It is sad to note that Kate Billson died peacefully on Monday 27 January 2020 at Glenfield Hospital, Leicester following a short illness as a result of lung cancer.
Kate became extremely well known in the men’s and boys’ game and she spent many years helping the development and progress of young players, not in a coaching capacity, but wholly as an administrator. She only played the game at school and only once was selected to represent her school.
Getting involved with the boys’ game with husband Tony, initially through supporting her son Andrew, Kate set up and developed the Northampton County Schoolboys’ Association before moving on to work in the development and match planning of the Midland Schoolboys. She then went on to work with the England Schoolboys national squads acting as Chef de Mission on their home and overseas tours.
Kate with Tony planned and organized many of the key England Schoolboy national events bringing a new level of organization and professionalism. She was successful in securing much needed financial sponsorship for the boys’ game from the likes of NatWest Bank and Nationwide Building Society, thus ensuring that the profile of schoolboy hockey was enhanced.
After the amalgamation of England Schoolboys with the men’s Hockey Association (HA), Kate continued her involvement as Chair of the Schoolboys’ committee and was majorly involved with and sat on various HA committees. She was involved in the organizing of several of the international hockey events at the National Hockey Stadium in Milton Keynes, including the women’s Qualifying Tournament prior to the Sydney Olympic Games in 2000.
Kate’s final key involvements with hockey were acting as Secretary to the Centenary Club and finally the Hockey Youth Trust. She engineered funding for the Trust to be able to help clubs and schools obtain financial support for the development of the boys’ and girls’ junior game at grassroots level.
Kate was also a great friend to The Hockey Museum, being one of its earliest supporters. When the first hockey museum was started at the Milton Keynes Stadium back in the 1990s, Kate arranged for the Centenary Club to purchase some splendid display cabinets, which are still in use in The Hockey Museum today. Kate also deposited the England Schoolboys records with the museum, now available to all as an archive.
Kate’s overall passion lay with helping and seeing young people have the chance to participate and develop through the opportunities afforded by the sport of hockey.
It is doubtful that any woman has ever done more for men’s hockey in England; indeed there have been few men that have accomplished as much as Kate did.
Mike Smith, THM Curator
10.02.2020
An Appreciation Of Kate From David Pattison
Kate and I spent many hours in each other’s company in meetings, on tours and on the touchline.
I recall that Kate caused a major problem when appointed to the England Schoolboys’ Hockey Association because we met in the East India and Public Schools’ Club. It was our custom, as ever, to seek refreshment at the bar after several hours confined in the gender-neutral basement. Not so the bar! I think we took it in turns to take a gin and tonic to Kate in the corridor before dispersing to the nether ends of the country.
During Easter 1985 it was the turn of Belgium to host the annual U16 and U18 tournament. Kate and I were suspicious of the arrangements for the tournament in Brussels or thereabouts not least because the conduct of the Belgian teams at the former tournaments at Canford bordered on the bizarre. (They were housed in my Boarding House so my recollections are fairly accurate even after this passage of time – and those of Matron.) When we arrived at the army camp, the teams were issued with knife, fork and spoon and taken to their barracks: iron bunks for management as well as players. John Law and I had no trouble having survived the Blitz and lulled the players to sleep with stories of the Battle of Britain and hummings of the Dambusters’ tune. It fell to Kate to negotiate a hotel and organise ‘permission’ from the men in suits, but we moved out. This experience alone served me in good stead in future tournaments, but devious machinations were relieved by meeting Kate and Tony each evening. Parents now understood the need to relax the management team with three fingers of gin and a drop of tonic.
As The Hockey Museum has the display cabinets, I trust that you will have the honours boards from Milton Keynes [Editor: we do]; surely another inspired work of Kate and Tony [Kate’s husband], and Bill Felton perhaps. The list of HA Vice-Presidents was a testament to the Corinthian spirit. The 1988 Gold Medal was achieved by those who were the product of England Schools’ and Youth: Kate ministered to Steve Batchelor when the ball bumped up and hit his lip and hurt him in the Waasenaar Stadium but he was brave! And … and … and …
It cost all these people their own money to serve their country while seeking to forward their own careers with success.
Kate and her like didn’t do a bad job I reckon.
R.I.P.
David Pattison, 15.2.2020
David Pattison was England Schoolboys Coach (1984) and Manager (1985-1987).
