Cricket Weekend
Last weekend saw seven Shiplake cricket teams in action against local rivals Pangbourne, including three senior teams.
The 1st XI were at home and having won the toss batted well against a disciplined Pangbourne bowling attack. Harry Ibbitson’s fluent score of 51 allowed Shiplake to put 140 for 6 on the board and declared leaving Pangbourne 28 overs to chase the target down. Despite two wickets from Callum Heppner-Logan and three from Harry Ibbitson in a brilliant nine over spell, Pangbourne reached the target with one ball to spare in a thrilling contest. This defeat was tough to take for the Shiplake lads, who acquitted themselves brilliantly in their best performance of the season so far.
There were no such problems for the 2nd XI who despite only posting 85 runs in their first innings skittled Pangbourne out for just 42 runs. The impressive Ed Farrar took his second five wicket haul of the season. There is great team spirit in the camp as they look to extend their unbeaten run to four matches against Oratory after half term.
The 3rd XI made an impressive start to their season with a convincing 64 run win over Pangbourne. Markland Tidswell starred with the bat scoring 30 runs assisted by Niranjan Rajagopal and Eleanor Waite who both got 16. Shiplake then took to the field with Dan DiGiulio taking 3 wickets and Dan Deakin 2 to bowl Pangbourne out for 67.
Shiplake branded cricket balls were awarded to Harry Ibbitson (51 runs and 3 wickets) and Ed Farrar (5 wickets) for their outstanding performances. After half term, all three teams play Oratory who will provide a stern test.
The U15As are currently the form side of the school and batting first managed to post 231 for 2 in 25 overs. Miles Bridgman scoring 85 out and Freddie Davis 68 not out. Finn Arbuckle then took four wickets as Shiplake ousted Pangbourne for 102 to record a convincing win.
The U15Bs were unlucky not to make it a double victory. After restricting Pangbourne to 104 all out Shiplake batted brilliantly to require just 11 off the last over. Harry Rees batted brilliantly to score 32 not out and managed to hit a 6 but despite this we fell two runs short of the target.
The U14As looked to be in trouble after only posting 105 runs batting first, mainly thanks to a great ninth wicket partnership of 34 from Tim Herbert and Jamie Westbrook-Burr. However the bowlers responded well to dismiss Pangbourne for just 74 and record a good victory by 31 runs.
The U14Bs were strengthened by some Lower School boys and bowling first restricted Pangbourne to 136 for 8 in their 25 overs. However a lack of depth in the batting was exposed but thanks to Year 8 Dillon Sichel’s 28 runs they managed to post 88 for 8 in reply.
The U13A and Bs played Magdalen College Oxford on Friday at home, with the A team losing by 6 wickets. Batting first the U13As scored 108 for 6 in their 20 overs, thanks to a partnership of 40 from Year 7s Toby Gorringe and Barny Rivett. MCS batted well and reached their target with 2 overs to spare.
The U13Bs are playing really well and recorded a 4 wicket win. Chasing 87 in 20 overs Shiplake reached their target with over two overs to spare with Thierry Althorp scoring 30 and Luke Mullin 20.
Awards for outstanding performances were given to Oliver Brown for his 71 not out vs Abingdon last week and Miles Bridgeman and Freddie Davies for their unbeaten knocks against Pangbourne.
Midweek
The 1st XI hosted Henley College on Wednesday and recorded an emphatic victory to notch their first win of the season. Batting first, the Shiplake middle order managed the run rate extremely well, following the orders of Mr Howorth. This helped post a daunting total of 142-6 from 25 overs. Requiring virtually a run a ball in reply, Henley quickly lost their composure after early wickets and were bowled out for 41 runs. Shiplake won by 101 runs.
The 3rd XI travelled to Bearwood College and posted their second victory in the space of a week. Chasing 116, solid innings from Dom Allen (34) and captain Ruari Van Raalte (25) put Shiplake into a competitive position. Requiring 11 to win from the last over, Ed Farrar saw the boys home for a tense 3 wicket victory.
The U15As teamed up with the U14As to faced a combined Bearwood College XI. Excellent bowling and sharp fielding completely blew Bearwood away, as they were quickly reduced to 21-4. Their middle order failed to stem the flow of wickets and Shiplake’s bowlers cleaned up the tail for a combined total of just 41 runs. William Gresswell and Hassan Rubbani raced to the target from just 24 balls to complete an emphatic 10 wicket victory. What a performance!
The U15Bs, led by History teacher Mr Liam Morgan, recorded their first victory of the season in a tight match away to Thorpe House School. Jack Tooley scored 21 and George Emeny 18, but the remaining Shiplake batsmen struggled to get their eye in. After being bowled out for 80 runs, Shiplake had to defend fiercely and fight to save every run. Thorpe House started well but really tight bowling kept the scoring down. In the 20th and final over, just 7 runs were required for victory but Harry Emmanuel bowled a magnificent maiden to claim victory. Notably, Jack Tooley claimed 3 wickets for just 8 runs and was awarded man of the match.
Facing the same opposition, the U14Bs found it tough to contain Thorpe House’s opening batsmen as they recorded 122-1 from 20 overs. Shiplake battled bravely in reply but in the end fell 12 runs short of the target.
On Tuesday, three Lower School teams were in action. The U13As earned a 9 run victory in a thrilling high-scoring contest against Our Lady’s Abingdon. Matt Dalrymple and Toby Gorringe were the stars of the show. Batting first, Shiplake posted 151-5. Dalrymple top-scored with a rapid 68 runs from just 53 balls, while Robbie Cartwright smashed 30 runs from 18 balls. Toby Gorringe chipped in with 17 to help Shiplake to a highly competitive total.
In reply, three wickets from Gorringe and 2 for Dalyrmple helped to reign in the OLA run rate, but the contest went down to the last over of the match. Despite a couple of scares, Shiplake held on for a magnificent victory. Parent Andy Dalrymple commented: “This was an unbelievable team effort, with great character shown by the Shiplake boys to bring this one home.”
The U13Bs enjoyed a more comfortable afternoon against the same opposition. They skittled the OLA batsmen out for 68 runs, and reached the target with 8 wickets to spare. Unfortunately, the U13Cs were unable to make it a clean sweep as they fell 5 runs short of the Oratory’s target of 97.
Touch Rugby
Enjoying some downtime between exams, Sixth Form pupils set up an impromptu of mixed touch rugby. Rather than girls vs. boys, the students combined to form two teams; the 'Wildcats' and the 'Tigers'. Some great technique from Shiplake's England players Sophie Arnold and Hannah Cartwright soon helped the boys get to grips with the new format.
Plenty of tries were scored, including a particularly spectacular effort from Henry Lewis. What a shame it wasn't caught on camera!
Tennis
Last Sunday on the school Astroturf courts, a number of boys from Years 7, 8 and 9 took part in the ‘Road to Wimbledon’ tournament. This is the first step towards having the opportunity to play in a National Tournament at Wimbledon in August.
Some closely contested pool matches eventually led to a closely fought final between Laurenz Claas and Marcus Hillman, but it was Hillman’s consistency that came through for him to take the spoils.
Marcus now goes through into a regional tournament and stage 2 of the competition. We wish him the very best of luck!
On Wednesday, Shiplake’s 1st and 2nd teams hosted Abingdon School. The 2nd team had the privilege of playing on the pristine grass courts, which are looking absolutely fantastic thanks to the hard work of Richard Evans and his groundstaff team.
