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THE SUNDAY LEAGUE PUB TEAM WHO ARE 'FAMOUS' |
e-mail: laurence_hughes@yahoo.co.uk
© 2012 Laurence Hughes
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OUR TEAM & THE LEAGUE WE PLAY IN |
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LEAGUE CUP COMPETITIONS |
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We will be playing in the LEAGUE CHALLENGE CUP (which is for all teams in the League) and also the LEAGUE SENIOR CUP, which is for all teams in the Premier Division and Division One. Details of our opponents (once the draws are made) will be displayed on the Latest Club News page of this website. |
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SUMMER 7-A-SIDE LEAGUE |
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COUNTY AFFILIATION & COUNTY CUP |
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As we are a Division One team, we currently enter the LONDON F.A. SUNDAY INTERMEDIATE CUP. This competition is supposedly for Premier Division teams from other (more inferior) Leagues and teams from Division One of stronger Leagues like our own, although for some reason, some of the best teams in London are allowed to get away with entering instead of going in the more ‘senior’ Sunday Challenge Cup ! The London F.A. Cup Competitions can see us having to travel to awkward places to get to such as Mitcham, Crystal Palace and Putney (for 10.30.a.m. kick-offs !), but quite often the teams we play in London F.A. Cup Competitions are not as good as those we face in the Waltham Sunday League. Click on the London F.A. Sunday Intermediate Cup link above to view the Draw & Results from this season’s competition. Details of our opponents will be displayed on the Latest Club News page of this website. |
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CLUB COLOURS |
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Our current first choice kit is Jade (Green) Shirts, Black Shorts & Jade (Green) Socks, Green (or various shades of it !) being our traditional club colours. Our change strip is Orange Shirts, Black Shorts & Black Socks, although we very rarely end up having to change as Jade is quite a distinctive colour that no other teams seem to wear ! |
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SPONSORSHIP |
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Our current kit sponsors are the ON BROADWAY PUB in Station Road, Winchmore Hill,
London N21. They have sponsored our kit for many years, but our players rarely drink
in there nowadays as most of them live in different areas or cannot stay after matches
due to family commitments. We will be looking for new kit sponsors for Season 2011-2012
providing we can find a kit manufacturer offering a suitable Jade & Black design.
We are also seeking sponsors for a new set of warm-up/drill tops. If any companies
are interested, please contact our Social/Fund-Raising Secretary Martin Loveday. |
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FILMING OF MATCHES & HIGHLIGHTS ON YOU TUBE |
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There are several different entrances to the ground, but the one preferred by most of our players is a small alleyway in-between house numbers 66 & 66A in Connaught Gardens which leads directly to the changing rooms. The postcode for this alleyway entrance is N13 5BS. There is normally some car parking space in Connaught Gardens if you get to matches early enough, but there are also walk-in entrances to the ground in Hedge Lane, Madeira Road, New River Crescent and Lynbridge Gardens, with car parking spaces in those roads as well. There is actually a car park inside the ground at the Lynbridge Gardens entrance, but the gates to that are normally kept locked by Enfield Council to stop travellers’ caravans getting into the ground ! This car park is also on the opposite side of the ground to the changing rooms and involves a walk across the (sometimes muddy) pitches. Hedge Lane is otherwise known as the A111, which runs between Green Lanes in Palmers Green to the 'Cambridge Roundabout', a major junction in Edmonton where the A406 meets the A10. Our pitch is shared with fellow Waltham Sunday League Division One side St. Mary's on Sundays and is also used every Saturday by top A.F.A. side Broomfield, who are 'allowed' to roll & fork the pitch and cut the grass themselves, despite it being an Enfield Council ground ! The pitch is therefore normally in excellent condition and there is also the advantage of it being right outside the changing rooms entrance, which are quite reasonable by Sunday League standards in so much as every team (and the officials) have their own rooms and the showers work (most of the time !). In fact most teams in our League rate it as their favourite away venue despite it being the furthest from the League's base in Waltham Cross. Due to Enfield Council cost-cutting measures and ground-staff cutbacks, both ourselves and St. Mary's now have the keys to open and shut the changing rooms at Hazelwood ourselves for Sunday morning matches, which we both agreed to do despite having to pay the same pitch hire charges as normal. The alternative was for both teams to play at Enfield Playing Fields (an atrociously poor venue) instead. These measures mean that players have to take it in turns on a Rota basis to sweep out the changing rooms and showers after each Home match, but our players are always prepared to do this rather than play at Enfield Playing Fields. (A lot of players actually decide to join the club because Hazelwood has such a good playing surface). |
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KICK-OFF TIMES |
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All League & Cup Matches in the Waltham Sunday League Kick-Off at 10.30.a.m., as do the majority of matches in London F.A. Sunday Cup Competitions. Players must arrive at the venue for matches at least 45 minutes before the kick-off,
otherwise they could find themselves being named as a substitute (at the Team Manager’s
discretion). We used to fine players for being late, but with everybody having a
mobile phone nowadays, they invariably get in touch with the Team Manager or Club
Secretary Laurence Hughes in the hour leading up to the kick-off, so that is usually
deemed acceptable. However, if players cause a late kick-off by arriving late, they
may (at the Team Manager’s discretion) be liable to a fine up to a maximum of £8.00
if the club is fined by the League. |
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ANNOUNCEMENT OF SQUADS & UNAVAILABILITY FOR MATCHES |
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We generally name a squad of 16 for each match including a substitute goalkeeper, even though only three substitutes can be used from five named. The squad is normally picked by the Team Manager on the Sunday evening prior to the
match and then named on the Forum the following (Monday) morning, although if the
squad is dependent on certain players attending training the Wednesday before the
game, it may be announced on the Thursday morning before a game instead. Once the squad has been named on the Forum, we expect all players who have been included to confirm their availability (or not) either verbally at training or by text, e-mail or posting a message on the Forum. If players require a lift to the venue, that can also be arranged on the Forum. Please note that WE DO NOT PHONE each player to tell them if they are in the squad or not...and that they have to phone or text us if they have not got access to the Internet. We will only contact players to tell them if they are in the squad if they were not originally named and have had to be called up as a 'last-minute' replacement. If players need to know if they are in the starting line-up before they set out to
travel to a particular match, they must phone the Team Manager only ! |
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WHO TO CONTACT ON MATCHDAYS |
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All players MUST ensure they insert the Mobile Phone Numbers of Management Committee Members into their own Mobile Phone Address Books so that they can phone or text one of them on a Sunday morning (between 9.30.a.m. and the 10.30.a.m. Kick-Off time) if they are going to be late for a match or have had to ‘cry off’ at the ‘last minute’. This is vitally important ! If you do not get any answer and have to leave a message, please also try phoning somebody else as the first person you phoned may be on holiday or working and therefore not attending the match. Please try and speak to someone rather than leave a voice or text message unless you know that person is definitely attending the match. Management Committee Members' Mobile Phone Numbers are as follows: LAURENCE HUGHES (Club Secretary)..................... 07949 128505 TREVOR HUGHES (Team Manager & Treasurer)......... 07894 961484 MARTIN LOVEDAY............................................ 07920 865376 TERRY MOORE................................................. 07753 416154 ALAN BARNARD.............................................. 07973 506642 DANNY HAGAN (Captain)................................... 07515 903704 |
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FAILING TO TURN UP FOR A MATCH |
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Any player named in a squad who does not turn up for a match without informing a member of the Management Committee of the reason beforehand will be suspended for the next match unless the Team Manager decides otherwise. |
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POSTPONEMENTS ON THE DAY OF A MATCH |
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Club Members who are not in the squad for a particular match will not be contacted, so if they intend coming along to watch the game they are advised to check with a member of the Management Committee first to see if the game is still on. In the case of frozen pitches, local Council groundsmen do not call the games off and leave it up to the referee to make a decision, which means we all have to turn up at the venue even if it seems ‘obvious’ that the game will not go ahead. If the opposition are there but our players don’t bother to turn up because they think the game will be off, then the opposing team will be given the points if the referee deems the pitch playable. |
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TRAINING SESSIONS DURING THE SEASON (& NEW PLAYERS WISHING TO JOIN) |
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All players attending are charged £3.00 each, which must be paid to the Team Manager
(or whichever Management Committee member is in charge) on the night. |
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PRE-SEASON TRAINING & FRIENDLIES |
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PLAYER REGISTRATIONS (for playing on Sundays) |
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Normally, registration forms & photos have to be with the League Registration Secretary before mid-day on the Wednesday preceding a match. However, at the start of each season the deadline is roughly 10 days if you want to play in our first League Match of the season. During the Summer up until early-July, all players who played for the club the previous season and intend to play for the club for the coming season are advised to re-register using the League's 'Multi-Registration' Form, which has to be returned to the League in the second week of July. This form is always brought along to 7-a-side League matches and only requires a signature (and a photo if you are a new player). If you miss this deadline, you will then have to provide a new passport-size photo (and fill in a full registration form) whether you are a new player or not...which is obviously a real 'hassle'. Registration forms do not have to be filled in for you to play in Pre-Season Friendlies. For players who are unable to play in the Summer 7-a-side League or Pre-Season Training/Friendlies in July & August, a full League Registration Form can be downloaded and printed off from here on the League’s ‘Full-Time’ website. Players must then fill in one side of the form ONLY in black ink and block letters, then post it to Laurence Hughes at 9 Wimborne Road, Edmonton, London N9 9EZ, together with a passport photo. |
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RE-JOINING THE CLUB |
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Players who wish to re-join the club have to supply a new passport-size photo for the League if they did not sign a registration form for us the previous season. Players re-joining the club will also be informed by Club Treasurer Trevor Hughes if they still owe the club any outstanding subs from their previous spell and if so, these amounts must be paid in full before they are allowed to play in a competitive match. |
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All players (including any new players to the club) must pay a £30.00 Annual Subscription to Club Treasurer Trevor Hughes before they play in any League match this season. However, if any players who played for the club the previous season pay their Annual Subs before the 1st August (or a nearby date as specified), they will then only have to pay £25.00. This incentive is so that we have enough money in the club funds to be able to pay our pitch fees which are due in August. Players who have not paid their Annual Subscriptions will only be picked to play in matches if there are not enough players available who have paid and this will be at the Team Manager’s discretion. Players who join half-way through the season will be charged a reduced rate of Annual Subs at the Club Treasurer’s discretion, while players who end up playing in less than 10 matches will be given a credit off their Annual Subs the following season with the amount of credit being decided by the Club Treasurer. All non-playing members are supposed to pay an Annual Membership Subscription of £10.00. This is for club officials and players who sign a registration form just to help us out in emergencies and do not want to be considered for a regular place in the side (e.g. Club Secretary Laurence Hughes !). If you want to pay your Annual Subs (or any big backlogs of Weekly Subs you might owe) straight into the club account via the Internet, please e-mail Laurence Hughes for the account details. |
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All players must pay £7.00 per match (for playing a full match only). If a player is substituted in the First Half of a match, he will pay £3.00 with the player replacing him paying £4.00. If a player comes off at Half-Time, he will pay £3.50 and so will the player replacing him. If a player is substituted in the Second Half, he will pay £4.00 with the player replacing him paying £3.00. All players are advised to bring £10.00 to every game and pay that amount if they can, so that they either go into credit for the next match or pay in advance for training the following Wednesday night. All Subs must be paid to Team Manager & Treasurer Trevor Hughes. If he is not at a match, then other Management Committee Members will collect in Subs instead. Match Fees (‘Weekly Subs’) were increased to £7.00 at the start of last season from £5.00 to help subsidise Wednesday night training sessions at the Southgate Hockey Centre (which are very expensive). If players cannot make an effort to go training and get more for their £7.00 payment, then that is their fault. Pre-Season Friendly match Subs will be £7.00 per match if we are using the Southgate Hockey Centre’s grass pitch (which again is extremely expensive), but we may be able to charge only £5.00 per match for Pre-Season Friendlies played at other venues (as we are not training in midweek during August and charge £6.00 per player for 7-a-side League matches). For Pre-Season Friendlies we have ‘roll-on, roll-off’ substitutions, so everybody taking part in the match may be charged £7.00 each regardless of how long they were on the pitch for (at the Team Manager’s discretion). |
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NON-PAYMENT OF SUBS |
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Players will be left out of the starting line-up (and even the squad) for matches if they owe the club over £25.00 in subscriptions. This includes non-payment for Annual Subs, 11-a-side matches, 7-a-side matches, London F.A. Fines for bookings & sending-offs and/or midweek training sessions. (This rule is subject to the availability of replacement players and at the discretion of the Team Manager). |
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BOOKINGS |
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When a player is booked in a match and it is sent in to the London F.A. by the Referee, that player must pay the London F.A.’s £10.00 fine/administration charge by re-imbursing the club. Players who are booked five times or more in a season while playing for us will be liable to a further F.A. Fine (£10.00) and a one match suspension. |
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SENDING-OFFS |
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When a player is Sent Off in a match and it is sent in to the London F.A. by the
Referee, that player must pay the London F.A.’s fine/administration charge by re-imbursing
the club. A Sending-Off for Swearing at the Referee is a TWO MATCH suspension and a probable £35.00 Fine. A Sending-Off for 'Serious Foul Play' or ‘Violent Conduct’ (e.g. Having a punch-up) is a THREE MATCH suspension and a probable £35.00 Fine. Players who are Sent Off will not be played in matches (as a 'ringer') while they are under an F.A. Suspension. |
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BRINGING THE CLUB INTO DISREPUTE |
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During the past few seasons we have more-or-less phased out fining players ourselves. However, the Management Committee still have the power to suspend or expel any member who they have deemed to be ‘bringing the club into disrepute’ at training, matches or any other club functions. Thankfully this hasn't happened too often in the club's 34-year history and we don’t expect there to be any problems this season where we might have to resort to those measures. |
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REFEREES’ (FIFA) RULES & REGULATIONS |
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All players are advised that if they play in any match for the club (both 11-a-side and 7-a-side), Referees will not allow them to take part if they do not have shinpads and/or if they are wearing jewellery. The club do have a couple of spare pairs of shinpads in the kit bag for when players genuinely forget to bring their own, but these must not be used as your first-choice pair every week. Also, in 11-a-side League & Cup matches, all outfield players must wear the same colour kit as provided by the club. |
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Unfortunately though, Trevor will once again be missing a number of matches this season, so substitutes will have to run the line whether they like it or not. They will then have £7.00 credit off their subs (or £4.00, £3.50 or £3.00 if they only run the line for part of the match). If we do not provide a Club Linesman at all, then we get fined £5.00 by the League, so anybody on the touchline who could have acted as Club Linesman but refused to do so would then have to pay that fine. If anybody has a friend, relative or work colleague who no longer plays and is willing and capable enough to be a regular Club Linesman for us (for £7.00 a match !), please inform Laurence or Trevor Hughes. |
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OUTFIELD PLAYERS BEING FORCED TO GO IN GOAL |
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SUBSTITUTES ROLES |
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Apart from acting as Club Linesman when required, all players named as a substitute in any match (Friendlies included) are expected to help keep an eye on any equipment and valuables left on the touchline during the game and especially to ensure that any of our match & practice balls do not go missing. All players who have been named as a substitute for a match must be ready to enter the field of play (if required) right up until the final whistle (unless the maximum permitted number of substitutions have already been made). |
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GOALNET ROTA |
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Players must take down the goal-nets (and bring in the corner flags) at the end of all Home matches when asked to do so by the Team Manager. When we play at our normal Home venue at Hazelwood Sports Ground, Management Committee members have to undertake jobs such as sweeping out the showers & changing rooms, collecting in Subs, paying the Referee, sorting out dirty kit and locking up afterwards, so it is essential that players help out and do their bit if we want to continue using such an excellent venue. Goalnets are always put up before the match by Management Committee members, so it is only fair that players help to take them down. |
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DRINKS (FLUID REPLACEMENT) |
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DIRTY KIT COLLECTION AFTER MATCHES |
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All players, and particularly new players to the club, are advised that club kit must be handed in immediately after each match and turned the right way out (ready for washing), then put in the white ‘clothes washing’ bag which is in the black kit bag. The only kit which should be in the black kit bag at the end of the match is clean (unused) kit. Players are also advised that we only wash club kit, so no more underpants please ! If there are no showers at a venue and players ‘have to’ go home in their club shorts & socks, these must be brought back washed and clean for the following week’s match. If that player is not playing the following week, then they will have to make sure their kit is returned to a Management Committee member before that match takes place. |
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INJURY INSURANCE POLICY |
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New players are advised that we do not have a club injury insurance policy as most of our current players have their own individual insurance (and also private healthcare). There are numerous different companies that specialise in individual sports injury insurance policies, so we couldn't really recommend any particular one. |
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MARKS OUT OF 10 & ‘VIDEO NOTES’ |
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Manager Trevor Hughes awards Marks Out Of 10 for each player that takes part in a match for the club. The marks are based on the following criteria: 1 - 3 Should not be playing football 4 Very Poor 5 Poor 5.5 Below Average 6 Average 6.5 Above Average 7 Good 7.5 Very Good 8 Excellent 9 Exceptional 10 Hat trick plus three goal line clearances !!! Players are advised that the Marks Out Of 10 must not be taken seriously. They are
a rough guide to how people played according to the Manager on the day and are also
subject to change by Laurence Hughes after viewing the match video. |
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CLUB TOURS, SOCIAL FUNCTIONS & FUND-RAISING |
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Our club Annual General Meeting each year is sometimes held at a secret (private)
venue that features a Snooker Room. In addition to the Trophy Presentations & Agenda,
there are plenty of fund-raising activities such as Pool & Darts competitions (and
occasionally Snooker !) whereby players win half of the entrance fee and the other
half goes into Club Funds. Goal Of The Season DVD's are also shown (which is another
fund-raiser), and with a 'licensed bar', it is always a good 'night out' when we
can get a reasonable number to attend. |
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OUR ATTITUDE |
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Our basic policy as a club is for our players to enjoy their football first and foremost. It is very rare that we will have a major inquest or bust-up in the changing rooms after a defeat - our players tend to just laugh it off and then discuss any problems rationally after watching the video highlights in order to see who was at fault. The majority of our players are intelligent & well-educated, so the changing rooms can be a dangerous place if you are not able to keep up with all the banter and good-humoured 'piss-taking' that goes on ! We also very rarely have any of our players 'throwing their toys out of the pram' when they get substituted, mainly because most of them are well into their 30’s and need a breather ! Our relaxed attitude and good team spirit is complimented by the club being very well-run in terms of administration & on-the-field behaviour, and quite often we end up being the only club in the League not to get fined or have any players sent off during the course of a season. |
For Season 2011-2012, we are again running just the one team in Division One of the
During the Summer (i.e. early-May until early-September) we enter either one or two
teams (depending on player availability) in a 7-a-side Football League played on
Astroturf at the 
We are affiliated to the 
Club Secretary Laurence Hughes is a professional cameraman specialising in the filming
of Non-League football matches and as such, the club is used as his main ‘advertising
vehicle’. Every 11-a-side match has been filmed (properly) since way back in February
1990 (except for about 20 occasions when needed as a player !) and full match DVD’s
are available for all of them. (See ‘
Our Home Pitch is 
Quite often during the course of a season, we have a number of matches called off
at the last minute (i.e. between 8.30.a.m. & 10.00.a.m.) on a Sunday morning due
to waterlogged or frozen pitches or no referee being available. In those instances,
all players named in the squad will be contacted by Management Committee Members
between those times in an effort to save them an unnecessary journey. If the weather
looks 'dodgy', but you have not heard from a Management Committee Member by 10.00.a.m.,
then you MUST take it that the game is still on and turn up at the venue. Any player
who wrongly assumes that a game will be called off and therefore stays in bed will
be left out of the squad for the next match, and especially if it leaves us with
less than eleven players.
This season we will again be training between 9.00 & 10.00.p.m. on Wednesday evenings
on half an Astroturf pitch at the 
During July last Summer (2010), we had a couple of Pre-Season Training sessions on
the grass area behind the Astroturfs at the Southgate Hockey Centre before and during
our 7-a-side League matches over there. These proved to be very successful with good
turnouts and we will be doing the same again this coming Summer on 
All 
Waltham Sunday League rules state that all clubs must supply a linesman. However,
unlike most other clubs in the League, we have no non-playing club members whatsoever
who are willing to attend every match and do the job. (Normally it is the Club Secretary,
but Laurence Hughes films all our matches and therefore cannot run the line as well).
Invariably Manager Trevor Hughes has to act as our Club Linesman because we do not
have any substitutes who are ‘capable’ of running the line.
Over the past few seasons we have been fortunate to have had two regular goalkeepers
available most weeks, but if on any occasion an outfield player has to go in goal
for a full match, they will be given £3.50 credit off his subs owed'. This is due
to an understandable shortage of volunteers when this situation arises. Similarly,
if a goalkeeper is forced to play as an outfield player, he will also be given a
credit off his subs dependent on how long he is on the field of play for (at the
Team Manager’s discretion).
All players are advised to bring their own drinks to matches (particularly Pre-Season
Friendlies) as there is never enough water in the ‘cool box’ for everybody (mainly
because the bottles are regularly left on the far touchline or behind the goal during
matches and then ‘nicked’ by opposing teams). Also, the water from the bottles in
the 'cool box' can also taste rather 'foul' because Laurence Hughes fills them up
from his tap in Edmonton (direct from Deephams Sewage Works at Picketts Lock ?),
so until Trevor Hughes volunteers to take the bottles home to the more 'luxurious
surroundings' of Whetstone to fill them up there, all players may be taking a risk
by not bringing their own drinks.
Since 1986 when we went on our first Club Tour to Holland, we have visited Germany
(twice), Spain (twice), Belgium, the Isle of Wight and most recently Prague in 2001,
but we have since had difficulties in arranging Club Tours because of family commitments.
However, Club Social & Fund-Raising Secretary Martin Loveday will be looking to organise
another Tour in the not-to-distant future depending on our ability to attract new
younger players to the club who do not have quite so many other commitments.