Bridgewater School – Prep. Department

A team of thirty Bridgewater aspiring athletes headed for the Robin Park Arena on Tuesday to compete in the AJIS Indoor Athletics Championships.  With 27 schools in attendance the majority of youngsters from all schools were competing with hope rather than expectation. To be able to represent your school in skilled, challenging and fun events in a relaxed but competitive environment was a treat for all participants on the day.  Bridgewater was no different to the majority of schools, in that podium positions were a distant thought. However, the day was to prove to be one that would surpass even those with the greatest optimism. With nine individual events and two relays to compete in, a busy day lay ahead for all the athletes and officials.

Lukee set the tone for the team in the first event, the three lap run. Lukee ran brilliantly to finish in an impressive fifth place and he was to follow this up later in the day, finishing agonisingly outside the medals in fourth place, in the Standing Triple Jump.

“So near and yet so far,” was the to be the theme of the day for many of our athletes. In total, four of the Bridgewater team finished in fourth place and just out of the medals in four different events. Closest of all was Ellen, who missed out on a bronze medal by 1cm in the Standing Long Jump! Allegra leapt into fourth place in the Standing Vertical Jump for the U11s and Matteo went equally close to a medal in the U10 Chest Push. This was one better than Oliver A who threw to a fantastic fifth place, whilst other notable achievements included 7th for Jaydon in the Soft Javelin, Florence in the Stork Balance and Anya in the Standing Triple Jump.

Overall, Bridgewater had 12 athletes in the top 10, ten athletes in the top 6 and a fabulous 9 athletes in the top 5. The U10 boys also went as close as any Bridgewater team in recent years to claiming a team medal in the overall standings. This was largely down to three incredible performances from three of our more unassuming members of the team. Tobias brilliantly showed his speed and agility to pick up a bronze medal in the Speed Bounce. Whilst the team were digesting this success, we had two more medals moments later and both were of the golden variety!  Craig proved to be head and shoulders above all other contenders as he soared to gold in the Vertical Jump. Minutes later, this achievement was matched by Moaed who left all challengers behind as he sprang to an amazing gold medal in the Standing Long Jump.

It is only right to celebrate the achievements of the medal winners in such a tough competition.  However, everybody played their part in ensuring the day itself was such an enjoyable and memorable one. Well done to each competitor who set individual bests, rose to the challenge and represented Bridgewater in a positive manner. Well done – we can start looking forward to the summer athletics season with even greater optimism and genuine expectation.

The U11s and U10s returned to West Lancashire earlier this week to take on congenial hosts Scarisbrick Hall School. Both teams had ambitions to emulate the U9s who had returned home with an impressive win and equally impressive performance. The 8-a-side games promised to be closely fought affairs and indeed, both our teams had to work hard to get the results they were hoping for.

The U11’s game kicked off with the hosts having to field an U10s team in the first half, as an English assessment delayed the older boys getting to the fixture. Bridgewater took full advantage of the situation and pressed relentlessly to build a lead that they hoped would sustain them throughout the match. Sure enough, this is what the team set about doing, with Oliver B in fine form out on the wing, Harrison looking lively up front and Paul and Freddie dominating the midfield. When Scarisbrick did break through, George pulled off the first of what was to be many great saves to give Bridgewater the edge.

Bridgewater built up a healthy and deserved 5-0 lead at half time, with goals from Oliver B (2), Freddie (2) and Harrison. Freddie and Owen were assured at the back, whilst Tobias debuted in midfield and worked energetically before switching back to the U10’s team for the second half. Harper made the transfer the other way to shore up the back line, that was to come under constant threat in the second half from the now U11s from Scarisbrick. Bridgewater found it difficult to get out of their half for much of the final stages of the game and were forced to defend throughout. They managed to do this brilliantly and with George in inspired form when the attacks did get through, Bridgewater held on for an impressive 5-1 win.

Meanwhile, the U10s were far too strong for their opponents and were in control from the first whistle to the last. Luca C in goal was rarely troubled in the first half, but when called upon late on he was too agile and brave for the Scarisbrick forwards. Thomas and Harper were solid at the back, whilst Matteo and Craig bossed the middle of the park. Up front, David was a constant threat to the hosts goal, with Jaydon and Toby offering width and creativity from the wings. Toby in particular demonstrated an ability to drive crosses in with pace and power, causing no end of problems for the Scarisbrick defence.

Bridgewater scored at regular intervals throughout the match and ran out comfortable winners in the end. The Scarisbrick goalkeeper kept out as many as he let in and prevented a cricket score being imposed on the team. Bridgewater finished up 11-1 winners with goals from David (5), Craig (4), Matteo and Toby. Both schools can take pride in the sporting manner in which the games were played and Bridgewater can be delighted with the hat trick of wins for the U9s, 10s and U11s. A big thank you to Scarisbrick for their hospitality and we look forward to returning for some cricket later in the summer and the return football fixtures next year.

In their Science lessons, Prep 4 have been taking part in a competition, where pupils design and make their own gliders.  The glider which flew the furthest is now taking part in a national completion against other schools in the region next week in Bury.

The winning team was ‘The Lighting Bolt’ built by Esme and Abigail! Second place was ‘MJ’ made by Molly and Jasmine, while ‘Fortnite Zombies’ – Luca C and Joel – came third.

What better way to start a visit to Ordsall Hall than with a full wedding feast – celebrating the nuptials of Lord and Lady Buxton (Shayan and Esme), our servants brought out a succession of delicious (if you were a noble) treats and fancies for the assembled guests.  A few merchants made it to the wedding table, but they were treated only to helpings of vegetable and horse bread.  Most were relieved to find out that they were only to be served beer to drink – after all, who wants to drink the foul potion carried in from the local river?

Once the feast was cleared away, we learned that some of the workers of the house required replacing and went to see if we could get ourselves jobs.  Water to be fetched from the river half a mile away (all for a penny a day), meat to be turned on the open fire (the last poor meat turner fell into the fire! – the risk meant you might earn two pennies a day and get a day off each week), spices to be ground, fresh game to be plucked and skinned.  We saw a cockentrice that had been prepared – the torso of a turkey sewn to the head and body of a pig.  The main idea of the dish was to use parts of regular animals to create an impression of a mythical beast, which would surprise the guests both with its unusual appearance and impressive taste.  Being mere servants, there was no chance we would get a taste.

We visited our potential sleeping quarters at the top of the house – surprise at the lack of beds and the cold for the forty servants who would be sleeping up here, and disgust at the potential unpleasant sounds and smells we would experience whilst there.

Time to see how the other half lived: we visited the Star Chamber where we saw the Radclyffe Bed, the only piece of furniture original to the house.  Joshua and Aarav were summoned by the Queen to hustle to London with their Salford army to repel the Spanish Armada, and thus we saw the two knights don their fighting garb in readiness for battle.  Seeing how fierce they looked, it was no surprise the Armada were unsuccessful in their invasion plans!

Upstairs, we visited our Lady’s chamber, and saw some of the elegant clothing of the period – we held an impromptu Tudor fashion show.  No one was tempted to use her bath, but we did make our own potpourri to mask the smells – what would you expect when the Lord and Lady only bathe once a year?

Our day was finished with a spot of Tudor dancing – simple yet elegant.  You’ll have to visit our Twitter feed to see this!

Prep II put their programming skills to the test today with Mr. Suter’s Bee-Bot Challenge.  Using their programming skills that they have been learning over the last few Computing lessons, today’s teams had to design an algorithm that would ensure their Bee-Bot moved around the mats they had designed, collecting all of the tokens in as few moves as possible.  Where mistakes were made, children had to debug their algorithms to rectify any errors.  Competition was tight, but eventually, it was the laid back team of Frankie and Raghav who prevailed.

The Salford Cross Country League reached its climax last weekend, with a final run of the 2018/19 season, at Buile Hill Park. The previous race at Bolton Road prior to the Christmas break was absolutely freezing and the numbers for the day were down across all ages from all schools. Bridgewater has ten fantastic runners in attendance for that event and there was no way they or their families were going to miss the final run.

Maya (75) was the only girl from Prep 3/4 to run in race three, but she was joined by Ava (69) and debutant Esme (53) for race four. In the Prep 3/4 boys’ race, the big talking point centred around Luca B and twin Sebastian B. Both had beaten each other in previous races with Seb edging out Luca in two out of three races. There was nothing to chose between the boys but on this occasion Luca (21) beat his brother by two places. In terms of the overall results for all four races, Sebastian can have the bragging rights for this year. Harrison (91) completed his second run of the series, whilst Anton from Prep 3 made his debut and finished in an encouraging 57th place.

In the Prep 5/6 race, there was another race within a race going on, as Tobias and Thomas battled it out for the four race honours. This time Thomas produced his best run of the series to claim a coveted 20th place and edge out Tobias in 21st. Tobias can proudly take the individual award for the best runner in the series overall and I have a feeling he will be back next year to do even better. The boys were joined by Chun Ka (59) for his second race and it was great to see Alfie (42) run for the first time in the event.

In the final race of the day and the series, the Prep 5/6 girls turned out in force, with a fabulous eight runners! Juliette (64) joined brother Anton in debuting in the race and was joined by Anya (40), Evie (39)and Yasmeen (30). This brilliant trio also ensured they have completed all races once again this year and this is a brilliant show of enthusiasm, resilience and commitment. The girls were joined once more by Evie who finished in an impressive 22nd and Freya (61),who are also integral members of the unique community of Bridgewater Salford runners. It would be wrong to ignore the achievements of two of our Prep 6 girls, Jess and Florence.

Over the last three years Jess has raced for Bridgewater in this event more than any other Bridgewater pupil. Jess was also determined to finish her final race by earning a certificate for coming in the Top 20 for one last time. She ran her heart out to come home in a well deserved 18th  place, much to her and her parents delight and relief! I am sure the meal on Saturday night was much tastier for all the family! Florence, as the Head Girl for Bridgewater Prep has set the best example possible over the last two years. Florence (63) has run in all eight races over the last two years and has shown a wonderful sense of commitment, determination and pride in representing her school. She has typified all that is good about the Salford Cross Country League, in that it is all about the challenge, the enjoyment and the achieving of personal goals.

Thank you to all our runners and their families for giving up your time of a Saturday morning. We have had 28 different runners across the age groups this year, which is approximately 30% of the cohort. A great effort overall, but I hope we can do even better in 2019/20. Cross country club takes place on a Friday lunch time and I am certain Mr Rooney, Mr Grant and Mr Suter would love to see you all there too.