Foreword

This tournament has been running now for six years, with a high turn out every year from pupils from a number of different schools and codes of Fives. These courts are excellent for bringing the three codes of Fives (Winchester, Rugby and Eton) together, the buttress from Winchester Fives, the serve and backcourt from Rugby Fives and the three sided court designs from Eton Fives. This tournament runs over a weekend and the pupils and teachers who attend stay in the school cricket pavilion.

This year the national school all Fives championships had a total of thirty-two singles entries and a total of sixteen doubles entries from some eight schools, which included St Olave's, Westway Sports Centre, Malvern, Marlborough, Kingston College, Lancing College, Oakham, Burlington Danes, St Dunstans, Stoke Newington and Aldenham. Unfortunately there was no appearance from the Irish or the Welsh as the Irish were concentrating on their world handball championship campaign.

After meeting early at Euston station we finally arrived in Blackpool’s fine weather, which was surprising. We arrived at the school and settled down and played a few games of Fives mainly for new players to get used to the courts before the competition the next day. In the evening the group all headed down to Blackpool’s famous pleasure beach to enjoy the rides and also had some memorable air hockey matches in the arcade.

The singles started early Sunday morning. With a total of thirty-two players they were split into to four pools, this year’s standard was surprisingly close with no apparent clear-cut winner. The top two players from each pool went through to quarter-finals, then to a semi-final and final.

- Final
Dash Mason-Malik (Stoke Newington) beat Sam Brewitt-Taylor (Malvern) 15-14

The final was a superb match going to sudden death with Dash Mason-Malik a Rugby Fives player taking match point.

This year’s doubles final was not the same it was an all-English final with Dash Mason-Malik and Steven Lim a pair from St Dunstons and Sam Tombs and Ed Nesbitt the Malvern pair. Dash and Steven beating the Malvern pair.

- Final
Dash Mason-Malik & Steven Lim (Stoke Newington) beat
Sam Tombs & Ed Nesbitt (Malvern) 15-9

Summary

A brilliant weekend!! Congratulations to Dash Mason-Malik who triumphed in both the singles and doubles competition but was up against very tough field of opposition. Hopefully we will have a stronger competition next year with increasing standards and even more entries including our Irish and Welsh friends.

D.E.A.R.

Rossall Schools International 2003-2004 by Howard Wiseman
Finalised 15th December 2004 by Mike Fenn
efa@etonfives.co.uk

Go to EFA Home page