Sports Round Up of the Week

Athletics

King’s Hawford U11 athletes enjoyed a highly successful afternoon on Monday at the athletics meeting hosted by Winterfold House School at the Ryland Centre. Twenty children were selected to represent the school across a variety of track and field events, competing with great enthusiasm and determination throughout the afternoon.

The children demonstrated superb techniques alongside impressive levels of strength, speed, stamina and resilience, with many achieving new personal best performances in their respective events. The standard of competition was extremely high, yet the King’s Hawford athletes rose to the challenge brilliantly.

Special congratulations must go to Elise, Bella, Sam, Harry, Charles, Zara, Jasmine, Charlotte, Will G, Tilly, Abi, Alice and Florrie, who all achieved Mercia qualifying standards in at least one of their events — a fantastic achievement and a testament to their hard work and commitment.

A particular mention should go to Alice, who produced an outstanding long jump performance of 3 metres and 27 centimetres despite still being in Year 4 and competing against Year 6 pupils. This was an exceptionally impressive achievement and highlights her tremendous potential.

Overall, it was an excellent afternoon for the entire King’s Foundation. King’s Worcester was the only school in the city competing at both U11 and U14 level, with The King’s School Worcester senior school – made up of several former Hawford pupils – finishing as overall winners in the U14 category to round off a superb day of athletics success.

Cricket

U9 Girls’ Cricket v Blue Coat School

The U9 King’s Hawford girls enjoyed an excellent afternoon of cricket against Blue Coat School on Tuesday, showing great determination, teamwork and enthusiasm throughout the matches.

Mr Hodgkins’ Team

Mr Hodgkins’ team batted first and watched the ball carefully against a strong Blue Coat bowling attack, managing to strike the ball into spaces in the field to secure several runs. The girls communicated well when running between the wickets, with Rosie, Alice and Bella especially impressing with a variety of shots at the crease.

In the second innings, the girls showed super energy in the field and worked hard to develop both the accuracy and speed of their bowling. Highlights of the fielding innings included multiple run outs during overs from Isla and Rosie, as well as superb wickets from Martha, Alice and Tanith. Lily and Emily also made super progress with their bowling technique and accuracy.

At the end of the match, our opponents voted Alice as Batter of the Match and Rosie as Bowler of the Match following their outstanding performances. Overall, it was a fantastic team effort with all of the girls contributing brilliantly and continuing to develop their cricket skills with confidence.

Miss Lake’s Team

Miss Lake’s cricket team produced a great all-round performance in a competitive match against Blue Coat. Batting first, Aoife and Bonita-May opened confidently, communicating well and capitalising on some slower fielding to get the score moving.

Sadie and Bonnie continued the strong teamwork with sensible decision-making between the wickets. Maddie and returning batter Aoife added an impressive 20 runs in the final two overs, including a brilliant strike from Maddie for three runs after a misfield, followed by two superb fours from Aoife to finish the innings strongly.

In the second innings, the girls fielded with determination and concentration throughout. Bonita-May impressed with her committed fielding, while Bonnie, Indie and Syrenna made several accurate throws to reduce opportunities for runs to be made. Maddie opened her bowling superbly, taking a wicket early on, and Bonnie and Sadie responded well to coaching advice to improve their bowling accuracy. The team should be very proud of their achievements. Blue Coat awarded Players of the Match to Aoife for batting and Sadie for bowling. 

U10 Boys’ Cricket v Moor Park

King’s Hawford U10 boys travelled to Moor Park on Wednesday afternoon for an excellent fixture, producing a hugely encouraging performance in what was, for many of the boys, their first experience of hardball cricket. The team should be extremely proud of the effort, determination and progress they showed throughout the afternoon.

Fielding first, Hawford displayed superb energy and enthusiasm in the field. Thomas, Isaac, Joshy and Tom all showed impressive speed and athleticism to cut off boundaries and keep the pressure firmly on the Moor Park batsmen.

Moor Park’s opening pair batted confidently and built an impressive partnership before Will produced an excellent breakthrough, striking the stumps with the third ball of his second over. Soon afterwards, Bruce bowled an efficient spell which led to a sharp run out, while Charlie also caused problems for the batsmen with a couple of excellent deliveries that came close to taking wickets.

In reply, Will and Edward gave Hawford a solid start, rotating the strike sensibly and building confidence at the crease. Edward played a couple of beautifully timed shots off his hips into the leg side.

Although Hawford found it difficult to build sustained batting momentum against a strong Moor Park bowling attack, the boys continued to battle hard throughout the innings. Rupert helped settle things down with some confident strikes square of the wicket, while Joshy and Gabe both showed strong defensive technique and resilience at the crease.

Overall, this was a very positive afternoon and a superb learning experience for the Hawford boys, who showed excellent attitude, teamwork and determination from start to finish.

King’s Hawford U10 girls delivered a superb all-round performance in their away fixture against Moor Park, securing an impressive and well-deserved victory.

Captain Fliss won the toss and elected to field first, a decision that quickly paid dividends. Elise and Georgia opened the bowling with great control and accuracy, immediately putting Moor Park under pressure. Their disciplined lines and lengths limited scoring opportunities, while an early breakthrough came courtesy of a sharp run out involving Elise, setting the tone for the innings.

A brief interruption for rain saw the players take shelter in a wooden hut, but it did little to disrupt the team’s momentum. Once play resumed under brighter skies, the girls returned to the field with renewed focus and energy. Ellie and Rosie maintained the high standard, bowling tightly and keeping runs to a minimum, supported by constant encouragement and positive communication in the field.

The next bowling partnership of Fliss and Sylvie proved to be a turning point in the match. Sylvie produced an outstanding spell of accurate pace bowling, claiming two crucial wickets and significantly halting Moor Park’s progress. Simi and Elise then took responsibility for closing the innings, both demonstrating confidence and composure. Elise capped off the bowling effort in style with an excellent maiden over.

Chasing 237, King’s Hawford went into bat with confidence and a clear plan: communicate well and capitalise on every opportunity for runs. Elise and Georgia set the innings off brilliantly, running exceptionally well between the wickets and accumulating 20 runs in the opening three overs.

Ellie and Rosie built on this strong start, working cohesively to add a further 24 runs, showcasing both good shot selection and awareness between the wickets. Fliss and Sylvie continued the positive momentum, with Sylvie striking the first boundary of the match – a notable achievement given the particularly large outfield.

The final pairing of Elise and Simi brought the innings to a close. Despite the loss of a couple of wickets, the team remained comfortably ahead with 269 runs, ensuring a convincing win. Their composure under pressure highlighted the growing maturity and confidence within the squad.

It was a fantastic team performance, with every player contributing to the success. Special recognition went to Sylvie, named Bowler of the Match, and Simi, awarded Batter of the Match by the opposition.

A thoroughly deserved victory for King’s Hawford, and a performance that bodes very well for the remainder of the term.

U10 / U11 Girls’ Cricket v Moor Park

The mixed U10 and U11 side made an excellent start to the hardball season in their fixture against Moor Park. With many players experiencing their first hardball game of the year, the team showed great confidence, enthusiasm and skill throughout.

Moor Park chose to bowl first, and opening batting pair Adelyn K and Daisy got the innings underway brilliantly. Both players ran superbly between the wickets and played some lovely attacking shots to give the team a strong start. The rain was hit and miss throughout the game, but we continued and the team showed similar efforts in the field when bowling.

A special well done goes to Rosie H, who kept wicket for the first time and was involved in a hard earned run out.

Overall, it was a really positive start to the hardball cricket season, as the players executed their skills very well with lots of energy and enjoyment throughout the game.