This article was written by Brandon Zerkhfaoui

It was a cold day and the trip to Slough Hockey Club by coach was spent with everyone reminding themselves of the rules of hockey so that they could officiate well. We arrived first and set up the necessary equipment for the tournament to run smoothly. We were then introduced to Mr Elwell who showed us what to do as the organiser of the event. After having set up, we then got to meet Mrs Eilish Macbean of the Berkshire Hockey Association. She was very pleasant and helped us throughout the day as it was, for most of us, the first time we had officiated an official tournament such as this one. Full of excitement and vigour, the schools arrived. Immediately, we could tell that there were some real leaders in the teams when the matches were underway. With the whistles at our mouths, we blew them to signal the start of the games and the start of the tournament. Running back and forth we put our knowledge to the test and showed our leadership skills to the younger participants whom which we were exemplars too.

Overall, it was a great experience for all of us and we would like to thank everyone who organised this event so that we, as young sports leaders, were able to develop our confidence and gain some experience in what it is like as a referee. We hope to be of help again in the future.

Below is the letter of thanks that Mr Constable recieved from Eilish Macbean:

Dear Mr Constable,

It is with great pleasure that I write to you to congratulate the Year 10 students from Langley Grammar School who assisted at The Slough Sports Partnership Hockey Competition at Slough Hockey Club Friday 26th January 2018

Harishath Navakumaran, Navin Vithana, Thivjan Thiruketheswaran, Khelan Fakira, Brandon Zerkhfaoui and Jayisal Fakira.

These young leaders were a real credit to Langley Grammar School. They were courteous, respectful and helpful throughout the day. They willingly accepted and responded to advice and worked extremely well as a team of young umpires. I am aware that for some of these students this was their first experience of officiating hockey games which, in itself is a challenging ordeal, and even more demanding when working with pupils in Years 5 & 6 in front of coaches and teachers. They did extremely well and it was a real pleasure for me to work alongside and to support them throughout the day.

I would strongly recommend these students for the Junior Sports Leaders Award which is in operation at Langley Grammar School.

Kind regards

Eilish MacBean

Berkshire Hockey Association Schools Liaison