Merry Christmas everyone!!!
I hope by now you’ve all finished work/school/studies or simply considering any of those options and
are ready for the impending Christmas period. Most I imagine are missing hockey already, with the
exception of the Mens 4th XI and the Ladies 2nd XI who have final games I believe this
Saturday, due to previous postponements.
I wanted to thank you all for the effort put in, both on and off the pitch, in
2012. It really has been a busy and largely successful year. The club is looking
great after a lot of work through 2011 and 2012. Demonstrated by our 2 nd XI
skipper sitting back and relaxing in his renovated home.
On top of finishing off the 2011/12 season, the summer of sport got well and truly underway with a
really fantastic home Olympics. Luckily for us just down the road. Olympic fever has really affected
hockey this year and really well done the England Mens and especially the Ladies for a great
performance and the bronze medal. During this time the mens and ladies summer leagues were in
full swing, keeping a few pounds off for those not on holidays. The club also
took part in a charity event in Chelmsford for Lee Bedingfield. A sponsored
Dragon Boat race saw three teams; Lee’s, the Ladies and a Committee team.
Although I’m slightly biased, the Committee team finished top, 3rd overall
with the second fastest time of the day. A great day out, when the rain
stopped, for a great cause, Leukaemia Research.
The beer festival run successfully for another year and a lot of that is down to
the hard work of our members. Thank you all for everything you did
alongside the Cricket Club and for coming and sampling the wares (it all makes the profit rise). A
special thank you to Bob, who sampled more than his fair share on his only night off this year. (Pete,
Brian and Dave can you let Bob know a bit earlier if you’re going to be late!)
We had our own version of Olympic fever at the Astro in September with the arrival of Chloe Rogers
the Essex hockey ambassador, ex Chelmsford
player and bronze medal winner. Huge
thanks to Daren White for organising this.
She ran a fantastic session for the whole club,
after a really good presentation and Q&A for
the junior section. I’ve never seen so many
people on our Astro and it was great to see
such an age range and the number of parents
who came along. We must have had a
hundred people there and it was not only a
great sign of the Olympic legacy, but a great
barometer on the successful state of the
hockey club with a great junior section ever
developing. Chloe took time with everyone
and was more than happy to let people
wander off with her medal for a photo, unlike
some of the England Ladies players who managed to lose theirs a while later. It was also good to
see Chloe taking the 1st team men through their paces. They were surprising quiet and well
behaved, I wonder why….
Our endeavours on the pitch have had mixed results. The men’s 1st have had some great results, but
a constantly changing team has hampered their consistency. Men’s 2nd are flying just now with a six
game winning streak. Team of the year so far though are the mens 3 rd XI, top of their league with
only one loss all season. Mens 4th XI are feeling the strain of promotion last year and despite a
higher league they have a goal difference better than a number of teams above them. Plenty of
confidence in the team for the second half of the season. The ladies 1’s are mid table in Div 1, with
Laura Smith on the top goal scorers list. The Ladies 2nd XI are having a tough year, but lots of hope
for 2013. Ladies 3’s are continuing their run from last year as the Academy side; second place in Div
4 battling it out for the top slot.
On top of the playing it is important to note the supporters. One of the factors that make Witham
the fortress that it is (and it is!) is the support from the sidelines we receive. Both current and past
players line the sides and really help to get the results we deserve. Please keep coming we would
really miss you all.
Finally for 2012, well done on a great Christmas party for the kids. Sarah as always
ran a great event and thank you to those that helped. A speacial thank you to Santa
for coming again….
So what lies ahead for 2013…..
Umpiring – We are hoping to get a course run in 2013 at the club so
keep your eyes peeled for notices on dates.
Social – looking forward to seeing you all for the socials to come. We
have two teams working together, for each night, this year. At least two more team nights to come
along with the dinner dance and village tournament. Please continue to support each other and
your captain when it’s your social or if you're duty team; it really does help and make sure you get
everyone in your team to help!
Playing – what’s to say other than keep it up. Those that could commit more please do. Think about
your captains, they have an often thankless task and anything we as players can do to make this role
easier we really should try and do. Thank you captains I really appreciate what is involved and the
hard work you all put in.
Other important stuff – we do need to organise a work party at the club in January and I’ll send out
details shortly. Work on the drive is required and the fallen leaves need sorting to boot.
Finally, Merry Christmas and a very
Happy New Year from Chairman Sam
PS. Training starts again 9th Jan
http://www.pitchero.com/clubs/witham1/