Dear All

The Hockey season has arrived and got off to a flying, albeit incredibly chilly, start. With boys of all ages having had training during Games and after school sessions, RGS’s young hockey players have been sharpening up to prepare for the season.  In addition to their hard work on the pitch, players from Year 9 upwards have had the opportunity to attend Athletic Development sessions in the gym with Mr Girdler, complementing the work they do with him on the pitch, which is designed to make them faster, more resilient and, fundamentally, a stronger hockey player. 

As always, one of the highlights of the second term is getting our “little legends” out on the astro for the first time. I’m pleased to say that we currently have over 60 boys enjoying playing hockey, whether that is building on what they’ve learned previously or at club sides or learning the ropes for the first time. We look forward to them starting their player journey in an RGS shirt.

Fixtures began in earnest in January with local friendlies as well as an immediate launch into National Cup competitions. The draw is below:

Boys ISHC First Round Draw

• U13’s – Whitgift
• U15’s – Eltham College
• U19’s – BYE

 England Hockey National Cup First Round Draw

• U14’s - DCGS
• U16’s - Eton
• U18’s – Bloxham 

At the time of writing, having managed to fit in our first few fixtures around the top year groups exams, the 1XI got their season off to a flying start with a 7-3 win over Bloxham. Meanwhile, the U16’s showed how far they’ve come from last season’s cup defeat by beating Eton 4-0 in Round 1 and achieving a 3-2 win against Merchant Taylors' School in Round 2.  A fantastic start for both teams.

Coaching 

RGS is lucky to have a wealth of hockey coaching experience amongst its ranks and this year it has been bolstered by Mr Mullholand joining the history department and working with our junior squads and Mr Girdler who takes over the hockey squads Athletic Development.

The coaching line up for this season is as follows:

U12’s – Mr Carr & Mr Mulholland
U13’s – Mr McDonald-Smith
U14’s – Mr Clark
U15’s – Mr Rowe-Elliot
U16’s – Mr Phipps
Seniors – Mr Clark
Athletic Development – Mr Girdler
Goalkeepers – Mr Rowe-Elliot

Regional Representation 

We are incredibly proud of Old Wycombensian, Jonah Pedrette who has been selected for England U18’s. Jonah made a huge contribution to RGS hockey in every team he played for, including making his 1XI debut at U15 and helping the team to two successive National Quarter finals. We wish him all the best with this exciting challenge ahead and look forward to seeing him turn out in an England shirt at one of their upcoming test matches. 

Links with Clubs 

RGS Hockey players are lucky to have a number of quality Junior hockey clubs in the local area if they want to play more hockey outside of school.

We have a particularly strong link with Wycombe Hockey Club, and many of our boys make up RGS teams in the week before donning the blue and orange of Wycombe on the weekend. However, we also have many boys representing Reading, Marlow, Maidenhead and Amersham & Chalfont and all of these clubs have a strong tradition of developing junior players throughout club hockey of all levels.  

If your son is interested in joining a hockey club outside of school, please feel free to have him talk to his hockey coach who would be happy to point him in the right direction.

Support

Our Hockey provision is only possible through the support of parents and guardians, whose contributions allow us to support and provide more for our boys than we would otherwise be able to do.

This year already we have been able to invest in restocking the school’s stick supply (which, it’s fair to say, were in need of a little TLC) and repairing the junior and senior goalkeeper kits which take a bit of a battering. We have also been able to acquire some deflection and rebound boards to help hone our goal scorer's instincts, as well as keep our keepers on their toes.

We also were able to bring in recent Bath 1XI captain, and OW, Colin Dudrey-Harvey as a Graduate Hockey coach for a term leading up to Christmas. His input was invaluable, sharing his wisdom with the boys and in particular taking responsibility for penalty corners with all of the squads.  

In order to maintain all our equipment and associated fixture costs, we ask for a £100 Membership from all students involved in after school training and fixtures.

To pay the membership fee, please go to ParentPay, look up Hockey Membership 2024 and make the £100 payment.

It is the policy of the School that pupils should not be prevented from taking part in school activities due to financial reasons.  If you feel that the cost involved is prohibitive, please feel free to contact me in confidence.

Events

20 April 2024 – Bat Oar Ball
This popular black-tie event, held in the Queen's Hall, includes a champagne reception, auction, 3 course dinner and dancing to live music until the early hours. Each year the Ball raises important funds to support all sixteen sports at the school.
Tickets are on sale on Little Box Office and will close on 1 April.  

2 May 2024 – Hockey Awards
A relaxed and enjoyable evening celebrating the excellent performance and achievements of all our players.
Tickets will be available on Little Box Office soon.
Keep an eye out in Letters to Parents and on our social media platforms for ticket updates.

Follow Us!

@RGSHWSport

@rgshw_sport

Keep up to date with all our fixtures on SOCS.

I look forward to seeing you on the side of a hockey pitch soon.

Sam Clark
Head of Hockey
szc@rgshw.com