The Rugby 1st XV played against Haileybury School on Saturday. Despite tough weather conditions Oundle played an attractive brand of rugby, especially in the second half, which rewarded the crowd who braved the cold. There was an impressive debut from Harry Lowther (Sc) and from Nico Lethbridge (S) who contributed to the score sheet on what will no doubt be a memorable day for him. It was a comprehensive 38-6 victory in the end.
The Colts A team played against Haileybury at home. Both sides had to adapt their game to some blustery winds and cold rain. The home side scored the first try with a driving maul all the way from the 22m line. At half time the morale was in favour of Oundle with a score advantage. Despite Haileybury dominating the territory in the second half, Oundle’s defence proved impenetrable. With another forwards try from Oundle, the game ended 12-0.
On Saturday, the Oundle 1st XI girls hockey played against Stowe in the final home game of the season. Stowe had first push back, however Oundle chased from the very beginning and won possession, and soon after, Hebe Hughes (K) took an opportunity to score. Stowe had a few close goal shots but Minna Coke (D) in goal made some incredible saves and didn't let one ball past her. Soon into the second half, Oundle won a penalty flick. Anna Hodgkinson (N) maintained her concentration under pressure and scored the second goal. Anna then set up an aerial pass for Dora Nicolle (W) to score the third. The final whistle blew and the score was 3-0 to Oundle.
On Thursday, 17 Oundelians travelled to Wellingborough to compete in the first round of races leading to the English Schools Cross Country Championships. The runners finished strong in all categories with 15 of them qualifying to go through to the county race. George Roberts (L) came 4th in BU19, Amelia Cookson (W) and Sacha Wight (K) came 1st equal in GU19. Archie Parkinson (L) and Eleanor Macintosh (K) both came 1st in the U15. They are hoping for a similar performance in January when competition will be more challenging.
Also on Thursday, the squash club competed against Oakham away. The 1st V lost only 1 out of the 16 games played in total. As each member of the team commanded such a convincing score line it would be hard to pick out a star performer. This is a particularly encouraging result, not seen in a match against Oakham in such fashion in recent memory.
The 2nd squash V were equally impressive, winning 4-1. Ryan Cheng (Ldr) performed especially well in coming back from a 0-2 deficit to win his match 3-2. Harry Daniels (G) and Alec Bruce Gardyne (Ldr) played very well, winning 3-0. This result is a sign of how much the 2nd V have improved this season; against the same team four weeks ago it was a much closer affair.
Oundle’s mixed badminton teams competed against Uppingham on Saturday. The 1st team, unfortunately, despite great effort, lost a tight match 8-10, while the 2nd team continued some outstanding performance, winning 10-8.
In the 2nd badminton team, the girls and boys double pairs did extremely well in their games, winning 6 out of 8 double games. Catherine Warner (N) and Augusta Williams (K), as usual, displayed a great deal of cooperation and teamwork, giving their opponents some tough games.
Dylan Martens (L)