I'm a 1st XI player, 'right-place-right-time' centre forward, and proud member of the 124 year-old institution that is Sale Hockey Club. Here you can find me waxing lyrical about Hockey to an intermediate level of knowledge, and when I say Hockey I mean Hockey down here at the mighty Sale HC!
So another week rolls by and those familiar chills of winter are beginning to be visible on the horizon. Being a right hard nut my underskin is still firmly in the wardrobe (unlike other members of the team). The meat of the season is starting to be served now and our Bem Brazil token is firmly on green for now. Two wins in a row should hopefully firm up our momentum and strip away from us any remaining fear of the division that we unjustifiably had. We won 4-1 at the weekend, it could've been more, it should've been more, and while two wins is nice it hasn't helped our cause much yet. We're still languishing in 6th position and have been all season. Perhaps that will change with a third win on the bounce??
No easy task, we have to overcome our local rivals and top of the league, who beat us in the first friendly game of the season (see this seasons first post) with a pretty comfortable (for them) 3-0 win. I think we were a shadow of what we are now on that day, but three wins out of three for our rivals speaks for itself as to the challenge we're up against. So a big early season crunch battle is in store for us in our second away game of the season. Again, this 'away' game is still about as far away from our club as our own home ground but that's beside the point; it's in the lions den, and we're going to have to fight hard in this early season grudge match.
I may as well come clean with it, I won't be present at this battle having been assigned to the Twos this week. As said last week I maintain that I can't be happy about it, but that it does come as a challenge. It's a particular shame to me as I personally felt I had a much stronger game last week than some other weeks, but we are oversubscribed in the forward department so it is always going to be difficult. I certainly have a case to present on that matter but that won't be put forward here and now.
The thing I'm discovering right now is that I have had to change my mind on a matter. Previously I have always stated that the most uncomfortable position to be in any game is on the sideline, watching and being unable to change the course of proceedings or take an opportunity that you spot. I know now this is not true. The most uncomfortable place to be is not there at the game, when you know you can be there. Watching, you can eventually make an impact and change a game. This weekend my hands are tied. Having played for my team for three years pretty much unbroken, it hurts to not be playing against a team who will likely be rivalling us at the top of the table. I know that anything short of a commanding three points from the guys will leave me furious. That's just honest.
All said though I'm looking forward to the 2's game. 2nd teams are crucial to the strength of any club, and as we want to build ourselves into a big successful club again only by winning with the 1's and 2's (and indeed 3's and 4's) are we going to achieve that. In the 1st teams division we play 2nd teams, 3rd teams, and even 4th teams more than we do 1st teams, so strength down the teams is clearly the mark of a good club. I will still be playing with 100% intensity, as I would expect from everyone. The fact we're playing bottom of the league should hopefully be a bit of a Brucey bonus for attackers like me too! Song of the week
Sorry to go all Liam Gallagher here and get obsessed with the Beatles but I've had to plump with another classic tune of theirs. This song is meant purely and simply as a challenge to the lads this weekend. Against top of the league I expect nothing but the best and so this weeks song of the week could only be: The Beatles- Don't let me down.
No Teas league this week folks as we were at home last week though it will hopefully be making a welcome return next week, providing my cover man for it doesn't bottle the big task and provides fair analysis. Catch you all at some time next week folks...
Once again apologies for lateness, I'm just not very punctual these days really am I? There was a very valid reason for this weeks delay but I'll be covering that in more detail later on. The first and great thing to bring to your attention is our glorious derby victory against arch-rivals Brooklands. Ok ok, maybe arch-rivals is too strong, after all we played their 4th team and their 1st team are a national league outfit (albeit one that takes a regular beating). Maybe in the 1970s it was the case but it was a different time back then; goalkeepers played in cricket pads, all the sticks were whittled down from railway sleepers, the balls hewn from granite, the pitches churned into mud and.... you get the idea. Never the less, we'll take the points and the victory, our first points in Division 3 for many years and also our first victory actually IN Sale for maybe even longer.
I can't say it was comfortable. We're still feeling our way in a little bit, like the new kid in school. We're not back to our best standard and we're not dominating teams the way we know we can. I think that there are signs there that we can get back but as always with Sale the biggest battle is in the head. We need to believe in it first to make it happen. We need to be less the nerdy kid wanting to make new friends and be a bit more like Ray Winstone in the classic film SCUM. This is the time of the season where your reputation is going to be gained. Last year we trounced the first few teams and we ended up with teams turning up to play us fearing the worst. Time to step on a few more throats I hope!
So back to the #FORTRESSSALE this weekend it is to take on a team we played last year. Well, what I mean is that we'll be playing the team above the team we played last year from the same club. In case anyone doubted our 'plucky minnows' status that team will be said clubs 3rd team. I don't think we care about that nonsense though, all games are still 11 vs 11 on the pitch, a goal is a goal and 3 points is three points. Speaking of goals I'll be hoping to contribute myself to the tally tomorrow after coming close last week with some efforts that never quite came off right.
As a matter of fact my overall play and lack of finishing has led me into the unenviable position of being dropped earlier in the week. Now despite the respect I have for all the lads down on the 2nd team I cannot honestly say I was pleased with this state of affairs. I should say that I'm not for one second trying to sound like I've a chip on my shoulder I simply believe that being unhappy or angry at being dropped shows the passion and desire needed to turn it around again, and that a far more worrying reaction would be nonchalance or dismissive arrogance at the 'powers that be'. Now this week I've had an 11th hour reprieve from execution and so like a man returned from the gallows I've been given a new lease of life. My own performances haven't been up to the standard that I'd want them to be, for a whole host of reasons that I'll not cover here for the sake of brevity, but if that is to continue beyond tomorrow it'll only be because I've run myself into utter physical and mental submission.
The only thing I'd like to add to the issue of dropping is that it is, and has to be, seen as a challenge of character as much as of ability. There is not a single player within the 1st squad that can't compete and win in Div 3, but can every player stay focused for the whole game? Make that crucial decision when the pressure is on? Make that full-pitch sprint that stops the counter attack in the last minute? Thinking and saying you can isn't good enough anymore, we're in the world of actions now and by actions will squad places live and die.
Anyway, that explains my delay this week, I was mustering myself to deliver a blog on my dropping and have instead had to 'drop' (groan) all that and re-think. I have to admit doing this on the eve of battle is quite a refreshing change so maybe I'll wait this long next week too. Or maybe I won't, that's the kind of wild unpredictability you'll have to get used to on this blog!
Song of the week
Not easy this week. It's been a bit of a turbulent ride for me personally but the team have won some points and want to be lively. This rules out Radiohead (apologies Radiohead's #1 fan Harrison Daly). Instead I've gone for a poignant classic banger from the most famous Scousers in music. I hope we can all forget the Charles Manson links and enjoy this weeks song of the week: The Beatles- Helter Skelter
Belting track! Now after all the commotion going on this week you could be for given for thinking I'd forgotten all about this weeks new feature. BUT NO! Allow me to introduce the inaugural bi-weekly feature that is.....
The Teas League
Ok. So in Hockey (and other sports) it is traditional for visiting teams to have food (Teas) laid on by the home team after the match. It's a lovely tradition and yet another reason I love dedicating all of my Saturdays to this sport. It has long been a subject of intense debate amongst the lads as to which club offers the very best and the very worst teas after the match. So with that in mind, I thought I'd introduce the Teas league where we rate and review the Teas of our opposing teams throughout the season and rank them in a league table.
Disclaimer: This is only a bit of fun. I am an appalling cook myself and in no way a food expert. All criticism will be tongue-in-cheek and if any people/clubs choose to take offence please know that all reviews are intended to make no negative reflection on the friendly welcome and hospitality that all teams always provide us, for which we are very grateful and thankful for.
After a bit of debate we drew up three categories for reviewing the teas these are:
1) Substance- what the teas are, and their various health benefits/ drawbacks.
2) Taste- Simple enough to grasp this concept I think.
3) Presentation- How the teas are served and packaged.
All marks in each category will be out of 10, making a total score out of 30 for each team.
.... still with me? Ok. let's get started:
6/10/12 Brooklands away:
3-2 derby win and in the bar afterwards we were treated to our own officially 'reserved' tables where the following teas were served:
Aaah the classic Sandwiches and Chips combo. Let's see how we do:
Substance: Sandwiches have long been considered to be the typical minimum standard for teas. Easy to make, cheap to buy, boring and always met with a dispassionate reception. However, with the addition of hot chips on the side the case has been aided. Further marks are gained for (as Nick pointed out) the two forms of Carbohydrate available, aiding athlete recovery. Mark here 5/10.
Taste: Always going to be held back by substance but the sandwiches were fresh and came in several varieties (egg mayo very decent). The chips were hot and ketchup was available too. A solid 6/10.
Presentation: The above picture is of my own arrangement so no marks can be awarded for that. All food came foil fresh (fresh to death) and real crockery was provided. Nothing to complain about here and as it's the first week and I have nothing to judge it against I'm going to go all generous and give an 8/10.
So, our first entry straight in a #1 in the Teas leagues is Brooklands- Sandwiches & Chips with 19/30.
Wow. Gone on quite a while this week. Hope you've enjoyed it guys and thanks for reading if you've made it this far down. See you next week.... at some point.
Apologies for the delay to normal service this week, I know you've all been dying for your fix so without further explanation let me try and bring you up to speed. The short version of events is that we kicked off life in Division 3 (South) last weekend and started off looking like we were going to carry on where we left off only to find ourselves on the end of a 3-1 defeat. Damn. It was a little bewildering as we thought we played quite well for long periods of the game, bossed possession, bossed tackles, superior fitness etc. But there it was after 70 minutes, 3-1. Welcome to the big leagues I guess.
I should say at this point that rather than stumbling blindly into the challenge this league is offering like a drunken rambler into a ravine we are very aware of how we went wrong and what we can do to fix it. The frustrating aspect of it is that the formula for success is so simple. It is making sure those simple but crucial moments go our way more often than they don't. These fine margins are to be the furnace in which our season is going to be fired into fuel or burned to ash, it is where we are going to win or lose and where we are going to have to play our hardest and put our best effort in. The fine margins are no secret to anyone so I feel free to label them here. I'm talking about the crucial touches of a games. A tackle, a save, a finish, a key pass or a good call. Getting those key moments right and wrong was what was separated us from victory last week. The obvious one to pick out was our finishing. We had several good chances to score goals last week when at 1-0 up, 1-1 all and 1-2 down and fluffed them. Now as a forward I feel I can speak for the lot of us by saying that our frustration was palpable both during and after the game. With missing goals you want to be careful not to turn it into a complex and instead try rope it off as 'just one of those things'. In our league we're going to get better defenders and better keepers so we'll have to rise to that and place our shots better. On the same note it's 'just one of those things' that isn't going to happen again.
It's not just getting the right angle on your tap in that is crucial though. Those defensive tackles, blocks, and saves are all going to play their role as well. We could have lost 5-1 at the weekend if our opposition had not been guilty of some 'nailed on dick-of-the-day' antics. I still can't decide if I prefer the 'backsticking the ball over the line when it was going in anyway' effort or the 'beat two defenders and the keeper then hit a stand up reverse stick bat shot so bad it drifts off well wide of the open net' that had me and my marker laughing. My point is we were as lucky as we were unlucky last week. Now I'm not sure what the best way of homing in of these areas is or what tactics we need to change as I think that answer lies on an individual to get right but I do know that we play our best stuff when we're focused and pushing ourselves and each other to give everything in a game. So that would be my one-liner for a quick-fix remedy; 'give them everything you have' (house keys, PIN numbers and quality graffiti style print t-shirts being obvious exceptions to that rule).
So the wagon roles on and after 4 consecutive home games and 4 weeks of appalling icy-cold, dripping-like-a-rusty-tap, embarrassing-to-the-club 'showers' we finally get to get the Sale show on the road. I say on the road, our first away game sees us playing Brooklands (which, atlas fans, is a part of Sale!). Because we are Sale but play in Whalley Range our first away game of the season will ironically be played closer to our club house home than our own home pitch, all of which probably means this will be the only week that H does directions and the only week we won't need them. I'm going to bill this as a 'local derby' game to decide who has the bragging rights down the J.P Joule this Saturday (as if anyone in the J.P. Joule has ANYTHING to brag about). I missed training this week so can't offer much in the way of our collective attitude towards this encounter but if the lads are as fired up for it as I am it should be another entertaining contest.
Song of the Week
In keeping with the theme of working on the tight bits in games that separate a win from a loss I've gone for a song (like usual) based purely on name. I am happy this week however to admit to being a proper real genuine fan of this song and the band that perform it. Sadly, I think that being able to use songs I really like could become a rare occurrence over the season so I hope you'll join me in enjoying this song by the 'so hot right now' (Zane Lowe voice optional) band known as The Black Keys, the track is called Tighten Up:
Thanks again folks and maybe next time you won't have to wait until Thursday to get an update. Be sure to check back next week for more spiel, hopefully winning spiel! I'll also finally get to debut my brand new feature... The Tea's league! For hockey players this will be a fairly easy to work out feature, if you're not a player, well come and check it out next week, all shall be revealed...
So it has been raining for about 55 hours pretty much non-stop now. This has put the big brakes on training as across the board all sessions have been cancelled. This means I think we might want to re-appraise the definition of the term 'all-weather pitch'. It's pretty bad timing for us too as I know we'd have all really liked to have got another session in before we embark upon the great crusade for which we have striven for these many months; the league season. That's right, 22 games of intense competition will decide if we can sail the great ship Sale on to even higher seas. We feel we deserve to be there but as we've found in the past many many times thinking you're better and being better are two very different things. Every week now we'll have to push ourselves to the limit, only 100% is going to be good enough this time round, it's what we owe ourselves, it's what we owe each other.
I've started by mentioning the league as it is our main focus this year but of course I have to bring you the joyous news that on Saturday we were very much 'up for the cup' and pulled off a dramatic 3-2 win. The facts show that we bested a team a league above us but I'd much prefer to point you to the confluence of promotion/relegation/restructuring that means we beat a team which 6 months ago were playing 4 divisions higher than us. There was a bit of pride there naturally for us but as an old wife once warned me, pride comes before a fall. We played well yes, but we can play better, and we certainly thought we had it won and let our opponents back into the game. Where coach may of been delighted with our goals (one in particular that was straight from a training session, for maybe the first time ever!) he was having heart palpitations in the last minute when the score was reduced from 3-1 to 3-2. We battled through though, eased some of the heartache from last year, and moved into the semi-finals of the competition. We play Knutsford now on the 5th of January, which if previous Christmas excesses are anything to go by is VERY bad news for us.
That's a battle and a blog for the future though and I'd like now to thank those lovely friends of mine who I hassled into coming down to watch me for showing the support and flying the flag (or perhaps I should say foam hand) for the team, who knows, we may even make players out of some of you yet! My thanks is also extended to all the members of the club who came to watch, we're at home in January too so I hope you'll come down then as well.
Saturday also saw my second ever game as an Umpire take place, as I oversaw my Dads 3's best Didsbury 7ths (or some ridiculous team number like that). It was nice to get another game done and I'm moving closer to getting approved. Not too many tough calls to make though I'm sure I missed a couple of things too, only one way to better though and that's to keep trying. I'd encourage as many players as possible to get involved in umpiring, it's not a very easy thing to do but enables you to see the game in such a different light and appreciate how hard it can be to make a call sometimes. The fact we always need umpires for games is a factor in my encouragement too!
I've gotten a bit aware that these blog posts are a little texty and now that I have a phone that would be described by men in jeans and tucked in t-shirts as 'smart' I'll hopefully be bringing some greater image content over the next few weeks and maybe even another feature to add to the hugely popular song of the week feature. Speaking of which...
Song of the Week
Given that we had the delight of Saturdays battled win and the deluge of rain of Tuesday that washed out training I thought I'd go for a song that combined both Rain and happiness. Sadly, this ruled out most of The Smiths back catalogue as they were a bit heavy on the rain. So instead I went for a twist on the obvious choice. This weeks song of the week would've been Gene Kelly- Singing in the Rain but out of respect for those awesome street dancers they have on Market Street in Manchester City Centre I thought I'd go for the sick re-mix. I love street dancing, I hope they keep releasing more generic 3D films of it at the cinema (in this section italics denote sarcasm). This weeks song of the week: Mint Royale- Singing in the rain
That's pretty much it for this time but I feel bad for leaving you on the note of that atrocity of a song. So by way of an apology please see the below panoramic image that I took of our home pitch on Saturday AKA #FortressSale. For anybody interested it was taken during a Ladies 1st team game which they won 4-0. Cracking stuff girls, see you all next time!
Much happier tidings. On Saturday we posted up our first win of the season! If only it was as simple as that though. Last season I often struggled to come up with way of making a 3-0 win where we dominated the opposition from start to finish sound interesting to outside readers; this year I doubt I'll have that problem. Sadly that isn't because my literary skills have increased to Tolkien levels of description, no, it is just a plain fact that our matches are going to be a much tougher battle than before. Saturday was one such battle.
For a friendly it was feisty and physical and attritional, lots of bullying off the ball and lots of 'early season' tackles going in as Danny so eloquently put it after an attacker had just sweep tackled Martin shins. Despite only being 24 I belong to a something of an old school of Hockey that thinks friendlies should be exactly that, where you own up to your fouls and have a laugh with the opposition. The long term trend in the game is going away from this as more and more the vulgar aspects of the culture of a game like football bleed over into the our own game, so I was somewhat saddened that the 'friendly' tag was not as appropriate as it should be. That said, two sides who both want to be pushing hard in their respective divisions came together on Saturday and I do think it was a positive experience to face that kind of intensity before we get into the meat of games that actually matter.
The result was a 5-4 win. From our point of view it was a much improved display than last week particularly from an attacking point of view. I think we can consider ourselves lucky with some of our goals (Mark) but also be happy that we were able to create sustained periods of pressure that, in turn, made that bit of luck more likely. The most all-round impressive aspect of the game was perhaps the heart and fight that we showed when we found ourselves 4-2 down and turned it around to win for 5-4. I was happier with my display having assisted the first goal (and by assist I mean I had my goal stolen!) and scoring the winner, but I know both myself and the team haven't gotten into that top gear just yet.
That's what we'll be hoping to do next weekend though as our first 'real' game of the season is this Saturday, in the cup AKA the Cheshire Plate (which, yes, technically isn't a cup but let's not argue crockery please). Our opposition are from one league above our own and it is a knock-out winner takes all situation. Last season our cup game had the strange status of being one of the seasons greatest achievements whilst also being undoubtedly the most heartbreaking moment of the season, and maybe even of all my seasons. The details are all in the archive of posts if you're interested but I'll briefly cover the facts. We were playing a team 5 divisions ahead of us in our first fixture of the season (no friendly warm-ups for us!). We matched them for the whole game and came back from 1-0 down to lead 2-1. With 10 seconds remaining on the game clock we conceded a short corner and they equalised. They went on to win 3-2 in extra time as a result of a golden goal. Brutal.
If there is one thing I want to put right this year it is that heart break. We owe this cup a win and I desperatley hope we go out there and deliver one, and aim to match last seasons intensity. This season we have been drawn at home and will be playing at 3pm. This is my official call for support, please come down and help us make that home support count. It doesn't matter who you are or what team, if any, you play for. If you're Sale, get down. Bring your friends, bring your girlfriends, bring a bunch of strangers no one knows that are a bit weird, it doesn't matter just come and support!
Song of the week
Yes the now famous feature of song of the week is back for its 2nd edition. Many people might have believed that this feature would never reach such a prestigious landmark but you've always got to believe! This week, in homage to some of the outrageous tackling that was coming from both teams on Saturday as well as the amount of sheer perspiration put in by our boys i've plumpled for and 80s classic that is surely loved by all: Olivia Newton-John- Physical...
**WARNING: VIDEO MAY CONTAIN BANANA HAMMOCKS AND THRUSTING**
That's all for now folks. I hope to bring tales of a cup win and no more 10 seconds away from glory sob stories next week. Ciao
First friendly off the mark. First loss off the mark and first bad performance off the mark too. Not a great start and not the one we wanted. In the burning heat of Saturday (now a distant rain-soaked memory) our style and substance melted away after 10 wonderful minutes and we ended up on the bad end of a 3-0 drubbing from league and local rivals. I won't lie to you all it was a grim post-match team talk, a concise and stark depiction from coach of just how far down the mountain of glory we've let ourselves slip and how much effort is required to get back up there. Grim. The good news though is that we know our problems, what we have to do to fix them, and how long we have to do that in.
It comes down to a simple currency that we have to get more liberal at spending: hard work. It's how we've done it in the past and it's present when we're at our best; working hard for each other. I'm confident that with a little bit of that voodoo magic we can turn that 3-0 upside down. The hard work is in evidence to be fair, some of the boys have been double training the last couple of weeks and everyone has been putting the effort in at training. At this point there is still a little rust needs shaking off but the whetstones seem to be out and we are in the process of sharpening and tightening up. I think it would be fair to say that everyone as an individual is getting a little frustrated with their game through this process but collectively we are still working together. Mistakes are often contagious, the key is to brush them off and right them for next time, heads on and heads up and maybe just maybe I'll be talking to you all about a lovely win and good performance next week!
All said about how bad we did it was nice to finally get some game time on Saturday, the hockey off season is a long one and I always seem to add at least a stone to my weight at various points in that gap, but no matter what fitness, drills, talks, mini games, or diagrams you work through nothing will get you sharpened up like a bit of game time. For me on a personal level it was a bad day, I missed a great chance at 0-0 (and by great I mean it was on the line) and kept missing my through balls and, as a consequence, had to chase a defender halfway down the field to recover every time (what kind of defender attacks?! It's bang out of order!). So, in summary my first touch and sprint resilience need to be improved drastically, bit of a shame that those are two of the most important things in my position but never mind, I'll keep trying.
So we're in a bit of an 'under construction' phase at the moment but just like a Tesco express that could face local planning permission protests from hippies we'll be built up, ready, and open for business as soon as possible.
Song of the week
A new feature for this year that I'm going to try out is the song of the week. In case you're a bit daft, this means that I'll be putting a song up that I think best sums up the previous week in my hockey world. Sometimes the song will be good, most of the time it will be dreadful, and if I get the chance to use some kind of cheeky pun I will: AT EVERY OPPORTUNITY. This week is a fairly safe choice as it is the first time I've run this amazing feature. It's a nailed on classic tune and to me represents our inability to hit the ground running on Saturday but also the recognition that we can turn things around. So without further ado the first ever Mighty Sale song of the week is... The Rolling stones- You can't always get what you want.
Hello my old friends. I know it has been a while, sorry about that. As the months of summer began to wash over me (rain-pun very much intended) I drifted away from the lovely life of hockey and into the doldrums of inactivity that I think can be best summed up by the image of an empty can of Pringles. The break was certainly necessary, for more mental than physical reasons. Last season began before the one before had even ended and it was a make or break one for us. We totally dominated it from beginning to end, it may have looked easy on the table but it wasn't, not when all you really have to fight is yourself for 6 months. It takes it out of you, and it took it out of us as a unit. As a unit we all needed a holiday, and what I can tell you is the Ice Cream in Croatia is both delicious and moderately priced.
Anyway I awoke in horror the other day with the sudden realisation that it was in fact now September and the new season is pretty much on the doorstep. Now I've not been totally ignorant of that fact and we have been doing some punishing pre-season fitness work for a while now, which has either made me fit or brought me closer to death. I don't think our preparation has been quite as good this season than last year (for a thousand poor quality reasons) but the good thing about that fact is that it can be changed at any moment when a group of individuals decide to graft together and remember the team that we are.
I'm writing this after 2 consecutive days of 2 hour training, no problem for an athlete I suppose, however I have never professed to be such and in fact I may end up sleeping in my computer chair tonight due to an inability to remove myself from it. It is all good really though, no pain no gain, carpe diem etc. And despite the pain I am excited that the new season is here, so please let me do a brief preview.
Those that followed our adventures last year will know all about our glorious league winning antics, but what you may not know is that when we gained promotion, due to a serendipitous league re-structure we ended moving up two divisions. So this season the 1st team will be competing in the lofty heights of Division 3 (South) of the Barringtons North West Hockey League, happy days! Of course moving up like this is exactly what we wanted but I would also spare a thought for the poor 4th team who have been dumped with the brown end of the re-structure stick and have been moved up 3 and a half divisions (don't ask me how you go up half a division, I don't know), and will play teams the 2nd team played last year. I just want to say keep smiling boys and remember, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger (plus they also play the 3rd team which is a nailed on 6 points surely!).
As always happens between seasons we lose some guys and gain some guys. Some people choose to have things like families, jobs and careers and such nonsense that is against all team-working principles. Despite this outrage I'm happy to report that the competition for places looks like it is going to be hot once again with stronger 1st and 2nd teams looking like the likely scenario overall. There are no safe or certain places in any team (especially mine!) and all the guys are judged by the effort and commitment they provide to training and the results they produce on the weekend, so embrace the privilege of pressure if you find yourself in the 1st squad in the early season, and if you're in the 2nds squad, hunt those squad places down mercilessly and without complaint and you'll likely get your chance.
This would also be a good time to mention that I am no longer understudy and chief-organiser vice-captain extraordinaire for the 1st team for this campaign. The 'poisoned chalice' has been passed on to our zealous defender Nick, a man who if he approaches the role with the same zeal he does a 50/50 ball will do a far better job than me. On a personal level I'm happy to see the team develop, get the opportunity to focus on my own (technically-limited) game and more importantly not have to sort out collecting subs and providing directions every week any longer!
Our first game is at the weekend against local opposition and fellow league adversaries Timperley, we're walking somewhat blind into this league so it's going to be a good chance to see what the standard is like and blow off our match rustiness. It's only a friendly but I think I can speak for most of the team in saying we want to hit the ground running and pull off a win.
Thank you guys for reading and I'm sorry if this blog doesn't flow too well this time. It's my first post since April (despite claiming at the time I would post during summer, sorry!) so I'm just getting rid of another kind of rustiness. I will be keeping you guys up to date as the season goes on so if you have me on Twitter or Facebook then prepare to have your news feeds invaded for the next 6 months because...
HOCKEY IS BACK!
