THE "FIRST THURSDAY" NEWSLETTER

NEWSLETTER JANUARY 1994 No. 4

Happy New Year!

It's the first Thursday of a new term, and with it comes the first 1994 edition of the school newsletter.

To start with, we look tuck at the events that took place at the end of last term.

The school play, Dark Of The Moon, was a very entertaining and enjoyable production. The scenery was very impressive, and the performances were excellent. Congratulations to all those who were involved, both from our school and the Girls' Grammar School.

The Music Department has been particularly busy.

On Sunday 12 December the school choir and Director of Music Richard Davies provided the music for the Friends of Dover Castle Christmas Carol Concert which was held in the historic keep. Despite the wild and windy weather, a large number of people turned out for the concert.

The next evening the School Jazz Group, again led by Richard Davies, played at the annual Christmas Party for the Dover and District Group of the British Diabetic Association at St. Mary's Parish Centre in Dover. Group chairman Sylvia Lacy has written to express the thanks of those present for the performance.

And then came one of the highlights of the schools calendar, the Service of Nine lessons and Carols by Candlelight at Charlton Church, Dover. Once again the choir and soloists sang beautifully and we were also grateful to the readers - representing pupils, staff, parents, Old Pharosians and Governors - for their contributions to the service. (A candle set light to some of the nearby foliage during the Headteacher's reading, hut this will not lead to the reading next year being changed to the story of Moses and the Burning Bush!) Our thanks, too, to the Rev. Nick De Keyser for allowing us to use the church, and to Mr. Davies and organist David Hobourn.

Music of a different kind filled the Great Hall at the end of term for the Lower School Disco, which was also attended by pupils and staff from the Girls' Grammar School. Thanks to the staff and senior pupils who helped organise and run the evening which appeared to be enjoyed by all.

The Headteacher's chair looked suitably festive during the last week of term, complete with coloured lights!

And so to the new term.

We welcome a new member of staff who joins the school this term. Sue Barham has been appointed Personal Assistant to the Head Teacher. We congratulate her on the appointment and hope she has a very happy time at the school.

Congratulations...

We are also pleased to offer our congratulations to two other members of' staff.

Mr. Michael Thomas has gained his Master Of Arts Degree in Theatre Studies from the University of London after studying on a part-time basis for two years.

Mr. Graham Lodder has passed his practical examination with Trinity College of Music. Together with the Musical Knowledge paper which he passed two years ago, he will now receive a Diploma as Licentiate (Performer) of Trinity College London (L.T.C.L).

It may well be encouraging for pupils to know that they are not the only ones who have to study for examinations'

Talking of exams, the Mock exams started yesterday (Wednesday), as soon as the pupils returned from their Christmas break.

Year 9 subject reports are due out on Friday 14 January and the Year 11/13 reports on Friday 28 January.

Parents and Friends Association

The winner of the £250 first prize in the P.F.A. Christmas Draw was Mrs. Jean Clarke, who has been one of the cleaners at our school for many years. Well done, Jean! The second prize of £100 went to parents Mr. and Mrs. C. Anderson. The form which sold the most tickets for the draw was Form 7P, Mr. Peter Dale's form, who receive £100 towards a class activity, such as an outing. The draw raised £730, and we thank all those who supported it.

The next Wine and Wisdom Evening takes place on Friday 21 January, starting at 7.30 p.m. As you probably will have heard by now, these evenings are very popular, very enjoyable and very successful. So why not invite your friends to make up a table of eight. and come along and join in? Tickets are £2 per person, and the event is organised on an American Supper basis - you bring the food and drink for your table. Bookings can be made through the school office. The last Wine and Wisdom evening raised £414 for P.F.A. funds. . . so we look forward to another very protitable evening.

Watch out for details of an antiques valuation day which the P.F.A. will be organising soon. Start looking out your antiques now!

Much of the money raised by the association goes towards financing the School Mini-Bus. The lease for our present vehicle runs out in February, and we hope we may be able to buy a new Mini-Bus for the school soon. We are currently making enquiries with various firms to secure the best deal.

200 Club

More people arc joining the 200 Club every month, and several took advantage of sending in their subscription in time for the December draw which is one of the two occasions in the year when a special prize of £100 is on offer. The results are given below.

If you haven't joined yet, all you have to do is contact the School Office for an application form. Return it by 17 January, together with £8 to cover the rest of the school year, to be included in the January draw.

Winners of the December draw were: £100 Mr. S. Osborn, £25 Mr. G. A. McMullan, £15 Mr. T. Moseling, £10 Mr. D. P. Bull. The draw takes place on the third Thursday of each month, and the next one is on Thursday 20 January.

C.C.F.

On Wednesday 24 November, nine cadets turned out for Air Experience Flying at R.A.F. Manston. They all enjoyed their flights in the Dehavilland Chipmunk.

On 26 and 27 November, 25 cadets attended a battlecraft weekend. Those who attended gained practical knowledge in the art of camouflage and concealment and night movement.

We would like to congratulate those RAF cadets who passed their proficiency Training Part 2 examination, and David Hughes of the RAF section who was promoted to Corporal.

Old Pharosians

The Old Pharosians continue to support the School in various ways.

Many years ago, a film was made about our school, called "The School On The Hill". This is now being transferred to video so that copies can be made available to anyone who wants one. Details of how these can be obtained, and the cost, will be published in a future edition of this newsletter.

We have been interested to note how many fathers of present pupils at the school are old boys of D.G.S.B. themselves. It was noticeable that many of the fathers of the prospective pupils who came along to the open evening last term were talking about their days at the school. So if you are an old boy of the school, and do not belong to the Old Pharosians' Association, why not join now? The membership secretary is Mr. R. Gabriel. of 229 St. Richard's Road, Deal. CT14 9LF, who would be pleased to send you an application form.

You will then receive a regular newsletter, giving you details of the association's activities, and news of old boys.

Among the events held each year is a football match between an Old Boys' team and the school's 1st XI, and the annual dinner, which take place this year on 17 September. We look forward to seeing you there!

The next Old Pharosians' Committee meeting is on 17 March.

We were pleased to hear from former pupil Jonathan Parry, who was at the school from 1968-1975 and who is now a lecturer in history at Cambridge University and Fellow and Director of Studies in History at Pembroke College, Cambridge.

In his letter he was reminiscing about his days at our School,
and sent his good wishes to all the members of staff who remember him. He also said he would be pleased to offer advice to any of our sixth form students who want to know more about Cambridge University.

Mr. Parry has recently written a book on The Rise and Fall of the Liberal Government in Victorian Britain, and he has kindly donated a copy of the book to the school library.

We are very grateful to Mr. Parry, and we were pleased to hear from him.

Looking ahead,

The next musical event is the Spring Concert on Thursday 24 March at 7.30 p.m., and there is an organ recital on Saturday 23 April.

A Summer Ball will he held at the Saturday 23 July, from 7 p.m. until the early hours.

Book these dates now!

First Thursday Sports News

We have a lot of sports news to fit into this edition of the newsletter, as Steve Bailey reports on the 1st XI's fortunes in the football season.

At the beginning of the season it became clear that the 1st XI squad was stronger than any others in the last few years. Despite losing Paul O'Brien from last year, the team emerged as clear favourites for the East Kent Schools League, and strong , contenders for the County Cup. The team settled down quickly, playing attractive flowing football and scoring lots of goals.

We won our first match 5-0 away to Dane Court, despite not playing particularly well. At this stage it became difficult to select the best team, as Spencer Bowditch was injured and missed the rest of the season, and there were so many options regarding players and positions. In the First Round of the County Cup we beat Welling School 6-3, but the following day dropped a League point away at Norton Knatchbull partly due to tiredness and partly because we ended the game with nine fit players after a string of injuries.

By the beginning of October it became clear that the defence - superbly marshalled by Chris Broom - wasn't going to concede many goals, and the attack, spearheaded by John Stonebridge and Stefan Peto, looked dangerous every time we attacked. In midfield, Matt Oilier, Marc Goodacre, Justin Luchford and Paul Campling played with skill, strength and flair. Obviously expectations were running high, and the following week we beat Astor 4-1 away, Rainham Mark 3-0 at home and drew 1-1 with Harvey away. Confidence and well-founded optimism began to rise. Another indicator of our chances was that six of the team were selected for the Kent Schools squads: Chris Broom and Matt Oilier for the Kent A's, and Marc Goodacre, Stefan Peto, Justin Luchford and Spencer Bowditch for the Kent B's.

In the second Round of the County Cup, we beat Q.E.S. 4-1 at Faversham despite several players missing, and the following Wednesday we hit peak form winning 9-0 against Bordon at home.
It showed the team at its best with rugged defence, positive running up front, and numerous chances created from midfield. Unfortunately, we lost the Third Round of the County Cup 2-1 at home to Hundred of Hoo School from Rochester (who subequently reached the County Final), we played indifferently - probably partly due to over confidence but also not helped by six of the team playing the evening before in a Kent Youth Cup match, The winning goal came with only 40 seconds of normal time left.

Following this disappointment the team concentrated on the League, returning to winning ways with a 2-1 win at Oakwood Park, and again beating Q.E.S., this time 7-0 at home. Maidstone Grammar conceded their game, and this left two games against the top teams, Simon Langton and Chaucer. Against Langton, we dominated the game, and scored with 10 minutes left, only to let in a soft goal to emerge with a draw.

So, the last game became crucial, with only a draw needed to win the League. On the day, it poured with rain and blew a gale, making it a game of two contrasting halves, against and with the wind,

In the first half, our team played extremely well against the wind, restricting Chaucer to hardly any shots on goal, and creating half a dozen good chances at the other end, one converted by Marc Goodacre. Chaucer scored on the stroke of half time, directly from a corner, but standing at 1-1 at that stage the team was very confident. But then everything went wrong.

Chaucer played better in the second half and scored a good goal. Our team gradually got back into the game, equalising with a penalty scored by Justin Luchford, only for the referee to allow a goal for Chaucer five minutes from time which was converted following a Blatant foul on Chris Broom as he passed back to the keeper. The referee must have been the only person on the field not to see the incident properly. Words were said to the referee and two of our players were dismissed for dissent, effectively ending our chances.

It was a sad and frustrating end to an excellent season.

To win trophies or Leagues there has to he an element of good fortune and this side was not destined to get any glory. It is a great pity because this was a football team that the school could be justifiably proud of.

They will be a difficult side to follow, but there is every chance that next season's side will again be strong, with the emergence of several players in the Under 16 side that reached the County Cup Quarter Final.

1st XI Playing Record:

Played 13, Won 8, Drawn 3, Lost 2, Goals For 48, Goals Against 16.

Top goalscorers were Justin Luchford and Stefan Peto. Colours were re-awarded to Marc Goodacre, Stefan Peto, Chris Broom, Matt Oiller, Colin Smith. Mike Andrews and Paul Henwood, and awarded to Dave Lewis. Steve Bells, Justin Luchford, John Stonebridge and Paul Campling.

Grant Sanders, Neil Humphries and Michael Robinson received Representative Ties.

Rugby

This term we turn our attention to rugby, and our 1st XV team will he playing Simon Langton Grammar School at home on Wednesday 26 January at 2.15 p.m.

Other dates for this term include a match against Oakwood Park Grammar School (away) on 3 March, and 1st XV. B XV. Year 9 and 10 XVs v Bethany School (away) on 9 March, and 1st XV and under 16 XV games against Minster College at home at 2.45 p.m. on 16 March.

We wish our teams well during the coming season, and look forward to reporting on their progress.

Cross-Country

There are also some cross-country events this term, in connection with the Inter-Schools Cross-Country League.

The first event is at 3.45 p.m. on Wednesday 19 January at our school, and the second is at 3.45 p.m. on Thursday 27 January at Brockhill.

The next one is at St. Edmund's R.C. School, Dover, on Tuesday 8 February at 4 p.m.

The Powell Cup inter-house cross-country competition is at 2 p.m. on March 18.

As with all our sporting activities, spectators are very welcome to come and cheer our boys on.

Towards G.M.

The period for objections to our application for Grant Maintained Status expires this week. and we expect that Kent County Council is the only objector.

During the past few weeks, the Head Teacher and Governors have been in contact with the Department for Education answering various questions and replying to K.C.C.'s objections. We have also passed a copy of all the correspondence to our M.P. David Shaw, who has shown an interest in the progress of our application through the "corridors of power".

Now we can only wait to hear the decision of the Secretary of State, which we expect will be announced some time in February.

Meanwhile, the new governors - who have been waiting patiently in the wings - are being invited to come to school this month to discuss the current situation. We are pleased that some of them have already been to the school in recent weeks, attending various events, including the school play.

The various sub-committees or the Governing Body are also meeting this month to discuss the buildings - including proposed alterations to the office area - the curriculum and finance.

The Governing Body itself meets on Monday 24 January at 7 p.m.