The Sport Mill Hill Initiative
‘Sport 2007’, now renamed ‘Sport Mill Hill’, has proved invaluable for the growth of Sport throughout the Mill Hill School Foundation. Developing links and forming sporting partnerships will continue to be the emphasis of this initiative.
The School currently works closely with local clubs including Saracens and Southgate Hockey Club – links which are proving to be mutually beneficial. Belmont, our Preparatory School, continues to be the home ground for Middlesex Junior County Cricket Teams while tennis has benefited through links with Hertfordshire LTA and local club, Totteridge. Our Golf Academy has achieved excellent results in its first year – including a Mill Hill team becoming the 2007 HMC National Foursomes Stableford Champions. Pupils Mit Maeda and Adam Rossington were also the top pair at the HMC Championships. More exciting announcements will be made this year regarding development of the Academy’s golfing facilities.
Since 2005, our sportsmen and women have had the opportunity to rub shoulders with and interact with some of the world’s most talented International sportsmen and women. Last year our 1st XI hockey players competed with and against several England International hockey players in a match at Southgate Hockey Club – an event we are looking to host again this year. At our last two Junior Tennis Open Tournaments hosted by Gosling Sports Park (home of the Herts LTA) pupils had the opportunity to play with past British Davis Cup Professionals Jamie Delgado and Arvind Parmar. And of course at the end of last year our 1st XV Rugby team had the opportunity to play with the World Champions, the Springboks, on our very own hallowed Top Terrace.
The benefits of such initiatives and opportunities have been immense as has the impact made by the efforts of our most talented sporting pupils who were recipients of the Bicentennial Awards.
In particular our 1st XV rugby team had their most successful season for 50 years. Not only did they win 5 out of 6 fixtures during their summer rugby tour to New Zealand, they also only lost one out of 10 regular fixtures and then went on to become Middlesex Cup Champions. Equally impressive is our younger U16 Rugby side which has become one of the most successful teams ever in Mill Hill history. This team remains unbeaten in 3 years, including a draw with Daily Mail Cup Finalists, St Pauls.
The girls’ 1st XI hockey team also remained unbeaten until they reached the finals of the Regional Tournament. In the lead-up to this they became County Cup Champions with a convincing 6-0 win against Godolphin & Latymer. They eventually finished fourth out of seven teams – an outstanding achievement and the furthest stage they have ever reached in this competition. The success of all these teams was particularly timely in the Bicentennial Year.
Pupils will continue to receive specialist coaching from our professional coaching staff including England Hockey player, Chloe Strong, PCA qualified and Head Coach at Totteridge Tennis Club, Clinton Coleman, and PGA qualified Dean Halford, Director of Golf. The girls will also be attending a master class this term with an England Netballer.
Our sporting facilities continue to be improved and extended; a new changing room block has recently been opened and we are delighted that after a number of years, planning permission has finally been agreed for floodlighting for the astro which will increase the usage both for training and matches during the winter season. As previously mentioned, there are plans for the school’s golf facilities to be expanded – watch this space.
As we start another term at Mill Hill School, we look forward to another successful year of Sport throughout the Foundation. The focus of Sport Mill Hill will be to continue to build and enhance our successful partnerships as we draw closer to the 2012 Olympics. We already have an exciting year planned with tennis tours going out to La Manga, Spain and South Africa where pupils will be competing in the Cape Town International Tennis Competition. The girls’ hockey team and boys’ cricket teams are also planning European tours in the near future.
