Australian Womens’ Field Hockey

On 10.10.09, In Field Hockey, Sports, By

The Australian Women’s Hockey team are known by the familiar nickname of Hockeyroos and have been at or near the top of world womens’ field hockey since winning the gold medal at the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games. Since that victory the Hockeyroos have won a further 2 Olympic Gold Medals (at Barcelona and Sydney) as well as 2 World Cup gold medals.

Kate Hollywood of Australia

Kate Hollywood of Australia

Naturally over these past 20 years the team roster has changed with retirements and new players joining the team. It is testament to the strength of Australian Hockey that the standard has been able to remain as high as it has for as long as it has.

Despite this long-running high performance the Hockeyroos will not be competing in the 2010 Champion’s Trophy in England because the English team, who are the bottom placed team is immune from relegation because they are hosting the event. Because the make up of the Champions Trophy is decided on the Beijing Olympics standings, where Australia finished 5th, the team has been relegated for the first time in the history of the event.

This hasn’t held the team back with another outstanding performance in the Oceania Cup with a win ensuring that the team has qualified for direct entry into the World Cup in 2010. With the closest of margins deciding the event in extra time on the synthetic turf pitch at Invercargill, the result complemented that of the men’s team which also was a little more comfortable.

Women’s hockey remains at a high standard worldwide with a growing number of teams that are challenging for the top honours in high class events. As of the 1st of September, 2009 the official top 5 nations in the FIH world rankings for women’s hockey were as follows: 1. Netherlands, 2. Argentina, 3. China, 4. Germany, 5. Australia.

One of the nations that have dropped in the rankings in recent times has been India. One of the reasons put down for their fall from the head of the pack has been the introduction and widespread use of artificial turf fields. As a poorer nation that cannot afford to install synthetic turf hockey fields throughout the country, the opportunity to play on these surfaces does not arise for all players and so, the crucial experience is missing. Other nations have surged ahead, able to play at a speed that is simply too fast.

Given time and an injection of necessary funds into the sport, it is expected that the heads of state in the game will once again be joined by India.

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The Sport of Women’s Field Hockey

On 10.09.09, In Field Hockey, Sport Equipment, Sports, By

Women’s Field Hockey is a sport that is growing in popularity although it is confined to only a few nations at the elite level. Historically, the game was played on a grass surface and this is still the case for most junior and lower grade level matches. At the international level, though, field hockey is played on a synthetic grass surface to ensure the ball runs truly and to provide a more even contest.

There are two important factors that were considered when deciding on the type of synthetic turf that was going to be appropriate for hockey. Tests had to be performed to determine the way the ball interacts with the surface and the way a person interacts. Both of these factors influence the way the game is played and so, would have an effect on the sport of hockey as a whole.

The artificial turf used for hockey is different to the types used in other sports such as soccer and American football. The grass blades are shorter on a hockey field and they do not attempt to replicate real grass. They allow the ball to roll quickly and smoothly and have effectively sped up the game since its inception.

There is another unique aspect about the majority of hockey pitches and that is that they are classed as unfilled pitches or water-based. They are heavily watered before play as well as at half-time and must be done so evenly to ensure the conditions at one end of the pitch match those at the other end. Watering the pitch reduces the abrasive nature of the grass, maintains the speed of the ball over the surface and gives the surface the optimum sliding properties.

All of this means that in order to create a synthetic grass hockey pitch, one has to be built specifically for the sport of hockey. This drives the cost of catering to the sport of hockey up to quite high levels. Whereas a synthetic turf football field can be used by soccer, football, baseball and other sports, a hockey field is only suitable for hockey and may sit idle for longer periods of time.

The more women who take up the sport of field hockey will put a greater demand on pitch time for these fields making the cost effectiveness more reasonable. With any luck it will also help to drive the popularity of the sport beyond the boost it gets every 4 years when it is seen prominently during the Olympic Games.

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