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Other Sports

Other Sports

Athletics

Athletics has been thriving over recent years and it is now a very popular summer term sport throughout the different age groups. Pupils participate in a number of different competitions throughout the term, including evening races in Cambridgeshire and the county and national schools competitions. Our best athletes train with Cambridge and Coleridge Athletics Club. Our most able athletes regularly qualify to compete in the National Schools Tournament.

Badminton

Badminton is offered both as a games option and a weekly after-school activity throughout the year.

There are several organised sessions every week for social players, as well as the selected squad players. The school plays in the Cambridge University Colleges League so has regular matches of a very good standard.

The Leys inter-house badminton tournament is also a very popular event, enabling pupils from both Day and Boarding Houses to participate in friendly, but very competitive matches.

Cross Country

Cross-Country at The Leys is run as a games option for those not involved in the core sports of the Lent term. Training occurs during games time and the weekly diet generally consists of a shorter steady run, a longer run and an interval training session.

We cater for all varieties of runners and it is used as a good way to improve general aerobic fitness for some, as well as specifically training others who wish to participate in cross-country, road or track events.

Football

Football at The Leys is run as a Sixth Form option for those not involved in the core sports of the Lent term. Practice occurs during games lessons, on a Tuesday and Thursday afternoons. Fixtures are usually played on Saturdays although, if there is a cup fixture then this may also be played on a Tuesday afternoon.

We are fortunate to have the professional services of Mr. Ben Elston and Mr. Ashley Shipp, who have played the game to semi-professional level, and have a wealth of experience coaching teams. In the 2021/22 season, fixtures were organised against: Rugby, Stowe, Bedford, Oundle, Greshams, Harrow, Kings Ely and The Perse.

For the lower years football is offered as an extracurricular activity.

Head of Football
Mr Ben Elston

Squash

Squash is available throughout the year using our three excellent glass-backed squash courts in the School’s Sports Centre. The courts are available to pupils as a games option and as an activity in the afternoons and evenings. Squash can be played for recreation in free time or at a high level competitively, and there is provision for all abilities from beginners to Regional players. Coaching is available individually and in small groups throughout the year, by school staff and external coaches.

The school has an U16 team, and a 1st Team, with both boys and girls encouraged to play. The 1st team reached the Regional Schools Finals, and recently our U16 team achieved 4th place in the National Finals. The School 1st Team also compete in the Cambridge University league, the University Cuppers competition, and play friendly fixtures. Pupils are encouraged to link with local clubs, and recently some of the top squash players have been involved in the school’s Sports Academy pathway.

Head of Squash
Mr Peter White

Strength & Conditioning

A long sporting career is built upon an athletic base developed throughout childhood and adolescence. As the cornerstone of performance, all athletic development sessions aim to help our pupils build a broad physical foundation to help unlock performance potential. Our pupils are expertly guided through a structured pathway of movements within games and physical education by our head of strength and conditioning (S&C) coach, Samuel Coe.

During the games programme pupils are taught how to perform basic and sport-specific movements efficiently, whilst also enhancing cardiovascular fitness for their sport. Those pupils illustrating significant prowess within the sporting environment will additionally receive strength and conditioning support through the junior & senior academy systems (see Sports Academy) In addition, sport scholars receive further support through dedicated scholar S&C sessions. The wider curriculum provides an alternative opportunity for S&C through both the junior athletic development (Years 9 and 10) and senior development (Y11-13) clubs.

All pupils have access to support from the strength and conditioning coach through activities, the games programme and have opportunity to approach staff for help and guidance.

During the 2017/18 academic year the Leys Leisure sports centre was updated to incorporate an impressive strength and conditioning facility, alongside a conditioning suite (Singapore Suite). Pupils are inducted to the conditioning suite during year 9, and from year 11 pupils are inducted into the strength and conditioning facility.

Pupils also have the chance to utilise drop-in injury clinics with Fit Again Sports Therapy (F.A.S.T.) on Tuesday and Friday evenings after school whose expert therapists help those pupils who find themselves on the injury list.

Head of Strength and Conditioning
Mr Samuel Coe

Volleyball

Volleyball is offered as an after school activity with sessions for both juniors and seniors, with juniors feeding into the senior teams as soon as they have mastered the skills and tactics of the game. The Leys compete in the Cambridge University College League, reaching the final in 2018, as well as playing friendly matches against local clubs and Sixth Form Colleges. It is one of the few sports that train and play as a mixed team.

We have at times entered the U18 National Championships, in which we have reached the last 16 teams for both boys and girls. Our boys were winners of the inaugural Independent Schools Beach Volleyball competition held in Brighton in 2009, and the girls have gone on to win the title in 2011 and 2014.

Head of Volleyball
Mr Richard Hill

After School Activities

There are also a number of other sporting activities which are available to pupils as After School Activities including Basketball, Climbing and .22 Shooting. Further details can be found here.

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After School Activities

There are a range of After School activities available at The Leys.

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Music

Music is held in very high regard at The Leys, and the Music School is a vibrant department at the heart of school life.

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Performance Drama

Performance Drama is a thriving and popular department, with real enthusiasm from pupils, parents and staff alike for what is done - especially for the quality and range of School Productions on offer.

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