Gosforth Schools had an incredibly successful time at the England Squash National School Squash Championship Finals at Edgbaston Priory in Birmingham from 11th – 14th March.
Mixed KS3
A Gosforth Trust team of William Brocklehurst, Kiran Sarkar, Elizabeth Muldoon Smith and Alice Pearsall finished runners-up in the Mixed KS3 competition. The only team that could beat them were Hastings High School from Leicestershire, who had two England internationals in their team!
Boys KS4
The Gosforth Academy Boys KS4 team of Duncan Rutherford, Aidan Mahoney, James Ulyatt, Charlie Armstrong, Leo Blackett and Will Young won their QF against Kings College from London 5-0 and then ran into one of the pre-tournament favourites, Epsom College in the semi-final, where they narrowly lost out 3-2. Then at 2-2 in the 3/4 playoff, the match was all square and James Ulyatt at number 3 had 3 match balls but couldn’t get over the line, losing that game 14-16, which meant the team finished a valiant 4th place.
Girls KS3
The KS3 Girls team of Lucy Ulyatt, Meera Jatania, Freya Finnemore, Tara Michla, Zara Ali Saleem and Lila Begg were never troubled in any of their matches, beating Roseberry School from Surrey 4-1 in the QF, then Wycombe Abbey from Buckinghamshire 5 0 in their semi-final and then roundly beating Benenden School from Kent 5-0 in the final to be crowned champions!
Girls KS4
The KS4 Girls team of Rebecca Little, Isla Cook, Lexi Sweenie, Sophie Cockett, Syra Bhatt and Izzy Wright beat Downe House School from Berkshire 4- in their QF, but then lost a very close semi-final 3-2 against Sevenoaks School from Kent. They secured bronze by finishing 3rd with a 4-1 win over Lincoln Minster School from Lincolnshire.
Girls KS5
What a squad of players the Academy took for the KS5 Girls’ competition. Shae Paterson, Ava Naisbitt, Rebecca Little, Kate Naisbitt, Katherine Palmer, Sarah-Jane Mothersole and Anna Morgan all play in our county ladies’ leagues and most of them have represented the county at junior level. They had comfortable wins against Wycombe Abbey in the QF and Sevenoaks in the semi-final, then continued their fine form against Epsom College in the final, winning 4-1 to lift the national schools title!
Amazing performances with 2 champions, a runners-up, 3rd place and a 4th place in a national event!
All the players that represented Gosforth Academy were products of the School Outreach work that Northern Squash runs in the local community and have progressed through Northern’s junior coaching program.
Anyone who would like more information about how to get involved in the junior squash coaching program at Northern can contact the head coach, Richard Vitty on 07757 989582.
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