Cranleigh girls win National Fives tournament

Cranleigh pupils are celebrating after winning gold at the U18 Girls' National Fives tournament at Repton.

The Fives season ended on a high with an exciting collaboration between Charlotte B. from the Upper Sixth (Year 13) at Cranleigh School pairing up with the Prep School’s Form 6 (Year 8) Matilda F.

Fives is a handball game, played as doubles in a three-sided court. The object is to force the other team to fail to hit the ball 'up' off the front wall, using any variety of wall or ledge combinations as long as the ball is played 'up' before it bounces twice.

Often played in unisex pairs, the game offers the opportunity for strong collaboration across year groups.

Cranleigh Prep School's Head of Fives, Mr Mark Halstead, said: "No one really knew what to expect, we hoped that we would be competitive but we were in unknown territory with Matilda playing girls five years older than herself. Huge credit goes to both of the girls who achieved a quite remarkable feat."

In the final they played against Shrewsbury, one of the powerhouses of the school game, and came through comfortably winning 3-0. It is the first time that Cranleigh has won an open Fives tournament at National level.