Apollo5: Vocal Jazz and Classic A Cappella Group, 7.45pm Beldam Hall

Keith Andrews (O’66) with the Bernard Darwin Tropy could anyone look more pleased? Three years ago John Bolsover (H’60) took over the Captaincy and this year drafted in two new boys; Philip Carr (H’72) and Douglas Campbell (H’71), both of whom are seasoned Halford Hewitt players and reached the age of eligibility (55) this year.

Repton beat The Leys, Uppingham, Marlborough and finally Charterhouse to put Repton on the board at Woking Golf Club as the 2014 winners.

This competition is a scratch, foursomes, knockout event for teams of six players over the age of 55, drawn from the original 16 schools that competed in the first Halford Hewitt event in 1924.

The foursomes pairs were Carr & Andrews; Elliott & Stafford; Bolsover & Campbell.

John Bolsover has all the political skills of Alec Ferguson as, at the top of his game, he hands over the captaincy to Paul Stafford (B’70) for the next three years. We wish Paul the best of luck and hope he can skipper the 2015 team to their second win - no pressure then!

The Bernard Darwin is played every June at Woking and supporters are welcome.

Repton's 2014 winning team: Douglas Campbell (H'71); Philip Carr (H'72); Keith Andrews (O'66); John Bolsover (H'60); Paul Stafford B'70); Myles Elliott (N'61)

A.E. Bishop (P’72)

On a sunny Sunday in June some 33 Old Reptonian men and women turned out for the annual OR hockey day. There were two OR squads and three school ones and the five mixed teams played a round-robin event. For the OR teams there were players of all abilities on show, with past and current internationals playing alongside lesser mortals, and for the school teams, too, an impressive collection of junior internationals was on show. No records were kept of the scores, but there were plenty of goals scored, as well as plenty missed, although it would be churlish to mention individuals in this respect, but they know who they are! All in all it was a fabulous afternoon of hockey, which was enjoyed both by players and spectators alike.

MLJ The first Bernard Darwin Trophy was won by Rugby in 1959 and for the last 55 years a win has eluded Repton.

Ellie Watton (M’05) (before she won a Commonwealth Silver medal late in the Summer)

As I am writing this article I am still a little stunned at how fast things have moved and how enthusiastic the response has been since I re-established the Old Reptonian tennis society late last year. It is great to have so many people involved, of so many different ages and abilities and I can only hope that over the coming years we can continue to help in maintaining old friendships as well as forge new ones while keeping the spirit of tennis and sport alive and well in the Old Reptonian Community.

When I wrote the first article for The Arch nearly a year ago, I talked of the almost unparalleled tennis heritage of the school and over the past year I believe that we have once again shown this to the rest of the country. The D’Abernon Cup is the inter-school competition for public school old boys; a competition which Repton has won on four previous occasions but the School has not fielded a team since 2000. This year, after battling through the qualifying rounds and dispatching the defending champions without the loss of so much as a set in the quarter finals, the team found themselves in the final competing for this prestigious trophy on SW19’s hallowed turf.

The six-man team for the final consisted of Jamie Muirhead (C’09)

Phil Brindley (N’02), Richard Harrison (H’92), Jamie Muirhead (C’09), Alex Grocottt (S’10), Phil Cooper (C’89) and Dan Cottier (L’99). We also had a great reaction from the rest of the society who turned out in their dozens to support and enjoy a fantastic sunny day by the wellworn Wimbledon grass courts. The opponents in the final were a strong Old Reedonians side who looked to have the edge early on after claiming two out of the three matches in match tie breaks. Repton then fought back strongly to win all three matches in the second round, with Phil Brindley and Richard Harrison showing particularly commendable spirit after fighting back from an 8-4 then a 9-6 deficit to claim their match in the final set. This left the score at 4-2 to Repton going into the final round, a lead which proved pivotal as the Old Reptonians secured victory 6 matches to 3.

In this incredibly close fought contest, 6 of the 9 matches were decided by a match tie break. Overall an enthralling day of tennis and with so many of the matches poised on such a knife edge, I must again extend my thanks to all those that made the effort to come down and support. It may well have been that this extra energy proved the difference between victory and defeat.

After the match, a presentation ceremony took place on the iconic front steps of the All England Lawn Tennis Club centre court that has played host to so much sporting history and drama in the past. The team soaked up the moment and smiled for a photograph that will be treasured for many years to come by proud family, friends and competitors alike. In all too short a time, the trophy was removed to be placed back in its rightful home next to that for the Wimbledon singles championships. I must commend the team not only on their excellent performance and determination but also for the friendly and sportsmanlike spirit that the matches were played in. I hope that next year will bring as much success and tennis related happiness to everyone as this year has done and that the society continues to flourish. If you are interested in getting involved, please contact Jamie Muirhead at muirheadjamie@gmail.com