Summer Term 2008
News

Two Blundell’s pupils, Nic Huntley OH/W and Lizzie Wessely NC have just been selected to compete in the English Schools Athletic Association National championships in Gateshead in July. Lizzie, normally a sprint hurdler, has performed at this level for the last two years. However, she has stepped up to compete in the 300 metre hurdles. Running for only the third time at this distance she gained a place at the Nationals by winning her event at the Southwest Championships, representing Devon. Her winning time was 45.3 seconds. Nic Huntley also competed for Devon at the Southwests, finishing second in both the shot and discus. He will now move forward to compete in the discus.

The Blundell’s team of Alexa Batting, Freddie Evans, Emma Selby & Emily Wardle put on an impressive performance at the hotly contested Southern NSEA Qualifier run by Gillingham School. They were judged over both show jumps and cross-country fences, with penalties being awarded for knock-downs, speed and style. In the main competition Emma Selby led the way, gaining an impressive 4th place individually. Alexa also gained 6th place individually in the warm-up class, competing whilst injured, as her horse had fallen onto her only a few days previously. The hosts Gillingham School won the team competition; nearby school St Mary’s Shaftesbury took 2nd, with Blundell’s only 1 penalty point behind in 3rd, ahead of Prior Park in 4th, Chilton 5th, Millfield 6th, with the Bryanston team failing to complete the course. This now means the Blundell’s team have qualified for the UK NSEA Championships in November at Keysoe, Bedfordshire, along with Rupert Batting who qualified earlier in the year as an individual.

Cricketing legend Sir Garfield Sobers entertained a packed audience at Blundell’s School on Friday evening. Sobers was visiting the school as an ambassador for his international cricket tournament held in Barbados each year. The evening was hosted by master in charge of cricket and former Somerset keeper Rob Turner. He introduced ex-Glamorgan keeper Tony Cottey who chaired a discussion session with Sobers for over an hour before a question and answer session.
The audience gave Sobers a standing ovation before they were entertained by stories of his past, special events in his life and as always the six sixes he hit at St Helens in Swansea. He also stated that on that occasion Roger Davies who almost caught one of the sixes was an old boy of Blundell’s. Sobers talked with great composure and wisdom, and commented on the future of cricket - the emergence of the 20/20 format was clearly a point of concern.
He also stated that he played many sports in his time and had even been offered a trial as goalkeeper with Everton which he declined as he said he couldn’t cope with British winters and even struggled with the summers!
At the end of a fascinating discussion he was able to give some of his time to the younger audience to sign autographs. Without any doubt this had been a very special evening for all. Blundell’s School kindly donated the proceeds of ticket sales to the Wooden Spoon Charity who were represented by Mr Bruce Priday.

We have 10 athletes (covering 13 events) selected to represent Devon on Saturday 21st June at the South-West Track & Field Championships at Exeter. They are: Max Seymour: 100m and 200m, Archie Miller: 110m Hurdles, Nick Huntly: Shot and Discus, Sam Sendell: 400m, Bobby Frankpitt: 100m and 200m, Bess Menheneott: 100m Hurdles, Kiki Blyth: Long Jump, Lizzie Wessely: 300m Hurdles, Emma Selby: High Jump, Katie Robbins: Shot.

Blundell’s School U15 cricket team have just been crowned Devon Cricket Champions. Playing in a 20-over tournament sponsored by the Daily Telegraph they managed to win all their matches. Their first victory was a local affair where they took on Uffculme. In good conditions Uffculme had the early advantage, keeping the Blundell’s score to 22 after six overs having taken four wickets. However, Guy Clatworthy came to the crease and with a mature knock of 37 put the Blundellians back in control finishing with a total of 103. The Uffculme innings never really got going and due to tight bowling and fielding they were all out for 64.
The next match was versus Exeter School and was dominated by Devon player Jack Lily d’Cruz who smashed a fine 77. He was well supported by Archie Christie who scored 43. This made a target of 128 for the Exeter outfit. Again, tight bowling, particularly from Christie and Barnie Goss, frustrated the batsmen and they could only manage to score 67 in reply.
This set up a semi final at Torquay boy’s grammar. Having won the toss Blundell’s selected to bat first and again d’Cruz was in sparkling form scoring 59 before being caught. Ned Menheneott and Tommy Cole kept the momentum going scoring 36 & 30 respectively. The innings finished on 139. In reply Torquay were subjected to some excellent spin bowling from Menheneott who took three wickets in four balls to restrict Torquay to 44 all out.
The final versus Plymouth College was forfeited by Plymouth due to unforeseen circumstances. This gave Blundell’s the title and they now go on to play the Cornish champs later in the season.

We had a very successful trip to St Ives with the year 10 Artists. The weather was superb, if somewhat blustery and cold. 40 pupils enjoyed the special delights of Barbara Hepworth's studio and garden, and as usual the special atmosphere here worked its magic on our groups. We also visited the main Tate Gallery and were guided round some of the permanent collection and three special exhibitions featuring the painters Margaret Maeckelberghe and Rose Hilton, and the Master Printmaker. These were all highly relevant to our pupils' current projects and they responded with real interest and did good work in their sketch books. Year 10 were creditable ambassadors for Blundell's.

Two teams from Blundell's competed in this prestigious event in a class of 200 competitors representing over 40 schools. The Red team of Sophie Birchmore, Emma Selby, Freddie Evans and Emily Mayes, and the White team of Rupert Batting, Alexa Batting, Sarah Malcolm and Emily Wardle put on a brave and impressive performance.
In the show jumping several had the odd pole down and the cross country required bold riding. Whilst the jumping phases were challenging, with only Sophie Birchmore producing a double clear with no time penalties, (several Blundellians got penalties for going too fast).
In the final analysis, even with both teams completing the competition with few jumping penalties, sadly neither were in the ribbons as the event was won on the dressage by Stonar School. Rupert Batting, the youngest Blundellian was the highest placed in 16th place, with Freddie Evans in 17th, Alexa Batting in 19th, Sophie Birchmore in 21st and Sarah Malcolm in 22nd place.
Our thanks to our trainer Sarah Harrison, whose guidance and preparation is always invaluable when competing at this high standard.

The Year 10 Ten Tors team completed the 35 mile course by 10.15 on the Sunday morning. In perfect conditions the team tactic was to reach tor 8 by seven o'clock before setting camp. The team actually reached tor 8 by six, and rules dictated that they could go no further. Mr Case said he was amazed at the team's commitment and stamina in completing the course in such a short time. Team: Christian Gare, Freddie Evans, Ben Grayson, James Foan, Sam Anderson, Chris Bodington.

A team from Blundell's School competed in the Royal Society of Chemistry's Lower Sixth Analyst Competition at Bristol University on 30th April 2008, against fifteen other schools and the top students in the South West. The team of Rebecca Ley, James Evans and Matt Cole were placed third, narrowly beaten by Colston's School in second place, with Bristol Grammar School in first. The team completed a four-hour experiment as well as a detailed write-up of their findings.

Four pupils from Blundell's School achieved second place in a regional Chemistry competition held at Plymouth University on Tuesday 28th April 2008, and with it a number of prizes including a cheque for £75. The team were: Michael Brown, William Browne, Philippa Horne and Emily Nash. There were two separate competitions - the Salter's competition in the morning and the University competition in the afternoon, after which the pupils were treated to a display of practical Chemistry by one of the lecturers. About fifteen schools participated in the competition.

A team from Blundell's School Rocketry Club has entered the UK Aerospace Youth Rocketry Challenge (UKAYROC), a national event for young model rocket enthusiasts. In order to qualify for the event the team has to demonstrate that they can design, build and fly a model rocket carrying two hen's eggs to an altitude of 750ft and return the eggs safely to earth in a total time of 45 seconds. The team, consisting of Year 12 students James Evans, Jordan Curnow, Harry Edmanson, Alistair Strong and Andrew Bewsey, have been designing and building model rockets for about a year now, but this is their biggest challenge yet. The rocket they are designing will require multiple stages and a safe recovery system for the eggs.

Pictured are members of Blundell's School equestrian teams presenting Piers Chemimant with a cheque for £1500. Piers is a representative of the Devon Air Ambulance and the money was raised at The South West Schools One Day Event held in September. The ODE involved over sixty Schools and was organised by Georgie Batting and Dee Brigden who teach at Blundell's. The event has grown over the years and helps to encourage young riders of all ages from all sections of the community. The Blundell's team had a particularly good season with their top team qualifying at Clayesmore to represent the South West in the National Finals. The team of Emma Selby, Rupert Batting, Emily Wardle and Sophie Birchmore competed well and managed to finish in a creditable seventh place. Piers also presented certificates to the pupils for their fund-raising efforts and stated that any school who raises over £1000 for the charity is eligible for a visit by the Air Ambulance.

Pictured are three Blundellians bound for South Africa next year. The boys are, from left, Zach Bess, Jack Lilly d'Cruz and Cameron Grainger who all play for the School's U15 team. They have been selected for the Devon U15 squad to tour South Africa in February. Zach is an opening batsman, Jack is a batsman and medium-pace bowler, whilst Cameron is an agile wicket keeper. Jack has been playing for Heathcoat Cricket club since he was eight and was presented with a cheque for £125 by membership secretary Alistair Deighton Gibson. The cheque was to help Jack raise funds for the tour. Mr Deighton Gibson said that the club had always been a keen sponsor of youth cricket and was sure that Jack would be an excellent ambassador for the club. Retiring Chairman Richard Brain wished Jack good luck in his venture.

Will Randall, the best-selling author of Solomon Time and an ex-Head of Modern Languages at Blundell's, delivered a wonderfully humorous and stimulating talk on his adventures in Africa, India and The Solomons. A character reminiscent of a cross between Michael Palin and Keith Floyd, he bombarded the audience with a stream of amusing annectdotes interjected with important messages for surviving Gap years and taking opportunities where they arise.

The U18 hockey squad retained the title of Devon Indoor Hockey Champions that they won last year in a very hard fought tournament in Exeter recently. In order to win they managed to defeat Exe HC 2-1, Exeter School 1-0 and drew 2-2 with eventual runners up ISCA HC. The squad now move on to represent Devon in the West of England finals in Cheltenham at the start of December.

Four Blundellians have played rugby for Devon recently. 16 year old Matt Kvesic who has been playing No.8 for the Devon U16 Squad. Matt played in the winning team that beat Bristol but were defeated by Somerset. However, he hopes that fortunes will change when they take on Cornwall next weekend. Winger James Pool, tight head prop Scott Ward Reece and No.8 Nick Huntley, have all played in the Devon U18 team this season. The team met with mixed success but managed a large win against Somerset.

Sue Norman and Bruce Wheatley from Blundell’s School have recently been crowned Save The Children National Tennis Champions. Sue, the school's Career coordinator, and Bruce, the Head of CDT, took part in preliminary rounds held at Blundell’s in the Summer. Having won that section they went on to play at the finals held at the LTA national tennis centre in Roehampton London. Having won the initial matches they went through to the semis and forced their way into the final versus a pair from London who had won the tournament for the last two years. Undaunted they battled through to win 6-4, to be crowned champions. Also pictured is Blundell’s Biology teacher Alison Frankpitt who organised the local tournament, which managed to raise £1200 for the charity.

All 92 Year 9 artists travelled down to Haldon Forest to draw inspiration from the environment in a spectacular setting. Groups were introduced to the important role trees play in the ecosystem before launching into a series of drawing, painting and sculpting projects. The work will not only be left on site as a temporary sculpture trail but will also be exhibited both in Ondaatje and the gallery at Haldon in the near future. Pictured here is Simon Tang's clay woodpecker, one of many excellent pieces. Great fun was had by one and all.

On Monday 17th September Dr Vince Smith of Bristol University and Dr Peter Ford of Bath University visited the Science Department at Blundell's to deliver two lectures, one on Einstein and one on Low Temperature Physics. The sixth formers and Year 10's who attended thoroughly enjoyed the lectures, particularly when shown how to make instant ice cream with liquid nitrogen! The photo shows Dr Ford demonstrating the effects of very low temperatures on various materials.

An image of the Little Dumbbell Nebula (M76) produced by Year 12 students Matt Cole, Harriet Bunning and Elliot Prior using the Faulkes Telescope, Hawaii. Following an intensive training session with Dr Sarah Roberts of the Faulkes Telescope Project at Cardiff University, the three students have become part of the Faulkes Telescope National Student Academy. As part of the Academy they will take part in projects with other schools and research scientists in the UK and abroad. The techniques and skills that they are learning are also contributing to a greater understanding of their curriculum work in A-level Physics.

Year 8 enjoyed a busy day at Plymouth Aquarium, drawing a wide variety of sharks and colourful tropical fish. The afternoon was spent aboard a tourist boat exploring the coastline and battleships off Plymouth Ho!

Year 7 were treated to a glorious day outing to Broomhill Sculpture Park and Woolacombe Bay. Some excellent and unusual sculptures were on show and much good drawing was done. The afternoon was spent making sand sculptures on the beach and there was even time for a quick paddle under the watchful eye of HMS Brigden.

Emma Selby (left) and Lizzie Wesley (right) have just competed at the National School’s Athletics event at Birmingham. 14-year-old Emma is a high jumper and managed to be the Devon Champion with a jump of 1.25m. This was above the qualifying height which gave her automatic entry to the Nationals. 15-year-old Lizzie is an 80m Hurdler and this was her second time at the Nationals having competed last year. Lizzie has also attended a coaching school with former decathlete Daly Thompson, and hopes to build on last years’ silver medal.

Following the success of the U15 team, the Blundell’s U14 s have just triumphed in the final of the Devon Schools cup. In the early rounds they had convincing wins over Clyst Vale, and Uffculme. In the quarter final they beat Exeter School by 150 runs before beating Churston Ferrers by 140 runs in the semi final. This set up a final spot versus West Buckland at Exmouth Cricket club. Despite the weather the Blundellians, led by Zach Bess, piled on the runs and scored 226-6 in their 20 overs. Top scorer was Freddie Gabbitass with 47 with Jack Lilly d’Cruz and Archie Christie both with 41. In reply West Buckland struggled against some tight bowling and excellent fielding. The pick of the bowling was Gabbitass with figures of four overs, one wicket for six runs. With wickets from Guy Caltworthy, Ned Menheneott and Will Yard the West Buckland innings collapsed to 56 all out giving the Blundellians victory. Gabbitass was made man of the match by the independent umpires.

Pupils took part in a recent sponsored swim in aid of the Lincoln College Holiday Trust. The trust is run by students of Lincoln College Oxford in order to give summer holidays to underprivileged children from the Oxford area. Organiser John Brigden reported that the swimmers aged from six to sixty, and covered a distance equivalent to a return swim across the Channel. In doing so they raised over £700.

Pictured are members of Year 10 from Blundell's School before they departed on their annual sponsored walk. The walk was to raise funds for Dr Barnardos and also the Tiverton Adventure Playground. The students managed to walk from Burlescombe along the Great Western Canal back to Tiverton. This is about ten miles and they hope to have raised several hundred pounds for both good causes. Headmaster Ian Davenport said he was pleased with the pupils' efforts and hoped that it would strengthen the relationship between the Tiverton community and the School.

Pictured the winners of the Junior section of a recent tennis tournament held at Blundell's School. The Tournament was organised by teacher Alison Frankpitt in order to raise funds for Save the Children. Despite atrocious weather the Juniors managed to raise £1000 and the Seniors raised £500. The players pictured from left to right are 13year old Sam Kingston, Charlotte Routledge, Milly Maunder and Harry Konig. The senior winners were Bruce Wheatley and Sue Norman. Mrs Frankpitt was amazed at the response and pleased that so many people battled the conditions to make the event such a success.

Pictured the Blundell’s School U15 cricket squad. The boys have just completed a remarkable run in the Devon Schools Cup. In the early rounds of the tournament they despatched St Peters’ Exeter by 7 wickets and King’s Ottery by 9 wickets. This produced a quarter final versus Exeter School. On a tricky wicket the openers batted well and soon amassed a total of 50 before some big hitting from Barney Loader helped the score to 131-5. In the field they got the Exeter openers out cheaply and then took regular wickets to restrict Exeter to 95, Andrew Longstreet taking 3 wickets for 20. The semi final was then played against Plymouth College. Again the Blundellians built up a large score of 158 in twenty overs, Hugh Mc Dowell scoring 66. Tight bowling from Harry Acfield with 3 wickets and some exceptional fielding restricted Plymouth to just 94. This set up the final against Okehampton Community College played at Plympton. In humid conditions the opening pair of Hugh McDowell (131) and Matt Kvesic (58) scored an enormous total of 202 and remained at the crease for the full number of overs. In response Okehampton produced a spirited reply and due to our less than elegant fielding they reached a total of 140 for 8, but victory went to Blundell’s.

On Weds 6th June the Cricket Club held a hospitality day to thank those people who have generously supported school cricket this year. Many thanks must go to Mr Andrew Saunders of Ford, Gilpin Riley Architects who kindly sponsored our tour to India, Mr Nigel Gulliford of Westford Mechanicals who sponsored our ties, and to Mr Euan Roberts of ARC Taunton Ltd who sponsored our Development XI on the recent tour to Guernsey. These sponsors attended a pre-match lunch held in the Beale Centre in their honour, and are pictured here with the 1st XI just before their fixture with Devon Dumplings. This event was our way of expressing our gratitude, and saying a big 'Thank You!'

As part of our recent hospitality day Mr. Mike Burns of Bradbury and Mr. Kevin Sedgebear of Somerset County Sports held a successful clothing and equipment sale at the school. Our thanks must go to them for their continued support of cricket at the school. Pictured are some of our pupils sampling some of the equipment on offer.

Gap student Jarred Swanepool and members of years 7 and 8 at Blundell’s School have been collecting footwear over the last few weeks in response to the Blue Peter Shoebiz appeal. The shoes, sandals, trainers, football boots etc are all going towards raising money for children in Malawi. So far the appeal has collected over a million pairs and the Blundellians have managed to collect over 25 bin liners of shoes to add to the pile. Chief coordinator, Eve Jardine Young, said she had been amazed at the response and hoped that they could collect even more shoes before the appeal closed.

Pictured, Lizzie Wessely from Ashbrittle. Fifteen year old Lizzie has just been on a training course with former Olympic Gold medallist, decathlete Daly Thompson. Lizzie is an eighty metre hurdler and has represented Devon at all ages. Last year she qualified for the National Schools event at Gateshead and in this she managed to win the silver medal in a time of 11.26 seconds. As a result she was invited to attend the course and during her time she was put through her paces and picked up many useful training techniques and advice about diet which she hopes to put into practice on the track this summer. Lizzie had the opportunity to talk to Daly about his experiences and she said it was a great opportunity to rub shoulders with some of the best athletes in the world.