Altrincham Grammar School for Boys Crowned Splatoon 3 Champions
Altrincham Grammar School for Boys Crowned Splatoon 3 Champions
Last week saw our four finalists come together at WASD to battle it out for the championship title and take home the trophy as the first winners of our latest iteration of the Digital Schoolhouse Senior Tournament in our latest title, Splatoon 3.
The competing schools had competed through the school heats, regional qualifiers and semi-final events and it truly was anyones game to win as the first match kicked off. But it was Altrincham Grammar School for Boys' team, AGSB, who fought their way up from the loser bracket to come out on top.
Southend High School for Boys' team, SHSB Esports, finished in second place, followed by Outwood Academy City's OAC Esports and Hinchley Wood School's Tidal Wave team.
Players went away with some incredible prizes, included branded merchandise from our programme lead partners and tournament sponsors, Nintendo UK, including a framed art piece for the AGSB team to display back in school. The winners and runners up were also awarded with medals and trophies recognising their incredible achievement and skill.
All teams carried the weight of expectation following some intense matches in the semi-final events in March but despite the rivalries, the ongoing sportsmanship and respect for all teams was a joy to witness. Players regularly acknowledged their rival teams in post-match speeches with the grand final host, Alysia Judge, and there were handshakes all around at the end of the event, along with incredible support from the wider audience during some seriously close matches!
Beyond the players
This year saw the return of our Creative Careers Competitions, with categories in commentating, producing and journalism up for grabs on the day.
We were honoured to be joined once again by Nimmz and BowietheHero in the commentator box, supporting 9 students who had progressed through the previous stages, developing their skills and confidence with commentating. This was one of our strongest cohorts of commentators yet and while everyone gave it their all to bring the energy, excitement and enthusiasm to the the matches, Dax from St John Fisher Catholic High School and Albert from Southend High School for Boys were selected as the winners.
New to this year's tournament was the producer competition, judged by Damon Bates, founder of ZMS Esports Studio. This saw students take control of the in-game view, working with the commentators to create an engaging experience for the audience both in-person and online. Josh from Hinchley Wood School was selected as the winner of this tournament and both he and the commentator winners went away with trophies, medals and an incredible new elgato Stream Deck+ each too, courtesy of Scan Computers.
Our journalism competition returned once again this year, with the support of Dom Sacco, freelance journalist and editor at Esports News UK. It was Dax from St John Fisher Catholic High School who came away with another top prize for their love letter to commentating and the impact it has had on their confidence. Their winning entry will be posted on Esports News UK soon.
"They have blossomed from someone who would normally shy away from big crowds, into now [...] conducting impromptu interviews with the competing squads to find out more about the people behind the characters to aid with their commentating. They are an absolute natural in front of the microphone and the skills developed during this year's tournament will continue to support them well into the future."
"I want to give a heartfelt thank you to the teachers and students that take part. In today’s landscape you’ve got to be a visionary as a teacher to a certain extent to take the leap and try esports. And to the industry, I feel like they have truly embraced and backed Digital Schoolhouse. We always get such a positive and warm response, and that’s been spectacular."
