01/10/2020
Hi everyone, with the season about to start in earnest I wanted to share my thoughts for the 2020/21 season and give you a bit of background to my hockey journey which you can find at the end if you’re interested enough to read that far!)!
I’m sure lots of you will know that Sheffield Hockey Club is my second home, in fact there are some weeks where I am there more than at my actual real home! But that is my choice and I love it. There are amazing and wonderful people in this club and we only exist and thrive due to the time and dedication of all the volunteers who help us to succeed. My life is so much richer for being a part of this family and I want to thank everyone who puts in so that every member can enjoy playing , every spectator can enjoy watching and every parent can enjoy supporting (and playing and watching in some cases)..
This season will be difficult, there is no doubt. We are very fortunate with our access to facilities, which other clubs are struggling with. I think the watch word for this year is patience. Please be patient with me, please be patient with each other, please be patient with other teams, and I will try and be patient with all of you. Saul is doing a fantastic job with the fixtures, when other teams can’t play, he is trying to find friendlies – we are doing our best to get everyone as much pitch time as possible.
To keep playing we need to follow the rules. I know people with be bored with me shouting 2 meters already but if we don’t follow the rules then no-one at Sheffield Hockey Club will be able to play any hockey this season. Nick Pink CEO of England Hockey has produced a very good, short video which is available on our page – please watch it. When the ball is not in play EVERYONE has to observe social distancing, 2 meters! All spectators (anyone entering through the gate) needs to sanitise hands on entry, observe social distancing and scan the QR code for NHS test and trace. We may have to limit the numbers coming through the gate to maintain safety – we will do this so we can keep playing. We ALL need to take responsibility so please take it seriously and play your part. We have already seen other clubs refuse spectators at any hockey activity and we have also recently seen the YYHL cancelled at least until Christmas.
We are a family, a flipping big one if the numbers on Pitchero are anything to go by! Let’s treat each other like family and get through this together. We are always looking for more volunteers so if you feel you can give a bit of time back to the club please get in touch either with me or any of the executive team – there is one post on the exec team that I know will be available at the end of this season so if you fancy a go at looking after the club finances we would be particularly pleased to hear from you.
Thanks for reading, and please, let’s be careful out there!
Michele’s Bio
I played hockey for the school – right half – and I loved it. I didn’t make it to university or further education so that’s where my hockey life finished … until …. 2012 Olympics! George and I were watching the men play and George pipes up to say “I want to play hockey for GB”. And that was a turning point for us. We found Sheffield Hockey Club, just down the hill from where we live and he started in September 2013, just after the Olympic pitch had been transported and installed at Abbeydale. A couple of years later I found back to hockey and my love of the sport was reignited. A chance conversation with Malcolm landed me with the treasurer role which I held for 3 years before the lovely Mr Dan Bridges took it on from me. Part way through this period the Ladies 5s was resurrected and I was asked by our Ladies club captain at the time, Kate Beesley, if I would captain! How could I refuse the fabulous Kate! After I handed the finances over to Briggo I spent a couple of years as Jack’s deputy and at the same time took the England Hockey courses in umpiring and coaching – now fully qualified Level 1 in both! Although I never had any ambition to be Chair, here I am – I am finding it a scary place to be and even more so with the current challenges of Covid! Alongside this I am also trying to manage our Men’s 1st XI, ensuring admin is completed, rules are complied with and supporting the coach on match days.
