It was a busy weekend at Keighley Table Tennis Centre to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the formation of Haworth Hawks Table Tennis Club. The club that originally started from humble beginnings in Haworth Village Community Centre has now expanded to over sixty members and a thriving junior section with over thirty children regularly attending coaching sessions. They are now based at a large dedicated facility on the second floor of a converted textile mill. The heart of the club lies in it’s volunteer base which was exemplified by a celebration on Saturday where parents, coaches and members ran a variety of events culminating in a hard bat pairs event and a pizza supper! Andy Bray who is Chair and Head Coach of the club must take great credit for the progress and was recently awarded the prestigious ‘Torch Trophy’ presented by HRH Earl of Wessex for his voluntary contributions to sport. Andy will soon be leaving for a two year teaching appointment in Qatar but commented ‘I am confident that I leave the club in good hands. We have a great club ethos and a group of exceptional volunteers. I am confident I will return to a bigger and better club and look forward to regular updates whilst I am away’.
The club has also recently held a series of coaches CPD sessions where eight of their coaches attended modules on ‘Keeping Children in the Game’ . Content addressed important ‘How to Coach’ skills to encourage creating a growth mindset in young learners. The coaches were also given the opportunity to use new technology to help with observing and analysing technique and encouraged to use innovative coaching styles whilst delivering mock sessions.