EFA
Rugby & Eton Fives Report 2001-2002
Thank You
There has been so much good news this season, it is really difficult to know where to start the report. The most important message to get across is a large thank you to all the Masters in Charge at all of the schools where we work (and where we don't work!!) for your hours of hard work. Organising fixtures, running teams all over the country, arranging teas, printing team calendas, fighting for a decent budget to buy gloves and balls, and freezing whilst supporting your team on a cold rainy day!! Few people realise how much time and personal commitment is required to simply keep a school team ticking over - let alone to develop its activities and enable large numbers to participate and represent their school. Without your hard work, Fives would disappear as we know it. No matter how low profile fives may be in your particular school your input is a huge contribution towards the well-being of the sport, and all Fives players everywhere are enormously grateful for everything that you do. All the Fives coaches from REFCA who have worked with you are personally grateful for all of your support and for the fun that we have all had working together.
I would like to publicly thank and acknowledge the work of last Fives season's outstanding coaching team who all put in great service for the game through their work for REFCA: Steve Britton, James Birch, Matthew Wiseman, Daniel Hawkins, Mark Marriott, Seb Cooley, James Toop, Steve Spurrell, Peter White, Sanjaya Ranasinghe, Kerry White, Lauren Addison and Chris Cooley. You all clearly suffered from contagious enthusiasm, which was clearly transmitted to most of your pupils. Congratulations!!
Mike Fenn works tirelessly for Fives. I cannot thank him enough both as a Fives enthusiast myself, and also as a colleague for all that he does. Michael Constantanidi, our Chairman has pulled off the most important development in modern Fives - the Westway Fives Courts. Both Michael and Anthony Wagg have worked so hard on this project. I thank them for everything that they have done for Fives, and for their support for all at REFCA.
A final, and from a personal point of view, most important thank you to Joanna Doley. Thank you for your direct support and sponsorship towards many REFCA events, but also for your direct support towards the sport through the Hand Ball Supplies Company and the help that you give so many youngsters at various schools when needed. Thank you also for acting as a free hostel in London for Lancing, Norwich, Ipswich and other travelling teams that seem to descend on your home whenever there is a Fives tournament happening somewhere!!
SCHOOLS
As well as taking on coaching programmes in new schools each year, REFCA has been working hard to build on the profile and popularity of Fives within all of the schools which it serves. The 2001-2002 season saw many inportant developments. Over thirty regular weekly coaching sessions were provided in almost as many schools. It is, as always impossible to cover in any detail the developments in all of the schools in which we work, but included in this report are the achievements that were particularly pleasing to see - especially in schools where the wider Fives community is less aware of how Fives is progressing.
The Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe, continues to play with great enthusiasm on their two open air courts, and fielded a team, yet again for the National Schools Championships, held at Shrewsbury. The active support of the Headmaster, Mr Tim Dingle makes all the difference here, and one hopes that having run a very popular coaching programme for several years now, the School may feel confident enough to consider financing a roof and lighting for the two courts in the near future. Each year a few more school fixtures/tournaments will be added to the High Wycombe programme.
Emanuel School entered the London, Northerns and Rossall Championships. The "Emanuels" has now become the Old boys Club for the recent school leavers - players who have played little school Fives, but a great deal of Adult League 3 on behalf of their school, and also League 2 for the EFA, as well as guesting ocassionally for the Old Olavians 1 in the first Division. These players have become an established part of the adult fives world before leaving school and it will be only natural for their participation in the game to continue and indeed grow in the future. Three young Old Emanuels are due to put more back into the Sport by working for REFCA next season.
The superb work that was carried out at Berkhamsted School by Jeff Tolchard has not been allowed to die. REFCA (Howard Wiseman was the coach) took over the coaching programme last January and immediately struck up a successful partnership with the new, and very hard-working, Master-in Charge of Fives, Martin Pett. The Berkhamsted pupils played almost every match that Jeff had arranged for them in previous years -only the Junior fixtures were slightly reduced. The Headmistress, Dr.Chadwick, is very supportive of the Fives and a full-time residential REFCA Graduate assistant has been recruited to run a full Fives Coaching programme next season, as well as help out generally with all the other sports. This will enable more attention to be directed towards the junior players too next season. It was great to see Berkhamsted perform so well in the National Championships and for so many recent leavers to be playing in both the Oxford and Cambridge Fives teams in the Varsity Match this year.
James Birch carried out great work at Cranleigh School. James was on a one-year REFCA Graduate Assistant placement, and managed to run regular training sessions and to play various school matches. It was particularly pleasing to see James and a very talented young Cranleigh pair travel to Shrewsbury in their holiday time to play in the National Schools Championships. James is now intending to enter the Teaching proffession(as a Historian), and will be a huge asset to any fives-playing school who should employ him in the future.
The City of London School continues to strengthen in both numbers and ability. Robin Nagy has worked unbelievably hard to develop both Rugby and Eton Fives at CLS, despite still having no courts of their own. The standard of their first pair is very high, and the coaching from players such as Matthew Wiseman, Seb Cooley and Chris Cooley over the past three years really has paid off. All of the recent CLS leavers have become regular players for the Old Citizens, thanks again to the fact that they had become regular members of the Old Citizens team before leaving school. A combination of regular invitations, by Match Management (the diary/ match fixing service used by the Old Citizens), for school players to take part in Old Boy matches, together with the consistent encouragement, support and hospitality from Old Citizens such as John Reynolds and Geoff Bates has made Old boys Fives present itself as a friendly, reliable, sociable and easy acytivity to persue having left school. The Old citizens is a growing club once again!! One can only pray that somehow the opportunity is presented to have Courts built once again at the City of London School. There is a high demand for this facility and plaenty of space in the courtyard - the traditional playground location that was to be found at the old School site. If you know anyone who might like to donate a few courts !!!
City of Norwich School again lacked matches, and was only able to represent itself with one pair in the Nationals at Shrewsbury. A Sponsor needs to be found to fund coach travel! However, a full and very popular weekly coaching programme ran very well yet again, and the whole junior Norwich Fives team descended upon Harrow school to take part in the REFCA Harrow U14 Beginners Tournament. Lauren Addison and Steve Spurrell both showed great commitment towards their coaching here, and Seb Cooley very kindly came back to help with transporting some players across country to and from Shrewsbury (sometimes via London!). Fives at the City of Norwich School is well established now, and the coaching programme runs very well - even though pupils miss academic lessons on a rota basis in order to receive their Fives lessons. With only two courts and no school funding, this is the only way to run a fair and self-funding coaching `programme that is open to all pupils. Every effort will be made in the coming season to build on the sound footing that the game now has in the school.
Westminster School took a large step forward this year. The Staff, lead by Mike Milner and John Troy have been keen to push the standard and status of Fives forward. Dynamic and frequent coaching by Matthew Wiseman seems to have done the trick. The whole team are rather more serious about their Fives, and are beginning to enjoy a wider partuicipation in tournaments and events outside the school circuit. This added experience is paying off, and next season Matthew will be running an evening training/drilling session for the more ambitious members of the team. It would be great to see Westminster become a major force in School Fives. They have the perfect coach to instill the required desire and technique into the pupils!! Watch this space.
Fives at the Lyceum Alpinum Zuoz continues to thrive, and there are now numerous tours planned for next summer. In this way, the Lyceum also benefits from regular match practice. Six different schools visited the Lyceum this Summer.
Without doubt, the biggest breakthrough that the Coaching Agency has seen this year has been with the Fives at Lancing College. For ten years now, coaching has been provided on a weekly basis at Lancing. Numbers are high each year, and there has always been a fixture list played against other schools. There has often been participation by a couple of Lancing pupils in various Tournaments, but no real sense of a team spanning all year groups, growing up throughout the School. Everything has changed this year!! A combination of a superb Captain, the introduction of girls to the College first year, and many boys having been coached each year (and then disappearing!!), resulted in a tide of players coming back to the game and a full and pulsating team appearing for the first time. The superb young ladies pair in the Fives Club seemed to provide the social cement that united all the otherwise separate year groups. The promise early in the year of a Swiss Fives Tour in the Summer was a huge incentive for everyone to improve their Fives, and to turn up to all of the practices. There were enough players present, spanning all ages at the College, to fill four courts every coaching session. The courts were apparently often full in the evenings (Dr.Betts ran an evening clubnight), and coaching, by popular demand, continued throughout the Summer term for the first time. A large number of Lancing players took part in The National School's Championships, the Northerns and also the London Tournament. Ten of the team members took part in the eight day Swiss Fives Tour, and there is no stopping Lancing Fives now!! Senior boys will be joining the Lancing Old boys for matches next season whenever possible, and another Swiss tour is already lined up for next year, as well as participation in numerous tournaments and school matches. They will be adding the Rossall International Schools All Fives Championships to their hitlist next year.
Fives at School level is healthier than ever. There has been a large injection of coaching support and management into schools where the game would otherwise struggle or cease completely. There are still more courts that can be brought back to life. Many Schools have been quick to recognise that their valuable facilities should be put to good use and that their past tradition of playing this wonderful game should be either reinstated or preserved, especially as this game so often provides the ideal sporting niche for so many talented sportsmen and ladies who cannot excell at the larger team sports, either because of physical size, or indeed character.
TOURNAMENTS
Separate reports are to be found elsewhere in the handbook - so little needs to be said here. The Rossall International Schools' Fives Championships is now established, after four highly successful years, as being one of the most important and enjoyable events in the school Calandar. The unique courts at Rossall enable all code of Fives and Handball to play each other on level terms, whilst using an Eton fives ball and Eton rules. The Adult tournament is equally as established and attracts many of the highest ranked Rugby, Winchester and Eton fives players.
The London Tournament was arguably the most successful Fives event of the year. Roughly one hundred players took part in either the Main Tournament or the Festival. The standard was unusually high with more top ranked players taking part than would usually be expected in any one year in even the Kinnaird. It was good to see two of REFCA's coaches take the title so conclusively, having dropped only one sgame throughout the Championship. This is the second time that Matthew Wiseman and James Toop have won this event.
The Harrow U14 Beginners Tournament was very well attended, and again the format was to mix up every individual, no matter from what school, so that they partnered different players in each of six one-game rounds. There are too few events that mix everyone in together - it is great for the youngsters social developments, as well as confidence on court.
There is soon to be a new department started within REFCA that runs various new Tournaments and events, many of which will be specifically targeted at bringing together diffent schools according to their geographic location and abilities.
SQUASH COURT FIVES
This game is really taking off! The red-leather covered Eton Fives ball has been tested by the Squash Raquets Association, and has been given their official seal of approval for use on squash courts. The game is superb - a very close simulation to Rugby Fives. Indeed, St.Olave's won the National Schools' Rugby Fives U13's Championship Doubles and Singles titles this year, having only ever played on their squash courts!! You can either play above the "Tin", or you can use a rubber collapsable Rugby Fives ledge from the Hand Ball Supplies Company (www.glovesandballs.com). This enables any fives player to continue and set up a club at University, or to play in the local sports centre. This is the ideal way to introduce any interested friends to Fives.
NEW DEVELOPMENTS
The great news of the season is that Oakham School will be up and running a Fives programme from this September. Their new Chaplain & Master in Charge of Eton Fives, Alex Aldous, is a very keen Fives player, and has produced National Champions in Rugby Fives before now. REFCA is working closely with Oakham, and this is certainly going to be a serious and very valuable addition to the School Fives circuit. Alex attended the National Championships at Shrewsbury and the Fives Dinner at Eton so that he could meet other Masters in Charge.
The Oakham courts are being totally renovated and turned into an indoor facility with a fully glazed run-off area, which will function as the Fives Club House. Oakham is well placed geographically for playing fixtures, and it will be exciting to see what happens.
FIVES TOURS & HOLIDAYS
There have been two Fives tours to Switzerand this Summer. Eighteen pupils and four staff took part in each tour - five different schools attending the second one (Lancing College, Tiffin, Newstead Wood, Berkhamsted and Emanuel). The is a real magic about taking various schools on tour together. Life-long friends are made, and it is such a fresh and exciting experience to socialise and play so many different sports with so many new people. There will be four 7/8 day Tours to Switzerland next year. Anyone who is interested should contact Howard Wiseman.
H.M.E.W.Rugby & Eton Fives Coaching Agency Report 2001-2002 by Howard Wiseman
Finalised 13th September 2002
efa@etonfives.co.uk