Euro Talks for Scottish Handball

THE development of handball in Scotland continued last week when top officials from the European Handball Federation visited Edinburgh.

EHF President Tor Lian, Vice-President Jean Brihault, Secretary General Michael Wiederer and Development and Education Official Helmut Hoeritsch held talks with Scottish Handball Chairman Stephen Neilson, SportScotland Chief Executive Stewart Harris and SportScotland Partnership Manager Megan Griffiths.

Among other issues on the agenda was possible joint development projects between the EHF and Scottish Handball.

*In other Scottish news, the Scottish Handball Association has opened a new office at the Inverclyde National Sports Centre, which is being staffed part-time by administrator Anne McLaughlin.

The office number is 01475 687820, and Anne works from 1-5pm on Wednesdays and all day Thursday and Friday.

Advanced Handball Apprenticeships Launched

TALENTED young handball stars of the future are being offered the chance to study and train as professional athletes under England Handball’s new Advanced Apprenticeship in Handball Excellence.

Starting in November, the scheme will give 20 of the current County Squad Athletes the chance to be part of the scheme, which lasts two years and is a University entry-level qualification.

Part of the EHA’s first High Performance Centre in Warrington, the scheme looks set to expand to London where a second High Performance Centre is scheduled to open in September 2011.
England Handball Director of Performance, Mick Hegarty, said: “The AASE programme has seen athletes like double Olympic gold medallist Rebecca Adlington benefit without compromising her studies.

“This qualification is, without doubt, a significant step for England Handball to support our best young players in their studies, their career prospects and their handball destinies.

“It must not be seen in isolation of the handball community and it is important that our current clubs get on board as they have a vital partnership role to play. I sincerely hope that the handball community embraces this opportunity.”

For more details of the scheme, please go to http://www.englandhandball.com/

Nottingham Tournament This Weekend

THIS Sunday sees the traditional start of the British Handball season - the Nottingham Tournament - which has once again attracted teams from across the country.

Eight teams will be vying for the first silverware of the season in two groups of four, with all matches lasting 20 minutes and taking place at the Sutton Bonington Campus of Nottingham university.

The action begins at 10.15am, and after the group stages there will be crossover games to determine the overall winner.

The final of the tournament is due to start at 6.15pm, with the trophy presentations afterwards.

English League Dates Set

THE English National League season begins on September 26, it has been announced.

The first matches in both the Women’s League and Division One of the Men’s League will start on that date - with university clubs being exempt from playing.

After champions Great Dane, Olympia and Manchester play their European Challenge Cup matches on October 1-3, the league resumes on October 10 with a second round of Men’s Division One games, while the Women’s Development League also begins then.

For more details of the English League calendar, please go to http://www.englandhandball.com/

Schools Prepare to Embrace Handball

HUNDREDS of schools and colleges across the country are preparing to welcome handball onto their curriculum as part of the Change4Life programme.

The scheme - set up to help our kids to get fit and stay fit - will see handball developed in around 420 secondary schools and colleges, and it is hoped many of these will then become fully established handball clubs for the future.

As part of the roll-out of the scheme, England Handball is looking to recruit eight new staff to ensure the sport is given the best possible start at this crucial phase of the plan.

“Without doubt, this is the most exciting development opportunity which the EHA has ever had,” said England Handball’s Director of Development Louaz Hofton.

“The Change4Life programme will involve developing handball in 420 secondary schools and colleges across the country. Although this is only funded for one year, those student clubs will be supported by the Change4Life staff to become established recreational handball clubs from September 2011 onwards.

England Handball are recruiting six part time Activators and two part time Managers to be strategically placed around the country to ensure the spread of the game is as effective as possible.

With the North West and London currently hotspots for handball in England, it is hoped that other regions will also embrace the sport and, through schemes such as Change4Life, help make the sport widely known.

Scottish Referees Course

IF you are a budding handball referee and live in Scotland, then there is a course for you!

The Scottish Handball Association is staging a training course on September 18-19, at a venue to be confirmed.

Running from 9am-5pm each day, the course will cost £35 per person, and is open to people aged 16 or over on the day of the course.

For more details, please contact fred_wallaceuk@yahoo.com

England Players Wanted for Home Nations Clash

PLAYERS eligible to play for England are invited to attend a training camp in preparation for the Home Nations Four Team Tournament in Scotland in October.

The event will be held on a date to be announced, and clubs are being asked to nominate players they feel are good enough to make the grade.

Players must be registered and training with a competitive club and playing regularly at a minimum of EHA National League First Division level, and you should be able to commit to all the dates in the programme.

Although there is some subsidy of the programme, some accommodation costs may need to be paid by the player.

For more information, please go to http://www.englandhandball.com/