The Old Pocklingtonian Old Pocklingtonian 2017-18 | Page 14

DEVELOPMENT AND SCHOOL NEWS
Kyle didn’t start playing tennis until he was 10 and
although he was still at the Prep School, it didn’t take
long for word of his talent to reach Trevor Loten,
the senior boys’ tennis coach at Pocklington School
at the time.
Trevor, who is a maths teacher and resident
boarding house tutor at Fenwick-Smith, recalled: “I
brought him in to play for Pocklington School in the
Under-12 Northern School Boys Championship,
which he and his partner won. He was 10 at the
time and you could see he was really talented.
“I’ve followed his career ever since and even played
against him about three years ago when he came
back to his former tennis club in Beverley. He was
only knocking about, thankfully, but I had a bit of a
chat with him, which was lovely.”
He added: “I think Kyle’s now in the best physical
shape he’s ever been. He’s developed his mental
toughness and ability to fight back, and reaching
this stage of the Australian Open will also boost
his confidence no end. I think he‘ll certainly progress
to become one of the world’s top 16 players.”
round every class and took the time to talk to pupils.
He also signed a tennis ball for every Prep School
pupil.
“It’s so nice that he still remembers us,” said Russ.
“He’s very unassuming and quiet… you wouldn’t
know he was a superstar. But in our eyes he always
was and is.”
Mark Ronan, Headmaster, Pocklington School,
added: “We are thrilled about Kyle’s success, and we
appreciate how he took the time to come back and
see us after his Davis Cup win and engage with the
pupils.
“As an Old Pocklingtonian he certainly remains true
to our ‘Courage and Truth’ motto. We wish him all
the best in his tennis career.”
Since Melbourne, Kyle has gone from strength to
strength in the tennis rankings, becoming the No. 1
British Men’s player in March and reaching a career
high of 16 in the ATP World Tour rankings in July –
and fulfilling Trevor Loten’s prediction! What next for
this talented young man…?
After winning the Davis Cup in 2015, Kyle returned
to the Prep School days later, took a replica trophy
POCKLINGTONIAN SPORTS
DINNER WITH SPECIAL
GUESTS FROM THE WORLD
OF INTERNATIONAL RUGBY
As we go to press, the school and the OP
Association are looking forward to hosting the
second Pocklingtonian Sports Dinner, at The Oaks
Golf Club, near Bubwith. The Oaks is owned and run
by the Nutt family, all former parents or students
of the school, and after doing such a fantastic job
of hosting us for our inaugural Sports Dinner with
Michael Vaughan in 2016, we decided to return
there for this very special night with guests Rory
Underwood MBE, Steve McNamara and Rob
Vickerman.
We have over 120 guests expected at the event,
14
including Old Pocklingtonians, current and former
parents, Governors and staff. Rob, who is a current
parent at school, will be hosting the evening as well
as telling guests about his experiences as one of
England’s Rugby Sevens most successful captains.
He led the team to wins in the World Series
Events in 2008, 2011 and 2013, and reached the
Sevens World Cup Final in 2013. He also played
for Leeds Rugby and Newcastle Falcons, making 50
premiership appearances.
Steve is also a current parent at school and is head
coach at the Catalan Dragons, recent winners of the
Challenge Cup. After a 15 year playing career, Steve
became assistant and then head coach for Bradford
Bulls. He was then appointed head coach of England
Rugby League, which culminated in a 2015 test series
win over New Zealand. Moving down under, he
spent time coaching the Sydney Roosters, the New
Zealand Warriors and the New Zealand national
team before returning to the northern hemisphere.
Rory scored a record 49 tries for England (85 caps,
1984-1996) and won 6 caps for the British Lions
touring Australia (1989) and New Zealand (1993).
He played first class rugby at Leicester Tigers for an
unbelievable 14 years and was awarded the MBE in
1992 for his services to rugby. Throughout his rugby
career, Rory amassed 18 years flying as a pilot in
the RAF.
We’re sure the evening will be a great success and
will be a fitting celebration of rugby and all the sports
enjoyed by the Pocklington School community. Look
out on our social media channels for photos and a
report of the event later this month.