OP SPORT
Josh back home from Dubai for Christmas and Marcus from closer at hand , saw the latter wrestle over , Matt Procter converting . And the revival was boosted as straightaway a big tackle freed the ball deep in the home half and wing Tom Richardson used quick feet to get into space then turned on the afterburners to outpace everyone on a 70-yard gallop to the posts . Procter converted and at 19-29 it was game on .
Determined tackling was the feature for the next ten minutes as the action settled down again , but the
home pack started to beast the OP eight at scrum time and took Pocklington up to the line where flanker Ben Stephenson burrowed in to close the gap to one score .
And another Pocklington raid saw the comeback completed as Joe Holbrough ( 97-04 ) wheeled away on the far side to stroll over in the corner and make it all square .
There was a hint of Pocklington stealing it at the death as they threw the ball around in one last offensive , but the OPs held out and an injury to home lock Tom Peters was the final act of the day as it ended in a 29- 29 tie and the honours and trophy shared .
( Report and photo credit : Phil Gilbank 67-74 )
OP MEN ’ S AND LADIES ’ HOCKEY
It was great to see such a fantastic turn out of OPs for the men ’ s and ladies ’ teams this year . With a full starting XI and at least three subs on each side , the OPs were in a good position to take on the welldrilled school teams . Umpires were : Peter Horne and OP Stuart Rawlings ( 75-80 ) for the men v boys match and David Byas and Lily Walster for the ladies v girls match . Parents , OPs and staff also came along to support the teams on what was a gloriously sunny morning for the matches .
Both games were as competitive as ever with the school sides defending a string of wins against the OPs in recent years . In the men ’ s match , Ben Byas ( 04-15 ) scored first for OPs . The OPs kept pace with the school boys in the first half and another goal from Ben Byas kept them in the game . However , the school boys gradually edged ahead and with time running out in the second half , it was the school boys who claimed a convincing victory in the end finishing 5-2 ahead .
The Ladies match was a real end to end battle despite the school missing a number of their key
players . Georgina Booth ( 96-06 ) scored first for the OPs and the score remained 1-0 to OPs at half time . In the second half the schoolgirls continued to pressure the OPs , their determination unwavering . Their persistence paid off and despite the best efforts from OP goalkeeper , Alice Cullen ( 8-15 ), the schoolgirls netted two goals in quick succession to steal the win . Final score 2-1 to school .
Thank you to all those who took part and supported the event . See you next year !
L-R ( back ) Scott Dyson ( 08-13 ), Shreyas Gopal ( 05-14 ), James Wightman ( 05-16 ), Edwin Au ( 10-14 ), Ben Byas ( 04-15 ), Joe Drydal ( 05-16 ), Elliott Dobson ( 07-13 ), Edward Wightman ( 05-16 ), ( front ) John Skinner ( 75-82 ), Guy Harland ( 07-12 ), John Cooper ( 06-12 ), Adam Waller ( 87-97 ), ( pictured right ) Jesse Chu ( 08-15 ) goalkeeper .
L-R ( back ) Lucy Snowden ( 06-13 ), Lucy Bryan ( 06-13 ), Camilla Eggleston ( 05-15 ), Jenny Owen ( 97-08 ), Olivia Martin ( née Byas , 99-08 ), Georgina Booth ( née Chapman , 96-06 ), Vicky Hodgson ( 04-13 ), Lucy Peel ( 06-13 ), ( front ) Natasha Leach ( 09-16 ), Kate Pratt ( 09-16 ), Alice Cullen ( 08- 15 ) goalkeeper , Liz Bramley ( 88-97 ), Janet Anderson ( former parent ), Charlotte Flint ( 97-08 ).
OP GOLF SOCIETY : BIRKDALE BUCKET 2017
In March , the 2017 Birkdale Bucket was held again at the world famous Woodhall Spa Golf Course rated 8th in England and 79th in the World . The weather was clear and the course was in fantastic condition , with all the bunkers in use and some excellent changes .
The Old Pocklingtonians did really well on the Saturday having the top two individual scores , Mike Strong ( 66-76 ) 37pts and Tim Russell ( 68-78 ) 36pts which combined with Larry Lawson ( 70- 77 ) 31pts and David Stephenson ( 77-81 ) 25pts put the team with 129 in second , frustratingly only one shot behind Uppingham . Steve St Quinton ( 64-74 ) and David Morgan ( 68-75 ) made up the Pocklington OP team out of a 54 man field with the other teams from Worksop , Wrekin , Gigglewick , Sedbergh , Oundle and Stowe .
The near miss on the Saturday spurred the team on to fill the first three places in the Sunday foursomes , Larry Lawson won with an amazing 42pts , newcomer David Stephenson an excellent second just ahead of Tim Russell in 3rd all winning very good cheques from the £ 4,400 auction pot .
The other OP golf events are the Grafton Morrish , scratch foursomes and suitable for single figure handicappers , which has a qualifier in May at Fixby Golf Club near Huddersfield and the Finals at Brancaster and Hunstanton in Norfolk during early September . There is also a Birkdale Bucket 60th dinner at Ilkley on Friday 9 June . The Bucket is in its 60th year and we need to try and get more OPs engaged for next year ’ s event , which is going to be on Saturday 17 March and Sunday 18 March 2018 .
We are always looking for new participants for both events so please contact Mike Strong by mikestrongy @ gmail . com or phone ( 07766-11144 ) if you are interested in either event . Finally , it is very important to attract younger players so for both students and younger players the event is subsidised .
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