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Competition Results for July 2011

Thursday, July 14th, 2011

A very quiet month, however there are now four Saxons in the top 100 of men’s foil.

Norfolk Open  – 16th  July

Chris Mollard and Edz Maldoom travelled up to East Anglia. Edz came 18th and Chris came 22nd.

National Rankings as at 31.07.2011

Men’s Foil
63 P Lowen
78 C Mollard
90 D Standen (as Manchester Uni.)
93 E Maldoom
134 P Dempsey
162 W Eisa
182 N Mort
248 P Harden
444 O Robinson
452 J Oates
550 R Albesa

Women’s Foil
157 B Lowen

Men’s Epee
279 D Standen
491 A. Gunn Cunninghame

Men’s Sabre
243 A Medhurst

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Competition Results for April 2011

Wednesday, April 6th, 2011

Saxon Novices – 2^ND April

A quiet month got off to big start for a number of Saxon members with the third Saxon Novice Competition.

The men’s foil was dominated by two young fencers from other clubs – Edward Sage of St Nuits and the winner Conner Manning of Kingston, although mention should be made of Anthony Badger’s direct elimination match against Conner where the Saxon member, just off the beginners course, pushed the young man all the way and nearly beat him.

The women’s foil was won by Lynn Holmes of Egham who just beat Saxon’s Elzette Roelofse in the final while Tanya Reid managed a bronze medal. Elzette who was returning from injury had not been fencing regularly but stormed into the final – her return to fencing seems to have stalled since then.

The final results were.

Men’s Foil

• Jack Robertson 6th
• Anthony Badger 8th
• Peter Robertson 11th
• Michael Potter 13th
• Barnaby Austin 16th

Women’s Foil

• Elzette Roelofse 2nd
• Tanya Reid 3rd
• Lucie Maldoom 8th

Birmingham Open Foil

The Birmingham Open Foil was held on the 23rd of April and two Saxon fencers made their way up north to compete.

In a very strong field there were 103 competitors and Chris Mollard came a good 50th, while Patrick Dempsey came 86th.

National Rankings as at 30.04.2011

Men’s Foil
94 D Standen (as Manchester Uni.)
102 E Maldoom
103 P Lowen
134 C Mollard
136 P Dempsey
146 W Eisa
303 N Mort
412 P Harden
435 J Oates (as Gadaski)

Women’s Foil
25 A Mitchell (as Aldershot)

Men’s Epee
287 D Standen

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Competition Results for March 2011

Tuesday, March 1st, 2011

British Veterans Championship 5.3.2011

Two Saxons made it to the Veterans’ Foil in Gloucester this year. Paul Harden came 44th while Paul Lowen came 14th but still managed to confirm his selection for the British Vets squad for the World Championships in October.

Invicta Foil  19.3.2011

A total of six Saxons made to the Invicta in Canterbury this, with Edz Maldoom now fighting under the Saxon banner, this obviously inspired him so that when he met fellow clubmate Chris Mollard in the first round of the D/E he beat him. The other notable event of the day was the return to competitions of Nick Mort, who if there had been a prize for the loudest shouter of the day would have won this easily.
The final results for Men’s Foil tries were:

• P.Lowen 10th
• P.Dempsey 18th
• N.Mort 22nd
• E.Maldoom 26th
• P.Harden 34th
• C.Mollard 39th

National Rankings as at 31.03.2011

Men’s Foil
100 D Standen (as Manchester Uni.)
107 E Maldoom
108 P Lowen
125 P Dempsey
148 W Eisa
161 C Mollard
301 N Mort
419 P Harden
438 J Oates (as Gadaski)
Women’s Foil
20 A Mitchell (as Aldershot)

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Competition Results for February 2011

Sunday, February 13th, 2011

Slough Open 5.2.2011

This year’s competition held in Rickmansworth saw eleven entries from Saxon members plus one from Alex Williamson (a friend of Chris Mollard) who guested as a Saxon and came 24th. This was a strong competition especially in the ladies foil where approximately 40 out the 45 fencers were in the top 100, Alice Mitchell came a very good 7th. Edz Maldoom entered under the 126 banner and had the misfortune to have Wayil Eisa in his pool who beat him and effectively put him out of the last 64.

The final results were:

Men’s Foil – 87 entries
P.Lowen 31st
W.Eisa 56th
D.Standen 58th
C.Mollard 59th
P.Dempsey 62nd
J.Oates 77th
E.Maldoom (as 126 still) 79th
P.Harden 83rd

Women’s Foil – 45 entries
A.Mitchell 7th
B.Lowen 37th

Men’s  Epee – 120 entries
D.Standen 31st

Hampshire Open 12.2.11

Patrick Dempsey did well and came 13th out of 52 entries.

Merseyside Open 19.2.11

Wayil Eisa took a week off from partying to brave the wilds of the North West and got a good result of 23rd out of 72.

National Rankings as at 28.2.11

Men’s Foil
102 D Standen (as Manchester Uni.)
109 E Maldoom (as 126)
120 P Dempsey
132 P Lowen
139 W Eisa
171 C Mollard
432 J Oates (as Gadaski)
438 P Harden

Women’s Foil
17 A Mitchell (as Aldershot)

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Competition Results for January 2011

Tuesday, January 18th, 2011

Aldershot Open 8.1.2011

On a cold January day four Saxons fought in the Men’s Foil in a field of forty two, with David Standen achieving a very good result by coming fifth.
The final results were:

• D Standen 5th
• E Maldoom (fighting under the 126 banner) 15th
• P Lowen 22nd
• C Mollard 25th

Cambridge Open 15.1.2011

The following week saw five Saxons make the journey to Cambridge. Paul Lowen and Chris Mollard radically improved their form of the previous week by coming eighth and tenth respectively out of a field of fifty one. The day also saw Paul Harden make his return to the competition circuit after many many years.
The final results were:

• P Lowen 8th
• C Mollard 10th
• E Maldoom (fighting under the 126 banner again) 22nd
• J Oates (fighting under the Gadaski banner) 35th
• P Harden 45th

Veteran National Age Groups 22.1.11

Three of Saxon’s more elderly members travelled to Milton Keynes to compete in this championships.

Adrian Medhurst equaled his previous years position of third place in the CAT1 (40-49) Sabre while Anthony Brown and Paul Lowen entered the CAT2 (50-59) Foil. Anthony came 14th and Paul came 3rd after a barrage for second place.

National Rankings as at 31.1.2011

Men’s Foil
109 D Standen (as Manchester Uni.)
113 E Maldoom (as 126)
115 P Dempsey
145 P Lowen
169 W Eisa
188 C Mollard
436 J Oates (as Gadaski)
442 A Brown
442 P Harden
Women’s Foil
18 A Mitchell (as Aldershot)

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Beginners Sign Up

Wednesday, September 23rd, 2009

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South East Regional Foil

Friday, July 3rd, 2009

Two Saxons took part in the South East Regional Foil on 21st June at the University of Kent. Wayil Eisa, fast becoming ubiquitous on these pages was joined by Oliver Robinson in his first competitive outing.
For a first competition, Oliver had an excellent poule, winning 3 of his 5 poule matches, before going out in the last 16 to take 10th place out of 19 competitors.
Wayil also won three poule matches, and took an early, big lead in his last 16 encounter. He then came close to throwing away all his good work by letting his lead slip away and letting the bout get far too exciting at 14-14. Fortunately his nerve held and he took the last point to earn a quarter final place.
This was as far as he went, but can be pleased with his 8th place.

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City of Chichester Open

Wednesday, May 27th, 2009

Four Saxons took part in the inaugural City of Chichester Open at the weekend.

Paul Lowen, Wayil Eisa and Edz Maldoom fought amongst 52 men in the Foil whilst Cat Crossley was one of 24 female foilists. Although fields were quite small, there were a number of top fencers in attendance. There was no sabre competition, Chichester being a genteel place and Saxons epeeists were all otherwise engaged. Tyro Steve Donati allegedly overslept

After a slow start, Wayil (seen here resplendent in denim-look lame) came through the two rounds of poules pretty well, winning six from eleven, to seed him 24th. In the incomplete last 64 he nearly threw away his good work with an over aggressive display, finding himself 11-8 down at one point. However after some sage calming advice from skipper Paul at the interval, he changed tactics, took a more defensive approach and turned the bout around to earn a last 32 place. Here he faced the Italian Allessandro Macchiarola, a deft flicker and conceded the first five points without reply. Wayil then once more cannily changed tactics, attacking with repeated fleches. He had marginally the better of the remainder of the bout, but that initially deficit was too much to make up and Wayil went down to an honourable 15-11 defeat. This gave him 24th place overall, his first to half finish in an Open.

Details are sketchier on Edz’ performance (the Ghost being in Derbyshire having pre wedding photos taken) but his poule results just placed him in the bottom half. He won his first DE but was also eliminated in the last 32 to take 31st place, enough to earn him ranking points.

Paul had typically strong poule results, winning all but two of his bouts. This gave him a bye through the first round and a reasonably easy victory in the last 32. In the last 16, however, he also faced Macchiarola. The wily Paul was a better match for the Italian than the athletic but less experienced Wayil. In a cagey bout they exchanged point for point until the end of the nine minutes of fencing time approached. Lowen then found himself a point behind with only fifteen seconds on the clock, forcing him into uncharacteristically reckless attacks which the Macchiarola dealt with to open his lead further when the clock ran down. Just denied a quarter final place, Paul was 11th overall.

In the Women’s’ Foil Cat, bravely taking on such a high standard tournament so early in her fencing career, finished 22nd. The experience against some high quality fencers can only serve to help her achieve her potential.

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Saxon Golden Anniversary Novice Foil

Tuesday, April 7th, 2009

On sunday 29th March, to celebrate our 50th anniversary, Saxon hosted its Golden Anniversary Novice Foil at St. Benedict’s School. 27 Fencers from as far afield as Eton and Fulham gathered to compete in the competition for fencers with less than 2 years in the sport. Two rounds of mixed poules, (round robin mini-leagues of 5 point bouts) were fought foughtto seed a men’s and women’s direct elimination tableau, seamlessly administered by John as the Directeur Technical and refereed by a motely crew of Saxons and celebrity guests.

Women

The women’s competition featured 11 fencers, the good turn out attributed by some to Paul’s impressive recruiting charm. Elzette Roelofse struggled in her poules, so had to fight Rosie Cuss of St. Benedict’s for a 1/4 final place. Sadly it was not Elzette’s day and she went out 15-10. The talented Julliete Allibone was a little off colour and out of practice. She had below par, poules, then powered past St. Benedict’s Philly Codrington to face Cat Crossley in the 1/4 final, where her day ended.

Sharon Thomas faired well in the poules with the men, taking 2nd woman’s seeding, her direct, belligerant (I agreed not to call her agressive) style pushing her past Rosie in the quarter finals to earn her a well deserved semi final place. This pitted her up against Hanna Mahal of Eaton. Hanna proved a very good fencer who maintained her distance well and showed excellent blade work. She went ahead early and despite a brave rally by Sharon in the middle points, it was Hanna who took her place in the final.

The elegant Madeline Bell, seeded as the 4th woman after the poules, went straight to the quarter final where she comfortably beat Jane Beeston. This drew her against Cat Crossley. Cat, a Club des Artiste fencer who has since joined Saxon, was the surprise package of the day. Her strong poules seeded her second amongst the women and she did well to beat Juliette. The Madeline-Cat Semi was an intriguing match. Madeline was ahead through most of the match and at 13-10 up seemed to have the bout sewn up. Cat was undaunted however and with Yorkshire grit hung in to take the bout to 14-14, then snatch the final point.

In the final Hanna’s class showed. Probably the best technnical fencer amongst the women she was compact with a very neat, well timed parry riposte which served her well all day. Cat never gave up, but Hanna opened an early lead that she was never going to give up so became the first Saxon novice champion.

Men

With 16 men there was a full tableaux, with all the men having to fight for their 1/4 final place. Steve Donati, another subsequently recruited Club des Artiste fencer was a pre tournament favourite. However his poule results placed him in the middle of the field so he had tough bouts from the first. His first opponent, Vittorio Spadadavecchia may not move on the piste as well as Steve, or be as easy to spell, but he makes up for it in strength and competitiveness. 8th after the poules, he powered his way into the quarter final against Christian Chilton. Christian, another fencer fancied for the title, finished the pouled as top seed had an easy first round match, but then found Vittorio, a frequent sparring partner on Thursday nights, sterner competition. It went right to the wire, before Vittorio took the bout 15-14.

Goldbert Dy, Brunel fencer and occassional Saxon had very moderate poules, winning only 4/10 and seeding 12th. He then picked his game up, easily beating James Pepper in the last 16 to face Adam Jeavons in the 1/4 final. Adam had been fencing well all day, making full use of his height and seeding 4th then getting a solid win in his first DE. Goldbert however fenced a very intellegent bout, closing the distance quickly and negating Adam’s longer reach. Adam had no answer and Goldbert went through comfortably.

In the semi final Goldbert again fenced a good tactical game, his fast footwork being too much for the less experienced Vittorio. Vittorio, one of the form fencers of the day, fenced well, but Goldbert always looked like taking the final spot.

The other half of the tableau was rather thin on Saxon fencers. Christopher Cockburn, after good poules, found himself against Damien Bienias, another surprise package on the day who beat him on the way to the final. Edward Bentley fenced superbly in the poules, winning all 10 bouts, seeding 2nd, just behind Christian. He will be still be kicking himself for going out to Anthony Brown in the first round.

The final between Goldbert and Damien was a bout between two young, fast energetic fencers. Damien had fenced well throughout the DEs, and the clash of steel rang around the St. Benedicts cloister from the start. Goldbert, though, clearly has a good fencing brain and fenced the better bout, coming away as men’s champion.

Results – Saxon Golden Anniversary Novice Foil Championship 2009

Women
1. Hanna Mahal – Eton
2. Cat Crossley – Club Des Artistes
3= Madeline Bell – Saxon
3= Sharon Thomas – Saxon
5. Jane Beeston – St. Benedict’s
6. Amber Mahal – Eton
7. Juliette Allibone – Saxon
8. Rosie Cuss – St. Benedict’s Club
9. Elzette Roelofse – Saxon
10. Philly Codrington – St. Benedict’s
11. Virginia Curran – St. Benedict’s

Men
1 Goldbert Dy – Brunel
2 Damian Bienias – St. Benedict’s School
3= Vittorio Spandadavecchia – Saxon
3= Nathan Garnham – St. Benedict’s School
5. Christian Chilton – Saxon
6. Jan Knapp – Club Des Artistes
7. Adam Jeavons – Saxon
8. Anthony Brown – St. Benedict’s
9. Edward Bentley – Saxon
10. James Pepper – Egham
11. Christopher Cockburn – Saxon
12. Steve Donati – Club Des Artistes
13. Rupert Belsham –St. Benedict’s School
14. Nic Wassall – Club Des Artistes
15. Matthew Brackenbury – St. Benedict’s School
16. George de Cintra – St. Benedict’s School

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Ranking Round Up

Tuesday, March 3rd, 2009

The British Fencing Association runs a system of national rankings for fencers in each weapon and a number of Saxons have such rankings. This is a slightly complex system whereby in any designated National Open or International competion, any Fencer finishing in the last 64 or top 3/4 of the field (whichever is less) scores points based on a formula based on the size of the field, the quality of the fencers competing and the fencer’s finishing position. The ranking is based on the best six results in the previous 12 months, on a rolling basis (are you following so far?).

Men’s Foil

David Standen, although he has slipped back from 162nd to 199th is still the highest ranked Saxon Fencer, after earning recent ranking points at Slough and Hampshire.

Fred Thomas’ ranking is slightly handicapped by his only competing in one Open per year. Nonetheless, as he did better at Slough than last year, earning him 263rd place.

Wayil Eisa earned his first ranking points at the Mersyside Open, moving him onto the ranking ladder in the Men’s Foil in 415th place. This will improve rapidly as he fences more tournaments.

Edz Maldroom missed out on qualification at Slough and points at Hampshire, both by the narrowist of margins. However after a year of steady improvement including a number of good results, he ranks 261st.

Men’s Epee

Saxon’s sole representative outside of the foil is Grant Smith in the Men’s Epee. His points at Slough have at least slowed down his plummeting ranking, putting him in 219th.

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