Weekly Newsletter

Bethany is a leading independent co-educational day
and boarding school for pupils aged 11-18

September 27, 2024

Headmaster’s Welcome

Dear Parents and Guardians,

I hope you are well and are taking the varied weather of this past week in your stride.

The Year 9 pupils and Year 12 Media pupils enjoyed their trip to the Imperial War Museum. Year 12 artists had the most productive day yesterday when they visited the Wallace Gallery.

I enjoyed the first Pengelly Society meeting of the year last night. The talk was given by Courtney Orange and he spoke about the importance of a positive mindset.

Given my youth, I am looking forward to FOBS sponsored disco for pupils in Years 7 and 8 next Friday. It starts at 6.00pm and finishes at 7.30pm. The cost is £15 and tickets can be bought by clicking here. Refreshments and snacks at the disco will also be available. All money raised from the event will be going to charities chosen by Year 7 and 8 pupils which are The Brain Tumour Charity and Cancer Research UK.

Tomorrow, of course, is Open Morning. It is a compulsory day of School which starts one hour later than usual. This means that buses will run one hour later than normal in the morning, but please note that there is no return bus service. Open Morning itself starts at 10am and pupils can be collected from 12.30pm onwards.

Yours sincerely

Francie Healy

Headmaster

PS Winston Churchill once said, ‘A pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity, the optimist sees opportunity in every difficulty’. Which one are you?

Latest Sports News

The latest sports news from Bethany School. Football and hockey teams were back in action this week, all looking to build on their positive starts to the season.

Football | Bethany 1st XI v Kent College

First Half:

Bethany started strongly despite playing against the wind. Their determination paid off in the 30th minute when a well-executed corner found Olly Canderloro at the back post. Canderloro’s precise header gave Bethany a deserved 1-0 lead, as Kent College struggled to cope with the challenging conditions. Bethany’s solid defence and pressing play kept the home team from creating any significant chances, giving them control of the first half.

Second Half:

The weather shifted in Kent College’s favour after the break, with the wind and rain providing a slight advantage to the home side. They capitalized on it, and after sustained pressure, found the equaliser midway through the half. A fluid team move ended with a well-taken finish from open play, levelling the score at 1-1.

The match became an end-to-end battle for the remainder, with both teams pressing for a winner. Despite the energy and intensity, neither side could break through again, and the match ended in a hard-fought draw.

Final Score: Kent College 1-1 Bethany

Man of the Match:

James Canderloro (Bethany) – His decisive goal and strong performance throughout the game earned him this honour.

Coach’s Man of the Match: Ben Krovina (Kent College) – Recognized for his work ethic and impact on the game.

Football | Bethany 2nd XI v Kent College

Blustery and rain-soaked conditions welcomed the 2^nd XI boy’s arrival at Kent College for their second match of the season. Bethany started the match playing into a strong wind and were soon under pressure from what looked like a strong opposition.

Despite an early change in formation to a back five in defence, Bethany found themselves 3 nil down within just 15 minutes. Kent College relentlessly pushed forward with wave after wave of attacks and added two more goals to their tally, which left Bethany somewhat reeling at 5 nil down at half-time.

Unfortunately, Bethany had no substitutions to call upon but after a rousing half-time team talk from George Vincent (not playing due to injury but taking on the role of Assistant Manager) and with the wind now in their favour, the 2^nd XI fared better in the second half. A slight change in midfield helped the team to have more possession and create more opportunities near the Kent College goal.

As the game entered the last quarter of the match Bethany’s tenacity was rewarded with probably the best of all the goals of the match. Following a good passage of play on the left-hand side of the pitch, Bethany were awarded a corner. Up stepped Nicholas Ewer who struck the perfect inswinger directly into the top right-hand corner of the goal! The opposition Keeper was rooted to the spot, he had no chance!

Everyone worked hard in the game, but it was David de la Roz Flynn whose energy and steely determination saw him always looking to put pressure on the Kent College defence.

Even though Kent College added another 5 goals, the 2^nd XI boys should be proud of how they kept going until the very end. A tough day at the office but the only way is up!

Result – Bethany 2^nd XI 1-10 Kent College

Bethany Goal Scorer – Nicholas Ewer

Coaches Player of the Match – David de la Roz Flynn

Football | Bethany U13A v Dulwich (Away)

First Half: Dulwich College fielded a strong Year 8 team, while Bethany presented a mixed squad of Year 7 and Year 8 players. From the outset, Dulwich played attacking football, taking full advantage of the large pitch. Their swift, flowing play led to frequent attacks, and it wasn’t long before they opened the scoring. Despite this, Bethany’s defence held firm at times, with standout performances in the backline. Goalkeeper Steve Kalkouris was instrumental, making several remarkable saves to keep the score line from escalating early on.

Second Half: The second half mirrored the first, with Dulwich maintaining their dominance. Steve Kalkouris continued his superb performance, denying Dulwich on multiple occasions. However, their relentless pressure eventually broke through, and Dulwich added three more goals to their tally. Despite Bethany’s efforts, Dulwich emerged with a commanding victory.

Final Score: Dulwich College 7-0 Bethany.

Bethany’s Man of the Match: Frank Cavill

Football | Bethany U13B v Dulwich (Away)

Bethany U13 B travelled to Dulwich for a tough match that tested their resilience. Dulwich took an early lead, but Bethany quickly responded with an equalizer, showing great spirit. As the game progressed, playing conditions worsened, with the wind making it increasingly difficult for Bethany to mount a consistent challenge.

Despite battling hard, Bethany struggled to keep up in the final quarter, and Dulwich added three more goals to secure a 4-1 win. Although the result didn’t go Bethany’s way, it was a valuable learning experience, with several key performances.

Player of the Match: Andrew Stubblefield
Coaches’ Player: Gus Tomlinson

Football | Bethany U13C v Dulwich (Away)

As the late summer weather gave way to the first of proper Autumn wind and rain, the U13 C boys took on a Dulwich School Cranbrook. Unfortunately, Dulwich had been affected by several pupil absences, which meant a 6 a side game instead of the usual 9 a side. Although this allowed for more space on the pitch for everyone, it also meant a hastily needed change of plans for the u13 C’s.

Bethany started the game very strongly and took an early led through Captain Arthur Seale. There was again some solid defensive work from Alex Munthali and Ashwin Mann once again which kept early Dulwich attacks at bay. When the opposition did break the defensive line there was no way past Bethany’s Goalkeeper, Alistair Goodman, who had an excellent first game in goal.

Midway through the first half, Dulwich managed to get an equaliser but then another excellent cross from Harry Morgan on the right wing, found Kip Duncan who restored Bethany’s lead. However, Dulwich started the second half strongly and scored two quick goals. This along with some rolling substitutions disrupted the U13 C’s flow in the match which led to large gaps being left in midfield from Dulwich utilised to score to more goals. Despite a consultation third goal from Arthur Seale, a combination of unlucky shots against the post and crossbar and a determined Dulwich team, Bethany struggled to get back into the game. Now onto next week.

Result – Bethany U13 C 3-6 Dulwich School Cranbrook

Bethany Goals – Kip Duncan – 1 / Arthur Seale – 2

Joint Coaches Players of the Match – Alistair Goodman and Harry Morgan

Football | Bethany U13D v Dulwich (Away)

Wednesday 25 September marked the inaugural outing of the U13 D football team (‘the mighty D’s) as they took on Dulwich school. The confident opposition took on an early lead but inspirational effort from Oliver Martin and Freddie Crampin saw us equalising before half time.

The second half was marred by terrible conditions and It is clear we need to work on our shooting at goal because the second half saw no fewer than 20 shots at goal, all of them wide. This did demonstrate just how dominant we were in the midfield, spending the majority of the time in the opponent’s half. I think with a bit more training and playing together as a unit the mighty D’s have a glorious future ahead of them.

A special mention needs to go to Archie Barnes who demonstrated outstanding sportsmanship. After putting in a robust but perfectly legal tackle on an opposing player, Archie walked away from the ball and stopped play to ensure that the floored player was ok and helped him back on to his feet. While it caused this coach to lose even more of his hair, it was a particularly nice moment appreciated by the spectators.

Final Score – Bethany 1 – Dulwich 1

Coaches Player – Oliver Martin

Player of the m Freddy Crampin

Football | Bethany Girls U13 v Farringtons School (Away)

Following on from their first outing as the first ever Girl’s football team in Bethany’s history, the U13 Girls played their first away match against Farringtons School. Incidentally, Bethany have been ahead of the curve when it comes to girls’ football because more schools are starting up girls teams and so the number of fixtures for the U13’s is growing, which is great news!

Back to the match against Farringtons School. The team arrived with much excitement which meant the U13’s took a little while to get organised and it was Farringtons who took advantage by taking an early lead. The u13’s then conceded a second after a little bit of a mix up at the back. However, as the first half progressed the U13’s began to grow into the game with good interplay and understanding between Darcie Vidler, Juniper Ambrose-Gordon and Olivia Garrett. Mid-way through the first half, the U13’s opened their account with a goal from Darcie Vidler and despite Farringtons adding another, the U13’s scored again with Olivia Garrett scoring after a goal line scramble.

As well as the players from last year, a good contingent of new Y7’s have joined the squad and so the second half was a time to get as many of the team involved as was possible (thanks to Farringtons’ encouragement too). Despite a few issues with formations, the U13’s scored the final goal of the match as the ball was played through to Darcey Stone who smashed the ball home to give the U13’s a deserved third goal.

Despite the defeat this match was another important step in the team’s progression and with more match experience and training the U13’s will be at the level of their recent opponents in no time at all.

Result – Bethany U13 Girls 3-6 Farringtons School

Bethany Goals – Darcie Vidler, Olivia Garrett and Darcey Stone

Player of the Match – Darcie Vidler

Football | Bethany U15A v Farringtons School (Away)

Match Report: Farringtons vs Bethany

First Half

Farringtons started the match as the more dominant side, with their two academy players making an immediate impact. Their composure on the ball and tactical awareness allowed them to control the pace early on. Bethany struggled to keep their lines compact, leaving too much space between their defence, midfield, and attack. This vulnerability led to two long-range goals from Farringtons, who took full advantage of the gaps in Bethany’s formation. By halftime, Farringtons held a comfortable 2-0 lead, with Bethany needing to regroup on the large pitch.

Second Half

Bethany came out in the second half with renewed determination, tightening the gaps between their lines and pressing more effectively. This change in approach allowed them to close down Farringtons’ midfield and win back possession higher up the pitch. Their hard work paid off when Max found the net to reduce the deficit to 2-1, putting Farringtons under pressure. Farringtons began to panic as Bethany gained momentum, but they managed to restore their two-goal cushion with a goal against the run of play. Bethany, undeterred, continued to push forward, and Alvaro scored their second goal to bring the score to 3-2. Despite a spirited effort from Bethany, they were unable to find an equalizer before the final whistle.

Final Score: Farringtons 3-2 Bethany

Man of the Match Max Morgan

Football | Bethany U15B v Farrington School (Away)

Bethany U15 B travelled to Farrington’s on Tuesday afternoon and took control of the game early on. Dominating the left side of the pitch, Toby Chapman and Oliver Candeloro linked up well, creating several chances. Their strong play paid off when Candeloro scored a brilliant goal into the top left corner. Shortly after, Candeloro added a second, sending Bethany into halftime with a 2-0 lead.

The second half saw Farrington’s make changes and increase the physicality of the game. Bethany found themselves under pressure, but goalkeeper Harry Jermyn made an outstanding save to keep the score at 2-0. Farrington’s then pulled a goal back, pushing hard for an equalizer, but Bethany’s defence, with impressive performances from Alfie Munthali, Tom Gerrish, and Jago Veale, stood firm.

In the closing minutes, Bethany caught Farrington’s on the counter-attack, with Candeloro completing his hat-trick to secure a 3-1 victory. Candeloro was named Player of the Match, while Alfie Munthali earned Coaches’ Player for his excellent defensive work.

Hockey | Bethany U15 v Radnor House

This week the U15 girls had a match against Radnor House. Unfortunately Radnor turned up with 7 players, but a few of our girls very kindly stepped up to play for them, which made for a very exciting game of hockey. The game was tied at 1-1 until the final quarter where we managed to score two wonderfully worked goals to make the final score 3-1. Hard work from training the day before definitely showed during the game, onwards and upwards from here!

Players player: Cecily – lovely skills and passing.

Coaches player: Amelia Bickford – unselfish play leading to a goal.

Hockey | Bethany 1st XI v Dover College

Today the girls 1st XI played Dover College in a slightly rainy fixture. It was a dominant display with a 10-1 win. I was very impressed with how the girls played, with some nice skills and teamwork across the pitch. A special mention goes to the captain Elsa Taylor who managed to score four spectacular goals, and lead the team tremendously. This team has huge potential, and it will be exciting to see how they improve week on week. Well done girls!

Players Player: Safi Chettiar – great skills and goal scoring.

Coaches Player: Ellie Turner – lovely speed and effort down the right hand side.

Hockey | Bethany U13B v St Ronans

Today the U13b girls played St Ronans in a very close encounter. After going behind early, the girls responded well with great passing and movement, with a very good team goal being finished off by Holly. Although they lost 4-3 in the end, I was very impressed with how the team worked together both in defence and attack, which is an improvement from last week.

Players player: Betsy – great speed and skills shown throughout.
Coaches player: Holly – great energy as always, did well to mark their best player.

Bowling Bonanza: Boarders’ Strike Night!

Last Saturday was Home Weekend and it was wonderful to have so many of our boarders opting to stay at School and take part in some fun activities.

The morning started with a hearty breakfast, after which we set off for Hollywood Bowl at Tunbridge Wells.

The bowling was great fun with lots of competitive minds and good humour on show. Following bowling, we headed for Tunbridge Wells where pupils were enabled to choose their own lunch venue and go shopping; one pupil even managed to get a hair cut! We returned to School at 4pm after a day well spent.

The Power and Purpose of Drawing

Sports Afternoon 2024

GCSE Results 2024: Bethany pupils achieve record breaking results

A Level Results 2024: Record number of A* and A grades for Bethany Pupils

Expedition to Tanzania with True Adventure

Bethany Enrichment Week