32 CLUBS AND SOCIETIES Good Evening, it has been a wonderful experience for me to attend this dinner again and to hear some of your stories from your time at Handsworth Grammar. This evening has made me realise how much I will miss attending this school next year. Over the last year we have enjoyed success across a range of sports and events on a local, regional and even national level. We are extremely proud of these achievements and I will share with you a few of our major successes. The school’s biggest success this year has been achieved by our Under 16s Futsal team and represented the West Midlands in the Football Association’s National Youth Futsal Festival. Our Under 14 Futsal team were crowned the Birmingham County FA Futsal Champions and our Under 12 Futsal Team have already been crowned the Aston, Erdington and Saltley Schools 5 a side Champions. Our school football teams have also seen significant success. Our new year 7s currently remain undefeated and have scored 33 goals already! They have also reached the Semi Finals of the Aston Cup having beaten Holte School 9-1!. Having beaten King Edwards Aston 5-4 in the first round of the Aston Cup our Year 8 team have progressed into the Semi-finals of the Aston Cup. I can also report that our Year 11 team are once again in contention for the Aston Cup, waiting at the moment to complete their second round fixture. Several of our students are currently playing football at higher levels outside of school. Adan George in Year 10 is currently contracted to Birmingham City as a Striker/Winger and has currently been on five tours in three different countries. Ty Barnett in year 7 is already contracted to Birmingham City and has played in two international tournaments for his club and recently returned from a tour to Latvia. He is currently the youngest athlete to be sponsored by Adidas and he shows enormous promise for the future. Over the last few years we have seen a significant increase in the interest in basketball within the school. This has culminated in a series of successes and the year 7 and 8 basketball teams have won their recent matches convincingly. Our Sixth Form team have quite spectacularly remained undefeated this year, coming from behind to win their last match in the final two minutes. It is not just inside the school community that our students compete in basketball, Amar Rupra in Year 9 currently plays for the City of Birmingham Basketball Club in their under 14-team alongside his roles in both the West Midlands regional team and the England team setup. Cricket has also been fantastically successful. Our year 7 and year 9 teams both won the Warwickshire Cricket League in their respective categories and progressed to the Birmingham Cup Finals at Edgbaston. Ismail Mohammed in year 8 is currently representing Warwickshire in the Under 13s and has had trials at Edgbaston and the Olton and West Warwickshire Cricket Club. The recently established school table tennis team competed at the Birmingham Table Tennis Championships in November and demonstrated the progress both the students and the team have made. They unfortunately lost the championship by one game but with more and more students attending table tennis club the future looks promising and I am sure we will be seeing some significant successes in the near future. This year saw HGS’s athletics team achieve their best results in years. At the King Edwards Invitational Athletics Tournament, we placed first in six events compared to the two last year; three of our students also qualified to represent the North Birmingham District in the West Midlands Finals in June. Daniel Olatundun in year 8 would, if his time had been verified, become first nationally for the 200m in addition to his current West Midlands ranking of 1st in the Power of Ten Table. Franciszek Czech threw the third longest shotput distance in the UK in his first shot put competition and placed second in the 400m at the West Midlands Schools Championship. Jordan Ricketts, currently the Warwickshire County Champion in the 80 metre hurdles and in the English Championships, finished in a very respectable 5th place in the 60m hurdles. The school’s sporting achievements this year have not been limited to competitive events. There has been an upgrade of the Pavilion and the Playing fields and this year’s ski trip saw 21 students travel to the resort of Dachstein West; a great opportunity for many who may never have the opportunity to experience a winter sport in later life. My experience on the ski trip has led to my qualification as an Alpine Level 1 Ski Instructor, which enables me to instruct in any international controlled environment. Will Smith in Year 10 has taken up boxing this year and has won eight of his twelve fights, including the fight in which he beat the British ranked number 2. The House competition has again seen students compete in a range of sports including handball, basketball, football, table tennis and athletics. Sam Grego and Raees Arain have taken up hockey at county level and Raees is also targeting a place in the England Under 16 team. This year has been a very successful year both inside and outside of competitive events enhancing students education and equipping them with the attributes to succeed. Thank You OLD BOYS’ DINNER in June. Daniel Olatundun in year 8 would, if his time had been verified, become first nationally for the 200m in addition to his current West Midlands ranking of 1st in the Power of Ten Table. Franciszek Czech threw the third longest shotput distance in the UK in his first shot put competition and placed second in the 400m at the West Midlands Schools Championship. Jordan Ricketts, currently the Warwickshire County Champion in the 80 metre hurdles and in the English Championships, finished in a very respectable 5th place in the 60m and equipping them with the attributes to succeed. Thank You Ever since joining HGS in year 7 I have always been welcomed and challenged to achieve my full potential. These last 6 years at Handsworth Grammar School have shaped me into who I am as a person today. This is down to the dedication of the staff here who do everything they can to ensure you succeed. During my time here I have been fortunate to receive the highest quality of education from a school which prides itself in its academic results and its history, as the oldest grammar school in Birmingham. My appointment as Head Boy is therefore a great privilege and an opportunity for me to make a difference in a school which has done so much for me. Throughout my time at Handsworth Grammar I have seen the many changes that have transformed our facilities. Our new £1.6 million Sixth Form Centre has provided students with some of the best facilities in the city to ensure that they achieve their very best in their A Levels. The new Astroturf pitches and Table Tennis Tables provide a place to stay healthy and to unwind after a long day, which is just as vitally important as studying. My advice to you is don’t just focus on your studies, focus on the wide range of extra-curricular activities which are equally as important. Because after all they will make you into who you will be. Head Boy’s Speech currently the youngest athlete to be sponsored by Adidas and he shows enormous promise for the future. Over the last few years we have seen a significant increase in the interest in basketball have quite spectacularly remained undefeated students compete in basketball, Amar Rupra in Year 9 currently plays for the City of Birmingham Basketball Club in their under 14-team alongside his roles in both the West Midlands regional team and the England team setup. Cricket has also hurdles. grammar school in Birmingham. My appointment as Head Boy is therefore a great privilege and an opportunity for me to make a difference in a school which has done so much for me. Throughout my time at Handsworth Grammar I have seen the many changes that have transformed our facilities. Our new £1.6 million Sixth Form Centre has provided students with some of the best facilities in the city to ensure that they achieve their very best in their A Levels. The new Astroturf pitches and Table Tennis Tables provide a place to stay healthy and to unwind after a long day, which is just as vitally important as studying. My advice to you is don’t just focus on your studies, focus on the wide range of extra-curricular activities which are equally as important. Because after all they will make you into who you will be. Josef Feiven