The North East Regional Schools Handball Games Finals took place on Thursday at Temple Park Leisure Centre in South Shields, with five county-winning schools representing Northumberland, Tyne & Wear and the Tees Valley competing for the under-15 and under-13 boys and girls titles.
The under-15 competitions were a battle between just Tyne & Wear and the Tees Valley. Washington’s Oxclose Community Academy girls won all three of their matches without conceding a single goal against Hartlepool’s High Tunstall College of Science. Another Washington school Biddick Academy took the boys’ honours after winning their first three games before High Tunstall gained a narrow late consolation victory.
South Shields’ St. Wilfrid’s RC College similarly won their first three games in the under-13 girls competition to secure the title, before falling to defeat in their second match against Northumberland’s Richard Coates CofE Middle School. High Tunstall meanwhile picked up two wins over Richard Coates to claim the runners-up spot.
The boys’ under-13 competition went down to the wire before High Tunstall defeated Oxclose Community Academy 7-5 in the last match of the day for their decisive third victory. Runners-up Oxclose had earlier scored two convincing wins over Richard Coates, while the Northumberland school’s sole win had come over eventual champions High Tunstall.
The North East handball schools champions were presented with their cups and medals by the England Handball Association’s north regional delivery manager Andy Clark who was impressed with the standard and competitiveness of the play throughout the day. The region’s four winning schools now go on to challenge for English national schools handball honours in Worcester on the weekend of 9/10 June. Best of luck to them all!
Results:
Under-15 Girls:
| Oxclose | 3-0 | High Tunstall |
| High Tunstall | 0-2 | Oxclose |
| High Tunstall | 0-3 | Oxclose |
Under-15 Boys:
| Biddick | 9-5 | High Tunstall |
| High Tunstall | 2-5 | Biddick |
| High Tunstall | 2-3 | Biddick |
| Biddick | 6-7 | High Tunstall |
Under-13 Girls:
| High Tunstall | 1-3 | St. Wilfrid’s |
| Richard Coates | 3-8 | High Tunstall |
| St. Wilfrid’s | 9-0 | Richard Coates |
| High Tunstall | 7-4 | Richard Coates |
| St. Wilfrid’s | 3-1 | High Tunstall |
| St. Wilfrid’s | 1-3 | Richard Coates |
Under-13 Boys:
| Oxclose | 9-5 | Richard Coates |
| Oxclose | 3-4 | High Tunstall |
| High Tunstall | 2-4 | Richard Coates |
| Oxclose | 6-2 | Richard Coates |
| Richard Coates | 3-4 | High Tunstall |
| High Tunstall | 7-5 | Oxclose |