Four Winners Crowned At Second Day of Girls Schools Finals

Four Girls Schools Finals matches were held today at Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre, with the young female athletes all playing their part in a fantastic day of hockey on the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.

Under 16 Tier 2 Final
Felsted 1-0 Scarborough College
The first final of the day saw captains Poppy Hughes and Beth Hiley lead out Felsted and Scarborough respectively; setting themselves for 70 minutes of action at Lee Valley Hockey And Tennis Centre. The match was ultimately decided by just a single goal, Julia Zangemeister scoring with a drilled finish after finding her way past a Scarborough defender. Scarborough continued to push for an equaliser, with Felstead’s Emily Salter repelling a number of penalty corners. ‘Boro also had a goal disallowed with 25 minutes to go, and even as 'Boro played with eleven outfield players for the final few minutes, Felsted stood firm and took the trophy home.

Under 16 Tier 1 Final
Repton 3-0 Millfield
With the prestigious U16 Tier 1 trophy up for grabs, Repton and Millfield played out a fiercely-contested and end-to-end match. Repton led after 34 minutes when Uma Kaeding deflected home, and it took until the 59^th minute for them to register their second goal via Beth Phillips’ rebound at a penalty corner. Millfield were giving their all, with three green cards in the space of ten minutes showing their commitment but unfortunately hindering their ability to get a foothold in the game. With four minutes to go, Evie Grindal made it 3-0 to Repton with a shot arrowed into the roof of the net. And so skipper Poppy Barlow lifted the trophy with her teammates in front of supporting family and friends; a great achievement for her side and all concerned.

Under 18 Tier 2 Final
The Royal Grammar School, Newcastle 5-1 Sevenoaks
A dominant first half performance proved vital for Newcastle as they took the U18 Tier 2 trophy in style against a valiant Sevenoaks side. With just two minutes gone, Alice Geoghegan got Newcastle off to a flying start, and her teammate Laura Cottee doubled the lead on 29 minutes; Newcastle breaking well from the halfway to win a foul and eventually slot home. Then crucially they still had time to add two more before the interval, Hannah Dodds rounding Alice Reeve to make it 3-0 before Ciara Boaden made it four right on the stroke of half time. Boaden got her second with another tidy finish in the second half, but credit must go to Sevenoaks for scoring a consolation through Summer Knight-Thompson with five minutes remaining.

Under 18 Tier 3 Final
Eastbourne College 2–1 Perse School
The final game had all the tension one would expect at the conclusion of a great day’s hockey. Eastbourne and Perse could not be separated for the first 50 minutes; Ella Panayiotou finding freedom inside the D to give Eastbourne the lead. And ten minutes later Abi Coleman scored in a different corner to double the advantage. With moments left, Perse had one more try and Madalena Sennitt made it 2-1, but it was Eastbourne who held on. After playing a number of rounds to get here, Eastbourne had been waiting for that day for many months and took a hard-fought win to lift the trophy.

It concluded a great day of hockey, and credit must go to all the young players for their spirit and quality, as well as to everyone involved for bringing together eight teams for a hugely memorable set of matches.

See a selection of images from the event on the England Hockey Instagram page here.