After a long pre-season the ladies side of the club all finally kick off their league campaigns this Saturday!!

The ladies 2s will be first up at 11am on the front pitch as they take on Pembroke. The 1sts meanwhile have an away match against Trinity in Wesley at 2.30pm. Jody Hosking and Nathan Warnock have taken charge of both 1sts and 2nds this season and have seen plenty of action from the girls with numerous pre-season games. Theres some new faces on both squads with younger players like Aoife McNulty showing some early promise. Best of luck girls!

The 3rds and 4ths have later start times as they take on Our Ladies and Muckross respectively. The 3rds are away at 4pm while the 4ths play the last game of the day at home at 5pm on the back pitch. Both squads are being coached by our two Steven Roberts’ this year!

On the mens side, the 5ths also start their league as they face Monkstown away in Kiliney at 1pm. The 4ths will be looking to build on last weeks last gasp draw as they play UCD at 11am on the back pitch at home.

The 2nds and 3rds will both be hoping to bounce back after some tough defeats. The 2nds are at home at 1pm to YMCA on the front pitch while the 3rds will also play YMCA but in Claremount Road at 4pm.

The 1sts have another home game, this week against Railway at 3pm on the front pitch. They’ve been serving up some exciting ties over the last 3 weeks so make sure you come up for a full day of hockey. It’s a jammed packed weekend in the club! The bar will be open and as per usual Rachel will be serving up her various treats!

Its that time of year again when subs are due. Once again we have not changed our rates. Bar tokens and a discount rate for full members will still apply for those who pay in full or part by the 31st of October.

This year we will be VERY strict regarding the ‘no pay, no play’ rule. After the 1st of November if we have not received part of your sub you will not be considered eligible for selection. The sub does not have to be paid in full, just part. The reason for this is you are not covered by insurance should something occur.

OFFER!!
This year we are offering the parent of our juniors the opportunity to avail of a 2 for 1 deal on pavilion membership. Should you be the parent of a junior member for €50 you and your partner can become pavilion members of the club. As part of this you will get:
– €36 worth of bar tokens
– a discount rate on the club dinner
– you will be invited to all club social occasions
– you will be invited to a pavilion lunch during the season

We also wish to offer an introductory rate for anyone who joins to the club. This will apply to full members only. As a full member joining for the first time you will be entitled to a sub of €250 for this year only.

Payment options for subs are as follows:
1) Cheques made payable to Three Rock Rovers Hockey Club, to be sent to;
Mandy Bools – ladies side
Stephen Findlater – mens side

2) Cash

3) Electronic transfer to account number 43634986 , sort code 900084. PLEASE reference your name!! This is essential for us so that you dont get people chasing you when you have already paid.

Subs categories are as follows:
Full membership
€375 (if paid before 31st Oct 2012. €420 if late)
* early payment entitles members to €4 x 10 bar vouchers

Student membership
€210
* early payment entitles members to €4 x 5 bar vouchers

School/Junior membership
€140

Veteran membership
€135 women
€275 men
*early payment entitles members to €4 x 3 and €4 x 6 bar vouchers respectively

Pavilion membership
€50

*** Should you have an issue regarding payment please let us know. We would prefer to know than to be chasing you. ***

Another gentle reminder about getting your dreams in for this years big fundraising event. New pitches don’t pay for themselves folks!!!!

Plenty of you have been thinking of what to donate, but please put pen to paper and email john.findyoulater@gmail.com

Every little thing counts no matter how big or small. If you’re unsure of anything please give John a shout to talk through it. Alternatively teams can put in a group dream either.

The event is on the 15th of November, dinner at 6.45 and the main auction at 7.30.

Also don’t forget there will be a sample catalogue at the cocktail party on the 19th of October. Tickets for this event can be bought from Siobhan or Stephen. They are €15 with two free drinks included in that. If you pre-purchase a ticket you get a free bar token on the night.

Lots of work is going into making it a glittery 1920s affair so start planning your outfits ladies and gents!!

The Golden Oldies World Hockey Festival was held last week in Hawaii and attended by David Costello and Nick West from the Three Rock Mens Vets. Below is a few words from Nick about their trip!

We played for a team called the Irish Gamesters which has players from a number of Irish Clubs including Monkstown, Glenanne and Lisnagarvey with some guests from England, Canada and Germany. Railway Union and Cork Harlequins also had players on other teams.

The Festival takes place over a week starting with the opening ceremony and party in the park where the games took place at the foot of Diamond Head, an extinct volcano at the end of Waikiki Beach. Three Days of hockey took place with 7 goals being scored by the Three Rock players and only one goal conceded in the week. But the hockey was not about the winning but about the three Fs – Fun, Friendship and Fraternity of course! Social Events included a picnic day at a ranch, a sunset cruise and various tours.

The final dinner was held in hanger 79 of the Pacific Aviation Museum in Pearl Harbour and the theme was "An Officer and a Gentleman" so our team was finely clad as Naval Officers. The band played into the night with an evocative Andrews Sisters set with a stage backdrop of a Douglas Dakota.

This is all was a great fun Festival. Roll on the next one in Leipzig 2015.

Nick

Fixtures
This week sees the mens 3rds and 4ths kick off their league campaigns! All have been drawn away for the first weeks of the season. Rob Johnson will captain the mens 4ths for the year, and they start their season away to North Kildare at 3pm. The 3rds meanwhile dont have as far to travel as they head for Rathgar at 2.15pm.

Travellers of the week though will go to the 2nds who head down to Kilkenny for a 1pm game. The Cats have so far played Avoca and Weston, coming out with a loss and a win respectively. They’ll provide tough opposition for the 2s who will be hoping to get some points on the board.

The 1sts have another big game as they welcome UCD to HQ at 3pm. The students have been revitalised over the last 2 years and will be hoping to cause something of an upset.

The ladies sides are into their last week of pre-season. The 1sts have a friendly against YMCA on Wednesday night at 8.30pm, while the 2nds take on Our Ladies at 1pm on Saturday. The schedule for the 3rds and 4ths is to be confirmed.

Umpire Clinic
Ali Keogh will be carrying out a brief umpire clinic on Saturday during the mens 1sts game. All ladies 1/2s are expected to attend. Anyone else that wishes to join please contact Ali directly at alisonfkeogh@gmail.com.

The clinic starts at 2.30pm in the clubhouse and will cover the following:
What to bring to a game
Where to stand/areas of control
Signalling
Specific questions on rules
It will also involve watching the umpires on the mens game so bring a pen and paper!

Garda Vetting
From the 1st of October the IHA will be charging for Garda vetting forms. If you are a junior coach and have not yet completed one please ask Ali for a form (alisonfkeogh@gmail.com). If you have filled it out but not yet returned it please do so asap!! They can be left in the club for Alis attention

Tickets for this years cocktail party are on sale now and can be purchased from Siobhan or Stephen.

The event will take place on the 19th of October. Its an open event so please feel free to bring friends along!

Tickets are €15 and include two free drinks. Cocktails on the night will be in line with our Great Gatsby theme. MAke sure you make an effort to dress up in your best 1920s style as there will be a prize for the best dressed lady and gent on the night!

The bar will be open til late and there will be a DJ on site.

To get an accurate idea on numbers please purchase tickets in advance or order them from Stephen (0868044238) or Siobhan (0879066379).

Dont forget there will be a sample brochure for the Dream Auction on the night so get your ideas for our big fundraiser into John Findlater at john.findyoulater@gmail.com.

The mens 1sts made a big statement last week by beating last years league winners Pembroke 5-4 in a thrilling game in Serpentine Avenue last Saturday. For neutrals the 9 goal spectacle would have been great entertainment, for those of us on the side line it was nail-biting to the last minute! The lads opened the scoring early on as JB found the net, only for Pembroke to equalise not long after with an Alan Sothern bullet of a drag. Jody popped up with another cracker of a goal for the 2nd week in a row before Pembroke brought things level again. The next goal went to Pembroke with the game staying at 3-2 for a while. Shane Madeley brought it to three all before Mickey Maguire put us ahead yet again. The lead didnt last long as Pembroke scored from nearly the tip-off. The game looked to finish at 4-4 but Luke Madeleys late corner drag was enough to seal the win.

Some pictures of the game can be found here: http://irishhockeyphotographers.zenfolio.com/p853322677

A match report courtesy of Findo can be found in the mens 1sts page: https://www.threerockrovershc.com/s/match-centre-64910/0-1897622

The 2nds were not so fortunate in their 2nd game. A home tie with Avoca, who have only been relegated from div 1 last year was always going to be a tough match. The lads looked all set for a big win though as 7 minutes from the end they were 3-1 up. However experience got the better of them and 3 Avoca goals within the last few minutes means that for the 2nd week in a row they were unfortunate not to get any points.

Match report from Findo can be found on the team page: https://www.threerockrovershc.com/s/match-centre-68286/0-1897640

The ladies 1sts had a tough friendly game against div 1 side Glenanne on Saturday morning. The girls are trying out a new formation which produced glimpses of quality passing to open the Glens defense. However, for most of the game Glenannes pace proved slightly too much for the girls and they found themselves defending for much of the game. Glenanne had over 10 corners to our 2 but the defensive team played well to keep most of them out, with Sinead Holden blocking most of the 1st strikes. Barbara pulled off some good saves bu the girls found themselves 0-3 down with 2/3s of the game gone. Val Saunders salvaged a goal from a well worked corner only for Glenanne to score again making the final score 1-4.

The ladies 2nds had a friendly v Pembroke but a 5pm start meant that the team only had 9 availbale to them. They lost the game but match fitness would certainly have been worked on! The 3s/4s were also meant to have a game but unfortunately the opposition cancelled at the last minute.

An early crunch game awaits the firsts this weekend as they take on Pembroke away at 3.30pm this Saturday. Both teams claimed wins last weekend and will be keen to keep up winning ways. It is always a tight and lively game so be sure to get down and watch!

The 2s will be looking to bounce back with their first home fixture of the season against Avoca at 1pm. This will be a tough test for the lads as Avoca only dropped from Division 1 last year. Their 2nds meanwhile take on UCD at 1pm on the back pitch.

At 3pm Trinity return to Grange Road for another year and kick off their league campaign against Monkstown on the front pitch.

On the ladies side of things the 1sts will have a tough game against Glenanne 1sts at 11am on the front pitch. The Glens always offer some hard opposition and with them being in Division 1 it will a good test for the girls

Junior training is the same as usual for both boys and girls in their 2nd week back.

The next few weeks will be busy from a social side of things within the club!

First up is the annual cocktail party on October 19th. Grace and Claire return once again to run the event, with Jack McCann also helping out this year.

We are going with a Great Gatsby themed event this time round with a prize for the best dressed! More details on time and ticket prices will be confirmed shortly but until then get the glad rags organised and practice your Charleston for what will be a great night!

At the cocktail party we hope to have a provisional catalogue for the all important Dream Auction on Friday November 15th. Its great to hear everybody thinking of ideas of what they can bring to the event. We have a target for at least 5 items to be brought by each senior team, followed by anything else that people can give.

Make sure you contact John Findlater with anything that you wish to offer. We are also giving the opportunity to businesses to buy a page in the catalogue for €200. Again, please contact John at john.findyoulater@gmail.com. The night itself we will have a viewing from 6pm, dinner at 7pm and then the auction itself commences at 7.45pm.

The mens 1sts got their Leinster league off to a good start by beating Corinthians 4-2 in a lively local derby on Saturday. Rovers had the better of the chances in the first few minutes but Corinthians sometimes looked dangerous. The lads capitalized on their dominance through a Mitch Darling goal 10 mins before the end of the first half. Mitchy was on the scoresheet again minutes later after some good work between himself and Jonny Bruton.
Corinthians responded reasonably quickly in the second half, by brining the game level only 10 mins in. Things started to get a little tetchy at this point with Gav Bourke getting a yellow card. Being down to 10 didn’t stop the lads though as JB slotted one in to put the lads ahead again. Corinthians continued to press, drawing some good saves from Westy and Jody off the line. However Jody wrapped the game up with a cracking shot into the top right corner to seal the win.

The mens 2s were unlucky not to get a point in the first game in Division 2. Having been 0-2 down to Pembroke for most of the match they hauled themselves back into game with goals from Steven Roberts and Harry Morris. With only minutes remaining Pembroke won a short corner and worked it well to score, ensuring they went home with all the points.

There was a great turnout for the Johnson-Walker cup on Saturday morning for the mens 3rds-5ths. Using it as a selection game before the start of the season in two weeks, over 28 guys turned up with a very youthful 3rds team getting the better of the 4ths and 5ths!

On the ladies side of things it was also selection weekend! A 1sts and 2nds squad both took on Loreto in a friendly. The 1sts drew nil all and had numerous chances to win the game but couldn’t find the backboard. The 2s meanwhile drew 2-2. With some new faces on both squads from last season these were good results to build on before the start of the leagues in 3 weeks time.

The 3rds and 4ths ladies also played some games between themselves on Saturday afternoon under the watchful eye of the coaches. They also have 3 weeks before their campaigns kick off.

The junior boys and girls all returned to training last weekend. No matches took place and the schedules are not out yet. Once confirmed we will put them on the site.