The school leavers’ Prom has become something of an established tradition now at Tiverton High School, eagerly anticipated each year by our Year 11 students. This year for the first time the students have had a choice of venues and today during a special assembly had an opportunity to hear persuasive arguments for the options available and to vote for their preferred one.

The results showed that an overwhelming number of students preferred to keep the Prom in Tiverton, with a very small majority in favour of having food available on the night.

We all look forward to the students enjoying the outcome of their decision on Friday the 6th of July.

Photographs from our previous Prom events can be seen on our Flick pages here: 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008

Tiverton High School 0-39 Dauntsey’s School

This proved to be a fantastic learning curve for the boys as they took on an exceptional Dauntsey’s side, who have only been defeated on one occasion in four years!!

The difference between the sides (apart from the 39 points) was primarily due to the extremely talented Dauntsey’s back row, (one of which is a member of the England U16 squad) who between them supplied their team with wave after wave of quick front foot ball for the rest of the team capitalize on. Had you taken these to ‘go to’ boys out of the equation then we certainly would have matched the opposition for ‘talent’ however, Dauntsey’s taught the boys that to compete on a national scale, you need to be exceptional at the fundamental basics of the game.

This was where Daunsey’s were so impressive; the sheer collective intensity they showed in the tackle area and at the breakdown being the single factor that separated the sides. This ensured that we simply could not create any momentum to allow the likes of Charles Hunter, Jack Rainy and Jack Zilch to show how dangerous (and arguably how superior to their opposite numbers) they are in broken play.

It is worth mentioning that Dauntsey’s school, have been brushing teams away by 50-60 points in previous rounds. And although after the first ten minutes the signs looked ominous, our boys to their credit soon realised that if they could stop Dauntsey’s destructive duo then they could certainly hold their own against them. In particular Ian Slevin, Oscar Freeman Davis and Charles Hunter must take a great deal of credit for their relentless commitment to bringing the powerhouses to ground.

Although Daunstey’s School approached half time with the result in the bag, with the score line being 0-25 to the visitors, Tiverton emerged from the second half  with their heads held high, dominating the last 5 minutes of the game. This upturn in events was due to the likes of Sam Anderson and Tom Stoneman barging their way over the gain line (we were back in business), allowing Jack Zilch to eventually sneak over the try line to score……………only for it to be disallowed by the referee. Fortunately on this occasion it did not affect the outcome of the game.

Our boys can now sit back and reflect on what has been a remarkable journey, which has put Tiverton High School on the map, amongst some of the most established Rugby Schools in the country. This would not have been possible without the support from our whole school community; it has been real team effort from start to finish. I am absolutely certain that no other school will have ‘rocked’ their way onto the field and this is thanks to all staff going above and beyond the call of duty to support our boys.

Until next time.

Mr. Morrell

Sweet Sorrow!

I don’t enjoy losing, I never have and I suspect I never will but on Tuesday afternoon THS U15 boys hosted Dauntsey School in Round 7 of the Daily Mail Vase; one of the premier rugby competitions in the country.  We lost, pretty convincingly.  Congratulations to the victors who are clearly a very strong team and look favourites to win the tournament at Twickenham.

I did enjoy the occasion however because:

• Our lads had got to Rd 7 and were the only state school left in the draw.  That’s quite an achievement.
• They played with real courage and even when things looked black they still got stuck in.  Often in games like that the winning team runs away with it in the second half but that didn’t happen.  Our lads restricted them after the break.
• We had terrific support from hundreds and hundreds of students and staff who chose to spend their lunch standing on the touchline cheering the team on.
• Our Rockschool students provided pre match entertainment to the usual high quality, creating a carnival atmosphere.

…..and more than anything else seeing the whole school out together with such a sense of community was something special.

Congratulations to the team, to Coach Morrell and to the whole school community.  I’m proud of you all.

Andrew Lovett

After winning the East Devon stage of the completion  in November,  the girls travelled to Chippenham on Wednesday 11^th January for the South West stage.  The teams in our group were Hereford United, Bristol City, Cardiff City and Yeovil Town.  The girls played outstanding football in all four of their matches, with Holly assured performance between the sticks, Jayde and Kim bossing the defence, Jade controlling the midfield releasing Jordan, Lydia down the wing and Emily  and Chloe up front.

Our first opponents were Hereford United, a tight game however super sub Jordon latched onto a lovely weighted pass, took it around the keeper and scored.  Final score 1 – 0 to THS.  Bristol City we are next opponents, a game in which we dominated possession and demonstrated fantastic skill levels.  The player of the match was Emily who score 4 goals, one of which was from a corner!

The following link is from the Russell Group (a group of 25 universities in the UK).  It gives helpful guidance for those thinking of applying to university at some stage in the future.  It is important for Y11 students who may be considering their post-16 choices and subjects.  Year 9 students may also find it useful to look at page 19.

www.russellgroup.ac.uk/informed-choices

Term Dates 2012/13

Autumn Term

Tuesday September 4^th 2012 –  Friday December 21^st 2012

Half Term: 29^th October 2012-2^nd November 2012