SPORTS AWARDS EVENING - 12th July

Students’ hard work and triumphs recognised during night of sporting celebrations

Another fantastic year of sport for Congleton High School was celebrated this evening in the company of a football legend. Former footballer Cyrille Regis was the evening’s special guest and not only presented the awards, but inspired students as he reflected on his remarkable career and life.

The evening started with a delicious three-course meal for the guests, award winners and their families, provided by Year 10 catering students. After the meal the awards ceremony commenced, which was an opportunity for CHS to celebrate the sporting success of students both inside and outside of school.

Mrs Salt, curriculum team leader for PE, started the evening by giving a brief summary of what has been another “really busy year” for the school’s PE department. She said that there have been “many sporting successes and leadership opportunities” for students that have contributed to the school’s “growing reputation” in the local area in addition to the school being represented both regionally and nationally.

Mrs Salt added that highlights of the year had been the ski trip to France, the recent football and netball tour to Barcelona and finishing runner-up in the School of the Year award at the Everybody Sports Awards. She also revealed exciting plans for the year ahead including the creation of a sport academy combined with improved facilities, including a 3G pitch and a 150 seat stand.

The evening’s special guest was then introduced to the audience who were treated to a video featuring the many highlights and goals Cyrille Regis scored in his illustrious career. The video could have easily been extended by another 20 minutes considering he spent 19 years as a professional footballer, including 16 years in the top-flight, playing over 600 games, scoring 158 goals and representing England on five occasions.

Regis gave students and parents an insight into how football has changed from the 1980s, how he stayed motivated during the many challenges he had to face, including racism. He explained how faith had a huge impact on his life following the death of his friend and teammate Laurie Cunningham and how God has given everybody a gift.

The former footballer certainly knows talent when he sees it having become a football agent after he retired in the late 1990s. His clients include some of the world’s most talented footballers, including the world’s most expensive player Gareth Bale. However, he said that talent alone is not enough to succeed in football and only counts for 10% to 15%, adding that the rest comes from a person’s passion, desire, character, perseverance and attitude.

Students’ commitment, passion and talent for school sport were then recognised with over 120 students presented with awards including Contribution to Sport, Extra Curricular Awards, Player of the Year, Athlete of the Year and Sportsperson of the Year. Within ten minutes of the awards ceremony starting it was evident why Congleton High’s PE department has so much success in a wide range of sports. A number of students were invited to the stage, all of them playing for football academies, competing in sport at county and regional level with some students even competing nationally.

Team of the Year Award

Boys: The boy’s team of the year award went to the year 8 football team. The boys won their league, reached the final of the South Cheshire Cup and represented the school brilliantly on the recent Barcelona tour, not just on the pitch, but also their support for their colleagues from the stands.

One notable performance was their victory over Sandbach when they showed determination to succeed and ultimate resilience to come from two goals behind to beat their local rivals in extra-time.

Girls: It was difficult to choose the winner of the girls ‘Team of the Year Award’ with a number of teams excelling in netball. However, one team stood out with the year 8 netball team performing exceptionally well throughout the year.

They were not only crowned South Cheshire champions, but they dealt extremely well with the challenge of competing in a new and more competitive league. They more then held their own, winning the league and being promoted to the ‘A’ league next season.

Daniel Sturridge Rising Star Award

‘The Daniel Sturridge Rising Star Award’ is named after former CHS student and Liverpool and England striker, Daniel Sturridge and this year the award went to another student who represents England, Ramtin Musah.

Ramtin excels in boxing and is certainly one to watch out for in the future as he looks to become the next Anthony Joshua. A record of just one loss in 12 fights (the one loss coming to the Commonwealth champion) this year has seen the year 11 student ranked number one in the UK for his age category. He has represented England on the international stage and is also a two-time North West champion and currently holds two belts for the region.

The Lynda Arnold Award

The ‘Lynda Arnold Award’ is the most coveted award and is named after former PE teacher Lynda Arnold and is awarded to the student who has shown outstanding contribution to school sport. I was very surprised and honoured to receive this year’s award for my work promoting and recognising school sport through the CHS sports blog.

Mrs Salt ended the evening by thanking the PE staff before paying an emotional tribute to PE teacher Mr Cross who is leaving to take up the role of director of PE and sport in a school in Spain in September.

Written by Adam Bailey

TRIP TO WIMBLEDON - 8th July

Students inspired by trip to Wimbledon

 

Eight lucky year 9 students were inspired recently after having the amazing experience of visiting Wimbledon on semi-finals day. The school had applied for tickets through the LTA (Lawn Tennis Association) ballot for school tennis members and won ten tickets for the prestigious tennis tournament.

Soaking up the atmosphere at one of sport’s most iconic venues is enough to inspire anyone and the chance to watch the world’s best players was a dream come true for members of the school's  tennis club.

The students were allowed the unique opportunity of watching world number two Andy Murray practising before his semi-final match against Tomas Berdych. They then came within touching distance of the 2013 champion as he made his way from the training court to the locker room, signing items on his way.

The students then took their seats on Court One to watch both ladies doubles semi-finals, including superstar sisters, Venus and Serena Williams. Away from the tennis stars, the students kept their eyes peeled for other celebrities and sporting stars as they wandered around SW19 and posed for a photograph with Welsh rugby player Dan Biggar.

Written by Adam Bailey

SPORTS DAY 2016 - 5th July

Sports Day 2016 ‘one of the closest in a long time’

The world’s best athletes will go head-to-head in Rio de Janeiro next month, but while there may not be an Olympic title at stake on school sports day, the competition was just as high as students looked to claim both individual and team glory. In fact, Mr Barlow said that it was the closest sports day, in terms of points between form groups, for a long time.

The first part of the morning saw the field events take place with students participating in high jump, long jump, discus, javelin and shot put. After the conclusion of the field events, the whole school made their way onto the field to support their friends and colleagues. The opening events on the track were won by Josie Robertson (year 8) and Ruby Spencer (year 9) in the girls 800m, while Spencer Sheard (year 7) and Matt Owen (year 8) triumphed in the boys’ event.

Although the rain did hold off for the day, the events took place in difficult conditions; with rain in previous days leading to soft and damp conditions underfoot. The conditions didn’t, however, stop school records being broken.  Year 7 students Joe Ayre and Fin Stratford set new records in the 200m and 1500m respectively. Joe beat Elliott Darman’s 2013 time by 1.03 seconds, while Finn set a new 1500m record in a time of 5 minutes, 20 seconds, beating Jack Farrall’s record from last year by 9 seconds.

1500m

The one event that only a small minority want to compete in is the 1500m, the dreaded three and three quarter laps around the track. Harper Whitehead, however, made the event his own in the year 9 race. Harper is used to difficult conditions having represented Cheshire in the English Schools’ Cross-Country Championships earlier this year and he ran a strong 1500m. The field was bunched crossing the finish line for the first time, but Harper soon increased the tempo and was unchallenged as he pulled out an advantage over the rest of the field.

100m and 200m

The 100m is the most prestigious and shortest running event on the schedule and saw Meera Shanati (year 9), George Johnson (year10) and Lydia Eardley (year 10) all record convincing victories. In the 200m, Lexi Harrison won by some margin in the year 9 girls race, while Daniel Sturridge’s 200m year 9 school record still stands despite a strong performance by Lewis Eaton.

Megan Sheard changed disciplines this year, but still managed to win just as emphatically. The year 10 student has previously run the 1500m and still holds the year 7 school record for the event, but she opted to switch from endurance to sprint this year. She won the year 10 girls 200m convincingly proving her ability as a strong all round athlete. In the year 10 boys 200m, there was an unconventional technique on show as one student ran the event backwards! I wonder whether we will be seeing any athletes running backwards in Rio?

Overall standings

Heading into the relay events the tutor standings were very close with just a couple of points separating the top few tutor groups in each year. However, with relays worth double points, that could still have all changed.

After the relays had been run and all results had been verified, the moment everybody was wanting for arrived...the final results.

There were just two points separating the top-five tutor groups, with 7ZGr beating 7HV and 7CT by one point to claim the year 7 title with 130 points. Year 8 was not as close, however, with 8KJE’s total of 136 points beating 8CE by six points. Year 9 was much more convincing with 9SDR taking the year 9 title by a 20 point margin, while 10JC were the victorious tutor group in year 10 once again.

Written by Adam Bailey

SOUTH AFRICA'S YOUNG RUGBY STARS VISIT CHS - 16th June

Students learn from South Africa’s young rugby stars

 

 

Five of South Africa’s next generation of rugby union stars provided students at Congleton High School with a rugby masterclass on Thursday (16 June).

The Junior Spingboks are currently competing in the World Rugby Under-20 Championships in Manchester and booked a place in the semi-finals with a 40-31 victory over France on Wednesday night.

Fresh from securing a semi-final spot, vice-captain Junior Pokomela, winger Mosolwa Mafuma, prop Kwenzo Blose, lock Eduard Zandberg and scrumhalf Marco Janse van Vuren all took time out from their busy schedule to share their knowledge and passion for the sport with close to 80 CHS students.

The South African’s led a training session for the students where they taught the pupils a range of rugby skills and participated in a series of touch rugby matches. Their visit to Congleton also coincided with South Africa’s Youth Day.

Speaking to the South African rugby's official website, Pokomela said: “Youth Day is an important day in South Africa’s history, so it was special for us to mark the occasion by spending the morning with the Congleton High School pupils. We may be far away from home, but it was important for us to celebrate the day, especially since we also represent the South African youth.”

South Africa play England on Monday (20 June) at Manchester City’s Academy Stadium for a place in the final in what promises to be an entertaining and enthralling game of rugby that sees CHS’ loyalties split!

Written by Adam Bailey

2016 BARCELONA TOUR - May 2016

Unforgettable days of sport and fun in the Spanish sunshine

 

There are many sporting enrichment opportunities offered to students at Congleton High School, but not all trips provide unforgettable days of sport and fun both on and off the field in glorious Spanish sunshine.

But over sixty students experienced just that on a fun-filled sports tour to Barcelona during half-term. The school’s football and netball teams developed their skills during training and fixtures and had the added bonus of experiencing a different culture and exploring the iconic city of Barcelona.

After what turned out to be a mammoth coach journey (24 hours, 20 minutes to be precise) following air strikes in Europe forced the PE department to change their travel plans at the last minute, the staff and students enjoyed glorious weather and an action packed three days.

Not only did CHS have to adapt to the climate, but also the sporting culture and style that Spanish teams are renowned for. The “tiki-taka” style of play (short passing and movement, while maintaining possession) was a very different sort of contest than what they were used to back home in Cheshire playing against other local schools and local clubs.

CHS more than held their own, though, in what were, as expected, very competitive games. Year 8 particularly impressed and were reminiscent of FC Barcelona in an emphatic 4-0 victory in their second fixture with a brilliant performance to match. Off the pitch, The “Congy Ultras” were in fine voice supporting CHS’ boys and girls from the stands as can be seen here.

Meanwhile, CHS’ netballers participated in training sessions with England Netball qualified staff, who said that they “really enjoyed” working with the students because of the “high standard” of coaching and discipline the students have received back home, which is a testament to the PE department. They also took part in fixtures against local Spanish teams and modelled their new kit.

As well as the sporting fixtures, the students also experienced the Spanish culture including a day in Barcelona visiting the vibrant La Rambla, a Segway tour of the city and of course no football tour would be complete without a visit to the iconic Nou Camp stadium, home to Barcelona.

Written by Adam Bailey

ENGLISH SCHOOLS' TRACK AND FIELD CUP - 11th May

Excellent individual performances in ESAA Track and Field Cup

Nearly 50 students represented Congleton High School in the first round of the English Schools’ Track and Field Cup held at Macclesfield Athletics Track this week. The inter boys finished fourth overall, while the junior boys and girls finished sixth and there were some outstanding individual performances.

On the track, George Johnson finished first in the 100m with a time of 11.8 seconds, while Harper Whitehead, who competed at the English Schools’ Cross Country championships earlier this year, finished second in the 1500m. Harper had to show determination and a turn of speed to beat Sam Hanson from The County High School, who finished just one second behind Whitehead’s time of 4 minutes, 44 seconds.

In the junior category, Jack Farrall finished fourth in the 1500m with a time of 5 minutes and four seconds. Ruby Spencer produced an impressive performance to win the 800m in two minutes, 44 seconds, while Abi McCusker finished third in the 100m with a time of 14 seconds exactly. Recognition also goes to Mia Donathy who completed the 1500m in five minutes, 57 seconds.

In the field events, Lewis Halliday was edged into second in the shot putt by just one centimetre after throwing a distance of 11.68 metres. There was no beating Ru Morgan in the junior boys’ competition. The year 8 student won the shot with a distance of 10.54 metres, while Joel Whitehurst finished fourth after throwing 9.37 metres.

Well done to everyone who participated in the English Schools Track and Field Cup you can all be very proud of your performances!

Written by Adam Bailey

FOOTBALL: WELLACRE ACADEMY 1-2 CONGLETON COLLEGE

Spirited comeback earns College victory

The Congleton College’s Football Academy moved to third in the English Colleges Football Association league on Wednesday after a spirited comeback against Wellacre Academy.

The newly formed college has only been offering the BTEC Level Three diploma in Performance and Exercise course since September and they showed great character recovering from a goal inside the first minute to take a hard-fought three points.

Congleton could be forgiven for thinking it was not going to be their afternoon when Wellacre took the lead after just forty seconds with a long range effort, but there was still a lot of football to be played in what turned out to be an entertaining affair.

Adam McHale drew the visitors level with a low driven shot and either side could have taken the spoils in an end-to-end game that saw both teams thwarted on several occasions by the woodwork. Daniel Needham saw his volley ricochet off the crossbar, while, Congleton goalkeeper, Hallam Carslake had to be on top form to deny Wellacre retaking the lead.

Congleton’s determination was rewarded, however, when George Hooper clinically steered his left footed shot past the Wellacre goalkeeper at the back post. The win moves the College into third in the league with one league game left in what has been an extremely encouraging debut season.

Manager Mr Donnelly commented: “I was really pleased with the players' efforts and I think it is probably our best performance of the season. The players showed great commitment and stayed very disciplined, maintaining the team’s shape.”

Congleton College: Carslake, Buckley, Laird, Guillon, Lynn, Hooper, Archer, Reed, Needham, Meeten, McHale.

Written by Adam Bailey

FROM THE SKI SLOPES TO BBC BREAKFAST: ANOTHER BUSY TERM FOR CHS' PE DEPARTMENT

From the ski slopes to BBC Breakfast: another busy term for the PE department

 

“What hasn’t happened this term” the PE department said when reflecting back on another busy and successful term for Congleton High School. Skiing, netball, indoor rowing, indoor athletics, rugby, football, table tennis and even ‘footgolf’ feature in this term’s round-up!

Last month forty students, of varying degrees of ability and experience, enjoyed another highly successful ski-training course at France’s second oldest ski resort, Les Deux Alpes. The students endured challenging conditions, with the French weather being as unpredictable as the English, seeing rain and temperatures as high as 14 centigrade. This did not, however, dampen the students’ spirits, in fact it added to the experience, with every student advancing their skills while having great fun! Planning is already underway for next year’s trip (see Mr Naylor for a letter).

From the ski slopes of Les Deux Alpes to the netball courts of South Cheshire, students have flown the CHS flag proudly. And CHS’ netballers have every reason to look back on this term with pride as the sport continues to go from strength to strength at CHS. Moving leagues was always going to provide a greater challenge for the students and this was clear from the first round of fixtures. However, all of CHS’ teams look set to be promoted to the ‘A’ league next season heading into the final round of games. CHS have continued their domination in the knockout tournaments too, with year 9, year 8a and year 7a and b teams all being crowned South Cheshire champions this term.

The PE department are always looking for ways to widen the sport provision at the school and a few years ago they added indoor rowing to the school’s endless list of sports. The sport has not only seen high levels of participation, but also plenty of success and this term was no different. All of the teams won the level 2 competition at Sandbach and progressed to the Cheshire and Warrington competition at Ellesmere Port Sports Village. The students all did extremely well finishing runner-up in each of the four categories, while there were stand-out performances by year 10 student Megan Sheard and year 11 Ramtin Musah who both won their respective categories.

In indoor athletics, the year 7 girls team represented the Sandbach Partnership at the School Games at the Northgate Arena in Chester after winning the level 2 event, while the year 8 girls finished runners-up in the level 2 event.

Rugby has been under the media spotlight in recent weeks and not just because England completed their first Grand Slam since 2003. There have been calls for a change in the way that rugby is played at school, with doctors and academics calling for tackling to be banned. CHS’ staff and students expressed their views on the topic across various BBC platforms, including on BBC Breakfast and Newsround, and opposed changing the sport in schools. On the pitch, the year 7 and 8 boys’ rugby teams finished as runners-up in the North Staffordshire Schools Tournament, while year 7 won three of their five games in the emerging school rugby tournament.

In football, Congleton College have continued what can only be described as a mixed debut season, with a 2-2 draw against Stockport College and a 7-3 defeat to Knutsford Academy in their latest games. And with two games left against Wellacre and Elite Academy they will be hoping to finish the season strongly. Elsewhere, year 8 have a cup final to look forward to next month as they hope to add to CHS’ trophy cabinet with the South Cheshire Cup.

This term has also seen CHS’ fourth annual table tennis championships get underway. Over 100 students and staff have been going head-to-head in the opening rounds of the tournament, with a high standard of skill and talent on display. James Garside is targeting a third successive title, while Mr de Souza will be hoping to repeat his 2013 success and seek revenge after losing to James in the last two finals.

The community is also a vital part of CHS and this term has seen the school host a series of sports tournaments with the schools partner primary schools taking part. Quinta Primary School triumphed in the hockey tournament, while Black Firs won both the year 3/4 Brilliant Advice Football Tournament and the first ever year 1/2 sports hall athletics competition.

Finally, year 12 BTEC Sport students tried out the new ‘FootGolf’ course at Burnage Rugby Club. There were a range of techniques on show, but not all orthodox!

Written by Adam Bailey

MAKING THE HEADLINES: CHS TACKLE THE ISSUE OF RUGBY TACKLING ON NATIONAL TV

Students and staff tackle the issue of rugby tackling on national television

Tackling has been a fundamental component of rugby since the sport was first played in schools in the 19^th Century. However, a petition signed by over 70 doctors and academics has called for tackling to be banned from rugby matches played in schools. This made national headlines yesterday and Congleton High School’s staff and students were asked to express their views on the topic on national television.

The PE staff have worked tirelessly to promote rugby as one of CHS’ priority sports over recent years, with an emphasis on the core values of rugby (teamwork, respect, discipline, enjoyment and sportsmanship). The importance of coaching and leadership skills is taught and as students learn more about the game, then the safer the sport is likely to be. The school have also widened the provision of rugby, including different variations of the sport that help students to develop the skills needed to play the sport safely.

Earlier this year, I watched a year 7 and 8 rugby match against Wellington and not only was I impressed by the number of students participating in extra-curricular rugby, but also their enthusiasm for the sport. Every student commented on how much they enjoyed taking part in the match, especially the contact and physical element of the sport, which students do not experience while in Primary School.

Mr Cross, who has become a “celebrity” making his second appearance on the BBC Breakfast red sofa, had an early start as he was interviewed on the topic on national breakfast news. He told BBC Breakfast that contact in rugby helps to “build character” and that the “risk factor” is part of the sport. In his experience of both being a PE teacher and a qualified RFU rugby coach, he said that players “enjoy” the contact element of the game and added that he believes that some students “need” the physicality. Mr Cross also took the opportunity to give Breakfast presenters Dan Walker and Louise Minchin a RFU wristband that highlighted the core values of rugby union.

 

An argument for banning tackling in rugby is the risk of injury; however Mr Cross ruled that tackling can be safe and at CHS they put an emphasis on “minimising the risks” and making the risk of injury “as little as possible”. CHS ensure that all staff are trained, all students are aware and that when it is appropriate for them to go into a contact situation they have done all the progress towards minimising the risk of injury.

Following Mr Cross’ successful interview, BBC News at One featured a report consisting of footage of CHS’ year 7 rugby team in action and interviews with students about their views on tackling within the sport. Every student who was asked highlighted their support for tackling to remain in school rugby. You can watch what they had to say here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/35705225.

The year 7 rugby team were also filmed by CBBC Newsround taking part in a tackling tutorial and training drill in the sports hall, before interviewing Mr Cross and students for their thoughts. The full report can be watched here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/35704580.

What are your views on the topic? Should tackling be banned in school rugby? Share your comments below.

Written by Adam Bailey