- Newcastle (Staffs) Volleyball Club
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Newcastle (Staffs) VC 
Full name Newcastle (Staffs) Volleyball Club Nickname(s) Castle, Staffs, Founded 1980 Ground Keele University
(Capacity: 110 seated)Chair Colin Roberts League Men 1 - NVL1
Men 2 - NVL3North
Women - NVL2NorthNewcastle (Staffs) Volleyball Club is an English volleyball club based in Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, England, affiliated to Volleyball England, with teams competing at national level for women, men, girls and boys. Formed in 1980, the club is perhaps best known for its tradition of junior development, producing a number of England's leading talents in the sport.[1].
The club was originally formed following the amalgamation of two local school teams in Newcastle-under-Lyme: Marshlands High School (now Wolstanton) and Edward Orme High School ( now Newcastle Community). The two schools had developed a strong cohort of predominantly male volleyball players and as they grew older the players needed to play at a higher level. The club was formed and its teams rose quickly through local and regional leagues to National League status. Once in the lower reaches of the National League, promotion came season after season, until the top flight was reached in the mid-eighties (1985). The present ladies team was formed in the late 1990s, again from two teams - Cheadle High School and Stone Alleynes High School, both of which had success at local level, but until combined could not move to higher levels. Once combined, the team entered the West Midlands Regional League, and in the mid-2000s, progressed to play in the National League. From 2008-2010 the ladies team went under a further transformation with a new generation of young players coming to the fore, graduating from the club's junior ranks. In the 2010-11 season this translated into triple success on the ladies side of the club - winning the National under 18 Championship, NVL 2 North title and winning the National Shield.
Despite winning many National Junior Titles throughout its history, the club has not translated this into silverware at senior level on the same scale. In 2002 the club plunged headlong into a significant programme of growth, centred on Madeley High School and which has now spread across all four School Sports Partnerships of North Staffordshire, a Talented Athlete Programme (TAP) at the City of Stoke-on-Trent Sixth Form College, links to all three higher education institutions (Keele University, Staffordshire University and Manchester Metropolitan University - Cheshire). September 2010 saw the opening of the Volleyball England National Academy based in Loughborough - of the academy's first intake a total of six boys and two girls play for the club and are now able to be part of a formal daily training programme linked to the national squads as part of the England performance pathway. The 2010-11 season saw three of the club's junior teams reaching National Finals, with the under 18 boys and girls both winning the title, and the under 16 boys losing in a pulsating final.
Twice winners of the Volleyball England "Club of the Year" Award since 2000, long-serving chair Colin Roberts has received a number of awards for his work with the club, as have other members. Roberts was presented with the National Leadership Award by the Institute of Sport, Parks and Leisure (ISPAL) in the summer of 2009 [2], and took second place in the "Service to Sport" award at the City of Stoke-on-Trent Sports Awards early in 2010 [3], after having won the Volleyball England "Volunteer of the Year" award in 2008, just 12 months after fellow club member Rod Stockwell had been presented the same accolade.
Contents
Honours
Newcastle (Staffs) Volleyball Club has won a number of English National titles throughout its history, predominantly in Junior age groups and a large number of players have been recognised an international level. In 2010 as National under 18 Champions the club's boys team travelled to the southern Italian town of Castellana Grotte to compete in the inaugural EuroVolley Cup 2010 - a European Junior Boys Clubs competition supported by the CEV and Italian Federation. At this event the team won two of its nine matches to finish in a creditable 8th place.
National competitions
Title Years Won Years Runner-up NVL Men 1 - 1994/95, 1995/96, 1998/99 National Cup Men - 1996/97, 2001/02 National Shield Men 2006/07 2003/04 National Shield Women 2010/11 - NVL Men 2 1984/85 - NVL Women 2 North 2010/11 - National u20 Men 1991/92, 1992/93, 1993/94 - National u19 Men 1982/83, 1983/84, 1984/85, 1985/86 1979/80, 1980/81, 1981/82, 1982/83 National u18 Men 2009/10 [4], 2010/11 1990/91, 1995/96 National u18 Women 2010/11 - National u16 Boys 1979/80, 1981/82, 2008/09 [5]. 1980/81, 1981/82, 1982/1983, 1989/90, 2005/06, 2010/11 National u16 Girls - 2007/08, 2009/10 National u15 Boys 1978/79, 1980/81, 1982/83, 2004/05, 2007/08 1979/80, 1988/89 National u15 Girls 2007/08 - National u14 Boys - 2007/08, 2008/09 National u14 Girls 2007/08 - Players at International level
Players highest honour only (i.e. if GB then England not recorded)
Great Britain England England Senior Development England Juniors England Cadets Richard Dobell Anthony Viggars Megan Viggars (GB Junior Beach) James Bannister Dave Lawton Sam Bragg Tim Hollis Paige Nelmes (GB Junior Beach) Sam Allen Alex Liebeck - Steve Fee Roman Neveykin James Goodwin Chris Ashton - Tom Stevens Rashad Ali Sam Shenton - - Neil Masters Rupert Scott Luke Davenport - - - - Patrik Cawthorn - - - - Sam Shenton - - - - Stewart Ross - - - - Iain McKellar - - - - Alex Jenkins - References
- ^ The Sentinel, 03/10/2009. Volleyball: Newcastlehail teen triumph
- ^ Baggaley, Mike (The Sentinel), 20/07/2009. Volleyball: Colin nets national award
- ^ Baggaley, Mike (The Sentinel), 13/01/2010. Sports awards: Colin's dedication inspires volleyball side to success
- ^ The Sentinel, 07/05/2010. Volleyball: Castle kids are kings of the country
- ^ The Sentinel, 22/04/2009. Volleyball: Ecstatic Newcastle end 27-year wait for honour
External links
Categories:- Newcastle-under-Lyme
- Volleyball in the United Kingdom
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