About UoNMHC
About the Men’s club
The University of Nottingham Men’s Hockey Club is the largest performance club at the university, consisting of eight teams with 160 playing members in total. We are a performance club with 7 competitive BUCS teams and a 8th XI. Our 1st XI compete in the England Hockey National Premier Division - the highest league in the country and were BUCS Champions in the 22/23 season. We have 6 teams entered into England Hockey Leagues, with our 2nd XI also being a National League side. We also participate in intramural leagues and support the delivery of this as well as weekly beginner sessions.
We currently have multiple players in the GB Elite Development Programme, with numerous junior international caps. Previous international alumni include Tom Sorsby, James Gall, George Pinner, Mo Gandhi (USA) and many more. Being a large club we can offer hockey of the highest level and also a lower yet still competitive opportunity to play hockey in the lower teams and other structures within the university.
As many opportunities that the club offers on the pitch, it also offers many off the pitch. The club does a lot of charity work on behalf of Movember, raising over £60,000 in the last 4 years, and supports one of the main causes by hosting mental health awareness events throughout the year. On top of this, the social side of the club is a reflection of the on field success - inclusive and rewarding. In addition to weekly socials, we hold about 5 full club events per year, often closely alongside the ladies club creating a fantastic university club social atmosphere. As you can gather, the club comes with a lot of benefits, and in return we do expect a high level of commitment, through playing and training to the best of your ability.
For more info, see our FAQs below!
FAQs
How many members/teams are there in the men’s club?
We have around 160 members, forming 8 squads, making hockey the largest performance club at the university. We have 7 BUCS teams (that play on a Wednesday) and 6 England Hockey teams (that play on a Saturday/Sunday). As well as an 8th XI that compete in the IMS league at the university.
Is there a good relationship with the ladies’ club?
UoNLHC are the same size and structure as UoNMHC, the only difference is we’re run by separate committees, though they still work closely together. Our relationship with the ladies’ club is strong as we often train on opposite sides of the pitch, support each other at games, and socialise with them on a weekly basis. Hockey is one of the few sports at the university with an equal men’s and ladies’ side, providing a great network of around 320 people to socialise with, give you advice on your course, and will likely be your some of your best mates in your time at university.
What BUCS leagues are all the teams in?
Our 1st XI and 2nd XI are in the highest leagues possible, closely followed by the 5 other BUCS teams. We are also introducing a 7th XI into BUCS, the only university hockey club (apart from the ladies’ side here at Nottingham) to have that many teams. Here are the leagues each team will compete in for the 22/23 season:
1st XI – National Premier (Highest Possible)
2nd XI – North Premier (Highest Possible)
3rd XI – Midlands Tier 1
4th XI – Midlands Tier 1
5th XI – Midlands Tier 2
6th XI – Midlands Tier 3A
7th XI – Midlands Tier 4
What EH leagues (weekend) are all the teams in?
21/22 was a history making season for UoNMHC. The 1st XI were promoted to the Premier Division for the first time ever. The 2nd XI were promoted to national league making us one of the few university clubs with two national league sides. We also introduced two new EH sides who were jumped up 3 leagues this summer by EH. Every team gained promotion in the 21/22 season making it one to remember. These are the leagues that the teams will compete in for the 22/23 season:
1st XI – Premier Division (Highest Possible)
2nd XI – Conference Midlands
3rd XI – Midlands Division 2
4th XI – Midlands Division 3E
5th XI – Midlands Division 6NE
6th XI – Midlands Division 7NE
How often do you train?
The 1st XI have 2 evening and 1 morning pitch sessions a week, plus a corner session, totalling 6 hours of training, in an average week. On top of this they also have 2 structured gym sessions in the High-Performance-Zone in the David Ross Sports Village. Their programme is very intense as they’re competing with the top teams in the country, not just the top universities.
The 2nd XI have 2 evening pitch sessions, plus a corner session, totalling 4.5 hours of training, in an average week. They also have one structured gym session per week in the High-Performance-Zone.
All teams from the 3rd XI to the 7th XI have 2 evening pitch sessions totalling 3.5 hours of training, in an average week, occasionally having an extra corner session ahead of big games. These teams often complete player led gym sessions.
The 8th XI have a 1.5-2hr evening training session each week, with the opportunity to train with the 7th XI when progression is appropriate, leading those individuals to eventually representing the university within BUCS and EH leagues.
How frequent are the games?
All teams from the 1st XI to the 5th XI have 2 games per week, BUCS on a Wednesday, and EH League on a Saturday (Sunday for 1st XI and 2nd XI). The 6th XI and 7th XI both have a BUCS game on a Wednesday and the two squads combine to produce one team EH league team on a Saturday.
The Development Squad play within the UoN Intramural Sports league (IMS) on a Sunday evening in a mix of 11-a-side and 7-a-side, mixed and single sex formats. On top of this they have occasional friendly fixtures on Wednesdays and can move up into the 7th squad and represent the club outside of the university on the days stated above.
When is Preseason and how do I get invited? (2023/24 season)
Preseason for the 1st XI starts around the 21st of August, and our other 7 teams follow on from this date. If you are interested in attending preseason, please complete our Expression of interest form - https://forms.office.com/e/dc9PQsEYec
Keep an eye out on our social media for more regular updates - @uonmhc.
What team will I be in?
If you attend a preseason this gives us time to get a good idea of what is an appropriate squad for you. However, regardless of whether you come to preseason or not, you will need to attend our assessment days which are held within the first couple of weeks of term. At these assessment days you complete many different drills and play various games to allow captains and coaches to see your ability. We ask you to attend both assessment days to avoid people being poorly assessed if you’re having an off day. From there, captains and coaches come together and decide who will be placed in each squad.
Unfortunately, due to the high demand of hockey at the university, some people may be unsuccessful in making it into one of the seven BUCS squads. Should this be the case, you would then be invited to join our 8th XI which plays in our university IMS leagues. IMS league teams are made up of our 8th XI, Society teams (e.g. MedSoc), and Hall teams. The 8th XI is an important part of our club as it connects us to the IMS league structure to allow there to be fluid movement of players, as people improve and progress into the BUCS teams.
If you are a beginner, that’s not a problem as we run ‘Just Play’ sessions every Sunday to allow you to gain the basic skills you need to play in the IMS league structure. These sessions are provided by the hockey club and are free to make hockey accessible to all at the university, we can even lend you a stick.
Regardless of ability, we have hockey for everyone here at UoN!
How does playing hockey balance with your course?
Playing hockey at the university can take up a lot of time as you’ll have seen from the training times above, though all sessions and matches are fitted around the working day, allowing you to still excel at your studies. Studies at UoN have proven that playing high level sport at university increases your academic attainment. All it takes is a bit of time management and making the most of the hours in the day. We have players in our performance squads that study Veterinary Science on the Sutton Bonington Campus who find a great balance between sport, academia and social life, despite being on a time-consuming course that’s mainly delivered on away from the main university campus.
If you’d like to speak to a current member about the demands of your course, please get in touch, we’re more than happy to arrange for current members to answer any questions you may have.
Is there a social side of the club?
The social side of the club reflects the on-field success - inclusive and rewarding. In addition to weekly socials, we hold about 5 full club events per year, often alongside the ladies’ club, creating a fantastic club social atmosphere. The weekly socials typically fall on a Wednesday post BUCS game, these vary from team socials, to mixing with other teams, the ladies’ club, or even other sports. For those that choose to continue onto a night club, before arriving at the final destination, we meet as a full men’s and ladies’ hockey club at our Sponsored Bar Vibes ensuring friendships are made throughout the whole club.
The majority of members end up living with fellow hockey players in their later years at university as they are often the closest relationships made during your time here at UoN.
Is there time to play another sport?
If you play in one of the BUCS teams you will struggle to play another sport at the same level, due to the commitment that we expect from our members. One exception to this is cricket as the seasons don’t heavily overlap. However, there are opportunities play other sports on a more casual level, as a club we have our own football and cricket teams (UoNMHCFC and UoNMHCCC) who compete in IMS leagues and against other sports who have similar internal teams.
How much is a membership?
Due to the range of contact time and cost between of our different teams the memberships also vary from squad to squad. The 8th XI has the lowest membership at £100, this includes all training and matches with no hidden costs. The 7th XI to 3rd XI memberships range from £195-£250 as they have higher costs as a result of playing in BUCS and EH leagues. Our most expensive memberships are with our National League squads with 2nd XI at £340 and 1st XI £380, these are because of the amount and level of coaching they receive, accompanied with the steeper costs of playing in National League.
All memberships include fuel costs and match fees meaning there are no hidden costs.
How much is kit?
For new members we offer a kit bundle or everything you need to play hockey at the university. This includes 3 match shirts, 2 shorts, 2 socks and a ¼-zip jumper. In addition to these we also offer extra items like our infamous gold coats and jackets. This bundle sits at around £200, which covers you for your 3 years at university, and is yours to keep when you leave.
Does the club do any charity work?
The club is very well known for its fundraising for Movember. In the last 3 years we have raised over £40,000 for the charity. We attended the 2021 Movember awards where we were crowned the highest fundraising hockey club in the country, and the 4th highest sports club in the country. 2 of our members were in the top 20 university students in the UK, with our President raising over £2,000 and was nominated for an award himself.
We also work within the community and state schools delivering hockey to children who may not have had the opportunity to take part in it.
But it’s not just about the fundraising. In March 2022 we hosted a ‘Men’s Mental Health in Sport Talk’ which saw a panel of 3 speakers, 2 of which are part of the club, talk about their experiences around poor mental health. We have two Mental Health First Aiders within our club as we are loyal to the cause of education people about mental health.
Is there access to an injury clinic?
UoN Sport has its own injury clinic based on campus in the David Ross Sports Village. They can provide physio, rehab, ice bathing and many other forms of treatment.
If you have anymore questions, please don’t hesitate to get in touch by emailing - hockey-mens@uonsu.com