Other Sports

The sporting possibilities at Shrewsbury are enormous and our wonderful site makes such diversity possible.  Brief details follow of some of these sports. Please also see our pages on Fixtures - Other Sports and Latest News - Other Sports to get a feel for the range and participation in these activities.

Archery

We have a professional archery coach who comes to the School on Wednesday afternoons.  All pupils are invited to try out this fabulous Olympic sport - no previous experience is necessary, and all equipment is provided.  The sessions take place in the Alington Hall from 4.45pm - 6.00pm on Wednesdays.

Athletics

Students train at the London Road Athletics Track, and take part in pentathlon events at Wrekin College and full-scale athletics meetings at King Edward VI School in Birmingham, as well as a number of field events.  In the Summer Term, there are a number of inter-house competitions such as a Triathlon, a Quarter-Mile race, and the Sidney-Darwin Dash.

Badminton

Badminton is popular with a committed core of students who attend practices twice a week in the Michaelmas and Lent terms.  The School team plays several matches during the year against local schools, and pupils of all ages are involved in the squad.  An annual inter-house competition inevitably creates stong rivalry.

Basketball

At present we have U16 and U19 teams in Basketball and several players represent the county on a regular basis.
 
Practices take place four times a week with ex-England player Dave McLean.  Fixtures are on a Wednesday throughout the Michaelmas Term and some of the Lent term.

Fencing

The Fencing Club meets every Wednesday with the professional coach Ken Holding (former International Fencer).  All three weapons (Sabre, Epee and Foil) are available.  The Club fields teams at Open Championships and competes at national level.  We have a regular fixture list against other schools.

The Club is steadily gaining numbers and runs courses for beginners through to the national standard fencer.  Ken runs a course of 10 lessons for beginners.  All fencers are equipped to national safety standards and beyond.

Golf

Golf is a popular sport at Shrewsbury which many pupils and staff play throughout the year outside the standard sporting curriculum. The school possesses close links with Royal Liverpool Golf Club, Hoylake, a course on the British Open rota, and with many local courses where professional tuition is available.

All third formers are introduced to the game in their first year as part of their Thursday afternoon activities, while L6th formers can choose golf as their Thursday option during the Michaelmas and Lent Terms. Matches against other schools, including the HMC foursomes competition, and Old Salopians give boys experience of competitive golf at a number of top Midlands golf courses and there is a school golf championship and parent and sons tournament held at Royal Liverpool Golf Club in the Lent and Summer terms respectively.

The golfing year concludes with the traditional pilgrimage to the British Open Golf Championship to work on the scoreboards.

Hockey

Although not a major sport for boys, hockey is currently growing in popularity at Shrewsbury. In recent years, the fixture list has grown to include U15, U16 and 1st X1 matches against schools such as Wrekin, Ellesmere and Denstone College, and a highly competitive lower school inter-house competition takes place on the school’s astroturf in the Lent Term. Emphasis is given in training to developing the skills that many have learnt at prep school, and many boys play club hockey at Shrewsbury Hockey Club, with whom we have strong links.

Please see Girls' Sport for their Hockey details.

Polo

Beginners, more experienced players and the merely curious are most welcome to explore this exhilerating sport, described as chess at 30 miles an hour.  We train principally with Longdole Polo Club at Birdlip in Gloucestershire, sometimes at Rugby and occasionally in Cheshire. 

Whether during the arena season in winter or on the broad, green fields of summer, matches pitch us against even the most challenging of other schools, both at individual games and at National Schools tournaments.

In the annual Schools & Universities Polo Association (SUPA) Tournament at the end of the 2011 season, our team took the second place: 2011 Polo report.

Volleyball

Volleyball is popular with students as a House competition sport, and we also play a limited number of School fixtures.