On Wednesday 22^nd January 2025, our U10 & U11 Boys hockey teams competed in an exciting set of fixtures against Copthorne Prep School. Both our A and B teams demonstrated great teamwork, determination, and skill throughout their matches, showing improvement from start to finish.

A team: Caiden, Laurence, Charlie, Alec, Daniel, Jude, Milan and Ethan.

Oakhyrst Grange 5 – 1 Copthorne School

The A team, led by captain Daniel, put on a fantastic display of attacking hockey, securing a hard-fought 5-1 victory. The team showed some excellent passing and movement patterns creating several goal-scoring opportunities. Charlie opened the scoring early, followed by a well taken goal from Jude. Our defence remained solid with both Ethan & Milan making crucial tackles to prevent the opposition from breaking through. The team should be really proud of their effort a teamwork.

Player of the match: Caiden H, for outstanding attacking play and stick work as commented on by Mr Pinnock from Copthorne School.

B team: Rahnal, Jaimin, Alex, Max, George, Heath and Ayush.

Oakhyrst Grange 0 – 3 Copthorne School

The B team fought hard in their hockey match in a close contest, resulting in a 3-0 defeat. Despite the score line, the team displayed great resilience and effort. Our defenders, led by Ayush, worked tirelessly to block attacks, and making several crucial goal line saves! The midfield battled hard to create chances, but unfortunately, we couldn’t find the breakthrough. Although the result didn’t go our way, the team showed fantastic sportsmanship and determination, and there are plenty of positives to take forward.

Player of the match: Rahnal D & Ayush S for excellent defensive work and commitment throughout the game.

Well done to both teams on their efforts, and thank you to Copthorne Prep School for a great set of matches. We look forward to hosting you in two weeks time.

Mr Smith, Head of Sport

On Saturday 18th January 2025, some of our Year 5 & 6 children took park in the annual Surrey School Cross-Country competition 2025, held at Reigate Priory Park.
In very chilly conditions, all the children ran their hearts out across the difficult 1.5km-2km course. There were over 100 runners per race with our results listed below:

Year 6 Girls (114 runners):
• Vivienne L – 8th – invited to train with Surrey.
• Jessica H – 66th

Year 6 Boys (108 runners):
• Jude M – 85th

Year 5 Boys (123 Runners)
• Alec W – 13th – invited to train with Surrey.
• Caiden H – TBC
• Alex W – 113th

The children should be really proud of their efforts as they were up against some very strong runners from across the county.

A big thank you to Mrs Loynes who was our school representative at the competition. Without her help, our attendance wouldn’t have been possible.

Mr David Smith
Head of Sport

On Wednesday it was the last home fixture before the Christmas break. Our Boys U10 & U11 football teams hosted our local friends from Essendene School. The afternoon consisted of our ‘A’ team playing against Essendene first, before our ‘B’ team doing the same.

A team:

The boys dominated possession throughout this match, creating many opportunities going forward. At half time we were leading 2-1 and in the second half we were able to up the tempo and score 3 goals quickly to put the game out of sight. All of the players involved worked really hard for the team and stuck to their role. Well done!

Player of the match: Jude M, Year 6

B team:

The boys were very excited to get the opportunity to play a competitive fixture. For some of them it was their first ever one and they played with great enjoyment and improved throughout the match. The score line went in favour of Essendene, however Charlie was thrilled to score the team’s only goal! Well done all.

Player of the match: Charlie L-M, Year 5

It was a great way to end the calendar year and we look forward to more fixtures and opportunities alongside Essendene School.

Merry Christmas everyone from the Sports Department.

Mr Smith, Miss Lomax, Mrs Evans and Mrs Cox.

On Friday, 29th November, five of us – Freddie, Sofia, Amaaya, Jude, and I from Years 4 to 6 proudly represented London South at the ISA Swimming Nationals after qualifying through OSG. Early that morning, Amaya and I travelled to the iconic London Aquatics Centre in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park for the morning events.

The morning started with a warmup. When it was time for my first event, with butterflies in my stomach, I approached the starting blocks for the Year 5 Boys’ Individual Breaststroke race. Giving it my all, I achieved a personal best (PB) but narrowly missed a medal, finishing in 4th place. Next up was Amaaya in the Year 6 Girls’ Medley Relay, where she swam the freestyle leg. We cheered as loudly as we could, and our excitement soared as the team clinched a brilliant Gold! Congratulations to Amaaya and the London South team for an incredible achievement!

Later that morning, Jude arrived at the venue and boldly stepped in to complete the Boys’ Medley team, swimming the front crawl leg. It was another nail-biting event, and the team put in a fantastic effort, securing 5th place. The medley relays marked the end of the morning session.

After a short break, we were joined by Mrs. Cox who had accompanied Sofia and Freddie to the venue. The afternoon session began with Para swimming, leaving us all in awe of the incredible talent on display. Then came another nerve-wracking moment as I stepped up for my individual 50m Freestyle race. Pushing hard through the water, I gave it everything I had. When I hit the pads and looked up, I was stunned to see my name in 1st place! Winning a Gold and setting another PB was an unforgettable moment.

The individual races were followed by the freestyle relays. Freddie swam the second leg for the Year 4 Boys’ relay, helping his team secure 5th position—a fantastic effort. Sofia powered through the second leg of the Year 5 Girls’ relay, which Jude kicked off the first leg of Year 6 Boys’ relays, both finishing strong in 7th place against tough national competition.

When Amaaya swam the third leg in the Year 6 Girls’ Freestyle Relay, we screamed our lungs out, confident her team would reach the podium, but they narrowly missed out, finishing in 4th place. In the Year 5 Boys’ Relay, I swam the anchor leg, moving our team from 5th to 3rd position. Unfortunately, our team was disqualified due to an early takeover by one swimmer. While disappointing, it was a valuable learning experience for us all.

We are sincerely grateful to Mrs Evans and Mrs Cox, who gave up their weekends to prepare us for the event, coaching us in 50m pools and offering unwavering support on the day. From cheering us on to providing Percy Pig treats, they kept our morale high and guided us every step of the way. Huge thanks for all their support! 

We are incredibly proud to see so many swimmers from a small school like ours make such a big contribution to a prestigious event like the ISA Nationals.

By Alec W, Year 5