The Peterite 2013-2014 by StPetersYork

THE PETERITE 2013-2014

St Peter’s School • York • YO30 6AB Tel: 01904 527300 • Fax: 01904 527302 Email: enquiries@stpetersyork.org.uk www.stpetersyork.org.uk

THE PETERITE 2013-2014

Gap Year University of Reading Edinburgh Napier University University of Edinburgh University of Sussex University of Exeter University of Gloucestershire University of Bristol Lancaster University University of Manchester University of the Arts, London University of Exeter University of Warwick University of East Anglia University of Warwick Northumbria University University of Warwick University of Edinburgh University of Surrey Gap Year University of Sheffield Imperial College London University of Birmingham Gap Year Northumbria University University of Huddersfield Gap Year Imperial College London University of Leicester University of Salford Oxford Brookes University Gap Year Gap Year Gap Year Gap Year University of Sheffield University of Warwick Oxford Brookes University Leeds Metropolitan University University of Edinburgh University of Cambridge (Trinity Hall) Gap Year University of Cambridge (Peterhouse) University of Manchester University College London University of Liverpool University of Warwick Manchester Metropolitan University University of Sheffield University of Warwick Loughborough University University of Cambridge (Christ’s) University of Bristol University of Cambridge (St John’s) University of Manchester University College London University of Sheffield University of Warwick Newcastle University Gap Year Southampton Solent University University of Liverpool Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh University of Exeter University of Bristol University of Bristol Swansea University University of Edinburgh Newcastle University Lancaster University King’s College London University of Edinburgh University of Warwick Gap Year University of St Petersburg Gap Year Newcastle University Newcastle University Lancaster University University of Cambridge (Trinity) Queen Mary University of London Gap Year University of Edinburgh University of Cambridge (Girton) University of Edinburgh Durham University Newcastle University Queen’s University Belfast Royal Agricultural University, Cirencester University of Leeds University of Leeds University of Cambridge (Christ’s) University of Warwick University of East Anglia Newcastle University Gap Year University of Leeds Newcastle University Imperial College London Liverpool John Moores University University of Manchester Newcastle University Lancaster University Northumbria University University of Manchester Coventry University University of Bath University of Edinburgh Newcastle University Northumbria University Gap Year University of Bristol Keele University Imperial College London Durham University University of Exeter University of Bristol University of Bath Gap Year

Animal Science English and Film Physics Engineering (with a foundation year) Geography (Science) Law Economics Mathematics (study abroad) Neuroscience with Industrial/Professional Experience (4 years) Foundation in Art and Design Biological Sciences with Professional Placement (4 years) Classical Civilisation Medicine Mechanical Engineering Business with Marketing Management Mathematics, Operational Research, Statistics and Economics Architecture Music and Sound Recording (4 years)

Leavers’ Destinations 2014

Felix Adams Christopher Andrews Harriet Andrews James Bell James Bellingall Siân Bigger Edward Bower India Charlotte Brattan Joseph Brennan Patrick Brown Alexandra Budarina Hannah Burke Thomas Calvert Sarah Carlton Emily Carman William Catchpole Gabriel Chan Michael Chan Ivan Cheng Timothy Chiu Edward Coates William Coidan James Contreras Patrick Copley Georgina Cornock Jack Crowther Thomas Dickinson Seb Dobson Amy Dodds James Downie Holly Drinkwater Nina Duncan Emily Easterby Charlie Elliot Elliot Elstob Alexander Eyre Henry Eyre Harriet Falshaw Eleanor Fletcher Sophie France Jennifer Frazer Angus Freeman Jonathan Fry William Fynn Minna Gabbertas Marco Gaias Matthew Garbutt Julia Gebbie Dylan George Jack Graham Brogan Grant Emily Gray James Greenall Harry Ha Guy Hall Rachel Hall Alexander Harrison Georgina Harrison Owen Herman Shahad Hilmy Archie Hinde Sasha Hinde Cormac Hopkinson Robert Hulmes Lucy Hunter Elle Illingworth Daniel James Imogen Jefferies Kirill Kulik Yasmine Kumordzi Tara Ledden Sabrina Leung Eleanor Martin Samuel Metcalfe Maria Mikhaylenko Valerie Morshchagina Laura Nichols Harry Nozedar Max Nozedar Luka Pajovic Alexander Payne William Pepper Katharine Phillips Samuel Philpott Zoe Pindar Alex Plane Josephine Proctor Sara Pycock Katherine Raines Hannah Ramalingam Emma Rawson Alex Reeds Alice Rhodes Lucy Schofield William Scholey Alexander Shaw Harley Shaw Scarlett Shaw Toby Simpson Charles Smith Oliver Smith Harry Snell Josh Stanford Emma Stephenson Daniel Stone Angila Sunuwar Jessica Szeto Lipfon Tang Euan Taylor Jake Taylor Tansy Tomlinson Stephanie Tong Joss Town Nik Ubhi Johnny Walmsley Georgina Ward William Waterhouse Elizabeth Wells Christopher Williams

Chemical Engineering with Biotechnology Biology Political Science with year abroad Business with Marketing Management Engineering foundation (general) Mechanical Engineering with a year abroad General Engineering (with a year abroad) Mechanical Engineering with a foundation year Architecture

Politics Automotive Engineering Real Estate Management Sport and Exercise Science Geography Medicine Law Economics Modern Languages (4 years) Dental Surgery Physics Law Chemistry with Biological and Medicinal Chemistry Mechanical Engineering Architectural Engineering and Design Management Classics Mathematics Natural Sciences American Studies Geography (International) Law and Criminology French with Spanish Computer Science (Security and Resilience) Yacht Design and Production Psychology Civil Engineering Geography (Science) Spanish and Russian (4 years) Law Aerospace Engineering (with a year in industry) Ancient History Civil Engineering Biomedical Science History Architecture History and Politics Physics Marketing and Management Modern Languages, Translation and Interpreting Economics Architecture Medicine English and Scottish Literature Natural Sciences Medicine Classics Animal Science Politics Agriculture History and Philosophy International Business Modern and Medieval Languages Economics English Literature Agriculture Economics and Management Economics and Business Management Materials Science and Engineering Sport and Exercise Science International Business, Finance and Economics Electronics and Computer Engineering Biological Sciences Product Design Engineering History Biomedical Science Pharmacology French and English Literature Marine Biology Built Environment (Extended Degree) Civil Engineering Philosophy with Humanities foundation year Medicine Biological Sciences Economics and Politics Economics Politics and International Relations

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Contents

The Peterite 2013-2014 Issue No. 431 Contents Commemoration

Salvete

Valete

House Reports

Visits & Exchanges

News, Events & Activities

Creative & Cultural

114

Postcard Portraits

146

Sport

148

Leavers’ Destinations

217

The Peterite Team Sara Pycock, Alex Plane, Lucy Schofield, Bethan Bradley and Peter Gray

Heads of School Toby Simpson and Katharine Phillips

The Peterite 2013-2014

Editorial

From the Head Master The academic year of 2013-2014 ended with a flurry of twowheeled excitement as we saw the riders and entourage of the 101st edition of the Tour de France sweep past our historic frontage and out towards the open roads of the Dales. A blaze of vibrant Lycra-clad energy left the city of York abuzz for days. The Grand Départ was a joyous celebration of what can be achieved when planning, preparation, effort, ambition, community spirit and sheer enjoyment combine to make special things happen. Unique as the Grand Départ was, we can nonetheless find abundant evidence within these pages of a comparable wholehearted participation and remarkable achievement. St Peter’s is alive with energy, talent, commitment and a genuine sense of the joy of learning – and simply being together. I hope you too are uplifted by what follows. My warm thanks and congratulations go to the team of pupils who helped compile this magazine and to Mr Keith Wright for his diligent and skilful editing of this, his first edition of The Peterite. Our flagship publication is in good hands. Do enjoy the read!

Mr Leo Winkley Head Master

Editorial For the last ten editions, The Peterite has been edited by Mr John Darmody, growing from a 78-page magazine duplicated in-house to a 220-page glossy magazine reflecting the highest production values. The years of John’s editorship have seen a steady growth in the range of activities which take place outside the school’s classrooms, alongside a magazine which has expanded in order to report on these activities. Now the editorship has been passed on to me, and – being aware that just as the captain of a large vessel can find it surprisingly difficult to change course in a hurry, but alarmingly easy to run aground – I have endeavoured to keep the magazine running on a steady course. The features in the magazine remain the same but, in the year that the Tour de France passed right by the front door of the school, it is appropriate that cycling is mentioned in these pages more than it has been in the past, and takes pride of place on the cover. What is new this year is that the magazine, for the first time, is being made available online simultaneously with the release of the paper publication. Just as back issues of the magazine, from the first issue in 1878, are now accessible via the school’s website, so this 2013-14 edition can be read in easy-to-use form on computers, tablets and phones, extending its reach across the globe.

I am enormously grateful to all who have contributed to the production of the magazine, principally John Darmody, who has guided me gently through the first year with words of advice, support and warning, and who has helped to select from David Morris’s comprehensive and imaginative photographs. Hutton Peach Design Solutions have once again produced a layout for the magazine which presents the images in an engaging counterpoint with the text, and Linden Richardson has dealt with the final printing stages with patience and efficiency. Our own editorial team (Sara Pycock, Alex Plane, Lucy Schofield, Bethan Bradley and Peter Gray) have worked hard to gather material for the magazine, and a small army of colleagues has undertaken the proof-reading tasks. Many others – too many to mention individually by name – have pointed me in the right direction when I seemed lost, or helped with essential pieces of advice or information. Most of all, though, I must thank the contributors who have captured this priceless snapshot of a year’s activities, and the scores of pupils and members of staff who have taken part in such a wide range of activities, whether they be sporting, artistic, academic, exploratory, creative, challenging, charitable, or just fun! Mr Keith Wright Editor, The Peterite

The Peterite 2013-2014

Commemoration 2014

Commemoration

Head Master’s Commemoration Address, 4 July 2014 On Sunday morning, the extraordinary caravan that is the 101st édition of the Tour de France will sweep past the Minster’s mighty walls and make its looping 123-mile progress from York to Sheffield via the Pennine hills of West and South Yorkshire. The route for the Tour is different every year, becoming more and more elaborate over the past 111 years. Studying this year’s route, it looks like the work of a malfunctioning satnav with a wicked sense of humour. Rather than going direct from A to B, the route deviates wildly, wilfully seeking out cruel detours, harsh gradients and sharp descents. Amongst the contenders for the Yellow Jersey will be GB riders Mark Cavendish and Chris Froome. A year ago Froome won the 100th édition of the Tour, completing the 2,128-mile course at an average speed of 25 miles an hour. That’s including the mountains. One hundred years ago today, the 12th édition of the Tour de France was already well under way. Back then, the average speed of the 54 riders was a more modest 16 miles an hour and the 1914 course was wonderfully simple. It was a 3,359-mile grand tour of the outline of France; Le Tour autour, as it were. Starting in Paris, they headed up to Le Havre and proceeded anticlockwise around France’s noble exterior, all the way back to Dunkirk.

Well before the inception of professional sport, the 1914 Tour was characterized by a unique blend of sporting spirit and moments of glorious amateurism. On the third stage, the riders reached the first checkpoint one hour late, after they had taken the wrong route and ridden more than 20 miles in the opposite direction. The wives and mothers in this congregation will know all too well how unlikely it is that 54 grown men would admit that they’re lost, let alone stop and ask directions. In fairness though, anyone who has driven across France might sympathize that the road signage is often enigmatic or even self-contradictory. By the sixth stage, the Pyrenees Mountains appeared. The weather was getting increasingly hot and, by the eighth stage, the cyclists did not want to race. Perhaps because this was France, the spirit of unionism and direct action was in the air: the entire field agreed to cycle at low speed. The Tour management got the message, stopped the race and held a sprint tournament instead. On the ninth stage, scandal broke as former Tour winner François Faber was given a 90-minute time penalty for being pushed and for taking drink from a motor-cyclist. History does not record what was in the drink. It is tempting to imagine that it was a half-bottle of Chablis.

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Commemoration

After the thirteenth stage, Belgian rider Philippe Thys was ahead of his nearest rival by 31 minutes and 50 seconds: surely, an unassailable lead. But, during the penultimate stage, Thys’ bicycle wheel broke. The Tour rules were clear. It was expressly forbidden for a competitor to receive any help with repairs. However, Thys decided to take the risk of a time penalty and seek breakdown support. Those of us who have broken down in France will fear for him, especially as this was during a lunch break. But Thys was in luck, and he bought a new wheel at a shop. Although this cost him 30 minutes on the clock, he retained his slender advantage and rode triumphant up the Champs Elysées. Why all this cycling history? Well, firstly, this service is an act of commemoration and what history tells us is that it is very important that we remember. The day of the 1914 Grand Départ, Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria was assassinated in Sarajevo, lighting the touch-paper for the outbreak of the First World War. One week after the 1914 Tour had been completed, Germany invaded the race-winner’s native Belgium and declared war on France. Suddenly, festivals of human endeavour such as the Tour de France became as meaningless as they were impractical. Le Grand Départ would not occur again until June of 1919. By that time, three former Tour de France champions had lost their lives. The 1914 winner survived the war and went on to secure a third and final Tour victory in 1920. This gathering today must surely consider the 100th anniversary of the Great War. In 1914, there were 102 boys at St Peter’s School. Some 540 Old Peterites served with the Armed Forces in the First World War. Of those 540 young men, 75 were killed. What is perhaps most significant is that 361 of them joined up before conscription was introduced in January 1916. What does it tell us of the spirit of Peterites 100 years ago that, of those young men

The Peterite 2013-2014

who fought in the Great War, more than three quarters of them joined up voluntarily? Amongst other things, I think it tells us of their deeply-held value of service. Mere numbers cannot tell the full story. Reading reports and articles on the young men in question, we get a fuller picture. With typical Peterite honesty, the 1914 edition of the school magazine describes the merits and characters of some of the First XV players, the following of whom volunteered:

These short descriptions of the merits of schoolboy rugby players are poignant. It is not hard to imagine how their skills and abilities were applied in the theatre of war: the courage, the commitment, the sense of loyalty and service. Nor is it hard to feel the tragedy of the loss of youth, the desperate waste of potential. The fates of five members of the First XV, including the three we just heard described, were dictated by forces beyond their control. None of them returned from the war. When it finally came, the end of the Great War was marked by a Chapel service in November 1918. Sam Toyne, the then Head Master, concluded his address saying: ‘let us discipline ourselves to God’s ways […] let us, as Peterites, never betray the trust of

Commemoration

Day, with over 70 MENCAP members and their carers spending the day with our pupils and staff, enjoying tennis, wheelchair basketball, football, cycling, drama and drumming. Meanwhile, up the road at the Glen Respite Care Home, 25 Fifth Formers were working on the next phase of a garden makeover and the installation of a two-level sandpit to allow access for children in wheelchairs. On the same day, a trio of Lower-Sixth pupils were invited to the Mansion House. They were three of only nine young people in York to receive the Lord Mayor of York’s Special Award for Volunteering. This culture of service is at the heart of what our school stands for. those beloved and honoured sons of the school who have laid down their lives in this mighty conflict.’ The names of those who had died were also read out at the Commemoration service of July 1919. Our act of Commemoration today affords us an opportunity to pay tribute together to all those connected with our school whose journeys through life were cut short by war, illness and other kinds of misfortune. We will remember them in a Chapel service on OP Day, 30th August. Not withstanding this sombre anniversary, Commemoration is an occasion for celebration of all the things that make St Peter’s the School it is. It is, above all, a celebration of what our young people can achieve, individually and together. This school year has been a year of celebratory anniversaries. We have marked the 60th anniversary of Queen’s House. 2014 sees the 100th anniversary of Grove House and the 50th anniversary of Dronfield House, named of course after the longest-serving Head Master of the School. 2014 is also the 10th anniversary of the school’s Community Action programme. Community Action encourages pupils to serve others through volunteering. Throughout the year pupils have volunteered their time to help with cookery and craft, swimming and music for children with special needs, as well as hosting tea parties and computer classes for local senior citizens, all on-site and sharing the school’s facilities. Many others have volunteered off-site in the local community, assisting with numerous projects, working in charity shops and helping with children’s clubs. Last week we hosted our third MENCAP

There are many other ways to serve our community. In its broadest sense, the positive contribution every individual makes is a service to the community. Whether it is in academic study and intellectual enquiry, drama (and we have been treated to some stellar productions this year), spirited debating, heartilycontested sport, all the beautiful music-making (not least in the moving concert in March and the exuberance of the Cabaret Concerts), the CCF (who achieved an excellent biennial inspection report), Young Enterprise, art and design – and what stunning exhibitions we have enjoyed – or the myriad other activities, trips and tours. Pupils serve the school every time they compete, every time they represent their house, every time they represent the school, every time they leave our site wearing the uniform and colours of the school. There have been many victories in tournaments and friendly fixtures – it’s been a terrific year for girls’ sport this year in particular, with unbeaten seasons in hockey, netball and tennis, at various

The Peterite 2013-2014

Commemoration

levels. All our sportsmen and women serve the school, at whatever level, by showing good sportsmanship, by extending the hand of friendship to visitors and by showing commitment to the end and dignity in defeat. The Archbishop of York, who is Visitor to our school, chairs the Living Wage Commission. St Peter’s is embracing those principles wholeheartedly. We have such a committed support staff, and I am delighted that, from September, every single support staff colleague will be paid the living wage or above. I am very grateful for the service given by our hard-working colleagues in the bursary, estates, domestic, catering, facilities assistants, matrons and nurses, grounds and maintenance staff and technicians. Last year saw the introduction of long-service awards: we gave out over 30. There are almost 40 colleagues across the three schools who have worked at the school for a quarter of a century or more. This tells the story of what service means at St Peter’s School. A further eight members of teaching staff received their 25-year long-service awards at the Whole Staff Party a fortnight ago. One such long-serving colleague is Mr Bob Shread who retires from teaching Chemistry today after 29 years at St Peter’s. Bob is wellknown for his excellent teaching, passionate leadership of school tennis and trademark wink. Also retiring are Mrs Lesley Birch, who has taught English at the school for seven years and Mrs Maggie Smales. Miss Katherine Barker moves on after four remarkable years to take up the promoted post of Head of Classics at Hurst School, in Sussex. Dr Matthew Thomson leaves us for the excitement of global travel with his wife. Johannes Hofmann and Tereza Hercigová leave us after successful one-year placements. Our pupils benefit from a dedicated and inspiring teaching staff. Thankfully, this is not just my view but also that of our parents, 61% of whom kindly took the time to complete the school improvement surveys we conducted earlier this academic year. The findings were that ‘parents believe pupils are academically challenged while experiencing a range of other activities […] in impressive facilities. […] particularly noteworthy is the high endorsement of exam success and other measures of academic provision, the care and communication shown by boarding staff and the opportunities provided in sports and music. Looking at “the School’s results in public exams”

The Peterite 2013-2014

and “the way pupils are stretched and challenged academically”, the school is rated significantly higher than the benchmarks from 30 other boarding schools across the country. […]’. A summary of the findings was sent to parents earlier this week and will guide our improvement planning. I thank all parents for your terrific support of the school. The quality of the pupil experience at our school remains our number-one priority. Parental feedback has usefully flagged some important areas for us to improve. Careers and higher education advice and support remains, rightly, an area of high expectation as we continue to diversify and develop our programme and seek to offer the individual support pupils need and parents require. We want to improve on communication with parents; we want to be more proactive and more detailed. We must continue to provide inspirational teaching in inspiring learning spaces. With this in mind, as the Chairman mentioned, we begin a three-year programme to improve our classrooms. We have appointed a

Head of Digital Strategy to deliver our IT plan. Curriculum design and innovation in learning remain key priorities. This year we introduced the Extended Project Qualification in the Sixth-Form curriculum, and we have more innovations planned as the national exam reforms come on-line. Recent physical improvements have gone down well. The newlyrefurbished Memorial Hall has already served the school and wider community wonderfully well and the new Gym is very popular with the pupils. We’ve had unprecedented demand for places at all levels of the school. We have ambitious plans for the future and we are in a good position to deliver them. In this shared pursuit of excellence, I would like to express my ongoing gratitude to the Board of Governors for their support and expertise in guiding the school forward. I’m delighted that Mr Bill Woolley has taken up the Chairmanship of the Board and I very much look forward to

Commemoration

leading the school forward together. I also warmly thank the St Peter’s and Whole School leadership team for their outstanding work this year. I thank my wife, Jules, for her unerring support, and for her interior design of the Memorial Hall, alongside a number of demanding day-jobs. Most importantly, I thank each and every pupil: your efforts and achievements, so many and various, are a genuine pleasure to see. And always the highlight of our jobs as teachers.

So, in just under two days’ time, the peloton will speed past this beautiful, ancient building. As a leadership team we were so privileged last week to have a tour of the East Window and see up-close the beautiful seated figure of St Peter that was blessed last Sunday on St Peter’s day. This is a building that has, over the centuries, seen all manner of processions of human transport go by: horses, donkeys and carts; walkers, wanderers and pilgrims; pedlars [sic] of a very different kind. It has seen carriages and sedans; bicycles and motor cars, and the lives of the transported countless human lives lived in the glorious and benign shadow of the Cathedral Church of St Peter.

A few years ago, I bought a T-shirt in a French market which had on it a quotation from Albert Einstein, translated into French: La vie c’est comme une bicyclette. Il faut avancer pour ne pas tomber. ‘Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.’ With this in mind, let us turn our thoughts to our UpperSixth leavers. This great occasion signals your own personal Grands Départs. It is the wonderful privilege of teaching to watch children grow into confident young adults. Many of our leavers today have been in the school from St Olave’s and plenty, including our Head Girl, have travelled all the way from the Nursery at Clifton School. Our Heads of School, Katharine and Toby, along with their deputies and an excellent team of Monitors, have served and led the school with dedication. Whether they joined the School in Nursery or the Lower Sixth or somewhere in between, the Upper Sixth of 2014 have shown themselves to be as diverse and characterful a year group as you could hope for. I hope all of you feel that your time at the school has served you well and that you are well-prepared for the next stage. To our leavers today, I say: enjoy the road ahead. Be prepared for deviations. Look for new roads, moments of surprise and beauty. Take time to admire the countryside. Enjoy the company of your co-travellers and those new friends you make along the way. Don’t be afraid to break away from the peloton. And if you get lost, for heaven’s sake, don’t be afraid to ask for directions. I hope you find the endurance to handle the punctures and crashes that will inevitably occur along the way. Keep your heads down when the wind, and the weather, are in your face. Keep moving forward as you travel over the ancient ways. And remember this simple but remarkable truth: that with a bicycle, its passenger is also its engine. And so it is with life. Mr Leo Winkley Head Master

The Peterite 2013-2014

Friends of St Peter’s

Facts about the Friends of St Peter’s • The Friends of St Peter’s is a volunteer committee of sashwearing parents who help at a variety of school events and raise funds for projects around school. • The committee was formed 25 years ago by Wendy Shepherd, a former Head of Girls’ Games, to welcome new parents to life at St Peter’s and to support the staff during the school year at music concerts, drama productions, school lectures and the Leavers’ Ball. • Our fundraising is mainly through raffle ticket sales and profits from refreshments, which is then donated to different departments within the school based on a bidding system. • In 2013-2014, FOSP accepted bids of £1,600 for projects such as the school magazine and radio, money towards a new First XV scoreboard, kickboards for the pool, items for the Chapel Choir and the girls’ Barbieshop group, and Community Action projects. • FOSP also likes to support the school in raising funds for major overseas trips at events such as the annual Music School Christmas and Cabaret Concerts. • Under the guidance of Mr Morris, FOSP is now involved with the annual Stargazing evening in January and also helps throughout the year at the public lectures. • FOSP is always grateful for any offers of help, event sponsorship and raffle prizes. Please contact our school representative, Mrs Justine Williams, or the school office. On a personal note, our fundraising is going from strength to strength as the school continues to improve the facilities, particularly the fantastic new Memorial Hall and foyer. We all really enjoy taking a more active role at school and although we work hard, we have fun, too. Thank you so much to such a wonderful, enthusiastic team and thank you to all the parents for their support. Why not come and join us? Mrs Kate Fordy

The Peterite 2013-2014

Commemoration

Obituary Christopher Blood Chris was a passionate man and also a private man. His passion for the trumpet was incredible to see – his trumpet was so much part of him. Chris had passion in such great measure that it made him one of the very best teachers that I have ever known. He was a man who did not like fuss; in his last few years, he did not like openly discussing the details of his illness and certainly did not want any special treatment. Of course there was his other passion: aeroplanes (and, by extension, the RAF). He married Della in the School Chapel, dressed in his RAF uniform from his work with the school RAF section of the Combined Cadet Force. His best man was his dear friend, Matthew Grant, who ran that section. He had pictures of planes and insignia in his room at school together with a variety of trumpets from all periods and a vast array of mouthpieces. He could hear a Spitfire flying miles away and be able to tell which mark of Spitfire it was, even before it came into view! When Chris went to RAF camps he was always excited: almost like a schoolboy, he loved the formality of it, the clean shoes, the uniform and the strong structure. Chris was born in 1953 in Clifton Village, a small, picturesque village situated by the river Trent, just four miles outside Nottingham. It is full of beautiful old houses, and Chris was particularly proud to have been born in a thatched cottage that several generations of his family, as tenant farmers, had lived in. When Chris was about eleven years old, he pestered his Mum and Dad for a trumpet after hearing his Dad, Oliver, accompanying his trumpet-playing friend, Alan Wright, on the organ in the Methodist Chapel. ‘You can have a trumpet as long as you practise!’ was the deal, and Chris certainly maintained his side of this bargain for the rest of his life! Alan became his first teacher, and his regular visits to give Chris lessons became Red Letter Days in the Blood household. After helping his Dad in the school holidays in his blacksmith’s shop and doing a spot of farmyard tractor-driving to earn some extra pocket money, Chris left Nottingham to study the trumpet at the Royal College of Music in London. During his time at the RCM, he won the prestigious Manns Brass Prize for solo trumpet playing. Whilst Principal Trumpet of the D’Oyly Carte Opera Company he enjoyed so much the unique experience of performing The Pirates of Penzance with the company in a private performance in Windsor Castle, where the select audience consisted of the Queen, Prince Philip and other members of the Royal Family. Chris played in many different orchestras and for West End shows before moving into teaching as Head of Brass at Bedford Modern School and also at the Junior Guildhall School of Music. Chris moved to York with Tina and their two daughters, Anna and Jenny, of whom he was so proud, in January 1992 as Head of Wind Studies at St Peter’s. Chris’s room was opposite mine and when I

arrived each morning he would always be practising: long notes, scales, and arpeggios. A routine, yes, but a careful and thorough one from which many could learn: a professional routine that ensured that he was always in good shape to play. It distressed him so much latterly when he could not play at all. Chris insisted on high standards in rehearsal and that everyone was part of a unit, all contributing to the whole. Teamwork in the bands and groups that he ran was an absolutely essential requirement. Above all, in everything that he did he was a professional. He provided excellent brass groups for our Minster services each year and he was so proud when one year he had a brass group that included a complement of five tuba and euphonium players. The school’s first USA Music Tour was in the July of 1993. To see him lick the Wind Band into shape during that year was so amazing, and choosing music that was difficult enough but still possible was an art he had clearly mastered. In that year he also established the Swing Band which is now such an important feature of musical life at St Peter’s. The idea of touring with 80 pupils for over two weeks was quite new to him, and he was not a little apprehensive about the whole thing. Over the years Chris’s work with the Wind Band was so wonderful. His choice of repertoire was always impressive and imaginative. One of the pieces he loved was Holst’s Suite in E flat – especially the Chaconne from this, which he conducted many times so effectively and memorably. Tim Dunn, one of his early band leaders, affectionately called him ‘Cap’n Blood’; Captain Blood is a film starring Errol Flyn with music by Erich Korngold – a composer much admired by Chris. One review of Chris’s work in The Peterite says ‘also thanks go to Cap’n Blood for his great patience, when most of us, at some time or other, have deserved to walk the plank.’

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Commemoration

Chris’s work in St Olave’s in getting new brass and wind instrumentalists started was also notable, and his organizing of classes where every pupil had an instrument to play got so many involved in music. Chris did some notable orchestral conducting – in my time I remember a performance of Elgar’s Overture Cockaigne at the Jack Lyons Concert Hall at the University – an extremely difficult piece played with real flair and precision. Then, more recently, a performance of Schubert’s ‘Unfinished’ Symphony in the Minster – so polished and beautifully shaped. In his last major conducting role, in March 2013, he directed Arthur Bliss’s Kenilworth Suite in the school concert in Leeds Town Hall arranged for Wind Band by Chris himself. It was a wonderful testament to his work with that group. He was a Tutor in Temple House and inspired much affection in his pupils in his down-to-earth, no-nonsense dealings with them. Chris loved bands and would regularly arrange for Army or RAF bands to visit both St Peter’s and St Olave’s, and for our pupils to play with them. This was also another way to encourage others to take up wind or brass instruments. The Remembrance Service in the Chapel each year is a very special occasion, not least because so many former pupils died in the two World Wars. Chris meticulously prepared the trumpeter for this service each year and also sent out many other trumpeters to similar services around York, all thoroughly rehearsed. I have seldom seen someone so attached to his particular instrument. In fact he had 16 trumpets altogether! His promise to Alan Wright to practise was always kept, but, far more than that, he placed something of that same enthusiasm in so many youngsters’ heads and hearts. It is such a sad loss that so many in the future will never experience that special enthusiasm, encouragement and professionalism. Chris’s life touched those of so many others, all of whom will remember him with deep affection. Mr Andrew Wright (Director of Music, 1986-2010)

The Peterite 2013-2014

Salvete

Miss Sara Burns

Mrs Dorothy Gillies Mrs Gillies joined St Peter’s Modern Languages Department last September, and has since become a valued member of the teaching community at the School.

Miss Burns joined us in September 2013 as the Drama Technician and the school is very lucky to have somebody with as much experience as her! Miss Burns grew up in Yorkshire but has worked all over the world. After school she went straight into working as lighting designer for York Theatre Royal and then became Chief Electrician for the RSC, going on to become a professional member of the Association of Lighting Designers, a terrific achievement. Since then Miss Burns has worked with people such as Lee Evans and Michael McIntyre. Miss Burns has a daughter, Mia, who often appears as another friendly face in the drama studio. You can often tell when Miss Burns is working in the studio, as you can hear her and Mia merrily singing along to the soundtrack to Disney’s Frozen. So far Miss Burns has been very involved with the school productions. In the first term she came with the Fourth and Fifth Form to the Carriageworks Theatre in Leeds to do the lighting and sound for the production of As You Like It as part of the Shakespeare Schools Festival. It was obvious that she felt at home in a professional theatre! Then, closer to home, Miss Burns did a fantastic job in leading the technical side of this year’s whole-school production, Alice. This was the first St Peter’s School production to feature a roaming spotlight, a spinning poker table and hand-sewn oyster puppets. The show was a tremendous success thanks to Mrs Burns! Peter Gray (V)

Having grown up in Glasgow where she went to school and university, Mrs Gillies gained an Arts degree, also spending time studying in Germany and France. This allowed her to study History and Italian alongside German and French, which she describes as a ‘brilliant’ and ‘varied’ opportunity. During university Mrs Gillies worked as a tour guide, a job which took her all over Europe and which she ‘thoroughly enjoyed’. Ever since then she has taught languages at nursery, primary and senior school levels. She was also Housemistress at Bradfield College, an experience ‘quite different’ to working at the Rise, being a boys’ school. Outside teaching, Mrs Gillies enjoys singing and is a member of the St Peter’s Choral Society. She also loves skiing, swimming and walking. One of her favourite pastimes is cinema, and she names her favourite film as Chariots of Fire. Mrs Gillies was attracted to St Peter’s after moving to York with her husband, (Classics teacher Mr Gillies), and daughter. So far, her impression of St Peter’s is of an ‘absolutely wonderful school’ with friendly staff and pupils. We wish Mrs Gillies a warm welcome to St Peter’s. Lucy Schofield (UVI)

Mrs Sharon Hogg Mrs Hogg is the latest addition to the Careers Department and is no stranger to different careers herself. She started out as a secretary, training at The Yorkshire Ladies’ Secretarial College, and after working successfully for a number of years in this field she moved to Archbishop

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Holgate’s School, where she learned that she wanted to work with teenagers. She was raised in the Middle East, and has a strong penchant for travel. Indeed, she has travelled everywhere from Wales to South Africa and beyond, and along the way has picked up interesting phrases such as, ‘go donkey go!’. Mrs Hogg has two children; George (aged fourteen and keen to swim in the Olympics) and Libby (aged eleven, who also has a passion for the pool). Not only does this mean she has subjects for her academic experiments, but it also ensures she is always on the go helping her children’s dreams come to fruition. It would seem that her dedication to the poolside has paid off, as she met pupils and parents from St Peter’s there. From these friends, she gained a taste of the friendly atmosphere at the school, which helped her decide to apply for the job. When she does have time to herself she loves to garden, and to read her favourite book, Little Women. It is clear that Mrs Hogg has already become entwined into the fabric of the school, and I know that she is eager to help anyone, from any year. On behalf of all the pupils, I wish her every success. Bethan Bradley (V)

Mrs Hopgood Mrs Hopgood is the latest addition to the St Peter’s Design and Technology Department. Along with her Interior Design degree and her list of life experiences she is the perfect candidate for the job. A self-proclaimed creator with a passion for lots of making, sewing, knitting and cooking, Mrs Hopgood’s credentials even extend to restoring her previous Victorian home. With a father in the Royal Air Force, Mrs Hopgood is certainly no stranger to change, as she has frequently moved around before settling in York. Born in Cambridgeshire, she lived on the Isle of Man until the age of three; subsequently, she lived in Northumberland for six months, then in Bexhill-on-Sea in East Sussex. After her stint in East Sussex, Mrs Hopgood moved to Belfast for five years, then Sunderland for eight years before finally staying put in York. Once settled in York, Mrs Hopgood attended our very own St Olave’s, which was then Queen Anne’s Sixth Form. After studying a foundation course at York College, she was then drawn to the bright lights of London, and gained an impressive Interior Design degree from Kingston University. The life experiences didn’t stop after university, either. With a career in interior design not feeling overwhelmingly creative

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enough for Mrs Hopgood, she then pursued an unpaid internship at the National Film and Television School in Buckinghamshire for 18 months. Following her creative dreams, Mrs Hopgood then worked in children’s television set design for ten years. However, as Mrs Hopgood cites both the Design and Art departments here at St Peter’s as ‘very strong’ and with a ‘strong identity’, it is no wonder she chose to work here. A fan of the way the school teaches and the ethos of both the people who work here and the pupils, it is not surprising that Mrs Hopgood has found her experience here to be ‘very positive’. Her positivity with regard to the school as a whole remains clear throughout my interview with her: ‘everybody is lovely’, the ‘students are polite and hardworking’ with a ‘good work ethic’. I am certain that Mrs Hopgood will be a valuable addition to the St Peter’s community, and we all wish her the very best. Sara Pycock (UVI)

Miss Alice Lambert Miss Lambert, a new member of the French department this year, was born in Hampshire but grew up in various different places including Gibraltar and Naples, later attending the Royal Hospital School in Ipswich. She went on to gain a BA in English and French at the University of Southampton, followed by a PGCE, also at Southampton. St Peter’s marks Miss Lambert’s first job since finishing her PGCE, although she previously worked at two schools in Southampton whilst completing her training. Having been a boarder herself at school, she was drawn to St Peter’s by the familiar nature of the school and its ‘happy and welcoming atmosphere’. In her spare time, Miss Lambert enjoys singing and reading, as well as various sports such as swimming and running – although she says team sports aren’t for her. She has also been a cadet in the past and has become involved in the CCF at St Peter’s. After a year at the school Miss Lambert retains her impression of an ‘open environment’, and we hope she continues to enjoy her time at St Peter’s. Lucy Schofield (UVI)

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Mr David Robinson Mr Robinson grew up all over the country including Yorkshire, Ashby-de-la-Zouch and Canterbury. He then went to Durham University to study English Literature, specializing in poetry and American fiction with his favourite book being The Last of the Mohicans. Following in the footsteps of his father, Mr Robinson was first a supply teacher before coming to St Peter’s, although at some point he also wanted to be a policeman. He fancies having 15 children in order to form a rugby squad out of them all but he’s not too sure about the practicalities of this plan. York being similar to Canterbury, Mr Robinson likes this city but not as much as he likes forests and the outdoors, declaring that he is a big fan of trees. Before he arrived, he thought that St Peter’s had a good reputation, and now that he’s here he absolutely loves it, especially how everyone is so involved with school life and how one can go from the rugby pitch straight to picking up a saxophone. His hobbies include rugby, skiing and he was even in the under-16 Great Britain karate squad (choosing not to comment about any injuries caused). Other than that, Mr Robinson claims to be a regular ten-fingered, ten-toed guy and we are very pleased to welcome him to the teaching staff and wish him all the best for his time here. Peter Gray (V)

Dr Jemma Senczyszyn Dr Senczyszyn is the new recruit to the Chemistry Department, and has come to the school with a wealth of knowledge she acquired from studying at no less than three universities! Her unusual surname originates from her grandfather, who is Ukrainian, however Dr Senczyszyn herself grew up in Ilkley, and acquired her doctorate at Manchester University, before moving on to do her teacher training at Nottingham University.

Although busy gaining a degree and a doctorate, she still found time to work in Switzerland at Hoffman La Roche, where she helped to develop drugs to combat schizophrenia. Dr Senczyszyn plays for a water polo team in Nottingham, and is clearly a talented swimmer: she was even able to swim home from work in Switzerland down a river! Her other hobbies include music (she plays the guitar), walking and cycling. She was first drawn to St Peter’s by the friendly and tightly-knit environment, and has already become an invaluable part of that, tutoring the Fourth Form in Temple. Greatly dedicated to her pupils and buzzing with enthusiasm for her subject, Dr Senczyszyn has already proved herself an invaluable asset to the Chemistry Department, Temple, and indeed the school. I wish her the warmest of welcomes, and a long and fulfilling career at St Peter’s. Bethan Bradley (V)

Mr Harry Vann Mr Vann joined St Peter’s in the Classics Department in 2013, and since then has been a valued member of the school environment, both academically and in co-curricular pursuits. Despite his short time here, he has made a lasting impression on every Peterite, regardless of who they are. He grew up in Harrow on the Hill in London, and graduated from Clare College, Cambridge, with a degree in Classics. He worked as a barrister for ten years before deciding to become a teacher. Mr Vann was attracted to St Peter’s by its emphasis on life outside lessons, in particular the rugby, cricket and thriving Drama Department. In the time he has spent here, he has engaged with the pupils and what he considers the St Peter’s spirit of throwing oneself wholeheartedly into any activity. In his own time, he enjoys visiting the opera, and is a particular fan of Mozart. Ever modest, he undertook the huge adventure of crossing the Atlantic in a feat he described as ‘run-of-the-mill.’ Known about the school as the man with the huge voice and personality to match, he has already become part of the fabric of the school. We give him our sincere gratitude for his continual support and hope he will remain an integral member of the school for many years to come. Bethan Bradley (V)

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Miss Tereza Hercigová Tereza joined us at the start of this academic year as part of the HMC teacher exchange from the Czech Republic. She threw herself into the life of the school from the beginning: her main responsibilities were teaching ICT as part of the RLR programme but her mathematical skills were soon recognised and she was happy to teach lessons in the Maths Department here and also help out in St Olave’s. Her enthusiasm for the subject shines through in her lessons and she loves the challenge of explaining unfamiliar topics to children of all ages. Around school she has been a constant presence in the co-curricular programme: as a keen runner she has helped with the cross-country options all year and ran her first half-marathon in March. She has been a regular at staff swimming sessions in the early mornings, put orienteering back on the map in St Peter’s(!) and has accompanied DofE Bronze and Gold expeditions. I believe she will even take the experience of sleeping in an old shower-block on Strensall Common back to the Czech Republic with her. Keen to experience as much of the country as possible during her time here Tereza and her fiancé Tomas have travelled widely during the school holidays to Ireland and Scotland. She probably needed to get as far away from school as possible to try and get over the shock of appearing in the staff contribution to the House Sing! Although Tereza does not have fixed plans when she gets back home she does of course have one very important event to plan: her wedding in October. I think I speak for all of us when I say that we have all enjoyed working with Tereza as she has cheerfully fitted in with all the eccentricities of both St Peter’s and Yorkshire and we wish her well for the future. Mrs Jane Dawson

Mr Johannes Hoffman Johannes Hoffman grew up in the south of Germany, in Bavaria, where he went to school and was first introduced to English. He gained degrees in English Literature, Philosophy, German, and German as a Foreign Language, which led him to teach German to students in South

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Africa before moving to England, and to St Peter’s, where for the past year he has been helping our pupils to learn the language from a native speaker. Johannes is passionate about sport, enjoying a variety from skydiving to tennis, paragliding and football. He is well-travelled, and has had many adventures – even getting his only pair of shoes stolen in Spain, and having to make his way home to Germany barefoot! There are many pupils that have benefitted from Johannes’ knowledge and skill with languages, and I am sure there will continue to be more in years to come. Bethan Bradley (V)

Mrs Maggie Smales The Drama Department was thrilled to welcome Mrs Smales to the teaching team this year. Having been born in South Africa and then moving to England, where she attended eight different schools all over the country, she completed her degree in Drama at Bretton Hall College, the same College as Miss Lindley, the current Head of the Drama Department. Since then Mrs Smales has been teaching for most of her career as well as becoming a wife and mother in her family life. During this academic year, Mrs Smales has contributed to the school productions as a co-director for As You Like It, The Wardrobe and London Below, as well as designing and then creating many fantastic costumes from scratch. Sewing is one of Mrs Smales’ skills and hobbies: she even made it to the interview stages for the BBC2 show The Great British Sewing Bee. The department is very grateful for the talent and all the hard work she put into making these costumes, some of which are on display in the Drama studio.

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Singing is another hobby for Mrs Smales and she sings in two choirs. She also took the opportunity to direct Githa Sowerby’s play The Stepmother in March at the York Theatre Royal and she said it was a joy to work on. Mrs Smales’ experience shows in the classroom as she is a very patient teacher and always endeavours to make her pupils laugh. Punctuality and enthusiasm are some of the qualities appreciated by the other members of the department. Smales by name. Smiles by nature! Peter Gray (V) Maggie’s 39-year teaching career included spells at Joseph Rowntree and Huntington schools, and we were delighted that she chose to spend her final year before retirement at St Peter’s. Maggie has not just been the best colleague we could have asked for, but a wonderful, delightfully funny, supportive, warm and creative close friend. We’re going to miss our friend, so it with real sadness that we say ‘goodbye’ to Maggie, but that is us being selfish because we want to keep her, and now she can spend more time with her family and being a Grandma and relaxing and enjoying not having a September-to-July diary (and not having to get through the York traffic in a morning!). The last line of Alice was ‘I’m not ready to grow up just yet’, and I think this might be fitting to say as Maggie starts her retirement. Miss Helen Lindley

Mr Oliver Couttie Ollie arrived at school five years ago as an external hockey coach. It soon became apparent what a talent he had in this area and after finishing his degree was employed as our full-time graduate hockey coach. Ollie is an outstanding coach both technically and tactically: he is rarely flustered and has a keen eye for the game and an excellent rapport with the players. Ollie has the balance just right between hard work and enjoyment in his sessions; he also has a good sense of humour, but a rather unconventional laugh. Ollie understood the ethos of the school, playing for enjoyment with character and commitment, and passed this on to the players. He coached both boys’ and girls’ hockey to success. It is because of his hard work that hockey has developed to a level where we have county champions, northern champions and national finalists.

Ollie recognised that he was enjoying the teaching environment and that he would like it to become his career, so whilst at school he took his GTP and qualified as a teacher. Ollie will be sadly missed by St Peter’s hockey: Cundall Manor’s gain is definitely our loss. Mr Mike Johnston

Miss Kat Barker If you walk past Miss Barker’s classroom, and the door is open, you quickly get a sense that there is something special happening. Attention is firmly focused on the front of the classroom, and there is a real desire to learn from this inspirational teacher. As well as our own pupils, Miss Barker has taught young people from schools across York, as part of the ISSP programme. For the last three years she has enabled them to achieve outstanding results at GCSE, and more importantly to develop a love of Latin and Classics. Her commitment to the ISSP is just one of her many achievements during her time in York. Miss Barker was the founder and driving force of the York Classics Association, organising lectures and cavalry charges (not at the same time). She was instrumental in the department’s trip to Pompeii in 2013, a bass trombone player in the Swing Band, and a part of so many musical events during her four years. She’s been a dedicated rowing coach to the Third and Fourth Form, and an invaluable support on Duke of Edinburgh Gold expeditions. In her role as Head of Academic Extension at St Peter’s she has introduced some great new initiatives, including the incredibly successful St Peter’s Challenge and St Peter’s Junior Challenge. After four busy and hugely successful years at St Peter’s, Miss Barker heads off to Hurst in Sussex as Head of Department. Hurst simply knew a good thing when she walked through their door, and they will be all the richer for her joining their staff, as we have been at St Peter’s. We thank her for brightening this place up with her smile, her generosity and incredible energy. We wish Miss Barker every happiness on her journey south. Mr Jon Whitehouse

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Mrs Lesley Birch

able to spend more time creating and not being pinned down to endless 40-minute periods.

Lesley has been with us since 2007 and, although employed to teach English on a part-time basis, this particular branding is very far from the mark in terms of what she offers a school like St Peter’s. She is a musician, an artist, a thinker and philosopher, an honorary and muchloved member of our own Art Department, a wicked mimic, a reader and writer and the owner of the best dressing-up box this side of Vaudeville. The dressing-up box has reached iconic status with pupils in Lesley’s classes; recently, two members of the Third Form – one dressed as a sheikh and one in a diaphanous golden garment – provoked bitter jealousy and resentment from classes along the corridor on a Saturday morning. The dressing-up box has been a teaching-aid for the poems of Thomas Hardy and has presumably been used in conjunction with explorations of duality in Jekyll and Hyde, where the lycra vest, circa 1980, would perhaps create the desired effect.

You leave, Lesley, with our love and best wishes.

Alongside projects such as Sonnet Face – shared with us and pinched gleefully by us at a departmental meeting, Lesley is constantly re-inventing ways of teaching; Sonnet Face starts, of course, with something visual but turns into a sophisticated analysis of sonnet form and Shakespeare’s anti-beauty poem. We know, within the department, that during the last inspection of 2010, it was Lesley’s teaching which was singled out and praised for its variety, creativity and substance. Lesley’s successes are really very evident amongst us: her beautiful homage to Coleridge’s Frost at Midnight hangs in pride of place in Queen’s, having adorned the school Christmas card. Many of you will know that one of Lesley’s paintings was selected for the Royal Academy summer exhibition last year. Simon Mortimer, in his own inimitable way and from a tent somewhere in Teesdale sums it up: ‘She knows more about art than us – the kids always went to her for info or advice on the Edinburgh trip and of course, her getting into the RA and not us. Cow!’ John Darmody, in a sage reflection of Lesley’s contribution to the Art Department comments: ‘She’s the only one who can keep up with Simon Mortimer drink for drink…’ We have been very lucky to have had such talent amongst us, but it is for the things closer to home that I thank Lesley for now: her championing of the naughty boys and her patience with their various peccadillos; her raucous laughter and sense of fun; her constantly fizzing idea. We’re delighted that you’re going to be

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Mrs Jo Lawrence

Mr Bob Shread Bob was appointed in 1985 to teach Chemistry; for the next 29 years that is exactly what he did. Bob has taught with enthusiasm, quiet authority and a very clear knowledge of his subject and its wider implications in society. All this came as a result of his MSc from York University and his work in industry. Let us just consider the fact that over the past 29 years every medical student, vet and dentist to have come from St Peter’s must have studied Chemistry successfully at A-level. He enjoyed the question-andanswer nature of his subject, ‘interceptions and all’, and also the practical nature of it. As Barry Gill commented: ‘the last of the “bucket chemists” has now left, explosions good enough to bring down ceiling tiles are over and fume-cupboard fires are now a thing of the past!’. Barry should know, as he has been part of a Chemistry Department that included Peter Northfield, Ian Lancaster and Lindsey Stark, who collectively gave over 130 years of service to the school. Barry is now the last man standing, which is good for Bob as he will continue to coach tennis next year and he needs his unpaid Tennis Secretary to keep up the good work. Bob has run the tennis since his first year at St Peter’s, and in those 29 years he has taken a half-colours, peripheral summer activity and entrenched it as a major full-colours sport, played throughout the year and across all age-groups. The huge success of senior tennis is now mirrored by that of the juniors. During the

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final week of this summer term the first pair in the U15s reached the Plate final of the national knockout finals at Eton. This remains the best performance in the history of tennis at the school. Although hugely competitive both on the tennis court, where Bob was a long-time member of the York first team, to rugby – where he coached all sides from the U14s to the Third XV (‘Bob’s Barmy Army’) – he was always a great sportsman and as the famous Notre Dame University football coach, Knute Rockne once observed: ‘one man practising sportsmanship is far better than 50 preaching about it.’ Bob cut his teeth on the pastoral side as Assistant Housemaster to both John Owen-Barnett and Peter Taylor in School House and then Dronfield, where he remained until 2008. Given his mentors, it is no surprise that Bob has over the years been regarded as a wonderfully calm and utterly reliable pastoral colleague, so much so that he was asked to help set up the new day-house, Hope, in 2008. Throughout all these years Bob has always been a family man: he married Trudi in August 1989, and they celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary this summer. Bob is immensely proud of Dom and Olivia and all they have achieved, and I know he, like us, is hugely grateful for the wonderful support that Trudi has given, enabling him to commit so much time and effort into supporting the pupils at St Peter’s. It is Bob’s desire to properly look after his 93-year-old mother that has led him to retire from teaching, rather than a real desire to hang up his lab coat. All his colleagues recognise his kindness and his warmth of personality, his cheerful and relaxed attitude and his no-nonsense Yorkshire approach. He has been a most loyal colleague right from his early days in No 7A St Peter’s Grove. We should remember Bob as one of the really top schoolmasters, not just a teacher of his subject, but a real educator in its broadest sense. He is part of that breed of colleagues who never clock-watched, that gave of their time in all areas of school life willingly; from extra chemistry to tennis, from OP fixtures to science conferences, from staff tennis to the good old days of staff sevens fixtures. Perhaps the following quote from Muhammad Ali can in some way sum Bob up and allow us to say a fond farewell to a family man, an outstanding schoolmaster and a loyal friend: Friendship … is not something you learn in school. But if you haven’t learned the meaning of friendship, you really haven’t learned anything. Mr Paddy Stephen

Dr Matthew Thomson

certainly taken off in a huge way with Matt’s inspirational PowerPoints (blisters: to pop or not to pop – that is the question) and the introduction of a creative writing module on expedition; last year, we were treated to a DofE remake of The Blair Witch Project – which looked uncannily like the original. The marriage of a creative brain with a body that wants to climb mountains has made him an enviable role-model amongst rather more portly or even just sedentary staff. Doc T, as he’s become known, started with a baptism of fire in the department by being extravagantly vomited on by Henry Roach at an RSC performance of Romeo and Juliet in his first few weeks. We hastened to assure him that this sort of excessive behaviour was not the norm. Matt’s compassion and loyalty are evident in many ways; he has been, despite his rather serious exterior, a kind and gentle presence with troubled children. His daily commute to and from Sheffield was devised in order to cope with the start of married life, with the burden of working in two different places resting squarely on his shoulders. Bowling over from breakfast in a jacket that’s actually a converted sleeping bag, he could be found staring at the photocopier, coffee in hand, printing out endless, enviable resources that were detailed to a terrifying degree, often in grid form (more DofE crossover) and by their very presence, silently rebuking anything produced in comic sans with frivolous pictures and Word Art. Matt has a formidable intellect, is passionate about his teaching and has been an absolute rock in his time with the English Department. His ideas and initiatives have helped shape the last few years and he has generously shared everything regularly with us – we have all benefitted from his presence. Indeed, in his own words: ‘If you’d told me you were retarded when I first arrived, I could have helped more’. He is, of course, an iron man – in his steadfastness and dedication there was never a truer epithet applied. Thank you, Matt – with love from us all – as you embark upon something a little more exciting than the East Coast Main Line. Mrs Jo Lawrence

Matt has been with us since 2010 but has actually managed to pack so much into his four years that he is now heading off for a well-earned retirement. I know I’m not going to do justice to his many and varied contributions to boarding, DofE, rugby and hockey – to name but a few. Many of you will thank Matt in your own ways, and well-deserved those thanks will be. DofE has

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House Reports

CLIFTON Before embarking upon this year’s report, special mention must go to Mr Grant who has made such a sustained and tangible contribution to the life of Clifton House and the students within it over the last six years. The successes enjoyed this year are as a direct result of the hard work that Mr Grant has put in and the belief that he has shown in the students that make up the house. It is a difficult task keeping track of all of the events that have taken place and so I give only a wide-angled snapshot of performances both individual and collective. Clifton House has had an exciting year, seeing many successes and performances of note both as a house and by individuals within it. We have had several senior individual honours: Deputy Head Girl (Emily Gray), and Captains of girls’ hockey (Josie Proctor), swimming (Alice Rhodes) and boats (Emily Gray) as well as Captain (Charlie Elliot) and Vice-Captain (Felix Adams) of cricket, President of debating (Ben Turvill) and Head of Band (Georgie Harrison). These individuals have made a sustained contribution to the school and the house and my thanks go out to them all.

The year began at breakneck speed as usual, with students across the year-groups needing quickly to find their collective feet academically and on the co-curricular front. Indeed, one of the first formal occasions required that one of the new Third Form had the daunting task of reading in Chapel. I was delighted that Jack Amsden not only volunteered, but also managed to read with such clarity and confidence in what must have been a wholly

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new environment. Later in September, Clifton’s House Chapel discussed the themes of writer’s block and perseverance, and was both entertaining and thought-provoking. The highly-anticipated inter-house cross-country was run with determination and commitment (in almost all cases!) and there was both a collection of superb individual runs and also very pleasing overall results, with the junior girls becoming overall winners of their category. The junior and senior boys both finished a highly-respectable second, with the senior girls putting in a gutsy performance to ultimately finish seventh. Special mention

should go to Emilia Proctor, Eva Carlyle, Becky Green, Maddie Hunter, Olivia Anderson, Matthew Jones, Ed Contreras and Freddie Heijbroek for finishing in the top tens of their events.

House Reports

November saw both the start of the new St Peter’s Challenge competition and the return of the established Great Egg Race. The Egg Race team of Charlie Elliot, Henry Eyre, Sandy Eyre, Joe Copley, Patrick Hayes and Henry Barker put bags of effort and ingenuity into their contraption, only for a lack of fine-tuning through testing to mean that what had been a very promising concept did not quite perform under pressure. Lessons will be learned. The St Peter’s Challenge team proved to be very successful. Charlie and Sam Elliot, Ben Turvill, Toby Latham, Joe Copley, Charlie Rae and Jess Webster contributed to navigate all the way to the grand final, where we eventually came a very creditable second. Next year will be a fascinating battle. The end of 2013 saw the girls’ inter-house hockey tournament, which was a superb spectacle in freezing conditions. Clifton drew a tricky group with The Rise, Queen’s and Temple, but managed to win all three close games. A tense 1-0 victory in the semi-final against Hope then saw them meet School in the final. With the scores level at full time and after extra time, the game went to flicks and sudden-death flicks. With Emma Walker giving an inspired performance in goal as well as some admirable nerve being shown by those taking the flicks, Clifton emerged, exhausted both mentally and physically, as victors. Throughout, the teamspirit shown was a joy to behold and I look forward to watching a more experienced side try to defend their crown next year. 2014 saw many more outstanding efforts and achievements. The boys’ hotly-anticipated rugby sevens competition saw the seniors, following an outstanding group-phase try-fest, eliminated in the semis. Exhausted and disappointed, they had nevertheless put in some outstanding displays of attacking rugby, with several longrange individual scores from both Will Pepper and Charlie Elliot. The juniors had a new potent attacking weapon in Charlie Rae and he was backed up with feverish work and excellent passing and

tackling from the entire squad. A solid group-phase and impressive semi meant a final against The Grove that was hard-fought and close. The Grove eventually avenged a group-phase defeat to be crowned champions, meaning Clifton were a creditable second. Wrecking Ball was a somewhat apt choice of song for our attempt at the House Singing crown. Rehearsals were enjoyable if not always tuneful affairs; my thanks to Mr Spencer for his patience and musicality: a light in the darkness. March saw the netball competition reach an exciting climax, with the girls managing to progress to the final following some excellent all-court play and an excellent game against Queen’s in the semi-final. We eventually finished runners-up; the girls performed strongly and should be rightfully proud, again, of the spirit and commitment on display. Despite having half of the current First XI in Clifton, winning the inter-house cricket has always been a challenge. This year, we were given the toughest first-round draw, but managed to restrict Temple to an achievable total. Solid batting from the openers

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House Reports

be crowned champions. This proved to be a most satisfying and fitting end to the year as the girls demonstrated outstanding team-spirit and determination to work for each other. As a new Housemaster, it has been a thoroughly enjoyable and eye-opening first year, one that I will remember for the rest of my career. My thanks go to the students and parents of the current Cliftonite crop for helping me to settle into what is a challenging but immensely rewarding position; to the Clifton tutors Mr Spencer (Upper Sixth), Mr Fuller (Lower Sixth), Mr Wallace (Fourth Form), and Mrs Chapman (Third Form), who have supported the students so admirably; and finally to my invaluable Assistant, Mrs Brough (Fifth Form), who (unfortunately for us) will be moving to Dronfield at the end of the year. I hope that we are able to build both on the spirit and the successes that we have enjoyed this year. Yellow and proud. Mr Rob Snelling

meant the target was reached comfortably and a second-round tie against Queen’s beckoned. Clifton again played excellent cricket and managed to make the final against Grove. Another excellent game saw Clifton finish runners-up. Special mention must go to the skipper, Sam Elliot, who batted superbly throughout as well as producing a stunning pick-up and throw to run out a surprised and unlucky batsman. Some would say that the finale of the ‘whole house’ events is Sports Day, and Cliftonites were keen to show their collective talents in what certainly is a showpiece event. Without picking out individual performances (there were too many to do so here), Clifton showed a broad and deep pool of athletic talent resulting in an overall victory for the house. This was an outstanding achievement and the future promises a great deal with many wins coming from lower down as well as some superb senior victories. The final event of the term was the junior rounders, into which we had to enter a weakened team because of injuries. The depleted squad managed to win their group games, progressing to a tense and close semi-final against School, from which Clifton narrowly emerged victorious. The final was against our close rivals, The Grove, whom we had met in the group-stages. Clifton, through a combination of tight fielding, excellent backing-up, spirited batting and determined running, managed to emerge on top to

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House Reports

DRONFIELD

Dronfield welcomed Miss Wilson, Miss Lambert and Miss Hercigová, and 14 new girls, to the house at the start of the year. Our new Third Form – Annabel, Katy, Alana, Sophie and Grace – all settled in very quickly, and got involved in house and school activities. Sophie was nominated for York County netball trials and broke a record in the inter-house swimming, while Katy and Annabel took part in the middle-school play, London Below. Grace joined the School Choir, and took part in the Cabaret Concerts. Abi, Liv and Emma all spent their Easter in Morocco on the Fourth Form trek, while Edith was involved in the dramatic productions of London Below and The Wardrobe. Nicole broke the county record for the triple jump and ran some great 800m races for North Yorkshire Schools’ athletics. Nicole was the best junior girl athlete at the school Sports Day, and was also the first-placed under-18 girl at the Beverley 10k in May. Our junior girls came third in inter-house rounders. The juniors also came second in inter-house debating and third in the swimming, with school records from Nicole, Sophie and Liv. Our Fifth Form of Pippa, Issy, Min and Dasha have had successes this Speech Day as Pippa achieved an

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House Reports

academic prize, Issy the Latin prize, an essay prize, a science prize and an art prize. Min won a maths prize and a drawing prize. Dasha finished her GCSE exams before half term, so enjoyed four weeks’

recovery followed by two weeks of community work at the end of the year. Holly and Georgia saw their year group nearly quadruple in size, making their year nine in total. They have involved themselves in various aspects of St Peter’s life, with Georgia, Carol and Holly in the Young Enterprise team, and Jemima and Carol in the Barbieshop group, performing in the Cabaret and Christmas Concerts. Lily, Holly and Jemima all went to the Ghent International Regatta and Holly and Lily rowed in the Women’s Henley Regatta alongside Min and Pippa. The Upper Sixth were the largest year-group in Dronfield and the largest tutor-group in the school. Maria sadly did not return to St Peter’s after Christmas, but we were all delighted to see her briefly to say our goodbyes later in the year. Yaz, Angie, Alex, Alexandra and

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House Reports

Hannah all played badminton for the school, and led Dronfield to victory in the house competition this year; Siân achieved her half-colours in netball, music and hockey, and Tansy and India received full colours and half-colours respectively for netball. This year at Commemoration Jenny received a volunteering award, Siân was rewarded for her services to the Chapel, and Jess received the Senior Music Festival prize. Georgie went to Eton to play tennis this summer while Hannah took part in the Great North Swim. Siân, Hannah, Jenny and Bussy all completed their Duke of Edinburgh’s Gold Award. Each and every one of the 18 Upper-Sixth girls in Dronfield has brought their own unique characteristics and abilities to the house. They are a great bunch of individuals, and a great team. Qualities such as generosity and consideration towards others, the desire to give of one’s best for individual success and for that of the house is very much the way the Upper Sixth of 2013-14 will be remembered. We hope all the girls who move on from Dronfield this year will find their way in life, and be happy and successful. We wish them all the very best of everything, and thank them for their contribution to the house, and in particular Bussy as Head of House. Particular thanks also go to Mrs Bollands for guiding the 18 through their final year.

The Lister Trophy was kindly presented to Dronfield by Chloe Lister (Dronfield 2008-2013) and her family, to be awarded to a girl in the house each year who has contributed towards house sports. The first recipient of the Lister Trophy is Georgie Cornock, who has been involved across the full range of sports competitions. Her contribution to tennis in particular has been exceptional. It’s been a good year in Dronfield in so many ways, and this has been very much down to the enthusiasm, unity and compassion of the girls in the house. We thank our Houseparents and tutors, and Magda and our domestic staff. We offer congratulations to Holly and Jemima on their appointment as joint Heads of House for next year, and to Georgia in her role as a school monitor. We say farewell to Miss Barker, who takes up a new post as Head of Classics at Hurst in Sussex. We wish her every success with her promotion. Miss Wilson takes up a new pastoral post in the Rise next year, and Miss Hercigová returns to the Czech Republic at the end of her one-year appointment at St Peter’s. Dronfield welcomes Mrs Chapman and Mr Miller as house tutors, and Mrs Brough as our Resident Assistant. Bussy Wells (UVI) & Mr Jon Whitehouse

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House Reports

HOPE The summer exam results drew to a close an all-round successful year for Hope (2012-13) and so we started a new year with sights set high and an expectation that we would build on the achievements of the previous twelve months to prove to the world that Hope – and Hopefuls – do regularly excel in all areas of school life: we know we can, and do, but we have our doubters on the outside …

The inclement weather over the summer put paid to a number of Duke of Edinburgh expeditions, and so Emily, Tim, Coidy and Johnny set off at the start of the year to complete their Gold Award trek, the start of a number of individual and small-team successes for the term. With House Singing postponed to February, there was only the inter-house cross-country to look forward to in the first half of term. Although we didn’t shine as a house, several pupils did particularly well: Phil, Ed, Rosalind, Livi and Katherine were all placed in the top 15, but Katarina ran superbly to finish second in the junior girls’ competition. That is not to say that the first half term was in any way dull: Max Auty had the unenviable task of opening the Music Award-Holders’ Concert with a fine cello performance, and Jack, Eve and Will showcased their considerable talents, contributing to an excellent evening of musical entertainment. Entertainment was also the order of the evening for the cast of As You Like It: Christian (Duke Frederick), Rosalind (Celia), and Alex (Charles) were both persuasive and amusing in their respective roles, whilst Livi was a reliable part of the creative team. It was not only creativity, but also a good deal of imagination, ingenuity and luck(!) that was needed for this year’s Great Egg

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Race in November. Emily, Rachel, Lewis, James Lilley and George managed to construct a magnificent roller-coaster worthy of any marble and, had the process of moving it to the test-bed not caused a small misconfiguration in one of the tubes, I am sure that their time would have seriously challenged that of the winning design. Further opportunities for challenge were found in the school’s version of University Challenge. Once the competition got going, there was no stopping Marco and Johnny! Edmund and George put some senior members of the house to shame with the breadth of their general knowledge as the junior members of the team, so much so that Edmund was asked to join the school team

in the external competition. Edmund, George, Felicity, Jack, Kate, Annie and Ollie all contributed to the junior team in the varying rounds, finally securing third place, having beaten Queen’s in the third- and fourth-place play-off by 200 points to 90. Hope also secured third place in the girls’ inter-house hockey, after a tightly fought play-off: we were on a roll! With the end of term nigh, the weeks of rehearsals for the school production of Alice came to a close and we were treated to a magnificent show. Will ably and animatedly narrated parts of the story in his role as Charles Dodgson; Beth, as the sous-chef for the Queen of Hearts, produced some lovely-looking tarts which our own light-fingered Knave of Hearts, Phil, stole away. Jess was

House Reports

a particularly green and rather hippy Caterpillar in Wonderland, whilst Rowan played the Walrus in The Tale of the Walrus and the Carpenter. One of my favourite scenes from the book has always been the Mad Hatter’s Tea-Party, and Rosalind was a terrific March Hare as she helped to bring the scene to life. The Easter Term saw an equally good mix of sport, music and drama (both in the house and on the stage). Emily, Shahad, Katharine and Jess did battle in the badminton tournament, and our netballers and squash players were also in action this term, but it was the swimming where we really stood out: of the 21 races, Hope girls won eleven of them, were placed in 19, and broke several records to boot. We finished in first place, 59 points ahead of the other houses, an absolutely awesome performance by you all! Hope boys’ sport has a little way to go (although individually there are many gifted sportsmen in the house), but James and Euan led a strong team in the inaugural water polo competition. In more academic pursuits, Marco and Johnny were in competitive mood again for the Science Society Quiz Evening. With the help of Edmund and Phoebe, the Quizee Rascals were placed equal second, missing first place by a single point. Others tried their hands at debating for the first time this term: Rachel,

Coidy and Tom represented the house in the senior competition, deciding that it was harder than it looks(!), whilst Ollie, George and Isaac faced a formidable Dronfield team in the junior competition to oppose the motion that the voting age should be lowered to 16. The middle-school play, The Wardrobe, provided some light entertainment, with Rowan and Beth playing the roles of Cecily and Matilda respectively, as the play told the story of the wardrobe from its place in high society to its final resting place in a museum. Not to be outdone by her sister, Rosalind gave a beautiful rendition of I Don’t Know How To Love Him in the Senior Music Festival, to win the singing class, and Will also

gave a characterful performance. However, it was as part of the Community Action chapel service on Valentine’s Day where he was able to really show off his talents, alongside the Barbershop group, serenading selected members of the congregation with wonderful poise and good humour. The House Singing competition – always a highlight (?) – was also held on Valentine’s Day. Katharine and Shahad worked hard to prepare the house during the short rehearsal time. George volunteered to play the guitar, and Isaac did an excellent job of keeping everyone in time, with his clear and rhythmical drumming. Not that Marco needed a lot of help as the conductor, with his red rose in hand, to mark the special day. And so to the Summer Term: the Junior Music Festival took place in June and Hopefuls excelled once more: Max, Jack and Katherine performed a mix of light-hearted but tricky pieces, but Felicity stole the show, deservedly winning both the string and piano classes, as well as the overall competition. A term dominated by sport, particularly tennis, saw our girls’ team (Rachel, Emily, Katharine, Phoebe, Izzy and Hannah) march to victory in their competition, while Johnny and Jack, having tried (in vain) to hone their ball-skills in the common room (aided and abetted by Scholey, James and Euan) – I think I have at least a dozen confiscated tennis balls in the office! – played very well in an exceptionally close, tightly-fought boys’ competition, finishing second. Hopefuls volunteered readily for most events for Sports Day, and characteristically gave their all on the day: Scholey won the senior javelin, Crofty the intermediate discus, Phoebe the junior long jump, and Katarina the junior 1500m. Those who weren’t involved came out to support, getting behind the relay teams, running alongside the 3,000m runners and generally cheering at the tops of their voices.

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House Reports

As ever, beyond the house, the school teams have regularly benefitted from Hopefuls this year. Scholey and Ted have not only represented the school, but went on to play rugby and cricket for Yorkshire this year Ilana and Phoebe have taken part at the National Schools’, hockey teams, Phoebe has also played at the National Schools’ netball tournament with Katarina, and the tennis finals alongside Rosalind. Katarina and Livi were both involved in the school’s cross-country, Ted and Joe have been involved in York and District hockey and cricket, and Jack has been to Teeside for rowing trails and training. I could go on … and on! We have celebrated many academic successes too this year and, once again, Hope has been vying for the top spot in the Merit Cup. Phoebe Hall and Jack Hargrave have contributed hugely to our total, and must be applauded for their consistent levels of effort and endeavour. Congratulations must also be extended to our prize-winners: Eleanor, Laura, Jack, Livi, Jack Robins, Johnny, Rachel, Emily, and Katharine. We must also congratulate Izzy, who has been appointed as Deputy Head Girl next year, Marianne who has been chosen to be Head of House and a monitor, and James who will also be a monitor. We wish them well in their new roles, confident that they will all do terrific jobs. I must extend heartfelt thanks to all the tutors who are extremely willing and supportive, and who give so generously of their time: to Mr Wright who, once again, has guided the Third Form, and helped them adjust to senior-school life, to Mrs Kinread who, latterly joined by Mrs Heaton, has endeavoured to keep the Fourth Form on the straight and narrow, despite tendencies to show off their sporting and artistic prowess, to Mr Noy Scott who has coaxed the Fifth Form into working towards their exams, and who guided them through the year with patience and perseverance, and to Mr Edwards who, in his role as Lower Sixth tutor, has ably assisted his tutees move seamlessly into the sixth form. I must also extend my particular thanks and gratitude to Mr Edwards who, as Assistant Housemaster, continues

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to be a source of great wisdom and support, and to whom I am enormously grateful for covering the house in my absence at the end of the summer. Finally, my sincere thanks to Rachel who has been a super Head of House. Hers has not been an easy job, but she has truly led by example, with great loyalty and integrity. She has taken an active role in almost all house events, and has dedicated much time and effort to the house whilst never losing her terrific sense of humour. As well as bidding farewell to the Upper Sixth, we also say goodbye to Mr Shread. He has dedicated a great deal of time and expertise to his role as a Sixth Form tutor in Hope. His patient, gentle manner and sound guidance of those in his care have earned him huge respect within the house, and he will be sorely missed. The fondness which his tutees have towards him was ably captured by Rachel and Emily on prank day: a huge sheet painted with tennis balls and the message ‘Bye-bye Bob’, flying outside the common-room window, the hall and walls in Hope plastered with photos of him and his many tennis teams over the last 30 years and a copy of his Salvete, which they attached to the common room door. Thank you for all that you have done to help and support me and the house; we sincerely wish you every happiness in your retirement. As I once again reflect on the year and our own unique community, I continue to marvel at the breadth and depth of talent that exists within the house. Every single Hopeful has something to offer both the house and the wider school community and, whether you demonstrate that outwardly, or quietly, out of the spotlight, each of you has had something to celebrate this year. My warmest congratulations to you all, and apologies to those of you I have not mentioned by name. We have, for the most part, gone from strength to strength this year. I hope that we will continue to do so, but, can we perhaps have a little less drama next year? We live in Hope! Miss Elizabeth Ullstein

House Reports

LINTON It is that time of year again when there is no particular routine in the house, and when I look forward, albeit briefly(!), to September starting when the house can be full again and the usual busy and, at times, manic routines can submerge us all! The examination period, for all year groups, has finished and, apart from the occasional football chanting, the house has become rather quiet and subdued. There are numerous trips occurring, lots of boys setting off on Bronze, Silver and Gold DofE expeditions and a number of Lower Sixth Formers attending university open days – all resulting in a very sparse house. I will attempt to summarise the main achievements and offer an insight into the annual ‘goings-on’ of the house. At the start of the year we welcomed seven new boys into the house. Spencer Ingall, Zac Faithfull, James Black and Rory Winterburn joined the Third Form, Archie Stephenson the Fourth Form, and the following entered the Lower Sixth: Andrey Fokin, Nicolae Bolocan and Bill Mo. All the boys settled into the routines very quickly and, as is customary, were guided by the Upper Sixth as they showed them the ropes.

Back in August the Fifth and Sixth Formers received their GCSE and A-level results. The GCSE results for the current Lower Sixth were excellent and between just seven students a staggering 54 of the GCSEs they gained were at grade A* or A. Those who were leaving the school gained places at university or embarked on gap years. It is heartening to note that the boys in Linton continue to take their academic studies seriously; they are determined to

study hard and there is a real desire to achieve the best results possible for themselves. In the run-up to the summer exams both the Third and Fourth Form boys revised thoroughly: there was a real sense of purpose too. The first house event of the term was the cross-country – in my opinion the way in which an individual, and a house, presents itself in this competition says a lot about their character and shows their ability and desire to ‘dig deep’ when the competition gets tough! Every boy in the house put in a huge amount of effort in a bid to secure a team win, working closely together to achieve a common goal. As well as outstanding personal performances from James Black (ninth junior), William Newitt (twelfth junior), Jake Stephenson (fourth senior), Nicolae Bolocan (fifth senior) and George Pindar (seventh senior) both the junior and senior teams came first. In fact Mr Winkley thought that we had imposed a compulsory training schedule, straight after prep, for all the boys! Luckily both the junior and senior rugby sevens competitions took place this year and were not disrupted by the weather. The senior squad had a real mix of players from the very experienced to a complete novice (Nicolae)! The senior boys put in an inspiring performance, using their size and power to compensate for their lack of pace! Their proudest achievement was actually beating

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House Reports

School House who made it through to the final. The juniors played well and came third in their group. In the Easter term we entered the inter-house football competition – again there was evidence of group commitment and playing for house honour – the senior team progressed through to the semi-finals but lost narrowly, however securing a win in the third- and fourth-place playoffs was another great performance.

This year saw the introduction of an inter-house water polo competition. Having two experienced players – Will Fox and Sam Raper – we felt confident that we would progress within the competition! As predicted we won the first round and met Hope in the semi-final stage winning 4-2 – In Mr Sunderland’s words, the final versus The Grove was ‘legendary!’ At the end of the full game the score was 3-3, so extra time of two minutes each way was played – score 4-4, and after another two minutes the score was 5-5 (after Linton scored in the last five seconds). The final two minutes of extra time saw The Grove creep ahead to win in the very last second of play. Well done to the following boys who were in the team: William Fox, Sam Raper, Harry Richardson, William Emery, Jack Guffogg, Jake Stephenson and Toby Simpson.

the following boys who, in their last year of school, captained a sports team: Toby Simpson (First XV rugby), Daniel James (Captain of boats), and Gabriel Chan (Captain of squash). Along with the numerous inter-house sports events the other usual house competitions were fiercely contested by the boys in Linton. The Great Egg Race took place in the newly-refurbished Memorial Hall and the team, made up of Daniel James, Gabriel Chan, William Fox, Jonathan Jaworski and Spencer Ingall built an impressive structure that had to ensure a marble travelled extremely slowly down it. Also before Christmas we entered the annual Literary Quiz: my thanks go to Dan Stone who organised the team and the boys, Patrick Litten, William Emery, Zac Faithfull and Andrey Fokin, who must be congratulated on finishing in a creditable fourth place. Patrick Litten expertly took charge of the House Debating team and along with Matthew Tse and Andrey Fokin they managed to successfully debate the motion that the needs of cyclists should be put before the needs of other road users in the UK. New this year was the Junior and Senior St Peter’s Challenge competition – the format was very similar to University Challenge and a number of boys were called in to represent the house team. Christian

Special mention must also go to William Emery who won the inaugural Linton house darts tournament. In his bid to remain unbeaten he knocked out Mr Smith in the semi-finals and Gabriel Chan in the final - fantastic! Many of the boys, as well as representing the house, have also played in a host of school sports teams. In rugby, Jake Taylor has represented Yorkshire and Harry Richardson has represented Yorkshire and the North of England, whilst Toby Simpson played for the English Lambs and had the honour of touring Zimbabwe. Meanwhile, Archie Stephenson won the North of England under-15 tennis championships. Special mention must also go to

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Bower was one of the regular competitors and his ability to recall facts was remarkable! A number of boys continued their success in both Drama and Music this year. Archie Stephenson must be congratulated on reaching the final of the Junior Music Festival performing Riptide by Joy in the guitar and vocals section. Josh Ramalingam won the guitar section of the Senior Music Festival finals and George

House Reports

Pindar reached the final of the boys’ singing. William Emery has been a committed member of the Barbershop and, along with George Pindar and Tom Collinson, the Chamber Choir. The main school play of the year, Alice, was a remarkable production and Andrey Fokin must be congratulated on his staggering performance as Cookie. Dan Stone’s band performed at both Alice and for the boarders’ dinner – it was fantastic. Following on in the drama world, Spencer Ingall took a lead role in the middle-school play and we sincerely hope he continues to perform in the school productions. Toby Johnston has also been busy performing in his GCSE piece The Wardrobe which was entered for the National Connections Competition in Scarborough. Congratulations must also go to the following boys who achieved some excellent results in their recent music examinations: Josh Ramalingam (Grade 7 guitar), Sam Raper (Grade 4 drum kit) and George Pindar (Grade 7 singing – with distinction). With a number of extremely talented musicians in the house I felt that we may, for once, be able to win the singing competition. However this was not the case – the boys chose Girls Just Want To Have Fun by Cyndi Lauper, and as well as its being one of the worst songs ever produced, the boys were unable to sing it! Luckily house Chapel was a greater success – the message, expertly delivered by the boys, talked about how to be successful in everyday life, pointing out that the most important thing in life is to embrace all the opportunities that come your way and to have a confident and positive attitude at all times. Reading the end-of-year reports and spending time reflecting on the year it is obvious that Lintonites do just that. The boys fit in a huge amount of things in one week – from academic studies, to music, sport, gym, drama, volunteering and socialising. I hope the boys who are leaving – Ed Bower, Gabriel Chan, Harry Ha, Daniel James, Kirill Kulik, Toby Simpson, Daniel Stone and Jake Taylor – continue to embrace, wholeheartedly, every opportunity that comes their way. As the last two days of the academic year approaches it is pleasing to note that Patrick Litten has been appointed a school monitor, Harry Ha, Toby Simpson and Rory Winterburn have all received prizes at the Commemoration service and Harry Richardson, Abdul Yahaya and Josh Ramalingam’s fantastic art work has been on display at the Whitestone Gallery. I wish all the leavers our best wishes and thank Jake Taylor for his outstanding service as Head of House: he, along with all the Upper Sixth, will be missed. I wish Sam Blott well as he takes over from

Jake. Dr Thomson is also leaving after three years in the house and we wish him well as he sets off on his mammoth cycle-ride along the east coast of North and South America! Finally I would like to thank all the staff who work tirelessly in Linton and who care for all the boys: matrons: Tracey, Dawn, Lisa and Maria – their help is invaluable and greatly appreciated – thank you! We have a great team of tutors – Paddy and Mr Smith, and we welcome Mrs Tooby-Smith and Mr Patterson (Lee) into the house next academic year. Mrs Justine Williams

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House Reports

QUEEN’S

As another year passes we wave goodbye to our Sixth Form and welcome in our new Third-and Lower-Sixth Form members to the house. This year the house was ably led by Cormac Hopkinson and Katherine Raines, who helped to organise house teams and events and enthused the Queen’s pupil body. The Christmas and Easter terms were notable for their unusual mildness. Whilst this kept the rowers off the water for the better part of two months, unlike previous years many school and inter-house fixtures were completed. On the sports pitch the girls gave a good showing in inter-house hockey, and the boys got a chance to prove themselves on the rugby pitch, winning the senior sevens competition led by their captain, Cormac Hopkinson. The junior hockey team, led by Tom Pycock, put up a spirited effort in the inter-house competition, but were unable to advance against strong opposition. Once again Queen’s were successful

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in the Languages Quiz, with a knowledgeable team lead by Harry Nozedar. October also saw the house deliver a rousing house Chapel, based on the Apollo 7 mission, and involving pupils from all years across the house.

House Reports

In the Easter term came the House Singing competition, postponed from October because of restoration work on the Memorial Hall. The musical know-how of Tom McCullagh, with support from Archie Hinde, saw Queen’s deliver an original arrangement of three popular songs with great enthusiasm. In debating, a strong team centred around Luis Fox got through to the semi-finals before being edged out by Clifton in a passionate debate about the necessity for nuclear weapons. In the new competition, St Peter’s Challenge, a strong team led by Helen Megone was placed third overall.

The Summer term is always difficult with exams starting quickly, and then large portions of the house being emptied by study leave. Before this, though, there was time to squeeze in Sports Day, which was unusually marked by beautiful weather and an excellent spirit of competition. It was particularly pleasing to see a strong showing from the junior boys in the house, with Kevin

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House Reports

Williams winning the junior 100m, Ed Johnson winning the junior 1500m, and the team of Kevin, Ed, Adam Brown and Marcus Brown winning the junior relay. This bodes well for future years! In the boys’ competition further wins by Ben Williams in the senior 100m and 400m, Cormac Hopkinson in the senior 800m, and Max McLeish in the intermediate javelin saw Queen’s take second place. In the girls’ competition there was a win by Katherine

Raines in the senior 400m but tight competition saw Queen’s draw with The Rise for sixth place. After a strong year in interhouse racquet sports, the Queen’s tennis team, led by Sara Pycock, came second in the inter-house tennis. House Dinner was as always an excellent opportunity to celebrate the house and enjoy a good meal with great company, although the earlier start of language oral exams and the GCSE Art exam made its positioning rather delicate. The evening was notable for flowing conversation and good humour, as well as being a chance to say ‘thank you’ to the tutor team for their hard work over the year. 2013-2014 marked the 60th Anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation, and therefore the foundation of Queen’s House. It was wonderful to welcome back so many former pupils in September to celebrate the past and current strengths of the house. Much enjoyment was had at the archive film-footage and photographs on display. Mrs Cath Hempsall

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House Reports

SCHOOL The annual house report can only provide a snippet of the year’s achievements, but led and inspired by the Upper Sixth, 2013-14 will go down as a hugely successful year for School house where the pupils have once again thrown themselves into house fixtures and activities with enthusiasm and aplomb. Christmas Term Heads of House, Will and Minna, were instrumental in forging a great team spirit within and between common rooms. Instantly, School house pupils new and old settled into their surroundings; the Sixth Formers making use of the new ‘quiet room’, yet the excitement towards that was overshadowed by the arrival of the new toaster/kettle combo and regular bread and milk from the kitchens. The oft-worn School house hoodies were also a welcome addition to many a wardrobe: it’s the simple things!

defied gravity (almost) to delay the descent of a ball-bearing down a well-crafted marble-run, comfortably seeing off the other houses and lifting the trophy. In inter-house hockey, with the team captained by Minna and inspired by fellow midfielders Hannah and Alice, great performances saw us keep clean sheets throughout the entire tournament, reaching the final where a 0-0 draw with Clifton saw us lose on penalty flicks; nevertheless, the girls involved can hold their heads high on some fantastic performances and tremendous team spirit throughout. On the same afternoon the inter-house rugby competition was played out in excellent spirit. The juniors, captained by Charlie, qualified from their group-stages with excellent performances which saw us reach the semi-final. The seniors went one better as the team, captained by Ollie, upset the odds and put in a great performance against Clifton in the semifinals, but they found the pace and power of Queen’s too much, going down in the final 19-5 against a very good side. Easter Term

Success in inter-house competitions came quickly, from the Languages Quiz teams to all involved in the inaugural St Peter’s Challenge. Hannah, Lipfon, Rose and Minna finished third in the Christmas Literary Quiz and highlights were aplenty in other competitions such as cross-country with Lucy Lawrence (junior girls – third), Sam Hudson (senior boys – third) and Alice Greswold (senior girls – first) outstanding in their respective age groups. Just a few days after we had delivered a terrific house Chapel based on the events surrounding Guy Fawkes, even more success arrived as the Great Egg Race team of Will, Alex, Charlie, Alice and Hugo

By January, we had reached the knockout stages of the St Peter’s Challenge competition where we ran out winners against The Grove in the quarter-finals and Queen’s in the semi-finals. Maya, George, Jonny and Alex took on Clifton in the final and, with superb answering from all of our team members, School emerged victorious and team captain Alex deservedly took the trophy on behalf of all of the pupils who had been involved. As one competition ended, another began and we went straight into the senior debating competition. We eased through the group stages and contested the final against Clifton. Proposing the motion

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House Reports

‘This house believes that austerity does more harm than good‘, Will, Alistair and Jonny put forward a tremendous proposal; it was a classic debate, much enjoyed by all and the result had to be delayed as the judging panel wrestled back and forth with their decision. Unfortunately the final judgment announced Clifton to be the 2014 champions but the margin of victory was extremely small indeed – debating was indeed the winner!

The junior competition began immediately afterwards and we enjoyed yet more success as Fourth-Formers, George, Alice and Rose battled their way through to the final. Successfully opposing the motion meant we became junior house debating champions for 2014. Debating in a foreign language is an even scarier prospect, and huge congratulations go to Minna and Lipfon who joined forces to become the inaugural French debating champions. Up next was House Singing, and our choice this year was Does Your Mother Know? by Abba. Once the initial nervousness

had worn off it was great to hear the dulcet (!) tones of impromptu rehearsals floating past my office. Supremely wellorganised by Minna, with Will conducting, real progress was made and in the event itself we gave our finest performance of all. Unfortunately the judges didn’t place us in the top three (we must have been fourth) but it was a great way to end the half-term. In house badminton, Keira, Gemma, Hannah and Alice did superbly to reach the final and finish in second place behind a strong Dronfield team. Despite some awful blizzard-like conditions,

Minna, Keira, Pippa, Tara, Hannah, Alice, Maddy and Sophie then did brilliantly to finish fourth in house netball. With the girls’ house competitions coming thick and fast it was the squash team up next and Hannah, Gemma, Alice and Izzy swept all before them before triumphing 12-4 over The Rise in the final and bringing the trophy back to School. The boys were not to be outdone on the sporting front and an inaugural inter-house water polo competition was fiercely contested with the ‘School House Seahorses’ spending weeks working on formations and tactics. Unfortunately our lack of actual water polo players proved crucial, but once again great fun was had by all. In the final week of term, the senior footballers took to the stage and qualified from their group stage unbeaten, before goals from Patrick Copley helped us to win the final 2-1 and become 2014 champions.

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House Reports

Summer Term We began the term with the House Dinner, this year held at Pizza Express, and we all looked sparkling in our black ties, dinner jackets and dresses! A lovely meal was interspersed with success stories of the year, limericks and poems about our respective heads of house and of course a toast to the best house of all! The very next day, Sports Day focused the minds of the house’s athletes and tales of ‘back-garden’ practice of jumping, broom-throwing (the obvious substitute for the javelin) and training runs demonstrated we were clearly taking the event seriously! The weather held for the day itself and I must congratulate everyone who took part; we finished third in both the boys’ and the girls’ competition, and particular congratulations must go to the event winners Minna Gabbertas (100m), Alice Greswold (1500m), Sam Hudson (shot put) and David Bird (200m). Maddy, Alice, Pippa, Keira, Anabel and Minna then put

final where we were defeated by a very strong team from The Grove. In our final house meeting of term I paid tribute to our wonderful team of staff in the house, from the cleaners who look after us all so well to our excellent tutor team who guide the pupils throughout the year. I also paid special tribute to Will and Minna who have been outstanding heads of house this year, and I publicly thank them again for all their hard work. After a tough selection process I was delighted to announce that Alistair Duffey and Keira Barnard will be the heads of School house for 2014-15. This has been a vintage year for the house and we say goodbye to a very strong Upper Sixth, but such is the strength and depth of the house as evidenced by all our success this year that we can look forward to more of the same next year. Roll on September! Mr Ben White

up a terrific fight in the house tennis tournament whilst most of the Third and Fourth Form girls took part in the annual house rounders competition, where we finished in fourth place, and the boys reached the semi-finals of the junior inter-house cricket competition. As holders of the overall St Peter’s Challenge trophy, we went into the junior competition full of hope. Once again, we rotated the team between those who volunteered to take part and it was great to see Third Formers Matt, James, Nathan and Lucy being strongly supported by Fourth Form stalwarts George, Maya and Rose. Again we impressed in the opening rounds and made the

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House Reports

TEMPLE When thinking how to start the house report this year I was looking for a theme to leap out at me. Looking over the events of the year I was suddenly reminded of the fact that Temple had won both senior relays on Sports Day, the girls winning theirs in a new school-record time. As well as the obvious speed, relays involve skill to achieve those smooth baton-changes and of course co-operation and teamwork with each member running their very hardest to achieve success for the team. It therefore occurred to me that it is very easy to see comparisons between the running of a relay and life in Temple house. Each year the baton is passed on to the year below, with the Lower Sixth taking over the reins from the outgoing Upper Sixth and the incoming Third Form stepping into the role of ‘newbies’. There may be some fumbles and mistakes along the way but all pupils get to where they want to be in the end. However, the key to a successful house is teamwork, with each individual feeling that they have a part to play, and playing that part to the very best of their ability. As team coach I feel that, unlike Roy Hodgson, I have had another excellent team this year, ably assisted by my backroom staff, Mr Parr,

Mr Matkin, Mr Johnston, Mrs Dawson and Dr Senczyszyn, who made her debut this year (you can see that as the end of term draws nigh I have succumbed to World Cup fever). My pupil team has been captained this year by Alex Reeds and Sarah Carlton who have been excellent heads of house. I have thoroughly enjoyed working with them and, as they hand over to Charlie Widdicombe

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and Chloe Burdass, I thank them for their work and wish them all the best for the future. As I have started on a sports theme, I will begin the review of the year with house sporting achievements. The first house competition of the year was the cross-country where Robbie Brown won the junior boys’ event in a time of 20 mins 14 secs and Concetta Scrimshaw finished third in the senior girls’ event. We had to wait until the Easter Term for our next major success, when the junior boys won the inter-house hockey and then at the start of the Summer Term there were lots of impressive individual performances on Sports Day, in addition to the aforementioned relay teams. Frankie Anderson won the senior girls’ long jump with a new school record distance of 4.81 metres, as well as the 200m for which she was awarded the Campbell Cup. Oskar Fraser-Krauss won the intermediate boys’ 800m and 400m and Robbie Brown won the intermediate boys’ 1500m. We will certainly miss Oskar’s prowess on the track as he leaves us this year with our best wishes to start his Sixth Form studies at Bootham. Will Fordy won the intermediate boys’ long jump and Ben Parkes was victorious in the junior boys’ javelin competition. The seniors were also masters of the shot put with Charlie Smith winning the

House Reports

boys’ and Ellie Martin the girls’ event. Although all of the above are impressive, what struck me this year, alongside the customary good humour in which these competitions are played, was the willingness with which members of the house took part with very little arm-twisting needed. This is much appreciated and is a good illustration of the teamwork I talked about earlier. Outside school, it is also worth mentioning that Will Fordy was selected to play rugby for North Yorkshire, Alex Martin has been selected for hockey training with Yorkshire and the North of England and Robbie Brown is currently ranked fourth in the UK in his age group for the 3,000m.

main performance of the year, the concert in the Minster at the end of the Easter Term. Individual highlights at the Senior Music Festival were Jack McCartney’s win in the senior boys’ singing section where he delivered a convincing performance of Embraceable You and Charlie Widdicombe’s win with a very intricate trumpet piece in the brass section. Libby Brown, who was entered on both the saxophone and clarinet, was highly commended for her clarinet piece in the woodwind section. Finally, at the Junior Music Festival in June, Fleur Booth was highly commended in the singing section for her performance of Poor Wand’rin’ One, a piece which required some real vocal gymnastics.

If medals were being handed out, Temple would have won a number of silvers this year with second place being a recurring theme in areas away from the sports field. In September we finished second in The Great Egg Race and later in the year Mrs Dawson’s Angels, our house Science Quiz team, took the runnerup spot, missing out on top spot by one point. As we know from competitions like The X Factor, finishing second is no bad thing, and therefore there may still be a recording contract out there for Temple house as we finished second in the House Singing competition with our rendition of Heartbeat by Scouting for Girls, an inspired choice by Seb Dobson, expertly organised and conducted by Ellie Martin and Sarah Carlton and accompanied by Alex Martin on the drums, Alex Reeds on the guitar and Charlie Widdicombe on the piano. House Singing very easily leads me on to music, where Temple continues to be well- represented in all the school choirs and bands with a large number of pupils taking part in the school’s

Another area where Temple continues to be heavily involved is drama. The school play this year was Alice, with impressive performances from Bethan Bradley as the Cheshire Cat, Duncan Smith as the White Rabbit (although I am sure he would agree that the obsession with being on time is a little out of character) and Elliot Elstob, who has contributed so much to the school’s Drama department during his time here, as Humpty Dumpty. We had an influx of theatrical Third Formers in September and therefore we were well-represented by Temple Third and Fourth Formers in both The Wardrobe and the middle-school play, London Below. Debating also requires the courage to stand up and perform in front of others, and this is an area where Temple has traditionally been strong. This year was no exception with the senior house debating team of Elliot Elstob, Tim Goodwin and Helen Taylor

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House Reports

free time in the lunch break. The aim for next year is to get some girl-power on board.

reaching the semi-finals where they lost out to School, proposing the motion ‘this house believes that nuclear weapons make the world a safer place’. Debating in English is challenging enough as it is but doing it in a foreign language is even more daunting and therefore it was great to hear that Frankie Anderson and her sister Olivia (Clifton) were runners-up in a national French debating competition which took place at Cheadle Hulme school in Manchester in November. This was the first time St Peter’s had entered this event and was thus a very impressive achievement. Another new initiative this year was St Peter’s Challenge, an interhouse quiz based on the University Challenge format. It proved to be a great success with a real buzz around the house and school on the days on which the rounds took place. Our team captain Guy Hall showed fantastic general knowledge, ably assisted by Ed Coates, Luke Dunsmore, Will Andrews and Robbie Brown, and the team made it into the semi-finals, finishing fourth overall after being defeated by Queen’s in a third- and fourth-place play-off. The junior team in the Summer Term did not make it past the group stages (sounds familiar) despite some resounding victories but it proved to be a very effective and enjoyable way of spending

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That completes my summary of the year and as ever I apologise to anyone I have missed out. I would like to say a heartfelt goodbye and good luck to the Temple Upper Sixth, including Emma Stephenson who is leaving us almost as soon as she joined us. They have been a very close-knit group, both inside and outside school and I do hope that they treasure the friendships they have made, and continue to nurture them from afar in the future. I will continue to follow their progress with interest and affection, although they will be relieved to hear that I don’t know how to use Facebook. It just remains for me to say a big ‘thank you’ to everyone involved in daily life in Temple. It is a real pleasure (most of the time!) to lead the team and I look forward to a different team taking up the baton in September, once they have had a good long summer break to recover from the many challenges which each leg of the school year brings. Mrs Jenny Houghton

House Reports

The Grove

THE GROVE

On a cold January morning 100 years ago, The Grove came in to being with a formal opening ceremony and a Chapel service to mark the occasion. In his history of the school, Angelo Raine writes: ‘The governors issued an appeal for funds to Old Peterites and friends of the School, and the property was purchased, the total cost after all alterations had been made being about £6,000. Considerable changes were necessary in Grove House itself in order to equip it for its new purpose… and a great deal of levelling was needed to make the field below the house into a football ground. On January 27 1914, the Archbishop of York performed the opening ceremony.’ 2014 has been an important year for anniversaries and, among the more mournful remembrances of the Great War, it was fun on a cold February morning to see Grovites leading the Chapel service with their reflections on our birthday and echoing the Archbishop who, on the day of our opening, had preached about the value of tradition and the importance of the pupils in its maintenance. House Chapels, whilst ranging from the inspirational to the toe-curling, allow individual talents to be showcased but depend on a wider group for success; they reflect what is true, therefore, of house life. By way of an informal celebration of our becoming centenarians, our House Dinner this year saw us conjuring a front room in the new Memorial Hall with sofas kindly

It is easy in a report such as this to trumpet the achievements of a few (the victories won, the trophies lifted) and I dare say I shall not resist, but conveying the collaboration and collegiality of The Grove to give a better flavour of the spirit of the place is much more difficult. Events such as House Singing, cross-country and Sports Day are particularly precious for they encourage the whole group to strive together and to enjoy what we achieve as a whole. Along the way though, a number of other events have drawn us together and offer vignettes that embody our school and house values. The house has an excellent sporting year and Grove teams seem to have figured in the final stages of many events. The juniors in particular have excelled and began the year with a thrilling, if unexpected win in the junior rugby event. With only two ‘A’ team players in the side, the narrow comeback win over Clifton in the final was a triumph for team-play over individual talent

laid on by the Metcalfes, a trashy movie and pizzas courtesy of Domino’s. The evening produced a great sense of togetherness and was a triumph for the pupil voice; it was exactly the evening they designed and made happen.

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House Reports

and gave a taste of the many victories to follow. In the Easter Term, the girls came to the fore and demonstrated that there was only one house in the school for netball. First the seniors won their event with a win over Hope and, a couple of weeks later, the juniors followed suit with a dominant series of performances

ending with a comprehensive win over Clifton in the final. The term ended with the inaugural boys’ inter-house water polo event for which our Grove Goldfish team lined up against the Linton Lobsters for what proved to be a classic. After a gruelling game which needed three periods of extra time and with negotiations about sharing the trophy beginning, the Goldfish prevailed with a goal with just seconds remaining. The Summer Term brought an equal dose of success with wins for the girls’ and intermediate boys’ teams on Sports Day which saw of series of outstanding individual performances, particularly from the girls with Annabelle Blackburn winning the junior 200m and Jenny Elliott and Millie Grant winning the junior and senior javelin events. The interhouse cricket saw a strong competition and a win over the noisy neighbours (again) with Will Huffer’s serene batting and Matt

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Roberts’ extravagant shot-making seeing us over the line in an exciting finish. The senior boys’ tennis generated even more tension but Sam Metcalfe and James Greenall held their nerve to retain the cup by the narrowest margin possible. Grove tennis looks to be in safe hands with Robbie Greenall sparkling all season and just being pipped after 100 minutes of gripping play in the final of the Alcuin Cup.

The cultural heart of The Grove continues to beat and we had many occasions to celebrate the performance of those in our number. The Senior Music Festival saw Josh Stanford (percussion and woodwind) and Elle Illingworth (girls’ singing) performing stylishly in their classes and in the junior event Sam Stanford (woodwind), Tom Dowdy (boys’ singing) and Sam Lightwing (woodwind and boys’ singing) did likewise, with Sam’s amusing rendition of Nice Work If You Can Get It earning him the boys’ singing award. Grovites have also excelled on the stage and,

House Reports

despite there being too many contributions to list, it would be remiss not to mention the contribution made by Elle Illingworth over the years which culminated with her memorable Queen of Hearts in Alice. The junior production of London Below featured a good number of Grovites and we look forward to watching their performances in years to come.

work that has gone into academic pursuits is impossible to reflect in a report such as this and I congratulate all our pupils for the time, effort and emotion they have invested. For those awaiting exam results, I trust appropriate reward is inbound. The end of a school year is a time not only to reflect on what has been achieved but also to bid farewell to our leavers and wish them health, happiness and fulfilment in the world beyond our school. While I am sure they are all keen to cut ties and revel in new starts and fresh challenges, I know the bonds of friendship they have built will keep them in touch. I hope that their connection with The Grove will remain strong too and that they will choose to drop in from time to time; they will always be most welcome. Mr Martin Lawrence

Near to the heart of any school is the learning and intellectual progress made and, by any measure, we have achieved a great deal here. The Third Form were particularly meritorious in this regard and, between them, they scooped an amazing 214 merits with Maddy Bletcher and Jack Lawrence bagging a total of 52. Our teams figured well in all the various quiz events and registered wins in the Literary Quiz, the Science Pub Quiz and the junior St Peter’s Challenge, where a remarkable performance from Matt Roberts saw us home with a convincing win in the final. The hard

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House Reports

THE MANOR

By the time this report is read The Manor will have been transformed. The long-awaited, and much-needed, redevelopment of the ground floor is taking place and I hope it will provide a sense of space and function that can be enjoyed for many years to come. I would like publicly to thank all those involved in helping to bring this about. Over the last four years the house has been physically developed throughout, from the roof downwards. But buildings are one thing: it is the people in the buildings that ultimately matter and in this respect The Manor is even more fortunate. The boys and the staff here are an absolute delight to work with.

Along with our impressive ‘Sims’ from Selborne in South Africa, here on exchange for six weeks, the year started well.

Christmas Term

The extra-curricular life of the school is well-supported in house. Many boys are involved in CCF, the DofE Awards, school choirs and orchestras as well as in team sports, plays and a whole host of other organised and more informal activities. The boys get a great deal out of this, reflecting the considerable effort put in.

Five Third Formers (Ben, Theo, Peter, Michael and Oscar), one Fourth Former (Dan) and four in the Lower Sixth (ID, Maciej, Simon and Andrei) joined us in September and became a part of the house more quickly and smoothly than I could have hoped.

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House cross-country was the year’s first house event. In the senior section Sam Dickinson won superbly and in the junior section Rory Combe featured strongly. The team competition depends as much on the seventh-placed person as the first, so as a house we finished a bit lower down. Sam’s performance in triathlon was a notable sporting feature of the year and he along with quite a few others availed themselves of the swimming pool during the week to train.

House Reports

On the final Wednesday of the term came the house rugby. Both juniors and seniors put in strong performances, though ultimately we lost out. It was the perfect backdrop however to the House dinner. The excellent relationship between the boys, as well as between staff and students, always shines through in this event. It was a delightful evening and reflected really well on the sense of spirit and community amongst all. Easter Term Hockey dominated boys’ sport this term and huge numbers of boys represented various school teams. The house hockey competition was enjoyed by all, though we came closer to victory in the house football. Our strong but numerically limited team was excellent in the early rounds and lost only by running out of steam in the final. This term was strong musically too. Andrei Zevakin has been a revelation on the piano and in the opinion of many (though not the judge) his performance at the Senior Music Festival was

outstanding. Ivan Cheng has been with us for the last five years, and the 20-minute piece he played in the Minster will remain one of my career memories. Having heard him practise and seen the hours he puts in, he deserved the long standing ovation he received.

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House Reports

Year-group takeaways in our office were a popular new event this year, something I am sure will continue into the next year. The Sixth Form dinner was another success and it was great to see the spirit amongst all the boarders, not least in the good luck called for in the next day’s House Singing competition. This was perhaps our house highlight of the year. On stage last, and with a combined McGill/Cheng composition for Valentine’s Day, our boys sang wonderfully well and silenced the hall. Rightly, we won. Summer Term The Summer Term prior to exams was short. Indeed exams have come to dominate this term ever more. House events still take place though, most notably in the junior cricket (where a team was hastily put together) and Sports Day. Sam Dickinson just missed out on the school’s 3,000m record that day, and won the 1500m too. Rory Combe won the intermediate 3,000m, Matthew Dickson the intermediate high jump and Theo Hedley the junior 200m. But virtually all took part and gave it their best. Many had a go at the Beverley 10k too, making the Housemaster feel obliged to have a go as well. The boys worked hard in preparation for the exams and the atmosphere of relaxed purpose was a delight to see. It has been focused yet calm and I hope all are well rewarded for their efforts. Post-exams there was a really enjoyable wind-down to the end of term and excitement as building plans for the year ahead were revealed in detail, and as work started on the extension.

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The People Though small numerically, this year’s Upper Sixth have been outstanding house leaders. Three monitors (Tom D, Tom C and Ivan) served the school very well with James, Michael and Luka all contributing in a number of valued ways. Luka has been an HMC East European Scholar and it is a huge testament to him, as well as the support he has had around the school, that he was offered a fully-funded scholarship at Trinity College, Cambridge. Tom Dickinson has been an excellent head of house and I am extremely grateful to him for the many positive developments that have occurred this year. The house staff deserve their thanks too. Dave Ray and Christien Bembridge assist well with duties as well as providing other support (such as opening up the house early in the morning), so often unseen. Colette and the cleaning team continue to provide excellent support and their work is greatly appreciated. The tutors all help too, and I thank them for their contributions. The Manor is a family house, as evidenced increasingly by the presence of our children in the TV and games rooms. It is only with the support of them, as well as my wife Dori, that the house runs as it does. It has been an excellent year. Mr Steve Gwilliam

House Reports

THE RISE It hardly seems as if a year has passed since I arrived as a new member of staff at St Peter’s School and took over the reins at The Rise. What struck me was how welcoming and friendly the girls were and, very quickly, I felt like ‘part of the furniture’. Christmas Term We welcomed our new Third Formers, Emily McDonald, Kitty Clapham, Charlotte Hollinrake and Jodi Smith, who got to grips with their new routines with great enthusiasm and cheerfulness. The efficiency with which they went about their morning duties was staggering and they had often left the house long before I appeared in the office. We also welcomed the new Lower Sixth students: Lucy Bower, Annabel Blott, Anna Thrussell, Heather Lam, Christa Liu and Rachel Simpson, who threw themselves into life here, admirably helped along by Alicia Cranston, Emily Williams and Anna Fairbank. Within a week, you would have thought that they had been here from the third form. Brogan Grant and Zoe Pindar, the heads of house, kept me on a steady course as I found my feet and gently reminded me about anything I had not done. The first challenge of this term was the Great Egg Race. Our team – Charlotte Hollinrake, Millie Clapham, Eve Bracken, Anna Thrussell and Ellie Fletcher – made a valiant attempt to make their ball-bearing descend the slope in the longest time. Although a prize eluded them, they certainly gained top marks for the most attractively decorated run! Remembering the house motto: ‘it’s not the winning but the taking part’, the girls braced themselves for the formidable challenge of the cross-country. Their guts and determination admirably paid off and the senior girls took second place, whilst the juniors finished a respectable sixth. House Chapel was next on the agenda. Under the highly-organised and motivating leadership of Brogan Grant, the girls explored the very important theme of ‘self-respect’ with notable performances given by Brogan and Anna Thrussell. Jodi Smith’s solo violin piece The Ashokan Farewell was particularly memorable.

The school production of Alice was without doubt one of the highlights of the Christmas Term. Brogan Grant was outstanding as Alice, as was Anna Thrussell as the Duchess, and Tilly Antrum was the most charming of flowers. Jodi Smith and Grace Moody’s brilliance backstage must also be mentioned. Another wonderful occasion was the Autumn Concert where we were treated to a wealth of musical talent. The Rise was admirably represented by Jodi Smith, Cassie Bythell, Eve Bracken, Emily McDonald, Anna Fairbank and Alicia Cranston in the Wind Band, Clarinet Choir and Chapel Choir. We rounded off a very busy but fun term with our sumptuous House dinner. The girls and their guests enjoyed a delicious dinner followed by speeches, an amusing video made by the Upper Sixth entitled What Really Goes On in The Rise… and an impromptu party back at the house. All the girls must be complimented on their

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House Reports

The Wardrobe was an exceptional and unusual play about the fortunes of a wardrobe through the ages beginning in the late middle ages and ending around 1914. Eve Bracken and Charlotte Hollinrake brought the characters to life superbly whilst Jodi Smith and Grace Moody made the wardrobe manoeuvres look effortless and problem-free. Eternal Light in the Minster at the very end of term saw many of the girls singing in the school choir and playing in the Wind Band and Orchestra.

elegance, their amusing anecdotes and their ability to walk in their spectacularly high shoes. Easter Term The typical cold, dank beginning to this new term could not dampen the spirits of the Rise girls and they quickly set about settling themselves back into their routines and preparing themselves for the new challenges ahead.

This term also saw the controversy that was house debating for both seniors and juniors. I was truly impressed by the eloquence with which the girls spoke and their thorough preparation. Although they did not make the final rounds they must certainly be congratulated on a wonderful team effort. Well done to Alicia Cranston, Anna Thrussell, Rachel Simpson, Emily McDonald, Cassie Bythell, Anna van Harwegen and Charlotte Hollinrake. Sadly, due to family circumstances, we said goodbye to our muchloved Mrs Cherry Fricker. Cherry was someone the girls and I just loved having around. Her gentle manner, wonderful advice and sense of fun will be much missed by us all. We wish you well for the future!

The girls showed great team effort, determination and willingness to participate in the inter-house netball, swimming and squash. Very well done to Grace Moody, Cassie Bythell, Annabel Blott and Anna Fairbank, who swam valiantly on behalf of The Rise. Annabel even swam twice in the relay! Zoe Pindar and Stephanie Tong are to be congratulated on a superb house squash tournament which saw them narrowly pipped at the post by School to achieve second place. Our rowers, Harriet Falshaw, Sabrina Leung, Lucy Bower and Jodi Smith, continued their excellent team efforts in the York Regatta, the Schools’ Head of the River race in London, the Triangular Head competition at Yarm, and on a trip to Ghent. Later on, in the summer term, the girls were to participate in the York Spring and Summer Regattas as well as the National Schools’ Regatta. The House Singing competition proved to be a particularly memorable and joyous occasion. Under Brogan Grant’s leadership, the girls committed themselves to countless practices of Wannabe by the Spice Girls. Accompanied by Tom on electric guitar, the musicality and unity of their performance was outstanding and ‘our’ Spice Girls walked away as runners-up.

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Summer Term Exams loomed as we returned from the Easter break and it was not long before the house became eerily quiet as many of the girls went home or shut themselves in their rooms, away from distractions. Nevertheless many girls turned up to support Eve

House Reports

talent, from First XI hockey, lead roles in the school production, dawn training for rowing, and squash captaining, to maths team challenges. It has been a real pleasure getting to know you all and helping you to plan your next step. Mr Gillies and I wish you well for the future. Special thanks go to my two brilliant heads of house, Brogan Grant and Zoe Pindar. Their help, advice and good humour were invaluable to me throughout the year as was their support to new girls coming into the house.

Bracken, Emily McDonald, Charlotte Hollinrake and Kitty Clapham in the middle-school play London Below, the imaginative and gripping tale of those who live underground. Emily’s singing and guitar-playing as the busker was memorable, as was Eve’s portrayal of Door. It was a most enjoyable night for all. The sun shone brightly on Sports Day, and we saw some amazing performances from Cassie Bythell in the 100m, Grace Moody in the 200m, Kitty Clapham in the 400m and Tilly Antrum in the 800m. Special thanks go to Zoe Pindar who gritted her teeth and ran the 1500m brilliantly. As the term rushed on, it would soon be time to say goodbye to my first Upper Sixth girls as they began the next exciting chapter in their lives: Brogan Grant, Zoe Pindar, Ellie Fletcher, Harriet Falshaw, Valeriya Morshchagina and Stephanie Tong. As a new Housemistress I was struck not only by their academic ability, positivity, conscientiousness and friendliness but also by their

Sadly again, due to increased work commitments, we said goodbye also to Magda Zasada. Her visits to The Rise were greatly enjoyed by the girls, as was her fun chat, Polish treats and adorable rabbit, Poppy. We wish you well, Magda and thank you for all of your help! I would like to take this opportunity to say a big ‘thank you’ to the other key members of the house, without whose help The Rise simply could not run and whose work we appreciate enormously. Thank you very much indeed therefore to our house tutors Mrs Barnard, Mrs Robinson and Miss Lindley. We are also indebted to Lesley, Jenny and Laura who keep The Rise shining and immaculate. Special thanks go to our Matron, Jane, who truly is the lynchpin of the establishment and who does so much for us all. Her efficiency, organisational skills, friendliness, sense of fun and sewing skills are so appreciated by us all! And so the year drew to a close with the house barbecue and a trip to Flamingo Land. I have the impression that next year is going to pass even more quickly! Time does pass quickly when you’re having fun after all!!! Mrs Dorothy Gillies

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Visits and Exchanges

Lower-Sixth Geography Field Trip to the Isle of Arran

When we arrived in Arran, contrary to the kit-list and a shock to everyone, it was actually sunny. This was probably the biggest surprise of the trip. We’d expected freezing weather and rain, as Mr Allan had said that every year previously it had rained. The sevenhour journey was helped by films and unlimited Mars Bars. Upon arrival on the island, we took an hour-long journey with a bus full of primary school children on their own excursion to Lochranza. After settling into our ‘accommodation’, we were shown around and introduced to the legend that is John (or Johnny to some!). He was given the task of educating us through our week there and, of course, enforcing road safety. Over the next few days we developed our geographical skills on the salt marsh in the bay of Lochranza and on the nearby hills, where we went on ‘short’ walks. We studied the halosere by looking at plant-height and species, as well as soil pH and texture. Using the different techniques to measure these was a new and

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Visits and Exchanges

interesting experience, giving us a deeper knowledge by getting our hands dirty.

only human geographer. Who knew that people-watching could be educational?

Our PGL guides were fantastic. We’ve never met someone as enthusiastic about geology as Becky. Remember: geology rocks! In King’s Cave and the other rock formations we saw this interest emerge, as she told us enthusiastically about how they were formed along with the dykes and sills, and there was input from John and Beth on the history of the cave, ancient art and all. Mrs Hall was very disappointed to miss our soil-sampling. We used a soil auger; however the pronunciation by some was a little dodgy.

After England lost their game, morale was significantly reduced and so the only happy person on the trip was Abdul (he changed his allegiance, now apparently a dedicated Uruguay fan!). However the prospect of a whole two units of alcohol sent tingles down the spines of many people, and everyone was looking forward to a meal at the nearest pub – which, by the way, was a 40-minute walk away. Thanks to our teachers for a fun and interesting trip! Laura Carrigan and Joe Copley (LVI)

Towards the end of the trip, the midges really started biting, leading everybody to slather themselves with repellent. The prize for the most bites certainly went to Nat Green. On the final day we travelled to four different sites over the island, including Brodick, which actually had shops. It was the first civilization we’d seen all week! When we got there we assessed their sustainability and rurality, which Beth was very excited about as she was the

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Visits and Exchanges

Economics and Business Studies Trips Pupils studying Economics or Business Studies have been out and about experiencing these subjects in the ‘real world’. Business Studies pupils travelled into York to visit Crumbs Cupcakery to see the challenges faced in setting up your own business, and discussed key start-up problems facing all entrepreneurs including issues of finance, location and legal challenges, staffing costs, profit margins and production methods.

A2 Economists headed to the University of Huddersfield for their annual Transport Economics conference to discuss some of the key issues and problems facing the UK economy in the field of transport. HS2: is it a £50bn vital piece of infrastructure investment or could the money be used elsewhere? Heathrow is at 99%+ capacity – what should be done for the UK’s growing airport capacity problems? How should we solve the permanent gridlock and congestion issues on UK motorways and main roads? After the AS exams, Economists turned their attention to several essay competitions and both Business and Economics pupils began the production of Peternomics 2014 (copies of which are now available in the Library). At the end of term, a group of Lower Sixth Economists and pupils with aspirations of careers in the

Meanwhile, Sixth Form economists made the trip to Sheffield University to listen to Tim Harford at the Royal Economic Society’s annual lecture. Tim is the author of several books that budding economists should recognise, such as The Undercover Economist, The Logic of Life and Adapt. His lecture How to run – or ruin – the economy relived the life of Bill Phillips, culminating in failing his economics modules at LSE and building the hydraulic MONIAC model which simulated the workings of an economy. Tim’s talk stretched from the ‘real Indiana Jones of economics’ to Singapore’s World War II campaign, to the A-Team, to removing the fourth down in American Football, and then on to whether randomised trials can help us avoid future recessions.

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Financial District took in the sights of the Square Mile in the City of London. Pupils explored the Bank of England Museum, covering such aspects as the role of the Monetary Policy Committee and the Bank’s commitment to providing financial and monetary stability to the UK economy. Pupils then received a lecture on the purpose and history of the bank, the stories behind the value of the gold bars hidden away deep underground in the Bank’s vaults (and the one occasion where the vaults have been breached by an outsider!) and the printing and security processes behind modernday banknotes. A tour through the financial district, taking in the awe-inspiring building, such as the Gherkin, the Walkie-talkie, Lloyds’ Tower and The Shard, led us through to lunch in Leadenhall Market then onto the London Metal Exchange. Here we managed to see live floor-trading of a host of key commodities. Mr Ben White

Visits and Exchanges

Bletchley Park visit On Friday 13 June, accompanied by Mr Trevett and Mr Spencer, a group of students studying history and mathematics visited Bletchley Park, a former military facility, the site of the cracking of the Enigma and Lorentz codes used by the Germans in World War II. Given a tour by a subject-field expert, we learned about the brilliant mathematicians and scientists who together, living at the park, managed to unravel various German plots and military plans thanks to their ability to crack those codes. As well as this, we were given a demonstration of a working Enigma machine, gaining more insight into how it operated. Thanks to Mr Trevett and Mr Spencer, we all had a really interesting day, even for those with a less-than-special interest in maths! Maciej Psiuch and Jemima Jordan (LVI)

Model United Nations 2013 Sixth-Form pupils in international debate at Model United Nations. Model United Nations involves debating international issues and building alliances in the role of different UN countries. It has a small but enthusiastic following at St Peter’s and is a significant part of the extra-curricular programme at many other leading schools whom we meet and debate against at conferences, such as MUN Cheadle Hulme (or MUNCH), which we attended in October. Olivia Anderson takes up the story: A group of students travelled to Cheshire to represent Spain, in what was for many of us our first ever MUN conference. We were excited but apprehensive and the painfully early start (5.00 am) meant that it was a pretty quiet drive to Manchester. When we arrived we found Cheadle Hulme bedecked with the flags of the countries and buzzing with expectant delegates.

encouraged everyone to speak, which was great in getting rid of the initial nerves. I thoroughly enjoyed lobbying for my resolution and making alliances with other delegates, a process during which the persuasive powers of Haribo featured heavily. Needless to say, by the end of the weekend we were all debating with a great deal more confidence than at the beginning of Saturday. Some of us even found courage to speak in the large Joint Committee, a highly nerve-wracking but very worthwhile experience. Considering that it was our first experience of MUN, we were all very proud of our achievements. We are looking forward to further conferences in the Upper Sixth. Olivia Anderson (LVI) & Mr Ben Fuller

Everything was new and fairly overwhelming but when we split into our respective committees we all felt slightly more at ease. I was on the Human Rights Committee which discussed the issues of the Right to Religious Freedom, Post-Arab Spring Human Rights and the Right to Self Defence. The chairs of the committees were very friendly and

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Morocco 2014 As we made our final approach into Menara Airport on the outskirts of Marrakech just after sunset, we could see the lights from the gas lanterns filling the Djemaa El-Fna square, and the plumes of cooking smoke spiralling up into the night. The minaret of the Koutoubia Mosque, Marrakech’s most famous symbol, topped with four copper globes, could also be seen dominating the skyline. The mosque, built of the same local sandstone that makes Marrakech the famous pink city, glowed red with the sunset.

Walking out from the airport and driving to our hotel we got a sense of the chaos and the buzz for which Morocco is worldfamous. It was quite exhilarating, arriving at night with the city still in full swing. We woke the next day, and piled into our minibuses for our journey to the mountains. As we got nearer to the start of our trek in the High Atlas we were reminded that this part of Morocco has only recently had access roads, enabling cars to get to the remote villages. So many places still have very poor roads and can be cut off during the winter months. We visited several small rural communities during our trek: Agouti, Ait Imi and Arous. After

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Visits and Exchanges

three days of trekking we arrived in the village of Imelghas, with the gites providing the luxury of a lukewarm shower and a simple mattress on the floor. Our day working with the villagers was an experience to be remembered. Some had the privilege to paint the inside of the craft centre that the women of the village were soon to occupy. Part-funded by St Peter’s over the last three years, it was great to see the building finally near to completion. Others took to the fields with scythes, to gather grass for the cattle, or they landscaped back yards with picks and shovels.

As has been the tradition on previous trips, the boys from St Peter’s took on the local villagers at a game of football. They were not quite prepared for the physical determination shown by the young Berber men, and were involved in a hard-fought contest. With the game being evenly matched for 90 minutes, it came down to a penalty shoot-out. A win for the St Peter’s team redressed the balance after defeat in 2013.

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The remote Ait Bougmez valley is stunningly beautiful in April – with the hint of snow-topped peaks surrounding it against a deep blue sky; villages and a carefully tended patchwork of green fields line the wide, flat base of the valley; yellow and red rock rises on either side, and flowering almond trees line the river. We had spent five days in the mountains and trekked for three days, following our trusty guides Jamal and Housain. We were as remote as we could be, and somewhere that would be hard to find on even the best maps. As we left the mountains it was time to head for the coast and the famous port of Essaouira. This charming citadel enjoys a prestigious past dating back to prehistoric times, and was renowned for its Tyrian factory which supplied Rome with the legendary purple dye. Essaouira is also well known for its thriving fishing port and market. We surfed, shopped in the medina and rode our own St Peter’s camel-train along the wide expanse of beach, with incredible views across the bay.

If we hadn’t quite had our fix of shopping in Essaouira, we had time to explore and hunt for bargains in the souks of Marrakech on the final day. We had a tour around the honeycomb of alleyways hiding souks offering everything from exotic spices to rugs and jewellery. We also had time to soak up the atmosphere in the Djemaa El-Fna square, where the snake-charmers and musicians were entertaining the crowds. Away from the noise of the square we visited the stunning Majorelle Gardens, a tranquil haven designed by expatriate French artist Jacques Majorelle and previously owned by Yves SaintLaurent. Forty eight students and five staff from St Peter’s enjoyed a quite magical ten days in Morocco. To those thinking of a trek with the school in the future, it will definitely not disappoint. Mr Jon Whitehouse

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Visits and Exchanges

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Visits and Exchanges

Fifth- and Sixth-Form Music students’ visit to Edinburgh

Reid Collection of musical instruments: flutes, including one disguised as a walking-stick!

In February, the Fifth- and Sixth-Form Music students visited two museums of musical instruments in Edinburgh. Setting off early by train, we saw a collection of early keyboard instruments at one of the museums, and all sorts of other instruments at the other. We even found time to wander around Edinburgh’s beautiful Old Town and fit in a delicious lunch at Pizza Express.

Our afternoon visit was to the collection of early keyboard instruments at St Cecilia’s Hall. It includes 50 of the world’s best-preserved instruments and those of us who didn’t know our clavichords from our fortepianos certainly learned a thing or two. Many of the instruments are in working order and the pianoplayers amongst us had great fun trying them out.

Our first venue was the Reid Concert Hall Museum of Instruments. This museum displays nearly 1,000 stringed, woodwind, brass and percussion instruments from all across Europe and elsewhere, some dating back 400 years. The range of instruments was impressive, and gave us a chance to see how the instrument that each of us plays today has evolved from its mediaeval origins. We even discovered that some early woodwind instruments were designed to double up as walking-sticks!

We had a fantastic tour guide showing us around the museums. She and Mr Wright — who could easily have passed for a tour guide himself — told us more about these wonderful, old instruments than we ever thought there was to know. Thanks to both of them, and to Dr Harrison and Mrs Lawrence, for a great day out.

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Libby Brown (LVI)

Visits and Exchanges

St Peter’s Politicians in Westminster The Politics department’s summer day in London is eagerly awaited and enjoyed – so much so that several students take part in both Lower and Upper Sixth. Travelling down at a civilized hour on a Friday morning we were able to pop into the relatively new Supreme Court in Parliament Square to see where our final court of appeal meets, before heading to Parliament itself. Perhaps aware that Guy Fawkes was a Peterite the security checks were more thorough than before – once in the Palace we had a full, ‘access all areas’ tour of the House of Commons. Students walked through the voting lobbies and stood at the Despatch Box before we headed to the Grand Committee Room off Westminster Hall to take part in a debate on the effectiveness of Select Committees with Marlborough School, St Albans. We then headed to Downing Street and, once through the high-security gates, installed in 1989 as a protection against IRA threats, enjoyed a peaceful stroll up the street on a sunny afternoon and the chance to take photos. Staff and students then enjoyed relaxing and shopping in Covent Garden before supper there and a late train home. Mr Ben Fuller

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Visits and Exchanges

Third- and Fourth-Form Scholars’ visit to the British Museum, Tuesday 6 May

The precedent was set last year to give the academic scholars and other able and interested students in the Third and Fourth Form a Grand Day Out. The purpose of the day was to just go and see something, and to enjoy learning for its own sake as opposed to exploring any specific links to the curriculum. This year, Mr Trevett and I had the pleasure of taking this year’s Third- and Fourth-Form scholars to London for a day in the British Museum. The main focus of the trip was to visit the Vikings exhibition. This was the first major exhibition on the Vikings at the British Museum for over 30 years. It featured many new archaeological discoveries and objects which have never been seen before in the UK, alongside important Viking Age artefacts discovered in Britain and Ireland. For pupils living and going to school in Viking Jorvik we felt this exhibition was an important and different way of understanding the cultural heritage of their city and its environs.

That isn’t all we saw. Here are some additional comments from Rose Gabbertas and Jess Webster: In May, 20 scholars from the Third and Fourth Forms took a trip to the British Museum in London with Miss Barker and Mr Trevett. Having caught the train from York we walked to the museum from King’s Cross, pausing at a few historical landmarks on the way such as the British Library and St Pancras Parish Church, with its Greek-style architecture, where the teachers shared their knowledge of History and Classics. At the museum, we were given free rein to visit exhibitions of our choice including the Ancient Greeks, Egyptians and other fascinating displays including the history of clocks. At three o’clock we walked back to King’s Cross, our brains somewhat saturated, but still searching for a ‘Cronut’ shop all the way home. Miss Kat Barker

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Pompeii 2013 Last October, members of the Fourth, Fifth and Lower-Sixth Form left school to embark on the best trip of the year. There were two groups departing from school at different times: I was in the first group and left at midnight. The coach was bubbling with excitement and anticipation as we drove to Heathrow and, although it was very late by the time we got to the airport, no one was sleeping! After studying Pompeii all year, we couldn’t wait to finally experience it for ourselves.

We arrived at Naples at midday and the second we got our bags we were whisked away to a coach that drove us to Herculaneum. We caught our first glimpses of Vesuvius on the drive, looming over the bay of Naples even though it is half the size it was before its eruption in 79AD. After refreshing ourselves at a small kiosk outside the historic town, we explored Herculaneum for hours, learning more and more about the lifestyles of the Romans who lived there. When it was time to go, we boarded the coach and drove back to the airport to meet up with the second group. Their flight was delayed by a few hours, but when they finally arrived we went to our hotel in Sorrento to have dinner and get some muchneeded sleep. My friends and I in group one were exhausted after a whole 48 hours awake! We went to bed that night wondering what mysteries Pompeii would have in store for us. The next morning, 40 half-asleep teenagers slumped down the hotel stairs for breakfast at 7.30 am. We got on the coach after

collecting a pack-up lunch and most of us slept all the way to Vesuvius. The few hours’ drive was not wasted, however, as Mrs Newport attempted to teach us Italian. We learned some useful phrases for the rest of the week even though our brains weren’t really working properly yet. When we got off the coach at the foot of Vesuvius, we were more awake than ever and couldn’t wait to start the climb. The slope was steeper than we anticipated, but the heavy breathing and red faces were all worth it as we looked out over the breathtaking view of the Bay of Naples. We also got to look into the mouth of Vesuvius and despite Mr Noy Scott’s teasing, it thankfully didn’t erupt and we made our way back to the coach safely. We drove to Pompeii and ate lunch on the lawns

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outside the entrance. Our food attracted a stray dog who quickly became our friend and followed us around all day when we fed it a slice of bread! We walked around the city in a group to begin with, Miss Barker giving us a small tour, until we were allowed to go and explore on our own. It was so amazing to actually be in the city we had been studying but also very spooky to be walking in the footsteps of ancient Romans, especially in the amphitheatre where hundreds of gladiators had been brutally killed. After an hour or two we reluctantly left Pompeii, wishing we could stay all day, and returned to the hotel. Before dinner, we were allowed to explore the small town of Sorrento. Naturally, we went to the supermarket to stock up on chocolate, but also came across many products and brands that weren’t available in the UK. The pasta was multicoloured and shaped in as many ways as you can imagine and there were whole aisles dedicated to Nutella. However we soon had to return to the hotel for a delicious meal, then bed. The next day we went on a coach trip to Paestrum and the Museum of Naples. Paestrum was a major Greek city and has

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many temples well preserved today. We walked around the city, the huge temples towering over us leaving us speechless. We then re-grouped and had lunch outside the city and bought some souvenirs in the small shops before driving to the Museum of Naples. We were let loose in the museum and learned even more about the towns we had been visiting all week. There were amazing paintings, sculptures and famous mosaics some of us recognised from the Cambridge Latin books. For example, we got to see the Alexander the Great mosaic, the mosaic showing the riot in Pompeii and many more. That night we explored Sorrento again before dinner and some of us managed to find a café with free wi-fi! We returned there whenever we had the chance and the waiter always reserved chocolate tarts for us. After we had browsed to our hearts’ content, we walked back to the hotel and went to bed after another amazing meal.

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On the last day, we got a hydrofoil to the island of Capri. We walked all the way up to the Roman emperor Tiberius’s palace and yet again we were left speechless. The view from the palace was amazing and looked over the endless sea with mist hovering on the water. After walking around the palace, we returned to the pretty bay to do some shopping. There were countless nooks and crannies to be explored and many ice-cream shops with every flavour in the world. When we had got everything we wanted to buy for our families we got back on the hydrofoil and returned to Sorrento. For the last time, we were let out to do whatever we wanted until dinner. That night, after dinner we had a quiz on Italy then went to bed reluctantly, not looking forward to going home. I had so much fun on this trip and I know everyone else feels the same way. Thank you to Miss Barker, Mrs Newport, Mr Gillies and Mr Snelling who put up with us for a whole five days and to Mr Noy Scott who organised the trip but unfortunately couldn’t come (he was too scared that Vesuvius would erupt). I hope this trip runs

again in the future and definitely recommend it to anyone even if you don’t do Latin or Classics. I know I would go again! It was an unforgettable experience and we are all truly grateful for all the effort the teachers put in to make it fun for everyone. Thank you! Emily Kelly (IV)

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News, Events and Activities

The School Archives A variety of researchers have made use of the archives over the year pursuing interests such as: an Oxford University student conducting research into the relationship between changing international athletic records of schoolboys and the physical health of the British population over a 100year period; a BBC researcher preparing for a programme on the Great War; and an independent TV producer looking for new angles on the Gunpowder Plot.

The school website contains the beginnings of our Great War Commemoration. David Mackie has been gradually creating a structured area for the addition of further information. The advantage of using the website is that people from beyond these shores are finding our resources and offering to send images and details to enhance what

is already there. One such Belgian visitor to the site has been extremely helpful in providing images of the memorials. All the volumes of The Peterite magazine are now available in digital form and on the website. Some of the older whole-school photographs have been digitised, along with images of a number of the honours boards, and all now appear on the website. Thanks are owed to the following people for donating items to the archives: Andrew Bryce for a copy of J Scott Cooper’s book E A K Denison for documents and photographs Mike Johnston for sports clothing David Harding for sports ties, blazer for Rifle Shooting, and programmes, copies of Petrana and old OP listings Jill Murray for photographs and postcards from Hugh Murray C John Helmsley for newspaper cuttings, 1951 Prospectus, revised fees for 1961 and photo album Please consider donating items to the archives if you are looking to downsize or are planning to make space at home. There are always gaps to fill! Angela Sanderson has again kindly helped with archives during the year. Work on the Great War project has greatly benefited from the interest that Angela has shown. Mrs Pat Chandler

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The Alcuin Library As technology moves on so does the Library. Nowadays the offer is a mixture of book stock, journals, audio-visual items and digital resources so that aspects of the Library are available 24 hours a day, wherever you are. Over the year an eBook-lending platform (vleBooks) has been set up to take advantage of the fact that a growing percentage of our pupils and members of staff like to access books on their portable devices or laptops. It will be interesting to monitor these developments.

National Poetry Day Miles Salter, a local poet, kicked off our literary activities this year with a visit on National Poetry Day. Sixth-Form students worked with Miles to try out techniques for stimulating ideas for poetry.

were super-prepared, and owing to the unprecedented numbers of students volunteering to present the books, Mrs Lawrence had to tweak the formula. Mrs Lawrence called upon pairs of English A-Level students to share the responsibility and superbly steered us through to awarding our imaginary prize to The Testament of Mary. This had nothing to do with the length of the novel(la) and everything to do with Ben Turvill and Nina Duncan’s insistence that this really was the best.

Man Booker Shadowing: October 2013 This year proved particularly exciting as the Reading Agency chose the school as one of its shadowing teams. As a result we were given additional copies of the shortlisted books, access to its blog and invited to a pre-award shadowing event at the stunning new Library of Birmingham. To have Jim Crace, Ruth Ozeki and Eleanor Catton (the eventual winner) on the same platform was marvellous and we gained quite an appreciation of what went into the writing of those novels. On our return we

Twelve Words of Winter competition The challenge was to create a winter-themed story in 12 words and it was quite a tough one. Olivia Watts penned the winner with runners-up Eleanor Graham, Alex Plane and Chloe Wong all submitting suitably crisp entries.

Christmas Lit Quiz Back by popular demand the festive quiz took place in the last week of term. Leaving aside the anagrams it was a closelyfought contest with The Grove taking the trophy. With wonderful support from the Library Committee – in particular, quizmaster extraordinaire Will Fynn and top-class adjudicators Sally and Libby – it was all good fun.

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World Book Day, March 2014 Paul Dowswell Paul joined us to talk to Third-Form pupils, J5 from St Olave’s and pupils from other local schools about the way he undertakes research for writing historical novels. With the spotlight on the Great War Centenary, Paul’s latest novel, Eleven Eleven, seemed very relevant. In the afternoon Paul led an inspiring creative writing workshop with Third- and Fourth-Form pupils and later took questions from the Literary Society. Further to Paul’s visit we shared books (Bookcrossing) and held a ‘shelfie’ competition, so it was a pretty busy week! We were very strict on the judging of the shelfies as it appeared that some people had exceptionally long arms … Winners of the competition were Izzy Hall and Jack Amsden.

Sir Andrew Motion One of the highlights of the year was to welcome Sir Andrew Motion to the Library. In addition to delivering a reading of his poetry as part of the York Literature Festival and Public Lecture Series, he led a fascinating creative writing workshop with Thirdand Fourth-Form pupils prior to enjoying a literary tea with Lit Soc.

Library Committee 2013-14 No year would be complete without a mention of our Library Committee members for their support, creativity and promotion of the library over the past year(s): Alicia Cranston, Angus

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Freeman, Alistair Duffey, Bea Rhodes-Blangsted, Ellie Caley, Libby Brown, Jemima Jordan, Luka Pajovic, Phil Hodgson, Sally Hicks, Will Fynn, Will Emery and Mrs Jo Lawrence. Thanks to you all.

Duke of Edinburgh Award Congratulations to the 12 pupils have completed the Bronze Award, two who have completed the Silver, and three pupils who have worked towards Gold over the year, undertaking a range of library skills.

Donations Book donations have been gratefully received from the following leavers and their parents, grandparents or guardians at the time of writing: 2013 leavers: Oliver Headlam-Morley, Laura Field, Bill Goss, Zara and Lewis Gower, Nicholas McLeish and Isabel Green. 2014 leavers: Josie Proctor, Joe Brennan, Lucy Schofield, Jonathan Fry, Jenny Frazer, James Bell, Henry Eyre, Charles Scholey, Sophie France, Daniel Stone and Elliot Elstob. Thank you all for your kind donations. Mrs Pat Chandler

News, Events and Activities

Le Tour - July 2014

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News, Events and Activities

Beverley 10k and 2k, 2014 House, stood firm on the starting line with rain driving into their faces. With their spirits un-dampened, the race started. The course was slippery and muddy in places and one of the organisers later commented to me that he thought that some of the pupils were ‘a champion mud-wrestling team’ on part of the course. Despite the difficult conditions, all managed to get around the 2k, some with much dirtier clothes than others. Ed Johnson was the top finisher from St Peter’s, coming fourth in a terrific time of 8:29.

The St Peter’s runners arrived to a rather wet, but otherwise cheerful, Beverley on Sunday 11 May. This year, a record number of 1,299 runners completed the 10k race. The St Peter’s team comprised 49 runners for the 10k and 30 for the 2k. This is the 16th time that the school has entered the event, which is now in its 21st year. The 2k runners were treated to proper East Riding weather for their race: there was a strong, cold wind which lashed the course with rain. The runners, many of whom were from Wentworth

For the 10k runners, more heavy rain fell just before the race, but fortunately it held off for the start. Although the faster runners managed to complete the course before the rain returned, many participants had to contend with more downpours during the second half of their race, making completing the event even more challenging. Despite the weather, the centre of Beverley was packed as hundreds lined the finishing straight and beyond. For the second consecutive year, Sam Dickinson was the first St Peter’s runner home in the 10k, finishing fourth overall and winning the under-18 boys’ prize in a time of 34:44. This is a new school record, breaking one previously held by Joseph Smith. Other quick boys included Rory Combe in a great time of 40:11

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then Gabriel Chan (44:10), Adam Freshwater (44:36) and Dan James (44:54). In her debut competitive 10k, Nicole Moir showed that she has a great talent for endurance running. She finished the race in 44:18 the fastest of the St Peter’s girls and winning the under-18 category. Sarah Carlton (52:20) and Siân Bigger (1:02:56) both pushed themselves through the less favourable conditions at the end of the race and finished well. We were unable to convince Simon Mortimer to wear fancy dress this year and consequently he ran faster than all the other staff in a time of 37:27. The support that all of the runners from St Peter’s showed for each other at the end of the race, which in my experience of

Beverley they always give each other, says much for the spirit of the school: pupils, staff and friends of the school encouraging everyone along the finishing straight and enjoying not only their own achievements, but those of all around them – a real embodiment of Peterite spirit! The morning’s exertions were rewarded with the traditional hog roast and ice-cream back at school. The runners concluded the day with both the pleasure of taking part and the resulting physical pain. This year we were raising money for York Against Cancer and at the time of writing, just over £1,200 has been donated from sponsors. Well done to everybody who got involved with Beverley this year. A special thanks goes to Paddy for helping to organise the event and Mr Morris for managing to get some great photos despite the weather. Mr Andy Parr

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St Peter’s Half-Marathon

The St Peter’s Half-Marathon took place on Sunday 2 March, the first Sunday following the half-term break, allowing participants not only to collect sponsors but to get in some extra mileage. The ‘race’ was on immediately the starter’s whistle was blown, when a pack of four runners including the Dickinson brothers Tom and Sam, along with Mr Mortimer and guest runner Emma Yates, sprinted away to form a distinctive lead group. By mile four, however, (at the much appreciated ‘Dawson Drink Station’), the real race was clearly just between Sam, Tom and Mr Mortimer. At the halfway point, each runner dutifully went around Mark Robinson’s flag and headed for home, with the courteous nod or slight hand raise as they passed fellow runners coming in the opposite direction. Despite the leading runners continuously jostling and vying for that gold medal throughout the race, Sam Dickinson was a clear winner in a new course record of 1hr 18mins, followed by Tom Dickinson in 1hr 19mins 55s. Mr Mortimer came in third in 1hr 21mins 11s and the first guest finisher was Emma Yates in a creditable fourth position with a time of 1hr 24mins 13s. The first female pupil home was Libby Brown in 1hr 45mins 43s, running a shrewd race to shake off her rivals, Annabel Blott and Anna Fairbank, who – like many other St Peter’s pupils – completed the distance in amazing times on the minimum

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amount of training. It goes to show what advantage youth has, as Paddy Stephen will agree, bringing up the rear of the race with Mr Vann (who, like the pupils, would have benefited from a few more miles covered in training!). Congratulations go to all 41 runners who took part making this year’s event the biggest and fastest so far and raising close to £700 for the chapel charities in the process. Mrs Angela Tooby-Smith

News, Events and Activities

Cycling matters A Hill Too Far I laughed when I heard Yorkshire was bidding for the 2014 Tour de France Grand Départ and was astonished when it was awarded. After following the Tour for years, the 2014 Tour began in Leeds, where I grew up, and ended in Harrogate where I worked in my teens. The second day started in York, went past the School and, en route to Sheffield, went through Ripponden where I lived for ten years before coming to St Peter’s. I wanted to be as involved as possible and so decided I would follow it back to France and take part in ‘the people’s stage’. The Etape du Tour is an annual event which follows one particular stage of the year’s Tour de France route. The stage chosen is normally in the Pyrenees or the Alps to include one or more of the iconic climbs. This year’s Etape was to follow the route of stage 18 From Pau, over the dreaded Tourmalet, finishing at the top of Hautacam – 148 kms. Nothing to the professionals, but …

France was to be our family holiday destination for the summer and so it seemed like a good idea at the time to take on this challenge in the middle weekend of two weeks in south-west France. The main problem I had was time to train. I train for short 10-and 25-mile weekend Warrior time-trial events and hadn’t ridden more than around 50 miles in one go over the past four years (and no hills). With two months before the event this posed a problem and nothing supplies the motivation better than going public and raising money for charity. Generous colleagues and friends helped me raise over £700 for Get Kids Going, which promotes opportunities for disabled children and young adults to take part in sport and is one which we have supported as a school in the past. Provided now with motivation to train I entered an event with around 1,000 others which followed the exact route of the first stage of this year’s Tour (through the Harewood estate). The sight of the garishly-coloured peloton of ‘mamils’ (an ever growing club) snaking past fly-fisherman in tweed with the Dales scenery as a backdrop was so dramatic I realised that TDF Yorkshire was going to be a massive success. I survived the day – which was the aim – but the next few days’ hobbling highlighted quite what I was taking on, given that Buttertubs, as challenging as it is, is no Tourmalet. The first week in Pau was amazing with temperatures of 35 degrees. Unfortunately, all week the forecast showed a dark spot over Sunday 20 July – wind, rain, lightning and a significant drop in temperature. Difficult to believe, but on the morning of the event the sun came out and 10,000 cyclists smiled. We set off in groups of 1,000 and there was a fantastic multi-cultural atmosphere, mostly good-humoured although applying the brakes in the world’s biggest Sunday ride was met with protest in a number of languages. The weather held until the foot of the Tourmalet and then everything changed. We literally (one of the few times this term can be used accurately) cycled up into a cloud and it simply poured down with no respite whatsoever. There is an odd feeling of comradeship as so many people make the silent pilgrimage in the rain together up a mountain. It took me 1 hour and 35 minutes to get to the top and I was amazed to find that it wasn’t that difficult. A steady 7% suits my slow-twitch muscles and when I saw the 5km-to-go marker I knew it was going to be fine.

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Soaking wet, the descent on the other side was probably my least enjoyable time on a bike. A number of people were taken away in ambulances as a result of falls and hypothermia. It was minus two degrees with wind-chill and many riders had been fooled by the early sunshine and left their coats at the start. Martin Corry (England Rugby) was an exception, leading the way in a shortsleeved shirt with no outward sign of discomfort. The bottom of the Tourmalet leads relatively quickly to the foot of Hautacam. I hadn’t really given this mountain much thought as it was just the little brother of the Tourmalet and, having got over the big one, I had set my sights on scaling it as fast as possible and heading home very pleased with my athletic prowess. It was a rather different story, though. For one thing, the gradient is roughly the same but it veers from sections of 2% to 14%. I had also underestimated what getting to that point had cost me – ironically, getting down the Tourmalet had been quite a struggle. Within 3k of the climb I was receiving ominous signals that my body had decided that enough was enough (still 10k to go!). Rather than keeping a steady rhythm, the steep sections sapped my strength completely and my speedometer kept beeping because it shuts down at speeds of less than 3mph. On the Tourmalet seeing the 5k marker was welcome relief that the summit was within reach, on the Hautacam I saw it as a sign that I was destined to fall at the last hurdle. It wasn’t that any part of me actually hurt – I just had nothing left. I’ve never quite felt like that before and, with endurance firmly in mind (and hope), I look back with a real sense of achievement that I made myself pedal on to the finish, although I felt a strange sense of anti-climax at the line 6 hours and 45 minutes after starting. My family deserves a great deal of thanks for putting up with the project. The timing chip is also a tracker and my family and friends were able to follow my progress, but the technology failed over the top of the Tourmalet, and this apparently caused a bit of consternation because I seemed to have disappeared. Having ridden and watched in Yorkshire, it is strange how subdued the spectators were in Pau for stage 18 proper. Not just the absence of yellow bikes but also the sense of anticipation and fun was missing. On Buttertubs, whilst waiting for the pros, we cheered ramblers as they made their way up the hill to the extent that they started running and then sprinting as the crowd roared them on. It was very British silliness. My favourite day of the Tour was when we all waited for them to come past St Peter’s. There was anticipation and patience in equal measure and after they passed, instead of anti-climax, Clifton was traffic-free, people were chatting in the middle of the road and cyclists rolled by. As the Head Master said at the time, it turned the city into a village for the day and everyone loved it. Mr Michael Schofield (Bursar)

The Bog Run Challenge No-one believed that Mrs Dawson was capable of cycling her bike over the 26-mile marathon distance to school from her home and back; the best she had done so far was driving with the bike

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attached to Rawcliffe Park and Ride, and arriving at school looking like the yellow-jersey rider of Le Tour. Mrs Tooby-Smith, on the other hand, didn’t believe that following major surgery just a year previous, that she was still capable of running 13 miles, the half-marathon distance. And so the ‘Bog Run Challenge’ was born: very early one morning in June (too early for spectators to line the route!) Mrs Dawson and Mrs Tooby-Smith achieved these feats of endurance and raised £500 in the process. The proceeds of this charity event went towards buying a set of desperately-needed toilets for a Kenyan school. Mrs Jane Dawson & Mrs Angela Tooby-Smith

The Big Pedal In 2014 St Peter’s took part in the Big Pedal, a Sustrans initiative to encourage more school pupils and staff to cycle to work. Nationally only 2% of school pupils regularly cycle to school, and this was reflected in the journeys logged at St Peter’s during the Big Pedal. The largest group cycling to school were support staff, followed by teaching staff, then pupils. Let’s hope that 2015 sees greater participation in environmentally-friendly transport options. Mrs Cath Hempsall

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MFL Salsa dancing with Almodóvar On a cold night in November the Upper Sixth Spanish group set out in search of a little Spanish sol (sun, not beer!) sangria (Coca-Cola) salsa and estudios. The evening started at York St John University where we were treated to a lecture in Spanish on the making of a film. Part of the A-level course involves studying the Spanish film director Pedro Almodóvar, so the technical background was very interesting. The lecture was given by the Spanish film producer Ma Jesús Martín who took us behind the scenes to explore the importance of setting in an audio-visual production. After the lecture we were joined by the Lower Sixth at La Tasca for a bespoke salsa lesson with Julio. 45 minutes later and Strictly Come Dancing eat your heart out! – the St Peter’s Sixth Form Salsa Gods and Goddesses emerged! A few tapas – albóndigas, patatas bravas, tortilla española, pescado blanco frito – rounded off the night. Estudiamos, bailamos y cenamos. Hasta el año próximo. Mrs Anna Robinson

Nouvelle Vague Study Day at the British Film Institute, South Bank, London: 10 January 2014

the London underground, the students gradually became alert enough to understand the French that was used by the presenter throughout the day. Students were encouraged to participate and ask questions in the language and ours got bolder as the day went on. It was great being able to watch and analyse a wide variety of film clips shown on the big screen just as their directors intended. In the afternoon we all watched the full version of Truffaut’s partly-autobiographical film Les 400 Coups, and this experience has clearly stayed with the students. They have often quoted examples and scene references from this film in their analytical essays and it has contributed to the richness of their understanding of the themes and techniques of this groundbreaking movement. Mrs Alex Newport

French Debating Competitions The process of debate offers profound and lasting benefits for individuals, for societies and for the global community as a whole. With its emphasis on critical thinking, effective communication, independent research and teamwork, debate teaches skills that serve individuals well in school, in the workplace, in life and in fulfilling their responsibilities within democratic societies. Once students have learned how to debate, they are better able critically to examine arguments and to make informed judgments about crucial issues.

As part of their A-level cultural studies, the Upper-Sixth French students have been studying the work of the influential French film director François Truffaut. When the opportunity arose to attend a study day learning more about the different directors and their work within this cinematographic movement, we as a class jumped at the chance. After an early start and negotiating

This year we decided to make a couple of forays into the academically-demanding world of French debating. We participated in the regional competition of the Joutes Oratoires when we visited Cheadle Hulme School with 15 other schools on 14 November. Frankie and Olivia Anderson represented the school and participated in many fierce debates in order to reach the final against Altrincham Grammar, but unfortunately were beaten by the narrowest of margins to finish runners-up. We are now looking into the possibility of hosting the North-Eastern heats of the Joutes Oratoires in 2015.

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The first St Peter’s French Debating Competition took place over three weeks in May and provided some fiery, animated debates. We were all struck by the quality of the debating teams and their use of fluent and idiomatic French. The teams had a week to prepare each of these three ambitious motions: • This house believes that the sale and consumption of fast food should be banned. • Reading is a waste of time: we learn nothing from literature; it is much better to watch television. • Immigrants should conform to the rules, learn the language and accept the traditions and culture of the host country. These debates were tightly contested, showing honed debating skills and supported by in-depth research into the topic. It was an excellent opportunity for students to practise their skills in a real context and greatly aided the skills needed for oral exams. The judging was based on content, skill of delivery and teamwork, and we congratulate all those who took part. The teams were: Emily Mahon & Alex Reeds Minna Gabbertas & Lipfon Tang Frankie Anderson & Lily Howells

European Day of Languages The European Day of Languages on 26 September was proclaimed by the Council of Europe on 6 December 2001, at the end of the European Year of Languages (2001), in order to encourage language learning across Europe.

Helen Megone & Helen Taylor

The general objectives of the European Day of Languages are to:

Georgia Calvert & Jemima Jordan

• alert the public to the importance of language learning and to diversify the range of languages learned in order to increase language learning and intercultural understanding;

Alex Eyre & Alex Plane

• promote the rich linguistic and cultural diversity of Europe; • encourage lifelong language learning in and out of school. In keeping with these objectives, people, young and old, are encouraged to take up a language, or to take special pride in their existing language skills. Also, those responsible for providing access to language learning are encouraged to make it easier for people to learn a range of languages, and to support policy initiatives to promote languages. There is also emphasis on learning a language other than English.

The eventual winners were Minna and Lipfon who won by one point in the final debate against Frankie and Lily. All teams were extremely strong and the level of French was stunning. We look forward to next year with great anticipation. Mr Mike Duffy

In order to celebrate EDL in school we hold a few special events, as we like to celebrate the many nationalities of pupils who come to our school. We organise an EDL chapel with a hymn in English, French and German. Pupils in the lower school vote for the nonlanguage teacher who speaks most of a foreign language in their classes: this year we had Maths classes taught in French and RS in Italian. There was also an international menu in the Dining Hall and a House Quiz in the evening with rounds ranging from pop group names to celebrated Disney songs in foreign languages. This year the quiz was won by Queen’s house by the narrowest of margins. Mr Mike Duffy

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Debating Society Report 2013-14 Debating Highlights If any part of the life of St Peter’s School can be testament to our attempt to appreciate the scale and importance of the world around us then it is the Debating Society. One of our first debates of the year grappled with internationally-pressing issues as we emulated the lawmakers of the Commons with a debate on Syrian intervention. Later on, 5 November saw a debate of great historical scale, as we opened up the Debating Society to a Probus audience to contest ‘This house believes Guy Fawkes was a freedom fighter.’ Unfortunately they were swayed by the adept opposition of Toby Latham, Patrick Litten and Luis Fox who soiled the memory of our most famous alumnus and took the victory, tarnishing Fawkes as little more than an early-day terrorist despite the best efforts of the proposition – Helen Taylor, Ben Turvill and Andrey Fokin. The motion was carried in the former’s favour by only six votes, a small margin. Guy Fawkes’ status is an issue that still rages: hero or villain? Debates later on in the Christmas Term analysed the sanctity of the nation’s institutions, with ‘This house believes hereditary peers should be restored to the House of Lords’ and ‘This house believes religion should be kept in the private domain’ proving the most rousing. In both cases the proposition took victory, which shows the power of the spoken word in producing two rather dissimilar results. But it was ‘This house believes feminism has won its battle’ that proved the highlight of the Christmas Term, certainly in terms

of spectacle. It proved the power of debating as a medium for discussion and freedom of expression and particularly the potency of that spirit at St Peter’s. An atmosphere of tension was tangible in the Lecture Theatre as supporters from both sides flocked to hear a debate that was to split the Sixth Form down the middle. Alex Eyre, Jonny Fry and India Brattan pitched themselves against Ben Turvill, Ellie Martin and Bussy Wells. The flame of this debate was kept alive over many days! On a lighter note, Christmas was accommodated in the debate ‘This house believes Father Christmas should be prosecuted’. The winning team, the proposition, succeeded in condemning Father Christmas for various (imagined?) crimes. The proposition’s speeches were marvels of political eloquence reminiscent of the soap-box debates of Speakers’ Corner. Will Fynn and Jonny Fry whet their teeth for senior inter-house debating. Lily Howells

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received her baptism of fire with characteristic spirit in her promising fight for the opposition. The second season of debating in the Easter Term was dominated by the inter-house competitions. Clifton and School fought their way through stiff opposition to the grand finals where the motion ‘This house believes austerity is doing the UK more harm than good’ was contested in gladiatorial style with School proposing and Clifton opposing. School fielded an experienced and intelligent side of Will Fynn, Jonny Fry and Alistair Duffey,

Moir for Dronfield. They debated the motion ‘This House believes that nuclear power is essential to a green future’ on Thursday 1 May. Never have I seen a junior final so closely matched and of so high a standard and, although School were crowned the ultimate victors of the junior competition, Dronfield composed themselves marvellously and presented arguments of great scope and integrity. Certainly in terms of passion and dedication to the art of debating I do not think this academic year has ever been surpassed at St Peter’s. I would particularly like to thank my Vice-President, Jonny Fry, an adept speaker and authoritative judge whose debating skills will no doubt help him to great things as he goes on to read Law. I would like to thank anyone who took part in debates as audience, competitor or judge whether as part of the Debating Society’s weekly cycle or in the inter-house competition. It is down to you that the society can remain relevant and important to Peterites as we endeavour to question the world around us. Thank you. Benedict Turvill (LVI)

who were evenly matched by their opposites from Clifton: Toby Latham, Ben Turvill and Alice Rhodes. The audience excelled in their participation in this debate and house loyalty was visible in the passion and incisiveness behind the questions from the floor. The tension of the debating chamber did not die at the debate’s end and was only resolved when the result was revealed to the two sides after lengthy deliberation from the judges. At four o’clock on Thursday 6 May, three hours after the first speech, Clifton was awarded victory. But debating prowess is not solely the preserve of the Sixth Form at St Peter’s. The final debates of the year in the Summer Term saw School versus Dronfield in the concluding debate of what had been a gruelling and hard-fought junior inter-house debating competition with many good teams falling at the wayside before these juggernauts: George O’Neill, Alice Jackson and Rose Gabbertas for School; Olivia Calvert, Pippa Simpson and Nicole

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President of the Debating Society, 2013-14

Debating colours this year were awarded to Benedict Turvill (Clifton) and Jonny Fry (School)

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A day in Parliament for International Women’s Day During October last year, I carried out work-experience for a week at Julian Sturdy’s office in York. Following this, in March, I was fortunate enough to be given the opportunity of shadowing Julian Sturdy in Parliament for the day in honour of International Women’s Day, which this year had the theme of ‘Inspiring Change’. The idea of having Sixth-Form girls from different constituencies as interns for the day was to give us the opportunity to experience first-hand what MPs do on a daily basis and hopefully to encourage women to be more involved in politics. I felt so lucky to have the chance to visit such an incredible place, especially as during my AS-levels I have taken such an interest in politics and the people involved in it.

home, I was taken to see the House of Lords and was able to watch some of a debate. Overall, I had the best day I could imagine. It was so interesting and I cannot believe how much I learned in one day! I felt like seeing everything really helped me to understand how everything works and to ‘get my head around it’. Everyone I came across during the day, from MPs to doormen to security to civil service and the people working with Julian were exceptionally helpful and spoke to me as if on their level. I really enjoyed myself and I am very grateful for being given the opportunity. Bea Rhodes-Blangsted (LVI)

My day began with a quick tour of Westminster and Portcullis House. Portcullis House is where some of the MPs’ offices are contained and also Select Committee rooms for debate. After that I was given a tour inside Number 10 Downing Street with girls of my age from other constituencies. I understand that it is very difficult to get into Number 10, so we were very lucky – it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. It was also good to meet other girls who shared an interest in politics. When the tour had finished I went back to Westminster Hall where we had lunch on Parliament Terrace, which has the most amazing view over the River Thames; it made it better that it was a really sunny day as well. During lunch, I was able to talk to Julian on my own; he was really lovely, easy to talk to and open to answering any questions. After that I went to the House of Commons’ chamber for an hour and a half to watch debates, including one on women in Afghanistan, which was really interesting! At four o’clock I had afternoon tea in the Speaker’s apartments. We were treated to cakes, sandwiches and a wide selection of drinks. The House of Commons Speaker John Bercow gave a speech along with a selection of inspirational women. Before returning

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Exploration Week 2014 Following their return after the AS examination period, the Lower Sixth returned to ‘Exploration Week 2014’, a week of different learning experiences incorporating some university-style lectures and practical activities, some careers guidance opportunities and teambuilding and debating experiences. We began the week with a special one-day conference looking at media and identity in the 21st Century. Entitled Published and be Damned, guest speakers Krishnan Guru-Murthy, Katherine Downes, William Bartlett and Gareth Barlow took us through their careers and insights into the media industry. The week also included a number of staff-led seminars and practical sessions that took pupils away from the A-Level syllabus, including Courtroom Drama, Completing Cryptic Crosswords, Beginners’ Italian, Code-breaking and Behavioural Economics. Staff expertise also saw pupils drawn into lectures on Stargazing, Philosophy, Advertising and Restorative Justice and many more,

whilst external speakers added variety to the week with lectures and sessions on such diverse topics as Forensic Science, Flower-arranging, Pathways to Success and Business Risk. There was a day of public speaking and debating workshops led by the English Speaking Union, and a UCAS preparation day, focusing on the application system, tips on personal statements and other insights into the process. Following this we also put on sessions of a more practical nature, such as a cookery masterclass, chess games and bicycle maintenance. All-in-all the six-day programme provided some really interesting opportunities for something a bit different and the Lower Sixth should be commended for their whole-hearted approach to their engagement in this week of exploration. Mr Ben White

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City of York Independent/State School Partnership at St Peter’s, 2013-2014

As the York Independent/State School Partnership (ISSP) entered its eighth year this year, students and staff from St Peter’s took part in several of the exciting events which are offered annually by the partnership. In November ten pupils aged from Fourth to Upper-Sixth Form visited The University of York’s Centre for Applied Human Rights for an evening entitled ‘Opinionated!’ The evening began with introductory speeches from experts on human rights. These included Andres Jaroslavsky, an Argentinian national who is Project and Outreach Coordinator for ‘York Human Rights City Project’ as well as being Country Co-ordinator for Amnesty International (Venezuela and Paraguay); and Abdiaziz Ibrahim, a Somalian freelance journalist who was arrested and imprisoned in 2013 for reporting crimes perpetrated by Somalian forces in an internallydisplaced peoples’ camp in Mogadishu. It was an excellent opportunity for pupils to debate questions on the legal and political aspects of human rights, as well as to discuss these issues in small groups before a plenary question-and-answer session with the experts.

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March brought the annual ISSP Masterclass series, with classes ranging from using physics to create computer games to the philosophy of memory; from Gothic literature at York Minster to discussions about the causes of conflict in troubled parts of the world. The aims of these annual classes are to offer something that pupils will rarely encounter in the course of their normal school curriculum and to involve as many students and teachers from the 11 schools of the partnership as possible. Two masterclasses were hosted by St Peter’s in collaboration with other schools. The Art Department worked with the Joseph Rowntree School and combined the ancient and modern to produce very different images of one natural object . The 25 year 9-11 pupils from local schools worked from observation and the illustrations of Ernst Haeckel to make images that combined traditional etching techniques using zinc plate and nitric acid with digital photography. There were some very exciting outcomes from students, many of whom were unfamiliar with both processes. Meanwhile the Physics Department worked with Bootham School to host a Masterclass on Stargazing. 24 pupils from Years 7 and 8

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it was interesting to hear what people the same age as you who are not at your school are up to. ‘I’m really glad I was able to go to the event. For me, the best part was coming away with my own blog and meeting people from other schools in York.’ Meanwhile, the ISSP has continued to run regular term-time classes amongst which features the GCSE Latin class. 24 year 9 pupils from eight schools arrived at St Peter’s in September for their first two-hour class of the year, and their first taste of Latin. After ten months they have learned as much Latin as many pupils do in three years, and have visited the British Museum to examine objects from the Roman world to bring the language to life. With my departure, the Latin class has moved to The Mount for the second year of their course, where they should continue to thrive.

spent their time at St Peter’s exploring what they might be doing in the future if they were to become professional astronomers, giving the department a chance to use the cloud chamber and to play with dry ice. In July, the Writing a World conference was held at Huntington School for students from year 11 and above. Workshops were run by professional writers: Mike Kenny, an internationally successful playwright whose adaptations have included the York Mystery Plays and Blood + Chocolate, spoke about how to turn ideas into scripts; Tom Harper taught pupils how to add tension and suspense to their writing; and Carole Bromley, a published poet and Creative Writing tutor for the University of York, showed pupils how to write poetry that brings ideas to vivid and thoughtprovoking life. Other workshops focused on writing news and feature articles to a professional standard and how to create a successful and enticing blog. This workshop was chosen by Katie Harrison, who had this to say: ‘The two teachers who ran the session are both successful bloggers who have written books stemming from their blogs which made it more interesting as we could learn how they became so successful and they were able to give us useful tips on what they’d learned in the process. I came away from the morning with my own blog and lots of ideas to help me make it successful, such as using social media. They set us the deadline of a few days after the course and by that time we had to email our first blog post. It was a really good idea as it meant we actually had to learn and listen, otherwise we’d never have got it done.

The ISSP is a truly remarkable organisation which showcases the vibrancy and variety of learning opportunities for pupils in York. It has been a great to see pupils from every year group and staff from three departments involved in ISSP events this year, and there are more in the planning stages. The role of St Peter’s in the partnership is set to continue to thrive into next year and beyond. Miss Kat Barker

‘For the second part of the day I learned about fictional characters and how to create them, and then did some creative writing. It involved a different group from in the morning so I got to meet lots of people from other schools, and this was another positive as

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United Kingdom Mathematics Trust Challenges 2013-2014 Senior Team Challenge James Greenall, Maria Mikhaylenko, Bill Mo and Simon Tang competed in the regional final of the United Kingdom Mathematics Trust Senior Team Challenge, at Fulford School in November. The competition tests mathematical, communication and teamwork skills, and students compete against teams from other schools and colleges from their region. 18 schools from the county were represented and the St Peter’s team were placed sixth.

Senior Mathematics Challenge This challenge encourages mathematical reasoning, precision of thought, and fluency in using mathematical techniques. In November 33 St Peter’s Sixth-Form students took part. Seven received bronze awards, and 11 gained silver and gold. Certificates were awarded to James Greenall, Maria Mikhaylenko, Ivan Cheng, Bill Mo, Simon Tang, George Gao, Luis Fox and Georgia Calvert.

Senior UKMT Mathematical Kangaroo Owing to their high marks in the UKMT Senior Maths Challenge, James Greenall, Bill Mo, Simon Tang, George Gao and Luis Fox

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were invited to take part in the Senior Kangaroo round of the competition in December. The questions for this round are set for the best school-aged mathematicians from across Europe and beyond. They all performed well, with James receiving a Certificate of Merit.

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Year 10 Team Mathematics Competition Four Fourth-Form students made the short journey to Bootham School in March to compete in the regional round of the Further Maths Support Programme Team Challenge. The competition comprised several rounds, all requiring teamwork and a range of mathematical skills, including flexible approaches to problemsolving and a pre-studied round on base-six arithmetic. The St Peter’s team of Luke Dunsmore, Robbie Brown, Katherine Spencer and Daniel Kondratiev worked well together throughout a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon to finish in fourth place out of the 17 teams competing.

Junior Team Challenge In April, Zaki Ward and Jack Hargrave, together with Fergus Waterhouse and Jamie Dunsmore from St Olave’s, competed in the regional final of the UKMT Team Challenge at the Mount School. 25 teams competed. There was a group competition, a crossnumber, a head-to-head and a relay race. They worked very hard during the day on these activities and finished third overall.

Intermediate British Mathematical Olympiad and Kangaroo Jack Robins was invited to sit the United Kingdom Mathematics Trust Intermediate Maths Olympiad following his outstanding performance on the Intermediate Maths Challenge in February. This is a national competition and only the best mathematicians are able to cope with the very challenging questions. Around 1,600 students participated. Jack performed very well indeed and was awarded a merit. Following their excellent performance in the Maths Challenge, Jack Hargrave, Zaki Ward, Rory Winterburn, Oskar FraserKrauss, Christian Brennan, Luke Dunsmore, Will Quinn, Wendy Wan, Sandy Eyre, Katherine Spencer and Min Lee were invited to sit the European Kangaroo paper. The questions involved thought-provoking situations requiring the use of logic as well as mathematical understanding, and pupils from over 40 countries in Europe and beyond took part. Jack and Oskar were awarded a Certificate of Merit for their excellent performances. Mr David Spencer

Intermediate Mathematics Challenge This challenge is targeted at the top third of pupils in English schools. The question papers are designed to make students think by using mathematical techniques to solve non-standard problems. In February, 67 St Peter’s middle-school students took part, with 16 pupils achieving a gold certificate, 26 a silver and 14 a bronze.

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Maths Inspiration lectures, West Yorkshire Playhouse

Maths Inspiration is one of the largest maths enrichment programmes for teenagers in the UK. It is a chance for pupils to experience the UK’s most inspiring maths speakers live, in big venues, presenting mathematics in the context of exciting, realworld situations. In March a group of Lower-Sixth Further Maths students attended the Maths Inspiration lectures at the West Yorkshire Playhouse. There were three talks:

Ria Symonds: The Friendship Paradox of Facebook Ever wondered why your friends appear to have more friends than you? Or why when you go to the gym everyone appears fitter than you? That’s because it is mathematically true! With the help of Kevin Bacon and social networking sites like Facebook, Ria talked through a mathematically engaging journey of friendships, networks and the world-wide web.

Hugh Hunt: Maths in a Spin Spinning things are strange. A spinning ball bounces in curious ways. Why does a spinning top stand up? Why doesn’t a rolling wheel fall over? In this lively talk, Hugh Hunt demonstrated the

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mechanics of lots of spinning things, including gyroscopes and bouncing bombs. He even threw a few boomerangs.

Professor of Risk, David Spiegelhalter: The Subtle Science of Uncertainty Do you know what you will be doing tomorrow? What about in ten years’ time? Living with uncertainty can be unsettling, whether it concerns future exam grades, passing the driving test, or your football team’s battle with relegation. David Spiegelhalter tried some probability tricks and gave examples of risky behaviour to help understand, and even enjoy, your own uncertainty. Mr David Spencer

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Community Action This year has seen a very busy and varied Community Action programme, from hosting and assisting with events and fundraising projects in school to volunteering with many local charities off-site. Proceedings opened, as usual, with the Macmillan Cancer Support Coffee Morning in September: cakes and drinks were sold to as many people as possible during break and lunchtime, raising funds for an excellent cause. Saturdays and Sundays have been busy throughout the year, when we have welcomed a lot of visitors from different organisations into school. Emma Walker organised a series of popular Sunday afternoon tea parties for guests from Contact the Elderly, and our Silver Surfers have come into school on Saturdays to learn more about computers, guided by Sixth Formers.

We have enjoyed many visits from the children at The Island, a charity which provides mentoring for young people. Sixth Formers have run regular cookery classes and craft sessions, and these have been very much in demand, with waiting lists both for the guests and for our volunteers keen to help out. Some of our pupils have been fortunate enough to have had the experience of working alongside members of Lollipop in drumming and martial arts workshops tailored to the needs of hearing-impaired children, and Alice Rhodes volunteered her services as a lifeguard at the Lollipop swimming sessions in the Autumn Term. Perhaps not surprisingly, St Peter’s has something of a reputation for its Christmas parties and this year has been no exception. In December, in a packed Queen Anne Dining Room, pupils ran a rousing pirates- and princesses-themed party for the children from The Island: a very lively event, with everyone joining in the games, a quiz, and a highly competitive team challenge to make the best human Christmas decoration. On the same day in the Memorial

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Trust for visually-impaired adults has continued to flourish, and a good number of Sixth Formers enjoy visiting Wilberforce tenants. Three Sixth Formers have also been involved in writing articles for Insight, the magazine produced by Wilberforce for their tenants, staff and supporters.

Hall we hosted the Lollipop Christmas party, when St Peter’s Sixth Formers helped with crafts, games and … sumo wrestling. The following day saw the Memorial Hall in party mood again, this time to welcome over 60 guests to the annual Community Action Christmas party. Pupils and staff joined in with the festivities, led as ever by the inimitable team of Mr David Spencer on piano and Mr Christopher Hall, Bridlington’s finest bingo caller.

It has been encouraging to see so many pupils taking the opportunity to gain experience by helping out in St Olave’s and Clifton Prep during lessons, lunchtimes and after school. Off-site, Sixth Formers have worked in several charity shops in the city and have also spent Saturday afternoons helping at SNAPPY (Special Needs Activities and Play Provision for York), supporting children with special needs. Our friendship with the Wilberforce

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At the end of the summer term there was a lot to celebrate. We were invited to go back to The Glen for Volunteering Week, and some 30 Fifth Formers tackled the challenge with great enthusiasm. Mr Noy Scott recruited a lively team, and with the theme of Le Grand Départ of the Tour de France in mind, the garden was smartened up and refurbished with new plants, murals and a splendid two-tier sandpit, accessible to the children who use wheelchairs. The pupils also decorated three bedrooms, creating canvasses for each room under the watchful eye of Mr Hall, and the children and staff at The Glen were delighted with the result. All the pupils involved set themselves very high standards, learning new skills along the way. In the same week,

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the Fifth Form volunteers were joined by the whole Third Form as we hosted MENCAP Day. Over 70 service-users from MENCAP came with their carers to spend the day trying out different sports and workshops. There was tennis, football, cycling and basketball for wheelchair users, as well as boccia and kurling. The drama workshops went down really well with everyone, as did the hugely-popular and inspiring drumming sessions. It was a privilege

commitment and enthusiasm to volunteering, giving many hours of their time. When interviewed by the Lord Mayor they all stressed how much they had learned from their experiences. I have really enjoyed coming back to oversee the CA programme, and it has been a pleasure to see so many pupils wishing to be involved. I would like to thank Mrs Chapman, Mrs Dawson, Mrs Robinson, Miss Ullstein and Miss Waddington for their unfailing support over the last two years and I am delighted that Mrs Chapman will be taking on the role of running Community Action next term. I wish her and the team every success: I know that Community Action will go from strength to strength. Mrs Julie Bainbridge

to hold this event at St Peter’s, and we are delighted that Alison Pike (OP) from MENCAP was so keen to help us to offer this fantastic experience. She and her team were an example to us all. The celebrations continued when we were invited to the Mansion House to see Emma Walker, Kerra Williams and Henry Wong receive Special Awards for their volunteering from the Lord Mayor of York. All three pupils have been outstanding in their

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Inspirations 2014 Harley Shaw, Hannah Whitehouse and Jess House attended Inspirations, at Elvington Air Museum in June 2014. Inspirations is an annual event which showcases the skill and creativity of young people across York and North Yorkshire, particularly in the areas of science, technology, engineering and maths. Competing alongside 150 students from across the region, Harley, Hannah and Jess presented themselves and their Design Technology projects to a selection of judges from engineering and business. Judges were particularly interested in the commercial potential of Harley’s garden-tool trolley, and the quality of Jess’s Garden Cloche.

Hannah’s consideration of bringing quality to self-assembly furniture won her the Key Stage 5 Innovation Award, presented by RBS, who were one of the main sponsors of the event. She also received the Key Stage 5 Resistant Materials award. Mr Jon Whitehouse

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The Young Enterprise Company Programme To mark the 50th Anniversary of Young Enterprise, Kingston University Business School were asked to study the impact of the Young Enterprise scheme on the UK economy. The study showed Young Enterprise alumni are twice as likely to end up running their own firms as their peers. Their businesses have a larger turnover; they are more likely to employ people; they are more innovative, and their owners are more resilient in surviving the recession. Students at St Peter’s School have been actively involved in the Young Enterprise Company Programme for the last six years. Our Young Enterprise team for 2013-14, known as Adapt, came up with the idea for a range of stickers to personalise iPad and iPhone chargers. The team designed and manufactured a range of stickers, and took their product to a number of events throughout the year. In March the team attended Venturefest at York Racecourse, an event which showcases revolutionary ideas, the people who create them and the people who want to invest in them. Young Enterprise teams from across North Yorkshire had the opportunity to exhibit alongside professional businesses, and as part of a competition were interviewed by representatives from York Small Businesses. Adapt were judged to be the best Young Enterprise company at the event this year. Two days later four of the team travelled to the Young Enterprise National Trade Fair at Stratfordupon-Avon, and after five hours of trading and interviews Adapt were placed second out of 46 teams attending the event. At the Young Enterprise York Area Finals, Adapt gave a four-minute presentation to a panel of judges from York businesses, and

were put through their paces with five consecutive interviews, examining various aspects of their business. Competing against seven other teams including Ampleforth and Queen Ethelburga’s, Adapt won three of the six awards: Best Innovation and Entrepreneurship supported by The Merchant Adventurers, York Best Marketing, Sales and Customer Focus supported by Novotel York Best Company Presentation supported by Elite Event Solutions Adapt were also named Best Company in the York region, taking them to the next round of the competition in May at the Merchant Adventurers’ Hall. The team came up against tough opposition from other YE teams at the North Yorkshire County Finals. Adapt were runners-up to Skipton Girls’ High School, who had taken the Yorkshire Rose and re-designed it into a modern and dynamic image. Georgia Calvert, Carol Chen, James Field, Holly Harrison, Marianne Spencer, Matthew Tse and Hannah Whitehouse each represented Adapt at the key events, and it is their drive and enthusiasm that enabled the team to be a success this year. Ably supported by Andrey Fokin, Gemma Willink, Patrick Knutson, Matthew Jones and Henry Wong, the team are congratulated on their achievements. Mr Jon Whitehouse

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York Roman History Day, Saturday 14 June

Roman history was brought vividly back to life in the summer term with York Roman History Day taking place at St Olave’s and St Peter’s one Saturday morning. The day was organised by the York Classical Association to commemorate 2,000 years since the death of Augustus, the first emperor of Rome, which is being celebrated on 19th August 2014. Over 50 pupils aged 12-16 from 12 schools in York took part in the extravaganza, with representatives from Joseph Rowntree, Huntington, Archbishop Holgate’s, Manor, St Olave’s, York College, All Saints’, Bootham, Easingwold, Millthorpe, York High and St Peter’s Schools. The focal point of the day’s programme was a Roman cavalry demonstration given by re-enactment society ‘Comitatus’, who used horses Apollo and Albus to display how Roman cavalry and infantry

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operated in three different eras of the Roman Empire. The cavalry was a prestigious unit within the Roman army, being both betterequipped and better-paid than infantrymen.

The pupils heard from James Harrison, Head of Classics at Bootham School, who started the day with a beginners’ guide to Roman history. York archaeologist Patrick Ottaway then gave a talk about Roman York and brought artefacts ranging from shards of pottery to dice and a comb made of bone and a piece of carved Whitby jet for pupils to examine (courtesy of the York Archaeological Trust). The day ended with a talk by Dr Penny Goodman from Leeds University, who outlined how Augustus, as first Emperor of Rome, has been remembered through history.

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It is testament to the interest and excitement surrounding Classics and Latin in York that pupils from such a wide range of schools were motivated to spend a Saturday learning more about the Romans. It was tremendous fun to see horses cantering around the riverside cricket pitch, and really brought the Romans to life. Miss Kat Barker

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Lectures and lunches inspire students and the public

A wide range of visitors to the school again inspired audiences with their experiences and ideas. Our evening Public Lecture programme continues to be very popular and is well supported by both our own community and that of the city and beyond. Our daytime Sixth-Form lectures complement the Global Perspectives programme, whilst our occasional invitation lunches allow smaller groups of students to engage more closely with a guest speaker. The highlight of the year was our partnership with the York Literature Festival, with four events at the end of March – two organised by us and two hosted here for the festival. Alan Johnson MP, former Home Secretary, was interviewed on stage by Elly Fiorentini of BBC Radio York about the struggles of his childhood recounted in his memoir This Boy. We enjoyed the company of Sir Andrew Motion, the former

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Poet Laureate, for a day. He worked with a group of middle-school English pupils in the Library, spoke at a Literary Tea for LitSoc and then read from his new book The Customs House as part of his Public Lecture in the evening. The next weekend the Memorial Hall hosted the BBC’s John Humphrys who was in conversation with Festival Director, Miles Salter – though at times Miles found himself being interviewed by John Humphrys! Professor Robert Winston closed the Festival by being interviewed by Paul Silverwood, Headmaster of Queen Margaret’s School.

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The Summer Term saw Andy McNab visit us to talk about his transformation, via the Army and the SAS, from being a lost teenager drifting into crime to an internationally bestselling author. We enjoyed another partnership in June with the University’s York Festival of Ideas and hosted three events, including a debate on the relationship between religion, science and medicine chaired by Ruth Gledhill of The Times with a glittering array of academics from across the world.

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There were two highlights to the Sixth-Form Lecture programme. Firstly, we welcomed hypnotist, magician and showman Martin Taylor to the school for the first time and enjoyed an uncanny show during which he mesmerised and entertained the Sixth Form, with a large proportion of them keen to take part. Martin Taylor’s technique is based upon hypnotism without the use of hypnosis, using instead powers of suggestion to yield remarkable results from his subjects – with lessons to be learnt about how we think and behave in response to others and in groups.

Secondly, to mark Holocaust Memorial Day we were honoured to welcome Holocaust survivor Iby Knill to talk to the Sixth Form about her memories, as told in her book, The Woman Without a Number. Mrs Knill’s account was frank and powerful without being sentimental. The Sixth-Formers were spellbound – I have never heard a hall with 250 pupils in it as silent as it was during her talk. Other talks included one on safer driving, by Richard Auton and a lecture entitled ‘Seven Billion People Want Everything You’ve Got’ by Anthony Day, which challenged us to think about issues of sustainability with a growing population and a worldwide increase in prosperity and demand for consumption.

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Our lunch guests this year covered the political spectrum. Hugh Bayley MP spoke about his work both as York Central’s MP and as President of NATO’s Parliamentary Assembly. Long-standing councillor Carol Runciman talked about her experience in local and national work for the Liberal Democrats, particularly in education in York having been cabinet member for Education, Children and Young People. In the summer we were visited by York Outer’s MP, Julian Sturdy, newly elected in 2010, who spoke of his work so far and the prospects for the city and country in the future – not least with the General Election looming. More of that, no doubt, in next year’s Peterite. Mr Ben Fuller

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Publish and be damned – media and identity in the 21st century A one-day event for the Lower Sixth Our one-day conference marked the return of the Lower Sixth to school after AS exams and gave an opportunity to think broadly about some of the issues facing media and society today. Krishnan Guru-Murthy of Channel Four News was our keynote speaker and opened the day. He posed the question ‘What is Journalism for?’ In answering this question he said the media must be trusted by viewers and readers and that the media should hold the powerful to account. He explained some of the risks journalists faced, having been in Iraq and Afghanistan last year with security-guard protection, but that journalists must remain independent especially in a conflict zone. ‘When journalists start carrying guns we’re finished’, he said. Krishnan addressed the question of change in the media and explained the importance of Twitter and other social media, most notably in the coverage of the Arab Spring, and its value to journalists in their work. He was followed by Katherine Downes, OP, from BBC Sport. Katherine emphasised the need to be multi-skilled, having started her career at a small commercial radio station before moving on to BBC Brighton. Katherine inspired the Lower Sixth with the opportunities available in the media; they were impressed by how much she’s achieved in the ten years since

graduating. Summer 2014 is going to be busy for Katherine. Oli Leedham (Clifton House) commented afterwards: ‘It sounds like a great summer – reporting on Wimbledon, the Open and the Commonwealth Games!’ After lunch we were joined by William Bartlett, whose company, Framestore, recently won an Oscar for the work done on the film Gravity. He not only showed us how identity and imagery could be manipulated through the work Framestore does in movies and advertising but spoke about the importance of the industry. It provides great career opportunities and is worth £3bn GDP to the UK. William’s presentation was amazing – peeling back layers of work and revealing some of the clever tricks which went into making Gravity and the opening of Skyfall. To close the day we were delighted to welcome Gareth Barlow back to St Peter’s, to talk about his life as a start-up farmer and his work on the BBC’s Countryfile. Gareth is a great example to our students to show how intelligent use of social media and marketing – as well as a lot of hard work– can build a business and a brand. All-in-all, a varied day with lots to consider about the changing role of the media in the world and the opportunities it offers as a career and to support success in business. Mr Ben Fuller

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Science Department Trips and Outreach 2014 Ogden Trust York Schools Science Partnership This was the second year of the Ogden Trust Schools Science (Physics) Partnership in York, with St Peter’s being the hub school. We were delighted to welcome Canon Lee School into the group to join Fulford School, Archbishop Holgate’s School, The Joseph Rowntree School, Selby High School and the Manor CE Academy. The schools work alongside the University of York Physics Department’s Outreach Officer/Ogden Officer, Katherine Leech. The aim of the partnership is to enhance the delivery and uptake of Physics by promoting the subject within the partnership schools, encouraging collaboration between them and giving their teachers access to the best support and professional development available. They aim to inspire young people to take Physics further. This is an exciting initiative and we look forward to continuing to strengthen relationships over the coming years.

Teacher trip to Boulby Underground Science Facility At the beginning of October the science being carried out in one of the deepest mines in Europe, and its use in educating young York scientists, was the focus for a group of teachers from St Peter’s and other York schools. The teachers ventured 1,100 metres below the surface of the earth to visit the Boulby Underground Science Facility, based at the Boulby potash mine. The mine is situated on the North Yorkshire coast near Loftus in East

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Cleveland, and is owned and operated by Cleveland Potash Ltd. The Boulby Underground Science Facility is the only underground laboratory in the UK, and one of only a few deep underground science sites in the world. The facility (operated by the UK’s Science and Technology Facilities Council – STFC) hosts the UK’s Dark Matter Search Project. This project is looking for the missing mass in the universe, alongside other projects such as studies of geology, climate, the environment, life on Earth and beyond. Mark Robinson, Andrew Rogerson (IOP Teacher Network Coordinator for York) and I were joined by teachers from Yarm School, Ampleforth College, Pocklington School, Selby High School, Queen Margaret’s School and The Mount School. Following intensive safety briefings we were kitted out in bright orange overalls, and proceeded to the mine shaft. We passed through two airlocks to allow our ears to become accustomed to the much greater air pressure at the bottom. We then entered the industrial lift. The journey down took six minutes (in a fast lift) and was extremely noisy due to the large fans blowing down to ventilate the mine, and obviously extremely dark when all torches were turned off. Underground there were tunnels with cars and lorries and it was a ten-minute walk to the research laboratory. It really was an experience of a lifetime, both to see a working mine in full operation and also to witness the extraordinary science that is taking place so deep under Yorkshire, where cosmic radiation levels are reduced by a factor of a million. Thank you to Dr Sean Paling, the manager of the facility, for setting the visit up for us.

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Nuffield Placement Students’ Awards Ceremony Later that same evening we were back in York to attend the Nuffield/STEMNET awards ceremony in the Yorkshire Museum. The ceremony was held for the Sixth Formers from local schools who had taken part in research placements in various institutions dealing with Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths. An exhibition of posters describing their experiences over the year

Our middle school was joined by J5 from St Olave’s, as well as visiting pupils from Queen Margaret’s, Bootham School, Selby High School and the Manor CE Academy. Starting with an overview of the history of space flight, the lecture involved videos and hands-on activities to help understand the challenge that gravity poses and the importance of getting into the right orbit. The lecture ended with a look to the future, understanding recent steps towards commercial space flight and the latest advances in the exploration of our solar system, before the pupils headed back to Earth. Laura said: ‘Space and astronomy is such an interesting topic, but many don’t realise how they themselves can work in the field. There are so many jobs in the UK in the space industry and it is growing year on year. We need a greater number of students to choose to train and work in the sector.’

Particle Physics: Answer and Questions

occupied the Museum’s atrium and the winners were presented with their well-earned Gold Crest Award certificates by Professor Jim Matthew, President of the York Philosophical Society and Emeritus Professor of Physics at the University of York. Jenny Frazer and Sam Philpott were the representatives from St Peter’s.

IOP Schools and Colleges Lecture We were delighted once again to host the excellent Institute of Physics (IoP) Schools and Colleges Lecture, which took place in midOctober. Laura Thomas, one-time astrophysicist from the University of Edinburgh, and now Space Ambassador for European Space Education Research Office (ESERO), demonstrated the physics behind cosmic travel.

In the same month I attended the Because Science is for Everyone public lecture on Particle Physics: Answers and Questions, by Professor Brian Cox at Manchester University. I was fortunate to meet Brian at the event and took the opportunity to ask him to sign a photograph for Alice Rhodes. Alice had baked a space-rocket cake with Brian pictured looking out of a window on the rocket. We hope to be able to persuade Brian to come to St Peter’s to give a lecture at some stage.

Guy Fawkes Public Lecture The school held the fourth Guy Fawkes Public Lecture on Monday 18 November. The lecture was entitled The Large Hadron Collider and the Higgs Boson: News from the Energy Frontier by Professor Jon Butterworth, Head of the Department of Physics and Astronomy at University College, London. On 4 July 2012, the ATLAS and CMS

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experiments at CERN announced the discovery of a new particle. This particle, the Higgs Boson, is intimately involved with the unification of two fundamental forces and the origin of mass and, as such, in 1993 it was nicknamed ‘The God Particle’. Professor Butterworth, who was one of several thousand scientists working in the search at CERN, discussed the experiments, the discovery, and what might come next now we have a deeper understanding of the physics of the universe.

The Particle at the End of the Universe On the following Saturday a group of students went to The University of York Physics Department to listen to Professor Sean Carroll on the subject of The Particle at the End of the Universe: The Hunt for the Higgs and the Discovery of a New World. It was an absolute pleasure to meet Caltech physicist and acclaimed writer Sean Carroll, who was in England to receive the Winton Prize for Science Books at the Royal Society.

Institution of Engineering and Technology’s First Lego League regional tournament In December 2013, seven students – Rachael Simpson, Jack Guffog, Lewis Hernaman, James Field, George Gao, Matthew Tse and Tim Goodwin – demonstrated their science and technology prowess, coming runners-up in the robotic challenge

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in the Institution of Engineering and Technology’s (IET) First Lego League (FLL) regional tournament in Sheffield. Schools competed against each other at Sheffield Hallam University. Each team, made up of 9-16 year-olds, designed and programmed a robot and then used it to solve problems and perform tasks. Teams were judged on their ability to build and programme the robot, their presentation and research skills and how well they cooperated with each other and their competitors. Each school had ten weeks to prepare for the event, with 24 regional tournaments taking place across the country. The IET works to encourage young people to consider technology- and engineering-related careers.

Stargazing Live 2014 In January the BBC once again aired its series of Stargazing Live programmes with Brian Cox and Dara Ó Briain; the themes of the three programmes being Space Weather, Space Exploration, and the Milky Way and Other Galaxies. St Peter’s joined them, with the intention of inspiring thousands of people to study and photograph the night sky and raise the profile of British Astronomy, by holding its own Stargazing Live evening. The event was run in conjunction with The University of

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IET Faraday Challenge Day - February In February a team of six J5 pupils represented St Olave’s in the Institution of Engineering and Technology’s (IET) Faraday Challenge Day at Fulford School. Teams had to use their STEM skills together with their problem-solving, team-working and communication skills in a hands-on-style approach as they researched, designed and made prototype solutions to the

York Physics Department and York Astronomical Society who once again turned out in force with an amazing array of telescopes. Unfortunately we were not blessed with clear skies, but everyone still enjoyed looking at the telescopes and we were very grateful to the Friends of St Peter’s who again ran a raffle and manned a food tent. Alongside the Astronomy/Physics exhibition – including mobile planetarium, cloud chamber, exhibitors, telescope retailers and hands-on things to do-we broadened out to include some of the other sciences this year. The Yorkshire Wildlife Trust were present, and staff from CIRCLE, the award-winning University of York research collaboration with Flamingo Land, brought snakes, lizards and giant snails for guests to see close-up. A huge sun hung above the stalls – as did a large remote-control inflatable shark, which did lazy laps through the air above the exhibition hall. The lecture by Mark Thompson, ‘The People’s Astronomer’, was the centrepiece of the evening. Titled A Voyage of Discovery, it was about the wonders of the universe and how much we are learning about its secrets. After the lecture, Mark signed copies of his book A Down to Earth Guide to the Cosmos. Around 500 York residents including the Lord Mayor attended the free lecture, with extra tickets allocated for the stargazing and exhibition only. Demand for the event was huge, with all tickets going. It was great to welcome people of all ages from across York and the region to share in the wonder of science. The enthusiasm it generated was infectious and we are already looking forward to next year’s event.

genuinely tough, real-life engineering problem that they were tasked with. The challenge was to construct a rocket, launch it and design and build a transport system to carry the rocket three metres from the storage facility to the launch site. Most teams built small cars with motors and wheels; ours was an elaborate pulley system like a cable-car. The eventual winners were the Joseph Rowntree School, but the organiser from IET commented that she has been judging these competitions for 17 years and had never seen such a unique and imaginative design as the one from our pupils.

Inaugural York Schools Science Quiz On Thursday 13 March we held the inaugural York Schools Science Quiz in the Memorial Hall. Each school represented was able to enter two teams of four pupils, with each team consisting of two year-12 and two year-11 pupils where possible and, for schools without a Sixth Form, the teams would consist of four year-11 pupils. Snack-type food was provided for everyone and, as well as prizes for the winning teams, each pupil was provided with an 8 GB

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memory-stick thanks to sponsorship from the Ogden Trust, and a water bottle thanks to sponsorship from the Rotary Club of York Vikings. The students all received information and freebies from the Society of Biology, The Royal Society of Chemistry and the Institute of Physics. Altogether there were 21 pupil teams alongside three teacher teams. Huntington School won after a tie-break, with Archbishop Holgate’s second and Bootham School third. Selby High School won the category of highest-scoring school without a Sixth Form. The winning team received four £20 Amazon vouchers with the winning team without a sixth form getting four £10 Amazon vouchers courtesy of the Ogden Trust. The event followed exactly the same format as the St Peter’s School Science Quiz that has been running for many years, and a huge ‘thank-you’ to Sarah McKie for putting together the quizzes and being the Quizmaster at both events. The event, open to all the York schools, should both strengthen the York Independent/State School Partnership and the York Ogden Trust Schools Science Partnership, and help to further develop links between our schools.

Intent on reversing the slump in our water-speed fortunes, dozens of British engineering companies have rallied behind the Quicksilver quest, and this collaboration is enabling considerable progress to be made with the design and construction of the 350 mph, turbojet-powered superboat upon which British hopes rest. The challenge of travelling on water at such speed places an exceptional weight of demands upon the Quicksilver team. Indeed, with an approximate fatality rate of 85% since 1940, the record is one of the sporting world’s most hazardous competitions. Nigel, founder and leader of the team, delivered a dynamic multimedia presentation to explain all about the project. There was dramatic footage of previous water-speed attempts, illustrating

the high points and low points of 100 years of history. As part of his presentation at St Peter’s, Nigel also explained how to join the Quicksilver team’s Official Supporters’ Club, and had copies of his latest book, Inspirations, on hand for those who wished to purchase a copy.

National Science and Engineering Week Public Lecture As part of National Science and Engineering Week, on Thursday 20 March we hosted the next in our series of Public Lectures. We were delighted to welcome Nigel Macknight, the leader of the ‘Quicksilver’ project, Britain’s determined bid to regain the World Water Speed Record, currently held by the Australian Ken Warby. It is 47 years since Britain last held this prestigious international prize, won for the nation by Donald Campbell.

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Independent State School Partnership Masterclass At the end of March 2014, twenty-four year-7 and year-8 pupils from local schools joined us at St Peter’s for an ISSP Masterclass

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on Stargazing. Following on from two excellent weeks at Bootham School, where the pupils learned how to be successful amateur astronomers, we had a look at what they might be doing in the future if they turned professional. The pupils saw antimatter being created by cosmic rays in front of their eyes in our huge cloudchamber. This also gave us an excuse to play with some dry ice! We were then able to study the sun, live, using our solar telescope and to investigate how astronomers work out the structure of the sun by observing how it pulsates. A discussion about black holes was a firm favourite as was a demonstration of a homemade radio telescope made by Mr Parr. The pupils were able to carry on with their exploration of space using the spectroscopes they had made out of blank DVDs.

Eggs, they then had to try and build the longest, slowest marble run they could manage, all against the clock and with a fixed amount of equipment. The day involved lots of learning, not just about science but also about teamwork, leadership and timemanagement. Everyone had a fun time and left with a memento.

May Public Lecture We welcomed Professor Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell, Visiting Professor of Astrophysics at the University of Oxford, on Wednesday 14 May to deliver a public lecture entitled Black Holes, White Holes and Worm Holes. Professor Bell Burnell was educated at The Mount School in York and it was a pleasure to invite her back to the city. The legendary astronomer, who discovered pulsars over 40 years ago, gave a fascinating introduction to black holes and why we believe that they exist. She told us about white holes and discussed whether travel through a worm hole to another universe was possible. She is a Fellow of the Royal Society and former President of the Institute of Physics and this year was also made President of the Royal Society of Edinburgh – the first woman to hold this post.

Clifton Science Week Also in March, St Peter’s Physics Department was able to contribute to Science Week at Clifton. Mr Bateman spent some time with every age group from Reception to year 3 talking about energy, where it comes from, where it goes to, and how it is changed from one form to another. He showed them a steam turbine and used the exercise bikes and water wheel made by Mr Deri Clarke (the father of one of the CPS pupils) to demonstrate the principles. He also supervised the children in their lunchtimes when they got the chance to look through a solar telescope, use prisms to make rainbows and burn holes in things with sunlight and magnifying glasses. This was followed by a lecture for the whole of Reception in the Lecture Theatre with some fun science demonstrations, and finally on 26 March we had the whole of year 2 over to take part in physics challenges in the Newton and Thomson Laboratories. Working in teams the children had to build the tallest Lego tower that could support a box of Creme

Fifth NE/NW SCS Technicians’ Conference In May, for the fifth year running, St Peter’s hosted the NorthEast North-West Standing Committee for Science Technicians’ conference. This was attended by over 80 technicians largely from the leading independent schools across the north of England, and it continues to grow and provide a focal point for the technician community. Thanks to the St Peter’s technicians, especially Mark Robinson, who led one of the workshops, for helping to make the day such a big success.

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and 3D printers, as well as designing electronic components. The whole exercise gave the students insight into the roles and responsibilities of an engineering team as they not only attempted to create their prototypes but then had to justify their ideas, costs and implementation plans to the judges. The winning team on the day were The Manor CE Academy.

IOP Workshop The Institute of Physics held a day of workshops at Pocklington School in June to help non-specialist Physics teachers and Mark Edwards was asked to deliver a series of workshops on ‘Miscellany’. This meant that he had to be prepared for questions about anything! The topics ranged from practicals about waves that inspired pupils to ironing out some misconceptions about energy, electricity and transformers. He was also asked what would happen if you were in space without a space suit. The feedback was excellent and Mark has been invited to give a lecture in Northallerton next year by one of the inspired delegates.

IET Faraday Challenge Day In 2014 the Tour de France had three of its early stages in the UK, with a good number of schools lying close to the route. The IET Education programme ran an IET Faraday Challenge Day miniseason in the Yorkshire region, inspired by the Tour de France’s Grand Départ. St Peter’s hosted the event on Thursday 5 June. The students were modelling and printing using 3D design software

York Festival of Ideas 2013 In June St Peter’s hosted three lectures as part of this year’s York Festival of Ideas, which was founded in 2011 by the University of York. York is a city of culture, a city of learning and a city of science; above all, it is a city of ideas. The York Festival of Ideas aims to celebrate the success of the City of York as a home to an exciting and vibrant, intellectually-curious community and we look forward to continuing to support this venture in the future. For the first lecture we welcomed ‘the voice of Le Tour’, Ned Boulting. Ned has spent over a decade following the Tour de France for ITV, and his talk offered a glimpse behind the scenes of this unique TV production. From this extraordinarily privileged

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perspective, Ned has developed an enduring passion for the greatest race on earth, in all its chaotic splendour, from the villains to the heroes, with all shades of comedy (and tragedy) in between. The lecture was hugely entertaining and Ned’s appearance created a real buzz in the audience. Ned also chatted with pupils, staff and guests after the talk, and signed copies of his book. The theme of the Festival was Chaos and Order, and these were two

ideas that Professor Monica Grady examined in depth, with particular reference to the solar system. In her talk, Professor Grady explored how the solar system was formed, and how we can learn about this from the meteorites that rain onto the Earth. Along the way, she considered just why the dinosaurs became extinct, and the importance of keeping penguin feathers out of Antarctic ice. Monica Grady is Professor of Planetary and Space Sciences at the Open University (OU) in Milton Keynes and in 2003 gave the Royal Institution Christmas lectures on the theme Voyage in Space and Time. Our contribution to the festival finished with us hosting a debate and discussion about Religion, Science and Medicine. Chaired by

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Ruth Gledhill from The Times newspaper, the debate also featured Professor Peter Harrison (University of Queensland), Professor Ron Numbers (University of Madison-Wisconsin), Professor Janet Golden (Rutgers University), Dr Tara Alberts (University of York), Professor Erez Manela (Harvard University) and Canon Chris Collingwood (York Minster). The evening was structured around the three history professors speaking about a series of questions. Their talks were then discussed and debated by the rest of the panel. The debate was far-reaching and interesting and provided a lot of talking-points for our guests.

Ogden Schools Physicist of the Year Awards On 23 June, The University of York hosted the inaugural Ogden Schools Physicist of the Year Awards for this region. Schools and sixth-form colleges across the region were asked to nominate their most promising AS-level or year-11 students for the award, which recognises ability as well as hard work, effort and dedication to the study of Physics. The 28 students each received a certificate of achievement, a £25 Book Token and a suggested list of science

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books to stimulate their curiosity even further. The Trust’s awardwinners are also eligible to apply for an Ogden Undergraduate Science Scholarship if they go on to study Physics at university. The awards were presented at a special ceremony at the University’s Exhibition Centre by Professor Sarah Thompson, Head of the University of York’s Department of Physics. Congratulations to Alistair Duffey and Georgia Calvert who were the two recipients from St Peter’s. Mr David Morris

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Liverpool University Physics Olympics This year the St Peter’s Physics Olympics team, comprising Cormac Hopkinson, Maria Mikhaylenko, Tim Chiu and me, accompanied by Mr Morris, headed to Liverpool University for a day of unusual and difficult Physics challenges. The train journey there gave us plenty of time to speculate about the challenges we may be met with. We looked at past Fermi Quizzes as a mental warm up, although this did little to calm our nerves. A Fermi Quiz requires teams to make sensible estimates to the nearest power of ten in answer to questions that you wouldn’t find on your Physics exam paper, such as: ‘If all the Earth’s water were to cover the surface of the Moon, how deep would the lunar ocean be?’. We were competing against 36 other teams and, after an

introduction from the organisers, we were handed our Fermi Quiz and got stuck into the first challenge. There were five challenges and the Fermi Quiz, which was to be completed throughout the day. The five challenges included taking measurements of gammaray absorption by aluminium, making a trebuchet by weighting one end and choosing the right place to pivot it in order to fire a ball at a target to score points, creating little boats with paper, tape and straws to support as much weight as possible, and calculating the speed of a toy dragon by using its Doppler-shifted dragon noise. We completed these challenges well, placing in good positions in all of them apart from the dragon task, which we found quite stretching. But by far our most successful task was the bridge challenge, where wooden blocks all of the same size had to be used to build a bridge across two tables of the widest

span possible. We came first and for this gained a prized Physics Olympics t-shirt. Overall we came fourth, just one point behind the team in third place. We all had a really enjoyable day and had our t-shirts to show for our efforts! Alice Rhodes (UVI)

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St Peter’s Physics Olympics Competition 2014 This was the eighth year of the competition and we again reached our capacity with an entry of 35 schools and indeed had several more on the reserve list. We were pleased to welcome a good number of new local schools alongside our regular participants from across the north of England. Each team consisted of four year-8 pupils, and the teachers also competed alongside the pupils. The day consisted of six individual, mini egg-race-type events in which the pupils combine their physics and mathematical knowledge with teamwork and communication skills to work together to complete a task against the clock.

The day is designed to be fun, but also challenging and stimulating, and in the Olympic spirit it is a competition with winners of the six individual events as well as Gold, Silver and Bronze medallists. The pupils should come away having both enjoyed their experience and, importantly, also having learned some new physics.

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Once again we received generous backing from the Institute of Physics, the Rotary Club of York Vikings, the Ogden Trust, Taylors of Harrogate and Nestlé. Sponsorship money has paid for the T-shirts, medals, trophy, water bottles, 8GB memory sticks and Uncle Albert Physics books that the pupils take away at the end of the day in their goody-bags. Events this year involved constructing a boat that was propelled using a supercapacitor that had been charged using a photocell, constructing a lighthouse out of twelve sheets of A4 paper that could support a Creme Egg; calculating the mass of a pink fluffy animal and the lift force of a helium balloon; constructing a bridge out of Jenga bricks and constructing a marble-run. In the Fermi Quiz, quantities have to be estimated to the nearest power of ten. One question in this year’s quiz was: ‘Imagine if the entire population of the world was to bathe in the earth’s oceans at the same time. What number of earth populations would be needed to make the sea level rise by the length of your head? (Answer: 100,000).

News, Events and Activities

Winners: A Bridge Too Far: Team Schrödinger, Joseph Rowntree School, York High Light: Team Newton, St Olave’s School, York Turbocharged: Team Planck, King’s School Chester Animal Crackers: Team Pauli, Bootham School, York Sooner or Later: Team Archimedes, Nottingham High School Fermi Quiz: Team Dirac, Denstone College Bronze Medallists: Team Planck, King’s School Chester Silver Medallists: Team Newton, St Olave’s School, York Gold Medallists: Team Chadwick, The Holy Family Catholic High School, Goole I would like to thank all my colleagues, the support staff and the dedicated Sixth-Formers who helped assisted on the day to make this year’s event the biggest and best so far. In particular, Mark Robinson showed his willingness and expertise in the designing and making of much of the equipment for the games and Mark Edwards once more displayed his wizardry on the computer in collating and presenting all of the

competition data. Clearly the event could not happen without any of them. Mr David Morris

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Nuffield Research Placements 2014 Nuffield Research Placements provide over 1,000 students from across the country each year with the opportunity to work alongside professional scientists, technologists, engineers and mathematicians. This year Alistair Duffey and Jessica Scott carried out Nuffield projects at The University of York Physics Department and Laura Carrigan also undertook a research project at the University Astrocampus. Stuart Tolley completed a summer workexperience placement at CIRCLE (Collaboration for Integrated Research, Conservation and Learning), a University of York facility based at Flamingo Land. These placements give experience to the students that is not usually possible until beyond the second year of an undergraduate degree and we are very grateful to the university for providing the opportunities to our sixth-formers as they move from the Lower Sixth into their final year of study at school. Mr David Morris Over the summer I spent four weeks working on a research placement. This was sponsored by the Nuffield Foundation and held at the University of York under the supervision of Dr Charles Barton. During this time I was working with another student on a radio telescope and a dipole antenna to observe low-frequency radiation from the Sun, Jupiter and methanol MASERs. A dipole antenna is effectively a long wire suspended in the air in which passing electromagnetic radiation causes a current to flow. We wrote up a report and created a poster showing details of several of the techniques we used and some examples of our results, and this poster was presented at an event run by the York Philosophical Society in September. The project was really useful for me: I learnt loads of new physics, especially in the field of astronomy, and also significantly increased my understanding of electronics by trying to fix one of the antennas, which we struggled with for a long time. The university technicians did manage to get it working at the very end of our placement, after ordering new parts. I also gained valuable experience of the reality of carrying out work in a university environment. I’d like to thank Charles for supervising me and Mr Morris for giving me the opportunity to take part and setting the whole thing up. Alistair Duffey (LVI) Over the Summer of 2014 I spent four weeks doing research in the Physics Department at The University of York. My project involved looking at the properties of magnetic nanoparticles, which heat up under certain conditions and have the potential to be used as a hyperthermia-based cancer treatment. I was investigating the conditions which caused these nanoparticles to

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dissipate the most heat, whilst still being within the limits of what the human body can withstand. As I was working with a group of theoretical physicists, my work was entirely computational research. I used codes and computer programs to simulate the results of each experiment I carried out as they would occur in real time. The aim of my project was to understand the theory behind what was happening to these particles and to try to find the conditions that caused the most heat to be released. There is still a lot of further work that can be done in the area I was working, and although slightly daunting to begin with I feel that this project has been a valuable experience in seeing how scientific research is conducted and in being able to do your own research. I would recommend to anyone thinking of a career in science to look into the Nuffield Research Placement scheme as it gives you a great opportunity to explore this area of science. I would like to thank Sergiu Ruta and Professor Roy Chantrell, who worked with me at the university, and Mr Morris and Dr David Ward who helped me to organise my placement. Jess Scott (LVI)

News, Events and Activities

Over the course of the summer I spent four weeks doing a research placement at The University of York. I was put on the Astrocampus, a new area built specifically for the astronomy department. My project was done using a Skywatcher telescope and the LHIRES III spectroheliograph in order to observe the sun in many different wavelengths. Our main objective was to get a detailed scan of the Sun in a single wavelength: this gives an overall image by taking frames of the Sun moving across the lens of the telescope. We chose to do this at specific wavelengths that had strong absorption lines on them, for example the distinctive sodium double lines at approximately 589nm and hydrogen alpha at 656nm. Not only did we manage to complete that, but we also conducted a side experiment. We kept the lens on the Sun and changed the wavelength of the image we were taking. This in the end gave us a full panoramic image of all the spectral lines in the Sun. We were able to identify most of these with a solar atlas and therefore match points on the picture to actual wavelengths of light. Using coding software we could even work out the relative strength of each of these lines. Overall I had a fantastic time over the four weeks working with research Professor Emily Brunsden, my partner and a team of PhD students. I learned a lot not only about the topic we were researching but in general how equipment and software usually used for astrophysics works. It’s really piqued my interest in this particular field of study.

they had taken in having read the signs. Later that day I took part in a meerkat encounter, having worms thrown onto my lap and meerkats fighting over each other to get to them. An interesting experience! Other interns were involved in looking into Flamingo Land’s natural woodlands on site and I helped by matting trees in order to keep weeds and other plants from out-competing the trees for sunlight. Some afternoons I spent time in the lemur enclosure. This included standing in the lemur walkways waiting for the lemurs to come out to be fed. During these feeding sessions the lemurs would jump from person to person and get worryingly close to members of the public. Whilst we were in the enclosure it became apparent that one of the lemurs had had twins and this attracted large crowds despite the gloomy weather. Sadly these babies were killed by the dominant female: natural selection at its most raw. I was also involved in the education programme, holding a bearded dragon and showing it to the members of the public. On another occasion I spent time working at the tiger enclosure, this granted me a great position to see the three new Sumatran tiger cubs of which Flamingo Land is very proud. This work experience has convinced me that working with animals and zoology is what I want to do in the future and I am grateful to Mr Morris (who provided the contact) and CIRCLE for making this happen. Stuart Tolley (LVI)

Laura Carrigan (LVI) During the summer holidays I spent four weeks working part time for CIRCLE (the Collaboration for Integrated Research, Conservation and Learning) at Flamingo Land resort. Having arranged an orientation day with the leader of CIRCLE I began working with the members of the team in their individual research projects. The first of these was an investigation into how effectively signs portrayed information and the willingness of the members of the public to read them. I spent many hours completing surveys with the public, questioning them on what

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Cambridge Senior Physics Challenge

In July I spent a week at the Senior Physics Challenge in Cambridge. This was a week of lectures and experiments hosted by the Physics Department at the university. The lectures were split between mechanics and quantum mechanics, with both involving time to work on problems. The standard was tough, especially some of the mathematics, but the content was interesting, with the course showing mathematically how some of the weirder quantum concepts develop. The lectures and practicals all took place in the Cavendish Laboratory just outside Cambridge. Evening entertainment included a ‘fermi’ style physics pub quiz and more laid-back lectures, such as one on juggling and relativity. We also ventured out of the lab to go punting one afternoon. I was staying

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in St John’s College which is absolutely lovely, with big rooms and fantastic breakfasts (if you’re thinking of applying to Cambridge this is the place to go). My standard of physics problem-solving and understanding as well as my maths were all improved by some great teaching. The course was also really useful in that it was a taste of student life studying Physics, confirming for me that this really is what I want to do. Finally it was great meeting loads of nice people from all over the country. The week was a lot of fun and I’m really grateful to Cambridge for putting it on and inviting me, especially since it was all completely free. Alistair Duffey (LVI)

News, Events and Activities

British Physics Olympiad Competition

AS National Physics Competition and National Physics Challenge for GCSE Students In the British Physics Olympiad for year 13 students Harry Ha received a Gold (top 50) award in the Round 1 paper and a Commendation in Round 2. Sam Philpott and Maria Mikhaylenko received Bronze II awards with Tim Chiu receiving a Commendation. In the AS National Physics Competition Alistair Duffey received a Gold award. Georgia Calvert and Tom Kelly received Silver awards. George Gao, Katie Hinton, Bill Mo, and Maciej Psiuch received Bronze I awards, with James Sowerby, Simon Tang and Joe Taylor receiving Bronze II awards. In the National Physics Challenge for GCSE students Christian Brennan, Robert Croft, Harry Dixon, Eleanor Dobson, George Doyle, Will Quinn, Josh Ramalingam and Jack Robins received Silver awards with an additional 15 students collecting Bronze awards. Mr David Morris

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Science Christmas Lecture 2013 This year’s Christmas Lecture, given by the Science Department, was titled The Ultimate Sensory Animal. However, as is always the case, the subject matter was a fairly tenuous link which joined many disparate demonstrations, activities and explosions together. We saw the Head Master and Charles Barry (aka ‘the Stig’) parking a car without using their hands; we saw Mr Stephen getting electrocuted (again) and we heard Mr Edwards and Mr Smith having a conversation whilst full of helium. We even saw what the Science Department got up to when they visited the BBC studios and took over from the celebrities. Paddy strung the

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lecture together by talking about some amazing adaptations of animals and he was ably accompanied by his science colleagues and other students performing feats with stacking cups, Rijke tubes, infrared flowers, electric guitars, harps and theremins. A hovering shark also joined in, and chocolate came into it somewhere. Huge thanks should go to Barry, Mark and Trevor, the lab technicians, as they do most of the work and are the real heroes. Mr Mark Edwards

News, Events and Activities

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University of Oxford Physics Summer School

During the summer, I attended a two-week course at the University of Oxford to study Physics. As well as all the benefits of learning more about my chosen subject, there were numerous other aspects of the course which were unforgettable. Firstly, I met people from all around the world: I was quite literally the only Brit there – something I’m not used to. The variety of people I met was incredible, yet they were all at Oxford for the same reason as me. It certainly enhanced my understanding of other cultures. Secondly, the activities I took part in gave me the chance to see Oxford and experience what it’s like being a student there. These activities included punting, bowling, recreational sport and an array of others – my personal favourite being Quidditch.

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However, the most important part of the course, the teaching, was yet another eye-opener. I was never in a group of more than two people, being educated in a mixture of seminars and tutorials. The pace was fast – we had covered everything I knew about Quantum Physics in the first hour and the rest was all new material. Finally, I would definitely recommend the course to anyone who has a passion for their subject and wants to meet like-minded people, whether you are considering applying to Oxford or not. Georgia Calvert (LVI)

News, Events and Activities

St Peter’s Challenge In November 2013 the house general knowledge competition, St Peter’s Challenge, began in school. Each week, two pairs of houses competed against each other, answering questions on anything from geography to herbology, fiction to football, music to current affairs. The group stages ended at Christmas, and saw The Rise and Dronfield unfortunately eliminated. In January The Manor, Linton, Grove and Hope fell at the quarter- or semi-final stages. In the battle for third and fourth places, Queen’s beat Temple 520 points to 440, with fine performances from captains Helen Megone (Queen’s) and Guy Hall (Temple). The final was held in the Memorial Hall in front of an audience of about 120 pupils and staff. School took an early lead thanks to contributions from all the members of the team (Jonny Fry, Alex Eyre, Maya Wordsworth and George O’Neill). Although the Clifton team (Charlie Rae, Sam Elliot, Charlie Elliot and Ben Turvill) fought to narrow the gap, School won with a score of 600 points to 370. Thanks to all who competed over the ten weeks of the Challenge, and to the staff who filled the Jeremy Paxman role each week. Miss Kat Barker

St Peter’s Junior Challenge A general knowledge competition took place in school for Third and Fourth Form pupils in school after the summer half-term. After four weeks of competition in the group stages and a hotly-contested semi-final, the match to decide 3rd and 4th place saw Hope take on and defeat Queen’s. In the much-anticipated final the Grove team of Zaki Ward, Seth Williams, Matthew Roberts and Polly Moss took on the School house team of Rose Gabbertas, George O’Neill, James Mahon and Matt Ubhi. After 20 minutes of rapid-fire questioning from Mr Smith, The Grove emerged victorious with 540 points to 240 from School. Congratulations and well done to all who took part this year. Miss Kat Barker

Junior Challenge winners (l to r): Zaki Ward, Seth Williams, Matthew Roberts (Captain) & Polly Moss

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Drama This year has been full of activity and fourteen different plays in the Drama department. We have transported the audience to Wonderland in the Memorial Hall and a tube station in London Below in the Drama Studio. Pupils have performed in two professional theatres: the Carriageworks in Leeds and the Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough. Pupils responded to the national ‘pop-up’ theatre movement of immersive and sitespecific performances with the A-level production Dust Off The Archives taking the audience around the school and A Doll’s House reimagined in the Recital Room (converted for the evening into the flat of Nora and Torvald). The world of the play is extremely important and having Sara Burns as our lighting and set designer has been an incredible opportunity, it has also meant that pupils in production teams have thrived – particularly George Snell, Lizzy Whiter and Jodi Smith. Aiming to ensure that we define ourselves as a generation of ‘theatre-makers’ as well as being able to love and understand the classics is very important. St Peter’s took part in the National Connections Festival performing the premiere of Sam Holcroft’s The Wardrobe and we saw Ben Turvill’s challenging debut play Woolwich 2013 as part of his Trinity College Gold Arts Award. I have no doubt that he will be part of the generation of theatremakers that I talk of. We have loved live music on stage: the Wonderband in Alice, Max and James as the foresters with their ukuleles in As You Like It, Emily McDonald as a busker in London Below, and a range of cast members demonstrating their musical talent in The Wardrobe.

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Creative & Cultural

We have taken a trip to London to experience Punchdrunk Theatre company lead audience members around a fivestorey warehouse in an adaptation of Woyzeck called The Drowned Man. We have also been led around York city centre getting our hands on 50 tickets for the criticallyacclaimed sell-out promenade performance of Blood and Chocolate, as well as Blood Brothers, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and a Frantic Assembly workshop in preparation for physical theatre work. We have welcomed two new fabulous staff in the Department – Sara Burns and Maggie Smales – and one new baby (Sophia Heaton: congratulations Helen and Rob!). Thank you also this year to Mike Redley for set, sound and technical expertise, Tom Figgins for musical assistance, Dave Morris for photos, and Mike Duffy for stage fights, in addition to the Catering and Facilities staff – and, very importantly, our extremely supportive audiences. Congratulations to Ben Turvill for securing a place in the National Youth Theatre and Rosalind Tait in being successful for the second time in working with the National Youth Music Theatre this summer. ‘On Pilot Theatre Company’s website they refer to Blood and Chocolate as “an event and a journey”. I agree with this as the fact that it was promenade theatre meant that the audience went on the ‘journey’ with the 200 actors. It took the knowing audience of 2014 from York in 1914, to war, and returned us home again to the chocolate factories on which York thrived during the war. The ‘event’ took over the entire city for three weeks.’ Phil Hodgson (LVI)

‘As one walks along in the footsteps – literally – of the people in the play, all the events are emphasised, especially with the presence of the community cast: some may be relatives of the people commemorated so a community movement such as in Blood and Chocolate can be a great show of fidelity: a physical “we will remember them”given familiarity and a greater feeling by the intimacy of a community of actors and audience.’ Ben Turvill (LVI)

Alice For one week only the Memorial Hall was transformed into Wonderland, complete with secret doors, rabbit hole, fake grass down the traverse with a more intimate audience on two sides of the performance space. A cast of thirty-six, a Wonderband of five and a crew of eleven worked incredibly hard to make this production the magical spectacle it was. People know the stories of Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass and the wonderful, often abstruse, characters Alice meets there, from reading Carroll’s books (I hope you have!), or from watching the Walt Disney classic film or Tim Burton’s adaptation. The challenge for a production is to find a way in which the episodic fragments of Alice’s journey can become one production rather than a series of scenes. There is a very

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interesting history concerning the original manuscript which I felt could allow an older cast and audience to engage in the plot. This adaptation meant that we would need to present Alice at three different ages. We were delighted to welcome Dee Alton, a parent of a former pupil, and Tess Gilbertson and Nell Maughan from Clifton School to the cast. It was also interesting in the research process to find out that Dame Judi Dench had played the role of Alice when she herself was at Clifton School.

wondered how the Queen and King of Hearts (Elle Illingworth and Peter Gray) could ever have a peaceful day of matrimony. The Wonderband were fantastic, entertaining the audience alongside the action and I don’t think any of the cast or crew will listen to Bastille’s Pompeii or Kodaline’s High Hopes without reminiscing about their adventures down the rabbit hole.

Our Alice told the real story of an adult Alice Hargreaves selling the manuscript Dodgson gave her when she was little, using that as a catalyst to remember the summer’s day when it had been written, and to take one last trip into the eccentric world down the rabbit hole. Brogan Grant deserves a round of applause for her mature, defiant and playful interpretation of the iconic role even when dizzy after her spin on a ‘lazy Susan’. I cannot think about Emily Brown and Lily Spencer’s ‘fight until six’ as Dum and Dee without smiling a lot. The crazy tea-party scene with the wild Mad Hatter (Ben Turvill) wired March Hare (Rosalind Tait) and rather grumpy awoken Dormouse (Charles Barry) had an abundance of energy and humour I will never forget (nor I doubt will the poor production team due to the amount of props broken in the process). I would like to congratulate every talented performer in the production for the way they generously presented the audience with their larger-than-life interpretations of these two-dimensional characters. I felt sorry for the terrified rabbit (Duncan Smith) fearful of Cookie’s temper (Andrii Fokin) and

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‘Curiouser and curiouser.’ Alice ‘begin at the beginning … and go on till you come to the end: then stop.’ The King of Hearts ‘sometimes I’ve believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.’ Duchess ‘There will be nonsense in it, not more than once a minute.’ Wonderlander ‘In such an hour, beneath such dreamy weather, we dare you to half-believe it’s true.’ Wonderlander

Creative & Cultural

The Wardrobe It’s the safest place they know – but is it safe enough. This is the first year that the school has taken part in National Connections. Connections runs nationwide and gives students the experience of engaging with brand-new writing and working in a professional theatre. The Wardrobe by Sam Holcroft spans five centuries of British history as small groups of children seek sanctuary in the same solid, old wardrobe. The first scene takes place in 1485 with Elizabeth of York (Amelia Bell) discussing her forthcoming marriage to Henry VII with her sister Cecily (Rowan Tait), and the last scene shows two teenagers (Esme Wright and Eve Bracken) exploring a museum housing the wardrobe, completing a worksheet about it using Google on smartphones. We were excited to see that the new blockbuster film Belle is inspired by Dido from 1780 (played by Edith Norvor) The performance involved all Fourth-Form GCSE pupils who are studying the text as part of their course, and they were joined by a few Third-Formers to make up a cast and crew of 24 altogether. The Wardrobe was first performed in school in February in the STP Studio Theatre to full audiences, including a director from the National Theatre. The second night was fantastic, but on the first our huge wardrobe got a little stage fright and caused a few problems. We had a wonderful trip to Scarborough to perform the play at the Stephen Joseph Theatre, watch three other brand new Connections plays, eat ice-cream and fish and chips, and sing open-mike in the theatre. The whole cast gave assured, emotive and vibrant performances bringing these young people from history to life as the wardrobe doors opened in their time.

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Shakespeare Schools Festival: As You Like It Shakespeare Schools Festival is an annual event in which schools perform an edited version of a Shakespearean play of their choice at a local professional theatre. Last year we performed the tragedy of Macbeth, so we were probably in need of the romantic comedy As You Like It. The play follows four couples as they fall in love ‘at first sight’ in the freedom of the forest of Arden after leaving the constrictive court. We took our thirty-minute version, with Beth Bradley as Assistant Director, to the Leeds Carriageworks Theatre in October – where George Snell operated the show alone – as well as premiering it in the STP Studio Theatre. The Lovespotters took us on a playful, energetic, and humorous journey through the play’s four swoons, using binoculars to monitor the ‘heartbeats’ of the lovers. Live music was performed by Max McLeish and Jack McCartney, with some popular love songs added to highlight the swoons, and the full ensemble sang Cheryl Cole’s Fight For This Love to the lovelorn shepherd Silvius, played with real character by Toby Johnson. Louise Gould played the spirited Rosalind, delivering the epilogue with vigour even though ‘it is not the fashion to see the lady the epilogue’ after falling in love with Orlando (Archie Stephenson), much to the disdain of her cousin Celia (Rosalind Tait) until she too suffers a similar fate. ‘Whoever loved that loved not at first sight.’ Phoebe ‘I like this place and willingly could waste my time it.’ Celia ‘Do you not know I am a woman? When I think, I must speak.’ Rosalind ‘All the world’s a stage.’ Jaques ‘We that are true lovers run into strange capers.’ Touchstone ‘Love is merely a madness.’ Rosalind ‘I pray you, do not fall in love with me, for I am falser than vows made in wine.’ Rosalind

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Creative & Cultural

Middle School Play: London Below London Below is an adaptation of Neverwhere, originally an urban fantasy television series in the 1990s co-written by Neil Gaiman and Lenny Henry and later adapted into novel form by Gaiman with a comic-book series to follow. The reason this idea was chosen was because of the large number of pupils interested in being involved in the Middle School Play and therefore the number of strong characters and design opportunities it offered. Gaiman is also a great writer! The cast and crew of 46 performed the show for three consecutive nights in the STP Studio Theatre – transformed into a tube station in the magical world of London Below by Miss Burns, Jodi Smith and the team. LONDONERS

HOUSE HUNTER

LONDONER

WAITRESS

FORTUNE TELLER

ESTATE AGENT

BOSS

CURATOR

VILLAGER

TRAIN GUARD

JESSICA

ESTATE BUSKER

JESSICA

GARY

SYLVIA

RICHARD

DOOR

CROUP & VANDEMAR

MARQUIS

ANGEL

HUNTER RICHARD MAYHEW

LADY OF EARL’S COURT ANAESTHE-

STAGE MANAGERS

LADY EARL

SFX

BLACKFRIAR

HALVARD

LONDON

BLACKFRIAR

BELOW

OLD BAILEY

MRS PORTICO

DOOR

NARRATORS

RAT SPEAKER

RAT

ILLIASTER

ANAESTHESIA

WARDROBE & MAKE UP

LAMIA

Young businessman Richard Mayhew (Jack Hargrave) moves from Yorkshire to London, his act of kindness in helping a young homeless girl, Door (Eve Bracken), catapulting him into the world of London Below. The Marquis de Carrabas (Gaby Richardson) and Hunter (Louise Gould) assist them on their journey, trying to protect them from villains Croup and Vandemar (Marcus Thomson and Ethan Thubron) but the Angel of Islington (Charles Barry) is not as angelic as he first appears to be. Richard spends the whole time trying to find a way home, but when he eventually gets there he realises he misses the London beneath the cracks.

SERPENTINE

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GCSE As part of their final GCSE grade each Fifth-Form pupil has been involved in two public performance evenings this year as well as their final written examination. Misrepresented by Shakespeare was a clever, energetic and funny piece of Theatre in Education – written by the group themselves – following the stories of four well-known Shakespearean antagonists. It invited the audience to reassess their opinions of the characters: Caliban, Shylock and the Macbeths. The group also performed it in front of their target audience at St Olave’s. Pool (no water) was a dynamic, atmospheric and incredibly wellperformed piece of ensemble physical theatre written by British playwright Mark Ravenhill in collaboration with Frantic Assembly. The group participated in a workshop with Frantic Assembly at Actacademy in Harrogate in October to help them develop their work. This play explored artistic jealousy, the fragility of friendship and resentment inspired by success. A famous artist invites her old friends to her luxurious new home. For one night only, the group is back together. But celebrations come to an abrupt end when the host suffers an horrific accident. George Snell was the lighting designer for this production and his work was chosen as exemplar material for the board by the AQA examiner.

For the GCSE group’s final performance of the year, pupils had to devise brand-new work, creating the ideas, characters and text themselves – and what a stunning job they did. This impressive quartet of new plays was performed in March and really displayed the talents and creativity of the group. Die Devils Hände was a

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contemporary remake of the fairy-tale The Girl With No Hands and Olivia Shread’s screams as her father (Henry Graham) cut her hands off on stage were truly haunting. The Price Of Life was written by Alex Gould and explored the concept that money can’t buy you happiness, and a healthy life can’t buy you longevity.

Fallen Footsteps was a mature piece which showed brother (George Snell) and sister (Bethan Bradley) surviving alone in a grim world where stories temporarily transported them to other places. The Final Waltz was the result of incredibly hard work and credit must go to Peter Gray and Rosalind Tait for their mesmerizing and emotional performances in this well-structured piece.

Creative & Cultural

A-LEVEL Dust Off The Archives

A2 Drama students are challenged with creating ‘a unique piece of theatre’ as part of the course. The group researched the concept of memory and looking for stimulus as a starting-point for devising took a trip to the Banana Warehouse in York Town Centre, where they found some old copies of The Peterite and The Olavite and concluded they needed to look no further than the school’s rich history itself for inspiration.

‘We decided that we wanted to produce a promenade performance due to the fact that we had viewed Slunglow’s Blood and Chocolate and Punchdrunk’s The Drowned Man. The vast sets and locations of both pieces inspired us to use the school’s historic grounds to allow the memories embedded in the walls to be retold.’ The audience saw three

characters: Betty Toyne, John R Hollington and Lucy Gilbert. Betty Toyne was the daughter of previous Head Master, Sam Toyne (1913-1936), and a French teacher at Olave’s; she was married in the school chapel in 1934 to a former St Peter’s pupil. John R Hollington was in the school’s rugby team and was granted colours for his performance on the pitch. He was very sadly shot down over Germany in 1939, shortly after he left the school. It was poignant to see his name in the Book of Remembrance in the antechapel. Lucy Gilbert won the school’s Barry Daniel Award

and used the scholarship fund to support herself trekking for two months in Spitsbergen after her tragic experience in Norway in 1986. We decided to take the audience to the places significant to these Old Peterites: Betty’s wedding was performed in the chapel to the backdrop of the whole-school recording of I vow to thee, my country, her reception was held in the Library with a champagne toast; Lucy’s letter home in a tent pitched outside the Geography classrooms with hot chocolate, and John R Hollington’s metaphor of the rugby-game-turned-war on the rugby pitch. Elle Illingworth (UVI)

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‘Since a large portion of our audience would either be current pupils, staff or people with a connection to the school we sought to imbue within these people a deep sense of connection with the school and its history, thus granting them the impression of being part of a bigger picture. Elliot Elstob (UVI)

It was unfortunate that we had to cancel the second night’s performance due to extreme weather conditions. Although we had back-up plans for locations, it was deemed unsafe in the Met Office’s red warning even to walk around the school. When we found out that the indoor Liverpool Empire Theatre cancelled its performance of Ghost because of weather on the same night it didn’t seem so bad.

AS: On Love

AS: A Doll’s House

The play On Love by Mick Gordon examines the multi-faceted nature of human relationships. The material of the play is collated from verbatim text collected by the writer using a Dictaphone. The cast multi-role-played to create humour such as the argument scene turned into a passionate tango, and some very touching moments – for example where a young woman tried in vain to resuscitate her boyfriend. This is a difficult play, particularly because the cast has a responsibility to tell people’s real stories, but they tackled it with the balance and tenderness required in a thoughtful, visually engaging way.

A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen caused quite a stir in its original performances and it remains challenging and provocative: what would make a mother leave her children? Our updated production of this play adapted by Simon Stephens aimed to immerse the audience in Nora’s situation by inviting them into the Helmers’ home. The audience were the proverbial ‘flies on the wall’, witnessing the marriage of Torvald Helmer (Ben Turvill) reaching the point of its destruction through the influences of Krogstad’s (Phil Hodgson) blackmailing and the intrusion of a supposed old friend, Kristine (Emma Walker). We felt slightly uncomfortable initially, almost voyeuristic, as we witnessed intimate scenes but soon became gripped by Nora’s (Anna Thrussell) predicament and though we were sympathetic to her, we were also at one with Torvald’s devastation as she left. Miss Helen Lindley

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Creative & Cultural

Gold Arts Award 2013-14

Woolwich 2013

This year was the second year that we have run Arts Award as a co-curricular activity. The award is endorsed by Trinity College, London and gets young people to explore and develop their own creativity through arts challenges that they set themselves.

Woolwich 2013 is an insightful and brave text which is entirely open to interpretation, made even more brilliant by the fact that it is written by our very own Shakespeare: Benedict Turvill. I was given the mammoth task of taking this breathtaking new piece of theatre from ‘page to stage’. I decided to produce a fully student-run play from the lighting to marketing, all in aid of Help for Heroes. Although Woolwich 2013 is a small ensemble play, the characters within the story are unique and powerful in their creation. The context of the play itself was challenging, especially finding the right balance between ‘artistic’ and ‘appropriate’. In the play there are no specific links between the characters, as they seem to all be part of the muse’s imagination. This is represented by the clean, white space you are presented with, and when the actors enter the space they are in role; out of it they are neutral. The audience was thrown into the revelry of the party but, lurking beneath the surface, lay a much more sinister message. Perhaps the greatest obstacle to overcome was that this was an entirely fresh script, so we were not able to hide behind the work of previous performances – it is wholly our play. This has also come with its advantages as I feel that I was able to put my own spin on what is a wisely written piece of theatre; and Ben Turvill deserves all the credit for a mesmeric piece of work. I was inspired by Punchdrunk Theatre Company and Slung Low, whose individual style I tried to weave into the performance. The feedback exceeded our expectations and all we were all very proud of what we had achieved, and as the director I was so pleased that all the months of hard work had paid off! The production was an absolute delight to work on, and the cast were amazing to work with.

The award is split into two units. The first unit is then divided into four sub-units:

Arts practice Young people gain experience of a new area of the arts and produce new art work by working with more advanced practitioners.

The wider arts sector Young people get involved in the arts world through placements, volunteering, training and research.

Research and review Young people attend and review high-quality arts events, reflect on how they influence their work, and also find out about the artists and their career-paths.

Forming a view Young people make the case for an arts issue that they care about, investigate the arguments around it and present their view and findings to others. The second unit asks the young person to plan, organise and host an event that involves their leadership skills, such as organizing a charity concert, an art exhibition or a workshop, or putting on a play. The possibilities are endless, and with 35 UCAS points at the end of the award it is certainly worthwhile. The course is undertaken by those students who wish to challenge and extend themselves, as the award requires around 150 hours of work in total! This year the scheme was take up by Benedict Turvill (Lower Sixth) and Elle Illingworth (Upper Sixth) who joined forces to create a leadership project focusing on a play which Ben had written based on the murder of Lee Rigby in 2013. Both Ben and Elle directed the play, recruited cast members, sourced props and costumes, and budgeted and organised the final event which was the performances of Woolwich 2013.

Thanks must also go to the wonderful Sara Burns, Helen Lindley, Maggie Smales and Helen Heaton for all their support. Woolwich 2013 truly was the perfect way to end my time here at St Peter’s and I am grateful to everyone who came to support us, or who even just bought a cake at our fundraisers, which helped us raise over £350. Elle Illingworth (UVI), Director

The play was a success, managing to sell out both performances and gaining incredible feedback from everyone that came to see it. Ben and Elle had to compile a portfolio of evidence that was then submitted to an external moderator. The feedback gained was extremely positive, and the moderator noted that both the portfolios were extremely clear and easy to read, and contained many forms of evidence of the activities undertaken. It is also worth saying that the uptake of Arts Award for 2014-15 is looking extremely healthy and with the ideas that are already being created it should be an exciting year for Arts Award yet again! Mrs Helen Heaton

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Design & Technology Awards 2014 Design Innovation Award: Alexandra Budarina Alexandra’s passion for painting gave her the idea to create an art case for carrying wet paintings from locations back to her studio. The complex design for the shell of the case was realised by laying-up carbon fibre onto a mould. This was a difficult and experimental process, but one which showed the innovative approach that Alexandra has towards product design.

(formed around a foam mould) to give a traditional Moses basket a more modern stylish look.

Design Commendation: Harley Shaw Minster Engineering Award for Quality of Design and Manufacture: Hannah Whitehouse Hannah’s design, made from cherry wood, focuses on the use of simple lines and shapes. The top surface has a structure and pattern to add interest, without detracting from the beautiful simplicity of the design. The table can be disassembled easily by adjusting four knock-down fittings, with the design packing flat into three pieces.

Design Commendation & the Dawson Award for Outstanding Achievement in Design & Technology: Brogan Grant Brogan sat down with a group of young mothers, to find out what needs they and their babies had, and they discussed the idea of more contemporary designs being available for products. Brogan used a blend of coloured acrylic sheet and veneered plywood

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Harley identified a problem gardeners have in transporting their garden tools from the shed or garage to the garden. Where a number of tools is required, it is often difficult to carry them safely, and more than a few at a time. Harley created a trolley which holds a variety of tools, both large and small. It is easy to manoeuvre, and very stable.

Sixth form Design & Technology Prize for 2014: Emma Stephenson Emma chose a project working closely with Clifton School, designing and making a teacher’s storytime chair and pupils’ bench for use outdoors. Emma produced a prototype made from treated spruce and assembled with knockdown fittings. Working with a client gave the project more focus and made it more real. Mr Jon Whitehouse

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Music Autumn Concert The Brass Ensemble gave us a rousing start to the first major concert of the year with a Prelude by Charpentier. The Chamber and Chapel Choirs were in fine form, singing both secular and sacred pieces, including the Victorian part-song He that hath a pleasant face by John Hatton and the Magnificat in D by Charles Wood. There were two lovely solos from mezzo-sopranos Elle Illingworth and Sarah Carlton, and high-quality chamber playing from the Senior String Quartet, Clarinet Choir and Guitar Group with highlights including The Entertainer arranged for three guitars and a Church Sonata for Bombardes played on five Bass Clarinets! The concert finished with two famous film scores arranged for Wind Band, played with great verve by the 45 players involved. Mr Paul Miles-Kingston

Visit of the National Youth Jazz Orchestra, Thursday 14 November We were delighted to welcome the National Youth Jazz Orchestra from London for a workshop and concert day in November. Our Swing Band greatly enjoyed working with director Mark Armstrong for an hour, and they then had the opportunity to get in amongst

the NYJO players for a full-tilt rendition of Love for Sale, which provided a memorable ending to the session for the pupils. The orchestra then entertained a packed Memorial Hall later in the evening with two polished sets of big-band playing including great standards such as Caravan and That Old Black Magic, as well as a fantastic jazz arrangement by legendary trombonist Mark Nightingale of The Flight of the Bumble Bee with a solo trombone feature that will live long in the memory. It was a fantastic day and a fitting opening for the newlyrefurbished Memorial Hall as it becomes established as a major musical venue in the city. Mr Paul Miles-Kingston

Evensong in York Minster, Monday 18 November The Chapel Choir sang an Evensong service in the Quire of York Minster in November. Starting with Humphrey Clucas’ fanfaric set of Responses, the choir maintained a high level of energy and commitment throughout with encouraging singing in Wood’s Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis in D. The highlight of the service, though, was the large-scale anthem Blessed be the God and Father by Samuel Sebastian Wesley. This famous piece has echoes of Mendelssohn and Haydn with a substantial solo Soprano section in the middle, beautifully performed by Sally Hicks. Mr Paul Miles-Kingston

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The Brass Ensemble played a rousing fanfare by Walton at the entry of the Civic Party. Isabella Crook (Third Form) then provided a lovely start to the service with the traditional solo verse of Once in Royal David’s City leading into the opening procession. The

Christmas Concerts The Christmas Concerts were great fun this year, with the evenings being warmly enjoyed by an audience of around 500 over the two nights. There was a very varied programme, ranging from both Junior and Senior String Quartet, String Orchestra, Wind Band, Chamber Choir and School Choir to Swing Band, Little Big Band, Percussion Group and both Girls’ and Boys’ Barbershop groups. The festive theme was present throughout with classical items intermingling with jazz and even a Ska item from the Percussion Group to complement their rendition of Ding, Dong Merrily on High arranged in 7 beats in a bar! Mr Paul Miles-Kingston

Carol Service We were once again fortunate to be back in the beautiful surroundings of York Minster for our annual Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols.

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choirs and Brass Ensemble supported some strong singing from the congregation throughout the service, and highlights from the individual choir items were the Chamber Choir’s performance of

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Here is the Little Door by Herbert Howells, the Chapel Choir’s I Saw Three Ships arranged by Richard Lloyd and the School Choir’s Sussex Carol arranged by David Willcocks. The lessons and prayers were read by pupils, members of the academic and support staff, the Headmaster and a Governor, and the service was led by Canon Christopher Collingwood and our Chaplain, The Reverend Daniel Jones. Mr Paul Miles-Kingston

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Senior Music Festival This was a highly enjoyable evening of music-making with strong solo performances in all categories. The adjudicator this year was Anthony Kraus, Assistant Director of Music at Opera North, who provided knowledgeable and constructive feedback on each performance. The winners of the categories were as follows:

Guitar and Vocals: Emily McDonald Woodwind: Jack Hargrave (Clarinet) Piano: Felicity Edwards Boys’ Singing: Sam Lightwing

Percussion: Alistair Duffey (Xylophone)

The overall winner was Felicity Edwards (pictured, below left) for a beautifully poised performance on the piano of Danza de la Moza Donosa by Ginastera.

Woodwind: Samuel Philpott (Bass Clarinet)

Mr Paul Miles-Kingston

Girls’ Singing: Rosalind Tait Brass: Charlie Widdicombe (Trumpet) Guitar: Joshua Ramalingham Strings: Max McLeish (Cello) Boys’ Singing: Jack McCartney Piano: Jessica Szeto Jessica Szeto was selected as the winner of this year’s Senior Music Festival prize for the best performance of the evening. Mr Paul Miles-Kingston

Junior Music Festival We heard over 100 performances in the week before half-term this year and selected 25 of those to go forward to the final, which was ably adjudicated by Anthony Kraus, Assistant Head of Music at Opera North.

Evensong in Beverley Minster, Monday 3 March The Chapel Choir travelled to the beautiful Gothic Minster in Beverley to sing evensong early in March. Singing in a small choir area with a fairly unforgiving acoustic, the choir produced some lovely sounds, accompanied on the organ in colourful and dramatic style by the Minster’s Director of Music, Robert Poyser. The canticles by Stanford and anthems by Wood provided a good opportunity for some full and warm singing and this was much appreciated by the congregation. My thanks go to all the pupils and staff involved, especially to Mr Wright for his expert direction of the service. Mr Paul Miles-Kingston

All the pupils in the final played with fluency, and there was a real sense of enjoyment and camaraderie amongst them, which created a lovely atmosphere for the event. The winners of the individual categories were as follows: Strings: Felicity Edwards (Harp), with Helen Ford (Viola) highly commended Girls’ Singing: Gaby Richardson, with Fleur Booth and Isabella Crook highly commended Brass: Jack Hargrave (Trombone)

Choral and Orchestral Concert, York Minster, Thursday 27 March Our Wind Band, String Orchestra and School Choir had the great privilege of giving our main orchestral and choral concert of the academic year in the majestic surroundings of York Minster. The Wind Band began with three movements from Elgar’s Wand of Youth Orchestral Suite No 1, with the brass producing some polished, full sounds for the declamatory sections which contrasted well with some expressive softer, phrased lines in the woodwind in the lyrical passages.

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The String Orchestra then supported a truly outstanding solo performance from violinist Ivan Cheng in Bruch’s Violin Concerto No 1 directed by Keith Wright. Performing from memory, Ivan reached a professional level with some exquisite playing and was rewarded by four ovations, the last one quite rightly a standing ovation. To complete the evening a choir of over 200 singers, formed from the School Choirs of both St Peter’s and St Olave’s and our Choral Society of parents, staff, governors and friends, joined together to perform Howard Goodall’s Eternal Light, a new setting of the Latin Requiem text juxtaposed with selected poems in English. The flowing melodic lines were projected well by both the choir and soloists Wendy Goodson (Soprano), Paul Gameson (Tenor) and Matt Dowdy (Baritone) in a performance that was warmly received by the audience of around 500 present for the concert. It was a memorable and very enjoyable evening and my thanks to all who participated. Mr Paul Miles-Kingston

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Cabaret Concerts It was a fun show this year with a fantastic atmosphere in the Memorial Hall, which was packed for both nights. The Barbieshop were on very fine form, with a mashup from Pitch Perfect being a highlight. The ensemble playing was both varied and enjoyable with the Clarinet Choir playing a pair of tangos, the Little Big Band playing funk, the Percussion Group a song by Madness and the Senior String Quartet an arrangement by Ivan Cheng (The Manor, UVI) of Pirates of the Caribbean! The Chamber Choir and School Choir both performed with energy and style. The Barbershop made a particularly strong impact this year, singing a set of three pieces arranged by the boys. This closed with an arrangement by Charlie Widdicombe of What Makes You Beautiful by One Direction that required a lot of hair gel! The soloists from the Upper Sixth all excelled themselves with instrumental solos ranging from Sam Philpott playing Body and

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Soul on the Bass Clarinet, to James Contreras and Alex Shaw engaging in a improvisatory duel with the classic bebop tune Tenor Madness by Sonny Rollins, and Josh Stanford playing Henry Mancini’s The Pink Panther. We also had seven vocal numbers starting with a beautifully atmospheric performance of Elton John’s Your Song by Laura Nichols, accompanied by Ivan Cheng on the piano. We were then treated to Abba from Josie Proctor and Georgie Harrison and some smooth swing with Sarah Carlton singing At Last and Georgie Ward Georgia on my mind. There was a significant change of pace in the middle of the show with Siân Bigger singing Fever with great character, and Ellie Martin really getting the audience going with Somebody to love by Freddie Mercury in an arrangement originally created for The X Factor’s Big Band Night. Closing the evening was a sparkling performance by

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Elle Illingworth, who sang the Toy Story favourite You Got a Friend in Me. My thanks go to all involved, and especially to the Swing Band who provided the foundation for both evenings. They played with great skill and precision throughout, both in accompanying the soloists and in their own numbers. Mr Paul Miles-Kingston

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External Music Examinations

Commemoration

The pupils have again enjoyed considerable success in their instrumental and singing examinations this academic year. We congratulate the following pupils on their achievements in passing the highest grade (Grade 8) offered by the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music and Trinity College.

We were once again privileged to be back in the Minster for our annual Commemoration Service on the last Friday of the summer term. The Brass Ensemble played a rousing fanfare by Elgar Howarth at the arrival of the Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress of York, and the Sheriff and Sheriff’s Lady. The Chamber Choir’s Introit, Locus Iste by Anton Bruckner, provided a lovely still atmosphere before the first hymn. The School Choir sang warmly throughout in their Jubilate in C by Stanford and in supporting the congregation in the hymns. The Chapel Choir’s anthem, O Thou the Central Orb, by Charles Wood, was also a highlight, with wellcontrasted dynamic range and an exciting finish.

Henry Wong

Piano

Sebastian Dobson

Clarinet (Merit)

Luke Dunsmore

Piano (Merit)

Edmund Meredith Clark

Cello (Merit)

Laura Nichols

Singing (Merit)

Emma Richardson

Clarinet (Merit)

Joss Town

Recorder (Merit)

Georgina Ward

Singing (Merit)

Charlie Widdicombe Libby Brown

Clarinet (Distinction)

Robbie Brown

Piano (Distinction)

Sarah Carlton

Singing (Distinction)

Ivan Cheng

Piano (Distinction)

Ivan Cheng Alistair Duffey Sally Hicks

Singing (Distinction)

Percussion (Distinction)

Singing (Distinction)

Elle Illingworth

Sam Lightwing Max McLeish Josh Stanford

Singing (Distinction)

Saxophone (Distinction)

Piano (Distinction)

Charlie Widdicombe

Saxophone (Distinction)

Mr Paul Miles-Kingston

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Trumpet (Distinction)

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At the heart of the service was a powerful and thought-provoking address from Dr Sam Wells, vicar of St Martin-in-the-Fields in London. This was based around the story of The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas by John Boyne, which Dr Wells used to illustrate the importance of friendship and future relationships for the students who were leaving the school. There were also readings from a number of students, and prayers read by leaving staff. Mr Paul Miles-Kingston

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Creative Writing: snapshots The year begins with a glut of wonderful writing. Rested and with active minds, we’re not trammelled by exams yet. We kick off with National Poetry Day at the beginning of October and the theme is ‘Water, Water, Everywhere’ – a nod to Coleridge’s The Rime of the Ancient Mariner. We embrace this wholeheartedly and using Gustav Dore’s woodcut illustrations, the Third Form write their own poetry, based on one of the most dramatic parts of the poem.

Water, Water Everywhere… The barren ship, wandered the abandoned ocean. Lifeless bodies sprawled over the scorched ship. My shrivelled brain rattled in my nutshell of a brain. The malodorous baked albatross weighted me to the floor as if it was bolted down. Water, water everywhere, but not a drop to spare. The emerald water luring me in, the poison everywhere. Emily McDonald

Water, Water Everywhere The beastly ship roared through the hellish sea, with a struggle. The Mariner’s eyes shimmered off the glittering sea; killing the albatross felt like a mistake! He felt like tyranny was setting in, and a blast of bad luck blew his way. He could see death in his boat floating past. Charlie Smith

Water, Water Everywhere Death stormed through the ocean Split the withering heat For eyes of woe did close.

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The water pawed at the boat and I was left alone in the sea of death. I shot the albatross brought plague of cursed water, glimmering, Fire sky and copper sun. Martha Horner

The Mariner The sun’s rim dipped, over the painted ocean while the star dogged moon shining white, surfaced. The glittering eye shone like an emerald, while his soul rotted as the men on the ship. As the ship sunk into the hellish ocean, Water, water everywhere. Angus Wilson From Third Form poetry we move to the Sixth Form’s study of narrative. Working on the basis that stories are to be found in everything, the Lower Sixth worked on creating narrative strands from art and photography. They were encouraged to explore light and shade, perspective, focus and the symbolism of colour. The responses were all unique – and in some cases, quite unexpected.

The Woman in White The curtains drew, the beaming light drowned the stage and the woman in white froze. Her dead eyes drifted beyond the stage light, as if she saw nothing but darkness. Her frail body crept further and further into itself, leaving nothing but an empty shell. She stood paralysed with pain. The beautiful shell inhaled slowly, her lungs fixed by the white silk corset that lay so structured against her frail bones. Thin pieces of string pulled so tight against her back that she slowly and tenderly began to bleed. All colours had been sucked from her gentle lips; her face fell emotionless, drowned with emptiness. The weight of the magnificent white-netted headpiece led every inch of muscle to ache through her neck towards her bony spine. The empty shell looked towards the audience; hundreds of faces looked back in amazement at the sight of the beauty in white that stood before them, Yet she felt nothing but an ache from within. To her it was the same audience that had been stood before her all along, the audience that constantly scrutinised and watched her every move. In her eyes the dance had become worthless. Every inch of joy and celebration that the dance represented had been twisted

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into a life of pain. Her feet throbbed from the agonising pain, her stomach numb from the intense hunger. She looked at the audience one last time before she knew she had to continue. As the woman in white knew, there was no escape from the dance. Lucy Wooton

She pushed the thought away; she was losing her concentration. She couldn’t do that. She’d made it this far. Noting the name of the artist, she stepped away from the painting and looked once around the room. Only one man caught her attention. He stood in the corner, wearing a long black coat like the ones in the detective films she used to watch with her father. It had been a while since she’d thought about her father. She wondered what he would think if he were still here. Would he be disappointed? Angry? Would he even care? Once again she reminded herself to stop daydreaming. She wasn’t allowed any mistakes. The man glanced at her every so often, just out of the corner of his eye, but obvious enough for her to notice. Testing him, she took a few steps towards to door and stopped at another painting. As if to mirror her actions he did the same, never once taking his eyes off her. In her mind she thought of how many ways she could escape. Of course, she could just walk out the door with all the other visitors but he was big and could probably catch her up before that. She couldn’t run because that would cause a scene and she would definitely be caught. It wasn’t an option. From where she was standing she could see a small door to the side of the staircase through which a cleaner came carrying a black bag. She waited until the man glanced at the painting for a second, distracted by its colour, and slipped out.

The Wave She stared, straining to look further into the distance, imagining what lay beyond. Its power excited her. The constant push and pull as the water stretched closer in, only to be dragged back, folding in on itself. She imagined the white horses, the phrase so commonly used though she never particularly liked it. It seemed too graceful for the sea and lessened its danger, the danger she liked. She thought of the depths of the ocean, calm in comparison to the tempestuous exterior. She was like the wave, in a way. Inside she was serene and composed, or that was how she wished she could be. It was her outside, her actions, her anger that caused problems, this problem. She was more powerful than she realised and in the past that may have frightened her. Many things did. A memory stirred. The pull of the tide, her own cry, the taste of the salt water in her mouth before strong arms lifted her clear out of the water and she was safe.

Jess Hart

The Thames below Westminster He rose like a mountain through the mist. A towering colossus that parted the clouds, He cut a figure of inconceivable magnitude as the dawn sun strained to break through the haze which was drawn to Him as a moth to a flame. Yet despite the early morning mist which attempted to obscure His view, He observed all that transpired beneath Him, watching over every lost spirit, every inhabitant, that wandered the cobbled streets of His sprawling city. He was their God; an omnipotent and inexorable being that inspired awe and demanded respect from all. Men, women and children, with jaws agape, craned their necks in vain as they tried to catch a glimpse of His many faces which extended to each of the four corners of the globe. At His bidding, the stillness of every morning was broken by a cacophony of sound as the great steel hives, like fishermen indulging themselves on the banks of England’s plentiful rivers, relentlessly reeled their workers in and slowly stole the life from each poor, unfortunate soul trapped between their high walls and hellish infernos.

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However, it was mornings such as these when He felt most content. The veil that was draped across His city during the night was beginning to fade away, caressing the chimneys and spires which punctuated the city’s skyline as it lifted; a parting kiss until they met again. The droplets which permeated the breathless air transferred to Him with ease the unremitting sound of water striking stone, nature striking man, as the Thames maintained its habitual beat. The riverboats, just beginning their voyage to the coast to collect their precious cargo, created an image of unadulterated beauty; their motion downstream produced ripples which reverberated out across the wide expanse of water in the manner of a stone which has been dropped into a pond and in so doing removed the water’s mask of tranquillity. And a man, standing amongst his colleagues on a jetty just off the Embankment, looked up to Him with a pained expression on his face, begging Him to do his job quicker so that he might return to the hovel that he called “home”. And so, it was, while looking out across the landscape which He both presided over and which, at this time, brought Him such great joy, that He made history and defied the words of St Marher when He stopped for one, brief second. Toby Latham

The Woman in the Red Dress To simply acknowledge the tilt of his head and his furrowed brow was not enough. You had to search his entire face for clues: the way the tip of his tongue poked out of the corner of his frowning mouth; the way his nostrils flared that little bit more when he breathed; the way he thoughtlessly swept wisps of hair out of his eyes; and the brightness which shone from his eyes, despite their black colouring. I watched him from my corner - his right hand moving over his selection of paintbrushes, choosing each one with precision, his left hand resting on his hip. With each brushstroke he made, his creation gained more and more life. Every so often, he would stop and perch his brush precariously behind his ear, allowing him to stand back to admire his masterpiece. Even from behind, I could sense the electricity during those moments. His work was nearing completion and both he and she knew what would follow. ‘Please Madam, straighten your back and lift your head up high. Yes, perfect.’ His clear, resounding voice broke through the silence, causing my attention to be diverted to the woman. I’d stared at her many times before – she had been sat in the same position, in the same room, with the same expression for five months, but each day she looked a little different. It wasn’t her fixed pout or her still arms that changed; it was her eyes. Each day her eyes seemed to open up a bit more to the world, sparkling with her increasing knowledge. Knowledge only he could give her. It had been going on for months and no one but myself suspected. The day she first walked into the room she had held her head up high and left her husband to do the talking, sitting silently, radiating self-importance. I think the attraction came from her original indifference. His charming and charismatic nature drew

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women to him, but he used them as a distraction, fascinating and tempting them. Yet his mannerisms were wasted on her; she answered him bluntly only when necessary and avoided making contact with his roaming eyes. But on the third week, she entered his studio with her hair draped across the left side of her face and settled herself into position. He initially tried to demand that she tucked the offending hair behind her ear, as she had in previous weeks. ‘I’m sorry Madam, but I must insist that you maintain the original hairstyle.’ ‘I’ve changed my mind. I would like it like this now, please.’ ‘Madam, I cannot change the painting. If you refuse to change your hair, I will have to tell your husband the painting cannot be completed.’ The look of mortification ad horror in her eyes is one I will never forget. ‘No, don’t do that. I will change it, if I must.’ I remember the painstakingly slow movement of her hand pushing the hair behind her ear to reveal the left hand side of her face. Spread across her eye and cheek was a large mark, in grotesque shades of blue and purple. Her cheeks blushed in embarrassment as I gasped, but he just nodded. ‘You may let your hair down again.’ ‘But…the painting?’ ‘It doesn’t matter. Leave it to me.’

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From that day on she began to accept his behaviour more and more. I don’t know exactly when it began, but signs soon became clear that only I could recognise. Her wonderful laugh resonates through the halls of his house, their conversation is seemingly endless, their lingering goodbyes fill his hall. He experiences a side to her that her husband never will.

her forearm and shoulder. The poignant bone digs into the already hollow temple. She makes a mental note: bring pillow next time. Alicia Cranston

Izzy Hall

The Creative Writing Competition, run in the summer term, this year featured an array of writing which was diverse in style and form, was self-generated, composed and edited and ultimately saw Concetta Scrimshaw and Ben Turvill as winners, both choosing to experiment with poetic forms. Below are their entries.

The Girl

Love Song

The girl is here again. Her face framed by an arched brow, quizzical in its composition. The intensity of her rigid neck, strained and fragile under the burden of her head struggles with the unfeasible angle. A feeble front incongruous to a hunched back, everything seems ill fitting. Her pale skin, taut on the bone magnifies her dainty, yet queer, disposition. The hasty snap of the head to accompany her eyes on their mission for knowledge, once again, left her ungainly in her confusion. The only light, sourced from a small window, left her in the company of the darkness. She heard it first – tired eyes don’t see all too well. A once-unencumbered youth now engulfed in enigma – where is the noise? Drained, she turns away. As she relaxes, her clothes return to hanging loosely off her skeleton; a lingering amalgam of sweat and tears lubricate the once silken fabric. The smell is redundant; only the noise exists. She reflects on the consistency of the noise: always in the top left of her peripheral vision. She appreciates this one grace afforded to her – her first and seemingly last clue. Her slightly rouged cheeks emphasise the sickly pallor of her being, grey and blue skin, cathartically cold against her raging mind. Ironically, her red hair – the only thing dead on her – appears the most alive. These wisps of escaped hair tickle the crook of her neck, an effeminate annoyance. The noise tests her will and concentration once more. The delicate slant of her indelicate lips encompasses both hope and belittling exasperation; they act as her only emotional outlet. Her emotions are reduced to that of confusion and unrest. The noise becomes the subject of her days and her isolation now becomes her resolution. Evidence of her addiction resides within; she is made ill by this noise. The window to the soul glazes over, seeing life through a greyed filter. Despite being a woman of greater stature than some, she still is no closer to reaching the noise. The sullen walls encroaching on her give nothing away. Their centimetre thick, uniformed 4 by 4 structure marks only her own enslavement but nothing or no one else’s. Fatigued, she settles once more, satisfied it will rest with her. She lies facing the top left of the room, balancing her head between

It’s deathly quiet in here save for the sharp crack of my footsteps. You’re in the middle of the room, glorious in mahogany, you’re that warm feeling I get when everything is just divine. Your lid is down. Not to worry, I’ll lift it up. It’s rather slow Better not make a sound anyway Eighty-five perfect keys, black on white. Gleaming. (But you were always into aesthetics. Always wanted to look your very best). Your strings glint in the sun flooding through a single slat of the blinds and dust particles glitter in the light, a ray of them, drifting. They’re beautiful. Just like you Oh, the rapture that fills the room like Elysium. Each spotless note, cascading on top of one another and spiralling on that sublime wave that flows faultlessly from bottom to top. The bass, a deep swell, rolling and crashing, sweeping away the delicate melody in a sparkling undulation. The world around myself has disappeared. It’s just you and me A looping surge that collapses into a shimmering ripple, a heaving crest that splinters into a thunderous arch of harmony; sorrow, as both perish into ebbing consonance. The room vibrates with the last few echoes of your enchanting sonority. And now you’re silent. Oh, how I long for you to sing again But all good things must come to an end. I step away from you, the sound of my footstep fracturing the tenuous lull. The silence is harsh, coarse and bitter. I take one last look at you, pure, perfect, and whole, the secrets within you fading in the air, transient and ephemeral. Concetta Scrimshaw

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The Cry of the Anglo-Irish

The Log Pile

after W B Yeats

So shall we stack the log pile now, oh brother, you and I? See we have rolled back the rock that guards the opening: we have opened and unleashed whatever may be found there. The sun burns against the lavender ends but winter’s chill is in the clouds and spiders scramble in the dark. So on you go to where I -

I am a culmination: two parts united to the whole. I am the image and its opposite. I see myself in a mirror of glass, a mirror cast of broken sands, a mirror then of divided lands, divided by a raging heart and here the conception of an art: a division of a raging sea. There is a bird that will fly a divide, fly above a charred earth. And if it flies above the earth, it will fly that rabid sea and be a bridge that nature gives to bind us, though we destroy. O guards who piqued that nation’s shore, do not destroy the birds that fly. Do not with crude, cold hand pluck beauty from the sky. It lands in an ancestral house, an ancestral house in civil war and that bird meets with another bird and birds will carry the message on. We hide not amidst the dawn. We shall not be blasphemy’s pawn. We fear not, there is no shroud between us but bed sheets and I am born. I shall make a boat of trees I fell with scratching nib, and land through my same scratched-out dreams. I shall find courage in a fabled man like me, who gives me fire to warm and light the way, to cook the fish the birds will drop for me. And I shall find my ancestral house, a house that is a tower, a tower, set as equals with those streets free from a blood that runs deep in me. Ben Turvill

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Then see you suddenly diving, scuttling down amidst the dark, amidst the dank and up to light proud and slinging now the log down with a hellish stampede of clank for transportation to our door and there unload, let rip, let fall the piling cascade and here the clang, clunk, drop the ever fall. I pick up the pieces still. And so I stack the logs against the porch’s side and mesh the cuts to one great wall of logs - a second curtain wall against the siege of winter. But I know another barrier that will forever withstand any rage of nature, emotion; cold or pain and here I prove it: now and now and now and then - as I walked back to you. For then we heaved the warped door to, oh brother, and rolled the rock to block that tomb again. Ben Turvill

Creative & Cultural

Abdul Yahaya

Hannah Whitehouse

Harry Richardson

Alice Appleby

LVI Form Fine Art Emily Brown

Emily Brown

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Creative & Cultural

Katie Harrison

Anna Fairbank

Katie Harrison

Lower Sixth-Form Fine Art Joe copley

Alice Appleby

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Chloe Burdass

Marianne Spencer

Creative & Cultural

Giles Jagger

Isabel Hall

Sophie Reed

Isabel Hall

Vivian Ko

Sophie Reed Lauren Caley

Marianne Spencer

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Bea Rhodes

AS-Level Photography: Beatrice Rhodes-Blangsted, Charlotte Rose, Emma Walker

Charlotte Rose Charlotte Rose

Charlotte Rose Emma Walker

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Emma Walker

Creative & Cultural

Sabrina Leung

Luka Pajovic

Upper Sixth-Form Fine Art Luka Pajovic

Sabrina Leung

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Creative & Cultural

Imogen Jefferies Sabrina Leung

Sasha Hinde

Imogen Jefferies

Alexandra Budarina

Bussy Wells

Sasha Hinde

Yasmine Kumordzi

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Creative & Cultural

Michael Chan

Holly Drinkwater

Michael Chan

Holly Drinkwater

Hanna Ramalingham

Sophie France

Hannah Ramalingam

Yasmine Kumordzi

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Postcard Portraits

Mrs Dawson Which three people (dead or alive) would you invite to a dinner party and why? Well, to be boring, I’ll have to pick my favourite mathematician, Galois (which had to be spelled out for us several times), because he led a short but productive life, and ended up dying in a pistol duel! The lovely Brian Cox, just to upset my daughter, and Michael Palin because of his great influence as a comedian and to get some tips on travelling.

the hour and a half that they spend on the pitch playing, they get paid far too much and I think people pay far too much attention to them (this question was asked on the first day of the Football World Cup!).

What is it about teaching that made you want to do the job. Well I didn’t originally. Then I discovered that the only way I could carry on doing maths all the time rather than applying it was to pass it on in the classroom. I suppose I ought to say that I wanted to help children, but …

What did you want to do originally? Well I took my O-level subjects intending to study medicine but then I sort of discovered maths, learning there was much more to it and much more to enjoy.

Is there anything you really don’t like about teaching What, other than the Third Form? No.

What would the starter be? Hand-picked and hand-dived Scottish scallops.

What three school-related things would you put in room 101? The entire Third Form, 8.40 Saturday morning lessons and uniform boo-boos such as boys wearing their trousers low like hipsters, and the three-quarter length trousers on girls.

What do you consider to be your greatest achievements? Producing two children. You can’t get much better than that!

Do you have unfulfilled ambitions? I wanted to become a pilot, go into space and watch a huge volcanic explosion. From a safe distance of course, but near enough to see it properly. I keep checking when Vesuvius is next going to erupt!

Which three items would you take with you to a desert island and why? Well (assuming there would be free wi-fi there) I would take my iPad, full of books to read. Also, a keyboard because I’d like to be able to improve my piano-playing since I’d have not much else to do. I’d take Mr Dawson with me: you’d want him on a desert island because he’s practical. He can make huts and things like that.

Which celebrities or public figures do you dislike most? I dislike footballers, I know they put a lot of work in but for

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What are your best and worst fashion moments? Bearing in mind that I was a teenager in the 70s, I think we are definitely going with flared trousers for worst moments, aren’t we? And permed hair! It used to be called a Kevin Keegan. I did have a very nice dress on my wedding day. What’s wrong with today, I ask you?

If you weren’t yourself, who would you most like to be? I would want to be Mrs Dawson, I’m very happy being me. I suppose if I could be anything I’d be a cat because it seems like they have an easy life and they also have a streak of meanness.

How do you imagine heaven and hell to be? In heaven I imagine there’d be an endless supply of time and non-fattening chocolate. My hell would be if I were locked in a room with reality television.

Lastly, what advice would you give the people at the school? When you don’t succeed: keep going, try again, and if all else fails, eat chocolate. Peter Gray and Bethan Bradley (V)

Postcard Portraits

Mr John Darmody Which three people, dead or alive, would you invite to a dinner party, and why? The comedian, Jack Dee, singersongwriter, Leonard Cohen (because they’re miserable old gits like me) and Jo Brand, to lighten the mood.

Which three things relating to St Peter’s would you put into room 101, and why? It would be Saturday morning lessons, single periods for the creative subjects, and lunchtime roll-calls.

What do you consider to be your greatest achievement to date? Lasting as long as I have and managing to keep smiling at all times. Seriously, probably that I’ve done things other than teaching, like not making it in football and almost making it in music. That’s me: ‘Mr Almost’!

art and being able to introduce young people to it. Apart from the increasing amount of bureaucracy and change for its own sake I dislike the excessive use of technology: emails have replaced faceto-face contact and the internet is a poor substitute for reading.

What are your best and worst fashion moments? Some of my best fashion moments some people say were actually my worst! In my late teens and early twenties I thought my pastshoulder-length hair and yellow Chelsea boots were the business. I always thought that when I became older I would never dress the same way as my dad. That didn’t work.

If you weren’t yourself who would you most like to be? I think I would probably have to be Bruce Springsteen, simply because my wife seems to love him more than me.

How do you imagine Heaven and Hell to be? Heaven would be sitting in a the directors’ section at the Stadium of Light with a pie in one hand and a pint in the other watching Sunderland beating Newcastle United by several goals to nil. Brought up and educated under strict Catholic principles, even now I can’t imagine Hell being anything other than a Hieronymus Bosch panorama.

Which three items would you take with you to a desert island, and why? A photograph of my family, and my drum-kit, so that I could play as loudly as I like. I might have to take a huge block of marble as an art supply, because that would take me years to carve and shape – plus a hammer and chisel, of course. Oops, that’s five objects.

Which celebrities or public figures do you detest most, and why? How long have you got? In politics, Margaret Thatcher, because of the damage her policies did to communities in my part of the world [the north-east]; in the art world I dislike the self-indulgent work of Tracy Emin, now Professor of Drawing at the Royal Academy – that’s a laugh! And in the media, probably Lee Mack – a Smart-Alec, not-funny comedian and show-off.

Who is your favourite artist?

Which aspects of teaching do you like and dislike the most?

I admire and envy the talents of a great many artists. My favourites change on an almost daily basis. In terms of the alltime greats I don’t think you can go past Titian for sheer vivacity and skill. One of my favourite contemporary artists is Maggie Hambling. I think both artists are just simply great painters who know their trade and have brilliant technique.

Very easy: I like the holidays! Seriously, just being involved with

Lucy Schofield (UVI)

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RUGBY First XV Following the excellent tour to South Africa the team was ready to face the retiring Captain’s XV, this was always going to be a tough battle against last season’s unbeaten XV. The school fought hard and pushed them close, but eventually went down 30-19. The second game of the season was at home to Leeds: this was a strong Leeds side who had come to play. As the game wore on our scrummage began to dominate and the front row of Will Shaw, Will Scholey and Jake Taylor enabled the school to dominate possession. Despite this we were 18-13 down with one minute to play. A sustained period of pressure saw Harry Stothard score and then convert to win the game 20-18. The game against Woodhouse Grove exposed some defensive frailties within the team and saw the school go down 36-18. Unfortunately we were to lose Dylan George and James Bottomley to injuries which did weaken the squad.

Away at Hymers there was a reversal in fortunes: an excellent attacking display saw the school score five tries in the first half. Backs and forwards linked well and Cormack Hopkinson scored three tries on the left wing. The score finished 39-7. Local rivals Ampleforth followed, and a stirring performance from the forwards enabled the school to dominate possession, Toby Simpson, the captain, led by example and his second-row partner Rob Hulmes worked hard in the engine room of the second row. The score finished 36-19.

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The game against Pocklington was again a one-sided affair: good performances from Charlie Elliot and James Bellingall saw us overpower them 50-12. This was one of the biggest and most powerful packs of forwards St Peter’s have produced for many years and a number of teams were simply not able to cope with the physicality we produced. The back row of Dominic Marsh, Oliver Smith and Archie Hinde also played with authority. Our next match was a major test away at Barnard Castle, and losing Jake Taylor at tighthead prop was going to make things more difficult. Unfortunately, missed chances cost us and we went down 11-0. A mention at this point for Will Pepper, who had an outstanding season: he was always an attacking threat and defensively superb. His efforts were rewarded with selection for the national independent schools’ team. The next game was against RGS Newcastle. The half-backs of Harry Richardson and Ben Williams were now showing more control in games and were able to dictate tactics more effectively. Early tries and sustained pressure enabled us to win 20-15. Our foray into the NatWest Schools Cup was to end in disappointment. An easy win against Ripon Grammar put us into the next round against Bradford. On a day when the opposition

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simply wanted the win more than us, we went down 23-17. This result was to be avenged in the last game of the season with the school winning 31-7.

The Upper Sixth always define the First XV and this year was no exception. Mention has to made of Toby Simpson, who was an outstanding captain and player.

Dylan George came back into the team following his injury and was back to his combative best.

PLAYED 12 WON 8 LOST 4 An excellent record and one to be proud of.

The match against a very strong Durham side saw the defence suffer and early tries conceded, but with changes in position at the break, the second half was won. This proved to be ‘too little, too late’ and we lost 31-17.

Squad: Will Shaw*, Will Scholey**, Jake Taylor**, Toby Simpson** (Captain), Rob Hulmes*, Archie Hinde*, Oliver Smith*, Dominic Marsh*, Felix Adams*, Harry Richardson*, Dylan George*, Ben Williams*, Charlie Elliot*, James Bellingall*, Harry Stothard*, Cormac Hopkinson*, Will Pepper**, Finlay Craig, James Bottomley * Full Colours ** Caps

Honours Harry Richardson: Yorkshire U18, North of England U18 Jake Taylor: Yorkshire U18, Newcastle Falcons Academy Will Scholey: Yorkshire U18, Leeds Carnegie Academy Toby Simpson, Will Pepper: independent schools’ national team

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Second and Third XV You can visit any club, team, business or school for that matter, and know within a short time whether you’ve walked into a winning or losing situation…The most important things in any organisation are relationships, communication, honesty, trust, motivation, confidence and teamwork – people working together for the common cause…You can tell if you are in a winning or losing situation by observing the way people treat each other. – Phil Gould (Australian RFL coach and commentator)

division. The excellence of Sam Blott’s throwing-in , Ali Duffey’s tackling, Toby McGill’s work in both the loose and tight, and Patrick Knutson’s scrum-work certainly bodes well for next season. Toby Latham and Eddy Stephen struck up a fine partnership at numbers nine and ten, with excellent support from Ed Cotter, Seb Dobson and Toby Courtis in the centres. Phil Hodgson, Nick Fullick, Alex Reeds and Matt Jones provided pace and great finishing out wide. Sadly we lost Zac Ransome, Jake Wilson, James Bell and Phil Hodgson to injury during the season. All coped remarkably well with the disappointment and I thank them all for their support of the team. Towards the back end of the season our newcomers to the game, Kirill Kullick and Dan Stone played full games for the side against Read’s First XV. In this fixture Tim Chiu, Ed Bower, Sam Colthup and Henry Eyre all added to their reputation on the field. Sadly the match was lost in the dying seconds but it was a great advert for the game in terrible weather conditions . For the lads who played in the Seconds and Thirds this has to be true: squad rotation and the need to give all the players quality game-time is an essential part of organising and coaching these sides. However, it requires enormous maturity and team spirit for it to work properly. Seb Dobson’s outstanding captaincy of the Third XV exemplified this so well; his selfless willingness to lead this team gave the younger lads in the backs a real feeling of security, especially when they played the First Teams of Read School and Scarborough College, and the very physical ‘third’ team from WHG. Success in these fixtures reminded these players that they were playing their rugby at a very good level, and for the Lower Sixth it showed them that first- and second-team rugby should be their aim next season. It was tremendous to see Alex Harrison, Jack Graham, Harry Snell, Euan Taylor, James Bell, James Contreras, Will Waterhouse and Will ‘comedy gold’ Coidan playing so well and providing such good ball for the less-experienced back

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Victory isn’t defined by wins or losses. It is defined by effort. If you can truthfully say, “I did the best I could, I gave everything I had,” then you’re a winner. – Wolfgang Schadler As with the Thirds, the Second XV were blessed with young men of great character. Will Fynn and Guy Hall captained the side with tremendous enthusiasm and set the tone for what would be required on game days. Up front we had an excellent front

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row with Marco Gaias, Josh Stanford, Will Fynn and Ben Gibson all doing the hard yards and showing fine technique in the tight. The athleticism of Will Catchpole and Charlie Smith, and the physicality of Jack Graham in ‘the row’ was a mainstay of our pressure defence and attacking options off phase ball. They were complemented by a hugely mobile and talented back row chosen from Alex Payne, Stuart Tolley, Joe Taylor, Dan Clough and Tristan Prince.

Scrum and lineout dominance in most matches gave our experienced and talented backs the chance to shine. In the really tough games against Barnard Castle, QEGS, Durham and WHG these forwards all fronted up and showed what it means to play for St Peter’s. Harry Snell, Tom McCullagh, Seb Dobson, Sam Blott, Toby McGill and Patrick Knutson all had cameo performances in one or more of these matches and were not found wanting. We were very lucky to have excellent half-backs with Tom Dickinson running the show at number ten all season (except for one game when Eddy Stephen stepped up to the mark against Hymers), and Toby Latham, James Field and briefly, on return from injury, Dylan George at number nine; sadly we lost Alex Eyre during the WHG fixture with a dislocated shoulder, sustained whilst making a try-saving tackle. Our centres, Ed Coates, Tom Calvert and Hugo

Adams, provided us with a strong defensive unit and co-ordinated attacking options. In the back three we had pace and power with Guy Hall leading the way from No 15 and George Gao, Nick Ubhi and Patrick Brown offering real finishing options out wide.

The latter also distinguished himself with a wonderful defensive performance at Barnard Castle that helped to see us home to a very fine victory. We were also lucky to have Oli Leedham on the occasions he was not with the First XV. He stands a very good chance of playing a major role next year. As Colin Clark reflected after the match at Barnard Castle: ‘rugby doesn’t build character, it reveals character.’ I would like to take the opportunity of thanking these Upper-Sixth lads for all that they have given to rugby at St Peter’s. I have had the pleasure of coaching them since the U16s, and hope they have enjoyed the experience as much as I have. I must also thank Colin Clark for his outstanding coaching and help this season and also Lee Paterson for the superb work on defence with all the lads. Once again none of this would have been possible without the help given by both Matthew Grant and Ben White. How we win the game shows something about our character; how we lose it shows all of it. Mr Paddy Stephen

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U16A The squad: David Bird, Alex Gould, Charlie Bellingall, Will Quinn, Tom Robinson, Andrew Hulmes, Douglas Whiter, Freddie Greswold, Luke Mander, Sam Lodge, George Metcalfe, Alex Taylor, Jakob Esler, Max McLeish, Will Kimpson, Josh Ramlingam. Ed Contreras, Scott Buskin, Daniel Jones, Oliver Newman

PLAYED 10

WON 6

LOST 4

The first game of the season, against GSAL, was a difficult start. We were heavily depleted due to circumstances beyond our control; Leeds were a big side and dominated the tight play. The game was not without its highlights, James Bird scoring a magnificent try from a first-phase setpiece move in the backs, but we lost 41-25. Against Giggleswick we proved too strong, winning comfortably 39-20. Hymers also played a direct game. It took us time to realise that we could outmanoeuvre them but once we moved the ball it was a comfortable win, 41-11. The composure of the side away at Ampleforth was commendable: we got to know their numbers nine and seven very well, especially at set-plays, but we lost 17-5. The match against QEGS was excellent. They are a very strong side but we matched them in desire and courage

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for the majority of the game. Our back row and midfield were outstanding. We lost, whilst playing the best we had all season, 15-3. Tom Robinson had a field day against Pocklington and we posted an easy victory, 35-0. Barnard Castle proved a sterner test: we had the backs, and they the front five. We managed to win the game with little possession, 18-15. A belter of a match against RGS Newcastle, everyone making their tackles and attacking the breakdown, resulted in a 15-7 win. Durham School were a very strong pack and we struggled to get any ball, losing 10-3. The last game of the season saw the backs and forwards combine well and beat Bradford GS 36-0.

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their game. In the second row Jake Esler improved considerably. He has the size and technique to be successful at the position. Alex Taylor played well, often helping the team by playing in positions that were not his first choice; sadly, he was too often injured. Sam Lodge at hooker always gave his all. He is a good games player and his throwing-in became consistently good. He has the ability to link up in open play. Luke Mander understands the game and is especially effective in the loose. Some of the front five needed to improve their core stability and their stamina: all too often they were a spent force before the end of the first half. Skill and ability are hard to acquire but fitness is easy - merely a desire and determination to improve. The side has been a pleasure to coach. I wish the players well in their senior rugby. Mr Mike Johnston

Overall this side has potential. At full-back Will Quinn excels. He comes into the line well, and has pace and a strong defence. On the wings David Bird is quick and elusive, and Andy Hulmes is a nimble player. Both need to bulk up their defence if they wish to make First XV. The midfield of Tom Robinson and Charlie Bellingall have the ability to beat a man and the pace to exploit it. Their defence is first-class and little if anything gets through. At fly-half Douglas Whiter challenges the gain line thus helping his centres. He makes good breaks but must learn to link up with his support more readily if he is to reach his potential. Freddie Greswold is a nuggety scrum-half: he has good vision and service, and uses his box-kick well. He cleaned up the ball well at the set where we struggled to give him a good platform. The back row of Will Kimpson, Max McLeish, and Josh Ramlingam are outstanding athletes. They were always in support and often were the first three from either side there. Again a little more bulk would benefit

U15B

P 10

W 10

L 0

F 396

A 49

Even by St Peter’s standards, the enthusiasm shown by the U15B XV this year (although primarily for fried chicken) was second to none from the very start of the season. This squad of players bristling with precocious talent demonstrated admirable camaraderie and teamwork throughout. To this spirit they added a growing awareness of the game and a determination to play fifteen-man rugby which the opposition struggled to contain. Their stand-out achievement was their development over the season as a team unit: their performance to defeat Bradford Grammar School 62-0 in their final game was not only their most convincing victory, but their most polished, against an opposition who refused to throw in the towel notwithstanding the

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scoreline. Very few of the points in that game were the work of an individual, but rather the culmination of the team constructing and converting structured opportunities.

Thubron; Alex Martin; Ian Ho; James Taylor; Ravin Dhesi; Ollie Williams; Sam Stanford; Paddy Hayes; Joe Bates; Jake Stanyon-

Particular highlights for me must include the opening win of the season against a tough GSAL team who pushed us closer than anyone else – an easy hurdle at which to fall, the win away against QEGS, in which every member of the team truly gave their all to get over the finishing line and, most of all, the delight on the team’s faces after the Bradford game at a job well done and, so I’m told, the promise of a team outing yet to come.

Mr Harry Vann

Huge thanks go to Mr Ed Noy Scott for his role as senior coach of the team and resilient referee for all our home games. I started writing a paragraph about those who had put in outstanding performances for the U15B XV, but realised I was essentially just writing out the squad list. The following played in this impressive and hugely entertaining side and can all be proud of their contribution to an excellent season, which could not have been more enjoyable as my first at St Peter’s: Matthew Roberts (Captain); Will Andrews; Will Fryer; Will Huffer; Sam Elliot; Tom Hawksworth; Jonathan Jaworski; George O’Neill; Archie Stephenson; George Ingall; Rory Combe; Sam Lightwing; Ethan

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Carr; Stephen Jones; David Adelugba.

U14A The U14s arrived at St Peter’s fresh from the summer holidays, full of eagerness to impress in their new surroundings. It was certainly clear from the outset that their prep schools had done a great job in preparing them all for senior-school rugby. Each of the boys did their utmost in the week leading up to the first game, which saw a comprehensive win over the Grammar School at Leeds: impressive considering that some of the boys had never played with each other before in a match. Over the initial few weeks of term the squad operated as a unit, gelling together as a new group of players working at the core skills in attack and defence, hitting good lines, working on slick handling, making good pass or kick selections, running good moves and organising themselves in the defensive line. Wins over Woodhouse Grove, Ampleforth, Pocklinton and Hymers saw them only concede 29 points in the first four games. The grudge match of the season was

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against Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, Wakefield, an extremely valiantly-fought game in which the defence withstood wave after wave of attack and showed a real display of determination and creativity going forward, and in which a number of players stood up and made themselves count! The only thing that let them down all day was a lack of self-belief that they could win – without doubt, this will not happen again in the future. The return after half-term saw a few indifferent results – defeats against Bradford and Durham, a nail-biting draw against Royal Grammar School, Newcastle, and only one win, which could be put down to some complacency creeping in among a few of the players – perhaps thinking that the games were too easy – and a lack of resolve to keep improving and to work harder at some of the more complex skills and tactical variations. It is true that they were met by some much larger and stronger opposition in the second half of term, and chinks in the defence opened up too easily allowing opposition runners in without difficulty. In all, the boys had a very enjoyable and fruitful season: they certainly developed their skills all round the pitch and secured a firm grasp of the more intricate game strategies. They will have taken away many lessons from various matters over the winter into their rugby over the next few years. I have enjoyed coaching them and I have enjoyed their company. I wish them all well next season in the NatWest Cup campaign. My thanks to Mr Smith for his valuable input and knowledge during the term. Mr Gareth Sharp

U14B Under-14 rugby is and always will be some of the most exciting we get to see at St Peter’s. Fresh faces arrive – some having already accrued a wealth of rugby-playing experience – and some who have more to learn. Irrespective of what camp you fall into, it’s all to play for. This season, an impressive 29 young talents represented the U14Bs, each one working hard for the team as a whole and embodying the passion and spirit that this wonderful sport is all about. This season started off with a bang. A 71-0 drubbing of GSAL had our boys on cloud nine, and the following weekend an equally impressive display of skill saw another clinical performance from the team, dispatching Giggleswick an equally impressive 77-0.

A string of excellent performances followed: strong forwardplay and clinical finishing by the backs left us with a tally of five consecutive wins. It was the dream start, but could this continue? In short, the answer was no. A spirited Pocklington team pipped a slightly unprepared B/C team amalgamation 19 points to 10, but in many ways this was seen as a tremendous positive for the group. For the first time all season we had some young men on the losing side of a rugby game, and it was a real test of their mettle to see if they could bounce back in the following games, and this they did in exemplary fashion. The rest of the season seemed to go completely as the first half had. We had the usual scything runs from the centre partnership of Ed Thompson and Theo Hedley, more often than not with surging support from Peter Konstantynov. The tireless Charlie Tannahill continued to be a thorn in the opposition’s side, and the raw power of players such as Feifei Rawnsley and Rory Winterburn meant that the side was constantly gaining momentum and were rarely on the back foot. That is of course until the final game of the season and an away game down in cold, wet Bradford.

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The scene was set for an epic. Two sides who had appeared to be almost peerless the entire season would wrestle it out in the drizzle and wind of an exposed Bradford Grammar School pitch. The match that followed was truly a game worthy of the hype. Excellent play from Bradford’s powerful pack and an exquisite display of game control from their fly-half saw Bradford take the lead early on, and following a successful penalty, our young champions were 10-0 down in the first 20 minutes. This was a situation we had never been in before. Might we be on the receiving end of a loss that we were by now so used to handing out? The second half answered this question and spoke volumes for the courage and character of the young men playing with the crossed keys of St Peter emblazoned over their hearts. Fly-half Ben Wilkinson stepped up to the plate and ran the game with aplomb, distributing the ball with ease and releasing his potent runners. A combined forward effort saw the scrum stabilised, the line-outs dominated and quick, clean ball presented to the razor-sharp Ben Raubitschek. The final result: a hard-earned and thoroughlydeserved 17-19 victory. This was without doubt the perfect way to end a tremendous season. True grit and determination was demonstrated by all. The team was selected from: Max Auty; Henry Barker; Marcus Brown; Marcus Dobson; Harry Exley-Moore; Zac Faithfull; William Farr; Nathan Goyea; Oscar Hales; Theo Hedley; Tom House; Oliver Hughes; Spencer Ingall; Ed Johnson; Peter Konstantynov; Alex Leahy; Chris Nelson; Ben Parkes; Ben Raubitschek; Feifei Rawnsley; Charles Smith; Charlie Tannahill; Ed Thompson; Marcus Thomson; Ed Turvill; Matt Ubhi; Zaki Ward; Ben Wilkinson; Rory Winterburn. GSAL Giggleswick Hymers Ampleforth QEGS Pocklington Barnard Castle RGS Newcastle Durham

Away Away Away Away Away Home Away Away Home

Won Won Won Won Won Lost Won Won Won

71 - 0 77 - 0 63 - 0 72 - 0 67 - 0 19 - 10 78 - 0 49 - 7 54 - 12

Bradford GS

Away

Won

19 - 17

Mr David Robinson

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Sevens The U16 and First Sevens teams travelled down to Rosslyn Park for the largest schools rugby tournament in the world, which attracts the best rugby-playing schools in the UK. The U16 Competition had 160 schools entered. We managed to win our group well with a play-off game at the end of the day against Dartford Grammar. A good win there put us into the last 16. Playing a very strong Welsh team we were 12-0 down at halftime, but magnificent determination saw us score two tries in the second half to win 14-12. The quarter-finals put us against one of the favourite teams Sedbergh. Again trailing with one minute to go we scored a length-of-the-pitch try to win the game by two points. The semi-final against Wellington was to be our last game unfortunately, but to finish in the top four teams in the country was a special achievement and the furthest an U16 St Peter’s team has gone in this tournament. Well done to the U16 Sevens team. The First VII won the group well with a great win over Bromsgrove School, but a loss in the play-off game put us into the Plate competition the following day. The quarter-finals saw us in a pool with Hymers and St Joseph Williamson School. After two wins we were through to the semi-finals with Clifton College and RGS Newcastle. Playing our best rugby we beat Clifton College 26-5 and then drew with RGS Newcastle 12-12. This put us into the final against Marlborough College, but unfortunately we lost this match against a strong side 33-5. With 172 teams entering, to reach the final of the Plate is a magnificent achievement: well done to First VII. First VII squad: Dylan George, Dominic Marsh, Will Pepper, Harry Stothard, Harry Richardson, Ben Williams, Cormac Hopkinson, Charlie Elliot, T.Dickinson, Oli Leedham, Oliver Smith

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U16 Sevens A trophy carries dust. Memories last forever. – Mary Lou Retton Under-16 Sevens is undertaken by a group of very committed young men who do this activity alongside their other formal options and academic work. This group achieved so much because they worked as a squad and supported each other at all times. Often during the term the weather was awful; at other times we were unable to enter tournaments despite the lads’ desire to do so. Consequently, vital match experience was lost. Despite this, the lads worked extremely hard and gained a great deal of confidence from good performances at both Durham and QEGS. It is often in defeat that you learn the most, and this was certainly the case with these lads. They listened to and acted on the advice they were given; adapted well to different styles of opposition and performed their skills under pressure with increasing confidence. All this came together in the last game at QEGS where we beat a very good Ampleforth side by 30 points to finish third on the day. The kick-off strategy worked on by Charlie Simpson-Daniel and the defensive press coached into them by Lee Patterson were superb and gave us a huge boost before setting off to Rosslyn Park. Sadly Andy Hulmes and Alex Taylor were unable to go to London; however this allowed our two U15s, Charlie Rae and Will Fordy, who had impressed so much at QEGS, to travel with us. Rosslyn Park proved a tremendous end to a most enjoyable season. All the lads did their bit on the two days we competed, and showed themselves to be very competitive, physical in defence and calm in attack. The kick-offs proved a real weapon with Freddie Greswold, Dougie Whiter or Will Quinn choosing the option and kicking, and Will Kimpson, Sam Hudson and Tom Robinson chasing them down like ‘dogs of war’. They became very good at the transition from defence into attack and David Bird’s pace and fearless defending led to a number of turnover tries. It was very useful on the first day to be able to bring on the substitutes and know that they were just as focused as the players being replaced. Charlie Bellingall, Will Fordy, Charlie Rae and Rohan Choudhury all came on and added fresh legs and enthusiasm with Rohan’s first-touch try in the opening game a message to all. We were not expected to get out of the group, so the parents of some of our competing schools were overheard to say!! Well, four wins out of four – including a fine win over a very confident Warwick

side – saw us into the knockout round. In a very physical match with Dartford we were not found wanting when a ‘bit of dog’ was required, thanks Tom, Sam and Freddie! This win took the team through to the second day. Our first match was against Strade from Wales (the Ospreys academy side!); in a pulsating game we went behind only for our collective belief to rise again to produce a wonderful win. All ten lads played their part with Rohan sadly sidelined by illness. By this stage we were tired and any notion of a best side and subs was long forgotten. All the lads knew that Sedbergh were up next and we would need them all to perform to win that game. It was an outstanding fourteen minutes of sevens; great kick-off, pressure applied, turn over conceded and eventually the first score. We then defended superbly under huge pressure and only conceded with a minute to go. They kicked deep, we kept cool under pressure, and Charlie Rae saw the gap and went 70 yards to score the winning try. It sounds so simple but it was not: the lads really put their bodies on the line and played with a passion and sense of collective belief that they overcame a very good side to reach the semi-finals. Wellington simply proved that little bit too good for us at that stage; despite scoring the final points in the dying seconds of the match we lost a hard-fought game. The only trophy we won this day, was the blood and sweat we left on the pitch.... and it was enough. That being said, I am not sure that is how the lads really felt having lost a game they so desperately wanted to win. I would leave it with the following quote from Vince Lombardi. The last ‘–‘ in the quote is important: we did not win the trophy, but in my opinion the boys were victorious on those two days. I firmly believe that any man’s finest hour, the greatest fulfilment of all that he holds dear, is that moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle victorious. Squad; Sam Hudson* (Captain), Tom Robinson*, Will Kimpson*, Freddie Greswold*, Douglas Whiter*, Will Quinn*, David Bird*, Charlie Bellingall*, Rohan Choudhury*, Will Fordy*, Charlie Rae*, Alex Taylor, Andrew Hulmes (*Rosslyn Park) Mr Paddy Stephen

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NETBALL First, Second, Third and Fourth VIIs The introduction of strength and conditioning into the netball programme this year has added focus and edge to a talented squad of players. An intense and short season, crammed full of fixtures and training, saw significant strides made in our tactical and technical play. Over 100 matches have been played across the age-groups in the season with the loss of only ten. The First VII opened their season with a triangular match against Giggleswick and Ampleforth, convincingly winning both matches. The shooting combination of Keira Barnard and Scarlett Shaw offered confidence under the post, enabling inroads to be made in the shooting circle and key turnovers mid-court kept the opposition in check.

In the same match the Second VII kept a tight defence with Olivia and Francesca Anderson key in keeping the ball predominately in the attacking third, and accurate shooting from Emma Stephenson and Emma Rawson guaranteed a 16-2 win over Ampleforth and a 16-6 victory against Giggleswick. The pattern was repeated in the Third VII triangular, and the fourth team also proved too strong. All teams had signalled their intent for the season and the process of tailoring training and shaping teams was in full swing. The following week the seniors took to the courts again in a block fixture against Worksop. For the First VII this contest proved a greater challenge, but an early test of resolve enabled the team to cling to a one-shot lead and produce a crucial turnover to win the match 25-23. The second team again proved too strong, winning 30-7, and such is the strength and depth of the girls that the third and fourth teams also won.

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Playing against GSAL (the national schools’ runners-up) mid-week is always a learning-curve and a good opportunity to experience the next level. The Firsts took a hit and learned a lot about discipline and error-rate, playing an experienced side where winning had become a habit. The Seconds held their nerve and edged a 17-13 win in a test of nerves under pressure. The following week the Seconds and Thirds were successful against Hymers College mid-week, with all the teams playing a block fixture against RGS Newcastle on the Saturday. The First VII defended with ferocity in the opposition ‘D’ to create successful turnovers and pressurise the shooters well. This enabled the team to create a comfortable lead which they retained over four quarters to win the match 29-20. The Second VII played their match of the season with a 45-3 victory, characterised by considerate team work and exceptional movement in the circle. The Thirds outplayed their equivalent team 34-3, and the Fourths were disappointed by a no-show, but played a reduced game to beat the Thirds 11-1. The season highlight came in the final fixture of February when St Peter’s girls competed against Sedbergh to achieve a cleansweep in every age-group. Three senior teams took to the courts and again strength in depth was a critical factor as all the teams played with commitment and discipline to achieve a fabulous set of results. The first team began a little frantically, but by the third quarter they had established a comfortable lead and were playing with increased confidence to make impressive steals in the defensive third. Shooting under pressure became a key feature in the final quarter, leading to a 28-25 victory.

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Ten teams took to the courts against Ashville in all agegroups with three out of the four seniors winning. The season-end against Queen Margaret’s was disrupted by the weather, but the Firsts proved their worth with a 4319 win whilst the Seconds won 33-24. A tremendous season. The following represented the First VII: Olivia Anderson, Frankie Anderson, Tansy Tomlinson, Harriet Andrews (Captain), Sasha Hinde, Scarlett Shaw, Pippa Martin, Keira Barnard. The following represented the Second VII: Josie Proctor, Georgia Calvert, Siân Bigger, Emma Stephenson (Captain), Sarah Willis, Emma Rawson, Elle Illingworth, Millie Grant, Katharine Phillips. The following represented the Third and Fourth VIIs: Katherine Raines, Marianne Spencer, India Bratton, Rosalind Tait, Xanthe Cooke, Izzy Hall (Captain), Eve Adcock, Georgie Ward, Maddie Palmer, Issy Hedley, Lucy Galloway, Cera Ledden, Ellie Dobson, Olivia Collins, Lucy Garnett. Closer to home, the Inter-House netball results were as follows: Juniors 1st 2nd 3rd 4th

Grove Clifton Queen’s Hope

Mrs Helen Barnard

1st 2nd 3rd 4th

Seniors Grove Hope Dronfield School

Results First VII 8/1/14 11/1/14 18/1/14 22/1/14 1/2/14 5/2/14 8/2/14 1/3/14 5/3/14 8/3/14 12/3/14

Hull Collegiate Ampleforth Giggleswick Worksop GSAL RGS Newcastle Barnard Castle Ashville Sedbergh Silcoates Pocklington Yarm

Second, Third & Fourth VIIs 8/1/14 2nd VII Hull Collegiate 11/1/14 2nd VII Ampleforth Giggleswick 3rd VII Ampleforth 3rd VII Giggleswick 4th VII Ampleforth 4th VII Giggleswick 18/1/14 2nd VII Worksop 3rd VII Worksop U16 Worksop 22/1/14 2nd VII GSAL 29/1/14 U16A Hymers U16B Hymers 1/2/14 2nd VII RGS Newcastle 3rd VII 4th VII 5/2/14 2nd VII Barnard Castle 8/2/14 2nd VII Ashville 3rd VII Ashville 4th VII Ashville 1/3/14 2nd VII Sedbergh 3rd VII Sedbergh 5/3/14 2nd VII Bootham 3rd VII Bootham 4th VII The Mount 1st VII 8/3/14 2nd VII Pocklington 3rd VII Pocklington 12/3/14 2nd VII Yarm 3rd VII Yarm 4th VII Yarm

D W W W L W D L W W W W

10-10 21-16 18-11 25-23 17-58 29-20 24-24 24-27 28-25 27-15 23-9 22-14

L W W W W W W W W W W W W W W W W W W W W W W W L W W L W W

5-7 16-2 16-6 27-1 25-1 17-1 21-2 3-17 33-14 22-6 17-13 28-12 33-10 45-2 34-3 19-8 24-2 19-9 18-13 35-6 25-17 31-21 23-22 23-9 10-21 22-18 26-15 21-30 28-16 22-15

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U15 The U15 A and B girls’ netball teams made pleasing progress during the season. There was a large number of girls involved, and they showed a huge amount of commitment both in training and in matches. This was reflected in the improvements they made both individually and as a team throughout the season.

In two very close matches at the start of the season the A team beat Harrogate Ladies’ College 18-16, and drew with Worksop College 20-20, whilst the B team lost to a strong Barnard Castle team and then beat Worksop College convincingly 35-14.

Against Woodhouse Grove, they responded quickly to the increased tempo of the game, and put in a strong performance. Despite this they struggled to convert goal-scoring opportunities, and as a result were beaten in both games.

Both teams continued to work hard in practice and made particularly pleasing improvements in their movement of the ball down the court when under pressure. The girls’ fitness levels improved throughout the season, and in some of the tougher games, this was particularly evident and important in the closing minutes! The A team played two extremely competitive matches in the same week, against Woodhouse Grove and Ashville College.

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Both A and B teams competed in the York and District tournament, and were eventual winners of their respective competitions. Despite some terrible weather conditions, the teams worked well to maintain possession of the ball, and to score some impressive goals. The B team in particular persevered in some very close matches. Over the course of the season we were also able to field a number of C-team matches. It was particularly good to see the strength of those players involved in these matches, and great to see such numbers available for these games. This was an excellent season for all those involved, showing depth

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throughout the squads, and some exciting potential for the future. I wish all of those involved the very best as they move up into the senior age-groups. The following girls represented the U15 netball squads this year: Tilly James, Jenny Elliott, Amelia Bell, Jess Webster, Beth Hartley, Phoebe Phillips, Olivia Calvert, Annabelle Blackburn, Eleanor Brierley, Emma Nelson, Catherine Hughes, Ellie Caley, Rowan Tait, Helen Ford, Gaby Richardson, Ellie Richardson, Alice Gilman, Lucy Leedham, Emily Kelly, Mia Morris, Sophie Gill, Nicole Moir, Edith Norvor, Iva Sharp, Eve Bracken. Results U15A Harrogate Worksop College The Mount RGS Newcastle Woodhouse Grove Ashville College Sedbergh Pocklington

W D W W L L W W

18 - 16 20 - 20 16 - 11 16 - 4 16 - 25 14 - 18 22 - 10 32 - 9

U14 All three of the U14 teams had a very good season with the U14A team losing out on qualifying for the national finals by just one point. All the players must be congratulated for their commitment and enthusiasm as they represented the school with both humility and pride. The B and C teams improved greatly and had to up their game on a number of occasions as they played against opposing teams’ A squads. The A team statistics probably sums up their season: in the school fixtures they remained unbeaten, scoring an impressive 255 goals and conceding just 56 in 11 matches! The shooters, attack and defence were all equally impressive. As well as being a very skilful team the girls showed a high level of physicality, often winning the 50:50 ball in their favour and turning over the opposition’s centre pass on many occasions before converting it into a goal. In

U15B Barnard Castle Worksop Woodhouse Grove Ashville College Sedbergh The Mount Pocklington

L W W W W W W

12 - 21 35 - 14 17 - 9 20 - 7 33 - 11 27 - 14 28 - 12

Mrs Emma Brough

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The following girls represented the C team: Grace Zhang, Emily McDonald, Annabel Ellis, Holly Drake, Lucy Palmer, Phoebe Hall, and Alana Greenhalgh Team U14A U14B 18 Jan U14A U14B 22 Jan U14 A U14 C 1 Feb U14A U14B 8 Feb U14A 9 Feb U14B U14C 1 March U14A U14B 8 March U14A U14B 12 March U14A U14B 22 March U14A 11 Jan

a number of games the players changed positions and, at times, it was difficult to find anyone that could not shoot! Importantly, though, the girls always played within the spirit of the game, displaying high levels of sportsmanship. The B team were equally impressive. In order to give them hard games we often had to play opposing A teams, such was their strength and ability. They too were unbeaten and racked up lots of goals! I wish the girls well as they progress through to U15 netball. It has also been pleasing to note that a number of the girls decided to trial for the North Yorkshire satellite netball academy.

The following girls represented the A team: Emily Booth, Izzy Viera, Katarina Bonner, Anabel Chan, Felicity Edwards, Katherine Robinson, Rebecca Green, Maddie Bletcher (Captain) and Alex Craig. The following girls represented the B team: Lucy Lawrence, Lucy Lovisetto, Anabel Chan, Sophie Green, Emelia Proctor, Maddie Hunter, Lucy Dabbs, Lucy Moss (Captain), Eva Carlyle

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Opposition Harrogate Ladies’ College Barnard Castle A Worksop Worksop The Mount The Mount B RGS Newcastle RGS Newcastle Ashville Ashville Ashville Sedbergh Sedbergh Pocklington Pocklington Yarm Yarm Queen Margaret’s

Mrs Justine Williams

Result W 23 W 24 W 37 W 39 W 21 L 25 W 16 W 11 W 50 W 27 L 11 W 31 W 30 W 32 W 29 D 17 W 27 W 18

- 10 - 20 - 0 - 8 - 6 - 14 - 6 - 5 - 0 - 4 - 15 - 11 - 9 - 23 - 9 - 17 - 16 - 6

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GIRLS’ HOCKEY First XI Following a fantastic tour of South Africa, and a packed preseason programme, the girls made a very positive start to the 2014 season. In their first match, against Ashville College, despite having numerous chances early on in the game, it was 15 minutes before St Peter’s were able to convert a well-worked goal. Ashville then scored a breakaway goal, leaving the score 1-1 at half-time. Despite some excellent saves by Ashville’s goalkeeper, they were unable to maintain the pace and let in a further two goals in the second half. The final score was 3-1 to St Peter’s. After the strong start against Ashville College, the girls began slowly against a tough Barnard Castle side in their second game of the season. Despite a number of good chances for St Peter’s, the score remained 0-0 at half-time. However the St Peter’s girls came out fighting in the second half and scored their first goal very quickly. This seemed to calm the team down and they began to play some excellent hockey, creating fantastic chances. A second goal quickly followed and the game ended at 2-0. This was an excellent performance by all involved and gave an insight into what the team would be capable of as the season progressed. The girls’ season continued to gather momentum as they also dominated their matches against Ripon Grammar, Giggleswick, Hull Collegiate and Hymers College.

As is often the case, there were few ‘bumps in the road’ as the season progressed; the first of which was a disappointing result against Ampleforth. A determined Ampleforth team put pressure on St Peter’s from the outset, scoring in the first five minutes of the game. Ampleforth were clearly keen to beat St Peter’s after they had lost to them on the previous Wednesday in the final of the U18 National Schools’ county round. St Peter’s started slowly, and failed to respond to the Ampleforth pressure, dropping deeper and deeper, and subsequently letting in three goals before halftime. After the break they were more competitive, and following some much more positive runs of play they managed to pull a goal back. Unfortunately they had left it far too late on this occasion, and the game ended in a 3-1 defeat. As previously mentioned, the U18 team were victorious and unbeaten in the county round of National Schools’ Hockey Competition, and having progressed to the North-East Finals were extremely unlucky to lose out to Greenhead College 2-1 in the semi-finals. This put them out of the competition. This was particularly galling as Yarm progressed through from the other semi-final match with a team that St Peter’s beat 8-0 in a midweek match the following week. One of the most pleasing games of the season in terms of emphasising the depth of the squads at St Peter’s was against Worksop. With a number of players unavailable for this fixture because of a national netball competition, this was a great opportunity for some of those who had been playing in the second team to show their potential. The team started

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confidently, setting a high press, and winning lots of ball inside their attacking 23m line. However, it wasn’t until 20 minutes into the game that they were able to score their first goal, following some well-worked play out of defence and into attack. St Peter’s then dominated the rest of the game, with a number of chances on goal (converting two of them), and Worksop’s only goal came from one of our own players, following some confusion over the ‘own goal’ rule. This was an extremely positive performance by those involved, and was a testament to the quality of players that we have had throughout the squads this year. The penultimate game of the season, against Sedbergh, was by far the most exciting and impressive. The first team were unfortunate to lose in a game where they were leading until four minutes before full-time. In the first half St Peter’s absorbed a lot of pressure in defence, but failed to produce many effective outlets within their own half. The score remained 0-0 going into half-time, and with a few changes to their formation, St Peter’s came out positively in the second half. With their play looking much better, they were able to produce some mature runs into the 23m area, and

converted their first short corner very efficiently to lead the game 1-0 with 15 minutes left to play! Sedbergh continued to force the mistakes inside St Peter’s ‘D’, resulting in them scoring two goals within the final four minutes of the game. Despite the eventual outcome, the girls showed real grit and determination against extremely strong opposition who had qualified for the National Finals. This really showed the potential within the squad and how far they had developed as a team and as individual players over the season. The season concluded with a match at Pocklington, where St Peter’s were eventual 3-1 winners. This was an extremely positive game which highlighted the improvements made in moving the ball around effectively when under increasing pressure. The girls created a number of chances, and everyone thoroughly enjoyed the game. The season was pleasing both in terms of results and team development. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the girls who were part of the squads this year for their continually high levels of effort and motivation. It has been a pleasure! Mrs Emma Brough The following girls represented the first team this year: Harriet Andrews, Ilana Bartlett, Eleanor Fletcher, Minna Gabbertas, Millie Grant, Alice Greswold, Sally Hicks, Sasha Hinde, Elle Illingworth, Hannah Lawrence, Ellie Martin, Zoe Pindar, Josie Proctor (Captain), Scarlett Shaw, Emma Stephenson, Helen Taylor.

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First XI results: Queen Margaret’s Ashville College GSAL Barnard Castle Giggleswick Ampleforth Worksop College Hymers College Yarm Sedbergh WGHS Pocklington

D W W W W L W W W L L W

1 3 3 2 5 3 3 4 8 2 2 3

- - - - - - - - - - - -

1 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 1

The following girls represented the second team this season: Sarah Carlton, Ilana Bartlett, Chloe Burdass, Rachel Hall, Siân Bigger, Helen Megone, Emily Carman, Annabel Blott, Sasha Hinde, Anna Fairbank, Jess House, Alicia Cranston, Georgia Calvert, Helen Taylor. Second XI results: Queen Margaret’s Barnard Castle Ripon Grammar Giggleswick Ampleforth Bootham Worksop Hymers College Yarm GSAL Sedbergh

W W W W W W W W W D W

2 2 4 4 6 5 1 1 1 3 3

- - - - - - - - - - -

0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0

Third and Fourth XI

Second XI The second team had a fantastic season in which they were unbeaten. The girls showed increasing confidence and patience as the season progressed, and produced some excellent and exciting performances as a result. The commitment and effort of all of the girls involved was second to none, and they should be extremely proud of all that they achieved this season. The performances against Ampleforth and Worksop College were particularly pleasing, showing real tactical understanding and effective teamwork, and producing some fantastic goal-scoring opportunities too! An extremely pleasing season all round: very well done, girls! Mr Ramli

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The standard of play in the third and fourth teams this season once again demonstrated the huge pool of talent within the girls’ hockey programme. The third team had an exceptional (unbeaten) season, winning all eight of their fixtures including those against Sedbergh, Ashville, Worksop, Hymers and Ampleforth. Playing with fluency and shape under the guidance of their team coaches, Mr Phil Hardy and Mrs Helen Barnard, the improvement over the season was immeasurable. Fitness levels, discipline and subsequent work-rate proved crucial in creating breaks and scoring opportunities, in a season characterised by team-work and camaraderie. The fourth team played with equal commitment and enjoyment, bringing great spirit and determination to the pitch. Mr Phil Hardy and Mrs Helen Barnard

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The following girls represented the third and fourth teams this season: Emily Williams, Rachel Simpson, Lauren Caley, Keira Barnard, Pippa Martin, Katie Harrison (Captain), Sarah Willis, Izzy Hall, Hannah Whitehouse, Millie Clapham, Ellie Dobson, Imogen Jefferies, Pippa Simpson, Farrell Voase, Georgie Ward, Tilly Antrum, Jess Scott, Lizzie Whiter, Katherine Raines, Maddie Palmer, Olivia Shread, Lucy Hunter. Third XI results: Ampleforth Queen Mary’s Ashville Barnard Castle Ripon Grammar Giggleswick Yarm Worksop College Sedbergh

W W W W W W W W D

6 1 1 3 2 8 4 3 1

- - - - - - - - -

0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1

Fourth XI results: Ripon Grammar Hymers College Pocklington 3rd XI Sedbergh 3rd XI

L W L L

0 3 0 0

- - - -

6 1 5 1

U16 National Schools’ Hockey Competition The U16 girls progressed to the North-East of England qualifiers in the national schools’ competition where the top eight schools in the region fought it out for the two places in the North finals. The first match was against Red House School, whom the girls had not played before. The St Peter’s forward line put on some great pressure from the outset, which led to a goal midway through the first half. The game remained close but the girls held their nerve to win the game 1-0. The second was against Pocklington, and the girls displayed a fantastic work-ethic and determination to prevent the opposition from creating any clear chances at goal.

Shortly into the second half a flowing attacking move from Peter’s led to a goal and the game ended with another 1-0 win. The confidence was high going into the semi-final and undoubtedly the most difficult game against Barnard Castle. The girls gave a great account of themselves but the score remained 0-0 after full time and the team subsequently lost on penalty flicks. The following girls represented U16 team this season: Annabelle Blackburn, Olivia Calvert, Alice Connelly-Bosson, Julia Crowther, Eleanor Dobson (Captain), Jenny Elliott, Helen Ford, Jess House, Emma Nelson, Phoebe Phillips, Olivia Shread, Pippa Simpson, Jess Webster, Ellie Caley, Amelia Bell.

U15A The school fixtures presented some mixed results for the U15A girls this season. To merely measure the season by the outcomes of the games would be unfair given the positive progress made as a team. The opening game against Queen Margaret’s was an eye-opening experience for the girls as the opposition worked tirelessly with and without the ball to deservedly take a 4-1 win. The result helped to kick-start the season and the girls went on to win their next two matches, against Ashville and Barnard Castle. With the term in full swing and commitments to other academic areas meaning the U15As had to call on promising players from U15Bs, the girls played a tough fixture against Bradford Grammar School. Despite narrowly losing the game, the performance was very pleasing. The next fixture in the calendar was against local rivals, Ampleforth. St Peter’s dominated in possession from start to finish but were unable to capitalise and the opposition broke away in the second half to snatch the game away. Despite this disappointing result, spirit and confidence remained high towards the end of the season, and it all came together with the girls winning the four remaining games, against Worksop, Hymers, Sedbergh and Pocklington. I have no doubt that this strong squad of girls will positively contribute to the senior teams next year. Finally my thanks to all members of the squad who represented the school in such a good spirit and gave maximum effort throughout the season. Mr Oliver Couttie The following girls represented U15A team this season: Phoebe Phillips (Captain), Jess Webster, Annabelle Blackburn, Jenny Elliott, Amelia Bell, Helen Ford, Isabella Cotter, Emma Nelson, Julia Crowther, Ellie Caley, Alice Connelly-Bosson, Olivia Calvert, Gaby Richardson, Catherine Hughes, Lucy Leedham, Mia Morris, Tilly-Mae James.

U15B The U15B girls’ hockey team made pleasing progress during the season. Having worked hard in training, and shown great enthusiasm, they played some highly competitive matches, winning against Ampleforth, Worksop and Pocklington to name but a few. Overall this was an enjoyable season of hockey, with

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signs of some much improved and very strong attacking play towards the end of the term. I wish all the girls well as they enter the senior hockey teams. Miss Wilson The following girls represented the U15B team this season: Alice Connelly-Bosson, Tilly-Mae James, Esme Wright, Lucy Leedham, Ellie Richardson, Emily Kelly, Catherine Hughes, Alice Gilman, Mia Morris, Nicole Moir, Rose Gabbertas, Cassie Bythell, Sophie Gill, Alice Jackson, Gaby Richardson. U15A Results Queen Margaret’s Ashville College Barnard Castle Bradford Grammar Ampleforth Worksop College Hymers College Sedbergh Pocklington

L W W L L W W W W

1 6 3 1 1 1 1 5

- - - - - - - -

4 0 2 2 0 0 0 0

U15B Results Ampleforth Queen Mary’s Giggleswick Hill House Ampleforth Worksop College Hymers College

W L L W W W L

2 0 1 2 3 1 2

- - - - - - -

0 1 5 0 0 0 0

hard to believe that the previous season they had only played seven-a-side matches. As the season progressed both teams went from strength to strength. As the girls’ fitness improved, and their understanding of the 11-a-side-game increased, they became a formidable force. The U14s enter the national schools’ competition and this season they had a fantastic run in the competition, reaching the final of the North of England. They lost narrowly in the semi-finals meaning they were placed third, missing out on a finals position by just the one game. I’d like to take this opportunity to say what a pleasure it has been to teach the U14 girls who chose to play hockey this year. Their good humour, commitment and reliability is to name just a few of their strengths: they are clearly going to be a formidable force as they progress through the school! Mrs Justine Williams The following girls represented the U14A team: Lucy Butters, Lucy Lovisetto, Katherine Robinson, Rebecca Green, Lucy Lawrence, Charlotte Hollinrake, Izzy Viera, Alex Craig, Madeleine Hunter (Captain), Emilia Proctor, Lucy Dabbs, Sophie Green, Katarina Bonner and Anabel Chan. The following girls represented the U14B team: Emily McDonald, Eva Carlyle, Imogen Matthews, Phoebe Hall, Annabel Fox, Lucy Moss, Annabel Ellis, Holly Drake, Kitty Clapham, Madeleine Bletcher, Emily Booth, Lydia Palmer (Captain).

U14A and U14B It was a fantastic first season for both the A and B hockey squads. The talented players who came through from St Olave’s were joined by a number of very strong players who came to St Peter’s. As the results table indicates, the majority of games resulted in victories for both the A and B teams, in fact in order to make the games more competitive for our B team, they played (whenever possible) A teams. It was clear from the first training session that we were going to have two equally strong teams and that the contest for places was going to be very competitive. The first fixtures of the season, against Scarborough College for the A team and Ampleforth for the B team, gave the players the opportunity to start working as a team and to actually play an 11-a-side game. Luckily all the girls stepped up to the mark and played well-structured games. It was

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U14A Results Scarborough College Queen Margaret’s AshvilleCollege Barnard Castle Bradford Grammar Giggleswick Ampleforth Worksop College Hymers College Pocklington

W W W W W W D W W W

U14B Results Ampleforth Queen Margaret’s Queen Mary’s Ripon Grammar Barnard Castle Tadcaster Hymers College Sedbergh Pocklington

W W W L W D L W W

2 -0 2 - 0 11 - 0 4 - 0 12 - 1 4 - 1 1 - 1 4 - 0 3 - 0 2 - 0

2 3 2 0 6 2 1 3 3

- - - - - - - - -

1 1 0 1 0 2 2 0 0

Inter-house hockey results:

1st Clifton 2nd School

3rd Hope 4th Queen’s

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BOYS’ HOCKEY This has been the most successful season of hockey at St Peter’s School: • County Champions at U14 U15 and U16 age-groups. • North-East Champions at U14 U15 and U16 age-groups. • North of England champions at U16, and qualified for the national finals. Credit must go to all the players and coaches who have worked so hard for many seasons to make this achievement possible. Mr Mike Johnston

First XI The season has been one of transition for the first-team boys’ hockey at St Peter’s. The team was a combination of senior campaigners such as Tom Dickinson (Captain), Will Scholey and James Greenall, with the young talents of Freddie Heijbroek, Oliver Fryer and Alex Martin. The beginning of senior fixtures saw the First XI testing their wits against Worksop College, Egglescliffe School and Trent College, who are well-regarded and successful sides in the school hockey circuit. The first match on the calendar saw a 5-1 defeat against Worksop. Worksop always offer a tough test and it was no different this year. The boys came under early pressure and Worksop did eventually open the scoring ten minutes before half-time, and scored again shortly after the break. St Peter’s responded with a good steal from Ben Williams as he calmly placed the ball past the goalie. The game remained competitive until the final ten minutes, when weary legs could not keep out a flourish of goals from Worksop to end the game. St Peter’s came across a very strong Egglescliffe side in their first round of the national cup. Egglescliffe, who had recently been playing the national finals of the indoor, started the game in

explosive fashion. St Peter’s were overwhelmed with the intensity and skills of Egglescliffe in the first half and went into half-time four goals down. The second half was more evenly matched, with the boys showing a lot more composure on the ball. The game ended 6-1 and a fair reflection of the quality of the opposition. Although the boys suffered two defeats, their confidence remained high going into the Giggleswick game, knowing that their efforts were unquestionable but better decisions in the final third needed to made. The game was closely contested with St Peter’s moving the ball well and playing at a high intensity. The possession and movement took its toll on Giggleswick midway through the first half and a great passing move was finished with a goal. St Peter’s continued to pass the ball around with confidence and purpose in the second half, which resulted in another goal to win the game 2-0. St Peter’s played extremely well against a very strong Trent College side, who boasted a number of scholarship and overseas players. The team in spells matched Trent in the way they moved the ball around the pitch, but just lacked composure in front of goal, losing 4-0. The game against the invitational Styx’s team allowed the First XI a chance to test their skills against two current junior internationals, two ex-internationals and a number of ex-county players. The boys started slowly and conceded

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scored a fortuitous goal and managed to deny QEGS a goal before half-time. The second half saw a more evenly-contested match, with both sides showing high levels of skill and effort. With ten minutes left QEGS did manage to break the deadlock, as a hit into the defensive circle was deflected in by member of the St Peter’s team, and the game finished a goal apiece. The remaining two fixtures of term saw St Peter’s win comfortably 3-0 against a determined Yarm School and lose again against Ampleforth, 4-2, in a game which followed a similar pattern to the first match. I would personally like to thank all the squad for showing great commitment and excellent effort during this challenging term of hockey. I wish you all the best for future. The following represented the First XI (*denotes cap): Tom Dickinson*, Toby Latham, Sam Dickinson, Will Scholey*, Finlay Criag, Oliver Leedham, Charlie Elliot, Ben Williams, Oliver Fryer, Freddie Hiejbroek, Alex Martin, James Greenall*, Jack Crowther, Tom Calvert, Alexander Eyre, Sam Blott, Oliver Smith, Nick Fullick, Will Kimpson. Mr Oliver Couttie two early goals through lapses of concentration in defence. As the half progressed St Peter’s imposed themselves on the game and duly deserved their goal before half-time. The second half continued in the same fashion and St Peter’s scored consecutively to draw level with ten minutes remaining. Whilst pressing for the winning goal, the Styx counter-attacked and through good fortune the ball found its way to an attacker who finished well, meaning that we lost 4-3. The fixtures came thick and fast in this very busy and short term for the pupils. Ampleforth proved to be an evenly-contested match but the teams were separated by the opposition’s ability to finish their chances. St Peter’s moved the ball around the pitch well but missed a number of attacking opportunities. The game was played with good spirit and lots of effort, with the final result a 3-0 defeat. Scarborough College was indisputably the best performance of season for the boys, as they won the game 3-2. The young guns led the way in this match, showing great skills, lots of endeavour and maturity beyond their years to control the game. QEGS usually offer a stern test for the boys but both teams had a number a key players missing which made it an even contest. After a resilient effort in defence for the first ten minutes, St Peter’s

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Second XI RESULTS 11 Jan 18 Jan 25 Jan 29 Jan 1 Feb 8 Feb 1 March 8 March 19 March 22 March

H H A A A H A H A H

Worksop College Giggleswick School Trent College Ashville College Ampleforth College Pocklington School Scarborough College Ashville College Pocklington School Ampleforth College

L W L L D L W D L W

0 - 6 4 - 1 0 - 8 1 - 2 3 - 3 1 - 5 4 - 0 1 - 1 2 - 8 3 - 2

SUMMARY: PLAYED 10, WON 3, DREW 2, LOST 5; GOALS FOR 19, GOALS AGAINST 36 The following boys represented the team: Hugo Adams, Alexander Eyre, Sam Blott, Tom Calvert, Dan Clough, Toby Courtis, Finlay Craig, Jack Crowther, Sam Dickinson, Seb Dobson, Alistair Duffey, Charlie Elliott, Will Emery, Henry Eyre, Nick Fullick, Toby Latham, Oliver Leedham, Sam Lodge, Sam Metcalfe, Tom McCullagh, Ollie Proctor, Zac Ransom, Eddy Stephen. The first match was at home to Worksop College, played at York St John University pitch, with the side captained by Seb Dobson. Worksop scored a very early goal, after only two minutes, but the game then settled down to be quite even, Sam Metcalfe and Alistair Duffey going close with two good chances. Worskop added a second just before half-time from a well-worked penalty corner. Charlie Elliott made a great goal-line save to keep the score at 2-0 at half time. Straight after half-time Worksop scored a third goal and followed this with three more very quickly, the score finishing 6-0 to Worksop College. The following Saturday the team played

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Giggleswick School on the Hubbard. Alistair Duffey opened the scoring after nine minutes, this remaining the only score up to half-time in a closely-contested match. Once again a lapse in concentration allowed Giggleswick to equalise at the start of the second half. This was followed by a hat-trick from Nick Fullick to make the score 4-1 at full-time. A journey to Trent College was the next Saturday game, in which the team lost 8-0. Dan Clough was ill so Tom McCullagh took over in goal but he could not prevent the flow of goals. It was 5-0 at half-time, and the side then rallied to create a couple of chances, only conceding further goals late on, before the heavens opened with a thunderstorm. Next was a Wednesday game away at Ashville College. We were a given a first-half lead by Sam Metcalfe, but in the second half Ashville came back and scored twice. A journey to Ampleforth College saw the team once again concede early before the game settled down. Both sides were moving the ball well and it was Ampleforth who extended their lead after 14 minutes to give a half time score of 2-0. St Peter’s came storming back with hat-trick from Nick Fullick only for Ampleforth to snatch a late equaliser to leave the score 3-3. The team then lost 5-1 to Pocklington School’s First XI, Eddy Stephen scoring the single goal. A trip to Scarborough College was the first match back after half-term and team played some of their best hockey to win 4-0. Alistair Duffey opened the scoring after 20 minutes to give St Peter’s a half-time lead of 1-0. He added a second straight after the break, and Eddy Stephen and Oliver Leedham then completed the scoring. Next was a return home match against Ashville College’s First XI, on the Hubbard. Nick Fullick gave the team a great start with a goal after three minutes from a ball down the left crossed in by captain Seb Dobson. It was 1-0 at half-time and Ashville then equalised from a short corner. Both sides had chances but Dan Clough was outstanding in goal and 1-1 was the final score. A Wednesday away match against Pocklington’s First XI was next, but they were too strong, especially their star German pupil, who scored six goals in an 8-2 win. After six minutes Pocklington scored with a drag flick from a short corner. Three minutes later Sam Dickinson did the same for St Peter’s, making it 1-1; however, Pocklington scored again quickly twice from short corners, and an individual goal made it 4-1 at halftime. Pocklingon added three more before Seb Dobson replied with a well-taken goal. A final Pocklington goal made the score 8-2, but the team had played well, failing only to deal with the quality of the German player. The final match was the return fixture against Ampleforth College on the Hubbard. This was a very evenly contested game. Captain Seb Dobson opened the scoring after eight minutes, and sustained pressure by St Peter’s was then resisted by Ampleforth College. In the 18th minute, Nick Fullick collected a long through-ball from Sam Metcalfe and went on to score a well-taken goal to give a 2-0 half-time score. Five minutes into the second half Nick Fullick made it 3-0. Ampleforth College pressed forward and look certain to score only for Henry Eyre to make a great goal-line save. Ollie Proctor played well in defence but had to leave early which made for a frantic last 10 minutes when Ampleforth College scored two goals. Dan Clough in goal made some superb saves from a short corner in the last minute to earn a well-deserved team victory.

This rounded off a season in which the Seconds played well, only struggling against a handful of particularly strong hockey schools. Mr Maltby

U16 This was a transitional season for the U16s moving from junior to more senior hockey. Owing to our relative strength in the area the team often played other schools’ First XIs and at the outset the players found this a challenge. The first game of the season, after only one hour’s training, was against Worksop College and was a convincing 2-0 victory. Tom Robertson, midfield, scored a great goal and Sam Hudson relished being back playing with his mates.

Pocklington’s First XI proved a sterner test. We lost 4-1 with their greater experience telling in front of goal. Sam Lodge had an excellent game and the defence, though tested, never capitulated and showed promising signs of comfort on the ball. In a see-saw game where we dominated possession and territory we lost 3-4 to Barnard Castle’s First XI. Will Kimpson threatened with the ball at all times and James Bird was tireless in leading the line. Again, trying to play the correct patterns cost us at times with technical errors turning over the ball. Tom Spearman’s conversion to a defender was a revelation. Trent College were a very strong outfit. They play on the Midlands circuit and offer scholarships. We matched them in play between the quarter-lines but in front of goal their greater experience showed as they took every chance they had. Sam Lodge in goal was outstanding and Andy Hulmes in defence showed great courage and potential, but we lost 2-5. Playing First XIs and quality opposition showed its benefits in the next match. We played Ampleforth and won comfortably, 8-0. The team moved the ball well and kept their shape. Will Quinn and Will Kimpson dominated in midfield with Charlie Bellingall showing great touches. The final game of the inter school season was a 1-1 draw against Yarm. The team then combined with the U15s and sixteen players from the First XI and the year below to enter the National Championships. Mr Mike Johnston

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The Nationals On Tuesday 4 February, a bus of mixed Fourth- and Fifth-Formers left the school to go to Weetwood (Leeds) to play in the county rounds of the U16 national hockey competition. In our first match we played QEGS. This QEGS team that we faced were very strong but a good solo goal by Freddie Heijbroek gave us a 1-0 win. In the game as a whole we created some great goalscoring opportunities, but we failed to capitalise on these chances. Nevertheless, we came away with the win and this gave us a great opportunity to progress in the tournament.

goal by Will Quinn, and another great midfield performance, gave us the 3-1 win. Tom Robinson, Will Kimpson and Sam Hudson never stopped running, and this definitely gave us the edge in this game. These four victories meant that we went through to the semifinals, where we faced Ilkley Grammar school. We had to win to go through. The defence of Tom Spearman, Alex Martin, Matty Roberts, Will Huffer and Andy Hulmes all stood firm, but a penalty flick gave Ilkley a goal. This goal though didn’t matter as a breakaway one-on-one goal by Ollie Fryer and a miss-hit flick gave us a 2-1 lead going into the last five minutes. We settled the game when a decisive pass by Will Kimpson gave the opportunity for Ted Patmore to come on and score: 3-1. County Champions! In the north-east round we comfortably beat Egglescliffe School, making us north-east champions.

In the second game we played Thirsk School. We came into the game with high morale after the close QEGS match and we won 6-0, with some great goals by our forwards including a great hit by Sam Hudson which nestled into the bottom left-hand corner of the goal. In our third match we played Pocklington, who had a couple of very good players in their team, and our aim was to mark these men closely which we did successfully on our way to an 8-1 win. In our final match of the group stages we played a Giggleswick School team which we did not know much about. We started off at a fast, passing tempo which suited our style of play. A great

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The northern finals were played at Timperley Hockey Club. Our first match was against Ampleforth and although they worked hard to nullify our strengths we won comfortably, 4-1. Freddie Heijbroek was outstanding in midfield, and Sam Hudson held his position at central defensive midfield and allowed nothing past. Sedbergh put eleven players behind the ball and made it difficult for us to break them down, but we eventually won 2-1. The King’s School, Chester were north-west champions and had won their previous matches. We started at a fast tempo and they couldn’t cope. We scored two quick goals and then added a third before King’s got a consolation goal in the final minutes, making us North of England champions. Ollie Fryer (V)

Sport

It was then with some disbelief that we found out the dates of the national finals, which had been arranged during the GCSE examinations. With much regret we withdrew the team from the competition, in the best interests of the players. England Hockey had little concern for the predicament they had created. This is an outstanding group of players; they have been a credit to the school, and a pleasure to accompany, at all times. Mr Mike Johnston

Waterhouse have both worked well in partnership with Tom, both chipping in with goals in various matches. An extremely competitive game at Pocklington finished 1-2 to them and the week after a very good Trent team won 3-0. The team really gelled against Ashville and finished 4-0 winners. The return match against Pocklington ended 2-1 to them again. Finally two good wins against Ampleforth capped a fantastic end to the season. It has been a very enjoyable hockey season and the boys have proved very competitive, often against Sixth-Form teams that have that extra edge from one or two more years of playing. I very much hope that the boys will continue to play hockey in the Sixth Form. Mr Pete Woolley

U15A The U15 hockey side had an unbeaten season, playing six Saturday fixtures and winning all of them, whilst scoring 27 goals and only conceding the one. The team won the county tournament as well, conceding no goals and scoring 31.

U16B It has been an absolute pleasure to coach the U16Bs this season, with strong characters to the fore; determination, team spirit, fun and – perhaps most importantly – excellent sportsmanship. Matt Coe has had some wonderful moments in goal, not least making a super save against Ashville and then losing the ball! Ed Contreras and Sandy Eyre have both learnt to adapt their play to wing-back roles, often working in tandem to great effect. Dan Jones has been a rock in defence and has blocked shots as if his life depended on it! He has had a number of partners including Henry Tannahill who has worked doggedly and Dan HopwoodRobinson who has combined a really good eye for the ball with great timing.

Goalkeeper Adam Freshwater was not troubled much because of the strong defence consisting of Will Andrews, Matty Roberts, Will Fordy and Ed Bottomley, who was always on hand to fill the vacant centre-back spot which was left by Alex Martin when he went to play for the First XI. It was in the midfield where we created the chances: at the bottom of the diamond was Will Huffer, the key distributer for the interchangeable wide men of Ted Patmore, Cam Burdass and Will Fryer, all of whom offed pace and skill. The goal-scorers were Sam Elliot and Tom Hawksworth whose chemistry made a strong partnership up front. James Taylor was another key striker with the knack of scoring the important tapins. A special thanks to Fred Heijbroek who was always available when he was not required for the First XI. We would also like to thank Mr Lancaster and Mr Johnston for helping us have such a successful season. We are hoping to have an equally successful season next year with our aim being to reach the nationals. Adam Freshwater (IV) & Will Andrews (IV)

Oli Newman has been given a free role to work in front of the defence and has proved very effective in turning defence into attack quickly. The midfield has worked hard with a number of interchangeable players. Matt Dickson works well on the right: his strong forward runs have often led to goal-scoring opportunities. Harry Dickson has a neat touch and good vision. Oskar FraserKrauss can be outstanding and earned himself man-of-the-match in the final game against Ampleforth. Up front, Tom Gill uses his pace to outstrip defences, and has captained the team by example. James Bennadi and Joe

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team is very well balanced: some outstanding, thoughtful games players, with a wealth of skill, combined with pace and vast engines, all of whom developed their capacity and maturity to take on board anything technical and tactical. Their attitude to training got better and as a product of making the time to work on their basic skills, and they saw the rewards in the results: a comprehensive win against a strong Worksop College side, and a well-manufactured win at home to Ampleforth were pleasing, but a rude awakening early in the season against Giggleswick highlighted my point that complacency had got the better of some of them in the rugby term and it came at a welcome point.

U15B This year saw the U15B squad go from strength to strength. The season brought us a new coach, Mr Hardy, who coached us through the toughest games. The first match against Worksop College proved to be the perfect challenge for our new midfield to start playing together – a 2-0 win. Our next game was the first of a series of three against Pocklington School’s U15A team. We won all three games: 4-2, 3-2 and 3-0. They had a couple of very skilled players but they were denied chances at goal by the strong defensive work of George Davis and Ed Bottomley who always put the ball back onto our sticks. The attack took full advantage at all times of the excellent midfield play.

After a defined and specific week of training, working harder on tactics, positional awareness and developing better ballspeed with the passes, we went into the next fixture with more confidence and belief in our abilities. A few honesty calls and the team began to gel as a unit; as the season moved on, they began playing for each other more and seeing the team-effort as the main focus rather than individuals performing for themselves. The result of this led to an excellent run in the County Cup: winning in the county final against QEGS in a very tense sudden-death penalty-flick round saw us move into the North of England finals day. A third-place finish here was what we deserved; there were some exceptional talents on display and it allowed the boys a chance to compete at this level at an early stage of their 11-a-side hockey development and to see the standards they must challenge themselves to reach if they wish to gain success and accolades at this level.

Thirsk U15A team was next and they were one of the toughest games of the season; it was the midfield players who worked tirelessly to gain the victory: 3-2 to us. James Hanley, James Guyer, Thomas Dowdy and Archie Stephenson provided brilliant balls through to the forward players who went on to score our three goals. Goalkeeeper Joe Simpson made some fantastic saves. Our biggest victories of the year were both against Ampleforth College U15A: 6-1 and 8-1. These games saw the forwards have a ball. George O’Neill led the attack in their pursuit of goals. Credit must go to Felix Van der Borgh and Charlie Rae as they both picked up a hockey-stick for the first time this year. Felix scored goals in all games and Charlie got a hat-trick against Ampleforth. Towards the end of the season we lost a few of our best players as they were required in the U15A squad but the U15Bs continued to triumph and ended the season having played ten games, eight of which were won and only two lost. In all the team scored 35 goals, conceding 12. Another great year for St Peter’s U15B squad. Tom Dowdy (IV)

U14A Perfection is not attainable; but if we chase perfection, we can catch excellence. – Vince Lombardi The U14s had very prolific hockey season, moving their hockey forward in every aspect of their development both in their skills on the ball and in the understanding of the 11-a-side game. The

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I thank the boys for their efforts and I wish them well as they move through the school. They add even more strength to the fast-evolving St Peter’s hockey. My huge thanks, as always, go to Roz Ramli, who is exceptionally good with the boys and his professional input and guidance is so valuable. Mr Gareth Sharp

Sport

U14B This has been an excellent season for the U14B team, which has won all bar one game, and scored 28 goals whilst conceding only three. The one defeat of the season came against Scarborough College’s A team. Feifei Rawnsley, in goal, mostly had little to do as the side dominated most games. When called upon he made some fine saves. In defence Peter Konstantynov, Oli Hughes, James Black, Rory Winterburn and Ed Turvill were always solid – Peter using his expert football knowledge to ensure that all was good positionally. The first game against Pocklington (which was won, 3-0) was a mixed affair as the team had not played 11-a-side hockey before. Ampleforth was the next challenge (won 6-0) with the midfield of Ben Wilkinson, Jack Amsden, Ben Raubitschek, Ralph Sinclair and Charlie Smith dominating possession.

We have all enjoyed the season and would like to thank Mr Sharpe and Mr Ramli for all their help with coaching. We hope to play some different sides next season. Ralph Sinclair (III)

We travelled all the way to Trent only for the game to be cancelled because of a massive hailstorm. It was difficult to get other schools to play B-team hockey and so we repeated some fixtures. This time against Pocklington we clicked, especially the forwards Spencer Ingall, Alex Leahy, Ben Chamberlin, Theo Hedley and Marcus Dobson, a winning score of 8-2 showing our improvement.

Awards

Scarborough College’s A team proved a sterner test. We lost 1-2 but thoroughly enjoyed a harder challenge. The last two games of the season against Pocklington A team and Ampleforth were won 3-0 and 6-0 respectively.

The Pandas Cup for middle-school player of the season: Freddie Hiejbroek.

The Stick awarded for outstanding service to hockey: James Greenall. The Mark Burn Trophy for the most improved player: Tom Calvert.

The Hubbard Cup for junior inter-house hockey: Temple

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GIRLS’ TENNIS The tennis term for the seniors is a particularly hectic one! With the unusually very short term, we had to manage study-leave, external exams, open-day visits, ‘rained off Saturdays’, and at times blustery, cold winds – not to mention fitting in three days at Eton, The Shepherd Cup and inter-house tennis! We managed it all, enjoyed it immensely and the standard of play and depth was at an all-time high across the senior teams. The first team got off to a smashing start on the first Saturday of term, winning the three-pair Bradford Grammar School tournament. It was unfortunate that our match against our strongest opposition, The University of York, at the start of the season was rained off. The weeks rolled by and throughout the term we were unbeaten and won the Under-18 York Tennis League outright - a fine achievement, given the strength of local teams from Pocklington and Queen Margaret’s at this age-group. Our mixed matches against Hymers and Ampleforth are always a post-exams highlight of our season and thoroughly enjoyable! The inter-house tennis final between Hope and Queen’s was very closely contested and featured the Phillips sisters on the opposite side of the net to the Caley sisters! Hope came out on top, winning by a margin of 25 to 18 games. The Shepherd Cup – now in its second year – saw Helen Taylor (Lower Sixth) beating Ellie Caley (Fourth Form) 6-3 in the final played in the last week of term. The coaching team was strengthened this season with the addition of Mark Hamilton and Catherine Baker, along with Marius Barnard and Mrs Helen Barnard! I would like to thank them all for their positive and wonderful input and knowledge of the game. Tennis is a game of technical ability, tactics, a tough mental approach, playing under pressure and of court-positioning! This was always in evidence whenever St Peter’s stepped onto the courts. Finally, a thank you to our retiring captain and Head Girl, Katharine Phillips. She has been a charismatic leader on and off the court, and we will miss her. An outstanding season: well done to all who trained hard, practised well and represented the teams. We are proud of all of you.

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The following girls have represented the four senior tennis teams: Katharine Phillips, Georgie Cornock, Sally Hicks, Keira Barnard, Helen Taylor, Lauren Caley, Emily Carman, Georgie Ward, Olivia Shread, Isabel Hall, Sophie Reed, Emily Williams, Millie Grant, Alice Greswold, Georgia Calvert, Sara Pycock, Hannah Whitehouse. Results: 26/04/2014 Bradford GS Tournament Outright Winners 3/05/2014 Senior VIII v RGS W 13 sets to 3 Second VI v Woodhouse Grove L 4-5 7/05/2014 Pocklington League W 6-0 Senior IV v Pocklington W 4-0 Senior Second VI v BGS W 9-0 The Mount League W 5-1 17/05/2014 Second VI v Queen Margaret’s W 5-4 Queen Margaret’s League D 3-3 11/06/2014 L6th VI Mixed v Ampleforth W 6-3 7-2 14/06/2014 Seniors v Ampleforth W 6-1 18/06/2014 Senior Mixed v Hymers W 12 sets to 1 W 7 sets to 2 21/06/2014 Senior VI v Queen Margaret’s W 8-1 Senior IV v Queen Margaret’s W 2.5 to1.5

Eton Eton is the highlight of the tennis season. Eight girls travelled to the leafy suburbs of the distinguished old town to take part in the championships of the Independent Schools Tennis Association (ISTA), a tennis extravaganza which takes place each year at Eton College. The immediate impression is the high quality of tennis that is being played, strewn across court after court and then the sheer number of entries into the event. What was especially nice this year was that the U15s played in a box-league format, enabling our two pairs to play many more matches against different and new opposition. Both of our pairs having lost in the initial stages then played in the Asbury-Bailey Plate where we started to win matches. Phoebe Phillips and Ellie Caley went on to qualify for the quarter-finals, eventually going out to Benenden 2-8.

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At U19 level, both pairs again lost to extremely strong opposition in the first round, and then had tough matches in the Plate Competition. Lauren Caley and Helen Taylor played their best tennis of the season going down to Culford 2 in two very close sets. Katharine Phillips and Georgie Cornock went one round further (to the quarter-final) before going out to Kingston Grammar School in straight sets.

Our girls did us proud both on and off the court and we were impressed by their efforts. Some will have opportunities to represent the school again at this prestigious tournament, something all of our tennis players should aspire to, and work hard for. A lovely few days.

Results U19: Loveband Trophy 2013 1st round Helen Taylor & Lauren Caley Katharine Phillips & Georgie Cornock

L L

St Swithun’s 1 Sir William Perkins

2-6, 6-2, 7-10 (tie break) 6-7, 5-7

1st round Helen Taylor & Lauren Caley Katharine Phillips & Georgie Cornock

L W

Culford 2 New Hall

6-7, 4-6 6-2, 7-5

2nd round (quarter-final) Katharine Phillips & Georgie Cornock

Kingston GS

2-6, 4-6

Rowan Tait & Helen Ford

L L L

Culford 1 Sir William Perkins 2 New Hall

1-6 0-6 5-6

Phoebe Phillips & Ellie Caley

L L L

St Edward’s 1 Kingswood Cranleigh 2

1-6 3-6 0-6

W L L W

Colston 2 Eastbourne Rugby Haberdashers’

6-3 3-6 1-6 6-2

W L W

Queenswood Sevenoaks St Edward’s

6-4 4-6 6-4

Benenden

2-8

Loveband Plate

U15: Asbury-Bailey Cup 1st stage box:

Asbury-Bailey Plate 1st stage box: Rowan Tait & Helen Ford

Phoebe Phillips & Ellie Caley

Quarter-fi nal Phoebe Phillips & Ellie Caley

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feature highly in the senior teams over the next three years. A good solid season, and thanks to all for their effort and enthusiasm for the game. The following girls represented the U15s this year: Phoebe Phillips, Ellie Caley, Rowan Tait, Helen Ford, Julia Crowther, Olivia Calvert, Olivia Whitehouse, Annabelle Blackburn, Beth Hartley, Jess Webster, Gaby Richardson, Lucy Leedham, Amelia Bell. Results:

U15 It was a busy, but very enjoyable season with lots of training sessions and matches for the whole of the squad. The U15 age group played in the Aegon National Competition, and this year we were beaten 1-5 by a strong Queen Margaret’s team in the deciding match for the outcome of the league; we had beaten all other schools. It is not helpful when our lovely tennis players are also outstanding athletes! So to lose some of them on match days to compete elsewhere undoubtedly helps the athletics teams but understandably impacts on the tennis results!! As well as the league matches, we gave as many girls as possible the opportunity to play matches and rotated girls in and out. They are a lively squad and benefitted hugely from the input of tennis coaches, Mrs Baker and Mrs Hamilton, at the sessions. We enjoyed playing in the tournament and the nine girls who played in the Ampleforth mixed matches really enjoyed partnering the boys! The girls in the first team, some of whom are extremely strong players, have good technique. They will develop well, and should

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07/05/2014

Bradford GS

5-4

14/05/2014

Fulford School (Aegon)

5-1

17/05/2014

Queen Margaret’s (Aegon)

1-5

17/05/2014

U15B v Queen Margaret’s B

1-5

21/05/2014

2nd VI v Worksop

5-4

21/05/2014

Ampleforth College (Aegon)

4-2

11/06/2014

Bradford GS Tournament

14/06/2014

Hymers

3-6

21/06/2014

Mixed v Ampleforth

3-6

(3 teams)

1-8

2-7

25/06/2014

Pocklington (Aegon)

6-0

28/06/2014

Newcastle Central High

8-1

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U14 The squad was strengthened with number-one player Maddie Bletcher who was new into St Peter’s. The U14s got off to a flying start in the short summer term when Maddie and partner Anabel Chan won the Hepworth Cup. This is a tournament held at Queen Mary’s School, and what a fantastic win over some strong opposition, with our second pair being beaten semi-finalists. In the U14 York Junior Team Tennis League, we ended up coming joint winners with Pocklington School, both having drawn two matches over the season, and winning the remainder. Rebecca Green and Alex Craig were strong numbers three and four respectively,

playing in the League matches which is both a singles and a doubles format. As well as the league matches, we played in the Bradford Grammar School tournament where we narrowly missed out on game-difference. We were runners-up to Pocklington in the Hymers mixed tournament, and we had lots of three-pair friendly matches and B-team league matches, giving more girls an opportunity to play. Overall the squad shows potential, and they are an enthusiastic bunch to work with. Within the first year of play at St Peter’s, we are keen for the girls to develop their allround game and gain as much playing experience as they can, as they develop throughout the school. Well done. The following girls represented the U14 teams: Maddie Bletcher, Anabel Chan, Rebecca Green, Alex Craig, Lucy Dabbs, Phoebe Hall, Annabel Ellis, Ellie McDonald, Kitty Clapham. Results 3/05/2014

Hepworth Cup

7/05/2014

Bradford GS

Outright winners W

8-1

3-3

17/05/2014 U14B v Queen Margaret’s B W

5-1

17/05/2014 Queen Margaret’s A 21/05/2014 Worksop

11/06/2014 Bradford Tournament

(game

8-1

difference)

14/06/2014 Hymers

3-6

21/06/2014 Queen Margaret’s B

5-1

21/06/2014 U14B Queen Margaret’s A

0-6

23/06/2014 U14A v U14B

5-1

25/06/2014 Pocklington School

3-3

28/06/2014 Newcastle Central High

2/07/2014

Hymers Mixed Tournament

6-3 Runners-up

Mrs J M Whitehead

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BOYS’ TENNIS

The U15 IV of Robbie Greenall, Stephen Jones, Freddie Heijbroek and Archie Stephenson produced one of the performances of the season winning the North of England Independent Schools’ Tennis Championships at Bradford Grammar School. Both pairs enjoyed a 100% record against Yarm, Hymers College, RGS Newcastle and Ampleforth College in the group stages before defeating the hosts in the final. At the National Independent Schools’ Tennis Championships, the U15 pair of Robbie Greenall and Steven Jones achieved the greatest ever performance in the history of boys’ tennis at St Peter’s School. In the Phillips Cup they defeated Colston’s 8-6, Eastbourne 8-6, Repton 7–6 (8-6 in the tie-break) and Haberdashers’ 8-6. In the semi-finals we defeated Ampleforth College eight games to nil. The final of the Phillips Cup was against Tonbridge: Robbie and Steven won the first set by six games to two, but lost the second set narrowly, 6-4. This meant that there

would be a Championship tie-break to ten points to settle the match. Unfortunately they went down 10-3.

The Alcuin Cup attracted an entry of 34 boys. This year’s final was between the youngest ever competitors: Robbie Greenall and Steven Jones. The match was of a very high standard, with many rallies of over a dozen shots! With the match balanced perfectly at one set all (6-3 and 3-6), we went into a deciding set; Robbie was ahead 3-1, 4-3 and 5-4 before Steven finally took the deciding set by seven games to five after two hours of scintillating tennis. Colours: these were re-awarded to the captain of tennis, James Greenall, and to Sam Metcalfe, and awarded for the first time to Jack Crowther, Johnny Walmsley, Robbie Greenall and Steven Jones. The captain of tennis for 2015 will be Edward Cotter. Mr Bob Shread

First VI There was a slow start to proceedings for the First VI this season with only two matches being played in the first half of term; however the team posted impressive results, beating Ashville and Worksop 8-1 and 7-2 respectively. The team itself was relatively inexperienced with only James Greenall and Sam Metcalfe

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remaining from the previous year’s side, and good understanding of the game and occasional flashes of brilliance saw them start the season at first pair but soon after talent prevailed and the younger pairing of Steven Jones and Robert Greenall claimed the top spot. The team was completed by the dynamic duo of Jack Crowther and Johnny Walmsley, both agile on court and providing entertaining high-speed tennis. The team travelled to Eton at the end of the season to compete in the National Championships, the two senior pairs played in the U19 competition with strong backup from Nick Fullick, reaching the plate semi-finals. The internal competitions saw Grove successfully defend the inter-house title after a tense final round against Hope who took second place by the narrowest of margins. The future looks bright for tennis in the coming years with a large group of Lower-Sixth players coming through and a talented first pair who will be in residence for some time to come. Thank you to Mr Shread, Mr Allan and all the external coaches for guiding us through the season. James Greenall (UVI)

Second VI Due to poor weather conditions at the start of term and then early examination leave, we had a short season this year. Just one match was played, against Worksop College, and that we won 9-0. During the weeks there were some hard-fought ladder matches to select the teams for the then-cancelled school matches, but these contests showed that this team has strength in depth and many of the players will be looking at the First VI next year. After studyleave the Lower Sixth clearly progressed in their game as they enjoyed the grass courts in the sunshine. I’ve also enjoyed joining in, in a high standard of tennis, when there has been an odd number of players! May next year provide a few more matches for the team to show their true quality! Mr Will Allan

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U15 The U15 boys’ tennis was held back by the wet weather at the beginning of this term and it was only late on in the season when the season managed to gain some momentum. When we did get under way we had good wins against Pocklington and Barnard Castle, but our biggest triumph was our defence of the North of England Championships at Bradford.

Impressive progress was made by some of the players in the rest of the squad: Luke Dunsmore, already a decent player, improved as the season progressed, Thomas Tam showed that he has real potential both technically and tactically and Tom Hawksworth and Tom Pycock made a strong team at third pair.

This has always been a difficult day, with a lot of tennis played, but our players coped very well. In the first round the A-team of Steven Jones and Robbie Greenall won all of their matches and, not to be outdone, the B-team of Freddie Heijbroek and Archie Stephenson followed suit to make it through to the final. In the afternoon the combined conditions of sun and gusting winds made life difficult for all the players but both St Peter’s teams showed great control and deft touch to win their matches against Bradford in a convincing manner. Therefore both teams went through the entire day without losing a set. This is the second time that St Peter’s has won this event and we hope that there will be many more to come in future years.

Perhaps our most enjoyable match came in the mixed pairings against Ampleforth when the presence of some excellent girls seemed to act as a catalyst for the improvement in attitude and performance of the boys. We played very well against their first, second and third team which made a pleasant end to a disrupted season. The U15 squad: George Avery, Robbie Brown, George Davis, Luke Dunsmore, Robbie Greenall, James Guyer, Tom Hawksworth, Freddie Heijbroek, Ian Ho, George Ingall, Steven Jones, Tom Pycock, Archie Stephenson, Thomas Tam. I have enjoyed working with these players and seeing the improvements in their game over the course of the summer term. I would like to thank Catherine Baker for her invaluable input in the coaching of these players and I wish them all success in the future as they move through the upper ranks of tennis in the school. Mr Mike Duffy

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U14 The fickleness of the British weather caused significant frustration amongst the tennis elite of the U14 year-group with four early fixtures of the season’s nine cancelled. By the time the weather was sufficiently kind to allow us the luxury of a match (against Poppleton LTC) the boys were as match-unready as the Poppleton team was match-fit. The pairings of Seth Williams and Jack Lawrence, Marcus Brown and James Mahon, Marcus Dobson and Oscar Hales found it difficult to match the sharpness demonstrated by boys who already had several matches under their collective belts. It was nevertheless an opportunity for them to settle more comfortably into their pairings and begin to understand each other’s game more. That run of bad fortune sadly spilled into the A and B team fixture against Bradford Grammar School for which James Guyer and George Ingall made a guest appearance in the A team and the B team was made up of Marcus Dobson and Oscar

Hales, Nathan Goyea and Spencer Ingall, Chris Nelson and Isaac Philips. Again the boys were faced with opponents who had clearly got their eye in. Good things come, so they say, to those who wait, and the final A-team match of the season against Pocklington School resulted in an emphatic and deserved 7- 2 win. Within this group of boys exist a positive mind-set and skill-set which, although still in their infancy, should ensure that their tennis goes on to flourish. When the chips are down there is resolve to overcome adversity and camaraderie to boost one’s partner. At their best they serve well, the volley game at the net is decisive, they cover the area of the court well and they play a graceful game from the base-line. There is much that can be improved, but the foundations are firmly in place. In the final Wednesday of term Seth, Jack and James paired up with Maddie Bletcher, Anabel Chan and Rebecca Green for the U14 Mixed Tennis Tournament at Hymers College. A good afternoon’s play saw the pairings beat the hosts and Wolfreton. Defeat at the hands of Pocklington meant that our team were runners-up on the day. In spite of the obstruction to play at the hands of the weather, the season concluded well and gives hope to these boys. Mr Matthew Grant

Mixed Tennis Tour to Portugal, Easter 2014 Thirty boys and girls travelled to Portugal for their first-ever tennis tour in Europe. With every level of tennis ability catered for, the coaching was great fun but very hard work each day. Over the three daily hours of tennis, it was very high-intensity, expertly-delivered coaching by experienced county and former nationally-ranked coaches. There was a variety of nice warm-ups, technical teaching and match play. With very early starts (we were on court at 8.15) the thought of swimming pools and sun beds in between the sun and showers was a welcome relief and down time! The highlight of each day was who was chosen to wear THE YELLOW JERSEY, awarded by the coaching team after each session, for a pupil who had tried the hardest - a difficult task! Robbie Greenall and Olivia Shread represented the school in the exhibition matches with the coaches: a nice evening followed by a barbeque. On the final Friday, all thirty pupils played in timed matches against Stowe School, battling for medal positions within their own standards. Everyone involved had a great time, improved their tennis and returned with the confidence that we will do even better this coming season. Mrs Helen Barnard

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C Widdicombe (T) R Brown (T)

First Round

6 3

3 6 6 0 0 6 7 5 0 6 6 1 6 0 6 3 0 6

N Fullick (S)

R Greenall (G)

D George (G)

W Andrews (T)

J Crowther (H)

O Kennedy (H)

M Roberts (G)

F Adams (C)

J Field (G)

M Jones (C)

S Dobson (T)

A Stephenson (L)

A Shum (M)

C Burdass (T)

M Garbutt (G)

F Craig (Q)

J Greenall (G)

A Payne (S)

H Stothard (Q)

E Cotter (C)

A Eyre (C)

J Eleanor (G)

T Hawksworth (T)

L Dunsmore (T)

J Walmsley (H)

S Metcalfe (G)

O Leedham (C)

M Nozedar (G)

G O’Neil (S)

W Huffer (G)

C Widdicombe (T)

S Jones (C)

Second Round

J Greenall (G)

C Burdass (T)

A Stephenson (L)

M Jones (C)

J Field (G)

O Kennedy (H)

J Crowther (H)

R Greenall (G)

N Fullick (S)

J Walmsley (H)

M Nozedar (G)

E Cotter (C)

A Eyre (C)

S Metcalfe (G)

O Leedham (C)

S Jones (C)

Third Round

J Greenall (G)

M Jones (C)

J Field (G)

R Greenall (G)

N Fullick (S)

E Cotter (C)

A Eyre (C)

S Jones (C)

Quarter-Finals

J Greenall (G) 2 2

R Greenall (G) 6

E Cotter (C) 4 6 0

S Jones (C) 6 3 6

Semi-Finals

R Greenall (G)

S Jones (C)

Final

S Jones (C)

Winner

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Alcuin Cup 2014. The Boys (Open) Singles Tennis Championship of St Peter’s School

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CRICKET Averages 2014 (not including T20 fixtures) * Indicates not out Batting

Innings Runs Not-outs Best Average

The following boys have represented the First XI this season: +* Charlie Elliot (Captain) +* Felix Adams, +*Will Scholey, *Harry Stothard, *Hugo Adams, *Jonnie Eleanor, *Ben Williams, *Oliver Leedham, * Toby Latham, * Tom Spearman, *Will Huffer, Ted Patmore, Tom Gill, Joseph Waterhouse, Will Waterhouse, Sam Lodge.

Felix Adams

501

45.5

Charlie Elliot

574

138*

35.8

Will Huffer

340

26.1

Results for 2014 (including all T20 fixtures)

Toby Latham

229

25.4

Jonnie Eleanor

171

24.4

Hugo Adams

234

16.7

Harry Stothard

184

15.3

Ted Patmore

12*

Will Scholey

161

71*

14.6

Oliver Leedham

7.3

Ben Williams

6.7

Tom Spearman

12*

6.5

Sam Lodge

1.5

+ = Capped player *= Colours

PLAYED: 18 WON: 8 DRAWN: 3 LOST: 7 CANCELLED: 3

If you are going to achieve excellence in big things, you must develop the habit in the little matters. Excellence is not an exception, it is a prevailing attitude. – Colin Powell

Also batted: Tom Gill 4, Joseph Waterhouse 5, Will Waterhouse 5*

Bowling

Overs

Runs

Ted Patmore

267

4-5

14.0

Ben Williams

246

5-27

15.3

Charlie Elliot

Wickets Best Average

203

2-12

16.9

Oliver Leedham

125.5

463

3-21

18.5

Felix Adams

20.2

101

1-11

20.2

Tom Spearman

350

6-29

21.8

Harry Stothard

2-13

23.5

Will Huffer

1-20

303

3-20

25.2

95.3

360

3-41

25.7

Will Scholey Jonnie Eleanor

Also bowled: Will Waterhouse 8-2-1-19 and Hugo Adams 7-1-0-42

The 2014 campaign got off to a bright and sunny start under clear skies at St Peter’s against the Retiring Captain’s XI. The game followed two played against Cheltenham College, which saw possibly the highest-scoring and most closely-fought pre-season fixture I have ever witnessed, with over 550 runs being scored in one day in early April, and the XI, needing two to win off the last ball of the game, just coming up short. The boys enjoyed the chance to get away and gel as a squad whilst earning some very valuable match-practice at a high-class venue. Our return saw a comprehensive win over the Yorkshire Gents, followed by the first schoolboy fixture of the term against the Grammar School at Leeds. On what looked like a pitch more suited to the Caribbean the school elected to bat first and soon realised that they had possibly made the wrong decision. Some late rearguard action from Felix Adams and Ollie Leedham saw us post what was in

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hindsight a fighting total. For the second time in a week we found ourselves in another lastover thriller, with GSAL scraping home by two wickets, with two balls to spare. A week later St Peter’s hosted the first round of the HMC T20 competition, which we were all excited about, looking to build on last year’s success in the tournament. The early rout of Ashville was a great start and meant that QEGS then had to take the challenge of chasing our total of 147 in the second game of the day. It has to be said that it has been a season of letting some promising situations slip from our grasp (comparable with the Indian test side this year) resulting in a number of losses that should have been avoided. We lost the game in the final over, with QEGS having needed 20 to win from the last 11 balls. The boys will testify my frequent references to the 1%ers making the all difference the higher up in sport you go: those ten easy singles that were turned down; the seven twos that should have been turned into threes; that bad ball and a half in the over that ends up going for eight or nine instead of two or three; the dropped catches that all-too-regularly let teams off the hook at 150 for 6, allowing them to reach 230 or 240; setting the right field and having the right fielder in the right place to take the game-winning catch. All part of the learning-curve and development into adult cricket.

The great English summer weather and the ever-increasing examination pressures added more frustration to the narrow defeats (including two more games that went to the final over) where small margins were the difference, against Durham, Woodhouse Grove and York CC. Another rained-affected practice session gave a chance for

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reflection and allowed some of the players to make honesty calls about approaches to training and their roles in the team. What followed was a real turning-point in the season and something that allowed us to end the season on a real high. Two Saturday wins, over Hymers and Pocklington, an earnest victory over an Australian touring side (never to be sniffed at) set the confidence levels high and showed just what the extra attention to quality practice can do: we played some excellent cricket and showed perfect examples of what we had been searching for all summer. The King’s Bruton Festival saw us come away winners for the fourth year in a row, and the two-day game against the OPs also went to the final over of the game to determine its result. The 2014 side had a plethora of ability; a mixture of maturity and experience, combined with youthful zest and skills to match. A balance of touch players and aggressive hitters, spinners that could turn the balls in and away from the bat, and seamers who bowled at a lively pace and hit the seam. This season we lose three players but those who return next summer will bring an abundance of skills and experience from this summer and an appetite for success and high levels of achievement. Will Huffer. Only a Fourth-Former in his debut season. Showed a maturity beyond his years with bat, with focus and mental stamina. Bowled lively seam-up when required, hitting the pitch hard; an excellent close-to-the-wicket fielder, never short of a

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word or two for struggling batsmen. Hugo Adams. Struggled initially at the top of the order but his talent found its place lower the down the order, really looking the part in the latter stages of the season; a big year for him next season. Good in the field and always a voice of positive support. Charlie Elliot. First XI captain and the man for all scenarios. Stood up well under the pressure of captaincy to lead a young and inexperienced side through some rough times. Real ability with bat and ball and a good cricket brain that many of the young players have learned from.

Toby Latham. New to the side, having only just joined us, but fitted into the side well with the bat, adding much-needed stability to the middle order on a number of occasions. An outstanding wicketkeeper, who kept the team going with his energy and zeal. Will Scholey. Great lad, great arm! An outstanding out-fielder with very good hands. Bowled a heavy ball and had the knack of getting good players out. With the bat, a strong and hard-hitting lefthander, really worked on his technique to earn the number seven spot. His humour and friendly smile will be missed next summer. Oliver Leedham. Left-arm over opening bowler who refined his technique over the winter to reap the rewards in the summer with some excellent and reliable spells with the new ball. A developing lower-order batsman who will push his way up the order next summer. An outstanding fielder, quick with a superb arm and a brilliant pair of hands. Jonnie Eleanor. Worked his way up the order through hard work and some determined innings to secure the opening spot for himself. He worked hard on his ground-fielding and always took wickets with his distinctive leg-spin. Ben Williams. Worked hard on his action and technique through the winter and in the early part of the season to earn the new ball and combine to make a serious pairing with Oliver Leedham. Excellent in the field and a more-than-useful lower-order batsman.

Felix Adams. If he were more laid-back, he would be horizontal. Reliable with the bat, producing some stoical game-saving innings; developed his all-round game well and always good value on long coach journey. He will be missed next season. Harry Stothard. A genuine hard-hitting all-rounder. Aggressive with the bat, always looking to attack and score, a developing slow left-arm spinner and always outstanding in the field: quick, agile and with a great pair of hands. Harry will lead the XI forward next summer with quiet dynamism.

Tom Spearman. An auspicious first season in the team with his energetic leg-spin. Was unlucky not have taken more wickets (as he kept reminding us). Another outstanding fielder with excellent hands and a real desire to be the best he can be.

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the three boys leaving this summer – Charlie, Felix and Will – for their combined services to St Peter’s cricket. Mr Gareth Sharp

Second XI Unfortunately the Second XI cricket season was badly affected by the weather. In total only five matches were played. The first game was against GSAL: bowling first we managed to dismiss them for a low score of 57. A comfortable run-chase resulted in an eightwicket win. Next came Durham and another straightforward win. Some of the Fifth Form were performing to a high standard: Tom Gill was taking wickets and scoring runs, Sam Hudson was opening the bowling effectively and Joe Waterhouse was contributing with both bat and ball. Woodhouse Grove were next, and batting first we scored 121-7 off 30 overs with James Contreras getting his half-century. In reply Woodhouse were 105 all out with Zac Ransome achieving excellent figures of 6-28 off six overs. Hymers was again a onesided affair: in 30 overs we were 192-2 with Joe Waterhouse on 80 and James Contreras on 60. Hymers finished on 58-9 in 30 overs with Sam Hudson taking five wickets for only eight runs. The final game against Pocklington showed again that we were too strong for the opposition: we scored 164-2 in 25 overs, and Pocklington were never able to compete, finishing 60 all out. An excellent season from all involved.

Ted Patmore. Made a late but very welcome entry into the side with his mature off-spin that left its mark wherever he went. A fantastic and brave fielder, he will go from strength to strength. Some ‘thank you’s: to Pete and Stefan, the Groundsmen, for their outstanding work all summer producing pitches of the highest standard, week-in, week-out; to Steve Williams and Paddy for their work with the junior and development sides, and to Dan Woods for all the time and effort he gives to school cricket and the First XI in particular – he has been a great influence on all the boys and will be missed next summer, but we wish him all well in his new job at Cundall Manor. Our loss is certainly their gain! Thanks also to our umpire, Ken Featherstone, for his good humour and fist-rate umpiring all season. Finally, my many thanks to all the boys for their continued commitment and effort throughout the season and for making my job enjoyable and rewarding. A special thanks and ‘good luck’ to

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Second XI Squad Eddy Stephen (WK), Zac Ransome, James Contreras, Will Quinn, Stuart Tolley, Sam Hudson, Tom Gill, Tom Robinson, David Bird, Joe Waterhouse, Joe Taylor, Oliver Fryer, Will Fox. Mr Steve Williams

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Third XI The necessarily short season for the Third XI was unfortunately cut even shorter by inclement weather, meaning that inspirational captain Clem Elliott was able to maintain a spectacular 100% win record (one from one). An away fixture against Bootham School’s First XI in nervy conditions enabled St Peter’s to put Bootham into bat and, through consistently tidy bowling and fielding, restrict them to 97 for eight off 25 overs. Will Fox bowled with Scroogelike frugality and Toby Magill took a preposterously casual catch as if either asleep or possessed. Wickets fell regularly and a slow run-rate thanks to laser-like line and nagging length bowling took its toll on the batsmen, who came in under mounting pressure. St Peter’s then managed to knock off the runs with comparative ease thanks to an excellent opening stand between Henry Eyre and Alex Taylor that combined patience with style and power, including a six from Henry that has left a lasting impression on the Bootham pavilion’s roof! A very pleasant afternoon’s cricket was rounded off with an excellent tea and short walk back to school for an earlier-than-expected finish. Mr Rob Snelling

U15 I think we judge talent wrong. What do we see as talent? I think I have made the same mistake myself. We judge talent by people’s ability to strike a cricket ball. The sweetness, the timing. That’s the only thing we see as talent. Things like determination, courage, discipline, temperament, these are also talent. – Rahul Dravid I hope very much that the lads who have worked so hard this season realise that they have all improved as players, and have gained a real understanding of playing within a team. Cricket matches are so much more than just 20-, 30- or 40-over fixtures. They are all about games within games, individual battles, captaincy decisions and moments of individual responsibility. For the B-team it has been so frustrating to have games cancelled at the last moment through the weather or opposition cry-offs. That they have worked so hard all term for so little reward says much about their character. It would have been good to have seen more of Rohan Jain’s left-arm spin, Ethan’s batting and bowling, and David Adelugba on the front foot. Will Newitt, James Taylor and latterly Adam Freshwater showed real promise with the ball.

Ben Maher and Titan Li also showed that with practice they can both bat and bowl well. Ashraf Harun alongside Sam Lightwing and Sam Stanford bowl many good balls, but need to keep at the basics so they bowl fewer long-hops! It is also important to note that 18 players have represented the A-team this year, showing the strength in depth of the squad. As we finish the final game of the season in rather damp conditions we can reflect on a year in which the A-team were beaten only once, in the Yorkshire Final of the national T20 competition, by two runs; the most significant feature of all these games being the catching and excellent ground-fielding. Charlie Rae led this, alongside Joe Simpson and Will Fordy, who made fantastic stops and took excellent catches. Cameron Burdass, Ted Patmore and Sam Elliot regularly hit the stumps, accounting for some memorable run-outs. Ed Bottomley and Will Fryer’s catching in the deep was faultless all season. We were also lucky to have two wicket-keepers, Matt Roberts and Will Andrews, who never let us down. Batting failed us just once, in the Yorkshire Final of the T20 against Birkdale: despite Will Huffer’s excellent 55 we ended this game agonisingly two runs short. We did not get the rub of the green on the day, but must remember that if we had controlled what we could do, and not worried about

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what we couldn’t control, we might still have won. It was also noticeable that the only time Will was dismissed for us all season, it was to an outstanding catch that ultimately won Birkdale the game. We were blessed with a fine bowling attack spearheaded by Felix Van der Borgh, who worked very hard to shorten his run up, tighten his line and develop his pace. He did all three and became a real handful, even taking three wickets for York CC in a match against our own First XI. Ever-reliable medium-pace from Cameron Burdass, Sam Elliott, Will Fryer, Joe Simpson and James Hanley served us well all season; with all taking vital wickets at important times. Ted Patmore was outstanding in the spin department and thoroughly deserved his call-up to the First XI at the end of the season. Alex Martin and George O`Neill also took wickets at the start of the season but a lack of real cricket in the middle of the term deprived both of any rhythm to their bowling. This will come next season when I hope Will Fordy’s developing off-spin will also be a factor. Our batting was good all year with several players coming to the party in all but one game. Highlights were Will Huffer’s innings in the T20 matches, Ted’s superb knock against Leeds, Alex Martin’s 75 versus WHG , Sam Elliot’s regular 30s and Cam Burdass’ and Matt Roberts’ 50s in the final match of the season. Cam, Sam, Ted and Will all captained with maturity and good game-management. Finally I would add that the lads were a real pleasure to coach all season. They ended up North Yorkshire champions but they also know they could have gone further. I am sure they will have learned much from this year and will do very well as they move into senior cricket next season. My huge thanks go to Andy Parr and

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Steve Williams without whom the lads would not have made the progress they did. To me, it doesn’t matter how good you are. Sport is all about playing and competing. Whatever you do in cricket and in sport, enjoy it, be positive and try to win. – Ian Botham U15A squad: Will Huffer, Alex Martin, Ted Patmore , Sam Elliot, Cameron Burdass, Matt Roberts, Charles Rae, Will Fordy, Joe Simpson, Will Fryer, Felix Van De Borgh, George O’Neill, James Hanly, Will Andrews, Ed Bottomley, Will Newitt, Ethan Thubron, James Taylor (Harry Contreras, Alex Liley and Jack Williams were U14s who also played in the T20 Competition). Mr Paddy Stephen

U14A We put GSAL in to bat, and bowled well, limiting them to 103-9 off 30 overs, with Ralph Sinclair’s figures 6-0-13-2 and Charlie Hudson’s 3-0-20-3. The fielding was surprisingly good considering that this was the first game, and the atmosphere on the field was excellent with all players encouraging each other. Harry Contreras opened the batting and scored a match-winning 47 not out,

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accurate and this was reflected in seven of the wickets being clean bowled. Woodhouse were quickly all out for 56. Finally the captain lost the toss and Hymers asked us to bat. On a difficult wicket Jack Williams and Harry Contreras made 20 each and Kevin Williams 30. The innings of real impetus belonged to Luke Huuffer who hit 41, 36 of which were scored in boundaries. The innings finished on 153 -6, and Hymers were never in the chase, losing five wickets in the first six overs. Harry Contreras’s figures were 5-2-9-4, James Black’s 3-0-13-2 and Jack Amsden’s 4-1-13-2. Jack Amsden and Luke Huffer both took excellent catches on the way to an easy win with Hymers 95 all out. The last game of the season against Pocklington was a one-sided affair. Pocklington won the toss and batted. All the bowlers were accurate with Harry Contreras (5-3-3-3) and Ralph Sinclair (4-111-3) doing the most damage, as Pocklington made 70 all out. We batted poorly with the exception of Harry Contreras (27 not out(, but St Peter’s won by 5 wickets. Overall it was a pleasing season. The players obviously enjoy their cricket and work hard at training. Special mention should be made of Harry Contreras, whose batting average of 75 is impressive. There are a number of potential First XI cricketers in the squad; I hope that they all continue to play and enjoy the game. Mr Mike Johnston

supported by Ralph Sinclair (21) and Ben Wilkinson (22). This was Ben Wilkinson’s last game, we wish him well in his cricket . Against Durham, Harry Contreras again won the toss and asked them to bat. All the bowlers bowled tightly with Luke Huffer bowling off-spin for the first time. Ralph Sinclair (5-1-6-2) and Charlie Hudson (3-1-10-3) took the most wickets. James Black looked threatening at all times with his left-arm swing, and Durham were bowled out in 33 overs for 100. Harry Contreras (38 not out) anchored the innings superbly on a difficult track, Alex Liley hit the ball hard for a good 16, and Will Thompson added a valuable 18 runs, reading the situation well. A seven-wicket win was pleasing not only for the result but also for the manner in which the sides played the game. Harry Contreras continued his run of winning the toss and decided to bat first against Woodhouse Grove. An opening stand of 56 set good foundations for the innings. Oli Hughes hit an excellent 57, playing well, especially when pulling the short ball. Alex Liley batted with controlled aggression and scored all round the wicket in making 65 not out. Jack Williams helped finish the innings with a good 27 not out. His reading of the position of the game and running between the wickets was first-class. The innings finished on 181-2. In reply Woodhouse struggled from the start, with only one of their batsmen making double figures. We used nine bowlers in total and the wickets were shared around. The bowling was

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B O AT C L U B This has been another successful year for the Boat Club with a lot of hard work followed by a crescendo of great results in big events as the summer term drew to a finish. The Easter term saw the River Ouse and many other rivers round the country flooded for prolonged periods: in the first half of term only four of our 24 rowing sessions were on the river. However, we used the time to get fit and improve our ergometer and running skills. Highlights of the year were: • St Peter’s rowers raced the Boston Marathon and raised over £4,000 for the NSPCC. • The Third-Form boys’ squad won gold at the Peterborough Junior Championships in a Quad Scull. • St Olave’s competed for the first time in the Peterborough Junior Championships, recording an excellent second place. • St Peter’s had two crews racing at Henley Women’s Regatta, for the first time since 2007. • We had our first St Peter’s finalist at the National Schools’ Regatta for three years. • Two OPs were selected to represent Great Britain in the World Rowing Championships.

Boston Marathon Sunday 15 September: £4,124 raised for the NSPCC On a very windy and wet day four intrepid St Peter’s crews set out to race the 51km Boston Rowing Marathon. Over 180 crews took part with crews starting every minute for over three hours. The course, on the River Witham from Lincoln to Boston, is narrow to start with, then turns into a wider canalised river. The head wind conditions made times slow and the rowing hard but the crews were determined to race and raise as much money as they could for the NSPCC. After rowing for over five hours, all the crews came back safely saying what an amazing experience it had been. There were two very special results: the Senior Girls’ Quad Scull (Alice Appleby, Katie Hinton, Fenella Hayes, Hannah Burke) won their event, and the Junior 16 Boys (Tom Collinson, Robert Croft, George Doyle,

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Henry Graham, Sami Hirzel, Oliver Millman, Jack Robins, Stan Schofield, George Snell, Alex Woodruff, Peter Gray) set a new course record, both excellent achievements. The last time we raced here we were delighted to raise £1,800 for Martin House Children’s Hospice. This time we more than doubled that by raising £4,124 for the NSPCC’s Childline, a fantastic effort of rowing and fund-raising. Other crews taking part were: J18 Quad Sculls: (1) Dan James, Chris Andrews, Joe Copley and Sam Philpott, and (2) Harry Nozedar, Patrick Litten, Ben Turvill and Patrick Copley.

Chester Long-Distance Sculls, Sunday 29 September On a beautiful sunny Sunday, seven St Peter’s crews crossed the Pennines to race in the Chester Long-Distance Sculls, a 5km time-trial raced in two divisions on the River Dee. The standard of competition was very high with 300 entries including schools, universities and clubs from all over the north-west of England. In the First Division the Girls’ Quad Scull raced well in only their third outing together, coming second in the J18 event, overtaking several crews during the race and beating some senior women’s crews. Our two Senior Boy scullers, Dan James and Sam Philpott, were in a very big field and both sculled well, coming eighth and 13th respectively. The Second Division saw the boys taking to their Quad Sculls, and two very pleasing results ensued. The J17 Boys’ Quad came second, battling all the way down the course, and the Senior Boys’ Quad won the Men’s Novice division, with a winning margin of one minute.

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Later in that division our two Girl Single Scullers raced, tired having rowed 20km over the day. Both maintained good technique in spite of fatigue, overtook several scullers and claimed pleasing second places. 2nd places: WJ18 Single Scull: Katie Hinton. J18 Quad Scull: Ben Turvill, Patrick Litten, Patrick Copley, Alex Woodruff. W Novice Single Scull: Harriet Falshaw. WJ18 Quad Scull: Alice Appleby, Harriet Falshaw, Hannah Burke, Katie Hinton. Winners: Novice Quad Scull: Sam Philpott, Chris Andrews, Dan James, Joe Copley.

Winners: J18 Quad Scull: Sam Philpot, Jonny Fry, Chris Andrews, Dan James 18 Boys’ Double Scull: Jonny Fry, Sam Philpot Women’s Double Scull: Harriet Falshaw, Hannah Burke Women’s IM3 Single Scull: Katie Hinton.

Tees Heads, Saturday 2 November On a very blustery day in difficult conditions, nine St Peter’s crews raced in the Tees Heads, a 5km time trial at Stockton-on-Tees. There were some excellent results against more than 250 crews from northern schools, universities and clubs. The J16 Boys’ Quad Scull (Rob Croft, George Snell, Stan Schofield and George Doyle) gained a third and a second place in their two races, steering really well on the winding, windy course.

York Small Boats Head, Sunday 17 November The normal fog, rain and sleet failed to materialise for this event, run on a lovely autumn day. 36 St Peter’s crews raced against 430 university, club and school crews. There were creditable performances all round, and some excellent results. Fourth places went to the Junior 17 Girls’ Quad Scull (Alice Appleby, Anna-Liese Calder, Sabrina Leung, Holly Harrison) and the Fifth-Form Boys’ Four (Jack Robins, George Doyle, Rob Croft, Ollie Millman, Peter Gray) who had an excellent race and were beaten only by university students, finishing a mere 12 seconds from first place in the Men’s Novice Fours event.

Also third was the Double Scull of Chris Andrews and Dan James in the hotly-contested J18 event. 2nd places: Novice Single Scull: Harry Nozedar. Women’s Single Scull: Katie Hinton.

Third place was gained by the Junior 16 Quad Scull (Louis Taylor, Alex Woodruff, Stan Schofield, Sami Hirzel) where great credit must go to Sami Hirzel who did an amazing job steering a slalom course through a whole group of crews who had bunched up and could not move out of the way to let him overtake. 2nd places: Louis Taylor, who had a great race in the J16 Single Sculls Harriet Falshaw in the Women’s Novice Sculls and Jonny Fry and Chris Andrews in the Open Men’s Double Scull.

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Great Britain Trials, Boston, Saturday 23 November Katie Hinton passed the ergometer test to go to the GB sculling trials in Boston. Here she fared well against the top 84 U18 girls in the country. On the water she was 36th in the 2km race and second in the 250m race, and on land came second, fifth and 37th, a good start to the season.

Winners: Senior Boys’ Novice Quad Scull: Jonny Fry, Chris Andrews, Sam Philpott and Dan James had a tremendous race to come ninth overall, and won their event by 25 seconds. Women’s Intermediate 3 Single Scull was won by Katie Hinton, who was the second-fastest Single Scull of the day. Women’s Open IM3 Double Scull: Harriet Falshaw and Katie Hinton had a very good race and not only won their event but were the fastest women’s Double in any category by 30 seconds. Special mention should go to the Girls’ Novice Quad Scull of Lucy Bower, Natasha Page, Lily Howells and Anna Stephens, coxed by Emily Gray. Most of them had only started rowing two months previously and they rowed with great determination and togetherness, managing to beat four crews in their event and coming home ahead of 90 other crews in the race, a great performance.

Rutherford Head, Newcastle upon Tyne, Saturday 30 November The Boat Club had a successful day on the Tyne in Newcastle. In very wintry conditions our crews raced twice in a field of 230 University, club and school Fours and Eights over the 5km course. Top results were achieved by the following: Seventh out of 12 were the Fifth-Form boys’ Four in the open Novice Men’s event, beaten only by university crews. Fourth: J18 boys’ Eight. Third places went to the girls’ Eight in its first race, and the Fifth-Form boys’ Quad Scull. Second places were achieved by both the senior girls’ Junior 18 and novice Quad Sculls. This is a very pleasing result for the latter crew who only stared rowing this term and had worked very hard. Winners, and the fastest Junior 18 Quad, was our senior boys’ Quad of Dan James, Chris Andrews, Jonny Fry and Sam Philpott. They beat their nearest school rivals by 40 seconds, came 14th overall and were beaten only by the top crews of Edinburgh, Durham and Newcastle Universities. A great performance.

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J16 Coxed Four: Jack Robins, George Doyle, Rob Croft, Ollie Millman, Peter Gray. Winning Crews The Fifth-Form boys’ Four won the Freshers’ Fours division. Jack Robins, George Doyle, Oli Millman, Rob Croft and Peter Gray. Senior boys’ Quad: Sam Philpott, Chris Andrews, Joe Copley and Jonny Fry.

White Rose Head, York, 7 December This was an inaugural an all-University event run by York University for over 100 northern University crews. In pleasant conditions for December over 100 crews from most Northern Universities and colleges raced 3km twice from Fulford to the middle of York. We were fortunate to be asked to enter 11 crews, from Third to Sixth Form. There were two particularly creditworthy performances. The Third-Form boys’ Quad Scull (Charles Barry, Max Hateley, Jack Hargrave, Tom Lister, Jodi Smith) put in a great race, sculling really well together and beating 14 crews, all of the other rowers being aged 19 years and older. The other great performance that came from relative beginners in the girls’ Quad Scull (Lucy Bower, Anna Stephens, Fenella Hayes, Holly Harrison, Emily Gray) who beat 18 crews including seven Eights.

Girls’ Coxed Four: Emily Gray, Harriet Falshaw, Katie Hinton, Hannah Burke and Alice Appleby.

New Year 2014 The New Year started with rain which continued for over six weeks. Out of a possible 24 river outings in that first half-term period we only managed four because the river was at dangerous levels. Land training became routine with extreme pressure on indoor facilities. Many of our normal events were cancelled.

The Fourth-Form boys’ Coxed Quad sculled really well together and with determination to take 29 significant University scalps. (George Avery, Ed Coidan, Sam Appleby, Toby Johnston, Jack Coulthard). The boys’ senior Eight came seventh in the open men’s event and the Fifth-Form boys’ Eight beat all the freshers’ Eights. 4th places J16 Quad scull: Louis Taylor, George Snell, Alex Woodruff, Stan Schofield. The girls’ Eight was placed 4th, beating 21 University Eights. Hannah Burke, Katie Hinton, Harriet Falshaw, Fenella Hayes, Anna Stephens, Sabrina Leung, Lily Howells, Holly Harrison. 3rd places J18 Quad Scull: Dan James, Ben Turvill, Patrick Litten Patrick Copley,

Triangular Head, Yarm, 18 Jan Now a regular feature this triangular head has become ‘square’ with the welcome addition of George Watson’s College from Edinburgh. Our under-rehearsed crews performed well and we had a welcome break from our land-training routine. Everyone mixed into Eights, Fours and Single Sculls to get the maximum racing experience.

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learned. The whole evening, with delicious food and wine and great company, was very well organised as usual by the Boat Club Supporters’ Association. The captains once again entertained us with their speeches. Funds to support the senior and junior rowing camps were raised by various means including auctioning a boat name.

Tyne Head, 23 February A small number of intrepid crews raced on the Tyne in this tough tidal water 5km head race. On a typical February day 170 northern university and club crews raced. Third place Boys’ J18 Eight: Patrick Copley, Harry Nozedar, Joe Copley, Daniel James, Christopher Andrews, Robert Hulmes, Jonathan Fry, Samuel Philpott, Emily Gray.

Annual Boat Club Dinner Dance, 25 January Tina Stiller, St Peter’s very own Olympian and international sculler, did us the huge honour of speaking at the Annual Dinner Dance. She had just raced up from Henley where that morning she had performed a very taxing 5km ergometer selection test for the GB senior national squad. Back in the Merchant Adventurers’ Hall, because of large numbers wishing to attend, Tina talked of the downs and ups of an international rower and what she had

Second places J16 Coxed Four: Robert Croft, George Doyle, Alexander Woodruff, Stanley Schofield, Peter Gray. Men’s IM3 Quad Scull: Patrick Copley, Harry Nozedar, Joe Copley, Daniel James. Men’s IM3 Coxed Four: Christopher Andrews, Robert Hulmes, Jonathan Fry, Samuel Philpott, Emily Gray. Second by six seconds over a 20-minute race.

Trent Head, Nottingham, Sat 2 March With so few events running this year because of flooding across the country there was huge pressure on the few events that ran. 11 St Peter’s crews competed in the 5km head race. This was our first race for over two months and the event was packed with top crews from clubs, Universities and schools from as far afield as London to Edinburgh. Having hardly been on the river this term all the St Peter’s crews acquitted themselves very well. Fourth places went to the senior boys’ Eight and the Fifth-Form boys’ Eight, both racing in very strong fields. Second places were achieved by the Fifth-Form boys’ Four, the senior boys’ Quad Scull and the senior girls’ Eight, racing in a field of 15 university crews.

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Winners of the novice Fours’ event by a margin of ten seconds were the senior boys’ Four of Emily Gray, Sam Philpott, Jonny Fry, Rob Hulmes and Chris Andrews. The Third- and Fourth-Form girls’ and boys’ crews, at their first event of the year, are to be congratulated on their mature and sporting behaviour on and off the water. They were extremely helpful with the whole St Peter’s squad, rowed very well together and raced hard. This was for some of them the first time they had rowed together this year for which they deserve special praise.

Schools’ Head of the River Race, 26 March Even the mighty tidal Thames, The Tideway, was affected by the huge amount of rain we had had over several months. The race was postponed for the first time ever because of this. Having had very few outings on the river before half-term because of constant flooding we were able to get a little practice in before going to London for the biggest time-trial of the year: 350 school crews racing over the Boat Race course.

Yorkshire Head, 15 March Sadly an exeat weekend intervened in one of our biggest local events. However some hardy volunteers raced as Guy Fawkes BC and had a successful day racing over 200 crews. The girls’ Pair of Harriet Falshaw and Katie Hinton had no competition but still beat 55 crews. All the crews won their events: Women’s Novice Eight: Lucy Bower, Anna Stephens, Holly Harrison, Lily, Fenella Hayes, Sabrina Leung, Katie Hinton, Harriet Falshaw, Emily Gray. J18 Double Scull: Sam Philpott, Jonny Fry. Novice Double Scull: Patrick Copley, Joe Copley. Novice Quad Scull: Patrick Copley, Joe Copley, Jonny Fry, Sam Philpott. Women’s Novice Four: Lucy Bower, Sabrina Leung, Lily Howells, Anna Stephens, Emily Gray.

Although relatively unprepared compared with other years everyone tried their hardest with results to correspond. Both boys’ Eights rowed in relatively pleasant conditions but by the time the girls’ Eight and J16 boys’ Four had started, a strong wind had got up and the skies had darkened. Round the big Hammersmith bend there were huge waves and white horses and then the rain, hail and eventually snow started. It was almost impossible to see them at the finish. Although they were damp and cold, it did not dampen their spirits. Girls’ J18 Eight: came a very creditable 16th. Min Lee, coxing here for the first time, steered a superb course down the very difficult river, overtaking several crews on the way. Her constant encouragement meant that the girls put in their very best effort all the way. (Holly Harrison, Pippa Simpson, Sabrina Leung, Fenella Hayes, Hannah Burke, Katie Hinton, Harriet Falshaw, Alice Appleby, Min Lee). Junior 16 boys’ Eight: a new experience against a lot of top-quality Eights, this crew pushed well all the way to finish 11th in their category. (Ollie Millman, Tom Collinson, Jack Coulthard, Sami Hirzel, Sam Appleby, Max McLeish, Stan Schofield, George Doyle, Henry Graham).

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Junior 16 boys’ Four: again a new experience for this crew, they pushed all the way with a lot of tough competition surrounding them, ending in seventh place. (George Snell, Alex Woodruff, Rob Croft, Jack Robins, Peter Gray). Boys’ J18 Eight came 12th in their category and again rowed well and attacked the race from start to finish with Emily Gray coxing here for the sixth and last time for St Peter’s. (Patrick Copley, Dan James, Harry Nozedar, Joe Copley, Chris Andrews, Ron Hulmes, Jonny Fry, Sam Philpott, Emily Gray).

Ghent Senior Rowing Camp and International Regatta, 9-15 April 26 St Peter’s rowers, our largest group ever, went on the annual senior rowing camp to Ghent, Belgium. Two days of intense training were followed by the International Regatta which combines with the Belgian National Championships. With seven countries represented the standard was, as usual, very high. Over the two days of the regatta our crews raced 2,000 metres, the full international distance, between five and seven times. Last year we won a silver medal in the Women’s Eight; this year we had again had relatively little water-time because of flooding and once again

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the German teams were there in force in their usual immaculate form. There were huge numbers of entries and a lot of GB trialists using the regatta to get top-quality competition. On the first regatta day fog on the course delayed the start by two and a half hours. When it finally cleared our best results were: Fifth: girls’ Double Scull, boys’ Double Scull. Third: Junior 16 boys’ Eight, boys’ Coxed Four and girls’ Coxless Four. Other crews produced very good performances, particularly as several rowers had only started rowing in the autumn term and this was their first-ever regatta. To put the results in context, some events had over 30 crews racing. Results Saturday Girls J18 Single; 20th Boys’ J18 Double Sculls: 18th and 19th Boys’ J18 Coxless Pair: 10th Boys’ J16 Coxless Fours: 7th and 8th Boys’ J18 Eight: 7th Boys’ J18 Quad Scull: 7th Women’s senior Eight: 6th

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Gold: J16 boys’ Four: Alex Woodruff, Stanley Schofield, Ollie Millman, Jack Robins, Emily Gray. All the rowers are to be congratulated on their behaviour and discipline on and off the water and their sportsmanship and helpfulness to make this such a successful camp. Huge ‘thank-you’s go to Iain Robertson for organising the whole trip: again, a very large amount of work and planning, we hope not for the last time. It all ran superbly. Very many thanks also to fellow-coaches Alec Gilchrist, Chris Wright, Rory MacLeod and Laura Mulligan for their coaching, rowing and good company and lastly, and very importantly, to the Boat Club Supporters’ Association who, as always, helped hugely in funding the trip. Girls’ J18 Double Scull: 5th, 9th, 10th, 11th. Boys’ J16 Four: 4th and 5th. Boys’ J18 Four: 3rd. Girls’ J18 Coxless Fours: 3rd and 6th. Boys’ J16 Eight: 3rd. On the second day, although tired from the first regatta day, there was a big improvement in most performances. The Eights’ and Fours’ performances leapt forward between 20 and 30 seconds relative to the crews they were racing on day one. Results Sunday Boys’ J18 Double Scull: 11th and 14th. Senior Women’s Single Scull: 12th. Boys’ J18 Quad Scull: 8th. Boys’ J16 Coxless Four: 6th and 7th. Girls’ J18 Coxless Four: 6th and 7th. Boys’ J18 Eight: 5th. Women’s Senior Eight: 5th. Men’s U-23 Coxless Four: 3rd. Girls’ J18 Coxless Pair: bronze medal. J16 boys’ Eight: 2nd. Boys’ J16 Coxed Four: 1st and 4th. Medallists Bronze: Junior Women’s Coxless Pair: Katie Hinton & Harriet Falshaw. Silver: J18 boys’ Eight: Stan Schofield, Maciej Psuich, Rob Doyle, Jack Robins, Ollie Millman, Alex Woodruff, Tom Collinson, Josh Ramalingham, Peter Gray.

York Spring Regatta, 3 May Over 70 rowers raced in the York Spring Regatta. There were good performances, often against much older crews, right through the club but especially from the Third- and Fourth-Form boys and girls. St Peter’s had 12l finalists and were winners in: Junior 18 Mixed Quad sculls: Harriet Falshaw, Fenella Hayes, Rob Hulmes, Sam Philpott. Junior 18 Mixed Eight: Patrick Copley, Maciej Psuich, Alice Appleby, Harriet Falshaw, Holly Harrison, Stanley Schofield, George Snell, Alex Woodruff, Emily Gray. Junior 14 Double Sculls: Jack Hargraves, Ed Johnson. Junior 13 Double Sculls: Pierre Herrenschmidt, Elliott Millman.

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Durham Regatta, 10 May Only one crew raced here, the girls’ Double Scull of Harriet Falshaw and Katie Hinton. In the Women’s IM3 event they hoped to get some side-by-side racing before the National Schools’ Regatta and Henley. The event was a straight knock-out with eight entries. They won the first two rounds very comfortably then had a very hard race in their semi-final against Queen Elizabeth’s High School, Hexham. They had a small lead from halfway which they extended to one length at the finish. In their final they raced a Double Scull from Tyne Rowing Club whom, after a close first half, they beat by three lengths.

The Third-Form boys also raced well, coming third in their Quad Scull and third and fourth in their Double Sculls, again with close margins. The Fourth-Form girls were placed second in the Quad Scull and the Fourth-Form boys’ Four came a very creditable fourth in the open men’s event. Ed Coidan did very well in both the Junior 15 and 16 Single Scull events, coming second in both. The senior boys’ Quad Scull won the J18 event by some three lengths.

National Schools’ Regatta, Friday 24 - Sunday 26 May 3,500 rowers aged 14 to 18 from across Great Britain competed in this event with about 10,000 spectators over the three days. This year we had eight crews competing at this, the biggest junior regatta in the calendar. As usual the competition was the best in the country and against this background St Peter’s did well. All events had big entries and often very harsh criteria for making the semi-finals and finals. Sat 24 May

Tees Regatta, 17 May Several St Peter’s crews raced at Tees Regatta in lovely conditions. The Third-Form girls raced in Quad, Double and Single sculls, making the final with two boats in close, well-fought races.

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Boys’ J18 Coxed Fours were first off. The first time-trial race reduced the entry down to 12 and St Peter’s Four (Alex Payne, Jonny Fry, Rob Hulmes, Sam Philpott and Emily Gray) raced well to end in the middle of that group. The semi-finals were tough with only three crews from each semi making the final. St Peter’s raced hard, a close fourth all the way then in the dying stages were just overtaken by Durham School to end in fifth place. Girls’ Championship Double Sculls With an entry of 33 to get down to a six- boat final this was

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a very tough event. A good time trial saw the Double of Katie Hinton and Harriet Falshaw into the top 18 to race in the semifinals. With only two out of six crews to go through it was always going to be tough. After a fast start St Peter’s held their position until just after halfway. They then were slowly overtaken and in spite of all their best efforts and ended in fifth position. Girls’ Championship Eight With a crew, the majority of whom had rowed for less than a year, this was an experience. With 15 Eights entered we had a solid time-trial against a very strong wind. This put us into a semi-final where we came fifth, beating the time of Cheltenham, a pleasing result for an inexperienced but enthusiastic crew with a lot of promise for next year. Boys’ J16 Eight Although reduced in number of entries compared with some years, the quality of this event at the top had not gone down. In difficult conditions we race a good time-trial and just missed the semi-finals by one place and a few seconds. Again, a good and promising group of young men. Championship Boys’ Double Sculls Again a huge entry of 38 crews this was always going to be a big challenge. Going off at a high rate the St Peter’s Double of Patrick Copley and Harry Nozedar did all they could. The eventual verdict was that they did not make the semi-finals but acquitted themselves very well. Sunday 25 May Championship Coxless Pairs Chris Andrews and Dan James took on this event again with another large entry. They raced well in their time-trial missing the

semi-final cut by about 12 seconds. A good effort by these UpperSixth boys. Boys’ J16 Coxed Four The crew of Peter Gray, Alex Woodruff, George Doyle, Jack Robins and Josh Ramalingham moved straight into the semi-finals. A strong crosswind made the conditions rather unfair. However, these boys raced a great race and were in final qualifying position (third) until the last 250m of the race when Doncaster just slipped past them. This was a great race and the crew will have gained great experience from it. Girls’ Championship Coxless Pairs Harriet Falshaw and Katie Hinton switched from sculling to sweep oar on day two of the regatta. They had a storming time-trial which put them third out of 19 crews. They moved straight to the semi-final where a very mature race put them in second place. The final was, as always, very tough with the best six Pairs in the country lined up. They raced hard but could not quite hold their early pace and ended in fifth position. This was our best result of

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the regatta and the first finals St Peter’s girls have contested since 2005. As usual we are deeply grateful to the Supporters’ Association who manned the marquee and provided fantastic backup for our crews with food, drink and moral support. The marquee was invaluable for keeping rowers shaded, dry, warmish, fed and watered until they had to race.

Six of the seven girls who raced here are in the Fifth or LowerSixth Form, so will be eligible to race again next year. It was a great experience for them all and teamwork and squad support were really good.

York Summer Regatta, 22 June A beautiful day saw 35 different St Peter’s crews competing.

Durham Regatta, 8 June This year only two crews competed here because of exam and other pressures. The J14 boys’ Coxed Quad (Zaki Ward, Max Hateley, Ed Johnson, Harry Exely-Moore, Angus Wilson) were first on the start. They raced a crew from King’s School, Chester. The St Peter’s boys fought hard, improved on their last race and eventually came second. However, it was another promising race and another stepup for these lads, all relatively new to the sport. Sam Philpott raced in the Novice Single Sculls. The competition was hot and in the first round after a very taxing race, he came a very close second to a Leeds sculler.

Henley Women’s Regatta, 21-22 June St Peter’s School last had two crews racing here in 2007. It is the country’s most prestigious women’s regatta. The beautiful setting in Henley belies the toughness of the competition with the best from Great Britain and many other nations competing.

The senior boys’ Quad Scull (Dan James, Patrick Copley, Rob Hulmes, Sam Philpott) were runners-up in a very close final to York City in the Men’s IM3 event. Senior Boys IM3 Eight (Patrick Copley, Harry Nozedar, Dan James, Chris Andrews, Alex Payne, Rob Hulmes, Jonny Fry, Sam Philpott and Emily Gray) won two great and close races against university opposition. J15 boys J15 Double Scull: Oli Williams and Sam Appleby raced through to the J15 semi-final after beating Durham School. They then lost narrowly in the semi to another Durham School crew. J15 Single Scull: Ed Coidan and Jack Coulthard raced in this event with Jack winning the event after beating scullers from Oundle and Durham School, a very pleasing result and good progress for him. J15 Coxed Four: Dan Kondratiev, Jack Coulthard, Patrick Hayes, Ed Coidan, Emily Gray raced several races in this new event against much older opposition doing credit to themselves. J14s

Katie Hinton and Harriet Falshaw raced in the Junior 18 Double Sculls against 16 crews. After two days of training in beautiful weather, race day dawned sunny and warm, so different from last year’s squalling rain. Their first race was straight into the knockout stages against King’s School, Worcester. St Peter’s got off to a great start and had about one length on their competition after a couple of minutes. They were unable to stretch this lead and then gradually King’s, Worcester started to edge back. St Peter’s tried again and again to push their opposition back but could not. In the end they lost by about two lengths in the fastest time of the day by a long way. Much later the girls’ Coxed Four raced against St Paul’s Girls’ School, London, who had come fourth at the National Schools’ Regatta. The Four of Alice Appleby, Holly Harrison, Lily Howells, Pippa Simpson and Min Lee had got together after half-term and made good progress. They raced hard off the start and were gradually overhauled by St Paul’s. However, this relatively inexperienced crew pushed hard all the way with a final result of five lengths, a great achievement against such opposition.

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J14 Coxed Quad: Ed Johnson, Jack Hargrave, Zaki Ward, Harry Exley-Moore and Charles Barry raced strongly and in the final narrowly lost to York City but showed great improvement since the two crews last met a few weeks ago at York Spring Regatta: this showed great promise for later this year and next. J14 Double Sculls: Charles Barry & Jack Hargrave, Harry Exley-

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Moore & Zaki Ward, and Angus Wilson & Max Hateley all raced well, but came up short against stronger, more experienced opposition. The smaller boats highlighted several coaching points to be worked on.

maturity. All the crews worked very hard and showed a lot of improvement since their last races which promises very well for their future.

J14 Single Scull: Ed Johnson decided it was all a bit too hot in the final sprint to stay upright, and so went for a quick swim in the same place he capsized last year. Despite this, the first 600m of the race were very positive.

Henley Royal Regatta Qualifying Races, 28 June

J14 Mixed Octuple Sculls: this proved to be a very close match between the two St Peter’s crews in a straight final, The eventual winners by a small margin were: Sophie Haslam, Chloe Wong, Martha Horner, Katarina Bonner, Jack Hargrave, Zaki Ward, Harry Exley-Moore, Max Hateley. Both crews performed at their highest levels and this event really strengthened the already good team spirit among the J14s. J14 Girls Single Sculls: Martha Horner had her first race in a Single Scull and raced with great spirit and determination. She was only narrowly beaten by a girl from York City which sets a very good standard for comparison. Quad Sculls: both the crews did really well and had stepped up their game from the regatta 2 months ago coming in much closer to their opponents and both beating their previous times from York Spring Regatta. Crews: Sophie-Rose Haslam, Katarina Bonner, Amber Rose, Martha Horner, Ellie Gath. Chloe Wong, Lucy Batters, Clare Hornby, Jodi Smith. Double Sculls: Lucy Butters and Sophie Haslam raced for the first time together in a Double and performed really well. Jodi Smith and Katarina Bonner got to the final of the WJ14 Double category, losing the final by a couple of lengths but showing great racing

The senior boys’ Eight was not strong enough to race so a Quad Scull was formed after seat racing in Double Sculls late in the term. After practice, interspersed with exams, they were required to qualify for the Fawley Cup which is always oversubscribed. 65 crews were fighting for 24 places and by the time the Henley Stewards had made some pre-selections it was a time trial of 55 crews with only 14 to go through to the main regatta, a very tough ask. On a blustery Friday evening the crew raced extremely well on the historic course. They eventually missed qualifying over a race of well over seven minutes. They had the best row they could have done in the circumstances but were clearly disappointed to miss qualifying for the main regatta. The crew: Dan James, Patrick Copley, Rob Hulmes, Sam Philpott.

Peterborough Junior Championships, 28 June Because of the quality and progress of both the Third-Form girls’ and boys’ squads and, for the first time, a J5 boys’ Quad Scull from St Olave’s, we took five Quad Sculls to the Peterborough Championships, our first venture here for five years. The first thing to say is that the behaviour, sportsmanship and helpfulness of the group was well beyond their years. The racing is

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always very tough here as it attracts a lot of top crews, many of whom have already sculled for two to three years. Both girls’ and boys’ squads produced top-quality rowing, the best of their year.

Unfortunately tonsillitis intervened and although they came third in their heat illness prevented them racing further, a real shame for a promising duo.

The girls produced the fastest times of any crew in heats and semi-finals. They made the final and ended fourth, not quite able to sustain their early showing after a very tiring day’s racing. A tremendous marker for their future if they wish to aim high.

Summer Sculling Course

The boys’ Quads again produced good results in the heats and qualified for the final. In the final, their third race of the day, they set off at a blistering pace and eventually pulled right ahead of the other crews, winning by a huge eight seconds. Harry Exley-Moore, Ed Johnson, Jack Hargrave, Zaki Ward and Charles Barry secured St Peter’s first victory here for six years, a great achievement. Both the boys and girls of these Third-Form squads are to be congratulated on their perseverance and commitment throughout the year. They have been attentive, they have worked hard, and have already achieved excellent results which they richly deserve. Girls’ squad: Katarina Bonner, Jodi Smith, Lucy Butters, SophieRose Haslam, Clare Hornby, Martha Horner, Chloe Wong. Amber Rose, Ellie Gath, Emily Gray. Boys’ squad: Harry Exley-Moore, Ed Johnson, Jack Hargrave, Zaki Ward, Charles Barry, Tom Clarke, Zac Faithfull, Jack Hargrave, Max Hateley, Angus Wilson. St Olave’s Quad: Elliot Millman, Pierre Herrenschmidt, Tom Raper, Joe Raper, Joshua Harrison.

The ninth summer sculling course once again proved very popular, attracting record numbers of girls and boys. They learnt a lot about safety, technique on the rowing ergometer, practical lessons in safe boat-lifting, and, of course, sculling and coxing. They had a very useful session in the pool learning capsize technique and swimming in kit. By the end of the four days all were competent at sculling in Octuple and Quad Sculls and some even ventured out in Coxless Quad Sculls with a coach sitting in the crew. In addition we watched rowing and entertaining DVDs to let lunch settle and enjoyed a great barbeque. All performed well and showed great sportsmanship. My congratulations to all the scullers who tried so hard. Many thanks to the coaches, OPs and present rowers, who helped coach, inspire and enthuse these young rowers. The Coaches: Alec Gilchrist, Chris Wright, Ellie MacLeod, Joe Copley, Katie Hinton, Alice Appleby, Alex Woodruff, George Doyle, Jack Robins, Lucy Bower, Oliver Millman, Patrick Litten, Pippa Simpson.

Thanks As always the coaches have been terrific this year: they are a great, experienced and hard-working team, delighted to work in weathers fair or foul and the performance of our rowers owes a lot to them. Mr Chris Hall made his contribution throughout the year. A very experienced coach, we used his talents with a variety of squads during the year, taking over the mantle of the J15 boys in the summer term with great success. Mrs Cath Hempsall coached in the Christmas Term. She brought the J15 boys on from virtual beginners and their year ended with many good performances. She taught them both discipline and technique each of which made their rowing faster. Miss Katherine Barker coached in the Summer Term. She did a great job with J15 girls who performed increasingly well each week ending their season with great racing at York Summer Regatta. They have good promise for next year. Mr Harry Vann coached in the very trying Easter Term where more time was spent on land that water. He continued Mrs Hempsall’s good work with the Fourth-Form boys, melding them into a more cohesive unit.

Great Britain National Rowing Championships Harriet Falshaw and Katie Hinton, having come fifth in the National Schools’ Regatta in a Pair, continued to train after term had finished and raced at the National Championships.

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Miss Alice Lambert started the year with the Third-Form ‘Round Robin’ then took over the Fourth-Form girls. Her calm and encouraging approach fitted this squad very well and they made sound progress under her guidance. Mr Alec Gilchrist coached the senior boys from September and

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taught then a lot about crew and single sculling. Alec remains very patient, instils discipline and team-working and gets great satisfaction from seeing the youngsters develop at whatever level. Mr Chris Wright took on the Fifth-Form boys coaching and helped them make substantial progress. He is always very flexible, and his patient, no-nonsense style works well. In addition he coached the Third Form on their Tuesday and Thursday sessions. Joe Foss again provided Wednesday coaching to St Peter’s and St Olave’s. Always very calm, he brought on series of crews. Annabel Robertson coached in the Christmas and Summer Terms, doing great work with the Third-Form girls who came on rapidly throughout the year with a great finale at the Third-Form Championships in Peterborough. Charlotte Jukes coached with us whilst studying for a sports degree at York St John University and then became indispensible, coaching more in the Summer Term as well. Her experience of both rowing and coaching was invaluable. Paddy Reilly O’Donnell coached with us for the second year and made a huge contribution to the Third-Form boys’ squad, bringing them to great success at the Third-Form Championships at the end of the season. We are fortunate to have him with us for another season. Dom Marshall joined us this year whilst in his last year at University. A great asset, he has really taken to the challenge of coaching younger rowers, and with Paddy produced great success with the Third-Form boys. Freddie Jagger returned from coaching in Melbourne and worked hard and competently with a variety of squads who all enjoyed his coaching. Anne Homa helped with the ‘Round Robins’ for Third-Form girls and also took on other rowers during the year, for which we are very grateful. Anna-Liese Calder, our fourth New Zealand gap-student, had a great year coaching with us, leading the Third-Form girls to several great performances. We were really sorry to see her go home in December and wish her all the best in her university and rowing career. She is always welcome back at St Peter’s. Laura Mulligan took over from Anna-Liese in January. She arrived from Hamilton, New Zealand to a very wet, cold UK. Already a junior national champion in New Zealand, she rapidly picked up how we do things here and did great work with the girls’ squads and beginners and even took part in racing at Ghent. A perceptive and very reliable coach, she stays with us until Christmas 2014. The Captains, Emily Gray and Dan James, deserve praise for leading from the front, performing their duties well and showing the younger ones what the Boat Club is all about. In addition, their own dedication ensured their squads’ and their own excellent rowing performances.

Association, who have done a huge amount to support the rowers, the Club and me. I am tremendously grateful for what they do, whether providing hot tea on freezing days at York events, organising the Quiz Night and the Annual Dinner or putting up the marquee and feeding the rowers at the National Schools’ Regatta. It would be impossible without them. Phil Blakeborough, who drives all our boats so expertly to regattas, helps supervise, rig and load. A constant source of cheerful chat, always helpful with a spanner in his hand, he keeps a very mature eye on our activities, on and off the water. And finally the Boat Club could not stay afloat without the huge time and effort put in by Jon Whitmore (OP) who works tirelessly repairing and renovating our fleet. He has ensured that boats are returned to use as soon as possible and even comes down on regatta days to make sure we are all riverworthy. We all appreciate his work tremendously and could not survive without him.

Old Peterite News Two Old Peterites, Tina Stiller and Jess Elkington, were selected to row for the senior and Under-23 Great Britain teams in the World Rowing Championships this summer. Jess Elkington (2010) has rowed at Exeter University for the last three years and was this summer selected for the GB Women’s Under-23 lightweight Quadruple Scull. The World Rowing under-23 Championships were held at the end of July in Varese, Italy. Jess’s crew made good progress in the heat securing a place in the semi-finals. Their semi-final was, as always, very tough, but they prospered and went directly to the final. On a blisteringly hot day they came fourth in the final, a tantalising 2.5 seconds off a bronze medal. This was a great result for Jess, the first time she has represented Great Britain, and perhaps a sign of things to come. Tina Stiller (2005) is already a World under-18 bronze and World under-23 silver medallist. Tina has now stepped up into the Great Britain senior women’s team and is selected for the Quadruple Scull which will race in the World Rowing Championships in Amsterdam from 24-31 August. Over 50 nations will compete on the world famous 1932 Olympic rowing course, the Bosbaan. We wish her our very best. This is a tremendous achievement for St Peter’s. We have never had two Old Peterites in the World Rowing Championships before. Rowing Awards and Colours Half Colours: Sabrina Leung. Full Colours: Emily Gray, Alice Appleby, Holly Harrison, Fenella Hayes, Chris Andrews, Daniel James, Sam Philpott, Jonny Fry, Patrick Copley, Rob Hulmes, Harry Nozedar. St Peter’s Caps: Harriet Falshaw, Katie Hinton. Dr Jamie MacLeod

A huge ‘thank-you’ also to the Boat Club Supporters’

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FOOTBALL First XI Football The beginning of January saw even more new faces than in previous years, showing the great progress that football is making at St Peter’s. The first week of training gave everyone a chance to impress the coaches, and it was clear that there was a great deal of talent within the squad, especially with the deadline-day transfers from the Hockey teams.

This promising start was followed by the visit of a very strong Woodhouse Grove side, and despite a resilient performance and a good finish from Abdul Yahaya, we went down 4-1 against a good footballing team. We were back to winning ways with a 5-1 win against Silcoates, with Alex Reeds proving a real threat

The eagerly-awaited first competitive fixture of the season saw local rivals Bootham travel to ‘The Colts’. In a fierce and highlycompetitive match, goals from Phil Hodgson and Harry Stothard gave St Peter’s a 2-0 lead, with Cormac Hopkinson adding a third to ensure a 3-1 victory. A special mention must be given to the Man of the Match, keeper James Bellingall, who produced one of the greatest performances of the season to deny Bootham numerous times with many fantastic saves to earn the win. St Peter’s Second XI were also in action against Bootham; Alex Payne leading the side to a comfortable 6-2 victory, showing the squad’s strength in depth, and many players consequently forcing their way into the First XI.

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down the left-hand side, and creating a number of goals, and Cormac Hopkinson scoring twice in the win. This was followed by a comprehensive victory over Read School, where the good passing play from St Peter’s proved too much for the opposition. The following week saw a strong Yarm team travel to St Peter’s, and take a 2-1 lead, (including a superb own goal from Nik Ubhi), but the team showed great resilience and motivation to fight back and win the game 3-2, with Dom Marsh scoring the winning goal.

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The team continued their excellent start to the season with a 3-1 win over Barnard Castle in extremely tough conditions. There were goals this time from Will Catchpole and James Bottomley, who was starting to show himself as a prolific scorer. A 3-0 win over Silcoates followed this, with Nicolae Bolocan showing his great football ability along with his immense strength down the right-hand side. Then came the highly-anticipated first game against Ampleforth, and after a motivational team talk St Peter’s were 3-0 up by halftime with two goals from James Bottomley and a Nik Ubhi header. However, good goals early in the second half saw Ampleforth pull the game back to 3-2. A strong defensive display late on, with Man of the Match Will Catchpole proving his worth, saw St Peter’s hold out to take the victory. The Second XI were again in action, in the first match of a triple-header against Ampleforth. St Peter’s showed their class by winning all of the fixtures, with Abdul Yahaya managing to score a hat-trick of hat-tricks during these games. The First XI continued to make ‘The Colts’ a fortress, and thanks to a fine performance from Ed Cotter, managed to beat Barnard Castle in a close 2-1 victory. This was followed by the return fixture against Ampleforth, in which St Peter’s ran out 5-2 winners, continuing their impressive winning streak, with Andrei Zevakin standing out in particular. The away trip to Bootham followed, where a highly-motivated Bootham team ran out eventual winners 3-2, despite late goals from Harry Stothard. St Peter’s then made the long trip to play Ackworth in the final game of the season. With many players being away, this gave the chance to others to impress, and there were solid performances from Toby Mcgill and Andrey Fokin at the

back, and Jonnie Eleanor in midfield providing great hope for next year. Throughout the season the squad trained hard on the 3G pitches at Roko Gym, which certainly aided us in playing good passing football. The end of the season saw the return of inter-house football where the School house team of Nik Ubhi, Patrick Copley, Chris Williams, Alex Payne and Will Fynn ran out winners, beating The Manor 2-1 in the final. End of the season awards were given to Phil Hodgson for Top Goalscorer, Cormac Hopkinson for Players’ Player of the Season and Goal of the Season, Nicolae Bolocan for Most Improved Player and Nik Ubhi earning a Manager’s Award.

This concluded the impressive season that the St Peter’s football teams had and I, on behalf of all of the players, would like in particular to thank Mr Lawrence and Mr White for the organisation of the games, their coaching and management and also all the other members of staff who gave their time during the season. Nik Ubhi (UVI) First XI Captain

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GIRLS’ BADMINTON We have, throughout our numerous fixtures, proven ourselves to be a force to be reckoned with, only losing two matches after playing Queen Margaret’s twice, Harrogate Ladies’ College twice, Bootham School twice and The Mount once. Our loss in our first match of the season was against a strong Queen Margaret’s team, which only spurred us on to win our next game, and indeed the next, and the game after that! We struggled against an intense Harrogate Ladies’ College team, who had notably changed their line-up to include players of a seriously high calibre after our triumph in our first match against them. As the first St Peter’s badminton team season it was a real achievement. Our passion as a team for badminton was mirrored through our desire for success and through our emotion and competitiveness on court, all of which were more important than our overall score. Sara Pycock (UVI)

ROUNDERS Senior rounders First and foremost, I sincerely hope that all the senior girls who opted for rounders had the opportunity to enjoy themselves and were able to use the sessions as a way to escape the stresses and strains of the examination season. The rounders term, because of study-leave and, this year in particular, bad weather, can often be rather short for the seniors. It does, though, give them the opportunity to play at least some competitive matches.

At the start of the summer term we were able to field two teams, as the exam season was not completely under way. The two matches against Ashville College saw the girls return to their original form – expert and skilful fielding coupled with some huge hitting! I would like to thank Tansy for organising the team during studyleave. The Upper Sixth will most certainly be missed. The following girls played in the rounders team during the term: Scarlett Shaw, Gemma Willink, Anna Fairbank, Georgia Calvert, Amy Dodds, Georgie Harrison, Farrell Voase, Annabel Blott, Anna Thrussell, Sarah Willis, Alicia Cranston, Harriet Andrews, Tansy Tomlinson (Captain), Laura Nichols, Eleanor Fletcher, Katherine Raines, Emily Easterby, Sasha Hinde, Josie Proctor Results Harrogate Ladies’ College Queen Mary’s B Ashville College A Ashville College B Queen Margaret’s Bootham Ampleforth Giggleswick

lost cancelled won won cancelled won cancelled lost

7-9.5 28-2 30-7 28-25 14-18

Mrs Justine Williams

U15 The U15s had a tough calendar of fixtures this year, and despite making pleasing progress during the season, lack of consistency in the teams meant that they struggled against stronger opposition. The A team suffered two strong defeats in their first two matches,

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against Harrogate Ladies’ College and Ashville College, whilst the B team drew 26.5-26.5 in a very closely-fought match against Ashville. Following a spate of bad weather, and numerous cancelled matches, both teams were successful in beating Bootham convincingly. Despite further inclement weather, the girls showed real focus and determination in the final few matches and produced a pleasing win against Queen Mary’s. Well done to all the girls involved this season! U15 results Harrogate Ladies College A Ashville College A Ashville College B Queen Margaret’s A Bootham A Giggleswick Queen Mary’s Pocklington A Pocklington B Barnard Castle

L L D L W L L L L L

in rounders and the girls were motivated and determined to play to the best of their ability. Highlights included both the As and Bs overcoming Ashville College, the A team winning by eight rounders in their match and a victory against Harrogate Ladies’ College where we scored a huge 26 rounders, and they only managed 6.5. The girls were fantastic to work with, they played intelligently and cohesively and I wish them all the best for their summer holiday and beyond! Thanks must be given to the captains for their excellent leadership and maturity throughout the season.

7.5-19.5 7.5-22 26.5-26.5 14.5-32.5 25-9 6.5-10.5 11-19 6-17.5 5.5-13 8-16

U14 results Harrogate ladies College A Ashville College A Ashville College B Queen Margaret’s A Bootham A Bootham B Giggleswick Queen Mary’s Pocklington A Pocklington B Barnard Castle A

U14 Despite several rounders matches being cancelled this season because of the wet weather, the U14s had a very successful term. Both A and B teams had fantastic seasons with outstanding victories against Pocklington, Queen Mary’s and Queen Margaret’s to name a few. Competition for places is always hard

W W W W W W L L W L W

26-6.5 11-3 9-6.5 34-20 26-6 29.5-11.5 5.5-6 14-19.5 13.5-7 14-16.5 28-9

Junior inter-house rounders A pleasing number of girls took part in the junior inter-house rounders competition this year. Following some extremely exciting and closely-fought matches the final placings were:

4th 3rd 2nd 1st

School Dronfield Grove Clifton

Mrs Emma Brough

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SQUASH Boys’ Squash

Girls’ squash

It has been a very busy and a very successful year for St Peter’s Boys’ Squash Club. This year has seen the introduction of termly pupil-v-staff squash matches, even more regular fixtures, the popular Coach Cup, and also an England Squash Court Challenge.

Squash has had up to 70 girls playing every week, with some girls training towards team squash and others enjoying recreational squash.

The pupil-v-staff matches have been a great addition to the calendar with three matches being played this academic year, all ending in draws. The boys look forward to these matches greatly, and see it as an opportunity for a bit of payback. Also, from a coach’s point of view, some good-quality squash is also played. We have had very good first and second team wins against Ampleforth, Stillington and Worksop. With Gabriel Chan, James Downie, Elliot Elstob, Angus Freeman, Callum Hatzel, Scott Buskin, Alex Greenwood, Steven Jones, Nathan Chapman, Oliver Harvey, George Thompson, Jack McCartney and Jonnie Eleanor making up the main first and second team squad. The Coach Cup is a straight knockout tournament, played within coaching sessions. Gabriel, Jack and James were three of the six winners of the inaugural Coach Cups. A very competitive tournament – especially when we had a Third-Former playing and winning against an Upper Sixth player, with all the Third-Form pupils being very vocal in their support. With the support of England Squash we organised our first England Squash Court Challenge event. All boys who had received coaching were invited to attend. The tournament was a U19 event and all who attended received a free England Squash t-shirt. The overall winner was Gabriel Chan, who beat Callum Hatzel 3-1 in a close final. I am excited about the coming season: we will have some potentially good squash players in all years, and with hard work from these players we should have another successful season. Mr Matt Bridson

Our first squash team has been very dedicated, and the following girls have played in some or all of the above first-team matches: Hannah Lawrence, Zoe Pindar, Lauren Caley, Gemma Willink, Georgie Ward, Izzy Cotter, Emily Brown, Steph Tong. During the first half of the season we lost all but one of our matches. It is a difficult term as many of our squash players are also hockey players and we are only able to train together once a week.

During the spring term the girls train three times a week and this was reflected in the results where they finished the season unbeaten in division four, placing them second. York and District Ladies’ Squash League, Division 4 Results 24 Sep 2013

Queen Margaret’s (A)

Lost 7 - 14

13 Oct 2013

University Students 1 (A)

Lost 1 - 20

12 Nov 2013

York 2 (H)

Won 17 - 6

26 Nov 2013

York Railway Institute 3 (H)

Lost 8 - 14

11 Dec 2013

David Lloyd 3 (A)

Lost 10 - 18

21 Jan 2014

Queen Margaret’s (H)

04 Feb 2014

University Students 1 (H)

Won 14 - 8

02 Mar 2014

York Railway Institute 3 (A)

Won 20 - 1

12 Mar 2014

York 2 (A)

Won 20 - 2

25 Mar 2014

David Lloyd 3 (H)

Won 18 - 5

Final table Team

W L D

1 University Students 1

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0 109 52

149

2 St Peter’s Girls

0 105 68

135

3 David Lloyd 3

128

4 York Railway Institute 3

109

5 Queen Margaret’s

6 York 2

53 119

Mrs Louise Cotter

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SWIMMING This year has been a fantastic year for girls’ swimming and our most successful since I started coaching the girls in 2008. The team, consisting of the three age-groups, U14s, U15s and Seniors, only lost one match and that was against our toughest competitors, Harrogate Ladies’ College. St Peter’s were on the wrong end of several harsh decisions and ended up losing by only five points, which showed how tight some of the finishes were. Although I say it nearly every year, many of the girls have to fit their training in between their main team sport, CCF, D of E, drama or musical commitments but despite this they always continue to give their utmost and the results below show how the rewards were certainly reaped this year. 24/09/13

Queen Margaret’s

(A)

Won

159-113

14/10/13

The Mount

(H)

Won

187-136

12/11/13

Bootham

(A)

Won

117- 98

20/11/13

Pocklington

(A)

Won

358-314

28/01/14

HLC

(A)

Lost

96-101

4/02/14

Bootham

(H)

Won

136-107

10/02/14

Queen Margaret’s

(H)

Won

199-170

12/02/14

The Mount

(A)

Won

128- 99

25/02/14

GSAL

(H)

Won

227-168

1/03/14

Ampleforth

(A)

Won

63- 47

The following girls have represented the school: U14s: Maddy Bletcher, Katarina Bonner, Alex Craig, Holly Drake, Sophie Green, Imogen Matthews, Emily McDonald, Katherine Robinson. U15s: Amelia Bell, Liv Calvert, Jenny Elliott, Abi Harrison, Nicole Moir, Katherine Spencer. Seniors: Tilly Antrum, Sophie Blackburn*, Chloe Burdass*, Emily Carman, Harriet Fordy, Lucy Garnett*, Rachel Hall, Helen Megone, Hannah Ramalingam +, Alice Rhodes**, Teresa Stefanini, Tracy Yip*. + Half colours *Full colours **Full colours re-awarded

Olympic Park. This is an invitational national relay championship involving the country’s top 70 independent schools. Unfortunately Alice could not compete because of a clash with her Physics A-level but the remaining four girls – Sophie, Chloe, Lucy and Tracy – swam brilliantly despite their nerves and the daunting prospect of swimming in the same lane that Michael Phelps had swum in at the London 2012 Olympics. The girls rose to the occasion and although they just missed out on the Freestyle final for smaller schools they set a new best time in the Medley Relay, gaining ninth place in the Dunelm Cup final. The boys’ team of Max Nozedar, Harry Nozedar, Joe Brennan and Sam Dickinson, narrowly missed out on the Medley Relay but came seventh in the Freestyle Relay of the Aldenham Cup final which, given the outstanding competition, was an excellent result. All the squad certainly deserved the great sense of achievement they all felt.

Inter-house swimming Once again the finals of the inter-house swimming proved very exciting but this year the runaway winners were Hope, gaining a total of 143 points, this being by far the highest score ever recorded in the event. A combination of both strong junior and senior swimmers meant Hope were placed first, second or third in 19 of the 20 events, winning 11 of them. A remarkable ten new records were set during the competition, by Sophie Green, Katarina Bonner, Liv Calvert, Nicole Moir, Lucy Garnett, Chloe Burdass and Katharine Phillips. It is worth noting that for the past five years the retiring captain Alice Rhodes has won all the individual inter-house races in which she has competed, which is a great achievement, and she currently holds four individual school records. The results were:

The Fowler Cup was presented to Alice Rhodes. The John Parry Relays were hosted by St Peter’s this year, this being an annual competition for the top northern swimming schools. The girls had their best results for seven years in timings and placings, gaining third place in all four events; U18 and U15 Freestyle Relay and U18 and U15 Medley Relay. It was the first time in many years that St Peter’s took a Senior boys’ and girls’ squad to compete in The Bath and Otter Cup, a prestigious event held at the London Aquatics centre in the

1st 2nd 3rd 4th

Hope Clifton Dronfi eld Temple

143 pts 84 pts 69 pts 57 pts

Great North Swim: For the third successive year St Peter’s took a coach-full of swimmers, a combination of 34 parents, pupils and teachers to experience the delights of a one-mile open-water swim on Lake Windermere. Despite a somewhat hurried arrival after being stuck on the M6 (no, we weren’t sure why the coach

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driver took us that way, either!), leaving literally only minutes before our ‘wave’ was due to start, everyone still managed to swim well, finish and enjoy it all at the same time. The water was almost warm at 17 degrees, and with little wind the lake was fairly flat, meaning that swimming conditions were good. Everyone completed the course in quick times, with Sam Dickinson coming second in our wave in a fabulous time of 21 mins 30 secs, and finishing 11th out of over 4,000 swimmers.

Finally, it would be remiss of me not to give a special mention to this year’s girls’ swimming captain, Alice Rhodes. Alice has been the most dedicated competitor on all levels. She has been a key member of the swimming team throughout her time in the school, always showing utmost determination in the pool. I have already mentioned her success in the inter-house swimming but on a higher level Alice has competed in 37 matches and swum in 78 individual races, winning 72 of them and coming second in the remaining six, alongside contributing to all our successes in the relays. This is a remarkable achievement and I am grateful for the dedication she has shown to school swimming throughout her time here. I would also like to say a big ‘thank-you’ to the Upper Sixth who are leaving, specifically Emily Carman, Rachel Hall and Hannah Ramalingham along with Siân Bigger and Ellie Fletcher: I wish you all the best, in and out of the pool. Mrs Karen Burdass

WAT E R P O L O This year St Peter’s has produced an excellent squad of water polo players. The commitment to the sport and the excellent team spirit resulted in a very high standard of water polo being played in all our matches. Opposition is difficult to find but our results for the year were: Bradford Grammar 8 – 4 St Peter’s Goals: James Contreras 3, Patrick Foster 1 This was a very close game with St Peter’s creating many scoring chances. Bradford were a lot more clinical in front of goal and their experience proved vital in the last quarter of the match. St Peter’s 4 – 2 Ampleforth Goals: Max Nozedar 3, Owen Herman 1 Ampleforth started strongly but St Peter’s defended well. A good solid performance in defence and attack. St Peter’s 2 – 4 Bradford Grammar Goals: Max Nozedar 1, Owen Herman 1 St Peter’s lost the first half 3-0 but recovered well to win the second half 2-1. Our visit to Ampleforth also included a swimming match where our water polo team doubled as our swimming team. Excellent performances saw St Peter’s dominate both the ‘A’ and ‘B’ fixtures, with the following results:

St Peter’s Ampleforth Bradford Grammar Mr Alan Sunderland

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A 40 27 24

B 21 9 8

Overall 61 36 32

Inter-house water polo Inter-house Water Polo was greeted with much enthusiasm this year and the resulting competition could not have been more exciting. The group stages produced some excellent games which resulted in semi-finals of Hope v Linton and Grove v Queen’s. In closely-fought games Linton beat Hope 4-2 and Grove defeated Queen’s 3-0. The resulting final was something to be recorded in the history books. The game was physically and evenly contested with creative play from both sides. At full-time the score was level at 3 goals each. Four minutes of extra time were then played (two minutes in each direction). Both teams attacked the opposition and the score moved on to 4-4, 5-5, 6-6, and then after eight periods of extra time Grove finally became 2014 inter-house champions by 7 goals to 6. The goal-scorers were: Grove – Jack Graham 4, Max Nozedar 2, James Field 1, and for Linton – Sam Raper 5, Will Fox 1. Everyone who had played was exhausted, as were the spectators who supported enthusiastically throughout. Well done to all who took part. Mr Alan Sunderland

Sport

CROSS COUNTRY

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S P O R T S D AY Girls’ Results Event Senior 1500m Junior 1500m Senior 800m Junior 800m Senior 400m Junior 300m Senior 200m Junior 200m Senior 100m Junior 100m Senior Relay Junior Relay Senior Discus Junior Discus Senior Javelin Junior Javelin Senior Shot Put Junior Shot Put Senior High Jump Junior High Jump Senior Long Jump Junior Long Jump House results 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th

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Winner Alice Greswold Katarina Bonner Olivia Anderson Nicole Moir Katherine Raines Nicole Moir Frankie Anderson Annabelle Blackburn Minna Gabbertas Amelia Bell

Anna Thrussell Olivia Calvert Millie Grant Jennifer Elliott Ellie Martin Edith Norvor Olivia Anderson Rebecca Green Frankie Anderson Phoebe Phillips

The Grove Clifton School Temple Dronfield The Rise Queen’s Hope

House S H C D Q D T G S C T G R D G G T D C C T H

127 110 106 101 97 93 93 87

Sport

Boys’ Results Event Senior 3,000m Intermediate 3,000m Senior 1500m Intermediate 1500m Junior 1500m Senior 800m Intermediate 800m Junior 800m Senior 400m Intermediate 400m Junior 400m Senior 200m Intermediate 200m Junior 200m Senior 100m Intermediate 100m Junior 100m Senior Relay Intermediate Relay Junior Relay Senior Discus Intermediate Discus Junior Discus Senior Javelin Intermediate Javelin Junior Javelin Senior Shot Put Intermediate Shot Put Junior Shot Put Senior High Jump Intermediate High Jump Junior High Jump Senior Long Jump Intermediate Long Jump Junior Long Jump

Winner Sam Dickinson Rory Combe Sam Dickinson Robbie Brown Ed Johnson Cormac Hopkinson Oskar Fraser-Krauss Robbie Brown Ben Williams Oskar Fraser-Krauss Rory Winterburn Clement Elliott David Bird Theo Hedley Ben Williams Charles Rae Kevin Williams

Toby Simpson Robert Croft Rory Winterburn Will Scholey Max Mcleish Ben Parkes Charles Smith Sam Hudson Rory Winterburn Will Catchpole Matthew Dickson Ben Chamberlain Will Pepper Will Fordy Harry Contreras

House M M M T Q Q T T Q T L C S M Q C Q T C Q L H L H Q T T S L C M C C T C

House results 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th

Clifton Queen’s School Temple Linton The Grove Hope The Manor

200 197 168 155.5 153.5 139 131 125

This was an excellent afternoon of athletics. In total three records were broken: the senior girls’ long jump was beaten by Frankie Anderson with a jump of 4.81m; a new junior girls’ 300m record was set by Nicole Moir in a time of 46.8 seconds, and the senior girls’ 4x100m relay record was beaten by Temple (Frankie Anderson, Ellie Martin, Helen Taylor and Sarah Carlton) in a in a time of 56.65 seconds. The inter-house girls’ trophy was won by Grove and the inter-house boys’ trophy was won by Clifton. Well done to all who competed and a special ‘thank-you’ to all the staff who helped out on the day.

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Sport

Athletics shields and cups The Clive Lewis Trophy for 100m & 200m combined: Charlie Elliot. The Lowther Sprint Cup (Girls’ 100m): Minna Gabbertas.

The Chris Hurst Trophy for 3,000m: Sam Dickinson. The Junior Sprint Cup (Girls): Amelia Bell. Cambell Cup (Senior Girls’ 200m): Frankie Anderson.

The Proudly Trophy for 400m: Ben Williams.

Mr Steve Williams

The Friends of St Peter’s Middle-Distance Cup: Alice Greswold. The Junior Girls’ Middle-Distance Cup: Nicole Moir. The Victrix Ludorum Cup (Best Girl Athlete): Nicole Moir. The Robinson Walker Trophy for 800m: Cormac Hopkinson. The Elmsley Trophy for 1500m: Sam Dickinson.

B OYS ’ AT H L E T I C S There are some talented athletes in school at present. At the senior end of school Sam Dickinson is an excellent 3,000m runner, as he demonstrated when he broke a 25-year-old North Yorkshire record at the county championships in June. It was great to see him awarded his colours. Will Fordy (intermediate discus), Oskar Fraser-Krauss (intermediate 800m) and Charlie Rae (intermediate 100m) all won their events too. Robbie Brown came second behind a very quick intermediate 3,000m runner and is well placed to continue as a strong athlete as he moves up through the school.

At the York and District Schools’ Athletics there were a number of competitors in addition to those above. The main team event of the year was the English Schools’ Cup, although sadly this year we were unable to progress from the first round. There are some promising athletes in the Third Form who will still be able to take part in this event next year, so there is hope that we might do better in the future. My thanks go to all those who took part this year as well as those who coached. Mr Steve Gwilliam

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Leavers’ Destinations 2014

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THE PETERITE 2013-2014

St Peter’s School • York • YO30 6AB Tel: 01904 527300 • Fax: 01904 527302 Email: enquiries@stpetersyork.org.uk www.stpetersyork.org.uk

THE PETERITE 2013-2014

The Peterite 2013-2014

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