Netball and Football seasons come to a close

U10 Football Festival at RGS

Wednesday afternoon saw eight boys from Year Five take the short journey to RGS The Grange to play in their U10 invitational football tournament. This was to be the boys’ last football fixture of this term, with the focus turning to cricket after Easter. Eight teams from different schools took part, and King’s St Alban’s were drawn in a tough pool against Warwick School, RGS A and The Elms, especially as two of these teams went on to play each other in the final.

The boys knew that it was potentially going to be quite a difficult afternoon, and that they would have to play their best football in every game in order to qualify for the semi-finals. After two tough opening losses against eventual finalists Warwick and RGS, the team were keen to finish their group games with a good performance against The Elms. Unfortunately, despite having plenty of possession, the boys were unable to convert their chances into goals, which allowed The Elms to score a couple of quick goals when they counter-attacked. Louie did come very close to scoring, though, when he took a shot from just inside our half which just went over the crossbar. Although the pitches were deemed playable, they were very muddy and slippery to play on, so all credit to the boys for showing great perseverance in difficult conditions!

After finishing fourth in their group, the boys were desperate to finish their football season on a high and not end their last match with a defeat. There was a renewed sense of energy in the fourth-place play-off against RGS’ B team, with Archie, Luca and Arlo making some solid tackles to win the ball and Will, Luca, Ben and Uriah all having chances and demonstrating great dribbling with the ball. However, some good goalkeeping and last-ditch defence from the RGS defenders and goalkeeper prevented St Alban’s from taking the lead. Harry D, who again played well in goal all afternoon, was then called upon to make several well-timed and crucial saves, which meant the match finished as a 0-0 draw. This was a great match against two teams of a similar ability, with St Albans showing fantastic effort, passion and determination, along with their best football of the afternoon. The draw was a fair result and meant that it was a nice way for the boys to finish their football for this academic year. They have made steady progress this term and have learnt valuable lessons about how to play tournament football at the various different football festivals in which they have taken part. Well done to Archie, Harry, Ben, Will, Luca, Louie, Uriah and Arlo, who all played well and tried their best for the team all afternoon, and thank you very much to all of the parents and grandparents who have come along to support the boys this term; your support is always very much appreciated! We are already looking forward to the forthcoming fixtures in the Summer Term, as the focus now shifts towards cricket.

U8 and U9 Netball v Winterfold House

On Tuesday, Winterfold brought all their Year Three and Four girls over to St Alban’s to play Bee Netball. It was great to have them all outside in the sunshine and playing a mixture of “Buzzers” and “Fliers” Netball.

Our Year Three girls have made so much progress with their catching and passing and are now confident when shooting and will always have a go. Julietta and Maddie are marking well, and made a number of interceptions. Daisy worked hard around the court, and identified the spaces well.

The Year Four girls all knew the positions well and understood where they were allowed to be. Hannah and Millie played particularly well together, moving the ball up court with careful passing and good forward movement. Well done to Millie, who was Player of the Match. The other Year Four team won 7-2, and they all contributed to the score sheet. They worked well together, moving the ball quickly up the court. Romi and Edith were awarded Player of the Match for their tenacious play and fast movement around the court.

U10A Netball v Winterfold

The member of staff from Winterfold was very impressed with the standard of this team’s play and thought they showed great potential for the future as a team. They were moving into space well, and Yifei was outstanding in defence, with some very impressive interceptions. Georgia and Skye played very well together around the circle, showing some mature play and working the circle as a pair. Charlotte should be complimented on her continuously high work level; she also tried to keep the momentum going in the last quarter as they started to lose some focus. They won 10-7, and Yifei was awarded Player of the Match.

U10B Netball v Winterfold

These girls have continued to impress this year, as their progress as a team has been outstanding. They work well as a team and encouraged each other. These two teams were very evenly matched, but after three periods they were 3-1 down. This didn’t really reflect the game, as the ball travelled from one end to the other. Rosie should be congratulated on her success in the circle, Tilly and Emily read the ball well and made some good interceptions of the ball, and Ariya was awarded Player of the Match for her all-round excellent play.

U11 Netball v Winterfold

The U11 girls travelled over to Winterfold for their last netball fixtures of the year. They started slowly and struggled to maintain possession for the whole of the first two quarters. We identified that we needed to work harder off the ball to create options, as this would enable us to keep the ball better and work our way down the court. We found ourselves down at half time but it was great to see the attitude of the KSA girls in the second half; they showed grit and determination to fight back and not give up. Emily S was superb at GK and GD, making a number of important interceptions and winning the ball back for KSA. Another stand out was Ellie B, who worked incredibly hard and impressed with her shooting skills, scoring six goals in the final quarter!