It’s been a few months now since the curtain came down on another successful season; which was rightly celebrated at a series of end of year events for both seniors and juniors.

Again, I’d like to thank all who contributed, in so many ways, on and off the pitch. I’m proud to lead a club with such passionate membership and supporters who are prepared to give up their time and put something back in.

The days of a close season where the club shuts down until September are seemingly long gone! It’s been a busy few months both behind the scenes and on the pitch with Summer League (men and ladies), Back to Hockey etc.

I’d like to thank those members and parents who came to the AGM in May. It was heartening to new faces step up and take on roles within the club. We are still looking for a permanent replacement as Secretary. If you’d like more detail on any of this or any other role then please contact me.

***Membership (and payments!) for 2017/18 season is now open, please see details on this below***

1. Signing up as a member for 2017/18 (Seniors/Youth teams)

This section details what you need to do to sign up as a playing member and how to pay your annual subscription & match fees for 2017/18. You can do this NOW…

***A separate email has been sent to parents of those playing for juniors (u8/10/12s)***

Membership sign up/payment is a THREE stage process, so please follow each step:
1. Visit www.wottonhockeyclub.org and either ‘join’ the website (if you have not already got a log in from previous years) OR if you are already a member of the website log in. Once you have logged in please go to your account settings and add/update as much detail as prompted e.g. email address, telephone number etc. This information will help us considerably in organising the club. This information will not be shared and is not visible to anyone else but yourself and senior management. NB - Please check your settings to ensure you are set up to receive emails and messages from us.

2.Once logged in, Click on ‘Membership, then ‘Payments’ and purchase the relevant Annual Membership product; then

3. Click again on ‘Payments’ and purchase the relevant Monthly Match fees product
(if you are a full time student regularly playing for a senior XI then select ‘Monthly Student Match Fees’)
If you are still having issues there is a useful ‘How to’ guide (with pictorial prompts!) under ‘Information’, then ‘Documents…

By clicking on the relevant ‘Monthly Match fees’ product on the payments tab, the website will deduct 6 x monthly payments for match fees from your bank account (e.g. 1 Oct – 1 Mar). This is the default option for paying match fees this season. Less admin burden on us all. We will rebate any matches that you don’t play in at the end of the season.

The website will only allow you to become a stand-alone club member if you are 14 and over. If you are a youth player under 14 please ask your parent to join the website as a club member and we will email them with further instructions of how to pay. The club website uses a payment system called Gocardless. If you would like any further information about this secure payment method please see the link https://gocardless.com/faq/customers

All annual subscriptions need to be paid by the end of September.

As agreed at the AGM in May, there will be no rise in fees this year (all of these payments are taken via electronic payment as above)
• Senior membership: Annual Subscription £110, Match fees £7
• Student/Unwaged/U18 playing senior hockey: Annual Subscription £85, Match fees £5
• Youth (U14s/U16s): Annual Subscription £85, Match fees £4
Any questions or problems contact a member of the committee.

For those families who have several (and several generations of!) playing members, there are also the following ‘family membership’ discounted annual subscription products– you will still need to purchase the correct monthly payment product, where relevant.
• 3 x juniors/students £225
• 1 adult & 2 children £245
• 2 adults & 2 children £340
The club is committed to inclusivity in sport, so in any genuine cases of financial hardship alternative arrangements will be considered. Please contact me or Treasurer Stu Jones, in confidence.

2. Training 2017/18

SENIOR PRE-SEASON (AUGUST)
Men (1s/2s): Weds nights 1930-2100, August 9h onwards
Ladies: Thurs nights 1930-2100 (TBC), August 10th onwards

WINTER TRAINING (SEPT 2017- MARCH 2018)
Tuesdays:
Girls u14s & u16s 1900-2000 (half pitch each)
Mens 3s & 4s 2000-2130

Wednesdays:
GK Training 1900-2000 (TBC)
Boys U16s 1900-2000
Mens 1s & 2s 2000-2130

Thursdays:
U8 Mixed, U10 Boys & Girls 1800-1900
U12 Boys & Girls 1900-2000
Ladies 1s, 2s & 3s 2000-2130

Saturdays
U7 Mixed 0900-0945 (TBC)

I will send a more targeted email to senior members re: selection in due course but, as discussed at AGM, we will be continuing the role of ‘Club Captain’ for both mens and ladies this year. Part of that remit will be to manage the selection process and the split training to ensure that there is appropriate movement between XIs

3. September and Beyond

The eagle eyed among you will have noted that the senior league fixtures for 2017/18 have been released, as well as the Badgers circle; these will appear on Pitchero in the coming weeks. We are still awaiting confirmation of Vixens Circle and the Avon u14 League.

We have booked the vast majority of pitch slots with WCSF/Sport Wotton so all being well members will notice little difference to how Saturdays shape up at the pitch though we have shuffled some games so that the Badgers/M4 arent always in the graveyard slot; but we will full publish details of fixtures and times as soon as these are nailed down. In the meantime, you can view the League Programme here:
http://www.wswhl.co.uk/public/fixturesmenu.php
http://www.wcwhl.co.uk/public/fixturesmenu.php

Our fixture secretaries have already begun getting friendly games for the coming season. More on this to follow; with a full programme of junior tournaments, both at Sport Wotton and in Cheltenham to be confirmed too.

4. Hockeyfest – Sunday 3rd September
As part of England Hockey’s nationwide celebration of all things hockey, we will again be running a junior club day as part of #hockeyfest. More details to follow.
We will be liaising with senior captains about how they want to play out Sat 2nd Sept and indeed Saturdays in September as we lead into the start of the league programme.

I know there is a lot to take in here, but felt that a detailed update on the position of the club and our immediate plans was long overdue.
As ever, the club really appreciates the continued support we get from members and their families. Any further queries on any of this information, don’t hesitate to ask a committee member but for now enjoy the rest of your Summer…

Stuart Emms, Chairman