Just had the application forms through from the Southgate Hockey Centre for this year's Summer 7-a-side Football League, and they are only running the League on Thursday nights, not Mondays as well. I don't know the reason why.

I believe that rules out George for a start ?
Is there anybody else who can't play on Thursday nights ?

There is no way we will have enough players to enter two teams in the Thursday night League, but we shouldn't have a problem getting enough for one...even for the early kick-offs at 7.00.p.m.

I need to fill in the forms next week, so if you are not playing this Sunday, please let me know asap if you want to play 7-a-side on Thursdays this Summer.

If ever you are SHORT of a keeper let me know....

If ever you are SHORT of a keeper let me know....

Here's the situation at the moment regarding us entering the 7-a-side League this Summer...

Due to other commitments, our new Manager for next season (James) will be starting as soon as the World Cup finishes, either with a Pre-Season Training session on Wednesday 16th/Thursday 17th July or from our AGM on Friday 18th July.
He will be organising Pre-Season Training sessions on Wednesday or Thursday evenings from then onwards throughout July & August until the start of the season, and we will also be having Pre-Season Training on Sunday mornings in July & August when we do not have a Pre-Season Friendly aranged.

As the Summer 7-a-side League is only on Thursday nights this year and the League doesn't finish until the second week in September, as far as I am concerned, we should NOT enter it.
The reasons for that are as follows:
1) We cannot have players who want to play for us next season preferring to play 7-a-side instead of attending James' training sessions.
2) We cannot afford the £60 entry fee and £40 a match because we currently have too many players who are blatantly not paying any subs and the club is therefore 'skint'. I cannot see that situation changing unless James drops them once next season starts.
3) We will not be able to find enough 'old boys' to play for us in the 7-a-side League from the 17th July onwards once our current players start Pre-Season Training instead. Jacko will be left on his own in goal ! Everybody else from the 1990's & 2000's has f*cked off to live in Australia, Bishop's Stortford, Leigh-on-Sea or Royston !

So there you go. I have not filled in the application form yet and I will not be doing so tomorrow unless somebody comes up with a solution.

If there was a Monday night League this year, then we would have entered as George Stahlmann, Steve Cokell and several others would have played. They cannot make Thursdays. Also, the Monday Night League always finishes in mid-August instead of the second week in September.

I would put myself forward to organise the team for Thursdays if enough current players wanted to play...I know that would probably consist of me, Daley, Cass, Terry, Barney, Jacko, Jack, Lex (if he uses his watch correctly)

And I'm sure Gary would also be up for it...and a few others.

Yes, but if we are training on Thursday nights from mid-July onwards, then we have a problem.

We won't know if we are Pre-Season training on Wednesday or Thursday nights until July because we don't know what players we are going to have playing for us yet and which Saturday clubs they are playing for.
If I filled in the application form for 7-a-side tomorrow, we can't just drop out half-way through the Summer if we suddenly find out half our players are training/playing with Saturday clubs on Tuesdays & Wednesdays, meaning we are therefore training on Thursdays.
That's why we needed to go in the Monday Night League instead...but there isn't one this year.

...and two of those players you have mentioned owe ridiculous amounts of subs by the way, although I have spoken to one of them about that today.
If players cannot afford to catch up with what they owe and cannot afford to play 7-a-side, then we can't play them.

Def up for 7 a side
Count me in

Well...from what I was hearing from most of our players today, they definitely want me to enter a team in the Thursday Night League for the following reasons:

a) The new players James is bringing along are all Semi-Pro Saturday players who play on Tuesdays and train on Thursdays, which therefore should result in us doing Pre-Season Training (with them) on Wednesdays, thereby freeing up our non-Saturday/Semi-Pro players to play 7-a-side on Thursdays.

b) Most of our current players apparently cannot get off work in time for a 6.30.p.m. start for training on a Wednesday, but they can make the 7.00.p.m. Kick-Offs for 7-a-side on a Thursday for some reason.

c) Most of our current players would rather play 7-a-side than do Pre-Season Training in midweek because they only want ONE training session a week...on a Sunday morning. But there will be a lot of players who cannot make Sunday morning training sessions in July & August because of family & social commitments. (Weddings, barbecues, weekends away, V Festival, Creamfields, etc.)

d) Most of our players who want to play 7-a-side think we are going to have a squad of 8 for every match who are all going to pay their £7.00's every match.
Sorry, but it just doesn't happen !

Lexton seemed to be the only one there this morning who was agreeing with myself and James that midweek Pre-Season Training sessions are a far better option than playing 7-a-side and that trying to do both will cause too many problems.

In my opinion, if our players want to play 7-a-side at the SHC on Thursday nights this Summer, then they will either have to enter a team themselves (tomorrow !) under another name and pay the entry and match fees out of their own pockets so that the club is not liable for any non-fulfilments and fines, or they join in with another 7-a-side League team over there.
If they then continue playing 7-a-side once James's midweek Pre-Season sessions start in late-July and they don't turn up to those sessions, thereby resulting in James bringing in players from other sources to replace them, then they will only have themselves to blame.

I wanted to speak to Hagan & Barney about this, but they had already gone by the time I had packed my camera away. I didn't see either of them speaking to James about the 7-a-side League problems either, whereas everybody else was.

Sorry I had to shoot off quickly as it was my dad's birthday. I would like to play the 7 a side league as it's ideal for an extra bit of fitness over the summer. I do understand the points you're making though, we did always struggle to field a side for it quite often at the last minute over recent years. I am quite happy to do whatever you decide.

Text O

Thanks Dan

As I say, playing 7-a-side up until mid-July has never been a problem. It's once players start 11-a-side Pre-Season training in midweek that we have always struggled to field a side on a Thursday night. That's why we only entered the Monday Night League last season and I think most of our players have forgotten that. If the SHC ran a Thursday Night League that was 1st May until mid-July only, then we would enter it. No question.

I think Barney is now away somewhere according to his out-of-office replies, so I may not get an answer from him.

I would be grateful if other players tell me (either on here or privately) asap what their feelings are regarding the 7-a-side League and Pre-Season training, as the only players I was able to speak to yesterday in depth about it were Jack, Lexton and Garry.

I'm pretty easy either way to be honest, which probably isn't going to help the discussion much. I think that we'd benefit more from Wednesday night training sessions as a squad than we would from 7 a side, but I'd be happy to do both (when I can) for fitness. That said, if we don't think we'll have enough reliable (i.e. turning up and paying) players, and if Lol isn't willing to run it / bring the kit, then it might be more hassle than it's worth.

Sounds like James has some good new players lined up, which hopefully will give the current squad the kick up the backside they need to get fitter, turn up on time and listen to instructions. I think we showed yesterday that we're not a bad side when we play to our potential, but as the last 15 minutes highlighted, we're just not fit enough, and that has to change off we want to be competitive.

Cheers
Barney

From what James has been telling me about his Pre-Season sessions, if they are on a Wednesday night, players will not be in a fit state to play 7-a-side on a Thursday as well. They will be aching like hell...and rightly so. Even you, Barney !

I have just e-mailed Liz at the SHC to tell her that we will not be entering this year...unless she wants to take a risk by accepting us and then allowing us to drop out in late-July with no financial punishment for doing so. I can't see her having that though.