Over the last few weeks, we have been treated to some fantastic competition between the Houses within Sport. Staying within their bubbles, all junior year groups have competed in House Cricket, House Rounders and House Cross Country, with Year 2 also running in their own House Cross Country race.
Year 5 Cricket proved a very tight affair, with three of the four games played coming down to the final over to decide the winner. In the semi-finals, Whitmore narrowly overcame Gloucester, by means of taking more wickets, as both teams drew on 245 runs. In the other semi, Burghley held off a Lilford fightback to win by 8 runs. The final was again close, with the game taking many twists and turns before Burghley were crowned the Year 5 House Cricket Champions, winning by 6 runs. Lilford beat Gloucester in the third and fourth place play-off.
In the Year 5 Rounders competition, Lilford made a cracking, beating Whitmore in a very close match by 8 rounders to 6.5. Burghley vs Gloucester was very tight, with Burghley taking the win by half a rounder (5.5 to 5). Gloucester and Lilford were outstanding in their next match, being tight in their fielding and drawing the match 4-4. Burghley stormed to victory, with great batting, beating Whitmore 9 rounders to 5. In the final round of matches Burghley continued their winning ways scoring 7 rounders to Lilford’s 5. Gloucester snatched victory from Whitmore in their final few hits, beating Gloucester by half a rounder (7 – 6 ½). Overall Burghley were clear winners on 15 points, with Gloucester and Whitmore both on 9, followed by Whitmore on 3.
Year 6 Cricket led to two extremely close semi-finals took place in the Year Six House Cricket. Whitmore needed one to win off the last ball of the game to beat Lilford and managed to do so with a well ran three. In the other game Burghley needed to take a wicket off the final ball of the game to beat Gloucester, however, could not quite manage it. Gloucester and Whitmore therefore competed in the final, with Gloucester proving extremely difficult to get out, only losing one wicket in their total of 272. Unfortunately for Whitmore, they lost 9 wickets and finished with 223. Lilford were able to snatch third place beating Lilford by just 9 runs in the third/fourth play-off.
In the Year 6 Rounders, both Burghley and Lilford made a strong start in the first round of House matches, with Burghley beating Gloucester 12 ½ to 11 ½ and Lilford winning 12 ½ to 8 ½. Gloucester soon found their form, beating Lilford 13 ½ rounders to 10, with Burghley once again claiming victory with a 11 ½ to 9 win over Whitmore. Whitmore fought back in the last round beating, Gloucester 10 ½ to 8 ½. Lilford put a stop to Burghley’s winning streak, gaining 10 ½ rounders to Burghley’s 9. Burghley and Lilford were joint first on 11 points (33 rounders each) and Whitmore and Gloucester joint 3rd on 7 points (33 ½ rounders each) – it could not have been closer!
The Year 4 Rounders competition saw Lilford get off to a strong start against Whitmore, winning 9 rounders to 7 ½. Gloucester v Burghley was very close, with Gloucester edging ahead to win 6 ½ rounders to 5 ½. Lilford continued their winning ways against Gloucester, winning 7 rounders to 3 ½. There was another close match between Burghley and Whitmore, with Whitmore claiming victory on the last few balls, winning 3 ½ to 3. In the final round of matches, Lilford were just too strong for Burghley, winning 9 rounders to 3 ½. Gloucester were once again lucky to win their final match with another tight finish, beating Whitmore 5 rounders to 4 ½. Overall results – 1st Lilford on 15 points, 2nd Gloucester on 11, 3rd Whitmore on 7 and 4th Burghley on 3 points.
Year 3 Rounders was a very close affair, with all teams demonstrating strong batting and quick fielding. Year 3 played three in a bucket, which required the batter to hit 3 balls and the fielders to get the ball back to the bowler, before the batter gets round. Lilford made a strong start, claiming an 18 ½ to 13 ½ win over Whitmore. Despite Burghley’s best efforts Gloucester were too strong, winning 14 rounders to 11 ½. Gloucester once again stormed to victory against Lilford, winning 16 ½ rounders to 14. Whitmore were very tight in their fielding against Burghley, getting the ball quickly back to the bowler and beating Burghley 21 ½ rounders to 14 ½ as a result. In the final round of matches, Whitmore were too good for Gloucester, winning by two rounders (16 ½ to 14 ½). Lilford were winners against Burghley with a score of 23 rounders to 19. Overall – Gloucester, Lilford and Whitmore were joint first on 11 points and Whitmore second on 3 points.
Year 4 Cricket for Year Four, took place on a somewhat wet outfield, which proved difficult to score runs. However, that said, the children played extremely well, recognising the different strategies to fit the conditions. Lilford and Burghley competed for first and second place having beaten Gloucester and Whitmore respectively in the semi-finals. Lilford won by 23 runs against Gloucester, while Burghley pipped Whitmore by just a single run. Wickets proved to be the difference in the final, with Lilford only losing 2, whilst Burghley lost 11, resulting in a win for Lilford by 40 runs. The third and fourth place play-off match was a much tighter affair, with yet another single run winning margin, this time in the favour of Whitmore over Gloucester.
The Year 3 Cricket competition was a bit of a washout weather-wise but a brilliant afternoon of indoor House Cricket was enjoyed. The children got 6 shots each at a batting cone whilst still batting in pairs to score as many runs as they could. Gloucester narrowly overcame Burghley in a tense, tight semi-final, eventually winning by just four runs. In the other semi-final, Lilford held on to beat Whitmore by 231 runs to 217. In the final, Lilford batted superbly well to score a massive 282 runs, and, whilst Gloucester tried as hard as they could, the risks they had to take to score proved costly as they finished with 235. Burghley took third place, beating Whitmore by 18 runs. Well done to you all in your first Cricket matches at LJS.
House Cross Country We enjoyed a fabulous two of House Cross Country, with Years 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 competing in their year groups. An extra challenge was included in the run this year for the junior age groups, with tyres to jump over at various points of the course. The competitiveness of those running, particularly at the front, was great to see, with some very close sprint finishes. All children demonstrated superb stamina to complete the course and the level of sportsmanship and encouragement was wonderful to be a part of. Several children completed their race before going back to support those further back, showing the amazing kindness of our children. The overall results will be revealed after half-term.
Overall rounders results:-
1st Lilford- 46 points
2nd Gloucester- 38 points
3rd Burghley – 32 points
4th Whitmore 28 points
Overall Cricket results:-
1st Lilford – 38 points
2nd Burghley – 30 points
3rd Gloucester – 26 points
4th Whitmore – 24 points
