By Lucy Steenson and Ollie Biggs
Manchester Medics Hockey Club (MMHC) is a mixed club with just over 100 members. We are the biggest medic society with abilities ranging from complete beginners to those who compete in our NAMS (National Association of Medical Sports) team and play nationally against other medical schools. Over the course of the year, we participate in a total of 3 tours and we also organise several fun social events. If you want a good balance of sport and occasional trips to the local pub, then this is the society for you! We have 5 teams that all play in the campus league every Sunday, and we also undergo training every Wednesday from 9-10pm at the university’s Armitage Sports Centre. At the start of every academic year, we hold welcome training sessions so that people can come along and get a taster of what MMHC has to offer. Despite these sessions, students are more than welcome to join the society at any stage during the course of the year!
Having already read about MMHC in the MedSoc welcome book, I was very eager to go along to the training sessions to see what the club had to offer. I had already played hockey before joining university but was worried that being part of a university team may have involved a huge level of time and commitment. I really enjoyed both the taster sessions, and soon became a keen member of MMHC both on and off the pitch; engaging in the fun events such as the welcome social, winter and summer formals as well as various hockey tours throughout the year. I found that MMHC offered a great platform to meet other medics from different year groups, and this therefore provided the opportunity to form many good friendships with people that I may not have encountered otherwise. As a member of the 2s, I found that the weekly training session and match games provided a great way to exercise, as well as an opportunity to build on my pre-existing hockey skills, whilst also being able to comfortably fulfill my other uni commitments. I truly believe that joining MMHC was one of the best decisions that I made upon joining UofM, and my uni experience wouldn’t have been the same without it.
- Lucy Steenson MMHC Social Sec, 2nd Year Medic
I started medics hockey in first year as a complete beginner – I had played once in year 8 and wasn’t particularly the best! Despite this, I was pulled along to an open session by a friend and completely loved the atmosphere. It is such a great way to learn a new sport, keep fit and meet like-minded and fun people both in and out of your year group. The weekly training is scheduled at a perfect time and the Sunday campus league matches are very enjoyable. However, nothing truly beats the post-match pints in Squirrels Bar and the many socials that MMHC has to offer. I loved it so much that in 2nd year I captained the Medics 4s Team and will hopefully be on the committee next year too, so I can’t wait to welcome some of the new first years onto the teams. Whether you’re a hockey fanatic, a social butterfly, or just want to try something new, MMHC has it all.
- Ollie Biggs, MMHC 4s Captain, 3rd Year Medic