Secretary & Development Officer

At the committee meeting on 19th July, the committee discussed the current vacancies on the management committee of Secretary and Development Officer.

It was felt that we needed to fill the secretary role, and Andrew Hesselden agreed to cover the majority of the role for the next few months until another candidate could be found. For the time being Andrew will be club secretary with the exception of minutes and player registration. Kev Doherty has kindly agreed to produce the minutes of management committee meetings and player registration will be handled by Randall Powell, Men's Chair.

In the absence of a Development Officer this season, Dave Leftley will chair the meetings of the Devevlopment Committee - Andrew Bates has kindly volunteered to assist in certain development activities.

Secretary
Andrew Hesselden

Millwall appoints Director of Rugby

Millwall Rugby Club got their plans for Season 2011/12 on track this week as they appointed Warren Abrahams to the newly created position of Director of Rugby.

Abrahams, who hails from South Africa joins the Isle of Dogs club following coaching stints at London Irish and Harlequins. As a player he competed at national level both in the UK and in South Africa, as well as being selected for South Africa's 7's national team.

Following the departure of last season's 1st XV coach and the retirement of a number of senior players, the appointment couldn't have come at a better time for Men's Section Chair Randall Powell:

"We are very excited to have Warren as our Director of Rugby.  He brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the club. With the talent the club brings in from Canary Wharf, I believe Warren is the perfect coach to take the club to next level.  He has a great ability to draw people in and get them to perform to the best ability.

As well as filling the senior coaching role for the men's teams at the club, Abrahams will be responsible for all coaching throughout the Millwall Park-based club, including its four junior teams and ladies section, Millwall Venus. And it's clear the new coach is up for the challenge:

"First of all I would like to thank Millwall RFC for giving me the opportunity to be part of the club. I'm very excited about this challenge, especially at a stage when there have been many changes at the club in terms of the set up and also the playing personnel. I hope to bring a level of experience and achievement that will be of immediate benefit to Millwall RFC. I'm looking forward to a great season and working with a group of players and coaches that consist of youth and experience."

Pre-season training for the men's senior teams begins on Tuesday 9th August at 730pm on Millwall Park. New players of all abilities and experience are welcome. For further information please visit www.millwallrugby.com

ENDS

Chairman's Update

Hello Members,

Firstly I just wanted welcome you all to the beginning of another exciting season at Millwall Rugby Club.

This weekends events:

England vs. Wales - Shown live in the Clubhouse on Saturday the 6^th of August at 14.30

Caribbean Night at the Clubhouse – tonight Friday the 5^th of August from 18.00. More details on Facebook.

Director of Rugby:

I’m delighted that we can start the 2011/12 season with the appointment of a Director of Rugby.

This professional position represents a real investment by the Club in the development and sustainability of Rugby at Millwall. This paid position is not just about running a training session, although this will continue to be a key part of the role, he will be focused on leading the Men’s training sessions.

In addition, an equally crucial component will be the professional development of our Coaches and looking at all aspects of coaching across the Club, which you asked for in last seasons Club survey.

Warren Abrahams is an IRB Level 2 qualified coach and brings experience of coaching and playing at the highest levels, working as a coach for London Irish and Harlequins as well as playing at a national level in the UK and South Africa he represented South Africa in the emerging Springboks Seven’s team.

Please feel free to introduce yourself to Warren, get to know him and welcome him to the Club.

Volunteers:

One of the things that makes any Club special is the involvement of you, it’s members and players in the running of the Club, no matter how big or small the contribution. We couldn’t do what we do without people like you helping.

We recognise that in the current climate finding time alongside work and home commitments is increasingly difficult but for our Club to keep the lights on, game teams out on the weekend and the ability to have a drink in the Clubhouse it’s vital that we get some more help from you. Whether it’s regularly volunteering 5 minutes or 5 hours a week your valuable time or some occasional expert advice/help, YOUR CLUB NEEDS YOU!!. We are looking for ways to recognise your contribution to the club, more details to follow.

Please contact volunteer@millwallrugby.com if you can help.

Recruitment:

We are always looking for new members to participate in this great Club as a player or socially, so spread the word amongst your mates. The amazing mix of people at Millwall is one of the reasons that we are such a welcoming and dynamic Club. More details to follow on some upcoming Club organised recruitment events, but don’t just wait for us.

Venus:

Congratulations to Louise and the ladies for starting the 2011/12 season for Millwall, last weekend Venus took part in the Worthing Seven’s tournament. The event was the first opportunity to put all the hard work and skill gained at training into a game and although the team didn’t win, each match was an improvement on the last and was a great opportunity for the team to play together and develop as squad. Good luck for the rest of the season, I’m sure you’ll go from strength to strength.

Men:

With season rapidly approaching, we have less than a month to go to the first game for the men.

We are hosting a trial game against the Phantoms on the 3^rd of September on Millwall Park. This is a great opportunity for you meet the new players in the Club and show of your skills to Warren and the rest of the Club before the start of the regular season.

For the existing players out there if you haven't already done so it would be great if you could drop an email to the men's chair Randall Powell or to the relevant team mangers email address letting them know of your intentions for the season.

Details of training and upcoming fixtures will be on the clubs website.

I hope you have a great weekend and are looking forward to the World Cup and the coming season as much as I and the rest of the Committee are, I look forward to seeing you at game or down at the Clubhouse.

Regards

David Leftley

Chairman

Millwall Rugby Club

Club Heroes

Thanks to the following people who've recently volunteered to help us out...

• Transport Officer - Andy Stephens
• Press Officer Team - Andy Stephens, Matt Shorrock, Andrew Hesselden
• Third XV Manager - Chris Attwood
• Match Player Appearances Record Keeper - Ryan Kuleska
• Programme Producer - Sophie Buckman

Your help is much appreciated!

Volunteers Needed!

We are currently looking for people to help us out...

Development Roles - Email: chairman@millwallrugby.com

• Development Officer
• Sponsorship Officer
• General Development Committee Members - to help come up with ideas to drive the club forward

Playing Committee Roles - Email: clubcaptain@millwallrugby.com

• First XV Manager
• Llamas Manager
• Fixture Secretary
• Match Appearance Stats Person

Admin Roles - Email: secretary@millwallrugby.com

• Membership Data Secretary

Clubhouse - Email: clubhouse@millwallrugby.com

• Bar Team

If you can help, please email us!  Without your help we can't run the club this year.

Can you manage a team of Millwall's Finest? Are you handy fixing fixtures?

We're looking for 3 men's team managers to run our 1st, 2nd and 3rd XV teams this season.

We also need a keen fixture secretary to make sure we've got a great programme of games each week.

If you think you can help do any of these, please get in touch with Randall Powell, Men's Chair and he can explain more about what the role involves.  Contact Randall at randall@millwallrugby.com.

Flyer the Island - YOUR help needed!

Dear Members,

This Sunday 17th July we are going to let the Island know WHO we are and WHERE we are!!

Starting at 11am we want to get as many flyers into as many doors as possible - our aim is to get a flyer in every post and letter box on the Isle of Dogs - and that's where we need YOU!!

You don't need to commit all day, if you can just pop by, pick up some flyers and do maybe just your own street or block that would be fantastic. We'll have a big map of the island being marked off over the course of the day so we can see exactly how much area we have covered.

We did this last year (with just a tiny number of volunteers) and covered 85% of the Isle of Dogs - with YOUR help, we could make it 100% this year!

Please come along and help out for as much as you can. It is simply impossible to do without your help.

If you want to help but can't make it on Sunday, I will be at the clubhouse tonight (Wednesday) until 9pm and on Saturday for anyone who wants to pick up some flyers in advance - you just need to tell me what streets you can do!

This event is part of the whole club recruitment plan, so please do your bit to help spread the word about Millwall Rugby Club!

Thank you,

Kerry Attwood
kez_sweet@yahoo.co.uk