Clubhouse opening & key dates (w/c 01/09)

Club Openings 
Monday - Open from 7pm

Robin will be opening the club on Monday before training starts at 7pm so you can use the club to change etc.  and will be staying open until post-training to quench peoples thirsts (if demand allows).

Wednesday - Open from 7pm 

Fisher will be looking after you this week. So make sure you come down to the clubhouse and celebrate reaching the mid-point of the week and refreshing yourselves after the training session. 

Friday - Open from 7.30pm 
Matt (aka Cuddles) will be opening the club this Friday. So come down and celebrate the end of the working week. 

Saturday - OPEN DAY - Open from 11am until ??? 
We will have a number of DMs helping on the day and we have a late licence to ensure our open day goes off with a bang. We have a touch competition in the morning and a Mens Friendly in the afternoon - as well as a BBQ and lots of other events during the day.

As always we are looking for volunteers, so make yourselves available to Fisher or Ed and help to welcome potential new members to the club.

 

New for 2014/15 Season - Just to let you know that as well as having SkySports at the club, we now also have BT Sport!! So you can now catch all of the Premiership Rugby matches at the club as well

Mens Pre-season v Southwark - THIS SATURDAY

Guys,

We have our first pre-season match this Saturday v Southwark at Hackney Marshes.  Kick off is 2pm.

Please meet at the club at 12pm sharp.  If you have Millwall shorts and socks, please bring them.  For the new guys at the club, as close to black shorts and socks where possible please.

We have arranged transport for 28 players to get you to the Marshes and back after the game, however if there are a few guys also driving that would be helpful so please let Sean Russell/Shaun Cook or myself know asap if you will be driving.

For those that haven't already, please email selection@millwallrugby.com to confirm your availability to help us plan ahead.

Let's get the season off to a positive and winning start and turn up ready for the challenge ahead.

See you Saturday.

David

Open Day 2014 - Saturday the 6th of September from 12 noon

The time is upon us....

Due to this being the season in which we will celebrate our 20 year anniversary, we are hoping this event will be a good reason for all the Millwall rugby club members, past and present, to get together at the start of the season and bring friends family and colleages down for a great experience at the Club.


At the clubhouse:

The clubhouse will open from 11am until late, with a BBQ from approximately 12 noon until around 5 pm. Followed by...........Diskotime....

Under 16 year olds are very welcome for the whole day, so bring the family down to join in the fun. (We may request that all our younger guests retire after 9pm however it will be at management discretion).



On the pitch:

We will have Chris, one of our youth coaches present to show younger guests the ropes and get those more experienced involved.

12 noon - 2pm
The 02 touch team have kindly offered to run an open challenge, so anyone not playing in games that day, please get yourselves down and have a run out.

2 pm - 4 pm
The mens squad have a pre season match versus Greenwich, so after a hard time on the touch field, or supporting your can relax and watch the game, with sufficient nourishment from our friendly clubhouse of course.


IMPORTANT ITEMS TO REMEMBER

Its our 20 year anniversary this year coming, and so the celebrations start now and continue throughout the season.

Fancy dress rules state that this in an Open day and as such all are required to at least attempt to wear one item related to, or from, the 90´s in keeping with the "20 years" theme.

Facepainting will be available, so make good use of it!!


Save the date! Get your colleagues, family, friends, people you met in a bar who should play rugby, someone you want to introduce nicely to skittlebombs down to the club and join the party

See you all there!

Ed

Social Sectretary

Changes at the Club - How this affects you

I hope you have been enjoying the summer and are looking forward to a great season of rugby.
 

I wanted to write to you personally, to bring you up to speed with the club’s current situation, as well as to highlight some changes to membership and subs that I believe are necessary and may impact you.


  

Improving Rugby at Millwall

Millwall Rugby Club is a strong, successful and vibrant club. And it may surprise you to learn that our annual turnover is in the region of £90,000, putting it on a par with some small businesses. Building the club to that size of turnover has inevitably meant that we encounter some challenges.

Over the past few years, the club’s committee has worked tirelessly to improve what we offer to members, to ensure that we stay competitive and grow as a club both on and off the pitch. As we enter our 20th Anniversary year, we are offering members more than ever before. 

• We now provide regular, quality coaching to the men’s teams via a paid-for-coach, rather than relying exclusively on volunteer coaches.
• We now provide free transport to most away matches.
• We’ve moved training from an often poor quality paddock at Mudchute Farm onto Millwall Park, alongside our clubhouse and we now have a set of reliable and fully portable training floodlights for the winter months.
• We are now more consistent in providing home and visiting teams with good quality home-cooked food after matches.
• We’re now running touch rugby more professionally all-year-round.
• We’re now providing better first-aid cover and physio support through recruiting and training volunteers. 
• Opened in 2010, we have a warm clubhouse, that is now open for longer hours and is consistently available for members and guests after training sessions and matches.

 
 

Shortfall in revenue

Some of the improvements that the club has enjoyed have inevitably meant incurring additional costs. The level of additional spending has now reached £16,000 a year more than the club needed to spend in its earlier years.  In terms everyone can understand, this now means that it costs more than double what it used to cost to give everyone a game of rugby.

Recent committees have made good progress in finding alternative funding sources in their efforts to maintain members’ cost increases to a minimum, with membership fees and subs increasing only slightly in recent years. I want to emphasise the efforts that have been made to keep charges low and affordable for everyone.

However, it is important to recognise the lack of certainty that the club is faced with as we look forward at the costs the club will face this season when compared with expected revenue. If nothing changes, we could expect a revenue shortfall of at least £12,000. Clearly, this situation has to be addressed if we are to ensure a financially viable rugby club for the coming years.

With this in mind, I called together the current management committee to look at how we can plug this funding gap and secure the long-term future of the club.

Whilst I understand that there are some potentially interesting areas where costs can be saved your committee agrees that a certain level of spending is necessary if the club is to develop and achieve its ambitions. We have an exciting season ahead of us in the Essex 1 league and maintaining the coaching and travel commitments in support of our ambitions has to be a priority.


  

Here’s what we decided

This issue affects the viability of the whole club, and we believe it’s the right thing for everyone to be part of the solution.  We are a “rugby club with a strong social element”, not a social club that plays some rugby. And we want everyone to come together as part of one Millwall rugby community.

Here are the decisions:

• We’re abolishing the two-tier membership structure and introducing a single-adult membership level of £50 per year for everyone. This will affect all adult members, including men, Venus, social members and youth parent members (except students/unwaged membership who will still pay £25). This change means that all members will simply be classed as ‘member’ (as opposed to playing or social), and anyone will be eligible to play for the club if they wish.
• We’re increasing weekly playing subs for adult men to £15 per match. (Venus subs will remain at £7.50 because the women do not benefit from the paid-for coaching). 
• Weekly playing subs for student and unwaged members (men and women) remain discounted, however they will rise to £5 per match while you remain a student/unwaged. Evidence of your status may be required periodically.
• The Standing Order men’s membership scheme has changed and remains the best value way to be a member if you play regularly - and more details are in the section below.
• We’re taking a more rigorous approach to collecting membership fees and weekly subs.  If your membership is not up-to-date by Wednesday evening before the game, your team manager will not select you to play. Any arranged club transport will not leave until every player travelling has paid their subs - even if that means letting the club down by travelling with fewer players or forfeiting fixtures.
• Youth subs and membership charges will be re-introduced this season. Details to follow. 
• Life membership, which includes all subs, will stay at a one-off payment of £1000 (or £100 per month if paid in 12 instalments over a year).
• Some of the bar prices will increase slightly, however we are keeping them as low as possible – for instance a pint of Becks remains at the low price of just £2.90.

All of the above changes are effective from today.
 

The men’s Standing Order scheme

Our standing order scheme is very good value for money because it includes membership and subs in one low monthly payment.  With the increased number of fixtures this season, you could easily save £80 against the cost of paying membership + subs.

A few years back the existing 12-month payment scheme was changed to an 8-month scheme, to try and counter the actions of some members who were not honouring the spirit of the scheme by cancelling their payments during the summer months.  

• To help budgeting over a longer period we have decided to bring back the 12-month scheme to allow members to spread payment evenly over the whole year. The 8-month scheme will cease.
• The new price for all members is £25 per month paid over 12 months, recognising that there are many more fixtures this season.  In recognition of longer term support for the club, any member who is already paying a 12 month Standing Order may continue to pay at their current rate. The club is grateful to the number of overseas members who continue to support the club in this way!
• Everyone who takes up the scheme is expected to honour the 12 month agreement. We will be more rigorous in ensuring that all payments are collected and if you should fall behind on your payments, you will not be selected to play until you’ve made up what you owe.

Historically, the club has allowed members on the 12-month standing order scheme to continue paying at the same rate for as long as they maintain the same un-broken standing order.  Whilst we can’t guarantee the actions of future committees, it is the committee’s intent that this approach will continue for the foreseeable future. You may therefore find that there are additional benefits in joining the scheme and locking-in your rate now.
 

Volunteers

It is the club’s policy to reward regular volunteers with 50% discount on membership and subs (except life membership) for as long as they remain a volunteer. Many of our volunteers choose not to take the discount, however we believe that this is a simple way to incentivise and recognise people who give a little extra of their time each week.
 

Hardship cases

We will still be understanding in cases of genuine hardship, and existing club policies around this remain unchanged: we want Millwall Membership to remain accessible to all. If you are in genuine hardship and cannot afford your membership fees you should write to the treasurer explaining your circumstances.
 

“Let’s Go to Work”

I believe your management committee has done its part and taken the difficult decisions needed to put the club on a strong financial path for this season.  We will continue working to minimise costs and maximise alternative sources of funding, such as finding sponsorship and applying for grants.

We need you to support the changes, keep training, keep socialising and to encourage others to play their part in the success of the club. We’d like you to suggest new ways of funding, new ideas that we might be able to action to bring in new revenue and to introduce us to your employers who might want to sponsor the club.

This season promises to be an exciting one for Millwall Rugby. We are in Essex 1 and the pre-season training has been progressing well. The players look fitter than ever and the tackling looks strong. Whilst I daresay we will encounter challenging moments through the season, I am looking forward immensely to watching the Men’s teams cement their places in the League and Merit tables, and for Venus to crack into the ladies league. Touch rugby has also received a new impetus and as we align ourselves more closely with the O2 Touch programme under the watchful eye of Mr Flex, we can look forward to seeing further new faces on the park and to welcoming more new members into the club.

Shaun Cook, who with the other playing members on the committee was part of these decisions, will be holding a meeting for players on Wednesday this week after training, where he will echo these key changes.  If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me personally at chairman@millwallrugby.com.


With best wishes for a cracking season ahead


Robin Poynder

Chairman, Millwall Rugby Club
www.millwallrugby.com

First Mens' Preseason match - Hackney Marsh

Afternoon Gents,

Hope the bank holiday was good for all and that we're raring to go with our first pre-season game this Saturday. The match is against Southwark Lancers and is down on Hackney Marsh so should be a great chance to pull on the boots and blow out the cobwebs! Those looking to play on the 13th September in the first competitive games of the season should really get their names down and get match fitness building back up.

Email selection@millwallrugby.com with your availability and make sure to get down to training tomorrow.

Also, if you're able to help out with the driving to and from Hackney Marsh let us know by emailing selection@millwallrugby.com - a great chance to help out the club right at the start of the season!

See everyone tomorrow at training

Cookie

Clubhouse opening & key dates (w/c 25/8)

Club Openings:

Monday - Clubhouse bar CLOSED, Training still on

 

Wednesday - Open from 7.30pm 

Wiggy will be looking after you this week as Wiggy Wednesday returns for a 1 week special. So make sure you come down to the clubhouse and celebrate reaching the mid-point of the week and refreshing yourselves after the training session. 

 

Friday - Open from 7.30pm 
Karen will be opening the club this Friday. So come down and celebrate the end of the short working week.

Saturday - Open from 3.30-4pm

Edna will be your host for this Saturday and will be opening the clubhouse at the end of the friendly match the mens teams have on Millwall Park vs Southwark. So make sure you come down and cheer the men on for the first game of the season and enjoy the club afterwards.

 

Also on Saturday we have another friendly match (on a slightly better quality pitch) - with Millwall Rugby vs North Greenwich Bowls club (next to Millwall Park) from 1pm - if you are interested, please click on this link to the facebook event for more details or speak to Ed or Fisher. 

 

New for 2014/15 Season - Just to let you know that as well as having SkySports at the club, we now also have BT Sport!! So you can now catch all of the Premiership Rugby matches at the club as well

Physio & First Aid News August 23rd

To All Current and New Season Student Physios, Physios and First Aiders

(and Players and members who are interested)

Hello Everyone

The first game is one week away, next Saturday August 30th, and things are going very well as we prepare for the season ahead. 35 of you have expressed an interest, there are 18 or so on the rotas already so here is an update for you on some items.

Courses

First Aid Course Open - Sunday September 21st

The initial First Aid course is open. It's a rugby specific course at our clubhouse, costing £65, half of which the club will refund to you when you do 8 games or massage sessions and its run for the RFU by STA. We have 10 spaces reserved and the course can hold up to 15. Book by calling Andrew Beech, Customer Advisor, STA, D: +44 (0)1922 748389 and tell him you are from Millwall Rugby Club
Facebook Event

Taping Course Open - Sunday Oct 5th

The first Taping course is also now open, it's a one day course run by Proactive, costing £80, again half of which the club will refund when you do 8 games or massage sessions. We ask that everyone goes on the course as taping is a very useful skill to have through the season.

Book  via the Proactive Website http://www.proactive-training.co.uk/training-courses/sports-taping-and-kinesiology-taping/ and pay £80 with your name

BANK TRANSFER

Bank - Barclays

Company name - Proactive Training Ltd

Sort Code - 20 90 74

Account number – 30554537

NB: please reference all online payments with your full name
Facebook Event

As of Thursday, the following were confirmed on the course
1. Abby Potter
2. Ambika Kumar
3. Charlie Potter
4. Damian Purcell
5. Damini Halai
6. Edwin Lam
7. Eilidh Rutherford
8. Paul Cheney
9. Sally Dixson

We will run additional courses for First Aid and Taping so everyone has a chance to be qualified.

Party Night and Fundraising - Oct 11

Millwall Rugby is a very friendly social club and on Saturday Oct 11th, we'll have a party; physios, student physios and all can meet our players and social members. We'll do food and fundraising via raffles, auctions and party games and the money raised will go towards you, reducing the course fees above, providing additional courses and training, buying polo shirts, equipment etc. Based on last year, it will cost you little or nothing as the players often buy drinks and our target to raise will be £350. Invite your friends and fellow students, our drinks prices are very reasonable (e.g. cider £2.30 a pint currently) and any bar profits go back into the club including us. I will need some help arranging it though, please let me know if you are interested and we'll join with the club's social secretary team. Please "Join" the Event on the main club's Facebook page here

Merchandise & Sponsorship

I'm getting physio, student physio and first aid tops and polo shirts and other items set up for you in our club shop, they'll have Millwall branding and be exclusive to this team, identifying you as a student physiotherapist and/or First Aider. We provide smocks for the games so you can be safely recognised on the pitch but you can also buy other items yourself; t-shirts start at £11, polos will be from £18 and there are many other items. Having the student\First Aid identification will protect you and the club from any confusion and you can buy the regular club tops as well.

As well as the fundraising above, I'm looking for sponsorship and other funding to reduce costs for you. If you know of companies, bars or individuals who would be interested in sponsoring the Physio & First Aid team in terms of courses, taping, tops etc, please pass my details onto them, we have a member who is a professional in this area and will then arrange the details. We'll cater for all ranges from £20 to £20,000!
http://www.teamshopbuilder.co.uk/millwallrfc/findProdByShopId.action

Professionals and Training Night with Partner Physios

This year, we'll be partnering with a number of qualified physio practises and other specialists, both to provide services to the players and masterclasses\training to student physios so you can learn and work safely under supervervision.

We're finalising the details but these currently include

• Fusion PhysioTherapy's Director and Lead physio, Laura Rathbone, who specializes in pain sciences and combines physio with a background of pilates. Some of you will recognise Laura from her teaching at Kings, she will provide clinics for players\members where you can take part and also do master classes with us.
• Kinetic Clinic's Director and Senior Physio - Francesco Contiero, where the focus of the treatment is osteopathy combined with functional rehabilitation and biomechanics. Franco is also a passionate lecturer and will do training\lectures with the first being on Thursday October 2nd
• Paul Cheney - Sport Injury Rehabilitation Specialist
• Andy Liu - Strength and Conditioning coach
• Others TBC including national team and Premiership club physios

If you know of others, especially those who would be willing to volunteer time with us, please send them my details. Doing perhaps one or two session in the season per volunteer physio would be very useful to you\us.

Player Baseline 

Laura is setting up a baseline evening with the players where we'll measure the players pre-season speed, agility, flexibility and strength & stamina and thus have a reference point for later in the season (and no doubt provide players and coaches with some amusement!). She will be offering you the opportunity to take part and learn its usefulness to physiotherapy, watch out for further details.

Open Nights

We've already had the first Open Night last Wednesday when 7 of you came down and chatted to Laura, Paul and I and we'll have two more, Wednesday September 10th and Wednesday September 24th. Its open to everyone including any friends or fellow students, sign up via the Facebook event

Open Day, Games and Massage Rota

Both of these are filling very well now and there are still spaces including our club Open Day on Saturday
September 6th.

This is a club-wide open day to attract in new members and provide a playing and social day for current members. We'll have both a full 15-side pre-season game for the men against local side Greenwich and a touch rugby tournament and will require First Aid for the day. Add your name to the rota, it's one of our biggest game related days in the year and there will a party in the clubhouse afterwards. Drop in with friends, the whole point is to invite new members

Rotas

•  Games
•  Massage

On the rotas, please be careful not to delete or alter already existing items. It's not the end of the world if you do as the sheet has a history but please try and avoid it. Also, if you are interested, sign up and if later we have to change it, we can do that.
Facebook

Priorities

As there are quite a few of you, I may need to prioritise some things e.g. who goes on courses first so here are some guidelines. 

•  Number of games\massage sessions completed
•  Number of games\massage sessions committed to
•  People who willing to do Away games, Women's and Youth games, 2nds and 3rds
•  Prior relevant experience and courses 

I will also need to balance numbers for games so all teams have some coverage and the same people get to travel with the same team. I'll pair you up until you're happy to do it on your own steam.

Insurance Update

First Aid

You are covered for First Aid through the club's RFU insurance and if your First Aid qualification is done through our rugby specific course above by STA, you'll have an additional level of cover.

Sports Massage

You'll be covered for this with your CSP membership, training course and £35 insurance policy.

Here are the guidelines from the CSP:
"Many students undertake sports massage work separate to their physiotherapy studies, and associate members may practice sports massage outside of their physiotherapy related work.
Due to demand, the CSP has brokered a separate sports massage insurance policy that students and associate members can purchase in addition to their CSP PLI for £35 a year.
In order to be eligible to purchase the separate cover you must:

•  Be a current student and/or associate member of the CSP
•  Hold one of these qualifications:
•               Level 3 (or higher) Sports Massage Certificate from Sports Massage Association Accredited Schools
•              Level 3 Sports Massage Therapy Certificate from VTCT, ITEC or CIBTAC
•  Retain your certificate of sports massage qualification as proof of eligibility to purchase the scheme
•  No other qualifications are acceptable

The premium paid covers a fixed 12 month period from July one year to June the following year. A pro-rata premium is payable for those who take out the policy mid-term. Renewals will come directly to you provided you are still a CSP student and/or associate member.
Student members do not need to continue their separate sports massage policy once they are registered with the HCPC as a registered physiotherapist and they have moved into a 'practicing member' category of CSP membership (either B or C categories). Qualified physiotherapists do not need separate 'sports massage' PLI as this activity is covered under the terms of the main CSP PLI scheme."

Physiotherapy

You'll be covered for treatment etc if you work under the supervision of an appropriately qualified and insured physiotherapist. Laura can provide this cover.

Calendar Summary

•  Sunday September 21st, 9am to 5pm, First Aid Training 
  
•  Wednesday September 10th, Open Night, 7-8.30pm 
•  Wednesday September 24th, Open Night, 7-8.30pm 
•  Thursday October 2nd, Lecture\Training night. 
•  Sunday October 5th, 9am to 5pm, Taping course .
•  Saturday October 11th - Party Night for Physios & Members 
•  Sunday October 19th, 9am to 5pm, First Aid course #2 - TBC (I'd like to move it earlier)
•  TBC Taping Course #2

I hope that's useful for you, I'm delighted that you are talking part with us and look forward to meeting those of you who I've not met already.

If any reason e.g. time\study commitments, sports physio not being attractive any more etc etc and you'd rather not get these emails and use Facebook instead, please let me know, I understand.

Join or use our Facebook site
https://www.facebook.com/groups/millwallrugbyphysio/

Thanks

Tim



Tim McDonagh
First Aid Officer
Millwall Rugby Club
75 Manchester Road - London - E14 3DN
+44 7795 436715 timmcdonagh@millwallrugby.com - www.millwallrugby.com

Follow us on Twitter @millwallrugby - Find us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/millwallrugby

30th August Social Event - Bowls afternoon with the bowling club next door

Our friendly local bowls club has invited us to join them for a friendly game of bowls on their green right next to our rugby club!

North Greenwich Bowls Club (It's not in today's "North Greenwich")
Address: 197 E Ferry Rd, London E14 3AY (yes, this is just by Canary Wharf College, alongside our railway arches).

Timings:

• Arrive from 13:00 onwards
• Bowling starts at 15:00
• Beers throughout
• BBQ after bowling commences timing depending on demand

Points to note:

• It will be mixed bowling: our hosts plan to split teams with pros and Millwall Rugby Club members to mix it up a bit and give everyone a chance to learn form the experts
• Cash-only bar: please bring enough or be prepared for the long hike to Equinox
• Please bring £5 for BBQ.
• Trainers only: their pitch is a lot better quality than ours
• Please try to wear some sort of "bowling" Whites if you can; as far as I am aware helmets, pads and a box aren't necessary. Shorts and skirts ARE allowed, the only fixed rule is no heels on the green, trainers or plimsoles only.

Exact location:

Posted on behalf of Ed
Social Secretary
Millwall Rugby Club
socialsecretary@millwallrugby.com

Clubhouse opening & key dates (w/c 18/8)

Club Openings:

Monday - Open post-training from 7pm

Fisher will be opening the club on Monday before training starts at 7pm so you can use the club to change etc.  and Ed will be taking over post-training to quench peoples thirsts. 

 

Wednesday - Open from 7.30pm 

Chris (our youth coach, and newly trained duty manager) will be looking after you this week as the final part of his training. So make sure you come down to the clubhouse with all your complicated orders to test his mettle. As well as celebrate reaching the mid-point of the week and refreshing yourselves after the training session. 

 

Friday - Open from 7.30pm 
Lucie will be opening the club this Friday. So come down and celebrate the end of the week and start of the long bank holiday weekend.

Saturday - Open from 6pm

Ryan will be your host for this Saturday, so make sure you come down and make the most of the bank-holiday weekend. We will record the NZ v Aus and Arg v SA games from earlier on in the day and show them back in the evening.

Millwall Rugby - Physio News, Courses, Rotas

To All Current and New Season Physios

This is an email I've just sent, please contact me if you are interested but have not received it yet.

Hello Everyone

For everyone new, thanks very much for contacting the club about the opportunities available with us. We're delighted to have you and look forward to a great season, I'm sure you will learn a lot and have fun along the way. For anyone from last season, welcome back!*

Here is some information about next steps

Open Nights
I will organise at least three Open Nights where  you can drop into the club and Charlie (Millwall physio & King's student) and I can give you an introduction and you can ask questions. I know some of you are away so don't worry, its just a casual chat, a quick presentation and beer. I can informally meet you other times as well, usually Monday and Wednesdays.
1. Wednesday August 20th
2. Wednesday September 10th
3. Wednesday September 24th

First Aid and Taping Courses
The dates that are available to me so far are
1. First Aid - Sunday September 21 (requested)
2. Taping - Sunday October 5th (requested and part confirmed)
I'd rather do both of these earlier or even doing the First Aid on a Tuesday\Thursday after September 22. I realise these will not be ideal but its looking like we could run two dates for each course. Please send me your availability in as much detail if you haven't done so already

On-Pitch Scenarios
I'll set this up but don't have details yet. It will likely be a Saturday morning.

Games Rota
Here are the links to the rotas for the year, we do self service in Millwall as far as possible. All you need to do is look at the dates you can realistically do and add your name in to a slot. We can have 3 or 4 physios at each home game but only about 2 for away games due to transport limitations. If someone is already in the slot, add your name to it (be careful not to delete names). If you need to change it later, no problem, just let me know. You should all have access to the games rota by now. I will probably need to move some names around later so we get a mix of experience and we get the same people with the same teams but we can agree on coverage.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Aj8R-syHKdwIdEJCTUl6NHBDZDBnZm4zR3A5MW8zZkE&usp=sharing

Massage Rota
We will also do a massage rota where you can practise your massage course skills. These will be on Wednesdays. Lets plan for 2 people per night and we'll see what the demand is like from you and the players
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Aj8R-syHKdwIdHAyUGRTWjVkWlZha09Qc1E5TkFzdVE&usp=sharing

If you cannot read\edit the rota, let me know and I can either permission you or add you

That's it for now, drop me a line here or via Facebook if there is something I can help with. Also I can probably meet you most times at the club house if you are available. I'm away Aug 30th to Sept 7th

*If anyone from last season cannot continue again, just let me know and I can take you off the email list. If you need anything from the club, let me know and I will help,

Thanks

Tim McDonagh

First Aid Officer

Millwall Rugby Club

75 Manchester Road - London - E14 3DN
+44 7795 436715  timmcdonagh@millwallrugby.com - www.millwallrugby.com

Follow us on Twitter @millwallrugby - Find us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/groups/millwallrugbyphysio/

Clubhouse opening & key dates (w/c 10/8)

Club Openings:

Monday - Open post-training from 7pm

Robin will be opening the club on Monday before training starts at 7pm so you can use the club to change etc.  and will keep it open until after training to quench peoples thirsts. 

 

Wednesday - Open from 7.30pm 

Fisher is back from the +100kg 7s tournament in Copenhagen (watching not playing) and will be looking after you this week. So come on down to the clubhouse and celebrate reaching the mid-point of the week and refresh yourselves after the pre-season training session. 

Friday - Open from 7.30pm 
Cuddles will be opening the club this Friday. So come down and celebrate the end of the week and start of the weekend.

Saturday - Open from 6pm

Gareth will be your host for this Saturday along with trainee duty manager Chris, so make sure you come down and make the most of the weekend and order one of our elaborate cocktails from our extensive cocktail list (i.e. lager & lime, lager top or lager shandy) to test Chris during his first DM session.

 

We will record the Aus v NZ and SA v Arg games from earlier on in the day and show them back in the evening.

We still need some more helpers for Communications

Earlier this week I wrote about the the club match-day programme and match report writing.

Thank you to the couple of you who came forward to volunteer.  We're still looking for another couple of volunteers ideally (for men, Venus and youth) so that we are able to make these things happen each week during the season.

If you're interested, please get in touch with me by email as soon as possible this weekend.

Thanks
Andrew
Communications Officer

The Wharf: News: Millwall Rugby Club looking to build on last year's success

Read about the club's targets for the season as Men's Chair, Shaun Cook talks about the season ahead. Read the full article here.

Reminder - Men's Pre-season Training Tonight

Guys,

Quick reminder to all those training tonight to bring boots and any items such as gum shields to begin contact training this week.  Please also bring trainers too for the first part of the session.

See you tonight.

David

Clubhouse opening & key dates (w/c 3/8)

Club Openings:

Monday - Open post-training from 7pm   

Fisher will be opening the club on Monday before training starts at 7pm so you can use the club to change etc.  Our social butterfly, Ed, will then take over after training to quench peoples thirsts. 

 

Wednesday - Open from 7.30pm 

(Please note there is a 'Millwall Park User Group' meeting in the club from 6.30pm)

Gareth is back and will be looking after you this week. So come on down to the clubhouse and celebrate reaching the mid-point of the week and refresh yourselves after the pre-season training session. 

 

Don't forget there will also be a meeting held in the clubhouse after training at 9pm to discuss plans for the Open Day on Sat Sept 6th and how people can get involved - so make sure you come down and participate in this. 

 

Friday - Open from 7.30pm 
Karen will be opening the club this Friday. So come down and celebrate the end of the week and start of the weekend.

Saturday - Open from 6pm

Edna will be your host for this Saturday, so make sure you come down and make the most of the weekend and this hot weather.

 

 

n.b. Please remember (especially during the summer months) with all club openings, how long the club stays open is dependant on demand and the DM (but we will always be shut by 11pm (10.30pm on Sundays)). The more people we have down, the better.

Club Communications: Programme & Match Report Volunteers needed

Do you like rugby?  And do you like writing or desktop publishing?

I'm looking for some volunteers this season who would like to help the club in one or both of two areas:

1. Writing weekly match reports for the newspaper of the game they watch/support or play in

2. Editing or sub-editing a match-day programme each week.

If you're interested in helping out as part of a small team with either of the above please get in touch with me by email to communications@millwallrugby.com. There's more info about it below.

By having regular coverage in the newspaper, it helps us recruit players. But equally important; it keeps the local community and local businesses informed and interested in the club. And that makes it much easier to get valuable sponsorship.

I hope you can help out because both of these things make a real difference to how successful the club can be on the pitch, in player recruitment and in attracting members, sponsors and funding. 

Best regards

Andrew
Communications Officer

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Here's some more background of what it involves:

Match Report Writing (Men's, Venus & Youth)

We have good links with the local papers and most weeks during the season we manage to get a few column inches and a photo or two into the paper.  The paper will sometimes rewrite what we send, so it doesn't need to be perfect. There just needs to be some basic info like:

• who did we play, 
• where did we play, 
• who scored, 
• what the final score was, 
• what the captain thought/said,
• and as the season progresses what the game means for our league position.  

It is vital that the match report is READY by 6pm Sunday evening otherwise it is less likely to get in the paper. Some of the papers have later deadlines.  "Something" is always better than "nothing" in this case, so don't feel what you do has to be perfect; it doesn't.

This job can be allocated to a player as a match-day job (it has been in the past), or could be done by a supporter who travels to see the game.  In the latter case, you'd get free transport to away games in the team minibus.

Programme Editor (or editing team)

The Millwall match-day programme is something of a club tradition. If you're interested in looking through the history of programmes since time began, we have a box of one copy of each edition upstairs in the clubhouse office. Some seasons we've been better than others at keeping this tradition going.

The idea is that teams pick up a copy at the Saturday meet and take it with them to read on the train/bus.  In theory a few copies would be taken for supporters too.

This job could be shared by a few individuals on a rota or each compiling part of it. Since we have the club blog it should be easier.  As a bare minimum, you'd take everything that's been published on the cub blog that week, include a list of stats/appearances (Flex makes this) and get an update on club finances from the treasurer.  It could include a regular message from the chairman or section chairs. It would include match reports from the previous games. If you don't have a match report, you can write a completely fictional one!! It could be funny or serious, as you like it.

Potentially, advertising could be sold, but only if this is a regular and reliable thing.

Essentially the programme editor (or editors) can make this "their own".  Design it how you like, or follow a template that's been used before.

If you decide to make a PDF version as well as a print version, it could be distributed to 800 supporters each week as well and that could have impact on sponsorship and donations from members who live away. As an example of what would be possible if someone made a PDF programme, see our Issuu library here.

Usually the programme editor prints a few copies of the programme at work (maybe up to 50 copies a week), but the club could pay for it to be printed elsewhere if necessary.

Win a VIP Matchday Experience

StubHub, the official ticket marketplace of the Premiership Rugby 7s Final, is offering two lucky fans the chance to win an unforgettable VIP match-day experience at The Twickenham Stoop.

Two lucky winners and a friend each will get to see the Premiership Rugby 7s Final on Friday 8th August and will experience the following VIP package:

• 2 VIP seats located outside the Trustee Lounge
• Exclusive access to the Trustee Lounge which includes a two course meal
• A behind the scenes tour of The Twickenham Stoop

For more info and to enter, visit the Premiership Rugby website here.