Happy Halloween
To All our members, supporters & sponsors we would like to wish you and your families a Happy Halloween! We look forward to seeing everyone back at the club, in some capacity, sooner rather than later!

As always stay safe, do your bit and we will be back at Grange Road, enjoying hockey in no time!

Hockey Ireland E-Hub
Hockey Ireland has launched their new E-learning platform. The “Hockey Ireland Hub” aims to offer support to all aspects of the hockey community via courses, helpful downloads and articles.

To access the Hockey Ireland Hub please go to: https://hockeyirelandhub.ie/. This link is also available in several areas of the Hockey Ireland website. You will need to create an account to access the resources on the Hub. All aspects of the site will be updated on continuous basis.

Read the Full article here: Hockey.ie

Junior Committee Update!
HALLOWEEN WEEKEND
Training IS on !

Sorry for the confusion with last week’s update, we are delighted to confirm that training IS on this Halloween weekend! So get out your costume and let’s see how many witches and ghosts we can have at training !!

HOWEVER, please make sure that your child can move freely and is able to train in their outfit.

COVID

As Halloween approaches we have now the opportunity to look back and review the first 2 months of opening under new and changing COVID regulations.

The overwhelming response from parents and massive cooperation from all coaches has ensured that we have been able to offer training and much needed outdoor exercise to our Junior members in a safe and secure environment. We can not express enough our thanks to our 140 + Covid Supervisors who have all completed the Sport Ireland Return to Play and Covid Officer online courses and have developed their understanding of how to support the club in this role.

They arrive early hail, rain or snow to meet and greet members, with one Covid Supervisor taking the online register while the other Covid Supervisor sanitises the children’s hands. During the session they support the coaches by constantly reminding the members of the 2 metre social distancing rules and all the protocols in place.

Quite simply without these volunteers we could not train !
So, you know who you are (!) take a bow …. thank you, thank you, thank you!

LEAGUE TEAMS

Please note that coaches will continue to assess the squads over the coming weeks. It now looks as if leagues may start in January and therefore coaches will have until the weekend of the 22nd of November to potentially move players up or down teams if they deem it necessary. Also be aware that there may be movement in January when the league season starts so all members should continue to work hard in training.

FOCUS ON OUR MEMBERS
As you all know we have almost 500 junior members in the Club, these are trained by 37 coaches many of whom coach a number of teams. We have 26 Gaisce students, who hopefully in years to come will become coaches also and we have over 150 active volunteer parents !! This is a huge hockey family, by any standard !

Over the coming weeks we will continue to put the spotlight on some of these people.
This week it is the turn of AOIBH MAGUIRE (pictured in newsletter with her 2019/2020 player of the year award).

We (in particular Inter Girls Team 4) would like to pass on their best wishes and socially distanced hugs to Aoibh Maguire who was recently diagnosed with thyroid cancer.
After informing her mum that she didn’t feel quite right and something was wrong, she was taken to hospital on the 7th of October where the diagnosis hit Aoibh and her family with shock.

Thankfully her surgery went very well and the consultant is confident that Aoibh can start the road to full recovery.Chris traveled to Ballycullen last Tuesday with a signed card from the Inter coaches and the girls in Team 4 and some chocolates to see how she was doing.

Aoibh’s mum has said that all the support the Youths have shown Aoibh has been so beneficial to her recovery. Aoibh will return to the pitch when she is ready, but in the meantime will hopefully manage to get down to the club during a training session to catch up with the girls in her team.

Aoibh, from all the Youths, good luck in your recovery and we can’t wait to see you back at the Club again soon.

CONGRATULATIONS

Special congratulations to Gillian Garrett and Ali Keogh ( who kindly came to talk to our Gaisce students recently ) who are part of the Irish Contingent of Irish Umpires and Officials who have been appointed to the Euro Hockey Tournaments for 2021.

Gillian is an integral part of the Junior Club being both a parent and coach of the 6th Class Boys.

Congrats to you both !

And Finally…

Well done to the INTER GIRLS who all wore PINK to training last Friday night in Aid of Breast Cancer Research. Not only did they add a bit of colour to the evening but they raised almost €200 ! (See pictures in the newsletter)

COVID- 19
On Monday 19th, the Government moved the country from Level 3 to Level 5 for the next 6 weeks, restrictions kicked in midnight Wednesday, until 1st December. We were delighted to learn that, although matches continue to be off the cards, training in PODS may continue.

This has been working really well over the last number of weeks with over 140 parents now volunteering to support the club by becoming COVID Supervisors.

Each age group now has a parent in charge of ensuring that every training session has a Covid Supervisor. Chris Steele has provided huge support and knowledge to the setting up of this system.

TRAINING OVER MIDTERM
PLEASE NOTE – there will be training over both weekends of the midterm break.
Friday 23rd – Sunday 25th of October & October 30th – November 1st.
Keep an eye out for any changes to this, that will be communicated to parents in the usual methods from Chris!

GAISCES
One of the many initiatives we are undertaking with this year’s GAISCE group is to hone their literary skills! Last week Hannah McKenna & Louis Peuch gave us an overview of their typical week of training. This insight was certainly of interest for our more junior members who could see how much work and time commitment is involved in developing one’s skills.

This week, another member of our 20/21 Gaisce Group, Emma Montgomery ( who plays both Inter 1 and Ladies 1st this year ) gives us her take on the Umpiring Session they had 2 weeks ago with Ali Keogh.

In her own words :
An Gaisce – October 2020 – “Umpiring with Ali Keogh”
We began the training session by Ali teaching us how to properly blow our whistles, as we were all being very nice in terms of how loud we were being. She took us through our first learning point of umpiring, which was knowing what part of the pitch belongs to which umpire. It was hard to get used to, as I kept blowing frees in the wrong areas. Two of us would umpire a mini match between the rest of us for a few minutes, and then Ali would take us through another learning point.

We were taught that umpires should move as much as possible to see the game, so we tried to move as much as possible when practising. We also learned the few hand signals we would need to umpire an U10s game and when not to blow frees. Ali said that the main goals when umpiring U10s are that the players learn about the game while playing it and are safe. We had great fun playing the non-contact mini match with each other. I did not think I would enjoy umpiring, as I have a habit of not enjoying umpires a lot, but I was pleasantly surprised!

We all learned a lot about this important role on the pitch and I have also gained a new level of respect for umpires, their job is a lot harder than it looks! We also had a socially distanced birthday party for our teammate and friend, Ella Power, after the session ended and stuffed our faces with cake.

The session was a great experience, thank you so much Ruth for organizing it.

Next week we hope to get a report from 1 or 2 of the Gaisce students on their experiences of their first weeks of coaching.

In the absence of any matches and with no changes to the COVID protocols we have little news on these fronts. With this in mind we would like to use this opportunity to give some of our Junior Members the opportunity to describe their hockey experiences.

This week we would like to introduce Louis Peuch (Under 16 boys / Leinster U16 ) and Hannah McKenna (Inter girls/ Leinster U16 ). Both of these are goalies and have benefited greatly from the superb coaching from Brian Cleary.

The following is their last weekend schedule showing how huge a part both hockey and Three Rock Rovers plays in their lives!

In Louis Peuch’s’ words :

On Friday we had U16s training with James; every alternate week we have goalkeeper training with Brian and this Friday was the girls’ turn.
I arrived just before 7pm, warmed up and got my kit on. I love my new Obo gear and am very grateful to the club for part-sponsoring me. At training we did some shooting drills, with quick shots from the top of the circle and some back-post deflections, and finished with short corners. After training I went home, had a shower and had my dinner.

I spent a lot of Saturday doing homework (I’m in third year). I had a music lesson over Skype in the morning and then I started my homework. I had the opportunity to train with the men’s 3rds-6ths, as my brother Theo was going to that, but I didn’t want to train five times in five days (I have school hockey on Mondays and Thursdays). I did all of my homework and went out with my mum and my dog for a walk.

I had Leinster training on Sunday at 2pm. We had about an hour of fitness in Marlay Park, where we did speed and mobility exercises, and then had hockey at Three Rock. At the training, we did rebounding and deflections. Near the end, the U18s boys joined us and we practised short corners against each other. This was beneficial because we had been practising them before against defenders who knew all the techniques, which lost us the element of surprise.

After a long shower and a big dinner I did my music practice and then relaxed for the evening.

TRR Goalie weekend by Hannagh McKenna
This weekend was a busy one for me with school, club and Leinster training.

Friday
Friday is a rest day from School hockey, so home early with some down time to chillax (on Play Station VR), fuel up and check my gear before Friday night training in Grange road.
This Friday I had goalie training with Brain Cleary (The best goalie coach!) and then group training with the Inter Squad.
Friday night after training is home, shower, refuel, chillax and an early night.

Saturday
At this stage in the season we would normally have school preseason warm up games on a Saturday Morning, but due to Covid restrictions these are on hold for the moment. Saturday for me is currently a rest day but we had our first school weekend training session so in school for 8.30, but this was a light training session for me, and I sat out the fitness part of the session and focused on training Drills.

I am in fourth year TY this year and I am doing the Gasice program in TRR. Ruth organised Ali Keogh, FIH International hockey umpire to give us an Introduction to Hockey Umpiring, this was an amazing session, Ali was brilliant, and I learnt a lot.
We also had a special birthday this weekend, Happy Birthday Ella Power! We had social distanced cake and candles pitch side after the Umpiring session! Thanks to Ali FQ for organising cake and hats!

Sunday
Sunday morning as part of the Gaisce program I assist Calum coaching the 4th class girls’ teams. This has been really interesting for me as I play goalie, I don’t get to do much outfield, so it has been interesting to help out. I hope to do the coaching qualification in 2021 and coach in Three Rock next season.

Sunday afternoon is time for Homework, relaxing and fuelling for Leinster training. Sunday evening, I trained in TRR with the Under 16 Leinster Squad, we are currently preparing for the upcoming Inter Pro tournament which will be held over the Halloween Mid Term Covid restrictions permitting.

GAISCES
On Saturday evening this year’s Gaisces were delighted to have an hour’s Introduction to Umpiring session with Ali Keogh. She very kindly gave of her time and expertise to talk to this enthusiastic group.

She was very keen to get them together on the pitch with their whistles… as she said one of the biggest things for young people to learn when starting to umpire is confidence blowing the whistle !! Consequently the evening air above 3 Rock was filled with the sound of 24 whistles being enthusiastically blown !

Next week 2 of those who participated will give their own report on the session.

Covid-19 Training Reminders
With the current restrictions now in place, training can still occur, however, we would like to reminder all members that you are to bring only the essential gear/items you need for training when up at Grange Road.

As part of the Hockey Ireland covid protocols, and protocols for all sports, only essential items are to be brought onto pitches and everything must be removed afterwards. There is no longer a lost and found shed in TRR, and any items found are being donated into the Enable Ireland clothing bank.

You can find TRR’s full Covid Protocol on the website.

ParaHockey Investment
Hockey Ireland have announced that they have secured investment for ParaHockey! Read the full statement below!

Hockey Ireland is delighted with the news that Sport Ireland, through the Dormant Accounts Funding, is investing in our Hockey4All disability and inclusion programme.

Our Hockey4All programme aims to offer young people with disabilities an opportunity to become part of the local hockey community, to keep healthy (socially, mentally and physically) and have fun in a team sport.

In 2021, we are seeking to engage with clubs to set up Hockey4All sections. Support will include:

Coach and umpire training
Equipment to support programme delivery
Taster sessions in local schools / community groups
Competition opportunities
Other supports as required

If you, or your club would be interested in finding out more about this programme, please fill in the following form. https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=p9R9iRJpqUakYa2lfUqiV93xNr8oaMxOs6iv7x9-vCdUMlZVU0dKVjE1MzJISTlJNkg1NUlVQlFLUi4u

Following on from the Government announcement on 14th October [that the exemption in place under Level 3 of the Living with Covid plan had been removed] and the subsequent statement from Hockey Ireland on the same matter, the Leinster Hockey Board can now confirm that all competitive hockey has been suspended until further notice.

The Board recognises that this is a disappointment for all of our clubs, players, coaches, umpires and volunteers who have worked tirelessly to ensure that our sport was played within the protocols and guidelines as laid out by the statutory bodies.

We are also disappointed to note that the announcement also means the postponement of the Inter-Provincial series that was scheduled to take place from 25th October and we assure our squads that we are working with the other provinces to ensure that these are re-scheduled once it is appropriate to do so.

In the meantime, clubs can continue to train in line with Hockey Ireland protocols.

We echo Hockey Ireland’s statement in applauding our clubs and their volunteers who have done everything possible to ensure the safety and wellbeing of everyone involved in our sport and look forward to seeing a return to competitive fixtures in the near future.

Trevor Watkins

Chair, Leinster Hockey Association

Find the full statement here: LeinsterHockey.ie

On Wednesday 14 October, the Irish government announced the removal of the exemption for senior club championship to be played in Level 3 of the Living with Covid-19 plan.

Following this change, the Board of Hockey Ireland has decided to postpone all hockey competition on an all-Ireland basis until further notice. Training can proceed subject to Hockey Ireland protocols and restrictions and any restrictions that may apply locally.

This also means that the Interprovincial Competitions scheduled for the end of October are postponed. Hockey Ireland recognises the time and energy the Interprovincial Working Group and the provincial teams have put into the preparations for these games. Suitable dates for the running of the competitions will be considered.

Elite hockey activity can proceed, and this applies to the Irish Senior Men and Irish Senior Women’s teams only.

Hockey Ireland would like to acknowledge the work of the clubs that has gone into hosting games over the last few weeks. The support of volunteers to follow the protocols and keep our players safe has been phenomenal. We must endeavour to keep club hockey activity going whilst we continue to observe Covid-19 guidelines and hopefully, we can resume competition soon.

You can find the statement here: Hockey.ie

Ladies 4s Coach
With the return of the Ladies 4s a coach is also required!

The team trains on a Monday, 7pm to 8.30pm and Wednesdays, 8.30pm to 10pm. They will be competing in Division 13 of the Leinster Leagues. Matches will take place, when permitted, on Saturdays with Cup matches on a Sunday occasionally.

If you are interested, know someone who might be or you would just like more information then please email Jess Rule, the 2020/2021 Ladies captain at ladies.captain@threerockrovershc.com

Spread the word far and wide and be part of the return of the Ladies 4s this season!

Results October 3rd
Congratulations to the Men’s 2s on winning the 2019/2020 Railway Cup Final, 3-2, against Monkstown last Saturday in Rathdown! Well done to Shane, Dylan and the squad on their achievement from all at Grange Road! See the winning team photo in newsletter

The Men’s 1s picked up a resounding 6-1 victory against Corinthians in EYHL action last Saturday evening up in St Columba’s, while the Ladies 1s lost 3-1 away to Kilkenny in Ladies Division 2. Kilkenny are coached by former Rover Gavin Bourke this season.

Fixtures
There are still only 3 games on the cards due to current restrictions this Saturday, October 10th.

Men’s 1 v Annadale , EYHL, 14:45 on front pitch

Men’s 2 v Railway, Division 1B, 09:30 in Park Avenue

Ladies 1 v Corinthians, Division 2, 15:00 on the back pitch

Good luck to all teams!

Hockey Ireland Update
Hockey Ireland have brought out a concise table of Covid-19 regulations, image in newsletter, as well as an update which can be viewed below by clicking the link.

Hockey Ireland Update

Covid-19 update
On Tuesday we were delighted to learn that training can continue for the junior club. Pods of 15 and all Covid Protocols are now being adhered to “as normal”. A huge thank you goes to the 130 plus parents who have volunteered to be Covid Supervisors and without whom we would not be able to run training safely.

Matches
No matches at junior level have taken place as per Covid protocols. Teams have now been selected in anticipation of league starting. This will enable them to train in pods.

Report from the field
Sunday at the Club was wet, windy and stormy! True hockey spirit shone through as training continued ( many other sports cancelled!) Covid Supervisors and children alike braved the elements with umbrellas, rain gear and good humour!

Rover’s Leinster Representatives
Our large cohort of, boys and girls, 16 and 18s, representatives continue to train in preparation of the Inter Pros in late October. On the senior front a number of our Inter Girls and Under 16 boys are now training and playing with the senior club teams. This transfer to the senior teams has gone really smoothly and sincere thanks are due to the senior players for the warm welcome they have given them.

Gaisces
We have 25 4th years participating in this year’s Gaisce programme. They are all assigned to a team and are working alongside a senior coach, learning on the job. We are particularly delighted that Ali Keogh has agreed to give them an umpiring training session next Saturday at the club. We will report back on this next week.