Sports Report – Common Time 2025, Week 10

Monday 17th March 2025

WinCoFo

Well, what a way to finish the SEN IXs season on Palmer! A day of drama, last-gasp victories, and standout performances. A took centre stage with two impressive wins, first seeing off D 22-9 thanks to the brilliance of T. Coles before holding their nerve in a nail-biting 19-18 victory over F. B were held to a pulsating 17-17 draw by H but showcased their attacking power with a 24-13 win over F, with F. Oliver leading the charge. Meanwhile, C edged past E 12-11 before sharing the spoils with K. G ended in style, crushing K 24-6 and beating E 22-10, inspired by D. Garrett. So, after an intense campaign, G are crowned champions, finishing unbeaten with 25 points! A remarkable achievement. Congratulations to all teams for a season full of heart and determination, and a special thanks to the referees who kept order—mostly! Palmer will await the next season, but for now, it’s time to send it out as a flyer over worms!

Basketball U14A v Bishop Challoner School (h):

The U14s completed their impressive unbeaten season against a strong BCS side. It wasn't the smoothest victory; despite their previous successes, Winchester still looked nervous and were a bit dozy in defence at times. As the game progressed though, people started to concentrate and compete on defence, and high scorers Wang and Oyedele did their thing at the other end. It is a shame that this is the U14s final game of the season: they are a great team to watch and their outstanding results this year suggest they have a bright future ahead. Won 61 – 45. [LNT].

National Schools Climbing Competition

The climbing team made up of twelve Wykehamist headed to White Spider Climbing Centre in Surbiton. This comprised of 24 schools where the standard proved to be very high throughout. We haven't received the final results yet, but all pupils represented themselves and the school exceedingly well. It was a tough day where they had 6 hours of climbing to navigate through sessions of bouldering, top ropes and lead climbing. We had a good mixture of Juniors and Seniors in attendance, full credit to them all with the standout performances being from Phuc Nguyen and Louie Stoesser who topped the points tally from Winchester. A big thanks goes to Amy Johnston and Andrew French who helped support then event and the training leading in. (JXD)

Pupils - Kentaro T (H) (captain), Billy W (D), Catherine B (G), Amir B (G), Louie S (G), Anton S (G), Thomas F (E), Oli S (K), Oliver S (K) and Ivan Z (X). 

Tuesday 18th March 2025

Golf: Winchester College 5 - 1 OWGS

Harry Ho bt Tom Hawkings 2&1

Ray Sanmathy bt Freddie Manduca 3&2

Seb Wells bt Huw Humphreys 5&3

James Redfern bt Charlie Rowley 5&4

Sander Andreasen lost to Alex Oh 1 dn

Kevin Duan bt Nyren Scott-Malden 6&4

Rackets v Radley College (a): Lost

1st Pair: Jack B (A) and William H-J (A) teamed up to take on Radley on their home court. The match was particularly intense with Winchester taking a close first game. However, Radley quickly responded by winning the next through their efficient serving. Despite this, Winchester went on to take the third with Jack returning notably well. The match drew level at 2 games all and unfortunately, Winchester could not convert in the final game.

2nd Pair: William H-J (A) and Jamie M (G) played against strong opponents. The first game was decisively taken by Radley with consistent serving and rally-play. However, Winchester provided resistance and claimed the next two in a row comfortably. In the fourth, after being 14 - 7 up within one point of posting a win, the pair somehow managed to freeze and hand the game to their opponents, 17- 15. A set 5 was played to decide the outcome of the match. Fortunately, William H-J stepped up to serve 5 aces and take a win for Winchester. This hopefully proved a valuable experience which will never be repeated.

Yearlings: Xander M (B) and Bear R (D) took on a Radley pair from the year above. The boys started efficiently by taking the first game 15 - 11. However, Radley fought back in a tight second, winning it in a similar way. This provided a momentum and spurred them on into taking the third game relatively quickly. Encouragingly, Winchester re-grouped and managed to level the match by narrowly taking the fourth game by returning and serving consistently. The final game was very closely fought with Winchester impressively managing to claim the win 17 – 14. (TERC)

Rugby Sevens U14 Triangular v King Edward VI & Lord Wandsworth College

The U14 Sevens squad welcomed Lord Wandsworth and KE Southampton over to Gater for a triangular fixture. First up were KES and they opened the scoring immediately and a couple of missed tackles shortly after the restart let them in again to open up a 14-0 lead. However, from the next kick off Ed B (I) claimed the ball in the air and galloped through the defence to get Winchester on the board. This settled the team and some excellent possession play saw the team progress up the pitch utilising width in attack to create an overlap which saw H Hill (I) unselfishly feed the ball to James M-W (E) who crossed behind the posts which W Leeson (G) duly converted to make the score 12-14 at half time. KES extended the lead at the start of the second half but E Oyedele (K) used his pace and power to outflank the defence and score to keep it a 2 point game. Much more effective tackling kept KES at bay but they worked an overlap and managed to score again. With time running out Oyedele plucked the ball up from his toes and broke through to score again and despite another Leeson conversion we went down narrowly by two points, 26-28.

A revised line-up then played against an another KES squad and a catalogue of errors and poor decision making saw KES dominate. Two good tries from James P (G) weren’t enough to reverse the tide and we ended up losing 12-31.

The final match against a mixed Lord Wandsworth College team saw another poor start allowing the away team to open up a two score lead. However, some dynamic tackling from H Fellows (D) and P Punnatock (C) generated turnover opportunities and T Parker (K) was prominent at the breakdown. Hill and Lessons at half back kept the ball moving and this saw tries scored by Burns and another brace from Oyedele. The lead was short lived as LWC grabbed one back but the tremendous spirit amongst the team was evident with a last ditch tackle from James M-W who managed to stop a LWC attacked inches short of the line, allowing Leeson and Fellows the chance to bundle the attacker into touch. With time up and the score locked at 19-19 a final attack saw Burns use his speed to break through the defensive line and out-race the cover to grab the winning try, 24-19.

Over the course of the term the U14 squad have worked very hard at mastering the principles of 7s rugby. Attacking with width, supporting from depth and improving contact skills have been evident and if the group continue to play next year they have every chance of continuing this progress. (MSB)

Squash: 1st ~ Doubles Tournament at the Royal Automobile's Club

In their first Doubles Tournament at the Royal Automobile's Club Woodcote Park the Sen. VI had some tough matches against the other four teams; Epsom (Winners), Harrow (Runners Up), Charterhouse and St Pauls. In a 30 minute,10 minute per pair format where every point counted every player was under pressure to compete in every rally. As each pair became more tactically aware there were some very close games especially versus Charterhouse where the match was lost by one point 49-50! There were also some very memorable rallies with the players having to play with great skill especially in the front of the court. At the completion of the tournament the team came fifth, in the 1st string competition. The Winchester College Team really enjoyed playing on the doubles courts and they are now really looking forward to next year’s competition. (RAA)

1st Pair : Felix C. & Ludovic R (Capt)

2nd Pair : Sam B. & Ayson K.

3rd Pair : Pran B. & Matthew L.

WinCoFo: JUN VIs Tournament Report

What a day of drama, determination, and dazzling displays of skill on the lush green expanses of Palmer! The JUN VIs competition was a spectacle from start to finish, with teams battling fiercely in the group rounds to earn their place in the knockout stages. From Group X, H reigned supreme, claiming 15 points, while K followed closely behind with 12—both securing their golden tickets to the prestigious Cup Semi-Finals. Over in Group Y, B and A emerged victorious, each tallying up 9 points to earn their shot at glory. Meanwhile, C and E from Group X, along with G and I from Group Y, progressed to the Plate competition, setting up an intense contest of pride and resilience.

The Plate Semi-Finals were pulsating affairs! C and G both fought their way through gritty encounters, besting T and E respectively to book their places in the Plate Final. With everything on the line, C edged out G in a thrilling contest, 6-3, to lift the Plate Trophy. A well-deserved triumph for a team that showed true fighting spirit!

Now, onto the main event, and what a contest it was! The Cup Semi-Finals saw A square off against H, with the latter showing their class in a 7-1 victory. Meanwhile, K edged out B in a nerve-shredding 10-6 thriller, setting up a mouth-watering final. And what a final it was! H, who had been imperious all day, proved too strong for K, triumphing 9-4 to be crowned JUN VIs champions! A magnificent performance from a team that combined flair, power, and tactical brilliance.

A huge thank you must go to the referees, who ensured fair play and kept the matches flowing smoothly. The Palmer pitches were buzzing all day with energy, excitement, and a real sense of sporting camaraderie. Congratulations to all teams for a phenomenal day of competition! (JCP)

Wednesday 19th March 2025

Fencing ~ The Public School Fencing Championships (a):

Four Winchester College Fencers attended the Public Schools' Fencing Championships at Lee Valley Sports Centre, London.

44th/99 Lucien Goedhuis (E) - Boys' Junior Foil

46th/99 Thomas Fitzwilliams (E) - Boys' Junior Foil

26th/100 Bodhi Burman (F) - Boys' Mount-Haes Foil

35th/62 Charlotte Wheeler (H) - Girls' Senior Epee

Golf: Micklem Trophy: Rd 1: Winchester College 5 - 0 Rugby

Harry Ho won 4&2

Ray Sanmathy won 5&4

Seb Wells won 4&3

James Redfern won 4&3

Sander Andreasen won 9&7

Thursday 20th March 2025

Golf: Micklem Trophy

Going into the semi-final on Thursday morning (following an uncomfortably early start), our opponents Eton, were somewhat of an unknown entity. They too, had progressed with a clean-sweep 5-0 victory from the last round so Winchester, despite the prospect of a first final in decades being on the line, were focused on nothing but defeating their auld enemy. Eton's team boasted an impressive line-up of handicaps, very similar to ours (ranging from +2 through to 3) and it became clear very early on that we would need to be on our mettle to prevail.

Harry H (I), at number 1, continued his imperious form, defeating his Malaysian-international opponent with room to spare. Eton's talisman was a fine player but Harry was relentless and the impressive quality of his golf gradually but entirely demoralised the Eton man, who succumbed 4&2. Captain Ray S (E) was also too strong, even for his highly accomplished opponent. Ray's persistence and composure was reassuring to the whole team as he slowly pulled away, securing a convincing 3&2 victory, so that Winchester had the first 2 points on the board in very good time.

Matches 3, 4 and 5 were all incredibly close from start to finish. While Sebastian W (G) in the 3rd match had his nose in front for most of his round, the Eton man rallied in the closing holes to press back Sebastian's advantage. Heading down the 18th all square, young Wells then produced a wonderful birdie at the last to steal the match back and win 1UP. In the final two matches, it was Winchester's Redfern (A) & Andreasen (A) who did the rallying, clawing their way back from early deficits, to both also take victory on the final hole, 1UP. Yes, the overall result a resounding (and admittedly incredibly satisfying) 5 - 0 victory.

After lunch Winchester College were ready to compete in their first Final at the Micklem Trophy since 1988. That alone is some achievement for this team but, of course, going one step further to win was the only thing at the forefront of the group's mind. Standing in the way, were serial winners of this competition (and many others!), Wellington College. Having beaten Stowe in the Semi-Final, Wellington arrived in good spirits, were able to make a substitution in to their line-up and still have all 5 players below a scratch handicap (their weakest player being a +1!).

Harry H, going out number 1 as always, came across his toughest opponent yet in the form of a very highly rated England International, off a +3 handicap. Entirely unphased, Harry played simply sensational golf from start to finish and, at the time of his incredibly impressive victory (3&2), he was 5 under par and his opponent cut a very frustrated and dejected figure. Ray S, again came through with a captain's performance against another +3 opponent. It is rare to beat an opponent of this calibre by a score of 4&3 but Ray did so with some fantastic golf under pressure. Even despite taking an early lead, Ray was clinical in finishing the match off and preventing any prospect of a late come back. Yet again, Winchester had the first two points on the board early.

In a similar fashion to the Eton match, the final 3 matches had been close all the way and it was almost inevitable that each match would come down to the wire over the closing holes. At numbers 4 and 5, Furleyites Redfern & Andreasen had played fantastic golf all the way round, with their matches (against impressively good opponents) toing and froing throughout. Sadly, in both these games, the Wellingtonians proved too strong and carved out late victories for the opposition.

In the middle, was Sebastian W. Seb had played some beautiful golf to find himself ahead for much of the round. Unfortunately, his opponent was capable of some equally impressive ball-striking and, at just the wrong time, seemed to find his form. The Wellington man fought back to all square and then 1UP heading down the closing two holes. Sebastian then threw the kitchen sink at his opponent, in attempt to claw back the deciding point. Even despite a spectacularly holed shot from the bunker on the 18th hole for par, the Wellington man closed out the match expertly to clinch the trophy for Wellington once more.

Overall, it was a wonderful performance by Winchester to both make the final and indeed run such a quality side so close in the deciding contest. Winchester has a golf team to really boast about and, with the ISGA National Finals approaching in April, continued success can be just around the corner. (Ray S)

Harry won 3&2

Ray won 4&3

Seb lost 1down

James lost 2&1

Sander lost 3&2

Fives v Christ’s Hospital:

U14A’s: W126-47

U15A’s: W128-43

Football v Canford School (a):

The Development XI took to the bus with confidence and good food as we trundled over to Canford for our penultimate match of the season. Proficient coach Mr Dodd had decided to put together a squad of 4 different year groups, giving two second years, Husband and Catsaras, a chance to learn from the wealth of experience of the three top years playing. The weather said “cricket” more than “football”, and this was shown in Mr Dodd’s dark sunglasses, but the boys didn’t let this phase them and took extra water for the occasion.

Co-Captain T. Miers chose to play with the wind for the first half, which allowed for us to attack their backline more effectively with long balls from keeper Browning and fullbacks I. Claisse and M. Jackson. We went hard from the start and put on some nice pressure via long throws and corners from M. Jackson and Chiang, through which we scored 3 early goals from. One came from Prince, who scored from a ball which popped out of the mixer of a poorly defended corner. Another two came from opposition captain, and “tekky baller”, Woody, who’s own goals set him up for a hattrick before half time. We held our shape well to contain them in their half with Husband, Catsaras, McCabe, Boon-Long and Clark maintaining discipline and intensity in the midfield throughout. Unfortunately, a lucky break from one of our corners and a clever pass through a certain defender’s legs led to a goal from Canford before the end of the half.

With renewed determination from Mr Dodd’s half time team talk to build on our foundation of goals, and some slightly less inspiring words from D. Jackson, we headed into the second half carefully confident. There was no need to be cautious, however, as we built on our first half rhythm and got into an exceptional groove. The Jackson brothers connected on a different level for their last game of the season playing together, and the breaking of Canford strikers’ ankles as they tried to press our defence was almost painful to watch. No defenders should have the right to perform Cruyff turns, flick-ons and Ronaldo chops deep in our half, but then again, they are no ordinary defenders. The team synergy spread throughout the pitch, with striker Kingsbury using his strength to create some nice chances. Eventually the pressure was too much, and the Canford keeper, in “woody-style”, passed the ball straight to Kingsbury who slotted away our fourth goal to make it 4-1. At this point maestro midfielder Bailey “Bov” Clark came on again to give some renewed energy, performing an outrageous nutmeg on an opposition player. Chiang also came back on, managing to score an exceptional goal after sending the defender with a lovely fake shot. Unfortunately, this was after co-captain D. Jackson let the heat get to his head and allowed a midfielder to glide past him, assisting their striker for a consolidatory 2nd goal. Overall the boys played excellently and deserved the final score of 5-2. Kudos to Husband and Catsaras for stepping up to the occasion, and to Canford who played with fluid football and integrity. (T. Miers, B)

The sun was shining as the Development 2nd XI warmed up for our match against the Canford 2nd XI on Thursday afternoon. Having lost the toss, we kicked off and swiftly took control of the game: we were solid in defence, and our midfield and attack were working together well to create several excellent chances. The first big opportunity came when Kam found space to get a shot off at the edge of the box, only just missing the top right corner. A few minutes later however, we were finally rewarded for our superior football. Jesse won the ball in our half with a strong challenge before evading a number of Canford players and finding a pass to Gio in the middle of the pitch. Gio then drove to the Canford box where he hammered the ball into the bottom right corner, giving the opponent's keeper no chance at all. 1-0 to Winchester.

After a half-time team talk from Mr Gover, we went back out in the second half ready to score more goals and kill the game. However, Canford started off the half the better team, giving us one or two things to think about in defence, but all threats were ably dealt with by our experienced back line. Then, when things had just started to settle down again, Canford poked in an equaliser from close range. This goal seemed to reignite us, and we started to play some excellent football again. Canford were on the ropes, but the winner we were looking for and deserved never came. Nevertheless, this was a great performance by a very promising young team. Final score: 1-1.

3rd XI: L2-1

Hockey v PGS & KES Witley

U18A v The Portsmouth Grammar School (a): Lost 2 - 4

U16B v King Edward’s Witley Boys (h): Lost 3 - 6

Netball 1st VII v Godolphin (h): Lost 16 - 34

Squash 1st v St. Edward’s School Oxford (h):

In their final match of the season the school's twelve players had a very encouraging win over St. Edwards. Led by Ludovic R. the team comprised of players from all four age groups and comfortably won all of their matches. A good final win for the teams who have had a successful season, especially the U-14's who remained undefeated in the 2024-2025 season. (RAA)

Side : Ludovic R. (Capt), Oscar O'C, John L, Alex F, Ayush S, Alfie M, Conrad B, Ratan D S, Barney M, Matthew L, Seb M and Max W.

Phatraprasit Pot ~ (Senior House Competition) Final

The Final was played by Felix C (E) and Ludovic R (I) the school's 1st and 2nd seeded players. The match was close with Felix controlling the first game with tight, accurate squash to narrowly win 11-9. The second really close game proved to be the decider as both players battled for every point. Ludovic, who was now controlling the rallies had game points at 13-12 and again at 14-13 but Felix showed his tenacity by finally claiming it 16-14! The match continued in similar fashion in the third game with neither player really getting a good points advantage until right at the end where Felix created some good length shots and won the game and match 11-9. The crowd were treated to a great exhibition of squash with the match being played in a very respectful manner by both players. It was the first final for a number of years, Sun Phatraprasit would have been impressed, and it befitted the wonderful new courts. (RAA)

Friday 21st March 2025:

WinCoFo: MID VIs

It was a glorious afternoon on Palmer, the sun beaming down on a packed schedule of fixtures as Group OTH took on the Commoners in the inaugural MID VIs tournament. Spirits were high, chants of “know your rules” and “keep it on the canvas” echoing across the pitches. But as the dust settled, it was one-way traffic.

The Commoners were simply dominant, taking 22 wins from 25 matches, and with two bonus points for victories by a margin of 15 or more, the final scoreline read 46–6. Hopper’s stood alone for OTH, their three spirited wins preventing a complete whitewash. From the opening ropes to the final bust, Commoners were relentless. A special mention goes to the referees who gave up their time and managed the chaos with calm heads and clear calls. It was a masterclass from the Commoners on a beautiful Palmer day. OTH will have to regroup. But for now, all that’s left to say is: the Commoners knew the rules—and kept it on the canvas.

Saturday 22nd March 2025

Basketball v Stowe School (h):

1st: L22-53 U16A: W38-34

Cross Country U18A’s v OW’s Match

Old Wykehamists: 110 points

Wykehamists: 98 points

Old Etonians: 85 points

Old Johnians: 36 points

The race was run over Jun except there were two laps of hills valley, making it a particularly tough 8.15 km course. Benedict Judge (D) won the race in under 30 minutes, one of the fastest times seen over the course, beating the leading OW in a close finish. This rounds off an absolutely super cross country season for Benedict. Our junior athletes ran impressively over such a long and challenging course, and Thomas Fitzwilliams (E) managed to beat his dad.

Fives v St Paul’s School (a):

U18s A really close match which Winchester just ended up losing 97-98!!

U15A A really close match which Winchester ended up winning 131-130!!

Hockey

U18As v Bryanston School (h): Lost 1 – 8.

U14Bs v Lord Wandsworth College U14D’s (h): Won 1 - 0

Rowing ~ Men’s HORR - Eights Head of the River Race

This was WCBC’s first race on the Tideway in 2 years, good preparation for Schools’ Head on Tuesday. It was an early start in London on Saturday morning as the 1st VIII headed to Emanuel Boat Club. After a race brief, pointing out key landmarks and distance markers the boys picked up the boat ready to go afloat. They were crew number 201, they had 200 crews to wait before they could race. The coaches and parents stood under Barnes Bridge watching the crew do a warmup loop of part of the racing course, helping to settle the nerves, then getting into marshalling position.

Racing started at 09:15, as the coaches stood on the other side of the river to Emanuel BC they saw the crew come round the corner at 10:15, from Chiswick Bridge, through Barnes Bridge and off towards Hammersmith Bridge. They looked to be in a strong rhythm holding off the crew in front of them to finish 7th overall in the Open Junior category and 151st with a time of 20 minutes flat for the course. A great event which sets them up in a good position for Tuesday. [SLG]

WinCoFo: VIs: Boys & Girls OTH v Commoners

VIs was set up to be the best match in years. OTH comprised of veterans from previous campaigns and the Toyeites who had maintained the house's remarkable unbeaten run in VIs Festival. With Bowder on ropes, Cloke-Browne and Alexander as kicks and Jackson as a planting machine, OTH looked a formidable prospect. On the other side, Commoners' captain Seb Morgan had seen his side beaten in XVs and VIs in their previous five encounters and he was determined not to lose again. That steely resolve proved to be contagious with the rest of the Commoners side starting the match in uncompromising fashion. A series of gritty, strong kicks and fearless plants saw Commoners take an early lead which they held onto until time-to-change. Duckworth chased down every kick and gave OTH no time to breathe. Although beaten on the ropes, Edwards played a canny game along the ball to pass him short but limiting the damage or retreating to play the ball intelligently forward. Morgan's performance was inspired, with almost all of his kicks being straight and delivered with power. Even his behinds stayed inside ropes, making OTH's job doubly difficult. For Cloke-Browne, it was a less happy afternoon and this enormously talented player simply had one of those days. Commoners started on top and remained there to finish the game 44-26.

Girls VIs

As with the boys, this VIs game was much anticipated and hotly contested. Again, OTH had a number of survivors from the last season and a formidable kick in Oleteju. Commoners were more of an unknown quantity with the majority being 4th years. As predicted, this turn into a nail-biter of a match with the scores only separated by one score throughout. OTH took an early lead but Commoners kept to their task and eventually taking the lead after time to change. Under Penner's direction, OTH refused to buckle and despite some ferocious chasing by Crouch came back to take a 4 point lead. Palser earned the respect of everyone watching, delivering long busts and a dipping down kick which separated her out from the rest. However, Houses were tenacious and held onto their advantage, finishing the match 17-13 and retaining Ali Pot for the second year. (MR)

Sporting quote for the week:

“Obstacles don’t have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don’t turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it.” Former NBA Superstar Michael Jordan

M.S. Burley

Director of Sport

24th March 2025

X: @WinCollSports