At the moment, it looks like we have enough current and prospective new players willing to attend training more-or-less every week from this coming Thursday night onwards.

However, finding a floodlit grass or Astroturf area (e.g. half a full-size pitch) to use between 7.30 & 9.00.p.m. on a Thursday night is proving to be impossible....and the same applies to Tuesdays & Wednesday nights (which we really don't want because of the Champions League on TV and various players training with Saturday clubs or playing other sports).

Unfortunately, we may have to train on concrete or travel a long way from Edmonton/Enfield if we are to do anything at all.
The only other option is to find a Saturday side with their own facilities who don't mind about 12-15 of us joining in with them.

If any of our players (or any clubs reading this) can help us out, please let me know.
Money is not a problem. We can afford to pay for facilities.

At one point with crouch end we was training in the gymnasium at woodhouse college near finchley, very decent sized and if you play 2 touch football it works wonders. Although I'd rather an astro but its as you say near enough impossible.

Just reading back through some e-mail conversations I had with Barney yesterday, I think training this coming Thursday night (9th September) will almost certainly have to be on concrete at Norsemen/Edmonton Cricket Club.
It's either that or nothing.

Apparently Wormley Rovers' Sunday team have always trained on the concrete netball courts at Wormley and never had a problem with injuries, so if they can do it, so can we.

Well...nothing was really decided at our match yesterday morning, mainly because Loveday had gone home by the time I had packed the camera away and come into the changing rooms, while Danny Hagan then announced that Crouch End Vampires (his Saturday Team) had now changed their training nights from Wednesdays to Thursdays for this season.
Presumably that means Olie can't make training on Thursday nights either (because he won't have a lift) ?

So...the situation at the moment is that we can probably train on the concrete netball court/car park at Norsemen/Edmonton Cricket Club from this coming Thursday night onwards (7.30-9.00.p.m.) but not on the floodlit grass area there using a full-size portable goal (unless Loveday can pull some strings). However, Danny Hagan, Olie, Steve Cokell (& others ?) won't be there, whereas those three would all be able to attend if we trained on a Wednesday.
If we trained on a Wednesday though, Barney would not be there because he runs the netball club at Norsemen/Edmonton CC...which presumably means we can't use the concrete on a Wednesday anyway because they are playing netball on it

Also, Jacko and Darryl are hardly likely to turn up to training if it is on concrete. How can they dive on that ?!
Also, the concrete is apparently 'dangerous' when it is wet...and the forecast for this coming Thursday (and indeed Wednesday) is rain...according to this !

One thing that myself and Trevor did discuss briefly with Loveday and one or two others at yesterday's match was that training without having a full-size goal available is pretty much a complete waste of time. We won't be able to practice shooting, crossing, set-pieces, defensive organisation, corners, zonal marking, etc.
We already play 7-a-side during the Summer to improve short passing and movement, while players should be doing their own training for fitness. What is the point of paying money for a slab of wet and slippery concrete for a 90-minute manic fitness session ?

I will try phoning the Southbury Leisure Centre later this morning to see if there is any chance of getting a half-pitch on one of the two Astroturfs on a Thursday (preferably) or a Wednesday (which of course has a full-size goal available).
I cannot see any way that we are going to get anything other than possibly a 9.00-10.00 p.m. slot on a Wednesday...and we know what is going to happen if we hire that. Players will get home from work at 7.30.p.m. (as usual ), start eating something, slump down in the sofa to watch the start of the Arsenal or Spurs Champions League match and no way will they then have the willpower to get up and go training in the middle of that !

As far as I am concerned, if we manage to find somewhere suitable to train between 7.00 & 8.00.p.m., then players will have to make more of an effort to leave work earlier and/or take their kit in to work so that they can come straight to training instead of going home for something to eat first.
I cannot believe the working hours some of our players supposedly do nowadays. It seems as if 'everybody' works from 8.00.a.m. until 7.00.p.m. Monday-Thursday, then 8.00.a.m. until 4.00.p.m. on a Friday, then builds up the overtime into an extra two weeks annual leave to go abroad during the season and miss a couple of Rovers matches !
Whatever happened to the good old Mon-Fri 9-5 and 6 weeks annual leave ?

Not surprisingly, I am not getting much feedback am I ?

The Southgate Hockey Centre have just told me they have half a pitch available on both Tuesdays and Wednesdays between 9.00 & 10.00.p.m., and also have 8.00.to 10.00. available on Fridays...which is obviously out of the question as our numerous City workers cannot miss their traditional end-of-week after-work piss-up.

I have asked the SHC if we can use the grass just behind the Astroturf fence for a 20-30 minute warm-up/fitness session beforehand if we train at 9.00 p.m. on a Tuesday or a Wednesday and I am just waiting for their reply.

I say if they allow that, then we got for it...'sofa mode' problem or not.
If players don't turn up because they are in sofa mode even when the Champions League is not on, then that's poor and they should be dropped !
I have asked the SHC if we can cancel certain sessions if Spurs or Arsenal have a massive match like Barcelona, Inter Milan or whatever.

The main question is what night ?
Wednesday without Barney or Tuesday without others (probably ?).
If we are to have training at the SHC tomorrow or Wednesday night, then I need to know this evening.

I can do either of them, the only times I won't be there are if Sarah is on Lates or Nights, or I am wanking away, sorry I mean working away...........

Obviously no training this week now as I am not getting any interest from our players on here or by e-mail.
Also, Trev has got the money to pay for it (if we use the Southgate Hockey Centre) and he is on holiday in Cyprus.

If we collect in enough subs this Sunday though, we can then hopefully afford to pay for training at the SHC maybe next Wednesday night at 9.00.p.m.
Who wants to watch Arsenal v. Braga ? Not me !

By the way, Spurs v. Arsenal in the Carling Cup is on a Tuesday and Spurs v. Inter Milan is also on a Tuesday. Spurs do have three Champions League matches on a Wednesday, but only Away to Inter Milan on the 20th October will probably cause us to cancel training I would have thought. That's the only Spurs match I personally would stay at home to watch.
The others I would V+ it (Virgin Media).

So...is everybody happy with starting training next Wednesday then (16th September) ?
9.00.p.m. at the Southgate Hockey Centre...or 8.30 if they let use use the grass first for a warm-up.
We may have to charge players a small amount (e.g. £2.00 each) depending on how much it costs, but we'll work that out later...maybe when Trev gets back from holiday.

Please reply on here or by e-mail so that I can get an idea of numbers before I officially book it.

Yup, I'm gay, I mean game...........

Yep i am in.

next weds defo out...on a late

Have you tried Aylward school astroturf on a thursday?

yeah rob you lazy fecker

Finger me !!! and Fucking Spiders............

I agree with Stu, Rob and Lol you are a lazy fuckers....

The Southgate Hockey Centre won't let us warm up on the grass beforehand because it gets churned up too much.
She says the hockey teams do a warm-up for training by running up and down the hill in Snakes Lane.
What do you reckon, Jacko ? Good idea ?
Myself & Trevor can look after your valuables back at the Astroturf while you all go and do that.

I notice that the running club do all their stretching and warming up on the pavilion balcony after getting changed in there, so I would say let's all meet at 8.20'ish at the pavilion every Wednesday, get changed there, do 5 minutes of stretches then all have a run up Snakes Lane down to Oakwood Station and back, which is probably just short of 2 miles ?
Then we train on the Astroturf at 9.00.p.m.

Yeah sounds fine to me........

You should be running before stretching...

Fuck that i will be at the bar with Rob an look after the valuables, when u score a 30 yarder u dont need to run not only that Rob needs a new hamstring lol.

Yeah lets all just stand outside Oakwood station stretching..........it won't be too long until we get arrested.

I've tried this sort of stuff before and I'm still not allowed within 250yrds of that Junior school......

I'm there, yeah smithy don't need to do the running as I usually do it for him.....no wonder olie is blowing it out! The last time he ran 2 miles was when barrymore was signing his autobiography at woolworths, he just about made it and that was 5 years ago

Dan if u wanna run about like a headless chicken like jenas its down to u, but i rather take the scholes approach hardly run and then pop up with a scorcher, BOOM BOOM

haha the only approach you have in common with scholesy is that ginger bonce! i wouldnt keep posting on here either mate as that east herts centre mid is probably out looking for you to "do you over" the silly boy!

Wot a prick he was dan werent he rob told me about him before we even got changed his lucky rob went off cos i think rob would of took him out,in fact i know he would of.

you could of borrowed ollies hamstring if u needed abit of pace pml