Welcome to the Third Year Blog!
In the words of the world’s most popular soft drink: ‘Holidays are coming, holidays are coming, holidays are coming’. The arrival of the advert that song comes from on our screens has become one of the more commercial Christmas traditions in the UK. Like it or not, it certainly tells you that that Christmas is on its way, though the Third Year blog will not be proactively listening to Christmas songs until the middle of the month. If we must listen to Cliff Richard singing about mistletoe and wine, let’s not get overexcited and commit to it too early.
The key signs of Christmas’ arrival are present in the School too. The massive Christmas tree in reception is a giveaway. Soon, Mr Leafe will be wearing his Hull City Christmas jumper which, the Third Year Blog believes, is the only one in existence.
Either way, there is now only a week and a half until the Christmas break. Does that mean that the high-octane Hampton lifeTM is slowing down? Of course it doesn’t…
Heads of Year Message
We are very grateful to the Third Year pupils who gave up much of their Saturday afternoon last weekend to help with the hosting of the 12+ and 13+ entrance exams. They will, no doubt, remember their own entrance exam experiences and appreciate the value of a friendly greeting and considerate hosting around the school site. Thank you all and remember to sign off your well-deserved LION Merits!
Interform Competition
It is a busy period of term for Interform events, with this week’s screen time challenge encouraging all members of the school community to consider their digital usage and being in conscious control of when and why they are on screens.
Next week brings the more familiar Interform basketball (Wednesday) and Interform volleyball (Thursday) competitions. Both these events will be held in the Sports Hall at lunchtime, and we hope that the boys get involved and enjoy these events either as players or supporters.
Festive Events
There is plenty to look forward to between now and the end of term, including the School Carol Service which is being held on Monday 11 December at 7.45pm in St Mary’s Church in Hampton, and the Christmas lunch on Tuesday 12 December. Whilst we are looking forward to many opportunities for festive merriment over the coming days, we hope that the boys will recognise the need to maintain their usual levels of good behaviour and mutual respect for teachers and peers throughout.
Boys – Please remember to let us, your Form Tutors or the relevant subject teachers know if you are having any difficulties.
Enjoy the weekend and get some well-deserved rest.
Best wishes
Mr T Rigby & Mrs M Bedford
Sports Roundup
U14 Rugby
Last Saturday, the Hampton U14As faced off against Cranleigh School’s U14As in an away fixture. As we arrived, we got into our usual one hundred touches drill followed by some stretching and a short five minute contact session to ready ourselves. After a strong pep talk from Mr Hood, the match began swiftly. It was a tough start as Cranleigh were a very big side physically compared to us however, with the starting kick, we made a strong press off the bat. The game was a fast and energetic one with Cranleigh scoring a powerful try in the corner early on which in turn led to a 5-0 score. However, good handling and strong running from Kian W and Ethan M among others, mixed with clean fast handling led to a lovely try, followed by a great conversion from Xavier K gave us a comforting, yet still tentative 7-5 lead. The match continued in this way, but the game eventually slowed up somewhat as both teams tired towards the end of a hard fought first half, but even though thirty minutes were drawing to a close, Cranleigh were able to play a strong forward move and gain a try just before half time. Even though the kick was missed, the scores had been raised to 10-7 in Cranleigh’s favour at half time.
With a well earned two minute water break, we were instructed to ‘ice off’ every ruck because we were unable to overpower them. This ‘icing’ also made them over commit to contact and left less players on the pitch for them to use, giving us the advantage. As the second half began both teams were raring to go, with a powerful push from Cranleigh putting us on the back foot and under pressure. However, we were able to now capitalise on our superior ball-handling skills and ship the ball left to right continually until Olly M-H made a brilliant break down the right wing to put the ball under the posts for a brilliant try and set up an easy conversion for Xav. This gave us a mental and physical lead to take into the next ten minutes which were strongly contended by both sides back and forth with smart set pieces from Hampton and impactful attacks from Cranleigh. A few scrums later and in an exciting five minutes Cranleigh were able to score their first converted try of the game. Hampton however remained unfazed; this led us to play a miraculous cross-field kick and lots of strong running slotted us into their twenty two. However, we were unlucky as they were able to fire over one of our rucks and gain possession. In turn they ran the ball through to our end of the field to put us under extreme pressure as every tackle counted. They stayed 10 yards from our try line for what felt like forever until eventually their second row spotted a gap and took to it, to score a final converted try. The game finished in such a fashion to leave the final scoreboard 24-14 to Cranleigh. A well-fought struggle which both teams deserved to win, however Cranleigh’s gain of a final try in the dying minutes placed them on top.
By Archie C (3H)
U14B Football
It was Thursday 30 November. The U14B team entered F3 at 13:45, warming up, ready to face their tough opponents, Windsor Boys School. Kick off was 14:30. Hampton got the ball first and we immediately started pushing up the pitch on the attack, being aggressive and making runs. Around the 10th minute our chance came from a corner. The cross from Brennan C missed the tall opponent’s heads and landed with Ashton C who hit it into the net.
Then half time came. After a short break, we headed back out, calm and collected, ready to win. It was an equal start to the second half, but in the 15th minute of the second half Kota D received a ball from Paul I. He made a diagonal run, driving on the angle towards the near post, before shooting between their keeper and the goal post. We scored! Our morale was high; we were confident. But then, a few minutes later, the opponent got a chance from a corner and scored, just barely missing our centre backs.
It was 2-1. We were worried but stayed confident until two minutes before the end of the match, when their centre midfielder scored a banger from outside the box, will the ball flying just over our keeper’s head. The match ended and we were facing 20 minutes of extra time. We desperately wanted to score, with no one wanting the game to be decided on penalties. We were on the attack, creating multiple chances, but we could not finish them.
The 20 minutes went by and the whistle blew, taking us all to penalties.
The opposition were taking first.
Their first penalty taker shot, just barely missing Harrison G’s hands.
Brennan C stepped up for Hampton, hitting it hard and low, the ball finishing in the bottom corner.
The next opponent stepped up, shooting over the bar. Our morale climbed: we were in a good mindset.
Ashton C was next up: he shot, scoring an absolute screamer, going top right, absolutely sending the keeper the wrong way.
We were now in with a very high chance of winning.
This only increased as the next Windsor player hit it wide.
Joe T was next, but he hit the left post. But we were still confident we could win.
The next opponent came up for their fourth penalty. They shot and Harrison dived right, but the ball went straight down the middle. But Harrison stuck out his foot, causing the ball to hit the crossbar and out. What a save!
Grigory D had the chance to win it with our fourth penalty. He struck the ball, watching it hit the left post and rebound back in – what a goal! What a win!
As the B team sprinted towards Harrison G and Grigory D, the A team and C team, who were watching, joined in and we all started cheering. What a fitting end to such a great match.
Now, we are in the fourth round of ESFA hopefully heading towards the final…
By Kota D (3H)
Two truths and a lie
Last week, Miss Towler was the Form Tutor spinning us a dark web of deceit. This is what she claimed:
- Miss Towler is an avid bird watcher (or ‘twitcher’, as they are known)
- Miss Towler is a qualified Scuba diver
- Miss Towler has never broken a single bone
Which was the lie?
Well, you might imagine that Miss Towler, a Biology teacher who loves her subject would be exactly the sort of person who might be an avid bird watcher. But you would be mistaken: twitching is not for her. However, scuba diving very much IS for her and she has also gone through life without breaking a single bone in her body, a bit like Wolverine in the form of a teacher.
This week, Mrs Reilly is looking to pull the metaphorical wool over our actual eyes. Which of the below is the lie?
- Mrs Reilly relaxes by knitting; and has recently mastered cable stitch
- As a teenager Mrs Reilly was regularly mistaken for a boy due to having very short hair
- Mrs Reilly hasn’t left the UK mainland since 2015
Talk!
Next week sees the second Talk! of the autumn term. Sir John Curtice is a leading expert in electoral behaviour, famed for his incisive analysis of the exit polls and live results on election night coverage. In his unmissable Talk!, Sir John will speak on the voting behaviour seen in the most recent UK elections, whilst also delving into current opinion polling to explore the likely factors which will determine the outcome of the upcoming national poll, which must be held by January 2025. With the next General Election on the horizon, don’t miss this wonderful opportunity to hear from one of the leading authorities on how we vote and why.
The Talk! takes place on Wednesday 6 December at 1pm in the Hammond Theatre, there’s no need for pupils to book tickets. Hopefully we’ll see you there!
SHOEBOX APPEAL
This Christmas, Form Charity is organising a Shoebox Appeal in aid of Solace Women’s Aid, which will run from Monday 4 December to Friday 8 December.
Each form will donate a maximum of three shoeboxes filled with donations for Solace.
- Please ensure the lid and base of the box are wrapped separately
- Please do not individually wrap gifts
- Please ensure all items are new and unused and suitable for their intended use
Why? Solace is a leading specialist charity in the UK supporting women and children experiencing domestic abuse and sexual violence. The lifesaving support that Solace provides to over 20,000 women, children and young people each year is so important. With the Cost of Living Crisis the need for donations is increasing and our gift donations can make a huge difference.
We would like Third Years to bring in the following items:
Soft toys
Stickers
Clothing (gloves, hats, socks)
Books
Pens and pencils
Colouring book
Puzzles
Stickers
Games
Hair accessories (in particular products for afro hair)
If you need support or have any questions regarding the Shoebox Appeal, please speak with Miss Embiricos, Miss Holt or Mrs Michelson at Form Charity.
On behalf of Form Charity and Solace, we thank you for your support and donations!
CONNECTION CORNER
Well done to everyone who had a go at last week’s Connection Corner. It was a tricky one and foxed nearly all of you – lots of you said either places in Central London or Tube Stations. The correct answer was Monopoly Board locations! Big shout out to William O’S, who made Connection Corner history in being the only Third Year to guess the correct connection!
Another tricky one this week, have a go over the weekend and see if you can spot the connection:
In case you’re still perplexed, here are last week’s answers:
Where would Harry Potter would catch the Hogwarts Express from Platform 9 3/4? Kings Cross Station
In which battle did Admiral Lord Nelson die? The Battle of Trafalgar
Ian Fleming is famous for creating which fictional character? James Bond
Which team defied odds of 5000/1 to win the Premier League in 2015-2016? Leicester City
Connection answer: Monopoly Board Locations
