Triumphs keep on coming
Gareth Batty, who is currently the captain of Surrey and has been capped by England at both Test and One Day level, coached both boys and girls at the school on Monday, June 19.
During his visit the 39-year-old ran the rule over the U14 players and gave them some key pointers surrounding their technique with both bat and ball, in addition to some fielding tips to help with their development.
The spin bowler, who is the younger brother of former Yorkshire and Somerset off-spinner Jeremy Batty, made his international debut against Bangladesh in 2003 after earning his debut ODI bow against Australia the previous year.
He has made a total on 19 appearances for his country and taken 15 wickets.
The masterclass was well received by both male and female group members, with Batty also lending advice on how to get the most out of things such as their run-up, preparation and even field positions for prospective skippers.
Mr Leach, said: “Having someone with the experience of Gareth come and take part in a cricketing masterclass was a huge benefit to our pupils, who really got a lot out of the session and picked up some tricks of the trade that will come in use in the future.
“To have an England international here was a huge privilege and I hope that it has provided our young under 14 players with plenty of inspiration for the future.”
Roman Pyrih produced a series of sensational efforts to finish second at the Chester Chess Festival last weekend.
The feat was made even more remarkable by the fact that Roman was testing his skills in the U18 category, something that brought with it a string of fine performances.
The 11-year-old was the star of the show in the qualifying stages and was the number one seed going into the final after topping the leaderboard with 4.5 out of a possible five point to secure a place in the final.
Unfortunately for the Ukrainian boarding pupil he was unable to claim the crown as he fell to his first defeat of the competition to a much older and more experienced opponent.
Mr Cashell, said: “Despite not winning the title Roman can take plenty of positives from his performance, which was exceptional given his inexperience playing competitively and the age category he was entered in.
“This experience will do his confidence and development an untold amount of good and the sky is the limit in terms of what Roman can achieve if he continues to progress in this manner.
“Our Chess programme is something we are very proud of here and with talent such as Roman coming through then it is in very safe hands.”
Sporting staff were given a helping hand in their preparation for next year with the help of a Premier League academy coach.
Padraig Roche, who works as a Strength and conditioning coach at the Arsenal FC Academy, visited the school on Wednesday, June 14 where he aided staff members from both the Prep and Senior sites with their Athletic Development strategy.
Sport scientist Padraig joined Arsenal in July 2013, having already forged a successful career in rugby union.
After playing football for Cahir Park AFC and Tipperary, Padraig retrained as a coach and earned a BA in sports management as well as becoming a UKSCA accredited strength and conditioning coach, a Level 2 weightlifting coach and an IRB Level 2 conditioning coach.
Having obtained his qualifications, the NCSA certified coach undertook a year-long position as head of strength and conditioning at University College Cork in 2007 before moving to Munster's academy.
After that Padraig worked with the Irish national rugby union team as their first-team assistant strength and conditioning coach and had a similar role with their under-20 squad before switching back to football when he joined the Gunners.
Mr Boyd, said: “Padraig has a wealth of experience at the elite level of sport in both football and rugby, and it was great to welcome him here to aid with our plans for the next academic year.
“Our staff really did get a lot out of it and it will help us with our preparation as we look to continue the impressive development across all sporting areas in the future.”
Abhishek Bathula will part of the Welsh Table Tennis squad that head to Shanghai in October, where they will take part in a series of coaching sessions with some of the best and highly regarded table tennis coaches anywhere in the world.
The talented 15-year-old is the only North Wales representative to be selected for the squad, and the training programme is scheduled to last for ten days.
It has been a season to remember for Abhishek, who has claimed a number of tournament triumphs and will make another appearance for his country this weekend at a competition in the Jersey Islands.
There was further cause for celebration this week with the news that the pupil successfully passed his Karate Black Belt grading after impressing assessors to achieve the honour.
The martial arts discipline is one of Abhishek’s chosen sports subjects as part of his GCSE module.
Mr Boyd, said: “This is an incredible opportunity for Abhishek and one that he is thoroughly deserving of.
“He has worked immensely hard and out a great deal of effort into his development, and he has progressed significantly since being part of the national set-up.
“Table Tennis is thriving in China and the Far East so this will be another extremely worthwhile experience for Abhishek, who is one of a number of sporting internationals we have here at Rydal Penrhos.”
Golf stars Reuben Bather and Charley Simpson produced another eye-catching set of results at the ISGA Junior League National Championships, which were held at Radley College on Wednesday, June 21.
The duo, who both joined our Golf Academy in September, competed against other qualifiers from across the country in the searing heat, and after an impressive pair of rounds they managed to come away with fourth placed overall in the team event.
There was further success for Welsh international Reuben, who finished with the third best individual score after a round that featured a number of flawless shots.
This was the first time in history that a team from the school had qualified for the national stage of the competition, and is the latest in a long line of triumphs since the inception of the school’s Golf Academy.
Mr Richardson, said: “Reuben and Charley have been a huge asset to since they joined us on golf scholarships last year, and this is yet another significant milestone for both them and our thriving academy.
“They work very well as a team and are always looking for ways to improve."