Category: Sport
The weekend saw multiple teams from Woodbridge School competing at the Suffolk County Show Jumping and Suffolk County Dressage Qualifiers for the NSEA County Championships at the end of April.
On Saturday 28 Jan at The Jays , Bury St Edmunds, many Schools from all over Suffolk were contesting for the NSEA Suffolk County Show Jumping Qualifiers from 70cms-1.10m.
Woodbridge School’s riding teams are going from strength to strength with the younger team members showing the way winning the 70cms Suffolk County Show Jumping Qualifier; crowning them Suffolk Champions and qualifying them to represent both Suffolk and the School at the County Championships.
The four team members of Perdi L (Yr6), Olivia B (Yr7), Tess W (Yr7) and Ada M (Yr6) all produced clear rounds with Ada producing an extremely fast round taking 2nd individually, narrowly missing winning and qualifying herself as an individual as well.
The School also had their youngest team competing in the 70cms who performed exceptionally to take 4th place. This was the first time any of this team had competed at this level before. They had gone for the experience and then all produced good rounds to take 4th place in a very competitive class. The Team was Isla A (Yr7), Lily W (Yr7), Sophia W (Yr5) & Eve M (Yr4)
The School fielded two full teams for the 80cms competition; with the teams taking 3rd & 4th place.
Third placed team of Fleur L, Oliver R, Alex R-D & Isla A. Fleur was substituted in at the last minute as Zoe N had suffered a minor kick so was unable to ride.
This was the first 80cms competition for Oliver R & Isla A.
The Fourth team was Olivia B, Tess W, Perdi L and Ada M. Ada again produced a fast round but was pipped from taking the County Title coming 2nd.
Tabitha W-S rode a top class round to take the individual Suffolk County title and qualify for the Championships in the 90cms with the team of Tabitha W-S, Rowena W-S, Zara L & Fleur L narrowly missing out qualifying themselves by taking the 2nd place.
In the 1m class; James B took 3rd place and Zara L took 6th.
On Sunday the 29th January, a team of Woodbridge Riders contested the Suffolk County Dressage Qualifier at Easton College.
The Team of Caragh P, Tabitha W-S, Rowena W-S and the youngest member Oliver R did exceptionally well to WIN the Dressage qualifier and secure their place to the Championships.
An extra well done to both W-S sisters and to Oliver R who competed back to back at the weekend on both days with superb results and qualifications on both days.
Dressage Team; (L-R_Caragh P (3rd), Tabitha W-S (6th), Rowena W-S (2nd) & Oliver R Suffolk County Dressage Champions
70cms Show Jumping Team: (L-R) Ada M (2nd individually), Olivia B, Perdi L & Tess W NSEA Suffolk County 70cms Champions
At 9.15am on Tuesday 17 January 44 athletes boarded the coach for Lincroft school for the annual Bedfordia Cross Country Competition.
Over 30 schools from all around the midlands took part and this created an excellent atmosphere amongst all competitors, especially the year 5 students who had never competed in such a vast event before.
Following a walk of the course the athletes changed and then it was race time.
Year 5 girls were first to race in a field over 300 runners, and they were superb.
Sophia Waterer had a storming run (83) and crossed the line in front of the rest of The Abbey students with Georgina Phillips (93), Charlie Hattan (96) and Havannah Vincent (106) not far behind. Mihi Forbes Ballard (227), Polly Scoggins (220) and Milly Johnson (221) decided it was best to run together to navigate the number of competitors and to stay safe during the run, all three completing the run with smiles on faces and keen to race again. The team finished a creditable 22nd out of 34 teams.
Year 5 boys were even more nervous after they had watched the ‘stampede’ of the girls’ race, as one of the runners called it!! Solid performances all round with Luca di Paola (33) leading the way, closely followed by Jonjo Walker (74)and then a throng of Abbey athletes with John Hall (132), Arthur Na Nakhorn (133) Henry Shaw (134) all pushing each other along throughout the race. James Hattan (150) did well to push his way through the crowd following a slow start and Edward Carter (206) and Jack Palmer (207) finished strongly to ensure that the team finished 16th out of 33 teams.
Year 7 Girls warmed up with a purpose, knowing that they had run several times before, and with the training were in excellent condition to do well.
The start was fast and furious and after the first 500yards the field settled into their running. Amy Goddard gradually made her way through the field, finishing in a fantastic 3rd position, Anna Jackson fought her way around the course and eventually finished 19th with Ella Pitt (40) and Lucy Clare(66) close behind, Annie Nicholass (102) and Iris Morton(105) completed the team effort and ensure that the Year 7 girls finished a creditable 7th in the competition.
The Gauntlet was thrown down to the Year 7 boys to finish higher still, and try they did with some excellent running from Ed Rufford (7) , Tom Martin (36) and Sam Bolus (44). The wait was on for the rest of the team mates to see if they could better the girls’ seventh place!! There was then a frenzy of finishers with James Holliday (107), Archie Sjoberg (121), Archie Bacon (122), Tom Childs (134) and Archie Cartwright (143) to make for a team placing of eleventh: the Year 7 Girls were still the best team of the day.
Year 8 girls were next to step up to the challenge and they were confident , with the experience of competing in events like this before. They were happy to let the front runners sprint off and then slowly pick them off around the course and that’s exactly what they did!! Bea Thomas (2) sat and waited as the main pack sprinted away, but an excellent run and strong finish saw her home with Molly Marshall (3), Cecily Royal-Dawson (6), Jess Elmer (7) and Emily Whyte(9). The team were in an excellent position, and when Ella Walker ran the final corner and sprinted to the finish line to finish (28) the team were reunited and just needed to wait on the result.
Year 8 boys had just witnessed an incredible run by the girls and knew that they had to match the outcome. Charlie Turner and George Wharam looked relaxed and chilled as the pack set off at a great pace, but the boys after numerous races were confident that they could win the race and do that they did! Charlie and George crossed the line hand in hand to finish joint first!… But the team had to back them up and finish strongly… and with Kit Evans Lombe (4), Tom Harper (10), Will Franklin (11) and Tom Turner (28) the team did just that. Mauricio Corfe (31), John Hendry (45) and Ruben Kill (80) who are all expert over shorter distances offered excellent support.
The Year 8 girls and boys did remarkably well, both finishing 1st in their competitions.
It was a great day, especially for the Year 5 students who have never competed in an event like this before.
The U13As, despite some players down due to illness, still put out four (victorious!) teams v RHS, and played brilliantly! They were always in control of the game and I didn’t doubt their ability to win for a second. Olivia Buchanan controlled the attacking third of the court brilliantly and shot consistently to put us up 7-3 at quarter time. Eleanor Wright, as WD played a solid game and made some great interceptions and Issy Eaton and Ariane Bilgen worked tirelessly in the defending circle, with some great turnover balls used to our advantage. Ella Walker was a controlling influence in the centre of the court and linked beautifully with the defence and attack of Rebecca Yardy who played very well. Cordelia Griffiths and Emily Whyte who both played shooter attacked out of the circle and created brilliant space and won some important rebounds. We were up 13-5 at half time and gave ourselves some breathing space for the second half. We were then joined by Molly Marshall and Clara Simpson who had played fantastically for the B team in the first half. Both girls made their mark on the team and we stretched our lead to 18-9 with 10 mins to go. A great quarter to see out the match from all the players meant that we had our second victory of the season under our belt – good skills! Bring on Ipswich School at the weekend.
Wow – what a Christmas Holidays.
My Ski training started on Saturday 10 December and I had the run up to Christmas training in Austria with Ambition Racing – my ski Team.
Training weeks mean early starts – normally 5am then breakfast at 5.30am, to be on the Mountain and ready to practice from 7am until 1pm. Then back to our team base for a pasta lunch and then off to the local Austrian school 2.30pm – 6.30pm with our tutors to keep up to date with school work and homework, then back to base for supper and ski preparation ready for the next morning. Not exactly a holiday but good fun as well as being hard work.
This routine continued after Christmas – I felt like I was the only person in school on 28 December, as it is not possible to fit in school work on days where we are racing, all non-racing week days are school days.
My first competitions as a fully fledged member of the team were VERY exciting. I couldn’t wait to see if all the training I have done since last May was going to make a difference.
On 6-8 January the Ambition Championships took place in in Hinterreit, about 15 minutes from our training base. I won three silver medals and a bronze – I was thrilled, especially as I was the fastest English girl. On 10-11 January the first Evolution Speed Championships took place. The location, Reiteralm, was about an hour and a half away from base, so very early starts. I was thrilled to win first place in the British Giant Slalom U12, and second in the International competition.
I am back in England until Saturday 21 January I have to work on my fitness, training every morning before school to keep my legs and knees strong and keep improving my core and cardio fitness. Then back to the slopes in Switzerland for three days of training before the next races.
On Thursday 12th January, Woodbridge School hosted the County Schools’ cross country race. This race was the final competition for the County to select their cross country team for the Anglian Championships. After finishing in the top 50 at RHS in October and top 40 at Culford in December, this competition was going to be tough – however, having the home advantage gave each Woodbridge School runner the incentive, confidence and determination to do well. Coming in the top 12 would gain a place in the county team, so the competition was on!
37 runners made it through to this final round from Culford, but due to injuries and illnesses, only 30 ran – which was still a phenomenal number. 12 out of the 30 runners gained a top 12 place, which was just superb, and is evidence of the depth and level of performer we have at Woodbridge. The top 12 in each race will be selected for the County team to compete at the Anglian Schools’ and if a top 8 place is gained there, then the athletes will go on to represent the County at England Schools’ in March. Good luck to all!!
Special mention and congratulations must go to the following runners who all gained medals; Nathan Goddard, Sarah Barker, Amy Graham, Charlie Turner & Ruby Vinton. These athletes did the most amazing job gaining a top 3 place in their race, especially as they were all running a year up in their respective races. Well done to all the runners in what was an excellent and successful day.
Results:
Minor Girls: Ruby Vinton 1st, Amy Goddard 4th & Anna Jackson 32nd
Minor Boys: Edward Rufford 5th, Edward Buckingham 7th, Tommy Burrows 17th, George Na Nakhorn 29th & Tom Martin 41st.
Junior Girls: Bea Thomas 7th, Molly Marshall 8th, Sophie Graham 17th, Issy Eaton 22nd, Jess Elmer 24th, Emily Whyte 35th, Victoria Burrows 37th.
Junior Boys: Charlie Turner 3rd, Kit Evans Lombe 6th, Thomas Harper 19th, Nathaniel Gunn 20th, Will Franklin 26th, Tom Turner 33rd, Mauricio Corfe 38th & Billy Zhu 45th.
Inter Girls: Sarah Barker 2nd, Amy Graham 3rd & Milly Buckingham 12th.
Inter Boys: Nathan Goddard 1st, George Rufford 17th, Alex Evans Lombe 21st & Daniel Davies 22nd.
The event was brilliantly organised (a comment from the Suffolk Association Chairman), and the course was challenging and perfectly set out. Such a fantastic event could not happen without the help of so many people, so our thanks go to the following:
Mark Goddard, parents and volunteers on the day (and in preparation for the event – taping the course etc.), grounds staff for excellent organisation of the course, and all our staff for marshalling.
A young Team of Ada Marson (Year 6), Perdi Ludgrove (Year 6), Olivia Lubbock (Year 7) and Fleur Ludgrove (Year 8) really pulled together in the final round to take 2nd Place in the NSEA Plate 75cms Show Jumping Championships at the College Equestrian Centre, Keysoe, Bedfordshire on Saturday 3rd December.
After the first round the Team were lying in 6th position going into the final round. The course increased in complexity and went up in height to 80-85cms, but the young team of Woodbridge girls held it together to produce a steady clear from Perdi, a fast clear round for both Fleur and Ada, and an exceptionally fast round from Olivia who unfortunately knocked 2 poles resulting in 8 penalty points
.
The other teams suffered under the pressure and the Woodbridge Team ended up climbing through the ranks to finish 2nd Overall which was a fantastic achievement for all involved.
Fleur was also 2nd in the Santa Stakes competition earlier in the morning, and after the main Championship Finals, the girls were on a roll taking 3rd in the Eventers Challenge Qualifier with Fleur also awarded 6th place individually.
A superb way to finish an incredibly successful term for all Woodbridge School Riding Team members at Grass Roots, National Championship Finals and now Plate Championship Finals.
Miss Sanders reports: Three out of our four Cross Country teams travelled up to Liverpool on Friday 2nd December to compete in the ESAA XC National Cup competition. Departing Woodbridge School excitedly, the runners were looking forward to having a night away but it was evident they were anxious about the race the following day – especially as a number of runners had been off school ill during the week. Although every runner had done the hard work to get the Nationals, competing in the area and regionals rounds, they wanted to give it their all and do their best. Arriving in Liverpool, Mr Goddard and Mr Turner took the three teams for a quick jaunt (well, run) around the docks to stretch their legs, before we all headed out to Zizzi’s for a carb-filled dinner and birthday celebrations for Amy Graham.
Saturday morning arrived. All runners stocked up on breakfast as they knew they needed the energy for their race and we made our way to The Range School in Formby. Luckily, the weather was kind to us – although a little chilly with a bit of wind. After walking the course, the Inter girls were up first. With their numbers on and chips around their ankles, they were lined up in their pens and ready to go. We heard Woodbridge School mentioned on the loud speaker, the organisers explaining that Dr Challoner’s High School and we were the only two schools with three teams competing at the Nationals, which made it even more exciting. The start was difficult, with all 140 competitors trying to get to the front of the pack, but Sarah Barker managed to fight her way through. It was an anxious time waiting at the finish line to see Woodbridge vests cross, but finally they came in sight. With only the first four counting towards our final score, the other two runners knew they have to work hard to prevent the oppositions’ 3rd and 4th runners from getting a better placing. Finally our results were in, 10th (Sarah Barker), 33rd, 52nd & 96th, which put us 12th overall out of 24 teams. Well done!
The Junior boys were next – very excited and definitely up for their race! Again, waiting in their pens for the starting gun, the boys knew they had to work hard to ensure they got themselves in a good position at the start. All six got away well, and towards the front of the pack, and at the finish line, they crossed in great positions… top five perhaps?
While waiting for the Junior boys’ results to come through, as there had been some issues, the Junior girls were last to run and although anxious, they were all determined to do their best. All penned in and waiting in anticipation for the starting gun, the team looked ready. With Bea Thomas fighting her way through, along with Molly Marshall just behind, it looked promising. Finally the girls came through the finish line – shattered but glad it was all over.
Still no news for the Junior boys’ results… then the Junior girls’ came through – 52nd, 58th, 76th, & 99th, putting us 19th out of 24th, another great result. Well done!
Finally, the Junior boys’ results were in…. Not fifth, nor fourth, third or even second… We had come FIRST! We were National Champions (by just 1 point!)… what an extraordinary achievement. Placings were 14th (Charlie Turner), 22nd, 23rd, & 54th. The boys were ecstatic and couldn’t stop jumping around – tears were flowing too (from Miss Sanders mainly).
All three teams should be extremely proud of what they achieved on Saturday – just getting to Nationals is a superb achievement, but actually winning is just phenomenal. Bruce Andrews, Secretary of the Suffolk Schools Athletics Association, told Mr Goddard that as far as he is aware, no Suffolk School has ever even won a medal at the England Schools Cross Country Cup Finals, let alone gold!
Well done to all, and thank you so much to all the parents who travelled up to support. Special thanks, of course, to Mr Mark Goddard, whose coaching, dedication and belief enabled these runners to achieve.
Mr Graham and I had such a great time… Roll on next year!!
Runners:
Junior Girls: Molly Marshall, Bea Thomas, Amy Goddard, Isabelle Eaton, Cecily Royal-Dawson & Anna Jackson
Junior Boys: Charlie Turner, Henry Dinwiddy, Kit Evans Lombe, William Franklin, Edward Rufford & Thomas Turner
Inter Girls: Sarah Barker, Milly Buckingham, Amy Graham, Victoria Burrows, Sophie Graham & Charlotte Dinwiddy.
Young athletes from Woodbridge School have earned a place in the national final of the England Schools Athletics Association (ESAA) Cross Country Cup. 24 pupils from Woodbridge School, aged 12 to 16, gave an impressive performance at the regional finals event on November 12, where they were one of two teams representing Suffolk against school teams from seven other counties.
Four teams from Woodbridge School took part in the regional event; Junior Girls (under 14) who came third place overall, Junior Boys (under 14) who came second overall, Inter Girls (under 16) who came third overall after some strong individual performances, and Inter Boys (under 16) who came fifth overall. Woodbridge School will be competing in three of the four cross country races – Junior Boys, Junior Girls and Inter Girls – at the ESAA Cross Country Cup national final on December 3 in Formby, Lancashire.
Out of 4,000 secondary schools in England, Woodbridge School were one of only 25 to qualify for the national finals and one of only three schools to qualify with more than two teams. This is the first time that a team of Woodbridge School cross country pupils will be competing at a national level.
Nine Woodbridge School cross country athletes have gained their first County recognition for the 2016/2017 winter season.
Seven athletes have been included in the Suffolk County Team to compete in the South of England Inter County Cross Country to be held in Oxford on Saturday 10th December 2016.
Congratulations to :
U13 Girls – Amy Goddard
U13 Boys – Charlie Turner, Kit Evans Lombe and Edward Rufford
U15 Girls – Sarah Barker
U15 Boys – Nathan Goddard and George Rufford
Two further athletes are currently on the standby list for the U15 Girls – Amy and Sophie Graham
We wish them well in this event and the rest of the winter.
It may have been a damp November day but somehow the cross country athletes from Woodbridge School brushed that aside with considerable ease. Spirits were high, with all four teams competing following their wins in the Suffolk leg. Anything seemed possible. We were up against seven counties including the might of Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire.
The fact that Woodbridge School had never had a Team qualify for the National Finals gave the task ahead some context. 21 Teams (top three from each of the seven counties) would be reduced to three for Nationals in each of the four races.
First race of the day was the Junior Girls (u14) and although the team had worked hard and were likely to finish as a fairly compact unit, we were not expecting this young group to qualify.
How wrong we were!
Bea Thomas ran an exceptional race and every athlete raced for the line making every position count. The result – A Trip to Nationals by finishing third, beating 4th by just two points.
Individual results were Bea Thomas 5th, Molly Marshall 15th, Amy Goddard 20th, Issy Eaton 34th, Cecily Royal-Dawson 35th, Anna Jackson 66th.
Congratulations Junior Girls!
Second race was the Junior boys (u14), our strongest team and the one where we genuinely felt we had our first chance of qualification. We were not disappointed as the Woodbridge vests soon made their way to the front of the race and the boys finished second, a single point behind the school that won.
Charlie Turner was the star performer running an exceptionally well judged race to close in on the lead pack and then power home for second place.
Individual results were Charlie Turner 2nd, Kit Evans-Lombe 7th, Henry Dinwiddy 15th, Will Franklin 22nd, Edward Rufford 32nd, Tom Turner 47th.
Congratulations Junior Boys!
Next up were the Inter Girls (u16). Perhaps an outside chance we thought. Better than that the girls qualified for Nationals in a strong second place. Sarah Barker and Amy Graham worked their way through the field and were full of running in the closing stages to claim 3rd and 4th respectively. Special mention should also go to Charlotte Dinwiddy who ran a brave attacking race to finish 23rd.
Individual results were Sarah Barker 3rd, Amy Graham 4th, Charlotte Dinwiddy 23rd, Milly Buckingham 31st, Sophie Graham 38th, Victoria Burrows 40th.
Congratulations Inter Girls!
Final race of the day saw the Inter Boys (u16) line up. Whilst the Team realistically knew qualification was unlikely, the boys had trained well and were keen to improve on last years 7th place.
With Nathan Goddard leading from the front with another of his powerful displays for 2nd place, the boys packed well for the team to come home in 5th place.
Individual results were Nathan Goddard 2nd, George Rufford 19th, Daniel Davies 28th, Alex Evans Lombe 29th, Tom Harrington 35th, Nathaniel Gunn 42nd.
With that effort is has to be – Congratulations Inter Boys!
So off to Nationals we go. Formby, Lancashire on Saturday 3rd December.
With some 4000 secondary schools in England only 25 make it through to the Nationals and Woodbridge School will be in three of the four races.
We are one of only three schools in England to qualify more than two teams – Now that is something!