February 11th 2022
It was a momentous day for our U11 boys on Monday as they finished as the overall winners in the IAPS Hockey regionals!
This now qualifies them for the Nationals later on in the term.
We are so proud of them and the manner in which they performed, both on and off the field.
In their words:
I was sooo nervous in the penalty flicks during the quarter final!
What an awesome day!
The semi-final was really intense!
We are Champions!
Huge thanks to Kings College Taunton for being such great hosts.
Joe Arkwright, our Music Teacher, gives a wonderful report of the match;
'An excitable group of U11 boys took the trip down to King’s Taunton on Monday 7th February, after an impressive set of results throughout the term, including qualifying for the regional stage of the In2Hockey tournament.
Sherborne were placed in a tough pool alongside Castle Court, Hazlegrove, Chafyn Grove, Clayesmore and Dean Close. The boys started off with a bang, 4-0 v Clayesmore including two Harry S goals, 3-0 v Dean Close and 2-0 v Hazlegrove. Spirits were high! Though, tournament sport is a fickle beast, and a lull is always on the horizon. Energy levels dropped and fatigued set in as we encountered our friends from Castle Court. Chances at both ends of the pitch resulted in a classic 0-0. Chafyn Grove up next, and with the knowledge that they had to beat us 4-0 to overcome our position as top of the pool we let our foot off the gas for the first 5 minutes and allowed them to score a soft goal. The boys fought back in the second half but to no avail and we walked away with our first loss of the tournament.
After squeezing through top of the pool, via goal difference, set up a quarter-final against Salisbury Cathedral. Playing with the majority of the possession and our rock at the back, Max F, distributing the ball well, we struggled to find the back of the net. 0-0 through normal time and then 0-0 golden goal brought penalty strokes upon the boys. Will M and Tristian T both buried their flicks and Roddy H made two superb saves to take the boys through to the semi-final!
Blundells to face in the semi-final, a game that would have deservedly been a final in its own right, didn’t disappoint. End to end Hockey with both teams giving it their absolute all! In the final 2/3 minutes, the tireless Harry F found himself in space on the left-hand side, he slid a cross to Harry S, waiting at the back post to deliver the winning goal. Many on the side-line commented on it being one of the best U11 hockey matches they have seen.
We took on the locals in the final, Taunton School. Another nail biter. Tristian T, as he did all tournament, created chance after chance but we couldn’t find the back of the net. On to golden goal and after a series of attacking short corners, Tristian found the bottom corner and Sherborne came out victorious. The boys were a credit to the school on and off the pitch throughout the day, playing with a strong sense of sportsmanship alongside supporting each other to the final whistle. They even stayed behind at the end of the tournament to help clear up! We look forward to the finals at Rugby on Wednesday 2nd March!'
Sport plays an important role in life at Sherborne Prep for all our pupils. The spirit and manner in which pupils at Sherborne Prep approach sport is central to all that is great about our school.
