This is just a little update on the club’s development. As most of you will know, Dundee Korfball Club was only formed last year, so it is still in its infancy. But like all infants, it is growing fast. The club was very lucky to be allowed into the Scottish Korball League as a development team for the 2011/12 season, and also to get so much help from both Glasgow and Mavs in our early games (both teams lending us the odd player when we were short, Glasgow lending us some posts to train with, and Mavs letting us join them and form Maverdee for the EIKT 2012). We faired pretty well through that first season, and decided to go it alone and enter a fully fledged team in this year’s League. At time we entered the 2012/13 season, we had more than enough players for one team, but not quite enough to justify two. But now, just a few months later, we think that we might be ready…
Without wanting to count any ckickens before they hatch, it’s looking quite likely that Dundee will end up in the top half of the League by the time of this year’s mid-season split (the top 6 and bottom 6 teams will split at the end of January, and will only play teams in their own half in the second part of the season). If that happens, it’s going to lead to a pretty tough (and potentially quite demoralising) string of matches for Dundee which, while potentially being quite good for some of us (in terms of development), will not be much fun for those of us who are sort of “on the fringe” of playing competitively. The solution to this seems pretty obvious, of course: It’s time for Dundee to form a second team. We think that we have enough players, and we think that most of them (a) are ready and (b) will really enjoy playing in more (full) competitive matches, rather than just coming in as subs for the odd part of a game. So we’ve written off to the SKA and asked if we would be allowed to field a second team in the bottom half of the league from January on. The application is still being considered formally, but the unofficial response was that we will probably be given the go-ahead to enter a second team (possibly as another development team). The development status would be a great bonus actually, because development teams are allowed to borrow players whenever they are short – the only downfall being that they don’t get points to win the league.
So, the big questions for now are (a) who would like to play, and (b) what would you like our new team to be called? Let’s face it, Dundee 1 and Dundee 2 sound a bit boring. In the past, we’ve played around with ideas based on Crocodiles (Dundee Crocodiles…get it?) and Dragons (of which, I believe, there still is one “in them there hills”, if not in the city centre). But maybe there are other (more imaginative) ideas out there in the club? Please let us know your thoughts, and please, please, please help us out as we try to expand through the rest of the season (and beyond).
I think this is a great opportunity to play some good korfball and show what you are capable of. Some people will be disappointed if they don’t make it into the first team, but you have to look at the upside. You will play full matches and improve your game to grow into a first team player. Anyone in the first team has to work to stay where they are, just as much as the second team players work there way up towards the first team. There will always be players in the second team that will also be subs in the first team.
As for names, I don’t know… sounds interesting to name the team other than first and second, but is that obvious enough to (new) players to know what the difference will be? I will be waiting to see what others bring forward.
I think a second team is a great move forward, and I’d be very happy to play for them (knowing that I’m not really first team standard). As much as we want everyone to get a chance, there comes a point where we have to be competitive as a club and a serious first team and (slightly) less serious second team would allow that.
I’m going to be incredibly boring, though, and suggest we stick with Dundee 1 and Dundee 2. Having run curling leagues in the past, it’s always much easier for the person running a competition (and for other teams) if they can instantly differentiate between two teams and know which is the primary entry- I still have no idea which of Dundee’s three ice hockey teams is the firsts! I’d also note that other teams simply follow this format (right up to Edinburgh University 4!) and I don’t think we should deviate from established practice. Finally, I’d say that when we’re looking for sponsorship and funding, we don’t want to dilute the Dundee Korfball Club “brand”, by introducing American-style team names. If we take, say, sponsorship for second team strips, are those sponsors going to be supporting Dundee Korfball or Dundee Dragons? If they advertise the latter, we lose recognition for the former.
I hate to be boring so, if you disagree with all of that, how about the Dundeerheids? 😀
I prefer Dragons as there is a direct link to the city of Dundee. Also if we can get the Evening Telegraph to publish match reports or even scores it would look better listed as Dundee and not Dundee 1. eg Dundee 1 5 Edinburgh Uni 4 2 or Dundee 1 5-2 Edinburgh Uni 4 just looks daft.
Plus who isn’t jealous of the Mavericks name?
As being born in the year of the Dragon, I am more in favour of that name. But does that mean that we have Dundee Dragons and Dundee 2? Also, if we are going for different names what happens if we would get a third team? Do we need names for each team that we add?
Erwin, I’d presume we’d just come up with other names for future teams, if it’s to avoid Steven’s (admittedly annoying) Dundee 3 2 2 Edinburgh University 1 problem (although in reporting it, we could easily just say Dundee Firsts, Dundee Seconds, etc. to differentiate names from scores.