Thought For The Day – Thursday 2^nd July 2026 

Addition: An interesting photograph from after last night’s match.  One squad. Leading by example.  Player leadership.  Student leadership.  Good luck to those leading on this morning’s “House Run to School”.

This morning sees the return of our “House Run to School”, as part of Sustainability Awareness.  Details have been e-mailed to students by Mr. Harvey.  Be on time. Represent the “Black and Gold” (and indeed Green) with pride.  Do not push past members of the public, who are also on their respective journeys, but be considerate and thoughtful.   Thank you to all taking part and supervising.

Depending on the route, students may pass our former “home” on London Road, where a sign, at the entrance to the redevelopment currently in progress, now remembers the past, with the following words: “The former Bishop’s Stortford High School”.

Perhaps participating students, and staff,  may be inspired by Harry Kane’s leadership, or whatever sportsperson, and sportsteam, they follow.

Harry Kane has now scored 72 goals in various matches this season and pretty much single-handedly won yesterday evening’s encounter against a fine and impressive Democratic Republic of the Congo team.  Congratulations to D.R. Congo on their excellent tournament.

As regards the England’s men’s football team, they now have the opportunity to play Mexico, at the iconic Azteca Stadium, in Mexico City.  Mexico have lost only two of their last eighty-eight matches at home.

The very significant task for the England team will not only be the passionate home support, and a Mexico team playing very impressively.  The Azteca Stadium is 2,240 meters (7,350 feet) above sea level. Playing at altitude brings challenges, as the England men’s rugby union team, preparing to play an international test match in South Africa, are experiencing.

The respected football writer and broadcaster Henry Winter last evening shared the following historical information.

“When England first played at the Azteca in a tour game against Mexico in 1969 (0-0, 105,000 gate), it was a draining experience for Bobby Charlton and co. Sir Alf Ramsey decided then that to acclimatise properly for the 1970 World Cup Finals in Mexico, they would need to arrive almost a month early.”

As well as effective, and efficient, play, the match will need appropriate, healthy, and meticulous preparation, and prior hydration, sleep and rest, both for those playing, and for any supporting and following.

The last World Cup (Finals) fixture the England men’s team played at this stadium was forty years ago at Mexico were the only hosts of the World Cup Finals . The game then was dominated, for both positive, and negative with regards to one goal, reasons by one player. This player would in go through challenges later in his career, owing to wrong decisions made. But, at the time then, after growing up in poverty in Villa Fiorito, on the outskirts of Buenos Aires in Argentina, and honing his skills in “street football”, he was at the peak of his sporting powers: https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m002wwsb/fifa-world-cup-2026-archive-maradona-v-england-world-cup-1986.