NEM Hawks celebrate multiple trophies

NORTH East Manchester Hawks left the National Sports Centre at Crystal Palace on Saturday with an impressive haul of eight trophies.

The Hawks club won both the boys and girls Under-18s cup finals to complete league and cup doubles.

But when the England Handball Association’s presentations were held on the court after the finals it was revealed that the club had also done the double in the Development League North (open age) after a countback in the women’s league with Manchester University and closest rivals Warrington Wolves failing to complete fixtures in the men’s.

Coach Donna Hankinson said: “When the boys lost the cup final last season we sat down as a club and set both Under 18 Cup and League as our targets.

“We increased the sessions to twice weekly and also entered the development league with the sole point being additional competition, I certainly never expected us to win everything. They have gone through the Under 18s competition undefeated and in the development league although we have had some indifferent performances - which is to be expected with young players learning their trade - we have still managed to beat older stringer and more experienced opposition.”

In the cup finals themselves, the girls were disappointed not to reproduce their league form as they struggled to find their stride against a determined Wirral outfit.

Hawks eventually won 16-11 but had it not been for some fine saves by goalkeeper Kara Hunte they would not have prevailed.

They improved after the break with Ruth Anderson scoring some particularly impressive goals in her five strikes.

The boys final was by contrast a thrilling encounter as Hawks beat Warrington Wolves 24-22.

Hawks’ captain Stefan Whaley gave his side a good start with two early goals and at one stage in the first half they led by seven with left-winger Tyrell Coley providing some excellent assists.

However, Warrington fought to stay in the match and pegged it back to 14-10 at the break with three late goals.

Sam Bedlow and James Higgins were the mainstay of the Hawks goal threat in the second period but it was opposition goalkeeper Alex Bradley who was the star of a pulsating finale.

The England U18 squad stopper pulled off a string of one-on-one saves to keep his team in the game and when Hawks were reduced to four outfield players through two-minute sin-bin offences in the closing stages they looked set to crumble.

However, a crucial stop by Hawks goalkeeper Marc Howard with less than a minute to play meant a relieved Hawks were able to run out the clock and the final whistle was the signal for celebrations aplenty.

Then to crown an amazing day for the two-year-old club, captain Ellie Whitehead was named EHA U18 player of the year and Donna Hankinson was named EHA coach of the year.

“I am shocked – I really expected Salford Coach Bill Baillie to receive the award this season,” said Hankinson.

“Knowing the award has been voted for by colleagues and players makes it really special. I have been involved in handball as a player and coach since I was 10 years old and I have never been prouder.

“This award is for the players that I’ve worked with and the club, they are a special bunch and I look forward to the seasons that lie ahead. For me personally it is an accolade for all mine and the players hard work and a reminder that if we are to continue improving then I have to continue to develop my coaching knowledge and experience, something I am more than determined to do.”

FINAL RESULTS
U18 Girls: Hawks 16, Wirral 11 ‹ Hawks scorers: Ruth Anderson (5), Beth Wilbraham (5), Ellie Whitehead (3), Eliza Morgan (1), Emily Maddison (1), Becky Barnes (1).

U18 Boys: Hawks 24, Warrington Wolves 22 ‹ Hawks scorers: Sam Bedlow (9), James Higgins (7), Steve Clarke (3), Stefan Whaley (3), Wes Hunt (1), Jamal Braithwaite (1).

EHA Cup finals this Saturday

CRYSTAL Palace National Sports Centre is the venue for England Handball’s finals day this Saturday, a great chance to see some of the best handball the country has to offer!

Four great matches have been lined up, and for the participants it will mark the end of a long season of handball action which has seen them reach the final hurdle.
The EHA Men’s Plate will see Deva and Olympia do battle at 11.30am, with the presentation to the winner at 12.40pm.

The Under-18 Girls Cup final sees North East Manchester Hawks take on Wirral at 1.20pm, with the presentations following at 2.20pm.

The Hawks are also in the Under-18 Boys final and face Warrington at 2.35pm, with presentations at 3.55pm.

Finally, the EHA Women’s Cup final will see London GD take on Ruislip Eagles at 4.50pm, with presentations at 6pm.

The final of the EHA Men’s Cup will take place at Bethnal Green on June 30 between Salford and London GD.

Hawks Celebrate Top Award

NORTH East Manchester Hawks Handball Club is celebrating after its “Hands On” project was granted the prestigious London 2012 Inspire Mark.

The Inspire Mark is the badge of the London 2012 Inspire programme which recognises exceptional and innovative projects inspired by the 2012 Games.

The club, working in association with Oldham Council’s Sports Development team, is promoting the sport in several primary schools.

Players from the club, some of whom have already had international recognition at age-group levels, talk to pupils about their experiences at a special assembly and then join coaches to introduce the youngsters to the fast-flowing indoor sport.

Seb Coe, chair of the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games said: “Hands On is encouraging local schoolchildren to fulfil their potential.

“I am proud that with the help of partners such as Oldham Council’s Sports Development team and the NEM Hawks club, we are delivering our vision to use the power of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games to boost participation in handball.

“The Inspire programme is ensuring the legacy of the 2012 Games starts now as projects like Hands On are enabling young people in Oldham to make positive life changes.”

Donna Hankinson, coach of NEM Hawks and also coach to the England Under 16 girls team, is the driving force for the sport in the North Manchester area.

She said: “I have played and coached handball for years and to see this recent explosion in the sport and the potential for more expansion post- London 2012 is fantastic.”

Emma Jenks, Oldham Council¹s Assistant Head of Integrated Youth Service, said: “We are all delighted to receive the Inspire mark. NEM Hawks have been pro-active in getting out to the schools in Oldham and this is a fantastic achievement for us all.”

Top Coach Receives Award

ONE of the best known coaches in English handball has been presented with a special award.

Donna Hankinson helped form the new North East Manchester Hawks Handball Club last season after a pilot project in schools around Oldham, Rochdale and Tameside.

And the club performed superbly under Donna's expert eye to win the girls U18 National Cup at Crystal Palace and finish runners up in the U18 boys final.

And her efforts were recognised when the club held its first ever presentation night and Donna was presented with the new President's Award.

The presentation was made by the club’s newly-installed first president, Royton and Crompton School headteacher Des Herlihy, who is chairman of the English Schools Handball Association.

“The Hawks have come such a long way in a short space of time, and to have had several junior internationals is testament to how hard the players work together to improve,” said Donna.

Other awards presented on the night went to:

Coach’s Player: Stefan Whaley and Ellie Whitehead.
Most Improved: Terry Ellis and Eliza Morgan.
Players’ Player: Marc Howard and Nicola Quick.

EHA Cup Finals Show Big Skills Improvements

THE EHA Youth Cup finals staged at Crystal Palace earlier this month were some of the best seen for many years, and highlighted the growth of handball in schools up and down the country.

The standard of handball is increasing across the board, but few teams have achieved success more than North East Manchester Hawks.

Their girls team were crowned National Cup winners after beating league champions Warrington Wolves 11-8, while their boys team made it to the final, losing out to Olympia Cannock 24-20.

Hawks' key to success was in defence where their physical effort knocked the Wolves’ shooters out of their stride. At the other end Nicola Quick netted two early goals, but it was the power

of captain Ellie Whitehead and line player Ruth Anderson that proved decisive.

Warrington's hopes took a big blow when England under-19s player Sophie Unsworth had to be carried off with an ankle injury.

And as the game entered its final stages the Hawks kept up a tempo that the Wolves couldn't contend with.

The boys final was also a physical affair, and a series of two-minute sin-bins that twice saw Hawks reduced to four outfield players gave Cannock a 13-11 lead.

Hawks had goalkeeper Terry Ellis to thank for saving a penalty on the whistle to limit the arrears, but they rallied after the break and twice levelled.

However, they could never get their noses in front and a series of missed one-on-one chances proved their downfall.

Baby Hawks Fly into Final

JUST 12 months after their formation, North East Manchester Hawks are preparing to field both their Under-18 boys and girls teams in the National Youth Finals at Crystal Palace National Sports Centre next weekend.
The Under-18 girls will face Warrington Wolves in the final after beating an experienced Deva side 16-9 in their semi, despite the fact that five of their players had not even heard of handball six months ago.

Formed last summer by Donna Hankinson, Sue Whitehead and Nicola Reddin, the Hawks came about when a series of trials for a one-off team for the regional championships were held.

Hankinson explained: “We trained every Wednesday for a couple of months and soon realised that we had a dedicated and talented bunch of athletes who’d really fallen in love with our sport.

“We soon realised that if we didn’t give them a platform on which to continue they would be lost forever – hence the reason why the Hawks were founded.”

Since then their progress has been rapid, and they have around 70 per cent of their players with England Youth caps, while one - James Higgins - was selected for the GB Under-21s.

With regular help from GB captain Ciaran Williams, the club and the players have gone from strength to strength, and Hankinson added: “The finals are just reward for all of the hard work the players have put in over the last few months.

“No matter what the result on 4th June to have achieved so much in such a short time was nothing short of a miracle - we are the newest club with the least experienced players yet all we have done match after match and session after session is improve.”

If anyone is interested in joining the club contact Donna Hankinson via email at donna@turner-bianca.co.uk

Hawks Fly into Final

NORTH East Manchester Hawks Under-18 boys booked their place in the final of the National Cup with a 23-12 victory over rivals Deva last weekend.
A solid defensive performance underpinned their semi-final victory. Goalkeeper Terry Ellis made some key early saves, including a penalty, and the Hawks were 10-6 ahead at half time.

James Higgins and Sam Bedlow made several surging drives, while playmaker Stefan Whaley racked up the points consistently and wide players Jamal Braithwaite, Tyrell Coley and Pavel Winnick played their part in rotation.

But coach Donna Hankinson reserved special praise for line player Matthew Barnes, playing at that position for the first time in the absence of injured Wesley Hunt.

“We lost to Deva by a point in the league play-off semis in February and have been working very hard in training since with current GB men’s captain Ciaran Williams, who has been inspirational,” said Hankinson.

“This result was reward for all that hard work and now it’s a job half done.”

The Hawks can now look forward to an encounter with Cannock at Crystal Palace on June 4, who beat Warrington Wolves 26-18 in the other semi-final at Birchwood Sports Centre, Warrington.