My name is Elias Idjer and I am the Deputy Head Boy. It is my pleasure to report to you on the sporting successes enjoyed by the school this year. Once again we have had a great deal of success in sports ranging from football to table tennis. The Year 7 football team won the league and cup double –winning the Aston League title and the Aston Cup. As a result of this success they were entered into the Birmingham Super Cup and achieved second place overall. Our year 7, 8 and 9 teams also enjoyed great success and this season they are all involved in the Aston Cup semi-finals. Our Year 11 team has reached the final of the Aston Villa Cup which will be played at Bodymoor Heath, the training ground of Aston Villa FC. Badminton and Table Tennis remain popular sports at the school. Our Key Stage 3 and Key stage 4 teams were crowned Aston champions and have recently qualified for the Birmingham Schools’ Games. Our basketball teams also continue to bring success to the school. The Year 11 team has won the North Birmingham League after winning all of their league matches this season. The Key Stage 3 team has qualified for the finals of the Birmingham Youth Games which will take place next week. Amar Rupra and Kijani Sullivan have been regular players for the City of Birmingham Basketball club, who play in the National Under 16s league. Our house sports competitions continue to be very popular with football, basketball, table tennis and now handball added to the list of house sports which are competed for. Our Sportsman of the Year for year 11 last academic year was Aden George. Aden left HGS in the summer to sign for Birmingham City FC and he has been a regular in their Under 18s team. We look forward to watching him progress in the football world. Former HGS pupil Corey Blackett Taylor, who is now 21, recently signed on loan for Walsall FC from Aston Villa. Corey has already played three games for Walsall and will be a vital part of their team until the end of the season. Finally, the highlight to the sporting year was at our school playing fields. As the country basked in the summer sun and England’s World Cup success, the first eleven played against a team from the Old Boys to open the new Ben Smoldon Pavilion and 3G pitch. In an exciting game the older more experienced team from the Old Boys secured a narrow 3-2 victory; although it was generally felt by the watching spectators that the school had played much the more attractive football. I actually had a last minute chance to equalise but unbelievably I missed a golden opportunity for glory!! Many thanks to all of the Old Boys – and there were some very old boys indeed! - who played a great game. SPORTING ACHIEVEMENT 34