In a tightly contested final, ABH (Jourdelay’s) were crowned winners of Senior House Ties 2025, clinching a 1-0 victory over a dominant PAH (Cotton Hall House) side.
After yet another enthralling campaign of upsets, heartbreaks and footballing prowess, two sides remained vying for their chance to lift the coveted Cartwright Cup. ABH, standing on the cusp of history, were attempting to win their House’s first Senior Football Ties in over 50 years. Opposite them, PAH were seeking to make a different kind of history: winning their third straight House Ties after Field Game and Cricket earlier in the year, to achieve the ‘Calendar Year Treble’.
It is rare for a Ties Final to be contested between the 1st and 2nd Seeds, but that being the case this year is testament to the class and quality that both Houses displayed on their run to the final. By no means had it been easy—at times both Houses were pushed to their sporting limits—but this time around, the cream had truly risen to the top.
From the first whistle, PAH established control, dictating the tempo through midfield orchestrator Judah C, who kept the focus on penetrating the ABH defence. Their patient, possession-based approach pinned ABH in their own half for much of the game. Despite their territorial dominance and several promising buildups, PAH found a breakthrough frustratingly elusive, with the final pass often missing its mark.
ABH’s victory was built upon a foundation of resolute defending. While the entire back line worked tirelessly, it was Tilewa A who provided notable defensive class, making a series of crucial interventions to keep the scoreline level during PAH’s most sustained periods of pressure.
At half time, it was all square: ABH 0-0 PAH.
The decisive moment arrived against the run of play in the second half. Exploiting a rare turnover, ABH launched a swift counter-attack. The move found Max M, the ABH striker, bursting into the PAH box. With defenders unable to close him down completely and the goalkeeper caught out, he displayed incredible composure, lofting a perfect chip that floated over the keeper’s outstretched arms, and into the back of the net.
It was the chip heard around the world for the ABH supporters, who went wild on the sidelines. Amid the roars and cheers, you could see the beginning of belief on their faces; the image of the Cartwright Cup gleaming in the ABH’s trophy cabinet was starting to feel real.
Trying to recover from the setback, PAH pressed on and won two dangerous free-kicks in promising positions near the box in the closing stages. While the first went clear, the second came agonisingly close to an equaliser, the ball pinballing around the six-yard box in a desperate scramble before ABH somehow managed to hack it away. Disaster averted, the navy and white camp was subdued, but buoyed by their lead kept the noise going to the end.
The final whistle confirmed a victory for the ages, carved out through defensive resilience and a single, beautiful moment of inspiration from the ABH attack.
With such equally matched sides and calculated play, this final was ultimately decided by individual quality, with ABH’s chance conversion ultimately securing the trophy, in a final where PAH can only feel they deserved more for their efforts.
In the leadup to the match, Mr Henshilwood, House Master of Jourdelay’s, was keen to stress that ABH’s record is nothing if not a group effort: “I’m proud of not just the team but the House coming out to support… and the boys are really getting behind the side.”
Always level-headed, he and his squad captain explained that their team went in unburdened by the past, saying: “We’re just really excited to play the final, and…hope that the boys can show the sort of football that they can play.”
As it turned out for ABH, that ‘sort of football’ is tournament-winning.
With thanks to the editors of The Dugout for their contributions
