Abingdonian 2018

58 The Abingdonian Shooting This past year has seen the Rifle Club enjoy great success thanks to some most impressive shooting from the club members, who were very ably supported and trained by our coach Alan Smith alongside the new master in charge of Shooting, Mr Johnson. During the Michaelmas Term, our A and B teams participated in Division 1 for both 5 bull and 10 bull in the inter-school leagues, a notable achievement in itself. The C team also shot well in Division 5. All teams faced tough competition, but managed to put in impressive scores across the board. Particular mention should go to Freddy Martin and Drew Farwell, both of whom came second in their respective leagues. In November, the Club also went to the Lord Roberts Centre in Bisley to compete in an inter-schools competition. Abingdon was placed seventh out of 62 competing teams and Noah Keighley won in his age category. Following this, we participated in the annual Winter Open competition, again at Bisley. This is the largest school rifle-shooting competition in England, with around 200 of the best young shooters in the country taking part. The competition was both enjoyable and successful; Noah Keighley again won in his age group, and Drew Farwell came second overall, while also winning his age category. During this term, Drew Farwell was also selected to be in the England A team for the BSSRA Schools National Match, shooting for the winning team. During the Lent Term, the A, B, C and D teams all shot very well in the leagues, with both the B and D team winning their divisions. Drew Farwell came top in the leagues for the A and B team, with James Hogge coming second and third in the same leagues. Near the end of the term, the same boys were both selected to represent the BSSRA at the International Saison Start for Shooters 34th ISAS 2018 in Dortmund, Germany. An outstanding achievement for both boys. The annual shooting competition between Abingdon School and Stade took place during the Easter holiday. As has become tradition, the club travelled to Stade, Germany, to participate in a friendly competition. During the stay, the participants thoroughly enjoyed trips to Hamburg and the U-Boat Museum at Bremerhaven and benefitted from using the host’s electronic ranges for practice before the match. The Abingdonians had hoped to beat their hosts and reclaim the trophy, but after an extremely close- fought competition they lost by a mere 2.5 points. Next year the club members will be welcoming their counterparts from Stade to challenge them on home turf.