'SPORT'LIGHT WINTER TERM
DECEMBER 2023
IN THIS ISSUE IN THE 'SPORTLIGHT' SCOTTISH CUP UPDATE IN OTHER SPORT ASPIRING ATHLETES NEW FIRIENDS IN THE CURRICULUM SUMMER CAMP FURTHERMORE IMPORTANT DATES SAVE THE DATE LIMITLESS PARTNERS & SPONSORS SPORTS COUNCIL THANK YOU
IN THE SPORTLIGHT EVIE- GOLF EUROPEAN GIRLS TEAM Evie’s highlight of the year was winning the Scottish Girls Amateur Championship in July, which was her first National win, she also won the qualifying stroke play stage of this event. During the summer she represented Scotland in the European Girls Team Championship in France and the Home Internationals in England. Since May she finished in the top 4 of all the competitions she played in, which resulted in finishing second in the Order of Merits for the Scottish Girls and Stephen Gallacher Foundation for 2023
HOCKEY Congratulations to our Hockey players selected for the Scotland Brave Squads Honor (U6) and Abi (L6) Lightning BRAVE Aspiring Girls Squad
Jessica (L5) Lightning BRAVE Emerging Girls Squad
IN THE SPORTLIGHT ALEXIA - GBR FENCING Congratulations to Alexia on her selection for the GBR Fencing Cadet Foil Squad (u17) She competed in 4 international competitions so far this year and has recently been selected for the European Fencing Confederation (EFC) Cadet event in Poznan, Poland. Alexia also won a Bronze in the Fencing Foil Women’s category at The Highland Open.
LACROSSE Congratulations to our Lacrosse players selected for the Scotland Development team and U21 Scotland team. Isla (U6) U21 Scotland Team Charlotte (U6) Scotland Development Izzy and Florence (U5) Scotland Development
IN THE SPORTLIGHT CRICKET: EAST OF SCOTLAND Diya (L4) and Adwita (L4) selected for the Eastern Knights U15 Cricket squad to represent the East of Scotland in the regional series
NETBALL: EDINBURGH DISTRICT Iris (U5) and Kari (U4) are selected to represent the Edinburgh District in the Sirens District Netball Programme.
Iris - U17 District Squad Kari - U15 District Squad
SWIMMING: SCOTTISH JUNIOR ADADEMY Caoimhe (Remove) is selected to join the Scottish Swimming Junior Academy.
IN THE SPORTLIGHT HOCKEY: EAST LOTHAIN DISTRICT Florence (L4) and Isla (L4) have been selected for the Under 15s East Lothian Hockey Development Squad.
TENNIS: EAST OF SCOTLAND Elodie (L4) & Kana (R) represented East of Scotland Tennis at the northern division of County Cup at Northumberland club (Jesmond, Newcastle). East of Scotland was 3rd overall.
BADMINTON NATIONAL CHAMPION Vibha (U6) won the Scottish U19 Nationals, Singles title at the Badminton National Junior Championships.
SCOTTISH & EAST CUP: 1XI HOCKEY TEAM SCOTTISH CUP: Scottish Cup: On Saturday 4th November the 1st XI Hockey team played Dollar Academy in a tough first round of the Scottish Cup. The score was 0-0 at half-time thanks to a disciplined performance and some good saves by Abi. In the second half, St George's took the lead after Hannah C set up Susanna to score a good opening goal. The girls fought to the end but unfortunately two Dollar goals in the final 15 minutes meant a final score of 21 to Dollar. The team then faced another tough draw playing Fettes College in the quarter final of the Plate. Eager to turn around a 3-0 loss from earlier in the season, St George's put in a much-improved display. Susanna and Issy P forced the Fettes goalkeeper into good saves, while the defence and Abi worked hard to keep out a strong Fettes attack. Fettes took a 1-0 lead into half-time and despite lots of St George's pressure, we couldn't get the goal we wanted and Fettes added a second on the counter attack in the final moments. On Thursday 30th November the 1st XI defeated Boroughmuir High School 5-0 in the first round of the East Cup. The girls put in a very good all-round performance in very cold conditions. The goal scorers were Annabel (2), Hannah C, Issy P and Florence. The team will now play George Watson's College in the semi-final next term.
EAST CUP: On Thursday 30th November the 1st XI defeated Boroughmuir High School 5-0 in the first round of the East Cup. The girls put in a very good all-round performance in very cold conditions. The goal scorers were Annabel (2), Hannah C, Issy P and Florence. The team will now play George Watson's College in the semi-final next term.
SCOTTISH CUP: U15/L5 HOCKEY TEAM SCOTTISH CUP:
The U15 Scottish Cup team have progressed into the semi final stages after two strong games in round 1 and 2. After a long bus journey to Glenalmond, the girls played some excellent team hockey and were clinical in the D, resulting in a 6-1 win. Next we faced a strong Fettes team and after a tightly contested match, we came out on top with a 3-2 win. The semi final will be in Februarygood luck girls!
SCOTTISH CUP: NETBALL This season 7 teams competed in Netball Scotland Scottish Schools cup competition. 12 games were played during the pool stages, it was great to see so many of our girls on the court enjoying the experience. The Lower4A and Lower 5A teams progressed into the Plate competition and the Upper 4A and First Senior teams into Cup Competition. The First Team and Upper 4A team where up against tough teams in their first cup knock-out rounds. They played with grit and determination, and did not give up right up until the final quarter. Congratulations to the Lower 4 and Lower 5 teams, winning their first knock out round, securing a ‘top 10 spot’ in their competitions. All the best with the next round in January. Next term we are looking forward to several friendly games for all our teams, please come and support us.
SCOTTISH CUP: NETBALL
IN OTHER SPORT SKIING MOYRA RUSHWORTH SKI RACE This year saw a young field of entrants for the Moyra Rushworth Trophy with students from U5 to P6 entered. There was some great skiing on show with the bulk o the field tightly packed together. However, after the 5 runs there was a clear winner with Pippa (U4) coming out on top having put together some impressively consistent runs. Pippa is a student that has progressed through all the Junior Ski levels at the St George's ski club and now attends the Lothian Ski Racing Club. It was really positive to see some many young skiers out that will develop further over the coming years as the St Georges Ski Racing Team.
BADMINTON The Senior Badminton Squad teamed up with Merchiston Castle at the end of this term to compete in the Edinburgh School Badminton Tournament against ESMS. After some tough singles matches a lot was riding on the doubles matches (girls, boys and mixed). At the end of the matches the fixture was tied 5-5, unfortunately one of the ESMS student suffered an injury forcing them out of the fixture resulting in a count back of head to heads to decide the winner. The combined St Georges and Merchiston Castle team came out 3-2 meaning we will progress to the next round! Not the way we would have liked the result to be decided and we wish the ESMS student a speedy recovery.
IN OTHER SPORT INDOOR HOCKEY Our 1st Indoor team competed in the East District Tournament on Friday 1st December. The team prepared well with morning sessions and a friendly game, but lost their group games 2-1 to George Heriot's and 4-1 to The Mary Erskine School, goals scored by Caitlin and Issy. With 8 players competing in indoor hockey for the first time, the team showed lots of promise for next season.
IN OTHER SPORT SWIMMING Fantastic results from our swimmers Caoimhe (R) & Isla (L4) at the Scottish Schools Swimming Championships Time Trials. Isla came 7th in the 13-14yrs 100m freestyle with a very good time of 1:16.78 a fantastic swim after almost a month off training with illness/injury. Caoimhe came 1st in both the 50m freestyle and the 50m breaststroke for the 12/under age group, with a couple of strong PBs.
CROSS COUNTRY On Wednesday 4 October, Bess (R), Caoimhe (R), Kana (R), Minna (R), Katie (R), Florence (L4) competed in the SSAA Road Race Championships in Pittencrieff Park, Dunfermline. Schools from across Scotland took part in this competition and a total of 1390 runners took on the typical cross-country conditions. It was great to see so many students taking part and enjoying their races. Well done to Bess who came 31st out of 116 runners in her P7 Girls Category and Florence 34th out of 117 in the S1 Girls category. Fantastic effort by all our runners!
IN OTHER SPORT EQUESTRIAN Three St. George's students, Orlaith (L5) Isla (L4) and Isla T (L4) and their ponies attended the Strathallan Show Jumping event at Highfield Equestrian Centre of Howe. It was an early start on a very cold day, but they had lots of enthusiasm and worked incredibly hard. Isla T was placed fourth in the 75cm Show Jumping and whilst there were no other placings, it was great day for the girls and their ponies to consolidate some skills, get to know each other better and gain more experience at their different events.
EQUESTRIAN VAULTING Leyla (R) had a successful day at the British Championships for Vaulting event. She achieved a 10th places in her individuals and 16th in her category. She also competed in the pre novice squad for her club and they came 3rd! Well done.
Aspiring Athlete Programme This year we have introduced an Aspiring Athlete Programme into our Upper School Sports Programme. The aim of the programme is to provide a supportive infrastructure and long-term athletic development that will enable and encourage our students to maximise their potential and meet their personal aspirations of playing sport at the highest possible level. Our success criteria is ‘to ensure that pupils leave school with the self-confidence and physical competence to complete a training programme in a range of environments.’ Currently the programme includes strength and conditioning sessions in our gym and regular talks and workshops covering topics around nutrition and sport psychology. We have partnered with Athletes Focussed to run the Strength and Conditioning Programme. These sessions develop a range of physical competencies centered around the fundamental movement patterns. We welcomed nutritionist expert Christine Bailey who discussed with our aspiring athletes the importance of nutrition for sports performance. World Record Cyclist Josh Quigley spoke about his journey and the role nutrition played. We are pleased with the athletes' progression and are waiting for their recent fitness test results. We have also carried out a survey, asking the girls for their views on how to improve the strength and conditioning sessions. We appreciate their honest feedback and will implement some of their recommendations into the next block.
NEW FRIENDS 1XI HOCKEY TEAM GAME AGAINST COLEGIO NEWLANDS FROM ARGENTINA
On 8 September we welcomed our first tour group for this year onto our campus. Our 1XI Hockey team hosted a lunchtime game against Colegio Newlands from Argentina. It was unusually warm weather and was great to see the rest of Upper School support the girls and chat with our visitors. After the game the teams enjoyed lunch and refreshments, sharing stories and making new friends. We are looking forward to our next tour group after the half-term break.
METHODIST COLLEGE GIRLS HOCKEY TOUR Our Lower 4 and Upper 4 hockey teams hosted Methodist College for an afternoon full of hockey fixtures and pizza. We are looking forward to your next visit.
IN THE CURRICULUM LOWER 5 FEMALE ATHLETE PROGRAMME As part of the Lower 5 National 5 Physical Education Course students have been learning about the menstrual cycle and how this impacts sporting performance, using period tracker apps and listening to podcasts. We have combined this with a fitness block where the students have created their own spin, High intensity interval training and strength sessions as well as learning how to fuel our bodies correctly for optimum performance.
NATIONAL 5 PHYSICAL EDUCATION TRIP
This was an enjoyable trip, one of the highlights included gymnastics; we used their amazing gym facilities to practise working on our skills and building our confidence by using different apparatus like the rings. We also completed a triathlon which tested our stamina and resilience. We used their spin studio for cycling, created a running route around the centre and then used the local pool for swimming. We also had the opportunity to use their gym and have coaching from their personal trainers. We completed a circuit in strength and conditioning and lifting weights. On the second evening, we had the pleasure of speaking to professional hockey player, Sarah Jamieson, about her experiences in hockey and overcoming barriers in sport. As the weather was nice, on the last night we walked down to the beach and got ice cream. Overall, the trip was very memorable!
SPORTS LEADERS The Sport Leaders have had a busy term, taking charge of organizing the S3 East tournament, leading lessons for students from P1 to P5, and actively participating in volunteer roles across various sporting clubs.
AUGUST 2023
SUMMER CAMP This year the summer camp ran from the 14 until 17 of August. Over 100 students joined us to sharpen their skills and to meet up with friends again. We also welcomed our new students to St George’s. Over the four days, we played hockey, netball, football, tennis, basketball and the annual return of our slip and slide! Our summer camp is always a highlight and we can’t wait for the next one in 2025. (summer camp won’t be on 2024, as we are touring to South Africa)
AUGUST 2023
SUMMER CAMP
Furthermore:
1XI HOCKEY TEAM SPONSOR
We are delighted to announce that i-confidential will be our new 1st XI Hockey Team sponsor for the next two seasons. Their logo will feature on our 1st XI playing kit and our astro. Louise Beattie, Chief Operating Officer for i-confidential says: “i-confidential is a cybersecurity consultancy in an industry where women are underrepresented. We are on a journey to break down barriers to participation in our industry and we are delighted to partner with St George’s on their journey to break down barriers for girls - whether that’s in sport or STEM subjects. What you wear shouldn’t be a barrier and we hope that the new team uniform (designed for comfort and customised based on student feedback) will support the 1st XI Hockey Team.”
Furthermore: IN CONVERSATION WITH JUDY MURRAY On Thursday, 21 September Mrs Chandler-Thompson hosted the evening, interviewing Judy Murray OBE about her debut novel, The Wild Card, the tennis tale of triumph over adversity and discuss some of the challenges in women and girls' sport. Judy Murray said, “It was great to be back at St George’s to talking about my debut novel The Wild Card which gave me an opportunity to share lots of behind the scenes details from my many years in the tennis circuit. It also allowed me to raise awareness of some of the issues and challenges that still exist for women and girls in the sporting world through the story of Abigail Patterson, one of Britain's brightest prospects who has to quit the game at 17. She makes a surprise comeback 20 years later as a wild card into Wimbledon and finds herself fulfilling her childhood dream of playing on centre court. But her success catapults her into the public eye and the media interest threatens to expose the secret she has been keeping. It’s a tale of triumph over adversity and a reminder that family and friends are more important than fame and fortune." What a fabulous night! We are grateful to everyone in our community who attended the event!
Furthermore:
BRODIES Tennis Invitational At the end of September, Brodies LLP delivered Scotland’s tennis event of the year, with legends of the sport at the EICC in Edinburgh. The star-studded players included Feliciano López, Jo Konta, Mark Philippoussis, Laura Robson, Freya Christie, Marcos Baghdatis, Ali Collins, Aidan McHugh and Greg Rusedski. Seasoned sports broadcaster Alison Walker brought her wealth of knowledge to the event as MC. Fifty St George's students and staff went to the inspirational event to watch legends of the game showcase singles and doubles, inspiring the next generation. Also at the event, Judy Murray and our Sports Leaders teamed up to showcase how to teach girls tennis with our P3 students participating on the court at the main event. Thanks to Judy for creating workforce development opportunities in the build up at school and at the event itself. Lower School students, Elodie & Kana, were part of six East players who played with professional players Ali Collins and Freya Christie in a different showcase session and carried out ball girl duties
IMPORTANT DATES
7 JUNE 10:00 - 11:00
5 JUNE 13 JUNE 13:30 - 15:00
12:00 - 15:45
JUNIOR SCHOOL SPORTS EVENT
LOWER SCHOOL SPORTS EVENT
NURSERY SPORTS EVENT
25 JUNE
25 JUNE
13:15 - 15:50
18:00 - 20:00
UPPER SCHOOL SPORTS EVENT
SPORTS CELEBRATION EVENING
SPORT TOURS LOWER 4
HOCKEY & NETBALL
SENIOR LACROSSE
NEW CASTLE 22 MARCH
MANCHESTER 22 MARCH
LOWER 5 HOCKEY
SENIOR HOCKEY& NETBALL
MANCHESTER 1 MARCH
SOUTH AFRICA 1 AUGUST
SAVE THE DATE When Tue 09 Jan
Sport
Team
Opposition
Netball
L5B
The Mary Erskine School
Wed 10 Jan Netball
L4B
The Mary Erskine School
Thu 11 Jan
Netball
U4B/C
The Mary Erskine School
Sat 13 Jan
Hockey
All
Dollar Academy
Mon 15 Jan Netball
Remove
EPSSA P7 Winter Competition
Wed 17 Jan Netball
L4A/B & P6 A/B St Mary's School, Melrose
Thu 18 Jan
Netball
U4A
Thu 18 Jan
Swimming All
The Mary Erskine School
Sat 20 Jan
Hockey
All
St Aloysius' College
Sat 20 Jan
Hockey
All
North Berwick High School
Fettes College
Mon 22 Jan Netball
1st &2nd Team Loretto School
Tue 23 Jan
Lacrosse
U14A/B
Loretto School
Tue 23 Jan
Netball
L5A
Fettes College
Wed 24 Jan Netball
L4C/D
George Watson's College
Thu 25 Jan
Netball
U4C/D
George Watson's College
Fri 26 Jan
Swimming All
Scottish Schools Swimming Championships 2024
Sat 27 Jan
Hockey
All
George Watson's College
Mon 29 Jan Lacrosse
1st Team
Loretto School
Mon 29 Jan Netball
P6
EPSSA P6 Winter Competition
U15A
Loretto School
L4A/B/C
Fettes College
Tue 30 Jan
Lacrosse
Wed 31 Jan Netball Fri 02 Feb
Hockey
L4A
East District S1 Tournament
Sat 03 Feb
Hockey
All
Hutchesons' Grammar School
Sat 03 Feb
Hockey
P6
The Mary Erskine School
Tue 06 Feb
Lacrosse
U15B/U14B
Fettes College
L4B / P6
Cargilfield School
Wed 07 Feb Netball Wed 21 Feb
Cross Country
OPEN
Lothian League - Meadows tennis Courts
Sat 24 Feb
Hockey
All
High School of Dundee
Sat 24 Feb
Lacrosse
1st &2nd Team 1st and 2nd X Rosebowl Tournament
Sun 25 Feb
Cross Country
OPEN
Scottish Independent Schools’ Cross-Country
SAVE THE DATE When
Sport
Mon 26 Feb Netball
Team Seniors Second
Opposition The Mary Erskine School
Tue 27 Feb Cross Country OPEN
Merchiston Castle School's Juniors’ XC Relays
Tue 27 Feb Lacrosse
Fettes College
U15A/U14A
Wed 28 Feb Cross Country OPEN
Lothian League -Inverleith Park - Rugby Club
Wed 28 Feb Lacrosse
U13/U11/U9 Belhaven Hill School
Wed 28 Feb Netball
P4 - L4
Belhaven Hill School
Thu 29 Feb Lacrosse
U15A
Lacrosse Scotland U15 Tournament
Fri 01 Mar
Hockey
Upper 4A
East District S2 Tournament
Sat 02 Mar Hockey
2XI / 3XI Seniors
St George's 2XI Hockey Tournament
Sat 02 Mar Hockey
Primary 6 Dragons
ESMS Primary 6 Hockey Festival
Mon 04 Mar Cross Country OPEN
EPSSA P6/P7 Cross Country
Tue 05 Mar Lacrosse
1st &2nd Team
Fettes College
Tue 05 Mar Lacrosse
U14A
Lacrosse Scotland U14 Tournament
Sat 09 Mar Hockey
All
The Edinburgh Academy
Sat 09 Mar Hockey Sevens
1st VII Hockey
George Heriot's School Golden 7's Tournament
Mon 11 Mar Cross Country OPEN
EPSSA P6/P7 Cross Country
Tue 12 Mar Lacrosse
Glenalmond College
U15A/U14A
Wed 13 Mar Cross Country OPEN
Lothian League - MES (Ravelston)
Wed 13 Mar Hockey Sevens
1st VII Hockey
Mon 18 Mar Hockey
Remove Dollar P7 HockeyTournament Dragons - P7
Tue 19 Mar Lacrosse
1st &2nd Team
Wed 20 Mar Cross Country OPEN
The High School of Glasgow 7's Tournament
Glenalmond College Lothian League MES (Ravelston)
AMBASSADOR PROGRAMME DO YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES TO BE A LIMITLESS AMBASSADOR? Limitless believes in inspiring the next generation and instilling a lifelong love of fitness and activity to build essential life skills like teamwork, fair play, confidence and leadership. Every year they support over 30 young Limitless Ambassadors by promoting their sporting endeavours and providing them with the sports kit they need to succeed.
DO YOU EMBODY THE LIMITLESS VALUES OF CONFIDENCE, TEAMWORK, AND A LOVE OF SPORT? IF YOU DO, THEN THEY WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!
Hear from Alexia - she is a limitless ambassoder Being an ambassador you don’t just have to do the most popular sports, actually out of all the ambassadors when we met no one had the same sports. During the time I have been an ambassador I have received a polo shirt, sports t-shirt, leggings, kit bag, water bottle, tote bag, sports bra, shorts and a bobble hat, which were all high quality. To become an ambassador I had to fill out a form talking about my love for my sport, and my commitment to it. When I got in the requirements to stay an ambassador was, to be active on social media by posting at least once every 2 weeks, tag them in everything and mention them in my bio. I have thoroughly enjoyed the experience, getting to try lots of new sports kit, meeting the other ambassadors with similar mindsets and the zoom calls being able to meet famous athletes and hear about their stories.
AMBASSADOR PROGRAMME The new application period for 13 – 17 year-olds to become Limitless Ambassadors in 2024 is now open. The programme is open to any student that would benefit from this programme, which focusses on young people enjoying being active and playing sport. Successful applicants will become an Ambassador for the UK’s leading independent school sports brand and receive free Limitless kit, provided they continue to post on social media about their sports throughout the year. They will also be supported and encouraged by Limitless as we follow their progress. During the year we offer talks from well-known sports personalities, who can inspire and motivate the next generation of athletes. The easiest way for students to apply is with the form on their website: www.limitlesskit.com/ambassadors APPLY HERE
The application form will be open from 4th December 2023 – 4th January 2024, with successful applicants informed by 16th January 2024. To be successful, the applicant needs to demonstrate their commitment to teamwork and a love for sports, as well as a regular, active social media presence. They don’t need to be participating at any particular level of sport – they need only love it and love talking about it. It is an excellent opportunity for them to work with a popular sports brand and develop leadership and organisational skills.
SPONSORS AND PARTNERS
SPORTS COUNCIL This year, the sports Council has 35 active committee members chosen from a wide range of sports. The aim of the council is to give our students a voice within St George’s Sport, to discuss topics highlighted throughout the year and outline the positive impact of sport at St. George’s. The council can action points, which this term has included the use of changing rooms for year groups. Having a wide-ranging group of students from Lower to Upper school provides a dynamic and exciting viewpoint bringing different opinions to the table. I am already looking forward to the next meeting!
Thank You This season, sport at St Georges has been brilliant! Everyone has been so eager and engaged since coming back from summer with high levels of participation in all the sports St Georges has to offer. From a competitive level or just for fun, the school has thrived this season with training and matches. None of this would be possible without the work that goes on behind the scenes. The kitchen staff who always make sure we are fuelled for our sport. From making us all pack lunches or providing the bacon rolls on a Saturday morning. The facilities team have made sure we have had transport for every game and make sure we arrive safely and on time. Not to mention getting up every morning to make sure the pitches are playable despite the badgers! Thank you also to Ms Patterson, washing the bibs every week making sure they are clean for us to use. There is so much work that goes on behind the scenes for us to be able to train and play to our full potential and none of that would be possible without the help from these people. We also want to say a MASSIVE thank you to our PE staff and external coaches who put so much effort into every session they take. Through snow, wind, and rain they have always been there pushing us to perform to the best level we can, we are so grateful for that. And to the parents that wake up early on a Saturday morning and drive us to our games and watch them, the support is hugely appreciated. Thank you!
HANNAH - SPORTS PREFECT - 2023/2024