Coton Primary School qualify for finals with 100% record!

Coton Primary School claimed their place in the Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Sainsbury’s School Games Spring Finals by winning the South Cambs SSP ‘Small Schools’ tag rugby competition in some style. The mixed team of year 4, 5 & 6 pupils played five, and won five matches, scoring 18 tries along the way!

Over 250 children took part in the event which was held at Melbourn Village College with 10 schools competing in the new ‘small schools’ competition which is open to schools with fewer than 120 pupils in Key Stage 2 and another 12 teams competing in the open competition. Both competitions were split into two pools with all teams playing each other in a round robin format with the winners of each group then progressing through to a final.

In the small schools competition it was the teams from Coton and Fowlmere that qualified as group winners. With both teams going into the final with 100% records the stage was set for a competitive and entertaining final. The teams didn’t disappoint, with some excellent rugby on display and the score locked at 2-2 for a long time. It was Coton who edged it though with a decisive try just before the final whistle to claim a 3-2 win and the title of South Cambs Small Schools Champions. There were other strong performances in the competition, particularly from Gt Abington and Meldreth Primary schools who finished runners up in their respective pools with just a single loss each.

In the open competition the initial group matches were strongly contested but it was the team from Steeple Morden that went through as winners of Pool A after a narrow 2-1 victory over Pendragon School in the last match ensured their 100% record. In the other pool it was Harston & Newton who topped the group after wins in all five of their matches to set up a repeat of last year’s final. In the final the team from Steeple Morden showed their quality and put in a convincing performance to overcome Harston & Newton 6-2. They now progress to the SSP Finals on 5th March where they will play the winners of the second Yr 5/6 tag rugby competition to be held at Swavesey Village College in February, to determine the overall South Cambs Champions and decide who qualifies for the county finals.

Claire McDonnell, School Games Organiser said, “It was a fantastic afternoon of rugby and we were delighted with the number of entries into the competition. It was also nice to have a number of schools taking part for the first time today and to have the new small schools competition which offers a more level playing field to some of our small village primary schools and gives them a chance to experience success.

There were some really good performances on the day and the standard of play definitely gets stronger every year. We hope events like this inspire and motivate the children and encourage schools to get involved in further competitions.

Congratulations must go to all of the players and schools that took part as well as a big thank you to the leaders from Melbourn Village College and Comberton Sixth Form who did a great job in officiating the matches and ensuring the event ran smoothly.”

Coton & Fowlmere Primary schools now go forward to represent South Cambridgeshire at the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Sainsbury’s School Games Spring Finals on 19th March; we wish them the best of luck!

Full Results

Open Competition
1. Steeple Morden
2. Harston & Newton
3. Pendragon
4. Petersfield
5. Steeple Morden 2
6. Pendragon 2
7. Bassingbourn
8. Bassingbourn 2
9. Melbourn
10. Harston & Newton 2
11. Petersfield 2

 
Small Schools Competition
1. Coton
2. Fowlmere
3. Meldreth
4. Gt Abington
5. Foxton 2
6. Guilden Morden
7 = Hatton Park & Haslingfield
9. Foxton 2