Saracens Amateur

RFC Newsletter Issue 7 April 2014

Chairman’s News: Welcome to the last bumper newsletter of the 2013/14 season. It has been a good season, both on and off the pitch, with success in many areas and some near misses. Thanks to everyone for using the clubhouse and facilities and it is good to see the age groups working together as a united club. Have a lovely rest from rugby over the summer and see you all in September, if not at the Ball in June (see Social Committee notes below). Peter Haigh

Social Committee: The newly formed Social Committee are very pleased to announce that The Saracens Ball will be held at the clubhouse on Saturday 7th June and we are looking forward to welcoming club members from every section to this celebration of the 2013/14 season. Tickets can be obtained from the bar or from saracensarfcevents@gmail.com. We have managed to keep the ticket price to the 2011 price of £35 per head which will include a 4 course meal and live music. Please make a note in your diary for the 2014/15 season: Saracens Club Dinner on 22nd November Christmas Fair on 26

th November

Burns Night 24th January St Patricks 14th March St George's 25th April (possible lunch on the 23rd) Senior Mens Section Awards 2nd May The date for the 2015 Ball will be announced after further discussions with the cricket club. Social Committee

Saracens Women’s 25th

Anniversary Dinner: Players, past & present, and supporters came together to celebrate 25 years of Saracens

Women at a special anniversary dinner earlier this month. Founding members, Katie Ball, Liza Burgess, Emma Mitchell and Amanda Bennett were amongst the guests to attend the black tie event, which provided a fantastic opportunity for the Saracens family to come together to reminisce but also to look towards the future. The women's game has developed rapidly over the past 25 years and Saracens Women are proud to continue leading the way. It is not often that you find so many legends of the sport under one roof boasting hundreds of international caps and several league and cup titles between them which is testament to the hard work of all involved. Awards were also presented to players after a stellar season for the club, with both sides finishing close runners up in the Premiership & Championship. 1

st XV Players’ Player – Hannah Casey

1st

XV Captain’s Player– Heather Stammers 1

st XV Coaches Player– Maggie Alphonsi

2nd XV Players’ Player– Lauren Newman 2nd XV Captain’s Player– Marcella Collins 2

nd XV Coaches Player – Charlotte Hamlyn Williams

Best Newcomer–Sarah McKenna Most Improved Player– Georgia Peedle Congratulations to all the award winners and thanks to those who have contributed to help make the club the best in the country. Here's to another quarter century of success for Saracens Women! Laura Eddie

Around the clubhouse: St GEORGE’s DAY LUNCHEON Almost 70 diners, including many former players and old friends, attended a most enjoyable luncheon at Bramley Road on Wednesday 23rd April. The food was up to Luan’s usual high standard and the wine flowed… Everyone was in good voice and joined in the singing led by Dominique and Philip, followed by Elvis Shmelvis who belted out the classics. Excellent entertainment, good company and lots of stories of happy times at Bramley Road – some would make your hair curl although there was not much evidence of that on the day. Thanks to all who made it happen, particularly to Bruce Claridge for rounding up the troops and for his tireless attention to detail. Let’s hope for a repeat performance next year…

BAR NEWS Following the switch to Marstons, members of the Bar Committee (Eugene Yost, Jimmy Desmond and Mark (6.6%) Luftig) and other interested parties went on a fact-finding trip to Wychwood Brewery in darkest Oxfordshire (home of Hobgoblin amongst others). After extensive sampling of several ales and a cider or two, the party had a conducted tour of the brewery followed by a very tasty lunch and further sampling. As a result, you may see a few new additions to our bottled ales. In particular try King Goblin, a strong dark ale, and Green Goblin cider which seemed to go down well. Marstons operates several breweries around the country and we plan to arrange further trips. Just register your interest at the bar if you’d like to come along to the next one. We are also planning a mini beer festival over the summer so look out for news of this on the website and in your inbox. Please remember that the bar and hall are available for hire at preferential rates for members and the bar will continue to be open during the summer on Wednesdays and Fridays from 6pm and Saturday and Sunday from 1pm. Closing times will be subject to demand. Bar Committee Summer Jobs

As usual, there will be a number of essential maintenance and general cleaning jobs to be carried out around the clubhouse during the summer months. We are currently working on the list of jobs which will be produced shortly. Each age group will be asked to help but please don’t feel shy

about coming forward if you think you have a particular skill or some free time you could give to your club during the closed season. Chicken Shed Floodlights It seems like not a week goes by but we have another issue with these lights following re-routing of the cabling by the Council and their contractors. This is very frustrating but rest assured we are on the case and will have this issue resolved for the start of next season. Scoreboard Thanks to all those who helped reconstruct the scoreboard after it was destroyed during the December gales. The frame is up and secure and the electronics work but the metal framework needs some tlc to make it

weatherproof before it can be put back in place. We know a “man who can” and will have this up and running again for next season. GYM The gym continues to be upgraded with installation of yet more new weights and lifting equipment over the last few months and, just waiting to be hung on the wall, a new 42” plasma TV thanks to kind donations from members and gym users. Although there has been a steady increase this year in gym use over the two formal gym sessions on Wednesdays and Fridays with around 18-20 attending each session during March (up from 8-10), the number of rugby members is still low in comparison to Barnet Athletic usage which accounts for about 75% of those using the gym. There are only 35 regular users recorded in the gym log this season so there is certainly scope for individuals (over 18) or age groups to find a slot. The gym will be open as usual during the summer months so please contact Ty (usually found in the gym) or Eugene (usually found elsewhere around the club) to arrange membership and access. PITCHES The end of another season means the start of another programme of remedial work on the playing and training areas before the grounds revert to the cricket club on May 1st. The posts are coming down Saturday 26

th April

and there is a lot of work to be done before the first cricket match scheduled for Saturday 3

rd May,

including verti-draining, seeding and fertilising which is planned to start on Monday 28th April. During this remedial work we would ask everyone to keep off the grass until further notice. In particular, after seeding, the pitches need to be rested for what could be up to 8 weeks depending on weather and growing conditions. Also, there are some areas which need special treatment as they are particularly fragile and we want to bring these up to standard in time for the start of the season so even after the seed has taken these areas may need further protection. Please therefore do not organise any activity on the park this summer without first checking with the Grounds

Committee. The Club spends a lot of your money on pitch maintenance and it is in everyone’s interest to protect our playing surfaces so please bear with us during these remedial works. The Grounds Committee Gispi Rugby, Prato Italy: Over the weekend of 5th and 6th April Peter Haigh, Eugene Yost, Bernie Griffin and Leo Salerno travelled to Gispi rugby club in Prato Italy for the 26th National Tournament of mini rugby which coincided with the clubs 30th anniversary. Last y ear a group from Gispi came to Bramley Road and were trained by Bernie and the two clubs have forged ties. Nearly 1,000 children participated from all over Italy being billeted with local families. The night before the tournament there was a huge dinner for over 300 people including our Saracens contingent and officers of the Italian RFU.

Senior Men: It's coming towards the end of a fantastic season for the Senior section. There have been some great achievements this year as the squad continues to go from strength to strength. Highlights have included the Saracens beating London Welsh at their first outing on the Allianz pitch, and an away win at Feltham who were previously unbeaten for two seasons and did not lose another game all season. At the time of writing this the Crusaders, after some great

results, are still to play in their League Cup final; again showing the progress the squad has made this season. On another note, we also welcome the U17s into the Senior Section, and have already had the pleasure of playing with the lads when the 'all we do is squat' American touring side came to play at Bramley Road. After personally joining with a number of training sessions, I know they will all be a fantastic asset to whichever team they represent. After giving everything for two years, Lucky will be standing down as Head Coach for a year to concentrate on his growing business. We cannot thank him enough for his time and commitment to the squad, and we wish him every success and look forward to him returning in due course. In the interim, the coaching duties will be taken over by Brian, Euge and myself. Please check the website over the coming months as we will be posting a training schedule, and we will also be running our Saturday Touch Rugby Club, which is open to all genders and ages. From everyone in the Senior Section, we wish you a peaceful and relaxing Summer. Dominic Saracens Festival of Mini Rugby: When the sun rose on 30th March there was an audible sigh of relief from the U12 group. The planets may well have aligned against the Saracens festival date throwing three other major festivals in our way, making it Mother's day and, just for the sadistic pleasure, putting the clocks forward that very morning, but they were no match for the organising team lead by Alison Millard. Months of planning, badgering, proof reading and a stubborn determination not to fail resulted in one of the club's most successful minis tournaments not only in terms of great rugby but also in the unheard of profit for the club. In the face of this unrelenting tenacity even the weather dared not misbehave! The decision had been made by the managers immediately after last season's tournament that this year would be an A team festival only with Saracens B teams also allowed to play. Harsh as that was on the Bs it was felt that it was a cleaner, fairer competition for them rather than a repeat of previous festivals where competitors put their A teams in the B team tournament in the hope of coming away with silverware. If the Bs were going to be beaten at least they would know it was by an A team! However, reports are that the B teams all rose to the challenge magnificently on the day keeping scores close and giving the other teams a run for their money. 60 teams and over 500 boys and girls and their families turned up to play. There were no drop outs on the day and, due to the other festivals happening around London and Herts there were teams present from far and wide - Colchester, Olney, Huntingdon and Old Northamptonians were just a few of the new faces.

Unfortunately, despite fierce competition these teams proved too strong and, though many came close, no Saracens age group won their age group trophy: The U7s missed out on a finals place only due to a countback against Hampstead who, in their turn, lost on countback to OAs. The U8s lost their final to Ealing. In the U9s Chesham beat Huntingdon in a thrilling sudden death final The U10s lost in the final to Amersham & Chiltern In the U11s Bedford Blues beat Barnardiston Hall (no, we don't know where they’re from either!) The U12s came close to victory against a strong Olney side but since both sides were undefeated the draw led to a slightly convoluted count back where Olney came away with the silverware based on a better try per minute rate. A great day was had by all with Maggie Alphonsi and Nick de Jager making the medal ceremony special for the boys. We'll leave the closing comments to our competitors: "Can I say on behalf of Ely Tigers. Thank you very much. The boys loved it and so did we as coaches. Excellent day. I spoke with my coaching coordinators and we will be coming as a whole club next year." "Just wanted to take the time to send a quick email to yourself to thank you and the Saracens group for what was a fantastic festival, really well run/arranged. Our kiddies really enjoyed the day and it was definitely one of the highlight festivals of our year. Thank you. Definitely if possible please pencil us in for next year’s festival." Worthing RFC "Many thanks from all of us at Huntingdon for hosting an excellent festival yesterday. It was a great development experience for all the players and I will be recommending that we enter all age groups next year." Anna Avenell

U17 News: The U17’s went on tour to Holland over the Easter holidays.

Touring squad

Saracens vs Dukes on 4G pitch a win for Saracens 41 7

U16 News: Congratulations to Seb Brownhill of SARFC U16’s who this month represented England (U16 London & South East) in their 38-5 victory over Italy (U17). Seb played at loose-head prop and appears in this picture, preparing for action, in the red and white scrumcap.

League-wise, the U16 A’s ended the season as runners-up in Division 1 (for the third year running!), losing out to OA’s in the title-decider. The U16 B’s were unbeaten in the league and finished Division 4 Champions - they are looking forward to the challenge of Division 3 next season. The U16’s have finished their season early so that the players can concentrate on their GCSE’s, with pre-season training scheduled to start in early July. Derek Blair

U15 News: The rugby season is nearly over so if you fancy a different sport, please join us at a Golf Day and evening meal that the U15s are organising. The Saracens U17’s 2016 tour Golf Day will be taking place on Tuesday 17th June 2014 at The Shire London - The only Seve Ballesteros designed golf course in the UK!

Further details on how to book tickets and if you are interested in any of the sponsorship opportunities (or know someone who may be) please see the U15’s extra article at the end of the newsletter and before the Saracens Services Supplement! U12 News: It couldn't last. Everybody who was there on the first morning of the season knew our boys' days of MInis Rugby were numbered. The first clues came when Harry turned up with a booming voice and a new pair of Samoan quads having undergone a cartoon-superhero-style transformation over the Summer. A few other boys looked like they needed a shave too. By March, anyone who watched our U12s at the Saracens and County Festivals will have seen that our 'minis' were well on their way to becoming powerful athletes and fine young men. Their skill levels, team work and rugby understanding has grown superbly. The quality of our rugby has risen with notable performances including the A team's thrashing of Ealing and the B team's epic encounter against Harlequins. The A team have qualified as the very top team from all of Middlesex for next year's combined Middlesex-Herts Junior Leagues thanks to a remarkable string of five bonus point victories in the triangular fixtures. An achievement that dozens of other clubs envy. And with real pride, our B team matched this achievement with their own set of five bonus point wins, including one against old foes Rosslyn Park, on the way to securing the highest league placement possible. The B team also won the silverware at the County Finals. A wonderful achievement. They will rightly be ranked alongside A teams from rival clubs in the leagues next season. We hope that these successes are built on the decision to coach all boys equally, with a focus on individual skills and a full understanding of the game from first principles so that they can think 'within the game'. We believe this approach allows the boys to express their talents most clearly and with fun. It is also proving highly successful. Next year they will move from minis to junior rugby. Some of our boys have been with us since the very first training session. You can see photos of them on the way in at the club house. We have welcomed several new boys to the age group this year. All boys count equally and it's great to see them, and their parents, being so warmly welcomed and contributing so generously from the very start. We have also welcomed a new volunteer coach, Jamie, who brings with him an impartial eye and a wealth of backs playing experience at a very high level. The boys will undoubtedly benefit from his experience. On tour, the boys easily dismantled the opposition. Our age group constitution was also tested on tour, but fortunately the parents led by Lewis proved they had remarkable constitutions and fine singing voices. There have been some outstanding contributions from the parents in various voluntary roles. We are blessed with an age group manager, Anna, to whom

our own parents and other age groups turn to for advice. She puts in a huge amount of work week in week out and deserves our full gratitude. The coaches, referees, first aiders and everybody who helped with the festival, tour and other events also deserve praise. The Saracens Festival has been described as one of the most successful in the club's recent history in no small part down to the work of Alison. We hope to be able to continue to call on this level of effort and reward next season. A huge amount of work has already gone on behind the scenes to secure friendly fixtures against some of the very best teams in the south east next season. There will be a handful of familiar teams such as Olney and London Irish, but there are others we have approached based on shared winning calibre. We have turned down endless invitations from clubs who were unable to field two competitive teams. This means that both A and B squads will be able to travel together to play thriving clubs. But it also means there will be no more easy fixtures. How we select players for league games is also being made stricter - from next a season it will be based on ability, attitude and attendance. There will also be a minimum fitness level set to qualify for selection. There will also be a greater attention to ensuring all boys are given the right game time to develop in friendlies. It is a measure of age group's success and also that of our club that we have a waiting list of boys who want to join our age group. Through the summer and early season we will be running trials to select which boys we will allow to join. We will chose these boys based on their character as much as on their ability. Above all in the coming season we want to create an environment where the boys can grow their rugby skills and also grow friendships that will last a lifetime. James Wickham

U10 News The U10s have enjoyed a great season of rugby. With close to 50 players, we have fielded 4 teams throughout the season and new joiners and old hands alike have developed their skills to become stars in the teams. Thanks to our coaching squad who have really stepped up this year to deal not only with a lot of kids, but with the complication of different rules at our age group in Middlesex and Hertfordshire where a lot of our fixtures have traditionally been. We performed well at the various festivals through the year, taking silverware at Middlesex and capped by finishing runners up in our own Saracens festival. We were also unbeaten on tour, and are now looking forward to a good break before tackling the new season. A highlight each year for the U10s is arranging the Minis Easter Tour, and this year was no exception. A huge amount of work went in from the Tour Committee with the support of our parents, and the Tour was a fantastic success. Rugby was good with great host clubs, the Sandy

Balls site was very accommodating, the weather held and the sound of age group BBQs will be ringing in the New Forest for some time to come! James Legg - jimplegg@gmail.com U8 News:

Another season is under the belt and we U8 are already looking forward to the start of the next season as we are getting so excited about contact and to finally say goodbye to the tags! Special thanks goes to Mark Skelly our Head Coach who has every week patiently and with perseverance arrange the drills and train every single kid focusing on the individual’s potentials and area of strengths. Mark all your efforts are greatly appreciated by us all. Another special thank you goes to Antonio Marcantuono who has put himself forward at every single occasion to train the kids even on a Saturday at Oakwood park. And another thank you to Pete Houghton and Graham Barnes who manage as always to make me laugh with their funny jokes when standing on the side-line. We also welcome to the next season the addition of Rian, Duncan and Andre as helping hands on the training (as Mark said it is now on paper so you cannot back down). This year we have seen a massive improvement in the kids’ team spirit. This has even become more evident during the Easter Tour on the pitch and outside the pitch. The kids are establishing what we hope long lasting friendships and to see them have so much fun and get on with each other was really nice. The matches against Farnborough, New Milton and Eastleigh saw some good play which were pretty much levelled up against the opposition. Tour trophy honours went to Kate Houghton (Spirit Of Saracens) Adam Marcantuono (Most Improved Player) Harrison Stephens (Player Of The Tour) Sadly with the season coming to an end, we will have to say goodbye to Harrison Stephens. Harrison, we wish you all the best for your new venture in Bath. You are an amazing kid and an amazing player, your humbleness and amazing personality makes you a true character and a true friend, one we will greatly miss. We have no doubt you’ll do great and we are looking forward to seeing you when you come down to London.

This Tour has seen crazy things happening but as we all know what goes on Tour stays on Tour unless you want to peep through Facebook and see all the evidence. All in all a great season and a big thank you from the coaches and the manager to all the parents who are now part of this big U8 family and who have helped, entertained and encouraged the players all the time. And also let’s not forget our two biggest fans: Katy Skelly and Sophie Chalmers! Nara Cravavnzola

First Aid:

Thank you to all the dedicated club first aiders who tirelessly help to make training and games possible for every section of the club. I would personally like to thank Kiri, Sara and Lauren who have looked after the Senior Men’s Squad this year – their final year at London Metropolitan University – and wish them good luck in their future careers. The Senior Men’s Squad look forward to welcoming new thirds years in September.

Dates for the diary:

Provisional dates have been pencilled in the diary for the next first aid course to be run at the club. Please keep Tuesday 14th and Tuesday 21st October free for the two three hour sessions. Price per person will be £20.

In September we will be holding an audit of first aid bags to streamline the kit across the club and replace worn and tatty bags Please will all first aiders bring their bags to the clubhouse on Tuesday 9th September at 7pm.

There will be a strapping course for U15’s upwards on Tuesday 30

th September at 7.30pm. For further information

please contact me joannamarykelly65@gmail.com or on 07854 375220.

The club physio, Zoe, can be contacted on 07896002286

Jo Kelly

Saracens Amateurs Shop:

The shop will be closed over the summer. If you need anything during this time please phone me on 07914 540 937 or email me at nicklinskey@aol.com. Have a great summer.

Nick Linskey

Saracens Services Supplement:

At the end of this newsletter you will find the new “Saracens Services Supplement”. We have a huge untapped natural resource of service providers and club

members who need those services. We are hoping to put everyone in touch with everyone else! So if you need a gas engineer, a function catered, your garden transformed or your leaky roof mended please check the first entries in the new section.

If you wish to advertise in the Saracens Services Supplement in September please send your ad to Jo Kelly on joannamarykelly65@gmail.com.

SARACENS U17s Tour 2016 - Golf Day at The Shire London I can now confirm that the Saracens 2016 U17s Tour Golf Day will be taking place on Tuesday 17

th June 2014 at The

Shire London - The only Seve Ballesteros designed golf course in the UK! The format of the day will be refreshments on arrival prior to playing 18 holes of golf on the Seve Ballesteros ‘Masters’ course. This will be followed by a 3 course meal in our private function room for both players and evening guests, including prize giving and Auction. We are also looking to see if we can possibly entice some of the Saracens professional players to join us on the day for a game of golf. The costs Refreshments on arrival including bacon rolls + 18 holes golf + 3 Course evening meal - Only £89 per person Evening 3 course meal only - £35 per person So how can you help There are several easy ways:

Come along for a game of golf yourself

Invite some friends or clients and make up a team of 4 on the day or maybe a couple of teams.

Can you or your contacts donate any items for the auction – vouchers for their services, products, dinner in your favourite restaurant, signed sporting memorabilia (not just rugby), your own business’ services….. Main items donators will be featured in the golf day programme too

Sponsor the whole Golf Day and have your company name/logo as main feature across all future communication and promotional material, including a feature in final tour programme in 2016. You will also be able to have a display banner / area at the venue on the day and evening + Full page advert in programme + feature on Facebook page - £950 (if you can get a higher bid then please do try!)

Sponsor a hole and have your company logo printed on a promotional sign in the Tee off area + Logo & listing in programme - £90

Sponsor the longest drive competition - £120

Sponsor the nearest the pin - £120

Place an advert in golf day’s programme – Half page (A6) £50 or Full page (A5) £90 LIMITED SPACES

We hope that this event can be a great success and help us raise lots of money for the boys’ tour in 2016.

To book or for more details please email michael@mcsquare.co.uk or helen.innes@me.com

May Half term activity:

Nick Bird & another young Saracen regular from the 1990 vintage, Kris Kirkton, have signed a deal with East Barnet Grammar School to provide sports & recreational courses during the May half term holiday this year. They approached the Club, requesting the opportunity to promote the courses to Club members, and members of the Committee have offered support for their new venture. They, in turn, will make a contribution to our Coaching Development budget by way of a formal 'thanks' based on any sales that they make as a result. Nick Bird was a Saracens Junior since 1990, and Captain of the 1st XV when we reformed the Senior Section, Nick is a qualified PE Teacher and has been on the staff at QE Boys Barnet since graduating. His Dad was a very long-serving Team Manager too throughout this 20-year spell at the Club.

“Orion Activity Camps is a new and exciting holiday activity camp based at East Barnet School during the May Half Term and Summer School Holidays. The camp is run by Nick Bird and Kris Kirkton (2 former Saracens’ old boys who first started playing for the club in 1990 aged just 7!) They went on to represent the 1st XV in the clubs new era of amateur rugby and although no longer play are still regular supporters of the club. The camps offer a number of sports, arts & crafts, dance & drama and an introduction to science. It is aimed at children aged 8-14. “

Please see their ad in “Saracens Services Supplement” at the end of the newsletter.

Charles Portsmouth and Colin Veitch

Saracens Services

Supplement Club Members Directory

April 2014

ACL Builders All aspects of the building trade

Call Tony Lay 07957 228 295

UNDERCOVER ROOFING

All roofing work undertaken.

Contact Dave on:

07831450833