Club roles and responsibilities
In order for our Club to operate successfully, a wide variety of roles and responsibilities have to be covered by our members. With very few exceptions these positions are entirely voluntary and unpaid.
In order to give members a flavour of what is involved in running our Club, and to encourage greater participation, we feel that it is appropriate to give a snapshot of who does what and the types of tasks available for those who would like to get more involved in Club activities.
The Club is administered by a General Committee which is made up of 8 Officers and 8 others all elected at the Annual General Meeting however, many jobs don’t require Committee membership. The Committee meets on the first Thursday every month to receive Officers’ reports and deal with Club business.
President
Robin Mitchell
Honorary position. Robin Mitchell. Robin was elected President at the 128th AGM held on Tuesday 14th May 2024. The President is a Club Officer but not a Committee member unless elected.
Chairman
Sam Pyper
Sam sets the strategic direction of our Club, ensuring we meet our goals and adhere to our mission. He also oversees all Club operations.
Honorary Secretary
Richard Burns
Richard plays a vital administrative role, responsible for a variety of tasks essential for the smooth running of Club operations.
Ladies Honorary Secretary
Kaitlin Stewart
Kaitlin also plays a vital administrative role overseeing the running of the ladies’ section as well as supporting the wider Club operations.
Honorary Treasurer
Kathryn Rogers
Kathryn manages the day-to-day finances of the Club, paying invoices promptly and reporting on the financial position of the Club at each Committee meeting. She also manages the annual subscription notifications and payments.
Club Development Officer
Rob Leigh
Rob is a new member of the committee for 25/26 and will be supporting us in finalising our Club Development Plan with the view to continuing our Club Mark awards and further development of all sections of the Club in line with our mission.
Fundraising Officer
Cara McConnell
Cara is in her second year as fundraising officer and has brought energy and enthusiasm to the role creating a wide variety of events for both social and fundraising objectives.
Communications & Social Media Officer
Anna Rogers
Anna manages the Club’s online presence by creating engaging content and promoting our events to boost member interaction and community involvement. If you have news you’d like to share drop Anna a message via FB or Instagram or email info@northdownhc.com
Child Protection Officer
Alan McMaster – alhoc16@hotmail.com
Ladies Club Captain
Maxine Taylor
Maxine holds a significant role in the Club, supporting team dynamics and overall club development on the ladies side of the Club, serving as the main point of contact between coaching staff and players.
Men’s Members Officer (Club Captain)
Stephen Magee
Stephen holds the same role on the men’s side of the Club – supporting team dynamics and overall club development to ensure players perform their best and everyone is informed of Club events.
Men’s 1st XI Representative
Josh Gilmore
Josh serves as a main point of contact between the Men’s 1st XI players, the coaching team and the Committee.
Ladies’ 1st XI Representative
Rachael Murphy
Rachel serves as a main point of contact between the Ladies’ 1st XI players, the coaching team and the Committee.
Coaches Representatives
Andrea Mockford
Andrea is the main point of contact between the Club’s coaching teams and the committee on the ladies side of the club.
Ross Linter
Ross holds the same role on the men’s side of the Club.
Youth Committee
This season (25/26) the Youth Section is being co-ordinated by a committee of members including Maxine Taylor, Andrea Mockford and Claire Smyth.
Youth enquiries can be emailed to youth@northdownhc.com
Designated Safeguarding Children’s Officer
Mark Linter
Mark is our primary point of contact for safeguarding within the Club.
Grants Officer
Claire Smyth
Claire has responsibility for submitting grant applications for funding to boost our Club’s finances.
General Committee Member
Jane Leigh
Other Non General Committee Roles and Responsibilities
Ladies’ and Men’s Match Secretaries
Anna Bennett and Peter Gray
Management of Pitch Usage
Robin Mitchell
Men’s Head Coach
Gareth McKeown
Responsible for coaching the men’s 1st XI squad and with an input into youth coaching.
Ladies Head Coach
Robbie McMinn
Responsible for coaching the ladies’ 1st XI squad.
Goalkeeping Coach
Graham Millar
Responsible for goalkeeper coaching across the whole Club.
Umpires – Panel and Club
Panel
The Club is required to provide qualified umpires to serve on the Ulster Hockey umpires panel which may also lead to Hockey Ireland appointments. The present requirement is one umpire per 1st XI however this is likely to increase as the number of panel umpires continues to fall. Current panel members are: Paddy Wright, Amy Jones , Julie Fisher and Aaron Saunders.
Club
There are not enough non playing members to cover 2nds – 5ths men’s and ladies’ games which means that the gaps have to be filled by players. The Club is keen that interested members attend one of the regular umpires courses to boost our Panel and Club numbers and this could lead to a different hockey career path. You may realistically feel that you aren’t going to make a representative team whilst playing but if you take umpiring seriously and have a talent for it you could be at the Olympics in a few years. Worth thinking about!
Ladies’ and Men’s Junior Coach
Ben Palmer. Responsible for conducting junior ladies’ and junior men’s coaching.
Youth Coaches
The Club is dependant on the support of members to provide quality coaching for the children in our youth section and for individuals to take responsibility for specific under age teams on blitz days and fixtures with other clubs. The Club is keen that as many members as possible obtain coaching qualifications and will bear the cost of coaching courses. There is a budget for each of the 7 categories of youth membership and coaches will receive appropriate reductions in their annual subscriptions in line with the budgets.
Team Captains
Team captains for 2nds – 5ths teams are responsible for team selection, team tactics, notification of players, game day arrangements and team management and prompt notification of the result to the Club’s Facebook page. A summary match report for the Club’s Facebook page should also be provided for each team. In addition, team captains should be aware and remind team members of the subscription deadlines.
Summary
What is involved in running our Club continues to evolve and change as sports governing bodies continue to think of new ways to make club admin more difficult. The main aim of the presentation above is to let everyone know what running our Club entails and that we are always looking for increased participation from members ie YOU! How can you help our Club move forward?
Now that you are on the website, go to the Downloads link, take another 60 seconds to read the Club Charter where the key message is: ‘the Club is you and you are the Club’. If you are feeling really adventurous, take another 5 minutes and read the Club Constitution – you’ll feel the better for it!