In April sixty two Year 8-10 PE students and six staff spent four days in beautiful Malta on a Netball and Football Sports Tour. 

On arrival the footballers traveled to to their training venue for a two- hour session led by Mr Donnelly, Mr Taylor and Mr Holt. The group worked on a variety of skills as a group and also in individual teams. The netballers headed off for their first fixture to play local team, Spirit. The Year 9 team took a strong first lead, 25-21, and the Year 10 team then won 21-18. 

The next morning the group took a trip to the beach and it was great to see all the students from Year 8-10 enjoying their time together playing beach football and volleyball. The footballers then had a recovery training session where they worked on mobility alongside some match-specific skills before setting off for their first set of fixtures.

The Boys' Year 9/10 team performed exceptionally, demonstrating some brilliant football playing through the thirds and breaking the opposition down at will. They also picked up a win - a spirited performance with all players running themselves into the ground as well as playing some exciting football.

The Girls' team came up against the Under 14s Malta National Team, a quality side with some very good players. Although the CHS team didn't get the win in this match, their spirit, resilience and desire to keep performing to the best of their ability was admirable.

The netball team saw three games with a magnificent view overlooking the sea for their netball fixture! Year 8, 9 and 10 won all games and played out of their skin to take the win!  

Friday began with some time to explore the local area, followed by the final set of fixtures for the teams. The boys headed out the their fixtures in the early afternoon followed by the final girls' football game. Once again the girls were met by a physical and skillful team and worked hard to compete with them for the duration of the match. With no specialist CHS goal keeper on tour, the girls took turns in this role, each giving it their all all but ultimately came up short and were unable to secure the win.

Our Year 9/10 boys team came up against a very imposing opposition who were much more physical than them, however their skill shone through as they were able to gain an early 2-0 lead. However the conditions got the better of them and ultimately the game ended 2-2. With only one team left to achieve a clean sweep it was down to Mr Holt and the Year 8/9 team to try to complete a clean sweep. A spirited effort from the whole team - and a header that will be spoken about in CHS folk law for years to come - enabled the team to achieve two wins from two on their tour to Malta.

The final night for the netball team comprised three games against All stars. Year 8 lost their first game by five points, which was very unfortunate against a strong team! Year 9 and 10 then took to the court and remained undefeated for the tour! Well done to Alicia, Freya and Freya J,  who were awarded Players of the Tour! Outstanding hard work and performance throughout.  

Finally, it was time to head home with a stop off in Valetta to learn about the history and culture of Malta through a short 4D film. This, combined with a chance to explore the capital, made for a relaxing and educational end to the tour.

All the students were respectful, polite and gave every aspect of the tour 100% effort. During the tour staff were often stopped in the hotel by guests wanting to pass on their thanks and appreciation for the outstanding behaviour demonstrated by our students. 

A mini highlight for the Malta Sports Tour staff team was bumping in to professional Darts player, Rob Cross, at the airport on the way out. They wished him the best of luck for the Premier League Darts 2025 in Berlin.