DB Pirates

noreply@blogger.com (Ed Sisterson) — Sat, 09 Apr 2011 23:52:00 +0000

Ahoy there Pirates! Welcome to this week’s Newsletter (Thursday 7th April)

CHAMPIONS!

A massive congratulation to the U14 girls who completed a fantastic season by winning the Sevens League to go along with their 10s League Championship. The DB Black beat HKFC 2 convincingly with a 41-0 score to sealed the championship while the White team beat HKFC 1 by an equally impressive 44-5 to secure third place.

The Black team was undefeated winning all eight league games. They scored 198 points for and only had 37 scored against them which proves that they have the best defence in the league as well as a strong attack.

The White team finished a clear third losing only three games (including a close loss to the Black team!). After a nervous start during their early games the team grew in confidence and finished by scoring 216 points for with only 75 scored against. This highlighted the strength of their attack – they scored more 7's league points than any other HK girls’ team from U14 up to U19! Considering most of the players are in there first year of U14 Rugby the team played extremely well to achieve third place.

We have a few events taking place this weekend, before the playing season officially comes to an end. This Friday the Colts head off on Tour to Singapore. Our thanks go to Dwyer and Co for their generous sponsorship to help make this tour happen. On Saturday the girls will be playing in the All Girls Tournament at Kings Park and the under 6’s will be flying the flag for DB Pirates at Hong Kong Football Club’ Taipan Festival to celebrate their 125^th Anniversary. Then on Sunday, the Minis Fun Day and End of Season Awards will be held at Discovery College.

From next weekend, you can start to enjoy your lie-ins again! (Unless you are in the Dragon Boat team – practices at 10am in Nim She Wan!)

1 .Results

Colts

Congratulations to U16A who placed second in the ultra-competitive Colts 7s tournament last weekend.

Minis

Results so far for the season,

Played	545
Won	291	53.39%
Drew	114	20.92%
Lost	159	29.17%

Netball

Jolly Roger vs Cricket Club - SEMI FINAL 3rd Division 24-16

The Jolly Rogers took on The Cricket Club Monday night in the semi-final of the league. A strong and determined effort by all players put Jolly Rogers 5 goals ahead at the end of the first quarter - a lead they convincingly maintained until the final whistle. A 24-16 win for the Jolly Rogers securing them a well deserved place in the final next week. Great effort from all!

2. Training Times

No more Sunday training for the rest of the Minis as the season is now over (apart from the Fun Day/Awards on 10th April)

3. Upcoming Events

Colts Tour

On Friday 8 April, the U14 and U16B jet off to Singapore to compete in the Barclays Cup against teams from around the region. Our thanks go to Dwyer and Co for their generous sponsorship. We wish the tourists the best of luck.

Colts Awards

The Colts end of year function and prize giving will take place in late May - stay tuned for details!

Fun Day 10^th April

This year the Minis Fun Day and Awards will be held at Discovery College from 9am to 1pm. (please see age group times below). Coaches, Parents and Players are more than welcome to dress up in your finest Pirate attire! The BBQ will be there.

Session 01 - 09:00 – 10:30 Fun Day Activities for Age Group u6-u8

Session 02 - 10:30 – 11:20 Awards Ceremony – All Age Groups

Session 03 - 11:20 – 12:45 Fun Day Activities for Age Group u9-u12

Courtney Davies is organising this year’s event. If you would like to help out please contact him on c.davies@arquitectonica.com.hk / SMS +852.6081.5262

All Girls Tournament 9th April Kings Park

The U10, U12, U14, U16 and U19 teams will be playing this Saturday; your coaches will contact you directly with more details and bus times.

Taipan’s Tournament 9^th April HKFC

Hong Kong Football Club will be holding a small tournament for their 125^th year celebration. The Pirates have entered an Under 6 team. Your coaches will have already contacted you directly with information if you are playing.

Ball 7^th May

To those who do not have their tickets for the Spring Ball, which will be held on the 7^th May 2011 places are filling up very quickly, so book now!!!. All enquiries to: sally@connectingdb.com or kimwhiley@tamcoholdings.com

AGM

Date not yet finalized, but the Club’s AGM will be held late May, of which all members will receive due notice. This is your chance to have your say in the way your Club is run – either by simply voting on issues or, better yet, by standing for office / volunteering some of your time and skills.

The Club relies on its volunteers and as we continue to grow the workload increases. In order for us to continue on our path to allow every player the chance to fully explore and develop their potential we need to be able to grow our coaching, refereeing, admin and backup support networks.

In simple terms? YOUR Club needs YOU!

Mixed netball

DB Pirates netball team is also looking for some keen men to join their mixed league team starting in May. No experience required!

- League will commence on 9^th May

- All League games will be played on Monday nights at Aberdeen

- Semi Final and Finals will take place at HK Park on 18^th and 25^th July

- $150 per player

Anyone interested in playing please let us know as soon as possible - jessicajbowden@yahoo.co.uk

Dragon Boat

The Pirates have traditionally entered a team (or teams) into the DB Dragon Boat Carnival in June and are still looking for “volunteers” to join the paddling.

Practices start this Sunday 10^th April at 11am in Nim Shue Wan (meet at the finger pier) and from 10am next week onwards.

For more details contact Felix Wong (fw@db202.com) or Kathy Albutt (skalbutt@me.com)

Touch

With the contact season over Touch will soon start in Hong Kong. If you are interested in playing contact Andy Tasker (awtasker@googlemail.com)

Quiz Night

1^st Wednesday of every month. 7:30 pm Duvet.

David Campese Rugby Academy 2011

David Campese will be running his Academy Rugby Course for ages U8 to U16. Week one 18^th-21^st April, Week two 26^th-29^th April. For more information, please visit www.davidcampeseacademy.com

4. Content and feedback

We would be delighted to receive (constructive) comments or suggestions about content of this Newsletter. Please email us on newsletter@dbpirates.com.

We would also welcome feedback of any kind about how you feel the Club is being run, ideas and suggestions to help the players get more from the Club etc. Mail us on feedback@dbpirates.com.

Finally

The off season is almost upon but there is still plenty of work to do. Coaches, if you haven’t let Peter (Minis), Anthony (Girls) or Brendan (Youth) know about the role you wish to play next season please do as I would like to get the age group and team coaches finalised before the Summer. If you know of parents that can and/or want to coach then please put them in touch with the relevant sub-committee chairman or contact me directly. If you are interested in helping the Club in other ways (e.g. committee work, social etc) then please contact me.

Many thanks

Phillip Baldwin

Chairman

And finally…take what you can and leave nothing behind. Aaaargh!

noreply@blogger.com (Ed Sisterson) — Sun, 03 Apr 2011 03:49:00 +0000

IYT and Hong Kong Seven’s Report March 2011

Played a few, won a few, drew a few and lost not many.

What a glorious weekend, some early morning starts but no one was left behind (only just for some of the U11 Boys). Atmosphere was electric and crowd in good voice, with the green t-shirts clearly helping the children spot their mums and dads. The Pirates did the Club proud with some great rugby and results, finishing off the weekend with the controlled madness of the march past and the hoarding of various company’s goodies, the Cossack hat and coat among the favorite booty.

Some great teamwork, good individual tries and brave tackling by all our teams. We could have used some luck with some of the refereeing decisions, but our record was still solid with W1-D2-L1 and as always some fabulous parents offering some tremendous support.

W1-D1-L1 the kids had a great time. At first the width of the pitch was a little daunting but they soon conquered this and starting passing wide and using the space, roll-on next year.

DBP1 Lost 3 - 1

DBP2 Won 3 - 0
DBP3 Lost 3 - 1
DBP4 Won 9 – 1

U10 G

U10 G lost 1 try to 0 against a determined and well organised team from Sai Kung Stingrays that kicked off on Saturday morning at 8.22 am in the NE corner of the Stadium. We fought back hard after falling behind right at the very beginning of the match. Unfortunately, we were unable to convert some impressive forward play, with multiple phases and good support, into an equalising try. Stingrays always looked dangerous on the break in the later part of the game but some impressive tackling kept them at bay.

U10 B

Played 2 won 1 Lost 1

DBP1 vs FC1 Lost 1-0

DBP2 vs Monkeys Won 4-0

U11 B

Team 1

A very early coach on Sunday morning set the scene for a special day for the U11 boys, playing at the HK Stadium before the final day of the HK Sevens. Matched against the Stingrays 1, U11 DBP1 showed no sign of being over awed by a big occasion and were playing a team that they had beaten in the past. However, the early dew meant a slippery pitch that worked against the normal running style of the team. Although Chris Handcock launched a couple of attacking runs, the boys were not able to capitalize on the level of energy which they put into the match. The team was rewarded with a try through the efforts of Jack Hickins. Ultimately, Stingrays took better advantage of the greasy conditions, securing a break-away try and then a further score. Despite a valiant effort, DBP1 went down 2 scores to 1.”

Team 2

The Pirates U11s second side had a great game against Aberdeen at the 7's winning 2 – 0 in what was a fast flowing and quite exciting game. The first half of the game was very close with both sides contesting fiercely for ground. The senior referee was certainly in whistle mode but eventually the Pirates gained the upper hand with a great break resulting in a try by Nick Karton from the U 10s. Nick and his team mate Jack Sisterton both played very well so a big thanks to both boys for helping out. As the battle raged on, the U 11s gained in confidence and were able to combine well as a team to run seemingly never ending attacks from all parts of the field. The forwards covered all their tackles and won great ball for the backs who then went on the rampage. Eventually ,scrum half Daniel Tracey, was able to run a dummy from a mid field scrum and then unload on the short side to big Sean at center who finished off with a fantastic run to seal the game at 2-0. The boys were very excited and will hopefully remember their 7s victory until at least the start of training next season.

U12 G

They had fun and won.

U12 B

DBP1 vs FC W1-0

DBP1 played our old foes FC1 at the Sevens in front of the South Stand. In what was a very committed and passionate display of rugby from the boys (including on the touch line with respective team coaches), the DBP1 forwards out muscled FC1 who never looked like scoring with smothering defensive work. The only try of the game came from quick recycled ball in the middle of the pitch which Patrick quickly shifted to the left for James to beat a few players, stepping inside to draw the defence and passing wide to Manel from Macau to race down the left touch line to score. The game was played very much in the forwards with hard hitting runs from Jacob and Jake. Every player did their job in what was a team effort and their best game of the year collectively to finish the season on a high note.

DBP2 vs VF2 D1-1

DBP2 performed well once again against VF2 at the HK Sevens. DBP dominated early on, protecting the ball well under pressure from the opposition with the DBP forwards proving hard to beat in the scrum.

Following some driving runs from William Tiller and Isaac Hine the ball was eventually passed out wide to find Jeremy Wardle who accelerated on a typical run down the right wing to break the deadlock with a good try. Going behind created the spark for Valley to step up a gear and DBP found themselves defending hard; some great tackles from Jordan Noffke and Josh ensured the score remained the same. Two minutes from time Valley managed to squeeze the ball over for a try despite great effort from DBP to keep the ball from touching down. A fiercely competitive match and overall a fair result, however, the DBP defending was first class and yet again the entire team displayed great commitment and effort. Well done DBP2!

International Youth Tournament (IYT)

Pirates entered one U12 side, a side made up of players from the DBP1 and DBP2 sides. The competition was made up of two pools of 4 teams with the top two teams from each pool playing the Cup semi finals. DB kicked off the IYT off with a victory over Qing Dai (China) 3-1. This was followed by victories over VF2 4-0 and Barbarians 6-0. The boys played FC1 in a tight semi final, James scoring on the hooter to secure a 1-0 victory but should have been more with the number of opportunities created. The final was played against Centaurs from Singapore, conceding an early try which was quickly followed by a further try from the kick off where Centaurs knocked the ball on.

Unfortunately only the referee did not see the knock-on. Having said that, Centaurs deserved to win where DBP were overwhelmed in the contact area and what little ball was won, was lost through lack of ball protection in the tackle.

Making the final was a great effort and the boys enjoyed the opportunity of playing against visiting overseas clubs. Players to excel the tournament was the rapidly improving Mikkel Christensen, Jacob Rebbeck, Jake Olsen and James Karton.

noreply@blogger.com (Ed Sisterson) — Sun, 03 Apr 2011 03:46:00 +0000

Ahoy there Pirates! Welcome to this week’s Newsletter (Wednesday 30th March)

Another 7’s is over, and what a great weekend it was! On top of the fantastic international rugby played, Discovery Bay Pirates had 19 mini teams playing over the three day event, as well as representatives in the Under 14 and Under 16 national teams. Well done to everyone who participated and a big thank you to all the parents who had early starts on the Saturday and Sunday mornings!

In the week to the run-up to the 7s there was a hive of rugby activity. The GFI 10s at HKFC took place on the Wednesday and Thursday which included a re-match of the New Year’s Day match between U12 Peninsula and Island. We had a number of Pirates in the Peninsula squad and this time the result was a better reflection of the two teams finishing in a draw.

Thursday saw the U12 boys, U14 and U16 boys and girls teams in action at the International Youth Tournament held at King’s Park. This annual tens tournament saw the boys compete against sides from Dubai, Singapore as well as HK.

Not to be out done the Women’s Invitational International Sevens was held at HKFC on Friday and U14 girls Ashley Brooks, Robyn Hopewell, Ruby Jurecka and Jenny Pugh played in the Island Girls side which trounced Peninsula 10-0! Many thanks to all the girls who volunteered for ball retrieval duties during this tournament.

For most of you, the playing season is over for another year, but there are still a few events taking place over the next month. Please see the upcoming events section below, and also look out for details directly from your coaches.

Congratulations to the following DB Pirates players who have been selected for the respective Hong Kong national teams. This is a fantastic achievement and we wish them the best of luck in their upcoming internationals.

U18 Girls - Shonagh Ryan

U16 Boys - Kale Hyde

U14 Boys - Austin Robertshaw & Lachie Oliver-Kerby

1 .Results

The U14 Girls played two 7's league games at Tai Hang Tung on Sunday Mar 20. The White team defeated DEA 31-5 and the Black Team defeated SKS 33-5. Both wins were impressive and the girls showed great ball handing skills playing in the muddy conditions. Both teams have their final league games against HKFC and the result for the Black team will decide the outcome of the HK U14 Girls 7's League championship and the White Team will secure third place.

Netball (last week)

Black Pearls Vs Black Magic (Division 1) 24-35

A well fought match from the Black Pearls with a disappointing end result. The team gave it their all for the last match of the season but was beaten by a solid opposition. Despite the loss, it was a good game to finish on.

Jolly Rogers Vs Valley Cougars (Division 3) 24-24

Monday evening saw Jolly Rogers take on the division leaders, Valley Cougars, at Western Park. After a slow start, Jolly Rogers fought back with determination to equal the match 24-24 on the final whistle. A nail biting performance which secured them a well deserved place in the semi-finals.

2. Training Times

This Sunday the U10 G & U12 G will be training at YMCA 13:30- 15:00. You will be notified of bus times by your coach directly.

No more Sunday training for the rest of the mini’s as the season is now over (apart from the fund day/awards on the 10^th April)

3. Upcoming Events

Coaches Wrap Up

Coaches end of season drinks will be held tonight - Friday 1^st April, 8pm at Zaks – be late if you dare!

All Girls Tournament 9th April Kings Park

The U10, U12, U14, U16 and U19 teams will be playing.

We still need volunteers to help out at the All Girls Tournament. There are various tasks to be carried out such as putting up tents, manning some of the stalls, marshalling etc

If anyone is available (and that includes parents) to help out could they please reply by email, to Tony Ryan at tryano13@gmail.com

Taipan’s Tournament 9^th April HKFC

Hong Kong Football Club will be holding a small tournament for their 125^th year celebration. The pirates have entered an Under 6 team. Your coaches will contact you directly with all the information.

Fun day 10^th April

This year’s fun day will be held at Discovery College 9:30am to 12 noon. More details will follow in next week’s newsletter. Courtney Davies is organising this year’s event. If you would like to help out please contact him on c.davies@arquitectonica.com.hk / SMS +852.6081.5262

Ball 7^th May

Attention All Pirates: For Your Eyes Only

Strictly on Her Majesty's Secret Service, Octopussy and her team will transform Siena Club into a scene from The Casino Royale for this year's ball.

So boys, don your best Bond dinner suit and practice your best Queen's English - and Ladies, remember Diamonds are Forever, so dress like you belong on James's arm.

Included in the price of your ticket is a sumptuous meal, wine on the tables and some fabulous entertainment. In fact, prowling around outside you might just find a Man with A Golden Gun with a Licence to Kill in his pocket - challenge him if you dare! Or you can try your luck at the tables of the Casino Royale where win or lose, you might Never Say Never Again.

So don't be a Dr No - get your Goldfingers tapping a note to your friends to gather your group of 10 and reserve The Living Daylights out of your table TODAY. And remember, even in case of Thunder, the Ball will still go on.

Sent From Russia, With Love

Date: Saturday 7th May

Time: 7.30pm til midnight

Price: Table of 10 $7,000 (pls advise names at time of booking), individual tickets $750

All enquiries to: sally@connectingdb.com or kimwhiley@tamcoholdings.com

Only a few tickets left so book (first class of course) now!

Quiz Night

1^st Wednesday of every month. 7:30 pm Duvet.

David Campese Rugby Academy 2011

David Campese will be running his Academy Rugby Course for ages U8 to U16. Week one 18^th-21^st April, Week two 26^th-29^th April. For more information, please visit www.davidcampeseacademy.com

4. Content and feedback

We would be delighted to receive (constructive) comments or suggestions about content of this Newsletter. Please email us on newsletter@dbpirates.com.

We would also welcome feedback of any kind about how you feel the Club is being run, ideas and suggestions to help the players get more from the Club etc. Mail us on feedback@dbpirates.com.

Finally

The off season is almost upon but there is still plenty of work to do. Coaches, if you haven’t let Peter (Minis), Anthony (Girls) or Brendan (Colts) know about the role you wish to play next season please do as I would like to get the age group and team coaches finalised before the Summer. If you know of parents that can and/or want to coach then please put them in touch with the relevant sub-committee chairman or contact me directly. If you are interested in helping the Club in other ways (e.g. committee work, social etc) then please contact me.

Many thanks

Phillip Baldwin

Chairman

And finally…take what you can and leave nothing behind. Aaaargh!

noreply@blogger.com (Ed Sisterson) — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 13:08:00 +0000

13 March 2011 REPORT

Hong Kong Football Club Tournament Report 13^th March 2011

Played 77 Won 36, Drew 14, lost 27

For the majority of teams this was the finale of the season. Non Contract age groups continue with their development with the U8’s obviously ready for contact next season. U9’s finished the season strongly with all the practice and coaching producing great results. U10 & U11 B’s probably had their hardest tournament of the season playing most of the other clubs 1st teams, results not going their way but continuing to play with great heart. U10G never quiet fully achieved their true potential despite some great moments and lots of commitment. U12G had a wonderfully committed tournament, just losing in the final after extra time 2-3 to HKU1’s. U12B 1’s couldn’t quite repeat the success of the last tournament losing in the semi final of the Cup to eventual winners Valley 1’s, the 2’s had a exceptional tournament losing to FC1’s in the final of the Plate.

Having seen the commitment and determination from all age groups at this tournament, the players, coaches and parents should be very proud of what they have achieved this season.

To all the Rugby widows, yes the season is almost over and you’ll get your Sunday’s back soon.

Played 10 Won 5, Drew 2, Lost 3

The teams all played hard/fair rugby, were congratulating in defeat and proud in victory. Most are now running in the right direction and know where to score tries and not to give the ball to the opposition.

Played 10 Won 5, Drew 2, Lost 3.

Once again some great defense with well executed tries often scored with swift pace and some classy support play. A truly spirited performance by the entire squad, and some awesome parental support from the sidelines.

Played 12 Won 4, Drew 5, Lost 3.

At this tournament U8’s showed good progress with some great support play and producing long passes that gave the team space to attack. Defense was solid as ever At times the running backing and bunching crept into the games but far less than usual.

Thanks to all the parents for the support this year

Special mention to

Oscar Strandlund who scored his 1st try for this year.

Improving players: William Walsh, Tyler Ikeda

Solid Defence: Nyrobi Gutu

Recovery of Rugby Mojo: Josh Brown

Played 13 Won 9, Drew 2, Lost 6.

All the 4 teams played really well. Great defending and some good attacking moves. All the children have improved over the last 2 tournaments and the results above show reflect that.

U10 G

Played 3 Won 0, Drew 1, Lost 2.

DEA 2:2, SKS1 0:5, HKU1 0:3

We had 4 players out at a soccer tournament and had recently seen Yiliya's departure from HK - possibly our strongest all round player

While able to borrow from other teams on the day, we never fully achieved our true potential despite some great moments and lots of commitment from the girls. Providing players to help out HKFC immediately after our own games may not have really helped.

While quite a disappointing result from the games, given previous performance, the girls should also take heart from the fact we already know we need to work more on tackling, attacking the ruck and maul and keeping our defensive line.

Gold boot to Lucy who has come on well since joining part way through the season, good ball carrying and some strong (and straight) running at the opposition and commitment at the maul.

Black boot to Claudia for some good tackling, covering a lot of ground and running good defence, and closing down the opposition. Some great covering tackles and a very solid game played to help Football Club. Another player who it is great to see making good progress this season.

U10 B

Played 6 Won 2, Drew 0, Lost 4.

The under 10's had a very tough festival this week, coming up against all 1st teams, FC1, VF1, SKS1, HKU1, DEA1 and FK1. DB Pirates split the squad into two even teams as every match was going to be hard. Even though the final result did not always go our way, both teams played exceptionally well. Especially in defence, which meant every game was close and went down to the final whistle. Well done to all the players!

U11 B

Played 7 Won 4, Drew 0, Lost 3.

In our last big tournament for the 10/11 season the U 11 players started brilliantly under fire by beating both DEA 1 and VF 2 in the first 2 games. The side faced the usual challenges of fielding 2 teams for 7 games with only 17 players. 3 or 4 key players including Tyler, Hugo and Tim Whiley were out due injury or sickness and this tested the boys and gave them a chance to show what they were really made of. Back to back games also tested their endurance and stamina on the day.

The team went onto win 4 out of 7 games in what turned out to be a great day. Stand out players were Chris Handcock and Jack Hickins in the backs and Big Luke and Justin in the forwards. Team spirit and morale remains high as the boys look forward to their big day at the HK 7’s.

U12 G

Played 5, Won 3, Drew 0 Lost 2

Match Report U12G: HKFC Cup runners up

The girls came through the pool games and semi finals with 4 wins and 1 loss to face an overly confident HKU1 in the Cup final. Our great team of U11 and U12 girls were facing an almost entirely U12 team and often significantly bigger overall without any reserves until the semi final when we gained an extra player. The Cup Final was as tough a game as you will see at U12 level, boys or girls, and several played on despite significant injuries knowing there was no one to bring on.

In the final, HKU1 broke away to a 2 - nil lead in the first half and our heads dropped, but only momentarily. Our girls showed tremendous depth of character to bring the score back to 2-2, overwhelming HKU1 and forcing the game into sudden death extra time. After a couple of minutes of overtime HKU1 were able to get the ball wide to one of their big fast girls who was able to break through some valiant defence to score. We had several opportunities that were missed: a disallowed try, ball being stripped over the line centimetres from being put to ground and Skye getting her hair pulled (accidentally) whilst making a critical break, ref missing it and subsequently losing possession. However none of this detracts from the quality of rugby played or the effort put in.

Anthony and I, as well as all parents and supporters watching the final, are tremendously proud of these girls. This is truly a team in every sense of the word where all contributed to a successful day as is indicated by 9 of the 11 girls scoring at least one try each. I said to the girls during the week that, despite having lost many players for various reasons this week, with determination and courage we are still very capable of bringing home the Cup! While we missed the Cup by the narrowest of margins a coach could not ask for an anything more from his players - not a thing.

Our season continues at the All Girls Tournament in April.

Pool Games: v DEA1 Win 6-0 v HKU1 Loss 1-4v SKS2 Win 6-0

Semi v SKS1 Win 2-0

Final v HKU1 Loss 2-3 in extra time

U12 B

Played 11, Won 5, Drew 0 Lost 6

DBP1 qualified for the Richard Hawk's Cup semi final beating SKS 6-0, VF2 2-0 and FK1 4-0. They lost their final pool game against DEA1 1-0.

They played against a very good and on-song Valley Fort team in the semi final losing 3-0. The boys were still in the game at half time after going down 1-0 early in the first half. A brilliant individual effort by the Valley fly half, running up the middle from half way and outpacing the cover defence made it 2-0 with a third try to follow to close the game out.

Valley went on to win the Cup beating DEA1 2-1 in the final. DBP1 lost to both finalists and a fair reflection we were the 3rd best team on the day where FC1 failed to make the semi finals.

Players to impress were Jacob from the forwards with strong busting runs and Manel and James the pick of the backs. Outstanding cover defence by James against DEA saving certain tries.

The U12 age group has been fiercely competitive and a high standard of rugby played throughout the season. Any of the top 4 Clubs, DEA, DBP, FC and VF were capable of winning on the day.

DBP2 qualified for the Cup qualification Tournament during the Richard Hawkes Cup festival at HKFC, on the back of a very solid performance at the pervious Valley Fort Festival.

The boys had a good but very tough day, being drawn to play against a number of first teams, including eventual Richard Hawkes Cup winners Valley Fort 1. The boys ultimately qualified for the Plate Final, which they lost after a very brave effort, by a score of 0 - 2 against HKFC 1.

Most pleasing for me was the defensive effort across the day, with the boys playing 6 games including fixtures against four first teams, and conceded only 8 tries. Including a very creditable 1 nil loss to the eventual Cup Winners.

Special mention to the tackling of Pat McGillveray, "Steady Eddie" Lewis, Will Tiller and Josh Marwick. The go forward provided by Mikkel Christensen. And the captaincy of Jake Olsen - who added another brace of tries to the 9 he had run in at the previous two festivals.

Interestingly over the last few festivals, the boys from DBP2 have beaten the second teams from HKFC, Valley Fort, DeA and Flying Kukris, which is perhaps indicative that we are the strongest club in the second tier of U-12 rugby.

Many thanks to the players, parents, and coaches who's interest and enthusiasm has contributed to the season, and to the hard work put in by our committee that makes it all possible!

noreply@blogger.com (Ed Sisterson) — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 13:01:00 +0000

Ahoy there Pirates! Welcome to this week’s Newsletter (Friday 18^th March)

Sevens Tickets - Distribution Arrangements

The second and final distribution of tickets will be at:

· 10AM to 12PM Saturday 19th March 2011 at DB Marina Club.

This two hour time slot is for you to collect your Supporter's Pack, which will include tickets, souvenir T Shirt and wristband.

If you cannot make it during this time, please arrange for somebody to collect and sign for the Supporter’s Pack for you – email the Secretary (secretary@dbpirates.com) in advance, as we will not issue tickets to anybody other than those to whom they have been allocated without your express instructions

1. Last Week – Review / Results

Youth

Girls U14G

The U14 Girls played their 3rd round of their Super Sunday Sevens League Games at King's park last Sunday, with only 9 players available across two teams due to injures and unavailability.

The first game was against FK2 and the team managed a comfortable 20-5 win. The next game was against a full strength and undefeated SKS side. The opposition started strongly and the Pirates found themselves trailing 0-14. The game turned with some strong defence and the girls pulled themselves back into the game scoring an amazing 31 unanswered points to win 31-14. The game took its toll and we picked up two more injuries leaving only 7 players to complete the remaining two games. The remaining girls lifted their game again and defeated HKFC2 43-0 and HKFC 33-0. All the girls were physically exhausted after playing four games on a hot day, but showed outstanding spirit to maintain their position at the top of the HK U14 Sevens League Table.

The following U14 Pirate girls have been selected for the Island U14 Rep 7's squad to play Peninsular U14 Girls during the Women's Sevens.

We would like to congratulate the following players on their selection:

Ashley Brooks

Robyn Hopewell

Ruby Jurecka

Jenny Pugh

The girls were selected from 30 trialists from Island clubs and some of the other Pirate girls who tried out for the team were very unlucky to miss out on being selected.

The Island U14 Rep Team is Coached by Wayne Gordon and managed by Tony Ryan, both from Pirates.

Boys

Firstly congratulations to U16B who won the Div2 Bowl final! This is a fitting end to a well played season.

This Saturday we have some of our U14s representing their nation of birth at the Country of Origin Tournament at Kings Park starting at 1300. The bus for those involved leaves DBIS at 1100.

Minis

Hong Kong Football Club Tournament Report 13^th March 2011

Played 77 Won 36, Drew 14, lost 27

For the majority of teams this was the finale of the season. Non-contract age groups continue with their development with the U8’s obviously ready for contact next season. The U9’s finished the season strongly with all the practice and coaching producing great results. The U10 & U11 B’s probably had their hardest tournament of the season playing most of the other clubs first teams; the results did not go their way but they played with great heart. The U10G never quite fully achieved their true potential despite some great moments and lots of commitment, a shortage of players being the main hurdle. The U12G were wonderfully committed in their matches. They just lost in the final during extra time 2-3 to HKU1’s who’d beaten them 1-4 in the pool match. For me that was the match of the day and the girls should be proud of themselves. It certainly bodes well for the U14 squad next season. The U12B first team couldn’t quite repeat the success of the last tournament losing in the semi final of the Cup to eventual winners Valley Fort 1, the seconds had an exceptional tournament losing to FC1 in the final of the Plate.

Having seen the commitment and determination from all age groups at this tournament, the players, coaches and parents should be very proud of what they have achieved this season.

To all the Rugby widows, yes the season is almost over and you’ll get your Sunday’s back soon.

A separate match report will follow.

Netball

Jolly Rogers Vs Runaways (Div 3) 35-20

A great game of netball from the Jolly Rogers to secure a confident win against their opponents. While the start of the game was quite tentative the players got into their stride and worked brilliantly as a team. Only one match away from the semi finals and already in a good position! Well done

2. Training / Fixtures

Mini’s

Individual Coaches will let you know training times this Sunday, most, if not all will be at the beach.

Youth

Girls U14

The next round of U14 Sevens League games will be played this coming Sunday 20th March at Tai Hang Tung.

The Bus will Depart DBIS: 1:30pm, with a pickup from Tai Hang Tung, Kowloon: 4:30pm

Boys

On Sunday U14 play their last XVs league match of the year against old foes HKFC at Happy Valley.

The coaches will let you know the bus and KO time.

U16A play their last XVs match of the season against DeA on 03 Apr.

Meantime we still have the IYT10s on 24 Mar for U14 and U16, and the Colts 7s sometime in early April. Planning continues to for U14 and U16 to attend the Barclays Cup in Singapore 8-10 April - expect a detailed announcement soon.

3. Admin

BBQ – Final BBQ will be run at Fun day.

4. Upcoming Events

Minis’ Tournaments

Hong Kong 7’s showcase 25^th -27^th March – Hong Kong Stadium

Full Details to be confirmed next week

Buses will take parents and children to the 7’s on the Friday. These bus trips will need to be charged for, in keeping with previous seasons. Return from the Stadium is by your our means

Playing schedule

U7, U8, U9 games will be played on the Friday, U10 on Saturday; and U11 and U12 will be on Sunday. A reminder no U6’s games

March past for all age groups including U6’s Sunday around lunchtime -Full details to follow.

All Girls Tournament 9^th April Kings Park

Full details to follow, but this will be for U10 & U12G only

Taipan’s Tournament 9^th April HKFC

Hong Kong Football Club has invited us a select number of teams to take part in 125^th year celebration, full details to follow.

DBP End of Season Fun day 17^th April, in the morning, location TBC anyone willing to help please contact Courtney Davies at davies.courtney@gmail.com . We will be presenting end of season awards for each age group.

Quiz Night

1^st Wednesday of every month. 7:30 pm Duvet.

David Campese Rugby Academy 2011

David Campese will be running his Academy Rugby Course for ages U8 to U16. Week one 18^th-21^st April, Week two 26^th-29^th April. For more information please visit www.davidcampeseacademy.com

Ball -7^th May

Attention All Pirates: For Your Eyes Only

Strictly on Her Majesty's Secret Service, Octopussy and her team will transform Siena Club into a scene from The Casino Royale for this year's ball.

So boys, don your best Bond dinner suit and practice your best Queen's English - and Ladies, remember Diamonds are Forever, so dress like you belong on James's arm.

Sent From Russia, With Love

Date: Saturday 7th May

Time: 7.30pm til midnight

Price: Table of 10 $7,000 (pls advise names at time of booking), individual tickets $750

All enquiries to: sally@connectingdb.com or kimwhiley@tamcoholdings.com

Tickets go on sale SATURDAY 19th March at the MARINA CLUB 10-12noon. First come, first served. PLEASE book early to avoid disappointment.

5. Content and feedback

We would be delighted to receive (constructive) comments or suggestions about content of this Newsletter. Please email us on newsletter@dbpirates.com.

We would also welcome feedback of any kind about how you feel the Club is running, ideas and suggestions to help the players get more from the Club etc. Mail us on feedback@dbpirates.com.

We have a great Club, a great spirit. The Sevens is almost upon us so let’s have a wonderful finale for the Minis and a great final few matches and tournaments for the Colts and the Youth Girls.

Many thanks

Phillip Baldwin

Chairman

And finally…take what you can and leave nothing behind. Aaaargh!

noreply@blogger.com (Ed Sisterson) — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 10:41:00 +0000

Ahoy there Pirates! Welcome to this week’s Newsletter (Thursday 3^rd March)

Sevens Tickets - Distribution Arrangements

We will be announcing distribution details soon. A separate email will follow next week with full details of the arrangements for those who have been allocated tickets.

However, in the meantime you should make a note that our current plan is to hold two distribution sessions on Saturday mornings 12th and 19th March. There will likely be around a two hour time slot on each day for you to collect your Supporter's Pack (which will include tickets, souvenir T Shirt and wristband). The venue is likely to the Marina Club, all details to be confirmed

Social kit

Social Kit, including the training tops will be available for collection from the Marina Club lawn between 9:30 and 10:30 this Saturday morning. Please remember to bring payment if you have not paid for already.

1. Last Week – Review / Results

Youth Boys

Not a good weekend for the colts - both U16A and U14 went down hard last Sunday. We need to get back in the game quickly though as ALL Colts have games this weekend!

Youth Girls

The U14 girls played their second round of 7's league games at Sandy Bay last Sunday. The first game was DBP Black Vs DBP White and was a close encounter with the Black team winning through 10-5. The White team then played Sandy Bay/ HKU/ HV in a tough game and lost 12 - 17 after trailing 0-10 at half time. The team showed a lot of spirit in the second half to come back into the game. The Black team won a hard fort encounter against DEA 17-7 after trailing 5-7 at half time. The girls stepped up their game in the second half and shut out DEA for the rest of match. The final round of games is to be played 20 March; these will determine the overall HK U14 Girls 7's league winner. The Black team is still undefeated and currently leads the competition.

U16 Girls

The first game against Flying Kukris did not go too well and we were soundly beaten 19-0.

The second game against the unbeaten SKS1 was a completely different affair. True Grit may not have won an Oscar in Hollywood but it certainly won the game on Sunday. Good solid defence and awareness played a huge part as well as retaining the ball through the middle. The passing improved and we got a break round the outside with Marcella scoring in the corner. 5-0 was the final score.

Minis

Valley Fort Tournament Report 27^th Feb 2011

Played 91 Won 46, Drew 18, lost 27

A very welcome break from the cold weather left some of us a little red faced. Another strong performance from the pirates with U10 & U11 boys continuing with their outstanding season. U12B are finishing the season strongly with all to play for at the final tournament on the 13^th March. The U10G & U12G again continue with their strong progress with some high competitive matches being played and won. The non-contact age groups continue to have fun and make progress with the basic rugby skills.

Please see separate full match report on the web site.

2. Training Times

Mini’s

As a Club, we are split between three locations this weekend.

Age Group	Head Coach	Session 1 Day	Time	Place
u5 & u6	Matt Rappel	Sunday	09:15-10:30	Beach
u7	Courtney Davies	Sunday	09:30-10:45	Beach
u8	Pete Porter	Sunday	10:30-11:45	Beach
u9	Pat Tiller	Sunday	09:30-10:45	YMCA
u10 Boys	Ed Sisterson	Sunday	10:30-12:00	Beach
u11 Boys	Sean Tracey	Sunday	13:30-15:30	DBIS
u10 Girls	Steve Kean	Sunday	13:30-15:00	YMCA
u12 Girls	Tom McDonald	Sunday	13:30-15:00	YMCA
u12 Boys	Colin Olsen	Sunday	09:30-11:30	YMCA

For YMCA 09:30 - 11;30 session, please arrive at DBIS 09:00

For YMCA 13:30 -15:00 session, please arrive at DBIS 12:45

Youth

Boys

U14 will meet HKU1 at Sandy Bay. Kickoff is at 1500; bus departs DBIS at 1315.
U16A take on FC1 at HKFC. Kickoff is at 1130; bus departs DBIS at 0945.

And finally, U16B play Kowloon Lions in the Div2 Bowl Final at THT. Kickoff is at 1615; bus departs DBIS at 1430. (Last time you met, we won 22-7!!)

Girls

Next up is training as usual this Sunday with an added bonus after training time. The Women's National Team will be turning up at 1.30pm at the YMCA to provide the DB Pirates Girls section with a workshop and skills clinic. The Pirate U10 and U12 Girls will be there and this will serve as their training session. It will be an interactive session for all age groups. It will end at 3.00pm so we hope you can all stay on and benefit from the professional coaching and skills training available on the day.

We have another Super Sunday the following week March 13th, this will be our last Sevens League games.

3. Admin

Pitch update

We have a few more training sessions left but the Sienna Pitch is currently in a very poor state. We are working on trying to use YMCA, DBIS and the Beach, but the situation remains fluid. Your head coaches will have the latest details so please look out for their e-mails.

BBQ – Final BBQ will be run during the season ending Fun Day.

Senior Rugby

We have had a good response so far and have a preliminary list of 15 people willing to play and another 10 who are possible. We are anticipating holding a get together to discuss how it will work next season sometime at the end of March / beginning of April, news on this to follow. If you are interested, please send an email to senior.dbpirates@gmail.com with your name, age, position and current club (if applicable)

4. Upcoming Events

Minis’ Tournaments

HKFC Tournament 13^th March HKFC

Full details to follow, but approximate timings are below

U6 Hockey Pitch 9:00 to 12:00

U7 Main Pitch 9:00 to 12:00

U8 Main Pitch 9:00 to 12:00

U9 HV 1 10:00 to 14:00

U10 HV 2 10:00 to 14:00 (includes U9/U10 girls)

U11 HV 2 14:00 to 18:00

U12 Main Pitch 12:00 to 18:00

U12G HV 1 14:00 to 18:00

Hong Kong 7’s showcase 25^th -27^th March – Hong Kong Stadium

Full details are to be confirmed closer to the date.

Buses will take parents and children to the 7’s on the Friday. We will need to charge for these bus trips in keeping with previous seasons. Return from the stadium is by your our means.

Playing Schedule

U7, U8 and possibly some U9 games will be played on the Friday if all the U9’s can’t be accommodated on the Saturday; U10’s will play on Saturday; while U11 and U12’s will be on Sunday. Please be reminded that there are no U6’s games this year.

March past for all age groups including U6’s Sunday around lunchtime.Full details to follow.

All Girls Tournament 9^th April Kings Park- Full details to follow.

Quiz Night

1^st Wednesday of every month. 7:30 pm Duvet.

5. Content and feedback

We would be delighted to receive (constructive) comments or suggestions about content of this Newsletter. Please email us on newsletter@dbpirates.com.

We would also welcome feedback of any kind about how you feel the Club is running, ideas and suggestions to help the players get more from the Club etc. Mail us on feedback@dbpirates.com.

We have a great Club, a great spirit so let’s make sure we make this season the best ever on and off the field and finish with a flourish!

Many thanks

Phillip Baldwin

Chairman

And finally…take what you can and leave nothing behind. Aaaargh!

noreply@blogger.com (Ed Sisterson) — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 07:33:00 +0000

Ahoy there Pirates! Welcome to this week’s Newsletter (Thursday 24th February)

Before getting to the informational aspects of this newsletter, I would like to remind players, particularly in the older age groups, that coaches give up their time to help you develop. Please show them the respect they deserve by replying to their emails/text messages and let them know whether or not you can make training/matches.

We have a busy weekend ahead. Also, please look out for the joint DB Angels/DB Pirates quiz night on 2 March – more information below.

Please see below for information about the Sevens tickets. I do ask that you are patient. We can only finalise distribution etc once we have received the tickets from the Union.

1. This Week’s Match /Training Times

Youth/Girls Super Sunday
U14 GirlsDepart DBIS: 7:30amPick-up Sandy Bay: 11:30am.U16 GirlsDepart DBIS: 9:30amPick-up Sandy Bay: 1:15pm.Each team is scheduled to play two games. The “clash of interest” will be the U14 Black and White teams playing each other in the first game!

Youth/Boys
We have two matches this Sunday:

U14 meet Flying Kukris at Tai Hang Tung. Kickoff is at 1645 (this is a change from the original time); bus departs DBIS at 1500.

U16A take on FC2 at HKFC. Kickoff is at 1130; bus departs DBIS at 0945.

U16B - your Div2 semi-final against SKS has been cancelled due to a lack of Sai Kung players. This means you go directly into the Bowl Final next weekend against the winner of this Sunday's semi between Kowloon Lions and Aberdeen.

There will be training this Sunday - times and venue TBA so please check your emails and Facebook.

U14 - Now is your chance to represent your country! HKRFU is holding a "Country of Origin" tournament on March 19. We need nominees from HKG; China; Australia/Sth Africa, NZ/Scotland; Wales/France and England. If you qualify to represent these countries by birthright let us know at YouthChair@dbpirates.com

Minis’ Valley Fort Tournament 27th Feb Kings Park
Coaches have the full schedule - if you require it please ask your head coach

Bus Times

U6, U7, U8 and U10 boys - Please meet at DBIS at 7:15 so the bus can leave at 7:30am.

U10 Girls and U12 Girls - Please meet at DBIS at 11am

U12 Boys – Please meet at DBIS at 12 noon

U9 and U11 – Please meet at DBIS at 12.30pm.

The return busses will leave Kings Park at 12:15pm, 12:45pm, 1pm, 1:15pm, 2:30pm, 6pm and 6:15pm.

As normal, on the way back, it is on a first–come-first served basis. If you are on a coach on the way back, please ensure that if it is not full it waits until the allocated time before leaving. We need your help and co-operation with this to ensure no Pirate is left behind!

A reminder to ALL Pirates, there is NO drinking of alcohol on, or beside, the pitches during U12B games.

2. Last Week – Review / Results

Netball
Black Pearls Vs Typhoons (Division 1) 21-21
An extremely well fought match from the Black Pearls resulting in a draw against one of the top teams. Great result!

Jolly Rogers Vs Crickets (Division 3) 25-17A great performance by Jolly Rogers at Aberdeen on Monday to secure a win against the Crickets. The defence was solid and the shooting impressive! A well deserved win!

3 .Upcoming Events

HKFC Tournament 13th March HKFC
Full details to follow but outline timings below

U6 Hockey Pitch 9:00 to 12:00
U7 Main Pitch 9:00 to 12:00
U8 Main Pitch 9:00 to 12:00
U9 HV 1 10:00 to 14:00
U10 HV 2 10:00 to 14:00 (includes U9/U10 girls)
U11 HV 2 14:00 to 18:00
U12 Main Pitch 12:00 to 18:00
U12G HV 1 14:00 to 18:00

Hong Kong 7’s showcase 25th to 27th March – Hong Kong Stadium
Full Details are to be confirmed closer to the date.

Buses will take parents and children to the 7’s on the Friday. These bus trips will need to be charged for, in keeping with previous seasons. Return from the Stadium is by your our means

Playing schedule
U7, U8 and possibly some U9 games will be played on the Friday if all the U9’s can’t be accommodated on the Saturday; U10 on Saturday; and U11 and U12 will be on Sunday. A reminder no U6’s games

March past for all age groups including U6’s Sunday around lunchtime -Full details to follow.

All Girls’ Tournament 9th April Kings Park – Full details to follow.

Women’s International Sevens
The Pirates have been asked to run the assistants team for the Women’s International Sevens on Friday the 25th of March. Please mail Anthony Hopewell (ahopewell@llewepoh.com) and Tom McDonald (mcdoodah@netvigator.com) if you are interested in helping, parents and players welcome.

Singapore Tour – Unfortunately nobody has stepped up to run a Club tour this year, so for Minis this will not be progressing as a group. Individual age groups may be arranging separate tours. Your age group coaches will inform you if they are. Next season we will look to put a Tour organizational structure in place for the Club. The Colts will be sending a team – possibly two, one for U14 and one U16.

DBP End of Season Fun Day 17th April, in the morning, location TBC anyone willing to help please contact Courtney Davies at davies.courtney@gmail.com

Quiz night Wednesday 2nd March
This is a joint event with DB Angels girls football club (although the general public are also welcome to attend) which we hope will help raise funds for both organisations.

Date: Wednesday 2 March 2011
Venue: Weather permitting at Duvet open area, if raining in Moorings
Time: 7:30 for a 7:45 start
Admission price: HK$25 per person
Team: Max 6 people per team, extra people start a new team
Prize: Winning team receives HK$500 and a free round of drinks!

If you attend three quiz nights in a row, you will be presented with a DB Angels Social Club card. This card entitles you to 20% off at Moorings and Duvet, 15% off at Wildfire and 2-for-1 drinks on Friday nights.

4. Admin

Pitch update – We have a few more sessions left for training and the Siena Pitch is currently in a very poor state. We are working on trying to use YMCA, DBIS and the Beach, but the situation remains fluid. Your head coaches will update you each week on where you are training.

BBQ – No BBQ this week as there is a tournament. It is looking unlikely to be run again until Fun Day on the 17th April. Thank you all who helped this season.

Sevens Tickets update
We will shortly be announcing arrangements for distributing tickets for the Sevens.
If you have been allocated tickets that you no longer need (or you don't need all 3 days), or you are looking for tickets, please use the Club's Facebook sites to communicate with other members. We would recommend Colts age groups use both the Colts AND the main Club Facebook.

Unfortunately, neither coaches nor the Club Committee can commit the resources to handle ticket changes for you.

REMINDER: According to HKRFU rules regarding sevens tickets, you are not allowed to sell any tickets for more than their "face value"
5. Content and feedback

We would be delighted to receive (constructive) comments or suggestions about content of this Newsletter. Please email us on newsletter@dbpirates.com.

We would also welcome feedback of any kind about how you feel the Club is running, ideas and suggestions to help the players get more from the Club etc. Mail us on feedback@dbpirates.com.

We have a great Club, a great spirit so let’s make sure we make this season the best ever on and off the field.

Many thanks

Phillip Baldwin
Chairman

And finally…take what you can and leave nothing behind. Aaaargh!

noreply@blogger.com (Ed Sisterson) — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 05:16:00 +0000

Ahoy there Pirates! Welcome to this week’s Newsletter (Friday 18^th February)

Well done to all players and parents that survived the cold and wet last Sunday it was definitely a new experience for a lot of the younger players and for a few of us it brought back memories of playing in cooler climates!

Unfortunately, the Siena pitch did not hold up well and for the time being is unplayable. The Committee continues to work with HKR on a longer term solution but in the mean time we are going to have to use YMCA and the beach for training. We thank you for your patience in advance.

1. Results / Review

Netball

Black Pearls Vs Hangtang (Division 1)

38-33

A fantastic performance at Western Park from the Black Pearls to secure a well deserved win. The Black Pearls dominated play from the very beginning with some excellent attacking balls into the circle and great shooting. Our defenders were impenetrable and managed to turn the ball around consistently. Well done everyone!

Jolly Rogers Vs DOGA (Division 3)

10-11

Jolly Rogers played a hard fought game against DOGA last night at Aberdeen. Fighting the cold as well as their opponents, the Jolly Rogers started strong in the first quarter. The score 'see-sawed' until the fourth quarter when Jolly Rogers equalized with two minutes remaining. An unlucky umpire call for Jolly Rogers and a lucky bounce in their opponents favour, allowed DOGA to win by one. It seems a low score for such a high effort game!

2. Training Times

Mini’s

Due to the on-going issues with the Siena pitch, training locations and timings are yet to be confirmed. Head coaches will let you know time and location but most likely training will be held on the beach.

Youth

Youth training and game times/venues have already been communicated to age groups and are given again below.

There was a mixed bag of results from last weekend. The U16A beat Flying Kukris 36-5 - all the more remarkable as they played the first half with only 14 men!

U16B lost their Div2 quarterfinal 27-5 to Valley Fort2;

U14 lost their Div 1 debut to league leaders DeA1 62-0.

Training

There has not been any training this week at the Siena pitch due to its surface condition. U14 training on Friday evening will be held at DBIS at 1830.

Training for ALL Colts is ON this Sunday at YMCA Tung Chung. Bus leaves DBIS at 0900. The bus will be packed!!

Fixtures

There are no matches this Sunday 20 Feb.

27 Feb

U14 meet Flying Kukris at THT kickoff at 1030;

U16B play their semi-finals against the loser of this weekend's quarterfinal between DeA2 and SKS;

U16A take on FC2 at HKFC kickoff 1130.

06 Mar

U14 v HKU1 @ SB 1500

U16B Div 2 Cup, Plate, Bowl or Shield Final

U16A v FC1 @ HKFC 1130

20 Mar

U14 v FC1 @ THT 1615

U16A v DeA1 @ KP 1100

27 Mar

IYT 10s Tournament @ KP

April

Colts Sevens Tournament

Tour to Singapore

We have been invited to the 2011 Barclays Cup - hosted this year by the Tanglin RFC in Singapore. It is a XVs format tournament that will be held from 9-11 April 2011.

Such tours are an integral part of rugby development and are a valuable team bonding experience.

The Club is sourcing sponsorship that will meet some of the touring costs, but there will be a cost per player that will have to be met. As Chairman I am keen that no player will be left behind due to financial reasons, so contact me directly in complete confidence at chairman@dbpirates.com should touring costs be a concern.

There is a huge amount of detail to work through between now and the tour so PLEASE reply a.s.a.p. to brendanoliverkerby@gmail.com (for Colts) to let him know if you are available or not.

Should any parents have touring or organisational expertise please also contact Brendan he will appreciate (and need) all the help that he can get!

3. Admin

BBQ -There will be no BBQ this week as we are not training at Siena pitch.

Sevens Tickets

We continue to keep an eye out for spare or released 7s tickets for people that were unsuccessful in their applications. If you have any questions please contact either your Head Coach or your respective Chairman in the first instance.

For those who were unsuccessful, a refund will be arranged once we have received the tickets from the HKRFU. The reason for this is, in part, in case we receive some spare tickets and so can accommodate your application.

First Aid and CPR Course

Since January a number of coaches and parents have successfully completed / enrolled in the Primary, Secondary and Care for Children’s Courses that has been run for the Pirates. This course gives attendees the confidence to look after people when hurt, in distress or seriously ill, although focused in part on sports the skills learned are applicable to everyday situations. Steve Tait will be running more courses during the next couple of months. To sign up for the course or for more information please contact Steve, steve@sjt-assoc.com or call 9615 1529. Also, look out for a separate more detailed email regarding the courses. Coaches and assistant coaches will be subsidised by the Club so I urge as many as possible to sign up and get a valuable first aid qualification.

4. Upcoming Events

Minis’ Tournaments

Valley Fort Tournament 27^th Feb Kings Park

Coaches have a draft schedule for review, and bus times will be communicated to you all early next week.

U6 AM

U7 AM

U8 AM

U9 PM

U10 AM

U10G Midday

U11 PM

U12 PM

U12G Midday

HKFC Tournament 13^th March HKFC

Full details to follow but outline timings below

U6 Hockey Pitch 9:00 to 12:00

U7 Main Pitch 9:00 to 12:00

U8 Main Pitch 9:00 to 12:00

U9 HV 1 10:00 to 14:00

U10 HV 2 10:00 to 14:00 (includes U9/U10 girls)

U11 HV 2 14:00 to 18:00

U12 Main Pitch 12:00 to 18:00

U12G HV 1 14:00 to 18:00

Hong Kong 7’s showcase 25^th -27^th March – Hong Kong Stadium

Full Details to be confirmed

A bus will take parents and children to the 7’s on the Friday. Contributions towards the cost of the bus hire will be gratefully received. Return by your own means.

Playing schedule

U7, U8 and possibly some U9 games will be played on the Friday if all the U9’s can’t be accommodated on the Saturday; U10 on Saturday; and U11 and U12 will be on Sunday. A reminder no U6’s games

March past for all age groups including U6’s Sunday around lunchtime..Full details to follow.

All Girls Tournament 9^th April Kings Park

Full details to follow.

Fun Day

The DBP end of season Fun Day has been pencilled in for 17 April 2011, location TBC.

6. Content and feedback

We would be delighted to receive (constructive) comments or suggestions about content of this Newsletter. Please email us on newsletter@dbpirates.com.

We would also welcome feedback of any kind about how you feel the Club is running, ideas and suggestions to help the players get more from the Club etc. Mail us on feedback@dbpirates.com.

We have a great Club, a great spirit so let’s make sure we make this season the best ever on and off the field.

Many thanks

Phillip Baldwin

Chairman

And finally…take what you can and leave nothing behind. Aaaargh!

Feb 12th News Letter

noreply@blogger.com (Ed Sisterson) — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 02:10:00 +0000

Ahoy there Pirates! Welcome to this week’s Newsletter (Wednesday 9^th February)

Kung Hei Fat Choi! As we enter the Year of the Rabbit, the Club wishes all its members (big and small) a safe, peaceful and successful year.

As we move into the second half of the season, the intensity of the rugby is starting to pick up. The under 10/12 Girls have a training session with the Hong Kong Women’s National Squad this Sunday at Siena, the Minis have two more tournaments before the show case Hong Kong Sevens at the end of March, the colts teams are preparing themselves for the knock out stage of the season (and a possible tour to Singapore) and the Girls’ season will round off with the All Girls’ Festival on April 9th. Phew! Not to mention the Six Nations are now under way and the Super 15 starts on Feb 18th! Please take a look at the DB Pirates’ training times this week, they are different from normal for some age groups, as we have to utilize the YMCA pitch more.

You may have heard through your coaches already, but the Pirates have been invited to the Barclays Cup in Singapore 9^th-10^th April. The Tanglin Rugby Club will be hosting the event, and there will be clubs from all over Asia attending. The tournament is for players (both boys and girls) from the age of 6 to 16 years old. For the Club to attend such a great event, there will be a lot of organising required. Age group coaches, and committee members have offered to help out, but for the tour to go ahead we are looking for a brave individual or two, to take overall responsibility of organising the tour. Anyone who is interested, please contact chairman@dbpirates.com

1. Training Times

Colts

We have a Super Sunday this weekend - all Colts teams are playing away from home. We will need EVERYONE on board!
U16A meet Flying Kukris at Tai Hang Tung at 1615. Bus departs DBIS at 1430.
U16B play Valley Fort2 in the Div 2 Quarterfinals at Happy Valley at 1500. Bus departs DBIS at 1315
U14 make their Div 1 debut against DeA1 at King's Park at 1100. Bus departs DBIS at 0915.

Minis

13^th Feb

Age Group	Head Coach	Registered Numbers	Session 1 Day	Time	Place
u5 & u6	Matt Rappel	46	Sunday	8:30-9:30	Siena Pitch
u7	Courtney Davies	44	Sunday	9:15-10:30	Siena Pitch
u8	Pete Porter	39	Sunday	10:15-11:30	Siena Pitch
u9	Pat Tiller	50	Sunday	11:15-12:30	Siena Pitch
u10 Boys	Ed Sisterson	24	Sunday	09:30-11:30	YMCA
u11 Boys	Sean Tracey	23	Sunday	09:30-11:30	YMCA
u10 Girls	Steve Kean	10	Sunday	14:00-16:00	Siena Pitch
u12 Girls	Tom McDonald	15	Sunday	14:00-16:00	Siena Pitch
u12 Boys	Colin Olsen	25	Sunday	Morning	Away at Flying Kukri's

For Siena Training the first 15 mins of each session (apart from U6’s) is a warm up on the older part of pitch.

For YMCA training the bus leaves DBIS at 09:00 and leaves YMCA 11:40 - space is limited on the bus.

2. Admin

Senior Team

Next season Discovery Bay Pirates are hoping to enter a senior team in the Hong Kong league. Anyone that is interested in playing for the Pirates please provide your name, age, position and whether you are currently playing for another club. Please send your information to Senior.DBPirates@gmail.com . This is an exciting development for our Club and will hopefully lead to those players coming through minis and Colts being able to graduate to senior rugby with the Pirates.

Social Kit

Social Kit (except for training tops) will be available for collection at the Marina Club lawn from 9:15 to 10:30 am this Saturday. There are also some spare items available if people are interested to buy them. There is also a large selection of Polo shirts. (Adults size in particular).

Training tops are estimated to arrive 26^th Feb. - we will keep you posted.

3. Upcoming Events

U10/12 Girls (with invitation also extended to U14 / 16G) training with HKG Women's National Squad. Sunday 13^th Feb

This is exclusively for Pirates girls’ teams and is an opportunity to be trained by some of the best players in Hong Kong. We can expect 8 players, to run a clinic designed just for your young players so please make sure to get them to Siena on time!

Sunday 2pm - 4pm at Sienna pitch

BBQ and drinks for players afterwards.

Minis’ Tournaments

Valley Fort Tournament 27^th Feb Kings Park

Full details to follow but please put the date in the diary

HKFC Tournament 13^th March HKFC

Full details to follow but please put the date in the diary

Hong Kong 7’s showcase 25^th -27^th March – Hong Kong Stadium

Full Details to be confirmed

Bus will take parents and children to the 7’s on the Friday. There will be a charge of HKD25 per player and HKD 50 per adult for buses (one-way trip only) - return under your own steam.

Playing schedule

U7, U8 and possibly some U9 games will be played on the Friday if all the U9’s can’t be accommodated on the Saturday; U10s will play on Saturday; and U11 and U12 will be on Sunday. A reminder that there are no U6’s games at this year’s HK 7s.

March past for all age groups - including U6’s - Sunday around lunchtime

Full details to follow.

4. Content and feedback

We would be delighted to receive (constructive) comments or suggestions about content of this Newsletter. Please email us on newsletter@dbpirates.com.

We would also welcome feedback of any kind about how you feel the Club is running, ideas and suggestions to help the players get more from the Club etc. Mail us on feedback@dbpirates.com.

The 2010-11 season once again is showing the passion and the skill of Pirates players. Their results are a fantastic endorsement of their efforts and behavior on (and off) the field. Proud to be a Pirate? You bet!!.

Many thanks

Phillip Baldwin

Chairman

And, once again (lest anyone should forget)…take what you can and leave nothing behind. Aaaargh!

noreply@blogger.com (Ed Sisterson) — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 13:09:00 +0000

Ahoy there Pirates! Welcome to this week’s Newsletter (Thursday 27^th January)

First off, on behalf of the Club I would like to congratulate all Pirates who participated in the New Years Day tournament. It was the best Pirate turnout to date with over 20 Pirates (girls and boys) taking part. Well Done!

I will come to the sevens ticket allocation later on, but as a rough guide if you haven’t been told otherwise, you will receive your allocation for which you applied. A waiting list has been established for those who did not receive tickets and if you have spare tickets, please return them to the Club (email secretary@dbpirates.com) . You must not sell on your ticket for more than face value. All tickets are coded and can be traced back to the Club to which they were allocated. So please, if you don’t want your ticket(s) or can’t use it, return it to the Club and we will ensure that it goes to a worthy recipient.

1. Last Week – Review / Results

Youth

Girls

Congratulations to our Pirate Girls who played at the NYD Tournament in the HKFC. The Club was represented by the following Pirates:

· U19 - Shonagh Ryan who played on the successful Lions team

· U16 - Eliza Prosser for the Dragons and Octavia Iafeta and Aileen Ryan for the Lions

· U14 - Kelsey Gordon, Tra My Hickin and Eleanor Udall for the Lions; Jenny Pugh, Theresa Mc Gillivray and Lucy Wyatt for the Dragons

Tony Ryan and Wayne Gordon were on the management and coaching team for the Girls U14 teams.

For the second half of the season the U14 Girls have now split into two even squads to play in the HK Girls Rugby 7's League. The Black team won both its games against FK1 25-5 and 24-5 against ABN/ HKU/ TPS/VF. The White team won its first game against FK2/ TSW 35-0, but lost its second against FK1 5-19. The next round of league games will be played 27 February.

The U16s started with a 26-10 win against HKU but lost 0-20 against DeA.

Minis - No tournament last week

2. Training Times

Below is the Mini’s schedule for the next three weeks. There is a possibility that this will change, so please look out for emails from your age group coaches. As they will have the latest timings and will inform you of any changes.

Mini’s

30^th Jan

Age Group	Head Coach	Registered Numbers	Session 1 Day	Time	Place
u5 & u6	Matt Rappel	46	Sunday	8:30-9:30	Siena Pitch
u7	Courtney Davies	44	Sunday	9:30-10:30	Siena Pitch
u8	Pete Porter	39	Sunday	10:30-11:30	Siena Pitch
u9	Pat Tiller	50	Sunday	09:30-11:30	YMCA
u10 Boys	Ed Sisterson	24	Sunday	12:15-13:30	Siena Pitch
u11 Boys	Sean Tracey	23	Sunday	13:30 - 15:00	Siena Pitch
u10 Girls	Steve Kean	10	Sunday		No Training
u12 Girls	Tom McDonald	15	Sunday		No Training
u12 Boys	Andrew MacPherson, Jon Rebeck and Philippe	25	Sunday	14:45:16:00	Siena Pitch

06^th Feb

Age Group	Head Coach	Registered Numbers	Session 1 Day	Time	Place
u5 & u6	Matt Rappel	46	Sunday	8:30-9:30	No Training
u7	Courtney Davies	44	Sunday	9:30-10:30	No Training
u8	Pete Porter	39	Sunday	10:30-11:30	No Training
u9	Pat Tiller	50	Sunday	11:30-12:30	No Training
u10 Boys	Ed Sisterson	24	Sunday	12:30-13:30	No Training
u11 Boys	Sean Tracey	23	Sunday	13:30 - 15:00	No Training
u10 Girls	Steve Kean	10	Sunday	14:30-16:00	Beach
u12 Girls	Tom McDonald	15	Sunday	14:30-16:00	Beach
u12 Boys	Colin Olsen	25	Sunday	09:30-11:00	Beach

13^th Feb

Age Group	Head Coach	Registered Numbers	Session 1 Day	Time	Place
u5 & u6	Matt Rappel	46	Sunday	8:30-9:30	Siena Pitch
u7	Courtney Davies	44	Sunday	9:30-10:30	Siena Pitch
u8	Pete Porter	39	Sunday	10:30-11:30	Siena Pitch
u9	Pat Tiller	50	Sunday	09:30-11:30	YMCA
u10 Boys	Ed Sisterson	24	Sunday	09:30-11:30	YMCA
u11 Boys	Sean Tracey	23	Sunday	11:30-13:30	YMCA
u10 Girls	Steve Kean	10	Sunday	14:30-16:00	Beach
u12 Girls	Tom McDonald	15	Sunday	13:30 - 14:45	Siena Pitch
u12 Boys	Colin Olsen	25	Sunday	11:30-13:30 or TBC	YMCA or FK possible

Youth

U16 boys training have been cancelled for CNY and will recommence on Tuesday 8th February 2011.

U14 Boys training will continue throughout CNY. Please note the times and venues:

Friday 28 January will be at Siena - start 6:45PM (bring boots and mouth guards)

Sunday 30 January 2011will be on the beach - start at 9:30AM

Friday 4 February 2011 will be on the beach - start at 9:30AM

Sunday 6 February 2011 will be on the beach – start at 9:30AM

Please bring running shoes and mouth guard to beach sessions.

U14 and U16 girls will train as per normal during CNY.

Any U16 girl who wishes to play in a mixed 13-a-side Baa-baa team against similar teams can make their way to the HK International School (Tai Tam) for 8:45AM on Sunday 30 January 2011. First match will KO at 9:30AM and the tournament is scheduled to finish at 2PM. Contact the U16 girls coach Tony Ryan as he will be travelling there with a couple of the U16 squad.

Club International Representation

The latest addition to the growing contingent of Pirates representing Hong Kong is Shonagh Ryan who has been provisionally selected for the U18 HK women’s squad.

The final squad will be selected two weeks before the tour to Japan which will take place between 20th and 25^th April 2011. Congratulations on behalf of the Club to Shonagh who has been a pioneer of girls Pirate rugby so it’s great to see her hard work and dedication paying off.

For the U14 boy’s national squad the Pirates have four representatives, they are:

Elias Arribas, Sjors Laurijssen, Austin Robertshaw and Lachie Oliver-Kerby.

We also have a number of U16 boys who are in the running for U16 national squad which will be announced shortly. We’ll keep you informed.

Congratulations to all those selected to represent Hong Kong. It’s a huge honour for you and the Club. A hearty Pirate ‘slap on the back’ should also go their respective current and previous coaches.

3. Administration

Pitch Update

The committee continues to work closely with HKR on a solution to the Siena pitch. They understand that the current grass surface has not worked and are exploring alternative surfaces for next session. The good news is that they are looking to fix it; the bad news is that it will not be done before April. Therefore, for the rest of this season we will have to juggle training sessions between different training grounds (e.g. Siena, YMCA and the beach). Thank you all for your support, co-operation and patience regarding this matter. Hopefully by the start of next season we’ll have a decent patch of ground on which to train.

BBQ

No BBQ 30^th Jan or 6^th February, will be reduced BBQ on the 13t February

HK Sevens

While we have done the best we can to allocate a heavily reduced number of tickets to those who applied for them, we have unfortunately been unable to meet the needs of all. We received approximately 30% less tickets than requested.

Those who applied for tickets and have not received an allocation have been placed on a "wait list" in case the Club receives any tickets back from members who no longer require them - if you have been allocated tickets and find you no longer need them please let the secretary (secretary@dbpirates.com) know as soon as possible.

For those whose applications for tickets were unsuccessful and have paid for them, we will arrange refunds during the next week or so. Please bear with us as this is a complex process with partial or total refunds required. You will receive an email from the Treasurer with refund arrangements soon.

HKRFU – Van Design Competition

The Hong Kong Rugby Football Union has launched a “Van Design Competition”. The object of the design is to present and promote a positive image of rugby within Hong Kong. The submission date is on or before the 14^th February 2011. Full details will be posted on the Pirates web page (News & Results tab) for those interested. The winner will receive a $1,000 voucher so good luck!

The Guinness World Record

The Guinness World Record for largest mini rugby tournament is now logged online. Please see the link.  http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/Search/Details/Largest-touch/mini/tag-rugbytournament/123089.htm 

4. Upcoming Events

Quiz Night

This is a joint event with DB Angels girls football club (although the general public are also welcome to attend) which we hope will help raise funds for both organisations.

Date: Wednesday 9 February 2011

Venue: Weather permitting at Duvet open area, if raining in Moorings

Time: 7:30 for a 7:45 start

Admission price: HK$25 per person

Team: Max 6 people per team, extra people start a new team

Prize: Winning team receives HK$500 and a free round of drinks!

If you attend three quiz nights in a row you will be presented with a DB Angels Social Club card. This card entitles you to 20% off at Moorings and Duvet, 15% off at Wildfire and 2-for-1 drinks on Friday nights.

Minis’ Tournaments

Valley Fort Tournament 27^th February 2011 at Kings Park

Full details to follow but please put this date in your diary

5. Content and feedback

We would be delighted to receive (constructive) comments or suggestions about content of this Newsletter. Please email us on newsletter@dbpirates.com.

We would also welcome feedback of any kind about how you feel the Club is running, ideas and suggestions to help the players and supporter get more from and contribute more to the Club etc. Mail us on feedback@dbpirates.com.

We have a great Club, a great spirit so let’s make sure we make this season the best ever on and off the field.

And finally, Kung Hei Fat Choy for the Year of the Rabbit; I hope that for all is it happy, healthy and prosperous.

Many thanks

Phillip Baldwin

Chairman

And remember…take what you can and leave nothing behind. Aaaargh!

Hong Kong Rugby Football Union – Van Design Competition

noreply@blogger.com (Ed Sisterson) — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 13:07:00 +0000

Hong Kong Rugby Football Union – Van Design Competition

Objective: - Develop a “Van Design” that will present and promote the image of rugby

within Hong Kong.

Design

Requirement:

- Can be drawn by hand or computer.

- Must have the HKRFU Logo in the design (if drawn by hand, please draw a

‘square’ to indicate the location of the logo).

- The design should promote the core values of the HKRFU.

o Multi-ethnic community of all ages.

o Dynamic, competitive and enjoyable game that emphasizes fair play,

teamwork, leadership and endeavor.

Submission

Date:

- All designs must be handed on or before 14th Frbruary 2011.

Submission

Procedure:

- Designs can be either posted to the HKRFU office or by email.

Office Address

To: Van Design Competition

Room 2001, Olympic House, 1 Stadium Path, So Kon Po, Causeway Bay

Email

florence.tang@hkrugby.com

Prize: - HK$1,000 bank voucher.

The winner will be announce on 18th February 2011 on the HKRFU website (www.hkrugby.com).

noreply@blogger.com (Ed Sisterson) — Sat, 22 Jan 2011 07:21:00 +0000

Ahoy there Pirates! Welcome to this week’s Newsletter (Friday 21^st January)

Happy New Year everyone, and welcome back to the second half of the season. There are a few important notices in this weeks Newsletter, Sevens Tickets update, Social Kit and Tournament behavior. Please take a minute to read to the end.

IMPORTANT NOTICE - Hong Kong 7s tickets

We have finished working through the ticket allocation process to reflect the (reduced) number of tickets the club has received. Emails will be sent - in the next day - to all those who have been successful in their 7s ticket application(s). Indeed, by the time you read this Newsletter you may already have received your email!

Due to severe restrictions on ticket availability, all the Minis and Colts / Youth clubs have had to juggle with allocations knowing that some members will be disappointed.

For all those who do NOT receive the email confirming tickets, we can only apologies. We share your frustration.

We hope you can find tickets through other sources, the public allocation starts on Saturday 22nd January. We will begin the process of arranging for refunds of fees paid over the next weeks; the Treasurer will contact you individually.

For those who find they no longer need their tickets between now and the time we distribute them - late February or early March we hope - please let the secretary know (secretary@dbpirates.com) and we will attempt to reallocate them. Or you can use the Club's face book sites to 'advertise' your ticket's availability (please remember you CANNOT offer the tickets for sale for more than their face cost).

1. Last Week – Review /Results

Youth

Last weekend U16B suffered their first defeat of the season 40-7 at the hands of HKU. While our lads were clearly stunned by the standard of the opposition in the first quarter they showed remarkable composure to stay in the game and score in the second half.

U14 were unable to play DeA1 on the weekend due to team sickness. We are trying to get this match rescheduled.

Both these teams can lick their wounds and rebuild at midweek and Sunday training. Meanwhile U16A meet Valley Fort1 this coming Sunday at Sandy Bay. Kickoff is at 1615.

Minis

To date Mini’s have played in 5 festivals played 380 matches, won 201, drawn 79 and lost 98, 2 more tournaments plus the HK7’s showcase

Age Group	No of games	wins	draws	Loss
u5 & u6	65	40	12	13
u7	74	39	17	18
u8	61	28	17	16
u9	59	22	12	25
u10 Boys	25	15	6	4
u11 Boys	26	22	1	3
u12 Boys	35	19	4	12
u10 Girls	17	6	7	4
u12 Girls	15	10	2	3

A Separate report on the Tai Po mini’s Tournament will be sent out.

2. Training Times

Minis

Age Group	Head Coach	Registered Numbers	Session 1 Day	Time	Place
u5 & u6	Matt Rappel	46	Sunday	8:30-9:30	Siena Pitch
u7	Courtney Davies	44	Sunday	9:30-10:30	Siena Pitch
u8	Pete Porter	39	Sunday	10:30-11:30	Siena Pitch
u9	Pat Tiller	50	Sunday	11:30-12:30	Siena Pitch
u10 Boys	Ed Sisterson	24	Sunday	12:30-13:30	Siena Pitch
u10 Girls	Steve Kean	10	Sunday	14:30-16:00	Beach
u12 Girls	Tom McDonald	15	Sunday	13:30 - 14:45	Siena Pitch
u11 Boys	Sean Tracey	23	Sunday	10:00 - 12:00	Beach
u12 Boys	Colin Olsen	25	Sunday	09:30 -11:00	Beach

Youth

Youth training times, and games, have been communicated to age groups already

3. Admin

BBQ

Under 7’s are doing the BBQ this week.

Siena Pitch

A reminder to all members that no Dogs are allowed on Siena Pitch.

Drinking at Tournaments

For a number of seasons now, the consumption of alcohol in cups and bottles by some patrons on the playing pitches of King's Park during festivals has been of a growing concern.

The incidents of abuse of match officials and others at festivals has also risen and in some case, excessive alcohol consumption has been the culprit.

To that end, in conjunction with the HKRFU and the HK Mini Committee, a ban on the consumption of alcohol on Pitch One at Kings Park is to be enacted.

This does not mean that alcohol cannot be purchased and consumed at King's Park. It means only that alcohol cannot be taken onto the pitches, the playing area.

To begin with this policy is for Pitch One, but may move to a position where alcohol consumption is banned from all playing surfaces where children are playing rugby. Please make sure that all Discovery Bay Pirates be supportive of this policy.

Social kit

50% of the pre-ordered social kit has been collected so far. All kit has turned up except for the training tops, which are on their way and will be with us by February 25th. Next collection opportunity will be Sunday 23rd January from 9am until 12pm and providing that training is at Siena pitch then collection will be there. Anyone who has pre-ordered kit and does not come and pick up this week then the kit will go back into the central 'pot' for others to buy as interest from others has been high.

4. Upcoming Events

Minis’ Tournaments

Valley Fort Tournament 27^th Feb Kings Park

Full details to follow but please put the date in the diary

5. Content and feedback

We would be delighted to receive (constructive) comments or suggestions about content of this Newsletter. Please email us on newsletter@dbpirates.com.

We would also welcome feedback of any kind about how you feel the club is running, ideas and suggestions to help the players get more from the club etc. Mail us on feedback@dbpirates.com.

We have a great Club, a great spirit so let’s make sure we make this season the best ever on and off the field.

Many thanks

Phillip Baldwin

Chairman

And finally…take what you can and leave nothing behind. Aaaargh!

Tai Po Tournament Report 16th Jan 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Ed Sisterson) — Sat, 22 Jan 2011 04:23:00 +0000

Tai Po Tournament Report 16^th Jan 2011

Played 86 Won 44, Drew 22, lost 20

A cold day for rugby, sickness and an early start meant a number of age groups were shorthanded again and had to play double the normal games. Continued strong showing from the U12 Girls, U10 & U11 Boys and with the U12B bouncing back from disappointment of the FK tournament to go undefeated.

Played 16 Won 10, Drew 4, Lost 2.

The U6s had yet another very successful tournament. We had many players unavailable due illness and fielded a squad of 21 players for 4 teams. This meant that some players had to play up to 9 games in total which is no mean feat for a 5 year old! The groups skills continue to develop well with some players now showing true form. By the last game we only had 9 standing players who belted out an outstanding last ditch effort against Valley Fort.

Once again, the kids enjoyment of rugby is only made possible by the commitment of the parents. True to form our U6 parents were there again cheering on the squad (in the cold) and providing the much needed support when things got tough for the players. The flip side of this coin has our U6s coaches applying maximum effort to ensure the players are enjoying the rugby experience, and for that, a big thanks from me!

Played 16 Won 7, Drew 4, Lost 5.

Played 12 Won 4, Drew 5, Lost 3.

Early morning start and rushing off the buses meant that some of teams spent the 1^st few games, bunching, cutting in front of one another, not maintaining a line and generally forgetting the basics. Thankfully that improved over the course of the morning with good support play, long passes being tried and less running backwards. Tackling and defense was solid with a reduction in off sides and number illegal tackles being made. Special mention to Lachie Fagan who helped another club out who were short of numbers.

Improving players were

Tristan Hollands, Charlie Higgins, Ben Edwards, Lachie Fagan and Taiki Lynn

Played 16 Won 6, Drew 2, Lost 8.

Played some close games of rugby with the luck against us this tournament with 6 of the losses by a single try only.

Try scorers:Toby Jerecka 3, Jayu Patidar 3, Rebecca Lim 2, Harry Fagan 2, Olivier Maclean 2, Owen Howels, Bailey Clements, Kai Lambon, Jack Finch, Gus Ringrose 1
U10 G

Played 3 Won 0, Drew 3, Lost 0.

Scored 2 tries all day (both by Yiliya), only 2 against and one of them by a surprise addition to the FKs who brought on a super-sub

Gold boot to Yilya (she had already won the Black boot). Black boot to Jasmine (second time of winning it)

U10 B

Played 6 Won 3, Drew 3, Lost 0.

A very strong performance from the under 10 boys this week. Every game was very close, but the highlights were a 1-0 win over Football club 1, a 1-1 draw with Sai Kung Stingrays and a 1-1 draw with VF1.The whole squad played very well, with exceptional defence and tackling. A special mention to Lachlan Macpherson as the Tai Po tournament was his last game for DB Pirates. His charging runs, unstoppable drives and all-round happy and positive attitude will be missed by the whole team. Good luck in Australia Lachlan, you will always be welcome to come back and play for the pirates any time.

U11 B

Played 6 Won 5, Drew 0, Lost 1.

U 11’s won 5 out of 6 games with only 16 players for 2 sides, beating FOOTBALL CLUB for the 3^rd tournament straight. It’s the simple pleasures in life! Our DBP 2 side ran out thinking they would beat the greatly improved “MONKEYS” side and learnt a good lesson about attitude and commitment loosing 1 nil.

Hugo Perchard and Tyler Guinea led by example up front in the forwards with solid work in defense and great aggression in attack. Our forwards are starting to play as a pack which is very encouraging. James Rivers is improving every game in his first season at open head prop. Sean Martin is also rapidly improving as a hooker and great attacking runner in open play and around the rucks.

Our inside backs gave great service to the outside pace men at this tournament with consistently strong games by Cameron Tracey at fly half, ran hard and tackled hard all day, and Jack Hickin at scrum half who scored a brilliant winning try in open play against an exhausted foot ball club. Outstanding player of the day was Chris Handcock at fullback who played great running rugby all day long and was involved in several great team tries.

U12 G

Played 3, Won 1, Drew 1 Lost 1

1 win v SKS 2 (3-0), 1 draw v SKS 1 (0-0), 1 loss v HKU 2 (0-1).

While the results were good without being spectacular it was another solid performance from the girls and importantly a number of players stepped up their game considerably. Golden Boot went to Alyssa Weibe for her strong and enthusiastic effort in attack and defence.

U12 B

Played 8, Won 8, Drew 0 Lost 0

U12 Boys – Winners of the Plate (DBP1) and Bowl (DBP2) divisions. Both teams were undefeated on the day winning promotion to the Cup and Plate divisions respectively after a temporary loss of form at the Flying Kukris festival. Close to full strength, the boys played collectively as a team, conceding 1 try and scoring 40 from the 8 games played by both teams. Highlight of the day was comprehensively beating Football Club II in the last game of the day, 8-0 to win the Plate.

DBP1: vs. SSP / THT Won 8-0; vs. DEA2 Won 5-0; vs. VF2 Won 5-0; vs. FC2 Won 8-0

DBP2: vs. HKU2 Won 5-1; vs. MTWR Won 3-0; vs. FK2 Won 4-0; vs. FC3 Won 2-0

noreply@blogger.com (Ed Sisterson) — Sat, 18 Dec 2010 04:24:00 +0000

Ahoy there Pirates! Welcome to this week’s Newsletter (Friday 17^th December)

This will be the last Newsletter until January. We wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

1. Last Week – Review / Results

Youth

U16B who finished the year on a high note with a 22-7 hard-fought win over Kowloon Lions.

Congratulations are also due to the U14 squad who have been promoted to Division 1 as a result of their fine performance in division 2 so far.

The U14 Girls

Continuing their amazing unbeaten run, the U14G 10s team finished the 10s league undefeated and scored 225 points for and 12 against. The team scored 37 tries and only conceded two. They beat their biggest threat, The Flying Kukris, this weekend 40-0 and also took down their second team 67-0 with some fantastic rugby.

They have now been crowned the U14 Youth Girls Hong Kong 10s Champions! Now, on to next year's 7s league...

U16 Girls

The U16 girls played at Aberdeen yesterday and played two great 10s games. The first was against HKU/SB, which, although only a friendly, was a convincing victory for DBP, 30-5.

The second game, which was a league game and was a classic affair against Aberdeen/Valley.

After a tough first half, 0-15, followed by a try immediately after the restart, the girls were 0-20 down.

BANG, the Pirates kick it up a gear and romp home with a 24-20 win.

2. Training Time

Minis

No training as tournament, next training will be 9^th of January, enjoy the break and see you in the New Year

Youth

Training finished for the year last night with a fun BBQ held by Al and Caroline Clery after the session. Training starts again on 4 Jan for U16, and 7 Jan for U14.

3. Admin

BBQ - No BBQ this week as we have a tournament

4. Upcoming Events / Fixtures

Youth

Training finished for the year last night with a fun BBQ held by Al and Caroline Clery after the session. Training starts again on 4 Jan for U16, and 7 Jan for U14.

The first Colts games next year will be U16A meeting DeA1 on 9 Jan, and U16B take on VF2 the same day. U14 - your first game of the New Year will be against Flying Kukris on 16 Jan.

Minis’ Tournaments

The next tournaments are the Flying Kukri’s & Tai Po Dragons

Flying Kukri Mini’s Tournament 19th Dec- Kings Park

Bus times - all depart and return to DBIS. Please arrive 15 mins before departure to allow children to be counted.

On the return trip it’s a 1^st come 1^st served basis bus will leave when full.

U6 7:45 from DBIS, return at 12:30

U7 7:45 from DBIS, return at 12:45

U8 7:45 from DBIS, return at 13:00

U9 11:30 from DBIS, return at 17:15

U10B 11:30 from DBIS, return at 17:15

U10G 12:45 from DBIS, return at 17:15

U11 7:45 from DBIS, No return

U12B 11:30 from DBIS, return at 17:15

U12G 11:30 bus, return at 17:40

Tai Po Dragons Festival 16th Jan – Kings Park

Full details to follow but please put the date in the diary

NYD U12’s Peninsula vs Island Match

The final squad has been agreed for the match. I pleased to announce that the following players have made the cut. Please join me in passing on our congratulations to the boys and my thanks to Tony Karton for providing DBP coaching presence for the team.

James Karton

Jacob Rebbeck

Harrison Campbell

Tin Tin Lo

Harrison McLean

5. Content and feedback

We would be delighted to receive (constructive) comments or suggestions about content of this Newsletter. Please email us on newsletter@dbpirates.com.

We would also welcome feedback of any kind about how you feel the club is running, ideas and suggestions to help the players get more from the club etc. Mail us on feedback@dbpirates.com.

We have a great Club, a great spirit so let’s make sure we make this season the best ever on and off the field.

Many thanks

Phillip Baldwin

Chairman

And finally…take what you can and leave nothing behind. Aaaargh!

noreply@blogger.com (Ed Sisterson) — Fri, 10 Dec 2010 09:26:00 +0000

Ahoy there Pirates! Welcome to this week’s Newsletter (Thursday 9^th December 2010)

As we head towards to the Christmas break, the amount of news to report has (thankfully) slowed down.

We have just passed a landmark as a Club, and now have over 400 registered players. From humble beginnings (23 players) in 2003, our Club has continued to grow in size and stature. It takes a lot of work to make the Club function as smoothly as it does – although we do have a few hiccups from time-to-time – but we ARE moving forwards. Thanks to all those who put in their time and energy; to the parents who drag their players to training and tournaments each week and especially to the players – yes, each and every one of you!

A very important reminder about Sevens Tickets - if you have not paid for the Sevens Tickets you ordered, please make sure you do ASAP! Late payment may affect eventual ticket allocations.

1. Last Week – Results

Youth

Mixed results from last Sunday: U14 Boys soundly beat Valley Fort2 52-nil, while U16A boys went down against HKFC1 35-10.

The U14 Girl's showed their strength again with a good win over HKU/ VF 29-5. The team impressed again with a strong defence (HKU/ VF only scoring during the last minute of the game) and speed/support play on attack. Their scrum was also very impressive, winning a number of tightheads. Player of the day award went to Megan Barnard, with Erin Sang and Eleanor Udall close behind.

U14 Boys - Congratulations to Sjors Laurijsen, Lachlan Oliver-Kerby, Elias Arribas, Austin Robertshaw and Dante Gutu. They have all been selected for the U14 National Training Squad.

Minis

No tournament

2. Training Times

Minis

U5/U6 8:30-9:30 Siena Pitch

U7 9:30-10:45 Siena Pitch

U8 10:45-12:00 Siena Pitch

U9 9:00-10:30 Siena Pitch

U10 boys 10:30-12:00 Siena Pitch

U10 Girls 14:00 – 15:30 Beach

U11 Boys 12:00-13:30 Siena Pitch

U12 Boys 13:30 -15:00 Siena Pitch

Youth

Training as normal this Friday for U14s and on Sunday for U14 and U16A. This will be the LAST training of the year for U14, while the LAST training of the year will be Tues 14 Dec for U16.

Our FIRST training of 2011 will be Tues 4 Jan for U16, and Fri 7 Jan for U14.

Good luck to all the players who attended the gruelling HK Representative trials over the last two weeks.

Please note that the Club will be breaking for Christmas and New Year, so there will be no training on Sunday 26^th December and Sunday 2^nd January. (Unless your age group coach advises otherwise).

3. Admin

BBQ

BBQ will be run by U5/6’s this week.

4. Upcoming Events

Youth Fixture

This Sunday 12 Dec U16B meet Kowloon Lions in the last match of 2010 for the Colts, good luck guys.

The U14 Girls will be playing Flying Kukris, at Tai Po this coming Sunday. The bus leaves from DBIS at 9AM.

Minis’ Tournaments

The next tournaments are hosted by the Flying Kukris & Tai Po Dragons:

Flying Kukri Minis’ Tournament 19th Dec- Kings Park

Full details to follow but please put this date in your diary. Likely tournament start time is 09:00, so the buses will not be as early this time around (hopefully).

Tai Po Dragons Festival 16th Jan – Kings Park

Full details to follow but, again, please put the date in your diary

5. Club Committee

There will be a DB Pirates Committee meeting this coming Monday. Please feed any issues, concerns or questions you would like raised through to your respective chairman or to the secretary@dbpirates.com.

6. Content and feedback

We would be delighted to receive (constructive) comments or suggestions about content of this Newsletter. Please email us on newsletter@dbpirates.com.

We would also welcome feedback of any kind about how you feel the Club is running, ideas and suggestions to help the players get more from the Club etc. Mail us on feedback@dbpirates.com.

As the year draws towards a close, I’m happy to see that the Club has had a fantastic first few months of the season. We still remain one of the dominant forces in Hong Kong Youth and mini rugby and will continue to strive to move forward.

Knowing that some of you will have left for the holiday season by the time the next Newsletter comes out, I would like to take this chance to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a peaceful, prosperous and fabulous New Year. Wherever your Christmas and New Year find you I hope you will be safe and have the chance to get some down time from the hectic pace that is life in Hong Kong!

Many thanks

Phillip Baldwin

Chairman

And finally…take what you can and leave nothing behind. Aaaargh!

noreply@blogger.com (Ed Sisterson) — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 13:51:00 +0000

Ahoy there Pirates! Welcome to this week’s Newsletter (Friday 3^rd December)

Well done to everyone who played in last weeks Sandy Bay Tournament. The results were outstanding and are a very good gauge to how the Club has progressed since September. Only 10 losses from 59 games played is excellent. The Coaches must be doing something right! Well done also to all the Pirates that participated in a grueling Team FEAR race on Sunday. Once again, there were a large number of Pirates collecting the winner’s trophies at the end. Congratulations to everyone who competed.

At the beginning of the season, we promised to keep the Club as informed as possible through the Newsletter, web page and age group coaches. One area that we have lagged in updating members about is what the Committee has been up to so far. Below are a few highlights of what they are focusing on

Committee work update:

Managing the club - We are now the 6^th Mini / Youth club in Hong Kong to have more than 400 players. This takes a huge amount of work, admin, bookkeeping, tournaments and training arrangement, transportation organising and booking etc. To this end we re-organised the Club structure and are continuing in our efforts to improve its governance and administration. It is hoped that these changes will provide the foundation for the long term growth and sustainability of the Club.
Pitch condition – A working group has been set up and is liaising with HKR on both a permanent solution for the current Siena Pitch, as well as a longer-term solution for a full size pitch in DB. Randal Leonard is heading this sub committee. Progress is being made and once we have confirmed news we will inform Club members.
Kit and Casual Wear – Orders are in place for a casual wear range, which is expected to arrive before Christmas. Playing Kit, nearly all outstanding orders should now have been resolved. Apologies to those that had to wait this year.
New training equipment has been purchased, (Tackle Pads, Tackle Shields and balls).
First Aid - With the guidance of Steve Tait, we have upgraded our First Aid equipment and supplies to a much higher standard than previous seasons. The club has also organized and subsidized a first aid course for some of its Coaches to attend.
Sponsorship – To keep the Club going and help it develop, funding and sponsorship is very important. Sponsor promotional packs are nearly finalized, which will allow the Club to market for more sponsors next year and beyond. There is an additional plan to try to generate sponsorship for tours and tournaments as well. Additional fund raising and financing activities are being worked on to enable us to offer more training and higher level coaching for players. We are also looking at how to offer various local benefits to Club members.
Online functionality being built. With the help of Q Solutions and Peter Udall, we have started to upgrade our IT platform and database that supports our web site. This is still very much work in progress, but we expect the changes to be complete by the end of the season. This year we used the registrations and Sevens Ticket applications to test the new structure. Next step is to link it to online payments and to make the website more dynamic and easier to update.
We have starting work on a 'senior club' strategy for next season as we have more Under 18s coming through the Club.

1. Last Week - Review

Results Youth

The second XV match against DEA had to be cancelled due to a lack of players turning up on the day. Please let the coaches know in advance whether or not you can make a match / training. Not to do so is not only rude but causes the Club great embarrassment when we have to cancel matches at such short notice and lets down your teammates who did make the effort.

Minis

HKU Tournament at Sandy bay- DB Pirates sent 15 teams and played 59 games, won 36, drew 13 and lost 10. Limited age groups due to Team Fear event, but another pretty good tournament for the Pirates. Age Group Reports as follows:

U6’s - Under 6s had an exceptional morning of rugby. Only had 22 players to play 16 games, but the players gave it their all and came away only losing 1 game! To give you an indication of their effort when we came to the medal presentation we had to present two players their medals while they were asleep on the grass! Thanks to the parents of the U6s, who once again turned up at 7.15am and supported/represented our club with great enthusiasm. The results: W15 D0 L1

U7’s - Great tournament for the U7's with a number of "career first" tries and rock solid defending. The results: W8 D6 L2

U8’s – Our 1^st tournament with scrums and we came away unscathed, which is a major bonus. We had a mixed tournament, with ratio of running forwards against backwards improving, however we are still bunching and defense is narrow, but tackles being made. Usual suspects of Seb, Ruaidhri, Lief Max & Xabi kept the score ticking over with Adam Scott scoring his 1st try at a tournament. The results: W4 D3 L5

U10(G)- Another tournament with a depleted squad, thanks in part to Team Fear, an outstanding and awesome effort from the five (yes, 5!) Pirates girls who did make it.

An incredibly tough day to call who should win the boots this tournament, everybody deserved more than just the medal.

Gold Boot - Nancy (huge work rate, some great running, good support and running a beautiful angle to score a try in the corner!)

Black Boot - Kate K (getting into the maul, ripping at the ball and disrupting the opposition's getting clean ball, nearly scoring once and then cleaning up a DEA dropped ball in the ruck to score)

The results: W2 D1 L0

U12(B)- Due to losing a number of players to Team Fear, Pirates could only enter one team into the RHL. The boy's had a very successful afternoon, winning all their games and walking away with The Plate trophy. Improving throughout the afternoon, the boys played some very good rugby. Both Forwards and Backs combined well to rack up over ten tries over the four games played. Equally pleasing was the defensive effort - Zero tries conceded. Special mention to Tin Tin Lo, and Harrison Campbell who used the Team Fear event in the morning as a warm up for the afternoons rugby. Also a special mention to Duarte Torres, who was injured in the game against Valley Fort, and was treated in hospital for two broken bones in his foot. Duarte had played a great afternoons rugby and we wish him a speedy recovery and return to The Pirates soon.

The results: W4 D0 L0

2. Training Times- Sunday 5th December

Mini’s

U5/U6 8:30-9:30 Siena Pitch

U7 9:30-10:45 Siena Pitch

U8 10:45-12;00 Siena Pitch

U9 9:00-10:30 Siena Pitch

U10 boys 10:30-12:00 Siena Pitch

U10 Girls 12:30-14:30 DBIS

U11 Boys 12:00-13:30 Siena Pitch

U12 Boys 9:30-11:30 YMCA

U12 Girls 12:30-14:30 DBIS

Please note that the club will be breaking for Christmas and New Years, so there will be no training on Sunday 26^th December and Sunday 2^nd January. (Unless your age group coach advises other wise).

Youth

Youth training times, and games, have been communicated to age groups already

3. Admin

Sevens Tickets - applications now closed and we are in final stages of collating numbers. Club applications submitted to the HKRFU and we expect to hear what our allocations are in late January or early February. Anybody who has not yet paid is encouraged to do so as soon as possible as the Club has to pay the HKRFU for the tickets in advance. Failure to pay on time may affect eventual ticket allocation

BBQ – This week will be run by U8’s this week.

Code of Conduct

Please refresh yourself on the Code of Conduct for Mini Rugby in Hong Kong, Parents & Players (http://www.dbpirates.com/info/laws.htm). Some parents are a little over enthusiastic with the level of support you offer your children and constructive advice offered to the referees.

4. Upcoming Events

Youth Fixtures

This Sunday

U16 A play HKFC2 at Sandy Bay. Kickoff is at 1430, bus departs DBIS at 1245.

U14 also play this Sunday, taking on Valley Fort2 at Sandy Bay. Kickoff is at 1330, bus departs DBIS at 1145.

Looking ahead, U16B play Kowloon Lions at Sandy Bay 12 Dec at 1615.

The first fixture of the New Year is U16B who play Valley Fort2 at Sandy Bay at 1500 on 9 Jan.

Minis’ Tournaments

Flying Kukri Mini’s Tournament 19th Dec- Kings Park

Full details to follow but please put the date in the diary

Tai Po Dragons Festival 16th Jan – Kings Park

Full details to follow but please put the date in the diary

5. Content and feedback

We would be delighted to receive (constructive) comments or suggestions about content of this Newsletter. Please email us on newsletter@dbpirates.com.

We would also welcome feedback of any kind about how you feel the club is running, ideas and suggestions to help the players get more from the club etc. Mail us on feedback@dbpirates.com.

We have a great Club, a great spirit so let’s make sure we make this season the best ever on and off the field.

Many thanks

Phillip Baldwin

Chairman

And finally…take what you can and leave nothing behind. Aaaargh!

26/11/2010

noreply@blogger.com (Ed Sisterson) — Sat, 27 Nov 2010 05:29:00 +0000

Ahoy there Pirates!

Welcome to this week’s Newsletter (26th November 2010)

In true Pirate fashion, the festive season kicked off in style, at our ZAKS Christmas Party last Friday. With just over 150 people attending, it was our biggest Christmas party so far. Thank you to every one involved, especially Neil Prosser and his social committee for organizing the event. A special mention to ZAKS for making sure everyone was well fed, and always had a full glass in hand! Thanks to ZAKS, every dollar raised on Friday went directly to the Club.

1. Last Week - results
Youth - U16A lost to HKFC 24-12 during a hard fought game at Happy Valley
No Results as training last week.

2. Training Times
No training this week due to Team Fear and Sandy Bay (HKU) tournament.

3. Youth
Youth training times, and games, have been communicated to age groups already

4. Admin
BBQ - No BBQ this week.

Litter / Lost property
Another reminder to all parents and players. The litter left at Siena pitch last Sunday, especially behind the wall people sit on was a poor reflection on the Pirates. Please make sure all litter is either put in the bins by the gate or taken home. We appreciate your cooperation.

Pitch update
Minis successfully trained on the Sienna pitch and the Committee will look at how best to arrange the training for the 5th Dec.

Code of Conduct
Please refresh yourself on the Code of Conduct for Youth and Mini Rugby in Hong Kong, Parents & Players (http://www.dbpirates.com/info/laws.htm). There were some reports of inappropriate behaviour from coaches, players and parents at the DEA tournament although nothing specific leveled at the Pirates. Nevertheless, it is important to understand all of our responsibilities as representatives of the Club.

5. Upcoming Events
Youth fixtures
Sunday 28th Nov - U16B meet DeA2 at Tai Hang Tung. U16A standby to help out with the numbers on this one!

Congratulations to the U16 players who have been nominated to attend trials for the U16 national squad. We are proud of any of our players who are nominated for regional or national trials - even being nominated is an honour. For some this is not their first nomination, and they do the Club proud!
This year the Pirates have seven players nominated for trials: Matt O’Shaunessy, Aaron Lum, Angus Prosser, Chris Shipman, Kale Hyde, Chris Grasic and Tom Borrelli. We wish them all the best of luck.
Minis’ Tournaments

The next tournaments are HKU the Flying Kukri’s
HKU Minis’ Tournament 28th Nov – Sandy Bay
Bus times - all depart and return to DBIS. Please arrive 15 mins before departure to allow children to be counted.

U6 7:30 depart, return 1pm

U7 11:45am depart, return 5pm

U8 7:30 depart, return 1pm

U9 7:30 depart, return 1:30pm

U10G 11:45am depart, return 4pm

U12 12:30pm depart, return 5pm

Flying Kukri Minis’ Tournament 19th Dec- Kings Parks -
(Full details to follow but please put the date in the diary)

NYD U12’s Peninsula vs Island Match
From the original 45 nominated U12 Peninsula players the squad has now been cut to 30. This number will be further cut to the final squad of 23 players in mid December. Following a review of all the players over the last three weeks, the U12 Peninsula coaches have selected the following players from

DBP to attend further squad training:
James Karton, Jeremy Wardle, Jacob Rebbeck, Harrison Campbell, Tin Tin Lo, and Harrison McLean.
On behalf of the coaches and DB Pirates congratulations to each of the player. We wish them all the best of luck - our fingers are crossed for their final selection.

Hong Kong 7’s
Unfortunately due to an increase in Mini rugby players and no increase in playing time the HKMRFU have taken the decision to not invite the U6’s to participate in the show case on the Friday. They are still invited to the March past on Sunday however. DB Pirates voted against this proposal, in favour of a reduced but selected number of teams across all age groups.

6. Content and feedback
We would be delighted to receive (constructive) comments or suggestions about content of this Newsletter. Please email us on newsletter@dbpirates.com.
We would also welcome feedback of any kind about how you feel the club is running, ideas and suggestions to help the players get more from the club etc. Mail us on feedback@dbpirates.com.
We have a great Club, a great spirit so let’s make sure we make this season the best ever on and off the field.

Many thanks

Phillip Baldwin
Chairman
And finally…in Pirate honoured tradition, take what you can and leave nothing behind ..... Aaaarah!

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Kean) — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 12:52:00 +0000

Ahoy there Pirates!
Welcome to this week’s Newsletter (Wednesday 17th November 2010)

Only 1 day to go!!!
The Pirates Xmas party is almost upon us so please help the Club and buy your tickets now (email social@dbpirates.com to reserve your ticket). This is our major fund raising event of the year and I would like to see as many of you as possible upstairs at Zaks this Friday. It’s a great evening so cancel whatever you were planning to do and come and support your Club – you can even buy tickets in the plaza (close to Uncle Russ) this Thursday evening between 6-7PM! Full details in section 5 below.
It’s also a great opportunity to catch up with parents and coaches, so book your tickets now!

Sevens Tickets!!
I would strongly suggest you also click this link and get your ticket applications in quickly, don't get trampled in the rush.

And please make sure you pay at the same time!!!

http://news.qinteractive.hk.com/dbpirates/DBpirates_7stickets2.htm

(If you don’t receive the confirmation email, please check your junk file – any questions, please email secretary@dbpirates.com)

1. Last Week - Results

Youth
U14 Girls - The U14 Girls started their HK 10's league competition with two impressive wins over DeA 33-0 and Sai Kung 36-7 at Tai Hang Tung this weekend. The team dominated possession in both games and displayed a complete team performance in both attack and defense with strong running with ball in hand and aggressive tackling. In the next round they face both of the Flying Kukri's teams, potentially their biggest rivals this season.

U16 Girls -The U16’s turned on three great performances – the first half against the Flying Kukris, unfortunately they ran out of steam in the second half and finished on the wrong side of a 5-22 score line.

The second two performances were in the first and second halves of the HKFC match. Unfortunately Aileen had taken a knock during the Kukris match so had to sit this one out. Snowy stepped up to the scrum half position and the girls were evidently fired up from the start. Octavia scored two tries, with Marie also touching down. Eliza made one conversion for a 17-0 win. Excellent support play, great rucking (we never lost our own ball and turned over quite a few), and fantastic defence work to deny HKFC a score. The fact that they maintained intensity throughout the match was a huge factor in the win. If the U16s play with similar intensity and move the ball faster, there isn’t a team we can’t beat.

U19 Girls - The combined HKFC / DBP U19's team won against the Flying Kukri's and lost against the top team this year, DeA.

U14 / U16 Boys - Last week U14 and U16B took down the Stingrays in a hard-fought back-to-back derby at Sai Kung Stadium. U14 won by 38-7, and U16B were victorious 58-19. Even better than the score lines though were the examples of individual performances that were the best seen so far this season. Keep it up!

Minis

Tigerfest Tournament- DB Pirates sent 22 teams and played 84 games, won 46, drew 18 and lost 20. An extremely successful tournament special mention to the following age groups as below:

U6’s – Won some, lost some and had fun and managed to generally run in the right direction.

U8’s – Had fun, importantly the players are really starting to think “rugby” by running forward and passing into space and supporting the player with the ball, scrums next.

U10’s Boys- Played 6. Won 5 draw 1, 19 tries for, 2 against. 4 very happy coaches. A Special mention to Lachlan Macpherson as it was his last Tournament with the DB Pirates before relocating back to Australia. Your powerful runs and crunching tackles will be missed!

U10’s Girls - 2nd Tournament together and real progress made against some well drilled Teams. Black Boot - Yiliya. Golden Boot - Flo.

U11 Boys – Real Teamwork won the day, winning 6 out of 6. Again 19 players covered for 6 MIA’s to field 2 full strength sides. Special thanks to Tiarnan Neville and Harry Haines who helped out from the U10s for a game.

U12 Boys – DBP1 stayed up in Cup competition, DBP2 stayed up in Plate competition. Both teams played with courage and determination, each game was competitive and physical. The victories in each of their final matches, was deserved and reward for the day’s efforts where earlier results could have gone our way in both divisions. Parents and coaches, proud of their efforts.

U12Girls - The U12s performance at the DeA TigerFest on Sunday was excellent, beating Sandy Bay and Sai Kung II and losing a tough game to Sai Kung I. Some superb rugby, with strong rucks and hard tackles and some great runs.

2. Training Times

Pitch update - still working to try and find the best space for DBP but the training times will be disrupted while this takes place. Please note the below changes for this week.

Mini

Age groups from U5/U6 toU10B, and U10G and U12Girls are training at Siena pitch this Sunday. U11 and U12B will train at YMCA

U5/U6 8:30 - 9:30
U7 9:30 - 10:45
U8 10:45 - 12:00
U9 12:00 - 13:30
U10B 13:30 - 15:00
U10G 14:30 - 16:00
U12G 14:30 - 16:00

(Coaches will advise you of bus times)
U12B 9:30 - 11:30
U11B 11:30 - 13:30

Youth

This Sunday U16A meet the old enemy HKFC1 at Happy Valley. Kickoff is at 1100; bus departs DBIS at 0930.

Sunday training is on as usual for U14 and U16B. You will be sharing the pitch with U12 so there will be no space for parents to accompany us to Tung Chung this time - sorry.

3. Admin

BBQ
U9’s will help run the BBQ this week.

Schools
Discovery College are looking to start rugby. (For players that go to DC). They are having a coaching clinic on Thursday 25th November for Year 4-10 students. At Tung Chung, 4-6pm. Please contact Andy Munn from DC andy.munn@discovery.edu.hk. They are also looking for coaches to help out.

4. Upcoming Events

Social

DB Pirates Christmas Party - ZAKS Friday November 19th 2010$500 ($550 on the night) entry upstairs at ZAKS and includes all Wine, Beer, Soft Drinks and Zaks famous Finger Food for 4 hours.
8pm till midnight (cash bar available after that for the brave)
Proceeds go straight to the club! Thanks very much to ZAKS for their generous support.
Tickets on sale in the plaza near Uncle Russ this Thursday 6-7pm.
Cash or cheque to 'Discovery Bay Mini Rugby Club'.
Enquiries or if you can't buy Thursday night, please contact social@dbpirates.com

Many thanks and see you at Zaks Friday night!

Minis’ Tournaments

The next tournaments are HKU and the Flying Kukris

HKU Minis’ Tournament 28th Nov – Sandy Bay
Draft schedule
Morning 08:30 start time for U6, U8, U9, and U11. Finish around 12:30. Afternoon 13:00 start times for U7, U10, U12 and U10G and U12G. Finish around 17:30. – Due to a clash with Team fear, please check with your coach if your age group will be entering a team or not.

Flying Kukri Minis’ Tournament 19th Dec- King’s Park

Full details to follow but please put the date in the diary

5. Content and feedback

We would be delighted to receive (constructive) comments or suggestions about content of this Newsletter. Please email us on newsletter@dbpirates.com.

We would also welcome feedback of any kind about how you feel the club is running, ideas and suggestions to help the players get more from the club etc. Mail us on feedback@dbpirates.com.

This season is already shaping up to be another great one. Let’s keep the much envied Club spirit strong, train hard and play hard (that includes those parents coming to the XMAS party!)

Many thanks

Phillip Baldwin
Chairman

And finally…take what you can and leave nothing behind. Aaaargh!

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Kean) — Wed, 10 Nov 2010 07:26:00 +0000

Ahoy there Pirates!
Welcome to this week’s Newsletter (Wednesday 10th November 2010)

It was a slightly damp weekend but good fun. A good Pirate turn out at Picnic in the Park, but no flag (washed away perhaps?). Unfortunately the rain didn’t do any favours to the pitch which was unplayable Sunday morning. A massive thank you to the Minis for accommodating the last minute change of training venue to the beach on Sunday. The state of the pitch is something that the Committee is reviewing together with HKR. We’ll work out the best plan going forward (both short and long term) and keep you updated on progress. In the mean time, we may need to be a little flexible on training venues if the condition of the pitch continues to deteriorate. Safety of our players is our primary concern. The good news is that the safety barriers have arrived and will be deployed around the pitch which will allay some concerns regarding the walls surrounding the pitch.

1) Results

Youth
Colts U14 boys – First loss to Flying Kukris. Despite winning the second half three converted tries (two from Austin Robertshaw, one from Zak Baldwin and three great conversations from Dante Gutu) to two, the U14 boys suffered their first (and hopefully only) loss of the season going down 47-21 to Flying Kukris.

Mini
U6 won the sandcastle competition on the beach this Sunday!

2) This week's Fixtures

Youth
The girls' U14 and U16 teams will be starting their Super Sunday league matches at Tai Hang Tung this weekend. Good luck.

vs. DeA, 9:16 kick-off
vs. SKS, 10:48 kick-off

Bus departure time DBIS - 8:00am
Pick-up from Tai Hang Tung - 14:00pm

No training on Sunday for U16As because too many of the players are unavailable. U16Bs may select from the available U16A players.

Mini
DEA Minis’ Tournament 14th Nov – Kings Park

All buses will depart from DBIS.
Buses Return Pick-up from same drop off point on Wylie Road in Kowloon and as soon as a bus is full, it will leave.

U6s – 3 teams; Bus departs 07:15 games start at 08:42. Last game 11:54. Return bus departs 13:00
U7s – 4 teams; Bus departs 07:15 games start at 08:30. Last game 12:18. Return bus departs 13:00
U8s – 3 teams; Bus departs 07:15 games start at 08:30. Last game 11:54. Return bus departs 13:00
U9s – 4 teams; Bus departs 11:30 games start at 13:00. Last game 16:46. Return bus departs 17:30
U10s – 2 teams; Bus departs 12:00 games start at 13:30. Last game 16:45. Return bus departs 17:30
U11s – 2 teams; Bus departs 07:30 games start at 08:45. Last game 12:30. Return bus departs 13:30
U12s – 2 teams; Bus departs 12:00 games start at 13:36. Last game 17:24. Return bus departs 17:30

Girls
U10 Girls – 1 team; Bus departs 11:30 games start at 13:00. Last game 15:00. Return bus departs 15:30
U12 Girls – 1 team; Bus departs 09:45 games start at 11:00. Last game 12:30. Return bus departs 13:30

Full program details will be passed on if required by the head coaches.

3) Training Times

Youth

Youth training times, and games, have been communicated to age groups already

4) Administration

2011 Hong Kong Sevens tickets. We will soon post information about the ticket application process on the Club’s web site. Points to note.
- Applications for Pirates’ members will be only be via an online process this year.
- 1 Ticket per registered player / 2 adult’s tickets per family.
- Deadline for application will be 5pm Friday 26th November
The rest of the details will be on the web page

No BBQ this week

5) Upcoming Events

Social
ZAKS Friday November 19th. (Parents)This is an excellent opportunity to support your club and have a great night at the same time. This is the major fund raising event of the year for the Club so please support it.
Tickets cost $500 for entry upstairs at ZAKS and this includes all wine, beer, soft drinks and finger food.
It kicks off at 8pm and goes until midnight (cash bar available after that for the brave ones). All proceeds go straight to the Club! Thanks to ZAKS for their generous support.Purchase your tickets on the festival buses this Sunday. REMEMBER TO BRING CASH or a cheque payable to 'Discovery Bay Mini Rugby Club'.Colts parents can purchase tickets this Sunday at training/games. If unable to attend, contact social@dbpirates.com to arrange your tickets.

Mini Tournaments

HKU Minis’ Tournament 28th Nov – Sandy Bay
We will have limited Contact age groups participating due to Team Fear clash, schedule TBC.

Flying Kukri Mini’s Tournament 19th Dec - King's Park

Full details to follow but please put the date in the diary

6. Content and feedback

We would be delighted to receive (constructive) comments or suggestions about content of this Newsletter. Please email us on newsletter@dbpirates.com.

We would also welcome feedback of any kind about how you feel the club is running, ideas and suggestions to help the players get more from the club etc. Mail us on feedback@dbpirates.com.

We have a great Club, a great spirit so let’s make sure we make this season the best ever on and off the field.

Many thanks
Phillip Baldwin
Chairman

And finally…take what you can and leave nothing behind. Aaaargh!

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Kean) — Thu, 04 Nov 2010 14:36:00 +0000

Ahoy there Pirates! Welcome to this week’s Newsletter (Thursday 4th November 2010)

1. Last Week – Review

Thank you to all players and parents for surviving a crazy weekend of Rugby. A new World Record of 2,854 Mini rugby players, playing in one tournament was set on the Saturday Morning. Australia and New Zealand put on a fantastic display of running rugby Saturday afternoon at the Bledisloe cup. Then the Pirates hosted a very successful tournament against the touring teams of Tanglins from Singapore and the Dogs from KL on Sunday. A BIG thank you to every one involved. This week should be a little quieter!

2. Results

Youth
Last week U16A suffered their first defeat of the season losing 27-12 to Flying Kukris. The coaches and supporters have commented on the team's composure in the face of trying circumstances, so well done guys. It is often how you cope with adversity that you can discover the true character of a team.

The younger U14s combined on Saturday with Sai Kung Stingrays in taking on the touring Tanglin RFC U13 team from Singapore. While the Hong Kong side was defeated, the Pirates can be proud that all their points came through Dante Gutu (maybe the All Blacks should have put Dante on the field instead of Steven Donald...)

Minis
Guinness World Record 30th October - HKFC
It's officially a World Record! Saturday’s GWR Mini's Rugby Tournament set a new record of 2,854 Mini's Rugby Players in a Tournament. DB Pirates sent over 200 children in 22 teams and played 70 games, won 39, drew 12 and lost 19.

Special mention to;
U6s- for some of them their 1st tournament ever and no one got lost, what a start.
U9s – Playing their 1st full contact rugby tournament, their defence held up very well. Only losing 4 or the 12 games played.
U10 Girls - played with great heart, showed some great skills with new players gelling well as a team, a promising start to the season
U11 Boys who managed to cover 2 teams worth of games with only 15 players.
U12 Boys – Richard Hawkes League – DBP 1 are now in the Cup competition losing a hard fought semi final to Club, with DBP 2 now in the Plate, losing only one of their pool games to eventual winners, Tanglins from Singapore.
U12 Girls - Maya Jordan earned the "Golden Boot" award for her tireless work in defence, smashing runs in attack and 4 tries. The U12 Girls just missed out on the final by 2 points to the eventual winners.

DB Pirates Post-Bledisloe Tournament 31st Oct - Siena Pitch
Our first ever tournament at the Sienna pitch was a huge success. Some very hard rugby was played by the U8, U10, U11, U12, against the “Dogs” from KL (a.k.a. Royal Sengalor Club), Tanglins from Singapore and mixed Barbar sides that included players from Macau. The pitch just about held up and we even managed a Coaches Touch game, which was refereed by the iron whistle of Steve ‘The Merv’ Kean. The visiting sides helped us boost the coffers of the club by eating every hotdog on sale and trying to drink Wellcome dry. A massive thank you to all involved in the set up and running during the day and a special mention to our First Aid Supremo Steve Tait for his hard work and expertise, hugely appreciated. Tours to Singapore and KL are being seriously considered.

3. Training Times - this Sunday

Youth
This weekend U16s train as usual at YMCA Tung Chung, while U14s will avenge U16A when they meet Flying Kukris at Tai Hang Tung on Sunday. Kickoff is at 1500, and the bus will depart DBIS at 1330.

The U14 and U16 Girls will have training as normal at YMCA – please let your coaches know if you cannot make it.

Minis - all at Siena pitch

Age Group Head Coach Session 1 time
u5 & u6 Matt Rappel 8:30 - 9:30
u7 Courtney Davies 9:30 - 10:45
u8 Pete Porter 9:30 - 10:45
U9 & U10 Girls Pat Tiller 10:45 - 12:15
u10 Boys Ed Sisterson 10:45 - 12:15
Coaches Touch 12:15 - 12:55
u11 Boys Sean Tracey 13:00 - 14:30
u12 Boys Colin Olsen 13:00 - 14:30
u12 Girls Tom McDonald 14:30 - 16:00

4. Administration

BBQ
A huge thanks to the team of volunteers who worked so hard with last Sunday's BBQ. It was enormously successful with numerous runs back to Wellcome required for extra supplies!!Fantastic job providing valuable income for the club!
This week it is the under 9 parents to have a turn at the BBQ. Contact kimwhiley@tamcoholdings.com Thanks!

5. Upcoming Events

Minis’ Tournaments

Three more Tournaments between now and Christmas.

DEA Minis’ Tournament 14th Nov – Kings Park

Rough schedule of events
9am start U6, U7, U8, U11
12am start U10G & U12 G
1.30pm start U9, U10, U12

More details to follow

HKU Minis’ Tournament 28th Nov – Sandy Bay

Full details to be confirmed; unfortunately this clashes with Team Fear and we have been unable to change the date of either event. Therefore we are confirming Age group participation, the clash will only affect U9, U10, U11 & U12 (contact) age groups.

Flying Kukri Minis’ Tournament 19th Dec- Kings Park

Full details to follow but please put the date in the Diary

U12 Peninsula Squad for New Year’s Day

U12 Peninsula Trials and Training will now start this Friday the 5th, for those selected please be at Kings Park at 1745 for a 1800 start. Any questions please contact Tony Karton.

Social Events

ZAKS Friday November 19th.This is an excellent opportunity to support your club and have a great night at the same time.Tickets are $500 ($550 on the night). This gets you in upstairs at ZAKS and includes all Wine, Beer, Soft Drinks and Finger Food for 4 hours. 8pm till midnight (cash bar available after that for the brave ones)All proceeds go straight to the club! Thanks very much to ZAKS for their generous support.Tickets will be on sale at the pitch this Sunday. Please look for the flyers and the volunteers with the tickets.Pay cash or cheque to 'Discovery Bay Mini Rugby Club'.Colts parents and other enquiries please contact social@dbpirates.com

Picnic in The Park – This Saturday
DB is getting ready to rock at picnic in the park this Saturday down in Siena Park from 11am - 9pm. Come in Pirate gear and let’s make a splash – look for the flag!
With 10 hours of live music, a bigger kid’s zone than ever before, cold beer for dads, wine stalls and 30 retailers for mum there is really something for everyone.
Lots of Pirate kids, coaches, organisers and referees are involved singing and dancing - so we want to support them!!
Organisers are required to assist with a couple of events next year e.g. quiz nights/fund-raisers and the Pirate Ball. We have had a few suggestions / volunteers so please contact social@dbpirates.com if you are able to offer expertise / help in these areas. Many thanks.

OrganisersAre required to assist with a couple of events next year i.e. quiz night/fund-raiser and Ball. We have had a few suggestions so please contact social@dbpirates.com if you are able to offer expertise in these areas. Thx.

6. Content and feedback

We would be delighted to receive (constructive) comments or suggestions about the content of this Newsletter. Please email us on newsletter@dbpirates.com.

We would also welcome feedback of any kind about how you feel the Club is running, ideas and suggestions to help the players get more from the Club etc. Mail us on feedback@dbpirates.com.

We have a great Club, a great spirit so let’s make sure we make this season the best ever on and off the field.

Many thanks

Phillip Baldwin
Chairman

And finally…take what you can and leave nothing behind. Aaarggh!

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Kean) — Thu, 28 Oct 2010 01:46:00 +0000

Ahoy there Pirates!
Welcome to this week’s Newsletter (Thursday 28th October 2010)

1. Last Week - Review

Results - Youth

U16A - defeated Valley Fort 1 24-7. Fantastic effort by all players.

U16A have continued their unbeaten streak by taking down Valley Fort1 24-7 at Sandy Bay last Sunday. Let's hope your great start to the season continues when you meet Flying Kukris at Sandy Bay this Sunday 31 Oct.

Results - Minis

On 17 October 42 intrepid tourists from the Pirates U12s (Boys) set off across the Pearl River Delta, to play the Macau Rugby Club Minis (the Bats) U12s.

The tour party, which included both players and their parents took on the Macau boys at the Taipa Sports field. On the field the Pirates U12s faced up to a strong Macau team, which included a number of boys who were two years their senior.

At the same time, their parents were (in time honoured Pirates tradition) bravely meeting the challenges and hardships of Macau, including free - flow cold beer, jug' of Sangria and Portuguese food.

After a hard fought hour’s rugby, the Pirates came away with the honours, downing the Macau boys by 7 tries to 5, in a very physical encounter that hopefully sets the side up well for the challenges of The Richard Hawkes Cup.

A great day was enjoyed by both parents and players alike, and we look forward to return visits in the future.

Many thanks to Luis Heredia and Oscar Souza Marques and the boys of The Macau Rugby Club, for hosting a great day!

2. Training / Game Times

Minis

No Minis Training this week at Siena

Youth

The Bledisloe Cup is not the only international this weekend.

Our 1998-born U14s will combine with the Sai Kung Stingrays on Saturday to take on the Tanglin RFC (Singapore) team.

Bus departs DBIS at 1215 and returns at 1500.

Under 16A play at Flying Kukris at Sandy Bay this Sunday.

Kickoff is at 1615; bus leaves DBIS at 1445 and returns at 1730.

Girls’ training times, and games, have been communicated to age groups already

3. Admin

BBQ
This week’s BBQ will be run by the age groups represented at Pirates Rugby Club - Bledisloe Cup Mini Tournament.

Litter / Lost property
Many thanks to those of you who were at the Siena pitch this week, we finished the day without having to clear any litter or lost property (other than some Under10s kit!)

Please continue to help keep the pitches clean.

4. Upcoming Events

Guinness World Record 30th October - HKFC
Time 09:00 to 14:30

We have 237 Mini Rugby players in 22 Teams attending this event

Bus times

Age Group No of teams Game Start Time Depart Bus requirement
U12 2 9:00 7:30 1 x 61 seat bus
U12G 1 9:36 7:30 1 x 61 seat bus
U6 3 10:48 8:00 1 x 61 seat bus
U7 4 10:24 8:00 2 x 61 seat bus
U10(B&G) 3 10:12 8:30 1 x 61 seat bus
U8 3 10:12 8:30 1 x 61 seat bus
1x 56 Seater
U9 4 10:36 9:00 1 x 61 Seat bus
1 x 51 Seat Bus
U11 2 10:48 9:00 1 x 61 seat bus

Bus Pick up from 14:45 from Wong Nai Chung Rd Entrance /exit

Bledisloe Cup

A reminder – if you need one – game starts at 4.30pm on Saturday 30th October. Both teams’ coaches are talking this game up in preparation for their Northern Hemisphere tours, so it could be a great game!

DB Pirates Post-Bledisloe Tournament 31st Oct - Sienna Pitch
Time 09:00 to 14:00

The finalized start / end times for year groups are:

1999/2000 Start: 9am Finish: 11:30am
2001/2003 Start: 11:30am Finish: 1pm
Short presentation that should finish before 1:30pm

Reminder that the Pirates are hosting visiting teams in what will be a busy morning of rugby. Whether your player is on the park or not, this will be a great chance to see the Pirates teams in action – the more supporters we can get at Siena to cheer all the players on and to demonstrate the spirit of Pirate rugby, the better the morning will be.

Minis’ Tournaments

The Minis Tournaments are almost upon us with four during the next two months! So please make sure your player (s) get to training.

DEA Minis’ Tournament 14th Nov – Kings Park
Full details to be confirmed but put the date in your diary

HKU Minis’ Tournament 28th Nov – Sandy Bay
Full details to be confirmed but unfortunately this clashes with Team Fear and we have been unable to remove the clash. Therefore we are confirming Age group participation, this clash will only effect U9, U10, U11 & U12 (the contact age groups).

ZAKS Xmas Party - Save the date

Our annual Xmas party at ZAKS is approachingDate: Friday November 19thDrinks included: All beer, wine, soft drinks,Food: CanapesWhen: 8pm till Midnight Cost: $500pp ($550 on the night)

www.dbpirates.com/xmas.pdf
Tickets: On sale soon. (contact: u16neil@gmail.com)

Note: ALL the proceeds from this event go straight to the club.
The evening is fully sponsored by ZAKS and is one our best opportunities to raise much needed cash for our club (to keep the annual fees down and buy equipment)
Your support is needed and appreciated.

U12 Peninsula Squad for New Year’s Day
Selection and training for the New Year’s Day match is due to start 22 Oct,
The U12 Coaches (Girls and Boys) will be in contact with you on the detail but this is a great opportunity for children to challenge themselves against the Island team. DB Pirates have traditionally had a strong presence in this team.

5. Content and feedback

We would be delighted to receive (constructive) comments or suggestions about content of this Newsletter. Please email us on newsletter@dbpirates.com.

We would also welcome feedback of any kind about how you feel the club is running, ideas and suggestions to help the players get more from the club etc. Mail us on feedback@dbpirates.com.

We have a great Club, a great spirit so let’s make sure we make this season the best ever on and off the field.

Many thanks

Phillip Baldwin
Chairman

And finally…take what you can and leave nothing behind. Aaaargh!

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Kean) — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 00:58:00 +0000

Ahoy there Pirates!
Welcome to this week’s Newsletter (20th October 2010)

In this issue:
1. Last Week - review
- Christian Cullen coaching the Pirates
- Results
2. Conduct
3. Training Times
4. Admin
- Golf Kart Parking
- Lost Property
- BBQ
- Litter
5. Upcoming Events
- GWR Tournament – 30th October
- Bledisloe Cup - Tickets
- DB Pirates Post-Bledisloe Tournament
- Minis’ Tournaments
- ZAKS Xmas Party
- Under 12 Peninsula Squad – New Year's Day Tournament
- HK Sevens
6. Content and feedback

Lots of housekeeping in this week’s newsletter but first…

1. Last Week - Review

Christian Cullen Coaches the Pirates!

On Wednesday 13 October 2010, legendary former All Black Christian Cullen visited DB and coached the U11-U16 age groups. Despite the short notice, we had a good Pirate turnout and three lucky Pirates won signed shirts for answering questions correctly about his distinguished career.

After a brief Q&A session, Christian started with the U11/12s and then worked his way through the age groups to the U16. It was great to have such a star player helping the players and I am sure neither they nor the coaches will forget it soon. Photographs will be on the website (facebook) soon.

Many thanks to Rob Walters and Steve Niven for arranging the visit.

Results

Another winning week. The U14 colts started their season in style by beating DeA2 36-10, including 4 tries from Austin Robertshaw, who was joint player of the match along with Jack McDonald. The U16B convincingly beat Aberdeen 31-7.

Next week the U16A play Valley Fort1 at Sandy Bay – Kick off at 4.15pm.

2. Conduct

All players, coaches and parents are reminded that as members of the Club we must conduct ourselves in a manner that presents a positive image at all times.

A code of conduct is on the website (www.dbpirates.com/info/laws.htm)

It is particularly important that all those who represent the Club set a tone for the Pirates that we can all be proud of. This will then carry forward into the behaviours demonstrated at national level when our players show players from other clubs what it means to be, and behave like, a rugby player.

I would also ask parents to make sure that their children remember to treat coaches with respect – we’re all volunteers.

3. Training Times

Minis Training Times for this week at Siena

Age Group Time
u14 Boys 8:00 - 9:30
u5 & u6 8:30 - 9:30
u7 9:30 - 10:45
u8 9:30 - 10:45
u9 10:45 - 12:15
COACHES TOUCH 12:15 - 12:55
u10 Boys 13:00 - 14:30
u11 Boys 13:00 - 14:30
u12 Boys AWAY
u10 Girls 14:30 - 16:00
u12 Girls 14:30 - 16:00

TYPHOON WARNING: Training this week may be affected as Typhoon Megi heads closer to Hong Kong. Your coaches will keep you informed of any changes to training – we expect to train unless the T8 / T10 signal is raised / expected.

Youth

Youth training times, and games, have been communicated to age groups already

4. Admin

Golf Cart parking

So as not to attract too much attention from the Fun Police, please can all Golf Cart drivers park their golf carts in the car park, once they have dropped of at Siena Pitch.

Lost Property

Lost Property (especially water bottles and mouth guards) will be kept in box next to the BBQ on Sundays. All items will be kept for 2 weeks and then discarded.

BBQ

This week’s BBQ will be run by the Under 9s’ parents.

Litter

Please make sure you leave the training pitches we use cleaner than when we arrived. Just because a piece of litter wasn’t left by you doesn’t mean you should leave it on the field for someone else to pick up.

Please help keep the pitches clean.

5. Upcoming Events

Guinness World Record 30th October - HKFC

Time 09:00 to 14:30

DB Pirates have 22 teams registered to play from U5/U6 to U12 and for some players this will be their 1st experience of Tournament Rugby. HSBC has kindly agreed to print NAMED participation certificates for all players in the tournament. These named certificates can later be used as proof if the player wishes to order an official personalised Guinness World Records (GWR) certificate from the GWR website (GBP 15 per certificate ex shipping costs).

Buses will be provided to and from the venue

Draft Timings

09:00 U12B start games
10:00 Opening ceremony on HKFC Main Pitch
13:30 Last game finishes
13:45 Winners/Prize ceremony
14:05 Parade – line up on HKFC main pitch and then move to Giant screen on the Racecourse where children can be picked up by parents.
14:25 Photos
14:30 Finish

Finalised timings to be supplied on the website and by the coaches nearer the time

Bledisloe Cup - Tickets

We now have the tickets for the Bledisloe Cup game on 30th October. If you have not yet received an email update about how these tickets will be distributed, please contact either the club secretary (secretary@dbpirates.com) or the social team (social@dbpirates.com)

DB Pirates Post-Bledisloe Tournament 31st Oct - Sienna Pitch

Time 09:00 to 14:00

DB pirates are hosting teams from Malaysia, Singapore and Macau at U8, U10, U11 & U12 age groups, because of our facilities this will be limited to 1 or 2 teams per age group but that is 28 games planned.

This is our 1st event on Sienna pitch so local support most welcome.

Minis’ Tournaments

The Minis Tournaments are almost upon us with four during the next two months! So please get to training.

DEA Minis’ Tournament 14th Nov – Kings Park

Full details to be confirmed but put the date in your diary

HKU Minis’ Tournament 28th Nov – Sandy Bay

Full details to be confirmed but unfortunately this clashes with Team Fear and we have been unable to remove the clash. Therefore we are confirming Age group participation, this clash will only effect U9, U10, U11 & U12 (the contact age groups).

ZAKS Xmas Party - Save the date

DB Pirates Christmas Party at Zaks 19th November – More details to follow.

U12 Peninsula Squad for New Year’s Day

Selection and training for the New Year’s Day match is due to start 22 Oct,
The U12 Coaches (Girls and Boys) will be in contact with you on the detail but this is a great opportunity for children to challenge themselves against the Island team. DB Pirates have traditionally had a strong presence in this team.

HK Sevens

Confusing as it is that it comes around at the same time as the Bledisloe Cup ticketing (!), we have to kick off the process of applications for tickets for the HK Sevens, and respond to the HKRFU in the next couple of weeks.

For those of you familiar with the process, we are obliged to submit our application without an accurate understanding of who will actually attend - but to attend the Sevens (as a player or spectator you MUST have a ticket for the whole event). With the mad scramble there always is for these tickets, this inevitably means that some people risk being disappointed.

We will open up an online registration process for Sevens tickets in the very near future, available details will be on the club website in the next week or so - please watch this space. And book (and pay) early!!!

6. Content and feedback

We would be delighted to receive (constructive) comments or suggestions about content of this Newsletter. Please email us on mailto:social@dbpirates.com

We would also welcome feedback of any kind about how you feel the club is running, ideas and suggestions to help the players get more from the club etc. Mail us on mailto:social@dbpirates.com

We have a great Club, a great spirit so let’s make sure we make this season the best ever on and off the field.

Many thanks

Phillip Baldwin
Chairman
mailto:chairman@dbpirates.com

And finally…take what you can and leave nothing behind. Aaaargh!

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Kean) — Fri, 08 Oct 2010 10:11:00 +0000

Ahoy Pirates!

October is turning out to be a busy month, as there are a few events scheduled already: Bledisloe Cup Fan day on 24 October, Guinness World Record mini rugby tournament on the 30th, Bledisloe Cup on the evening of the 30th, then the DB Pirates Mini festival for contact age groups on 31 Oct. (Please see below for more details on these events).

Last week end was another success for the Colts, the U16A beat DeA2 54-nil, and U16B beat Football Club3 20-15.

The next Colts matches are scheduled for 17 Oct:

U14 meet DeA at Kings Park at 1215; U16B take on Valley Fort2 at Sandy Bay at 1615; and U16A play HKU at Sandy Bay at 1500.

BBQ

This week the BBQ will be run by the under 5/6 age group. Please email kimwhiley@tamcoholdings.com to confirm the time you can help or if you have any questions.

Thank you to all the Under 8’s parents who helped last week.

Keep the Pitch Tidy

Can we remind all players and parents that they need to place all of their rubbish in the rubbish bins. For the last two weeks there has been too much rubbish left lying around on the pitch as well as behind the wall that people having been sitting on. It should not be left up to the coaches at the end of the day to clean up your mess. Your cooperation on this will be much appreciated.

Christian Cullen visits DB

Between 4:30 and 6PM, Wednesday 13 October 2010 legendary All Black Christian Cullen will take a coaching session for DBPRFC at the Siena pitch. Your coaches will be in touch shortly about which contact age groups will be invited to participate. However, everyone is invited to come and watch and see a true master of the game take the Pirates through their paces.

Bledisloe Cup Fan Day

The Hong Kong Rugby Union are delighted to announce that, as part of the DHL Hong Kong 2010 Bledisloe Cup community legacy, both the Qantas Wallabies and the All Blacks will attend a special “Bledisloe Cup Fan Day” on Sunday 24th October, 11am-1pm, at So Kon Po Sports Ground. This event will be open to anyone who has purchased a ticket for the DHL Hong Kong 2010 Bledisloe Cup, which will be held on Saturday 30 October at 4.30pm at the Hong Kong Stadium. As well as the opportunity to meet the full Australian and New Zealand playing squads, the legendary Bledisloe Cup will be on show, and there will be rugby games and activities to enjoy. If you are going to attend, please let you age group coach know, as it will be during normal training times on Sunday.

Guinness World Records TM attempt: Largest Mini Rugby Tournament.

This will be held at the football club on 30 October and will include all Mini Rugby age groups. Please keep an eye out for more information from your age group coaches over the next week

Charity collection – Old Football Boots.

As part of the Guinness World Records TM attempt: Largest Mini Rugby Tournament on 30 October, we are supporting the Indochina Starfish Foundation (ISF). ISF is a charity with close links to Hong Kong, and one of their main aims is to help some of the poorest children in Cambodia play sport. There are currently some 2,500 children in the ISF sports and soccer programme. The one thing these children very much need is football boots without which they can't play, learn, have fun and develop. ISF would like anyone who has old children's rugby boots to bring them to the tournament. ISF will arrange for the boots to be transported to Cambodia and distributed to the kids.

So please bring along those old boots!There will be 2 drop bins clearly identified with a logo at the tournament for you to deposit the boots in. It would be great if we could donate as many boots as possible to help children in Cambodia have fun playing sports the same way as our children in Hong Kong.

Sports World New Store

Bruce Pye who has been a long standing supporter of the Pirates is opening a second Sports World store on Hong Kong Island. Opening day is on 15 October. The shop is located at: 5/f, 14-16 Wyndham Street, Central, Hk. Please spread the word!

Content and feedback

We would be delighted to receive (constructive) comments or suggestions about content of this Newsletter. Please email us on newsletter@dbpirates.com.

We would also welcome feedback of any kind about how you feel the club is running, ideas and suggestions to help the players get more from the club etc. Mail us on feedback@dbpirates.com

And finally…take what you can and leave nothing behind. Aaaargh!

noreply@blogger.com (Steve Kean) — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 10:28:00 +0000

Ahoy Pirates!

We start this week’s newsletter with our first results of the season. Congratulations to the U16B Colts. They won the Colts Tens Division 3 Plate last Sunday finishing with solid back-to-back wins over Causeway Bay and Aberdeen.

Going forward we will look to keep the club up dated on any major wins, as well as posting all results on the website.

BBQ

Thank you to the Under 11’s parents for running the BBQ last week, Great job in the heat. (We do have some tents ordered to help provide shade, with any luck they will arrive soon). This Sunday’s turn is the Under 8’s!! The more volunteers we have easier it is. Please email kimwhiley@tamcoholdings.com to confirm the time you can help or if you have any questions.

Training Times

We are still using the temporary training times at Siena pitch until the new grass is ready to play on. Please see times below:

U5/U6 8:15 - 9:15
U7 9:00 -10:15
U8 10:00 – 11:15
U9 11:00 – 12:30
U10 Boys 12:15 – 13:45
U11 Boys 12:15 – 13:45
U12 Boys 13:30 – 15:00
U10 Girls 14:30 – 16:00
U12 Girls 14:30 – 16:00

DB Pirates Mini Festival for Contact age groups - 31st October 2010

We are planning to host our first event for the mini contact age groups (U9 – U12) at Sienna pitch. Planning is under way, so please make a note of the date and we will provide more information closer to the time.

Kit

Players still without kit should contact their head coach and Randal Leonard, Head of Equipment and Facilities at facilities@dbpirates.com. Distribution will be arranged as soon as possible. Those players who have registered, paid and went to the kit distribution days but still require some or all of your kit, please rest assured that additional kit has been ordered and we will contact you, please also keep checking the website and your emails for updates.

Colts Season

The boys Colts XV's season kicks off with matches for both U16 squads. Watch for emails from the respective coaches announcing the teams.

U16A plays DeA2 at King's Park kickoff at 1215.
Bus departs DBIS at 1045, and returns at 1330

U16B plays FC3 at HKFC kickoff at 1030.
Bus departs DBIS at 0900 and returns at 1130.

U14 boys will have to wait until next weekend (Oct 10) for your first XV League game, when you will take down the Sai Kung Stingrays at Sandy Bay at 1615. Bus details to follow.

Provisional XVs LEAGUE SCHEDULE from 17 October 2010

These are for information only, as the plan changes frequently! Colts will be sent an email the week before a game with details of the venues and timings:

Oct 17
U16A v HKU @ Sandy Bay 1500-1615.
U16B v VF2 @ Sandy Bay 1615-1730

Oct 31
U16A v VF1 @ Happy Valley 1330-1440.
U16B v Aberdeen @ Sandy Bay 1500-1615

Nov 07
U14 v FK @ Tai Hang Tung 1500-1615

Nov 14
U16B v SKS timings and venue unknown

Nov 21
U14 v DeA2 @ Kings Park 1215-1330

Nov 28
U16B v Kowloon Lions timings and venue unknown

Dec 05
U14 v VF2 @ Happy Valley 1330-1440

Dec 12
U16B v HKFC3 timings and venue unknown

Remember to check your emails!

Have a great season!

Phillip Baldwin
Chairman
DBPRFC

Newsletter 23rd September 2010

noreply@blogger.com (Peter Udall) — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 02:27:00 +0000

Ahoy Pirates!

Unfortunately the weather and Mid-Autumn Festival thwarted our plans for training Tuesday and Wednesday this week. Hopefully things will improve for Thursday and Friday. Please check the website and contact your coach to ensure whether training is on or not (and where).

Kit

Players without kit should contact their head coach, the Treasurer (treasurer@dbpirates.com) and Randal Leonard, Head of Equipment and Facilities at facilities@dbpirates.com. Distribution will be arranged as soon as possible. Those players who have registered, paid and went to the kit distribution days but still require some or all of your kit, please rest assured that additional kit has been ordered and we will contact you, please also keep checking the website and your emails for updates.

Registration reminder

Player spots for age groups U8, U10 (girls and boys), U12 (girls and boys) and U18 (girls and boys) still have places open but all other age groups have very few openings. As mentioned previously due to training capacity constraints and safety reasons, we have to limit each age group to a maximum of 50 players so please register and pay now to avoid disappointment.

Once we reach capacity in a given age group we will place a notice on the website and inform parents. Anyone who registers after capacity has been reached will be placed on a waiting list and you will be informed you when/if a space becomes available.

You can only register on-line so please visit the web page www.dbpirates.com.

You will need to fill in a separate registration form for each child and, until further notice, please note that you will need to use a different primary contact email address for each player.

Our youngest age group is Under 6, although we may be able to accept younger players with a sibling already old enough to join the club. This means that any player with a Date of Birth younger than 2005 may not be accepted into the club. You can still register them, but please bear in mind that numbers for these younger age groups are strictly limited and their acceptance is not guaranteed. We will confirm their status as soon as possible

Registration fees and payment

Registration on-line is only the first step, you must pay to become a member and receive you kit. No pay, no kit, no play! So please pay as soon as you have registered.

Registration fees for the season are as follows:

Mini Rugby (under 12's and below) - $1,000 per player.
Youth / Colts Rugby- $1,200 per player
Youth' / Colts Rugby (who live outside of DB) - $950 per player.

Payment Methods:

You can pay either by cheque or bank transfer to the club's HSBC account 571-142595-001 (for the latter please send a PDF copy of the transfer slip to treasurer@dbpirates.com together with your order and contact details).

If paying by cheque, please make it out to 'Discovery Bay Pirates Mini Rugby Club' and write the name and date of birth of the player on the back of the cheque.

Please send to:

Steve Kean
Treasurer
DB Pirates RFC
4C Verdant Court
Discovery Bay

Training Times/Places

All the Mini Rugby ages (under 6s to under 12s boys and girls) started training on Sunday 19th September at Siena Pitch, the U14/16 Boys and Girls have been training for a few weeks longer. This means we are now in full training as a Club and as such it is important that you ensure you know when and where you are training. Due to maintenance we may need to alter training times occasionally so please make sure you visit the website for details at: http://www.dbpirates.com/schedule/training.htm and contact your coach to confirm the time and place of training.

If you cannot make training please inform you coach directly. Training sessions are carefully planned and if players fail to inform coaches of their pending absence this can disrupt training for the whole team.

U12 Girls Go to Sai Kung

On Sunday 26 September 2010, the U12G will travel to Tsuen Kwan O stadium to take part in a pre-season tournament against Sai Kung Stingrays. The bus is scheduled to depart DBIS at 11.30AM and return from Tsuen Kwan O stadium 2.30PM. Again check the website and with your coach (Tom McDonald) the day before to double check bus departure times and place.

BBQ

The BBQ was sizzling hot on Sunday and hopefully will continue to be throughout the season, but we need volunteers from each age group to man it. Don’t think someone else will volunteer, please step forward. The BBQ is a major contributor to much needed Club funds so contact Neil Prosser – Head of Social at social@dbpirates.com now and volunteer to help your Club.

Bledisloe Cup – 30 October 2010, HK Stadium

Ticket sales via the Club have stopped but you can purchase them via HK Ticketing at http://www.hkticketing.com/eng/.

On the day of the Bledisloe Cup there will be a Guinness World Record attempt to stage the biggest ever minis rugby tournament at Happy Valley and HKFC and DB Pirates RFC will be taking part. More details to follow. Coaches will be briefed soon and they will in turn ask players whether or not they want to be a world record holder!

Sponsors

We have been fortunate in that we have had some great long terms sponsors: Borrelli Walsh, KPMG and Zaks. This year two new sponsors, Allied International Limited and Q-Solutions have joined the Pirate crew and I would like to thank to all of them on behalf of the Club.

The operating costs of the Club in DB have increased significantly during the past twelve months so if you are in a position to sponsor the Club, please contact me at chairman@dbpirates.com. It’s your Club, let’s make sure that we have the financial means and other resources to ensure that it can fulfill its potential and most importantly help give your child the chance fulfill his or her potential on and off the field.

Many thanks – take what you can and leave nothing behind!

Phillip Baldwin
Chairman
DBPRFC

PS Visit www.dbpirates.com now to register (pay a.s.a.p. to avoid disappointment) and to check training times and venues (as well as contacting your coach)
PPS Contact Neil Prosser at social@dbpirates.com to volunteer for BBQ – our sausages need you!
PPPS Support your Club, those wishing to sponsor DBPRFC contact me at chairman@dbpirates.com now…thks.