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Wirral Girls PE Newsletter - Spring 2013 - page 1

Spring 2013

IT HAS BEEN A FANTASTIC SEASON OF NETBALLAt Wirral we have: hosted the Wirral Schools’ and Merseyside Schools’ tournaments; we have travelled to Keswick for the Regional round of the National Schools’ netball with all teams; we have hosted an Australian touring team; we have competed against some of the top local schools in Saturday matches and we have played a huge number of matches against local schools often Bielding A, B, C and D teams in the younger years.

National Schools’ Netball Competition

You may have read that earlier in the term all of our teams qualified for the regional round of the National Schools’ Netball Tournament. As the highest participation school sport this has involved beating opposition from a huge number of schools. Wirral were one of only two schools who had qualified a team for this round in every possible age group (even our younger teams qualified but as a rule we could not enter more than one team in each category).

The tournament was held at Keswick High School with the fantastic backdrop of the lake district. We travelled from school on Friday with a coach full of apprehensive but excited players, coaches and parents. Friday night was for relaxation and carbo-loading and Miss Taylor had booked us into a great Italian restaurant that met these criteria

perfectly! There was a great team vibe and even a little bit of entertainment from the staff and parents.

The senior team were drawn in a very competitive section of the tournament and played some fantastic netball, they beat some very strong and renowned teams including Stoneyhurst and Sedburgh. Out of the 4 teams in their section 2 are national finalists as North West netball amongst the best in the country so the team played very well against the best teams in the UK.

The Year 11 team also played some great netball, the triumphed over the Isle of Mann and QUEGS, had a very close battle with but lost to Christleton and lost 9 – 6 to Penwortham who are national finalists. They finished 3rd in their tricky section.

The year 9 team had an excellent start to the day, drawing their first match with Helsby, beating both the Cumbrian teams and losing to Saddleworth (the eventual winners of the

tournament) . Their qual ificat ion then depended on their last match and when they went down 5 goal to 1 it looked to be all over. However, steely determination helped them to pull the game back to 5 – 5 only for a couple of decisions to go against them and the final score was 7 – 5 to St Michael’s. They were gutted but we could still go through on goal average. A tense wait outside the officials room followed but we hadn’t done quite enough this time. It was a true tournament of highs and lows for the Year 9 team in their first Nationals experience. They played some of their best ever netball, staff commented on the quick thinking and interceptions made by Kate Goacher and Georgia Hayes led by example as captain giving 110%. They all displayed great determination and team spirit and should be very proud of themselves, they will use this experience to help them next time they enter a competition of this scale.

Wirral Grammar Schoolfor Girls | PE Newsletter


Australian TourRight at the start of the year Wirral

Grammar School welcomed Netball and Rugby teams and their coaching staff from Merewether High School, Newcastle, Australia. The teams arrived from Birmingham and were collected by host families who volunteered to look after our guests and give them an insight into Wirralian life.

Friendships formed quickly but these were put to one side on Wednesday afternoon for some competitive and closely fought matches. Our Year 10 and 11 team beat Merewether 21–19 and our Senior team narrowly lost. A big thank you to all the host families, our guests had a great experience and enjoyed their trip to the Wirral.

Wirral Schools’ Netball Tournament Years 7 and 8.

The Year 7 and 8 Wirral Schools’ Netball Tournament was held at school on Saturday 16th March. The best achievement of the morning was that we had four year 7 teams and four year 8 teams representing school.

In the Year 7 competition our 4th team did really well and had a good win against St Mary’s College, our 3rd team beat Upton ‘B’ and drew with Wirral ‘B’ . Our ‘B’ team were undefeated in their section and had impressive wins against UAB, Upton ‘B’ 10 -1, Prenton, Birkenhead School and West Kirby ‘A’. The Wirral ‘A’ team produced some excellent Netball too with wins against Hilbre 23-0, St Mary’s 15 – 0, Plessington 16 -0, West Kirby 11-0 and Upton ‘A’ 17 -0. In the semi Final the ‘B ‘ team were extremely unlucky to lose to Upton Hall after extra time and the ‘A’ team played against Prenton and won 15 -2. In the final our ‘A’ team beat Upton Hall to become Wirral Schools Champions. Our ‘B’ team defeated Prenton to finish in 3rd position. Both teams therefore have qualified for the Merseyside Finals in Kirby on Friday

In the Year 8 competition our 3rd and 4th team played really well and the 3rd team had a good win against St Mary’s and a draw with Prenton. Our ‘B’ team played some great stuff and had wins against Birkenhead Academy, Prenton, Wirral ‘C’, St Mary’s and West Kirby ‘A’. Our ‘A’ team had impressive wins against Birkenhead School, Hilbre 17 -1, Wirral ‘D’. Plessington 12-1 and Upton 15 -1. In the semi final our ‘B’ team had a great win against Birkenhead School and our ‘A’ team won against West Kirby 11 -2 to set up an all Wirral Final. In the final the ‘A’ team just shaded it to become Wirral Schools Champions with the ‘B’s finishing as runners up.

Well done and Congratulations to all girls that took part – we were very proud of you all.

Wirral Schools’ Netball Tournament Years 9 and 10.

On Wednesday 27th February we hosted the Year 9 and Year 10 Wirral Schools’ Netball Tournament. The weather was surprisingly warm and eight schools from the district turned up to play in the sunshine. Our Year 9 and 10 teams were unbeaten winning by huge margins considering the short length of the games. The competition was a round robin so our teams played against every other school and showed excellent endurance, motivation and team work.

The Year 9B team stepped in to play in the tournament when another school dropped out

and they did themselves proud winning a number of matches against other school’s A teams. Georgia Hayes and Jess Kennedy showed great captaincy and led by example. The Year 10 team showed great teamwork throughout the afternoon as they always do.

Merseyside County Netball FinalsThe Merseyside County Netball Finals were

held at school on Saturday March 9th. The County Finals are for the teams that finish in first place in the area competitions held on the Wirral, Sefton, Liverpool and St Helens. Despite the cold weather and persistent rain our girls played some excellent netball.

In the U19 Age group Wirral played Upton Hall and won 16 -1, West Kirby and won 12-4, Merchant Taylors and won 22-2 and Formby High School and won 17 -4.

Not to be our done our Yr 11 team played Archbishop Blanch and won 19 -0, St Mary’s College, Crosby and won 16 -5, West Kirby and won 17 – 1 and Sacred Heart and won 12 -4

The Year 10 team played Upton and won 16 -3, Greenbank High School, Southport and won 17 -1, West Kirby and won 13-5, Range High School and won 6-4 and Rainford High School, St Helens and won 10 -7

We entered our year 8 and 9 teams in the U14 Age group with both of them coming up with 4 convincing wins each.

The results meant that we won the Merseyside Championships in every Age group. This is the first time for a couple of years we have had a ‘clean sweep’ and this is a fantastic achievement.

Congratulations and well done to all the girls. A big thank you to you all for your continued loyalty and your commitment throughout the season.


Year 7The Year 7 squad has been

sensational this year, the A team have only lost 1 game all season and 4 teams played well in the district tournament. The A squad are Wirral Champions and both A and B teams have qualified for the Merseyside finals.

Most Improved player Niamh Leong / Daniella Norman

Coaches’ playerGeorgia Ellis

Players’ playerRuth Hughes

Year 8The Year 8 squad has gone from

strength to strength this season. The Year 8 A team are Wirral champions and Merseys ide champions, we also entered them in the Year 9 competitions and they were the 2nd best team in the County in the U14 age group. The majority of them are playing club netball and they are working very well as a team. The Year 8 B team came second in the district tournament and the C and D teams have beat some local A teams.

Most Improved playerErin Taylor

Coaches’ playerBecky Helsby

Year 9The Year 9 team have had a

fantastic season; they are Wirral C h a m p i o n s , M e r s e y s i d e champions and only narrowly missed out on a semi-final spot in the North-West Netball finals.

Most Improved playerIndia Coy

Coaches’ playerKelly Cunningham / Georgia Hayes

Birkenhead Netball LeagueBoth the Year 11 and senior

teams have entered teams in the Birkenhead Netball League this season. The senior team are currently top of the league and the Year 11s are in 3rd position. The teams have played some fantastic netball in the league often having to adapt their game to play against the different styles of netball that can be encountered in adult netball. They have played in some challenging environments and will hopefully remain at the top as the season draws to a close.


Wirral Schools U14 Championships

The Wirral Schools U14 Volleyball Championships took place on Wednesday 13th March at Wirral Grammar School for Girls. Eighteen teams from across the Wirral took part. Wirral Girls entered 5 teams from Year 8 & Year 9, we also provided two very talented referees from Y11 and Y12 to keep track of the 15 minute matches.

All teams played extremely well and played some fantastic Volleyball. The Wirral Grammar A and B teams were undefeated in their pool and qualified for the quarter finals which they both won. Wirral A unfortunately just missed out on their chance to reach the final by two points and finished 3rd in the competition.

Wirral Grammar B (y8) won their semi-final and made it through to the final against Prenton (y9). They played their hearts out in front of a very supportive crowd from both

schools. The game was extremely close and very exciting, with both teams taking it in turns to take the lead. We lost the first set 13-15 and Prenton took the second set winning by just two clear points.

Miss King would like to say a big thank you and well done to all the girls who took part and congratulations to the Wirral B squad (Becky Helsby, Lizzie Forshaw, Rosie Stothard and Olivia Pearson) who finished as runners up of the tournament.

VOLLEYBALLThe Wirral Schools U15 Volleyball ChampionshipsSeveral teams from across the Wirral and Manchester took part. Wirral Girls entered two teams and we also provided four very talented referees from Y11 and 12 to keep track of the 15 minute matches.Both teams played extremely well and played some fantastic Volleyball. The Wirral Grammar A team were undefeated in their pool and qualified for the final against a very strong Moorside team. Wirral Grammar A played their hearts out in front of a very supportive crowd from both schools. Moorside were in the lead but Wirral Grammar staged a come-back and went on to win the set 25 – 22 and finished as Wirral Schools’ Volleyball champions.Congratulations to Lydia Edgar, Louise Haggett, Holly Pearson and Sofia Latista.Our U16 and Senior squads are playing in the Wirral Schools Senior Volleyball league and are currently sitting in top position after four rounds with two

HOCKEYYear 8 Team

The hockey players have enjoyed some expert coaching this year on Wednesday afternoons. Mike has helped the girls develop complex skills and understand both the indoor and outdoor game better. The Year 8 team have enjoyed continuing success and despite losing 6 – 5 to Birkenhead Academy in a very tough match have won the majority of their matches, scoring 7 goals against Oldershaw school earlier in the season. The Year 7 team have played some indoor and outdoor matches against local, rival schools and are improving rapidly. Practices will continue after Easter

as many of our Year 7 girls they have sampled hockey for the first time this term.

Earlier in the season Annie Johnson and Alex Moore were selected to play hockey for Cheshire. They are currently enjoying this privilege and the improvement they have made is also having a positive impact on the girls they play with in school. Congratulations Annie and Alex.

Coaches’ player of the seasonAnnie Johnson

Most improvedAlex Moore

Year 7 TeamCoaches’ Player

Megan CroneMost improved Player

Ruby Garrigan


BASKETBALLBasketball County Finals

On Friday the 1st of February the Under 13 Basketball team travelled to Woodchurch High School to take part in the County Schools’ Basketball tournament. They beat Prenton in the district round to qualify for the competition and faced the best school from each of the districts in the county: North Sefton, South Sefton, South Wirral, Liverpool and Knowsley.

The team was made up of Connie Hawley and Ella O’Toole who play for Chester jets and Bulldogs respectively. Becky Helsby, Lizzie Forshaw, Erin Taylor, Jenny Wise and Jenny Arthur from Year 8 who have been attending practices in school since September and Ruth Hughes and Rebecca Williams from Year 7.

The team worked well together and despite it being some of the girls’ first Basketball games they were not intimidated. They battled to win their first game 13 – 11, just one basket. After this though the team found their stride and couldn’t stop scoring. All players contributed with Ruth being our most consistent scorer, Lizzie and Becky doing some excellent work in defence and Erin playing excellently through the middle of the court.

In two of their games the team scored over 40 points! They finished the tournament as County Champions and qualify for the regional competition. They will be training hard in preparation for this. Congratulations girls, well played!

Year 11 TeamThe year 11 team have remained

committed to training and their club this term. T h e y h a v e p l a y e d m a t c h e s a g a i n s t Woodchurch girls and boys teams, Wirral boys and St Marys. They beat the girls but lost narrowly to the boys teams. They have also helped in coaching and inspiring the younger players who are currently doing very well in the schools competition.

Regional BasketballOn Monday the 11th of March the Under

13 Basketball team travelled to King’s School Wakefield to play in their first regional basketball game. The team qualified for the regional rounds after winning the county tournament earlier in the season. Most of the team are relatively new to Basketball but they have transferred their athleticism and skill from a variety of other sports; especially netball and have developed into fantastic players. When we arrived at King’s we were slightly intimidated by their level of skill and full basketball kits however once they settled into the game the team couldn’t stop scoring. They scored a huge 65 points with Kings managing just 18 to win the game comfortably. They will now face Ellesmere Port Catholic High School who are renowned for their basketball however, if the team continue to play how they have been playing another win and a place in the zone round could be theirs.

Welsh InternationalBeth Taylor in Year 11 has been selected

to represent the Wales U18 Basketball Team. She was scouted during a tournament playing for her club Bulldogs and will now represent Wales at FIBA. A fantastic achievement, well done Beth!

Catholic HighThe big game arrived and the team who

knew some of the players from club basketball were excited for the challenge. The first quarter finished 10 – 10 a sign that the game would be as testing as we had imagined. A great second quarter from the visitors and we found ourselves down 20 – 10. It looked to be all over but determination, speed and quick thinking form Wirral brought the score back to 32 – 32 at full time! It was very tense but Wirral had the flow of the game, they drew on all their strength, speed and competitiveness to win in extra time 42 points to 36. This now qualifies the team for the North Zone rounds of the competition. They are the best U13 team in the region. Well done girls!

BADMINTONCounty Badminton Finals

On Friday the 8th of March our U16 Badminton team travelled to the Badminton Centre in Wigan to compete in the County r o u n d o f t h e N a t i o n a l S c h o o l s ’ Championships.

The team had qualified as the best team in Wirral and faced strong opposition from the other district winners. In our group we beat Rainhill, Broadgreen and Fazakerley easily but faced a very strong team from Greenbank school who won the contest and went through to the next round of the competition. 2nd in the group at this stage of the competition is a fantastic achievement. The team showed great teamwork and supported each other throughout the day. Three of the team will still be eligible to play in the competition next year. Well done girls.


FootballThe U13 footbal l team have progressed from 7 a side matches to adapt their play and compete in the knock out 11 a side tournament th is term; they have played matches against St Marys Wallasey and Ridgeway so far. The U16 team which includes a number of very talented players are due to play St Marys and Prenton after the Easter holidays. A large number of girls are participating in practices during lunchtimes and after school and they have shown good teamwork and commitment this season.

Indoor AthleticsOn the 16th of February Emily Darrock competed for Merseyside at the North West Regional Finals of the Indoor Athletics Championships in Wigan. She competed in the standing long jump, 2 lap race and 4 x 2 lap relay and she represented Merseyside as team captain. Emily made the final of the 2 lap race and completed the race in a time of 23.6 seconds; she came 5th however the winning time was 23.5 seconds; what a close race! In the standing long jump Emily leaped a huge 2 metres 30cms to win the gold medal. She is now ranked best in the North and 2nd in the country in

this event. The county team were third overall, well done to Emily for these fantastic achievements.

Sports Hall Athletics County FinalsBoth our Year 7 and 8 Indoor athletics team successfully qualified for the Merseyside Schools Final which took place on Tuesday the 4th of March at Leasowe leisure centre. Both teams performed exceptionally well, having already triumphed over strong opposition in the district round. The year 7 team came 6th overall and the year 8 team came 3rd, missing out on a final place by only 1 point. With every team scoring around 300 points this was a narrow and a tough defeat! There were standout performances on the day from Emily Darroch, Ella Johnson, Sophie McAvoy, Juliet Hodder, Ruth Hughes and Rosie Hurst.

Cross CountryWe would like to thank all the girls

that have taken part in cross country this year come rain or shine, and often snow! The season began with weekend races in L i v e r p o o l i n w h i c h P h o e b e Ashworth, Juliette Hodder and Faye Hank inson qua l i fied fo r the Merseyside schools team. Further races were also held at Arrowe Park where the girls produced some fantastic times and we hope for this to continue into the athletics season. Lizzie Forshaw coming in 3rd and 5th and Juliette Hodder securing a couple of 2nd place finishes.

In the Merseyside Cross Country League Juliet Hodder has finished the league ranked 3rd in the county, picking up a bronze medal. She has now been selected to represent Merseys ide in Regional and National competitions. In the open section Sophie Tarver won a silver medal has also been selected for M e r s e y s i d e a f t e r f a n t a s t i c performances in the League. Both girls competed in the Inter-counties Cross Country Championships in Birmingham on the 9th of March.

Huge thanks must also go to our games prefect Faye Morrison and Freddie Neal for their help with c r o s s c o u n t r y , t h e y h a v e encouraged and inspired our younger runners, well done girls and a big thank you.


National Schools’ TrampoliningOn Saturday the 19th of January a group of

girls from Wirral competed in the Northern zone round of the National Schools’ Trampolining competition. They qualified for this competition by winning the regional round last term. In the elite team competition Chloe Farthing, Lucy Steele, Katy Oake and Ellie Parr were victorious.

Charlie Simms won the elite U18 category and Chloe Farthing came 3rd in the junior elite category. Overall the team finished in 1st position and will now represent Wirral Grammar School for Girls and the North in the National Finals in March. Congratulations girls, an outstanding achievement.

The National Schools Trampolining Finals were held on Saturday March 9th in Stoke. Wirral had qualified for this by being placed in the North West Schools and the Northern Zone Championships. We were represented in the individual competitions by Charlie Simms in the U19 Elite Competition and Chloe Farthing in the U14 Elite Competition. Chloe also participated in the U14 team competition with Lucy Steele, Ellie Parr and Katie Oakes. Charlie finished in a

fabulous 3rd position and Chloe 7th in the country. The U14 team also performed fantastically well to finish in 3rd position.

Congratulations and well done to all the girls.

Wirral Schools Floor and Vault Gymnastics CompetitionThe Wirral Schools Floor and Vault Competition took place at Weatherhead High School on Tuesday 12th February. Several schools across the Wirral took part and all competitors demonstrated a very high level of skill on both the Floor routines and the Vault.Our competitors produced outstanding performances in both areas, the results were as follows:In Y7 Lucy Steele was placed 1st in Set 3 Floor and Vault and Lucy Howard was placed 1st in Set 1 Floor and Vault. In Y8 Katie Oake was placed 3rd in Set 3 Floor and Vault, Ella Jayne Hamer was placed 2nd in Set 3 Floor and Vault and Christa Neill was placed 2nd in Set 4 Floor and Vault. In Y 10 Claudia Barlett was placed 1st in Set 4 Floor and Vault and in Y 11 Sophie MacClaren was placed 1st in Set 3 Floor and Vault.Well done also to Faye Hankinson, Emily Maxwell, Rosie Hartwell, Chloe Farthing and Lydia Price (Year 7) on their fantastic performances. Congratulations to all the girls who took part.

GYMNASTICS

HandballWirral Schools Handball Tournament

This year we entered the Wirral Schools’ Handball Tournament for the first time. In year 10 pupils have the opportunity to sample handball in their games lessons and many of our older girls have found that they have a real aptitude and passion for the sport. A number of our Year 10 girls have progressed to play club

handball and last year Lottie Hardwick was selected to play for England.

In the tournament the team faced opposition from Woodchurch and Oldershaw, they beat Oldershaw comfortably, winning 7 - 2. Woodchurch put up a good fight but Wirral came through to win 3 - 2. Congratulations to Izzy Nolan, Phoebe Bryan, Lydia Edgar, Lottie Hardwick, Harriet Hughes, Anna Welsh and Sarah Buckley.

kwik cricketU13’s have won the Wirral round of Kwik

cricket and are through to the Cheshire rounds on 20th March. The team includes: Rebecca Helsby, Rosie Stothard, Georgia Wake, Ella Johnson, Annie Johnson, Erin Taylor, Emily Darroch, Jenny Hanton-Wise, Sal Mirales and Sophie Macavoy.


INTERFORMYear 9 Comic Relief Interform

The Year 9 ‘Comic Relief’ Interform took place on Friday 15th March. All girls participated and represented their form in Volleyball, Netball and Handball. Each form made a voluntary contribution for the event and we managed to raise £98 for Comic Relief.

Although the weather was poor the rain didn’t dampen any spirits. The girls played enthusiastically throughout the tournament and produced some pleasing team performances in all sports.

The results were as follows:• 6th place with 29 points – 9M • 5th place with 36 points – 9E• 4th place with 37 points – 9B • 3rd place with 43 points – 9C• 2nd place with 50 points – 9L• 1st place with 64 points – 9JCongratulations to 9J who finished as the overall winners and well done to all the girls who took part.

Year 8 InterformYear 8 Interform took place on Tuesday

19th March. Year 8 is a very sporty year group and all girls were extremely enthusiastic, organised and competitive despite the weather being dreary. The girls chose to compete in netball, hockey or volleyball and they competed against all the other form groups. The overall results can be seen below:• 6th place with 24 points – 8S• 3rd place with 44 points – 8E• 5th place with 36 points – 8F• 4th place with 39 points – 8B • Joint 1st place with 57 points – 8M and 8C

Well done to all involved and big thanks to all the umpires and helpers from Year 9 and 10 who ensured the smooth running of the tournament.

Year 7 InterformYear 7 Interform took place on Monday

18th March. The girls were extremely enthusiastic and competitive. All girls participated and represented their form in Netball, Hockey and Volleyball.

The results were as follows:• 6th place with 29 points – 7G• 5th place with 36 points – 7P• 4th place with 37 points – 7L• 3rd place with 43 points – 7W• 2nd place with 50 points – 7H• 1st place with 64 points – 7S

DANCE FEVER 2013This year’s dance show was an astounding success. Over 400 girls participated over the two nights. A range of dancers showcased their talents and demonstrated projects they have been working on in curriculum time, dance club and GCSE dance.The show included a variety of dance styles and performances from musical theatre to contemporary from Bollywood to Charleston. The dance community pulled together to ensure the show ran smoothly; sixth form girls helped out, staff served refreshments and manned the backstage. The show sold out both nights with a supportive crowd of parents, friends and family. Well done to all involved.

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