OB Fives

2022 Derek Whitehead (Adders 1949) Cup

Last Sunday saw the 7th annual Derek Whitehead Cup. A tournament, for those who are unfamiliar, where Old Berkhamstedians and teachers are paired up with some of the younger students in the Senior school. Thirteen pairs entered, a slightly smaller field than previous years, but this was compensated well on the day by the depth and strength of the competition!

The group stage involved two pools of 6 and 7, playing to 8 & 6, respectively, the top four pairs qualifying for the quarter finals. Special mention goes to OB Chris Eaton who stepped in at the last minute to partner his son. Whilst many years had passed since last donning the gloves, Chris’ instincts remained sharp as he fought valiantly for every point. Time constraints due to our late substitution led to some games in Pool B playing to 7.

This leads us on to seeded quarter finals, where 1st seeds would have afforded themselves an easier path to the final games – or so we thought! Only upon reflecting on the results since Sunday have I realised a clear dominance of one Pool over the other – in every match-up, pairs from pool B came out victorious! A particular mention goes to Gibbons & James B, who, qualifying last in their group, must have found several new gears after fuelling themselves on the delicious barbeque. A word of thanks must go to Ashley and the catering team for their help on Sunday.

Approaching the Semi-finals, we now had an exciting mix of pairs:

Ms Gibbons & James B – James, being a defending champion from 2021

Richard Dennis & Charles A-B – Richard, winner from 2018, being the most experienced player in the tournament

Aswhin K & Jack M – Aswhin, being a current Year 13 and newly appointed School Captain

Jack Pemberton & Leo H – Jack, ex-School Captain, now Old Berkhamstedian

The first semi-final was a nail-biter. Speaking to Jack Pemberton after his match, he complimented Miss Gibbons’ “darts” into the buttress and James’ ever improving reading of the game. The second semi-final saw a mix of styles, but the Charles & Richard pairings’ court-craft came through to complete our draw: Gibbons & James vs Dennis & Charles.

Interestingly, as well as James B being a previous winner, Richard Dennis had his share of success at this tournament, winning in 2018 and losing out to James, who won the 2021 tournament. Could this be the start of a rivalry for the ages?

The final was a ‘best of three’ format to 12. Mr Foster spoke highly of the battle between the two pairs, but the clearest figure in the fog of war was that of Richard Dennis. His experience and placement were too much for Gibbons & James. The strength of cutting kept Dennis & Charles on the back foot and, in the end, allowed them to succeed in two games.

Cup Finalists (left to right): Derek Whitehead, James B, Charles A-B, Richard Dennis (Be ’74), Maddi Gibbons

Cup Winners (left to right): Derek Whitehead, Charles A-B, Richard Dennis (Be ’74)

Elsewhere in the tournament, our plate matches came to a close after a round-robin of our unqualified pairs. Success came to Ashley Hornsey (OB), & Billy N, who managed to fend off all other competition.

Plate Winners (left to right): Billy N, Ashley Hornsey (Bu ’20), Derek Whitehead

My thanks to Derek Whitehead for his time and presence. It was great to hear a small portion of his experience and memories of Berkhamsted Fives. Thanks also to Anthony Theodossi for organising the event and all those who came to play and support. I look forward to seeing you all next year.

Eton Fives Club

Berkhamsted Fives had a season to be proud of on the whole. 2021/22 saw the OBs take on League 2 under new captaincy, with Andrew Joyce moving to Singapore shortly after the season began. Nonetheless, the OBs performed admirably despite the loss of a leading player. Out of a league of 11 teams, the OBs finished a respectable 6th at the final tally. Special mention must go to the core set of regulars: Jack Pemberton (’22), Charlie Nicholls (Ch ’17), Chris Davey (Staff) and Will Roen-Tate (Gr ’15) – an excellent display of commitment all round. And in equal measure, in a real sign of how far and wide Berkhamsted Fives has spread in recent times, a huge thanks also belongs to the many players who offered their services to the squad (sometimes at very late notice and travelling all the way from Oxford University!).

The Barber Cup was cut short for the team this season, as unfortunate timing and circumstance led to a forced forfeit in the early rounds. We are looking to re-group and be back stronger for next season!

A real highlight of the season came at the Midlands Tournament, where ringleader Ant Theodossi (Staff)summoned the troops (and a minibus) to take a record number of pairs up to Repton School in Derby. These included old school stalwart pairs like Alex Rattan (SG ’11) & James Holroyd (SG ’11) (respectable run to the main quarter finals), young up and coming stars like Jack Pemberton, who paired with coach Chris Davey to the semi-finals. But also, a wealth of players that have honed their skills at the now infamous ‘Tuesday Night Club’ at the Castle site Fives courts. Having that thriving community together at a tournament like the Midlands was a real highlight in the Berkhamsted Fives calendar. There were lots of other individual successes from a number of OBs as well across the year. At the U21s Tournament, Freya Butler (Sc ’19) won the Ladies Competition; she then had further success winning the Ladies Universities Competition under the Oxford University banner, where she is studying and is Captain of the Ladies Team there. At the London Tournament at Highgate, Charlie Nicholls reached the quarterfinals before losing out to the eventual winners. In the Turnbull Trophy (OB & School Pupil Tournament), Alex Rattan & Jack Pemberton reached the semi-finals. Jack Pemberton had further success reaching the final of the U25s Tournament.

The end of season EFA Dinner also saw more success with Berkhamsted seeing five nominations in the End of Season Awards. These included Coach of the Year with nominations for OB Oliver O’Gorman (Ha ’12) and Berkhamsted Coach Anthony Theodossi, Young Player of the Year for Freya Butler and Y13 pupil Bethan Miles (’22), and finally Berkhamsted School as Team of the Year.

The season rounded off with a thank you and farewell to Berkhamsted School MiC Martin Pett, who has not only done so much for the School Fives, but for the OB Programme as well. With his English books and marking of papers behind him, we hope he will find even more time to get on court with us next season. Thank you, Mr Pett (Hon).

Going into 2022/23, I’m pleased to announce a return to League 1. The return of Messrs Theodossi, Perrie, Foster and Campbell, the experience gained from recent seasons in League 2, and the presence of talented youngsters with adult Fives experience ensures a competitive season lies ahead. The future is bright.

Alex Rattan (SG ’11) OB Fives Captain