All posts by Craig Hockenhull

Player Requirements for returning to hockey

August 19, 2020 Craig Hockenhull

Firstly a big thanks to Anna Latham who has taken on the role of COVID officer for the club.

If you have any questions or suggestions we have setup a club email covid@whitchurchhockeyclub.com

We at Whitchurch are looking to commence training on Wednesday 26th August. However, training, as well as games, must take place under strict rules, as laid out by England Hockey and the government. With that in mind, anybody who wishes to participate in training (and matches) will need to do the following :-

Mandatory requirements for players before training / games

If you wish to attend training, or play in matches you MUST sign an England Hockey Participation Agreement

Check your contact details on TeamApp are up to date and make sure you ‘save’ them even if you don’t change anything. This a requirement of returning to play by England Hockey and the Government for the ‘Track and Trace’ system

You will not be permitted to train or play without completing both and the COVID officer confirming! Please be aware that it takes up to 48 hours for your details to become visible to us on the England Hockey portal, so please complete both in plenty of time.

We would also like to get an idea of numbers interested in playing and training so we have sent out a link on Teamapp with the below questions:

1. Can you please confirm whether you are willing to return to training at the current time? Please chose Yes / No / Maybe in the dropdown box.
If you answer maybe, we would welcome your feedback in either the comments on TeamApp, or if you wish to keep the comments private, please email covid@whitchurchhockeyclub.com .

2. Can you please confirm whether you are willing to return to matches at the current time? Please chose Yes / No / Maybe in the dropdown box.
If you answer maybe, we would welcome your feedback in either the comments on TeamApp, or if you wish to keep the comments private, please email covid@whitchurchhockeyclub.com .

Your responses will only be used as an expression of interest, so we can gauge numbers for training sessions and whether we have the numbers to field all our teams. Your response is not binding … you can change your mind at any time.

Find attached the latest information for Players from England Hockey – Advice for participants. Please read and familiarise yourself with the requirements.

We will provide further information about how training will proceed once we have an idea of numbers willing to attend.

Obviously, we appreciate that are many different views and opinions regarding the Covid situation – even within the club committee. We respect that some players will not wish to participate in team sports at this stage, whilst others may be prepared to return subject to the organisation to minimise risk, and there will be other members just desperate to get back on the hockey pitch. Please feel free to respond as you see fit, or comment as you feel appropriate. We request that all members respect each other’s opinions on participation. Nobody is right and nobody is wrong!

Also, please bear with us (the committee) whilst we work our way through the requirements to restart activities on the pitch. There is a lot to do and a lot to consider.

Many Thanks

The Committee

General News

Hockey prepares for return

August 10, 2020 Craig Hockenhull

With England hockey announcing we are moving to Step 4, the club is reviewing the requirements to restart hockey – all the latest information will be published on the website as it becomes available.

Hockey’s Return to Play guidance moves to Step 4

With the recent announcement of the Recreational Team Sports Framework and England Hockey’s subsequent submissions to government, we can now confirm that hockey can move from Step 2 to Step 4 of the Return to Play plans.

Working with the other team sports and learning from the evidence developed from the resumption of professional sports, England Hockey has been able to demonstrate to DCMS (Department of Culture Media and Sport) that hockey can be resumed safely. This means that moving to Step 3 (small group activity) will not been required.

With government approval, competitive activity can resume – both training and matches – outdoor and indoor. This is great news for many as pre-season will be able to start in earnest and local fixtures can start to take place.

However, England Hockey is also acutely aware that not all hockey players or organisations are currently in a position to play, with access to pitches in particular a significant challenge. Moving to Step 5 (the resumption of league hockey) will therefore be assessed over the coming weeks, ensuring that the decision to start the season can be made when there is enough confidence that clubs are sufficiently ready to start. We continue to recommend planning for a normal start date for the season and will continue to monitor the situation closely.

Our full guidance for Step 4 is available on our Covid-19 Club Support Page, with a number of shorter guides and information also available. You can also access a direct link to our Step 4 Guidance document.

England Hockey will add to these documents in the coming days with a short video for players and will develop the guidance based on feedback we receive, including updating our FAQs.

The permission to play competitive hockey means that everyone involved will need to understand their responsibilities to ensure that we can all make the most of our return to the pitch. Clubs and other hockey organisers must follow guidance to ensure that they are compliant before starting competitive activity. For some this will take time to ensure that everything is in place and we encourage players and clubs to be sure that everything is sufficiently ready before starting. The risks during competitive hockey are low, but special permission has been given to resume hockey by government, so we expect all players to understand their responsibilities clearly and adapt their behaviours accordingly. All hockey organisations will need to conduct risk assessments, adapt processes and appoint Covid Officers to ensure this happens.

By ensuring everyone understands the expectations it will mean that the game is as welcoming to all those involved in the game as possible. We all have a responsibility to ensure that the standards set out are maintained and that all in the game from player to umpire to coach feel confident in the ‘new normal’ for hockey. The code of ethics and behaviour will be updated to make provision for Covid-19 related issues and guidance will be given for adaptations in competition rules.

Overall, this is great news for hockey, and we hope that clubs and organisations can make up for lost time enjoying the feeling of being back on the pitch and feeling the spirit of hockey start to shine through again.

If you have any questions, please email clubs@englandhockey.co.uk

Committee News, General News, Ladies Section, Men's Section

Whitchurch Hockey Club AGM – Wednesday 27th May starting at 20.00 – online

May 11, 2020 Craig Hockenhull

Due to the unprecedented times we are going to hold our AGM for 2019/20 on-line for the first time.

The link to Zoom for the AGM will be available in Teamapp nearer the time under ‘Events’ section. So please check in advance that you have access to Teamapp and Zoom and the link works for you.

Hope to see as many of you there as possible if not just to see if it works.

If you have any questions or topics that you would like to raise please send to secretary@whitchurchhockeyclub.com by Monday May 18th 2020.

Craig Hockenhull, Secretary

Committee and Club Roles

This is also your opportunity to get more involved in the running of the club – if you would be interested in putting yourself forward for any role on the committee or elsewhere, please let us know and we will get in touch to discuss and make sure you’re included in the nominations. We have a very strong team of members and volunteers working hard in the club but additional support even for a small amount of time doing anything allows us to continue growing the club further.

All the roles and responsibilities are on the website at https://www.whitchurchhockeyclub.com/club-info/documents/

Also there is a document explaining why we hold an AGM at the above link.

Agenda for AGM

Chairman’s report
Academy and Junior Report
Financial Report
Election of officers
Team Reports (we are going to compile a report rather than reading them out)
- Ladies 1s
- Ladies 2s
- Ladies 3s
- Men’s 1s
- Men’s 2s
Any other business (Topics presented in advance)
Closing and Targets for next season

Development News, General News

Free ‘Hockey at Home’ Masterclass Series

April 5, 2020 Craig Hockenhull

Hi Hockey Family,

During this unsettled time we wanted to do something extra special to support our community, so we have teamed up with some brilliant Hockey experts to bring you a Free ‘Hockey at Home’ Masterclass Series that you and your family can enjoy from the comfort of your own space.

Every week, starting Monday 6th March, we are going to bring you practical advice for coaches and aspiring coaches, skills training for players, specialist mastery for Goalkeepers and no nonsense strength and conditioning for improving your hockey fitness.

You don’t need to do anything, we will deliver the masterclasses to your inbox on the day.

Mondays – Coaching the coaches, with Steph Brennan: Steph Brennan, Performance Centre Lead Coach, Hockey for Heroes Men’s Coach, Club Coach with Bromley and Beckenham HC, GB Advanced Coach programme graduate, Sport & Exercise Science graduate and self confessed coaching, pedagogy and sport psychology geek. Alongside Steph’s day job of a PE Teacher and Head of Hockey. Steph has been guided over 10 years through one of the biggest changes in coaching and has been influenced by some excellent minds in the industry. Steph’s aim is to bring relevant and relatable chunks of practical advice for coaches and aspiring coaches through this period, which can be applied to not only coaching, but all aspects of life.

Wednesdays – Skills session with Callum Giles: Double Olympian, Callum Giles – owner and Director of Stickwise Hockey camps. Stickwise provides high quality and fun hockey camps for players of all ages and abilities. Having coached and played in Holland, South Africa and Australia during his long career, winning 2 premier league titles with Havant, among many other championships along the way. Callum represented England & Great Britain at the Atlanta and Sydney Olympic games & was the country’s top goal scorer for just over 14 years. Callum will be providing skills videos and sessions for you and the children to do from your home.

Fridays – Goal keeper mastery, with Tom Millington: Tom Millington, Co-Founder and Director of Fortitude Hockey who provide expert goalkeeper coaching across the UK and Belgium. Tom has been coaching for a number of years with GB Hockey and England Hockey as goalkeeper coach across all ages groups, EDP & Senior programmes. Tom’s playing career spanned 18 years at ISCA HC, University of Exeter, Loughborough University (Prem) (Indoor Champions), Wimbledon HC (Premier League Champions) and Old Georgians as well as representing England and Great Britain in all age groups with two senior indoor caps. Tom & Fortitude will be providing Goal Keeper specialist videos to keep the mind and body occupied during this period.

Saturdays – Hockey fitness, with Adam Jordan: Adam Jordan – Owner of ‘7R – The Training Club‘ in South London. Adam is a current serving British Army Reservist. Having successfully captained Oxford University, The British Army, United Kingdom Armed Forces, Infantry Hockey, played for East Grinstead and Holcombe 1st XI for 4 years, inclusive of national Indoor titles and competing in the Euro Hockey League. Adam also managed to squeeze in a few caps playing for England during his Hockey career as well. Adam explains how as an ex EHL and National League player his game relied heavily on speed and fitness. Adam’s day job is leading the space at 7R where they pride themselves in delivering no nonsense strength and conditioning and Adam will be offering advice for how you can improve your fitness specifically for the hockey field, even during lockdown.

If you know anybody that would benefit from receiving these Masterclasses please share this email and direct them to our private Facebook group where they can find further details >>> CLICK HERE TO JOIN NOW. Everyone is welcome.

Stay safe, and best wishes.

Hockey for Heroes.

Whitchurch (Shropshire) Hockey Club