SOUTHEND HIGH SCHOOL FOR BOYS
Junior Boys: Winners
Inter boys: Winners
SOUTHEND High School for Boys were in stunning form at the National Track and Cup final, winning both the junior and inter boys competition.
The success in Bedford made it 18 wins in 14 years for the school who have now done the double three times.
And, to add to the excitement this time around, the inter boys scored the highest ever total in the 25 years of the competition, bagging 598 points.
Sam Bennett, a Year 9 pupil, also broke a school record by jumping 6.22 metres in the long jump while both of the school’s hammer throwers went past 50m.
The junior boys also impressed, scoring 30 more points than their A final score Year 8 pupil Michael Akhiebe broke the competition’s long jump record, which was set in 1989, with a leap of 5.99m.
Both hammer throwers also scored 30 points each to turn around a half way deficit of 59 points and the school have now won each age group nine times.
Head of PE Stephen Thomas said: “The attention to detail required and the grace under pressure required to perform to win any national final is paramount to their success.
“It was one of those days when everything went to plan and I could just sit back and enjoy it.”
Junior boys team: Josh Patmore, Joey Awala-Shaw, Tom Farquharson, Samuel Butcher, Luca Albon, Michael Akhigbe, Daniel Monk, Franck Macwan, Andrei Gare, Joe Gbadebo, Samuel Butcher, Will Harris, Sam Mellor, James Porter, Josh Colvill.
Intermediate boys: Louis Dunmore, Spencer Owen, Aaron Cottis, Dylan Ponting, Sam Jones, Ross Luckman, Joseph Bryan, Mitchel Cox, Mosope Oyelola, Scott Kingman, Sam Bennett, Sam Jones, Lewis Barrett, Jolaoluwa Omotosho, Alex Skingle.
SOUTHEND HIGH SCHOOL FOR GIRLS
Junior girls: Winners
Inter girls: Third
Champions – the Southend High School for Girls junior girls team with their English Schools Track & Field Cup final trophy
A MAGNIFICENT championship record javelin throw from Eleanor Butt inspired Southend High School for Girls’ junior girls team to victory in Bedford.
Butt launched the javelin 31.94m to start the afternoon session – after a morning where the team had dominated on the track – and from there the girls never looked back.
The team went into the competition as favourites, having had the highest points score in the regional qualifiers, and they lived up to that billing with a fine display that saw personal bests tumble everywhere.
The school’s head of PE Sue Simpson said: “You never expect to win because anything can happen on the day.
“But the girls held their nerve and all produced top performances.
“We took the lead after the morning track session and then after Eleanor’s huge javelin throw, everyone was just buoyant.”
Finished third – Southend High School for Girls’ intermediate girls team
Though the school did gain a championship record, they did lose one in Bedford as Sarah Wilhelmy’s 200m record of 25.4s, that had stood since 1993, was broken by Lincolnshire’s Amy Hunt by two-hundreths of a second.
The intermediate girls team finished third but were just a point shy of second place even though they had three athletes who had returned from the World Schools Athletics Championships barely 24 hours earlier.
Hannah Badger, Dolita Shaw and Kendrea Nwaelene were all suffering from the exhaustion of competing in China but the team still managed to hold on for third place.
Junior girls team: Ezinne Okwielize, India Perry, Uchenna Okafor, Abena Oteng, Hannah Phipps, Eleanor Butt, Beth Ashley, Isabelle Bates, Esther Odugbile, Holly Lawrence, Esther Odugbile, Omoefe Osayi, Lily Garner.
Intermediate girls: Adesewa Adedoja, Dolita Shaw, Elizabeth Shaw, Kendrea Nwaelene, Elena Iruskieta, Shekinah Joseph, Katie Faint, Joanna Rimmington, Hannah Badger, Iona Doyle, Anesu Munemo, Ella Healey.
KING JOHN SCHOOL
Inter boys: Third
KING John School’s intermediate boys team finished third overall which made them the best comprehensive school in the land.
Third place – the King John School intermediate boys team
The team was also an agonising point away from finishing second but the school’s staff said they were extremely proud of their efforts. Albert Wilton was the team’s top scorer as he collected 50 points from his efforts in the 100m and pole vault.
The team was sponsored by Wiltons Pet shop.
Team: Albert Wilton, Adam Liddell, Jack Dresener, Frankie Stone, Mason Smith, Bradley Hart, Louie Hay, Xander Styles, James Moxom, Callum Liassi, Theo Fadayiro, Tyler Ruskin, Cody White, Joseph Belcher.
FITZWIMARC SCHOOL
Inter girls: Fourth
FITZWIMARC School’s intermediate girls team finished agonisingly short of the top three places.
The teenagers gave it everything they had but finished 20 points off their south Essex rivals Southend High School for Girls in third spot.
So close – the FitzWimarc School’s intermediate girls team finished in fourth place at Bedford
Sinead Clark was the top scorer on the day for her performances of 2m 23.7s in the 800m and 9.96m in the triple jump.
Gabrielle Quigley (discus, 34.08m) and Jessica Down (shot, 10.72m) picked up the maximum 32 points in one event.
Team: Ashley Hart, Olivia Lord, Katy Short, Ellie Rowan, Emily Pert, Ella Wright, Sinead Clark, Tilly Deacon, Lauren Johnson, Grace Cook, Jessica Down, Gabrielle Quigley.
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