It's been yet another fabulous week for sports at Shiplake. The 1st XV travelled to Rosslyn Park to play a fantastic match against Emanuel School for their Friday Night Lights event, securing a win in the process. The 2nd XV also beat Emanuel School, while the 2nd XI Girls' Hockey team returned from Pangbourne College with a win under their belts. A close draw for the Under 14 Cs against Pangbourne College and a win for the Under 14 Bs makes for yet another varied week!
Rugby
1st XV v Emanuel School
With many boys absent due to other commitments, the team had undergone various changes, giving many boys the opportunity to step into the 1st XV. The boys arrived at Rosslyn Park on a cold Friday evening with very little time to warm up; however, the excitement and anticipation meant they were already in the correct mental state for the match. Early on, the 1st XV looked to exploit the wide and fast 3G pitch, which worked effectively as they found themselves in Emanuel’s half for the majority of the first ten minutes, thanks to busting runs from Hugh Rutledge and the pace out wide of Will Parton. Unfortunately, our boys came away empty-handed; a few sloppy errors and penalties allowed Emanuel to advance down the pitch and take hold of the game. The majority of the first half continued with Shiplake giving penalties away, enabling the home side to get 3 points before scoring a converted try, meaning the 1st XV went into half time 10-0 down.
From the start of the second half, our boys won the ball back exactly as we had planned, setting the standard. Shiplake won a penalty for themselves, allowing Louis Ashcroft to kick the ball deep into the corner. The forward pack then set up a strong maul with Tom Coates controlling from the back to dot the ball down over the line, Josh Howard then added the extra two points. The momentum had shifted back to Shiplake and our boys knew they had to take advantage if they were going to win. They continued to increase the pace, with which Emanuel struggled to keep up. Debutant Joe Kerrison then passed through a gap from a well-worked set piece to dive over the try line giving us the lead. Josh Howard converted, making the score 10-14. The game once again became evenly matched. However, the determination of the Shiplake boys enabled them to continue adding pressure especially out wide, resulting in Josh Howard linking up well with Lucas Smyth, who scored after breaking through a couple of tackles. Our boys then closed out the game with some strong defence on their own try line, stopping Emanuel from scoring in the final moments. The final score was 19-10 to Shiplake, making it 3 out of 3 FNL wins for us.
2nd XV v Emanuel School
With six wins on the bounce, the 2nd XV travelled to Emanuel School to play in a match that was expected to challenge our boys. On a pitch as wide as that of Twickenham and going up the hill in the first half, the 2nd XV worked tirelessly to dominate both possession and territory for 25 minutes.
Emanuel were a physically big team who were mostly playing around the fringes, however our pack kept them at bay; debutant Tooey Morris was puffing hard early on due to the number of hits he was putting in. The opposition were also looking to kick the ball away, however when you have a running full-back like Shiplake’s Ben Monson on the counter, they should have kept the ball in hand as defence was turned into attack on so many occasions. Eventually, the deadlock was broken with a well-taken lineout and Zach Green powered over.
It wasn’t long until Emanuel were able to string some decent rugby together and after drawing level with their own try they piled the pressure on us for the last 10 minutes of the first half. A try in the corner from Harry Holmes helped to settle nerves, but the pressure just kept coming. How Emanuel did not score during this period is a miracle and a testament to how our 2nd XV are willing to put their bodies on the line for each other. Bradley Wilkins, Callum Brady and Will Properjohn pulled off some defensive moves that had Mr Mallins almost crying with pride.
As the second half began, Shiplake came out with a renewed rigour. With Lewis Bishop kicking us down into the right areas, our boys made some fantastic runs; Jamie Gibbs, Callum Theodorou and Ben Monson again carving out the yards. The opposition could not handle Shiplake; Ollie Heap and Tomas Gorringe finished off some lovely team rugby to score a try each and with Joe Kerrison slotting the conversions, our boys suddenly found themselves 26-10 up. So, another fantastic performance from this marvellous squad of players. No one can wait for the season finale against Churcher’s on Saturday.
U16B v Emanuel School
The game began with 12-men-a-side due to injuries and illnesses, affecting the Shiplake team. The opposition, in a similar position with 14 boys available, gracefully accepted the re-negotiated terms! A competitive first 20 minutes saw Shiplake trailing by three tries to one. George Head scored Shiplake’s point, who ran in from 40 metres, following some excellent offloads in the middle of the park.
Unfortunately, Carl von Wisenberg sustained a broken collarbone soon after and the first half was cut short. Shiplake’s momentum seemed to disappear shortly after, and Emanuel took advantage adding 6 further tries. The 7-59 final score was harsh, but tired legs could not keep up with the pace of Emanuel’s winger and full back, both causing problems all morning for our spirited team. Man of the match goes to Arthur Langeler and we wish Carl a speedy recovery!
U15B v Emanuel School
The Under 15Bs sadly suffered their biggest loss of the season, with a big defeat to Emanuel. However, having won 50% of their games, everything is to play for in their final game against Churcher’s College this weekend. Despite the heavy loss, the B team actually had more possession than Emanuel. Emanuel had two of their best players from the A team playing in their B side for their own reasons. This meant that they were able to execute and capitalise from their possession much more effectively. Shiplake failed to make the most of their chances, but the final score of 55-0 was not reflective of the encounter. It’s not easy trying to dust yourself down after such a loss, especially when you have played well, but the Shiplake boys must and will do exactly that in time for their final game this Saturday.
U14C v Pangbourne College
Shiplake managed to get the ball early on, and passed it down the line to Zack Devine who pumped his legs and broke through Pangbourne’s line of defence to score a great try. Tom Houghton managed to score a second try by outrunning Pangbourne’s players who just couldn't keep up with him. Just before half time Zack Devine pulled of a second try, making it 15 to Shiplake, 0 to Pangbourne.
Surprisingly, Pangbourne then quickly scored their first try. Soon after, Will Taylor managed to catch an awkward pass and run almost the whole length of the pitch to score a great try. After Tom Petrie and Tom Houghton had both scored tries, and after Pangbourne had made a good comeback, the score was 30-all. The last play came, and after many try saving tackles put in by Zack Devine, they were on our try line and it was a scrum down Pangbourne ball. Shiplake won the scrum and instead of risking another try and a potential failure Tom Petrie rightly kicked the ball out of touch and the match ended. It was a great game with Pangbourne and we hope to play them again soon. The final score was 30 points each.
U12s Cokethorpe Festival
On a very cold, but bright Thursday, the Year 7s made their way to the Cokethorpe Rugby festival. They were in a group of five teams, hoping to make their way into the cup semi-finals. The first game was a tough one against Lord Williams's School and due to the very cold conditions, the opposition ran in some early tries. However, once the boys had warmed up, their defence was unbeatable. The Lord Williams’ boys proved to be to be just too tough to break down in the time that was played and unfortunately, the first game was lost. The boys’ attitude after the game was fantastic and the preparation for the next three games and attitudes were superb as they ran in a number of tries against the next three teams.
The main success from these games was that the defence stayed strong and did not concede another try in their group stage. Finishing second in the group and the best runner up in all groups, they were through to the cup semi-final, an achievement of which they were all very proud. The opposition was a tough team: Crypts School from Gloucester. With the sun going down, the temperature dropped and was extremely cold, but the boys rallied together and focused on the game at hand. Once again, Shiplake’s defence was strong and the boys proved themselves tough to break down. Unfortunately, a lucky bounce led the ball to fall into opposition hands and they took the lead.
The Shiplake boys did not let their heads drop and showed strong desire to make up the score line; they managed some superb handling to send Harry Sharp blistering down the wing on a strong run but was unfortunately denied the try. This sadly allowed Crypts to reset their defence and even though Shiplake were pressuring hard there was not enough time left and the final whistle sounded. The boys came off the pitch, both teams disappointed with the result but extremely proud of their performance. From the start of this year the team has progressed in every game they have played, and their teamwork, drive, respect for opposition and commitment to improving has been second to none. The squad as a whole stood out in this tournament and worked well together to progress as well as they did. Special mention goes to Billy Badsey and Joe Biggin for making their first outings for the U12As.
Other results:
- U13A v Emanuel School - Lost 20-25
- U13B v Emanuel School - Lost 1-8
- 4th XV v Emanuel School - Lost 0-38
- U15C v Pangbourne College - Lost 29-38
- U15A v Emanuel School - Lost 12-36
- U14A v Emanuel School - Lost 21-29
- U14B v Emanuel School - Won 31-12
Hockey
1st XI v Pangbourne College
Shiplake’s 1st XI played Gillotts in a local grudge match. The conditions on Wednesday evening were not in our girls’ favour. It was cold, dark and damp and they were missing their captain, Lauren McNally, to illness. However, this wasn’t to get the team down. In the first third of the game, Shiplake didn’t play to their strengths as they were all cold and adjusting to the horrible weather and unfortunately, Gillotts scored twice in quick succession as our defensive concentration and communication was lax. This was not to discourage them as they came back fighting! Using the new training techniques they had learned in their Monday training session, they moved the ball around the pitch more frequently. This was down to the work of Emma Renwick, Brooke Creighton, Rhian Edwards and Hannah Burnett.
Finally, after some nice interplay, the Shiplake girls managed to work the ball through the Gillotts’ defence and THE Sophie Weldon smashed the ball home. For the rest of the match the ball spent most of its time in Gillotts’ defensive half but unfortunately, Gillotts broke through our girls’ wall and managed to score again. All of the girls played amazing well and Daisy Stuart and Georgie Stebbings stood out for their amazing defensive work. Player of the match went to Jade Miller in goal, who made several fantastic saves; including an inspired double save from a short corner.
Report provided by interim Captain Hannah Burnett
2nd XI v Pangbourne College
Last Wednesday, the 2nd XI team achieved a great win against Pangbourne College. Ella Roullier opened the game with a good, clean goal. Soon after, Pangbourne scored their first, making the score one-all. With Mary Keswick’s excellent goalkeeping and the defenders' quick interceptions, the 2nd XI intimidated their opposition which knocked their confidence midway through the first half. After this, our girls had most of the possession throughout the rest of the game, with the ball in Pangbourne’s half thanks to Darcy Timms’ runs up the wing. After half time, they came back on feeling very positive, with Weazy Harman and Mimi Ellis playing together upfront, passing between each other in the D. Weazy scored the winning goal and winning our first game of the season. Well done to all the girls who played, especially Mary and Weazy for getting joint player of the match.
Report provided by Jem Evans, Year 12
Rowing
Last Saturday Oli Newton, Alastair Holbrough, Dom Brown and Rhys Ash competed at the famous Scullers Head of the River, held on the Tideway in London. The race was held from the mile post near Hammermith Bridge to above Chiswick Bridge, a total of 7km. Oli was our quickest sculler finishing 5th in the Junior 18 category and Alastair finished 7th out of 18. Dom finished 3rd in the Junior 17 category out of 17. Rhys finished 4th in the Junior 16 category out of 13. Rhys must have a special mention for being our youngest rower to compete in this extremely tough race. Well done to all the boys for some very solid results.
Football
- 6th XI v Easthampstead Park School - Won 5 - 3
