Trinity’s 1st VII Netball team took part in the first round of the National Schools Cup at Shirley High over the weekend, playing against other schools from the county. We had entered with high hopes of doing well, but the standard across all teams was incredibly high.
The team played phenomenally well and in eight rounds won matches against St Catherine’s, Caterham School, Epsom College, Wimbledon High, Coloma and Bramley. They only lost two games all day, to Guildford High 11-13 (multiple National champions) and Royal Russell 12-13 (they have two international titles). Realising that second place in the group may come to goal average the players threw everything at their final group game against Kings Wimbledon, winning 21-5 to assure their place in the crossovers.
A nail-biting crossover game against Alleyn’s (winner of the other group) saw Captain and Goal Defence George Budden sustain an injury very early in the game which meant Holly Young stepped into the breach. The girls adapted to the change and fought off a spirited Alleyn’s attack and in the last few seconds scored what was to be the winning goal, beating Alleyn’s 8-7!
This incredible result means we are now through, for the first time in Trinity history to the National Schools Cup – Regional round where we will meet the top two teams from the other Counties in the South East in January.
Mrs Long, Head of Girls’ Games, says, “This is a fantastic achievement for a group of girls who have only been playing together for six weeks, and it is not even Netball term. They beat sides who have been playing together since they were seven and 11 years old! We are very proud of them, well done.”
Player of the Tournament: Maya Malhotra – her shooting under immense pressure was exceptional and inspirational to the rest of the team!
Maya says, “The National Cup County Tournament was an unbelievable experience for the team and I. The atmosphere as the final whistle blew in our last game against Alleyn’s was something I will never forget. Not only did our match play become stronger throughout the day, but so did our teamwork and friendships. It truly was an incredible day!”
Trinity 1st VII Netball squad:
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