Hereford Cathedral School

On what must have been the nicest day of the year, at the beautiful grounds of Repton School, HCJS put on a stunning performance only to suffer semi-final penalty heartache against our old foes RGS The Grange. Placed in Group C, we started off nervously in our first game against Edenhurst (Newcastle Under Lyme). However, once we got into our stride, we became more confident and the goals came. Billy Turner put us into the lead and this was extended with two second half goals from Harvey Newall, ensuring a 3-0 success.

Next up were Westbourne (Sheffield) and they looked a good side, with two particularly tidy players. This game was more of a battle and the need to be physically stronger was taken on board. Billy put us in the lead with an outrageous chip over the keeper and then Luke Tulacz made it two with a tap in after Joe Colebrook’s shot had been blocked. This knocked the stuffing out of our opponents and in the second half, Billy scored his second, with the 4 – 0 win being completed with a lovely individual effort from Luke.

And then it was RGS The Grange. To be fair, they were the better side, and although they won 1 – 0, they could have won by more. Self-belief was lacking on this occasion having already lost to them at Winterfold. We huffed and puffed without really looking like scoring until right at the very death when Joe broke free only to see his shot well saved by the keeper.

Our last group game was against Leicester Grammar School. We got back into our stride and Jasper Linley – Adams opened the scoring with a powerful half volley. Our second goal was a beauty. Joe Colebrook swung over an inviting cross where the unmarked Billy headed it into the net. The second half was more of a scrap and Leicester pulled a goal back, but we held on for a 2 – 1 win, meaning we finished second in the group, a point behind RGS.

In the quarter finals we were drawn against Grace Dieu (Leicestershire). We had been warned about a couple of their stronger players, but the only threat came from HCJS as our attacking was relentless. After several near misses, Luke’s deflected strike gave us the lead and in the second half he went on to complete his hat trick. His second was an incredibly brave header and his third a low drive into the corner. This was by far our best team performance, and all in front of a scout from West Bromwich Albion.

With one game standing between us and the national finals at St Georges Park, we had to overcome RGS The Grange in the semi-finals.  Having lost to them already, it was about being physical and having that self-belief. HCJS had plenty of possession without creating a lot of chances and HCJS keeper Jonathan Snell was very quiet indeed. HCJS did come closest to scoring with efforts from Billy and Jasper but at the end it finished 0 – 0 so straight to penalties.  After three successful strikes each it went to sudden death and after it became 4 – 4, Joe was the unfortunate player; his well struck penalty was saved by the keeper. So that was it; a very unfortunate way to be defeated, but a performance to be proud of.

We did have to play a 3^rd / 4^th play off game against Fairfield (Loughborough) and we used this as a chance to experiment with the team and formation. Although Jasper’s smart finish gave us the lead, Fairfield came back strongly to win 2- 1.

This was a brilliant day where every player performed.  It was a sad way to lose in such a way, but to get so far (and lose to the eventual winners) speaks volumes for the side.

Squad: J Snell, C Laing, G Harris, J Colebrook, L Tulacz, J Linley – Adams ©, B Turner, J Thomas, H Newall

Group C

Edenhurst 0  v  HCJS 3  (Luke Tulacz, Harvey Newall 2)

Westbourne 0 v  HCJS  4  (Billy Turner 2, Luke Tulacz 2)

RGS The Grange 1 v  HCJS 0

Leicester Grammar School 1 v HCJS  2  ( Jasper Linley – Adams, Billy Turner)

Quarter Final

Grace Dieu 0 v  HCJS  3 (Luke Tulacz 3)

Semi-Final

HCJS 0  v  RGS The Grange 0  ( Lost 5-4 on penalties)

3^rd / 4^th Playoff:  Fairfield 2 v  HCJS 1  (Jasper Linley-Adams)

  

A mixed team of twelve HCJS runners made the annual pilgrimage to the St Richard’s cross-country races. Ground conditions this time were a little kinder than in previous years, greatly improved by the lack of any real rain for the last two weeks, making the mud a nice grippy “plasticine consistency” . With just over a 100 runners in the combined start for the boys and girls race, it was the usual fast and furious start down the hill towards the lake. A great team effort from the boys saw them finish 3rd team overall out of ten teams while the girls team finished in a solid 7th place. Special mention to Charley who unluckily twisted her ankle just after the start and had to pull out of the race.

Aidan Webb 7^th, Miles Newall 9^th, Billy Turner 15^th, Luke Tulacz 23^rd, Jonathan Snell 30^th, Jasper Linley-Adams 44^th

Ciara Wheeler 17^th, Harriet Reese 34^th, Sophie Lavender 35^th, Lucy Matthews 36^th, Fleur Berry-Jones 37^th, Charley Dallow dnf

  

After a frustrating period of bad weather for all of the 13 sides competing, it was great to finally play some football. However, despite underfoot conditions being good, a very strong cross wind still made it difficult for sides to play good football.
 

Split into two groups, our first game was against Hallfield, who had won their ISFA regional tournament earlier in the year. They were a physically strong side but we coped well, with neither side really threatening the goal. Jasper Linley–Adams had a powerful shot tipped over and a draw looked on the cards until a piece of magic from Hallfield saw them win 1 – 0. Needing a win straight away, we got one against the host side, Winterfold. Charlie Laing crashed home a corner to give us the lead before Winterfold equalised from a long range shot which the wind certainly helped. However, HCJS scored a second, which proved to be the winner, when Miles Newall’s shot squirmed under the keeper.

It was old foes RGS Grange next, and they looked like a very strong side with two excellent players. However, HCJS defended well, with Charlie and Guy Harris outstanding at the back. Again, a draw looked the likely outcome only for RGS to grab a late winner, when the ball was swept into an empty net after Jake Harding had made a good initial save.
 

We had left ourselves a mountain to climb to qualify and simply had to win all of our remaining games and hope for favours elsewhere. St Richards were next and we found the net three times without reply in the first half through Miles and two goals from Joe Colebrook. However, lacklustre finishing in the second half meant it stayed 3-0.
 

Against King’s Hawford, we really clicked into gear and played some good football. Joe scored two goals again, and although Hawford replied in the second half, a 2-1 victory was well-deserved. Our last game was against Moor Park. It was fairly one way traffic but we could not find that elusive goal. However, from a training ground corner routine, Harvey Newall bundled the ball over the line to seal a 1–0 victory.
 

Unfortunately, this left us in 3^rd position in the group and we had to be content with playing The Elms for 5^th place. Again we played some good football and scored some super goals on our way to a 4–0 win. Luke Tulacz grabbed two, with one being a spectacular volley, Joe scored with a left foot drive and a header from Harvey was the culmination of a good move and cross from Charlie Laing.
 

We played some good football during the day but also learnt that if you make mistakes against good sides, you get punished. Encouragingly, the final was between Hallfield and RGS, two sides whom we matched but who got the better of us in the end.

Squad: J Snell, J Harding, C Laing, G Harris, M Newall, H Newall, L Tulacz, J Linley– Adams,

J Colebrook,