By this time several events, as outlined in the photograph, had already been decided and Oswald House would enter the games on 2 April with a commanding standard points lead over Burnaby and Holbache. On 19 March I calculated that Oswald was leading with 147 standard points and I thought a total of 180 points was achievable if the House performed to its optimum level.

My Diary entry for 19 March: Satisfactory progress.

I was brimming with confidence as I took stock of the situation looking at the number of Oswald boys who had made it into the finals. Finalists had been decided by the heats, held previously on the Maes-y-Llan, and it reflected that all our training and preparations had paid dividends.

Meanwhile, set against this background of frenzied preparation for the finals and not helped by an increasing number of acts of vandalism to School property (not to mention the after effects of Valentines Day), the Headmaster railed at the Prefects in our weekly meetings for not stopping this clandestine activity.

Diary entry for 17 March: Mr Schofield, Head of Holbache House, temporarily loses the use of his car.

Major Frankland had appointed more Prefects than ever before, and his logic was that as his eyes and ears on the ground we were expected to act on his behalf and put a stop to it. This was a constant theme in his weekly Prefects' meetings. He thought that we were not performing our duties properly, and he even hinted to one of the Junior Prefects that he suspected that some of the more Senior Prefects, including my brother Bernard and myself, were behind the rising tide of unpopularity against him and his increasingly autocratic regime. 

Extract from my Diary, 21 March: Mr Frankland take his Prefects to task.

A note in my Diary reminds me that the Headmaster had dismissed several applicants for the post of Assistant Matron because they were too attractive; a decision that was almost laughable. 

The inter-House fives competition was due to start soon and I went to see Dai Lewis to explain that we needed more time to decide who would represent Oswald. I also raised doubts about our Juniors who were under prepared for fives, and he agreed on a postponement until Sunday 27 March.

Diary entry for 22 March: A welcome postponement of the fives competition.

Thursday 24 March was a very busy day including tuition for our juniors in the art of playing fives, more CCF activity, choir practice and yet more standards. The following day, Dai Lewis came up with the bright idea of having a clear-out of the dungeons, the storage area beneath the classrooms adjacent to the quadrangle, so during the morning I ended up having a bonfire on the lower paddock, much to the amusement of a cluster of juniors who insisted on helping me out.

A busy busy day all round.
 

This was followed by more standards and athletics practice in the afternoon during which Oswald secured several more points. By the arrival of Sunday we were all geared up ready for the fives competition to begin but for some unknown reason Headmaster Frankland decided to postpone the start, so Bernard, Jack Greves, Jeremy Parslew and myself took in the opportunity to get in some much needed practice. I mused inwardly that we were rapidly running out of time to complete the competition before 2 April, and I almost resigned myself to it not taking place at all.

The Thursday before Sports Day we had a meeting of our senior members of Oswald to determine who would enter which races, as each of us could only enter three track and two field events. I recorded our collective decision in my Diary entry of 31 March, which can be seen below.

Diary entry for 31 March: Decisions, decisions!

My final Diary entry, the day before Sports Day is self explanatory, and although I was supremely confident of winning the games as a whole, bearing in mind that Oswald had already surpassed my expectations, I gave the House a gentle reminder not to be complacent going into the Finals the following day.

1 April: No time for tomfoolery!

As there is so much more to report about the sporting activities on 2 April,1960, I have decided to make Episode 7 a two-part article. The final part will also include a gallery of relevant action photographs, many of which were taken on Sports Day itself.