T H EAY MESTREYM A G A Z I N E

SPRING 1981

MINUTES OF THE ANNUAL GENERAL MEETINGOF THE OLD AYMESTREY ASSOCIATION

HELD AT AYMESTREY SCHOOL ON SATURDAY, 21st JUNE, 1980

Present: The President, John Hughes; The Chairman, Hugo Tuthill; The Vice-Chairman, Edward Carpenter; The Honorary Secretary, Bill Stallard; Colonel Anthony Claydon and Messrs. Nigel Blair-Oliphant, Nicholas Coley, Andrew Duncan, James Edwards, Norman Green-Price, Hugh Griffith, George Johnson, Richard Johnson, Paul Jeavons, Andrew Lane, Edward Lane, John Phipps, Michael Rosoman, Jerry Thomason and Richard Tildesley.

Apologies were received from: Messrs. Alan Aitken, Dan Asterley, Air Vice- Marshal Nigel Blair-Oliphant, Messrs. J. F. Bowles, John Eyton Coates, J. A. G. Coates, S. J. D. Maclaren, A. P. Maclaren, Brian Massey, Charles Massey, M. P. St. John Mildmay, Charles Scovell, Neil Brown. Jean and Dan Asterley and Jonathan Coates.

The Minutes of the A.G.M. held on the 23rd June, 1979, having been circulated, were taken as read and were approved.

The Accounts for the year ended 31st March, 1980, were received and adopted. The following Officers were elected for the ensuing year:

CHAIRMAN: Edward Carpenter.VICE-CHAIRMAN: Anthony Claydon.HONORARY SECRETARY/TREASURER: Bill Stallard.SCHOOL CORRESPONDENT: Dan Asterley.COMMITTEE: Norman Green-Price and Michael Rosoman to serve with Messrs. Anthony

Powell, Anthony Claydon, Andrew Lane and Francis Tuthill.

It was reported that Detailed Planning Consent for a proposed new Gymnasium had been obtained and the Appeal Fund stood at £5,300. A Meeting of the Appeal Sub-Committee had felt that there was an insufficiency of funds to see through the original scheme and thought should be given to alternative projects. In the course of a discussion Edward Lane expressed the view that the Association should inform the Headmaster that the funds were available for an alternative project subject to the Association's approval of the manner in which the money was spent and that the Appeal Sub-Committee should be empowered to approve the same. Anthony Claydon felt that the Appeal Funds must be spent on a specific identifiable project and that it should be done soon. Hugh Griffith indicated that he would like an en-tout-cas all-weather area with a wall at the one end. The surface would cost £10 per square metre. This proposal had some support from the Meeting which felt that speed was essential and also that contributors to the Appeal Fund should be notified of any change in the nature of the project upon which the money was to be spent.

There being no further business the Meeting closed with a vote of thanks from the Chairman. Hugo Tuthill, to Mr. and Mrs. Hugh Griffith and their Staff for the gracious way in which they had received Members of the Association.

The Association's Annual Dinner was again held at The Union and County Club, Worcester. The Association's President accepted the Chairmanship of the Dinner and proposed the Health of the School which was responded to by Hugh Griffith.

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OLD AYMESTREY ASSOCIATION

Income and Expenditure Account forthe Year ended 31st March, 1980

INCOME EXPENDITURE

£ £Membership Subscriptions .... .... .. 25.20 Mr. and Mrs. D. H. Griffith — Contribution

Magazine Appeal Subscription .... .... 2.05 to School Magazine expenses .... .... 40.00Interest on Abbey National Building Society Inland Revenue — Corporation Tax .... 4.71

Share Account .... .... .... .... 42.40 Lloyds Bank Limited — Bank Charges .... 0.48Interest on Lloyds Bank Limited Deposit Balance in hand being excess of income overA c c o u n t . . . . ... .... .... .... 3.98 expenditure .... .... .... .... 28.44

73.63 73.63

Balance Sheet

for the Year ended 31st March, 1980

£ £Balance brought forward from the 31st March, Balances at Lloyds Bank Limited:

1979 .... .... .... .... .... .... 562.82 Current Account .... .... .... .... 31.93Excess of income over expenditure for the year 28.44 Deposit Account .... .... .... .... 25.61

Balance on Abbey National Building SocietyShareAccount .... .... .... .... .... 533.72591.26 591.26

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L E AV E R S A N D N E W B O Y S

LEAVERSMarch, 1980

D. A. Pearce — Came September 1978 (Bowbrook). Swimming Colours. Gold Survival.July, 1980

R. Blair-Oliphant (Bryanston) — Came April 1975. Rugger XV; Soccer XI, Cricket XI. Choir. Head Boy.

R. E. Edmonds (Old Swinford) — Came September 1976. Rugger XV; Choir. Prefect.T. M. F. Edwards (Malvern) — Came September 1974. Rugger XV; Soccer XI; Cricket XI. Choir.

Prefect.D. W. Ilsley (Wycliffe) — Came September 1978. Rugger XV; Soccer XI.M. D. Kent (Old Swinford) — Came June 1978. Bronze Survival.S. P. C. Nelson (Malvern) — Came April 1975. Cricket XI. Colours for Swimming. Silver Survival. Choir. Ogden Cup. Reading Cup. Prefect. R. C. Paske (Wycliffe) — Came September 1975. Choir. Prefect.

A. M. Perryman (Malvern) — Came January 1976. Choir. Bronze Survival. B.J. L. Phipps (Bloxham) — Came April 1975. Prefect. D. C. Richmond (Worcester Royal Grammar School) — Came September 1978. Rugger XV;

Soccer XI; Cricket Xl. Colours for Rugger, Soccer, Cricket, Swimming. Gold Survival. Sports Shield.

M. A. Sanderson (Old Swinford) — Came September 1977. Rugger XV; Soccer XI; Cricket XI. Bronze Survival.

D. Searle (Bloxham) — Came January 1977. Choir.December, 1980

K. T. Steel (John Masefield) — Came September 1980. Choir. B. F. M. Walsh — Came September 1979.

NEW BOYSJanuary 1980—E. A. Gleed, C. D. Parry.April 1980—T. A. C. Duncan, O. L. Saunders, D. E. L. Taylor.September 1980 — A. Bowen, N. J. Cox, K. F. R. Draycott, J. F. B. Essex,

T. R. B. Essex, J. N. Higgins, C. J. Knappett, A. D. Parry, K. T. Steel, J. D. B. Woods

W. J. BRITTEN

Will Britten died in April, 1980. He left Aymestrey in 1923 for Merchant Taylors', and his main career was in the Metropolitan Police. He afterwards held various posts, and will perhaps be best remembered as a tireless talker with an intensely lively mind, and also with a remarkable fund of reminiscence about Aymestrey in its early days.

'TAYLOR'

Old Boys of earlier generations will be sad to hear of the death in August at Stockport of Charles Mark Taylor, at the age of 85.

Taylor started work at Aymestrey in 1923 in a post which he held, expanded, and by his personality adorned for 41 years. Engaged originally as 'School Porter', he was soon much more than that—carpenter, decorator, electrician, skilled engineer of every kind, and friend of everyone connected with the School. No tangible crisis at any hour of the day or night ever found him other than eager to help and able to cope with success; and he was keenly interested in all the School's doings, and in the boys as individuals, being always glad to hear of their subsequent doings even in much later years.

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Intensely patriotic (and often saddened in recent times when he felt that his country was not being true to herself), his greatest praise for event or person was "Makes you proud to be British", and no better epitaph could be found for him: he made you proud to be British. There are many who will be proud, too, and touched to know that his ashes were brought from Cheshire and now rest by the side of the drive along which he walked to work those thousands of times.

OLD BOY NEWS

A. N. K. Brown has a M.A. (Hons,) in Psychology at Aberdeen, an M. Sc. in Educational Psychology at Strathclyde and is now an Educational Psychologist in Glasgow.

N. Brown is a solicitor in London.R. Brandram Jones has nine 'O' levels, four of them at 'A' grade at Malvern and is near the top of

his year. He is now doing an 'A' level course in Science and Maths.J. A. G. Coates was made C.B.E. in the New Year Honours, for services with the C.B.I.A. D. R. Colyer has 12 'O' levels, three of them at 'A' grade at Rossall. He has now started an 'A'

level course in Latin, Greek and English.D. C. Davies has a degree in engineering. He is now a technician in Bristol.J. C. Davies is at Leeds reading French.S. J. Dorrell was married in September.J. N. F. Edwards is in his last year at Exeter Art College.J. W. F. Edwards is taking 'A' level in Ancient History, Latin and Economics at the Worcester Royal

Grammar School.D. Elt is a deck cadet in the Merchant Navy and has been all over the world.B. Gaskell is back from Operation Drake and working in the British Museum on the field work he

did on the expedition.S. Green-Price, though dogged by injuries, played several times for the 1st XV at Gordonstoun.N. Harris is in his third year at Oxford.M. C. L. Harris was awarded the Munster Scholarship to the Royal College of Music. He sang the

bass solo in Sir Michael Tippetts' "Child of our Time" under Sir David Willcocks at the R.C.M. Christmas concert.

M. Hughes married Miss E. Petrie in March.P. Jeavons is in his first year at the Royal Agricultural College, Cirencester.M. Jeavons is dairy farming on Sark.S. Kingston was working for the National Trust on Witley Common in Surrey.R. Lane married Miss H. Lewis in August.N. R. A. Leakey has completed 25 years with the Addis Brush Company and duly received the

traditional gold watch from the firm.S. J. D. Maclaren is travelling in Australia and doing a variety of jobs.R. Manning has 11 'O' levels and is now doing an 'A' level course in Maths. Physical Sciences and

Biology.J. C. Nicholas has been in Canada and is now back farming with his father. M. Packman is training as a chef in the R.A.F.J. C. Peters is working on the Stock Exchange in London.M. Rosoman married Miss A. Brooks in November and is working for a Kidderminster solicitor

doing his articles.R. Rosoman did his H.N.D. at Middlesex Polytechnic and is hoping to open his own restaurant.A. P. Sherwood is head of the English Department at Manama School, Bahrain. A. Simpson is working for extra 'O' levels at Hereford Technical College, and is attending Holme

Lacy College of Agriculture part-time.

Wing Commander P. D. Stokes is on the Defence Equipment Staff at the British Embassy in Washington.

S. Tudge is in the Colts XV at the W.R.G.S.

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TOWNSEND-WARNER HISTORY PRIZE(February 1980)

Lane and Edmonds E. qualified for paper 11 and both did well. Lane was 107th and Edmonds 174th out of 747 entries from all over the country. This is a history competition that is open to all prep. schools and, as always, the standard was very high.

S AT I P S C H A L L E N G E(November 1980)

For the first time we entered both a senior and a junior team for this general knowledge competition which is also open to all prep. schools.

Though the teams were not very high on the list we had some individual succ esses. In the Senior, Lane was only six marks behind the leader with 77% and came 13th out of 560. Edmonds G. scored 73% and came 32nd.

In the junior we were not sent a list but Bader - 71% did well and Knappett and Rankin were both in the 60's.

THE FETE

Weather played a great part in the Fete this year, because although it did not actually rain on the afternoon itself, it only stopped about one hour before opening time. This meant that organisation of the ghost house was a nightmare because a leaky roof made it impossibe to hang various skeletons until the last minute. However, all was ready and everything went with a swing.

The net profit for the day was £908. The biggest contribution by far came from a splendid raffle which raised over £500. For this we were most grateful to the many parents who gave such attractive and valuable prizes.

First prize was a boy's racing bicycle which was given by the Richardsons, Rankins, MacLarens, Goadbys, Edmonds, Parrys, Cummins and Princes. Mr. and Mrs. Bews gave champagne, Mr. and Mrs. Rankin a turkey, Mr. and Mrs. Trove a tape-recorder, Mr. and Mrs. Rose-Cooper a £10 voucher, Mr. and Mrs. Phipps a Worcester Porcelain Dish, the Lanes and Schilizzis a camera and Mr. and Mrs. Richmond a haggis.

We are most grateful to the many parents who helped with the stalls. Mrs. Paske made an enormous amount of delicious cakes once again; she is now famous in these parts. Mr. and Mrs. Carpenter ran the bottle stall and provided many of the bottles. Mrs. Edmonds, Mrs. Richardson and Mrs. Rankin did well on the cake stall. Mr. and Mrs. Bews did a flourishing trade in second hand books, Mrs. Rose-Cooper provided and sold Fancy Goods; Mrs. Prince sold plants and toys and Mr. Richardson ran a successful clay pigeon shoot. The Brodie pig was a major attraction even though it did not drink all its milk according to plan.

The boys ran many side shows and finally, once again, Mr. and Mrs. Coley sent over some beautiful strawberries, some of which were sold on the Produce Stall by Mr. and Mrs. Beard and some were sold to be eaten on the spot.

The Secretary of the O.A.A. writes that the balance of the Appeal Fund now stands at £6,402 after settlement of tax and expenses.

MUSICDuring the year the following Associated Board Music Exams were passed:

Richardson—Grade 1 Piano

Maclaren—Grade 1 PianoKent—Grade 2 PianoWise—Grade 2 PianoLane—Grade 3 PianoBews—Grade 3 PianoPalmer—Grade 4 PianoBlair-Oliphant D.—Grade 5 Trumpet. He also played The Last Post on Remembrance Sunday in Cradley Church. This follows on the tradition started by Fields A. and continued by Kimpton and Edwards T.

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GIFTS

We are very grateful to the following for their presents to the School: —Mr. and Mrs. Phipps—Tape RecorderMr. and Mrs. Edmonds—High Jump Stand Mr. and Mrs. Paske—Video tapesMr. and Mrs. Nelson—Video tapesMr. and Mrs. Perryman—Table tennis netMr. and Mrs. Godsall, once again, for their splendid potatoes on Nov. 5th

MALVERN PREPARATORY SCHOOLS ARTS FESTIVAL 1980This year we took part in all three sections of the Festival—Drama, Music and Art.

Many boys contributed to the Art Display which was beautifully mounted by Mrs. Wales.

Mr. Driver wrote and produced a play—The Hunting of the Wren—which was staged in the College Theatre and very well received by an enthusiastic audience.

As a result we were offered the use of the theatre for future plays.Edwards and Nelson played their trumpets in the Orchestral Concert under the batons of Rory Boyle

and Neil Page.

On the Saturday our boys formed part of a Choir of 250 treble voices to sing Choral Evensong, conducted by Neil Page and addressed by the Bishop of Wor cester. The following was written by a member of the Choir:

As we walked into the Chapel we heard the organ being played by William Watkins, who is the senior music scholar at Malvern College. This recital included pieces by Bach and Howells.

The first hymn was not announced so it came as a bit of a surprise when the massive organ went into action. The hymn was part of an anthem written by Henry Purcell. On the third verse the choir sang unaccompanied while the Bishop of Worcester walked behind the Chaplain down the aisle. Mr. Page, our conductor, made sure that he did not hit the Bishop with his baton as he passed!

Then came the first anthem—Lift Up Your Heads 0 Ye Gates. The music was by William Mathias. As it was the first of four anthems I felt a little nervous. It all went well though.

Next there was a reading and then our second anthem—Jesu' Joy of Man's Desiring. There was an oboe solo by Patrick Purcell who teaches wood-wind at the College. This was followed by another reading and some prayers.

The second hymn—The Royal Banners Forward Go—was written by Percy Back.

After that the Bishop gave the address. It was about giving a shape to something that had no shape. "For instance," he said, "your poster paints are useless by themselves but when they are put

on paper they are being used to create a shape out of something with no shape."

The third anthem was my favourite - O Lord God Thou Strength of my Health.God be in my Head—the last anthem, was sung unaccompanied. The final hymn was Praise to

the Lord. The Almighty, The King of Creation—the third verse being unaccompanied and Choir only.

We went out listening to the music of Eugene Gigout.DAVID BLAIR-OLIPHANT (IIIrd Form).

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ACTING

The school's first entrance into the harsh limelight of public performances took place at the Malvern College Prep. Schools Festival in March, 1980.

Sandwiched between a play with scenery and another with symbolic under tones the twenty minute explosion of 'Hunting the Wren' complete with all the worst jokes in the world, sword dance, demented char-a-banc trips and the Dreaded 'Obby 'Orse made a welcome, if sometimes bewildering change. Following up the kind offer of the College to use their theatre again a packed house was lured in to watch, and eventually participate in, 'The Giant Rat,' in the Autumn Term.

Most of the casts of both these homespun efforts have had, probably without noticing it, a solid dramatic background. The Sunday afternoon skits have produced some remarkable performances, intentional and otherwise, in most areas of what the knowledgeable apparently term "theatre workshop". Acting lessons for most forms have been used in preparation for forthcoming events and the shooting of the epic silent movie 'The Man from Porlock' on video introduced them, and the cameraman and director, to the mysteries of the silver screen.

As yet we have avoided the 'star' system and every production has relied on total commitment from the whole cast. (The latest production 'Desperado' involves every boy in the school). However, inevitably, certain highlights from the various productions do remain: Rawlings' controlled performances in the difficult parts of Zoomer Bloomfield, Jack the Lad and the Poet Coleridge; Lane and his tail as the Giant Rat; Schilizzi's uncontrolled performance in various lunatic roles; Nelson's villainy; Edwards' long distance endurance as the Butler; Paske's female leads; Blair-Oliphant's tuba; the Ilsley babes; Woods and `Ice-a-cream' Prince as the knock-about Kings; Palmer's cameo role as the van driver. The list, that ought to include the tribe of Arabs on the East Lawn and the bodies spelling out "The End" on the South Lawn, is endless, but perhaps it may be best summed up by the sight of the entire cast performing, with words and actions, "Swing Low Sweet Chariot" at the end of the "Giant Rat", and, through their enthusiasm, compelling the audience to join in too.

PRINTING

The printing press has lurked for the last couple of years in a corner of the Science Room. A steady stream of boys has been introduced to the mysteries of galleys, furniture, ten point New Roman, inner chases and hitting the automatic counter with a mallet when it refuses to work. The pioneer work was done by Martineau and Fox. The present ink-stained operatives who brave the perils of putting in, setting up and taking out are Blair-Oliphant D . and Woods, often aided by Essex, Palmer and Evans.

Work undertaken has ranged from letterheads, invitation cards, business cards, record cards, W.I.

programmes, concert programmes, mysterious school play programmes, and lately to the epic undertaking of printing a complete book. "Hunting the Wren" involved about two months' work most evenings of the week, and for the statisticians, consumed over three thousand separate sheets of paper, thirty different type settings, six different lino-block illustrations, and a good deal of ink, though the latter was often equally distributed between the machine and its operators.

When it was found that some members of the public could be persuaded to buy copies of this limited edition plans were immediately laid to preserve the "Giant Rat" in the same manner and work has begun on this project. We hope the result will be as satisfying to the reader as its production is to the printers.

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SOCCER 1980

From a season where the 'goals against' compared to 'goals for' resembled a respectable prep. school cricket score recollections will either be horrendous or humorous. Fortunately this year's team kept their heads and, no matter what happened, continued to play on with a good deal of spirit in place of the skill most of them lacked.

The back four that included among its members Ilsley D., Kent, Edmonds E., Edmonds G., Edwards, Schilizzi, Blair-Oliphant D. and Nelson in its times of crisis, always looked like a remnant of a rugby team puzzled by the altered shape of the ball. At their best they delivered a series of uncomplicated kicks roughly in the direction of the other end; on other occasions the ball could pass all of them while they executed a chorus-line precision in missing it with exuberant air shots.

The midfield of Sanderson M. and Woods improved through the season and as well as providing a staunch relief force for the beleagured backs began to operate a fairly regular supply of passes to the wings.

Palmer played on the right wing and when he did get going proved quite useful. Shafto and Blair-Oliphant R. ended up as the regular forwards and began to put more shots in as their confidence increased.

Johnson, who played in goal for the first half of the season and on the left wing for the second, was really the one player whose natural ability gave the others hope. In the Winterfold game he produced a breath taking display of agile goalkeeping that earned everyone's respect, particularly that of the opposition. During his games out of goal he bemused his opponents by his deceptive running on the wing and his regular supply of crosses into the penalty area. His goal against Moor Park was a good example of his creative skill.

Pulfer replaced Johnson in goal and tried very hard in what proved to be a busy position. He too improved through the term and never lacked courage.

Sanderson must take credit for being the highest scorer with two goals. The last one of the season was indicative of the whole team's enjoyment, no matter what the odds. We were about ten goals down against Malvern Ferrets (having contained them well in the first half dur ing which they could only score one goal) when Johnson took the ball up the left wing, crossed, and Sanderson, arriving with the rest of the front part of the team, chipped it over the advancing goalkeeper's head.

After the success of last year's team it was probably inevitable that we should find ourselves on the receiving end this year. However promising the juniors have shown themselves this year, which is always encouraging for the future, they should take careful note of the way this year's team have conducted themselves in defeat. Despite their record they approached and played each game with the same spirit of enjoyment and enthusiasm, and they never gave up.

The recollections then are more humorous than horrendous; Schilizzi bringing himself down, the Ilsley knee shot, Johnson's repeated attempts to score an own goal and Kent's reverse tackle. Above all, however, it is the good natured acceptance of their lot that ought to be remembered.

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C R I C K E T 1 9 8 0Played 7, Won 5, Lost 2.

This year's side, though perhaps not the best we have had in recent years, was certainly one of the most effective. Richmond, the captain, can take much of the credit for this. He was, without doubt, the fastest and most hostile bowler that the writer can ever remember in prep. school cricket. His batting was no less effective than his bowling but let the figures speak for themselves.

Batting-7 innings, 3 not out, 308 runs. Av. 77. At one stage his average stood at 137.

Bowling—He took 51 wickets at an average of 3.60 runs.

Added to all this his fielding was an example to everyone and his captaincy improved with each match.

With such a good leader there is always the danger of becoming a one man band. When beating the Elms by 32 runs Richmond scored 93 not out from a total of 105—with 7 extras. However, the support developed gradually during the season. Johnson bowled well and took 27 wickets for an average of 8.25 runs. He is at his best when he bowls his fastest round the wicket; being left handed, when he used the crease, he became nearly as hostile as Richmond. His batting can have the grace of a miniature Sobers but it is literally hit and miss at the moment. Luckily it was "hit" and not "miss" against the O.A.A. (one of the rare occasions when Richmond failed—bowled for 19), when he made 57 not out in great style; he hit twelve boundaries, nearly all in left handers' territory between square leg and long leg. His fielding, particularly at slip, was always very sharp: one remembers especially a hot caught and bowled when Jonathan Hughes hit the ball back at him like a bullet.

Blair-Oliphant D., the wicket keeper, was brave if a little untidy, but it must be said that keeping to Richmond and Johnson was never easy, as on many occasions he needed to stand a third of the way to the boundary.

These three boys were awarded their colours.

Sanderson bowled tidily and was always useful in reserve. Blair-Oliphant R. looked a possible middle order batsman but, like his brother, had little luck. Pulfer started well with a useful 21 in the first match but he faded out because he did not pay enough attention to technique. Schilizzi always played with great determination. The 'tail' was made up of a variety of willing triers but it seldom had the chance to wag.

On the last Saturday of term a very keen Under 11 side routed David Holt's XI from Rushwick. Winning the toss Maclaren put them in and, changing the bowlers every over, bowled them out for 52. We knocked off the runs for the loss of two wickets, the captain carrying his bat with 24. Trove and Rankin batted well and no less than 6 of our 7 bowlers took wickets. The skill and

enthusiasm of this team bodes well for the future.

SWIMMING

Last year the weather was bad but this year, apart from three weeks at the beginning of term when the pool was not ready, the weather was appalling. As a result, only a few hardy swimmers achieved much. However, two juniors, Wise and Richardson, stand out for their courage in the cold water and the vast improvement they made in their style and endurance during the term.

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ATHLETICS

In the A.A.A. Five Star Awards the following did well: Shafto gained his four star in the three events and Pentathlon Under 10; Hawa four star three events and Pentathlon Under 11; Johnson four star in three events, Pentathlon and Decathlon Under 13; and Richmond, despite the injury to his knee, four star three events Under 14.

RUGBY 1980

The season began well as we once again proved our capacity for enjoyment and success in the Henry Oldnall Sevens. A competition of this kind is a great leveller allowing the smaller school to exhibit its skills without being crushed by its larger rivals" advantages of numbers and extra weight. Given this rare opportunity of uninterrupted space within which to run, Johnson and Woods scored all the points that gave us a draw with Wells House, a win over Millstone and a narrow two points defeat by Bromsgrove. The three forwards were Pulfer, Schlilizzi and Rawlings who, with Blair-Oliphant D. at scrum half, Woods at fly-half and Johnson covering huge distances at full-back, were the very reliable basis of the full fifteen for the rest of the season.

Our first match was away at Moor Park. This welcome win against their 2nd XV set the pattern of play for the rest of the term. Although the ball, on several occasions, passed from wing to wing it was the pack, playing as a unit, that established an efficient supply of ball. The decision to concentrate our best players here, rather than spread them across the field, may seem to have been faulty in the light of our next match when Winterfold performed their Anfield-style, complete control, display and beat us at home. If, however, it is quality and skill that should be the ultimate aim, and not the dreadful clamour for results that seizes so many coaches and even some spectators in apoplectic paroxysms along the touchline, then the experience for the forwards should have been beneficial. The return match against Moor Park perhaps proved this. The visitors seemed determined merely to batter their way to the try line, and were beaten instead.

St. Michael's exacted revenge for last year by inflicting on us our heaviest defeat. Again our forwards out-played theirs in the set-pieces, rucks and mauls but their centres crashed through on enough occasions.

We can hardly complain about our game at Winterfold as they lent us their bus when ours broke down, and we scored a pushover try.

The last game was against St. Richards and finished the season with one of the most satisfying moves we produced. Having fought back hard through the second half we were awarded a penalty in their twenty-five. Rawlings emerged from the back of the maul, bided his time among four of the opposition, passed to Pulfer who, supported by Bowen, missed out Woods leaving Johnson to score. A good example of confident support play under pressure.

It was a season that, once again, saw the emergence of a team rather than a noisy band of individuals. The forwards were represented by Pulfer, Essex, Schilizzi, Rawlings, Bowen, Palmer, Trow, Richardson, Parry and Edmonds, all of whom worked hard to master their techniques and produced a well-balanced and well-organised pack. Blair-Oliphant played a staunch role at scrum half and learned to work closely with Woods and Johnson. These two never stopped run ning and also contributed some spirited tackling. Johnson was top scorer with

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thirty-two points. Shafto and Maclaren played in every full-side match and made up for what they lacked in size by their enthusiasm. The rest of the backs changed fairly frequently but the most promising duo was the unlikely Goliath and David combination of Taylor J. and Ilsley B. who both provided some useful tackling.

The only disappoinment of the season was the attitude of some of the Senior Game who weren't prepared to work as hard as the team and provide enough hard opposition. Their lack of commitment, however, is soon forgotten when the all round ability and enthusiasm of the team is remembered.

Colours were awarded to Johnson, Rawlings, Schilizzi, Puffer and Woods. The kicking competition was won by Edmonds.

RU'A FIOLA 1980

We—Paske, Searle, Packman, Perryman, Phipps and the writer—were blessed again with excellent mild weather which allowed us outdoors most of the time. Abseiling and climbing were both popular despite a high wind which gave an added dimension to an abseil. Canoeing in the Atlantic and attempting to paddle round the island were both enjoyed while the expedition to Scarba Island turned out to be a truly blackening experience as it was necessary to walk through an area which had been burnt by a huge fire a week before. Being marooned, adultless, on an island, was, for many, the highlight of the week although the deliberate lack of food was soon put right by a late breakfast the morning after. An exciting and most enjoyable week was over all too soon..

CAMP 1980

Mr. and Mrs. Green Price kindly allowed us to camp on their farm in Wales again this year. Unfortunately we did not manage to do as much helpful work on the land as we had hoped but if we re-routed part of the river it was the result of the Welsh version of the Aswan Dam, masterminded by engineers Nelson and Edwards.

Despite poor weather Blair-Oliphant R. stuck to the task of cooking supper after our various expeditions and no doubt felt rewarded by the sight of Paske eating it. Whilst Phipps was improving on the construction of Ra II, Ilsley perfected the technique of sinking enemy shipping by practising on the camp leader's mess tin.

Around an enormous camp fire we were again entertained by our visitors' spine-chilling tales of horror, and it is doubtful whether Perryman has yet recovered from the effects of these. Several wide games were enjoyed by all in the marvellous moorland bracken.

Our thanks again to the Green Prices for their generous hospitality and for the magnificent cake.

Also to Mr. Trove, Mr. Nelson and Mr. Edmonds for help with the transport.

(The Editor would like to add his thanks to Mr. Cash for his leadership. We have been invited to return next year.)

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