2023/24 School Reports
Read on to find out the schools' views on their 2023/24 seasons. Missing reports will hopefully be added shortly...
Aldenham
Boys Festival winners
The 2023-24 season provide some real highlights for the school and also for some individuals. We are still looking for a secure place within the day to establish regular practices and, as a result, numbers fluctuate from year to year. Competition wise we were delighted to host the U13 and U14 qualifying tournaments – two year groups where we have good numbers and also some emerging quality. Fixtures were more sporadic this year as we try to reconnect with some of our neighbours and find mutually convenient playing times. Weekend tournaments remain challenging for many of our players who have prior outside commitments.
We really enjoyed the days at Repton in the national finals and I was delighted with the progress some of our pairs made.
Perhaps the greatest achievement was at the senior end. Our 1st pair Frankie Manderson-Harkin and David Elliott won the national festival and Frankie and partner OA Danny Francis played in the Kinnaird Festival only losing the final 12-8, 10-13, 10-13 against Dom Robson & Ed Phillips. This was a true victory for Frankie who has been an outstanding and inspirational captain, whilst showing independence to find club games and has benefited greatly from the welcoming atmosphere of the Heath Club on Tuesday nights. A pathway I would encourage others to follow.
Andy Stephenson
Berkhamsted
Boys Open champions; U15 winners; U11 winners
Pett Plate champions; U16 winners
Berkhamsted Fives started off the year with a lot of unknowns. With the departure of Anthony Theodossi at the end of the 2023 season, we started the year with no ‘Head of Fives’. Dossi had been a real champion for fives in his time at Berkhamsted and always put the kid’s enjoyment and development as his number one priority, without him we knew the school’s program would not be the same. It is with great credit to Dossi that the program at Berkhamsted has still been able to thrive this year, even without his top coaching and much-loved presence around the courts.
Both the boys’ and girls’ commitment to Fives shone through this year as they persisted to turn up to afterschool and early morning trainings even without a consistent face at the fives courts. The students have enjoyed taking part in Inter-house fives competitions which saw over 80% of each year group step onto court to take part.
We started off 2024 with great success in the Pett Plate which was hosted at Berkhamsted. Our mixed girls and boys team played some excellent fives against some strong opposition. Moving into nationals we were unsure on the success we may have due to the lack of time on court for some of our players due to a reduced fixture schedule. Despite this Berkhamsted were still able to have their most successful year in the school’s history. Winning 5 national titles across both boy’s and girl’s categories. Even the age groups we did not win we saw great success and our students were challenged against the very best in the later stages of the tournaments.
Highlights include our U13 Girls pair (Rosie W and Indie C) wining their second national title in a row while also making it to the U14 semi-finals playing a year up. Rosie and Indie also went on to win the U13 Rugby fives nationals as well! Our U11 boys were able to get over the line in their national finals after two previous years of Berkhamsted being runners up in the competition. In the U15s we entered just the one pair, mostly due to the success of a large number of our boys in the previous year’s U14 tournament meaning they would need to play up a year this time round. Lawrence F and Louis C played some great fives despite not ever being paired together before this tournament and were able to go all the way and become U15 national champions. Our U16 year group was strong this year which led to two Berkhamsted pairs making it into the semifinal where our pair 1 (Ed H and Tom A) battled it out against our pair 2 (Theo P and Rishi M). Long term pairing Ed H and Tom A were dominant all tournament and were able to overcome a strong Shrewsbury pair in the final to win the U16 competition for the first time ever in the school’s history! Finally, our U18’s where we only had one pair entered into the competition. Sam K (Y13) and Ben S (Y12) made it to the Semi-Finals in last year’s competition and were eager to go all the way this year. Sam and Ben looked strong throughout the tournament and only got better with each game. They managed to go the whole tournament without dropping a set and faced off against an impressive Eton pair in the final. Despite Sam getting cramp in the third set the boys were able to push through and secure the Open Age Championship and become just the 4th pair from Berkhamsted to achieve this and the first since 1981!
Well done to all the students who showed so much dedication to the programme at Berkhamsted throughout the year. It was a great pleasure to see the school achieve so much success this year despite the transition period it has gone through. A special thanks to Chris Davey, George Campbell and Doug Foster for their efforts in supporting the Fives programme at Berkhamsted. Their coaching and experience has been a real driving force in the success of the Fives at Berkhamsted this year.
Quentin Hoad
Bryanston
No report received yet
Burford
Burford School continued their Fives coaching on Saturday mornings at Summerfields this year with a group of around 8 students consistently attending. Although a couple of our fives players left at the end of the last year we were able to recruit a few more in September and so the season began for us with a fixture against Summerfields. Being a slightly more informal fixture this gave us an opportunity for some of the newer players to have some invaluable game experience against a good rotation of Summerfields students both experienced and new.
Due to the arrival of my baby, I haven’t been as freely available as previous years and so attending major tournaments proved difficult this year. We did manage to attend a fixture at St Bartholomews when a contingent of Shrewsbury School toured down south over the Northern Tournament weekend. The usuals from Burford, Lucas and Luca were as keen as ever while we also had Ella, a new starter in September, join us for her first competitive fixtures. Coming from Spain and a pelota background, Ella already had the basic techniques and hand eye coordination to make her useful on a fives court.
I leave Burford at the end of the year and so this may be the final fives report from us for the foreseeable future. I’d like to thank everybody who has hosted, played against or offered guidance to me/Burford over the past 2 years since we started playing, we are all incredibly grateful for how much encouragement we have had along the way. Lucas and Luca also leave Burford at the end of this year to attend sixth form’s in London, I have already told them where their nearest courts are and that I hope to come up against them in tournaments for years to come.
Steven Kaaber-Gore
Charterhouse
Senior 1st pair; Hughes Cup team; U14s; Aberconway Plate winners; Pattison Plate winners
Despite various 'not-all-Fives-related' injuries to Captain Will (Year 13 - 'eye' – and latterly 'collar-bone'), Jan (year 10 – 'back'), Bertie (year 10 – 'collar-bone') and even coach, Alex K 'torn calf', the 2023/24 season will go down as one of the most promising for some time.
There were a total of fourteen matches in addition to two tournaments (not including the season-ending National Schools) for our pupils to dig their teeth into this season.
Five of these matches (when counting the triangular event with Shrewsbury) were against perennial local rivals Cranleigh beginning with a Charterhouse whitewash victory away at the start of the season for our strongest team, then troughing as our un-blooded U14s entered the fray in the 2nd match, peaking again in Spring as our Juniors began to mature in the 3rd meeting, and evening out in the final 4th and 5th matches when Cranleigh's 1st pair marginally gained the upper hand over our Captain, Will, and partner, Max, at 1st pair whilst at the other end of the pairings the Charterhouse U15s and U14s started to dominate.
As usual there were also two social matches against the much more experienced Brigands club (Men) who provide an excellent learning foil for our youngsters and where it could be seen by the 2nd match that our schoolboys were in the ascendancy (albeit with some way to go to achieve parity). There was also a double fixture against Sunningdale who schooled our U14s early in the season during the Away fixture but where the honours were equal when invited back to Charterhouse.
Other matches included a cat and mouse rubber away at Eton (and a similar meeting in the Spring back on home turf), a drawn match at home against Westminster, a tight meeting away at Berkhamsted and the encounter of the season away at St Olave's with a draw at 1st pair, a narrow victory for Charterhouse at 2nd pair, a more generous win for us at 3rd pair and some losses at U14 level.
Aside from these bilateral fixtures, Charterhouse managed also to enter four pairs into the London Tournament Festival held at Harrow in December. The pairing of Jules & Matteo (both Year 10) admirably finished as runners-up in Plate B, whilst Bertie (Year 10) and his partner from Ipswich School finished as Plate A1 runners-up to Plate A1 victors Charterhouse schoolmaster, James Branchflower (!) and his partner, Matt Davis. Jan (year 10) with his partner/father (and Charterhouse coach), Tom Leach, eventually ran away with the Main Plate! Charterhouse received a special mention for their ‘return to the fold’.
With the unfortunate cancellation of the Bowden Bowl for 'Tier 2 Fives schools', a late decision was made for Charterhouse to enter the top-tier U15 Hughes Cup - traditionally a 3-pair event showcasing the crème-de-la-crème at this age level featuring Harrow (at home), Eton, St Olave's, 2 Shrewsbury teams and now... ...us! Able only to field 2 (out of the requisite 3) pairs, we were seen to be fighting against the tide and were asked upon check-in if we wanted to enter 'in spirit' rather than 'to compete' – especially given that in each match we were immediately forfeiting the 3rd pair. The resounding answer from our ranks was: 'no – we're here to win!'
In a round robin against 5 other teams, our first match was against St Olave's, on paper, the strongest team. We, of course, had to waive 3rd pair. At 1st pair, Jules & Matteo were 7-7 at one point in the 1st set and 9-9 at one point in the 2nd set but ultimately went down 12-9, 12-9. Bertie & Jan in 2nd pair were 9-7 up in the 1st set but also went down 12-9, 12-6. Up next were hosts Harrow who Jules & Matteo soundly defeated 12-6, 12-3 and where Jan & Bertie won 12-5, 12-2. The following fixture was against Shrewsbury B-team where we won again at 1st pair 12-6, 12-3 and at 2nd pair 12-4, 12-2. Shrewsbury A-team were to be our next opponents... Jules & Matteo drew 9-12, 12-10 in an evenly matched contest whilst Jan & Bertie edged their encounter to win 12-7, 12-11. By the time of our final match against Eton, Jan was sporting a hand injury to add to his dodgy back and despite Bertie's scintillating fives, the 2nd pair went down 12-10, retired... ...whilst at 1st pair Jules & Matteo slipped to a 12-7, 12-9 defeat. Once again 😊 Charterhouse were mentioned in dispatches as the surprise package of the tournament! Technically we may have finished 4th (due to lack of a 3rd pair) but really we were on a par with Shrewsbury 1 and Eton 1 based on standard of play... ...and not miles away from eventual winners, St Olave's!
Hubris struck during the Long Quarter half-term holidays – U15 2nd pair stalwart, Bertie, was unserendipitously upended by a French lady on the ski slopes and an X-ray showed his collar-bone was broken putting a spanner in the works as regards our pairings for the upcoming Nationals. The brains trust, however, went to work around the table at Pizza Express in Godalming at the Charterhouse Fives Dinner celebrating all-things-Fives, especially our performances at the previous year's National Championships, and a contingency plan was formed...
Our team for the Nationals held up at Repton were to consist of:
Open (U18): Will & Max as our sole pair. Will & Max showed their innate talent and got off to a flyer against 5th seeds, Ipswich 1st, taking the lead 5:2. Inevitably Ipswich then got going and we were to fall behind and eventually lose 12:7. A simple 8:2 win against Eton 8th was to follow. Shrewsbury 5th were next on the agenda but despite being 7:2 up in a game we should have won, we conspired to lose 12:11. St Olave's 4th pair were to be the final test in the group where we went down 12:8. Thanks to points accumulation we scraped through in 3rd place to the knock-out round where we faced, of course, our nemesis Cranleigh 1st in the knockout stages... ...and with the scores stuttering from 8:8 to 9:9 to 10:10 we finally lost 12:11.
U15: 1st pair of Jules & Matteo with 2nd pair of Jan (& Jack from U14 deputizing for Bertie). Jules & Matteo, thanks largely to their performance at the Hughes Cup, were seeded 3rd amongst other top seeds St Olave's 1, Shrewsbury 1 and Berkhamsted 1. Likewise Jan & ‘’Bertie’’ were seeded 7th in the country only further behind QE Barnet 1 and Eton 1... Despite his natural volleying, it was assumed that Jack's relative inexperience was clearly going to provide an uphill struggle as an U14 player but that, in the absence of Bertie, this scratch pairing should at least make their way through the U15 group stages and – even if not matching the 7th seed status – gain valuable experience for Jack ahead of the U14 Novices competition to follow.
A drawn-out navigation of the A3/M25 junction-closing on our trip North and a couple of nights in the Derby Ibis Budget led to the following results: In the group stages, 1st pair of Jules & Matteo beat QEB 3rd 8:4, surprisingly lost to Shrewsbury 2nd 8:7 😲 (thereby losing our seeding) but then beat Eton 7th 8:2. Meanwhile the scratch 2nd pair of Jan & Jack beat QEB 5th 8:2, beat Eton 4th 8:4 but lost to Ipswich 1st 6:1 in an untidy performance. Both pairs qualified as 2nd in their group and advanced to knockout stages... ...whereupon Jules & Matteo beat Eton 6th 8:4 and Jan & Jack beat Repton 1st 8:1 to advance to the Round-of-16. Jules & Matteo beat QEB 1st 13-12, 12-10 at this point to advance to the quarter finals whilst Jan & Jack lost to the strong Shrewsbury 1st pair (and semi-finalists) 3-12, 2-12. Jan & Jack went on to avenge their earlier defeat against Ipswich 1st though, beating them 6:0 in the Plate quarters but then went out marginally to QEB 4th 7:8 in a nip and tuck Plate semi-final. In a traditional late finish quarter-final in the main event, Jules & Matteo participated in a humdinger against Eton 1st eventually pulling through 12-5, 9-12, 11-13, 12-8, 12-8 to set up a semi-final the following morning against favourites (and eventual Winners) Berkhamsted 1st where we were to lose 9-12, 5-12, 11-12.
U14: 1st pair: Jack & Benbecula, 2nd pair: David & Will, 3rd pair: Kin & George, 4th pair: Arthur & Leo, 5th pair: Jake & Lenny
It was a timely late February snatch from the Charterhouse squash courts that brought Jack's new U14 partner, Benbecula, to the fore... ...and a real shame not to have been able to bring more pairs with several devoted U14 Fives players unfortunate not to have been selected for the trip North. Nevertheless 5 pairs was something of a record turnout for Charterhouse U14 Nationals and all players were to acquit themselves well. After his performance in the U15s, Jack and partner Benbecula were seeded 4th and it was no surprise that our 1st pair made it through the group stages winning 8:2 against Eton 6th, 6:0 against Shrewsbury 6th and 6:0 against Harrow 2nd thereby qualifying for a bye. Our 2nd pair of David and Will finished 3rd in their group after vanquishing Eton 10th and despite losing to Eton 2nd and a narrow defeat 8:7 in their final group match against Shrewsbury 7th. Our 3rd pairing of Kin and George performed exceptionally to finish 2nd in their group after beating Shrewsbury 5th and Eton 7th (only losing to a strong QEB pair). Arthur & Leo did well to beat an Eton pair in their group.
David & Will beat Eton 6th 6:1 to join Jack & Benbecula in the Round-Of-16 whilst Kin & George did no worse beating Harrow 3rd 8:7 to ensure Charterhouse had 3 pairs present in the final 16 – quite an achievement! Unfortunately Will & David were then to go out against Shrewsbury 2nd whilst Kin & George also went down against Harrow 1st. Meanwhile though our 4th and 5th pairs were competing well in the Plate competitions with Jake & Lenny showing real perseverance and improvement to achieve a 3rd place spot in Plate A! Back at the business end of the competition, Jack & Benbecula were toughing it out against QEB 2nd pair. We narrowly won 15-13, 5-12, 12-3 in a topsy-turvy match and advanced to the quarter finals. It was by this stage that the very early morning start from Surrey was beginning to show and our top pair looked tired and out of sorts against a strong Shrewsbury 2nd pair in the quarters who beat us in straight sets 5:12, 9:12, 7:12.
Charterhouse pupils also featured in the end of season competitions, notably the Aberconway Cup where Jan and his father, Tom, triumphed over Tom Dunbar and son, Jamie, in the Plate final to take home the Mike Fenn Plate.
After the Easter hiatus, the Charterhouse Fives season culminated in May with the inaugural Pattison Plate tournament (in honour of late Old Carthusian and Fives advocate, Ronald Pattison) for pairs consisting of a teacher and a pupil. A huge turnout of almost 40 entrants were greeted by fine weather and a tasty barbecue and it was fittingly Bertie (Year 10), now recovered from his collar-bone break, and History teacher partner, Mr Gillespie, who were named champions and took home the silverware to Bodeites.
Whilst it is a great shame to say goodbye to tireless servants to the game, Captain Will and partner, Max, at the top of the Carthusian Fives hierarchy as well as to Amar and Caspar, it is heartening to see that even at 6th form level the likes of Khalel are taking to the game at a later stage. Our heroic U15 quartet will now be joining him in representing the school in the lead pairings whilst the plethora of new U14s enjoying their Fives to a high standard (as evidenced by their performance at the Nationals) bodes excellently for the future of Charterhouse Eton Fives and we fully expect the Eton Fives pyramid to continue laying even deeper foundations with the advent of the new season.
Huge thanks to the Eton Fives parents particularly at the U15/U14 level who have been incredibly supportive. Our goals for the upcoming season are not only to re-enter the Hughes Cup and London Festival but also to compete in the Turnbull and Barber trophies alongside Old Carthusians as well as to exceed the quarter-final and semi-final achievements from this year's U14 and U15 Nationals.
Tom Leach
City of London
It has been a fun year for Eton fives at City of London School with a very healthy turnout every Wednesday for the weekly afternoon session taking place at Westminster school, reinvigorated by the temporary return of Old Citizen Ed Gosnell and coached in the latter half of our time there by the brilliant Can Koksal. Ed used his Fives contacts to organise two away fixtures, the first being a trip up the M1 at Mill Hill School where the Citz lost 2-1. There with a spirited effort from third pair Sebastian Drax (Year 12) and Slater Cochrane (Year 11) gaining a well-deserved point on the board for the Citz, triumphing in a four-setter on what was a lovely occasion. The second game only involved one City pair, Arthur Phillips (Year 12) and Indigo Luksch (Year 13), at Harrow School, but also proved to be a tremendous afternoon for all present, involving games against several Harrow pairs. A major highlight was the presence of two current schoolboys, Sebastian (again) and Gabriel Oldknow (Year 13) appearing at the Old Citizens' Adams Cup in April, with Sebastian reaching the final on a very impressive debut.
Rahim Dharamshi
City of Norwich
No report received yet
Cranleigh
Girls Champions; U13 boys; U12s; U13 girls
Fives at Cranleigh is run as a year-round club which happens after school for 45 minutes a week. It is an optional club with no selectivity. This model has evolved over the years and works well for us although it does make it difficult to compete with other schools who have greater access to players, curriculum time and courts in their playgrounds. The courts at Cranleigh are all over at the Senior School across a busy road and this prevents play before school and at playtimes.
Success of a programme is usually determined by championships won and, in this respect, we have not been successful although over the last 9 years we have provided 8 National finalists without ever winning anything. Most of our success has occurred in the Girls’ U13 tournament although we did have a Boys’ pair who reached a final in 2019 as U12s before missing out the next year due to COVID.
Over the years I feel I have become more philosophical about where we sit in the pecking order and find myself getting as much pleasure from introducing new and unlikely players to the game and seeing how they develop and improve.
One of the highlights of this season was seeing an U13 pair who last season had struggled to win a point nearly win two games at the U13 Qualifiers-next year Hugo!
This season has been remarkable in many ways and ended in a most unlikely Cranleigh win on the very last day of the Nationals at Repton. However, before we get onto that, here is a brief recap of the season in chronological order.
First up were the u13 Qualifiers at Aldenham in Hertfordshire. Four pairs were entered and the first two pairs of Josh F and Will B, and Ethan D and Jake L both qualified for the finals next week. This put them into the top 24 in the country for their age group. It was a great day’s Fives for all and the improvements made by all were quite spectacular, testament to all the efforts and work they have put in over the year. Perhaps the most satisfying performances of the day came from Jack Mc, Johnny E and Hugo J who were competitive throughout but also just loved the opportunity and experience they had. They were so close to winning 2 games.
Next on Tuesday 30th Jan we moved onto Highgate for the U13 Girls’ Nationals. Taking five pairs of greatly differing experience. The aim was to have fun and improve and I think it is true to say that this definitely happened beyond my wildest dreams. Pairs 4 and 5 were experiencing their first ever matches and they did amazingly and ended the day winning about as many as they lost. Tilly B and Aoife S even ended up the plate C final where they had a great match before narrowly losing after 3 close fought games. The top 4 pairs all qualified for the main competition proper and were then pitted against some of the big guns. Pairs 3 and 4 reached the second round. Pair 2 the quarters and Pair 1 the semis. In the semis Matilda and Orla were pitted against a very strong Ipswich pair and went onto produce the performance of the day. We narrowly lost but heads were much held high after their third place in the country. I was delighted with the performances of all the girls. They were great fun to take and I really hope the Form 6 leavers continue to play and love this great game. I also look forward to seeing how far the current Form 5s can go.
Next up were U12 Boys who began their campaign for National glory with the Qualifiers at Harrow School.
Cranleigh’s 5 pairs were among a field of 52 pairs from 6 other schools all vying for the chance to qualify for the Finals next Thursday. Jamie, Avey and George, relative newcomers to the game, found the going tough early on but it was lovely to see them winning games towards the end of the day as their skills and confidence grew. The other 4 pairs made it through their groups and into the final 32. With a quarter-final place guaranteeing qualification the tension began to mount. Freddie and Fraser made it into the next round but just came up short in the round of 16. Their play improved dramatically over the day and they promise much for the future. The top 3 pairs of Hattie and Olive, Monty and Fynn and Ollie and Wilbur all made it through to the quarters and therefore qualified for the Nationals next Thursday. With that objective in the bag everything else was a bonus. Hattie and Olive fell in the quarters, Monty and Fynn in the semis and Ollie and Wilbur made it to the finals where they defeated a pair from Belmont. It is only the second time that Cranleigh has won this tournament. The last time being in 2019.
It was a great day out and both Mr Thomas and I were so impressed with their play, their sportsmanship and support of each other. It was a great day out!
The U12 Nationals followed next at Highgate where 3 pairs had qualified from the previous week’s qualifiers.
The top two pairs impressed in the group stages progressing to the last 16 stage. Third pair, Olive and Hattie, the only girls participating, found the going tough early in the day, after being drawn against the top seeds and they deserve great credit for their fortitude and determination. Their day however ended gloriously with them winning their plate competition. They gained valuable experience and will be better players for the future.
The last 16 draw was not kind to either pair with both pairs going out to seeded teams but I was encouraged by how well they played and Olly and Wilbur can count themselves very unlucky not to have progressed further after leading in their match. It was a great day out and their performances bode well for next year.
The next week saw the U13s head off to Eton for the annual Prep Schools’ Championship which is possibly the hardest tournament on the fixture card with a limited entry and all the main players present. There is little room for error in this competition and even the group stages are tense affairs. This year I had intended to field a team consisting of all mixed pairs but my plans were scuppered by the late withdrawal of Olivia. Even so our team was made up of 5 boys and 3 girls- once again they were the only girls present!
First pair of Matilda and Josh sailed through their qualifiers serenely playing some excellent fives and impressing everyone. In the quarters they faced one of top seeds and eventually lost after two closely contested games. They went onto to play the other losing quarterfinalists and were competitive throughout.
The other three pairs went into the plate competitions where they played with great determination. All three pairs were excellent and can take great pride from their achievements.
The final chapter of our season was an unexpected one and revolves around two very talented girls.
The first is Charlotte B who is now in Upper Sixth at Cranleigh School and sits at the top of all the Fives players who have been through the Prep School over the years. She was a finalist at U13 when she was with us and with her partner Effie they bucked the trend by keeping playing once they got to Cranleigh School. The next two years saw two more final appearances and two more losses before they finally were victorious as U16s. Charlotte continued to play coming to help coach the Prep School children, but unfortunately her partner did not. In Charlotte’s final year she approached me and asked whether it might be possible for her to partner Matilda at the U18s the following week.
Matilda is 13 and at the Prep School. She had had a great season reaching the U13 girls’ semi-finals and then the quarter-finals in the Prep Schools but I think we all worried that it might be too early for her to play at this level. How wrong we were.
Below is my report from the day…
Friday saw the culmination of the Schools’ Fives season with the Under18 Girls’ Nationals at Repton and a very exciting collaboration between the Cranleigh schools with Charlotte B from the Upper sixth at Cranleigh School pairing up with the Prep School’s Matilda F.
I don’t think any of us really knew what to expect. I think we hoped that we would be competitive but we were in unknown territory with Matilda playing girls 5 years older than herself.
What followed was quite remarkable. The girls gelled beautifully and were a credit to the school. Charlotte looked after her younger partner superbly and Matilda’s performances grew stronger and stronger as the day progressed.
Cranleigh won their group beating the pre-tournament favourites on the way and then progressed through the rounds without dropping a game.
In the final they played against Shrewsbury, one of the powerhouses of the school game, and came through comfortably winning 3-0.
Huge credit goes to both of the girls who achieved a quite remarkable feat. It is the first time that Cranleigh has won an open tournament at National level. I could not have been prouder of them.
All in all, it has been a remarkable season for Cranleigh Fives and it is lovely to finally have that monkey off my back with a Cranleigh win. I must finish with my thanks to Mr Harry Thomas. All the plaudits for Cranleigh Fives seem to come my way as I sit at the top of this empire but he shares equally in all respects. His coaching and understanding of sport and how to help people improve is inspirational. His support and contribution are unparalleled. Perhaps most remarkable is that his efforts go unrecognised and unappreciated. Amongst some real heroes this year he perhaps deserves the greatest credit of all.
Mark Halstead
Editor's Note: The season ended with Mark Halstead winning the EFA Coach of the Year award.
Dover
No report received yet
Eton
Open runners-up; Turnbull Trophy finalists; U16 Individual players
No report received yet
Harrow
Harrow Fives enjoyed a great season with the highlight for many boys being the visit to Nationals at Repton staying in a farmhouse.
Although Gus Stanhope and Algie Anderson (First pair) did not win the Open event they played in the best match that I have witnessed for many years. A full report is already on the EFA website.
Elsewhere the boys continue to enjoy their Fives and are improving at different stages. I am very grateful for all the Senior boys efforts in promoting the game and would like to point out the Valentine Ballingal got to the quarter finals having only started a year ago. He partnered with next years Captain Charlie Allday.
On the domestic level we hosted several events at Harrow and also ran a successful programme for Shaftesbury Enterprise with local schools coming in to play a version of Fives being coached by the boys.
I thank my colleagues Sander Berg and Ryan Blank whose constant enthusiasm and humour is the perfect fit for Fives at Harrow. We are all looking forward to next season ahead.
Ian Hutchinson
Highgate
U15 & U16 champions
Highgate Fives has enjoyed a pleasant 2024 campaign with some excellent results. Serial winners Zara Kirstein and Millie Roxburgh retained their U15 and U16 championships, playing with pace and aggression, and crucially growing in confidence and quality as they grew through the tournaments. A breakout win in the u14’s for Veronica Maslovsky and Laila Offeringa was another highlight of the season: both players showed a level of dexterity and determination which will stand them in good stead for future competitions; indeed, they will be challenged all the way next year by the outstanding Stella Valensise and Annabelle Holmes, who were unlucky not to make the U14 final, and will no doubt come back stronger next year having come up just short against a powerful Shrewsbury pair. These players form a committed and hardy band who have trained at 7am sharp every Wednesday morning in all weathers, and whose cheerfulness at such an hour has done much to galvanise their coach over the course of the year. Andrew Lee and Oliver Tong are two more graduates of this school of early morning knocks and have developed in leaps and bounds this season, pushing their St Olaves' opposition all the way in a semi-final defeat in the Under 14s. These will be a force to be reckoned with in future years. A final Highgate tournament win for the departing Miles Wijeyeratne sadly wasn't to be as he and partner Ben Musikant suffered a similarly narrow U16 semi-final defeat; taking the first set against Shrewsbury before sadly falling short to an outstanding pair. The performances of promising senior players in Y12 will do much to galvanise that U16 team, who look set to make a big impact as they move into the Open competition.
Junior Fives at U11 and U12 continues to thrive, with a band of 40 extremely noisy players on the courts every Tuesday afternoon; and a wonderfully enthusiastic core of players committing every lunchtime to practise. There is a palpable sense of momentum amongst the current crop of Highgate players and I am looking forward to seeing them develop next year.
Many thanks finally to Billy Bolton, Head of Senior Sport, who has undertaken a huge amount of organisation for fixtures, training, matches, and, latterly, coaching as well. I am extremely grateful. Altiora!
Jack Flowers
Holyport
The new courts at Holyport being built
No report received yet
Ipswich
U13 champions; Richard Barber Cup team; Kinnaird Pepperpot champions
Any year in which pupils win a national championship has to be a great year. So a successful year but not without its frustrations. A new cohort of U12s took to the game in great number in September, only then to melt away, leaving just two carrying on playing. We had hopes that our senior girls’ pair who made the semi-final of the Girls Open last year could do better still a year on. However, they decided not to play. Whether their unfortunate experience in that semi-final had anything to do with it, they weren’t saying. Academic pressures and other demands certainly took their toll, with the U16s being particularly affected.
Our U13s, boys and girls, just pipped our senior boys as the keenest groups this year and also provided us with our greatest successes. In the EFA U13 Individual, Alex B achieved a maximum points score but it was Kishen who took the glory from him in the final. Alex again starred as part of a mixed U13 pair against the EFA’s Mandie and Louise, both he and Betsy showing a mature (and fierce) determination to win in the fifth game, which they did. The only other competition the boys had before the Schools’ Championships was the Pett Plate, which turned out to be a close and very enjoyable contest, except for coming second to Berkhamsted by a single point. That experience proved invaluable for first pair, Harry and Kishen in sharpening them up for the Schools’ challenge. Given the small amount of competitive practice they had had, it was not surprising they looked a little ragged and inconsistent early in the competition and I thought they were probably not sharp enough to go all the way. In the semi-final against Summer Fields however they showed tremendous self-belief, turning the game round after losing the first game and raising their play to a new level. In the final, against Sunningdale, it looked as though their cut returning was going to let them down but they stepped up again and proved themselves worthy champions. It was entirely fitting that the victory should be at Harrow, given Ipswich’s historic indebtedness to two Old Harrovians. Also pleasing was our fifth pair, MacAulay and Thomas, who won the A Plate. The U13 girls matched, or even outdid the boys in keenness, turning out happily against any opposition and being prepared to mix it with the best. The Richard Black Cup saw Betsy, Izzy and Anastasia join the OIs and help them to a respectable third place. Anastasia enjoyed her trip to Repton for the EFA U14 Individual, using her powerful cutting and good positional play to win the girls’ title. In the Schools’ Championship the girls came close to emulating the boys with Millie and Betsy only losing in the final to an excellent Berkhamsted pair whose cutting was impressively efficient. Their semi-final against Cranleigh, which from the scores looks very one-sided, was, in actuality, a superb display of U13 fives with many long rallies and in many respects a much better game than the final. Second pair, Anastasia and Izzy made the semi-final and Carys, Bella, Rebecca and Emily reached the quarter-finals, to confirm some strength in depth. Anastasia and Emily played in the Ladies’ Festival, winning the Plate and Millie and Betsy took advantage of the U15 Girls’ Championship being on a Sunday to play through to the semi-final of that and turning a few heads on the way.
The U14 Boys, a small but keen group, made smaller by our best player deciding to concentrate on rugby, had little competition during the season and so it was pleasing when Guy reached the final of the EFA U14 Individual and when they did well in the Schools’ Championships. First pair, Jake and Max, pulled round their last sixteen game to earn a quarter-final place and second pair, Guy and Jack, played well to win Plate A. Sadly the U14 Girls remained a blank sheet, with fate contriving to keep the two potentials from actually getting on court. The U15s was nearly the same story but Sophie and Charlotte made it to the Schools’ for their only outing of the year and came away with the A Plate after using the group stage to shake off their rustiness. We had plenty of U15 boys who wanted to smack a ball around at lunchtimes but only five interested in competition and of course the usual demands from elsewhere left us with only one pair to represent us at the nationals. First pair, Daniel and Charlie, were ineligible, having made the quarter-final of the 2023 U14s and so it was left to George and Callum to carry the Ipswich flag. A respectable last sixteen place was their well-earned reward. Daniel had been sharpening his game in the festivals, narrowly losing in the final of the Midland, reaching the semi-final of the London and the Plate final of the Kinnaird Festival. The experience served him well and enabled him and Charlie to take a last eight place in the U16 Championship. Our top Yr 11 pair Wills B and D managed the last sixteen, which was reasonable given their lack of practice. Academic pressure certainly affected the numbers playing in this age group. It looked as though we would not have an entry for the U16 Girls’ Competition until Maddi, despite having an injured hip and Emilia, decided to reprise their partnership of previous years. Impressively, they won their group, came back from losing the first game of their quarter-final against Shrewsbury 3 and only lost 8 & 6 to Shrewsbury 1, with Maddi gamely limping round the court and her coach thinking, “Should I pull her off? No, she’ll kill me.”
At senior level it was for the most part left to the boys but early on Tash and Kezia joined with Alex, Elliot, Henry and Charlotta Cooley to take second place in the Boughton Bowl. Sam C, Yr 12, was ever present and always willing to coach the younger pupils. It seemed sometimes as though he must be sleeping in the courts. Not naturally gifted, Sam is an advert for how determination and practice can enable success. His 12-11, 10-12, 10-12 loss in the final of the Midlands Festival was a great credit to him, both because of his standard of play and how he managed his emotions and took the loss philosophically. He thoroughly enjoyed the chance to play with Archie Cameron-Blackie to reach the semi-final of the Kinnaird Festival later in the season and will deservedly be our Keeper of Fives next year. Alex, this year’s captain, was also ever willing. He and Henry made the semi-final of the U25s, then with Daniel reached the London Festival semi-final and had an even more impressive semi-final run in the Graham Turnbull Trophy alongside Steve Burnell. Alex and Elliot combined to win the Kinnaird Pepper-Pot Plate and in the Schools’ Open reached the quarter-finals. Will and Henry couldn’t quite emulate that, falling at the last sixteen hurdle, lack of time on court for Will taking the edge off his game but credit to an impressive Eton pair who were deserving winners. We had no takers for the Girls’ Festival but it was great to see Jackson and Logan play in their first ever competition. Making the Plate final was a just reward for them and U15s Callum and George used their extra experience to take a last eight place before doing the honourable thing and losing to the hosts.
Thanks to the EFA and its administrators for running the majority of the fifteen tournaments in which we participated this year. Similarly to all who provided venues and facilities - that we so easily take for granted. Repton was much enjoyed as the setting for the major part of the Schools’ Championships and Aldenham too, was a brilliant location as far as we were concerned (nothing to do with the Danish pastries on offer). Finally, many thanks to my fellow coaches, Tony Stubbs, Charlotta Cooley and Tim Wyndham for making it another great year of Ipswich fives and giving so readily of their time and expertise.
Peter Boughton
KES Birmingham
I recall to mind the famous Geoffrey Chaucer phrase ‘out of acorns do mighty oaks grow’ although it is also perfectly acceptable for the ‘mighty oaks out of acorns grow’…and that is surely the case for the situation of Eton Fives at KES. Our acorns have been planted and we now have to be patient waiting for them to grow. The healthy numbers of Year 9s have moved on to a slightly fewer set of Year 10s but are still showing signs of personal improvement and with some special lunchtime session to the Year 7s and 8s we are setting ourselves up nicely for a serious competitive start to the 2024/25 season with attendance at the Junior qualifiers being the target. Certainly, the case for continuing Fives at KES is good and, in the background, we are cautiously optimistic that the right noises are being made with a view to the repair of the courts and the uptake of more players especially from the sister school next door. Things are slowly moving forward, patience being the key.
Jon Shorrocks
Lancing
It is impossible to start this report on a very sad and upsetting note in relation to the Fives courts at Lancing. In April 2023 Richard Black and I attended a meeting at the school with the Headmaster and master in Charge of Fives . We were told that a decision had been made to convert the 2 front Fives courts to a café and retain/refurbish the rear courts.
Despite numerous and well-argued representations to the decisionmakers at Lancing to halt the conversion, the plans were implemented and construction started in August. Given that there was nothing that could be done to reverse the decision, extensive efforts were made to ensure that the refurbishment of the rear courts was undertaken to the highest possible standard and appropriate for the playing of Fives. The Estates, design and construction teams did engage with us and took on board requirements that they were simply unaware of. Valuable input was received from John Reynolds and Ed Taylor on detailed specification matters.
The end result are 2 attractive and excellent courts as can be seen from the photos above.
The hope is that the refurbish courts will create greater interest and participation in the game , which has been at a very low ebb for the last few years. The OLs will continue to try to promote and encourage the game at Lancing, which as Howard Wiseman has been known to say, “is a tough gig”.
Matthew Beard
Ludgrove
Prep Schools winners
Ludgrove had an excellent fives season culminating in winning the Prep Schools Fives 2024 defeating Summer Fields in the final. Bear Robinson and Alex Steel did not lose a match all season and have been a stand-out pair for Ludgrove for a while. Their combined power, accuracy and determination made them formidable opponents and we wish them well at their next schools. We have plenty of fives players coming through in our younger years and our usual fixtures were well fought by the whole team against Sunningdale, Eton, Summer Fields and Berkhamsted with many victories.
The School Fives competition was won by Alex Steel and Ameyaw Osei-Sarkodie and the Colquhoun Cup victors were Merlin Rawley and Rutger Pari. Wellington won the Sets Fives cup.
Guy Smith-Bingham
Lyceum Alpinum Zuoz
Boys Festival finalists at Repton; LAZ squad; Girls Festival winners
The Lyceum Alpinum's 2023-2024 Fives season has been both busy and highly successful.
In the Summer of 2023, the Lyceum Fives squad emerged victorious against the Lyceum Alumni in the annual Summer Games Championship event. With such an impressive performance from a young squad, the new Fives season in September held great promise.
Come September, the Benny Oei Championship took place on the blue courts of Veigy, serving as a fantastic tribute to Benny Oei with a significant international gathering. The final match saw two Lyceum students engaged in a high-quality face-off alongside a City of London Old Boy and Lyceum staff member.
As the Schools' National Championships at Repton approached in 2024, the Lyceum team was well-prepared for the Mixed, Boys' and Girls' Festival events. Despite being relatively inexperienced in such School events, all participants performed exceptionally well once their initial nerves subsided. Special recognition goes to Maggie Lin and Jocelyn Tao, who successfully defended the Lyceum's hold on the Girls Festival title by triumphing over Repton 1 in a hard-fought final.
Now, Lyceum students eagerly anticipate the 100-year Championship, which celebrates the centenary of Lyceum Fives.
It has been a remarkable season, and congratulations are in order for all participants!
Matt Wiseman
Marlborough
No report received yet
Mill Hill
No report received yet
Oakham
It has been a really enjoyable year of Eton Fives at Oakham School. A core of regulars alongside a group of enthusiastic new starters has been a breath of fresh air and helped to include more of our girls. Fixtures against local schools earlier in the year have helped develop identity, skills and competition. We look forward to more fixtures next year, during which a number of our Eton Fives playing cohort will reach the final year of their schooling. I will look to these for leadership and passing on the torch to the years below them when we return.
Nayan Chohan
Prestfelde
No report received yet
QE Barnet
Continuing from previous seasons, the Queen Elizabeth’s teams have flourished, boasting a robust participation of approximately 20 players across Years 9 to 11. This strong showing not only speaks volumes about the dedication and passion of our players but also bodes well for the future of Eton Fives at our school.
At this year’s Nationals, our teams once again showcased their talent and determination. One of our pairs reached the semi-final of the U14’s beginners' tournament, a commendable achievement that reflects their hard work and commitment to the sport. Additionally, our first U15 pair demonstrated exceptional progress, reaching the final of the main tournament, narrowly missing out to a very good Berkhamsted pair—an accomplishment that underscores their talent and potential.
We extend our heartfelt gratitude to the schools that have supported our fixture list and graciously hosted our matches throughout the season. Your hospitality and sportsmanship have contributed to the enriching experience of our players and have helped foster a sense of camaraderie within the Eton Fives community.
Furthermore, we would like to express our sincere appreciation to two outgoing members of our squad, Pratham Bhavsar and Indrajit Datta. Their dedication, leadership, and unwavering commitment to the sport have been instrumental in shaping our team's culture. In particular, their initiative in creating a 'pay it forward' culture, where experienced players mentor and develop younger talent, embodies the ethos of teamwork and camaraderie that defines our Eton Fives program.
As we reflect on the successes and lessons of the past season, we look forward with optimism and enthusiasm to the opportunities and challenges that the upcoming season will bring. With a talented and dedicated team, supported by a strong network of schools and mentors, we look forward to the 2024/25 season.
Jon Hart
Repton
On home courts; Repton at the Turnbull Trophy, Mixed pairs; Home Nationals players
It has been an exciting year for fives at Repton. Whilst we continue to operate on a basis of squeezing fives in around other sports, I remain pleased with the innate Reptonian spirit within the pupil body to make things work in busy schedules and keep the game growing. This year, sessions have run every afternoon and 30 players have gathered sufficient skill to represent the school, and all have done so with the spirit of the game being upheld. The crowning point of the year was hosting the National Schools Fives Championships, which has undoubtedly contributed to our largest entry to the event in recent years. 19 pairs participated in the National Schools’ Championships tournaments, and I hope the event itself will have raised the profile of the game amongst the many Reptonians and staff who watched.
In school ‘fixtures’, the Michaelmas term, saw matches against OREFC where the school came out on top in the girls and drew the boys matches and Oakham, where a comfortable victory was secured away from home. The Black Cup was entered again, and the girls and KH secured a pleasing 4th place at Highgate. In December, the Graham Turnbull Trophy provided another good day for 5 Repton pairings. In the Lent term, fixtures were arranged with Shrewsbury, Wrekin and Wolverhampton Grammar School. Overall wins against Wrekin and Wolverhampton were tempered by the usual loss heavy but mixed bag of results against Shrewsbury. House fives competitions were better contested than at any stage since the pandemic, but irritatingly The Priory were pipped into second place in both the senior and junior boys competitions ; - ).
So, to the National Schools Championships hosted at Repton for the first time. Standout performances came from Tom Gilbody and Freddie Tebbs who won a plate in the Under 15 competition and Zac Garner and Bobby Weston who enjoyed the opportunity to compete against the best in the Open and made the semi-final of a great festival tournament. Serena Derby and BeBe Stannard reached a quarter-final in the Under 16 girls against all odds and Charles Hill and Zac Garner played some excellent fives reaching the Last 16 of the Under 16 boys competition. Also worth a mention are the Year 10 pairing of Indi Mayman and Anna Metcalf, who did superbly well to reach the final of the Girls Festival before losing out to 6th form opposition. From a playing perspective, it has been great to see the development of our players across the nationals week and more broadly, I hope that Repton pupils and staff enjoyed the opportunity to see the premier event in the game in action and that they support further growth in the player pool and game next year.
David Exley
RGS High Wycombe
No report received yet
Rydal Penrhos
Welsh Invitational winners
No report received yet
St.Bartholomew's, Newbury
Regular weekly “activity time” sessions started in September with all years invited. After a few weeks the sessions settled down into a regular group of Year 8 students playing Fives and learning the rules, helped by Year 12 student James Holland. Numbers fluctuated from two or three to students queuing to use the three courts (see photo). A regular visitor to these sessions was David Cooper who enjoyed coaching and passing on his vast knowledge of Fives to the students. As the summer term arrived and students were able to use the playing field for other games and sports the numbers unfortunately declined. St Bart’s hosted a fixture between Burford and Shrewsbury in February where we were hopeful that we would be able to field a pair or two but unfortunately none of the more advanced players were available. In September the current Year 8 players will be encouraged to return and the new Year 7 students will be invited to play. As momentum builds and word of mouth spreads through the school it is hoped that we will be able to field teams in fixtures against other schools.
John Talbot
St.Bees
Coaching weekend; players at the St Bees Invitational
No report received yet
St.Olave's
Williams Cup winners; U21 finalists; Hughes Cup winners; U14 finalists
No report received yet
Shrewsbury
Turnbull Trophy winners; U14 novice finalists; Mixed finalists; Richard Barber Cup winners
It has been another strong season for Shrewsbury School Fives, with Shrewsbury reaching the latter stages of most tournaments entered this year. Numbers of Fives players at Shrewsbury remain healthy and we continue to attract a core of cricketers and tennis players, which has benefited our sports provision as a whole, namely Theo Wylie’s emergence in the England U19 cricket set up. This year Shrewsbury won the Graham Turnbull trophy for the first time, and achieved best-ever finishes in the Richard Black and Hughes Cups respectively. Our girls reached the final in every year group competition, and it was fantastic to finally get a pair to the U16 Final, the first time since 2014. With an all-Salopian final in the U14 Novices tournament, and a keen core of players in the U14 Girls gives us hope that the future is bright for Shrewsbury School Fives.
Adam Morris
Stowe
No report received yet
Summer Fields
No report received yet
Sunningdale
U12 winners; Prep School team champions
Another successful Fives season for the boys at Sunningdale. We enjoyed success in the U12s National Fives Competition, courtesy of Guest and Hoare ma, whilst also reaching the final of both the U11s and U13s National Fives Competition. We had six competitive fixtures against Ludgrove, Berkhamsted, Eton, Charterhouse, Harrow & Summerfields. In the senior ranks, the first two pairs of Witt, Corn ma, Guest and Hoare ma competed admirably against the top Fives playing schools. They were ably supported, by Godman, Burnham, Dougherty, Campion, Robarts and Q.Xu. Despite a number of near-misses in the National Fives competition, Hoare ma and Guest provided the moment of the season when they won the U12s Fives Championship, without dropping a set!
The juniors enjoyed a successful season as they continued to learn the game of Fives. Logue and Lintott only narrowly missed out on retaining the U11s Fives Championship for Sunningdale. The first pair were well supported by Sasegbon and Myles. Hoare mi, Blundell mi, Bathurst mi, Corn mi and Ugwu mi have demonstrated potential and I look forward to seeing how they all progress moving up the school.
Sunningdale were represented by the following boys:
Seniors - Corn ma, Guest, Hoare, Witt, Robarts, Dougherty, Campion, Q.Xu, Burnham & Godman.
Juniors - Logue, Lintott, Sasegbon, Myles, Blundell mi, Bathurst mi, Ugwu mi, Hoare mi & Corn mi.
George Thomason
Uppingham
This season has been somewhat a fallow year with limited fixtures. However, the highlight perhaps was being represented at the National U15 competition at Repton by Sergey Teliatnik and Eli Birch. The boys did brilliantly and gained plenty of experience on the Fives court against some strong opponents. They are very much looking forward to returning next year.
James Holroyd
Westminster
U15 squad
The combination of both School and League 3 "Abbey Club" fixtures, along with "Top Squad" training sessions, has once again contributed to a highly successful Eton Fives season at Westminster School. Additionally, current student and joint Old Westminster squads delivered fantastic performances in both the "Richard Barber Cup" and "Graham Turnball Trophy" competitions.
Two new initiatives have been introduced this past season:
1. The "Shot-Challenge" House competition, which sees all Station squad members striving to accumulate points for themselves and their House over the course of the term.
Points are awarded for successfully executing various shots. The player with the highest total score at the end of the term will be honored with their name engraved on the "Shot-Challenge House Trophy," to be displayed courtside in due course. Congratulations to Lower Shell student Jin Lee of Hakluyt's, who emerged as the winner for 2024.
2. Invitational "Top Squad" training sessions with Fives Coaches Mr. H.Wiseman and Mr. A.Charles, adding further gravitas to Fives Station. With two-hour sessions focused on shot drilling, students have clearly benefited. Two regular attendees, Henry Tamlyn and Albert Sparks, performed exceptionally well at the U15 National Qualifiers, along with fellow U15s Louis Petit and Sai Bhardwaj.
Special recognition this season goes to School Fives Captain Kieran Saujani-Lee and Vice-Captain Sacha Hunter, who tirelessly represented the School in squad selection and dedicated their own time to encourage a new group of junior players during Station hours.
As always, heartfelt thanks go to all assisting staff members, whose continued help with supervising Away fixtures and the general internal running of Fives Station is immensely appreciated.
Well done to all for another fantastic season!
Matt Wiseman
Wolverhampton Grammar School
The good news is that boys in Year 7 and 8 continue to be introduced to Fives in good numbers and a fixture against Repton was completed. Hopefully their enthusiasm continues next season.
The bad news is that a group of U15s who had enjoyed playing in the U14s beginners tournament the year before were unable to find time to play in their packed timetables this year. I’m sure this has been experienced at other schools where Fives is not considered a major sport.
Andy Husselbee
Wrekin
No report received yet