GCHC Men’s Club Captain welcome July 2021
Greetings from Richard Mobberley, Mens Club Captain 21-22.
As many of you will be aware by now, Mark stepped down as Club Captain in May after what we will agree was a successful tenure in the role. We now have a new committee, with an equal mix of both Hockey playing and non-hockey playing members. I was honoured to be invited to take up the reins of the Men’s side of the club and to be one of the more “experienced” heads on the committee.
For those who don’t know me, I have been in and around the club since I was old enough to walk. I am just about old enough to have played some competitive matches on grass, and was one of the lucky kids to have been part of the first ever club junior coaching on the newly laid “fake grass” pitch at Plock Court.
After a brief stint away at Uni doing other things, I eventually found my way back to GCHC in 2005. I was talked into becoming a joint team captain. It took two of us to look after a bunch of unruly teenagers, many of whom are still at the club to this day (you know who you are). I have held a captaincy position ever since, so taking up Men’s Club Captain might just be a natural progression!
As we get closer to the resumption of league Hockey, I am sure you are all as eager as I am to get back to playing again. I do think it is important to recognise however that the pandemic has had a serious impact on every section of society which will be felt for a long time to come. Many of our fellow club members will have been through tough times so I feel it is important to put on record that I recognise this and that getting every club member back onto a pitch playing Hockey and finding our “new normal” is my top priority for this season.
I cannot do this by myself though, and this is where you come in! our club is a family – it is at its best when its members do their bit. Whether that is something as small as ensuring your contact details and availability are up to date, helping your team out on match days by arriving promptly, volunteering to assist coaching sessions, signing up for umpiring courses or volunteering to be a Captain, it all adds to the betterment of our Hockey family. For those that have stepped forward both in the past and present, and those that will in the future, I extend our clubs thanks and gratitude to you.
Over the next couple of weeks I will send more information out to you all. There are numerous Hockey related challenges that have needed to be overcome, not least the new England Hockey league restructuring, and new “Games Management System” that is live though not in its finished format.
Look forward to seeing you all soon
Regards
Richard
Men’s Club Captain – Gloucester City Hockey Club