The Salopian no. 160 - Summer 2017

OLD SALOPIAN NEWS 71
Aberconway Cup
This is the national Fathers and Sons /
Father and Daughters competition. This
year it was won by Grant Williams &
Guy Williams against the Salopian pair
of Mike Hughes & Chris Hughes. These
two pairs have won the competition a
total of ten times.
Veterans’ Cup
The over 40s’ national competition
(they don’t like it being called Veteran)
was won (again) by Grant Williams
and Mike Hughes. They have won the
competition a total of nine times (also
note that they are significantly older
than 40!) and Mike Hughes has won
the competition 10 times.
Varsity Fives
Not only has Shrewsbury produced
some of the best women players in
the country, they are also much more
intelligent than their male counterparts,
as shown by being bright enough to get
into Oxbridge. Pair one of the Varsity
match had three Salopian players: Esmé
O’Keefe was playing for Cambridge
against the all Salopian Oxford pair of
Rosie Parr and Hannah Pritchard. The
all Salopian pair emerged victorious 3-0.
Mixed Universities
Championship
I am very pleased to announce that
after heartache in previous years, Alice
Brett and her Liverpool University
partner Aroop Bhattacharya won the
Mixed Universities Championship.
The calibre of players on the day was
incredibly high, with players who have
already gone far in some of the national
championships. Aroop would admit
that he was not the best male player
in the draw, so he was fortunate to
be paired with the best female player.
Many congratulations.
We shall be celebrating a very
successful season with a dinner
following an evening of Fives on 1st
June, and we will quickly be starting
the new season in September.
Finally, on behalf of all the OS and
wider Fives community, our thanks go
to Rex Worth who stepped down as
Club Secretary at the beginning of this
season. He remains Club Treasurer and
an integral part of the success of the OS
this season.
The Alan Barber Cup Final 2017
The final of the Alan Barber Cup, the EFA’s premier
inter-school trophy, was played at Eton on 26th
February between the now traditional finalists, the
Old Olavians and the Old Salopians. The competition,
founded in 1965 by Alan Barber, then President of
the EFA, and won in its inaugural year by the Old
Edwardians, was first won by the Olavians in 1973;
in the 21st century they have won it 16 times with
only one break, in 2003, when it was won by the
Old Salopians. The sense of rivalry between the
two schools can be gleaned from the fact that the
Salopians have reached the final 22 times, winning
on just three occasions, while the Olavians and the
Salopians have contested the last seven finals in
succession.
It would have been difficult to witness the game
of Eton Fives played to a higher standard across all
three courts than the feast of Fives provided by these
outstanding players.
In the first court, James Toop and Matt Wiseman,
multiple Kinnaird winners and finalists, faced Ed
Taylor and Ian Hutchinson in a match played at a
tremendous pace with rallies at times of a length
and vigour that defied belief. In the end, the greater
accuracy of James and Matt proved too strong for the
determination of Ed and Ian but the scoreline of 3-0
does not begin to do justice to the excitement of the
game and the skill of all four players in raising the
game to such heights.
In the second court, Seb Cooley and Howard
Wiseman, also with countless Kinnaird winners’
cups between them, were a formidable pair for
Chris Hughes and Henry Lewis to take on, but the
track record of their opponents did not faze the
more youthful Salopians for a moment. They were
‘into’ every rally and there were even moments
when one or two rare mistakes were forced upon
the Olavians. But the gravity-defying agility of Seb
and his crisp cutting and hitting to an impeccable
length, combining with the ever-reliable support from
Howard, proved too strong for them. It was a riveting
match to watch but after an exhausting tussle the
Olavians again emerged winners 3-0.
In the third court, former National Schools’
Champions George Thomason and Tom Cox faced
Dave Mew, a former Kinnaird semi-finalist, and Tony
Barker who had recently played in the Cambridge
first pair. The Olavians took the first game 12-9, but
George and Tom fought back magnificently in the
next 3 games to take the match 3-1 as the sun set, a
huge credit to their skill and determination.
So once again, to the acclaim of all, the Olavians,
with their unique brand of skill and athleticism,
retained the Trophy for the 17th time in total and
for the 14th time in succession. They still have far to
go to match the Old Cholmeleians’ 23 wins in total,
though only one more to equal the Cholms 15 in
succession between 1977 and 1991. The Olavians’
firepower does not seem to waver, with their ability
to put out a national champion or semi-finalist on all
three courts – but the now more youthful Salopians
will be hunting them down relentlessly. What an
enticing prospect future years will bring!
Richard Barber