Hi All,
This email is only going out to the u14s and u16s parents, as this is more specific to this age group. I have spoken with the NW chairman and rep for the new league as well as speaking to the executive committee about our upcoming plans. We have a few updates to talk about and mention and I'll do my best to explain these below. Please do not hesitate to reply with any questions or concerns and I'll do my best to get back to you as soon as possible. I am now off work for the summer holidays so have more than enough time to sort things out!
What teams are we entering?
As a club, we will be entering teams at u12, u14 and hopefully u16 level. We are hosting trials over the next few weeks, as well as on Friday 5th and Friday 12th August to select the members for the teams. We have to inform the league chairman of which teams we are definitely entering by August 7th, however we do not need to inform them of who is on those teams. With this being said, u16s is presenting an issue for us. At u12 and u14 level, we have a larger number of players who we can create a team from, however our u16s do not have this luxury. If we do not have enough u16s to fill the team slots as well as be able to financially commit to the season, then we will not be able to enter an u16 team this season.
We are looking at the H-League 3x3 competition for our u16s however, with our current trial team doing well in that competition. Hanley Hustlers are a partner club of ours and they share our vision on developing young talent and pushing them forward using competition. If we are unable to provide a 5 on 5 tournament to compete in next season, we will definately be liaising with Hanley to build on their 3x3 league format so our u16s are not left out and still have the chance at competitive fixtures throughout the season.
What are the requirements to make the team?
These teams will not be picked purely based on ability. Our aim as a club is to develop talent, and to give all our members a family friendly place to grow and improve, and being able to use skills learned on the court outside in the real world. We want to win games of course, but we will not put this above the goal of developing our players. These teams are being created to offer the chance at competition which increases ability, but also to help our Juniors with communication skills, interpersonal skills as well as bonding and making friends with other like minded youngsters. Some of the best times a young person can have in my experience are actually on the minibuses to games, or in the changing rooms after a game, and we value the whole process of playing and competing in the game of basketball, and these teams are no different.
What is the format of the league?
Unfortunately, I still do not know this. The meeting I had on Wednesday 13th July was a good one, and this topic did come up, but currently the league committee are not able to create a schedule yet due to not having a definitive list of what clubs are entering which teams. For clarification purposes, if the u14s league only has 6 teams, it may make sense to have mini round robin tournaments in an all day format at a host venue, then simply rotate venues around the teams in the league, thus minimising travel and duplicate fixtures. However, if the u14s league has 20 teams, we could end up having a home fixture one week, then away fixtures the next three weeks in a row. As it stands, this is still being decided, but updates will be sent out as soon as I know what is going on.
How much will this cost me?
The overall cost for the season is something I cannot say, as it will vary based on what format the league is, how many teams etc. However, we are aiming at having a one hour training slot for each team that is only for the players on that team. We are aiming at not changing how our Monday sessions are run, due to the feedback we had from our recent survey in April. This means an additional time slot is needed for the closed team sessions. As it stands, the slots allocated for both u14s and u16s will be at CHS Sports Centre from 7pm until 9pm. u14s will have the first hour, and the u16s will have the second hour. With this extra session, I am sure you will be aware there is an added cost. However, I have spoken with the committee members and worked out a monthly pricing plan that actually lowers costs overall whilst maintaining our ability to book venues. A £35 monthly fee will be implemented for all players who make the teams. This helps us cover the cost of court hire as well as referee costs for games. The players who pay this monthly fee however will get the Monday sessions FREE. For context, should we pay per session like our current model, the monthly cost would be £48 for just venues, however this monthly fee lowers the overall cost and has a potential for 8 sessions per month instead of the current 4. I hope this makes sense to you all!
Adding to this, we are aware of the current financial situation of the country and understand that costs may mount up. If you feel like you cannot make the monthly payments, please speak to me in private and we can try to work something out that benefits the players and the club. I was in this position when I was younger, so I know what it is like. I do not want any child being left out due to factors not under his control.
You mentioned kits at the AGM, what is this about?
This question requires a two part answer.
Part One:
This season we were partnered with Starting5 Teamwear. All of the kits you have seen this year were made by them and are great quality. However, shipping issues, cost and printing errors meant that we had to send some kits back and you all had to wait longer for products. Because of this, we ended our partnership with Starting5 Teamwear and obtained a new partnership with HoopFreakz. This is a brand owned by a former professional BBL player, and is run by a group of people who used to have their own NBA merch shop in Newcastle-upon-Tyne. They have the ability to manufacture and print in house meaning shorter turnaround times and quicker delivery, but also no minimum order quantities. They also have the ability to take payments themselves via hosted club shops, which means you do not need order forms and to pay the club directly using invoices. You buy what you want, when you want and it is delivered directly to you as soon as possible. HoopFreakz is relatively new and has all the latest machinery, which means we can have more varied designs and more colours available, so we now have bags, hats, hoodies, t-shirts, tracksuits and jackets all available and at really low prices. Check out the club shop here: https://www.hoopfreakz.co.uk/congleton-grizzlies
Part Two:
We have been speaking to CongletonEats to try and get them to sponsor us, and they have said to us it's a definite yes, but we'll need to see the designs. They will be our shirt sponsor alongside Stephenson Browne and we will have official game kits for the league teams. These game strips will have default numbers and will be provided to the players on game days and will be returned to the coach after the games. We needed to obtain these for a few reasons. Firstly, the kits we currently use from Starting5 are very good, but the sizings are too big as well as a few league rules on kits not being followed (jersey numbers too small, colouring issues). By having new kits, they will fit better, look better, are lighter to play in as well as giving the club an outlet for sponsorship, which brings more revenue into the club. More revenue means better equipment for the players. Also, one issue we would have is that some players who make the team may not have a kit yet, and we cannot order another kit from Starting5 teamwear due to ending our partnership. By having two designated kits, we can ensure that all players have the same uniforms and that they all fit better. These new kits you WILL NOT need to pay for, as CongletonEats is paying for them as part of our sponsorship agreement. However, we do have new training jerseys on the club shop that anyone without last season's kit can order. PLEASE NOTE: The Reversible jersey on the club shop is just a jersey. No shorts come with that product.
What are the changes upcoming for the new season then?
Due to it being a new season, and players moving up year groups at school, we will be receiving all current year 7s from the Eaton Bank session at CHS from the 1st August. This enables us to have 2 weeks of trials minimum, plus two weeks of pre-season workouts, before having 4 weeks to practice as a team before the league starts. As it stands, our Monday sessions will be staying the same, with the respective team training sessions taking place on the Fridays. If we have a home fixture, all our teams will need to use the Friday slot for games due to a broken basket at Eaton Bank. Should the u12s have a home game, this Friday will go to the u12s, and the u14s and u16s will NOT have training that week. We will however be trying to get Eaton Bank on Thursdays to cover this potential clash. The above-mentioned monthly fees should cover all of these scenarios, however if changes need to be made then we will communicate this in due course.
I am also currently looking into a booking system that allows online payments, as one issue we identified at our AGM is that the first 5-10 minutes of sessions is spent collecting money, and we realise this isn't efficient. This will take me some time to implement so more updates will be released when I have sorted this.
I hope I have covered everything in this email, but if not PLEASE email me back so I can sort this as soon as possible. All that's left to say is thank you for the support, and we look forward to the next stage in our club development. GO GRIZZLIES!!
Thanks again,
Ryan
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Ryan Anderson / Head Coach, Treasurer, Social Media Manager
congletongrizzlies@gmail.com / 07494 225883
Congleton Grizzlies Basketball Club
Box Lane, Congleton
CW12 4NS
https://congletongrizzlies.webador.co.uk/
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