‘Castle News Number 83-84 I July-August 2013
Welcome from the Chair The summer break has brought a well earned rest to those who wish to take it! Many of our coaches and players are involved in sessions up and down the county in preparation for the forthcoming season or, in a number of cases, national selection for forthcoming tournaments. It has soon become clear to me that the volleyball calendar is never empty. And as we plan this year’s calendar already we are seeing a busy and challenging but hopefully enjoyable season for our players, parents and of course our coaches! As we strive to develop the club we have been consulting on a number of areas. We have facilitated the training of new coaches who will start with us in September. We are looking at fundraising ideas and would welcome suggestions and support from our players and their families. Parental involvement is essential and in our case very much appreciated. We will be introducing a player/parents voice, feedback from which will help us to strive to be a greater club. Have a lovely summer. If you are visiting a beach - don’t forget to take a volleyball! Regards, Jeanette Carter Club Chair
Contents: 3-7 – ‘Castle News Updates 8 – ‘Sportset 9– Social Volleyball 10– NVL 2013-14 11– Junior Competitions 2013-14 12 – Coaching Edge 13 – Castle Shop Submit your own content (please!) to willroberts1981@hotmail.com by the end of each month.
Castle News, no.83-84 July-August ‘13
Volleyball England AGM sees new President elected Wayne Coyle has been confirmed as Volleyball England's new President after being successfully elected at the AGM in Loughborough. After a campaign from both Wayne and his opponents which caught the imagination and attention of many in the volleyball public it was Wayne who secured ‘Castle’s vote – and seemingly those of the vast majority of the membership. Wayne takes over from former President Richard Callicott OBE who leaves after two successful terms, the maximum period that this role can be held. Having been involved in the sport for over 30 years, Wayne makes the step up from the board as International Events and Competitions Director with a wealth of knowledge and experience. He has worked in numerous roles in professional and voluntary capacities in volleyball and in sport generally from grass roots through the elite delivery. Based in Sheffield, Wayne knows many ‘Castle people personally and we feel he is a fantastic appointment for the sport. The ‘Castle committee would like to wish Wayne all the best for his four year period of office. At the same AGM ‘Castle’s Will Roberts stepped down from the role of Commission President for School and Youth after four years in that role. Will had previously been a member of Volleyball England staff linked to the commission and first became a member of the commission in 2003 – and felt that after 10 years as part of the team it was time to focus just on Volleyball in North Staffordshire through ‘Castle and the NSVA.
U18 Grand Prix This month Volleyball England contacted all entrants to the National u18 competitions to inform them of a new competition to be launched in the 2013-14 season! The u18 Grand Prix will take place in the second half of the season after Christmas, and will feature the 8 teams that have qualified for the Last 8s. The Last 8s tournament will take place in December with the final still staking place at the Cup Finals. The Grand Prix will take place on weekends in January through to the finals which will take place at the same event as the Super 8s Finals – effectively meaning there is a Junior Super 8s. ‘Castle welcomes this innovation for Junior Volleyball but recognises that with many of our u18s already playing NVL volleyball it may lead to us needing to register more players for each competition – no bad thing! Full details of the competition are to be confirmed in September by Volleyball England.
Whitefield Tournament Castle entered a number of Men’s and Women’s teams at the famous Whitefield tournament at the amazing venue of Bath Recreation Ground right at the heart of the beautiful city of Bath. As per most of the month of July the weather was scorching – a huge difference to when this 1000+ player tournament had to be cancelled a few years back. All of the ‘Castle teams performed admirably in the heat and some medals were won too!
Rich wins Sandbanks under 16 title Playing alongside Wessex player and fellow England Junior International Joel Roberts, ‘Castle’s Rich James won the prestigious under 16 Boys competition at Sandbanks. In the last couple of years this event has moved to become a solely Junior Tournament and this year it was officially sanctioned by the CEV (European Federation) with a large number of entries from Holland. As the photos show the weather was scorching!
Men’s teams back in training Chunder...
Rich joins good ‘Castle company in being successful at Sandbanks with Roo Scott, Will Roberts and James Goodwin having previously won the u14 3v3, and Sam Allen lost in the u18 final playing alongside GB Olympian Nathan French!
‘Castle Players at National Squad Camps This summer a number of players from the ‘Castle Junior teams have attended England Cadet and Junior Camps for both boys and girls at the National Volleyball Centre in Kettering. At the mid-point of the current international cycle it is a critical time in the development of the players in the squads and with England hosting the NEVZA (Northern European) Championships in the autumn – a great and rare chance for young English players to represent their country on home soil.
2012 Olympics Games – one year on This time last year we were all bathing in the glorious enjoyment of Team GB’s performance at the 2012 London Olympic Games – whether it was the record breaking medal haul for Team GB, the packed stadia every day across the event, the gutsy and determined performances of the British Volleyball and Beach Volleyball teams, or the amazing Games Makers. For the volleyball community there has been the disappointment of the 100% cut in funding to the British indoor programmes – something that had been craved for, for so many years. This was something that none of us could really be surprised by – if GB sports teams at elite level are funded for medals then why would public money be invited in a sport which would struggle to qualify to even compete at the next two or three Olympic Games? Agree with the policy or not, it has been the case for years and was not due to change – especially in light of the record breaking performance of our British team... which surely shows that the policy works? For the Beach Programme the news was slightly better and the new pairing of Zara Dampney and Lucy Boulton are performing well on the world tour so far this season, showing encouraging signs for 2016 qualification. Perhaps the biggest public eye success of the Games has been the Games Makers who made such a great impression of the British public and persona. For those of us involved in volleyball though, being a Games maker is a daily under taking that has none of the glamour and the glitz of the Olympics, but all of the satisfaction and pride that came with the 2012 Games. For us the legacy has to be the ambition to do more, and do better in our club every time we put on the navy blue!
Betley Show
Club Calendar due for publication The club committee has been working hard to produce a single club calendar listing all events for the year ahead on a day by day basis – the work of the club really does seem to be 24/7 year round!
Betley show is a traditional family, fun day out with many varied and interesting exhibits and activities for young and old. The show has been held at Betley Court farm throughout and continues to attract visitors from far and wide.
Included on the calendar will be all club training sessions and matches across senior and junior teams, local league dates, the LPV weekend for 2014, and social event including End of Season and Christmas celebrations, and importantly a cut off date for the payment of fees.
For ‘Castle it provided us with a great chance to introduce more people to our sport and our club, and increase our local profile with the thousands of people that attend the show.
When completed this club calendar will be published on the website – keep your eye on Twitter for more info.
This year was the 156 edition of the Betley Show – one of the largest village horticultural shows around, and we were there with a Go Spike court.
Sport England – Economic value of sport Sport England have published a report which examines the economic benefits of sport for both individuals, & society as a whole, estimating that sport generates £20.3 billion for the UK economy each year. Over £11bn of this figure is said to result from people playing sport, with the rest resulting from broadcasting, attendance at sports events, & the purchase on sports clothing, equipment & footwear. One of the key benefits of “consumption & participation in sport” is identified as improved educational attainment... participation in sport can “increase student’s motivation, improve their social relations with peers and persons in authority and can impact positively on self-discipline, time management and self-esteem”. The report also argues that taking part in sport can promote well-being & happiness, improve health, reduce youth crime, protect the environment, stimulate regeneration & community development, & promote volunteering. Furthermore the “consumption” of sport, through attending sporting events or watching sport on TV, can provide a “feel good factor” & enhance national pride
Academy Programme Confirmed for 13-14 The training programme for players involved in the NSVC/NuLC Volleyball England Satellite Academy has been confirmed for the year ahead by Academy Head coach Ant Viggars. With increased numbers of players as part of the Academy the programme has been extended with all players now able to access a broad programme as follows: Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Girls
1900-2100 Newcastle Community High School
1900-2100 Newcastle Community High School
1830-2130 Madeley High School
1630-1800 Newcastle under Lyme College (Strength & Conditioning)
1630-1800 Newcastle under Lyme College
Boys
1630-1800 Newcastle under Lyme College
1600-1800 Newcastle under Lyme College
1800-2000 or 20002200 Madeley High School
North Staffs League Early indications are that the 2013-14 season of the North Staffordshire Local League will see a significant expansion of the Men’s League and good consolidation of the ladies competition. If you wish to enter a team or want to know more please contact NSVA Chair Will Roberts on willroberts1981@hotmail.com. Entry costs are £15 per team with all teams to be part of a Volleyball England Affiliated Club. At present the entries are as follows, on which basis the Men’s League will split into two pools with a play-off process in place for the 2nd half of the season. Women’s League Castle Dynamo Lady Gio’s Castle Juniors Newcastle College Castle Go Spike Ladies
Men’s League Fenton Newcastle College 2 Keele Team Gios NSVC Lions (u16 A) NSVC Diggers (u15)
Newcastle College Academy Staffs Uni MMU Cheshire Castle Men NSVC Spikers (u16 B) Castle Go Spike Men
Fixtures 2013-14 Season Details of all 54 NVL matches for our teams! Subject to final confirmation from Volleyball England SEPTEMBER 2013 21st: Ladies v Tameside (a) NVL1 Men1 v Essex Blaze (h) NVL1 28th: Men2 v Manchester Marvels (a) NVL2N Men1 v Danes Watford (a) NVL1 29th: Team Loughborough (a) NVL1
OCTOBER 2013 5th: Ladies v Herts (h) NVL1 Men2 v Cambridge (h) NVL2N Men1 v Team Northumbria 2 (h) NVL1 19th: Ladies v Portsmouth (a) NVL1 Men2 v Sunderland (a) NVL1 Men1 v Essex Blaze (a) NVL2N 20th: Men1 v Tendring (a) NVL2N 26th: Men2 v South Birmingham (h) NVL2N Men1 v Birmingham (h) NVL1
NOVEMBER 2013 16th: Ladies v Bristol (h) NVL1 Men2 v Wigan Seahawks (h) NVL2N Men1 v Team Northumbria 2 (a) NVL1
23rd: Ladies v South Birmingham (h) NVL1 Men2 v Leeds (h) NVL2N Men1 v London Docklands (h) NVL1 24th: Ladies v Portsmouth (h) NVL1
DECEMBER 2013 7th: Men2 v Loughboro Students (h) NVL2N Men1 v London Lynx2 (a) NVL1 8th: Men1 v London Docklands (a) NVL1
JANUARY 2014: 4th: Ladies v Reading (a) NVL1 Men2 v Leicester (a) NVL2N Men1 v Bristol (a) NVL1 5th: Ladies v Surrey (a) NVL1 Men2 v Leeds (a) NVL2N 18th: Men2 v Leicester (h) NVL2N Men1 v Tendring (h) NVL1 19th: Ladies v Tameside (h) NVL1
25th: Ladies v Team Loughborough (h) NVL1 Men2 v Manchester Marvels (h) NVL2N Men1 v Danes Watford (h) NVL1
FEBRUARY 2014 1ST: Men2 v Nottingham Rockets (a) NVL2N 15th: Men2 v Cambridge (a) NVL2N 16th: Ladies v Herts (a) NVL1 Men2 v Lboro Students (a) NVL2N
MARCH 2014 8th: Ladies v Bristol (a) NVL1 9th: Ladies v Devon (a) NVL1 Men1 v Birmingham (a) NVL1 22nd: Ladies v Devon (h) NVL1 Men2 v Sunderland City Predators (n) NVL2N Men1 v London Knights (h) NVL1 23rd Ladies v Surrey (h) NVL1 Men2 v South Birmingham (a) NVL2N 29th: Ladies v Reading (h) NVL1 Men1 v Bristol (h) NVL1
APRIL 2014 5th: Ladies v South Birmingham (a) NVL1 Men2 v Wigan Seahawks (a) NVL2N Men1 v London Knights (a) NVL1 12th: Men2 v Nottingham Rockets (h) NVL2N Men1 v London Lynx2 (h) NVL1
Junior Competition Dates 2013-14 season UNDER 15s For both boys and girls Regional Rounds – 1st or 2nd February 2014 Divisional Rounds – 22nd or 23rd March 2014 National Finals – 10th May
UNDER 16s Girls Round 1: 30th November 2013 Round 2: 18th January 2014 Last 8s: 1st March 2014 Final:30th March 2014
Boys Round 1: 1st December 2013 Round 2: 19th January 2014 Last 8s: 1st March 2014 Final: 30th March 2014
UNDER 18s Girls Round 1: 12th October 2013 Round 2: 10th November 2013 Last 8s: 15th December 2013 Final:30th March 2014 GRAND PRIX (for teams that make the u18 last 8s) GP1: 12th January 2014 GP2: 9th February 2014 GP3: 2nd March 2014 GP4: 15th March 2014 GP Finals: 26th April 2014
Boys Round 1: 13th October 2013 Round 2: 9th November 2013 Last 8s: 15th December 2013 Final: 30th March 2014
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