"The new season is now under way, and once again the year comes with plenty of challenges. As you are no doubt aware, the centenary celebrations continue this year.  Lynne Morgan and her Centenary Committee continue to organise all the different events and functions, details of which will be announced during the season through leaflets and the website. Attendance at Centenary events has been very good, especially the ball, and I hope that this will continue to be the case.

Please continue to support your committee and your team captain, declare your availability as soon as you can, and if you are unable to play please give as much notice as you can and volunteer your match tax  to save people having to chase you for it at a later date.

On the playing front it will be another stimulating year, with the first team looking to bounce back from relegation last season;  due to some irregularities, the second team stay in the EM Premier Division, and that brings a level of challenge which will need to be surmounted.  Further down the club, the captaincies have remained stable, and that should also be reflected in the results on the pitch.

The Ladies continue to play well and hold their own in their respective divisions but they also need support with umpiring.  My thanks go out to those members who put themselves out to umpire, again quite often a thankless task, but a rewarding one, nonetheless.

When playing, play hard but fair;  treat your opponents and officials with respect, and use Caythorpe as often as possible.  Let's try to generate a real club atmosphere this year. As ever, if you have any suggestions or want to get involved with the running of the club, please approach anyone on committee - we are elected by you to represent you, so come and talk to us.

 Have a great season individually, and the club will benefit in this special year."

Yours in hockey,

Ian Lane

Chairman, South Nottingham Hockey Club