Barclays Premier League Trophy Arrives at Shiplake

Pupils were left rubbing their eyes in disbelief on Tuesday as the gleaming Barclays Premier League Trophy arrived at Shiplake College. All members of the College community had the opportunity to pose for photographs with the trophy, with many opting for a trophy selfie!

When Shiplake parent Andrew Leigh speculatively entered ‘A Dream Come True for Your Child’, a competition run by Barclays, he did not expect the dream to become a reality: “The trophy spends most of its year travelling the world, and when Barclays offered me the opportunity to enter a prize draw, it was too good an opportunity to miss,” Andrew explained. “I knew my son Jack and other Shiplake pupils would love the chance to see the trophy close up and grab some photos. You can imagine my surprise when I was informed I had won.

In the morning, the trophy was on show on the New Field, adjacent to the track where boys and girls were competing in inter-House athletics. In the afternoon it made its way to the terrace to accompany the House Tug-of-War and latterly the Swimming Gala.

The trophy is one of the most coveted awards in the world. It is made of solid silver, with 24 carat gold plating around the lions and crown. The base is made of malachite, a green stone which represents the field of play.

There are two identical versions, one which takes pride of place in the current champion’s trophy cabinet whilst the other tours around the globe. Many pupils found it hard to believe that the exact awe-inspiring trophy sitting on the terrace was lifted by Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany just 6 weeks ago.

Barclays also generously donated a Chelsea FC football signed by the 2013-14 playing squad. This was a wholly unexpected bonus and generated additional excitement on the day. Pupils enjoyed picking out famous signatures from the likes of Frank Lampard, Oscar, Cesar Azpilicueta and Mark Schwarzer.

A charity raffle was organised to determine the recipient of the ball, which raised £148 for Books2Africa and the Matt Hampson Foundation. Incredibly, the raffle was won by Year 12 Burr pupil Alex Exadactylos, who is regarded as the most devout Chelsea fan in the College. Alex was a hugely popular winner as the announcement was met with a huge cheer.

Pupils can access the photos taken of them with the trophy on our Flickr gallery. All images are available for free download.