RESULTS: IAPS Netball Tournament @ Roedean School, Brighton:

Last week the Y6 Netball Squad left Dulwich at 7:00am and travelled to Roedean School in Brighton for the IAPS Netball Tournament. 55 schools from the South of England were taking part, with only the top 11 teams going through to the National Finals.

JAPS had eight matches to play in the first round and had to come in the top three in their group to qualify for the second round. No team from JAPS has ever managed to do this and the girls were understandably nervous.

JAPS go off to a fantastic start winning their first two matches against Kent, Canterbury and Holmewood House. The third match against Caterham was closely fought and with only one minute to go it was 2-2. Caterham managed to score just before the whistle giving JAPS their first loss of the day. The rest of the afternoon was like a roller-coaster ride, with three more wins and two more losses.

With five wins and three loses in the first round, JAPS assumed they had finished fourth and started to pack their bags. Monika and Mrs Woodward decided to double check the results one last time, just in case. Unbelievably, JAPS had managed to finished 3rd and had therefore qualified for the second round! With very little time to prepare, JAPS found themselves on court against St Ives, playing for a place in the National Finals. St Ives got off to a quick start and JAPS struggled to keep up. The final score was 5-1 to St Ives.

The girls had come so close to qualifying for National Finals and it was no surprise that they felt disappointed after the final match. They did however get further than any JAPS team has so far and finished in the top 18 schools in the South of England. They were able to leave Brighton with their heads held high!

The Y6 Netball Squad has worked incredibly hard this year and they can be very proud of this achievement. The girls showed great team spirit all day and fantastic support for each other, both on and off the court.

Congratulations to:

Captain: Erin Murphy (WD, C), Vice-Captain: Catherine Brown (GK), Nephele Penny (GK), Rosa Collier (GD, WA), Sophie Lewis-Ward (GD, WD), Aggie Martin (WD, GD), Georgia Gibson (C, WA), Cecily Crawford (WA), Breagha Campbell (GA), Rachel Cordery (GS), Jessica Mascarenhas (GA).

Thanks also to all parents, aunties and grandparents who supported the team all day.

Mrs Woodward           

RESULTS: Y4 Netball Tournament at St Christopher’s (Wednesday 3rd March):

2nd out of 7 schools

RESULTS: Y5 Netball Tournament at St Christopher’s (Tuesday 9th March):

Congratulations to the Y5 Netball A-Team who came 2nd out of 10 schools at St Christopher’s U10 Netball Tournament on Tuesday. JAPS played four matches in the first round, losing only to Bromley High in a closely fought game.

Finishing 2nd in their group, they played Sydenham High in the Semi-Final. Having lost to Sydenham by just one goal, the day before, JAPS were determined to turn things around. The semi-final tested the nerves of all supporters, especially Mrs Woodward & Mrs Bedford. At full time the score was 2-2 which meant both teams had to face a golden-goal situation! Mrs Woodward aged 10 years in the space of 2 minutes as both teams struggled to capitalise on scoring opportunities. Finally Nancy Powell shot the winning goal, putting JAPS into the Final and allowing Mrs Woodward and Mrs Bedford to breathe a sigh of relief.

JAPS faced Bromley High once again in the Final, by which time the adrenaline had almost run out. Despite their best efforts, JAPS could not keep up with the pace set by Bromley. Losing 4-1 in the Final JAPS could not have tried any harder.

A number of other schools commented on how well JAPS had played that afternoon and that they thoroughly deserved to finish runners-up. Mrs Woodward would like to add her congratulations and thank the girls for being so impeccably behaved all afternoon. This was their last netball fixture as Y5’s and they have certainly finished on a high note! They were a credit to the school. Well done!

Captain = Ailsa Smillie (C/WD/WA), Vice-Captain = Amy Gifford (C/WA), Daphne Stamouli-Simoncioni (GK), Nicola Fincham (GK/GD), Mali Eber-Rose (GK/GD/WD), Jessica Norton-Raybould (WD), Katie Charnley (WA/GS), Nancy Powell (GA/GD/GS), Pia Raben-Christensen (GA/GS).

SOPHIE LEWIS-WARD (6P):

Congratulations to Sophie Lewis-Ward who recently won two silver medals and a bronze in the Kent County Swimming Championships. Sophie who swims for Beckenham Swimming Club has been competing in the Kent’s for the last three weekends and has performed brilliantly in the 10 year old age group. Competing against other girls in clubs throughout Kent, this was an outstanding achievement. Sophie trains several times a week at school and with her club and has put in a great deal of hard work in preparation for these championships. Remarkably she has also found the time and energy to train with the Y6 Netball Squad and represent the school at the IAPS Netball Tournament last week.

Well done Sophie! We are all very proud of you!