2019/20 SEASON ROUND UP
1 Xi
It seems fitting to first begin with the 1 XI. Going unbeaten in 2019, the 1s consistently performed to a high level, setting the tone for the rest of the season. With a huge game away at Lee Valley against our local neighbours LSE, a 3-0 victory over them towards the beginning of the teams journey was an indicator of just how special this team was. However, narrowly losing out to Portsmouth away from home resulted in a 2nd place finish just behind Portsmouth in the league. Bouncing back from this, we went into the biggest game of the season: our Varsity match against our rivals Strand Polytechnic. Coming out with a 3-0 victory and taking the Varsity trophy home, it was safe to say this was the absolute highlight of the 1 XI season.
2 Xi
2019-2020 proved to be a very challenging year for the UCL Hockey 2nd XI. Faced with a tough league, they were only able to take away one win against the Portsmouth 2s. In spite of this, the 2s were able to avoid regulation by continuing to demonstrate a strong fighting spirit and playing impressive hockey throughout the season. Alexander Fomin proved to be a fantastic captain and coach, placing heavy emphasis on the improvement of core skills during training and cultivating an inclusive and cohesive team. Off the pitch, the 2s continued to show a fantastic commitment to the club’s social events and several of them have earned a place on next year's committee.
3 Xi
Broadly speaking, the 3s have had a successful season. We stormed through most of our BUCS games, suffering defeat only at the hands of Barts before the title showdown against Queen Mary’s, who we had previously drawn to. Unfortunately, we lost that match in a crushing (and controversial) fashion, but were still able to end the season with a strong 2nd place finish. Our cup run was far less successful, being eliminated by RVC’s 1st team in the first round due to a combination of some unfortunate refereeing decisions and a severe lack of hockey playing ability. However with a youthful and great run in the league, the upcoming season looks promising for the 3 XI.
Off the field
Off the field, UCL were just as lively and successful! With massive events such as the Fresher introduction, Christmas ball as well as many others. Welfare was a huge part of this hockey season and our Welfare sec Saiff Hamid was crucial in this. Working with the union, we held active bystander training sessions, which provided a platform for our members to challenge antisocial behaviour and teach them what to do if they experience harassment. Together with the Women’s Hockey Club a mixed tournament was held during our normally scheduled training session to celebrate Pride Week. In order to try and provide a more chilled out social setting outside of sports night and engage with the entire spectrum of our membership, members could attend a quiz every week after training at a local pub. During quarantine, we still tried to organise quiz socials over Zoom to try and bring people together. Furthermore, we created a UCLMHC group on Strava to encourage people to get active. One big event which people really engaged with during lockdown was our run to Cullera event, where we collectively ran 1000 miles in 10 days for charity. It gave people a lot of motivation to get out every day and exercise.
