Sports Report Autumn 2021

What a term this has been!

We hoped that after restrictions were lifted for September 2021 we would return to fixtures with a ‘bang’, and the Autumn Term has not disappointed! From a record number of positive results at netball tournaments, to the U18 hockey team getting to National Finals, to hearing about the incredible GDST Day of Dance at Base Studios I have found myself on a Friday standing up in staff briefing again and again with a beam on my face, sharing the incredible achievements pupils have made

It isn’t just the wins either, the number of pupils at sports clubs has continued to be high and I am proud not only of the breadth of teams we have (we have 85 different teams in total!), but also with the breadth of clubs we provide; there have been 13 different sports represented this term alone!

There is no doubt that many students will ready for a rest this Christmas This is much deserved after 215 fixtures over that period!

I would like to wish all students and our extremely supportive parent body a wonderful Christmas, and with a number of exciting tournaments and competitions awaiting us next term, I cannot wait to see what 2022 will bring!

Highlights in this issue:

Pre-season Hockey and Netball for Year 7's - Pg 2

Regional Tennis Champs - Pg 4

U18 Hockey team off to Nationals - Pg 6

Achievements throughout Autumn - Pg 9

Autumn sport through photos - Pg 10

Pre-season Hockey & Netball for Year 7's

On Wednesday 1st September 2021, Year 7 was invited to attend the Pre-Season Sports Day at Notting Hill & Ealing High School This was a special opportunity for us girls to meet before the start of School, to be active, to have fun and to be introduced to and play two of the many sports offered at NHEHS, Hockey and Netball

The atmosphere was very exciting from the very start We came into School with butterflies in our stomachs, adrenaline running through our bodies and mouth guards on our smiling faces, as we entered School all ready for a morning full of hockey We all had an incredible time doing drills and playing games alongside some of our old and some new friends

At lunch break, we all got a chance to look around and become even more familiar with each other and we got a better idea of who is going to be a part our everyday life at NHEHS The faces were very friendly and the personalities were pleasant and kind This opportunity was truly wonderful in all aspects!

After lunch, we got ready to play the next sport on the agenda, Netball It seems that the lunch gave us plenty of fuel and we put our 100 percent in the netball drills and while playing the matches We all enjoyed the games and it seems we have many sports enthusiasts among us

At the end of the day it became very evident that the day was a complete success and it brought out the best in everyone who joined I really look forward to continuing our sporting journey together as a strong year and I am confident that we will bring home many wins as a team!

" ... the day was a complete success and it brought out the best in everyone who joined!"

Extra-Curricular Fair: Autumn '21

The Extra-Curricular fair is always a time where students, especially Year 7's, get a chance to see all the different clubs that are on offer to them

Our games captain and sports reps were manning the Sports table, answering questions about the different clubs, along with challenging them to juggling

Unfortunately none of the students gave it a go but there was a 'juggle off' between Miss Nicholas and Sophie (games captain) After several warm up rounds, the main event took place, with Sophie taking the victory

GDST Select Netball

I’m really happy that I got the opportunity to participate in the GDST netball trials It was a fantastic experience where I could test my netball skills against girls from the 25 other GDST schools Having not practiced a lot over lockdown, It was great to improve my skills in the time we had lost being off school. I learned a lot about how I can improve how I play in defense by practicing key interceptions, ball handling and footwork

The first round of trials were held in early September, where myself, Sephera and Gen had the chance to play against other netball players from GDST schools The second trial was towards the end of September, and the standard of playing was high and very competitive

I was very proud to hear that Gen got selected for the team, and I was chosen as a reserve We are both excited to work towards refining our skills

Ibstock Netball Tournaments

The first tournament as the U13A's we went to was the Ibstock tournament, in which we played 8 matches: winning 6 and losing 2, thereby getting through to the semi finals

Overall we placed 3rd, losing against Surbiton in a close semi final We were extremely proud of how we played in this tournament, considering it was our first time as the U13A team!

The U15A team played in a gripping semi final against Highgate, drawing at full time, a draw in extra time and it then went down to Golden Goal

Results: U12A team finished 2nd, U13A team finished 3rd, U15A team finished 3rd and the U18A team finished 5th

Junior Biathlon at LEH

The Year 7's and 8's took part in their first biathlon with Lady Eleanor Holles This wonderful event was a mixture of swimming and running held at LEH It was a friendly competition which started off with swimming (50m for YEar 7 and 100m for Year 8) and then running (800m for Year 7 and 1600m for Year 8)

Taking part in the biathlon was a wonderful experience as well as a challenge I had never done a Biathlon before, and afterwards I felt like this could be something I would participate in again

Cross Country round-up

On 7th October NHEHS cross country runners took part in the Ealing Cross Country Championships The course ran over three muddy fields, with quite long grass and one small hill I had known the course from doing it in the junior school, but had never run the senior route before, which was around 2 kilometres for the Juniors and 3km for the Intermediate runners

I raced with another Year 8 and a team of Year 7s When we set off, there was a sprint, but I made my way into 1st place, and managed to hold the position all throughout the race! Both the junior and intermediate teams performed excellently with lots of top ten finishers!

Every year, the NHEHS cross country running team enters the English School Athletic Association (ESSA) cup competition

This year, a team of Year 7 & 8 (the junior team) and Year 9 & 10 (the intermediate team) entered with 5-6 runners in each category The first round of the cup was at Harrow on the 30th September, which was a strong performance from both categories: the Junior team came 3rd overall with 1 person in the top 10 and the Intermediate team won their round with 3 people in the top ten Both teams qualified for the Regional round which was in St Albans on November 13th

Regional Tennis Champs

Our U15 Tennis Team beat North London Collegiate School in the Regional Division 2 Tennis Cup in September to be crowned the Regional Champions! The winning team consisted of Ayah Mian, Lydia Minko, Anna Whelan and Sephera Forrester A special mention must go out to Gen Pearce who played in all the previous rounds during the Summer of 2020 to get the team through to the regional playoffs, but was unwell for the finals

The St Albans course was difficult with the course being 2km for the juniors and 3km for the intermediates I found the race tough with it being quite a hard terrain to run on and with it being a very cold day However, even though it was tough, both teams overall placed well (junior team finished 9th and intermediate team finished 7th) and everyone was supportive of each other which made the whole experience enjoyable

Harrodian Netball Tournaments

Monday 22 November was a brilliant day for the 10 players selected for the U12A Team at the Harrodian Tournament NHEHS were drawn in Pool A where we played 4 different teams, starting off with the hosts This was a rather close game with the score ending up being 8-6. Straight after this we had another match against Francis Holland; this game was also rather close as the score was 7-1 We had now started to get into the game and had a brilliant match against St Pauls even though they were rather strong we pushed through as the score was 12-5 Now we had one last match in our pool against Emmanuel During this match we played really well and the score ended up being 11-3 After this we had a break and this time we did some drills to keep us warm and talked about how we could improve

After all the scores had been added up we had a semi-final against Godophin and Latymer This was a very tight and stressful game as Godophin was winning 5-2 after half time but we put our minds to it and turned over most of the balls so the score ended up being 9-7

We had made it to the final but the team we were playing was Surbiton, a team that we had previously played in a different tournament and they had beaten us in the final. We were all very stressed but the first half went very well, us winning by quite a bit but this did change as surbiton started to catch us up and if it wasn’t for the whistle syng time we would have had drawn that watch but the score ended up being 8-7 At the end of the match Mary Kate was awarded player of the final match but Miss Nicholas’s women of the matches were Iskra CP and Meredith J

Overall results:

U12A team finished 1st

U13A team finished 3rd

U14A team finished 2nd

U15A team finished 2nd

U18B team finished 6th

Instagram take-overs

Both our Director of Sport and Games Captain did Instagram takeovers during November to share some insight into the daily activities that they are involved in.

Miss Nicholas, Director of Sport, took over the NHEHS Sports Instagram account on Monday 22nd November She took us through her day, sharing a wide variety of clubs, lessons and even a netball tournament were highlighted

On Thursday 25th November our games captain, Sophie Claxton, showed us a short but busy snippet of some of the activities that she does daily. This included early morning football training, a variety of A Level lessons and lifeguarding duties To end off a busy day, Sophie, alongside Mr Henderson and Jenny Dawson, were invited to the opening of the new Ealing Trailfinders indoor facility, meeting former England Cricket Captain Sir Andrew Strauss

U18 Hockey team are off to National Schools in Spring!

Regional round

County round

With an early 4-2 loss against St. Benedicts in the season, the 1st XI hockey team were anxious in anticipation for our first match in the County tournament against our rivals An amazing goal secured a 1-0 win, boosting morale for the rest of our matches Our next match against Highgate proved contentious for Mr Henderson, but with a secure 2-0 win, it was evident he was coaching the right school To secure a place at Regionals, we had to win our last match against Latymer, a side who had been strong in their previous matches against But, NHEHS remained victorious with a 1-0 win, taking us first place to the regional tournament, and a promised trip to McDonalds

Tensions were high when the team realised, we would have to face St Benedicts yet again in the regional round An early goal boosted confidence and our formation began to take shape, as we were able to dominate possession throughout the rest of the game However, the last five minutes of the match proved challenging with Bennies remaining in our 23 and pressure was mounting A clearance down the pitch allowed us to steal a breakaway goal in the last minute The team all knew a secure victory in the next game would take us to Nationals, but were reluctant to get complacent against Trinity, a team we had not played before Goals followed goals as we stood 3-0 up in the first half But, as always, the match could fall away from us if we did not keep our strong defence. Another 3-0 scoring half (resulting in a 6-0 win) secured the team’s place at nationals The whole team was ecstatic with the result, our gold medals, and our promised McDonalds, and we can’t wait for the next round

Results from the tournaments

County

St Benedicts - 1-0 Win

Highgate 2-0 Win

Latymer Upper 1-0 Win

Regionals

St Benedicts 2-0 Win

Trinity 6-0 Win

Waterpolo round-up

On the Sunday 28th November six girls Zoe Davison Rosie Hewitt, Nicola Hewitt, Amelia Dunlop, Zara Dannatt and Evie Smethurst (out of a team of 13) from NHEHS played in the Inter-county water polo tournament This was the first time we had played with half of our teammates We played Sussex, Surrey, Kent and Hampshire We managed to win against Surrey, 9-1, and Hampshire, 5-1 Unfortunately, we had a disappointing loss to Kent 2-1 and Sussex 6-3. Despite this we still managed to come second place overall, with Sussex coming first This was a very impressive result against some strong teams

It is not only in out of school water polo that NHEHS has been achieving success in, the Under 14- 15 water polo team has played fixture against Highgate and North London Collegiate The match against Highgate was a particularly challenging match as Highgate had a team predominately made up of boys Although the team has played many fixtures, we had not yet come up against a boys' team in school We found this challenging as some of them were physically a lot stronger than us However, we played well as a team and managed to draw We found that this match was good chance to challenge ourselves and develop our skills and knowledge of the game

There are also many more exciting water polo competitions coming up in and out of school We are currently looking forward to the ESSA water polo tournament in school and some of the NHEHS girls are competing in the Under 16 National age group (NAGs) in Sheffield on the 19th of December

Gymnastics at NHEHS

On a Wednesday lunch time in the sports hall there is a Year 7-9 gymnastics club In the club we do multiple types of gymnastics So far we have done: Acrobatic Floor and Vault (artistic) Mrs Scott is the sports teacher that runs the club with help from two super friendly Year 13's Carmel and Alice

So far, we have learnt multiple types of leaps, dynamic movements including handstand forward rolls, backward rolls, and walkovers, we have also learnt balance moves like handstand, headstands, splits and many more In my opinion the club is really fun

On Wednesday the 24th of November the Year 7-9 gymnastics club participated in a club championship 13 of us took part in the sports hall The competition consisted of a Floor competition and Vault competition On floor, you could choose between 3 routines - Bronze, Silver and Goldbased on your level of ability All routines contained dynamic and balance moves, some of these also needed flexibility

A big thank you for Carmel and Alice for all the help in setting up and for very fair judging

"There's no substitute for hard work. If you work hard and prepare yourself, you might get beat, but you'll never lose."

- Nancy Lieberman

Swimming round-up

This term we have had many galas to encourage and support our teams with their racing So far, we have participated in the ESSA Relay gala where we finished 3rd in the local round, The Year 7&8 London Schools League where we finished 2nd to LEH, and several friendly galas against St Augustines, Godolphin & Latymer, and St Paulsall of them in which we were victorious! We have had a very successful term!

As the swimming captain, I want to express that there’s so many opportunities for everyone at NHEHS, no matter the level! There are many training sessions at lunchtimes and after school, catering for all abilities!

Many of us are currently swimming at county or higher level, but many swimmers at NHEHS enjoy the social and fun nature of the sport It is such a supportive and friendly environment that everyone has thrived this term

GDST Day of Dance

On Monday 6th December, 7 NHEHS students were given the opportunity to take part in the GDST Day of Dance at BASE Studios in London, where we took part in classes with industry professionals in a variety of dance styles

These included contemporary, commercial, lyrical jazz and musical theatre This was a fantastic opportunity to try out new types of dance while connecting with students from other GDST schools We particularly enjoyed the musical theatre class with Ellie Mitchell, who taught a dance from the musical 'Wicked', the musical in which she made her West End debut

We also loved the fun and vibrant commercial class with choreographer Alex Schoendorf to Dua Lipa's 'Pretty Please' NHEHS student, Zara, was even chosen as one of the dancers to preform the dance a final time with several other GDST students to the rest of the group!

Overall, the day was such a fun, educational and fantastic experience, and I would recommend it to anyone who has the chance to take part in the GDST Day of Dance in the future!

U15 Hockey Tournament

On Monday the 6th of December, the U15 hockey team participated in the county tournament, having fought through the rain and cold to produce an excellent result We drew against Godolphin & Latymer, the team who was unbeaten in the tournament, and we managed to win against St Augustines 1-0 The games were only 15 minutes long, which makes it hard to produce a landslide result, so leaving every game on edge We finished 3rd and were pleased with our performance

Sporting achievements by NHEHS students

It has been a busy term for NHEHS athletes, participating in a full Autumn term of school sport, alongside their own sport outside of school

Below are some of the many achievements that they have achieved this term:

London Youth Games Hockey: Team Ealing

Alice Whelan

Guusje Vroegop

Yasmin Iyengar

Olivia Bebb

London Youth Games Netball: Team Ealing

Dana Niama

Morven Pearce

Georgia Cook

Jaspreet Gill

Jasmine De-Rosa Rashid

London Youth Games NEtball: Team Hounslow

Julia Bevers

Alex Down is ranked 1st in London for 1500m and 18th in GB

Shobhitha Gnanaratnasingham was part of the Trio that placed first & were crowned National Gold Medallists at the British Gymnastics Championships in Aerobic Gymnastic

Abby Gherendi was runner-up in the U12 Grade 4 LTA County Tour tournament

Gen Pearce, Amelia Cayton, Ella Milner and Jaspreet Gill were all selected for London Pulse

Pathway West London Hub

Emma Scott, Minna Williams, Natasha Bennett, Eadi Solanki Jackson, Rosie Hewitt and Nicola Hewitt participated in the London Mini Marathon

Sofia Younis received her first Middlesex Cricket bat and ball Cap

Abby Gherendi won the 2021 Ealing Lawn Tennis Club 12U Girls' Champion & 2021

Middlesex Team Champion with Ealing LTC 11U Girls Team

Alex Down was selected as a London Youth Games 33 ambassador

Abby Gherendi was runner up at the 12U Grade 5 girls' singles tournament at Oxted County School in Surrey

Shobhitha Gnanaratnasingham was part of the Trio, who became Welsh Champions First place medal in Aerobics Gymnastic

London Youth Games Cross Country Championships

Jasmine Palmer 31st in senior

Rosie Hewitt 52nd in U15

Nicola Hewitt 68th in U15

Natasha Bennett 96th in U15

Minna Williams 22nd in U13

Manpreet Gill, Alex Down, Zoe Davison, Zara Dannatt, Jaspreet Gill and Evie Smethurst have all been participating in various swimming galas throughout the term, and collecting an array of medals

Six NHEHS players were part of the U16 Middlesex Waterpolo team, finishing 2nd in the County tournament (Rosie Hewitt; Nicola Hewitt; Amelia Dunlop; Zoe Davison; Zara Dannatt; Evie Smethurst)

26 NHEHS students are in county teams for various sports, including netball, hockey, gymnastics, swimming, waterpolo and tennis

"A trophy carries dust. Memories last forever."

- Mary Lou Retton

Autumn Sport in pictures