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5
ST EDWARD’S CHRONICLE
A Question of Sport
We talk to Director of
Sport, Andrew Dalgleish,
and Deputy Director of
Sport, Eve Singfield, about
their own sporting history,
the Teddies sporting ethos –
and favourite moments.
Tell me about your own experience
of sport.
Eve:
At school, I played hockey, netball and
tennis, and rowed for a local club. I rowed
internationally up to U18 level, racing for
Great Britain twice as a single sculler at the
European Championships, La Coupe de la
Jeunesse, and in a quad at the Junior World
Championships. At the time I was neither tall
enough to be a heavyweight or small enough
to be a lightweight so I stuck to club rowing
and then started coaching. I’m now in my
13th year at St Edward’s; I’m Housemistress
in Corfe, Deputy Director of Sport and I
coach rowing – so it’s pretty busy!
Andrew:
I was very much an all-rounder
when I was a pupil at Bedford School, but
particularly enjoyed cricket and rugby.
I played the latter for the Scotland U18s
(qualifying through my grandparents). After
21 level, I left the Scottish programme, but
went on to play professional and semi-
professional rugby. As Captain of the England
students’ team, I played at Twickenham in
an England shirt – an amazing experience.
In addition I earned two Blues for Oxford
University against Cambridge in the annual
Varsity Match, captaining the Blues and
OURFC in 2005. I represented the famous
Barbarians RFC on nine occasions, once as
Captain. In recent years, since injury forced
my rugby retirement, I have joined the masses
and taken up triathlon. I prefer to race the
Ironman distance but represented Team
GB for the Middle Distance (half Ironman)
European Championships in 2015 and will do
so again this year. This is my 10th year at St
Edward’s and my third as Director of Sport.
What are the main sports at
St Edward’s?
Traditionally rugby, hockey, rowing and cricket
for boys, and hockey, netball, rowing and
tennis for girls. But as we see in the wider
public context, more and more sports are
gaining in popularity so we now offer a much
wider range of sports for all pupils.
What are the new sports?
Swimming is enjoying a resurgence (see
pages 9 and 30). We now boast a large and
active squad who have attended a number
of fixtures in recent years, including the
prestigious Bath Cup and Otter Medley
National Schools Relays at the Olympic
Pool. Running is now very popular; the
Harriers achieve considerable success in
the Oxfordshire Cross Country League
and in local road races. We are competitive
at national level in golf and squash, and
compete in inter-school sailing and climbing
competitions. Girls’ cricket and football are
gaining in popularity and we are looking to
launch a girls’ rugby programme.