#Trinity60‍

What first brought you to Trinity in 1962, and what made you stay for so long?
I was happily teaching at Rutlish School, where no hockey was played, only rugby. That suited me well because it meant I could continue playing club hockey myself during the winter and spring terms. In the summer, I coached and umpired the school’s 1st XI cricket team.

In the summer of 1961, Trinity came to play their annual fixture, accompanied by Jack Griffin. In conversation, he asked why I was not teaching at a hockey-playing school and mentioned that Trinity was advertising a Maths post, with hockey as a preferred interest. I expressed my interest.

A few days later, the Headmaster, Oliver Berthoud, rang and invited me for interview. After a short discussion, he offered me the position of Maths teacher combined with responsibility for hockey, which I was delighted to accept. It was too late in the term to give notice at Rutlish, but Mr Berthoud kindly agreed to hold the post for me, so I began at Trinity in January 1962.

When I arrived, I did get something of a shock. There had been talk of an all-weather pitch when the school moved to Shirley Park, but in reality there were just three grass pitches at Sandilands, one of which was very low-lying and often waterlogged. Boys did not start playing hockey until the fourth year, and coaching in poor weather on poor surfaces was a challenge. The all-weather pitch eventually arrived in 1965, laid by the builders. It was basic, but a significant improvement.

What appealed to me greatly was the nature of the direct grant system. There was a real mix of boys from different backgrounds, with strong parental support, and most of the pupils were excellent. The facilities were good at the time and improved considerably over the years, which certainly contributed to my staying.

How did you balance teaching Maths with coaching hockey, and what did you enjoy most about each?
It was a very natural balance. Maths lessons were in the morning, followed by games every afternoon, which suited me perfectly. I coached not only hockey but also rugby, cricket and tennis. I was playing club tennis myself and was the only member of staff playing club squash, which I helped build up from nothing at the school.

I have always been a games player and enjoyed everything, so it was a very enjoyable life. Teaching and sport complemented each other well.

Are there any pupils, teams or matches that particularly stand out from your years coaching hockey?
Not particularly in terms of matches. In the early days, the ground simply was not good enough to support a particularly skilful game.

There were, however, individuals who stood out. Martin Seymour was one of the first really strong players, and I took him along to my club. He later became captain in the Sixth Form. His brother, David, also played, though not at quite the same level. Andrew Tyball was another exceptional all-round sportsman, captaining rugby, cricket and hockey, and later going on to become Headmaster of Ewell Castle School.

We were never a particularly well-known hockey school, and we did not reach national school finals. I always felt I was better at coaching men than younger boys. I coached at Surrey level, where I had played myself, and continued coaching there after I stopped playing.

How did hockey at Trinity change over the years?
The main change during my time was the improvement in facilities. The developments in the game itself largely came after I had finished coaching.

Looking back, what do you hope pupils took away from their time with you, both in the classroom and on the pitch?
In the classroom, I mainly taught fourth and fifth year sets, often the lower sets. I never claimed to be a great mathematician, but that helped me understand the difficulties the boys were facing. My approach was always to support them, and they quickly realised that. As a result, I never had any problems with discipline. I hope they took away enthusiasm and a sense that they were being helped, which is how I approached coaching as well.

Becoming Second Master in my forties was something of a turning point. I was reaching the stage where I felt I was moving beyond coaching and had started to look at deputy head roles elsewhere. Then Oliver Berthoud died and Robin Wilson was appointed Headmaster. When Alan Turner retired, Robin offered me the Deputy Head role.

It was a new challenge and one I greatly enjoyed. I do not think I would have wanted to be a headmaster, but I was well suited to the operational side of running a school. Robin and I complemented each other well. I oversaw much of the day-to-day running of the school, which I enjoyed, although I probably made a few enemies along the way.

In those days there was no bursar, so I took on a wide range of responsibilities, including exams and the timetable, which I managed on my own for 16 years. When I retired in 1995, Bill Tucker remarked that it took five people to replace what I had been doing.

There was a particularly demanding period when Robin was Chairman of HMC, which took him away from the school more than expected. For around three years, alongside major building works, I was effectively running the school while still doing my own job. It was exhausting, and shortly after Robin retired, I decided it was time for me to do the same. I stayed on briefly to support his successor, Barnaby Lenon.

It was all done rather informally. I never had a contract. Robin simply told Peter Shaw he wanted me as Deputy Head, and that was that. We agreed to give each other a year’s notice.

Alongside all of this, I remained involved in Trinity hockey for a good few years. I played for the OMW's 1st and 2nd teams as did Derryn Brand and Ian Marsh who both followed me in charge of School Hockey. Good friends from those days include David Jackman, Colin Green and John Harris among many others. My final games with the 2nd team featured John Bone who was in one of my first 6h form Maths sets at the school in North End. Happy Days!!