Category: Sport
The U15Bs put on a great display of determination and team play against Finborough recently. In particular, in the second part of the first half once our team had settled to its task, Emily made some great attacking runs up the pitch and Erin kept things tidy at the back. We discussed decision making at half time and tracking back which made a huge difference in the second half, exemplified by Phoebe and Katie B who worked a fantastic attack only for the ball to come back off the post. We made some great chances in the second half and really put the pressure on Finborough, their goalie (who was a year older!) making a series of fine saves. Talia and Lottie played some perfect passes up the pitch with Ella and Becky working hard in their attacking roles. Sophie and Bea had solid games in defence, clearing the ball wide, and Lakisha and Elsa played well in goal. Katie B-M and Olivia also made telling contributions and Maisy put some real pressure on the right of the pitch. It was an exciting game to watch and we were unlucky to lose 0-2. Well done girls, and many thanks to all the parents for supporting.
The under fourteens very much enjoyed taking part in their first tournament of the season recently, hosted at Portman Road. Split into two teams, the first group opened their day against Kesgrave A in a hard fought and tiring encounter concentrated in midfield. Kesgrave took an early lead they never relinquished, but Fazil and Theo in particular helped us get back into the game, and Ollie made a brilliant penalty save towards the end. The second game, against Beccles A, was a slower paced match with much of it played in the opposition half. Moses made a series of brilliant tackles in what proved to be a frustrating encounter in the end, as Beccles stole a goal on the break to win. Unfortunately the pattern was similar in the final game against Saxmundham A: plenty of possession but very few attempts on goal. In an end to end game, Saxmundham took their two chances to secure the win. The B team had a better day of it: in the first game Max scored twice up front while Tom kept a clean sheet in defence thanks to a fine save. 3 points won – the team feeling good! The second game was against Farlingaye which added a bit of local rivalry to the proceedings. In a tight encounter we defended as hard as possible and Erwan made some amazing saves. The match ended 0-0, giving us a well-earned point. The final games was against group leaders Kesgrave (we were joint second). Our approach was determined, but two headers from the opposition in rapid succession proved too much for us as they ran out winners by 3-0. The team, made up of Year 8 and Year 9 players who had not played together before, was proud of its efforts and the points gained.
Last Saturday, four Woodbridge girls took to the mountains of Norwich to compete in the National Finals of the ESSKIA dry slope skiing competition. They were the embodiment of what has come to be known as the Learning@Woodbridge qualities. Their perseverance to make it through a tough qualifier, by far the most stacked in the country, and endure miserable (but fast!) conditions in Norwich was commendable. They took responsibility for their own training regimes, all attending school training as well as clubs or academies outside school. They were collaborative and worked excellently as a team to qualify for the prestigious team finals. And they were aspirational, competing in the Under 19 category as two 13 year olds, a 15 and 16 year old. I could not have been prouder of the way they represented the school, skiing competitively and exuding positivity, improving times between runs and proving that they are a team for the future.
With results yet to be ratified, our team of Katherine (Y12), Beth (Y11) Honor (Y9) and Madeleine M (Y9) has finished in the top dozen schools in the country, a fantastic achievement. And hot off the press, Honor has been selected to represent Great Britain in the upcoming races in Andorra next January, so many congratulations!
Woodbridge made a lightning start against Thomas Mills, scoring five well-worked tries in the opening half before the opposition had barely found time to draw breath. Fazil touched down for two and there was one each for Erwan, Edward B and Obi. So slick was the play that spectators might have felt they were there for a masterclass in flowing attacking rugby by Woodbridge: tries scored out wide after quick passing and good handling from the backs. One onlooker was even drawn to make comparison with the All Blacks! The forwards played their part magnificently, opening up the pitch beautifully with their powerful running to allow the backs to flourish, George N, Hector and Sam W being particularly impressive. The second half was much the same with another five tries: Barnaby, Fazil, Robert S (2) and Moses scoring. This meant that Woodbridge were dominant victors with Fazil scoring his third hat trick in three games.
The under fifteens recently travelled up to Culford on a cold and rain swept Saturday afternoon, but came away with smiles on their faces nonetheless. The match proved to be unexpectedly straightforward thanks to the successful use of many of our tactical plays – typically, the forwards crashing through in the heart of attack, and the backs finishing off superbly in the corners. Woodbridge were stronger, faster and fitter on the day, and it paid off with a score of over 50 unopposed points by halfway. The second half allowed the less experienced players to get some game time, and it made for a much more evenly matched game thereafter. Meanwhile the weather ended as it started, with heavy rain, though with a silver lining to the clouds thanks to the convincing victory by 64-14 (tries by Tom, Mauricio, Ollie, James, Ruben and Jack). Roll on East Bergholt!
The under fifteens have continued their season with two spirited encounters. The first was against RGS Colchester: after another strong week of training, strategies were in place before the whistle, only for a slow start to lead to a converted try against us. Happily, a few clean breaks from numerous players got us back on our feet, and Jack finished the phase with a well-deserved try. Unfortunately Colchester then scored twice more through their strong and consistent forwards to secure the lead at half time. The start of the second half saw some fine individual performances from the likes of Tom B and Mauricio, and another try followed as John dived into the corner. But the physicality of the game began to show, and with substitutions for injury, Colchester eased away again before Woodbridge answered back with a lovely weighted kick from Barney for Mak to touch down under the posts. 19-35 the final score.
Next for the team was the national cup fixture against Ipswich. It was a shame that not all wounds had healed from the weekend, but our team gave their all in another physical and demanding match. The highlight came early in the first half when multiple strong carries by Jack W and others, led to John’s try – one for the whole team. Just before the break Mauricio then scored a very cheeky try in open play with a chip and chase, leaving the boys close enough to hope for more in the second half. Sadly it was not to be as Ipswich’s strength in depth proved decisive. Despite defeat, the team were immensely impressive: relentless tackling and hard work for the full 70 minutes, but Ipswich played their best game and they deserved the win. Special mentions go to Jack W, Kit and Barney who all had very strong games and refused give up or to allow Ipswich through.
Ten athletes from Years 6 – 8 travelled to Birmingham to compete in the National Prep Schools’ Athletics Championships, after gaining 1st or 2nd place at the Regional round at Bedford in June. To have ten athletes from one school representing the East team is a phenomenal achievement!
Better still, three of our athletes gained podium positions – truly phenomenal achievements: Fazil Akyol won the U13 High Jump with an amazing jump of 1.54m; Beau Barrington-Hibbert became the U13 discus champion with a huge throw of 25.85m; and Henry Dinwiddy showed extraordinary determination on the track to gain a bronze medal and third place in the 800m.
Close behind them, but not quite on the podium this year, Lexi Barrington-Hibbert and Tom Mitchell were both called up to represent the East team in the discus, and for their first major competition they performed exceptionally well against some tough competition; Tom Martin managed to secure a distance in his last throw in the javelin, but he was unlucky not to be called up for a 4th throw in the top 8 of the competition; and the U13 Relay team of Ada Marson, Maddie Buchanan, Libbie Brightey and Ruby Vinton ran a good race with slick changeovers, but unfortunately they were just outside of the qualifying time for the finals.
Many, many congratulations to all the athletes: they performed brilliantly on what was a fiercely hot day. Thank you also to Mr Graham and Mr Goddard for their coaching in preparation for the event and on the day, and to all the parents who came to support. Roll on next year!
Congratulations to Oliver Juszt who has just returned from completing a series win over Germany this weekend, playing for the England U18 Hockey team, this all despite still being an under sixteen! Indeed it was his string of exceptional performances as the number 1 shirt for the England U16 team over the season (against The Netherlands, Spain and Ireland to name but a few) that earned him this very unusual and prestigious call up to the more senior squad.
Next up for Oliver is a Test series with the England U16 team against Belgium, and the summer Six Nations event. We wish him the best of luck and great success in his career as an England international over the course of this summer and beyond.
Last Thursday 14 sailors from Woodbridge School took place in the annual Suffolk Schools Regatta held at Alton Water. Completing in a wide range of different fleets all our sailors performed well in an event that attracts several hundred sailors from schools around Suffolk. Congratulations to Freddie Simpson who achieved 3rd in the RS Tera fleet and who also won the trophy for the best hired boat, thereby keeping the trophy in Woodbridge School for the second year running
A big day at Ormiston last Thursday: the Suffolk Finals! Hosts Ormiston Sudbury were our first opponents: victory! 10½ to 6½ with some fantastic rounders being scored and some great work in the field. We then played Farlingaye and again dominated to win 6-3½ with Victoria Burrows bowling intelligently and Annie Yates, Libby Martin, Emma Trebilcock, and Flora Pitt striking the rounders Next was a tense game against Thurston: some great fielding by Sophie Graham in particular helped us come out on top by 8-4, but an unfortunate injury sidelined Annie for the rest of the competition. No time to rest: next it was Thomas Mills with the girls on a high and feeling confident. Nell Pilkington scored some good rounders as did Saffron Holliday and Sophie; Verity Hobday put in a great performance and Laura Golding ran well between the stumps when the pressure was on… victory again! One more game: Bungay… and no mistaking the intent as the girls put on a great performance in both field and at bat to win 9-5½.
This was a fantastic result from a great group of students who thoroughly deserved their win. They were a real credit to the school and thoroughly deserved to retain their title from last year! Very well done.