The Salopian no. 157 - Winter 2015

46
SCHOOL NEWS
Hockey
1st XI
The 1st XI squad have made steady
progress all season with their new
coach, Emma Davis. At the beginning
of term, she introduced a new playing
formation and set of tactics which
the girls took some time to adjust to.
However, things have really started
to click with the 1st XI and they have
certainly started to work well together
as a unit and produce some great
performances.
There are a number of new faces in this
year 1st XI and a few of them are new
to hockey. Yet they have worked hard
all season to refine their skills and earn
their place in the team. This season
the squad has been captained by Amy
Mobley (EDH) and Jess Moeran (G).
The girls have worked closely with Miss
Davis to push the squad.
On 9th November the girls travelled
to King’s High School for Girls in
Nottingham for the Midlands Regionals.
In their first match against Oakham,
they started slowly and although they
picked up the pace, at half time they
were down 2-1. This was a frustrating
game as the girls managed to get
within their attacking D but struggled to
convert goals. The final score was 1-3
to Oakham. A slow start but the girls
were determined and playing well.
Their second match versus King’s High
was a dip in the day, with the final
score 5-0 to King’s. But their third game
versus Solihull was much better – the
final score being 2-0 to Solihull. There
were a strong side but the girls raised
their game and played their hockey.
The Shrewsbury defence put in a strong
performance to survive a number of
short corners. Even though the girls
lost this game they were in high spirits.
They played well as a squad and
supported play when required.
Their final game versus Nottingham
High School resulted in a win for
Shrewsbury (2-0). They found their
rhythm and the hockey on display was
great to watch.
The girls have gone from strength to
strength this season and with wins over
Oswestry School (5-0) and Bedstone
College (3-0), the girls are in high
spirits. There are some very strong and
talented U15s and U14s developing
through the School – it is an exciting
time for hockey at Shrewsbury. With
the new hockey astro due to be
complete and in use by September
2016, this will mean that we will be
able to provide more specialised
training and matches.
In August 2016 the School’s first full
Hockey Tour will take place. Girls
between Third Form and the Lower
Sixth will have the opportunity to train
and compete in Valkenburg, Holland in
the week.
1st XI Hockey Squad 2015:
Amy Mobley, Jess Moeran, Imogen
Evans, Sophie Cormack, Emily
Skelton, Sarah Jackman, Jemima Price,
Nell Kirkby, Poppy Holbrook, Katie
Edwards, Morgan Butler, Amelia Binns,
Molly Beharrell, Sasha Lo, Caroline
Reid, Maddie Phillips, Ruchi Scott.
Junior Hockey
During the October half term exeat,
Lilleshall National Sports Centre
hosted the Shropshire County Hockey
Tournaments for U14 and U16 teams.
A number of our regular players were
unavailable to play, so we fielded just
one mixed Third and Fourth Form in
the U16 tournament. Despite only
having 11 players and all the girls
playing at a higher age group, the team
performed exceptionally well, winning
through to the final, where they just lost
out 0-1 to a strong Moreton Hall side.
This meant that Shrewsbury qualified
for the Regional Midlands round at this
age group for the first time.
The U16 Midlands tournament
took place at Repton School on 5th
November. We drew our first game
against Leek High School, won the
second game against Nottingham High
School 1-0 and lost the final one against
Repton 0-2. Although we just missed
out on qualifying for the next round
on goal difference, this was a solid
performance from our young team.
All the girls involved are still eligible for
this tournament next year, when
we hope to go one step further.