President’s Message



Dear Club Members and Parents,

Let me start by saying I hope you are all keeping well during this time of great uncertainty. I know we have many club members and people affiliated with the club who work in healthcare, retail, pharmaceuticals and other industries that are keeping our country going at the moment and I would like to take this opportunity to thank you all for all that you are doing.

For some teams last weekend would have been the last competitive match of the season with most other teams finishing their seasons over the next couple of weeks however this season has come to an abrupt end.

As some of you may have seen Hockey Ireland have deemed the 2019/20 finished- https://www.hockey.ie/news-detail/10061629/

We await details for the conclusion of the season which are due by April 12th.

There has been lots of hockey skills challenges popping up online as well as online coaching courses that may be of interest to you so while on pitch activity is on hold there are lots of hockey related activities to keep you busy at home….

Unfortunately we have had to cancel our planned Easter camp and for the moment we won’t be planning the usual season extension for our junior age groups, we do hope to have some hockey related activity to get everyone out and active once we have been advised it is safe to do so.

The annual Dinner Dance scheduled for April 18th has also been postponed however an alternative date is being worked on and we will update everyone as soon as we can.

For the moment, I hope you all stay safe and that we will see you all back on the hockey pitch before too long.

Caroline Daly

Avoca Hockey Club President 2019-20



Open Learn

The Open University do a large number of Free Courses through their Open Learn platform. They have a very good course : ‘Exploring Sport Coaching and Psychology’. Like ICoachKids it is an interactive course with videos, audio clips and quizzes. There are interviews with world renowned experts, sportspeople and coaches. Really interesting content .

It has a guideline of 24 hours to complete and is broken into 8 sections. It is geared towards coaching children , teenagers and adults. A Statement of Participation is issued on completion. Get started here; however, be aware the portal seems to be slow at the moment when logging on for understandable reasons.

ICoachKids

ICoachKids is a EU funded project with some of the leading European experts on children’s sport behind the project and putting the 3 MOOCs (Massive Online Open Courses) together. The courses are aimed especially at sports clubs and programmes for 5-12 year old children. The 3 courses are:

On completion of each course a certificate is issued via pdf to the participant. It is interactive with videos and quizzes. For your information MOOC 1  is longer in duration than 2 and 3. Also Young Leaders and teenagers that have some time on their hands would benefit from doing these courses.

Dad’s & Lad’s

POSTPONED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE!!!

Avoca Hockey Club’s Hockey for Dads & Lads starting 23rd April

Haven’t played in a while or a Hockey Dad ?. Come along on Thursday 23rd April for the first of four sessions (also on 30th April, 7th May and 14th May) at 7.00 pm at Newpark School, Newtown Park Avenue, Blackrock and try the game again (or for the first time).

Last year Avoca entered a Men’s 4th team with 15 of the panel coming from players who either just started playing or returned after a long absence. The Fearsome 4s, pictured above, have reached the Minor Cup Final in their first season. The Club plans to introduce a Men’s 5th team next year and is looking to recruit players and these sessions are part of that process.

You can play Men’s Hockey from aged 15 upwards and we have several players over 65 playing Masters Hockey so age is no barrier. If you come along please wear a gum shield and shin pads and if you don’t have a stick we will provide one along with coaching for those new to Hockey. Each
session is €5 or €20 for all four. You can pay on the night or register for all 4 sessions here.

Places are limited so please register to avoid disappointment or email dennis@2into3.com. Registration includes insurance and you do not need to be an Avoca Club Member or Dad of a member. All welcome Thursday 23rd April 7.00 pm to 8.30 pm Newpark School and continuing at same time on 30th April, 7th May and 14th May.

Mum’s & Chum’s

POSTPONED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE!!!

Avoca Hockey Club’s Hockey for Mums & Chums starting 23rd April

Haven’t played in a while or a Hockey Mum? Come along on Thursday 23rd April for the first of four sessions (also on 30th April, 7th May and 14th May) at 8.30 pm at Newpark School, Newtown Park Avenue, Blackrock and try the game again (or for the first time).

Give Hockey a Go!
Give Hockey a Go!

A number of Hockey Clubs have introduced open Hockey sessions at the end of the season to allow an opportunity for people to try the game for the first time or pick up a stick again. Avoca’s Men’s section introduced it last year and formed a Men’s 4ths as a result. Avoca Ladies section would now like to do the same. The Club plans to introduce a Ladies 6th next year and is looking to recruit players and these sessions are part of that process.

You can play Ladies Hockey from aged 15 upwards and we have several players over 50 playing Masters Hockey so age is no barrier. If you come along please wear a gum shield and shin pads and if you don’t have a stick we will provide one along with coaching for those new to Hockey. Each session is €5 or €20 for all four. You can pay on the night or register for all 4 sessions here.

Places are limited so please register to avoid disappointment or email Grainne Millar at grainne@gminnovations.ie. Registration includes insurance and you do not need to be an Avoca Club Member or Mum of a member. All welcome

Thursday 23rd April 8.30 pm to 10.00 pm Newpark School and continuing at same time on 30th April, 7th May and 14th May.