Due to justifiable (in my opinion) complaints by Bill The Ref at the Southgate Hockey Centre about our players turning up at 6.50/7.50/8.50.p.m. over on the pavilion balcony, then taking ages to get changed in the changing rooms when other teams turn up already changed (or do so at pitch-side), WE ARE NOW SCRAPPING THE BALCONY MEET IDEA WITH IMMEDIATE EFFECT AND MEETING AT PITCH-SIDE FOR EVERY MATCH !!!
That means that players can turn up at 6.50/7.50/8.50.p.m. if they want, and also wear their own shorts (preferably black) if they want.
It will then only take them five minutes to put on our jade shirts & socks from the kit bag on the touchline or in their cars (as other teams do), and Bill can then kick-off as soon as the previous match finishes....which is invariably at 7.55/8.55.p.m.
He does this because he has to get up at 6.00.a.m. for work the following morning, and on Monday mornings he drives all the way from Bristol (where he now lives) to work in London for the week, and to be fair to him, it must be quite tiring Refereeing three matches in one night after that !
Also, he is a good Ref, and if we piss him off, he might stop doing it and the League will then be back to what used to happen 5 or 6 years ago with neutral players from other teams having to be persuaded to Referee games...which was a total nightmare !
Yes, I know we are supposed to kick-off at 7.05/8.05/9.05 after being allowed a five-minute warm-up, but virtually every other team in the League all arrive at 6.50/7.50/8.50.p.m. already changed and then do their five-minute warm-up on the grass outside the Astroturfs.
We are the only team that complains !
The meet up on the balcony idea was for players to turn up at 6.30/7.30/8.30.p.m., but nobody ever does that anymore (for reasons best known to themselves). If players are coming straight from work via the Tube and turn up at 6.50/7.50/8.50.p.m. wearing a suit which they don't want to get dirty, then they will have to take their own kit from the bag on the touchline, walk over to the changing rooms with it and risk missing the start of the match.
AFTER the match, using the changing rooms (and showers) is not a problem.
