Sarah Hawkshaw has been named captain of the Ireland women’s hockey team ahead of this weekend’s franchise tournament at the Sport Ireland Campus. Hawkshaw replaces Katie Mullan who recently stepped down after 8 years as captain.
Hawkshaw, 29, was part of the Irish squad that made history by qualifying for the Olympics for the first time in 2020, achieving this milestone with a dramatic penalty shootout win over Canada. She competed in the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 after the games were postponed due to the pandemic.
Hawkshaw said: ” It came with a lot of thought. Gareth [Grundie, Ireland Women’s Head Coach] believed in me and made that known. So it gave me a lot of comfort in accepting the role.
“While I am a new captain, I have experienced lots of different cultures of captaincy at club level and during my time in the USA. I think on the international side I’ve had 8 years with Katie Mullan as captain and she was also my captain when we were both in the Under 18 international team.
“You could always see that she was doing the right thing for the entire group. I’ve been watching her blossom into the role of captain. The whole team feels reflected through her and I will be able to ask her advice and have her example of what went before as I build in the role myself in helping Gareth advance the National team towards the goals of FIH Pro League qualification and the next World Cup and Olympics.
Hawkshaw was born in Dublin and began playing hockey at age 12. She earned her first cap for Ireland in January 2019 in a match against Chile and plays her Club hockey for Railway Union.
She also had a distinguished collegiate career at the University of Massachusetts from 2014 to 2017, earning multiple honors, including All-America recognition in her final two years. She finished her UMass career ranked among the program’s top scorers.
Brother Adam Hawkshaw is also an accomplished athlete. Adam captained the Ireland U20s Rugby Team to a Grand Slam in 2019 and currently plays his club rugby for Connacht.
“It’s all about getting the best out of people and to achieve that, you have to make them feel confident in different situations,” she added pof her new role. “If I can even play a small part in that, then that’s my job done. I want everyone in the squad to feel empowered and that they belong. Belonging has always been a strong aspect of the Irish team, and we have a great group of leaders in this team. Lena Neill , Hannah McLoughlin and Róisín Upton will be sitting beside me. We will need to draw on all of that leadership going into a busy 2025 and not only next year, indeed the next four years leading up to LA.”
Grundie added: “I think she has got the ability to connect with every member of the squad and understands the importance of fostering unity and inclusivity. Her leadership qualities and the standards she sets for herself will inspire the team to reach new heights. She has a real way of communicating with the entire squad, both the older players and the younger ones alike.”
