All systems go
We’ve had a bit of a hiatus from Back Posting these last couple of weeks as there’s been lots going on with the committee meeting, men’s/women’s days, kit supplier negotiations and CIO planning, but we’re back with a number of important updates so please have a thorough read.
Dates for the diary
The inaugural Men’s Day and Women’s Day 2.0 were resounding successes thanks to a storming social and karaoke at The Northcote and communal teas and drinks at The Moretown Belle. Big thanks to our Club Captains, Tipple and Issy, for organising, and to everyone who took part.
And the good times aren’t over! There’s plenty of fun in store so get the following in your diary:
15th March - W1 vs East London derby match (LV @ 18:00 with afterparty at The Northcote).
29th March - 1s club fundraiser - Details below!
12th April - End of Season dinner - Details coming soon!
19th April - 25/26 season early registration deadline - More on this below
9th August - Club Day - It’s gonna be a big one so get it in the diary now.
Recruitment and 25/26 season registration
We’re now in full planning mode for next season and to avoid issues with team registration/oversubscription we’ve set up an early sign up scheme.
If you intend on playing next season please sign up before the 20th of April so we have a clear idea of returning members. Not only will this save you £10 and help the club with planning for the year ahead, it will also secure your place playing league hockey which we cannot guarantee for those joining later.
We’re also considering our recruitment strategy, across all teams in the club, for next season.
One of the recruitment angles we are considering is the offering of employment opportunities, both short term and long term. If you either (a) work in recruitment, or (b) are able to provide any sort of employment opportunity, we would be really grateful if you could reach out to Chair, Helen, or stand-in VCP, Warren. Thanks.
Socks on sale!
With an exciting kit update on the horizon, it’s time for a flash sale of the merch we have in stock, including a fiver off a set of home and away socks so treat yourself to some now!
One of the reasons we’ve been able to leverage such competitive kit offers is because we look so fly on our socials 💅 so please do be repping by wearing official Wapping socks to all your games.
Merch can be purchased from our webshop and all orders will be fulfilled by our kit sec to either LV/JO as requested.
NB. Kit for the 25/26 season is being colour matched to our current kit, so any socks purchased now will still look peng next season.
R.E.S.P.E.C.T
Wapping has been blessed with a blossoming umpire community thanks to a huge amount of hard work from our ULOs, UDOs, and support from those who umpire. We now have a fantastic Umpiring - Learning & Discussion group where our UDOs share video clips of incidents for discussion so everyone (umpires or not - it’s open to all) can better understand how to interpret the rules in different game play situations. Our sponsorship team have also secured club radios to ensure our umpires are able to discuss decisions on pitch, and our experienced umpires are working closely with those less experienced to ensure as much support as we can possibly give them. But what our umpiring community needs most is respect.
There is no single greater resource at our club than the volunteers who make it run, and the mental health of those volunteers is something we take incredibly seriously so I implore everyone at the club to hold themselves and others accountable for their behaviour both on and off pitch.
I would also like to remind everyone that it is not appropriate to be posting content on social media or in club WhatsApp groups that passes comment on umpiring. This undermines our efforts with our umpire community and more importantly, negatively affects the mental health of those who do give up their time to umpire. As Club Chair, if I see anything posted on social media or in club whatsapp groups that could be interpreted as a negative comment on umpiring then your team risks losing their club umpires for the following game and the individuals who posted it may also face a financial penalty/playing ban.
The Chair of London Hockey has reached out, asking us to raise awareness about expected behaviours and about what to do when misconduct occurs so please do take the time to read the following:
EH's Spirit of Hockey Code of Conduct, which came into force at the start of this season.
🎉 Get ready for an unforgettable night at the Wapping HC Fundraiser! 🎉
Join us at our beloved clubhouse, The Moretown Belle, on the 29th March for a night packed with fun and laughter, all for a great cause! 🏒💥
We want to bring together the best of our hockey community to raise funds and celebrate everything we love about our club.
We have brainstormed all ideas under the sun to make this an unforgettable night, and the more participation we get, the more exciting things we can plan! Expect games, raffles, awesome prizes, and plenty of chances to enjoy a drink or two with great company! 🍻🏅
Details are coming soon, but trust us – you won’t want to miss this! Your support will make a huge difference; we can’t wait to see you there. Let’s make this a night to remember! 🙌🎉
Sponsorship
Our sponsorship secretaries have done a brilliant job this season, in what is a very challenging climate. As ever, the best chance of acquiring sponsorship income is via personal contacts. If you think your company might be at all interested, please do reach out to our sponsorship secretaries, Estelle and Steph, who can provide a copy of the sponsorship deck and some pointers about why getting involved with Wapping is a brilliant idea. With the ever-rising costs, this income is crucial in keeping subs down and continuing the invaluable work we do in the community.
Back to Hockey
With CAWHL just around the corner, now is a great time to rally your friends and colleagues to pick up a stick. Kiran has been coaching B2H for a long time now, providing hugely enjoyable sessions that are suitable for even the most complete beginners. A reminder that it runs every other Monday at 7.30pm, with the next session on February 24th. Here’s a link with more details: https://www.wappinghockey.club/back-to-hockey
Insta on 🔥🔥🔥
Following the smashing new club showcase video put together by our Head of Press, Budgen, and tons of top content from our press team, we’ve hit a new social media height with 2,500 followers on Instagram which is excellent news for our club profile, recruitment and sponsorship. Big shout out to the press gang for all their hard work 📸🫶
The culprits of hat-gate have been identified
Pirates Cap(tains) Ollie and Maddie felt personally slighted by the reminder not to wear caps on the playing field. They’ve since gone into hiding - thank you Iain Davidson for creating a poster and offering to fund a reward.
This week’s fixtures
Last week’s results
Member discounts:
Check out our Members' area (Password: whc1989) which has all of our available offers, including:
5% discount and 5% club kick back at the Moretown Belle
A free Psycle session
Grubby: 50% off + free delivery on 1st box, plus 30% off for the rest of the month
Balling: All members = 15% off, W1 and M1 = 25% off. We also get 25% off OTE sports (sports nutrition bars, etc)
