Millfield, Clifton & Whitgift clinch Schools Champs
UK Padel held the first-ever National Schools Championships at the weekend, with more than 80 juniors playing in some 20 teams. But who clinched the titles in the boys, girls and mixed competitions? The Bandeja reports.
The National Schools Championships at Rocket Padel, Bristol, were groundbreaking for two reasons – they were the first competition of their kind and the largest ever junior padel tournament held in the UK, bringing together young players from all over the country in a team event format that was competitive yet exemplified the camaraderie and fun that padel promotes.
Girls Championship winners were Clifton College, Bristol, who won two strings to nothing against an ever-improving Hurst.
The mixed event provided drama and entertainment, with Millfield School, Somerset’s 1st pair sealing a tie break against Caterham School, Surrey, to win the match 8-7 and clinch the title.
After very close semi-finals (Aylesbury Grammar School and Radley College, Abingdon, were unlucky losers) Millfield School and Whitfift School, South Croydon, contested the boy’s final, which also went to the wire. Beautifully poised at one rubber each, the title was decided by a shoot-out which Whitgift won to become the inaugural Boys Championship winners.
Nick Baker, CEO of UK Padel, said: “We really believe that this event will be a catalyst for the beginning of a major school’s movement to get behind padel. Competitors were highly engaged in a memorable day of padel, played in great spirit with first class support from teachers, coaches and parents. Thanks to all the UK Padel event team that made it possible, Rocket Padel, sponsor Portico Sports and in particular headline sponsor Evelyn Partners.”
“The competition really captured our students’ excitement and imagination.”
- Darren Withey, Master in charge of squash and tennis at Aylesbury Grammar School
Coaching
Alongside the competition, UK Padel coaches hosted clinics to help the young players and prepare them for their next matches. “We often see quite fast improvement from players at the start of their padel journey – and the juniors showed this in spades,” said a spokesman for UK Padel.
The competitions were played in a timed format in the group stage leading to one set to 8 games in the knock-out stages, with standards rising as each round went by.
Alex Fieldhouse, PE teacher at Caterham School, described the day as ‘amazing’, adding: “All our students were really positive about the experience and I thought the amount of padel they got to play was perfect in relation to the day.”
Darren Withey, Master in charge of squash and tennis at Aylesbury Grammar School added: “The competition really captured our students’ excitement and imagination and they were all extremely excited to be given the opportunity to participate in this fast growing sport.”
Padel v tennis? Well, there is room for both of course, but UK Padel’s social media team had some fun with some of the boys. Click here.
Thanks to the sponsorship by Evelyn Partners, a wealth management and professional services group, the event was free for schools participating.
On the same day, running alongside and in parallel, was the inaugural UK Padel Schools Alumni Championships, playing for the Jarvis Cup. The brain-child of father and son duo, Pete and Tim Jarvis, it was the UK’s first padel competition for old boys and girls of schools throughout the UK. Just as with the Schools Championships, Millfield School featured strongly, beating a valiant Clifton College in the final to claim the Jarvis Cup for 2024. 🎾
Full results here.
