About Us
About the ladies club
The University of Nottingham Ladies Hockey Club is the largest performance club at the university, consisting of eight squads with over 150 members in total. We are a performance club with 7 competitive BUCS teams.
We are a performance club with six competitive BUCS teams. Our 1st XI compete in the BUCS National division - the highest league in the country, and most recently secured BUCS Gold at the BUCS Big Wednesday Championship final! Our 4th and 5th XI also achieved a BUCS Gold and Silver respectively in the Conference Cup, in a closely-matched inter-club final.
We have six teams entered into EH weekend leagues, with the addition of our 5th XI and 7th XI for the 2021-22 season. We have had three weekend league wins in the past season, including our 1st XI in the Vitality Women’s Division 1 North resulting in promotion to the country’s highest league - the Vitality Women’s Premier Division.
We currently have five players in the GB Elite Development Programme, with numerous junior international caps. Previous international alumni include England and Great Britain’s Annie Panter, Jo Hunter, Esme Burge and Alex Malzer, and Germany’s Olympic captain Nike Lorenz.
Alongside our successes on the pitch, the club offers you friendship, social opportunities and the all-around university experience! We arrange regular socials, including around five annual full club events annually alongside the men’s club, creating a fantastic social atmosphere. The club comes with many benefits, and in return we do expect a high level of commitment, through playing and training to the best of our members’ abilities.
Frequently asked questions
How many members/teams are there in the Ladies 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).
What leagues are all the teams in?
Information on our teams including captains, coaches and leagues can be found here.
Is there a good relationship with the Mens club?
UoNLHC is the same size and structure as UoNMHC, the only difference being that we are run by separate committees, though they still work closely together. We have a strong relationship with UoNMHC since we often train simultaneously, show support at each other’s BUCS and EH league matches, socialise on a weekly basis, and share the same love for our sport! Hockey is one of a few sports at the University of Nottingham with an equal Men’s and Ladies’ club, providing a widespread network of over 320 people to socialise and study with, becoming some of your closest mates at university.
How often do you train?
The 1st XI have 3 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 (HPZ) in the David Ross Sports Village. The programme is structured to compete 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 HPZ.
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 complete player led gym programmes.
The Development Squad 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.
Our training sessions take place in both mornings and evenings on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday to fit around our players’ university studies.
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. 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.
When is Preseason and how do I get invited?
If you are interested in our 2022 Preseason, then please complete our 2022 Preseason Interest Form. Our coaches will look at your previous experience and invite you to an appropriate team’s preseason for 2022. We will reach out over summer with information on the preseason schedule, accommodation for the duration of the training and any other necessary information.
What team will I be in?
If you attend preseason, this will give us time to get a good idea of what is an appropriate team for you. However, regardless of whether you come to preseason or not, you will need to attend our Assessment Days which will occur in the week commencing 26th September. At these Assessment Days, you will complete various drills and match play situations to allow both captains and coaches to assess ability. From there, captains and coaches come together to decide who will be placed in each team. More information our Assessment Days will be available on our social media channels and at the 2022 Welcome Fair.
How does playing hockey balance with your course?
Playing hockey at the university can be time-consuming, especially if you are selected for one of the higher teams. However, all training sessions and matches are fitted around the working university day, allowing you to still excel at your studies. We have players in our performance squads that study particularly time consuming and demanding courses such as Medicine and Veterinary Science who manage to find a great balance between sport, academia and social life.
If you’d like to speak to a current member about any concerns you may have about the demands of your course in relation to hockey don’t hesitate to get in touch, as our 150+ members cover most courses at the university and we are very happy to arrange for a current member to answer any of your questions!
Is it possible to move teams after selections?
Coaches and captains constantly observe training sessions and games to see if there may be a team that is better suited to players, and movement will occur in this case. Alongside this, inter-club friendly matches are scheduled regularly throughout the season to allow comparison of players between teams.
What happens if I don’t get selected for a team/don’t want to play hockey at such a competitive level?
Unfortunately, due to the high demand to play hockey at UoN, some people may be unsuccessful in making it into one of the seven BUCS squads. In this case, you may be invited to join our Development Squad which plays in our university IMS leagues. IMS league teams are made up of Development Squads, Society teams and Hall teams. The Development squad is an important part of our club as it connects us to the IMS league structure to allow fluid movement of players as people improve and progress into the BUCS teams.
If playing hockey to a competitive BUCS level doesn’t appeal to you for commitment or other reasons, then becoming a part of society or halls team can be a great way to play hockey in a more casual environment.
Equally if you are a beginner, we run ‘Just Play’ sessions every Sunday which 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.
Is there a social side of the club?
The social side of the club reflects our on-field success – inclusive and rewarding. We hold weekly socials which typically fall on a Wednesday following BUCS games. These vary from team socials, to mixing with other teams, the Men’s club, and often also other sports. In addition to this, we hold several full club events per year, often alongside the men’s club, including our Alumni ball, Christmas Dinner, Boat Party, charity mixed hockey tournaments and End of Season dinner. Teams will also organise socials by themselves within the week, such as pasta-nights, bowling and meals out.
Our social calendar works to create a great atmosphere within the club, and we find that often the friendships you make within hockey are some of your closest during your time at the University of Nottingham.
Is there time to play another sport?
If you play in one of our BUCS teams then it will be likely a struggle to play another sport at the same level, due to the commitment that both us and other clubs expect from our members. However, it may be possible to be part of a summer sport such as the Ladies Cricket Club as their season doesn’t heavily overlap with our own, or to be part of an IMS team for another sport since they often do not require the same level of commitment.
How much is a membership?
Our membership costs differ across our teams, from around £160-210 for the majority of our teams, to around £280-350 for our highest teams. This membership cost covers: coaching costs, equipment costs, weekend league entry fees, transport to weekend matches, weekend match umpire costs, etc. Dependent on the team selected into, this may also include strength and conditioning gym and video analysis costs.
How much is kit?
We offer our playing kit in a bundle on the Student Union website which includes a green skort, green socks, white socks, white playing shirt and green playing shirt altogether costing approximately £115. However, this year we are also introducing a second-hand market in which alumni can donate their used kit (dependent on the condition) and players can purchase this kit at a reduced price. Additional optional kit which we offer on the Student Union website is the UoNLHC Puffer Coat. Our quarter zips and other kit such as tracksuit bottoms and training kit can be found and purchased on the PlayerLayer website.
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