b'As the Cricket season began the rain came out to play, as the month of May decided it did not want to see competitive fixtures, but we persevered and managed to get some games played, to the sheer delight of pupils, desperate to represent the school and enjoy the team dynamic that many of them had missed. It was also great to see two prominent girl cricket players, make full representation for the first XI, congratulations to Georgia Munro and Emily Ashley as girls cricket and the numbers playing continues to go from strength to strength.We saw the return of the LTA tournaments at the Indoor Tennis facility and all of our academy groups back doing the things they love and further developing the skill and abilities they have. Not to be missed, the cross country for Sixth Form made an early appearance along with House Golf and the UK Maths challenges. The traditional House Dinners could not operate as normal so this year they were replaced with a House Barbecue on the Terraces, which was greatly appreciated by all involved and proved to be big hit with the pupils (Wakeman-Lambart even brought croquet back to Ellesmere on the Terrace lawn, which was certainly a nod to tradition).School, as with life, is a learning curve, and we as a community have learnt much over this last 18 months. We have learnt much about ourselves, we have understood the importance of those simple things and the things we often take for granted - family and health. At the same time, the pupils have been pragmatic and dealt with what life has presented and continued to move forward. It has been great to see the whole community of pupils, parents and staff work and support each other through this most difficult of periods and we have certainly come out of this stronger as a community.Stephen Mullock Deputy HeadExternal RelationsEllesmere College Newsletter Summer 2021 35'