A celebration of sporting success

The sporting community at Pipers came together on Thursday for our annual celebration of sporting success. This year, due to the sheer amount of achievements throughout the school, the Awards were split into two sections, a Prep Ceremony and a Senior School Ceremony.

It has been a very busy and exciting sporting year at Pipers and the awards presented at both the Prep and Senior Ceremonies included Full and Half Colours, Coach’s Players of the Year, and Most Improved Players for each sport. A variety of other team and individual awards were also given out. 

Sport at Pipers continues to go from strength to strength and the Sports Awards event is a way in which we can celebrate and give formal recognition to all the girls’ outstanding successes. The event also highlights and promotes the important role that sport and physical activity plays in all of our everyday lives. Participating in physical activity and sport provides a wealth of benefits - physical, emotional, psychological, and social. It helps build character, encourages emotional growth, and teaches players and spectators the value of honesty, respect, teamwork, dedication, and commitment. 

As a school we absolutely believe that the competitive element, and camaraderie gained from experiencing the highs and lows, the struggles and successes, and the winning and losing together as a team, or as an individual, is hugely beneficial. Whatever the reason for taking part in sport and physical activity, it adds value to our lives.

At the Senior Awards we were delighted to welcome, Rochelle Clark MBE to speak about her career as an England Rugby Player. Rochelle, better known to her teammates as “Rocky”, earned the distinction of being England’s most capped rugby player in November 2016. She reached the milestone by overtaking Jason Leonard’s 114 cap total in the 12-10 win over Ireland at University College, Dublin. Following that, in the next match against New Zealand, she became the world’s most capped woman, overtaking the career total of her Director of Rugby at Worcester Valkyries, Donna Kennedy, who had made 115 appearances for Scotland. By the end of the 2018 Women’s Six Nations, Rocky had moved on to 137 caps, having played at the top of the game since 2003.

During her speech, complete with film and audio from the 2014 Rugby World Cup, Rocky focussed on the value of resilience and how it is important to keep trying and striving for success no matter what setbacks or obstacles may come your way. Her message of staying positive in the face of adversity was truly inspirational.

At both the Prep and Junior Awards the students’ dedication and commitment to their respective sports really shone through, and we look forward to seeing how much more they can achieve over the next academic year!