As you are aware, last week was a great week for the BIG 3, and this weekend topped things off perfectly. Saturday was a momentous day, for both the rowing program and the trust, as we saw our first students take to the water at Lemonroyd. On top of this, BOTH the Leeds Gorse VC U18 Boys and Girls teams secured their spots in the National Volleyball Final! Fabulous progress all round!
Needless to say, the rowing journey has been slightly longer than anticipated, and has been a long time coming. However, as students rowed down the canal for the first time in the glorious sunshine, all was forgotten. It was amazing to see students and parents so excited to be apart of this day. A tremendous amount of hard work and patience has been put in to getting this project off the ground, and we firmly believe that the fruits of our labour will show in the coming months. I would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who has been involved in this work along the way, it certainly has been a team effort. Special shout outs should go to the rowing team, the health and safety team, the project team, and Sir John, Leanne and David for supporting this every step of the way, we certainly wouldn’t have made Saturday without you all!
In summary, 40 students attended throughout the day from both our secondary academies and post 16 colleges. Especially with regard to our post 16, who, for some, have only been part of the trust for six months, it was amazing to see the level of commitment they have to the program already.
While a number of students already had the opportunity to row at Roundhay last year, several had no on-water experience. So, it was brilliant to see them getting stuck in and learning new skills.
Even though this was our maiden voyage onto the water with our new boats, it was incredible to see so much support from both within the trust and out of it in terms of parents. It really feels that in these few short hours we are setting the seeds for a community that will continue to grow throughout the years. As always, it is amazing to see so many parents standing along the banking watching on and supporting their child.
We also saw more incredible developments for the volleyball team, who seem to be dominating everywhere they go. Please see write up below from Elaine.
Competing at the National Volleyball Centre in Kettering this past Saturday, both teams entered ranked 3rd and 4th in their respective divisions. After strong performances in pool play, they each finished second, setting up high-stakes semifinal matchups against the top-seeded teams.
The boys were determined to avenge last year’s heartbreaking tiebreaker loss against Newcastle Staffs as they faced the same team again in this year’s semifinal. With the girls rallying behind them after their own victory, the boys fought with unmatched endurance and determination. The match once again came down to a tense tiebreaker, but this time, Leeds prevailed! In the final point, Josh Cosgrove (EHC/TFA) delivered an on the money set to Emmanuel Oretoye (TFA) who swung with all his might, tooling the block to win the match! The gym erupted in celebration as the boys secured their place in the final. Maks Makowski (EHC) did a phenomenal job leading the boys all day as captain, Ben Sorley (EHC) was a force to be reckoned with putting up monster blocks time and time again, and Essay Mulubrhan (EHC/TRGA) united the team through his positive energy and mindset. The boys will face Urmston Grammar in an all-northern final on 26 April.
This incredible group of athletes have a history of success, winning the U15 boys Championship in 2023, the U15s girls and U16 boys Championship in 2024, and have now set their sights on the U16s girls, U18 girls and U18 boys Championship title in 2025!
Additionally, Lili, Daniella, Krystina and Lauren will compete on 23 March in the Women’s National Semifinal Cup match where the Leeds Women’s Super League team (ranked 5th) will take on the formidable London SideOut team (ranked 2nd). The team will have a serious battle on their hands but we hope the juniors’ winning streak will extend to the women.
A huge congratulations to all the players, coaches, and supporters who continue to make this possible. One last step to the championship—let’s bring it home!
Overall, a very impressive time for the BIG 3. I cannot wait to see what can be achieved over the up and coming months.
