Sports Report – 14th January
Netball
1st VII
The first team played Wisbech Grammar School on Saturday and lost a close and physical match 35 – 29. With some last-minute changes to the team the girls played very well and did not give up. The final result could have gone either way with great defensive turnovers from Nicole Spencer as well as great attacking play, with Hattie Lawrie and Ellie Hollinshead working well in the circle. However, unforced errors in the final quarter gave Wisbech the lead. Coaches Player of the Match goes to Hattie Lawrie for fantastic shooting and defensive play throughout the game.
U15A
The U15A team played their first netball fixture of the season at home against Wisbech winning 32 – 11. It was a slow start for both teams taking their time to warm up and adapt to the court conditions. However, Ratcliffe gained the upper hand and finished the first quarter 5 – 2 up. The second quarter saw Ratcliffe find their groove and dominate throughout the court. Excellent drives into the circle from Captain Annie Rose-Reddin coupled with excellent vision from both centre court players Elise Atkinson and Amy Mason saw Ratcliffe extend their lead to finish half time up 17 – 5. Ratcliffe maintained their high tempo into the third quarter turning over Wisbech’s first centre pass and converting to goal. This continued throughout the quarter with multiple turn overs in the centre third by Maddi Bryant and Annie Bridgwater with Ratcliffe extending their lead 24 – 7. The final quarter continued to go Ratcliffe’s way, capitalising on Wisbech errors and converting to goal. Amelia Chapman put in a strong performance as GK, preventing the ball getting into the circle and backing up her team to the goal third line. With Ratcliffe finishing the game 32 – 11, which bodes well for the rest of the season. Player of the Match goes to Annie Rose-Reddin for leading her team to their first victory of the season with excellent mid-court intercepts and accurate shooting.
U15B
The U15B team lost a close fought game 22 – 18 to Wisbech. The girls showed some great attacking skills, finished off with some superb shooting. Player of the Match goes to Daata Apiafi.
U14A
The U14A team travelled to Wisbech and lost 25 — 13. Both teams were neck and neck up to half time; going in to third quarter with a one goal difference. Unfortunately, in the second half Wisbech didn’t miss a shot. Ratcliffe went in to the fourth quarter nine down and, despite some hard work from the girls, the lead was too much to reverse. There was some excellent netball on display from both teams, however, to many errors cost Ratcliffe the game. Players’ Player of the Match was Chelsea Makendeni and Coaches’ Player of the match was Talluah Wood.
U14B
The U14B team travelled to Wisbech and lost 19 – 7. After conceding seven goals in the opening quarter without any reply, Ratcliffe finally began to find their form in the second quarter. Shooters, Olivia Chapman and Coral Keates began to communicate and were proving success from long range. Unfortunately, Wisbech shooters rarely missed. Player of the Match went to Captain Amelia Tebbut who put in a fantastic defensive performance, coming out with numerous interceptions, and Coaches’ Players of the Match went to both Amelia Tebbutt and Matilda Miles who was relentless at centre.
U13A
The U13A team faced Wisbech in their first fixture of the netball season and came away with a 38 – 12 win. Ratcliffe asserted their authority from the off and created some wonderful passages of play down court. Sophie Walker and Katherine McCrindell worked harmoniously in the shooting circle and couldn’t miss the net so by half-time they were up 24 – 4. In the second half the girls kept up the high tempo of play and our defense ensured that we kept Wisbech’s scoring opportunities to a minimum. Player of the Match was awarded to Jessie Bardsley.
U13B
The U13B team won 17 – 4. After a very evenly-contested first-quarter, Wisbech finished the quarter with a 2 – 1 advantage. However, Ratcliffe started to turn the fixture in their favour during the second-quarter, with a mixture of fantastic shooting from Sophie Shield and a multitude of exceptional interceptions from Romi White leading to Ratcliffe going into half-time with the score 6 – 3. Ratcliffe’s dominance continued throughout the final two-quarters with the girls showcasing some fantastic attacking play, with Millie Woan in particular proving to be a continuous threat to Wisbech’s defence. Ratcliffe finished the fixture as 17 – 4 victors, with Sophie Shield scoring eight goals, Sophie Packwood five goals, and Millie Woan four goals. Players’ Player goes to Georgie Daynes and Coaches’ Player was shared between Sophie Shield and Romi White. All of the girls played fantastically and should be extremely proud of their performance.
U12A
On Saturday, the U12A travelled to Wisbech for their first game of the season and won 20 – 9. Ratcliffe had a solid warm up and the girls knew exactly what they had to do to win the game. Ratcliffe came out strongly, dominating through the court. They were told to control the pace of the game and limit errors to maintain possession which the girls did very well. Fantastic defensive displays from Millie Lake and Izzy Westwood gave the attack plenty of opportunities to take the ball into the circle where Rebecca Bloor and Sophie Bardsley scored goal after goal. The third quarter saw a few small errors creep in, however, these were quickly dealt with and Ratcliffe were back to their slick play. Mollie Hunt and Holly McNeeney kept the ball safe through court whilst Fran Best and Katie Bradley worked tirelessly to stick to their player and force errors from Wisbech. A phenomenal display of netball. Player of the Match was Rebecca Bloor for her fantastic shooting accuracy and Coaches’ Player of the Match was Sophie Bardsley for her solid shooting and defensive work.
U12B
On Saturday, the U12B girls played against Wisbech and narrowly won 8 – 7. In the first quarter the girls were down 5 – 2 but this did not dampen their spirits. By the end of the second quarter the Ratcliffe girls had gained two more goals making the score 5 – 4. In the third quarter the girls came back fighting, moving the ball around the court well, going in to the final quarter two goals down. The girls showed great resilience and team work, managing to sneak the lead with some great defensive play, Well done girls! Players’ Player was Francesca Turner and Coaches’ Player was Maisie Collier.
Hockey
1st XI
The 1st team got their season up and running with a fine performance to beat Hillhouse 4 – 0. From the start Ratcliffe were the better side but it took until 10 minutes before half-time to score. Player of the Match Archie Heaney opened the scoring with a nice finish from the top of the circle and shortly after Reece Goodman got the second from close range. After half–time Ratcliffe continued on the front foot and scored another good goal when Toby Snell reacted quickly to finish from close range. The pick of the goals was left until five minutes from the end though, when James Turner crashed the ball into roof of the net from the top of the circle. The keeper didn’t see it and never moved! A strong start to the season for the 1st team ahead of their cup game on Thursday.
U15A
The U15A team got their season off to a great start with an 8 – 0 victory. Two fine reverse stick strikes from Ollie and Xabi sent confidence soaring. From this point Ratcliffe played some really good hockey, using and creating space very well with Roman and Ethan working particularly effectively down the right. The final score was well-deserved, with Dom picking up Player of the Match for his composed performance.
U15/14B
A tough opening game for the U15/U14b saw them lose narrowly to Derby Grammars’ A team. They managed to keep the opposition from scoring in the first-half with some great defending from Will Marsden and Louis Westwood. The second half was much the same as the first, where the boys defended for most of it. Unfortunately, Derby Grammar taking the lead with two quick goals towards the end of the game. Player of the Match was Will Marsden for his outstanding defensive work throughout the whole game.
U14A
The U14A hockey team started their season off in fantastic style with a 7 -1 win against Hillhouse. The boys started the game well, scoring early and heading into half-time with a 1 – 0 advantage. In the second half, the boys showed real class, scoring some fantastic goals. Players’ Player of the Match was shared between hat-trick hero Samuel Gray and Wilfred Milner, who displayed fantastic composure throughout the game, including a goal-saving tackle late in the first half. Coaches’ Player of the Match goes to Joseph Atkinson who led a strong defensive line to a very organised performance. Well done boys, a fantastic start to the season!
U13A
The U13A team started their season confidently with a 4 – 2 win against a spirited Hill House XI. The boys came out the blocks quickly and scored three very well executed goals. In the second-half the game was a lot tighter with both Ratcliffe and Hillhouse scoring one goal each. A great start to the season boys. Goal scorers were Player of the Match Finley Spencer, Riley Kirk, and Harry Cregeen with two.
U13/12B
It was a tough first game for the U13/U12B’s losing against Derby Grammar A team 4 – 2. We were stronger in the second half scoring two well worked team goals through Joe Marsden and Lucas Kariolis. Players of the Match for their tireless running and tackling in defence were Ernie Hoggard and Harry Hings.
U12A
The U12s made a very good start to the hockey season with a convincing 4 – 0 win against Hill House. In the first half, the boys passed and linked superbly and went into half-time with a 3 – 0 lead. Hill House raised their game in the second half and it took until the last play of the game for Ratcliffe to score their fourth goal. Goal scorers were Fin Martin, Lucas Barker and Michael Joy with two. Players of the Match were Fin Martin, Michael Joy and Kim O’Sullivan who had an excellent match in his first ever game of hockey.
Triathlon
Well done to Jade and Brooke England who have qualified in the open girls’ section of the Pony Club Triathlon Championship and Liv Crawley in the junior girls’ section. All girls will be representing our Area at the Championships on March 31st.
X-Country
Well done to Mia Atkinson who ran in the Leicestershire 2019 Cross Country Championships held at Rotherby. She had a strong run leading from the front to secure gold in the U17 women’s 5km race, in a PB of 18mins 15sec. The win secures her place on the Leicestershire team who will compete in March at the English Schools Cross Country Championships in Leeds.
Matthew Lindley and Jenna Pole
Sports Ambassadors
