Pitsfordian December 08

Volume 4, Issue 3: Autumn Term 2008
Page 1
The Pitsfordian
Peter Briggs wins U19 International Badminton Team Event
Peter Briggs (L6) has had an incredible run of recent success on the Badminton Court, both individually and
within the England U19 team.
England's Under 19 players achieved first place in the Team Event at the recent U19 Northumberland International Open, held on the 22nd-23rd November at The Parks Sports Centre. The team, made up of Under 17
players, returned home victorious having defeated Wales, Scotland and Sweden. In the individual event Peter
reached the 1/4 finals of the Singles, having beaten Scotland's Fraser Michie, a top 10, U19 European ranked
player. He then narrowly lost to Mattias Borg of Sweden, the eventual winner of the competition.
The last week of November he took part in the Yonex Welsh International Adult Open at Cardiff’s Welsh Institute of Sport, part of World Badmintons International Series. Against some seasoned Adult players, Peter
narrowly missed out on qualifying for the latter stages, although given he was up against full senior opponents,
it would have exceeded all expectations were he to have qualified.
Finally, last weekend he took part in the Hampshire Open in Winchester, where again he reached the quarter
finals of the seniors competition, losing to the England number 13 ranked senior player, Mark Ashton. A
fantastic run of events and hopefully more to come over the Christmas holiday period.
Well done Peter!
NGS Juniors Shine at ISA National Swimming Meet
This was held at Coventry on the 16th November, and 3 pupils from Northamptonshire Grammar Junior School
qualified to represent the Midlands Division at the Nationals.
Natalie Sharman (J5P) was a member of the U11 freestyle Quartet who won gold, Fraser Harrop (J6C) won
silver in the U12 Boys freestyle and Sam Thompson (J6B) who won the award for the best U12 swimmer at the
qualifying Midlands gala, won gold in both the butterfly and the Breaststroke U12 events.
Swimming Stars, Natalie, Fraser and Sam
Sam in the Pool
Sam and Fraser both completed in the U12 medley and freestyle relay teams where they again picked up gold
medals and all NGS successes contributed to the Birmingham Division winning the National Trophy.
LAC
Volume 4, Issue 3: Autumn Term 2008
Page 2
Senior School Girls Sports Results
Senior School Boys Sports Results
Netball
Rugby
U15 team beat KCC 12 - 6
Player of the Match: Abi Seward
U13 team beat Duston 7 - 5
Player of the Match: India Chipchase
U12 team beat Duston 5 - 4
Player of the Match: Hannah Reynolds
Well done to the U15 Rugby team who beat Quinton
House 34 – 14. Good attacking rugby with strong
support play proved too quick for the opposition.
Try Scorers were: Charles King (2), Carlton
Strowbridge (2), Simon Scott , Jack Brown with 2
conversions from Louis Wixon.
Man of the Match: Oli Hayton
Well done to the U13 Rugby team who beat Quinton
House 43 – 12. Good rucking by the forwards and
direct running from the backs.
Try Scorers were: Aidan Lawrence (2), Guy Stevens
(2), Angus Johnson, Jon Mundy and Jack Keeping.
Man of the Match: Guy Stevens
Cross Country - Junior and Senior School
There were six trophies up for grabs today in the South
Northants Cross Country Championships held at William Parker School Daventry - and we came home with
two of them!
Our largest ever squad of 42 athletes, including nine
Juniors, defied flood, storm and snow warnings to show
what they were made of.
The Year 6/7 boys finished third overall , led home by
2nd placed Fraser Dalby; Archie Lascelles on one of his
very good days in 8th and Luke Conyard in 11th. There
were fine supporting performances from Sam Thompson,, Fraser Harrop, Alex Gilmore and Rob Bailey.
Also impressing on the day were the Year 6/7 girls.
Three of our girls qualify for the County Championships:
Hannah Reynolds, 9th; Lois Strowbridge, 11th and Eleanor Bickers, 20th. They were ably supported by Juniors, Ocean Rose and Charlotte Grant-Salmon, followed
by Libby Lannie, Jenny Gilmore and Dempsey Ainsworth. Jenny gave full entertainment value with a spectacular and quite acrobatic slip at a particularly treacherous point of the course. Thank you, Jenny!
Our first trophy winning team was made up of Miss Determination herself, Helen Briggs, Flora Louden and
Hannah Smith who were 7th, 8th and 9th, followed
home by India Chipchase, Natasha McLean and firsttimer, Emily Whitaker. The first four are also County
qualifiers. All of our girls finished in the top half of the
field. Well done girls -we are proud of you!
Year 8/9 boys, trophy winners themselves two years
ago, were up against it, but big time specialist, Rob
McArdle managed to pull out a County qualifying performance to finish in 11th, as did Charlie Bingham in
20th. Jacob Marlow, Ryan Conyard, Mark Westaway,
Aidan Lawrence and Alex Marsden also put in creditable performances.
The Year 10/11 boys struggled with the notorious triple
hill climb, with only Rob Verrall, 7th, managing to qualify
for the County Championships. Who would have thought
that only one year ago Rob was plodding round the Pitsford run in over 40 minutes? This year he will be ahead
of almost everybody - because he has developed his
talent through hard work. The rest of the team was
made up of new kid on the block, Jack Brown, and some
old faithfuls, Louis Wixon, Damien Conyard, Charlie
Merry and Jamie Bickers.
Finally the Year 10/11 girls. We already knew what a
class athlete Sarah Ward was, and she proved it again,
gracefully powering home in first place by a good 20
yards. Abi Seward looked justly delighted with her 8th
place and I'm sure Maryanne will be looking forward eagerly to the County Championships after her qualifying
performance. No? The last three girls in the team deserve special mention, however. They don't delight in
running. In fact they just about hate it! They finished
nearer the back of the field than the front, but Ally
McArdle, Amy Tibbits and Abi Hipwell ran so that we
would have a full team, ran through the pain, ran to the
best of their abilities - and ran their way to a share in a
trophy. They became part of our second championship
winning team.
I am very proud of all our athletes: the winners, those
who made up the numbers, and those who gave it their
best shot. I am grateful too to you parents who support
by watching, running together with your children - or simply by setting the treadmill at a brisk tempo and not allowing your children off! *
JAW
Master i/c Cross Country
* Please do not try this at home!
Volume 4, Issue 3: Autumn Term 2008
Page 3
Senior Maths Challenge
House Music Competition
On Friday November 28th the three houses battled
for honours in the House Music Competition. Each
house was permitted two items, one solo and one
ensemble item, to last no longer than 6 minutes in
all.
This is a national competition we take part in every year,
and was held in November.
Our 6th form Mathematicians answer a booklet of very
challenging questions that test even the most
mathematical of brains. No guess work is allowed as
points are deducted for incorrect answers.
First off was Hesketh, with Adam Reynolds (Year
7) playing a tuba solo. Then came Kevin Li (L6) for
Wake with an unaccompanied violin piece. Finally
Nick Smith (Y11) representing Robinson, played
an oboe piece.
Best in School: Qian Nie
After a judgement and scores, the houses performed in the same order. We heard a rock band
with members of the Upper 6th, followed by two
wind ensembles.
Silver: Molly Zhang, Peter Briggs, Mona Cheng, Eric
Wang, Lewis Wang, Michael Wu, Steve Luo,
Cherry Zheng.
The Robinson entry: I got plenty of nothin’ by
Gershwin was adjudged to be the best performance and the overall winner was Robinson, with
Wake a close second.
Gold:
Qian Nie, Fiona Zhang, Vivian Wei, Kevin Li,
Rock Zhao, Catherine Wu.
Bronze: Anabelle Xie, Emily Wu, Broderic Ge, Robert
Armitage, William Lawson, William Howell.
Thanks to all who took part.
The intermediate Maths Challenge for the Year 10 will
be on Thursday February 5th 2009.
AJM
JML
Carols at Kelmarsh Hall
On Wednesday 3rd December members of the A
Cappella Choir sang Christmas Carols at
Kelmarsh Hall.
This was our fourth visit and as usual we were
singing in the large entrance hall in front of the
log fire, which warmed us if not the guests! The
occasion was the Christmas Fair and we were
there to provide a suitable festive backdrop to
the proceedings.
Walled Garden
The school is very grateful to BTCV enterprises who
over the past four weeks have provided a team of
volunteers to clear the Walled Garden of weeds, old
cold frames and foundations in preparation for
spring planting.
BCTV work with Job Centre Plus to provide sustainable employment solutions for local companies and
candidates.
In our hour of singing we only had to repeat one
piece, which we think was quite an achievement
as the choir has now learned a huge repertoire of
Christmas music.
The clearance is now in its final stages and the
vegetable beds are now being rotovated ready for
the school gardening club and also to provide the
school kitchens with freshly grown produce next
year.
AJM
CB
Volume 4, Issue 3: Autumn Term 2008
Page 4
JUNIOR SCHOOL NEWS
Squirrels Trip to Holdenby Woodland
As part of their study topic this
term of ‘the seasons’, the
Squirrels recently enjoyed a visit to
Holdenby Woodland centre, at
Moulton.
There they undertook a wide range
of woodland themed activities and
events, such as making leaf hats,
weaving, using natural dyes, making clay models and a mini beast
hunt.
Overall a multi-sensory day in the
forest for the Squirrels!
U9 Rugby Tournament
As pretty much their first foray into Rugby, the U9’s entered the Winchester House Tournament on the 8th November, playing 5 games over the course of the day, and beating Bilton Grange along the way!
A good effort from all, although Calum Renshaw deserves special mention for some good try scoring work!
Diwali Festival
Juniors Christmas Fayre
The Junior school celebrated the festival of lights with a
special day celebrating Hindu Culture and traditions.
The Junior School Christmas Fayre took place on
Saturday 29th December, and as always was very
well attended and supported.
Activities included practical displays of Hindu art, such as
Rangoli and Mehndi (henna) painting techniques, an overview of different traditional crafts, and a full Indian meal for
all pupils.
The highlight of the day was the visit from the Nupoor arts
troupe, who demonstrated various dances to pupils, who
then practiced their new found skills, with a performance at
the end of the day.
There was a fantastic range of games and stalls
run by the children, with a lot of effort and thought
having been put in my parents and pupils alike.
Santa’s grotto was well attended and for the parents the mulled wine helped alleviate the somewhat brisk climatic conditions outside!
Just over £1500 was raised and this will help with
the Junior School garden and IT projects.
Thanks to all for making this another great
success!
Volume 4, Issue 3: Autumn Term 2008
Junior School Christmas Plays
Ralph the Reindeer
The Squirrels, J1, J2 and J3 performed a musical
Christmas Play called “Ralph The Reindeer”.
With Christmas fast approaching, all the Elves
are busy preparing the presents, but just when
the sleigh is loaded and ready to go, disaster!
Rudolph is struck down by a nasty case of “man
flu!”
As luck would have it, a new Reindeer, Ralph
drops by looking for work and it seems that
Santa’s problem has been solved. Unfortunately,
Ralph can’t seem to get airborne, so needs some
help with his flying.
With some help from the other reindeer, and a
longer take-off run, Ralph is able to take to the
skies with the others, and the Three Kings
receive their Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh and
can deliver them safely to the stable in
Bethlehem on Christmas morning.
A fantastic performance from all the children, and
with special mention to Connie Westaway, Alex
Smith and Loui Partridge.
“Mr Humbug Sees the Light”
J4,J5 and J6 presented a pantomime called “Mr
Humbug sees the Light”, where the eponymous
character is too busy working to think of others
during the festive season, and has forgotten the
real meaning of Christmas.
A series of visitation from Ghosts, former
teachers, rock stars and Drunken Irishmen
eventually led Mr Humbug to see the light, and
realise there are more important things to think
about at Christmas time, not least goodwill and
charity to others less fortunate.
Performed with enthusiasm and skill by all,
particular mention must be made of Fraser
Harrop in the title role, who put in a sterling
performance as the initially mean spirited Mr
Humbug.
Archie and James also deserve recognition for
their seamless work in stage work, although the
sticking chairs taxed even their ability to change
set flawlessly mid production!
Thanks to all the parents, Children and Junior
School Staff for all their efforts in making these
two great productions.
Page 5
Volume 4, Issue 3: Autumn Term 2008
Page 6
Miss J’s “Gap Year”
It was with some degree of sadness that I heard of Miss Jackson’s plans to retire from teaching in order to embark on an extensive trip around the world on her boat. However, I was delighted to be able to convince her
that instead of resigning her post here, she could always take a year out and come back afterwards. We will
welcome back the experienced Mr Tovey to cover in her absence from September 2009.
NRT
As some of you may know I am very keen on sailing spending most of my holidays on our boat. I really enjoy
the whole process of visiting new places under our own steam and on many occasions not quite ending up
where you planned due to the vagaries of the weather. Over the past few summers we have take part in the
Yachting Monthly Biscay Triangle, a 3 week rally to La Coruna and back and visiting southern Ireland. The disappointing part with all these trips is the moment at which you realise that you have to turn round and come
back!
I am therefore thrilled to be being
given the opportunity to venture further a field. In the year I am taking off
we should be able to have a great
adventure! The intention is to sail to
the Mediterranean via the Biscay and
Portugal and down towards Greece
stopping at various places on the way,
including Sardinia to visit Mnt Limbara
a mountain range after which our boat
was name by the previous owners. In
the second summer we hope to join
the Eastern Mediterranean Rally, this
is a cruise in company from Istanbul
along the Turkish coast and the on to
Northern Cyprus, Syria, Israel and
Egypt finishing in early June. This will
be a fantastic chance to visit some
countries that are not so accessible by boat on your own. In fact I think a Turkish gun boat accompanies the
rally for some of the route!
After all this it will be time to head back towards the UK in time for the start of the new school year. Hopefully
anyone who is interested will be able to follow our exploits on our website and we may even be able to communicate with Mr Tickles Radio club as we are aiming to be qualified radio hams!
SMJ
Miss J’s Boat
Volume 4, Issue 3: Autumn Term 2008
Development Director Appointment
Page 7
New Daventry Bus Route
It is with pleasure I report that Colin Evans has
joined us from 24th November 2009 as School
Development Director, focusing on building longterm relationships within the local business and
education community, in order to market the school
as effectively as possible, increase revenue and to
enable us to focus on capital projects going forward.
From September 2009 we will be running a
school bus service from Daventry, via Long
Bucky, East Haddon and Harlestone.
Colin will be heavily involved in the Theatre Appeal,
in addition to improving our current pupil admissions
and registrations systems.
Exact details of the route and times to follow.
Prior to joining us Colin was an Associate Partner in
a hotel investment and development consultancy,
and lives near Market Harborough with his wife
Katherine, and 2 year old son Fraser
NRT
I am delighted to have joined Northamptonshire
Grammar School at this extremely exciting time in
its history, and to help build on the significant
progress already made so far at the school.
Even during my first few weeks at the school, it is
apparent something special is going on here; and
the strong family ethos of the school, with support
and attention at the forefront, makes for both a
fantastic environment to be part of, but more
importantly, a solid base for the future development
of the School.
I would be very pleased to hear from you regarding
development, and I look forward to meeting many of
you in the coming months.
Colin Evans
cevans@ngs-school.com
07894 193 978
Dates for your Diary
Mon 5th January
Term Starts
Tue 6th January
Upper Sixth Ext.exams start
Wed 14th January
J4 + J5 Theatre visit
Fri 23rd January
NGS PTA Quiz and Chilli Night
Wed 4th February
House Singing Competition
Fri 13th February
Half Term Begins
Mon 23rd February
New Half Term Starts
19th - Fri 20th March
Musical
Fri 20th March
Theatre Appeal Launch evening
Sat 21st March
Rugby Sevens
We feel this is an important addition to our current routes, and will be of benefit to both current
and prospective parents and pupils.
Testimonials
Thanks to all those Parents who returned
Testimonials back to us over the last few weeks.
It’s great to have positive feedback from you, but
also very useful to hear some suggestions and
comments about what we can improve going
forward.
Please keep them coming!
Noel Toone, Janet Cooper, and all
the teachers and staff at
Northamptonshire Grammar
School would like to wish you all
a Merry Christmas and a Happy
New Year.
Thank you for all your support
this year.
Here’s to a great 2009!
NORTHAMPTONSHIRE
GRAMMAR SCHOOL
——————————
PITSFORD
Pitsford Hall, Pitsford,
Northamptonshire, NN6 9AX
Telephone 01604 880306
www.ngs-school.com