sport at fettes
Excellence in sport is a long-standing tradition at Fettes College and we believe it contributes significantly to the all-round development of each pupil. Whether an enthusiastic amateur or future Olympian, we have the facilities, expertise and enthusiasm to help each and every pupil achieve their sporting goals.
Connect Our success cannot just be measured in the short term by just looking at wins and achievements. Instead we should be looking at lifelong goals and evaluating how many of our students go into adult life enjoying physical activity and sport. By connecting to our sporting partners both locally and nationally, we aim to provide a fantastic allround sporting experience for our students.
Participate We want all of our students to participate in sport, not because they have to but because they want to. We seek absolute equality in our sports provision to ensure that every student has the opportunity to enjoy and participate in sport and physical activity.
Perform Whether a student is in the 1st Team or the 4th Team, we expect them to perform to the best of their ability all of the time. We help them to develop a high performance mindset, the right attitude, an excellent work ethic as well as the energy and passion to perform at their best.
Protect We aim to provide our students with the best medical provision because we believe in protecting our players. Our sporting values are critical to the lives of our students and our will to win should never compromise either safety or our sporting values.
ATHLETICS Summer
BADMINTON Year Round
A mix of field and track events, coached by our specialist athletics team. The College attends a number of athletic meets across the summer term, with the whole school Summer Sports Day being a fantastic culmination to the school sporting calendar.
We have a developing fixture list and badminton is a major participation sport, enjoyed by both boys and girls. Using the fantastic double sports hall facility in Westwoods we can cater for an 8-court badminton event or training.
BASKETBALL Autumn and Spring
CRICKET Summer
This is a competitive boys sport. The team compete on either a Tuesday or Saturday against opposing schools and is a growing sport at The College
One of our major sports, Fettes College is in the top 100 schools in the UK for our cricket provision. We have a very strong coaching team and fixture list to ensure the very best cricketing provision for our students across the year groups.
CROSS COUNTRY Year Round
DANCE Year Round
The team will vary their running between the Pentlands Hills, city runs in and around Edinburgh as well as utilising the school grounds to ensure a variety of running opportunities. In the spring term the team will attend and compete in a range of cross country meets with other schools.
A small but growing cohort of students opt to take dance with one of our specialist dance teachers. Due to the nature of the activity, the content can be flexible, based on the individual interests and levels of students who opt for this popular activity.
FIVES Year Round
GOLF Summer
In fives, an old English sport, a ball is propelled against the walls of a 4-sided special court, using a gloved hand as though it were a racquet. This is a fantastic sport, played by both boys and girls on our very own Fives courts within the College grounds.
A summer sport that enjoys the availability of a variety of local challenging courses. The golf team play in a number of national events in match play and stroke play. Edinburgh is blessed with a number of fantastic local courses that the team play through the week, complemented by a number of driving ranges and coaching sessions.
FOOTBALL Autumn and Spring
HOCKEY Autumn and Spring
Football is open to boys and girls. A popular Hockey is our largest sport at Fettes, played sport that is complemented by a strong and by girls in the autumn term and boys in the spring term, with strong links to the growing local fixture programme. national league club The Grange. We have the benefit of an on-site, world-class hockey pitch in the water-based McMurray facility.
HEALTH AND FITNESS Year Round
HORSE RIDING Year Round
We run a variety of fitness classes throughout the year, from spinning to dance fitness and aerobics. Using the purpose-built fitness suite, this choice allows students to develop a healthy fitness regime during our games provision.
Horse riding is run on a Tuesday and Thursday using a local horse riding centre. A small cohort of experienced riders are transported and supervised using our staff expertise to offer guidance and mentoring opportunities.
LACROSSE Spring
NETBALL Autumn and Spring
Lacrosse is played by the girls in the spring term across all age groups. A highlight of the Lacrosse calendar is the national finals, when we compete against the best schools in the UK. A great sport that girls start to participate in from 3rd Form and develop throughout their sporting life here at Fettes College.
Netball is a growing sport at Fettes College, and this is reflected by a strong fixtures list and growing participation amongst the girls. We play in a variety of mid-week, Saturday competitions and fixtures across the spring term.
RUGBY Autumn
INDOOR ROWING Year Round
A major sport with a breadth and depth of playing opportunities across the school. Fettes has won the Eclipse Conference for the last three years with a number of players entering the Scottish Rugby Union performance pathways.
Complemented by a large number of new indoor rowing machines, the indoor programme is an option sport available to both girls and boys. Each year, in conjunction with British Rowing, we run a talent ID event designed to unearth emerging rowing talent. We also enter the Scottish Indoor Rowing Championships.
SCOTTISH ISLAND AND PEAKS Autumn and Spring This adventure race is for teams of sailors and fell runners and is held annually on and around the most beautiful parts of the west coast of Scotland. Students take part in an extensive fitness programme to train for this endurance event.
SQUASH Year Round Employing a recently refurbished 2-court facility, this sport has enjoyed a growing participation base over recent years. This is an option sport for both girls and boys, complemented by a fixture list in the spring term.
SWIMMING Year Round Having the opportunity to use our on-site 6-lane, 25m swimming pool, swimming is an option sport for both boys and girls. Swimming opportunities are available early mornings, during games or in the evening for pupils.
STRENGTH AND CONDITIONING Year Round An option sport that is complemented by the Fettes gym which has a wealth of cardio and weight lifting opportunities in the main school. Boys and girls can choose this option or utilize the gym in or around their alternative games programme. We have specialist S&C coaches to offer individualised training programmes and advice to suit every student’s needs.
SHOOTING Year Round
TENNIS Autumn
Using our purpose-built Grassie Shooting Range, shooting is an option throughout the year. During the autumn and spring term this is inside, but during the longer, warmer summer afternoons, an outdoor shooting option is available to both boys and girls.
Using both our own tennis courts when the sun shines and indoor facilities when it doesn’t, tennis is a major sport in the summer for girls. We provide three forms of tennis: team tennis, cardio tennis and social tennis.
Facilities We are privileged to have access to some outstanding facilities on the Fettes site, including extensive grass pitches for all sports, two floodlit all-weather hockey astroturf pitches, one sand based and the other water based. We have three cricket squares (two are covered), outdoor cricket nets, six astroturf tennis courts, a marked 400-metre running track, two long jump pits and shot put arena. Our sports complex includes a 6-lane, 25-metre swimming pool, sports hall with indoor cricket nets, two netball courts, a fitness suite and dance studio.