Latest news with #JoePhillips
BBC News
01-08-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Gloucs' Phillips hits maiden ton in Middlesex draw
Rothesay County Championship Division Two, College Ground, Cheltenham (day four)Middlesex 445: Williamson 153; M Taylor 3-88Gloucestershire 404-9: Phillips 136; Cornwell 2-55Gloucestershire (15 pts) drew with Middlesex (15 pts)Match scorecard Gloucestershire's Joe Phillips hit his maiden first class century as the rain-ruined County Championship Division Two match with Middlesex ended in an inevitable the third day washout, a still wet outfield prevented any play until 13:25 BST, with a minimum of 68 overs left in the their first innings on 54-1, a deficit of 391, Gloucestershire extended it to 400-9 by stumps, 21-year-old Cornishman Phillips making 136 from 182 balls, with 19 Hammond contributed an attractive 71 and Cameron Bancroft 58. But there had been too little time on a placid pitch for the teams to conjure a decisive outcome and both had to settle for 15 an early lunch at 12:45, Phillips and skipper Bancroft played confidently on a pitch still proving surprisingly straightforward to bat on considering it was shaved at both on 11 at the start, Phillips had a scare on 34 when advancing down the pitch to off-spinner Josh De Caires and edging between wicketkeeper and first slip for four. It was a rare moment of anxiety for Gloucestershire as Bancroft was first to his half-century, off 104 balls, with nine experienced Aussie was looking in prime form and it was a surprise when, with the total advanced to 126, he was bowled off a bottom edge aiming to pull a boundary off left-arm seamer Noah then Phillips was treating the sparse crowd to a range of sweetly-timed strokes off front and back foot, a single to deep cover off Luke Hollman's leg-spin taking him to fifty off 92 deliveries, with five fours. Two more boundaries followed from fierce pull shots in the same Cornwell Price was soon looking equally at home on the two-tone coloured surface. A glorious square drive for four off Ryan Higgins took Truro-born Phillips past his previous best first class score of 80, made on the same ground against Worcestershire in tea, he had moved to 96 and, with Price unbeaten on 33, Gloucestershire were 209-2, still trailing by 236. A looping full toss from Sam Robson gave Phillips the chance to strike the boundary that brought up his century off 145 balls. It was his 15th four and he raised a clenched fist in the air to departed soon afterwards for 34, caught behind top-edging a sweep off Robson's leg-breaks. The dismissal meant a first bowling point for Middlesex on a day their promotion hopes suffered a damaging blow with Glamorgan's victory over and Hammond took Gloucestershire to 250 and a batting point. With more bonus points up for grabs, neither team wanted to shake hands on the his feet well to attack the spinners, Phillips continued on his merry way, while Hammond also went on the attack at every opportunity. Their entertaining stand of 66 in 12.1 overs ended when Phillips holed out to long-on off Hammond, who often flourishes at the Festival, advanced to smack a straight six off Des Caires as Gloucestershire progressed to a second batting point, losing James Bracey cheaply, caught at mid-on off Des Caires with the total on earned Middlesex a second bowling point when having Graeme van Buuren caught at slip. But Hammond moved to a fluent half-century off 63 balls before Zaman Akhter was seventh man out, caught at backward square leg sweeping a ball from Hollman with eight overs remaining.A Hammond six off Hollman took Gloucestershire to a third batting point before he fell aiming to clear long-on off Higgins. With three overs remaining, Middlesex took the second new ball and Cornwell had Matt Taylor caught behind to give his side maximum bowling was still time for a Josh Shaw six off Higgins as he and Todd Murphy helped the hosts reach 400 in the very last over. Both teams could feel happy at the end of a thoroughly entertaining final Reporters' Network supported by Rothesay.
BBC News
12-05-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Esports course boosts Bournemouth SEND pupils' school attendance
A video games course has helped improve the attendance and engagement of students with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), a school has said. Iford Academy in Bournemouth, whose pupils have a range of needs, is running a Level 2 BTec in first group of students to be offered the subject have recently completed the course, which is equivalent to a GCSE. Academy principal Joe Phillips said trying to engage its students can be challenging as some have had "very negative experiences in schools" in the past. "We were looking for an opportunity to give them a topic where they felt they were at the same level as their peers", he added. Lessons typically last an hour, with time split between learning about the business and marketing of esports tournaments, and gaming together as a includes researching and delivering a presentation on the who is a keen gamer and has completed the course said it "makes school fun".He added: "It's helping with my English, because it helps my punctuation when we're typing on the computers." Course leader Alex Allen said he "loves video games" but didn't ever think it would be a subject he would teach."It could not have gone better. Our first Year 11 group to do it - I'm just so proud that they've managed to get through it. They've really stuck at it, I think they've surprised themselves", he has grown in to a huge industry, with hundreds of millions of people playing and watching worldwide and major brands investing in the BTec course highlights potential career opportunities through gaming, Alex Allen said the Academy's main hope is that it will give students "the confidence to know they can lift their aspirations". You can follow BBC Dorset on Facebook, X, or Instagram.
