In absence of a Sports Report today, we catch up on two sports trips that took place at the start of the Christmas holiday. In football, our senior boys travelled to Valencia for a three-day tour while in skiiing, 18 pupils travelled to compete at the International School Ski Championships in Sestriere, Italy, with great success!
Valencia Football Tour
During our football tour in Valencia, we had an exciting and busy schedule. Each morning, we kicked off the day with intense professional training sessions led by three coaches who work with Levante UD. With each session, we saw our skills benefit and an improvement in our teamwork under the guidance of experienced coaches. On Saturday afternoon, we grabbed something for lunch at a local cafe and then got a real taste of local football culture by attending a Levante game, where they played Cordoba and drew 2-2. The energy and passion of the crowd made for an unforgettable experience.
Despite having a long first day in Valencia, it didn’t end there as we had two evening fixtures against Spanish opposition, Club Deportivo. An unbelievable strike from F McCalley in the 2nd half unfortunately wasn’t enough as two well battled matches left us disappointed with the results, but excited for the next day of training.
Sunday, our least busy day, gave the boys the opportunity to finally get a half-deserved lie in before training, which started an hour later than usual. A lower intensity-based session in the morning meant that we were all ready to embrace Valencia's coastline with a surfing session, where clearly no one had ever stepped foot on a board before.
In our final two fixtures against Puzol CF, a really good first half display saw L Spence amongst the goals and Shiplake leading 1-0 at half-time. The other match saw a solid defensive display from O Bailey and D Litchfield at the back. Due to two unfortunate goals conceded in the 2nd half, we fell just short. However, the standard of the football we played and the fight we showed playing for each other as a team on the pitch spoke volumes of how much this tour had brought us together as a squad. We left the pitch in high spirits, proud of our performance and our attitude, in what was a tough game against very tricky opposition. We then took photos with the Spanish players and headed back to the hotel to get some sleep.
To cap off our trip, we visited the iconic Valencia stadium for a guided tour, exploring the stands, locker rooms, and behind-the-scenes areas of Spain's largest stadium. The mix of football, local culture, and adventure made this tour an unforgettable experience for everyone involved.
On behalf of everyone who came on the tour, I’d like to say a massive thank you to Mr Gingell for his efforts setting up the trip for us, as well as Mr Canning and Mr Player for making our experience in Valencia a special one.
Report: J Laing-Buck, Boys’ Football Captain
Flickr album: Senior Football Valencia Trip, December 2024 |
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International School Ski Championships
At the start of the Christmas holiday, 18 pupils took part at the International School Ski Championships in Sestriere, Italy! Competing in their respective categories were the following pupils:
- Girls’ U14: L Jones and L Baietta
- Boys’ U14: E English, D Mellor, F Greenway, C Deering, D Steward, J Verheggen, E Evans, O Wray, and W Hargreaves
- Boys’ U16: O Wilson, A Bowater-Rubio, J Swankie, C Sooka Williams, R Surplice, and D Wray
- Girls’ U19: S Ferguson
All pupils competed in the Individual Slalom and the Giant Slalom with Year 13 pupil S Ferguson winning both her races! In the girls’ U14 category, L Jones was pipped to bronze place by less than a second while E English (U14) and O Wilson (U16) finished in the top 10 in the Slalom category. In the Giant Slalom category, there were further top 10 finishes for L Jones, D Mellor, and O Wilson.
There was then further success in the team events where we won gold in the Giant Slalom and silver in the Slalom resulting in a 2nd place finish in the Plate Competition.
Lead teacher on the trip, Mrs Hanlon, says, ‘This was more than just a competition - it was a journey of growth. From technical skills to team spirit, our pupils made incredible progress on the slopes. With such an amazing debut, the future looks bright for Shiplake skiing. Could we have the makings of a legendary team? Watch this space!’
Flickr album: ISSC Ski Trip, December 2024 |
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