On Friday 7 March the Royal Hospital School, Holbrook, welcomed around 80 U11 players from throughout Suffolk and Norfolk for a Festival of Netball.
It all came down to the very last round of matches with four teams vying for the winning title in a wonderfully exciting tournament. After six rounds of excellent and competitive netball in the Spring sunshine, Moreton Hall A team’s seventh and final match was against Ipswich High A, while Finborough played Old Buckenham Hall. Old Buckenham eventually lost a very tight and thrilling match 3-4 and were awarded 4th place.
For the neutral spectators Court Two was the place to be, as Ipswich High A took the early advantage scoring two goals before Moreton Hall mounted a brave rescue act as this tense game finally finished in a brilliant 4-4 draw. The draw was enough for Moreton Hall A to be declared champions on points scored. Ipswich High A finished on level points with Finborough, but they scored two more goals over the seven matches putting them in 2nd place and Finborough a creditable 3rd.
Notre Dame from Norwich and Stoke College finished on the same 13 points but Notre Dame scored one more goal more than Stoke to claim 6th place. Their exciting 3-3 draw in the morning was another highlight of the day.
Points Table
Moreton Hall A 31
Ipswich High A 29
Finborough 29
Old Buckenham Hall 27
Ipswich High B 19
Notre Dame 13
Stoke College 13
Moreton Hall B 7
Organiser of the event and Sports Development Manager at the Royal Hospital School, Don Topley, said “The top four sides could have easily beaten each other on any given day but many congratulations must go to the winners of the Festival, Moreton Hall, who played with great determination, skill and commitment to have a wholly undefeated tournament”.