THE HARROVIAN Vol. CXXVIII No. 24 GALLIPOLI REMEMBERED

RH Boissier and RF de Robeck at the Centenary Commemoration Service, Helles Memorial, 24 April At the invitation of HM Government, OH’s RH Boissier, 84, (Elmfield & West Acre, 19432) and RF de Robeck 72, (Druries 19563), attended a Service to Commemorate the Centenary of the Gallipoli Campaign, held at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission’s Helles Memorial on 24 April.

The two OHs were amongst a group of 15 descendants of those who took part in the disastrous campaign. Other distinguished representatives at the commemoration were: HRH Prince of Wales, HRH Prince Harry, the Prime Minister of Australia; the Prime Minister of New Zealand; the President of Ireland; the President of Turkey; the President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan; the Minister of  Defence of France; the Minister of Defence of Canada; the UK Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs the Rt Hon Philip Hammond; and representatives from Bangladesh, Germany, India and Sri Lanka. The Ambassadors to Turkey from the UK and France also attended. Before the Service, the descendants were invited to a reception on board HMS Bulwark by the First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff, Sir George Zambellas, a Governor of the School, and Bulwark’s CO, Captain Nick Cooke-Priest. HMS Bulwark was anchored in the Dardenelles, near the Helles Memorial above V-beach, where 1,000s of brave men, including many OHs, were killed during the landings on 25 April 1915. During the service, Roger Boissier read the poem, The Dead, by Rupert Brooke. These hearts were woven of human joys and cares, Washed marvellously with sorrow, swift to mirth. The years had given them kindness.  Dawn was theirs, And sunset, and the colours of the earth. They had seen movement, and heard music; known Slumber and waking; loved; gone proudly friended; Felt the quick stir of wonder; sat alone; Touched flowers and furs and cheeks. All this is ended. There are waters blown by changing winds to laughter And lit by the rich skies, all day.  And after, Frost, with a gesture, stays the waves that dance And wandering loveliness. He leaves a white Unbroken glory, a gathered radiance, A width, a shining peace, under the night. Rupert Brooke was the first major English poet to die in the First World War. Brooke volunteered for active Service at the outbreak of the war in 1914 and, after serving on the Western front, wrote sonnets that reflected upon his experiences. On 23

May 16, 2015 April 1915, Brooke in a French hospital ship after being bitten on the lip by a mosquito, while travelling to Gallipoli. He was buried on the Greek Island of Skyros. Roger Boissier’s father, Lieutenant Commander EG Boissier, DSC, RNVR, Howe Battalion of the Royal Naval Division, was asked the best way to line the grave of Rupert Brooke on Skyros. He suggested tinplate panels which he and others made by tearing apart tins of Huntley & Palmer biscuits.  Lt Cdr Ernest Boissier took part in the first battle on Achi Baba on 8 May. He was in charge of a machine gun Unit. He was awarded the DSC for his actions on Achi Baba. His life was saved by supporting fire from a French Battery of 75mm howitzers behind his position. In early June, Ernest Boissier was seriously wounded by Turkish shrapnel in another battle on Achi Baba. He was evacuated to Lemnos and on to Egypt, eventually arriving back in England in 1917. The continual use of machine guns led to deafness in later years, but this did not stop EGB (as he was called) following a successful business career. However, sadness came to him, his wife and family, when his eldest son, John Richard (Moretons, 19373) was killed, at the age of 21, with 22 other crew members, on 12-13 May 1945 (four days after VE-Day) when his boat, MGB 2002, was destroyed by a German mine in the Skagerrak off the coast of Denmark. Richard de Robeck’s great uncle, the distinguished Admiral Sir John de Robeck, second son of the 4th Baron de Robeck, was in 1914 the Rear Admiral commanding the 9th Cruiser Squadron on the Cape Finisterre station. In January 1915, at the start of the Dardanelles campaign, he became second-incommand of the Eastern Mediterranean Squadron under Vice Admiral Sackville Carden. In February, flying his flag in the battleship Vengeance when the bombardment of the Dardanelles Forts began, the ship was heavily splashed. He also planned the gun-demolition parties ashore at night on to the Peninsular.

However, everything changed when Admiral Carden’s health broke down and Churchill (First Sea Lord) promoted him to acting Vice-Admiral. He found himself in a position of great responsibility. He was of the opinion that the Narrows could not be forced by the Navy alone and that the Army needed to be on the Peninsular. He meticulously planned from his flagship Queen Elizabeth, with General Hamilton, the landing of the Army landing troops on the Peninsular at beaches V, W and X on 25 April. In August, the second major landing attempt was made, north of Cape Helles and Anzac at Suvla Bay. In November, after a short leave in England, he master-minded the brilliantly successful evacuation of the British Army from Gallipoli without loss, in January 1916. It is a military cliché

May 16, 2015 that ‘evacuations do not win wars’ and his feat was perhaps surpassed in British history only by Admiral’s Ramsay’s evacuation of British troops from Dunkirk in 1940. Admiral de Robeck was created a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath (KCB) following the evacuation.

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throughout the campaign. Some 559,000 Allied personnel were committed, of whom 420,000 were British and Empire troops, 80,000 French 50,000 Australians and 9,000 New Zealanders. The cost in human terms was terrible. The Allies had 250,000 casualties, of whom 50,000 were killed, with only 10,000 having graves. Turkish forces with some Germans, numbered between 300,000 and 400,000 and of these some 87,000 were killed. The evacuation in December and early January 1916 was a masterly operation – one of the great feats of military history. (The Gallipolian, the Journal of the Gallipoli Association)

SMOUHA CHAMBER MUSIC

Adjudicator Ms Susie Meszaros, Chilingirian Quartet, Music Schools, 10 May Richard de Robeck’s father, Brigadier John 6th Baron de Robeck CBE, was a 20-year-old second lieutenant in the Royal Field Artillery (‘B’ Battery, 55th Brigade X division) and went ashore on the Gallipoli Peninsular on 7 July 1915 and was evacuated on 9 January 1916. Richard has letters written by his father, John, to his uncle, Admiral Sir John on Queen Elizabeth, from his dug out on Green Hill describing the appalling conditions on the Peninsular and how so many suffered from illness, particularly dysentery, and how medics were vulnerable to sniper fire and had to keep their heads down. Richard’s father went on to serve in Burma in the 2nd World War. Other descendants included, Sir James Dunbar–Nasmith, Bt (aged 88), whose father, was awarded the VC, CO of the submarine E11 during the campaign and went on to become the youngest Admiral afloat. Others were Mrs Sarah Kellam, whose father had also won the VC, John Hartshorn (aged 47), whose great grandfather, Hood Battalion, RND, a Durham miner, travelled to Gallipoli in the same commandeered White Star Cunard liner, SS Franconia, from Avonmouth to Lemnos with Roger Boissier’s father, albeit one sleeping on a cramped deck in a hammock and the other, a Sub Lieutenant, in a firstclass cabin with his own steward. Both descendants returned to Gallipoli together, economy class, in the same aircraft. During the visit, they exchanged details of their forebears actions in Gallipoli. All the descendants met and spoke, to The Royal Princes on board HMS Bulwark.  Roger Boissier and Richard de Robeck had many interviews with BBC TV and Radio. In addition, Sir James DunbarNasmith was interviewed by Chinese TV. The press and media spoke to every descendant at some point, during their visit to Gallipoli. Boissier and de Robeck stated that they were very honoured to be chosen to visit Gallipoli,  finding it a very emotional and moving experience.

The Gallipoli Campaign is characterised by countless deeds of heroism and endurance. It took place in an area smaller than Southampton amid appalling conditions, such as heat, flies and lack of water, equipment and proper sanitation. Later on, rain and a freak spell of sub-zero temperatures had to be endured, to say nothing of the desperate close quarter fighting

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On Sunday, the annual Smouha Chamber Music Competition, which also doubled as a concert of a wide range of chamber music repertoire, took place in the Music Schools. On this occasion, nine groups took part and the adjudicator was Ms Susie Meszaros, a member of the renowned Chilingirian Quartet, as well as a professor in various conservatoires around the country. The first group, a saxophone quintet comprising of Michael Siu, The Knoll, Dita Jaja, Moretons, William Miles, West Acre, Ed Rowe, The Head Master’s, Hugo Wickham, The Head Master’s and Eddie Eyton, Druries, played ‘All because of you’ by Street. This group had incredible blend and a rich sound when the whole group played together. Next, a string quartet comprised of Curtis Ho, Lyon’s, Ashley Chow, Rendalls, Tom Moy, The Grove, and Kazbek Kandour, The Park, played “Lento” from Dvořák’s ‘American’ String Quartet in F major. A fairly sparse and thin texture was achieved from the start through extremely sensitive and gentle playing which established a bleak atmosphere from the start. However, this group could afford more swing to their playing, and a larger variety of textures would have perfected the performance. Next, Justin Stollery, The Knoll, Chatto Marks, Lyon’s and Jobie Wong, Bradbys performed two Miniatures (Romance and Saltarello) composed by Bridge. The first was dreamy and warm, with a strong melody played in octaves by the violin and the cello, accompanied professionally by the piano. The second was bouncy and spritely jovial. However, it felt like the group avoided taking musical risks, which resulted in a slightly less adventurous performance. Then, an extremely unusual ensemble, consisting of Michael Yeung, The Grove, Ryan Chung, Rendalls, Kandour and Aristo Sham, Moretons, performed a lively and whimsical movement of the Oboe Quartet composed by the prolific Czech composer Bohuslav Martinů. The group played with tight ensemble and the spirited rhythmic motifs were articulated skilfully. After that, Marco Chau, Elmfield, Keisuke Sano, The Knoll, Cody Kwok, The Grove and Dita Jaja a group we heard in Speech Room on Monday just last week, played “Minuetto” and “Vivace assai” from Haydn’s ‘Quinten’ String Quartet in D minor. As expected, the piece was negotiated with great precision and thoughtfulness throughout, and special mentions must go to Chau for his strong leadership and free playing. Following this, a piano quartet consisting of Francis Chiang, The Grove, Oscar Tao, Moretons, Christopher Hedges, Druries and Aristo Sham performed “Très calme” from Chausson’s Piano Quartet in A major. The particularly impressive thing from this movement was the contrast of sombre, melancholic moments against grand and magnificent passages reinforced by thick chords. Then, Colin Tai, Bradbys, Tarquin Strickland, West Acre, and Aristo Sham once again performed “Modéré” from Ravel’s Piano Trio in A minor, an extremely harmonically demanding piece. The delicate mood was juxtaposed by agitated, frantic

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tremolo passages, with jarring, disjunct melodies. Overall, all the musicians produced a harmonious, organic timbre, and coped well with such a demanding piece. Next, Ryan Chung, Michael Yeung, Christopher Willoughby, Elmfield, Justin Wong, Moretons, and Oscar Tao performed “Allegro ma non troppo” from Schumann’s Piano Quintet in E-flat major. This pompous movement was powerfully played and all the players really invested a lot of energy in the performance, giving it a lot of rhythmic drive and momentum. Overall, the performance was polished and of a very high standard, especially in the seemingly unrelated fugal section in the middle of the movement. Finally, a string quartet comprising of Francis Chiang, Ryan Chung, Colin Tai and Christopher Hedges, who had all performed at least once up to this point, performed “Allegro sostenuto” from Prokofiev’s String Quartet in F major. The tranquil, somewhat cathartic opening was complemented by sublime dissonances which largely characterise Prokofiev’s music. When the final performance was over, DNB invited the adjudicator to give a short adjudication. Third place went to the saxophone quintet who performed a piece by Street, which was noted particularly for its good balance and how the solos emerged above the thick texture. Second place went to the Ravel piano trio, who were especially commended for their exciting performance and how they took risks at every juncture. Ultimately, first place went to the Martinů oboe quartet. The adjudicator was extremely impressed by the high quality of oboe playing as well as the rhythmic vigour displayed in the performance. Overall, the concert was extremely enjoyable and it is safe to say that every member of the audience thoroughly enjoyed themselves. Many thanks must go to DNB for coaching most of the chamber groups who performed, to DNW and to the rest of the Music department for their constant support to all the boys throughout the year.

MORTIMER SINGER PRIZE Ryan Theatre, 26 April

Winning Soloist: Aled Williams, The Head Master’s Winning Band: Serenity (Harry Russel, Druries; Maciek Shasha, The Head Master’s; Will Bryant, Druries; KC Bassey, West Acre) This year we were very lucky to have Mr Paul Pacifico (Rendalls, 19883) to adjudicate the annual Mortimer Singer Prize. Mr Pacifico, an avid harmonica player, joined the Featured Artists Coalition as a board member in 2013, having spent a decade working in the banking sector in the City before turning to music consultancy. Mr Pacifico is the music director of Specific Music, which manages The AllStars Collective and has worked on projects with many prolific music producers such as Quincy Jones, Nile Rodgers and Joss Stone. The evening got off to a confident start with the band round of the competition. Ya Men and Gi delivered an excellent range of colours, which was particularly evident on the keyboard, played by Alex Strong, The Park. This was pairedwith the assured accompaniment of Al Gliksten, The Park, and Chris Abdo, Moretons, giving us an excellent performance of their original song Bloodshot. They were followed by the eventual winners, Serenity, who sung Another Love by Tom Odell. This had a great feel, achieved with rhythmic keyboard playing by Maciek Sasha, The Head Master’s. The voice of Harry Russell, Druries, sat really well with the band and cut through the wall of sound behind him, forming a unique atmosphere here. Following this was a confident and assertive performance by Zudo, singing Life in Technicolor by Coldplay. The layering



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of the parts was distributed well thought out and it allowed Maciek Shasha’s voice to ring out with authority. Unprepared were next in the spotlight singing Dust Bowl Dance by Mumford and Sons. This was a moving performance with Hugo Wickham, The Head Master’s, as the lead singer, who sang captivatingly with decisiveness. Once again, the textures within the band were well altered and adapted to suit the performance. Following Unprepared were the competition closers, The Outlasts, who sang Jimi Hendrix’s Hey Joe, bringing the ound to a very upbeat close with confident singing by Amit Armon, The Head Master’s. After the band round had concluded, the solo round immediately got under way. The first singer, Al Gliksten, captivated the audience with his own song, ‘River’. Gliksten, despite only having begun his journey in singing earlier this year, has quickly settled in and is already an experienced performer. He did an excellent job of going first, which we all know is never an easy task. His performance was very lyrical and the vocal line, sung with passion and soul, worked well with the guitar accompaniment. Charlie Lamont, Bradbys, followed with a really effective acoustic version of Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah. Lamont managed to capture the feel of the original song in this intimate acoustic performance.

The next performer, Ed Rowe, The Head Master’s, also sang his own song, Oceans. Rowe was able to hold the audience’s attention with the song’s contrasting sections and relaxed feel while showing his confidence through the guitar part and his impressive stage presence. Will Bryand, Druries, was next in the spotlight, singing Sun Don’t Shine by Klangkurussel. His delivery was confident and assured yet relaxed, and was enjoyed by the audience and adjudicator. Next was eventual winner, Aled Williams, The Head Master’s, who really rose to the occasion and sang his heart out. With his haunting composition, Bitter Winter, which showed elements of sheer brilliance and thoughtfulness, held the audience in the palm of his hand.. The performance showed his masteryof selfaccompanying as well as a gorgeous ranges in dynamic range. Up next was Hugo Wickham, The Head Master’s, who sang A Year Ago Today by Bear’s Den. Hugo made this song his own with beautifully shaped vocal phrases backed by a solid guitar accompaniment. Tarquin Strickland, West Acre, singing Neon by John Mayer, then amazed the audience with his unusual percussive guitar technique. His vocal delivery was assured and he displayed virtuosity with his guitar accompaniment. This was a memorable performance that ended the concert with a very upbeat feel. The evening concluded with Mr Pacifico’s excellent adjudication which gave the audience some insight into the perspective top professional musician on performance, composition and the music industry as a whole. Many congratulations must be given to all the boys who took part and especially to the winners. The adjudicator specifically commented that Serenity had a good sense of gradual building up throughout (as well as specifically

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May 16, 2015 citing the second pre-chorus as one of his favourite moments of the evening), and that Williams, who he thought narrated the song terrifically, was “one to watch in the future”. Many thanks go to the staff of the Music department who made this event possible, as well as to Mr Singer, who founded the prize. Thank you also to the Drama department for allowing the event to take place in the Ryan Theatre.

SHAFTESBURY LECTURE Speech Room, 28 April

Last Tuesday, it was most fitting that Speech Room was packed to hear Nicholas Ashley-Cooper, the 12th Earl of Shaftesbury, deliver the annual Shaftesbury Lecture, on the 214th anniversary of the birthday of the 7th Earl of Shaftesbury, the speaker’s ancestor, OH and after whom Shaftesbury Enterprise is named. Before we heard our speaker discuss his vastly interesting life, JEP provided the audience with a detailed background and one particularly memorable anecdote from the 7th Earl’s time at Harrow, which motivated him to dedicate his life to the service of others: A fourteen year old at the time, the eventual 7th Earl was walking down Church Hill when he heard a rowdy mob emerge from a side road. He was said to have watched in fascinated horror as a party of drunken men came staggering round the corner carrying a rough coffin. Suddenly, they let the coffin fall to the ground, swearing and cursing as they did so. JEP in fact mentioned that an early biographer wrote, ‘Before the sound of the drunken songs had died away, he had faced the future of his life and had determined that with the help of God, he would from that time forth devote his life to pleading the cause for the poor and friendless.’ This transformational incident is commemorated on a copper plaque on the wall of the Old Schools on Church Hill, and Harrovians are certainly encouraged to pay it a visit. The current Lord Shaftesbury began his lecture in the same vein as JEP and spoke of his family’s history in Westminster. He felt thoroughly inspired by the legacy left for him to live up to, and was humbled by his inherited title. For him, the biggest takeaway from his ancestor’s legacy was perseverance, and he quoted two examples to validate his point: first, a 35 year battle the 7th Earl fought for the chimney sweep boys of London, second, the 14 contest for the 10 Hours Bill, to limit the length of the working day. After this, the Lord Shaftesbury provided us with some background, prior to obtaining his current position. After attending school at Eton, and going to University of Manchester, he began his career in music in New York City as the increasingly popular DJ Nick AC. The audience were thoroughly amused at a picture that was shared of an especially trendy haircut. At that age, he felt little responsibility for his family’s legacy, being the second son, and thus ineligible to inherit the title. However, in 2005, he faced tremendous tragedy, when his father was murdered and his brother, Anthony, died of a heart attack at the young age of 27. He assumed the de jure position of 12th Earl and head of the family. Thus he relocated to the United Kingdom to uphold the endowment and legacy handed down to him. Of the bequests, the most significant project (which is now his full time employment) was the family home, St Giles House. His father had attempted a downsizing of the house in the 1980s which had not gone to plan, and since, then, the house had been virtually untouched; no one had lived in it since about 1963. To ensure he acted most economically in his plans for the house, Lord Shaftesbury took time off to attend the London Business School to equip himself with enough skills to continue work on the project. It was at this time that he also took up his passion for longdistance running. He ran the London Marathon and soon after was inspired by discussions with close friends to take up

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ultra-marathons – multi-day, long-distance runs (of about 180 km in length). While the physical endurance was pivotal, he conceded that the real skill lay in strength of mind. After he had successfully completed races in the Sahara Desert and Namibia, he had a rough fall and suffered a Level 1 spinal fracture, which set his running back for some time. However, learning from the 7th Earl, he persevered and ran a 260km foot race in the Atacama to ‘mend’ his back. Running competitively was no longer in question after his injury, and thus he explained what an excellent chance this was to harness his inner determination and encourage others who were in physically-challenged states to keep going. Later on, he took part in the 170km ultra-trail of Mont Blanc, climbing over 9700m during 44 hours 34 minutes. The footage that he shared with the audience was breath-taking, and really exposed what a challenge the race was considering the weather and terrain conditions on offer. Lord Shaftesbury shared with the audience how he used his experience and mental training in the mountains to handle the restoration of St Giles House. The three-phase process of fixing and creating accommodation, restoration of the grand rooms and finally developing the Great Dining Room, took nearly three years but finished just in time to mark the 50th anniversary of someone last living in the house. He has ambitions to share the venue with people and lease it out for major events, and provide others with the opportunity to enjoy the history of his family. To close, he explained four of the most valuable lessons learned along his journey: first, the finish line is a false promise and we must enjoy the journey as well as the end result in everything we do in life; second, as humans we do not chose what happens to us, but instead we should determine how we respond to hardships and adversity; third, to succeed in life, one has to think big and take the necessary risks (and also deal with the consequences of bad decisions); and finally, perseverance is the key to achieving any goal. As no speech is complete without a quote from our illustrious OH, Winston Churchill, he finished on a powerful Churchillian note: “Success is not final. Failure is not fatal. It is the courage to continue that counts.” After a rousing ovation and a few questions about the Earl’s life, David Webber, the Chief Executive of Livability spoke briefly about the importance of philanthropy, the courage of Shaftesbury and how to most effectively compartmentalise difficulty – quoting the recent Nepal earthquake as an example. The proceedings closed with Lord Shaftesbury awarding the new Shaftesbury Enterprise tie to 11 outstanding Sixth Formers for their dedication to serving the local and international community: Kabir Gandhi, Bradbys; Harry Gibbons, Elmfield; Edward Rowe, Ibi Akhtar both The Head Master’s; Edward McGovern , Henry Elsom, both The Knoll; Farri Gaba, Lyon’s; Shakil Karim, Newlands; Kit McCrystal, Peter Marsh, both The Park; and Henry Quilter, West Acre.

INTER-HOUSE DEBATING Junior Final, OH Room, 9 May

The final of the Junior Inter-House Debating Competition took place last Friday. The motion, “This House Believes that Education is all about Grades”, was proposed by The Head Master’s and opposed by West Acre. The debate was adjudicated by Mr Roderick Johnson, Head of English at St. Helen’s Girls School in Northwood, who also chose the motion for the debate. The first speaker for the proposition was Max Gentleman, The Headmaster’s, who started by defining ‘education’ itself, and went on to refer to the education system in Britain. He explained that here at Harrow, every piece of work that is handed

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in is marked and graded, which allows us to know where we go wrong. He also talked about the way gradation doesn’t stop when we leave school; we are judged in our jobs and in all aspects of life, and that judgement is essentially gradation. He concluded by stating that gradation is good, and that without it, we would have no exams (the only compulsion to learn), and thus people would give up on subjects. Gentleman’s fluid, confident speaking style was commendable. The next speaker, for the opposition, was Benjamin Menell, West Acre. He started by discussing the ways in which education is an enlightening experience that extends far beyond classroom or grades, going on to state that the purpose of education was to prepare for life rather than merely to get good grades. As an example he cited many of the most famous entrepreneurs, such as Steve Jobs, Bill Gates and Richard Branson, who did not get good grades at school and either dropped out of higher education or didn’t participate in it in the first place. Menell was commended for his excellent speaking technique and wellgrounded research; however, the adjudicator did advise the use of cue cards as an aid memoire to avoid the potential slip ups that come with speaking unaided. The penultimate speaker was Joseph Ayoub, The Head Master’s, for the proposition. He started by pointing out that grades and exams are able to teach us core skills such as analysing and applying knowledge, and that following a set syllabus teaches us the information that we need for later life, thus learning for exams is the way to reinforce that knowledge. He also argued that grades are the only way for universities to compare candidates in order to determine who to accept or interview, therefore grades based education is the easiest way to compare pupils to others. This argument is to be commended. The final speaker was Felix Trimbos,West Acre,for the opposition. He opened by stating, that any grade is merely a letter on a piece of paper that does not accurately express a candidate’s full potential or skill. He explained that the National Curriculum and Nicki Morgan, the Education Secretary, have both said that education needs to have much less emphasis on grades, pointing out an Ofsted report that found children who go through less grade-motivated schooling end up with a better education. Trimbos also described how many pupils end up committing self-harm due to the enormous pressure to achieve well in exams. Trimbos’ speech was dynamic and well-rehearsed, raising a number of interesting points.

After the speeches, the debate was opened up to the floor, with many astute observations made by the audience. The ‘floor’ picked up on the fact that the motion was ‘education is all about grades’, with Trimbos taking the opportunity to rebut Ayoub’s point on university entrance; that if education is all about grades, why would universities need to conduct interviews in the first place – surely they would only be selecting on grades and not interviewing candidates if this were the case? Other members of the audience challenged the opposition with the question: ‘if education isn’t about grades, what is it about?’ Finally, both sides presented their conclusions and Mr Johnson presented his judgement. He offered some points to the debaters; namely, to rebut respective points straight away, and that more points of information (interjections by the opposing team during a speech) should have been given and taken. He said that it was very close and that he did change his mind about his winner



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midway through the debate, before awarding the accolade to West Acre. Thank you to Mr Johnson for attending, and to LAM and MEPG for chairing and adjudicating the many debates this year.

PHILOSOPHY SOCIETY

Lucas Marsden-Smedley, The Park, 6 May This week, Lucas Marsden-Smedley, The Park, gave the Philosophy Society a mind-boggling talk on a series of thought experiments, which exercised the minds of the whole audience. A thought experiment is essentially the mental assessment of the implications of a hypothesis. In this case, the hypothesis that was tested was the principle of Utilitarianism. The theory of Utilitarianism was the invention of a well-known Victorian philosopher, Jeremy Bentham. The guiding thought of this theory is to provide “the greatest happiness for the greatest number, ” and Marsden-Smedley provided examples in which the audience would have to decide the best outcome. The more common of these assessments is the “Trolley Problem” in which there is a train track that splits into two at the switch of a lever. Suppose you are in a train carriage and if you were to keep going, you would kill five people tied down to the track, but if you switched the lever, you would only kill one person tied to the track . Which option would you choose? The obvious decision would be to switch the lever and save five. However, what if we changed the conditions? There are still five people strapped to the track and above the track there is a fat man (there is no lever to go onto another track in this example) on a bridge, who you know is heavy enough to stop the trolley, but you do not have time to explain the situation to him. Would you push the fat man off the bridge, or would you do nothing? In the previous situation, there would obviously be someone who died, you would have to act. Here, we would consider whether a murder was acceptable to save five people. In this case, the utilitarian or the consequentialist would push the fat man off and pull the lever, but how would you be able to live knowing that you murdered the fat man in cold blood, without knowing him or considering whether he has a family? The consequentialist would argue that if the nature of the act is good, then it is right. In this instance, we can see that utilitarianism is a highly controversial theory. To add to the audiences confusion, Marsden-Smedley offered another example of a doctor and his patients. Let us say that there are five patients desperately in need of a transplant and the doctor (you) realises that there is a perfectly healthy man in the next room. Would you take his organs to save five lives or would that be cruel and unnecessary? Could we live in a society where one could be forced to sacrifice oneself for the good of another at any given moment? These opinions provoked active discussion on what one should do, with a few wise words from CEGB. Furthermore, we went on to discuss the Russian movie “Bridge” in which a father who operates a draw-bridge, has to decide whether he wants to save his son and raise the draw-bridge thereby killing everyone on an oncoming train, or kill his son for the sake of everyone on the train. Of course, this led to the discussion of God and Jesus – God sacrificed his own son to save the world, so why shouldn’t the father operating the draw-bridge? Could this be God’s plan, everything falls into his hands, and we are not guiding our own fate? We thank Marsden-Smedley for his extremely thought provoking talk in which even the top members of this society found themselves “stumped.” Particular credit to Marsden-Smedley for taking the time to prepare his talk in the midst of his GCSE exams and to CEGB for organising such an interesting event.

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SCHOOL ELECTION POLL

Tory landslide despite voter fraud, 7 May The outcome of the 2015 General Election will surely go down in British political history as something of a surprise result. Like in 1992, despite polls to the contrary, the Conservative Party managed to secure a slim majority and enable the incumbent Prime Minister to hold onto the keys of Number 10. On 7 May, the School conducted an online poll, open to boys and all members of staff. Perhaps the results here came as significantly less of a shock, as the School community voted overwhelmingly in favour of five years of Conservative rule. While approximately 36.8% of the electorate voted Conservative across the UK, on the Hill their support was much more overwhelming, winning 62.9%, which was over four times the number of votes secured by the Green Party in second place. The results were thus as follows: Conservative Party 62.9% Green Party 14.5% UKIP 11.9% Labour Party 7.2% Liberal Democrats 3.5% Unfortunately, the poll was somewhat marred by electoral fraud and rumours abound that boys logged onto different computers in order to vote twice, thus invalidating the reliability of the data. With some boys going to such lengths, clearly the School is not suffering from voter apathy or disillusionment with politics as is often considered to be the case in many parts of the UK. As a consequence of this electoral fraud, one House was shown as casting twice as many votes as there were boys in the house, while the Lower Sixth was shown as having cast far more votes than the number of boys in the year. Moreover, it is alleged that boys also identified themselves online as Beaks in an attempt to show a skewed picture of their educators’ political proclivities. This means that presenting data by house, by year group or showing the political leanings of the Masters Room, the staff as a whole and so on, becomes superfluous. Perhaps this highlights very pertinently the dangers of electoral fraud, with accusations of such being made in the constituencies of Glasgow East, Edinburgh South West and Edinburgh South. To my mind at least, it seems bizarre that voters simply need to give their name and address at the polling station and need demonstrate no form of identification. Some boys may have felt a little disgruntled that the SNP, the Monster Raving Looney Party or even Class War were not represented in this online poll. However, the parties shown did reflect the options available in the Harrow West constituency, which was incidentally, held by Gareth Thomas, the Labour incumbent, with a slightly reduced majority. Despite the shenanigans of a minority of boys, the poll hopefully provided boys with an opportunity to express their support for their party of choice and generated a little more interest in what was an exciting and eventful General Election.

A PUBLIC SCHOOL PLEA FOR TORY 7 and 8 May

The evening of the 7th of May and the morning of the 8th saw some of the most dramatic politics in the lives of Harrovians. I hardly need write that Scotland suffered a ‘political earthquake’, or to use Alex Salmond’s somewhat trite analogy, the Scottish lion roared. Neither should I waste time describing the political stalwarts, both red and yellow, who lost their seats as a result of the will of the electorate. I need not write about all these

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things and the many other goings on at the end of last week because the whole School was very much aware of them and followed the rolling coverage with interest. It is heartening to know that political engagement is alive and well on the Hill and that Harrovians, unlike many thousands of young people, care about the way our nation is run. The election campaign was full of surprises, the School election wasn’t. It is no shock that the Conservatives performed so well on the Hill; not only do a proportion of boys have links to the party, put some of the greatest Tory and Conservative leaders were Old Harrovians: Baldwin, Churchill, Peel and Perceval to name a few. Conservative policy is also more likely to appeal to Harrovians and their families, and so a recent Public School Plea for Labour has been met by a Harrovian plea for Tory. Perhaps the more interesting result is the party in second place, the Greens. This party can only be described as the polar opposite of Harrow School with its leadership holding the view that public schools should at the very least be stripped of charitable status, and at most abolished. It is unlikely that boys chose the Green Party in the hope that the School might be abolished; perhaps instead it was the attraction of the party’s ideals concerning political and environmental reform that encouraged 14.5% participants to vote in their favour. One Harrovian I spoke to claimed that it was the Greens’ global outlook that he found attractive, especially their policy on foreign aid and their concern about the rights of women in Saudi Arabia. Alternatively, following claims of School election fraud, perhaps one avid Green Party support had a free period and decided to make a political point. However it seems that the feelings about some parties are universal and in an eerie turn of events, the percentage of votes for the Liberal Democrats in our constituency (Harrow West) was the same as the percentage in our School election: 3.5%. Lastly we should congratulate the three Old Harrovian MPs, Richard Drax, Emfield, Guy Opperman, The Grove, and Peter Aldous, The Knoll, who have all been re-elected. Perhaps following the political engagement of recent weeks, current Harrovians might also find themselves being re-elected as MPs, perhaps wearing blue rosettes, perhaps green.

STRANGFORD PRIZE Shell: Ostap Stefak Newlands Lower School: Akhil Seth, Lyon’s Sixth Form: Humphery Bright-Holmes-Stanton-Ife, Bradbys This year the Strangford Prize challenged boys to answer the following question: ‘The GDP of African countries is increasing. Is it in the best interests of western nations for African economies to continue to grow?’ In the past, many have referred to Africa as a ‘lost’ or ‘hopeless’ continent. At first glance this may seem true; many times newspaper headlines have dwelled upon Africa’s social, political and military misfortunes. Yet after several lost decades, during which debt, disease, famine and war held back Africa’s development, in the late 1990’s Africa seemed to have encountered an economic recovery and one which so far has proved durable. Despite the global financial crisis of 2008 and its lingering effects, the economies of sub-Saharan Africa grew at an average of 4.7 percent a year between 2000 and 2011. This robust performance has resulted in the first overall decline in the region’s poverty rate since the 1970s, from 58 percent in 1999 to 47.5 percent in 2008. These positive trends have been widespread, with the change in fortunes not being limited to certain kinds of economies; oil exporters such as Angola and Nigeria have boomed, but so too, have oil importers such as Ethiopia and Rwanda.

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Africa’s rebound has many causes, including a buoyant global economy until 2008, an increase in external assistance, and high commodity prices. But what has really allowed even those countries without significant natural resources to flourish has been the wide-ranging changes to Africa’s macroeconomic policies, inspiring confidence in investors and consumers alike. Many bureaucratic complexities have been removed, inspiring hope for those tired of such convolution and paving way for a more accommodating, secure and mutually beneficial business climate.

STRANGFORD PRIZE ESSAY Ostap Stefak, Newlands

GDP has been a measure of this positive economic change, and signals Africa's steadfast rise from the depths of ruin and stagnation. A high GDP means that a country is increasing the amount of production that is taking place - it depicts the fact that citizens have a higher income, and are spending more. Today, Africa is undergoing the drastic changes that have been previously witnessed in China, India and Brazil; the rise of a consumer middle class. The reason as to why such a change is so paramount in its significance is due to a principle that forms the backbone of a traditional market economy, that of supply and demand. Today, much of the demand in the world is indeed made up of the middle class, a rather ambiguous social classification broadly reflecting the ability to lead a comfortable life. The middle class usually enjoy stable housing, healthcare and educational opportunities for their children, reasonable retirement and job security, and discretionary income that can be spent on vacation and leisure pursuits. It emerged out of the bourgeoisie in the late fourteenth century, a group that while derided by some for their economic materialism provided the impetus for an expansion of a capitalist market economy and trade between nation states. Ever since, the middle class has been thought of as the source of entrepreneurship and innovation—the small businesses that make a modern economy thrive. Middle class values also emphasize education, hard work and thrift. Thus, the middle class is the source of all the needed inputs for growth in a neoclassical economy—new ideas, physical capital accumulation and human capital accumulation. Thus, as well as a large middle class contributing to the internal economy of a country or region, it also provides a large, and newfound consumer base for well-developed western companies with a view on intercontinental expansion. As the African middle class grows and gains in stature, this provides opportunity for establishments providing services, technology, or other products, and with headquarters based in western countries to make their way to new and emerging markets, with this paying dividends not only to the countries where they were founded, but also increasing the economic prosperity in the areas they turn to encompass. Indeed, we need only to take one look at Asia, a country that now forms one of the largest markets for companies all over the world, to understand why a growing economy and with it a growing middle class within Africa’s shores could prove to be one of the greatest commercial opportunities for western business in the coming decades. On another positive note, Africa’s economic development would mean the end of, or at least the decrease of foreign aid that many countries in Africa have received year upon year since independence. As the African economy continues to grow and as long as costly wars and disputes are kept to a minimum, governments will find themselves financially stable and able to devote more of the GDP to health, housing, and schooling



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rather than the military budget. As well as greatly benefitting the people of Africa, a financially independent Africa would also relieve pressure on western nations to devote part of their GDP to helping out other, less developed nations, and instead using this money in their own countries either for repaying debt (many western countries are net borrowers), increasing the capacity of the police force, or for other projects that would serve to benefit the average citizen. In addition to this, a growing economy usually signals an increase in quality of life, and that the average wage is rising, resulting in more people being able to partake in leisure activities and to provide good schooling for their children. Thus, as an economy grows, average quality of life also increases, and a rise in quality of life has not only intrinsic, but also extrinsic benefits. The reasons for most violent rebellions in Africa during the past decades have mostly, been economic. People feel the need to rebel if there truly is nothing to lose, if the economic situation is so dire that simply surviving has proved to be a struggle. Thus, as more people are happy and feel fulfilled with their lives and professional vocations, one of the main reasons to rebel by use of force is extinguished, resulting in such extreme incidents that have largely paralysed growth and threatened Africa’s national security and wellbeing in past years being greatly reduced, if not completely eradicated from Africa’s social and political landscape. This would be something reciprocally beneficial - not only would it benefit Africa, which would become a far safer, calmer place as a result, but it would also be to the profit of the west - a calmer social environment would provide a more welcoming business climate for overseas investors, and a sense of security with regard to their investments. Yet despite the fact that from a financial and in some ways a security standpoint an economically growing Africa would most certainly be to the favour of the west, this is not so much the case with some other occurrences that increased African economic might may bring about. As the economies of African nations grow, this in turn will translate to them having greater influence on the international stage. They will be able to militarily help allies, some of which will undoubtedly not be on amicable terms with the west, and propagate their own ideals as to how a country should be run and governed. Of course, not all of these will coincide with those of the west. Some African countries remain thoroughly undemocratic in their approach to government, and rely on traditional approaches with regard to human rights, many of which are outdated and seem to be trapped in an unhealthy dogma of reliance on radical and extreme methodologies. Certainly, then, propagation of such motifs to other areas would not be beneficial for the west, which looks upon many such rules and conventions with a disdain that cannot be feigned. Similarly, as has been the case with China, and to some extent India, Africa will no doubt sacrifice environmental cleanliness for economic and industrial expansion. One can envisage a buildup of highly polluting factories, chemical plants and other such establishments, as far more emphasis will be placed upon economic growth rather than a reduction of pollution. While many western nations are now at a stage when they can afford to take note of the environment and to take measures to decrease the impacts of greenhouses gases on climate change, such matters will almost certainly not be of concern to African leaders, for whom it will surely not be of interest to stunt economic growth through the inclusion of environmental measures. Furthermore, an economically growing Africa would become a birthplace to new and forward-thinking companies. Just like the China, India and South Korea of yesterday, Africa would no doubt create many new and interesting products that would challenge those already on a marketplace currently dominated by western companies, and create increased and sustained competition in areas where there previously was none. Such products would

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May 16, 2015 also undercut those made in western countries with regard to cost, as labour would undoubtedly remain far cheaper in Africa than in western countries for some time to come. More so, as new companies and enterprises would be created, and city job opportunities increase in an area formerly dominated by financially unstable agricultural ones, perhaps this would trigger something of a reverse migration, in which many foreign labourers currently spurring on the economies of western countries may return to their countries of origin, as the economic might of those begins to provide opportunities for work akin to those able to be procured abroad. In summation, however, even despite some of the more negative aforementioned points, overall it nonetheless firmly remains in the best interests of western nations for African economies to continue to grow. For forty years between 1965 and 2004, the G7 economies accounted for an average of 65 per cent of global GDP measured at market exchange rates. Despite major events in the global economy - the collapse of the Bretton Woods fixed exchange rate arrangement in 1971, oil price spikes in 1973 and 1979, stagflation, the fall of the Berlin Wall and dismantling of the Soviet Union - the share of the G7 in the global economy always stayed within three percentage points of 65 per cent. Underpinning the performance of the G7, and indeed driving the global economy, is a large middle class. Were Africa indeed to continue on its road to economic prosperity, and follow the likes of India and Asia in their economic rise, producing an entire new middle class consumer base, such an occurrence, at least to western nations, would be close to priceless. As well as this, fewer resources would need to be spent on aid to African countries as they would become more self-sustainable, and radical, violent uprisings would greatly decrease, increasing the security of investors’ holdings in the African continent and decreasing military tension worldwide. It is true - Africa will most likely develop with disregard to pollution and climate change, and there is always a chance that African countries will form powerful alliances with others that do not view the west in amicable light. These are things we need to be aware of, and have adequate responses to, but we must in no way let them impede a transformation, an economic revival that perhaps, may turn out to be one of the greatest in history.

WE REMEMBER Harrovians in WWI

2nd Lieutenant G.P.N. Reid, Essex Yeomanry, The Grove 19023-053, killed in action in France, on 12 May, 1915, aged 27. 2nd Lieutenant G.W.V. Hopley, Grenadier Guards, Moretons 052-102, killed in action in France, on 12 May, 1915, aged 23. Major W.F. Martin, Leicestershire Yeomanry, The Head Master’s 18902-942, killed in action during the 2nd Battle of Ypres, on 13 May, 1915, aged 39. Captain GC Stewart, 10th Royal Hussars, The Grove 033-053, killed in action during the 2nd Battle of Ypres, on 13 May, 1915, aged 27. 2nd Lieutenant G. H. Baghshawe, 1st (Royal) Dragoons, The Knoll 042-072, killed in action during the 2nd Battle of Ypres, on 13 May, 1915, aged 25. Captain R.E. English, North Somerset Yeomanry, West Acre 973-013, killed in action during the 2nd Battle of Ypres, on 13 May, 1915, aged 31. Captain H. Mcl. Lambert, 1st (Royal) Dragoons, Elmfield 933-973, killed in action in France, on 13 May, 1915, aged 35. 2nd Lieutenant H.G. Byng, Border Regiment, High Street 032-082, killed in action at Festubert, on 16 May, 1915, aged 25. 2nd Lieutenant L.A. Jarvis, Scots Guards, Moretons 053-103, killed in action on the Rue du Bois, on 16 May, 1915, aged 23. 2nd Lieutenant L.H. Alison, Royal Berkshire Regiment,

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Rendalls 043-093, killed in action in Richebourg l’Avoue, on 16 May, 1915, aged 25. Lieut.-Colonel J.R. Pease, Royal Garrison Artillery, The Knoll 873-903, died from pneumonia following influenza, on 17 May, 1915, aged 42. Lieut.-Colonel P.C.L. Routledge, South Staffordshire Regiment, Druries 883-913, killed in action in France, on 17 May, 1915, aged 41.

GAFFE AND GOWN Quips from around the Hill

“Sir, may I use the loo?” “No, keep working.” “Sir, what about going for some water?” “No, keep working.” “Look sir, I don’t understand any of this. Can’t I just leave?” “Sir, were you a ladykiller when you were younger?” “Indeed, almost as much as Nick Clegg.”

CORRESPONDENCE Letters to the Editors of The Harrovian Dear Sirs, Recently in the online site of Varsity (a Cambridge student paper), I read an article entitled “Private schools’ homophobia problem”. It discussed a student’s experiences with homophobia in an unnamed small private boarding school in northern England, where there was regular bullying, including physical violence, towards those who had come out as gay, and the common use of homophobic slurs. I am extremely relieved to say that the former does not appear to be an issue at Harrow, but the latter is certainly not something that we should be complacent about. People in the LGBT (Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) community are now accepted by society today, especially among young people. However, the casual use of offensive terms is still an issue. There are many terms which some people in the LGBT community are fine with, and others find offensive – the same is true for racial slurs. The problem is that teenage boys generally (and at Harrow we are not immune to this) throw around terms that insult LGBT culture. This is dangerous in a school context: boys who are unsure about their gender or sexuality will feel threatened and insecure if others mock people in the LGBT community, and perpetuate the view that there is something abnormal about certain sexualities and gender identities. Simple remarks like “That’s so gay”, used as an insult perpetuate the use of “gay” as a negative description and could be damaging to the mental health of LGBT students. The use of more pejorative terms such as ‘queer’ or ‘faggot’ are worse still. The term ‘queer’ is one which is taken with pride by many in the LGBT community but is often used as an insult by those outside it: this is not acceptable. Similarly, the other term (‘faggot’) is one for which there is certainly no excuse; it is a word which is extremely offensive with its historic association with abuse and violence. The problem with terminology is that people feel entitled to throw around any term, particularly when they are generally not challenged in their bigotry. The implications of such bigotry can be devastating for those on the receiving end. The Adult Psychiatry Morbidity Survey reveals that 48% of young transgender people (under 26) have attempted suicide. This is shocking, and it is fuelled by significant ignorance in society. Gender dysphoria – the condition of having been born in a body which is different from that of

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the gender identity e.g. being born in a male body but feeling in every other way to be female – is fully recognised by the medical profession and those who are afflicted by it deserve the full support and understanding of society. Using terms like ‘queer’ is wrong, even when just with your ‘straight friends’. Even if you disapprove of someone’s lifestyle, it doesn’t stop you being civil and kind. This isn’t about political correctness, it’s just decent manners. The best approach is to be open with people – if a friend of yours identifies in the LGBT community, clarify what they find offensive rather than risk offending them unnecessarily. Many readers I’m sure will already know these facts; however, we all need reminding that any homophobia, including that seen and heard in unkind or thoughtless remarks, is wrong, even in the company of ‘straight friends’. We surely don’t want it here at Harrow. Yours faithfully, Freddy Wickham, The Head Master’s

TENNIS

RHMW Tennis Tournament, 9 May Having seen the strength of Radley a few weeks previously, this was always going to be a tough fixture. However, the 1st VIII really rose to the challenge. There were no weak teams amongst the four schools; indeed, the standard at the top of the order was some of the highest ever seen in the competition. The 1st VIII battled brilliantly to beat Wellington in the first round, followed by a close encounter with Marlborough in the second, which we clinched. Finally, the team met Radley in the deciding match. Radley, however, had stepped up a gear since the previous week and, despite some excellent performances, the team finished runners-up. 2nd VIII were also runners-up managing to win a total of 175 games - only 8 games away from beating Radley. It was a valiant effort from the 2nd VIII team displaying a high standard of tennis. Particularly from the captain, Max Findlay, The Park, was managed to come back from 3-0 down to secure a draw against Radley’s first player, and from Sheng Ho, Newlands, who remained undefeated throughout the whole tournament. All the pairs played well together, winning all their doubles games against Radley and Wellington. Well done to all the boys that took part. The Junior Colts successfully retained their crown as RHMW winners. Set amongst the beautiful grounds of Wellington College, the boys had to adjust to both dull astros and bouncy hard courts during the day. We were well prepared for this eventuality and the standard of tennis was great on the day. The amount of effort and learning that has taken place in training over the past few weeks has been evident in the boys’ doubles games and their singles play was strong across the board. Congatulations to Alex Masri, Rendalls, Anthony Stanley, Druries, Max Sodi, West Acre, Daniel Billings, Lyon’s, Bridger Ryland, Lyon’s, George Taylor, West Acre, George Watson, Newlands and Jose Abaroa, Moretons, for their performances and to boys who didn’t quite make the cut in trials for pushing these 8 to play at the standard that they did. Team Scores on the day: Harrow 71-25 Wellington, Harrow 63-33 Marlborough, Harrow 59-37 Radley. Harrow win by 30 games overall. Additionally, a team of six of our Junior Colts made up from the B and C squads were victorious in a friendly away match against Radley, winning 5 sets to 4 in doubles. Highlights included our 1st pair beating Radley’s 1st pair 6-1, and our 3rd pair beating Radley’s 1st pair 8-6 on tie-break, as well as beating their 3rd pair 6-0. Zayan Dhanani, The Park, and Ozzie Chalmers, Bradbys, put in particularly strong performances. An outstanding win from the top eight Yearlings players. They got off to a flying start with comfortable vcitory over



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Radley and never looked back. Thoughtful play saw them overwhelm Marlborough and steely determination in the final round held Wellington at bay. There was excellent tennis in difficult conditions from all eight players but particular mention must go to Otto Stroyan, The Grove, Joe Patron, Rendalls, and Cameron Mahal, Rendalls who didn’t lose any of the 18 singles and doubles matches they played between them.

HOCKEY

The Beaks v Eastcote, 28 April, Draw 3-3 The Harrow Hockey Beaks began their season in scintillating form, not necessarily in regards to performance but more the quality of team spirit and speed of ‘thought’ post match. Missing several key players through injury, lack of fitness and availability, the Beaks took a while to settle and were indebted to the experienced centre-back pairing of NSK and SMS on several occasions. Through their calm and composed play, debutant keeper CWE was not left exposed and although the School did not create much in the way of attacks we were pleased to go in at half time goalless. The game opened up in the second half as both sides changed tactics and legs began to tire. The deadlock was broken when CWE was beaten from close range. The Beaks responded well, quickly levelling the score but were once again pegged back by short corner routines which led to two penalty flicks being awarded as TH inexplicably decided chose to play football rather than taking the more obvious option of stopping the ball with his stick. CWE channelled the spirits of George Pinner and David Seamen as the first was dragged wide, but was unable to do anything about the latter. In between the furore, WJA had scored an impressive goal for the Beaks following a high energy run from midfield. Another of these runs resulted in SSJH being on hand to blast the ball, four sticks, three players and the keeper into the back of the net to give the Beaks the lead for the first time. Unfortunately, they were unable to hold on and the opposition scored an excellent deflected goal, although you could certainly hear murmurs of discontent that TRPL was not ‘in net’ to stop it going in, the crowd were certainly calling for his return to the side. Despite the late equaliser, it was a positive start to the Summer league campaign against a side that have played together all year and gives the Beaks much to build on in future matches. In a gesture of sympathy and kindness CWE was given the MoM performance and a request to play outfield in future fixtures where his mistakes will matter less.

ATHLETICS

Achilles Relays, 7 May, Oxford

On Thursday, the Harrow track squad travelled up to Iffley Road in Oxford to compete against 24 other schools in 13 relay races. The “Achilles Schools’ Relays” competition attracts the best schools in the South of England and the teams get their first taste of tactical running and rotational squad selection – necessitated by many races having heats and finals. It is crucial

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May 16, 2015 to run well enough in the heats to qualify, but not expend too much energy doing so, saving something extra for the finals. The longer races (and hurdle relays - yes hurdle relays) are always straight finals and so the best four runners are fielded for these events, with no second chances if things go wrong. Harrow had some very strong athletes in all races, but in the end relays are always about depth: did we have four or five excellent runners? With the usual traditional rivals entered, as well as Millfield, Southend and various other strong athletics schools, the trophies on offer are very difficult to win. At this competition, first is everything and second is nowhere – just the opposite of what is expected at most other matches. Harrow entered ten of the 13 relays, and with the first race off at 13.30 and the last at 18.30 it was a long afternoon: mostly spent waiting around for the next event involving the team! When all was said and done it proved to be a brilliant afternoon for the athletes: one 4th place, two 2nd places and four 1st places is testament to the abundant talent in evidence in the squad, with trophies being won in both sprints and middle distance relays. Highlights of the day were the U17 4x100m squad equalling the championship record, the U17 4x800m being made up of Removes only and beating many teams containing Fifth Formers, and the Senior 4x800m achieving the extraordinary feat of breaking eight minutes (thus averaging under two minutes per leg) and yet not breaking the match record. Congratulations to all who entered, but in particular to the following:

2nd place U17 4x100m Hurdles Lee-Clarke, Bradbys, Hainsworth, The Park, Swan, Elmfield, Aubry, Newlands 2nd place Open 4x100m Adebayo-Oke, Lyon’s, Chritchley, Lyon’s, Hubble, Lyon’s, Sirker, The Knoll

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The School v Tonbridge, 9 May, at Tonbridge On Saturday, a squad of 62 athletes travelled to Tonbridge to take on five other Kent schools, including the Judd school who in recent years has proved to be our toughest opposition. The team was eager to remain unbeaten and most boys travelled uncomplainingly. Those most worried about exams were encouraged to bring study materials with them and the tables in the coffee shop of the Tonbridge Sports Centre were put to very good use throughout the afternoon. It is the very nature of athletics that the ratio of the travel time to competition time is disproportionate. Indeed two boys left Harrow at 12.15 with the team but were only competing at 5.30, each running for under a minute, but each vital to their relay teams. It was thus extremely pleasing that both teams affected won! Unusually good weather (for Tonbridge) nicely complemented one of the closer competition Harrow has had for the last seven years. The sprinters were in top form, winning all six 100m races (three age groups, two strings) as well as the three 4x100m relays. When the results were announced, it had come down to just 28 points, with Harrow triumphant once again. Congratulations to a dedicated and motivated squad – it is always difficult to win away at Tonbridge. Results: Juniors 2nd Tonbridge 158 1st Harrow 170 Intermediates 2nd Harrow 172 1st Judd school 193 Seniors 2nd Judd school 191 1st Harrow 208 Overall 6th RGS Guildford 289 5th Sevenoaks 331 4th Brighton 418 3rd Tonbridge 465 2nd Judd school 522 1st Harrow 550

CRICKET

The School XI v I Zingari 7 May, at home Harrow Won By 7 wickets

1st place U17 4x100m Alfa, The Knoll, Dickson-Tetteh, Newlands, Bradley, Newlands, Edevbie, West Acre 1st place U17 4x200m Obatoyinbo, The Knoll, Dickson-Tetteh, Newlands, Bradley Newlands, Edevbie, West Acre 1st place U17 4x800m A. Hayes, Moretons, O. Acar, Moretons, A. Denison-Smith, Elmfield, G. Grassly, The Knoll 1st place Open 4x800m Millett, Newlands, Clarke, Bradbys, F. Blount, Elmfield, L. Hussey, Elmfield. In this last race the following extraordinary splits were recorded: Millett 2:03, Clarke: 2:01, Blount 1:57, Hussey 1:56. This classy running saw them win their race by nearly 200m.

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I Zingari N Defty, c M Kellock b A Nazir T Cassady, st sub b A Nazir W Gubbins, c A Rath b F Copestick W Spencer, c J Jordache b A Nazir A Chamberlin, st sub b T Nevile R Gubbins, lbw b A Rath T Morris , b M Kellock

Runs 21 3 2 1 1 25 4

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W Gillions*, b A Nazir J Virgin+, c J Jordache b A Rath R Harmsworth, b A Rath F Fox, not out Extras Total

26 0 0 1 3 87 for 10

Harrow Bowling O M R W F Copestick 5.0 1 18 0 F Ruffell 2.0 1 3 0 A Nazir 11.2 7 19 5 T Nevile 7.0 5 7 2 R Wijeratne 3.0 1 2 0 A Rath 6.0 2 13 2 M Kellock 5.0 1 23 1 The School Runs F Ruffell, c A Chamberlin b W Gubbins 21 M Kellock, not out 39 R Wijeratne, lbw b R Harmsworth 11 J Jordache, c T Cassady b R Harmsworth 8 T Nevile, not out 9 F Copestick A Rath J Cleverly D Steward A Ellis A Nazir Extras 0 Total 88 for 3

On a wicket that was still drying out after a May storm the day before, Harrow’s spinners mesmerised a team which consisted of several good players lacking match practice and one or two who, it might be said, were past their prime. Nazir confirmed his considerable promise by taking 5 for 19 runs and he was well supported by Nevile and Rath in particular. When Harrow batted the wicket wasn’t any easier to play on, but Kellock showed the necessary application in a rare chance to open in a mature innings off 128 balls.

The School XI v Tonbridge 9 May, at home Harrow Won By 146 runs The School Runs F Ruffell, b Z Crawley 144 F Copestick, c and b M O’Riordan 47 A Rath, b Z Crawley 81 R Wijeratne, b J Prideaux 5 D Steward, not out 17 J Jordache, b J Prideaux 2 S Assani, not out 11 M Kellock J Cleverly T Nevile A Nazir Extras 20 Total 327 for 5

May 16, 2015

Tonbridge Runs E Hyde, b S Assani 12 C MacGregor, lbw b F Ruffell 4 Z Crawley, c T Nevile b A Nazir 58 M O'Riordan, c A Rath b F Copestick 25 H Langhan, hit wicket b M Kellock 14 H Nolan, b M Kellock 2 B Earl, run out(R Wijeratne) 24 J Prideaux, not out 19 A Bissett , b S Assani 0 N Winder, b S Assani 4 FS Wiwa, b S Assani 1 Extras 18 Total 181 for 10 Harrow Bowling O M R W S Assani 6.1 0 37 4 F Ruffell 3.0 0 16 1 F Copestick 7.0 2 15 1 M Kellock 11.0 0 50 2 A Nazir 9.0 0 39 1 A Rath 4.0 0 22 0 If there was a cricket report-writing app that included a template for the perfect win then it might have been used here for the third time this season. It might go something like this: Team X won the toss and chose to bat. Team X played positively throughout their innings, never letting the bowlers settle into a line and length, whilst always pushing the fielders in the outfield. Top order batsman X batted through the innings scoring a big hundred, allowing others to play cameos around him. Chasing a formidable total, Team Y were up against it when New Ball Bowler X burst through the top order. Team Y managed to put some partnerships together in the middle of the innings but team X’s spinners were able to wrest control back with some admirably measured bowling. With the run rate climbing Team Y were unable to force the pace and it was left to Bowler X to administer the coup de grâce by cleaning up the tail. For Team X you must insert Harrow. Top Order Batsman X this time around was Ruffell, whose patience and hard work in the nets has finally paid off with, perhaps, his most accomplished innings for the School. Copestick and Rath, too, added valuable support, the former seeing off the new ball well and the latter effortlessly accumulating runs from his first ball. Tonbridge join Hurstpierpoint and Hampton as the latest Team Y. New Ball Bowler X (and Bowler X) was Assani, back after a quad strain and looking somewhere close to the form that led to some devastating bowling on the tour to Cape Town last December. Of course, if such an app existed it would encourage the kind of lazy journalism even the News of the World might have scoffed at. But while the XI continue to play mouthwatering cricket it is worth noting that the formula for success with cricket teams is a tried and tested one. Even so, it is a measure of the increasing maturity of this team that they have been able to put it into practice again.

CRICKET RESULTS

The School v John Lyon, Bedford and Essex Boys Club 2nd XI JLS Harrow Junior Colts B Harrow JLS

Won by 6 wickets 152 all out 153-4 Kempley 43*, Laing 42 Won by 92 runs 158-4 66 all out

Fenwick 58 Bullen 3-10

453

T H E

May 16, 2015 Junior Colts D Won by 1 run Harrow 147-9 JLS 146-7 Shankhar 2-7 Junior Colts E Lost by 5 wickets Harrow 69 all out JLS 70-5 Wilson 3- 17 Yearlings A Won by 116 runs Harrow 164-9 Smith 47, Harrington-Myers 35 JLS 48 all out O’Rourke 4-5 Yearlings B Lost by 5 wickets Harrow 148-6 Kirby 36, Allen 37 Essex Boys Club 149-5 Yearlings C Won by 170 runs Harrow 204-3 Du Sautoy 78, Lintott 57 Bedford 34 all out Gill 4-9 Yearlings D Harrow JLS Yearlings E Bedford Harrow

Lost by 6 wickets 104 all out 105-4

Yearlings F Harrow JLS

Won by 67 runs 107 all out 40 all out

Won by 9 wkts 61-9 64-1

Middlemas 6 wickets

The School v Tonbridge 2nd XI Tonbridge Harrow 3rd XI Harrow Tonbridge 4th XI Harrow Tonbridge

Match drawn 237 all out

Lloyd-Williams 3-23 Laing 3-43 166-9 Laing 47 Lost by 3 wkts 142-7 143-7

Stewart 44, Newall 37 Holmes 3-28

Lost by 8 wkts 98 all out 100-2

Maxwell 24* Stevenson 2-32

Colts A Harrow Tonbridge

H A R R O V I A N

Lost by 14 runs 132 all out 146-6

Colts B Lost by 5 wkts Harrow 136-9 Tonbridge 140-5 Colts C Lost by 6 wkts Junior Colts A Won by 1 wicket Tonbridge 129-8 Harry Maxwell 3-19 Harrow 133-9 Junior Colts B Won by 8 runs Harrow 193-7 Fenwick 82,Holmes 26 Tonbridge 185 all out Gaba 3-21, Llewellen Palmer 3-35 Junior Colts C Won by 10 wkts Tonbridge 97 all out Harrow 101-0 Clark 65* Junior Colts D Won by 7 wickets Tonbridge 57 all out Flame 4-10 Harrow 58/3 Siu 23 Yearlings A Harrow 174-8 Boland 48, Dicketts 42 Harrington-Myers 39 Tonbridge 125 all out Boland 3-12 O’Rourke 2-30 Yearlings B Won by 28 runs Harrow 149 for 8 Kirby 31 Tonbridge 121 for 10 Dhaliwal 4-16 Yearlings C Won by 67 runs Harrow 164-9 Tonbridge 97 all out Yearlings D Won by 37 runs Harrow 121-7 Llewellen-Palmer 49* Tonbridge 84 all out Gill 2-6 Obatoyinbo 2-6 (and 2 catches) Barr 2-8 Yearlings E Harrow Tonbridge

Won by 51 runs 155 for 7 104 for 4

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Bowie 33 Jordan 3-22

Peel 28 Middlemas 2- 12