Sep 01

With the new season only a couple of weeks away, all coaches and players looking forward to building upon the results achieved last season which brought both team, individual titles and International selection.

In May, the youngest members of the club were invited to attend the annual Yazoo National Youth Festival in Nottingham. Aptly named the Beijing Festival, two U9 squads competed against 40 clubs from across England. At this age group, the emphasis is on fun and participation not on winning. However, the club was honoured when one of its young players, Jordan Joiner was awarded the Player of the Tournament Award; an outstanding individual achievement and recognition of quality of play and skills displayed by him.

Other age groups also gained County, Midlands and National recognition. The U11 and U13 squads won their County Championships in February and progressed to the Midlands Finals, where representing Staffordshire the U11's were narrowly defeated 1 - 0 by Belper in the final (one of only 2 goals they conceded in the whole tournament.) The U15's reached the finals of the National Plate competition, an excellent achievement for which they can feel justly proud.

The youth section celebrated its success at the end of season Presentation night when all of its players were applauded for their dedication, hard work and enthusiasm. Individual players of the year went to:

• Under 9 - Jordan Joiner, April McGarrie
• Under 9 Most Improved Players - Jack Ryan, Natalia Argetaki - White
• Under 11 - James Bandurak
• Under 13 - Daniel Hoare
• Under 15 - Chris Beck, Richard Parker
• Under 18 - Will Fleet

The club recognised the highest number of players achieving representative honours to date. No less than 24 players achieved County representation, 5, Midlands and two represented England.

This new season sees the whole Club go from strength to strength. A new Tiger Turf pitch - due to completion in early September will provide International standard facilities placing it at the forefront of hockey in the country. A new coaching team at National League level, committed to working with the youth section will implement a clearly defined player pathway to ensure the development of individual players. This is just one of the exciting projects aimed at making Cannock Youth Section not just one of the largest hockey youth sections in the country, but also the most successful.

In recognition of our continued growth and commitment to the highest standards, the Club has been awarded the status of Junior Development Centre and Junior Academy for Staffordshire. These centres will be lead by two of the Cannock coaching staff and will work with the best players from across the county.