Year 9 Basketball team see off Queens

The year 9 basketball team went to Queens on Wednesday in their penultimate County League game. The game was always going to be a close affair, based on previous matches and results from this season. The game started with some strong defence from both teams and saw us edge ahead in the first half through some fantastic fast breaks and passing from Alex Cleaver and Stephen Kerslake. During the second half the combination of Queens' best two players drew the game closer and us trailing by 4 points at one stage. After some inspirational words from Mr Coy the team reverted back to their slick passing game and Dan Mair showed how strong he is on court with a great display and some superb finishing. The team ended up taking the game 75-61, which slightly flattered us but the result is nothing less than the team deserved. A great win, well played boys.

Another great week for basketball

Both the year 9 and 10 basketball teams have been in action this past week and have shown how much progress they've been making by racking up 3 wind. The year 10 team went to The Hemel Hempstead School and after a very slow start came out 92-74 winners. The year 9 team has been playing some fantastic basketball and the team beat St. George's on Friday 56-22 as well as Verulam on Monday night 74-42. There were some excellent performances from Alex Cleaver, Dan Mair and Dominic Boost who has been playing up a year. The year 9's go to Queens tonight, in what should be a very close game. Good luck!

Saturday Football League Tables

Year Group	Played	Wins	Losses	Draws	Goals For	Goals Against	Points
7	4	2	1	1	11	8	7
8	4	2	0	2	11	3	8
9	4	2	1	1	16	10	7
10	3	3	0	0	12	2	7

Year 10 beat Roundwood Park

The year 10 Basketball team played Roundwood Park last night in the District League. The team won 75-21 in what was another solid performance with all playing a major role. Max Hood was excellent throughout, both offensively and defensively contributing 16 points. The second 5 started the game and put the team in a comfortable lead early on, making it hard for Roundwood to get into the game. The win puts the team in a good place with much confidence for Wednesdays game against St. Columbas away in the County League.

Year 10's Daily Mail Vase Campaign

The Year 10 rugby team have made an impressive start to the season. After meeting tough opposition in the opening round in the form of Berkhamsted Collegiate School the team dropped down into the vase competition. They have played two games and fought incredibly hard for two close wins. They beat a strong Kings Langley team 36 - 29 and had an attritional battle against Tring school, winning 12-10. The team have worked hard on improving their defence and the performance of Max Hood last week epitomised the fighting spirit of the team. They play Roundwood Park on Thursday to see who progresses into the next round.

Year 8's see off Sports College Queens

The year 8 Basketball team, in what was their first game of the season, put in a very impressive display against a strong Queens side who were very organised and right in the middle of their County League fixture card. The team were almost at full strength and started brightly. The height of Goldingay, Boost, Jacobs and Newman-Booth gave us a real advantage when rebounding at both ends. The fast break off Goldingay's accurate passing also ensured that we were able to make quick transitions from defence to offence and score quickly on the break. Nat Nicholls put in an excellent performance when he came off the bench and showed how much progress he has made since last year. This was a great display from the team who eventually ran out 41-32 winners.

Y9 and 10 Basketball teams go down fighting

Both the year 10 and year 9 teams lost to Beaumont and St. Columbas respectively. Both teams put in some excellent performances in what were 2 very tough match up's against the last years Y8 National Champions and some of Beaumont's National finalists. This show's the hard work and determination of the school's basketball teams and how far they have come in such a short space of time.

There were many positives to come out of the games and also some areas that need to be worked on for the future and for us to ensure we continue our run of success within the county and beyond.

Yr 11 Girls Win Plate Final!

This week the year 11 girls triumphed over STAGs in the plate final. Having recently competed in a close match against STAGs, the girls were prepared for another exciting match. The team was captained by Kazia Adams who dictated the pace of the game as centre right from the very start. We took an early lead and prevented STAGs from scoring at all in the first quarter due to some fierce defending by Lily Wright. In the middle quarters of the game STAGs fought back and managed to go into the last quarter with a one goal lead. The whole Sandringham team pulled together and with the shots by Ellie Glover and Alice Lawrence going in one after the other, we managed to clinch the win in the dying seconds of the game and gain the first bit of silverware of 2011 for the Sandringham School trophy cabinet. Huge congratulations to the whole team.

Team: Kazia Adams, Sophie Flynn, Alice Lawrence, Anna Podmore, Amy Hanton, Ellie Glover, Lily Wright, Hannah Saunders and Emma Poole

Sandringham success against Cavendish

Our footballing success continued yesterday, as our rearranged fixtures against Cavendish school saw us pick up one win and two draws. The year 9 team were away and playing on Cavendish schools 3G astroturf. The team came away with a 3-3 draw with goals through Max Bull, Luke Foster and an own goal. The team felt they should have had a last minute penalty to seal the game, but unfortunately the decision didn't go their way and they had to settle for a point.

The year 7 team also shared the game 3-3 against a strong Cavendish opposition with what was a controversial last minute equaliser in the very last kick of the game. Goals for them came from Alex Cox and Tom Levy who continues to find the net.

The year 8 team off the back of two consecutive draws and back to a full strength team produced a solid performance in the tough conditions. The team won 6-0 with Ed Freer (2), Tom Goodall (2), Matt Potter and Charlie Stubbs all on the score sheet.

Next week sees the year 8 and 9 teams both play their County Cup ties. The year 9 team play Kings Langley at home on Wednesday and the year 8 team travel to Stevenage to play John Henry Newman on Friday.

Saturday's football moved to Thursday night

This Saturday's football fixtures versus Cavendish school has been moved to Thursday night. The games have been changed due to Saturdays Rugby World Cup quarter final against France. The year 7 and 8 teams will be at home for a 4:00 KO and the year 9 team will be away. This week the year 10 team will have a weeks rest.

Another undefeated Saturday

Yesterday saw us take on Sir John Lawes, the ever strong outfit, who always present a strong test for our football  teams. The year 7 and 9 teams were at home and both managed to pick up wins. The year 9's took the game 2-0 with goals from Toby Parker and Tommy Wright against a well organised and battling opposition. The score could have been more if it wasn't for the woodwork as the team hit the bar 3 times. Dan Mair also showed his talent producing a fantastic double save at 0-0 which may have been the turning point.

The year 7 team again showed more sign of what is to come this year after scoring 5 without reply in what was a very one sided encounter. The team played some fantatsic football at times and are already making huge progress both individually and as a team.

Away at Sir John Lawes the year 8's and 10's both battled hard to ear themselves a draw. The year8's again playing some fantastic football were able to maintain their unbeaten record as they came from 1-0 down to take the lead 3-1 through Goodall (x2) and Ed Freer before being pegged back late on to 3-3. The year 10's thought they had earnt their first win against SJL in 4 years after going 1-0 up early on, however a second half equaliser was enough to share the points even through sustained attacks from the red and black outfit.

Another successful week for Sandringham's football teams. Next week sees games against Cavendish, let's hope there's no more clashes with the RWC 2011 again!

Year 10 Basketballers start strong

The year 10 team have kicked off the basketball season with 2 games in a week. Monday saw the start of their District League campaign against an ever-strong St. Columbas College team, away. The team were 10 down in the first quarter but battled hard to get themselves back into the game in the second. Some superb passing from Jacob Moody and Alex Cleaver into Oli Ryan in the post clawed the game closer. At the end of the third the scores were tied 50-50, most definitely the closest this side has got to beating SCC. Some foul trouble and a number of missed lay-ups ended up costing the team as Columbas came out on top 76-66 in a high scoring last quarter. The team worked hard to get so close to what is a powerful unit especially being our first game of the year.

Thursday saw us travel away again to Stanborough International School in Watord. The game was always in our hands from the tip and Sam Tanton and Oli Ryan worked tirelessly to ensure we kept our noses in front. There was also a very big input from the bench with Alex White and Isaac Nelson showing just how they can influence things in the second quarter. The team kept the game close but always stayed in front and won 51-47 for the seasons first W and County League points.

Next up for the year 10 team is Beaumont on Monday 10th October in the District League.

Local derbies go in our favour

Last Saturday's football fixtures saw Sandringham come out on top against our local rivals Beaumont. The year 7's has a great win after being behind early on with some late goals to win 2-1. The year 8's saw a very rare 0-0 draw but were on top for most of the game, having 2 chances cleared off the line. The year 9's, who again were 1-0 down, proved to be too strong in the second half and took the game 5-2. The year 10's rounded off a successful Saturday with a 3-1 win.

Next week sees a tough test against Sir John Lawes. Keep your eyes out for teamsheets and venues during the week.

Football V Chancellors

Today saw a great start to the football season for Sandringham with 3 wins against an ever strong Chancellors outfit. The year 9's were the only team not to pick up a win as their height disadvantage hindered their performance seeing them lose after an early lead. The new year 7's started their school careers well, with a hard earned 4-2 victory. The year 8's came away 2-0 winners with 2 early goals from Tom Goodall and the year 10's romped to a 6-1 win.

Let's hope that the trend continues and we have another successful Saturday next week.

Well done to all students who played today!

Fixtures

Fixtures that have been arranged so far can be found here..

http://www.sandringham.herts.sch.uk/dp/learning/sports-calendar

Big scores at Ware

Last night our County league match over at Wodson Park, Ware was a success. The girls put together some very big scores and took advantage of a slightly weaker field, with the U14's scoring 51 and the U16's 56 which should see the U14's challenge for a top 4 finish and the U16's move right back up the table.

The boys were up against Nicholas Breakspear who have some very strong teams. The U14's were able to finish a close second on 49 points and the U16's without a Long Jump score reached 54, which should be enough to hold their plate final berth going into our last match next Wednesday.

County League Athletics so far

At half term we have passed the half way stage in this year's County League athletics competition and a mixture of results have seen all 4 teams move up and down in the tables over the last few weeks. The year 8 boys started with a huge score of 58, which was then followed up with scores of 45 and 43 to place them in 6th position overall before their last match against STABS and Cheshunt saw them only gain 41 points. The year 10 boys scored 45 twice and one 59 pointer putting them into 5th position (1 outside the top 4 finish for a cup final spot) again before they scored 43 against the top 2 schools.

The girls have had similar results with our weaker matches seeing us score highly. The year 8 girls who are expected to perform well currently lie in 6th with a 41, 37 and 35 at the the halfway stage. The year 10 girls are slightly further down in 16th having scored 34, 42 and 27.

Hopefully all 4 teams can tally up some big scores in their final 2 matches with the luxury of some more favourable schools to compete with. If any teams finish in the top 4 they will be rewarded with a cup final berth and the top 8 will see them battle it out for the plate final. Let's hope we can reach these milestones with one final push!

County League is underway

We have now had 2 county league athletics matches which have both seen some outstanding performances and some big team scores. Last week saw us at Stevenage for match 1 where the year 8 boys scored 58, year 10 boys 45, year 8 girls 41 and 10 girls 34, which has given us a decent start in the league where we able to build on at last night's match in Welwyn. The year 8 boys scored 45, 10 boys 59, 8 girls 37 and 10 girls 42. It was almost a reverse of what we saw last week ensuring that all teams have managed to averaged their scores out in preparation for round 3 next week.

Y7 Athletes have a successful start

Last night the year 7 boys and girls kicked off the athletics season with a friendly match against JFK school, from Hemel Hempstead. Their were some outstanding performances from a number of athletes, including Tom Goodall 100m/800m (1st 13.5/3:05), Chloe Nichol 200m (1st 31.3), Aaron Jacobs Shot/Javelin (1st 7.96/21m), Luke Rhodes Long Jump (1st 4.15).

The season looked promising for the year 7's with a number of students set to compete in the County League for the year 8's this Thursday at Stevenage.

Year 10 Basketball team make history

The year 10 basketball team have gone further than any other side from Sandringham School this season reaching the last 8 in the whole of the country. We have seen the culmination of that run in what has been a very busy week for the boys as they went out in the National quarter-final last night.

On Tuesday the side travelled to Walsall to take on Pool Hayes Community School in the last 16 tie which saw us come out 51-42 winners in a pretty one sided and very scrappy game against a well organised zone defence. This then set up a quarter final place with one of the country's top teams in Burleigh Community College, Loughborough. The school is a Basketball Academy linked with the Leicester Riders.

The game was always going to be tough but off the back of a convincing win, the team was full of confidence. We started strong and quickly established a 4 point lead. Burleigh began by shooting the ball well, which meant we had to shift to a much tighter man to man defence. Michael Stubbs continued to dominate in the key and drew a number of fouls as well as forcing himself inside to score off a number of strong drives. The Burleigh defence saw this as a threat and began to double team Stubbs which gave Moody, Ryan and Marshal opportunities to attack. As the game drew to an end Burleigh's outside shooting took over and saw us 6 down with 2 minutes to play. The game became a 4 point game but eventually slipped away as time ran out.

The team have achieved so much in such a short space of time and have literally put Sandringham school on the basketball map. Congratulations and let's hope next year is even more successful.

The team:
Michael Stubbs
Riley Griffin
Charlie Marshal
George Holley
John Little
Jacob Moody
Oli Ryan
Sam Tanton
Max Hood
Will Holland
Leo Stamatiou

Year 7 and 10's crash out in District Semi's

Both the year 7 and 10 football teams failed in their bids to reach the District cup finals. The year 10s played Beaumont last night and went down 2-0 to two costly mistakes. The year 7 team played Verulam, this years county cup semi finalists. The team lost 1-0 to a super strike from 20 yards. The team battled hard and were unlucky not to sneak an equaliser in the dying moments.

Well done to both teams for reaching the semi finals. Let's hope they can both learn from the experiences and move on to bigger and better accomplishments next year.

Year 8's make County Final

The year 8's have made it to the county basketball final after a 68-62 win away at Turnford this evening. The boy's were always in control of the match but had to fight through a well organised full court press and an extremely physical side from Cheshunt. A solid team performance and some great individual contributions from Akutu, Frankl, Mair and Cleaver managed to overpower Turnford in what became a closer match than first expected.

The team has set up a county final against St. Columbas next Wednesday at 4:00pm, which will be a tough game!

Year 9 go out of County Cup battling

The year 9 boys basketball team lost in a great game against a strong Beaumont side in the County Cup Semi final yesterday. The team put in a solid performance against a side that have had much success and includes some fantastic players who have been playing up in age.

The game always seemed just out of reach but the team fought hard after going 23 points down to get the game back to single figures. A good defence from Oli Ryan, Max Hood and Jacob Moody restricted Beaumont's players scoring, but eventually landed us in foul trouble. Some great drives from Hood, Moody and Tanton helped us close the defecit as we chipped away at Beaumont's lead.

The game finished 72-61 and would have been very different if missed lay ups had have been converted. This year has been a very positive one for the team and has seen huge progress. I know that next season we will continue to close the gap and produce more fantastic results.

Year 7 District Netball Tournament Results and Match Reports

Yesterday the year 7 A, B and C teams competed in the District Netball Tournament at Roundwood Park School.

The year 7 C team played some fantastic netball, with Jordan Adams and Mia Pullara making some excellent interceptions. The whole team worked well together and experienced playing in a variety of positions. The C team finished in 5th place in their pool.

The year 7 B team battled some fierce competition winning 3 of their 5 matches. Kuljinder Johal and Charlotte Pether worked well together in the shooting circle and tucked away goal after goal. The B team narrowly missed out on going through to the B team semi-finals and finished 3rd in their pool.

The year 7 A team played some outstanding netball throughout the tournament. They breezed through the A team pool matches, losing only one of their games to Beaumont. They went through to the semi-finals as runners up. Their next competition was St Albans High School, who had one all of their games so far in the tournament. The Sandringham A team then had the game of their lives with fantastic shooting from Chloe Nichol, Emily Caswell and Jasmine Fisher and some exceptional interceptions by Abi Charnock. Sandringham had beaten the High School 7-6 and were going through to the District Final! In the final, Sandringham again faced Beaumont. After a nail biting first half the score was 4-3 to Beaumont but Sandringham were making a comeback. Chloe Pettengell battled against tough opposition and sent the ball into our shooting circle where Emily Caswell put away her shot. The game was tied 4-4. Beaumont made a quick break and managed to take the lead in the last minute of the game. Sandringham made a desperate effort to get the ball back down our end but there just wasn’t enough time and the game finished 5-4 to Beaumont. A superb effort by the whole team and an astonishing achievement to finish runners up in the District Final.

A huge congratulations and thanks to all the girls who represented the school and played some brilliant netball.

Miss O’Connor

Year 7 Sportshall athletes perform well

The year 7 Sportshall Athletics took place yesterday at Gosling, Welwyn. Both the boys and girls performed very well finishing 2nd and 3rd in the district respectively. There were some excellent performances from both teams including wins for a number of individuals including Tom Goodall, Dan Goldingay, Erin Breen and Emily Mair.

The evening was a great introduction to competitive athletics for a number of the students and an insight into the success that we should have throughout the Summer term.

Well done

Year 7 & 9 Netball Match Vs St George's - Monday 14th March

Today the year 7 & 9 netball teams faced St George's to improve their postition in their respective leagues.

The Year 7 Netball Squad
Jasmine Fisher, Abby Charnock, Chloe Pettengell, Ruth Saunders, Emily Caswell, Emily Mair, Frankie Hammond, Chloe Nichol, Izzy Hanton.

The year 7s started with vigour and determination, finishing the first quarter leading 7 - 0. They continued with the same impressive performance, driving forward with the ball and working it into the circle to allow Chloe, Jasmine and Emily C to slot the goals away. The girls finished with an outstanding 19 - 2 win with Chloe Pettengell achieving Most Valuable Player. An excellent result girls well done.

The Year 9 Netball Squad
Ashleigh Wright, Rhian Hay, Rachel McKinlay, Pheobe Murray, Zoe Pagdin, Esther Gill, Rachel Pankhurst, Jessy Fox.

The year 9's started well with Ashleigh Wright scoring the first goal of the game. Unfortunately St George's were not planning to stay behind for long quickly achieving a 2 goal lead, finishing the first quarter 3 - 1. Sandringham were not going let St George's get the better of them, fightin back in the second quarter with 2 goals each bringing the score to 5 - 3, St George's. Sandringham continued to play well with superb interceptions from Rachel M and Esther Gill but unfortunately it was not enough to beat St George's accurate shooting and centre court play. The final score being 14 - 7 to St George's.
The Most Valuable Player as nominated by St George's was Esther Gill.

Year 7 Netball Vs STAGS

The year 7 netball squad clocked up a double win tonight for the league. A massive congratulations to both squads. An excellent display of sporting talent.

The A Team had got themselves into a comfortable position after the first quarter with a 7-1 lead. They continued with an excellent performance throughout with superb fluidity and control, resulting in a 15 - 3 win. Izzy Hanton was nominated by STAGS as the Most Valuable Player.

The B Team got off to a great start with an early goal. Unfortunately STAGS kept us from scoring any more goals in the second and third quarter. However, we fought strong and managed to slot the goals in, finishing with a 4 - 0 win. Kuljinder Johal was nominated Most Valuable Player by STAGS.

A Team Squad: Chloe Nichol, Emily Caswell, Izzy Hanton, Chloe Pettengell, Frankie Hammond, Abby Charnock, Ruth Saunders, Amily Mair.

B Team Squad: Kuljinder Johal, Charlotte Pether, Charlotte Hughes, Jordan Adams, Hannah McKinlay, Hannah Gill, Megan McKinnon, Daisy Corke, Esther Gibbons, Bethany Willan.

Year 11's win to seal District Cup Quarter Final with Beaumont

The year 11 football team cruised past Sir John Lawes 3-0 with goals from Elliot Bailey (2) and Cieran Yapp. The game was never in doubt and only made by tough through the conditions. The wind played a big part and the boys found it very hard in the first half but were able to break the deadlock through Yapp early on. The second half saw some very attacking football from us as we looked to add to the lead. Bailey was able to score twice setting up a quarter final with Beaumont at home to be played before 25th March.

Year 10 and 11 Netballers flying high

This week, four year 10 girls were selected to represent St Albans and Harpenden district in the county netball tournament. The four girls involved were Ellie Glover, Sophie Flynn and Kazia Adams who were selected for the B team and Alice Lawrence who was selected for the A Team.  A big congratulations to Alice (who played GS) and the rest of the girls  as the A team were successful in winning the tournament.

The Year 11s have continued their success from winning the B league last year and were successful in  the district plate competition this season (pictured here with their cup and plate). They have their last game against St Albans High School on 31^st March  to find out their placing in the A league this year. Good luck ladies.

Y9 Rugby team falls short in County Cup Semi

The year 9 rugby team fought very hard but were undone by some individual brilliance going down 27-10 in what was a fantastic semi-final. The team who have shown much character and passion this season started slow and had an uphill battle on their hands against a very strong Parmiters side. There was little between the two teams but some great solo efforts from the oppositions left winger made the difference. Some superb performances from Ed Little, Callum McDonald, Max Hood and Sam Tanton were not quite enough to see the team back into the game.

It has been a great season for the team and Mr Coy has worked hard all year to ensure that the whole squad has made progress. A bright future is in store as Sandringham Rugby continues to improve and feature across the county.

Year 10 make last 16

The Year 10 basketball team continue in their quest for national glory after beating Twycross House school 66-45 on Monday. The boys were always in control of the game and excellent performances from Michael Stubbs, Riley Griffin, John Little and year 9 Jacob Moody helped them see of the travelling school from the Midlands.

The last 16 game is due to take place over the next fortnight and we await our opponents from Queensbury Upper School, Dunstable, Anthony Gell School, Derbyshire or Paul Hayes Arts and Community College.

Well done!

Here is the draw U15 ESBBA Draw

Year 8 Footballers shine on Saturday morning

The year 8's showed how strong they are by taking Mount Grace apart and putting eight past them. Goals came from James Merritt (4), Toby Parker (2) and Joe Lowthian (2) in a fantastic performance that gave the visitors very little chance in a one sided game. The year 9's and 10's both drew 1-1 in closely contested games that saw Jack Starrs score for the 10's and Callum Glenister for the 9's. The year 7's trip away was a lot tougher and after taking an early lead through Tom Goodall the team which seemed to lack some strength went down 5-1 on what was a very wet pitch making it tough to play their natural passing game.

A week off next week will students a chance to prepare for Monks Walk on the 19th March.

Year 10 Basketball team make last 32!

Last night the year 10 basketball team came out 77-45 on top in a solid performance against King Edward VII school from Kings Lynn. The team ran away with what looked a close game early on. Michael Stubbs and John Little linked up well to score most of the points with Charlie Marshall and Riley Griffin also chipping in with notable contributions. Next Monday Twycross House school travel down from the midlands to play what should be a thrilling game.

Michael Stubbs in action yesterday

Year 7 Basketball vs St. Georges

The year 7's played their final District League game of the season yesterday. They started strongly with a number of breakways baskets from Dom Boost, but eventually lost 41-30 in a close game away at St. Georges. The boys have made huge progress this season and look set to develop into a strong side in years to come. Below is last night's team of (back row) Harry Newman-Booth, Dom Boost, Dan Goldingay, Aaron Jacobs, Tom Turner, (front row) Josh Cozens, Nat Nicholls, Michael Townsend, Joe Shoemaker and Isaac Rayner.

Well Played!

First Week Fixtures

Be prepared for our first week back after half term.

There is a year 9 District Cup 1st round football game versus Roundwood Park at home on Thursday 3rd March.

In basketball the year 8's will play St. Albans Boys on Mon 28th Feb, year 7's travel to St. George's on Wed 2nd Mar and the year 10's face King Edward VII school from Melton Mowbray in the 1st regional round of the English Schools. This is new territory for Sandringham School so let's hope for a great game!

Welcome

Welcome to Sandringham School's PE department's very own blog. We are using this to improve the links between you and us and give you information on training, fixtures, results and most importantly our ongoing successes across a variety of sports on a district to international level.

We are continually working to improve this and know that in the future we will grow as is Sandringham's sport on an individual and team basis.

If there is anything you want to see added or tweaked, please feel free to let us know.

Enjoy