Category: Senior School News
Our Junior Hockey teams had mixed fortunes last week, with our Junior 1 team playing two matches against Culford, while our Junior 2, 3, 4 and 5 teams, as well as our U14 and U15 teams took on Langley. Read more about the matches and our players in our reports below.
Junior 1 Team
The Junior 1st team played two matches on the trot against Culford’s top two teams. The first match was dominated in the first half by Woodbridge but they were denied time after time by an In-form Culford goalkeeper. Frustratingly, two goals went in at the other end against the run of play to put Woodbridge on the back foot. Woodbridge pulled one goal back before half time, through Year 8’s Michael, making his Junior 1 team debut.
The second half saw our team much more secure in defence and continue to dominate, but the penalty corners and goals just didn’t come. Year 8’s Dex made the scores level, but with Woodbridge pushing for the win that they deserved, Culford got the goal at the other end instead.
A short rest and it was onto the next game! Again, Woodbridge showed their skill and tactical knowledge, as well as staying mentally strong after their disappointment from the first match. This time two early goals, one nine-yard dribble and finish and one hit from the top of the D, from Year 8’s Joshua gave Woodbridge the early lead. Year 8’s Alfie and Theo put Woodbridge further ahead in the second half. The team was not going to let this victory slip out of their hands! Culford did score twice, but could not keep our team at bay.
Well done to our Player of the Day, Year 8’s Olly who played two outstanding matches!
Junior 2 Team
The Junior 2s took on the Langley U13A team at Magpies. For the first time this season, the team could not find their flow and lost their winning streak. Usual good decision making and work rate were lacking on the day, and this could not be afforded against a strong Langley A team. Good lessons learned to take into the remaining games.
Junior 3 Team
The Junior 3s, on the other hand, put their best foot forward against Langley U13B. In a close game, Woodbridge was the stronger team but did rely on Year 7 goalkeeper, Harry, to keep a clean sheet to secure the win. Using the whole width of the pitch, Mr Walsh was delighted with attacks up the flanks . The only goal of the match was scored by Year 8’s Alfie R. Well done to the Junior 3s who are on a good winning streak themselves.
Junior 4 Team
The Junior 4 team played Langley U13C in a very equally matched game. The game took a while to find its flow with both teams starting off slowly. Woodbridge managed to put together a string of attacks finding their way into the Langley D. However, with some good defending were quickly closed down. Langley were the first to open the scoring after a quick counterattack down the wing. Woodbridge levelled the score through Year 8’s Alex soon after half time and started to move the ball a little more freely. Before the final whistle Langley managed to bag another goal after a well worked move. Player of the Match went to Year 8’s George B.
Junior 5 Team
The Junior 5s had an enlarged squad to play Langley U13D. The team came away with a goal in each half, to take the win. Very promising depth indeed from our teams. Goals were scored by Year 8’s George B and Year 7’s Miles while the Player of the Match was Year 8’s George T.
U14 and U15 Teams
The U14s and u15s also played against Langley last week. The U15A team came away victorious while the U14s rued missed opportunities in a one-goal defeat.
In the U15 match, Year 10’s Tom was a force to be reckoned with as he used his speed and strength to break through and past Langley defences. Tom scored a goal on his way to winning Player of the Match and set up another. Year 10’s Jago and Year 10’s Charlie completed the scoring for Woodbridge – and it could have been a lot more with the number of chances created.
The U14 team was evenly matched with their Langley counterparts. Woodbridge had the better chances regularly throughout the match but was denied by sharp saves and a last bit of skill lacking in the D. Year 8’s playing up, Otto H, Otto P-S, Joseph and Griff all made an impact. Year 9’s William, Alex and George provided good build up play and balls into the D, linking up well with Year 9’s Anthony in particular in the first half. Langley scored what proved to be the winner a few minutes from the end of the match. The frustration with this close loss shows how the team keeps getting better, knowing they have the ability to compete with confidence and win this kind of game if all comes together at the right moment.
On Saturday 8 March, 12 Woodbridge School athletes were included in the Suffolk team to compete at the UK Inter County Cross Country at Wollaton Park in Nottingham. The UK Inter County event is one of the most competitive in the country, with Area teams from Scotland and Wales competing against 45 County teams from England, almost giving the day a Home Nation International flavour.
At Senior and U20 level, the event also serves as a selection race for the World Cross Country Championships. Worlds are only held every two years and there is no championship in 2025.
Our athletes had a phenomenal day with three outstanding results to highlight.
Suffolk U20 Men won team silver against the very best the UK had to offer. The Suffolk scoring team included our own Year 13’s Iwan providing a very special reward for Iwan’s final cross country season at Woodbridge School. Just as special and worthy of a mention is the fact that all four of the Suffolk scoring team train together at Woodbridge School most Saturday mornings for exactly this reason – to raise the standard to compete with the very best.
The best individual result of the day came in the U13 Boys where Year 8’s Dexter finished an amazing 5th place, just nine seconds behind the winner over 3km – That’s 5th fastest in all of the UK! As far as we are aware only two Woodbridge School athletes have ever finished higher and both of those athletes went on to represent either English Schools or Great Britain.
Suffolk’s second best team result on the day was in the U13 Girls with a 9th place finish. What is unique with this result is that all four Suffolk scorers were Woodbridge School athletes. Our top two athletes had identical times in 28th and 30th, but such is the level of competition that they were only four seconds from 20th!
Here is a full summary of the Woodbridge School athletes (context being up to 350 athletes in each race, all good enough to be representing their county):
U13 Girls: Suffolk Team 9th:
28th – India J (Year 8)
30th – Chloe (year 7) – a brilliant run as a lower year!
39th – Alexandra (Year 8)
86th – Ella (Year 8)
222nd – Imogen (Year 8)
U13 Boys: Suffolk Team 14th:
5th Dexter (Year 8)
U15 Girls: Suffolk Team 21st:
73rd – Romilly (Year 10)
201st – Alice (Year 9)
U15 Boys: Suffolk Team 35th:
112th Digby (Year 9)
261st Hamish (Year 9)
U17 Men: Suffolk Team 15th:
97th – Angus Blackburn (Year 12)
U20 Men – Suffolk Team 2nd – Silver Medal:
53rd – Iwan (Year 13)
Congratulations to every athlete earning the right to compete at this event and a massive thank you to all the parents travelling up for the weekend in support.
Good luck to those athletes representing Suffolk Schools at English Schools in Sussex this coming weekend. The final race of the winter!
CCF RAF students from Years 9, 10 and 12 spend a full day at RAF Coningsby on Monday, organised by one of the School’s parents, Mr Winchester, who was stationed there as a flying instructor. Cadets visited the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, looked around a Typhoon jet and ‘flew’ on the simulator. Year 10’s Ishan shares his thoughts from the day.
Year 10’s Ishan
On Monday 3 March, ten cadets from the RAF section were given the once in a lifetime opportunity to have a very detailed tour of RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire.
Upon arrival we were escorted around the Battle Of Britain Memorial Flight (BBMF) hanger, which was filled with old fighters including, Hurricanes, Spitfires and my personal favourite – The Lancaster Bomber. The tour guide was amazing, giving us access beyond what you would get as a museum visitor. My favourite thing about this hangar was a Spitfire that was painted as a memorial for Sqd Ldr Mark Long.
After we visited the BBMF hangar we were then joined by Fighter Pilot called Phil McQuade who already that morning had flown to Wales for some low level flying through Snowdonia and then some touch and goes at RAF Valley. He took us to the 29 Squadron hangar where we saw Flt Lt David ‘Turbo’ Turnball who was last year’s display pilot, ahead of a tour of the hangar, it was incredible to see all the jets parked up! Our guide showed us around and told us about the different parts of the jet including the pylons for the A/A missiles and A/G bombs/missiles, the external fuel tanks which were much bigger than I previously thought and the coolest part of the jet tour was where the flares and chaffs came out from and the engines themselves.
After that, we were all given the once in a lifetime opportunity to sit in the jet which I didn’t think twice about, even the teachers got involved! Being in the cockpit was surreal, its much bigger than it looks and there aren’t many buttons to memorise which is very handy.
The next activity we had was the chance to have a go on the flight simulator, but not before being taken to where pilots were kitted up for their missions. We saw and learned lots about the pilot’s helmet from our guide; there was a day helmet and a night helmet which had the ability to put night vision goggles on. We also saw a G-suit which forces the blood up to the head to stay conscious. While we waited for the flight simulator we went to the crew room where we were able to get refreshments and food. The crazy thing was that everyone who walked in there was a pilot!!
The flight simulator was housed in a massive building for training pilots, we learned that most pilots in 29 squadron have a 70/30 spilt between simulator and flying. Following a thorough brief, we went into the simulator room – I was amazed! The throttle and flight stick were exactly the same as the one in the cockpit. We were ‘loaded up’ at Coningsby and told where we had to go and what our mission was – we had to fly under a bridge inverted, something I partly achieved; I managed to go under the bridge but I tried to roll out and I crashed!
This was most definitely one of the best trips I have been on, and we are all so very grateful to Mr Rob Winchester for organising the visit.
We are delighted to announce significant success in the Advanced section of the UK Linguistics Olympiad. With around 1,800 candidates taking part nationally, Woodbridge gained what the organiser described as “a remarkably distinguished set of results”.
In particular, of the 89 Golds which were awarded across Britain, two went to Woodbridge – a very impressive success-rate. Moreover, five of our winners were competing a year up (the Advanced section is for Sixth Form).
This is the third year in a row that Woodbridge has won a Gold in the Advanced section, and the second year in a row that Year 11’s Alexander has won Gold. He and Abigail qualify for Round two, from which the GB Olympiad squad is picked.
Results for the Breakthrough, Foundation and Intermediate levels will be announced in April.
Gold (in the top 5% in the country) (pictured above)
- Alexander C (Year 11)
- Abigail D (Year 13)
Silver (top 10%)
- Sam L (Year 11, and narrowly missing Gold)
- Jack C (Year 11)
- Aurelia H (Year 11)
Bronze
- Mika Q (Year 11)
Many congratulations to all.
New experiences and continued progress have been the theme of this week’s Hockey for our U12, Senior 1st and 2nd teams, which you can read more about below.
New U12 Team Perform Well at U12 County Event
Woodbridge School took part in the U12 County Cup for the first time last week. Our Junior teams usually play as mixed Year 7 and Year 8 teams in their Wednesday fixtures, but this event brought together Year 7 boys from five different teams. Quite an exciting yet challenging prospect, with players working together for the first time and needing to learn fast to make connections.
The first match against Culford was the steep learning curve in which the boys adjusted to their attacking and defending structure, getting to know how different players play in different positions. Despite losing this opener, Woodbridge already impressed, with the Culford coaches showing appreciation for the individual talent and team play from our boys.
In the next three games, on the trot, our team was in full flow. Wonderful passing, carrying into space, elimination and decision-making saw Woodbridge play creative hockey and making many chances. Somehow the goalkeepers of Ipswich School and RHS just seemed to stop everything though! As a team our boys could only respect these performances which denied them the wins they deserved.
In the last match of the day more goals went in. Congratulations to James E who was our top goal scorer on the day, including a marvellous deflection into the top corner against RHS. We were also very proud of the slick penalty corner goal with Barney, Max and Oliver combining to score their ‘triangle’ move!
Well done to every member of the team who worked so hard, with body, heart and mind, and got so many compliments for their play. The future is bright!
Senior 1st Team Builds Momentum
Our First XI is building nice momentum, winning their last three matches.
Last week the team beat Ipswich High School convincingly, spreading the goals around. Year 13’s Luca scored twice while Year 13’s Alfie, Year 12’s Lucas and Year 11’s Tom also scored. This was another game which saw Year 11 players gain experience at top school level, which bodes well for future season.
This week the 1st team turned their fortunes around against Greshams. Scoring three goals in the first half took the game away from the opposition, leaving our players to consolidate and manage things in the second half. Year 13’s Alfie was clinical from short corners, scoring two drag flicks. Captain, Year 12’s Luca, scored our third, taking him to the top of the goal scorers list for the team.
2nd Team Progress
Our 2nd XI is getting stronger and improving their results with every game.
Last week they were very disappointed to lose a two-goal lead in an agonising defeat in the closing minutes to a strong Langley 1st team. This week they went one better, with an enthralling goalless draw against Greshams. The finishing touches eluded the players on the day, but promising build up play hopefully sets them up nicely for the last matches of the season.
Well done and thanks to each of our players and staff for their commitment. Looking ahead, we’re looking forward to everyone putting in the last push at practices and matches as the days get longer and the sun gets warmer.
Classics, Geography and History students from Year 10 and 12 travelled to the Bay of Naples, Italy last week, staying at the Hotel Ascot in the centre of the beautiful town of Sorrento, which overlooks the bay.
With an exciting and busy itinerary that included visiting and spending time exploring the vast ruins of Pompeii and learning about the people who lived in this ancient Roman city, students also visited the Baiae Archaeological Museum and Park, climbed up the Vesuvius volcano, and visited the mysterious site of the ancient prophetess, Sybil. They also visited the Herculaneum, the LAPIS underground Naples Museum and enjoyed some free time each day exploring for themselves.
Spending five days in Italy, our students have shared that they had a wonderful time and that the trip offered them the opportunity to find out much more about the history behind this beautiful part of the world, and that it supported their studies brilliantly.
Sharing their thoughts on the trip, reviews from Year 12′ Sofiia and Year 10’s Ted are below:
Year 12’s Sofiia
“I really enjoyed the trip! I thought that there was a nice balance between educational talks and free time for exploration. I also really liked the accommodation and organisation in general, and I appreciated the fact that we visited a wide range of places (not just the historical sites). And I can certainly say that the trip encouraged me to learn more about the history of the Roman Empire!”
Year 10’s Ted
“Our trip to Naples over last week was excellent! We covered all bases, I really enjoyed our trips to Pompeii and Herculaneum to find out about what life was like for the Romans, and in the evenings I had a great tine exploring Sorrento – eating lots of Pizza was a highlight! Overall it was great fun, and we learnt so much.”
Woodbridge school equestrian team have competed in three National qualifying competitions this term already. With details from Forest Edge, Poplar Park and Brook Farm, our reports below include details of the competitions, riders and their performances.
Forest Edge, Show Jumping
Travelling to the Forest Edge Arena in Norfolk for Show Jumping, our riders were there to qualify for the NSEA Championships, which take place in Addington in October. It was a successful day for the Woodbridge riders, with Year 8’s Jasmine starting off with a win in the 60cm warm up, followed by all four teams qualifying. It was also a win for the 70cm team, comprised of Year 8’s Jasmine, along with Year 7’s Daisy, Kirsty and Tati. The 80cm teams of Year 7’s Daisy and Tati, Year 9’s Grace, with Year 10’s Harry and Daisy, saw Harry and Year 10’s Edie qualify in first and second places. The 80cms teams of Daisy, Grace, Tati and Harry (team 1) and Daisy, Harry and Edie (team 2) qualified in first and second places respectively. Edie, Harry and Grace also went on to win the 90cm jumping. Well done everyone!
Poplar Park, Eventers Challenge
The next qualifier was a local one at Poplar Park on Saturday 15 February. This was an Eventers Challenge which is a mix of show jumping and cross country. Both 80cm teams qualified, with our team of Year 10’s Edi, Year 9’s Grace and Year 7’s Daisy taking the win; while our team of Grace, Year 10’s Zac Y10 and Daisy came in second place. We also had individual qualifiers with Year 8’s Kirsty taking second place in the 70cm, while Year 9’s Grace not only won the 80cm but also came second in the 90cm to qualify for the NSEA Championships at Hickstead in May. It certainly was a good day for Woodbridge, especially Grace, congratulations to all of them.
Brook Farm, Eventers Challenge
An Eventers Challenge at Brook Farm in Essex on Sunday 23 February saw our team of Year 7’s Daisy and Tati, with Year 9’s Grace go on to win the 70cm. The 80 team of Year 7’s Daisy, Year 9’s Grace and Year 10’s Harry also won, as did the 90cm team of Year 10’s Harry, Zac and Edie, with Year 9’s Grace. Individual qualifiers saw Daisy come in first place, while Grace came in third in the 70cm, while Harry took first, Daisy took second, and Grace took third place in the 80cm. Grace also took first place in the 90cm, while Harry took fourth. Another wonderful day for Woodbridge at Brook Farm, well done everyone.
Our U13 Girls Cricket team, made up of Year 8 players, enjoyed an action-packed day at Inspire Suffolk on Monday, finishing as runner-ups in the ECB Girls U13 Schools Indoor County Competition.
The team got off to a fantastic start, which saw Woodbridge restricting RHS to 55 from their 8 overs, thanks to some fantastic bowling from Year Ella and Jasmine. A strong chase from Woodbridge saw them canter over the line, with Alexandra batting brilliantly.
In game two, Woodbridge came up against Ipswich and were outplayed with both the bat and the ball, resulting in a loss. In game three – a win needed to progress to the afternoon’s finals – Woodbridge won the toss and bowled well, with India J and Lottie the pick of the bowlers. Excellent batting from Rebecca and Evie saw Woodbridge chase their target down with a few overs to spare.
After a bite to eat for lunch, Woodbridge who finished second in the group stages, found themselves playing Orwell Park in the semi-finals; Orwell Park had won the other group. Batting first, some fine shot making from the batters, especially Jasmine and Alexandra, followed by some strong running from the rest of the team, saw Woodbridge score 74 in their eight overs. Orwell started nicely, but some good fielding and tight bowling from Imogen and Lottie saw Woodbridge slow the scoring down and eventually win and move into the final.
Ipswich were the opponents in the final, with the girls looking to make amends for their defeat earlier in the day. Woodbridge batted first, Jasmine and Lottie continued their good form and helped Woodbridge post a solid 71 from their eight overs. Despite India B’s great catch, Woodbridge weren’t able to keep the Ipswich batters in check for long enough, as they cruised home to victory with a few overs to spare.
A fantastic day of learning and much to look forward to heading into the outdoor season in a month’s time.
Last week we hosted the Suffolk Preliminary Round of the Have Your Say Languages Competition, welcoming around 150 students and 25 members of staff and visitors from local schools.
This popular competition is organised by the Association for Language Learning (ALL) Essex and East Anglian Branch. Students work in pairs on a chosen dialogue in Spanish, French or German, which they perform in front of the judges and other competitors.
On the day, Year 7’s Alex and Harriet, Year 9’s Millie and Marina, and Year’s 10 Cleo and Aldara were excellent ambassadors for the School, competing in their respective categories.
Special congratulations to the following students who have gained a place in the final, which takes place on 14 May 2025 in Colchester:
Year 8 Spanish
Diego and William
Rebecca and Evie
Year 9 Spanish
Millie S and Isabella
Bay and Freya
Year 10 Spanish
George and Oliver
Year 7 German
Arthur and Miles
Year 8 French
Isabella and Pip
Year 10 French
Maxim and Elijah
Well done to everyone who took part, for showing resilience, initiative, and a real flair for languages!
On Saturday, three Woodbridge School Cross Country Teams travelled to Leeds to compete in the National Final of the English Schools Cross Country Cup.
Schools need to navigate a County round and a Regional round to earn the right to line up at the start of the Nationals; the event is open to all schools across the Country. With over 6,000 secondary schools in England, only 27 were at the start of each race. Woodbridge School had teams in three of the six age group races, an achievement which in itself matches a best ever for the school.
Woodbridge School has now qualified one or more teams for the Nationals every year since 2016. And wow, what a day it turned out to be!
Saturday saw the National Final of the English Schools Cross Country Cup in Leeds, in the centenary year of English Schools Athletics.
Turns out a school so often celebrated for its academic and arts achievements can also compete with the very best athletic schools in England, with team Gold for our Junior Girls, team Gold for our Junior Boys and an Individual Gold for Dexter. A brilliant run by Year 8’s Dexter to take the win at a national event. Senior Boys were 27th last year, and a much improved 16th this year.
It was announced at prizegiving that the double Junior victory is unprecedented at this national event. They mentioned that they were so pleased it went to a school that had twice hosted the national final in recent years on behalf of English Schools, which is obviously great PR for Woodbridge School on the national stage.
There were so many happy athletes and parents, and well-deserved, after training tirelessly through all weather, weekends and holidays.
Full results:
Junior Girls – Team Gold – National Champions:
India J (Year 8) 9th
Alexandra (Year 8) 13th
Chloe (Year 7) 16th
Ella (Year 8) 22nd
India B (Year 8) 55th
Imogen (Year 8) 76th
(Woodbridge win with 60 points, second was 92 points and third 94 points)
Junior Boys – Team Gold – National Champions:
Dexter (Year 8) 1st
Olly (Year 8) 18th
Josh (Year 8) 24th
Alfie (Year 8) 26th
Otis (Year 8) 35th
Archie (Year 7) 56th
(Woodbridge win with 69 points, second was 97 points and third 108 points)
Senior Boys – 16th:
Iwan (Year 13) 28th
Angus (Year 12) 47th
Bruce (Year 13) 68th
Jasper (Year 11) 97th
Sam (Year 12) 119th
Congratulations to every single athlete, out there competing with the very best in the country!
A special day for the profile of Woodbridge School on a national athletic stage, and a huge thank you to all staff and parents supporting the team in Leeds.
Looking ahead, this coming weekend, 13 of our athletes will compete for Suffolk County at the UK Inter County Cross Country Championship in Nottingham and we wish them every success!
