Netball

Monday’s match between RGC 1st and 2nd VII was competitive, exhilarating and a great opportunity for both teams to get used to playing together as we begin our journey in Netball this year. The first quarter began with a tight score line which meant that coming into the second quarter both teams had to bring their A game. Both teams improved their play as the game continued, with quick passing and great interceptions throughout. Most importantly, everyone put 100% effort into the game and were extremely proud of themselves after a tricky and lively game which concluded with a 29-13 win for the 1st VII. Special congratulations goes to the Players of the Match, Victoria M (S4), and Mama O who each played phenomenally!

2nd VII Captain Sophie F gave her analysis of the match:

“Going into our second match of the season against our own 1st VII we all knew it was going to be one of the toughest of the entire season. However we went out and played some very strong Netball. Unfortunately we fell behind in the second quarter, but we didn’t let this dampen our spirits and played some of our best Netball in the third and final quarters managing to slightly close the gap in the final score. Well played everyone, this match was really good practice for our Cup matches which are coming up in the next couple of weeks.” 

Our busy week of Netball fixtures continued with our S2/3A Junior team meeting Aberdeen Grammar in the League. The team won 29-1 and were very strong from the start. This game allowed the girls to play out of position and they therefore had to work hard on their communication and passing. Player of the Match went to Shawna for her skills in both attack and defence.

On Wednesday our 3rd VII travelled to Bucksburn Academy to play their 1st VII in the Aberdeen Schools League. Team Captain, Georgia P, provided us with this report of the match which ended in a draw:

“Another great match from our girls against Bucksburn’s VI team. Once again everyone played brilliantly, our communication as a team only continues to improve the more we play together, in addition to our skill set and organisation of ourselves on the court. Some of us showed incredible endurance on Wednesday (special shout-out to Krystal for playing centre for the entirety of the match) and we had some beautiful and consistent shooting from both Cissy and Mhairi. We started off strong, and made an absolutely incredible comeback by the last quarter, demonstrating everyone’s impenetrable determination and efforts regardless of what the score may be. Once again girls, thanks so much for an incredible match!” 

Our 1st VII played their second match of the week on Wednesday, away to Aberdeen Grammar in the League. Vice captain, Emily W, gave her report on the game:

“The match started off with Grammar leading, however, we slowly turned it around in the second and third quarter as we made better connections and had some great shots on goal. However, it was the strong defence which really brought it back, leading to GD Kate D winning the Player of the Match as she fought hard to make lots of interceptions to win the ball back. Although we narrowly lost in the final quarter by only one point, with the final score being 18-19, everyone tried their best until the very end.”

Football

Senior Football had a very exciting and nail biting match on Wednesday where each player gave a superb all round effort against Inverurie Academy in Round 1 of the Scottish Schools Cup. The team came back from behind four times in the game to win on penalties after a full time 5-5 draw. They played some really good football throughout the 90 minutes and kept cool heads to win the penalty shootout.

Boys Hockey

S1-3 Junior Boys Hockey travelled to Edinburgh on Tuesday to play Stewart’s Melville in Round 1 of the Schools Cup. S3 player Peter F provided this report of the match:

“Gordon’s started off brightly, producing some good play early on, but Stewart’s Melville’s quality shone through and they took the lead. However the boys never gave up and there were some forays into the opponent’s D. Again Stewart’s Melville showed why there were favourites for the Cup with a quick succession of well worked goals. After half time Gordon’s came out much improved defensively-wise and apart from an early goal in the half we defended resolutely and frustrated our hosts. The boys are a bit disappointed with the late flurry of goals and feel a bit hard done by the score line. With that being said, Stewart’s Melville was maybe a step too far for this team right now but we look forward to playing them again in December and wish them all the best in future rounds of the Cup.”

On Saturday a mixed 1st & 2nd XI team produced a dominant display against a well organised Aberdeen Grammar team. The first half saw the squad play some excellent hockey, particularly in between the defensive and midfield lines. Unfortunately, the amount of possession did not result in any goals, partly due to some great saves by the Grammar goalkeeper. The second half was a similar story, with the team continuing to focus on the targets set of moving the ball quickly around the pitch with confidence. Eventually the deadlock was broken, a fantastic reverse stick effort by Tom R (S5), beating the goalkeeper at the near post. A deserved win with many positive and mature performances. 

Girls Hockey

Mrs Roberts took a very eager group of P5-P7 hockey players along to Rubislaw Pitches on Monday after school to play in some friendlies against Ashley Road School. This was the first fixture for our P5s and a great experience for P6 & P7s too. Well done everyone and thanks to our 1st XI helpers Hannah, Maddie & Emma.

On Wednesday the P7 hockey team had a great afternoon of matches at the High School of Dundee P7 Festival. The girls played some fantastic hockey, drawing against Dollar Academy then winning against Morrisons Academy and Strathallan with a flurry of goals to take them through to the final against St Leonard’s. The team played with urgency and great communication to become overall winners of the tournament! Well done to all our players for their excellent effort all day. 

Countesswells was a very busy place on Saturday morning as we hosted St Margarets, Albyn and St Leonard’s with two of our teams travelling to St Andrews. S1A had a cracking game where a quick start by both teams saw some end to end hockey and numerous chances for both. A period of daydreaming with heads in the clouds saw RGC go 1-0 down, but some lovely attacking play saw an equaliser from Olivia, just before HT. Lovely individual play from Carla after the restart put us 2-1 up, but we couldn’t quite hold on, conceding a second goal late on. We were unlucky not to get the win, but a draw was a fair result in the end. Elsa showed confidence and made some great saves today, but Player of the Match goes to Olivia, for fantastic attacking play and control on the ball.

S1B had a great morning in the sunshine with 4 players representing the College for the first time. Without a GK it was tricky to keep St Megs from scoring but they didn’t give up. They tried to play a passing game but we still have lots to work on with basic ball control. Player of the Match was Anna who was a ball of energy and didn’t give up at any point!

A much changed S2A team due to some players being unavailable won 5-0 against St Leonard’s School. A very hard working S2A played some great hockey and we grew in confidence as the game went on. Overall this was a team performance and any one of our players could have been Player of the Match. In the end it went to goalie Olivia S who made some outstanding saves to give us a clean sheet. 

S2B had a strong first half against St Margaret’s with displays of passing and moving well. The score was 0-0 at half time and in the second half we lost our shape a little. We could have been a goal up but an early umpire call meant a free pass outside D which unfortunately didn’t lead to a goal. Lucy M was busy in goals and made some absolutely reaction saves! She was awarded Player of the Match for her excellent work today. Overall a win for St Margaret’s today.

S3 scored their first goals of the season on Saturday in their match away to St Leonard’s in St Andrews. They put in a much improved performance from our last game and they created some fantastic chances today. Neha was absolutely brilliant on attack, Sophie S was super on defence and all our players worked extremely hard. We were unlucky at the end to concede a couple of late goals. Overall Miss Howie was very happy with their performance and how hard the girls worked.

The 1st X1 were also away to St Leonard’s on Saturday and were excellent. A good mix of nice passing combinations and individual skills led to their 5 goals. Hannah L was excellent with her linking play and passing, and Ava B & Becky S provided speed on attack. Kate D really led the defence with a strong performance. The whole team worked until the final whistle.

Rugby

On Wednesday P7 Rugby joined girls hockey at the excellent tournament hosted by High School of Dundee. They boys progressed through the pool beating HSoD B, Lathallan and Dollar. In the semi final we scored some well constructed tries against Morrisons. As a result we progressed to the final but were beaten by a more organised HSoD A team. Lots of exciting rugby played. The pie and doughnuts post tournament were a highlight for all!

On Saturday S1 Rugby played a Triangular Rugby competition with Ellon RFC and Aberdeen Grammar. In the first match RGC started quickly against Ellon by scoring a number of breakaway tries. The willingness to complete a tackle and win rucks gave RGC a lot of opportunities with ball in hand and an overall win. The second game against Aberdeen Grammar gave the boys a lesson in the need to quickly close down strong running opponents. RGC conceded a few tries from turnovers, but then fought back to score a couple of well worked tries in the latter stages of the game. A win for Grammar in this match.

S2A had a really enjoyable and competitive game against Ellon. We attacked well and scored some very good tries. We have lots to work on in defence and this was a good game that exposed our weaknesses. The team was delighted with their win.

S3 had a tough first half against Ellon due to their strong defence and poor ball control from RGC. However it was a totally different and much stronger second half performance from RGC where we kept a hold of the ball and made strong carries over the gain line. Defence was strong throughout with a real improvement in the chop tackle this week. A convincing win for RGC. 

The final match of the morning was our 1st XV against a very competitive Deeside RFC. 

With the boys struggling to connect in the first half and with many planned changes they connected well to finish the game with a strong win.

Skiing

RGC entered a very strong squad into the SSSA Dryslope Champs at Hillend, Edinburgh on Thursday. In the S1-S3 Male category Blair M S3 was the Scottish Champion and overall fastest racer on the hill today. In the S4-S6 Male category Grant M S6 was the Scottish Champion and overall second fastest racer on the hill. In the S4-S6 Male category Finlay C S6 was 2nd and overall third fastest racer on the hill. In the S4-S6 Female category Daisy C S4 was 2nd overall.

Our male team comprising Grant M, Blair M, Finlay C & Jamie R were placed 1st and therefore Scottish Schools Champions. Our female team made up of Daisy C, Carla F, Emily C & Elise M were placed 3rd Female Team.

These excellent results mean that both teams have now qualified to represent Scotland and RGC at the British Schools Dry Slope Championships to be held in Stoke in late November. Our four male racers currently hold this title and hope to retain it! 

House Golf

We had an excellent turnout at House Golf on Thursday with 22 players from S1-S6 taking to the course at Deeside Golf Club for this annual event. Well done to Blackfriars who were the overall winners. 

Team of the Week

Congratulations to our TOTW, P7 Hockey who had a great experience and showed some amazing talent for the future by winning the High School of Dundee P7 Hockey Festival. Well done to Mrs Roberts and all the girls. 

Sport Update: Week Ending 9 October