Tag Archives: Bedales sport

Girls’ First XI Hockey v Embley Park

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By Kevin Boniface, Head of Hockey

On Wednesday the girls’ first XI travelled to Embley Park School and played an adapted format game (four quarters as opposed to two halves), which provide a lovely opportunity to rotate a number of positions.

The first quarter involved both sides turning over possession on a regular basis but it was the Bedales side who held most of the attacking territory. A calm finish from Mathilda Douglas after a well worked team move and another goal from a short corner drag flick from Alisia Leach put the Bedales side 2-0 up going in to the first interval. The second quarter saw a ramp up in intensity and better retention of the ball from Bedales, with Mathilda Douglas adding to her tally. The third quarter was probably the stand out for Bedales in terms of attacking possession – the Bedales side attacked at speed and were efficient in front of goal. Kamaya Nelson Clayton picking up a hat-trick inside 15 minutes. The final quarter saw Embley rally and put together some powerful drives in to the circle, deservedly winning a number of penalty corners. However, Bedales captain Esther Stewart, Shanklin Mackillop-Hall and goalkeeper Matilda Gellatly were on hand to keep Embley at bay.
 
A special mention must go to Sammy Smith, who had arguably her strongest game of the season and deservedly picked up player of the match. An enjoyable game and good preparation as the side head to Abingdon next week for the South Central regional finals.

Match report: Girls’ Second XI Hockey v Alton School

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By Kevin Boniface, Head of Hockey

The late Wednesday afternoon fixture saw the girls’ second XI back in action. The opposition was a strong Alton side who had the majority of the attacking play in the first half. However, they were kept at bay for long periods due to the goalkeeping of Tilda Gellatly, who had shown incredible commitment to the Bedales hockey programme by playing for the first XI in the afternoon before travelling back to fill a slot in the second XI, which was wonderful to see.

Alton were deservedly 2-0 up at half-time but a positive team talk and approach in the second half saw the Bedales side come out fighting. Forward running from Sage Bidwell and Izzy Land always meant that the Bedales side had an attacking threat; they were ably supported by the impressive Ava Sender Logan alongside the hard-working and influential Katie Mansbridge and Lula Goldring. 

Despite the best efforts of full back Maya Cressman, the Alton side ran in three late goals to finish 5-0 winners, a score not fully reflective of just how close the game had been. A really valuable game in terms of development for the team and plenty to take into next week’s game.

Match report: Girls’ First XI Hockey v Portsmouth Grammar School (PGS)

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By Kevin Boniface, Head of Hockey

The girls’ first XI were back in action on Wednesday. Although the team were high in confidence after their success at the Hampshire Trophy Tournament, they knew they were facing a tough opposition in PGS.

The Bedales side were quick to adapt to the bouncy, water-based pitch at HMS Temeraire and made a lot of the early attacking advances, forcing a number of attacking short corners and it was from one of these that the incredibly influential Alisia Leach put the side 1-0 up. However, an unfortunate head injury to Rebekah Leach threw a spanner in the works, and despite some reshuffling, Bedales found themselves 2-1 down at half-time.

Further reshuffling involving the adaptable and impressive Leela Walton gave the Bedales team more footing in the game and it was incredibly evenly matched until a controversial PGS goal once again threw the Bedales side out of kilter, before two quick PGS goals put the game out of reach.

However, huge credit to the Bedales girls who bounced back once again, finishing the half as the strongest team and ending with a thoroughly deserved goal for Kamaya Nelson-Clayton. A special mention must also go to Anna Tasker, who came into the side late in the day and proved that she is more than capable of playing at this level.

Girls’ U14 Hockey v Alton School

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By Kevin Boniface, Head of Hockey

On Wednesday evening, the girls’ U14 side faced Alton. This was the first time the team had played together, and for the majority of the side, the first time they had a competitive fixture on a full-sized pitch. It was therefore perhaps not surprising that early on the Bedales team found themselves 2-0 down. However, it was incredibly impressive to see the way in which the side rallied and forced their way back into the game – much credit due to the work in the middle of the pitch from Daisy Milton and Agnes Bathurst – to bring the scores level at half-time.

Some focused and brave defending from Jazz Daly and Jazzy Jordan kept a talented Alton side at bay for a good period of the second half, but once again the Bedales side found themselves two goals behind. It is clear to see that with this side though, Bedales are never out of the game; some driving forward runs from Ella Reid, Poppy Daly and Phoebe Land forced attacking territory and Bedales managed to get themselves back into the game 4-4 with eight minutes to play. The consistently hard-working Tallulah Plant, Inaya Strong and Iris Biles were putting everything in an attempt to force a victory, but it was not to be, and despite some excellent clearances from debutant goalkeeper Freya Hunt, Alton grabbed two goals in quick succession to finish 6-4 winners.

A thrilling game and exciting times ahead for this developing side.

Girls’ Second XI Hockey v Churcher’s College

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By Jamie King, Teacher of PE & Sport

The girls’ second XI hockey team travelled to Churcher’s College for their first game in many months on Wednesday. Churcher’s were combative and difficult to contain, but with the help of some versatility from Greta Stilwell, who played in three different positions during the match, we were able to draw level at 1-1.

Our first goal came with Ottilie finishing the move after a lively and skiful drive into the D by the ever busy and purposeful Sage Bidwell. Ultimately, the game would be lost (final score: 8-2) but there were some very promising passages of play with the two Bedales wingers – including captain Anna Tasker and Rosy Riley – lighting up the attacking line and causing lots of problems for the opposition. The second Bedales goal was a wonderful individual effort from Rosy, who broke free down the right wing and cut into the ‘D’, finishing decisively in the bottom corner. 

There were excellent performances in defence from Maya Cressman and Lula Goldring, who were often facing an attacking overload but continued to put in strong tackles and vital clearances. The moment of the game came after a deflected long-range shot seemed destined or the Bedales top corner, only to be denied by an outstanding one-handed tip over the bar from goalkeeper Rosie Voyantzis. It was an excellent game showing lots of promise for the season ahead. Our Monday practice sessions will continue to develop the team’s cohesiveness and fitness levels. Well done to everyone involved!

Match report: Girls’ First XI Hockey v Churcher’s College

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By Kevin Boniface, Head of Hockey

There was a sense of nervousness and excitement on the Astro on Wednesday as the girls’ first XI hockey team were back in action after a COVID enforced break. The team knew they had to be ‘switched on’ as they were facing a quality opposition in Churcher’s first XI and the match certainly lived up to expectations with both sides looking to play good hockey. It was Churcher’s who held the majority of attacking possession, but good saves from Tilda Gellatly and some timely interceptions from Shanklin Mackillop-Hall kept the Churcher’s side at bay for the majority of the first half. This, alongside the impressive Alisia Leach and phenomenal work-rate of forwards Mathilda Douglas and Kamaya Nelson Clayton, made for an enthralling encounter.

As the game moved into the second half, an unfortunate deflected own goal put the Churcher’s side 2-0 up. But, by virtue of her ‘do as I do’ approach, captain Esther Stewart kept the team focused and an exceptional stick save from the Churcher’s goalkeeper stopped Mathilda Douglas’ brave attempt to bring Bedales back into the game. As the match progressed, tiredness crept in and an increasing number of opportunities fell to the Churcher’s side – although it is fair to say that without the presence and influence of Rebekah Leach at centre-half, there would have been a greater number of opportunities.

At the final whistle, it was a deserved victory for Churcher’s, but there are a huge amount of positives for the Bedales side to take into the Hampshire U18 Trophy Tournament next week.

Bedales Summer Hockey Festival

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By Kevin Boniface, Head of Hockey

Last Friday saw the culmination of the Bedales Summer Hockey Festival. This has run for six weeks in the Summer Term, with over 70 students signed up and good representation from all year groups. I think it is a real credit to Bedales Hockey that we are able to produce a culture that facilitates these opportunities. Week in, week out, it has been incredibly pleasing to see every single player and team consistently perform at a good level and striking the right competitive balance.  

Finals day was no different, with extremely close match ups in the semi-finals between Team Wheeler vs Team Mackillop-Hall and Team Upton vs Team Shuster. It was Team Mackillop-Hall and Team Shuster who came out on top and went on to produce a tight and exciting final that had to eventually be settled by a round of penalty shuffles. Congratulations to Team Shuster who eventually emerged as winner.

In another closely run competition the ‘Golden Stick Award’ for the festival’s top goal scorer – which featured an incredible 18 different goal scorers – was won by Block 4 student Joe Cullen.

Thank you to Mariela Walton, who was instrumental in the smooth running of the festival.

Parents’ Day Tennis Finals

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By Graeme Coulter, Head of Tennis

On Saturday the finals of the intra school tennis tournaments were contested, with parents able to come and watch for the first time since the start of the pandemic. Six finals were contested over the course of six hours.

Harry Hornsby and Nikolas Beecham took on Hari Walton and Tommy Hornsby in the boys doubles. The youngsters from Dunhurst played to a truly outstanding level to win 6-0, 1-6, 10-5. The mixed doubles was very closely contested by Paddy Arrowsmith, Sasha Arney, Tobias Bonham Carter and Jade Mark. This final was a brilliant match where momentum flowed form one pair to the other. It was eventually won by Paddy and Sasha 6-4, 6-7, 10-5. Grace Vernor-Miles, Lally Arengo-Jones, Sasha Arney and Alisia Leach played the girls doubles final. This was another close match where either side could have won, but Grace and Lally held their nerve to win for the second year running 6-4, 7-6.

The junior girls singles was played between Lola Mackay and Rebekah Leach. This was an outstanding match and both girls showed amazing grit and determination to compete through injuries. Rebekah was victorious after nearly two hours 6-4, 3-6, 10-6. The Junior Boys singles was contested between Nikolas Beecham and Hari Walton. Both players played very well with Hari winning in straight sets.

The final match of the day was the senior boys singles. This was played between Tobias Bonham Carter and Hari Walton. This was the best final I have seen since the introduction of the intra school tennis tournaments 12 years ago. Hari won his third title of the day 6-4, 7-6, but credit to both players who were absolutely outstanding. I could not have been more proud of all those involved. You were a huge credit to Bedales Tennis and Bedales School as a whole.

Match report: Girls’ Hockey First XI v Barton Peveril College

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By Kevin Boniface, Head of Hockey

On Wednesday the girls’ hockey first team travelled to play Barton Peveril College in the second match of a three-game series. With the boys having lost last week, and the opposition able to field a couple of national league hockey players as well as an England international, we knew we would have to perform to the best of our ability to stay in the game. Unfortunately, however, we got off to a slow start, and despite some outstanding work at centre half from Shanklin Mackillop-Hall, the Bedales side found themselves down 4-0 in the first quarter. The second quarter saw the Bedales side start to adjust to the pace of the game, but Barton Peveril remained too strong and added another two goals to their tally.

An incredibly productive half-time talk and some inspirational words from newly appointed captain Esther Stewart seemed to do the trick, as the Bedales side came out battling in the second half and slowly they started gaining more possession and creating more attacking possession. The right hand side of the pitch was particularly productive, with some nice link-up play between Leela Walton and Block 3 debutant Rosy Riley. Another debutant, Katie Mansbridge, was also impressive, working tirelessly alongside the ever consistent Sasha Arney.
 
The final quarter saw the best period of play for Bedales, as they created chances and the resolute defence of Maya Cressman, Shanklin, Esther, Leela and Lula Goldring kept Barton Peveril at bay.
 
What was incredibly pleasing to see was the work ethic and the team ethos that had been created. There was nothing left to give from the team: an attitude that can’t be faulted. All promising signs for next season.

Sport update: District Athletics, Mountbatten Stadium

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By Mariela Walton, Teacher of PE & Sport

On 18 May, we took 18 of our Block 3 and 4 athletes down to the Mountbatten Stadium for the District Athletics event. In previous years we have taken 40 or 50 of our top athletes down to compete, but due to COVID restrictions, our numbers were limited meaning we took smaller teams and required all of our athletes to compete in multiple events.

Despite the rain in Petersfield the sun shone down on us in Portsmouth, and thanks to the excellent commitment displayed by our Bedales students, we managed to fill each event and get some exciting podium finishes!

Sage Bidwell cinched the win in the Inter Girls’ 200m, Greta Stillwell took first place in the Junior Girls’ Shot Put and Sol Arbib comfortably won the Inter Boys’ 1500m, with a time of just 4.55. First place finishes also went to Bruno Heggie, Louis Pattison, Sam Gibbon and Lola Mackay. Jago Levine qualified for the next round and will have the opportunity to compete at the Regional Athletics meet for Shot Put. He will be joined by Gordon Thistleton-Smith, who qualified with his 100m time.

After a successful day of events both of the Block 3 teams finished in fourth position of eight, which was a great effort. Our Block 4 boys team finished in second place out of nine, and our Block 4 Girls team took home the win, coming first out of seven teams.