Endurance & Success in Ten Tors and Variety of Sports

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Presentation of a Torquay United shirt

Our Director of Football, Chris Hogg and I met with Connor Stewart this week to present him with his Torquay United shirt.  He was selected to play for United’s first team for the FA Cup game.  Now the season is over he has been given his United kit to keep.  Connor was delighted to play for Torquay and who knows what the future will hold for our talented Year 13 student?

Sports Roundup

Football News

Football Cup Finals

Year 10 and 11 crowned South Devon Champions

On Monday the South Devon Cup Finals took place at Plainmoor the home of Torquay United.   Both teams played their finals against Torquay Boys Grammar School.  I would like to thank Mr Jones, Mr Grinsill and Mr Jones for their incredible coaching this year as well as writing these match reports.

Year 10 Team

The Year 10 team played their game first. Going in to the game TA were clearly favourites as they are the current Devon Cup holders, however within 20 minutes, even though TA were creating chances at will, they found themselves 2-0 down. With TA dominating possession and creating chances they were finding that lady luck was not on their side hitting the post and crossbar as well as watching chance after chance rebound off the TBGS goalkeeper or roll agonisingly wide. On the stroke of half time TA halved the deficit when Harrison Beer latched onto a loose ball in the six yard box to scramble the ball over the line. At this point the half time whistle was blown. What was said in the changing room at half time by Mr Grinsill will remain a secret, however it was added too by Mr Margetts when he made a surprise appearance in the changing room to rally the boys and to psych them all up for the second half. TA took to the pitch for the second half totally pumped up and within 30 seconds of the restart they were level when Lewis Eaton smashed a shot in off the post from 25 yards. It was clear to see that TBGS were shocked and two minutes later TA were in front when Olaf Koszella turned his man twelve yards out and struck the ball into the net with the aid of a deflection. TA were in total control at this point and TBGS had no answer to the high tempo and pressing game that TA were playing. It was soon 4-2 when TA were awarded a penalty and skipper Cole Harford converted sending the goalkeeper the wrong way. The scoring was completed just after the hour mark with a fine individual goal scored by Cole Harford once again that was extremely similar to the one Gazza scored against Scotland in Euro 96.

It has been an incredible year for the Year 10 team this season winning both the Devon Cup and South Devon Cup as well as making the last 8 of the National Cup. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the hard work and commitment the boys have shown as well as thank all the parents for their support travelling up and down the country to cheer us on. A fantastic effort by all.

Year 11 Team

After watching the success of the Year 10 team,  Year 11 took the pitch in their final as underdogs due to the fact the week before TBGS participated in the County Cup final. The game started at a real pace with both teams attacking each other but without any real chances being created. The midfield area was a real battle with tackles flying.   TA started to dominate and on twenty two minutes,  good work down the right from Joe Belsten saw him cross the ball into the box for Joe Constantinou to meet on the half volley with his left foot to smash the ball in to the back of the net. TBGS rallied a little after going a goal down and found themselves level 10 minutes later. TA then took control of the game and soon went 2-1 in front when Steeve Yava broke through the TBGS defence and slotted the ball past the keeper from 12 yards out. TA then completed the scoring just before half time when Joe Constantinou headed home a Joe Belsten corner from close range. TA manged the game well second half making sure that TBGS had no chance to get back into the game and ensure that TA would be crowned champions.

A big thanks to all the boys for their efforts and for all parents and families for supporting the boys.

A massive well done to all.

Year 8 Team

The Year 8s unfortunately lost their South Devon Cup Final on Monday. A scorching start by TBGS caught us cold, with us on the back foot for the first 15 minutes. Within 5 minutes we were behind when some slack marking from a corner allowed a free-header to nestle in the back of our net. The TBGS lead was doubled a few moments later when a powerful, direct run from the attacker was unable to be halted and after outpacing our defence, a cool finish was applied. Shortly after, to conclude a nightmare start to the game, we conceded a third goal which had a huge slice of luck attached to it, as a tame looking shot was cruelly deflected over the head of goalkeeper Nick Turner. However, after the poor start, we played our way into the game – assertive pressing from Ryley Steele, Josh Watt and Reece Shaw in particular saw us create several chances of our own. Archie Farkins and Will Makinson started to put a foot on the ball in midfield and for the remainder of the first half, we dictated play and really should have got a goal back, but Ryley was unable to capitalize on a mistake by the TBGS goalkeeper on the stroke of half time.

A few changes and tactical switches saw us come out in the second half revitalized. The boys dominated the second half and pushed forward with positivity and urgency, but we were unable to convert this dominance into goals. TBGS always looked a threat on the counter attack with pace and power but we limited them to long range efforts and very sparse attempts at goal. With 15 minutes remaining however, a Josh Watt free kick was deflected into Reece Shaw’s path who converted it from six yards out to give us a lifeline! This was followed by an opportunity from a corner for Ryan Wilson and an excellent strike from Ryley Steele which was somehow clawed away from the top corner by the TBGS goalkeeper. As we threw bodies forward in the last 5 minutes, we were inevitably caught out as TBGS added two counter-attack goals to their tally and eventually run out 5-1 winners, although the scoreline far from tells the story.

A fantastic season for the Y8 squad. Two finals (losing to the same team twice) is something to be very proud of and I am in no doubt that we will continue to see a meteoric improvement from this set of players next year. Well done boys.

Year 7 Plainmoor House Football Finals 2017

On Wednesday the Year 7s travelled to Plainmoor to participate in the annual house football competition. The competition was open to both boys and girls who competed with an excellent spirit and determination throughout the day.  Houses were put into 2 leagues of 4 with the top 2 finishers entering a cup competition and the bottom 2 entering a plate competition.  After the hard fought semi-finals the plate final was between Nearne and Brunel.  Congratulations to Nearne who won plate with a 1-0 victory.

The final of the cup was between Kitson and Christie. Nothing could separate the teams in normal time and the final score was 1-1. Penalties decided the cup winners with Cody Bose holding his nerve on the spot to win the game!  TA’s Football Academy had a large role in running the tournament. They did an excellent job managing teams and refereeing alongside a number of other roles.

Well done to everyone who participated in an excellent house tournament.

Track and Field Cup, Exeter Arena

On Tuesday 20 of our top athletes from Year 7 and 8 competed in the Devon Schools Track and Field cup at Exeter Arena. This is the first of our major Athletics events of the year and probably the hardest level to compete at. Many top flight athletes attended  and despite our lack of experience in many events.  The students managed to do themselves and the school proud. Our best result of the day came from Year 8 Georgia Davies in the 200m who stormed into 2nd place. Athletics club is every Monday night after school, all years and abilities welcome.

Taekwon Do

On Sunday the 7th May Kacy Fairhurst and Antonia Standen in Year 7 took part in the south west open Taekwondo Championships at Torbay Leisure Centre.  It was a very long and tiring day but both girls represented their club Primary TKD and Torquay Academy with great effort and attitude.   The girls took part in 4 categories which were high kick, flying kick, patterns and sparring in all there was a total of 299 competitors taking part. Antonia walked away with a Gold medal for her patterns and Kacy walked away with a Bronze medal for her sparring. Brilliant achievement for both of the girls who did the school and their club proud.

Basketball Success

The Sixth Form basketball team, ably assisted by 3 members of Year 11, travelled to South Dartmoor Community College this week for the second friendly game of their season. After a hard fought first quarter during which they found themselves playing against a very organised defensive team, we were trailing by 8 points.  After a quick team talk and a change of tactics they were quickly level and from then on there looked to be only one winner. We eventually ran out 74-59 winners. Mr Harries said that it was an absolute pleasure to take this group of enthusiastic students who do not know when to give up.

Ten Tors 2017

The Ten Tors Event as chronicled by Mr Brett.

Every year is different. This year’s training started out cold, another was very wet but after that we settled down to several good weekends. On some days the visibility was so good the navigation was comparatively easy so we went out for a short night walk just to remind the students what it could be like if the cloud came down.
The selection weekend turned out to be another superb weekend both for walking, camping and meteors. The 45’s walked for an hour and a half in the dark and were spot on; impressive! The 35’s had a great weekend being on track pretty much all weekend.
The Event itself came round very quickly after that. On Thursday the camp was set with little drama. The teams set out from TA after the “official” photographs and arrived in good time to find no queues and that we would only have one team scrutineeired so it was all going well. A quick check of kit before the official one meant we picked up on all the issues and the students then acquitted themselves very well at the official check. Both teams were clear to participate.  Saturday dawned a little grey with low cloud hanging over the Tors; a really atmospheric moment for the pre event photos.

The start is the first time that all 400 teams come together and leaves a lasting impression on all participants. Then the teams were away, the 35s heading south to start their adventure and the 45s heading south east to settle some unfinished business.
The rest of Saturday could be followed as well on line as at the camp but we had the times that the teams had worked on and all was looking good until mid afternoon when the 35 team seemed to slow but they continued to make progress and were just a little behind their predictions. Unfortunately they had to camp up a little earlier than they had hoped. In contrast the 45’s were still running 13 hours after the start and putting their night navigation to good use making progress up the pack.
Sunday’s weather was much better and the 45’s walked into their next checkpoint at 0600. Amazing achievement as they had put themselves in a really good position. They managed to beat the first cut of time showing some real spirit and walked on to their 9th Tor having covered around 45 km. The 45’s however were in a tight group of teams on their route and worked hard all the way to the line which they crossed at 1430 having covered at least 72 km.

I hope all the young people trained this year have gained something from their experience. I would like to express my considerable thanks to the staff and the parents who have been very generous to the teams. They have played a significant part in the improvement of the training and camping experience for the young people. This year, the students were significantly better prepared and I look forward to working with the team next year. We will look to run a 35 and 45 mile team. We will also start the challenge of preparing a 55 mile team for the first time in the history of the school.
A big thank you to Mr Brett, Mr Wheelan, Miss King, parents and everyone who had a part in organising and attending the event.

Year 12 Pop-up Music Performance

On Monday lunchtime the Year 12 Music Performance students treated their peers to a ‘pop-up’ performance on the outdoor stage. The glorious weather complimented the student’s Reggae performances perfectly! Currently working on Unit 22 Session Musician Styles, the students are given a different genre every 2 weeks which they are required to research and choose a piece to learn and finally perform in a different setting each time. So far the students have covered pieces from Classic Rock, 80s Pop and now Reggae. The big question now is… What will the next genre be?

Year 9 and Sixth Form Velodrome Visit

Last Wednesday was the Year 9 and 6th forms turn to battle for house points at the Velodrome. Competition was increased for the Year 9 boys as there were 10 talented students cycling. The battle of the day was between Cameron Smith and Alex Roberts who displayed fearless high speed overtaking moves on the steepest sections of the track. Alex won Gold and Cameron won Silver with last year’s champion Scott Taylor in Bronze position. Jack Britton just missed out on the medals by a very small margin and finished in 4th place.
Well done to Oli Mellit for winning Gold for the Year 9 girls. Congratulations to Harry Cheong for winning Gold and Edwin Chan for winning Silver for the 6th form.

Principal Certificates

Principal Bronze: (not in order) Olaf Koszela, Christian Rodriquez Palacious, Zoe Piper, Linda Aspbury, Tyler Dawson, Elena Reshad Matthew Leighton, Eloise Simpson, Oliver Brazier, Mia Rose, Evan Loasby, Alex Dale, Dayne McKenna, Jacob Luscombe, Tia Goldrng, Josh Kendall, Joe Reynolds, Tamla Wells, Cameron Smith, Alice Bowman, Leah McDonald, Aisa Kana, Reece Layton, Elizabeth Cook, Callum Saint, Mya Miles, Miles Ripley, Logan Sicobo, Olivia Le Huray, Poppy Brown 

Principal Silver: Tay Stevens, Drew Taylor, Charli Sims, Thomas White, Ellis Chapman, Antonia Standen, Thomas Porter, Kelsey Cresser, Lauren Bowden, Mateusz Baczynski, Jack Shirlow

 Principal Gold: Taylor Ford, Nathan Wells

Additional Principal Certificates

Charlie Cuss and Elle Bryant from Year 11. Charlie received his Bronze Principal award and ​Elle finished top of the Year 11 effort audit with the perfect average score of 1.0 which is an incredible achievement. Well done to both!

Governor Bronze

 Governor Bronze : Lily O’Sullivan, Morgan Tout

Governor Silver

 Governor Silver : Emma Harrison

Students of the Week

Students of the week with myself and Dr Hocking are; Jake Winstone, Leah McDonald, Reece Shaw

Ivybridge 10K

Mrs Sanders (centre) and Mr Christophers (right)  ran the Ivybridge 10k last weekend.  Well done to them.