Taylorian

4

TAYLORIAN 2024 FROM THE HEAD MASTER

An Introduction from the Head Master

A s I write this introduction, I have just heard news of a sensational victory for our U18 cricket team, who went to Whitgift and comprehensively beat them in the National &up. :e are now through to the Tuarterfinals and :hitgift one of the leading sporting schools in the country can reflect on three defeats at our hands in the last two years, with no wins to their name. This is in a cricket season in which we have also whitewashed %erNhamsted 6chool oYer fixtures and 6t 3aulÖs 6chool oYer fixtures . 7ruly 076 is at the forefront of schoolboy cricket nationally. Richard Mulcaster – our first Head Master – would be proud, as he was one of the pioneers of school sport. You will hear other examples of his thinking later in this edition of the Taylorian , where I quote from his 1581 book on education in my St Barnabas’ Day speech. The book is called ‘Positions’ (Positions Wherein Those Primitives Circumstances be Examined, Which are Necessaries for the Training Up of Children, Either for Skill in Their Booke, or Health in Their Bodie) . Mulcaster was the first to promote healthy physical activity, alongside Greek, Latin and Hebrew. He is credited with the earliest introduction of organised team football into English schools. We can let him off his choice of football over cricket, rugby or hockey, as those sports had not been invented yet.

In his book, Mulcaster mentions the positive effects football has on the pupils’ health and strength, as well as the educational value of the sport. He was one of the first advocates of the introduction of referees, although he was a little overconfident that their decisions would be respected: ‘For if one stand by, which can judge of the play, and is judge over the parties, & hath authoritie to commande in the place, all those inconveniences have bene, I know, & wilbe I am sure very lightly redressed, nay they will never entermedle in the matter, neither shall there be complaint, where there is no cause.’ I wonder what he would make of VAR. Mulcaster’s discussion on football was the first to refer to teams (‘sides’ and ‘parties’), positions (‘standings’), the benefits of a referee (‘judge over the parties’) and a coach (‘trayning maister’). He writes: ‘Some smaller number with such overlooking, sorted into sides and standings, not meeting with their bodies so boisterously to trie their strength: nor shouldring or shuffing one another so barbarously ... may use footeball for as much good to the body, by the chiefe use of the legges’. Well, it is good to be guided by tradition; Mulcaster would be pleased to note that his school is still doing good to the body, through the use of the legs. Enjoy this year’s Taylorian magazine. Mr S. J. Everson