Please note that Sunday Morning Hockey training (5th)is cancelled due to bad weather!

For all those due to play at Cheltenham please visit the Gloucester Hockey Association Website www.glos-ha.org.uk tomorrow morning (should be updated by 9.30) to see whether the tournaments will be taking place in the afternoon.

Happy New Year to all, and time to start back to training.
Mens training will start Monday 9th January 18.30 - 19.45
Womens training will start Tuesday 10th January 18.30 - 19.45

We are excited to unveil the new YouTube Channel EnglandHockeyTV. Follow to link on the WHC links page to the YouTube site or click here to go directly to the England Hockey TV YouTube link. Since this is an Olympic year the channel will have a distinctive British feel over the next nine months as we get ready for London 2012.

At the quiz night organised by the Womens section, £165.56 was raised to be shared between the club and St Richards Hospice. Thanks to everyone that attended and to the Wheatsheaf for hosting.

Saturday 3rd December @ The Wheatsheaf 7.30pm for 8pm Start Teams of 6. £5 for Food, £1 for Entry per Person. Raffle in Aid of Worcester Hockey Club and St Richards Hospice.

Under 18s beat Redditch 5-1 in the 1st round of the plate, the under 16s beat Harborne 12-0 and Stourport 1-0 in the Club championship and the under 14s beat Stourport 5-0
After two rounds of matches both U16s and U14s are unbeaten in this years competition.

Many thanks to Southco for allowing us to use their car park for fundraising at last nights Worcester rugby match. Over £1000 was taken on the evening. Many thanks also to the families that helped.

Both Worcester players had a successful Futures Cup, Tom Dalton picked up a runners up medal with the Mercia Lynx U18 team and the Mercia Lynx U16 team that Dan Ferrier played in finished as Champions, both players will be hoping to have caught the eye of the England selectors to progress to the next development level.
Futures cup day 3
Futures cup day 4

The EH Futures cup started yesterday with updates available on the England Hockey website links below, Tom Dalton and Dan Ferrier will be playing for the Mercia Lynx U18 & U16 teams respectively.
Futures cup day 1
Futures cup day 2

U18 Girls lost 10 – 0 to Lichfield.
For U16 and U14 the first round of the cup is a league format

U16 Boys beat Edgbaston 8 – 3 and lost 2 -0 to Shrewsbury
U16 Girls were given a 5 – 0 walkover against Olton & WW and beat Ludlow 4 – 0
U14 Boys lost 5 -3 to Bridgnorth and lost 4 -2 to Olton & WW
U14 Girls beat Olton & WW 14 – 0 and drew 0 – 0 with Lichfield

The over 50s will host Bowdon in the 2nd round of the cup after a convincing 4-0 win against Chesterfield, the Bowdon match will take place at Nunnery Wood on 30th October push back 12pm.
The over 40s lost 5 - 2 to Bournville and will now play in the plate competition, where they will be looking to repeat last seasons strong performance.

Two Worcester 1st XI players have been selected for the Mercia Lynx squads to play three other regions in the England Hockey Futures Cup.

Congratulations to Goalkeeper Tom Dalton who is in the U18 squad and Dan Ferrier who is one of the forwards in the U16 squad.

The Futures Cup is based on the format of a Junior International Tournament for Boys and Girls U16 & U18 teams. The Mercia Lynx team will play Pennine Pumas, Saxon Tigers and Wessex Leopards at Cannock Hockey Club between 27th and 30th October.

Congratulations to all Worcester players who have been selected for the Birmingham Lynx JRPC tier 1 competition squads.
U18 Boys
Tom Dalton, Chris Pedrick
U17 Boys
Jack Cutler
U16 Boys
Dan Ferrier
U16 Girls
Holly Smith, Isobel Friedlander
U15 Girls
Evie Richards
Competitions will be held in Cannock and Nottingham on 11th & 25th September.

Fixtures for the 2011-12 season have been loaded by Dean Ferrier the new WHC Fixtures Secretary who has taken over from Andy Hares. Many thanks to Andy for all his time and effort over the last 10+ years arranging the club fixtures.... thanks Andy!!

Put it in your diary!! Club day is on 3rd September 2011 first game starts 12 noon, all welcome, please contact either your captain or Paul Simon

Worcester Hockey Club needs more volunteer umpires, to help officiate the ever increasing fixture list. Andy Hadley will hold an informal meeting in order to discuss everything you need to know about starting to umpire.
Umpiring can be a challenge. however is also very rewarding and helps develop confidence & communication skills. WHC and the existing club umpires are there to support you and encourage you to officiate. The meeting is open to members & parents aged 15 years and above and should not last more than 2 hours. There is no obligation to umpire after this meeting, but Andy hopes to convince you to give it a try and will ensure you are fully supported by the club. Please let Andy know if you wish to attend on 07747 100921.
Meeting will be in the downstairs Sports Bar.

Mens training will start on Monday 22nd August at the University of Worcester. Open club training will run from 6.30pm - 7.45pm and is open to all, Elite training for last years 1st and 2nd team players and those invited by the coaching staff will run from 7.45pm to 9.15pm.

Ladies training starts Tues 9th August at the University of Worcester with the Club session running from 6.30pm to 7.45pm and the Elite session running from 7.45pm to 9.15pm. For each session please try to arrive early but especilly the second session by 7.30pm. The Elite session is for last years 1st and 2nd team members and those invited by the coaching staff/captains. Could everyone else please come to the Club session and you will be assessed from there. Mens Training to start Monday 22nd August

Our Badgers team Manager Barrie Roberts has been nominated to be an Olympic Torch Bearer, click on the Olympic Torch Bearer Nomination link to read and share Barries story.

On Saturday 2nd July 2011 from 10am-1pm the University of Worcester will be hosting the first female mixed sport event.
Any female over the age of 16 is welcome to come and join us for this free and exciting morning of netball, fitness, rugby, hockey, football and cricket.
You will have the opportunity to take part in up to 3 of the 6 sports/activities on offer. Each session will be approximately 40minutes in duration and all activities will run simultaneously at 10am, 11am and 12pm.
Please be at the University Sports Centre WR2 6AJ to register at 9.30-9.45am, wearing appropriate attire. Shower facilities at the University will be available and parking is free.
If you have any questions please email Sophie Corp at s.corp@worc.ac.uk

Thanks to all the helpers that turned out for the car wash, we raised a grand total of £154 for the Mcdonalds Childrens Charity.

The Ladies 1st Team will be doing a car wash to support the Mcdonalds Charity.
Please bring your car along to Mcdonalds Hylton Road on Saturday 11th June between 12 noon and 3pm, only £6.
More helpers are required, if you can spare some time please call Jean Roberts on 07801 809247.

Good luck to the Worcester Vets team who are heading for the Dublin Hockey tournament over the Spring Bank Holiday. There is a spare place so for more details call Andy Taylor or Kevin Maguire.

Plans are underway for Worcester to be represented in Ladies Summer Hockey, Mens Summer Hockey and Vets Summer Hockey teams

This years Worcester Hockey Club AGM will be held on Thursday 12th May 2011 at Worcester Norton Sports Club. Meeting will start at 8pm sharp. Please make every effort to attend. NOTE this is a rearranged date

Result: Worcester 1 City of Peterborough 2 The final of the English hockey over 40 national plate competition saw Worcester pitted against a determined Peterborough team, despite being on the backfoot for periods of the first half, Worcester maintained discipline and strong defending by Paul Sharratt, Kevin Maguire and Andy Water kept the score even until the 25 minutes when Peterborough picked up a loose ball and scored from open play. Worcester pressed forward and good midfield play by Malcolm Evans, Gerry Ogle and Mark Carey gave the forwards, Andy Taylor and Phil Thomas more opportunity to level proceedings. Peterborugh increased their lead after half time but Worcester responding well with a close angle strike from Taylor. A number of short corners followed but an illusive leveling goal could not be found. So Worcester pick up a runners up medal, the first adult national achievement in the clubs 119 year history.

In the first contest of the day Worcester defeated Lichfield 2-0 with two first half goals scored by Katie Cuppar and Kate Dunn Massey. The second game saw Worcester up against a very competitive Banbury team who took a first half lead. The battling Worcester girls dug deep and Sarah Ellis scored a great goal after good midfield play to level the scores. In the closing minutes Jess Ferrier in goal made the save of the season to ensure a crucial draw. This resulted in Worcester qualifying for the final. Worcester faced Buckingham in the pursuit of the Midlands Championship Crown, these were two well matched teams who put on an impressive display of girls hockey. After 5 minutes, a fantastic cross from the right was met perfectly by Emily Sale for a splendid opening goal. Despite, great defensive work from the trio of backs, Buckingham levelled the score and pushed on for a second. With sheer determination particularly from the forwards, Worcester pulled one back to be 2-2 at the final whistle. Extra time was now necessary and by now the midfield especially were exhausted from their amazing efforts all day and the blistering heat. However once again the team found the strength to work together and their huge efforts were rewarded with a great goal from Emily once again. Seconds later the final whistle went, a 3-2 win and Worcester Hockey Club Under 14 Girls were Midlands Champions once again!

This year the End of Season Junior Presentation and Ten Pin Bowling Night is on Friday 20th May at 7.00-9.30p.m. Call Catherine Hurley for details on 01905 753666

It is with regret that the coaching team are having to cancel the training at Nunnery Wood on Sunday 17th April. Please look out for extra dates after Easter. Have a good Easter Break

For the first time in living memory, the Worcester Hockey Over 40s are through to the Masters Plate Final against Peterborough, next Sunday 17/04/2011 at 14.00. The venue is Tonbridge School, Tonbridge, Kent, TN9 1JP. A coach is leaving Nunnery at 07.00. Price of the coach is FREE to all, but there is a £6.00 entrance fee at the ground for spectators. Please contact Andy Waters with Names and numbers as soon as possible please.

The U14 Girls retained the title of Midland Regional Champions for a second year with a 3-2 victory over Buckingham in the final. Report to follow...

Worcester Badgers played Redditch in the Final of the Bromsgrove "24 hour Hockey Marathon" Badgers Tournament. In the final the score was 0-0 so it went to penalties with Ed & Charlie scoring the winning flicks!! Well done to the whole team!

Please note that we have had to re-schedule the AGM due to unavailablity of the star turn, (Mr Howie). New date is Thursday 12th May 2011, 8.00pm, venue Worcester Norton Sports Club as before.

The mens over 40s progressed to the final of the EH Masters plate with an excellent 5 -1 victory over Burton HC. They now face Peterborough in the final on 17th April at Tonbridge School in Kent.

The Mens over 40s plate semi-final is to be held this Sunday against Burton HC at Worcester University, push back 12.15......all support welcome

This years AGM will be held on Thursday 19th May at Worcester Norton Sports Club. Meeting will start at 8pm sharp. Please make every effort to attend.

The mens over 40s have made it through to semi finals of The National plate competition, with a 4-1 victory away at Taunton. Congratulations.

The Mens 1st XI play their final home game of the season on Saturday 19th March against Warwick University. With two games to go, we sit 2nd in the table on a goal difference of 1. If we win both remaining games, and win by good margins, we have a chance of promotion depending on how the national league unfolds. The first team squad has played some great hockey this season, so for the final match, we hope as many people can come along and give us their support. The match at the UOW starts at 12.30pm, please come along and enjoy what promises to be a great game.

Worcester played host to a very strong team from Woking. Unfortunately being blighted by pre-match injuries meant that a bare 11 Worcester team took to the pitch, with a very weakened attack. Woking attacked hard from the outset and gained a one goal advantage in the first few minutes, from a short corner. Worcester was hit early on when Tom Neal received a bad knee injury and had to come off the pitch. Worcester regrouped and defended hard for the remainder of the first half and kept out several short corner attempts. With Worcester now down to 10 players Woking were not able to monopolise their one man advantage and the half finished 1-0. The second half saw Worcester pressing hard but they were not able to break Wokings defensive line. Woking were then awarded a penalty flick which Tom Dalton only narrowly missed saving. A very immobile Tom Neal came back on for the last 15 minutes of the match and although he hogged the oppositions D he was unable to receive the ball to convert it. Although Woking won 2-0 the Worcester boys should be extremely proud of their performance; their fantastic team spirit and effort was a pleasure to watch and they are all deserving of a mention. Tom Dalton (GK), Alex Swan, Tom Allen, Sam Grew, Chris Predrick, Chris Kendall, Jake Glass (C ), Joern Bachem, Chris Holden, Tom Neal and Ben Darlow-Jones.

Worcester Hockey Club have bought 26 tickets from England Hockey for one of the hockey sessions at the olympics. The tickets are all for the same day, and are valid for one session of 2 group matches. The groups have not been drawn yet so it is pot luck as to what session we get. The cost of the tickets is £21 each, anyone who is interested please email Paul Simons. If more than 26 people are interested in buying the tickets then all names will go into a draw.

The Worcester Hockey Club Annual dinner will be held on Saturday April 2nd 2011 at the Worcester County Cricket Club, Graham Hick Stand. Tickets are £27.50 with a Start time of 7-15 for prompt sit down at 8-00. (Raffle prizes would be appreciated - especially if you cant make the dinner). Contact John Ranscombe (01905 764168) for more more information and to buy your tickets.

Kidderminster Hockey Club will be holding a Club Engagement evening on Wednesday 9th March 2011 at 20.00 at the Chester Road Sports and Social Club. Nisar Chaudry, Development Officer for Birmingham, Black Country, Hereford & Worcestershire and Shropshire, will be attending, along with the Regional Manager. This will be your opportunity to ask questions regarding any hockey issues you may have. All welcome.

Come and support Worcester boys who play Woking for a place in the semi final of the EH Plate on Sunday 6th March at the University, push back is at 12.30.

The WHC Over 40s Mens Vets beat Plymouth Marjon 2-0 at Plymouth today to progress to the Quarter Finals of the Mens over 40s Plate. Ogle and Carey were the scorers.

The Olympic Committee have issued dates and times for the events at the London 2012 Olympics. Click on the hockey details pdf download link to find out more

Worcester travelled to Teddington in the 4th round of the cup on the back of an 8-0 win at Olton in the previous round.
Taking full advantage of some great moves, Sade Gerald opened the scoring on 10 mins, firing home from a narrow angle, Teddington equalised in the 30th minute when the ball was turned in from close range.
The hosts started quickly in the second half and scored 2 individual goals in the first 5 mins, the hosts held strong for the rest of the half with the score line 3-1 at fulltime.

The U18 boys progressed to the quarter final of the EH Plate with a hard fought 3-2 away win over a strong Plymouth side.
There was a great team spirit following the long trip down and Worcester went ahead with a superbly struck short corner from Chris Pedrick, the hosts levelled but Worcester again went ahead with a great strike from Alex Swan only for Plymouth to come back with another goal from a short corner. With 5 minutes left Jake Glass managed to put Tom Neal through to slot in the winner, a great result and all round team effort, thanks also to Andy Howie for travelling down to umpire.

Worcester had to field a very young team in their second round of cup matches, but despite having five players 11 and under, they had a great 4-1 victory over Sutton Coldfield and a close 2-1 defeat to Edgbaston.
Worcester now host the 3rd round on Sunday March 13th against Lichfield and Olton & WW to hope to get through to the finals.

England Hockey Board are looking at launching an exciting new programme "Get Back Into" for hockey. The programme will be aimed at women who want to return to the sport or decide to take up the sport for the first time. EHB really want to understand what would make women attend these sessions and what is appealing to them. Calling all Mums, Sisters, Female friends, retired female players from WHC, please click on this SURVEY page link to a questionnaire for women to complete who do not currently participate in regular hockey activity. The results of these questionnaires will help to shape the product going forward and we will really value honest opinions and how what people would like this scheme to look like. It is very short and should not take long at all. Our aim is to target as many women as possible even if they have no connection with a hockey club. The deadline for completing the questionnaire is the 4th February 2011.

Helen Reeves recently attended a National selection day for the British Colleges Hockey team at Beeston Hockey Club and has been selected to represent British Colleges in a variety of games in National and International events. Previous trips have even involved games against full National sides! Well done Helen from everyone at WHC!

An outstanding team performance resulted in an 8 - 0 win for the U18 Girls in their 3rd round cup match at Olton & West Warwick. The goals came from Sade Gerald (4), Julia Paschwitz (2) and Helen Reeves (2). The girls face another away match in the 4th round at either Wycombe or Teddington.

The U14 girls progressed to the regional finals of the U14 competition with an impressive 9-0 win against Marlbourgh in their final group game.
The win leaves the girls top of their league as the only unbeaten team and without conceeding a goal in their 5 games.
The team along with Coach George Ellis and Manager Di Walton can now look forward to the finals on Sunday 10th April.

The U18 Boy’s played superbly with only 10 men to beat Yate 3-2 in the 2nd round of the National Plate Competition.
Worcester showed great determination to come from behind twice to secure the win with 2 goals from Chris Kendall and 1 for Chris Pedrick.
They now face Plymouth Marjon away in the 3rd round.

Legend Junior Youth and Adult Hockey camps for the Summer 2011 and 2012. There are 2 camps in 2011 and 3 in 2012. The 2012 camps coincide with the Olympic Games and includes a trip to the hockey matches. More information and booking forms are on our LINKS page or see www.legendshockeycamps.webs.com

Mens senior training restarts on 13th January with a "one off" session from 7pm - 8pm. Then from 20th January the time returns to 8pm - 9pm.

Mens Thursday night Club training has finished for 2010. Everyone can have a well earned break - it will restart in the New Year.

Following on from two wins in October, the U14 girls team remain unbeaten after their latest two matches at Cheltenham on Sunday and are the only unbeaten team in the group.
Worcester played Witney in the first match and put in a strong performance with for a 2-0 win. The 2nd match vs Cheltenham was end to end hockey, Worcester keeping very level heads for a well fought draw.

Junior hockey training on December 5th at Nunnery Wood has been cancelled due to the frozen pitch.

All WHC home games have been called off due to the cold weather. Check with your captains for away match details.

The super sixes National Indoor Hockey Finals take place at Londons Wembley Arena on Sunday 30th January 2011 where Englands top clubs will battle it out to be crowned super sixes Champions. Click on the supersixes link to find out more and to book

Junior hockey training on November 28th at Nunnery Wood has been cancelled due to the frozen pitch.

Everyone is welcome to come along to a quiz night at The Wheatsheaf on 27.11.2010 at 7pm.

Our Junior teams will be in action in the England Hockey Cup and Plate competitions on Sunday 14th November.

Boys U18 Plate 1st round
Girls U18 Cup 2nd round
Boys U16 Cup 2nd round
Girls U16 Cup 2nd round
Boys U14 Club competition at Sutton Coldfield

Worcester U14 Girls played their first 2 matches in the Club Competition on 17th October with wins against Swindon and Cirencester , their next matches are on 28th November.

Reminder to all players - annual subs are now overdue if you have not already paid. Adults £110 Juniors / Students £60

Worcester Mens 1st team are currently top of their league at the end of October 2010... so are the Worcester Mens 2nd, 3rd and 4th teams!!!!!

Warning.. you need a car parking ticket for matches at the Uni. Captains & players – can you warn playing opponents at the Uni too? In the links area is a link to UOW Coppertops Off Peak Parking Form for a year pass at £25.

Congratulations to Helen Reeves, who represented the Midlands Mercian Lynx squad in the England Hockey U17 squad HIPAC. The event culminated in a competition against the other 3 regions in the England JRPC areas. The outcome was 3 games played and 3 games won !.Giving Mercian Lynx victory in the competition. Helen featured well in all 3 games and despite two days of 6.30 am starts she stayed awake throughout!

Following their win at Wolverhampton on Sunday, the U16 boys will be away to Lichfield in the second round of the England Hockey Cup, matches are due to be played on Sunday 14th November.

Congratulations to Stuart West the partner of Emma Wright (the Women’s 3rd X1 captain) who has won the Over 40’s single Kayak World marathon Championships. The marathon Kayak course was over a distance of 21.5KM held in Banyoles, just north of Barcellona. Stuart beat competitors from over 30 countries ranging from the European Nations to USA, South Africa and Australia.

Worcester Under 16 boys are through to the next round of the English Hockey Knockout tournament, after a fantastic 11-1 win against Wolverhampton at Aldersley.

Worcester Ladies 1st Team are playing Isca (Exeter) on Sunday 3rd October. The match is at home at University of Worcester, have a chat with your friends, and lets get some supporters to come and watch!!

Good to see Garth Davis - Clubman of the year - fit to play in goal again at the Club day last Saturday after his bout of ill health last season. Congratulations too as Garth and Pam celebrate their 40th wedding anniversary this weekend with a trip to Venice on the Orient Express!!

Several of the 7ners have been doing some (gentle) fitness training during August. Now that Club training has started officially at Nunnery Wood we will meet on Thursday evenings at 7:30, with the men''s Club training following on from 8 - 9. Not a 7ner? then why don''t you come to see if you can keep up with us?? Vince', 'Seventh team ready for the new season!

Don't forget that the Ladies 1st XI play their first National league game at home this coming Saturday. So as many supporters as possible please at the University pitch – push back 1.00pm

Congratulations and every good wish to Rachel (Creesy) and James Humphries who married this summer and enjoyed an idyllic honeymoon in the Caribbean!

Subscriptions for the 2010/2011 season are now due. They remain unchanged from last year £110 for adults and £60 for Juniors/students. Payable in full, or 4 post dated cheques.

Fixtures for the 2010/2011 season have now been uploaded.

This years Club day will be held saturday 11th September 2010 at University of Worcester. Same format as always, 9 a-side teams, 3 games per person and a BBQ! First game starts 12 oclock. All those wanting to play contact either team captains Paul Simons or Andy Taylor.

We will be running a summer academy on the pitch at Nunnery Wood for a ten week period from Sunday 06/06/10 through to 08/08/10. Each session will see a training session for U14/16/18 boys and girls on a shared pitch running between 9.30am and 11am followed by different age group games for an hour 11am to 12 noon. All sessions are on a Sunday. Contact Mez for further details.

This years AGM will be held at Worcester Norton Sports Club, 7.30 start. Please make every effort to attend.

Worcester Hockey Club U-14 Girls Team were crowned Midlands Regional Champions last Sunday at the England Hockey Tournament held at Banbury. Having come through the previous two Rounds unbeaten, they went into their final stage of the Competition with high hopes but at the same time with the realisation that all the matches would be tight. In the first match - against Banbury - we scored an early goal and were looking strong when a couple of lapses in concentration allowed the opposition to put 2 into the net. However, we immediately stepped up a couple of gears and ran away winners at 4 goals to 2. We then a long break of 3 hours which worried their coach as several of the girls disappeared into town to use the Playstations and eat at McDonalds. Fortunately, they all returned in reasonable time to be woken up by vigorous warm-up. The next match was against a strong Burton team which we won 3-2; again, allowing in 2 easy goals but again coming back strongly with some g

Congratulations to the Worcester Boys U14s who became runners up of the Midland regional. They put in a brilliant performance on sunday even though they were missing a few of the first choice squad and unfortunately they met an exceptionally strong Olton team in the final. Very well done to them, and huge thanks to Barrie, Jean, Andy Taylor, Jeremy Butterfield (and rising star Max Butterfield who played in one of the matches albeit aged 10) and everyone else who helped. Mary

Congratulations to the Womens 1st team on their return to the National League. This is a fantastic achievement by all the players in the squad, and of course, the management/coaching team of Jean, Terry and Marvin, well done!

Congratulations to the Mens 5th team on their promotion to West Midlands Premier Dision.