s greater experience meant they were battlehardened for a league game in a way that we were not. They put us on the back foot from the word go, but we generally managed to hold our own in the midfield, with Myles Browne leading by example. A Will Kaye shot that was just tipped away from the bottom corner was our highlight, but two early goals from our visitors gave them a strong platform and by the end we were well beaten (0-8). This was not the start we had hoped for – maybe best described as a ‘valuable learning experience’. Next up were St Paul’s and, yes, another ‘valuable learning experience’: they were well drilled and we were no match for their cohesion, physical power and game management. The same goes for their untamed wit. The final score of 0-11 was a bitter pill to swallow – offering a big challenge to the morale of the squad.

Galvanised by the relentless positivity and calmly delivered technical advice of former pro Paul Berry, who worked tirelessly along PWG throughout the term, we approached our local derby at Abingdon with a degree of hope. This was our first break from the league

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programme and gave us, we thought, a way into the season. We had a great start, with chances worked by Myles Browne and the hard-working Monty Martin-Zakheim - both had shots well saved early on. However, a few lapses in concentration cost us dearly and somehow we ended up on the receiving end of a 0-7 score line. This was a fluid and exciting end to end game, with Paddy Sayer making some brilliant saves that kept us in the game for most of the first half. A bright point was Tom Lennon scoring our first goal of the season unfortunately it found the wrong net.

Despite the stark score line, this was a better performance and we worked hard right up until the end.

It was back to the league next, with a tough fixture against an accomplished Harrow side unquestionably one of the best teams on the circuit, with a strong pool of talent to choose from. With no apparent weakness in their team and a couple of starlets thrown in, this became something of an ‘Alamo’ match. Nevertheless, we battled it out and Ethan Clarke played out of his skin in his attempts to keep their strikers under control. The 0-10 result does not do credit to the honesty and commitment of our team’s performance that day. We did manage one moment when we looked about to break our scoring duck - Myles Browne took a beautiful free kick from 35 yards out which a combination of keeper and crossbar only just kept out of the top corner.

After four ‘tough days at the office’ our performance against Rugby showed just how much we had improved. Despite an early goal from the visitors we clawed our way back into the game and two great runs from Dom Anwyl-Jones earned us two penalties….. And yet…. we couldn’t yet break our goal drought: both penalty efforts were parried away by a scrambling keeper. We engineered a late glimmer of hope

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Coaches: P Berry, PW Gamble Captains: EJ Clarke, MC Martin-Zakheim

for a longed for first win, when a Freddie Barlow cross was turned into his own goal by a Rugby defender to level the scores, but we were denied a glorious ending in the latter stages by their agile keeper.

This was a game where, for the first time, our midfield were able to assert themselves, with the pace of Miles Greene and the skill of Tom Johnston causing problems for the opposition.

This allowed Will Kaye’s marauding work to have more of an impact than in other games where we were often starved of possession. The defensive unit also drew confidence from Archie Valentine’s calm presence in goal – an initially unwilling conscript from JC2, but a goalkeeper with plenty of potential. Unfortunately this was not a league game, so there was no tangible reward in the shape of a league point, but everyone in the squad saw this as a step in the right direction.

More league action, and further need for defensive resolve, came with a trip to Haileybury, the last match before the sanctuary of leave away.

They were another good side, clearly very experienced as a team, and a potent attacking force. That said, we were certainly showing signs of improving as a defensive unit and it took two debatable goals to get them up and running before ending up 7-0 winners. Newly selected Jonny Evans had a great game at right back and Ollie Friend worked equally hard at left back to prevent their tricky winger from getting shots on goal.

Ben Broughton also had a fine game in midfield, showing great tenacity against physically strong opponents.

Whatever the results sheet was telling us – with annoying repetition, we were showing plenty of character as a team, working hard during the week’s sessions and learning to look after each other during matches.

The away trip to Wellington saw us playing on a sloping and heavy pitch that made for a draining afternoon.

In a pretty even first half we missed one or two decent chances – not least another penalty – and saw their keeper make some fine saves, all of which came back to haunt us when we conceded three goals on the break. We were never likely to come back from that deficit, but some brave individual performances, notably

by Ollie Friend and Jacob Tregear, inspired us to keep the second half almost level and to end the game camped deep in their half. That says much about the team’s never-say-die attitude.

The next away day challenge was a trip to St John’s. Solid play from Tom Wates as CDM and some great early saves from newly recovered goalkeeper Toby White kept the hosts pegged back, but their pace and physicality proved too much for us in the end. Once they had secured a lead through a delightful curling shot into the top corner, they never looked back.

Ultimately, 5-0 in their favour was a fair reflection of the play.

Our final fixture of the term gave us one last chance to bounce back from defeat, as we faced an Oratory side at home who were just one point above us in the league. A fantastic early shot from 25 yards by Dom Anwyl-Jones confused their keeper, rattled their crossbar and allowed ‘marksman’ Archie Browner to nudge home the rebound (elegantly, with a combination of knee and thigh).

To be in the lead was uncharted territory for us and the team probably got over-excited about this…. Soon enough, some well worked individual goals took the Oratory ahead and we were left in their wake. However, to interrupt their progress to a seven goal tally, renowned penalty winner Dom Anwyl-Jones had the referee again pointing to the spot and the even more renowned – previously overlooked - penalty taker Miles Greene blasted the ball into the back of the net to briefly bring us back into the contest and, cue celebrations, break our penalty duck.

FOOTBALL JC2 P9 W2 D1 L6 F8 A48 JC 2’s football season proved to be a roller coaster of emotion from start to finish. It all started relatively well with one of the better results of the season, a 5-1 (loss) to a very useful Tonbridge side. Although clearly suffering from the excesses of a Christmas break, Radley managed a goal, courtesy of Artie Diamandis’ successful penalty. However, this was followed by a heavy loss to St. Paul’s Year 9 first team (a 10-0 thrashing) only a few days later. Despite this crushing defeat optimism was high and, thanks to some weighty midfield and defensive tackling against local rivals Abingdon, complemented by some inspired managerial decisions

by GJAH, the men mustered up a ‘world class’ 1-0 victory. Jack ‘Goal-

For all the statistical downsides, there were plenty of positives for us across the season and our improvement as individuals and as a team was rapid. We would all like to thank Paul ‘Paulo de Berrios’ Berry and PWG for all their hard work and dedication to the squad. Nobody would claim that it was the best of terms, but we stuck at it and showed real passion and developing skill, qualities that will hopefully have their full reward in later seasons. Our coaches never lost faith in us and this quote from Winston Churchill maybe sums up our attitude towards the season: “Success is going from failure to failure without a loss of enthusiasm.”

Ethan Clarke, a & Monty Martin-Zakheim, k

Coach: GJA Huges Captains: JM Innes-Ker, GH Seagrave

man’ Goaman was on the scoresheet, thanks to a 20 yard screamer into the top corner, and not for the last time that season. The wave of emotions was ridden again with a 12-1 loss to Harrow, a disappointing 3-1 loss to a very beatable Rugby side, and a foulridden mud-fest away trouncing by Haileybury (with goalkeeper Patrick Sayer leaving the field with an injury within minutes, leaving James InnesKer to attempt, unsuccessfully, to keep out nine goals).

Despite the odds stacked against them, JC 2 soldiered bravely on, but suffered a 7-0 beating by a strong Bedford side. However, the tide turned in late November and there would be no more crushing losses for the mighty men; JC 2 approached the end of the season

on a high with an epic 2-2 away draw at St John’s (Will Lennon and Goaman on the scoresheet), taking the moral victory by edging an informal penalty shootout after the final whistle. The lads then managed a late season 2-0 win against an ‘athletically challenged’ Oratory side (Seagrave and, once again, Goaman scoring). Goaman finished with the JC 2 Golden Boot, with his ‘season hat-trick’. All the boys put in a great effort and, despite the unflattering win to loss ratio, they can be proud that they performed well against often much more adept opposition.

James Innes-Ker, c George Seagrave, k and GJAH

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FOOTBALL JC3 P4 W1 D0 L3 F3 A33 The JC 3 season ended sooner than we would have liked, when it became obvious that we had insufficient boys fit to field a regular side. The season started promisingly enough with a narrow defeat at the hands of the destroyers at Tonbridge. 0-0 at halftime represented a really solid start and despite conceding three late goals, men-of-the-match reluctant goalkeeper Theo Lowe and centraldefender/striker Freddie Fowler (in the mould of Paul Warhurst and Chris Sutton) were the stand out men in a solid team performance. St Paul’s was to prove a much sterner test,

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0-9 despite some valiant defending, Lowe again excellent between the sticks.

The first (and only) win of the season came against Abingdon Midgets 2, a hard fought 3-2 victory, on-loan hockey-ist Freddie Barlow bagged a brace, and now outfield Lowe snatched another. Hard working coach of the year contender LPG was over the moon with her lads, and she smiled her way through the entire next week’s training.

However, this success was short-lived and the death knoll sounded against a far too talented Harrow Midgets

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Coaches: LP Gregory, A Cunningham

2. 0-19 strikes this reporter as very poor schoolmastering and no team deserves to lose by this much. It goes to show that some schools do not see the “sporting” way as we do at Radley. Nevertheless, Johnny Evans, who later went on to star for JC 1, claimed the man-of-the-match for his never say die attitude. LPG and AC must be lauded for their dedication, and then later for their ability to claim higher paid jobs in JC 2 and the 8th XI respectively, as must all of those who pulled on a JC3 shirt this season.

John Motson, i

GOLF Regular players: Tom Wright (capt), Fred Campion, Alex Bibby, George Innes-Ker, James Todd, Harry Bartlett, Luke Stalder, Henry De Groot, Arthur Tapner, James Duffy, Charlie Seddon & Finn Fordham.

Played 25 Won 15 Halved 3 Lost 7 As the record suggests, this year has been another successful one for the golfers. The target was to build on the progress of 2013/14 and also see the conveyor belt of talent continue to move forward. The boys retained their crown at the West of England School’s Championships at Burnham & Berrow G.C. in late March and finished runners up (& winners of the handicap section) in the South East School’s Championships at West Sussex G.C. in September. However, more importantly, significant progress has been made in the two national competitions – the Independent School’s Championships (ISGA) and the National School’s Foursomes Championships (HMC Foursomes).

The golf season kicked off in week one of term with our now annual strokeplay meeting with Wellington, Tonbridge and Marlborough at The Berkshire.

This is valuable in gauging the state of the top six golfers early in the term as the “major” matches come thick and fast before the daylight hours recede.

Seven days later, our campaign in the Independent School’s Championships commenced with a home tie against our neighbours, St Edward’s Oxford.

It’s fair to say that there was a big gulf between the sides and we ran out comfortable 3-0 winners. Harder ties would follow. The competition continued and we faced the unknown package of St Albans School in the regional semi-final. St Albans are not on our usual “circuit” of fixtures and the boys were understandably nervous but ready for battle. St Albans arrived at Frilford Heath with three sub-four handicap players – the boys knew it would be a tough tie. Capt Wright was not quite firing on all cylinders and succumbed to a strong opponent on the

Coach: KJ Reid Captain: TR Wright

final green. The pressure was on James Todd and Fred Campion to deliver winning blows. Todd played steadily at number two and never looked in trouble. He led early, maintained the pressure with a string of pars and won comfortably by the margin of 2 & 1.

Young Campion was in the limelight. He was one hole up and putting to win the 16th hole from around 25 feet. He left his first putt a long way short on the treacherous green and then missed the next – had the tide turned? Campion then steadied himself and fired a long, straight drive down the 17th fairway, some 40 yards past his opponent. He then calmly parred the hole and took a lead onto the risk or reward 18th hole at Frilford Heath’s Red course.

The “rescue” club was selected and he again bisected the fairway, placing the pressure firmly back on his opponent.

Unfortunately his opponent felt the heat, lost the hole tamely and we were through to face the academy golfers of Bedford School in the regional final.

As I have mentioned before, making the step up to play the “academy” schools is always going to be difficult. Such institutions are now offering anything up to 100% reduction off fees to attract top national and international golfers, many of whom arrive only for the 6th form. Nevertheless, the boys were up for it. Wright was paired against an English international at number 1 and despite

some early success, he succumbed to a player who was three under par for the holes played – a bit too hot to handle. Campion was in control of his tie at number three, meaning it was down to Todd this time to deliver.

Unfortunately, James could not find any momentum and found himself a couple of holes down early in the round. The match finished on the 15th green with the Bedford player level par for his round. It was a tough day at the office.

Nevertheless, we are not too far away from mixing it with the “big boys” in the top school’s golf competition in the country.

The HMC Foursomes campaign followed a similar pattern. Tom, Fred and James were joined by George InnesKer, Alex Bibby and Luke Stalder. These six boys were a pretty formidable team.

The early rounds were hurdled with relative ease with the highlight of these matches being a good victory over Eton at Sunningdale in mid-October. A semifinal against Bradfield was arranged after the winter shutdown, which meant that their chosen venue should be in the best possible shape for what was an important tie. Unfortunately by the time the match came round the team had been hit by a host of withdrawals by key members for unforeseen reasons, meaning that a depleted team faced Bradfield in what was our first regional semi-final for many, many years. Tom

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and Fred battled gamely in the top match but were just out-classed by a very strong Bradfield top pair. A makeshift pairing of Henry De Groot and remove golfer Arthur Tapner played incredibly well and won handsomely in match three.

The stage was set for another makeshift pairing of Bibby and 6.1 golfer Harry Bartlett in the second game to deliver the telling blow. They led by three holes early in the round but were pegged back by the 14th tee. This was due to a mixture of good play from Bradfield and some careless play around the greens from our boys. Unfortunately this pattern continued and the boys lost a match they should really have won on the 17th green. It really was a lesson in foursomes golf – if the prizes were given for superb, long driving and well struck golf shots, there would have been only one winner. Nevertheless, progress had again been made and hopes remain high for another good run in 2015-16.

Burnham & Berrow G.C. again provided the venue for the West of England School’s Championships and, unusually, the weather was relatively benign for mid-March on the Bristol Channel coastline. The boys were well prepared for their tilt at a third victory in the past four years. Wright, Campion, Bibby and Innes-Ker were joined on this occasion

by Bartlett. He had been in good form during the warm-up matches and was drafted in to replace Todd, who withdrew himself from selection.

The opening matches were dealt with relative ease, meaning the stage was set for the final morning against a strong team from Cheltenham College.

It proved to be a real ding-dong battle.

The ever reliable Campion led early, but a surge of birdies from his opponent took the tie in Cheltenham’s favour.

Bibby was again in imperious form from tee to green but his putting deserted him at opportune moments meaning that the third match had also slipped away. Thankfully, Bartlett continued to play sensible golf in the back match, never looked in any real trouble and won by 5 & 3. Innes-Ker was the star performer of the week. His long game was in superb shape, he made some great course management decisions

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and he holed crucial putts when he needed to. He led from the start in his final tie and, in all honesty, did not give his opponent a sniff of optimism – matchplay golf at its best.

With the scores tied at two matches apiece, the stage was set for Capt Wright. He was paired in the top tie against an opponent with lofty credentials and was undoubtedly the underdog. Wright led from the first green and never really looked back. A long string of pars saw him race into a healthy three hole lead with only three holes remaining. Nevertheless, he was hit with birdies on the short par four 16th and the difficult par three 17th, meaning his lead was now only one hole standing on the 18th tee. Cometh the hour, cometh the man. His opponent found trouble. Wright took a three wood from the final tee and bisected the fairway. A regulation par four was enough and the ensuing jubilation was probably heard back in Oxfordshire. The boys were ecstatic – it proved to be a very sweet victory. To win a trophy is difficult, to retain it is an even bigger achievement.

Aside from the major competitions, we have again played an array of fixtures. Over the past academic year we have competed against Wellington, Tonbridge, Bradfield, Bedford, Stowe, Cheltenham, Eton, Abingdon, Charterhouse, Bedford and, of course, the ORs. Venues for these matches have included Sunningdale, The Berkshire, Stoke Park, Woburn, Cotswold Hills, Woking, Worplesdon and Huntercombe.

The course at Radley has been in stunning condition this year. Adam King and his team do a remarkable job on a daily basis and we are all very fortunate to have such a facility at our disposal.

The new tees on the 4th, 6th and 8th holes have now fully bedded in and do add an extra dimension to these holes. During the early part of 2015, the 1st and 5th tees were flattened and re-turfed and a large extension to the putting green was put in place. We are hopeful that this should be up and running in the next few weeks. We are also excited at being chosen to host the National Prep Schools’ finals in late June. This event will see the top 10 prep schools, who qualified regionally from

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the length and the breadth of the UK, here to play 18 holes of strokeplay golf.

Final preparations are being done at school so that the course is in optimum condition. ORs and parents are also very welcome to play the course if they are in the area, however, it would be extremely useful if they could email kjr. reid@radley.org.uk in advance so that arrangements can be put in place.

We are also indebted to Mark Walker (OR) and Adam Wootton at the Oxford Golf Centre in Binsey. As I have mentioned previously, Mark really does roll out the red carpet for us and Adam is a coach who the boys really relate well to. I would also like to extend my thanks to the ORs for kindly hosting the boys at two fixtures during the year – The Berkshire “lesson” by some members of the Hewitt side certainly provided the impetus for the successful campaign at Burnham & Berrow the following week.

Finally, I would also like to extend my thanks to Capt Wright for all of his help and assistance during the year.

It is always controversial to choose a younger boy to fill the role of captain but I felt that Tom was the man for the job. He is absolutely committed to his golf, provides an excellent role model for the juniors and, above anything, shows exactly what can be achieved by practice and determination in abundance. Over the past twelve months he has played himself into the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire elite squad, won a number of 18 hole events and, most notably, was victorious in the prestigious Luke Donald Salver at Beaconsfield G.C. He is currently working towards achieving a place on a scholarship programme in the U.S. – the next twelve months are going to be tough but it will certainly be an exciting ride for him.

KJR

GOLF JUNIORS Regular players: Arthur Tapner, James Duffy, Freddie Horler, Andrew Liu, Bertie Southgate, Freddie Armstrong, Geordie Thomson, Rory Henry, Artie Diamandis, Julius De Watteville and Will Morgan.

Played 12 Won 9 Halved 2 Lost 1 The current Shell golfers have bolstered our golfing talent and a busy programme of fixtures have complemented the coaching programmes available both inside and outside school for the younger year groups. Fixtures have been played against Wellington, Bradfield,

Coach: KJ Reid

Cheltenham, Stowe, Canford, MCS, St Edwards Oxford and Marlborough and are largely contested over nine holes of matchplay golf.

On occasions the boys have competed in foursomes and stableford formats.

The team is selected on a rotational basis and, aside from the summer tournament with Wellington, Canford and Bradfield, we will always aim to match our team with the opposition to ensure a fair and sporting match.

mentioned earlier, I am particularly excited by the talent in the Shell year.

James, Freddie, Andrew and Arthur (Remove) have played in the senior side and have definitely not been out of their depth. As team players, professional coaching is available each Tuesday from October until March.

Any other keen golfers in college can arrange one-one golf lessons with KJR (MiC Golf) during their free time at school and can then work diligently on the improvements suggested.

KJR

Many of the younger boys make the step up into senior golf and, as I

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HOCKEY CLUB It is a pleasure to run a club which boasts such talented players and committed coaches and it is no surprise that 2015 produced many highlights and successes. We were fortunate to secure the services of Peter Bennett as our hockey pro and his expertise, delivered with great energy and enthusiasm, was valued across the club. We also welcomed KMWS who was an excellent addition to our JC1 & 2 coaching team, as were JPJD and MGGD at Midgets 3.

The return of GW did much to revive the fortunes of the 5th XI (bigside grockey as they prefer to be called) Once again, many of our Shells were introduced to the game and it is very pleasing to see so many of them, with little or no hockey experience, embrace the game which has a strong tradition of excellence at Radley College. I am confident that we achieved our goal of providing all of these boys with a fulfilling experience that will encourage them to continue with the sport.

Congratulations to HC’s Midgets 2 and JRWB’s Midgets 5 teams for

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winning their ISHL leagues. Our Junior Colts were exceptional. JC2 and JC3 were unbeaten and secured the ISHL titles at a canter. In total this year group won 27 matches and lost just four, scoring a phenomenal 129 goals and conceding just 34.

It is such a shame that despite their emphatic performances and the undoubted success, so many of these boys see themselves as footballers and will inevitably be lost to the club. We are strong at the top end and Colts 1 had a successful season, despite losing a couple of players to the 1st XI, but unfortunately the lure of football was too great for many and we were unable to field a Colts 3 team for the first time. Our 1st XI, under the expert guidance of DJC for the first time, recorded some excellent results against some very good teams this year and they could count themselves unlucky that they failed to convert a few of their draws and narrow losses into wins.

It was a young team and they we can expect great things from them in the coming years. The 2nd XI had

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Master in Charge: GR King Captain: JMI Todd

another good year and won their IHHL league along the way.

The standard of hockey on our circuit is strong and to come away with block wins against Bradfield, St Edwards (we did not lose a match), Abingdon, MCS, Cheltenham (we won 11 out of the 15 matches) and Wellington was very rewarding.

There is a lot to look forward to. A very strong group of juniors and a young 1st XI makes future success very achievable and with a third astroturf pitch on the way, grass hockey should be a thing of the past and the quality and quantity of training will undoubtedly improve.

My thanks, as always, go to AJK and his ground staff for providing such excellent facilities, the team of dedicated coaches and the players, who often have to contend with terrible weather and unsociable training and match times.

GRK

HOCKEY 1ST XI P 10 W2 D3 L5 Squad: Ollie Moffat (c), Will Swift (b), James Cunningham (g), Tarquin Stephenson (k), Richard West (f), Ned Campbell (e), Ed Christie (j), James Todd (g), Maxim McGrigor (f), Alex McGrigor (e), Luke Stalder (e), Hamish Wishart (k), Sholto Hanson (a), Fergus Brown (e), Alex Bibby (g), Ned Marriott (g) Once again, the hockey season began with a pre-season tour to Barcelona.

As ever, this was expertly organized

by GRK and I would like to extend my thanks to him for everything that he does for the 1st XI and the hockey club as a whole. Thanks must also go to MH for accompanying us on the pre-season tour, providing advice and expertise, and, of course, Peter Bennett, who is a new addition to the coaching team. Mr Bennett showed tireless drive and enthusiasm throughout the hockey term and the team benefited hugely from his experience and tag-lines (“Give it him”).

Barcelona was a three day “back to basics” hockey camp and the boys responded very well to a demanding schedule. When we returned to cooler climes, the team’s attitude was exemplary and I was excited to see the work that the squad had put in throughout the Michaelmas term and on tour in action. Marlborough away was a slippery first fixture. Radley had the run of play throughout the match and were the team trying to play the more adventurous hockey. Pressing high up the field, Radley created a lot of chances, but couldn’t quite find the all-important connections to reward their superior hockey. A few breakaway goals left a sour taste in the mouth, but there was hope when Sholto Hanson (a) scored his first goal of the season, on his way to winning the 1st XI “Player of the Season” award later on in the term.

Coach: DJ Cresswell Captain: JMI Todd

Bradfield and Tonbridge away were the low points of the season, but valuable lessons were learned by a young side. Bradfield’s one and two touch passing dismantled the Radley half-court press with ease and showed how important it is to front mark a player, and Tonbridge got under the 1st XI’s skin. Later on in the season, these lessons helped Radley keep their cool and boost their performance against a strong Eton 1st XI. However, before this result Radley went on a journey of improvement, beating St. Edward’s 3-2 and then drawing 1-1 with a highly rated Abingdon side. The performances were becoming much more structured and the 1st XI showed how successful they could be by relentlessly following a game plan. The forward line of Brown, Bibby, Hanson, Wishart and Marriott worked tirelessly to create problems for the opposing defence by pressing hard without the ball, and looking to create space for the midfield to run in to and for the Radley defence to outlet. Bibby provided a competitive edge, which married well with Brown’s athletic ability and Hanson’s calmness under pressure. Hamish Wishart is a player to look out for in the future and Ned Marriott was able to make things happen with his sharp acceleration.

The midfield was led by captain James Todd, whose best performance came against Eton. He took the game by the scruff of the neck and was able to nullify the Eton attacks with some deft defensive touches, as well as keep the ball moving forward in attack. His midfield partners Alex and Maxim McGrigor were not so subtle, but followed the example set by Todd and got better and better throughout the season. Their commitment, along with Luke Stalder’s skill, provided an exciting and robust midfield trio, which will only improve next season. As the most improved player of the season, Luke Stalder has a bright hockey future ahead of him.

The back five were an essential part of the team and they put their hands (and bodies) on the line on numerous occasions throughout the season. Richard West, Ed Christie, and Ned Campbell played high energy hockey from half-back and provided the team with an engine up and down the wing. Tarquin Stephenson was solid in the tackle and was a stable influence on the defence.

However, it was Toby Swift who was awarded his Full Colours for his robust performances, running down short corners and constantly trying to improve his game from full-back.

He partnered James Cunningham, whose improvement throughout the season was second to none.

Stepping up from Junior Colts to be an integral part of the 1st XI in a season is no mean feat and James provided invaluable out-letting for the team, as well as a threat from short corners.

Indeed, it was the team’s determination to make their short corners count that led to the opportunity against Eton. When the time came, James Cunningham buried the ball bottom left. James Todd was wise to the phase of the game and the lesson learned in previous matches and made sure that the team were switched on in the final minutes of the game. With thanks to the GK, Ollie Moffatt, who pulled off some remarkable saves all season, the team managed to hold on to an important win. Even though wins were hard to come by, the team were resilient and hard-working throughout the season. James Todd (captain) and Sholto Hanson (vicecaptain) led with distinction and I feel that all the 6.2s who contributed to the team will have left behind an attitude that will continue next year.

THE RADLEIAN SPORTS SUPPLEMENT

DJC

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HOCKEY 2ND XI P10 W5 D2 L3 Team From: Homan, Bailey, West, Murray, Lennon, Stephenson, Harland, Rutledge, Perkins, Milne, Napier, Marriott, Chamberlain, de Vere Hunt, Campbell, Purton As previously, the team adopted the tried and tested FCB methods (rondos in the warm-up) and diamond formation of the Guardiola years.

As I write Luis Enrique’s Barca have just defeated Pep’s Bayern Munich 3-0 in the first leg, playing a slightly more dynamic and threatening style than in the previous tiki-taka era.

The similarities with the 2nd XI were obvious again this season, with the three-man strike force of Neymar, Suarez and Messi mirrored by Felix de Vere Hunt, Hector Chamberlain (or Ned Marriott early on as Pedro) and Harry Napier. Whilst the Barca front three is

arguably more effective in front of goal (!) our three-man attack usually came up trumps.

Behind them lay the diamond of Luke Perkins (Iniesta), Jack Harland (Busquets), Jack Rutledge (Xavi) and Rupert Milne (surely the Rakitic figure).

The midfield routinely dominated possession and linked defence and attack with real dynamism - notably in Jack Rutledge and Rupert. The defence was shorn up by a mixture of Ted Bailey (Dani Alves), Wills Murray (Pique) and Ed Lennon (Jordi Alba) with Richard West as the Marc Bartra youngster coming through the ranks. I am not sure if ter Stegen keeps up an inane running commentary during matches, but if he does then our very own Chingachgook Will Homan is the man. He intimidated opposition forwards and our own defenders alike, but sometimes taking the mickey when goals down seemed a little hubristic.

HOCKEY 3RD XI P10 W4 L6 The 2015 season for the mighty 3rd XI began with much promise – fresh from out title-winning season the year before, and retaining a number of that all-conquering side (Will Dodd, Charlie Purton, Milo Morgan, George InnesKer, Ed Henderson, Harry Ashcroft, Ollie Gillen-Toon, Charlie Saunders), all seemed to be set fair for another productive season. However, in the words of Jimmy Greaves….’it’s a funny old game’ (he was of course referring to hockey as well as football when he said this).

The season began with a tough 2-0 away loss at Marlborough. We enjoyed the majority of possession and territory, but their strong defence held out our rusty-looking attack. The self-titled

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‘Dream Team’ of HDH and TCL were not used to losing – and this didn’t bode well. This was swiftly followed by a 4-1 loss to Bradfield – thanks to a hat trick from their striker who was a mixture of Harry Potter and Usain Bolt. The next game saw us face St Edward’s 2nd XI, and potentially staring down the barrel of three losses on the bounce. However, the boys rallied and put in a very strong performance winning the game 3-1.

We were now seeing the emergence of the new breed of 3rd XI player (or 6.1s as they are more commonly known) – Angus Stahelin, Ollie Henderson, Will Payne, Harri Guy, George Hervey, Ollie Farr in goal and the deadly finishing of James Lee. However, this proved to be something of a false dawn as we inexplicably lost 1-0 to Winchester’s 1st XI. We

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Coach: N Murphy Captain: JH Rutledge

The ISHL League was won with some decent wins (Marlborough, Pangbourne 1st XI, Cheltenham, Eton and Wellington) and a couple of draws (Abingdon and Bradfield), but there were defeats to Tonbridge, Charterhouse and MCS late on in the season. The difference largely was in taking chances and scoring goals - an occasional Achilles heel in Radley hockey. All in all, however, it was a very successful season.

Special mention must go to our returning 6.2 men - Tarquin (until his elevation to the 1st XI), Luke, Jack and Jack - they were outstanding throughout and it was a real pity that Jack Rutledge had to miss the last match of the season through injury. My thanks to them all and here’s to Sant Jordi.

NM

Coaches: TC Lawson, HD Hammond Captain: WG Dodd

dominated any area you could possible care to mention – bar the scoreboard – and reminded me of a jammy win for Chelsea in the Nou Camp all those years ago (the Winchester striker may have been called Torres, but I couldn’t say for certain). This was then followed by our annual drubbing by Tonbridge, and the main problem was fairly obvious for all to see, with another zero marked up next to our name. However, this wasn’t to say that we weren’t playing good hockey. All these boys are good players and they tried at all times to play the game the way it should be played.

Their fine play did pay off in our next two games with a 4-2 win over MCS (hat trick from Lee) and our best performance of the season, which saw us defeat a strong Cheltenham side 2-1.

While we were delighted with the win, it undoubtedly frustrated the coaches, as it highlighted what the boys could have been capable of throughout the season. Captain Dodd was once again the work horse of the side, breaking up attacks for fun and launching counter offensives all season (while managing to annoy pretty much everyone in the opposition in the process).

The season finished on something of a damp squib via a 4-2 loss to Eton and a tired 3-1 loss at Charterhouse (yet

HOCKEY

4TH

P8 W3 D1 L4 Team: Rupert Elmhirst (Captain), Catherine Wilson (gk), Charlie Riley, Freddie Campion, Fred Simpson, Harri Guy, Jack Foreman, Monty Dove, Ollie Henderson, Rufus Eyre, Will Payne, with cameo appearances from Nick Bennett, Hugo Strutt, Hal Armstrong and Archie Brown.

We started the season with an unusual match against Marlborough. We were playing on grass and this caught out a lot of our players, who were not used to this very different game.

However, almost everyone got stuck in and played a good game of grockey.

Everyone was full of energy which meant that Marlborough found it hard to get any play going without a Radley stick in the way. Despite spending a significant amount of time in their D, we seemed unable to score more than three goals and after some lapses in defence the score was 3-3. Ollie Henderson was a natural grockey player and was awarded man of the match.

The following week we were back on astro against Bradfield. Despite not much time training on astro we still managed to show them what’s what and beat them 4-1. This confidence boost helped propel the side into a much more difficult game

another game which we dominated, but simply couldn’t score) – followed by an easy 6-1 win over a fairly poor Wellington side (it was 1-1 for a while – which was not funny). The boys tried their hearts out all season, and didn’t noticeably play that much worse than the team that won the league the year before. However, the opposition were probably a touch tougher and we didn’t always get the rub of the green (where perhaps we have done in the past). The boys worked their socks off all season and were great fun throughout.

A huge thanks to Mr Hammond for his

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fine coaching, umpiring and general good fun throughout the term. Thanks to the parents for all their loyal support (even when our games were after Bigside and therefore didn’t finish until deep into the night). Good luck to all the 6.2s who depart (I hope they will all keep playing), and we look forward to giving it another crack next year.

TCL

Coach: TCH Norton Captain: CRD Elmhirst

versus Pangbourne. Harri Guy and Fred Simpson played a key role in the midfield, which involved a lot of running lengths of the pitch, and we managed to fend them off and finished victorious with a score of 2-1.

This victory was due to the team’s incredible desire for the ball. There was no standing around and sulking if someone lost the ball: it was straight up and chasing it down and this determination was the deciding factor.

We were on a bit of a roll and spirits were high when we faced Abingdon in our next match. We carried the same mind set forward from the previous game and we managed to secure a 3-2 victory. However, in this victory there were sacrifices made. These included Rupert Elmhirst and Ollie Henderson going off games for the next three weeks. Nevertheless, the team went away for leave away in high spirits.

After coming back we faced Tonbridge.

This was to be the end of our winning streak. They were a strong side; we were missing a handful of players and had little time to train with the replacement players. We let the game slip and they ended up winning 0-2. This proved to be devastating to our team morale and with people still missing, we lost against MCS 1-3. We had a rethink and with players returning from injury, spirits improved as the game against Cheltenham approached - the decider

for the Inter Schools Hockey League.

After a strong start we thought we were back to winning ways. However, we got complacent and they scored some very lucky goals. We had also lost that hunger for the ball that had been the main reason for our success earlier in the season. As soon as they started to pull away our heads dropped and that led to some stupid and forced mistakes and allowed Cheltenham to take the victory with a final score of 2-4.

Then the final game approached, on grass. This caused people to take a more relaxed attitude in training which proved to be our downfall. We started well as Eton were just as unused to grass as we were, but they soon got the hang of it and started to put some good passages of play together which then led to goals. We stayed in the game but lacked the finesse on grass to put away the opportunities that we created and allowed Eton to just take the game by 2-1. Overall a good start to the season but after losing momentum and letting our heads drop we quickly ran into trouble. Still, we came second in our league.

Rupert Elmhirst, e

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HOCKEY 5TH XI

Coaches: G Wiseman, RMC Greed Captain: HR Strutt

(BIGSIDE GROCKEY) P3, W2, L1 As your Club Secretary it is a great privilege for me to be writing the report this year. It’s been a tough season with dwindling numbers, limited fixtures, and pressure from the rest of the Hockey Club to reform our ways and play on Astroturf. But we have prevailed and as a result have had a very pleasant and entertaining season.

Although many might see only three fixtures as a disappointing season, we upheld standards by winning two of them, one even being on Astroturf. The results were as follows: St Edward’s [Home]: Won 2-1 Cheltenham College [Home]: Won 6-3 Cheltenham College [Away]: Lost 0-4 Our loss on the last game of the year was disappointing as it robbed us of an unbeaten season, but we really gave it our all and we shouldn’t be discouraged for next season as we will come back stronger than ever.

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The season could not have gone as well as it did without the strong leadership of one of our key players. Nicholas Bennett, our Captain and a very ‘skillful’ grass player, was always the first to put his body on the line in order to secure victory. It was his general attitude throughout matches that became the backbone of the Barbour-clad squad.

Messrs’ Greed and Wiseman were ever diligent to fight our case as a grass team against the lures of Astroturf and were a constant source of humour and support throughout matches and weekday practices. Rousing half time speeches instilled a sense of honour into all of us.

It was a tough time for our 6.2s this year with mocks occupying much of their time. But all of them; Davies, Elmhurst, Brown, Tsu, and even Fergus Williams managed to give the time for ‘training’ and even their Saturday afternoons for matches. A special mention should also go to Hal Armstrong. We were all in awe of his legendary goal scoring finesse and he was a critical component; he possibly Radley’s hardest hitter of a hockey ball and players would scatter as he undertook his striking routine. It was more than could have been expected

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from men who were under a lot of stress at the time, so we all take our tweed caps off to them.

The exceptional skill of Hugo Adams put us all to shame. In early January it was the first time he had picked up a stick and by the end of the season he was one of the most valued players in the team. Magnus Gilje somehow combined the sports of Polo and Golf to produce some life-threatening shots. In one nasty experience my front teeth were close to destruction from this. Wiltshire was on the team as well. Finally special mentions to Katherine Wilson and Charlie Barber, our honorary goalies for the season and on more than one occasion saving us from defeat. Their efforts are much appreciated.

As a member of the planning committee for next year’s tour to Dublin, where we will be playing St. Columba’s College, our sister school, I can say that the Grockey Club will return as strong as ever and with continued support from all will remain so.

Hugo Strutt, f

HOCKEY COLTS 1 P10 W5 D2 L3 Team From: Milner (c), Austen (GK), Maidment, Garrett-Cox, Marshall, Hart, Clark, Farr, Wallis, Jones, PritchardGordon, Bracey, Caplan Mr Hills and I found the Colts 1 team a real pleasure to coach all season. The best moments were sublime - most notably the 15 minute purple patches against Eton, Tonbridge and Teddies.

Highlighting these instances betrays the axiomatic issue that marred many of our fixtures though: the ability to sustain for 60 minutes the lofty heights of skill, vision and execution invariably glimpsed - but all too fleetingly - in every game.

Against Teddies, this cost us dearly, as we ended up drawing a game we dominated throughout, barring the very final play, and undoubtedly in a

Coaches: CE Scott Malden, MH Hills Captain: CEA Milner

match in which we produced our best hockey. This is the most valuable lesson the boys will take away as a team.

As individuals, if an award ceremony were to be held, accolades would be distributed thus: Leading from the Middle: Captain Milner; Player of the Season: Austen; Most Improved Player(s): Garrett-Cox, Maidment and Farr; Top Scorer(s): Bracey & Milner; Longest Aerial: Marshall; Shortest Aerial: Marshall. And in the ‘Most Likely To...’ category: Shoot Outside the D: Clark; Fall Over Unassisted: Bracey; Argue About a Decision: Clark; Dribble Unnecessarily in his Own D: Hart; Get Cross With Someone Much Smaller than Him: Milner & Marshall; Use His Reverse Stick: Clark; Use the Back of His Stick: Garrett-Cox; Turn Up in the Wrong Clothes: Wallis, Jones or P-G.

This wasn’t an easy season for Colts 2. Although the squad was keen enough, a lot of previous second team players had defected to football, and on the occasions Colts 1 had to use our original captain Will Caplan we were thin on the skill front. In addition, training was sometimes challenging thanks to one or two personalities, and to disruption from Mocks.

Nonetheless, we got off to a flying start in our best performance of the season in the first game at home to Marlborough, passing with fluency and

CESM

Returning to the team side of things: many of these players will represent

HOCKEY COLTS 2 P11 W4 D2 L5

Bigside over the next two years (as their two star players from the Junior Colts year, Messrs Cunningham and Wishart, did so admirably this season), and rightly so, and as their coaches we really do hope they go on to fulfil the potential they showed over the course of a successful and highly enjoyable term’s hockey. A final word must go to the stoic and unstinting parental spectators who took to steeling themselves for home games with a ‘bonding’ visit to a local hostelry. Your enthusiasm and support played a great part in the team’s success and general sense of unity. Thank you.

Coach: IK Campbell, Captains: WEN Caplan & JJ Beattie

putting five goals past them. We never again achieved such heights, although the run of success continued with a hard fought 2-1 win at Pangbourne.

Thereafter we did later beat MCS 1-0 and Teddies (out of the League) 5-0, and drew with Tonbridge and Charterhouse in further friendlies, but we lost to a good Bradfield side, Abingdon, Cheltenham, Eton and, rather disappointingly in the final game, 5-2 to a Wellington side that had no goalkeeper.

When Caplan wasn’t playing Jack Beattie captained admirably. Will Womsersley was an athletic and

effective debutant goalkeeper, while Will Heagerty scored muscular goals at the other end of the pitch. In between Will Getley, Guy Carter, Gus Levinson and the very solid Josh Bex made up the defence, sometimes aided by Kit Marlar, while Harry Osborne, Johnny Dewhurst and Rupert Evans worked hard with Beattie and Caplan in midfield. Up front we had Seb Berger on the left and Ed St John on the right. It’s a shame we didn’t gel better on the pitch, but I am sure some of the team will continue to enjoy their hockey in the sixth form.

IKC

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HOCKEY JC1 P10 W6 D2 L2 The Junior Colts 1 hockey team will reflect on 2015 with a great sense of pride. The season provided us with a wide range of experiences, lessons and emotions which make schoolboy sport so valuable and fulfilling.

They had to overcome adversity from the outset as Week 1 served up a 5-0 loss to an exceptional Marlborough team. Teams with weak character may not have been able to bounce back, but this Radley team responded by rolling up their sleeves and addressed the weaknesses that had been exposed. We were therefore not surprised when the team produced a high quality performance to beat Bradfield 5-0 the following week. Some new faces in Week 2 also helped. Val Brooke, who completed a meteoric rise from Midgets 3 last year, and Nico Rooth, a tireless midfielder with a sense of competitiveness which is second to none, both brought a lot to the team and ended up being highly influential members of the team. Rory Betley produced three spectacular goals but the stand-out player on the day was Will Todd who, being highly skilful with an exceptional work rate, is a coach’s dream.

The first two weeks provided agony (Marlborough) and ecstasy (Bradfield) but against MCS we experienced these both in the same match. We produced outstanding hockey during the first half and Ned Gordon, our highly talented captain, and James Skinner scored a couple of excellent goals to give us a well-deserved 2-1 lead at half time. Considering the quality of the opposition (we lost 9-2 against them last year) this was completely against the odds.

Unfortunately we conceded a couple of sloppy goals after half time and we then fell apart to eventually lose 6-2. We learnt a few valuable lessons that afternoon: we were capable of

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playing hockey of the highest quality but we had to be mentally tougher.

We could have beaten them, but I doubt we truly believed we could win against a team as good as them and this ultimately cost us. Later in the season we would face Eton, a team as good as MCS, who also trounced us the year before (8-1) and we were leading at half time against the odds. We used the MCS experience to go on to record a win which no one, apart from ourselves, believed possible given the result last year.

The next two weeks produced frustration. Teddies set up very defensively and when they hit us on the break to go 1-0 up it looked like their tactics were working.

Fortunately James Skinner scored an equaliser, but we struggled to find a way past their packed defence for the remainder of the game, despite a wealth of possession. A natural goal scorer, James was our “go to” man up front and it was no surprise that he finished the season as our top goals scorer with six goals to his name.

We had to give credit to Teddies for executing their game plan but we couldn’t help being disappointed that a potential win had eluded us.

Our 0-0 draw with Abingdon will not be remembered with much fondness.

Neither team played well and decent goal scoring opportunities were few and far between. The highlight was the performance of our defence.

Our defensive unit consisted of Nico Rooth, the perfect defensive midfielder, who played in front of the back four of Benedict Weldon, Felix Milne, Benedict Yorston, Val Brooke and at the heart of it all was our “rock”, Alex Rayne. Add to this our reliable goal keeper, Edward Mair and it is unsurprising that, over the course of the season, we kept a clean sheet on four occasions out of ten (a rare feat in modern hockey). Although the results of these matches were frustrating, it was comforting to know that we had become a team

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Coaches: GR King, KM Willis-Stovold Captain: NC Gordon

that was very hard to beat.

With our defensive structures firmly in place, the aim of the second half of the season was to be more threatening up front and the addition of Henry Day to the team, another player who had spent the previous year in Midgets 3, had a huge impact.

He is a talented athlete with an instinct for scoring goals that cannot be coached. If he embraces hockey, he will certainly have a bright future.

Jasper Toor was also added to the squad and with his strength and pace up front we now had the firepower to make dominance on the pitch count on the scoreboard.

We played well against Tonbridge and we were good value for our 2-0 lead at half time thanks to strikes from Will Todd and James Skinner.

However, a couple of uncharacteristic defensive lapses allowed them to draw level and with 15 minutes to go it was anyone’s game. The deadlock was broken by an audacious lob of the keeper by Henry Day and the victory was then sealed with a second from James Skinner.

We travelled to Cheltenham and produced our best performance of the season to win 5-1. Cheltenham were not bad and at this point were second on the ISHL table, but they had no answer to the pace and flair with which we played. Skinner scored a hat trick and Day added another two, but it was Benedict Weldon who was named man of the match for his all-round contribution on attack and defence.

We followed this with a highly rewarding win against Eton (goals scored by Todd and Day) which I have mentioned already and with three wins in a row we were able to take on a strong Charterhouse side with confidence. We were not at our best but, as usual, our defence was solid so we always felt in control. It was fitting that Jasper Toor, who had

added so much to the team since being promoted from JC2, broke the deadlock with only five minutes remaining and another win was recorded.

Wellington had not had a good season and we were confident that if we put in a good performance against them we could finish the season on a high. We took a chance by only playing with a squad of 12 and when Benedict Weldon complained of a fever during the warm-up we were down to 11 and we started to feel nervous.

Fortunately, Matthew Raikes has the skill and versatility to play up front and in the midfield, which made him one of the first names

on the team sheet every week. It was therefore very pleasing when he scored our opener. Nico Rooth also registered his first goal of the season and our early two goal lead settled my nerves. However, my fears were confirmed when Will Todd was struck above the eye and had to go to hospital for stitches and we were down to ten men. I mentioned earlier that this team had character and this was no more evident than in this match as we held on to our lead with ten men for almost two thirds of the match to secure our fifth win in a row. It was a shame the season had to end.

they worked hard during training, developed into a very tight unit and played the game in the right spirit. It was obvious that they improved as a team and as individuals which made coaching them highly enjoyable and rewarding. Particular thanks go to Ned Gordon who led from the front and was instrumental in creating an environment where all of the players enjoyed their hockey and felt valued.

GRK/KMWS

In between fantastic experiences the boys enjoyed on weekends,

HOCKEY JC2 P10 W8 D2 L0 One of the objectives set down at the start of the season was to give GRK & KMWS a selection headache. With five players progressing through to JC1st X1 at various points during the season that box was soundly ticked. Despite the regular changes of personnel, JC2nd X1 returned the impressive stats of Played 10 Won 8 Drew 2, thus highlighting the quality in depth available throughout this age group. Stats however only tell a part of the story, it’s the work put in on the practice ground from Monday to Friday that is the key and it was here that the boys showed a maturity beyond their years. There is no doubt that the team took advantage of the expert coaching available to them from our new Hockey Pro. Pete Bennett and sessions with GRK. With astroturf pitches and ever improving laws, hockey has become a much quicker, more fluid game in recent years. Rarely will you

Coach: AR Wagner

now see a game played by a team of just eleven, such is the pace of the game and the modern player is encouraged to become more versatile and capable of playing in a variety of positions. That said, the spine of this team remained constant, revolving around a solid, well organised defence. At its heart were arguably the team’s most consistent performers - goalkeeper Freddy Campbell-Grey and central defender Fergus Wilson (whose pace proved our saviour on more than one occasion). Playing on the defensive flanks, Ed Newell & Hamish Heagarty dovetailed nicely with an understanding that while one joined the attack, the other was required to cover the defensive duties. Zak Kary showed the discipline required of the midfield link and his ability to find a pass meant that the point of attack could be switched in a couple of passes. The midfield or engine room of the side worked tirelessly, with Rupert Elmhirst (left) Harry Foreman (central) and Murdo Blythe

(right) proving a difficult trio to get the better of. Rufus Darwall & Henry Anderson provided the width and additional support in front of goal, where leading goal scorer Freddie Jodrell spearheaded the attack. Alex Alder fitted comfortably into either a defensive or attacking role giving the side a variety of options. In all, 34 goals were scored and only six conceded. Of the victories, the opening game of the season versus Marlborough (6 v 0) was perhaps the most comprehensive and set the bench mark for what was to follow.

Team Freddy Campbell-Grey - Alex Alder - Fergus Wilson - Edward Newall – Rufus Darwall - Murdo Blythe - Giles Elmhirst - Hamish Heagerty - Freddie Jodrell - Zak Kary - Henry Anderson Harry Foreman.

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ARW

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HOCKEY JC3 P8 W8 The JC 3 Hockey team had a very successful season, winning all of our games and some by a considerable margin. We started off with thinking about the width of the pitch, to create space in order to showcase the considerable skill of Caspar Muir on the Left Wing and the pace and strength of Lachie Neville on the Right Wing.

We also had a clinical finisher in Tom Parr, who didn’t disappoint. In Midfield we had Freddie Barlow on the right hand side who was a constant threat when he had the ball at his stick; he was a danger to any defence. On the left was Dan Bishop who was also a great runner with the ball, but most importantly fed some searching passes through to Lachie, Caspar and Tom. We played with great style and skill up front. Tom Parr finished the season as top scorer with around 18 goals.

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At CDM we had Will Morgan, who had great skill and a very powerful hit which was perfect for getting the ball to the front. At Left Back we had Freddie Younger who funnelled the opposition onto their weaker side, which meant no balls could enter the box with any power. In Centre Back we relied on the massive engine of Rob Crawford, who never stopped running. Nothing could get past him due to his vision for the game and his pace. He also had a tendency to make darting runs with the ball to middle field or even up front.

On the right we had the terrier of Tom Warner who had admirable persistence and caused attackers no end of trouble.

In goal we had the indomitable Charlie Maunder, who was very nearly unbeatable - only three goals were scored against him.

As a team we played with great skill and teamwork which was installed into

THE RADLEIAN SPORTS SUPPLEMENT

Coach: DJ Pullen Captain: TJE Spreckley

us from day one by our excellent coach, Mr Pullen. He loved a bit of strength and conditioning at the end of sessions, which was the bane of many people’s day; however it helped us keep a good level of fitness which helped us pull away in all of our games. The whole season was a lot of fun and it was a great experience.

Theo Spreckley, a Theo was a great skipper. He led by example during training and matches.

He could be relied on to prepare the team, make considered decisions over selection (there were a number of excellent players in JC4) and be highly constructive during team talks. He is also a skilled hockey player with a combative spirit and a strong desire to win. It was a most enjoyable season.

DJP

HOCKEY JC4 P8 W5 D1 L2 Although the squad looked a little rough at the edges at the start of the season, with a number of players with very limited experience of the game, nevertheless the boys played with determination and skill to produce an excellent set of results.

After a shaky start against Marlborough, the team set out to win some notable victories, scoring a total of 20 goals in the season. In goal, Inigo Maciejewski nobly took up the challenge, despite never having played in the position before, and what he lacked in experience, he made up for in courage.

His willingness to throw his body into a dangerous situation acted as an encouragement to the rest of the

Coach: DWS Roques Captain: James Strain

team. The defence was organised by the redoubtable Harry Christopherson at sweeper, ably assisted by Charlie Pemberton, Mungo Spencer and Angad Srinivasan.

The strength of the team however lay in the midfield, with the mid-season transfer of James Strain from football providing much greater possession between defence and attack. Tom Neill and Tom Novis also worked very hard, running the hard yards in order to gain a good attacking position, as well as tracking back when the goal was threatened. Up front, goals were scored

by Jonty Barlow, James Parker and Dominic Lodge, all of whom showed great skills on the ball at times. Ben Rougier and Jasper Perry could also be called on to keep the team fresh on

HOCKEY MIDGETS 1 P10 W3 D3 L4 Squad: W. Brolly (gk), G. Redmayne, R. Marshall, W. Barker, M. Stalder, L. Needham, J. Dobby, G. Marshall (capt), J. Beck, H. Chapman, L. Ely, O. Simm, H. Purton, F. Horler, W. Nicholson.

What a fantastic group to work with. We started the season very rusty and our first game was so early we were caught totally unprepared by Marlborough.

We then got right back to basics and worked hard to improve tough passing and confidence to hold the ball up.

The results were instant, a very good performance against Bradfield got us a 3-2 win having been two down at half-time; on top of that, the start of the striking squadron of Chapman,

the pitch. Of the matches, the grittiest performance came against Eton. Two-nil down at half time, with Eton dominant, the situation looked grave. However, the team stepped up to the challenge, scoring once and pushing Eton back on their heels. Radley could not manage a second, but came off clear winners of the second half.

Also memorable was playing against Cheltenham on a grass pitch where the ball rarely travelled more than two metres at a time. A 3-nil victory would have been much greater on an astro pitch. Overall then, this was a very pleasing season.

DWSR

Coach: REP Hughes Captain: GEM Marshall

Purton and Stalder each getting a goal. We moved on to St Edward’s and Abingdon. Both games we came away with a draw, feeling slightly frustrated to have not got the win. Having been totally outclassed by both Tonbridge and MCS we moved on to Cheltenham.

Having watched Midgets 2 win 1-0 just before our game, we were determined and came away with an impressive 2-0 victory; as well as our first clean sheet from Wes Brolly. Injuries plagued our next couple of games, as we drew against Eton and lost to Charterhouse.

But we finished the season on a high, beating Wellington 2-0 without our keeper touching the ball.

Regionals. We went to the Regionals and comprehensively lost our group and were therefore entered into the Bowl competition. This was between six other schools. We went on to win the Bowl and came away with a cherished prize (a key ring each).

A hugely enjoyable season and improvement that bodes very well for the future of this squad. A special mention to Captain and Player of the Season George Marshall. Excellent and inspirational throughout.

REPH

As well as these games, we also entered the county competition, finished 2nd and therefore qualified for the THE RADLEIAN SPORTS SUPPLEMENT

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HOCKEY MIDGETS 2 P10 W7 L3 In pre-season and the early stages of the Lent Term it looked as if the top team of players were fairly concrete in their hold on first-team places; but it was to the great credit of not only players in Midgets 2, but also in Midgets 3 that by the end of term there had been a significant amount of turnover, with boys improving enormously through the course of the term, thanks to consistently focused commitment in training from many boys. The example set in this regard by Midgets 2 captain John Peers (A) was excellent, as was the total professionalism throughout the term from Freddie Horler (B), who came from Midgets 3 to being the lynchpin of the Midgets 2 side, to being promoted to Midgets 1 in the second half of the season.

The opening match, where perhaps the squads were a little rough around the edges, was a difficult first task.

It was business from the off, in that the Independent Schools’ League began on the first afternoon, away to Marlborough. The game opened well with considerable pressure being exerted by Will Robson (H) and Will Goodman (H) at the front. No-one had the killer instinct, though, and a number of half-chances went begging. Things began to level out with Marlborough finding routes into the game and they forced a pair of solid saves from Freddie Armstrong (K – Man of the Match).

Their right wing caused us problems and eventually - just before the half time whistle - the breakthrough came from an outstanding reverse-stick finish from their most skilful player. By and large the defence had been very solid – Captain Peers, Jack Maidment (C) and Toby Crawford (A) particularly - but on this one occasion players stood off and we paid the price.

The second half followed a similar pattern and Goodman provided a fine shot on target which required a sharp save from their keeper. As the clock ran down the match could have been

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saved but equally a second could have been conceded and it finished a fair 0-1 deficit.

The luxury of a few extra training sessions made an enormous difference to the shape of the squad. Jude Dobby (A) and Ollie Sim (E) came down from the top squad, Horler came up from Midgets 3 and took possession of the Centre Midfield role (where he was named Man-of-the-Match), and the super-fast Tristan Southwell (E) provided an excellent attacking option in at right wing. Bradfield weren’t as strong as they have sometimes been, but had considerable threats, and at half time it was 0-0. Milo Daly (G) switched to Centre Forward at half time, with an immediate goal following a Southwell cross. Once the first had gone in, the floodgates opened: Sim scored two rather fluky goals, but he stuck at it when their goalie got in a muddle and gained his reward. Horler and Dobby both deservedly added goals from strong attacking positions in the D. The 9-0 win against St Edward’s that followed saw a more settled side hit their stride. Radley scored after two minutes and continued to apply pressure throughout, consistently getting their reward. Southwell continued to absorb information like a sponge, following instructions to the letter and providing endless threatening crosses to the goal mouth. Sim (Man of the Match) doggedly chased everything down, scoring three fine goals. Daly scored two, one a cracking deflection off a Southwell cross before Tristan scored a super goal of his own, chasing in from the right taking it right round the bend to the keeper. Will Duncan started on the bench but quickly showed the talents that had seen him rise from Midgets 4 (and would see him rise still further to Midgets 1 by the end of the season), scoring a brace to round off a resounding win.

Abingdon provided a much sterner test a week later, especially with Ollie Sim moving up to the 1st team. But his

THE RADLEIAN SPORTS SUPPLEMENT

Coach: H Crump Captain: JH Peers

replacement was no slouch: Sam Tucker (K) played at right half and broke the deadlock after early Radley pressure.

But Abingdon levelled quickly after half time; the response from Radley was first rate, with Duncan bagging a hat-trick of poacher’s goals (duly being named Man-of-the-Match). Will Carr (J) scored a fifth after more pestering from Duncan. Abingdon scored again from a short corner and continued to threaten, so it felt a fine win at the final whistle, especially as it brought with it the ISHL bonus point for another win by a margin of three goals.

The run of fine victories came to an end on the occasion of the lengthy bus ride down to Tonbridge. This was a strong side – significantly better than any other we had played through the term – and if truth be told we did very well to contain them to a single goal in the full 50 minutes of play. Perhaps inevitably, a second did come, from a penalty corner after time. Our defence had to remain strong and Charlie Robertson (J) played brilliantly. Crawford stayed solid and Horler was typically excellent. Ed Cockcroft (C) made his Midgets 2 debut in goal and was superb, sustaining his place in the team for the remainder of the term.

Thankfully the Tonbridge match was a ‘friendly’, not counting towards our ISHL tally, but the two next matches did, against MCS then Cheltenham (both away). Each saw Radley claw through with 1-0 wins, vs MCS thanks largely to debutant Matt Chapman’s (G) excellence in defence, alongside Captain Peers who hit a purple patch in early February, winning Man-of-the-Match twice in a row. Horler provided the winner vs MCS, Southwell vs Cheltenham.

The season took quite a jolt at the start of March when, during a training match against the 1st team in which total commitment saw the 2nds more than hold their own, Freddie Horler took a painful injury to his finger after closing down the M1 captain George Marshall (G) for the entire match. This might have

ended the season of many a player, but Horler returned for the final match, rightly earning his place in the 1st team.

Without him things were more difficult, and different players gave their all to the pivotal central position that had been vacated. The match against Eton was much closer than the 0-3 scoreline suggested; it was an excellent match (where Chapman was named Manof-the-Match) but one in which we simply could not break through their outstanding defence.

Against Charterhouse away Radley might well have won by more than the single goal which decided the outcome,

but this was a worthy match-winner, scored by Lucas Ely (E). Sim (back in the side) and Southwell created many more opportunities, and George Redmayne (D) played impressively in the midfield.

Ever since the opening game of the season – a loss which Radley lamented where they did not the deficits to Tonbridge or Eton – we had watched the ISHL league with interest. We knew that one slip-up from Marlborough would allow us to pounce, and eventually that slip-up did come. Marlborough lost and failed to pick up the bonus points that Radley did, so we entered the final match of

HOCKEY MIDGETS 3 P10 W1 D4 L5 Squad: W Carr (Captain), Armstrong, Cockcroft, Liu, Henry, Brett, Cox, Wilkinson, Egerton-Warburton, Goodman, Wilson, Robson, Marriott, Thomson, H Carr, Brown, Gilliat-Smith, Butterwick To get the season started, we faced Marlborough away. As you can imagine with the first match, it was not the most organised and therefore we suffered a 5-0 loss which was rather disappointing.

Next up was Bradfield at home and after a great start of two goals by W Carr in the first half, they managed to slip three goals past us in the closing stages, which was rather disappointing as we should have won. Pangbourne was always going to be a tough game as we were playing their A team. They were a very skilful team and outplayed us, which resulted in a 4-0 loss.

Winchester, top of the league at the time, away was a tough game and was quite even throughout the match. I personally thought that we were the better team and it was harsh to come off with a 2-1

the season knowing that either a draw or a win would see the team crowned champions. The team duly finished in style. Sim scored both in a Man-of-theMatch performance, the first a good right hand combination between Tucker, Southwell and Sim with the finishing touch, the second a neat deflection from a Tucker hit from outside the D. It was a fitting conclusion to an excellent season of hockey.

HC

Coaches: MG Glendon-Doyle, JPJ Dodd & SH Dalrymple

Captain: WCK Carr

loss, despite a great finish by Duncan.

Tonbridge away was an unlucky defeat with us coming out with another loss of 2-0.

Our second home game of the season was against Magdalen College School which triggered a significant improvement. It was much nicer to be at home, but unfortunately we only managed a 2-2 draw in a game we should have won. Cheltenham was a game in which we were on top throughout but could not manage a win. However, we played extremely well as a team, earning another draw (1-1).

Next up was Eton, one of the best sides around. We played the best we had played all season and managed to fend them off, leading to a 1-1 draw. We enjoyed a fantastic win against Charterhouse.

Everyone was delighted with the muchdeserved win resulting in a 1-0 victory, thanks to a cracking goal from Goodman.

up against Wellington College who are well-known for their sport. We came out with another draw of 1-1 in this game with a goal from H Carr, but again we all felt that we could have won. Throughout our season we really improved and were undefeated since the MCS game.

We deserved more wins than we were awarded but it was fun all the same.

A word from the coaches. This team vastly improved over the season and showed an increasingly vibrant team spirit as the weeks went by. One lesson to learn though was the importance of playing out the entire game, as in several matches, we gave away a lead or draw in the final minutes. Some special mentions go out to Henry, Brett and Liu for their physicality in defence and Egerton-Warburton for his gritty determination. It was an enjoyable season and some great hockey was played.

Will Carr, j

For our final game of the season we came

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HOCKEY MIDGETS 4 P9 W3 L4 D2 A gutsy Midgets 4 side faced some impressive opposition throughout a demanding season. Team selection was tricky to start with, as a number of lads had not played the game before, but after a challenging afternoon at Marlborough things started to take shape.

Mr. King had provided the Midgets with more astro time, meaning that players could develop more cultured strokes and work on accurate passing and teamwork. Will Duncan was spirited away to the Firsts and Matt Chapman also got the call up after impressing against Marlborough. George Egerton Warburton played with zeal and also soon ascended to greater things. M4 developed several stalwarts whose games blossomed over the course of the term. Ee-thern Ship was a stand-out in defence and his tenacity and verve made the difference time and again.

George Medd displayed intelligence and care and could be relied upon to

keep possession and put in faithful passes under pressure. Will RogersColtman in goal is destined for greater things next season. Up front, Harry Gent scored spectacularly – but also missed his fair share with his flamboyant swing.

Alex Hughes captained with authority and slotted home goals when the opportunity presented. Cian Ellis and latterly Baz Butterwick were dangerous in the D and midfielders Joe McDermott and Hugo Carr, Freddie Stone and Luke Howard displayed athleticism and grit. James O’Leary harried his opposite number and accuracy was his trademark. Stand-out player Archie Barrow topped the leader-board for goals and his physical presence and skill was too much for most oppositions.

Tonbridge proved a turning point. A spanking 8-0 defeat gave pause for thought; it was a very good game and great credit must be given to M4 for determinedly attempting to break the code and not giving up. Some personnel changes and a realisation that hockey must be won as a team saw

HOCKEY MIDGETS 5 P9 W5 L2 D2 Team: T Bantoft (capt), E Elliott, A Parker, B Moss, J Stubbs, O White, B Southgate, L Howard, T Sweetnam, W HamiltonRussell, J Watters, R Mathewson, W Dunhill-Turner, T Willcox, J Aird, I Mayfield, H Carr, F Stone, H Wiggin, T Strutt, A Tufnell, M Stuart-Bourne, H Bennett, H Bertie, W Rogers-Coltman, H Walther-Caine, J Terry, C Girelli-Kent As can be seen from the cast of thousands who played for Midgets 5, this was a team which regularly changed personnel as players were promoted, demoted or managed to get themselves injured as the season progressed.

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When the dust settled at the end of term and after a close 1-0 encounter with Wellington, it turned out that they were the winners of the ISHL League (for U. 14 E teams), just pipping Marlborough in the process. Since we escaped with a fortunate draw from the very first match back in January with this same Marlborough side, I am inclined to say that the key performance in this League winning effort was Will Rogers-Coltman’s heroics in goal on that dark afternoon, as he parried shot after Marlborough shot from his goal.

That, inevitably, was the last M5 saw of Will as he was briskly promoted to higher teams, but he was replaced in goal by good performances from Ed Elliott and Will Dunhill-Turner, so our goal remained stoutly defended.

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Coach: RD Woodling Captain: AB Hughes

M4 starting to win. Our defence became more concerted: Harry Walther-Caine cooperating with Marcus Stuart-Bourne (new signing from the fifths) together with Ship and Medd in front started to keep clean sheets and then we began to score.

A 5-0 win vs Cheltenham was hugely welcome and a massive boost. The match against a classy Eton side was promising, but we lost 3-1. We then beat Charterhouse away in a magical display of teamwork and tenacity trumping a team who beat Eton. Our final match against a sophisticated Wellington side away was played without some loyal team members but a 1-1 draw was excellent, Oscar White shining; in all a fine end to a difficult but ultimately very rewarding season! I look forward to following the progress of some very fine hockey players in years to come.

RDW

Coach: JRW Beasley Captain: TE Bantoft

In the outfield, Angus Parker was a rock on defence throughout the season, Luke Howard, Oscar White and Theo Bantoft scampered about with purpose and no little skill in midfield, and Bertie Southgate and Jonty Stubbs both tried to outbiff each other in attack. These last two ended up as the leading scorers for the season, making hay especially at Pangbourne and Abingdon - 8-1 and 5-2 wins respectively. The hockey was subtler when played on astro than on grass – astro allowed men such as Robin Mathewson and James Watters to show off their skills more effectively – but on every surface there was plenty of spirit and oomph on show.

JRWB

HOCKEY MIDGETS 6 We expected the worst on a bitterly cold early January afternoon, the prospect of a pitched battle on the muddy terraces at Marlborough. How marvellous then to seal a comfortable 4-1 win against a decent home side.

Immediately following this match almost half of the side went up a team.

Ivo Mayfield played sensationally well, almost scoring the goal of a life time, flying headlong and well off the ground at a cross and tapping just wide. Will Taylor cleared up very tidily in defence.

We had a good trip to Tonbridge, passports at the ready, where M6 narrowly lost 1-2 on a slopey pitch. We actually won the first half 1-0. Thomas Boulton (capt) played doggedly well.

He simply dominates the midfield and he makes numerous tackles turning defence into attack. He is much swifter than he at first seems. Hugo Bertie’s goal was a scorcher, smashed from the edge of the D, and the best goal that the opposition coach has ever seen.

On a very dark late February afternoon,

Coach: SA Hall Captain: TWB Boulton

we arrived about 3.50 pm at Marston Road to play MCS U13Cs, and didn’t start playing till about 5.10pm. M6 lost the first half 0-1. So I gave them the full benefit of 29 years’ games coaching experience, and would you believe it?

They scored seven golden goals in part two. So M6 managed to turn around a 0-1 deficit only to win by six. Man of the match? Forget it. They were all men of the match. Jake Terry hammered in two goals and Henry Carson three. Theo Strutt was a menacing presence on the right wing and with deft flicks of the stick, Thomas Willcox worked tirelessly to reveal his class.

Eton are always tough opposition and so it proved again this year. Henry Stratton made a left-handed save of the season – keeping the score to just 0-1.

Ed Andrew was the pick of the defence, robbing their attack several times. Alex Martin is the most improved player, strong and fast, whereas Ethan Russell is compact, skillfull and able to turn a sixpence. Jess Beardsworth has the most powerful hit of any of the team.

Charterhouse is a long journey for all concerned. We battled hard in a tight first half, drawing at the break 1-1.

However we succumbed to a good second half goal and having felt that we had earned at least a draw, we had little to show for our efforts. Much the same can be said of the final fixture.

Henry Carson scored yet another fine goal (his fifth in three matches) and Archie Gill ran his socks off in pursuit of the enemy, but we were overcome by a strong Wellington attack and were probably second best on the day.

It has been a memorable season; captain Tom Boulton has led by example and we owe Mr Beasley huge thanks indeed for so much meticulous organization, hard work and constant good cheer. Our final stats? Goals scored 13, conceded 10. It sounds like a winning season after all.

THE RADLEIAN SPORTS SUPPLEMENT

SAH

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LACROSSE All the talk in 2014 had been of centenary seasons, and this year Radley College Lacrosse Club celebrated a tenth of that in their current incarnation.

After an unfortunately dim opening to things in the first week after Leave Away – where Radley boys found themselves fumbling in the dark thanks to the malfunction of Downe House’s astro lights – we welcomed St Helen’s for the local derby match to kick off the season.

The second team began proceedings, with the towering Macdara Fahy taking the captaincy as it was felt he just might be able to keep Ned Campbell’s ego in check. Eds Bailey and Henderson were pivotal in defence, commanding the backstage with conviction after the loss of a couple of early goals. Given a shortage of manpower, two first team defenders were allowed to play up front and proved to be the difference: while Felix de Vere Hunt isn’t necessarily a natural front man, he crafted a number of opportunities, and Jack Hewitt slotted two neat finishes to draw level. Macdara led by example to snatch the winning goal, sealing a narrow victory, 3-2.

The first team match was an entirely different affair. The girls were stronger – the strongest St Helen’s have been in ten years, all present agreed – and they attacked Milo Morgan’s goal with suitable ferocity. Again, two relatively early goals were scored, and it took a man-of-the-match performance from Ed Sayer to pull Radley back into things, brushing aside the silky skills of the girls to go for powerful precision on his run through and finish past the England goalie that St Helen’s boasted.

Once the first goal had arrived, things began to move in our direction. Fergus Brown was a predictable pest up front, causing lots of problems with his positioning and pace and ultimately bagging a brace for his efforts. After Captain Catherine Wilson manipulated a positional switch, it left Jack Hewitt the chance to score in two matches in succession, and the ever-unpredictable Will Homan scored a blinder, once given a chance further up the field. The pick of the goals, though, was the icing on the cake, when Tristan Kleinwort combined brilliantly with his fellow strikers (including the enigmatic Senior 56

Coaches: H Crump, BR Knox Captains: CC Wilson, ES Biggart

Prefect Mungo Fawcett) to score a real ripper. The crowd could hardly contain themselves. The final score was 6-3 in favour of the home team.

The season continued with the arrival of Stowe as November took hold. Again the 2nd team were the warm-up act, and again they scraped a closely fought encounter, this time welcoming the likes of Harry Lloyd and Tom Carr into their midst. While such players might have been lacking in experience, they made up for it in enthusiasm. The pivotal performance this time around was man-of-the-match Ned Campbell, bursting to get out of defence, and scoring the decisive goal with a brilliant solo run. Captain Macdara and his deputy Chris White took the other two.

For the second week in a row, the first team’s opposition boasted an outstanding goalkeeper. Things looked to be in fairly good shape as Tristan Kleinwort found the net early on, and Fergus Brown put in another, but Stowe began to stamp their authority in the final third and first clawed back the deficit before reversing it. Tristan scored another and Captain Catherine pulled the game within reach to make it 4-4; but ultimately a flurry of goals in the final moments left Radley facing a 5-6 score-line from the wrong direction, despite the heroics of Jack Hewitt’s last gasp score.

To have the dream of the unbeaten season cruelly snatched away from the club at such an early stage allowed the team to throw caution to the wind and play with freedom in their next matches against Malvern St James. Both teams saw home their victories with room to spare, the second team picking apart their opponents with goals from the irrepressible Luke Perkins, as well as Messrs Hewitt, White and Stone, with only one Malvern goal slipping through a defence increasingly impressively marshalled by Macdara with everimproving contribution from Harry Ashcroft. The first team were not to be outdone, and they saw home a 9-4 win courtesy of a Fawcett hat-trick (gosh he was missed in the Stowe match), a

THE RADLEIAN SPORTS SUPPLEMENT

Brown hat-trick, and further scores from the midfield engine Sayer (who won just about every single centre draw in this match) and from Kleinwort too.

It became the fad to send a defender careering up the field to try his luck in front of goal once Tarquin Stephenson managed exactly this feat.

The final week of the season saw a quick-fire 1st team double header vs first St Mary’s Calne and then Downe House. The first of these saw the team at arguably its best of the season, scoring at will in a full-length match.

Jack Hewitt took the plaudits as manof-the-match thanks to his haul of five goals, but plenty of others got in on the act, with a brace each for Fawcett, Brown, Stone, and Kleinwort. Even Will Homan found himself with another goal when he was subbed on after half time.

Ed Sayer and Max Waters (defender of the hour) made up the final tally of 16, to their eight.

Perhaps slightly jaded from the exertions of the previous day, the team took a little while to really press the accelerator in the match against Downe House, but a defensive run from Felix de Vere Hunt started things up nicely before Hewitt scored yet again.

Radley were 6-1 up courtesy of goals from Fergus Brown and an exquisite hat-trick from Mungo Fawcett. In such a comfortable position, we were afforded the luxury of being able to take off our star striker. Suddenly the score turned to 6-7... But captain Ed Biggart calmed his defensive soldiers, and did all he could to stop the rot.

The match ended at furious pace, with Radley drawing level through Fergus Brown, before conceding again to make it 7-8. Charlie Stone somehow dug his way through a wall of players with his head-down-and-charge approach to score an unlikely equaliser and it was almost unbelievable when Fawcett Fantastic managed to find a chink in the considerable armour of their defence to squeak home a winner with only seconds left on the clock. So the season ended in dramatic fashion just as it had begun.

HC

POLO Although Radley Polo this year was at a slight disadvantage, due to the number of key polo players undertaking public exams, and therefore not being able to give up as much of their free time as they usually willingly would, the quality of play was nevertheless extremely high. With twelve strong players now competing for team places, and in theory three teams of four that could be put out, the Radley first and second team sides continued to impress and were able to maintain their strong reputation among the polo community.

Having competed in the Arena Polo Schools’ National Tournament earlier in the year, the first team now turned their sights to the outdoor season.

With a few of the matches being played against Eton, Oxford University, and Marlborough, much was at stake. Although narrowly missing out on success against Eton at Guards Polo Club in the first round of the Copenhagen Cup, potentially due to the absence of two very strong first

Coaches: PE Henderson, D Ashby Captain: MMS Rumsey

team players, the adjusted first team were still able to establish very strong victories against both Oxford University and Marlborough during the exam period.

With all players now readily available after exams, the Schools’ National Outdoor Polo Tournament held at Kirtlington Park Polo Club on 20th June was an opportunity for both the first and second team to demonstrate their skill. Freddie Jodrell impressed all spectators looking on, as he dominated for the Radley 2nd Team, scoring some extremely impressive goals in each of the matches. With the help of his team mates Freddie Barlow, Jonty Barlow, and Freddie Younger, the B Team were able to win the Under 16s league, beating a few first team sides along the way.

The first team consisting of Dom Lodge at 1, Patrick Lodge at 2, Max Rumsey at 3 and Rob Fleming at 4 were equally as successful, winning the prestigious 85 year-old trophy, the Indian Cup, with

Rob Fleming also being awarded Best Playing Pony in the top league of the tournament.

As term time draws to a close, although Radley players will unfortunately no longer be able to wear their Radley shirts with pride on the polo pitch, they will all continue to play the remainder of the summer season as eagerly throughout the summer holiday. With a large number of players being involved in both the Hipwood and Buckmaster Junior British Polo Championships, and extremely competitive adult tournaments ranging in handicap from 0-15 goals at many of the top clubs throughout the country, Radley Polo will undoubtedly return next year with even stronger force than it has done this year.

Max Rumsey, f

THE RADLEIAN SPORTS SUPPLEMENT

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RACKETS This year the captaincy was shared by Mungo Fawcett and Rory Hanna. Both boys had been playing rugby for their first four years at Radley. This year they had decided to focus on rackets. They had a tough season results wise, mainly due to the fact they had not played anywhere near as much as their fellow competitors. That said their natural talent for the game helped them through against the weaker opposition and, to be fair, even against the stronger ones they held their own.

Second pair, however, fared much better.

Felix White, Jack Foreman, Harry Meek, and Luke Stalder all played their part in achieving some very good wins over the season. Marlborough away and Wellington away being just two of the many. Sadly throughout the season Felix White and Harry Meek sustained long-term injuries so didn’t feature much in the latter stages. Now recovered we look forward to them getting back on court in September.

At Colts level we have four very talented and competitive players: Freddie White, Ollie Martyn-Hemphill, Tom Eden, and Seb Hill. The most impressive of wins were those of Freddie and Ollie against Malvern, Haileybury and Tonbridge.

They won 3-0 in all three matches, two of them being away from home, and looked very good in the process.

The win at Malvern was a particularly good one, as the court is tricky and their opposition were big hitting players. Tom

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Coaches: MV Hubbard, KM Wills Stovold Captain: JO Foreman

Eden played several matches too with Freddie, and their match away at Clifton was one of the highest standard. In the end our boys won 3-2 but it went on for a long time and was one of those matches that could have gone either way.

The Junior Colts pairing of Harry Foreman and Ed Mair never quite got into top gear. They competed strongly in every match they played and had many where they lost 2-3, when they possibly could have won them by the same margin. Half-way through the term Tom Parr joined us again having had some time away. This added to the competition for a place and thus improved the quality of the rackets played. That coupled with the fact this year we have a great number of talented Shells taking up the game has made a really positive impact.

The Shells have been extremely keen this year. We have a really good pool of players to pick from. Harry Purton , Louis Needham, Rory Marshall, Oscar White, and Tom Sweetnam all played matches this term; but there are another five or six that would have played if we could have had more matches. Purton and Marshall had a very good win away at Haileybury, winning 3-1 against a pair who had one very talented player. They played the game very sensibly and it looked like they had been playing rackets for years. Needham and Purton had a very strong game away at Clifton.

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They lost in the end 3-2, but the standard for new boys was very high.

Throughout the term the Shells have come in at every opportunity, even after hours of gruelling rugby practices. They are keen to learn new skills and are very competitive amongst each other. A very encouraging sign for the future of rackets here at Radley.

I must also mention and thank Jack Foreman for all he did during the Michaelmas term when sadly I was off games for a long period. He was excellent in organising practices, tournaments, and generally making sure that the rackets club was ticking over. It was a great help to me and was reassuring to know the club was in safe hands.

And finally I must welcome to the rackets club Kyle Willis-Stovold. He is our new master-in-charge of rackets and will be an excellent addition to the club. He is young, enthusiastic and can play the game too. He has a great rapport with the boys and enjoys getting on court with them as much as he can.

MVH

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ROWING 1ST VIII Having not had the easiest of seasons due to illness and injury, the group of ten or so boys that made up the 1st VIII squad this year dealt with the adverse situation extremely well: forming bonds in the process that will undoubtedly carry through many years to come, past the world of rowing. The 1st VIII season has not been unsuccessful by any stretch of the imagination, winning medals and gaining highly commendable performances over the full range of annual RCBC regattas and heads.

Schools Head Of The River: The 1st VIII produced an excellent performance at the Schools Head on the infamous Tideway. The 2014 finishing result resulted in Radley starting 3rd behind St. Paul’s School and St. Edward’s School, with Eton just behind. The 1st VIII had a tremendous first half to the race, reportedly taking some ten seconds from Eton and catching St. Edwards by Hammersmith Bridge.

Unfortunately the VIII did not quite have the speed to break through the wash of the St. Edwards VIII and consequently Eton gained what

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they had lost in the first half in the second. The VIII produced a gutsy sprint for the line alongside St. Edwards and eventually finished 4th, two seconds behind Eton (3rd) and just over ten seconds behind St. Paul’s (2nd) and Westminster (1st).

This was the first time Westminster School, the event organisers, had won the event outright since the race started in the 1800s.

National Schools Regatta: Saturday: The 1st VIII’s National School’s campaign started with a quick paddle on the lake at Holme Pierrepoint near Nottingham. After a pleasant night at Derby’s finest Jury’s Inn, the VIII returned on Saturday, faced with a 10:00 am time trial.

This time trial was a new edition to Ch8+ in 2014 and in 2015 there was a slight change — the VIII placed last in the time trial would gain entry to the ‘little’ final and would not be given the chance to be crowned National champion. There were nine entries in Championship 8s and the

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Coach: JE Gearing Captain: CRJ Elwes

Radley 1st VIII gained 7th place in the time trial, just over five seconds behind the winners, St. Paul’s. We were subsequently placed in a SemiFinal with Abingdon, Hampton and St. Paul’s, with the first three through to the A Final.

Unfortunately the VIII were not straight on the start line and therefore found themselves down off the start. However, a storming middle 1000m saw them row through Hampton and nearly catch Abingdon by the finish. The final was then contested by Shrewsbury, Westminster, St. Paul’s, Eton, Abingdon and Radley. The VIII had a good start, but at the 1000m mark found themselves trailing behind the pack in 6th. However, they had a good 3rd 500 and overhauled Abingdon and then put in a massive sprint for the line, passing Shrewsbury to gain a very respectably 4th position, only two seconds behind Eton.

Sunday: The 1st VIII squad only managed to field one coxed 4 for the small boats racing on Sunday.

The format of racing was similar to

Saturday, although due to a crosswind, crews were aligned in echelon formation instead of a chevron, favouring lane 6. After a good time trial the 4+ were in lane 6 and would face an established St. Edward’s 4+. The 4+ ended up winning the semi by a comfortable distance. The final soon turned into a two-horse race between Radley and St. Paul’s.

However, having held off a strong middle 1000m from the St. Paul’s crew, the Radley 4+ were able to pull away to victory, giving coach, John Gearing, his first ever National School’s Regatta gold.

Henley Royal Regatta: Wednesday: The VIII came up against George Watson’s College, Scotland, in the first round of the Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup. The VIII had a good start, taking almost half a length off George Watson’s by the end of the island. Then, after an effective step down onto race pace, Radley moved away from their opponents and ended up winning their heat of the Princess Elizabeth with a comfortable distance of c. 5 lengths.

Thursday: Radley faced Shiplake

College in a second heat of the Princess Elizabeth. Shiplake had entered, and won, the Child Beale event for 1st VIIIs at the National School’s regatta so we knew that Thursday was going to be a tougher race. We had not previously raced Shiplake and therefore did not know what they were capable of as a crew.

After another good start, Radley had a few seats by the end of the island, which was stretched out to a length by the Barrier. We then moved out c.

3/4 length of clear water, which is where the VIII remained for the rest of the race.

Friday: Radley’s quarter final was against Boston College, USA, who had beaten Shwanigan Lake School, Canada, the day before and were Canadian national champions.

Radley yet again had another good start, gaining a slight advantage by the end of the island, which was stretched out to just under a length by the barrier. However, unlike the race against Shiplake, Boston did not fall behind as quickly. Although Radley were moving on them slowly, they were hanging on and making it tough for us. Eventually Radley broke contact just before half way and we ended up not needing a sprint finish through the enclosures, winning by 1 1/2 lengths.

Saturday: The semi-final proved to be our toughest race of the regatta so far. It was against St. Paul’s School, who we had not beaten in VIIIs all year. Both schools had good starts and St. Paul’s had the advantage out of the island. They then extended that lead on Radley through the Barrier, stretching out to a length.

Throughout the race they carried on moving on the Radley 1st VIII, despite several strong pushes to try and overhaul the leaders, eventually winning the race by two lengths.

Congratulations to the St. Paul’s crew who went on to win the event outright.

I would just like to commend the rest of the crews throughout the Boat Club who have produced some outstanding performances and personal achievements. Also, a big thank you to all of the coaches, and to Andy Thomas and Ray Underwood who are vital to the smooth running of the boathouse and boats.

Charlie Elwes, j

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ROWING 2ND VIII Going into this season, the 2nd VIII had much to look forward to: this year’s senior squad had some of the highest numbers that RCBC had seen in a while.

We were full of hopes for the coming season and wanted to do what other 2nd VIIIs at Radley had failed to do.

This began with our winter training; as we had mixed eights for so long this year, we were being coached at the same level as the 1st VIII for the first half of Lent Term, with a difficult training programme of land training and the weights room in the early hours. This really gave us a solid base to move off from after half term, and with some brilliant 5,000 metre ergo times, we were eager to see how we were matched against other crew from varying schools.

This opened with Head of the Trent, where we had a slightly disappointing result from the difficult cross winds.

But we gave it our all and then headed back to Radley to get some more water training done on the river. This where I feel we came together as a crew, as we had 100% commitment and had an objective that we were aiming for not far off.

Up next in the calendar we had Reading and this was far better for us, as we had done some effective water training.

Sadly we did not manage to win a pot, but the performance of the crew put us in high hopes for the pinnacle of the Head racing.

The Schools’ Head of the River Regatta.

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This was what we had been training for during the dark mornings and we were prepared to give it our best shot. The course is the Boat Race backwards and a frightening 6.8km; we had trained for this so we were ready or the challenge.

This was our most exciting race of the season: for as soon as we were past Chiswick Bridge, we were already coming up behind one crew trying to overtake another. With some brilliant coxing from Louis Wood, we were able to get past both without being washed down or put off and he kept us on the racing line.

Coach: CJ Lee Captain: MW Hobhouse

In Italy the crews were dissolved for training in mixed eights as the crews were being looked at again. This involved another 2,000 metre test with Jamie Moir pulling another impressive time: the only member of the Boat Club to improve his time. Training in Italy was intense as there were two water sessions per day with weight sessions mixed in; but the boys showed Spartan endurance and not once complained about the tough regimen.

With this small victory we powered on and managed to overtake three more crews. We had excellent support from Hammersmith Bridge which allowed us to push off and track down the final crew. They had been five lengths ahead but we managed to overtake them with 500 metres to go and finish a fantastic race on a high.

Seat racing for the Second VIII was in pairs, where Luke Bishop showed his true grit by winning all but one seat race. So with the eight finalised, we completed the last two days in the eights, really putting some mileage behind us, trying to use every moment on the glassy water. With the Italy camp finished, we had a few days at home and then returned back to school for the summer terms excited for the races ahead.

This had been an outstanding race, as we finished just below medalling in fourth but also 26th overall, which was the best result a Radley second eight has had in a while. In jubilant spirits and generally happy with the results we finished the Head racing and began training for regatta season.

Sadly, once back at school we had issues with illnesses, this led to the loss of Jamie Moir, our bow-side beast, going up to the 1st VIII and a replacement from the 3rd Eight had to be brought in.

With the loss of two more boys due to injuries in the higher boat, the 2nd VIII had to drop out of Wallingford Regatta.

This started with a 2,000 metres time trial at the end of the Lent term with Jamie Moir and Joshua Bowesman-Jones putting in some impressive times and we were excited for our rowing camp over the Easter holidays in Gavirate, Italy.

Returning from the exeat we prepared for further training but had difficulty with numbers, as the boys had other commitments with exams fast approaching. This meant that for the two weeks leading up to the National Schools Regatta we were training in

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small boats, when it was key for us to be in the eight. Even with this hindrance we had a solid block of training; we managed to finally get the eight together on the taper of the Nationals, but even with this we arrived at Nottingham with hopes for the finals.

first to the 250metre mark, but soon Hampton had taken the lead and we had Abingdon hot on our tails. Before the race we knew that the middle 1,000 metres was our weakest point; even so it was a sad sight to see both crews slowly creeping ahead of us.

The top three would go through to the final and we were keen to go at them.

The race started superbly as we were

Entering the last 500 metres we made a heroic push, but it was not quite enough and we finished three seats behind

ROWING J15 There were some fine wins this year for 15-1, with pots for the VIII at Kingston Head, Bedford Regatta, and a day of dominance for the top IV at Marlow Town; but on the big days the former magic of last year’s J14 year eluded us, and without key man Paddy Langdale out due to injury, at National Schools we had to settle for fourth place in both the eight on

Abingdon. A slightly disappointing end to the season, but I feel that we proved so much through the season and with the majority of the crew hoping to return next year, the Second VIII has a good future ahead of it.

Max Hobhouse, f

Coach: AJ McChesney

the Saturday and the quad on the Sunday.

Much has gone well this year though, with a determined group of boys training hard, working on strength and conditioning in the mornings before school and producing some outstanding times on the ergometers.

So as long as all the twenty boys in

the squad can see that this has been a year of ‘work in progress’, then I think we shall see even stronger performances in the Colts, as much of the groundwork has already been laid, thanks to the expert coaching of Bill Barry and Doctors Rhodes and Borthwick.

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AJM

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ROWING J14 1 For the past two years the success of Radley J14 sculling has had its roots in the September sculling programme. In the first seven weeks of the Michaelmas Term, on a Tuesday and Thursday a minibus leaves for the river at 4.30pm straight after rugby, allowing any Shell boy the chance to try out single sculling.

This year the activity was made even more popular by the introduction of a new award: Sculling Socks. To win a pair of these boys have to complete a successful trip up to Sandford Lock and back in a single scull. By the time this year’s autumn sculling drew to a close, with the nights fast drawing in, we had awarded over twenty pairs and had developed a considerable pool of talent from which to build

Radley’s octuples. The construction process is a long one and it often takes time to develop combinations when putting crews together.

Whilst it was a little disappointing to finish fifth in the National winter sculling head at Eton in March, we knew that the best was yet to come and pressed on towards National Schools in May. By the time the BASHER spring regatta came in April we were right up in contention with the best and looking good for some success in the big regattas coming up.

The combination and order was settled two weeks before National Schools and Putney Town Regatta marked the beginning of a winning streak with wins in the octuple

ROWING J14 2 J142 experienced an unlucky season.

Having done well at BASHER, where we beat a J15 Eton crew, we were put in the 1st boat division at Bedford Regatta. Unfortunately we were seeded against the eventual winners of the regatta, St Paul’s 1st boat, in the first round. We rowed well, but were beaten by a length.

We travelled up to Nottingham on Thursday and prepared for Friday’s races. We came third in the time trial, behind Hampton and St Paul’s. We rowed well in the semi-final, winning it by 1½ lengths, Ed Pascall leading as a great stroke. The Final was a closerun game; St Paul’s edging us out by a canvas.

The following weekend was Putney Town regatta, where the octuple had been divided into an A and a B quad. The A quad was hit by waves in the first race, while racing Tideway Sculling School. Having won their first round, the B quad was also beaten in the final by Tideway.

Following on from the National Schools Regatta, we went to Bedford Star Regatta. However it turned out to be another short day for the crew, as we lost to the Norwich 1st boat.

However, the race underlined the improvement of Ned Rae Smith, who had progressed greatly on both the ergo and in the boat in recent weeks.

The next event was the biggest one in the season, the National Schools Regatta. Having been unlucky in the previous two regattas, the J14 2 crew was desperate for success.

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The following week, four of J14 2 rowed in an octuplet, with four of J14 1, in a combined crew for the Marlow Town regatta. We won the regatta.

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Coach: AJ & A McChesney

and also the doubles events. The highlight of the season was just a week away and with the boys in good spirits, with winning ways established, they went on to take the gold at National Schools Regatta at Nottingham with St Paul’s just a canvas behind in second.

This year’s National Champions in J14 Octuples were (from bow to stern): Dominic Woolf, Jack O’ Hara, Jamie Walker, William Redley, Luke Miles, William Nelson, Henry Williams, Theo Metcalf and cox, Matthew Dawson. The crew was the first Radley octuple to win this event at National Schools since 1997 and the boys owe much to their coach, Annabel Eyres.

Coach: AJ & A McChesney

After this regatta, came the final one of the season, BASHER II. Ned Rae Smith had been deservedly moved up to the first boat and had rowed at Marlow regatta the previous day.

A poor time trial let us down at Eton Dorney and we were punished for our mistakes as, despite winning one and drawing the other of our multi-lane races, we were second in our category, losing by less than a second on the average of our three times.

This capped a season where we had rowed well, but had been on the unfortunate side of results. Despite this, some promising talent came through towards the end of the season: with Archie George and Elian Rosswag promising a strong future for the Boat Club.

Xavier Coughlan, k

REAL TENNIS The sport of Kings continues from strength to strength at Radley. 19 fixtures, an ever increasing numbers of players and a club atmosphere second to none. It is great to see boys of all levels playing, improving and enjoying the game.

Shells Will Barker and Hugo Carr led the way, winning most of their matches, training and putting in the hard work even despite playing rugby and hockey to a high level. They have been showing the way for other players such as George Redmayne, Milo Daly and George Egerton-Warburton who have formed a great double partnership and look very promising for the future. Oscar White has done little more than dip his toe into the game thus far, but has the ability to make an impact, if he is prepared to match the commitment of the others.

Will Barker and Hugo Carr’s performance in the U14 National Schools doubles at Oratory was a beauty to watch, reaching the semi-final and giving the eventual winners a more than decent game. They played many a short penetrating shot with pace into their opponent’s corners to win those crucial points to be allowed onto the podium.

The top Remove pair of Ben Yorston & Ned Gordon have had a solid season playing against some tough opponents but still managing to get those ‘Ws’– their win against Henry Brind & John Steeds from Hardwick 6/3 was a cracker.

Playing an age-group high, they came an impressive 3rd in the Colts National Schools Championships. All bodes well for the future. Ben Yorston especially should be pushing for a spot in the top senior pairs next season. Ben Broughton, Tom Novis and Jonty Barlow also played matches (notably the new National Junior league, as did Benedict and Ned) with real promise.

Master In Charge: AMM Hakimi Captain: CPH Stevens

them for when the time came, they got the job done (winning the final 8/5 from 2/5 down) and brought the silver home.

These two players have great natural talent, playing many other rackets sports to a high level. However if they have ambitions of lowering their handicaps and making it into the top pairs next year they will need to cut out their wristy squash-like shots and remember the solid ball is made out of cloth not rubber.

The seniors have proved a very strong group this year with Charlie Stevens, Leo Boddington, Henry Batstone, Charlie Seddon, Harry Meek and Felix White all with handicaps of under 50. They have lost very few this year. Matches against Oxford University II, Queens’ Club, Dedanists, Jesters, Hardwick, Radley Seniors, Clifton and Canford were all negotiated with spirit, traditional sportsmanship and plenty of success.

Several others have played in a match or two, including the evergreen Will Dodd, Ed Gordon, Olly Smith, Leo Lawton and Ben Mills. Olly and Ed should certainly be aiming to press the higher echelons next season.

Harry Meek has only just started to play regularly this year but has picked the game up remarkably quickly. The senior squad next year threatens to be very strong in depth, and with Felix White back to full fitness (as captain) there is every prospect of success in the Nationals. Both Felix and Benedict Yorston, have proved their credentials by reaching the finals of their respective age-groups in the GB junior doubles, and continuing to be

part of the GB junior squad, while Felix also won the B grade Invitation Schools singles event at Radley in December, beating an experienced Cliftonian.

The National Schools doubles at Queens’ was a highlight, though we were hampered by the loss of Felix White from the first pair and Harry Meek from the second due to injury, The final 5th place in a very strong year was achieved by a much improved Charlie Stevens and Henry Boddington with some credit (beating Eton II in the decisive match).

The scratch pair of Charlie Seddon and Leo Boddington played with real heart but had to be content with 9th place.

We wish Charles Stevens good luck with his future playing career and thank him for his hard work as captain of Tennis. We are saying good bye to a noble, loyal and professional member of the club and look forward to playing him as an OR. The club would like to thank AMHH, MFD and professionals Chris Ronaldson and Mark Eadle for all their time, help and encouragement over the past season. The boys benefit greatly from their energy and organisational skills that make the club what it is – it is much appreciated.

Felix White, g Congratulations should also go to recent OR Ben Boddington (left 2013) who Captains the GB U25 team to Australia in June 2015 MFD

Colts Freddie White and Olly MartynHemphill started their season very nicely against two challenging pairs from Canford who posed a threat in the National Schools Championships.

However they did not let this unsettle

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RUGBY 1ST XV P11, W2, L9 As was noted that ‘the most controversial notice ever to appear at Radley’ was posted outside School by Warden Selwyn in 1914. It simply read: ‘Rugger will be played next season’. One hundred years later, the 2014 playing squad had the privilege of representing the College in the Centenary season.

Throughout our preparations for the Centenary season, which included a six match extensive tour of Australia’s east coast, it was difficult to escape the sense of history. The date 1914, the official start date of rugby being played at Radley, resonates for the obvious fact that it was also the beginning of The Great War. Indeed, the 1914 1st XV, captained by Richard Bucknall, were to lose seven boys in the War, along with the two dons who coached the team.

It made for an emotionally charged season and although the final results may not have reflected the effort expended, one could not lose sight of the fact that a sense of history was felt in wearing the 1st XV shirt. The shirt had remained relatively unchanged throughout the past one hundred years, aside from the addition of some white strips, but we reverted to the original design of 12 white stripes; it made for an even stronger connection between the generation of players who had worn the red and white striped shirt.

The original serpent emblem was embroidered onto the shorts and it was

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only appropriate that it was on display, alongside the modern day version that adorned the left breast of the jersey.

It was fitting we played Sherborne on the opening day of the season, because matches between the two schools date back to Radley’s inaugural season in 1914, although a hard November frost led to its cancellation. The September 2014 fixture was a great celebration of rugby as we played all 20 matches at home, as well as in front of the R.F.U. President, Mr Bob Reeves. The two schools challenged for The Centenary Cup, a gift from the Old Radleian Society, the winner being the school that won the highest number of matches on the day; the Cup was awarded to Radley, who won 12 of the 20 matches. Sadly, despite a fiercely-fought fixture the 1st XV lost 7-26 to the strong Dorset team. It was a lively opening from Radley, who didn’t allow the magnitude of the occasion to overwhelm the players. Harry Ryan had the privilege of being appointed the 1st XV captain and it was Ryan’s constant energetic leadership, a dominant feature throughout a testing season, which drove on his teammates. A brave and committed player, Ryan’s excellent feet and balanced running were put to good use off the base of the scrum. The squad was notable for a relatively small set of forwards who made up for their lack of collective physical presence with a ferocious commitment. 1st XV rugby has become a physically demanding

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Coach: RMC Greed & TC Jackson Captain: HJ Ryan

playing environment and, although we were technically excellent, we did struggle when matches became an ‘arm-wrestle’.

The sheer weight of opposition scrums made it difficult for us to absorb the engagement and, as a result, Ryan was often forced to carry ball off a moving platform. His dynamic ball carrying, allied to his dexterity of skill, was remarkable and Harry always performed with great bravery as he charged from the front. It was a heroic performance from him against Sherborne, but it was Ed Christie, in support of Jasper Leadbeater’s weaving run, who took the pop pass to crash over the line after nine minutes to notch the first try of the Centenary season. Alex Bruce nudged the conversion and we led 7-0.

Christie, who had cut his teeth in the XV the previous season, had matured into an elusive runner and ran beautiful lines. He had also hardened his defence and was adept at quickly positioning to make his tackles – in all, he was a clever player who maintained a fine consistency of performance throughout the season. Sherborne fought back to lead 7-12 at half-time but the physicality wore us down and two scores in the last seven minutes saw them run out 7-26 winners.

Christie had formed a strong understanding with his midfield partner Ed Loftus, the Vice-Captain. Loftus was a formidable inside centre and, like Ryan, was a returning Full Colour.

Loftus, a large powerful young man, was much more than a hard running inside centre. He could drift beautifully on a weighted wide pass and had quick feet to avoid the congested areas. His wide arching runs caused defences trouble throughout the season and he was deceptively quick for such a towering presence. Like Ryan, Loftus brought a reassurance to the players around him.

It was also pleasing to see Milo Allsopp make an impact off the bench at prop, prior to having to take a rest from the game due an impending operation. Mr Chris White, who has officiated in 50

test matches and at three World Cups, was the match referee and did much to orchestrate a highly entertaining contest.

The following weekend we not only hosted St Paul’s but also various generations of ORs, which again generated a grand occasion for players to experience, not to mention an extra degree of pressure to perform. After an OR past greats played a curtain raiser on Bigside, we faced a tight encounter with our guests from West London.

An aggressive defensive performance was crucial in our victory and it was a pressure following an offensive tackle that led to Rupert Elmhirst picking up the spilled ball and popping to Richard West, who scooted into the corner.

Elmhirst is a talented winger who can run aggressively and with balance, and he will undoubtedly feature more frequently next season. West, at 9, was challenging another very fine player for the spot in the team and it was pleasing he had an opportunity in the second match to stake a claim for the shirt; he took his try very well. MacDara Fahy, making his debut at lock, lasted only a few minutes due to a shoulder injury.

He is a tough and uncompromising player, qualities that we needed as a team. His injury was a blow but we were delighted he recovered fitness in time to make a significant contribution to the second half of the season. Our fine defensive play was rewarded with three kickable penalties and Bruce, at fly half, made no mistake in taking the chances. Bruce was settling into the role of playmaker and he made impressive progress in a short time span. He has excellent distribution skills and worked effectively with his centres, whom he had no problems bringing into the game. He is also a fine striker of the ball, who remains calm under pressure.

It was most satisfying to see him evolve his game throughout the season and he should be proud of his progress, although injury cut short his number of appearances. The Radley team thoroughly deserved the 14-11 win.

Radleians enjoy the encounter with Eton and it often brings out the best in them. However, it certainly wasn’t the case in the opening 12 minutes of this game, when we leaked two relatively

straightforward tries before we could regroup at half-time 10-0 down. Max Waters, who is best suited to blindside, made his presence felt by blasting over from 10 metres out to pull us back into the match just after the turn. Waters is an honest grafting and tough player. He is unaffected by pressure and his quiet determination was a feature in every one of his performances. He competes hard and is unafraid in the heat of battle – in that respect, he was a true warrior on the pitch and a true players’ player. He worked well alongside Ryan, as did Tom Oliver, another competitor whose boundless energy never ceased to amaze his teammates. He enjoyed the battle and despite the competition from bigger opposition, neither Waters nor Oliver shirked from the challenge.

Oliver has another season and will prove a key member of the team, both in terms of leadership and effectiveness on the pitch.

Both Eton and Radley squandered opportunities and a late score from tighthead Charlie Barber, from close range, was not enough to save us from a 17-10 defeat. Barber is an honest player who is passionate about the game – he is a terrifically hard-working prop, who enjoys the grafting aspect of his role and is more comfortable in the dark recesses of the field rather than the wide-open spaces. He has an excellent tackle count and is a player who wins respect from his peers for his good old-fashioned toil on a Saturday afternoon. He is also developing into a fine technical front-row forward. Jeremy Elmhirst, playing with his brother

Rupert, was another with immense potential. He is a dynamic and abrasive player who would have preferred to have played in the backrow. However, he had the physical qualities to play at lock and on his day he could be a major force, for he is a talented sportsman.

He is difficult to stop on the charge and we tried to get the ball into his hands as often as possible. He was a strong scrummager and we valued his contribution when he was fired up. The Eton match also saw replacement Will Greed stepping onto the pitch to make his debut at hooker and he happily threw himself into the affray with his robust approach to the game.

When you have lost three of your opening four matches, an away trip to a wet Tonbridge can appear even more testing than usual. For one brief moment, with ten minutes to play, you just started to believe that it was going to be one of those memorable days.

We had battled heroically for over an hour and defended valiantly against a talented and physically powerful opposition. Tonbridge struggled with the ball in the air, along with our accurate kick-chase game, in the foul conditions and we sat in a winning position at 0-3, with just those few minutes to play. Jack Harland, who was making his second appearance at 10 following Bruce’s injury, had slotted a beautifully struck penalty in the 28th minute of the game.

The team had been immense in executing a carefully crafted game plan to suit the weather conditions.

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The forwards, who were arguably the lightest-weight pack Radley has fielded in the last 20 years, scrapped for every ball and every yard; it was something they did every game, week after week.

Jamie Adams was another hardworking and grafting backrow forward who demanded the best of himself in every match. Adams, who played in every backrow position, as well as lock, tackled relentlessly. His calm poise and whole-hearted attitude was a vital ingredient in keeping up the morale of the team. Another player who always delivered at the top of his game was hooker Ollie Horridge. Horridge made up for what he lacked in bulk with the size of his heart, and he charged around the field with the agility of an outside back. He worked hard at the breakdown, ran intelligent supporting

lines and kept his focus at the lineout.

He was a true competitor who enjoyed the challenge. Will Targett-Parker, our mobile loosehead, had returned for the season with the ambition to play on the wing. He was certainly built to play in the backs but was a fierce scrummager at the set-piece. TargettParker was technically precise and we greatly valued his work-rate around the paddock. Although our forwards lacked bulk, we did have the advantage of speed, but we suffered with being unable to get ourselves on to the front foot to establish the all-important ‘go forward’. Despite the position we found ourselves against Tonbridge, the physical attritional play of the opposition eventually broke us down, with Tonbridge just getting across the line to win 12-3. It was a Radley

performance of which to be proud.

I think we would all agree that the opening half against Abingdon are the 40 minutes of the season we would want to forget. We couldn’t get on the ball or even keep the ball when we had it. We were 0-28 down after 30 minutes and but we sneaked a vital score just before the whistle for the break. Archie Wilson, who had returned from injury the previous week, was playing in his favorite position of fullback. Wilson is blessed with great speed and had developed into a top quality rugby player. He had been frustrated with past injuries and was energised for the local derby match. Wilson had something special and he could turn a match in a moment; he was also the type of player who gave others confidence and you were just delighted he was on your side and not the opposition’s.

From a scrum under their posts, Charlie Saunders made one of trademark breaks from 9, and drew in the fullback before slipping a pass to Wilson who had picked an exquisite line, to make it 7-28. In the second half, momentum swung our way as Wilson was simply on fire. Some deft work in the midfield from Loftus and Christie brought in Wilson, who deftly off-loaded to Christie to score under the post. A few minutes later, Loftus weighted a delightful ball into the path of the red-hot Wilson, who effortlessly slipped through the Abingdon defence. From a driving maul, a tactic which the forwards had succinctly perfected, captain Ryan emerged and sprinted to the line to make it 26-28 with 7 minutes to play.

It was now down to who could hold their nerve and the game sat on a knifeedge until the gut-wrenching feeling of seeing the opposition kick a penalty and hold on to win 26-31. Every defeat hurts but we paid the price for a shabby opening 30 minutes. Wilson was quite simply brilliant but his concussion would mean it was his last game of rugby; if it’s of some consolation, it was one great personal performance for him to go out on. Richie Horton made his starting debut in the game and it was pleasing to see him charge around the field and make a seamless transition from the 2nd XV – I have no doubt he will feature more prominently

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next season. Horton partnered the athletic Oscar Perry, another talented young player, who is developing and honing his skills. Perry had grown in confidence and it was pleasing to see him starting to dominate the aerial duel at the lineout. His physical game was also developing, especially at the scrummage, and he is another who has much to offer the sport.

The season was rolling on and you are desperate to get back on the winning trail. Cheltenham, at Radley, was the next challenge and Saunders, our scrumhalf made one of his sneaky breaks at the ruck and darted into the corner. Saunders was a joy to coach. He listened, absorbed and worked hard at honing his skills. Both his passing and his box kicking had significantly improved through hours of practice – there are no short cuts on the path of success. He would often be the first out to training and the last to leave and he was rewarded with a high consistency in his performances. He was also a ferocious tackler and it was not easy for him playing behind a pack that lacked the physical stature and presence of their opposition. But, like his forwards, he battled for every yard and he was very much at the heart of the team. He was also challenged by the talented West and we were fortunate to have two quality nines. Alex Henson, an immensely strong young man, was a powerful set-piece expert. Although he was not necessarily technically precise, what he lacked in finesse he made up for in brute force. As you would expect, he was a strong ball carrier and someone who could do the hard yards; one certainly admired his no nonsense approach to the game and one appreciated his quiet contribution.

Jasper Leadbeater, on the wing, continue to also go quietly about his game. He is a much-underrated player who has the knack of just doing the right thing at the right moment. He was an elusive runner and brave defender. He always seemed to beat the first defender and have awareness about the location of his supporting players. He made a lovely break against Cheltenham, before off-loading to the ever-present Oliver, who in-turn beat three players before popping to Waters, for what was an outstanding team score.

Targett-Parker had earlier crashed over from a metre and a Christie aggressive run made the line for our fourth try - the game sat at 27-27, each as we moved into the dying moments. We need a hard team chase on a restart but gaps opened up and the opposition broke free. It was an excruciatingly painful 27-34 loss.

area. Often, it is about having your best players on the pitch and Henderson’s versatility led to his selection on the wing. He equipped himself very well but picked up a leg injury in the Sherborne game. Everyone was pleased to have him back in the team although I expect him to be making his mark as an openside next season.

An organised and effective Oundle side was a testing encounter and we spent much of the time on the back foot. 10-3 at the turn was not a bad position to be in and achieving the first score in the second half was an absolute key objective. Sadly, it was not to be and, valiantly as we battled, we lost the match 24-3. Alex McGrigor was a warrior at fullback and a player who would never yield a yard. His competiveness was a motivating factor to others, as was his willingness to keep playing, whatever the score. McGrigor had wonderful feet and would always beat the first man. He had excellent game sense and would attack space and link with players. We do need to work on his kicking game, although his deft kick in the previous game had led to Waters’ try. He was also a ferocious defender who would hurl himself into tackles, which is a reassuring quality in your fullback. It was also pleasing to welcome back the talented and athletic Olly Henderson. Henderson is a very fine sportsman and a dynamic rugby player. He is blessed with a turn of speed as well as a nose for the ball.

It became apparent on the pre-season Australian tour that the backrow was going to be a competitive selection

It does become difficult, mentally for the players, when matches slip from your grasp but the only option you have is to continue to battle on for success. Marlborough was a game we simply had to win and we were not worried about entertaining spectators in the process. A grey and damp day in Wiltshire was not going to help with flowing rugby, but it had a tense competitive aura from two teams desperate for victory. It was always going to be a tight game and we found ourselves trailing 10-3 at half time. It pays to have bright players who understand the laws and an undefended Marlborough post saw the quick thinking Saunders pick up the ruck ball and dot it on the base of the post, as the law entitles you to do so. Charlie Le Grice had made the switch from wing to centre, replacing the injured Christie, and it was a more natural position for him. He has pace and good feet, and has been working on his ability to link with others. He is a player with immense potential and the following season could see him fully mature – he is an exciting prospect.

Likewise, Harri Guy was another player who had worked himself up through the rankings and gave an impressive

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account of himself in his tight play as well as the contact area; one senses he will have a major part to play in the next season.

and chased the game only to go down 17-21. Despite the pain of losing, the inner belief still burnt brightly as we faced our final opponents in Harrow.

Bruce picked up an injury and had been replaced by Harland, who had taken considerable time to join the fray from the distant 2nd XV pitch.

Harland has significantly polished up his skills since the previous season and it was wonderful to see him have an opportunity in the 1st XV. He is a fine passer and had a clear understanding of how we were trying to play the game – indeed, Australia had been a positive playing experience for him. He is a strong runner and, given space, he is difficult to stop. As we moved into the final 10 minutes, with the match poised at 10-10, Harland was given the chance to put Radley into lead for the first time during the match. He struck the ball cleanly and it sailed between the posts. We have had problems hanging onto a lead but not on this occasion.

It was a mixture of joy and relief to end a two months drought but victory required belief and a strong nerve; it demonstrated the resilience of this group of players, not to mention the quality leadership of Ryan and Loftus.

Harrow were back to full strength and got away quickly, being 0-12 up after nine minutes. Saunders, yet again burrowing over from short range, pulled us back into the game but it was tired bodies and legs fighting for victory.

Replacements arrived in the shape of Greed and Henson and it was Barber who scored in the final few minutes after some excellent approach work from the forwards, who gave away a significant weight advantage to the opposition. Archie Sparks made a last minute appearance and it was pleasing to see Milo Morgan given an opportunity in the unfamiliar role on the right wing; he certainly knew only one way to run.

The free-running Bedford, a team with bulk and pace, was another arm wrestle of a match. Loftus was quite exceptional in his personal performance and it was a pleasure to see him play with such confidence. He ran his favorite arcing runs and his power and pace tested the opposition defence. His brace of tries were a tribute to his endeavors, but it left us seven points short and we fell short at 14-21. In the following match, Loftus’ partner against St. Edward’s was the powerful George Bolitho and he showed he was a handful in attack with his barging runs. He is another who should be making an impact next season and it was good to see him gaining some valuable experience along Loftus. Anything the ViceCaptain could do was clearly going to be challenged by the Captain. Ryan’s form had been excellently consistent throughout the season and his two tries were from driving mauls, although the first did see him sprint from 20m out to dot down his first. Sadly, we let our grip slip in the middle part of the game

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If you statistically analyse the 1st XV centenary, the picture it paints will mislead you. The 1st XV lacked any true team physical presence and, with many players having to play out of position, it tested the depth of the squad. Defeats can sap confidence and eat away at the bonds and values that bind together the team. It was the resilient young men who battled every week, both in matches and training, which was the success of the season and it will remain memorable for those reasons.

There was great excitement at Radley about our Centenary season and it was an honour to find myself leading the club at that moment in time. The club is founded upon a dedicated, enthusiastic and loyal Common Room who enables the College to field 23 teams.

Furthermore, a wide range of support staff ensures the club runs efficiently and effectively – I’m exceptionally grateful to my many colleagues for their dedication, in a variety of areas, which provides an opportunity for over 400 Radley boys, each year, to enjoy their rugby.

Mr Tony Jackson was an inspiration to have alongside me on the touchline, both for his technical knowledge, as well as his driving energy throughout the season. Mr Simon Dalrymple, the 2nd XV coach, was also a strong source

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of positive inspiration and a voice of calm reason in the emotional arena of Bigside Rugby. Finally, I would like to express my gratitude to Harry Ryan for his strong leadership as Captain and someone who remained a positive force throughout a testing season. Thanks also to Ed Loftus, the Vice-Captain, who led the side on three occasions and who never feared to put his body on the line for the team.

The Centenary season had us reflecting on the past greats who have worn the shirt and I have received much correspondence from former players reflecting upon their memories. Part of one letter should be shared as it captures the essence of what it’s like to have played for Radley College R.U.F.C.: “What fantastic memories I still have of my time in the fifteen. Certainly the highlight of my five years at school and a period of my life that I shall always recall with immense fondness and pride. I still have the shirt and can’t help but raise a smile every time I see it winking at me from within the sports drawer. It’s not often that I look to turn back the clock, but if I did, I’m pretty sure I’d opt for being eighteen again and out on the park with the guys. I hope that the current crop of players enjoy every minute because it’s a certainty that they’ll miss it when it’s gone”.

RMCG

RUGBY 2ND XV P 11, W 9, L 2 The following boys represented the 2nd XV during the 2015 season: J.C. Harland (capt), J.W.D.Mathewson (vc), W.M.R.Greed, M.J.M.Allsopp, C.R.G.White, R.J.W.Elmhirst, M.H.E.Morgan, R.H.Milne, A.T.A.Sparks, G.A.Bolitho, C.R.Horton, F.H.P.de Vere Hunt, W.L.Hazell, C.H.J.Craven, B.W.O.Bowman, C.P.Betton, C.R.D.Elmhirst, M.N.McGrigor, H.O.M.Guy, R.C.West, E.J.F.Sayer, W.A.S.Targett-Parker, G.F.V.Hervey, C.M.LeGrice, J.P.W.Leadbeater.

After some bruising encounters ‘Down Under’ the 2nd XV season proper got underway in glorious sunshine playing in the second tranche of games on Bigside as the school celebrated 100 years of rugby. The boys were clearly inspired by the occasion, as a decent Sherborne side were put to the sword with a confident display of running rugby. This game was remarkable for the second half display of Rupert Milne, who came off the bench to score two tries, including one of the scores of the season, as the ball passed through over ten pairs of hands directly from the kick off before Rupert surged through a gap, tumbled to the floor for no real reason and then regained his feet and just made it to the line. Rupert belied his slight frame to become one of the first names on the team sheet and won a string of Man of the Match awards for his tireless work at the breakdown and his intelligent support play. A 39-5 victory was a great start to the season and a number of players were promoted to the 1st XV on the back of their performances.

There followed a much tenser affair against a physical and very athletic St Paul’s side. The free-flowing rugby of the previous week was a distant memory as two close range tries and a penalty from captain Harland saw us home in a tight encounter. This was the first sign that the 2014 2nd XV was able to adapt and find different

Coach: SHD Captain: JC Harland

ways to win games. This adaptability was in evidence in the Eton game as Milo Morgan stepped onto the right wing having previously played for the school as a prop and in the back row.

This conversion was to last for the rest of the season and Milo’s willingness to learn a new position and his ability to terrify opposition wingers with the Maori sidestep were rewarded with a Bigside cap later in the year. A closely fought first half saw Radley gradually gain dominance up front and a more disciplined showing in the second half (almost capped by a 60m score from the galloping James Mathewson) allowed us to run out victors by 29 points to 7.

After a brief break for Michaelmas weekend the 2nd XV travelled to Tonbridge knowing it would be a stern test. A slightly shambolic warm up and near horizontal rain conspired to rid the group of their usual composure and the game was frenetic. Both sides made a hatful of handling errors, due in large part to the conditions and it became clear that the match would be decided by small margins. A couple of balls bounced in Tonbridge’s favour and a 7-12 defeat was a tough pill to swallow. Whether this affected the performance the following week against Abingdon is anyone’s guess but it was the one occasion this side were outworked. A 12-8 defeat capped a disappointing week for the group and it was clear that a response was required against a talented Cheltenham side. Here the boys showed that they had come to appreciate that there are many ways to win a rugby game and also unveiled a new ruthless streak. The Cheltenham left winger clearly did not enjoy the combination of a well-directed box kick and a flying Milo Morgan arriving at the same time and the tactic reaped rewards. It was a pleasure to see the emergence of some nous and the second half of the season was typified by a growing rugby awareness as the side found a way to pose the opposition problems and exploited

any weaknesses. A much needed 24-0 victory saw confidence restored and meant that the game against Oundle could be attacked with real confidence as the boys were well-rested after Leave Away.

Oundle were unbeaten and battlehardened, having come through a number of tight matches. Everything pointed to a very tight encounter so what followed caught most people by surprise. It was undoubtedly the performance of the season. A very talented backline of West, Harland, LeGrice, Bowman, McGrigor M, Elmhirst and Morgan enjoyed a steady stream of good possession and turned on the style. Some of the rugby played was truly exceptional and one try scored from inside our own half off first phase possession was a real gem. The first six tries were scored by different members of the back line and when Richard West crossed for the final score, all seven of the piano players had crossed the whitewash.

If the team did not quite reach those dizzy heights again, they did develop a real steel and won away at Marlborough against tenacious

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of the season. The back three, namely Messers Morgan, de Vere Hunt, White, Maxim McGrigor and Elmhirst, shared over twenty tries across the season which shows the ambition with which the boys attacked.

opposition, in filthy conditions and despite considerable disruption, as George Hervey once again stepped in at fly half and produced a really assured performance, Milo Morgan returned to the front row from the wing for scrums and Maxim McGrigor was inspired in the centre. There followed a very impressive win over a big Bedford side and a relatively comfortable victory against St Edward’s, where special mention has to go to the half back pairing of Ed Sayer and Archie Sparks who filled in at 9 to real effect. I don’t think that Archie would have predicted running out at scrum half at the start of the year, but this performance showed the character of a side where individuals were willing to step out of their comfort zone to serve the needs of the team.

This brought us to the final weekend of the season and a tough test against Harrow who, although unpredictable, are always extremely athletic and brimming with potential. Often a couple of early scores can dull the Londoners’ ambition, but on this occasion it was the Radley side that switched off, having taken a 14-0 lead. Two tries from the rolling maul that had become a potent attacking weapon were answered by some impressive running rugby from the visitors and it seemed that the tide had turned in their favour. The next score was important and captain Harland landed a penalty to take us back into the lead and the season was capped off by Rupert Elmhirst scorching through a gap in the Harrow midfield from another lineout. It was nice to

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show that the team could roll up its sleeves and take people on up front but also had the ability to play with ball in hand and score tries out wide.

A 22-14 victory brought the curtain down on a hugely enjoyable season, where a talented and likeable group gelled fantastically well and produced some great rugby. Our success was based on the platform provided by Messers Betton, Greed, Guy, Allsopp, Morgan and Henson at the coal face, along with the aerial prowess of Hazell and Mathewson who developed into the two best lineout forwards on the circuit. A back row that included Sparks, Craven, Horton, Milne and Jeremy Elmhirst combined powerful ball carrying, grunt around the tackle and some lighter touches and provided the essential link between forwards and backs. At half back both Charlie Saunders and Richard West were exceptional at 9 providing contrasting strengths, but both allowing those outside them to express themselves.

Captain Harland and George Hervey, when called upon, gave the team clear direction and real control. They both kick the ball well and also offered a threat with the ball in hand to challenge defences and preserve space in wider channels. In the centre Maxim McGrigor, George Bolitho, Ben Bowman, and Chris White, when called upon, all showed a pleasing mixture of physicality and creativity and we became much more solid defensively as the season progressed. The back three was another area of strength, as Rupert Elmhirst developed his positional skills and started to hit the line with real intent in the second half

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My thanks go to them for their hard work both on the training field and on Saturdays and for making the season so enjoyable. The end of season dinner was a fantastic occasion and it was great to see 6.1 and 6.2 boys mixing completely naturally, because they had escaped the constraints of the Radley hierarchy and become teammates.

Credit has to go to the leaders within the team for creating such a positive environment. RMCG and TCJ also deserve a huge vote of thanks for their hours of wisdom on the training field.

The boys developed a huge amount in three months and the fact they worked so closely with the 1st XV was a huge factor. AJK and his team should also be thanked for the quality of the pitches that we train and play on. Sug 2 became the 2nd XV’s fortress and many schools would be very happy to call it their Bigside, such is the quality of the playing surface.

Finally my thanks go to the parents for their loyal and good-natured support of the team. It meant a huge amount to the boys to be able to celebrate their wins with friends and family and the sight of two Radley mums celebrating a try scored from a rolling maul with real vigour was one of my personal highlights. Here’s to more of the same in 2015.

SHD

RUGBY 3RD XV P9, W 6, L 3 The 3rd XV were an absolute joy to coach. Very ably led by Charlie Bracken, they developed a thoroughly entertaining style of play and finished the season off with a cracking victory over Harrow. There had been a couple of stumbles along the way; Eton were too strong at the start of the season and we were a little soft against Tonbridge a week later. We played with considerable style against Marlborough, but perhaps the driving rain and sloping pitch were not ideal for the fifteen man, off-load game that we were trying to develop. Character was developed with some close wins over Oundle and Bedford.

Master In Charge: DJ Pullen Captain: CWH Bracken

The pack drove forward at every opportunity with Charlie Bracken, Rafe Thornhill, Hugo Adams, Ed Wiggin and Harry Constant providing much of the bulk and power up front. Alexander Anderson and Milo Eadie were the tireless warriors in the second row. Charlie Craven, Harry Lloyd, Mark Lambert and Luke Perkins covered metre after metre from the back row.

Due to support to the 2nd XV and injuries, the backs were a less stable group. A number of different combinations at scrum-half and flyhalf were tested from Luke Stalder, Hector Chamberlain, George Hervey, Ed Sayer and Robbie Cockroft; all of them kept the play moving forward

and loved to attack. Will Swift, Perry Beckett, Luke Bishop and James Mills scored a number of tries from the centre with Henry Tregear, Charlie Purton, Charlie Heath and Ollie Gillen-Toon getting involved as much as possibly from the wings and from full-back.

At the end of the season, Harry Lloyd was voted the Players’ Player. Mark Lambert was given the 3rd XV Team Player award – Mark played in every game (as did a couple of others) but having beaten Harrow, two hours later he performed one of the lead roles in the College play.

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DJP

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RUGBY 4TH XV P11, W7, L4 Having so many players in one season is tough if you want to maintain continuity.

Many players went up to the second XV during the course of the season – due to injury or trials.

We had many teams this season, but most of the time we all worked as a single unit, with great passion and flair.

All sixteen players set out to play wide expansive Welsh Rugby (like we do every season in the 4th XV). Yes, sometimes we had to reel in the good intentions when it became a tight contest. Some teams gave us plenty to think about and learn from this season. Sometimes it was a game more about strategy, sometimes it was about being flexible and our ability to react quickly to what was in front of us. However, whenever we had even the slightest chance to be creative with the ball, all sixteen players on the park went for it. It was well worth the gamble to be inventive and led to some great free-flowing Rugby, culminating with Radleians coming off the park with huge grins after thoroughly enjoying the experience.

It was a superb season - forty yard breaks with an extremely graceful running style were common place. Wonderful to be a coach who has players with that ability.

One of the most memorable group of Radleians I have had the privilege of coaching in the last twenty years.

1 Hugo Adams, Skillful in all aspects of forward play - always did the right thing. Very hard to stop. Edward Wiggin, the strongest challenger to an opposition five metre penalty I have ever witnessed…Hamish Wreay, would often miraculously appear in free space from a maul, running with the ball. That is a frightening sight for any opposition.

Kit Morland, a beast of a man when on the rampage. You could visibly see the opposition faces drop when they realised Kit was taking a crash ball.

2 James Mocatta, pin-point accurate

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throw-ins. Frederick Simpson, a winner of the ball and a great player with ball in hand too.

3 Harry Constant, the thinking man’s Raging Bull. Showed great leadership under fire. Christopher James, I have no words to describe his five metre penalty carry… Charlie Saker, part man, part protein shake. Power personified…

Caspar Lumley, a powerhouse.

4 Max Hobhouse, great work rate and tenacious tackler and carrier of the ball.

The engine room of the second row.

Toby Orders, an eye for the ball, resilient and a fighter for the ball. Mark Lambert, head down on the charge very difficult to bring down. So good he moved up…

Alexander Anderson, majestic in the air in the line-out. So good he was taken to play for the 2nds and 3rds…

5 Hugh Scrope, the life and soul of the team. Felix von Simson, strong in the scrum.

6 Luke Perkins, how did he get his hands on the ball – all the time? The Martyn Williams of the team. Who was there when play broke down, or a man needed to pass just before the try line? Punches above his weight… Harry Manners, the last man to stop running – ever.

7 Harry Anwyl-Jones, great flanker, and Welsh. Rafe Thornhill, hard with a nose for the ball. Charles Heath, How fast?

How chunky? So good, he was taken up to play on the Wing.

8 Thor Winkler von Stiernhielm, tough, fearsome, effective. Wonderfully skilled receiver in the line-out. Charlie Bracken, very strong, very hard, almost always made the decision to straighten and run into / through the opposition. So good he was taken up…

9 Luke Stalder, sniping runner through bigger men with no fear. Tristan Kleinwort, scrapper, ball winner. Hector Chamberlain, a Terrier, a commander of the pack.

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Coach: WOC Matthews Captain: NM Fenwick

10 Mungo Fenwick, calm under pressure, team player. Mungo Fawcett, sometimes not calm at all. Great to have on the team, a thinking player. Alexander Hanbury, a great boot on him. Great running lines, read the game extremely well.

11 Jamie Codrington, gone. That fast…

Somto Okereke, a divine hand-off with an eight foot arm at forty miles an hour.

12 Charlie Purton, hard strong runner.

Louis Wood - hard as. Centre.

13 Jamie McCulloch, centre - never miss a tackle. Oliver Moffat, angular - strong runner - wing. Great hand off. James Mills, a massive unit… A beast on the charge.

14 Zam Bradstock, in a straight line – faster than a cheetah. Peregrine Beckett, banter, banter, banter – but invaluable when things got tough. Oliver GillenToon, I would say more about him if it were possible to track with the human eye at that speed?

15 Henry Tregear, Captained incredibly well. Fierce and underestimated by the opposition every time - then he had them. Picked wonderful lines to run.

Robert Cockcroft, Captained incredibly well - just a great ball player. 10, 12, fullback. Centre. Rufus Eyre, put his head where God himself would have resisted.

16 Derick Wreay The most vocal supporter of a team I have ever witnessed. Invaluable. I hope he goes on to play at University level now?

WOCM

RUGBY 5TH XV P9, W8, L1 Team from: Alex Hanbury (Captain), Will Homan, Kit Morland, Nick Bennett, Tom Binks, Caspar Lumley, Henry Rees, Fred Simpson, Tom Weeks, Ben Harbinson, Guy Walker, Hector Chamberlain, Charles Ash, Archie Whitehead, Harry Manners, Harry McGrath, Tristan Kleinwort, Jo Kelly, Chris James, Henry Davies, Charlie Riley, Louis Wood, Jack Rutledge, Rory Neville, Archie Brown, Felix von Simson, Toby Orders, Fergus Brown, Ollie Atkins, Matt Leech, James Sheppard, Will Hsu, Jake Redican, Jamie Cunningham, Charlie Saker, Joe Ellis.

On 13th September 2014, Stonewall embarked on a tremendous campaign, starting, as usual, against Sherborne. It was clear to see that the boys hadn’t played much rugby beforehand, and small errors meant the game ended in a tight 24-14 Radley victory. We started strongly against St Paul’s, quickly scoring three tries, before a resurgence from the opposition meant Radley again won by a small matter of points, with a 28-14 score line.

Coach: TCH Norton Captain: ACJ Hanbury

The first away game of the season was against Eton, and we travelled with an injury-stricken team. A very scrappy game ensued, and a dogged performance from all, led by the relentless Hector Chamberlain at scrum half, allowed us to leave with a 24-14 victory. Undoubtedly the most frustrating game of the season was away at Tonbridge. Bad weather had ruined the pitch, and the handling on both sides suffered. Several dubious (to us) refereeing decisions, including a ‘Stonewall’ try being disallowed, allowed Tonbridge to steal a 5-3 victory, ending any hopes of an unbeaten season.

Everyone was desperate to bounce back, and Abingdon were not prepared for us. The whole team impressed, and the pack, led by our 300kg front row of Casper Lumley, Nick Bennett and Chris James, dominated affairs. Alex Hanbury, the captain, kicked superbly and helped the team ease to a 43-5 victory.

Unfortunately after this match, the team mascot, the Stonewall Owl, was lost. In the next game, Charles Ash helped the team dominate in a 65-0 victory away to an unbeaten Oundle, scoring four tries

from the wing.

Horrible weather and limited enthusiasm from the opposition put a dampener on the game vs Marlborough, with Tom Binks’ quick thinking granting Radley a 37-0 win. An undermanned Bedford were up next, and it soon became a training session for Stonewall, with backs and forwards swapping, in a 49-19 victory.

A stellar performance from Kit Morland at fly half was the highlight. We wanted to end the season in style, and Harrow proved tough opposition. However we out-thought them and imaginative back play from Tristan Kleinwort, Matt Leech, Will Homan and Jojo Kelly gave us an impressive 29-12 win to end an impressive season, during which we were brilliantly led by Mr Norton.

“Who could not conquer with troops such as these?”– General Stonewall Jackson Tom Binks, k

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RUGBY COLTS 1 P10, W3, L7 This year group has not had an easy ride when it comes to their early Radley rugby careers. However, in the previous season they showed steely determination as Junior Colts to win three matches and it was our collective goal to replicate these victories and pick up another scalp or two along the way during this influential season.

Despite everyone’s best efforts, the team only managed to equal the three wins over the season, although the 19-24 defeat to Cheltenham will always haunt the side and coaches as the lowlight of the season and the game that should have delivered that fourth elusive win and undeniable progress, statistically speaking. This was a hugely winnable game, despite key injuries to the side and a golden opportunity missed.

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However, lessons were certainly learnt and this disappointing result seemed to be the catalyst needed to motivate the team to turn their fortunes around with two standout performances after leave away that would provide the major highlights of the season. In addition, the privilege of playing on the hollowed turf of Bigside, is enough motivation any Radleian needs to give their all to the cause. A much needed win (22-14) against Oundle was swiftly followed by another nail-biting victory against Marlborough, when cool heads prevailed and Charlie Davies kicked a penalty from 40 metres out to seal a last minute (2019) win.

Two much-needed morale boosting performances led to an inspired first half defensive display against a strong Bedford side, before inevitable defeat, which then led onto an

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Coaches: SJA Perkins / JM Sparks Captain: BRC Collins

important third victory against St Edward’s 20-14 the following week.

An impressive month of rugby and set of results that demonstrated the team’s potential when the set piece, attacking play and defensive structure were all firing on full cylinders. Unfortunately, during the first half of the season, there were too many occasions when one facet of our play would let us down and relieve the opposition of any pressure built or territory gained at pivotal moments in the early matches.

Throughout the season, the squad demonstrated exceptional character and always maintained a positive and progressive mindset during training sessions, which is a huge testament to them as a group.

Many lesser individuals would have crumbled under the early disappointments, but the team

was superbly led by Ben Collins and Freddie Marshall, who both captained the side at different stages.

Marshall always leads by example and his impressive fitness level enable him to continually harass and frustrate the opposition throughout the match. Collins is a fine tackler who also demonstrated impressive leadership skills and regularly united the troops and made good decisions under pressure.

The front row club consisted of Hugo Eyre, Tom Tyrwhitt-Drake, Tom Allan and Harry Osborne. There were glimpses throughout the season of Eyre devastating even the most robust defences, embarrassing a fair few renowned individuals and leaving a wake of destruction in his path. He also contributed with some vital tries at big moments.

The second row engine room was usually occupied by Rob Fleming, Jonny Dewhurst or Freddie Marshall.

Fleming is a man-mountain who was one of the most improved players of the season, developing into a fine ball barrier. There was plenty of competition in the back row with Collins, Marshall, Hart, Ryan and House in the frame. Alex House made some formidable number 8 pickups from the base of the scrum and carried tirelessly for the team with a number of impressive displays.

Caspar Hart’s sheer tenacity and bravery to make countless tackles and turnovers made him a fierce back-row competitor, who always punched well above his weight.

Behind the pack, Cunningham found a new position in scrumhalf which suits his skill-set and his game management will only improve the more he plays there.

His half-back partner in crime was Sam Hoddinott, who tackled hard and distributed well at fly-half and equally performed well filling in at scrum-half on occasion. The centre pairing comprised of talented duo Sam “Seb” Way and Rufus Wallis.

Way is a vicious defender who often produced some essential hits as well as a vital ball carrier, whilst Wallis is a superb runner who will always beat defenders in open space.

Rufus was our top try scorer with six tries that were often the result of outstanding solo efforts and has been an influential figure in the team throughout the lower school. The wings were strongly competed for

by Jack Elvin, Charlie Pritchard, Tom Wildblood and Hamish Wishart. Elvin finished a couple of tries with his genuine pace and Charlie Pritchard is a good finisher on his day, the Oundle try will remain the standout by him. Occupying the full-back birth for much of the season was Charlie Davies, who also was much improved throughout the season. A safe pair of hands at the back, a fine kicker and a superb one-on-one tackler who made many vital cover tackles throughout. He was equally adept at 10 or centre, when called upon.

A final mention should go to Charlie Pritchard-Gordon. P-G played fullback for some early games, before suffering a string of concussions and missing most of the season.

Despite his lightweight stature, he was extremely brave, competitive and could read the game well.

Individually and collectively this team has made definite progress both on the paddock and off the field physically with thanks to the strength and conditioning team.

Therefore, they can look towards senior rugby in good shape and as size differentials reduce, they can look towards reducing the gap.

SJAP, JMS, Ben Collins, g

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RUGBY COLTS 2 P 9, W 2, L 6, D 1 As the new school year started, there was much excitement and anticipation for the rugby season ahead. The progression to Colts brings new challenges as well, such as the development of the line-out and the determination to make this work was encouraging. The season started with some tough losses against St. Paul’s, Eton and Tonbridge. A recurring theme throughout the season was to become the disruption that plagued consistent selection. This occurred through a number of injuries both within the Colts 2 squad and equally unfortunately, in the Colts 1, thus resulting in losing players up to the top side. As a result it became hard for the squad to gel as completely as I would have been liked. Needless

to say, the Colts 2 extended squad as it was becoming, refused to let this affect them unduly and continued to approach each session and match with a positive outlook, determined to make things happen.

Abingdon was a closely fought contest and on another day, would have seen an important victory. This was a gutsy performance in some difficult circumstances. With Radley on top for the last ten minutes of the game and mounting a serious comeback, time sadly was of the essence and the clock halted what could have been a great comeback.

However, there were good victories at Cheltenham (26-12) and against Marlborough (27-0). Here the squad

RUGBY COLTS 3 P 10, W 5, L 5 Colts 3 had a mixed season but definitely finished on an upward curve, with three straight wins. Close encounters against Sherborne (12-17 L) and St Paul’s (15-10 W) demonstrated how competitive the team was and bar some handling errors close to the try line, could have netted Radley two hard-fought wins.

Eton and Tonbridge were quicker and stronger and heavy defeats meant we went into the Abingdon game short of confidence. A new look back line of six boys from B Social saw us get off to a flyer before we were punished either side of half time. Following a lengthy injury to Sandberg, Radley gave it one last effort with Erasmus close to forcing it over the try line with seconds to go.

Alas we came up short, losing 22-29.

Oundle was a thriller. Again we found ourselves down with seconds to go

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and facing their scrum. Through some arguably illegal work from Campion in the scrum, Kleinwort ended up with the ball. The scrum half managing to draw two defenders before slipping it wide. Great hands followed, as the ball was moved down the line and the fleetfooted Jewell went over in the corner. We didn’t need the conversion as the final whistle blew with a 20-19 victory.

The momentum quickly disappeared against Marlborough. Despite the hard running of Campion and Gates with the ball we could not find our way over the line: somehow losing 7-14, despite having all the ball and the territory.

We learnt our lesson and next game against Bedford (24-14 W) we got the ball into Smellie’s hands at centre.

Running down the slope he was unstoppable and crossed for two tries and made countless line-breaks. We were helped by Rees taking over the

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Coach: KM Willis-Stovold Captain: JJA Robinson

showed what they were capable of when allowed to play rugby a bit more freely.

Cheltenham was a particularly pleasing victory, coming as it did following a very tough first half of term and facing a 0-12 deficit at half time. Great character was shown to come back from this in the second half and come away with a good win.

Whilst it was a difficult season, there are certainly many able players who will flourish next year as they are strengthened in depth by joining the year group above them and the opportunities that senior rugby holds.

KMWS

Coaches: TRG Ryder, M Hills Captain: TW Jewell

kicking duties at 10 from Goodwin, who we preferred to play at Flanker where his rucking ability was crucial. Fortunately Kleinwort only attempted one box kick in that match.

St Edward’s (50-5 W) were no match for us. An unstoppable pack ran in many tries, leading to a comfortable victory.

The last game of the season was away at Harrow. This was a vintage performance from us as we dominated both halves (46-17 W), even when playing up a slope with a 10% gradient. Our achievement was all the more remarkable, with Colts 1,2 and 4 losing heavily. Horton at centre was to the fore with some nimble footwork and one exquisite chip and catch proved too good for the Harrovian defence. It was an uplifting way to end the season and I hope that the team will continue to improve next season as seniors.

TRGR, MH

RUGBY COLTS 4 P 8, W 5, L 3 The Mighty Colts 4, as they soon became known about Radley, had a startling season with an impressive win/loss record, as well as some jaw-dropping individual moments, captained by the indomitable Dom James, and supervised to success by Mr Holt’s “Duck, duck, goose” training sessions and Dr Rhodes’ infamous “Union Jack” warm-up run - he never once missed one.

The first game against Sherborne was an ideal morale booster, as Radley went on to win 46-25, with tries from Dingemans, GrevilleWilliams, Sandberg and James, notably aided by man-of-the-match Cosmo Cotton and his crunching tackles. Following this were the fierce lads of St Paul’s who lived up to the hype, leaving Radley somewhat mauled with concussions and bruises and with a score-line not to be dwelled upon.

The match against Eton didn’t get off to a particularly good start either, with Radley 19 points down after seven minutes, before clawing it back to 12-24 by half time. Second-half heroics from the likes of Will Caplan and Charles Henry, as well as a snapped shoulder for Tom Rutherford brought Radley back to 29-29 with seconds to go. Eton were penned in on their own try-line in the last play of the game, when a loose defensive pass landed neatly into the path of winger Dingemans, who deftly grubbered the ball between the Eton backs to touch the ball down for his third try of the game and grasp a sensational Radley win in the dying seconds.

Coach: EO Holt, AR Rhodes Captain: DEG James

another heroic comeback. However it was not to be as Radley’s hopes were smashed by injuries, losing 0-26 in debatably their gutsiest performance.

Next came the local derby against Abingdon, this time with guest appearance from expert tackler James Sloan. Radley started brilliantly, going up 21-0 at half time, including a memorable chip and chase from Dingemans. Abingdon attempted to launch a late comeback, but Radley clinched the game 28-19, thanks to the inspirational defence of the stalwart Tom Ogilvie and the tireless running of Sven “Winkler”, scorer of a spectacular try all the way from his own 22 to the posts.

Following on from this came an emphatic win against Oundle, 76-7, with multiple tries from across the team, including a spectacular brace from captain Dom James. The pace of newbie Nicholas Erasmus and the intelligent passing of Charles Henry opened up the Oundle defence, with Tom Ogilvie again thoroughly reliable on kicking duty.

through with the sharp thinking of Charles Henry, taking a quick penalty to release Winkler to run again from the 22 to the opposition try line, past the entire Bedford team. A slew of tries followed from captain James, Wood, Erasmus, Dingemans and Winkler again to finish the game 47-5 in Radley’s favour.

The last match of the season ended in a narrow 22-27 defeat to Harrow, with a tenth try for topscorer Dingemans and a series of characteristically powerful runs by Otto Bodycombe and man-of-theseason Aubrey Wood, setting up tries for James and House. Though the match was a disappointing loss, the boys were certainly able to look back on a very strong season overall, where they always put up a good fight and, more often than not, came out on top.

Arthur Dingemans, c

The penultimate match was a particularly strenuous affair against Bedford, but Radley eventually broke

For the away game of all away games, Tonbridge in the torrential rain, the team were two players short; boldly into the breach stepped the famous Joshua Bowesman-Jones and utility player James Maidment, very nearly inspiring Radley to

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RUGBY JC1 P 12, W 9, L 3 Team From: Sopher, Lumley, Innes-Ker, McChesney, Hayes, McCoy, Langdale, Neville, Rooth, Betley, Skinner, Toor, Clarke, Anderson, Anwyl-Jones, Onslow, Todd, Howard, Brooke, Day This was an excellent season overall, and the squad grew as players and in morale as the term progressed. I would like to think that greater success beckons at Colts level and beyond (although there will undoubtedly be a few tough matches to come) as the team is able to marry a more expansive style to its forward play. The defeat against Sherborne in the first match could well be reversed in the future, and as the boys grow in stature, the matches against Marlborough and Harrow could also be very interesting indeed.

Good wins were secured against St Paul’s, Abingdon, Oundle, Burford, Bedford and St. Edward’s, but the most satisfying matches were those against Eton (20-14), Tonbridge (8-0) and Cheltenham (10-5). As the scorelines suggest, these were all epic clashes (the Tonbridge match on Bigside, no less) and they constituted a real test of character.

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Coaches: N Murphy, AR Wagner Captain: P Langdale

Eton had pacy backs, and one winger in particular was devastating, but with a dominant pack controlling possession the boys came through in the end to win the game. Similarly the Tonbridge match saw clever defence out wide in the 13 channel to nullify the opposition’s strike runners, and Jasper Toor managed to kick a penalty goal and score the game’s only try. Cheltenham were another tough proposition, but heroic defence (led by Will Todd from fullback) and another fine performance up front saw a nail biter successfully closed out.

The Harrow fixture was also an enormously creditable performance. The game plan revolved around dominating possession up front, and kicking cleverly to turn and nullify Harrow’s big backs. It might have originated at Thomond Park but it was enormously effective - at one stage just after half time we led 14-9.

We took it as an enormous compliment that Harrow then decided to bring on all six of their substitutes to try and win the game - after fifty minutes of attrition their strategy paid off. However, although a disappointing end to the season it was a memorable effort, and I am sure that the physical gap between the teams will narrow year on year.

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Special mentions must go to the forward pack, notably Archie McChesney, Paddy Hayes, Henry McCoy and Lachie Neville.

They bested every pack on the circuit and terrorised the opposition. The backs ticked along very nicely indeed, with Nico Rooth growing into the scrum-half role, Tom Onslow proving a destructive inside centre and the various strike runners (Jasper Toor, Dom Anwyl-Jones, Henry Anderson and Ethan Clarke) getting better and better as the season progressed. I think this back division has a big future both in better defensive organisation and clinical attack - we shall see.

Lastly Paddy Langdale led the side with great maturity, physical commitment and skill. He willed his men to follow him into the darker places that exist on a rugby field, and they followed his example. I take my hat off to him. My thanks also to MGGD for his expertise and good humour with the 2nd XV, and - as always - to Wags and the supportive parents. The season was indeed a pleasure.

NM

RUGBY JC2 P 10, W 2, L 8 Squad: Lowe (Captain), Blythe, Farrer-Brown, Batchelor, Senior, DillonRobinson, Richardson, Spreckley, Milne, Brooke, Weldon, Parr, Browne, Wilson, Elmhirst, Campbell-Gray, Bishop, MartinZakheim, King-Thompson, Heagerty, Wigg, Beck, Kloster Although the team did not quite get the results this season, the boys were unlucky not to pick up at least three more wins. There is no soft fixture on this circuit and it can certainly be said that the players improved over the weeks and built an increasingly cohesive team spirit.

The season got off to an explosive start with a closely-fought encounter against Sherborne at home to celebrate the Centenary celebration. Unfortunately tries from Weldon and Lowe were not enough to avoid a 14-22 defeat to a team which already had the experience of one game under the belt.

The following week we came up against a superior outfit of St Paul’s at home and despite superb tries by Lowe and Blythe, the boys were outclassed 38-12 but

Coach: M Glendon-Doyle Captain: TCW Lowe

never gave up the contest. Our match away at Eton on the day before exeat was perhaps not a high point of the season. Although everything was to play for at half-time, the opposition got wind in their sails and Radley did not get low enough in the tackle, resulting in a 0-19 defeat. Tonbridge at home was always going to be a monumental encounter and with a fantastic comeback in the last fifteen minutes sparked by Browne and Bishop tries, the boys just lost out 15-22, but undoubtedly would have won it if injuries had not taken their toll (we had twelve players on the pitch for the last five minutes). However, this muchimproved performance gave the team renewed belief and self-confidence to go on and beat Abingdon away 7-24and there were some brilliant tries from Lowe, Wilson, Howard and new recruit Batchelor. The opposition simply could not cope with Milne, Spreckley and Richardson at the breakdown and there were some great hands from Elmhirst.

In addition, the team secured another fine victory at home against Cheltenham (15-12) with a game-changing thumping tackle from Farrer-Brown, tries from Lowe, Blythe and Batchelor and brave resistance to a late charge

by the opposition. Losing 12-17 at home at Oundle in the last second of the game, following well-worked tries from Batchelor and Weldon and some body-on-the-line commitment from Dillon-Robinson, was a sucker punch.

The boys simply did not do enough in the first half when the wind was behind us. Away at Marlborough, injuries took their toll again on the team, as we played much of the second half with a depleted team and went down 7-22 despite another Weldon try and a great solo performance by Senior.

Despite tries from Brooke, Wilson and Martin-Zakheim, Bedford away was a particularly painful afternoon, as the boys simply forgot how to tackle in the second half going down 19-42. Harrow was always going to be a tough day at the office and despite a well-worked Parr try and textbook tackling from CampbellGray, the team was overpowered 5-48 away in a brutal final match.

Although we should have picked up a few more victories, there was a genuine improvement over the season accentuated by some extremely positive moments. Our tackling and passing got better and better but occasionally the boys needed to be more consistent and focus on transferring training drills into the match situation. Players of the season awards would have to go to Captain Theo Lowe with his countless tries and thumping runs, and Myles Browne who kicked extremely well (both from hand and the kicking tee) and showed a particularly impressive attitude. With some narrow defeats, the boys have hopefully learned what is needed to dig deep and see out a game.

There were some real laughs along the way, such as ‘Myles’ boot’ and a certain individual literally roaring into a tackle.

I am sure it can be said that the season was much enjoyed by all. I would like to thank NM and ARW for their back move and scrum masterclasses throughout the term.

MGGD

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RUGBY JC3 W4, D1, L6 Overall the JC3 rugby season was a little up and down, with the team winning 4, losing 6 and drawing 1 (0-0 against Bedford). A convincing 43-7 win in the opening game against Sherborne lifted spirits early in the season, but that was followed by a four match losing streak. The team managed to put in some good performances in the final few games, ending the season on a high. The nail-biting 19-10 win over local rivals St Edwards’ was a notable favourite.

Mungo Spencer led a solid and mobile forward pack of Felix Adams, Ned Greville-Williams, Miles Yeoman, Ludo “The Oak” Curtis, Ollie Binks, Tiger “Spaghetti legs” Beck, Dom “D Lo Green” Lodge and the ever

Coaches: AMH Hakimi, GJA Hughes

enthusiastic Christian Kloster. Felix Adams in particular displayed some great acts of bravery and aggression and made up for his smaller frame by constantly shouting with his annoyingly high-pitched, loud voice. Miles Yeoman proved to be a versatile member of the squad and often found himself playing in three different positions in the same game.

Ludo “The Oak” Curtis towered above his opposition and was a huge threat in the line-outs.

Skipper and scrum-half Caspar Muir and fly-half Ollie Friend formed a terrific partnership and linked play between the forwards and backs beautifully. Will Kaye and Tom Parr were introduced midway through the season after arriving from the second team and made a huge impact.

Between them they managed to

RUGBY JC4 P 11, W 6, L 5 This rugby season, as I am sure all the JC4 players will agree, has been very memorable, and I would like to thank our two coaches Mr Roques and Mr Knox for such a fantastic term of rugby.

At first, it seemed we were going to have a horrendous season, losing four games out of five. However, over the course of the term we improved and eventually ended up winning the majority, six matches out of eleven.

This was aided by an able group of players. Everyone in our team contributed to this season; but the man of the season has to be Rob Crawford, who managed to score a hat-trick in almost every match in

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score four tries and also made a huge contribution defensively. Tom Parr in particular made some spectacular try-saving tackles on the wing.

The back-line was bolstered by the strong and penetrative Alex Rayne.

His meticulous adherence to good “line speed” and his strong carrying of the ball laid the foundations for many of Radley’s promising attacks.

Rayne and Kaye’s excellent running in the midfield opened up space for the pacey winger Freddie Barlow and full-back Jake “Dickie-san” Dickie. Barlow and Dickie managed to contribute a massive eleven tries to the season tally. Jake Dickie deserves special mention after he was awarded “Player of the season” for his excellent contribution.

Mungo Spencer, d, Ludo Curtis, d, AMHH, GJAH

Coaches: BR Knox, DWS Roques

which he played. A powerful runner, once he had the ball in hand, he proved very difficult to stop. In second place it is Seb Prentice who managed to carry eight people on his back in the match against Tonbridge to score a barn-storming try. In third, Matthew Moffat provided safety at the back, and pace on the attack.

The forwards of Hamish Gordon, Tom Johnston, James Parker, Harry Fitzpatrick, Seb Prentice, Jasper Perry, Archie Browner, Will Dunlop, Ben Rougier and Rocco Chu worked really well and there were many memorable moments such as Hamish scoring the ‘Chicken Roll’ try. It was the scrum who proved the most competitive element of the team, holding their own against all comers, even when conceding points.

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The backs provided a spark to the game: namely Rufus Darwall, Zak Kary, Max Armfield, George Seagrave, Patrick Sayer, Harry Seaton, Toby White, Tom Neill, Rob Crawford, Matt Moffat and Val King. Unfortunately they suffered quite a few injuries, the most dramatic being Val King’s finger which bent at ninety degrees to the right; he has a picture from Mr Knox to prove it. They also tackled with real skill and I am sure that the other teams would have been scared when they faced our backs.

Ed Newall, g

RUGBY MIDGETS 1 P10, W6, L4 The final game saw us up against a very strong (and large) Harrow side. The first half was one of the bravest performances I have seen from a Radley side. We led 5-0 at the break, and had quite simply tackled anything that moved.

Harrow were clearly a strong side and you felt our defences would break at some point. They got a fast start to the second half and sadly ran out winners by 10-28.

However, the boys finished the season with their heads held high,

Coaches: OH Langton, TC Lawson Captain: ZAC Nearchou

and firm in the knowledge that they will have many battles with Harrow in the future.

They are quite simply a cracking set of boys – hard working, good fun, honest, talented and a delight to coach. A huge thanks to our captain and Coaches’ Player of the Season Zac Nearchou, who backed up his fine performances by being selected for the Independent School Lambs side. Other awards went to Ben Moss (Most Improved) and to Will Redley and Charlie Robertson (both were voted

Players’ Player of the Season).

Thanks from myself to all the players, to Mr Langton and Mr Hughes for their fantastic coaching and great company throughout the term – and to all the parents for their loyal support. This group of players have great prospects for the future and I look forward to seeing how they progress in the years to come.

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TCL

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RUGBY MIDGETS 2 P 10, W 6, D 2, L 2 Try Scorers: Rae Smith x 3, Walker x 2, Makin x 3, Moss x 5, Chapman x 2, Martin x 2, Henry x 2, Barrow x 6, Beck x 5, Miles, Russell, George x 2, Irons.

Conversions: Needham x 6, Southgate x 13 A great way to start the season was against Sherborne for the Centenary (43-5 win). New energy, new moves, new balance that worked from the start. The backs had learnt the set plays so well that I was able to change the entire back line in the game.

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Forwards worked hard and some were immense, Jamie Walker and Eliot Makin the stand outs. We then went away to St Paul’s – a bruising 12-2 loss, but a proud coach as we were in the game right until the end (charged down kick lead to a runaway try for them to finish). Our next two games were bizarre: a loss to Eton on conversions 10-14 and a 0-0 draw with Tonbridge, showed how much we were missing injured Irons, and (now) Midgets 1 regulars Dobby and Moss.

But from then on we looked very impressive, except for a draw against Marlborough (12-12 again on

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Coach: REP Huhes Captain: LLF Needham

conversions) we won our remaining games. This included victories against Abingdon (34-0), St Edward’s (31-0) and Harrow (19-5). A large number of tries came from new recruit Archie Barrow who was elusive when running with the ball, and some incredible tries were scored by our pace man, Joe Beck; but the special mention must go to our captain Louis Needham who persevered throughout the season and was immense in attack. A great effort from the entire squad and a real pleasure to coach.

REPH

RUGBY MIDGETS 3 P 8, W 8, L 0 Was this the perfect season? Eight played, eight won. 189 points for, 81 against in regular play. Additionally, M3 beat Cheltenham M2 by 40 points; conclusive. As in past years, it was always going to be about the Harrow game. St Paul’s was a gritty encounter and M3 were shattered at the end, but a win was secured thanks to committed play from Olly Skelly up front and match-winning runs from Alex Martin. Eton are a bench mark and M3 came through with real plaudits. When the Rhinos beat a classy Tonbridge side RDW whispered to the Chaplain that the unbeaten season was on the cards. The dons didn’t tell the boys, but knew some sensed what they were quietly thinking.

Tonbridge were an excellent schoolboy side with a tenacious pack and welldrilled backs. They were used to winning and had already put big scores on well-known rugby playing schools.

Theo Metcalfe was a bull up front and battered the opposition in the loose.

His performance in this match caught the eye of M1 where he ultimately secured a place. Archie George played with rare ferocity and extraordinary will and scored the last try to tie the match.

Bertie Southgate then had the daunting task of kicking to win from the side line.

DW and RDW had rigged a late kick-off on Jackdaw to ensure returning crowds would stop to watch the final minutes on the way back from more distant matches. So, in front of a now sizeable and rumbustious crowd, headed up by the Warden, Southgate stood and delivered – over the top of the sticks. The final whistle blew and the back-slapping began; a historic and vital win.

Coaches: D Wilson, RD Woodling Captain: EBA Pascall

the last few yards. Dom Woolf flanked gallantly and Harry Salter, in the engine room, was a candidate for player of the season. Salter produced commanding performances, match in, match out. Jamie Walker, also at lock, was 13 going on 25. His muscular athleticism and power in the loose and in the scrummage wore down oppositions. John Peers knew no fear and is one of the Club’s best tacklers; Gus Cayzer was a rock up front; George Batty brought athleticism and strength to the wing forwards and Will Dunhill-Turner scored the decisive try with a classic number 8 pick-up to defeat Harrow. M3 is often about screw turning up front, but this year M3 were blessed with skill and power in the backs to complement a dominant pack. Scrum halves Will Duncan and Toby Crawford brought cheek and flair to a central position and their confidence won us close encounters. Hugo Carr was too good to be in M3; his savage runs from centre and fullback and lengthy boot had the score board running overtime.

The Harrow match was a classic. Mr. Greed had provided M3 with a Society Ref for the second weekend in a row, such was the importance of this match to the Club. Mr. Greed gave a pre-match team talk to M3 over at Kennington II and all the lads understood the significance of winning. Experienced pros arrived from Harrow and barked instructions from the side lines. The Warden watched the entire match and contributed pithy words to RDW and a nervous Chaplain.

Baz Butterwick and Felix Reynish were late signings but proved vital to the ultimate success of this celebrated team. Milo Brett, at outside centre, was a determined tackler with a rangy running style that brought us valuable points. Zac Peskin always made ground on the wing: with no reverse gear he tackled head on and carried the ball prodigiously well for a more nimble lad. Archie Gill was the finest tackler in M3 and could be relied upon to put his man down either from fullback or from the wing. On several occasions this proved quite crucial.

Archie also scored repeatedly and his superior speed and determination was too much for his opposite numbers.

There were congratulations from Harrow and from the Warden and a place in immortality in Radley Rugby. Very few sides go unbeaten and this talented and determined team of lads will soar as they rise up through years and the ranks. I hugely look forward to following the progress of these stellar players and fully expect to see several representing Bigside in years to come.

It was an old-school encounter with ramraiding from the forwards and simple play from the backs. The backs were especially nervous and it took singleminded play from Robson up front and Walker in support to lead the way. Ed Pascal’s try to break the 5-5 deadlock with a swashbuckling run made the difference. There was an extraordinary urgency to matters thereafter and when the final whistle sounded the exhaustion and sheer relief was enormous.

RDW, DW

Fresh from this match and pumped with confidence, the Rhinos ran rampant to leave away with Captain Ed Pascall marshalling a focused and professional band of boys. An extraordinary team of lads rode roughshod. Felix Giliat-Smith galloped in repeatedly; Will Robson savaged the opposition up front and Nico Reid Scott was irresistible over

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RUGBY MIDGETS 4 P 8, W 4, L 4 This year’s team were phenomenally focused; their commitment during training and their team spirit during matches gave them and their supporters a huge amount of enjoyment on Saturday afternoons.

By half-term the stats sat at won 2, lost 3; but the boys worked hard to claw back a few well-won victories to end the season with four wins and four defeats.

A solid 41-14 win against Sherborne

on Centenary day got us off to a solid start to the season; however defeats against St Paul’s and Eton in quick succession came as a bit of a shock. Beating Tonbridge 39-13 was a real morale booster, before an unbelievably tight game against Abingdon just before halfterm, where the boys had to work extremely hard to end the game 5-12 down.

The second half of term saw only three fixtures, and good wins against Marlborough and Bedford

RUGBY MIDGETS 5 P 8, W 5, L 2, D 1 Try Scorers: Henry Wiggin (6), Ed Andrew (3), Jess Beardsworth (3), Luke Howard (3), Raphah Jung (3), Ollie Sim (3), Henry Carson (2), Blake Hannaby-Cummins (2), Freddie Horler (2), Andrew Liu (2), Claud Marriot (2), Ee-thern Ship (2), Angus Parker (2), Will Shott (1), Tom Sweetnam (1), Jake Terry (1).

Our first match was against Sherborne on a special day for the

school; it was gloriously sunny.

We started well 22-0 up at half time. Our aim was not to concede; unfortunately that didn’t happen, but we still recorded a solid first win of 42-5. The next match was tough and one of our hardest matches of the season against St Paul’s, but with solid defence and very quick wingers, we managed to scrape through with a 10-0 win. Just before leave away we played Eton, who we were expecting to be tough, but they were not the greatest

Coach: DSB

saw us improving our stats to end the season having won as many games as we had lost.

Overall this was a highly successful season against some tough teams, and the boys went from strength to strength as the season advanced.

They never lost their team spirit and put in some unbelievably determined performances, even when faced with bigger and stronger opposition.

Harry Purton, h and the Team

Coaches: JW Schfield / JPJ Dodd Captain: FJR Horler

side in defence and we earned a comfortable 27-12 win.

Tonbridge was our next match and we struggled with a new look team. Mix-ups appeared and they capitalized on these, which resulted in our first loss 22-0; this was disappointing. We were hoping to turn the next match around, just before half term when we played Cheltenham’s 3rd XV, but they were skilled and we conceded penalties to our cost, eventually losing 10-16.

After half term we bounced back with a convincing win against Marlborough 65-15. Then came our local rival St Edward’s, the match started well 7-0 inside a minute and the score ended 50-7, which combined with the Marlborough score brought morale to a high.

Our final match of the season was against Harrow which we knew would be a tough end to the season.

It was a close match, which ended at 12-12 draw.

Freddie Horler, b

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RUGBY MIDGETS 6

Coach: IK Campbell / GHS May Captains: TLV Wilkinson, WVR Shott & HC Bennet

P 6, W 2, L 3, D 1

Ed Andrew, Theo Bantoft and the nippy Hugo Bertie in the latter. Jack Maidment, Joe McDermott, Jimmy Aird, Jamie Bell, Toby Bennett, Ed Elliott, Charlie GirelliKent, William Davie-Thornhill, Toby Strutt, Andrew Liu and John Fu also played.

More than a quarter of the Shell year, 38 boys if my records are right, played at least once for Midgets 6. This obviously provided challenges, and it means that this report can’t tell of a well-oiled, consistent squad and its performances.

But it’s nice that so many boys in a big year group got a chance to represent the College.

We had some successes in spite of these challenges. Only St Paul’s, Tonbridge and Harrow were able to put out a genuine sixth team against us, and we lost the first of these 36-33 in the last play of injury time, and won the other two, 42-10 and 55-7, which was a great achievement. In other games we lost 24-7 to Sherborne 5ths, and drew with and then lost to Magdalen College School’s 3rds. Sherborne were stronger than usual, and we were probably at our weakest, but we would probably still have won, had it not been for the tries scored by a mis-selection of theirs, who was playing for their 3rds a week or two later. Hundreds of baying senior Sherburnians awaiting their games in the Centenary celebrations probably didn’t help our cause either, but it made for a memorable day.

stability. The tight five was drawn from Alex Wrey, Beetle O’ Kelly, Levon Sarkisov, Kit Merrill, the technically very adept Billy Greenall, Shott, Rory Gearing, Jake Terry (who also played in the backs) and latterly Will Rogers-Coltman. The back row had consistency through number 8 Harry Vyvyan-Robinson, with flankers coming from, amongst others, Ivo Holbech (who later played centre), Tom Boulton, Henry Portwood, and, in the last game, Christoph Wallendahl, up belatedly from the 7ths. Ellis took some replacing, and the way he combined with Tom Sweetnam at number 10 on his brief visit to us was instrumental in our trouncing of Tonbridge. Again too belatedly we promoted Will Goodman, and he did a great job against Harrow, partnering James Wilson at fly half.

Ivo Mayfield started at number 10, but went on to make full-back his own and also place-kicked superbly. We had stacks of centres and wings, with most consistency being achieved through Bennett, Holbech, Robin Mathewson and Lucas Ely in the former position, and

Inevitably given the number of practices and the fact that a number of boys ended up with us through deficiencies of attitude rather than talent, there were longuers on occasion in training, but overall the improvement of a number of players was very satisfying. The Harrow coach was even overheard describing us as ‘a very physical side’, which was probably a first at this level. I wish the boys well as they rise up the school some may well play for very good teams in the long run.

IKC

St Paul’s away the following week, after a number of changes, went much better and was less tentative. Then in a way the season peaked with the Tonbridge win, before more restructuring was needed for the last four games. It was a shame we did not have more fixtures.

The squad went through three phases: firstly, we picked our best side with many training injuries under the leadership of formidable tackler Tristan Wilkinson at number 7; then he and scrum half Cian Ellis got promoted and we had to reorganise; following a big gap there were lots of boys on games and we had more recruits trickle down. Will Shott was captain in the middle, before he too was promoted, and Hugo Bennett skippered the last game. We had a core of ever-presents that provided some

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RUGBY MIDGETS 7 P2, L2 M7 is all about fresh air and exercise, competitive matches at the appropriate level and above all ensuring that boys enjoy their time on the games field. This term has proven to be even more fun than usual. The squad have played many exciting practice games and new giants have emerged. Harry Gent, for example, who kicked a conversion in one such encounter just in from the touch line nearly back on the 22. Will Goodman’s handling is so slick, the lifeblood of our lightning fast backs. His last-gasp try against Marlborough, nearly demolishing the posts in the process, will remain a highlight of this season, of any season really. James O’Leary’s pace was scintillating, and his tackling improved enormously. Marcus

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Stuart-Bourne was a stalwart in the backs, never giving up and leading the team impeccably. Alexander Hughes made countless slinky runs, sidestepping numerous opponents, and Usman Ladan, the happiest of players, ran and grinned for the entire season. James Watters and Will Davie-Thornhill are genuinely fast, their pace turned whole games upside down.

Forwards form a rare breed in M7 squads. However our front row of Rupert Fraser, Declan McCarthy and Tom Willcox were as strong and incisive as any we have had over the years. Will Taylor, Will HamiltonRussell and Will Rhodes proved that in the second-row position wherever there’s a will there’s a way. Their resilience ensured that much possession was won.

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Coach: SAH

Lightning fast hardly does justice to flankers Christoph Wallendahl and Toby Bennett, both of whom had the ability to tackle well, while Theo Strutt could be devastating in attack, when in the mood. Other squad members played a huge part: Harry Walther-Caine, Jock Stancer and Henry Stratton played well and improved a great deal. Charles Girelli-Kent enjoyed kicking the ball from hand, and Peter Stern participated in just the right spirit.

My warm thanks to them all for the most fun it is possible for an old coach to have on a games field.

SAH

SAILING

Master in Charge: AK Muhlberg Captain: G Chilvers

This year saw a large variety of sailing events from the Inter-Social Regatta in Fireflies (won for F by Chris James crewed by Lauren Thomas) to Cowes Week, where Radley competed in their SB20.

whose trusty kite flyers, mainsheet pullers and jib setter at various times were Dom James, George (Boris) Dillon-Robinson, James Chelton, Will MacMillan, Olly Daly and George “Yoda” Barker.

In between these momentous events, notable ups and downs included losing to old and current Wykhamists at Seaview Regatta in September, the (rather breezy)Shell Sailing Day/Swimming Gala in April, and managing a very respectable 2nd Place overall in the Warsash Spring Series on the Solent. Well done to helm, George Chilvers,

Aside from a number of various matches against local schools some won, some lost - another great highlight was Itchenor Schools Regatta which is sailed in Chichester Harbour in June. Will Dodd, and his trapezing crew/tea bag, George Chilvers had a fantastic couple of days in their 420, winning the Silver Fleet trophy. Meanwhile, the Remove

crew of Olly Daly and George DillonRobinson fought valiantly against a huge tide and 49 competitors to come 39th overall.

For the pièce de résistance, the Radley team went to Cowes in August and brought home the bacon in style, winning the youth section of the SB20 Grand Slam in Cowes Week. George Chilvers, Boris, Kit Merrill and Felix Reynish - we salute you!

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AKM

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SQUASH Squash is less frustrating than golf, less fickle than real tennis, easier than badminton and cheaper than polo. It is better exercise than bowls, quicker than cricket, less boring than jogging, drier than swimming, and usually safer than hang-gliding. As James Bond says, ‘you only live twice, only when you’re born and once when you die’. I beg to disagree. You live a third time - when you beat Dr Giddens at squash.

It has been a tremendous season under the guidance of Dr Giddens and Scott Handley. Tears have been shed, balls have been broken, McDonalds was consumed (on one occasion - ed. SRG) and other schools have been shamed

by Radley College’s squash maestros.

Sam Austin led the squadron from the front, never once not turning up for a match. Whilst he made himself comfortable on court Hugo Besley made himself comfortable next to the smoked salmon sandwiches. Charles Stevens devoured anything that managed to avoid Besley. Joe Beckford just made himself comfortable except for some unorthodox pre-match preparations. James Lee epitomized squash perfection; smacking the ball with a combination of purpose and delicacy into the tin (although only on occasion). And despite Ollie Martyn-

Master in Charge: SR Giddens Captain: SH Austin

Hemphill’s unfailing ability to have an injury at critical moments Dr Giddens’s complex and ever-changing win-ratioalgorithms ensured that this was the most successful season in living memory. This cocktail of sporting talent was Radley’s Squash First V for the 2014-2015 season.

The minibus, which is affectionately named RO04 STY, has become a part of the squash family and deserves our gratitude. Its stubborn resistance to go beyond 62 mph - or Joe Beckford’s top speed on the squash court - has meant that the minibus has become a second home to the team. Going through London on our way to play Harrow, a usual highlight of the season, the contrast between the swampland of Harrow to the safe haven of Harrow on the Hill is stark. As always the team rose to the challenge this season.

Scott’s tough regime of court sprints paid off; Hugo Besley even managed a complete game before breaking into a vigorous sweat. There were some encouraging performances from the Shell years with Oscar White, Tom Sweetnam and others showing great potential.

Many of the key players this season and in recent years have emerged from

SWIMMING The boys have had fun training in the pool this year and working on speed, cardiovascular fitness and perseverance over longer distances.

We’ve struggled to attend galas this year, but we look forward to competing against other schools next year.

Swimming captain Finn Salter is to be congratulated on having completed a Channel swim with his father and other pupils in the school

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the mighty C Social. However, the C social monopoly was challenged at last this year, as G Social won a very closefought final in the inaugural Intersocial Squash championships. Given this unexpected result and the changing of the guard in the First V next season, the club clearly has a ‘Socially-diverse’ future.

Squash is a lifestyle choice; but one which involves a treat once in a while, particularly for Dr Giddens and Scott, whose commitment to the club makes it the ‘back of the bike shed’ within the sporting world of Radley College. Their time, commitment, efforts, expertise and dedication deserves genuine thanks. The season finale comprised a ‘Shanghai 30s’ Chinese meal for the senior team players. The fortune cookies showed favourable portents for next year’s club as we washed down our Chinese-style braised beef in a pot with non-alcoholic beer. The 2015 season has set a high bar but one which, no doubt, will be emulated in 2016 as the rigours of the summer training programme develops the next generation of squash players.

Charles Stevens, c

Master in Charge: GV Maybank Captain: FHR Salter

are interested in following suit.

Senior Inter-Social Swimming was well attended, with J social once more carrying all before them and still reigning supreme in terms of the school records. J social also set a new record of 53’78 for the 4x25m relay. A social did put them under pressure, however, coming a close second. We look forward to a close competition in Shell Inter-form Swimming in a few weeks’ time.

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The Henley Swim this year is happening after Gaudy and the official end of the school year. We wish all those participating in this event well. Many thanks to Miss Oh, Ms Naylor, Mr Newell and Mrs Porter and the lifeguarding team for all their help in running swimming sessions this year.

GVM

TENNIS BIGSIDE P26 W20 L5 D1 2015 has been a watershed year in terms of performance. Captained by Harry Ryan the team has demonstrated that they can compete head to head with the very best in Britain. The signing of Wolmar Boris-Möller, whose brother Henrik was at Radley some years ago, has injected stellar individual talent to a team with depth and experience. As captain’s partner he has had the freedom to scythe with abandon, knowing that he can call upon air support at any time with the relentless thunderbolt strikes of Ryan.

Brother Toby Ryan has again played top tier tennis partnered ably by Freddie White, whose rare talent is developing a more enduring and sophisticated deep lustre. Felix de Vere Hunt has continued to play his own simple brand of high fidelity tennis, competing with, and often beating, the best. He has been a rock at no. 4 in the Glanvil singles; a lad with simple strokes but deceptive power and absolute reliability; a player’s player.

Elsewhere, Henry Batstone has continued to show his class, with perhaps the club’s best topspin groundstrokes. Ed Lennon has hammered his way into Bigside with resounding groundstrokes and a fearsome serve. Lenman also possesses one of the best backhand smashes in the Club. Sam Austin can be heard across the courts spanking forehands and first serves and has played with passion.

Last, but by no means least, Harry Meek has shown the Club how it’s done when serving. His second serve, in particular, is outstanding. He has edged even the top pair players in second serve aces.

Master in Charge: RD Woodling Captain: HJ Ryan

and cemented the belief that ultimate excellence was close at hand.

In other competitions the Bigside VIII thrashed opponents in ISL League 2, 33-3, and showed that Radley rightfully belongs in League 1, and would have been included, but for illness. Radley won the RHWM quadrangular tournament by a country mile, winning 229 out of a maximum 288 games: an extraordinarily high total, and the most for a number of years. This very high score is testament to some extremely concerted and focused play, maintaining composure over five hours and six matches. Radley comfortably retained the OXIST trophy closer to home.

Very pleasingly, Bigside showed signs of competing very closely with Eton at the top end. The match was lost 7-2 but the top pair had several set points and were unlucky to go down 7-6, 7-5 against one of the best doubles pairs in the country. That match also missed the services of second pair White and Ryan, due to exams. Bigside galloped to victory at Harrow and Winchester, and at home to Tonbridge and Abingdon. This theme was continued with a win by White and Ryan against Eton in the St. George’s Pairs. This pair played especially well and reached the final of the competition, before narrowly losing to KCS.

Before going to press, Bigside retained the Clark Trophy at the Independent Schools’ Tennis Association National Championships. This was very satisfying but meant that we had to lose in the main draw. We lost to no. 1 seeds Reed’s but were the only school to have taken a match off them by the end of the tournament. Sadly, the singles shoot-out was lost, following a massive and apt win by Freddie White and Toby Ryan against pair 2. Wolmar Boris-Möller played with distinction, going down 1-6, and might have pushed the Reed’s top seed even harder had he been less nervous. Next year… Along the way matches were won against King’s Taunton, Cheltenham, Rugby, St. Peter’s and Warwick. In the final we had to draft in Ed Lennon and Leo Boddington to play Pair 2 as the Ryan brothers had prior commitments. The new lads played impeccably, doing all that was asked of them with a 6-0, 6-2 win. A win for the Club by the club at a vital stage and demonstration of the depth of talent waiting in the wings. Grateful thanks to Leo and Ed for filling in at the 11th hour and to Wolmar, Freddie, Harry and Toby for playing with such aplomb throughout.

RDW

The season has had many highlights, but perhaps the most significant was the run to the regional final of the Glanvil Cup – the National Schools Championships.

Although the top IV came second, our opponents, Lancaster School, a tennis academy, are fifth ranked in Britain - a close match was lost 4-8. Significantly, however, we won both the top seed singles match, Wolmar Boris-Möller, and the top pair doubles, Boris-Möller again, partnered by captain Harry Ryan.

This gave enormous heart to the team

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TENNIS SENIOR II P9 W8 L0 D1 III P6 W4 L2 D0 IV P3 W2 L0 D1 V P1 W1 L0 D0 You will already have read of the heroics of Clubman of the Year and Secondside stalwart Leo Boddington. His play latterly for the Bigside IV was out of the very top drawer and puts him in pole position for the Bigside 8 jacket next year. Players of distinction were legion throughout the Senior sides, but those of exceptional note played for the 2nd team. Captained by gentleman Will Dodd, they did not lose a match all season, including impressive wins against Eton and the saving of 11 match points against Harrow by Meek and Austin to secure the Club win. Extraordinary. By the end of the season Henry De Groot had been promoted to Secondside having played very efficiently for the IIIs. De Groot wins the Bread and Butter Award for best simple put-away. This award takes account primarily of success rate, but also of style and reliability of shot. A keen Club player, De Groot was loyally supported by vocal parents with real acuity of line judging.

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Dodd and Harry Napier were a fearsome pairing for the IIs: Dodd played with old fashioned style and guts and Napier played withering winners off serve and from the ground. Reliable pairing Max Davis and Zam Bradstock hardly ever lost and could be trusted to bring home the bacon at Pair 2. Both lads will be challenging for Bigside stardom next year. The mercurial Ben Thomson played some sparkling tennis on occasion and is also an outsider for Bigside in 2016. Felix White has already trained with the top squad and showed his class by winning the Social Tennis with Bigside brother Freddie, seeing off Boris-Möller and Seb Hill in a grudge match. Elsewhere Fred Simpson showed real promise and graduated quickly to the IIs from MRJ’s occasionals. Fred possesses one of the best serves in the club and has stylish and punchy groundstrokes.

James Mills, Hugo Adams and Harry McGrath all played for the IIs on occasion, but were more often found winning for the IIIs with other sportsmen Felix von Simson, Henry Rees, Mungo Fenwick, Jack Traube. All these players could have their day, especially over one set or a Champion’s Tiebreak.

These results echoed up the order and had a bearing on occasion even on the lower reaches of Bigside. Radley

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Seniors have to a man cultured strokes and well-resolved serves, tools which allow them to compete with anyone.

For the IIIs Rees and Traube were very impressive. Both players have well resolved games and can play attacking and exciting tennis. Rees likes to volley and does so with venom. Fenwick has impressive athleticism and cultured strokes. Von Simpson has one of the best two handed backhands in the club and is a tactical master. Adams has punch and tenacity while McGrath and Mills have games that threaten to explode into excellence, both lads possessing great reserves of power and rasping top-spun groundstrokes. Mills played impressively for a Bigside Invitational VI vs Roehampton Club and helped Radley to victory partnering Harry Meek.

Haphazard games against Eton were contested by the IVs and Vs with both teams avoiding loss all season, an impressive feat, unmatched in recent years.

The Senior juggernaut motors on in 2016 supported by a host of excellent Colts and seasoned Senior 6.2s looking to make the coming season perhaps the best ever.

RDW

TENNIS COLTS 1 P12 W12 L0 D0 This was another fine cohort of tennis players moving their way up the school. Harry Osborne had already proved his outstanding credentials with particularly committed pre-season work in Mallorca, along with Josh Bex and Will Caplan, and former tourists Seb Hill, Caspar Hart and Ollie Donalson were all also waiting in the wings. Seb Hill played at first seed throughout the season with his wily mix of defensive craft and power groundies (if not serves) outwitting most of his opponents, and Josh was a worthy second, hampered only by injury to first one and then the other wrist and the occasional sticky service game.

Will Caplan worked on developing a ‘B game’ alternative to his natural all-out attack style and regularly won matches, especially when playing with his highly dependably partner Osborne. Ned Rees and Caspar Hart pushed hard to displace the pairs above and gradually made this happen, as they produced the pick of the results on some match afternoons. When an eight was required, there was an enormous pool of talent to choose from, and all of the following took part in what was a largely commanding season for Colts 1: Ollie Donaldson, Charlie PritchardGordon, Will Jones and Tom Whitbread. The question now is which of these ten players can step up that extra level to stake their claim for a place in the 1st IV or VI next season in a very strong field.

Harry Osborne proved an excellent captain during the season (he was, in fact, the only player who played in every single match of the term) and it is his words that follow: HC

Coach: H Crump Captain: HG Osborne

The season kicked off with the traditional first round of the Independent Schools’ League (ISL) tournament, with Seb Hill, Josh Bex, Harry Osborne and Will Caplan all being selected to play. To start off with, Radley played Cranleigh and achieved a convincing win of four sets to two, with Will winning both his singles and doubles match with Harry and thanks to an impressive win at first pair for Bex and Hill.

After this Radley came up against tough opposition from Reed’s, where Tim Henman had gone to school, with Radley losing four sets to two this time, with – if truth be told – the two sets coming courtesy of an (accidentally Caplan–imposed) injury to their third seed… This therefore meant it was all to play for against Cranleigh, as Radley needed a win in order to secure a second place finish. After a nervous few first games Radley eased ahead and won five sets to one, this outcome aided by Josh (still perfecting the single-handed slice backhand) and Seb who won both their doubles and singles matches. This resulted in Radley finishing in a well-deserved second place to Reed’s, who won by only a marginal three more sets.

Following on from this with high spirits, Radley travelled down to Harrow after a one and a half hour bus journey.

Everyone knew Harrow would be one of the toughest oppositions Radley would face; it may not have helped when Seb rocked up to play with kit assembled from a number of sources that were not his own. Unfortunately, Radley struggled to beat Harrow with both Radley’s first and second pair losing two sets each and therefore locking Radley out of a win. Yet Casper Hart and Ned Rees who were playing in the third pair punched well above their weight, winning against their opposite pair and also Harrow’s second pair. The match narrowly escaped us, with Caplan and Osborne seeing the deciding tie-break slip away, so the set count was 4-5 down.

After this tough fixture against Harrow, Radley had an opportunity to get full revenge as they faced Harrow again in the RHWM tournament, comprising of the schools Radley, Harrow, Wellington and Marlborough. Radley began by brushing aside opposition from Wellington and Marlborough and looked in good stead to face Harrow. In a pleasing turn of events (and knowing the risk of incurring their coach’s wrath), Radley beat Harrow really quite comfortably, resulting in Radley winning its first piece of silverware and also a surprise trip to McDonalds courtesy of HC, where the boys discovered he hadn’t actually been to McDonalds in eight years…. A mention here though has to go again to Caspar Hart, who managed to win the most number of eight nil victories against his opposition.

Radley was then narrowly beaten to winning a set of t-shirts at the second ISL competition, which at the Colts level Radley won (beating Dulwich and Abingdon, and drawing with KCS); yet as the results from the Midgets and Removes are also taken into account, Radley narrowly found themselves in second place in the overall competition.

The weekend after Leave Away Radley faced Winchester who proved to provide little opposition and were absolutely decimated, with all three of Radley’s pairs losing only seven games in nine sets. A note must be made of Harry Osborne and Oliver Donaldson here, who only dropped one game in their whole three sets of doubles.

Then, Radley played in the OXIST league tournament which usually is against St Edwards, MCS and Abingdon.

However, Abingdon didn’t actually bring a team, which meant that at 1.09 pm on the afternoon of the tournament, Radley had to band together a B team to complete the draw. When Radley arrived, though, the Abingdon absence was quickly forgotten as Radley quickly proceeded to dispatch both MCS and St Edward’s; but stiffer opposition was faced against Radley B, where

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just a couple of the Radley A team questioned team selection by losing to Radley B. However, this didn’t stop Radley winning the tournament by a decent margin and a second piece of silverware. The fun didn’t end there though and HC bought the whole team ice creams in Oxford, which was a nice way to finish the day.

TENNIS COLTS 2 & 3

Finally, Radley played against Tonbridge with the match fortunately being at home and not three hours away... Due to last minute personnel reshuffles, new players were moved up, including Tom Whitbread and ‘Wildcard’ Will Jones. Tom Whitbread and his partner Ned Rees convincingly won two of their three sets, along with Will Jones and Oliver Donaldson who finished off their third pair very expediently. Harry Osborne and Will Caplan won three from three at first pair and the tie was taken 7-2.

C3: P2 W2 L0 D0

Harry Osborne, f

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Coach: AMH Hakimi Captain: JP Elvin

pleased and Freddie Peake played with style and finesse.

C2: P3 W3 L0 D0

The strength and depth of the year group made picking the teams for fixtures very difficult but allowed for rotations within the squad and a variety of pair combinations. The ever enthusiastic and industrious Jonny Dewhurst, Charlie Rougier and Harry Rogers made numerous terrific appearances.

A talented Colts II and III squad finished the season with an impressive unbeaten record. A strong core of players inspired by the heavy-hitting Thomas Whitbread and tenacious Will “Wildcard” Jones, put in some superb performances and wowed their spectators. George Love swept opponents aside with his devastating serve, Monty Browne hit forehand winners whenever he

All in all, a thoroughly deserved unbeaten season.

AMHH

TENNIS JC1 P16 W11 L5 D0 This year’s tennis season has been a good one. Under the watchful and experienced eye of MVH, our rackets professional, we have had some strong wins and just a few poor losses. With some good coaching we have all greatly improved. We came second in our first weekend of the Oxist league. After losing out to a very strong Harrow side, we can hold our heads high after very good wins over Wellington and Marlborough.

We again came second the following weekend, losing out narrowly to MCS. After suffering heavy defeats to them in the singles and doubles,

Coach: MV Hubbard

we almost managed to pull it back with a great win over Abingdon, our local rivals. In our weekly Saturday matches we had an excellent win over a very strong Bradfield side.

We managed to whitewash a weak Winchester team 9-0, only dropping a few games overall.

Travelling to Tonbridge is always a pain, especially on a hot day. Almost three hours on a stuffy coach is then made even worse when we manage to have one of the worst losses of our season to a team that we should have beaten. In the ISL tournaments we fared slightly better. First up we had a trip to Charterhouse, where

TENNIS JC2 P8 W3 L5 D0 The JC2 squad enjoyed a successful season this year, with great wins against some tough teams. A core eight players - Max Armfield, Artie Diamandis, Ned Gordon, Hamish Heagerty, Felix Milne, Tom Parr, Patrick Sayer and Harry Seaton - received occasional help from Matthew Raikes; special mention also goes to Joe Trafford, who battled to win promotion to JC2 for the final fixture, only to see it cancelled on the day.

the top four battled hard, narrowly coming third overall. However we did much better when the ISL came to Radley when the top four played brilliantly and finished first.

A huge thanks must go to MVH. All in all it was an enjoyable season from start to finish.

The following boys formed the JC1 team: Harry Foreman, Alex Alder, Freddie Barlow, Nico Rooth, Tom Parr, Felix Milne, and Ned Gordon.

Tom Parr, g & Nico Rooth, g

Coach: JM Ambrose

were cemented and as the team matured, we saw some truly exciting fixtures. Winchester provided a resounding win.

Against Bradfield all looked hopeless until an inspiring lastgasp rally that was not quite enough on the day.

At Tonbridge the team learned

their lesson - they came away with a tight victory after a flush of wins in the final round, taking the day by one game in the final doubles set. This result sums up the close, encouraging season, and promises much for next year.

Ned Gordon, c

The boys faced some challenging sides early on, trouncing Marlborough but not improving quickly enough to beat Eton.

The depth of the squad allowed pairing experiments throughout but, as the winning partnerships

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TENNIS MIDGETS M1: P13 W8 L5 D0 M2: P7 W3 L3 D1 M3: P7 W4 L3 D0 M4: P1 W1 L0 D0 The Midgets Tennis Squad have had a strong season this year, with plenty of depth in the squad. During training we tended to work on our doubles technique to prepare for matches and our skills dramatically improved in this style of play. We were much more confident at the net and different formations began to emerge. With the assistance of both SJAP and SRG and Dave Tuck (our coach on Tuesdays), our shots, court awareness and doubles teamwork began to improve.

Our first fixture arrived and after a solid week of training we felt reasonably prepared. It was Marlborough - a close rival. We were missing the first pair, but nonetheless we came out with a very convincing win. It was a great start to what would be a promising season.

Harrow was up next. This was to test us, but we were all in high spirits, after a crushing victory over Marlborough.

Harrow was definitely a more talented team and was our first experience of demanding and aggressive tennis. We had a variety of results, but overall we dominated.

In early May we had our first exposure to competitive singles matches at a big RHWM fixture (Radley, Harrow, Wellington and Marlborough). All teams were very strong and we played very well against them to come second overall. We then travelled to Eton and

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had a slow start to the matches. The Eton teams were also very impressive.

Unfortunately we were not aggressive enough at the net and had to settle for an honourable loss, with the third team producing the best results. It was one of the few overall losses in the season.

Our next opponents, Winchester, tested our ability to guess where the ball was to go as the patchy grass courts had not been rolled and so anticipating the bounce of the ball was tough. But the team was up to the challenge and we came out convincingly on top. OXIST took some players away but the very strong line-up could manage without them against Abingdon.

Tonbridge followed and Joe Beck and Oscar White led the way as first pair.

Joe’s second serve was very consistent and difficult to return and Oscar’s could hit a winner no matter how well you had returned the ball. In the second pair Milo Brett’s fast forehand shots and Baz Butterwick’s strong serve and controlled volleying was difficult to beat. The first team was completed by Tom Sweetnam and Hugo Carr, whose consistency was exhausting, and by occasional performances by star cricketers Harry Purton and Rory Marshall who stepped up in some style.

In the second team Luke Howard’s ability to get anything and everything back over the net was most impressive. Lucas Ely’s confidence at the net, combined with his solid groundstrokes, meant that he was difficult to beat. Tristan Southwell’s fast serve and topspin shots were deadly. William Dunhill-Turner also had a lethal first serve and forehand. Geordie Thomson’s technique was possibly the

THE RADLEIAN SPORTS SUPPLEMENT

Coach: SR Giddens, SJA Perkins Captain: OSG White

best in the second team, while George Egerton-Warburton was very consistent and would always encourage whoever he was playing with. Ollie Simm also made appearances in the second team to provide his opposition with a serious fight, as did the cricketing duo Milo Daly and William Nicholson.

In the third team James O’Leary and Claud Marriot formed a formidable first pair who won regularly and with some style. Jock Stancer, Cian Ellis, Levon Sarkisov and late-comer Charles GirelliKent played in various formations and all competed well. Cian makes a strong claim for most improved player of the season. All of the players, no matter what, would always keep encouraging and supporting the partner they were with throughout the season.

The term ended with a well-fought and competitive singles knockout tournament. All the final-round matches showed Shells’ tennis at its best. The final in particular was something to behold as the favourites battled it out playing Bigside-quality tennis in front of an appreciative audience. Joe Beck narrowly won the tournament with a cool-as-can-be ace to beat Oscar White by the narrowest of margins in a tiebreak.

This season has been an excellent start to the Radley College tennis careers for many Shells. But none of this would have been possible without the guidance and inspiration of SJAP and SRG, so thank you very much, and also to RDW who organised so many inter-school, ISL, OXIST, RHWM and ISTA fixtures.

Geordie Thomson, b