Year 11

It is now time to say goodbye to a group of eightynine vibrant, unique and individual personalities who have reached a key milestone in their educational journey. Among them are emerging leaders; patient individuals, resilient, team workers who in a dignified manner have completed their Key Stage 4 journey with some great achievements and memories. Under very high expectations, they have continued to build on their strong foundation for the next milestone of their lives. I am extremely proud of the pupils who have flourished in numerous achievements in the academic, enrichment, sporting, house and PSHE activities. A special focus on building leadership (including sports leadership) among a vast majority of pupils lead to planning and running a number of activities and educational sessions that were delivered by pupils themselves – thus honing their skills in building empathy, reliability, risk-taking and effective communication. Therefore, many of the PSHE workshops were run by pupil leaders with aplomb. I am particularly thankful to the School Council representatives for participating in the decision-making process and creating awareness of pupil voice.

It is an exciting time for all pupils as they embark upon the next stage of their educational journey; at the same time, we bid farewell to some of our dear pupils who will be leaving Sherborne. We wish you a smooth transition back to your home country.

As my final message, I reiterate the message to all from our final assembly: “Be the coffee bean when you are hit with an adverse situation. React like the coffee bean in water to achieve your best flavour”. The highlights of this year are not complete without the acknowledgement from an excellent team of pastoral tutors.

“It has been an absolute pleasure being your form tutor, 11A! Thank you for being such a wonderful tutor group and making this such a memorable year. You have all developed into fantastic, intelligent and well-rounded people. Despite the difficulties of lockdown and restrictions, over the past few years, you have rose above every challenge life has thrown at you and came out shining! You are an inspiration to the younger pupils at Sherborne. From the bottom of my heart, I wish you all the best of luck in all of your future endeavours. Stay hungry; stay foolish.” Miss Ebrahimi,11A “I had a wonderful year with 11B. My only regret is that I did not get to enjoy their company in Year 10. It was a pleasure to see them handle the pressures of examinations with such a degree of maturity. I will also miss the Rummikub games!” Mr Morley, 11B

“I have had the pleasure of leading this tutor group for the last two years. I remember the relief we all felt when we returned after having online lessons. Our form room became a place of comfort where we celebrated achievements and discussed your concerns. I am proud of the young adults you have become and I hope you get the results you deserve. Good luck in the next stage in your journey and I will look forward to seeing you next year if you join our Sixth Form.” Mr Thompson, 11C

“It has been an absolute pleasure to be 11D’s form tutor for the past 5 years. I have SO enjoyed watching you mature into wonderful ladies and gentlemen whilst successfully navigating the unprecedented challenges the past few years have thrown at you. You are brilliant, hardworking, funny and kind individuals and I know you will have a life filled with success. Enjoy!” Mrs McCormack, 11D

“The last two years have been a pleasure and a privilege – I witnessed you grow into an amazing group of young adults. You have been witty, welcoming, friendly and warm – never lose that!

I have enjoyed our times together, from discussions on conspiracy theories, to our attempts at yoga to our Pixar shorts, and not to forget our cat videos! Thank you for being such a lovely part of my time at Sherborne Qatar.

I hope you get the results that your hard work deserves, and I wish you and your families a safe and happy future. I am sure whatever your next steps, you will face the challenges and adventures with fortitude and optimism. I wish you success wherever you may go.” Ms Hafeez,11E

This year we also celebrated our Year 11 pupils and their successes and the Gala Dinner 2022 marked this momentous occasion. Here is a lovely speech by one of our Year Representatives of the School Council:

I’m sure the majority of you have passed by this quote. But have you ever stopped and considered what it meant? And only recently have I began to grasp its main central idea.

I don’t want to bore you with the basics of teamwork, but honestly it really is the foundation of a thriving environment. Especially during these challenging times where the world seemed to stop, the walls and barriers seemed to grow and have ultimately divided us from one another. We’ve not only had to juggle our personal lives but also the many responsibilities that come with title “student”, and on top of that face the many adversities that arose during the two years. We’ve been overwhelmed with the incessant work, waves of exams and the colossal amount of stress. Yet we’ve managed to continuously handle it with persistence and patience - it is clear how resilient we’ve been, and I’m sure if we continue combining these elements, we will excel and hopefully achieve and go beyond our aspirations.

Without a doubt, we have passed a substantial milestone, we’ve passed the difficult and exacting fraction of the two years and now with only two months to spare - I hope we continue to work harder, aim higher and perpetually strive for more. On behalf of myself and my classmates, I would like to express the immense gratitude to all of the Teachers who helped us come this far. Your support and efforts will always be remembered.

And as summer quickly approaches, and as we’ll go our separate paths, I hope we all continue to grow and learn, to succeed and prosper and most importantly continue to cultivate kindness. Finishing our GCSEs will be a transition, a transformation, a signifier that a significant change has been accomplished, that a new stage has arrived. Finally, I hope we all continue to work hard and learn, for we are all stronger when we are educated and use that education for the betterment of society.

Thank you, I wish you all the best of luck.

Mrs Hamlin Head of Year 11

FORM 11A

FORM 11B

FORM 11C

FORM 11D

FORM 11E

The ultimate goal

I laced up my grass-stained, once-yellow Nike Dream Speed football boots. My hands trembled slightly as my heart thudded piercingly in my throat, but I forced myself to steady. I then stuffed my shinpads into my red socks, pulled them over my shins, and stood up.

‘Breathe, Houda, breathe,’ I told myself, willing the blood pumping in my ears to lessen. I then looked up, scanning the jam-packed, buzzing changing room for a black-and-white striped captain’s band. I turned and twisted my neck, looking for it.

‘Aha!’ It was right under the sea of sodden sports bags. I walked over, picked it up and slid it onto my right arm. That gave me a feeling of resolve and hope. Maybe we could still win this game.

I clapped my hands together. ‘Right, ladies, listen!’, I commanded. The thunder of chatter immediately died down as an army of red-clad girls turned simultaneously towards me. I smirked. My voice never failed me. ‘Girls, it’s nearly time to go back on. I understand that this game seems impossible to win. The ref has obviously got it in for us and Everton obviously aren’t the friendliest lot,’ I cited. A murmur of agreement passed over the girls.

‘But’ I interjected, ‘we have still got forty-five minutes left, and we are miles better than them. They may seem intimidating, but the fact that it’s still 0-0 says a lot. We need this win if we want to stay at the top of the title race, so this last half is crucial. So, come on Liverpool Ladies, let’s get this win!’The girls burst into cheers. ‘Yes captain!’, they shouted.

With spirits much higher, we all left the musty, sweaty smell of the changing rooms and stepped back into the cacophony of jeers and boos. But we didn’t mind. I was so focused that the blue Everton fans seemed light years away. I clapped some teammates on the back as we took our positions on the pitch. It seemed

massive, the goals too far away. But we had to do this.

The pot-bellied, bald referee blew a neon whistle. The Everton striker kicked off, passing back smoothly to her centre-back. She crossed the ball to the right-winger, creating a beautiful, seamless arc as it travelled. They played so faultlessly.

I gritted my teeth. ‘Press,’ I ordered. Our defenders moved forward, putting pressure on the right winger that had possession of the ball. She tried to get past by feinting right but pushing the white ball left, but Yousra didn’t fall for it and neatly stole the ball off her, scanning the field for an open red shirt. ‘Cross to Fatima!’ I hollered, pointing to the left wing. Yousra planted her left foot firmly next to the ball and dug her right foot under it, allowing the ball to soar weightlessly in the air before landing perfectly, impeccably at Fatima’s feet.

I grinned broadly. Everton may be good, but we were definitely better. Fatima drove the ball forward, dipping her right shoulder to confuse the blue defender but steered left. The defender slipped and fell.

I could see Fatima smiling as she dribbled up the field to meet the next one. She dragged the ball behind her left foot, feigned going forward and tried to sweep the ball between the iron defender’s tree-trunk legs.

She wasn’t having it.

Furiously, she yanked Fatima’s brown, sweat-slicked ponytail and slammed her harshly to the ground. A dull, sickening crunch echoed through the stadium.

I spun around angrily, looking for the referee. I pointed at the scene, outraged. But he simply shrugged and mouthed ‘play on’.

I was livid.

I scanned the field haphazardly, looking for the damned ball as Fatima groaned in pain.

‘I’ll get this goal no matter what,’ I whispered to myself through gritted teeth.

As I wiped sweaty strands of hair off my blotchedred face, I spotted the ball at the feet of a blue centre-midfielder. My brows furrowed into an evil grin and I charged for her. She could’ve never seen me coming, I was far too quick. I neatly plucked the ball from her feet and tapped it through her legs. Driving forward, I faked right, then left; pushed the ball smoothly to the right, leaving the defender behind in a haze of confusion.

Next was the tree-trunk defender.

Her piggy little eyes were squinted in an evil smirk as she , ‘you’re next’.

But I was ready for her.

I twisted my back towards her while flicking the grass-stained ball up with my feet into the air so that it arced over her head. She had no chance. She could only stare at the ball in bewilderment as it travelled over her.

I was already behind her to meet the ball. I took a touch using the instep of my right boot and I sole-rolled the ball forward to face the goalkeeper. A malicious smile was etched onto her face as she clapped her gloved hands together, daring me to shoot.

‘Is that a threat?’ I questioned mockingly. I took a fake shot at the bottom-left corner, relishing the moment as she fell for it, diving with a horrorstruck face into that corner. I then dragged the ball in a V-motion using my left foot, dug my foot under it and nestled it beautifully into the top-right corner.

The final whistle blew, and I was met and mobbed by an enormous army of ecstatic, screaming red shirts.

By Maryam Ghaly, Year 11