Sport at
Selwyn MICHAELMAS 2011
The year in sport Once again it has been an exciting and successful year for Selwyn’s sporting teams. Supported by generous donations from alumni, Selwyn’s sports men and women have continued to represent the College with pride over the past year. Highlights have included the men’s rugby team reaching the Plate final as well as the women’s 3rd boat who earned their blades in this year’s May Bumps. You can read about these achievements in the following articles as well as other anecdotes and tales of success from our teams. This year, over £5,000 worth of support to students for sporting activities has been awarded from the Vickerstaff Sports Bursary Fund, the Hermes Fund and the Agelasto Fund. Grants have been made to a wide variety of needs, ranging from a new goalkeeping kit for Selwyn’s hockey club to supporting several Blues athletes in their University sporting activities. These grants would not have been possible without your generosity – thank you for your support.
L-R: Simon Berry (SE 1968), Owen Chadwick, Peter Thompson (SE 1968) and Alan Frost (SE 1967) celebrate the Hermes Club’s 90th Anniversary in November 2010
Swimming Selwyn put in a strong performance at this year’s Swimming Cuppers gala. Eleven colleges entered the competition, which was held over three days, with exciting finals races taking place on the third day. Selwyn’s ladies’ team fared particularly well, finishing in an impressive 3rd place and special
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mention must go to Nicola Jones whose performance in her individual races and both relays was excellent; she will be sorely missed by the team next year. Unfortunately, despite their best efforts, the men’s team fared less well and finished in a disappointing
10th place, which damaged Selwyn’s overall performance. Nevertheless, the team is hopeful for some fresh talent with next year’s intake and we are confident that we can improve on this year’s result. Katharine Joyner (Captain)
Badminton: Ladies’ Doubles Team Selwyn ladies’ badminton team has had a roller coaster year. After having suffered relegation at Christmas, the team worked hard to get back on its feet during Lent term. We progressed to round two of the intercollegiate Cuppers tournament and, despite the freezing conditions of the Real Tennis Club on Grange Road, all pairs put up a good fight against a very strong Robinson side which, unfortunately, knocked us out of
the competition. League matches were similarly well played and the team showed their resourcefulness when obstacles had to be overcome. Bikes inextricably locked together miles from college and several very early morning matches kept the team on their toes.
Miriam Kaltz will be an excellent captain next year and I am sure the newer team members will be eager to step into the court shoes of those who are leaving this summer.
Anna Stokle (Captain)
The team has shown great commitment this term. We pulled together and finished mid-table in Division 4 at the end of Lent term.
Tennis With a handful of Freshers signing up for the tennis team there was a lot of potential for this to be a very successful season. After a few practice sessions to try and shake off the rustiness built up over the winter, we faced a strong Catz team in our first round Cuppers match. Sadly we lost narrowly on a particularly miserable February afternoon, the tournament’s organisers starting this year’s competition extremely early in order to fit in an increased number of fixtures. The tennis season no longer contains any leagues – only a cup and plate competition, so we moved on into the plate feeling we had a strong enough team for a good chance to challenge for the title. Strong performances from Dunluce Eccles, Will Lawes and Auriol Rae helped us in
comfortable victories over teams from Churchill and Jesus. We knew we would meet much stronger opposition when we reached the semi-final, where we were pitted against Queens which proved to be a very exciting match! After over 3 hours of play the match came down to the very final set. Ice cool Andrew Robertson held his nerve to come back from 5-2 down to take the deciding set 7-5 much to the delight of the spectators and the rest of the Selwyn team. This secured an unlikely 5-4 victory against Queens who had looked strong in the run up to our game, sending us through the final where we would meet one of the strongest college teams, Jesus.
end to a successful season. Credit must go to Andrew Sawbridge, playing as the Selwyn first seed for the whole season, who beat a 3rd team player with ease. We hope that Andrew, who’ll be our captain for next year, will lead the team one step further in next year’s Cuppers tournament. I must extend my thanks to all the players who have given up a lot of time over the last two terms representing the college, and for making it an incredibly enjoyable season.
Will Vernon (Captain)
Ultimately their team containing a blues player and a handful of other university level players proved too strong for us, but it was a fantastic
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Hockey This year Selwyn had both a men’s and women’s team in their respective 2nd divisions. For the men this was a big step up from 12 months ago when we had been in the 4th Division and despite some impressive victories a third successive promotion was just too much to ask from the men from Selwyn. A mid-table spot at the end of Michaelmas term meant that we could have another bash at promotion to the top flight in Lent. Our second term in the 2nd Division was slightly better than the first and promotion remained a possibility right up until our last match. Sadly, a loss to the impressive Downing side (which was promoted and will not be troubling us next year) ended our hopes of winning the league, but put us in a strong position to challenge for the title of 2nd Division champions next year. Highlights on the pitch included an 8-2 victory against Churchill, largely due to 6 second-half goals
from Will Vernon, as well as a 7-1 victory over fellow 2nd Division side Corpus Christi in the first round of cuppers. Away from the pitch next year’s captain, Fred Wilson-Haffenden, has become the face of InjuryLawyers4U after an incident involving a hockey stick and his chin. The girls had a varied season with many ups and down, the one thing that was constant from week to week was 11 (or as many people as Louise could find) smiles in maroon shirts. They showed great determination to get a couple of good results which were enough to keep them up where they belong in division 2. This team spirit did not go unnoticed as BBC Radio 4 broadcast Selwyn women’s hockey to the nation, recording their game against Girton (is hockey really the best radio sport?) and getting the views of the players after the match. The men and women were keen to join forces at any opportunity and did so with great success. The Oliver Wyman Invitational was a 7-a-side mixed tournament new for the 2010-11 season and it was an enormous hit. Selwyn battled hard
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to finish second in their group and earn a place in the 3rd/4th play-off which sadly, was lost on penalties. May Week brought with it the St John’s Summer 6s Tournament which (despite the best efforts of the weather) was a fantastic day. Although unlimited ice cream was not the order of the day due to the heavens opening, nothing accompanies a day of hockey better than Pimms and a burger! On the pitch the tired and hungover Selwyn teams didn’t play to their full potential, but we made sure our presence was felt as the “Wild Sling” (a big yellow slingshot for firing water balloons) meant that even when the rain stopped, staying dry proved difficult. Selwyn hockey should continue in fine fettle next season as Louise and myself hand over the captaincies to Fred Wilson-Haffenden and Claire Hayes. Best of luck guys!
Andrew Robertson (Men’s Hockey Captain) Louise Mead (Women’s Hockey Captain)
Football The 2010/2011 season was a successful one for the boys in burgundy. Buoyed at the start of the season with a number of impressive additions allowing us to convincingly win the Men’s Division 2 come April, the squad was best described as the perfect blend of youth and experience Freshers Konrad Grose, Fred Wilson-Haffenden, Chris Hutton and Matt Parry joined some experienced heads in the form of Captain Joe Hyam, Blues stalwart Mark Baxter and the Selwyn veteran Sam Gregson. Perhaps the key to the Selwyn success story was a resolute defensive unit that rarely put a foot wrong throughout the season and finished with one of the best records in the whole of Cambridge. Hyam and Liam Foster dominated as centre-backs and Ben ‘Fozzy Bear’ Foster performed well in any defensive position required (although he should never play in goal again!). The defence were ably backed up by Parry and Gregson as reliable holding midfielders playing in Selwyn’s unique 4-2-3-1 formation. Danish stopper Erasmus Zu Ermgassen also had a great season between the sticks, before his season with Selwyn and the University was ended prematurely by an unfortunate knee injury.. While the team excelled defensively, our attacking potency was often something to behold, with young-guns Hutton, Grose and Wilson-Haffenden combining with the more experienced heads of Baxter, Will Vernon and Oli Temple
to make a creative offensive force rarely seen in the footballing world. Unfortunately Temple’s season was curtailed by a horrific broken leg in a league win against Corpus Christi, which will also prevent him from helping Selwyn in their quest in the top flight. Looking forward to this coming season, the team hopes to convert even more of the chances it creates, which should only be helped by the return of new Captain and ‘fox in the box’ Dave Hawes from his time away in the US of A. A lot of our success in 2010/2011 can be put down to the team’s happy knack of winning games even when we weren’t at our best. If the scores are level and time is running out, we will always revert to the Selwyn Winning Formula™, which is as follows: 1. Get the ball to Chris ‘Cristiano’ Hutton in the box, whereupon he will proceed to ‘invite (or invent) the contact and leave a trailing leg.’ 2. Appeal unanimously for a penalty. 3. Watch on nervously as Gregson (or ‘Sammy G’, ‘SAM GREGSON’, ‘Dr Greggles’, but never just plain Sam) noisily scores from the spot. The success rate of this Winning Formula™ is undeniable, with around half of Selwyn’s goals deriving from the ‘Hutton tumble’.
Despite failing to achieve the legendary Cambridge league, Cuppers and five-a-side Cuppers treble, the team managed two out of the three, after performing mercurially to take the five-a-side title in the Easter Term (see the pathetically small trophy behind the College Bar) to complement their earlier Division 2 triumph. Clearly Selwyn Football is well-positioned going into the 2011/2012 season in the top division, with many of last season’s key players remaining in Cambridge for another year. However, a number of improvements can certainly be made. The fitness department is one area of concern for WilsonHaffenden, who needs to avoid cramping up within the first half hour, while the discipline of Hutton must also be questioned as he became the only player in recent Selwyn history to receive a ban for picking up too many yellow cards (surprisingly, none of which were for ‘diving’). Next season we’re hoping for more talented Freshers to get involved as Selwyn look to construct their very own footballing legacy of which the likes of Barcelona can only dream.
Chris Hutton
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Selwyn College Boat Club (Women) The past year has seen both growth and success for SCWBC. From a successful 2010 May Bumps campaign which saw W1 go up two and W2 go up one, a strong contingent of experienced rowers returned in Michaelmas to build a crew with a lot of potential. W1 finished a creditable 9th of 19 1st VIIIs in the Fairbairn Cup (delayed by ice on the river to the beginning of January 2011). Some hard work by the LBCs meant that promising novices challenged for seats in W1 in Lent and Easter, whilst for the first time in some years Selwyn has had a W3 throughout the year. Although W3 narrowly failed to get on to Lent Bumps, it was a very successful week for W1 and W2. The 1st VIII finished the week up
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three, whilst the 2nd VIII went up two. W1 also travelled to compete in Bedford in February and in the Women’s Eights Head of the River race on the Thames in March, finishing a creditable 164th from over 300 crews, and up twelve places from last year. The women’s side of the club have trained hard this year, pushing each other for seats in the respective crews each term, and determined to prove ourselves with success on and off the Cam. As I write May
bumps are a week away, and after a year of building strength and fitness in the gym and improving technique on the water, we anticipate the full complement of SCWBC boats enjoying success in front of the crowds. Bumps for all three crews would be a perfect way to end a triumphant year, and also a brilliant final memory for those graduating this summer after years’ service rowing for Selwyn.
Sophie Sellars (2010-11 Captain)
Rugby Like a phoenix from the flames the Selwyn-Peterhouse rugby club has come soaring back to life with the life and vigour of Lazarus. Like a German Panzer division we steam-rolled all before us on our way to the dizzy heights of the Division 3 promotion league in Michaelmas Term. Undefeated at our home ground, Barton Road, that regularly welcomes capacity crowds to cheer us on, this Selwyn team had the makings of something special. A fusion of young and old was the secret to our success; a fine vintage of fourth years gave the team ballast and cool heads under pressure while a record intake of Freshers actually did the running and, in Chris Hutton’s case, scored all the tries. It truly was the meeting of two golden generations of Selwyn rugby; Campese to Lomu, O’Driscoll to Earls, Davison to Munns. The season began with an impressive performance against the Old Boys, featuring an impressive try by Ben Quarry who managed to fool everyone into believing he had an ounce of pace. After that we rolled on through successive victories and consecutive drubbings of Christ’s by over sixty points before meeting staunch opposition from a well drilled Emma. After a comprehensive defeat we rallied together and through some impressive coaching developed tactics, including the now legendary Lion Ball, which gave us a victory.
represented the XL club in their varsity match against Oxford as well as Jeremy, Oli and Chris for representing the Colleges XV in their Varsity match. Having reached the lofty heights of second place in the Division Three promotion league the team decided simply playing wasn’t enough; following the example of Jeremy Cribb it is now high fashion to become concussed and play on, Ben Quarry now has a middle name of Stone according to his Addenbrookes’ records after he couldn’t remember and Fred Wilson-Haffenden managed to go out cold on debut. It was not just the junior players who threw themselves around with gay abandon, Dr. Robbie “Heavyweight Champion” Leigh showed us all how rugby used to be played throwing uppercuts left, right and centre. After Christmas the squad looked to start afresh with the world famous Cuppers tournament beginning. Drawn against a Trinity Hall team filled with power and
pace Stuart Cribb responded the only way he could, shouting “boom” anytime he came within 5 metres of a tackle situation. Unfortunately this did little to stop the whitewash. As is always the case with great teams defeat only hardened our determination to succeed though. Against both Jesus and Johns II’s Selwyn-Peterhouse recorded famous victories. The defence in the John’s game was immense and testified to a real spirit in the team which I have no doubt will be present next year. Sadly this was not enough to beat Fitz in the final, but many thanks to the great support we received from so many people on the day. Next year the team is being passed over to Jeremy, who I have no doubt will do an excellent job. Maggers and I are also looking forward to reacquainting ourselves with Oli Munns at Old Boys and seeing how good his famous hand off really is. Rumour has it there will be training too.
Asher Cohen (Captain)
Congratulations should also be given to Tom Roberts who
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Netball Selwyn Netball continues to thrive as a college sport. This year, we have yet again seen the addition of several new players in both the ladies and mixed teams. The ladies played some incredibly challenging matches in Michaelmas, resulting in several losses and relegation to Division 3. Despite this, the team pulled together and improved considerably in Lent term. With brilliant defensive play and some
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perfect shooting, we won six out of our seven matches and have now regained our position in Division 2. Our mixed team has had a very successful season, beating some strong competition. The increase in enthusiastic male players this year has led to an abundance of availabilities for each match and a fantastic team spirit. All players have enhanced their skills across the year,
resulting in some great victories at the end of Lent term. The team have maintained their position in the top division throughout the season, with a final position of 4th – a great achievement. We have great hopes for further successes next season.
Nicola Pierce (Captain)
Basketball The Selwyn College Mens Basketball Club (SCMBC) was resurrected in 2010. At first, it was just a group of friends who played basketball on a weekly basis. However, once finding out that there wasn’t a men’s basketball team, several of us took the initiative to reinvigorate the SCMBC. After recruiting at Selwyn’s Fresher’s Fair, we gained a total of thirteen members, all of whom had a strong drive to participate in the college league and make it to the cupper’s tournament. The club’s weekly training sessions and regular practice games, allowed captain, Dishant Mahendru, and coach, Zachary McCune, to analyse performances of individual players and formulate successful defensive and offensive plays. Videos of our practices and games were taken each time and reviewed separately to properly analyse our team strategy. Starting at the bottom of the league in Division 5 we proceeded to win all our games before Christmas, winning promotion to Division 4. Our success continued in the New Year, once more winning all our league matches meaning that we will start the 2011-2012 Season in Division 3. The clubs successful season secured us a position in the Cuppers tournament, earning a respectable position and nearly beating the best team in the entire league, The Hellenic Society. Basketball is a sport heavily played around the world and the team
definitely is a strong representation of that fact. The club had members from the following countries: USA, Germany, Scotland, England, Denmark, Canada, China, India, Greece and Latvia, successfully representing Selwyn’s cultural diversity. Regular socials, especially our post-game meal and drinks at The Avery helped to improve our team spirit and of course led to nicknames. Some were more straightforward than others. For example Alexander Steinforth, our most valuable player for 2010, was named “The German”, not only because he was German, but because he fitted the international stereotype perfectly. My personal favourite, however, has to be “Beer” which was given to Peteris Erins, our most improved player for 2010. During our first official basketball practice even though he introduced himself as “Peter”, we all heard “Beer”. This name stuck for some time, however, as it took until our first game for Peter to correct us!
The experience of re-establishing the Selwyn’s Men’s Basketball Club has been very rewarding. Bringing friends together and making more friends from the enjoyment of playing an internationally renowned sport as well as proudly representing Selwyn has been exciting. The enthusiasm which the members bring to the club followed by the teams successful performance in the league has provided hope that the club will continue to develop and attract more members. We hope to have a successful 2011 season and hope you all will come to support our games.
Dishant Mahendru (Captain)
Our most memorable game was against St. Johns. Due to academic priorities, half of the team couldn’t make the game. Once St. Johns approached the court, we saw approximately over 20 people in their team. Of course this was a bit worrying, but pep talks given by both the coach and captain boosted the team’s morale. Our squad of 6 fought incredibly hard eventually winning by 10 points. Throughout the game morale was maintained and constant discussions allowed the team to develop strategies, on the spot, to beat the opposition.
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Development & Alumni Relations Office Selwyn College Cambridge CB3 9DQ Tel: 01223 767844 Fax: 01223 767843 E-mail: alumni-office@sel.cam.ac.uk www.sel.cam.ac.uk
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