GIRLS’ SPORTS REPORTS 02/03/15

NETBALL

North West Netball Finals:
U19 – 3rd in SectionThe 1st team began the tournament slowly and lost the first game 8-5 to a Fallibroome side who were not the better team, after some strong words a much better performance followed and we beat The Range School 11-4.  

Next up were Loretto Grammar, so far unbeaten, a physical side who boasted some regional players, a tight match ensued with end to end play finishing cruelly with a 10-9 loss, Loretto went on to win the tournament and make National Finals.  

Our final game against Cardinal Newman saw us play some fluid netball, an injured Churchouse and Holdsworth holding up the defending circle, but again a loss 8-6 which put us out of semi final contention.  

No excuses today, we had players injured and ill but still had the capability to qualify, took us too long to get into our stride and we need to work on turning on our game against every opposition not just the stronger ones.

LS

U16 – 3rd in section
The U16 squad played really well and they raised their game to compete with the best in the North West. The first match was against Range and we started with Russell and Lewin shooting, Preston C, Preston L & Thomas in centre court with Turner & Holdsworth in defence. At half-time we were a narrow margin of 3-2 up after taking time to settle.

Bell came on at WA, Holliday to GK and Turner switched from defence to attack. The changes worked and we pulled away to a 9-3 victory giving us confidence.

The next match was a very different standard and speed and Fallibroome were outstanding, giving us little chance to get into the game. An 18-1 loss was hard to take after playing so well and errors were forced by the potential winning team.

Time to regroup and we took heart from the fact that our next opponents, Westholme had also been beaten by the same scoreline. We were determined to play our best and we played fantastic attacking netball pulling away to a well deserved 10-7 win. The team selection worked well with Turner, Lewin, Bell, Preston, Thomas, Holdsworth & Holliday.

In the final match we were quickly behind and we needed more height in the defensive D so a switch of Russell back into attack and Turner to defence pulled the match back to a 7-11 loss.

Sadly we missd out in going through to the semi-finals on goal average and Westholme & Fallibroome went through. It could not have been closer. Fallibroome were eventual winners; they were National Runners Up last year.  Player of the day – Tabitha Holdsworth but the whole squad were fantastic in their attitude, commitment and effort. 9/12 will have a second chance next year as they are in year 10. 

HJC

U14 – 3rd in section
An easy start to the regional finals saw Sedbergh get their first comfortable win against Chesterfield with a final score of 11-1. With spirits high, Sedbergh had a strong first quarter against Christleton however, basic errors and several failed backline attempts in the second half cost Sedbergh a 7-9 defeat.

Sedbergh then went on to play Hulme Grammar who were a small but strong side. Sedbergh were easily muscled off the ball and lacked drive and strength through court, with the final score 4-10 to Hulme.

With two defeats Sedbergh needed a win to build confidence. The next opponents were King William who gave Sedbergh a competitive game. Smooth sets of play and high shooting accuracy from McGuire and Whitfield saw Sedbergh take a 6-3 lead going into the second half.

Sedbergh remained focused for the remaining 7 minutes however could have increased the score line.  Sedbergh’s final match was against local rivals Stonyhurst, who took a win over Sedbergh two weeks earlier.

Stonyhurst always pushing Sedbergh to their limits and a very physical match pushed the brown girls throughout the 14 minutes, however some excellent marking from Elissa Baxter gave Sedbergh the lead and denied Stonyhurst vital goals. Controlled play and consistent shooting from McGuire saw Sedbergh take an 8-5 win.

Overall many positives taken from the day with CSPS girls Dale and Heathcoat stepping up and giving strong contributions to the squad. Sedbergh marginally missed out on a semi final position to Christleton who went through to the finals. Vital lessons to be taken from the day with some great performances and upcoming talent for the Sedbergian future.

ATH


2nds v St Peter’s  Lost 45-17

U15B v St Peter’s  Won 33-20

U15b started the first quarter with an excellent centre court combination of Sykes and Coulthard feeding ball into the circle for on form Bridle to secure a strong lead. Changes in the St. Peter’s team caught us by surprise in the second quarter with a very strong centre making exceptional use of all centre passes and opening up play considerably.

Too many loose balls and poor passes kept the ball out of our circle and allowed at Peter’s to win the quarter. In the third and fourth quarter the team fought hard and despite an increasingly physical game maintained clean possession and defended effectively.  Final score was 33-20. An excellent team performance in both attack and defence. TAG

U14B v St Peter’s
Sedbergh got off to a good start, but lost a little composure towards the end of the first quarter and for most of the second. This is when St Peter’s took control of the game. Sedbergh came back strongly to win the third quarter convincingly before succumbing to composed shooting at the other end.

Most of our players were on average a foot shorter than their opposite numbers yet the Sedbergh youngsters put up a spirited fight. Movement around the court was usually slick and assured and the girls worked hard to find space for each other.

Perhaps my eyes deceived me but I am sure I saw Gemma Hill scurry between her opponents’ legs at one point. Without a substitute, all girls stayed on court for the duration of the match and their fitness really did them credit.

Christina Peart had a good shooting game, ably backed up by Hill who moved excellently around the D. At the opposite end, Alex Clifton and Amy Slattery worked tirelessly to pin down the St Peter’s tall shooters; their hard work certainly limited the damage.

In the middle, Jemima Cookson was up against a statuesque Peter’s centre but she made the most of her speed and agility to set up some lovely Sedbergh attacks.

Emilia Page closed down her WA for much of the game and read the play very well to make some telling interceptions at key moments. Ruby Page always seemed to be in the right place at the right time, and played a composed game at WA making some great attacking passes.

The final score reflected St Peter’s quality and their height advantage, but the Sedbergh girls worked hard and should be proud of their performance.

PJFP


LACROSSE

National Schools Lacrosse Championships
The Nationals Schools Championships is the highlight of the Lacrosse calendar. A well organised event that hosts a huge number of talented teams offering exciting competition. The first day of the championships sees teams split into sections and Sedbergh were competing alongside Stowe, St James, St Barths, St Helen & Katherines, Lady Eleanor Holles and Bedford for the top of the section. 

The games challenged the Sedbergh girls like never before and they responded to each game with grit and determination. Sedbergh’s defence was outstanding throughout the day and never wavered. Georgie Snowden, Abi Quigley, Ella Dennison, Sophie Webber and Megan Kenyon made up the foundations of this reliable unit and together they slowed down fast breaks, intercepted passes, covered key players and cleared the ball out of danger consistently. 

Sedbergh’s attack took a little longer to respond to the demands of the game and the midfield struggled to keep possession of the ball but as the day went on they settled into their style of play and the ball began to move freely up the pitch into attacking play allowing Eliza Hodgson to play her signature shovel shot but unfortunately the goal was disallowed.

The most valuable player of the day had to be Sophie Woof in goal who made a number of incredible saves that could have doubled the oppositions score line!  Despite their efforts Sedbergh lost their games and were placed in Divison 3 on the second day of the tournament.

This meant that the competition was more evenly matched and Sedbergh stood a good chance of progressing through the knockout stages. Sedbergh began the second day the way they finished the first – with fire in their bellies.

With a few position changes the midfield and attack came out fighting against St Swithun’s and Claremont, the other teams in Pool B.
Nicole Jefferies took control of the draw and Amber Clarke-Williams and Katie Barker were quick to the ball and hustled all the way to the restraining line.

The attack found space and made great use of behind the goal which gave Abi Quigley the opportunity to come up the field and score an excellent quick stick goal from a feed behind in the St Swithun’s game. Sedbergh held Claremont to a goal-less first half but Claremont came out firing and managed to score four quick goals in the second half seeing them into the top of the Pool. Both games were tight on the pitch with the ball constantly being fired from one end to the other.

The first stage of the knockout round Sedbergh played Bradfield in their most exciting game of the tournament. Sedbergh put into play everything they had learnt over the tournament and displayed great team work all over the field.

Unfortunately, a momentarily lapse in Sedbergh’s defence allowed for a quick goal from Bradfield and with this they found momentum to break to goal and score on a few more occasions. Sedbergh responded with a sneaky goal from Georgie Snowden but it was too late as Bradfield had taken the lead to win the game.

The girls came off the pitch smiling as they had achieved so much in that game and throughout the whole tournament and have become a much stronger team as a result.   RPM

Results:
Day one – 7th in Section
Day Two – St Swithuns – 1-4                 Claremont  – 0-4                       Bradfield – 1-4 

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