I’ve been around on the Astro at SGS for many years now and I’ve never seen as many people at practice. There are pupils of all ages swarming around at practices and it is absolutely fabulous, average numbers are around 30 per age group. Enjoyment coupled with engagement results in us seeing progress and improvement. Hockey is one of our “Emerging” boys sports and it is great to see the boys taking the opportunity to join in practices after school and their stand alone practice on a Wednesday lunchtime. Matches for the boys are now in the calendar and will be played shortly after the half term break. The girls Strength and Conditioning Sessions before School on a Wednesday in the newly refurbished Fitness Suite have also been well attended.

We have already travelled to a number of counties for fixtures – Lancashire where the sun shon for once and there wasn’t the usual biting wind, Yorkshire (does it always rain in Leeds), Staffordshire and of course Greater Manchester both on Saturdays and mid week for cup matches and block fixtures. The front end of the Hockey fixture list is hard and deliberately so with early rounds of cup matches to play but things are starting to come together and perhaps the rub of the green is changing in our favour.

Working on the transition phase and turning from defence into attack has been one of our main threads with the older groups and learning and responding to the outcome rather than the score with the younger teams. Moving forward we will look at finishing and supporting the player with the ball. We have also had a big drive on Club links, the more pupils play the better their skills become, the more match play they experience the better they are at reading the game. Should anyone want to know more about Clubs in the local area please do not hesitate to contact me (withingtons@stockportgrammar.co.uk) and if your son/daughter expresses a desire to go to an evening Club session please encourage them to do so. Greater Manchester County Schoolgirls Hockey have also put on training sessions which many of our girls are taking advantage of.

In the Cup or Plate competition there are some tough matches on the horizon. The 1st XI will go to Repton, the U15s will play Bradford and the U13s Yarm. Cheadle Hulme will have the opportunity to avenge their 2 – 0 defeat in the U16 National Schools as they take on our U14s. The U16 will make the short journey to The King’s School Maccelsfield for the next round.

None of this happens without you, the parents, and thank you for getting up on a Saturday morning and having your child here for a 7.30 leave numerous times this first half term, thank you for being there to pick them up post match and sorry for being late (most weeks!), but most of all thank you for your support which is appreciated and acknowledged.

Miss Sharon Withington
Head of Hockey