Prep School
By Mrs Gardner
This past week is the final week of sport this academic year for Prep School! The year has gone by so quickly with hundreds of matches being played. The joy of working at a school like Queen’s is watching the progress children make over the course of their time here. The excitement and expectancy is evident in all year groups, in all teams and this infectious enthusiasm is really quite additive as staff member.
This week the Year 3 and 4 had their last outings to play against King’s College Prep. The difference in understanding and level of play from the start of the season to now was clear to see. Many of the King’s children play cricket outside of school, so there was some great skills on display, however, we did well in many of the matches showing determined running between the wickets and accurate bowling.. However, the Queen’s teams worked so hard and really showed some great team work and had an enormous amount of fun.
Wednesday saw Perrott Hill come for our last Year 6 and 5 fixtures.
The U11 A girls went out in style playing some of their best cricket of the season. Some accurate bowling by Juno and some great batting overs including Anya and Jemima resulted in a convincing win and some happy girls.
The B match we struggled to get going, Immy suffered a bee sting before we even started and we were a little distracted. Bowling was generally good but we struggled to put on the runs. Well done to all the girls it has been great taking you this year and we wish you the best for the future.
The boys travelled away to Perrott and the A team had a successful afternoon building the run total, with Mitch top-scoring on 29. A good bowling spell led to a comfortable victory. The B team also played confidently with a short boundary there were plenty of fours and sixes throughout the afternoon. Finally, the U10 batted well with a hat trick of retirements (Luca, Arthur abd Seb) and apparently according to George some very delicious food!!
Well done to all and thank you for your efforts.
Senior School
Saturday Cricket Triangulars
By Mrs Foster
Queen’s U13As took on the equivalent teams from West Buckland and Wellington in a triangular tournament. Overall the attitude and energy was good across the two games, and switched back on after the break, with plenty of encouragement and support in the field. Despite Queen’s losing both games, there were a few individual highlights. Munesu bowled with accuracy and pace throughout, Kirk once again demonstrated stickability with the bat, Tom top-scored with an aggressive 19 as well as bowling with good pace and there were contributions from most of the team. Hopefully a win is on the horizon soon as be fits their hard work.
Our U13/14A girls took on West Buckland and Wellington in a triangular tournament against their boys B teams. It was a good contest with some dominant individual displays and a nail-biting finish. We started with 31 all out against a strong bowling attack and some trouble dealing with the slow tennis ball bounce. West Buckland were equally dominant in their reply making 92 in their 8 overs as we played on to give everyone a bowl. Tori enjoyed her wicket-taking delivery and Issy and Emily made some quick singles with the bat. Our second game was boosted by added year 9 girls, mainly Evvie smashing 24 and coming back after retirement to hit her way to 30. Maz was a great partner and everyone kept busy at the crease moving the scoreboard to the end of our 8 overs setting 76 to win. It proved very competitive too. We bowled tightly and added extra pressure with our early economy, but a hitter came in for his quick 20 and got them back in contention. This was a great game to show the ebs and flows of cricket, and how quickly things can change in short formats. We weren’t short of volunteers to bowl under pressure and Eliza executed well, but it proved to be a last-ball victory to Wellington finishing 79/3.
Our U12A Boys and Girls combined in the C team triangular. West Buckland again showed their dominance hitting 90/4 in 8 overs which included a few missed chances in the field. Our batters got bogged down by dots and dealt mainly in singles to reach 27/6. Their second match was a pairs contest with Wellington. This time our run scoring was more fluid, but losing 8 wickets reduced us to 206. Wellington’s run rate was similar but without the wickets so finished on 256. Overall the games were enjoyed by all, proven by the regular volunteers to have a bowl, get a bat and be in the battle.
U12 Cricket vs Over Perrott Hill School
In a thrilling encounter, the U12 Queen’s College cricket team showcased their prowess and team spirit as they secured an impressive victory against Perrott Hill School. The match, played under clear skies, was marked by stellar performances from several young talents, culminating in a memorable win for Queen’s College. The star of the match was undoubtedly Louis, who delivered a remarkable all-round performance. Louis dazzled with the bat, scoring a season-high 27 runs, and followed it up with an outstanding display of bowling, taking 3 crucial wickets. His efforts were instrumental in both setting a competitive target and restricting the opposition’s scoring.
A special mention goes to Ollie R, who got off the mark for the first time this season, contributing 3 valuable runs. His determination and perseverance paid off, providing a boost to the team’s morale.
Charlotte and Livi continued their impressive form, displaying maturity beyond their years with a series of well-selected batting shots and quick singles. Their partnership was pivotal in building a solid foundation for the team’s innings, ensuring a steady flow of runs and keeping the pressure on the opposition.
Captain Ollie B’s entry to the crease was a turning point in the game. His brilliant shots settled any early nerves and added crucial runs to the scoreboard. Ollie B’s composure and skill were evident as he navigated the bowling attack with confidence and expertly set the field for a dominating display.
With just a few runs required for victory, Harry came into bat and delivered the final blow. His impressive 4 not only sealed the win but did so in a glorious fashion, sparking celebrations among teammates and supporters alike.
The victory over Perrott Hill School is a testament to the hard work and dedication of the Queen’s College U12 team. Each player contributed to the team’s success, highlighting the depth of talent and teamwork that are the hallmarks of their play. With performances like these, the future looks bright for Queen’s College cricket.
U13A Boys v Perrott Hill
The boys started brightly in the field with some really committed fielding through diving stops and bodies on the line. We bowled the new ball with pace, but as proved the case throughout Perrott Hill’s innings we got punished for missing lengths. Captain Felix added protection through a deep square fielder, but it was the placement and power of the batsman that found the boundary regularly. They also ran well, but not without offering chances. Our boys needed to adapt to being on the one as each partnership shared the same aggression. We used 9 bowlers and everyone delivered good balls at times. Most impressive was Jayden’s magic delivery and Tom’s extra bounce. Credit to their batting for scoring off good and bad balls and exploiting the small boundaries with quick outfield to reach 201/6 off 20 overs. Two main areas for improvement is bowling to our field, with batters strong areas protected by sweeper. We would also benefit from a quicker over rate, particularly as we had some tight overs that would have been good to rattle through. Our best strength was our catching, we went for everything and took some great grabs in removing 6 batsman.
Our approach to chasing 10 an over was to play their attack on merit and see what the wicket and small boundary was worth with players prepared to stop the good balls and hit the bad ones. Our batters were encouraged to give themselves a chance to get in, run positively and then always take the positive option. This got us going at 6 runs per over in the power play, but for the loss of 4 wickets. With the game getting further out of reach it was time to execute options to difference types of bowling and see what strike rate and partnerships we could achieve. Captain Felix anchored the innings with a well constructed 33, while Tom hit a sensibly brisk 29 and their partnership added 45 runs. We finished our 20 overs on 105/11 having been allowed to bat all our squad. Another school fixture played the way it should be with good sportsmanship from both sides and lots of positives to take away. Everyone enjoyed Jack’s wicket in his over, Max took a good catch to give Finn a wicket, Josiah held on at cover twice for James and Munesu to celebrate, and Joe and Felix both caught well to help Jayden take 2 for 12. Ptolomy’s first ball boundary cut was another highlight, as well as Jack hitting a boundary and mostly the partnership of Felix and Tom to secure we hit over 5 an over and reached three figures.
U13A Girls v Perrott Hill
Queen’s achieved a thrilling victory against Perrott Hill in their recent girls’ cricket fixture. Queen’s winning the toss and choosing to bowl first. There was excellent bowling on show by all players with special mention to Ella with her triple wicket maiden! Their batting performance was equally commendable, Eliza scoring 30 not out with a mixture of quick singles and fours contributing to a positive outcome for the team. Well done!
U12B Girls v Perrott Hill
The U12B girls’ team had an enjoyable 20-over softball match with Perrott Hill on Wednesday. There was plenty of opportunity for the girls to practise their skills and there were some positive performances. Perrott Hill batted first and posted a challenging total although a good amount of their runs came from wides and no balls. This would be the main thing for the Queen’s girls to take away from the game: working on improving their bowling technique and accuracy. However, the girls fielded well, especially Isla who seemed to be everywhere, swooping in on every Perrott Hill shot, taking a great catch and scoring a direct hit to run one of the Perrott Hill girls out. The Queen’s reply got off to a slow start but began to accelerate when Freya and Francesca came in. They looked to score off every ball and were very positive running between the wickets. Unfortunately, we did not manage to overhaul Perrott Hill’s total but the Queen’s girls should be commended for their efforts. Mention should also go to Isabelle R who had a solid all round game and demonstrated great sportsmanship to the opposition.
Senior Athletics
Following the success of our athletes at the Taunton Area Schools Championships last weekend, some of the Queen’s athletes were selected to represent Somerset Schools at the South West School Championships, held at Exeter Arena.
Alfie (Year 11 – Senior boys javelin), Harrison (Year 11 – Inter boys javelin), Jacky (Year 12 – Senior boys long-jump), Caspar (Year 11 – Inter boys long-jump) and Franky (Year 13 – Senior boys steeple-chase).
Congratulations to all the boys for their achievements this season.
And congratulations to Charlotte (Year 7) who has recently qualified for the National Prep-Schools Athletics Finals, to be held at the Alexander Stadium, Birmingham in July.
Charlotte threw a personal best in the javelin event in the South West Prep-Schools Championships at Millfield School last Friday, achieving second place in her age category. Good luck girls!
