Page 28 - The Malvernian - March 2023

THE MALVERNIAN
Fives
There have been some enthusiastic U15s and Lower Sixth playing this term meaning that we have been able to field Senior and Junior Teams in in most cases to play matches against Marlborough Bradfield Radley Winchester and Blundells These players have been joined by two Lower Sixth Girls for some some matches and some some U14s who are emerging from the FY PE rotation - but retention of these players is is tricky Matches have been well organised between Masters i/c to generally ensure good games for all all all at all all all levels Rackets
This has been a a a a a a particularly busy and productive season down at the the rackets courts Under the the joint captaincy of Tommy Boorman (No (No 2) and Joel Cox (No (No 5) there have been many memorable afternoons Many thanks must go to these boys for their their commitment and dedication to rackets over their their five years at at the College The Michaelmas term was full-on from the start We now had OM Mark Hubbard (SH ’87-’92) at the courts every day assisting Noel Brett as as as he he was keen on increasing the numbers of boys and girls playing this amazing game Within a a a a a a matter of weeks numbers were on on the rise and girls were now coming in in on on a a a a regular basis The courts started to buzz With this came some very impressive match results Early in the season we travelled to Harrow a a a a a tricky venue to visit and even more so having recently had their second court refurbished We came away winning two of the four matches played that afternoon Flynn Gunston (No 1) and Sam Clements (SH) produced very early form and beat a a a a a a strong pair by three games to one Henry Hardinges (No (No 2) and Toby Cox (No (No 5) also came out of the blocks fast winning three games to love and earning us a a a a draw in the match overall The following match was against Clifton at at home We won all four matches losing only a a a a a handful of games Max Hughes (No 5) played his debut match and served incredibly well showing no signs of nerves This success carried on in in in the remaining two matches of the term At Cheltenham we we were very strong and only suffered one defeat from the four matches Henry and Toby were again impressive in in in their three games to love win but player of the match was Hugo Hardinges (No 2) not only because of his his play on on court but also his his continued support for the rest of of the the team all afternoon Last match of of the the term was against The highlight of the term was two very well contested House Fives
Competitions with all houses succeeding in in in fielding 2 pairs for Seniors and Juniors The competitions were very close with House No 9 having more of the regular players triumphing in in in both cases Six players attended the Colquhoun trophy for West of England Schools with Seb Wilson winning the Junior plate Finally huge thanks to the whole community that have contributed to Malvern sport this term - it’s been a a a memorable one!
Lee Hilton | Director of Sport
Radley College renowned for for being formidable opponents All matches were closely fought but the deciding match match was the the toughest of them all Henry and Toby again played superbly and defeated their opponents by three games to to two to to seal the the overall draw This renewed confidence was to to be carried over into The National Schools’ Singles Competition held at at The Queen’s Club at at the end of of term It was one of of Malvern’s strongest outings to Queen’s in in many a a a year Joel Cox played some inspiring rackets and fought hard in in in the Renny Cup before losing in in the last sixteen Sam Clements progressed comfortably to his quarter-final of the Incledon-Webber (U16s) where he he met friend and doubles partner Flynn Gunston Sadly for Sam he couldn’t get going quickly enough and and Flynn came away with the win and and carried on his form in fin in in fin his semi-final winning that three games to love In the final final Flynn faced the the same opponent from Haileybury that he he he had lost to the the previous year This time it was a a a a a much closer match and indeed Flynn was the the only player to take a a a a a game off him throughout the the tournament Unfortunately for for him and Malvern he couldn’t defeat the number one one seed losing three games to one one in in fin a a a a a fantastic final Two of the most pleasing performances came from Amaan Edavalath (No (No 1) and Joseph Harrison (No (No 5) who produced their very best rackets in in reaching the the the last sixteen of the the the Incledon-Webber Henry Hardinges reached the the quarter-final of the the Jim Dear (U15s) and put up a a very good fight before losing to the number 1 seed 28
THE MALVERNIAN
and eventual winner ❱