St Edmund's

Day 3

The Old Town and Creek was this morning’s excursion and it was good to be out on the water, albeit briefly, for some breeze. Surrounded by traditional buildings and mosques, we made our way through the narrow streets to the gold souk, jewellery and textiles shops. Bracelets and kaffiyeh headdresses were a popular choice for purchase, with some expert haggling on show! A couple of sparkly friends made their way back across the water too, before a quick dash to the Snocone shack, and boarding the coach back to the Damac Mall for a lunch pit stop. 

And then we were off .. to DESC once more for our netball fixtures. We were met by friendly staff and pupils, welcoming us into their covered netball area. Still hot at 3.15pm, the girls did an absolutely brilliant job. We dived into the air conditioning after each 10 minute period to cool down!

DESC are one of the top performing sports schools in the UAE and we were certainly impressed with their high level of skill, movement around the court and accurate shooting. The U15’s swung into action rising to the clear challenge that lay ahead. Some fabulous passing in the attacking half of the court led to goals for Milly and Tabatha. Lucy simply didn’t give up at C, the most demanding position in this heat. At the defensive end Hetty pounced and intercepted, with Angel stretching for the rebounds. Plaudits also to Yasmin and Autumn who played super wing attack and defence respectively, providing the link in mid court, sticking close to their opponents but creating space on attack. Targets were set at the start of the fourth quarter and the girls achieved these, scoring 4 themselves and keeping DESC in check with just 6 scored. 

Mrs Lea reports on the U18 match: 

The girls worked really hard in attack and defence against a well organised team. They had some great passages of attacking play from Lizzie, Elysia and Gabs to build up the pressure. However, the DECS defence was strong, and it was hard to find Betsy and Angelica in the D. In defence, the team worked hard to try and  prevent as many attacks as possible. Chloe (Player of the Match) played brilliantly at GD and won some  great turnovers to get us back on the attacking foot. 

A terrific performance from both teams and again, the most superb work ethic we could ask for. 

Back to the hotel for a dip in the pool to cool down, and a well deserved dinner before bed!