For the second time in five days, Brecon’s Penlan Arena is the venue on Wednesday of this week, July 11^th, for a major track & field competition organised by the Welsh Schools’ Athletic Association.

After the success of the Aviva Nationals on July 7^th, it is the turn of school teams to make the most of their opportunity at arguably the biggest grass roots competition for secondary schools in the summer term – the NASUWT Cymru Cup & Plate Finals.

Welsh Schools has been hugely grateful to NASUWT Cymru for their continuing sponsorship, now in its thirteenth year.

The Cup competition has been organised each year since 1988 while the Plate Final was added in 2007 – so this will be the twenty-fifth time that the Cup competition has been staged.  The age groups are u14 (years 7 & 8) and u16 (years 9 & 10) – and are sometimes referred to as ‘junior’ and ‘middle’.  Because of changes to UK Athletics rules, two events in the u14 boys’ competition – the 300 metres and the triple jump – are only open to pupils of year 8 ‘age’.  Pupils are limited to a maximum of two individual events, plus a relay, and, if they are entered for two events, one must be a track event and the other a field event.  In the field and hurdles events, the competitions are held with the lower year groups’ implements or hurdles distance and spacings.

Two small changes have been made to the event organisation.  A new rule has been added for wet conditions and, without wishing to impact on the weather on Wednesday, this reads: In wet weather, only pupils wearing spikes will be allowed to compete in hurdles and high jump event.

In addition, because the u14 boys’ high jump is one of the last field events, and often takes more time than is allocated to compete, the order of the relay competitions on the timetable has been changed so that the two u14 boys’ 4 x 100 metres relays will be the last on the programme, instead of being the second pair.

Thirty seven schools have qualified from Cup Finals organised by the eight district associations – Afan Nedd Tawe, Cardiff & the Vale, Dyfed, Eryri, Glamorgan Valleys, North East Wales, Powys, and South East Wales -  to field sixty three teams at Wednesday’s Finals, which start at 12 noon, and are due to finish by 4.30 pm.  One place is currently unfilled – the u16 Boys’ Plate finalist from North East Wales.

To date, no school has won all four sections of the Cup competition in one year.  The highest number of wins in any year stands at three and is held by Bro Morgannwg of Barry, in 2007.  Jeremy Evans and Helen John of the Cwm Rhymni PE department will hope to equal that target.  The Caerphilly County Borough School has claimed three Cup qualifying spots in Glamorgan Valleys' district, but the staff and pupils know that, excellent record though they have with nine wins since 1994, they face a formidable challenge

Other schools who have qualified a number of teams include Sir Thomas Picton (Dyfed, Cup – u14 Boys & Girls; Plate – u16 Boys), Welshpool (Powys, Cup – u16 Boys & Girls, Plate – u14 Girls), Cardiff High (Cardiff & the Vale of Glamorgan, Cup – u14 Girls & u16 Boys, Plate – u16 Girls) and Gwyr (Afan Nedd Tawe, Cup u14 & u16 Boys, Plate – u14 Girls & u16 Girls) and Caereinion (Powys, Cup – u14 Girls, Plate – u14 Boys & u16 Girls).

Of last year’s Cup winners, only the Sir Thomas Picton u14 boys’ squad return to defend their title.  In the Plate competition, three schools are through this year to contest the Final again – Gwyr (u14 Girls), Whitchurch (u14 Boys) and Bro Myrddin (u16 Girls).

In the Cup competitions, pupils will wear single digit numbers, from 1 to 8.  In the Plate competitions, pupils will wear double digit numbers, from 11 to 88.

In track events, except the 1500 metres, the Cup Final heat will be held before the Plate Final heat.  In the 1500 events, all sixteen athletes will run together.

Because schools are permitted to make changes to their teams on the day, the pupils competing may be different from those in the programme.

Schools Qualified to Compete

Cup Qualifiers
District	Number	u14 Boys	u16 Boys	u14 Girls	u16Girls
North East Wales	1	Castell Alun	Rhosnesni	St Joseph's	Hawarden
Dyfed	2	Sir Thomas Picton	Dyffryn Taf	Sir Thomas Picton	Tre-Gib
South East Wales	3	Caerleon	Gwynllyw	Brynmawr	Chepstow
Eryri	4	David Hughes	Eirias	Syr Thomas Jones	Brynrefail
Glamorgan Valleys	5	Afon Taf	Cwm Rhymni	Cwm Rhymni	Cwm Rhymni
Powys	6	Llanidloes	Welshpool	Caereinion	Welshpool
Cardiff & the Vale	7	Llanishen	Cardiff High	Cardiff High	Whitchurch
Afan Nedd Tawe	8	Gwyr	Gwyr	Bishopston	Olchfa

 

Plate Qualifiers
District	Number	u14 Boys	u16 Boys	u14 Girls	u16Girls
North East Wales	11	Alun	No entry	Hawarden	Darland
Dyfed	22	Pembroke	Sir Thomas Picton	Tre-Gib	Bro Myrddin
South East Wales	33	Newbridge	Newbridge	Caerleon	Croesyceiliog
Eryri	44	Eifionydd	Syr Thomas Jones	Dyffryn Nantlle	Eirias
Glamorgan Valleys	55	Cwm Rhymni	Hawthorn	Rhydywaun	Rhydywaun
Powys	66	Caereinion	Llanidloes	Welshpool	Caereinion
Cardiff & the Vale	77	Whitchurch	Cowbridge	Llanishen	Cardiff High
Afan Nedd Tawe	88	Olchfa	Bishopston	Gwyr	Gwyr

 

For one year 10 pupil, this Cup Final provides an opportunity to make a unique piece of Welsh Schools’ history.  Adele Nicoll, winner of the SIAB Schools’ under 17 girls’ shot last year when she was still only in year 9, has represented her school, Welshpool (Powys), at this event every year since 2009.  In years 7 and 8, her u14 team qualified for the Cup Final.  Adele won the shot (2.72 kg) with a new best of 11.12 metres in 2009, and followed that up with a discus (0.75 kg) victory in 2010, setting another best of 35.92 metres.  Last year, her Welshpool u16 team had to settle for a place in the Plate final and Adele again chalked up another win in the shot (3.25 kg), again bettering the old mark with a distance of 13.23 metres.  For this last outing, the Welshpool u16 girls have qualified for the Cup final.  Adele is entered in the discus, and looks to be on course for a possible fourth consecutive new best.  To do that, she needs to hurl the 1 kg implement further than 32.87 metres – the distance set by current holder Stephanie Owens in 2005.

The organisation of this major event requires a great deal of time and thought on the behalf of the Joint Cup Secretaries – former Chairman Gwilym Williams and his daughter, Gwenan Rosser – and Welsh Schools is hugely grateful to them, and to everyone who contributes on Wednesday.

The association will also take the opportunity to ‘get a message’ out to serving teachers that, both nationally and at district level, it faces huge problems in finding individuals who are prepared to help as organiser or part of the organising group both at district level and at major national events, or to help as officials at competitions within the current domestic programme or to help as team managers at international fixtures or to replace current officers, when they decide to step down.

Currently, the association is seeking a new National Cross-Country Secretary, and a new Vice Chairman will be needed at the Annual General Meeting in November when the current Chairman, Mrs Kath Elias, comes to the end of her two year term of office and is succeeded by Mr Gerald Davies.

In addition, both Mr Dilwyn Davies (Treasurer) and Mr Graham Webb (Awards Officer) have been in post for longer than ten years – and the association should be looking to identify potential replacements.

Because of the existing and potential future shortage of ‘people’, the association has decided to devote the first half of its next Executive, which is scheduled for Llandrindod Leisure Centre at 10.30 am on Saturday, September 22^nd, to a discussion on ‘The future of schools athletics in Wales at district at National level’.

That meeting on September 22^nd is open to Welsh Schools’ Officers, members of the Executive, representatives of the eight districts and to current serving teachers.

If you are a serving teacher, and want the association to continue, please make an effort to come on September 22^nd.  If you plan to come, please contact our Chairman, Mrs Kath Elias, at kathelias@hotmail.com by Friday, September 7^th.  The meeting room at Llandrindod will only hold twenty people comfortably, so, if more people than that are coming, an alternative venue will be needed.

Preview by Peter Morris.