Cheryl Day and Sarah Dignasse, regional winners in the secondary head of the year award, realised when they looked at the pictures in the winners’

booklet that they had something in common. Well, they’re both female, and the other nine regional winners were all male. But surely there was more to it than that? Wasn’t there something familiar, thought Sarah, in the cheery smile and dark bob of Cheryl, head of Clapton girls’ technology college in east London? And didn’t Cheryl recognise the face of Sarah, now head of the Plume school in Maldon, Essex? But not till they met at the, er, knees-up on the opening night of the national awards ceremony did their memories finally click. They had both attended Chelmsford county high school in Essex, and played in the same hockey team.