Adam Dixon: The making of Great Britain hockey’s captain

GB men’s hockey captain Adam Dixon on his old school coach, the underdog mentality and how England players can have more vocal influence in the sport

I was handed the captaincy straight away at Worksop College when I joined the school in the sixth form. It was a brave decision from Trevor Franse, who was in his first year in charge of the hockey programme.

All the boys really admired Trevor and he was like a big brother in a way. He came in with a lot of energy and what it takes to be a team player. There were no egos in our team and the South African shot that down if that was the case.

We did loads of team building exercises in that first season. The first few sessions were picking up rugby tackle bags and doing laps of the cricket field. It gave us an extra connection. 

We didn’t have the depth in talent but this only made us fight for each other.