Bingham family aim for hockey hat-trick

A hat-trick of Binghams will be playing in the England Hockey National Club Championship Finals this weekend for two different clubs.

Lottie Bingham, 18, will be playing for Holcombe Women’s 1s against Beeston Women’s 1s in the Tier 1 Final.

Lottie, a current England U21 women’s squad member, played in the Junior World Cup in Chile earlier this season and is currently revising for her A Levels at Weald of Kent Grammar School.

Lottie left Knole Park to sign for Holcombe this season and has helped them achieve promotion back into the Premier Division. Still a part of Knole Park’s junior programme, she is back on the pitch enjoying summer training with her sister. 

Her younger sister Emily Bingham, 14, will be playing for HC Knole Park women’s 1s in the Tier 2 Final against Swindon Women’s 1s.

The club’s women’s 1s achieved their fifth consecutive promotion into the South East Premier Division next season. They reached the Tier 2 Final after a convincing semi-final win against the British Army. Emily is in Year 9 and also plays for the club’s U14 side, as well as for UK Lions and Kent U14 Girls. 

Meanwhile mum Ruth will run out for HC Knole Park women’s 2s in the Tier 4 Final against Preston Women’s 2s. Last time Knole Park reached the National Final in 2022, Ruth was on the sidelines celebrating the win, having undergone major surgery to remove a sarcoma.

This weekend she will be on the pitch, having made a full recovery as the Bingham fans in the stands aim for a trio of successes. 

3G in Scotland: ‘There is negligible support from the council for such a great hockey club’

The clubs under threat of losing their access to hockey pitches is a sad state of affairs and one of concern to me, writes Kevin Cumming. 

I’ve been playing for around 25 years and hope to continue for many more, pitch access permitting.

My former club Falkirk & Linlithgow HC lost access to the pitch they trained and played matches for years on at Grangemouth High School, which was relaid as 3G by Falkirk Council pandering to a local amateur football club, Syngenta. 

This despite the hockey club being instrumental in setting up a community sports hub many years ago at the pitch for locals to access sports. Falkirk Council’s reputation is already poor (i.e. organising a council meeting on disabled access in the region on the first floor of a local hotel with no lift), and they assured the hockey club they would be consulted. Hah! So many local children who did access the junior coaching sessions now can’t.

Falkirk council have given access to an alternative pitch in the local authority area, but it’s a distance from the original pitch, and one of the only two pitches in the area suitable for hockey, where many high school pitches are already 3G. So there is concern these pitches will also be relaid in the future.

All Falkirk LA pitches are now being changed to 3G as part of a refresh programme (likely including Falkirk High School in 2025) and the work at Grangemouth High School was expedited due to the influence of Syngenta, who paid for it with funding they received from a council community fund.

The club do still access Linlithgow High School for M1 games, but as a club which has been in existence for many years, there is negligible support from the council for such a great club.

The club uses Linlithgow Academy for most training and matches now, but are limited by access at weekends, and have been forced into taking annual lets, as opposed to seasonal, to prevent lets of 20+ years being handed to other sports.

My current club Highland HC (Inverness) access the only suitable hockey pitch in the region, but it will need to be maintained and possibly relaid in the future as pitches do have a lifespan. We worry about what the future holds as, a few years ago, the pitch was unplayable for about 18 months, forcing the club to play home games in Nairn and even Aberdeen, a very significant distance away. 

Swansea University inks multi-year partnership with Hockey Wales

Swansea University has announced a landmark partnership with Hockey Wales. “University hockey plays a pivotal role in nurturing the growth and development of highly skilled athletes throughout Wales,” Hockey Wales CEO Paul Whapham said at the recent announcement.

This new collaboration builds on what is already a positive and committed relationship between the two organisations, rooted in a vision to develop the sport regionally and nationally.

Through their shared commitment to nurturing talent and promoting hockey at all levels from beginner to elite, the partnership aims to support the existing high-performance programme and environment at Swansea University, while continuing to attract, develop and retain talented athletes with the support, guidance, and exciting collaborative opportunities.

Collectively the partnership offers a unique range of expertise and depth of experience that will accelerate hockey in Wales and support the health and wellbeing of students and the wider community.

Professor Paul Boyle, Swansea University’s Vice-Chancellor said: “We are delighted to enhance our partnership with Hockey Wales, which will help to foster a collaborative approach to ensuring the continued growth and visibility of hockey at local, national, and international levels. This joint effort reflects our wider vision for sport at Swansea University and will create expanded and improved opportunities, encompassing player involvement, research, education, commercial initiatives, event hosting and the comprehensive development of the hockey landscape; from grassroots to high-performance tiers.”

The collaboration enhances the University’s current hockey offerings, stemming from the successful hosting of the Under 18s EuroHockey competition in conjunction with Hockey Wales. Swansea University boasts two world class hockey pitches, a recently constructed 300-seater spectator stand, and a distinguished roster of present players and alumni. Notable individuals, such as Megan Langley and Jacob Draper, have emerged from the university’s comprehensive hockey programme.

Whapham added: “We are elated to enhance our collaboration with Swansea University, a partnership that has flourished over several years. This extended association not only solidifies our existing rapport but also delineates a clear trajectory for future endeavours.

“Swansea University boasts some of the premier facilities in Wales, coupled with an excellent track record in event management. The prospect of collaborating with their industry-leading Sports Science department presents a significant opportunity for both current and prospective athletes. It is our aspiration to witness Swansea University’s BUCS teams ascend to compete amongst the finest in the United Kingdom, thereby contributing to the advancement of hockey at both local club and international levels.

“Central to this partnership is a commitment to fostering growth and development, offering athletes, students, and staff novel avenues for career advancement. This collaboration stands as a testament to our collective dedication to elevating the standards of university hockey in Wales and beyond.”

Paris 2024 Olympics: When do Great Britain hockey teams play?

Full pool stage and knock out schedule for Team GB men and women competing at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games

Full fixtures guide to Olympic hockey competition here

Women
Pool A: Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Japan, China, France
Pool B: Australia, Argentina, Great Britain, Spain, United States, South Africa 

Men
Pool A: Netherlands, Germany, Great Britain, Spain, France, South Africa
Pool B: Belgium, India, Australia, Argentina, New Zealand, Ireland

GB men were drawn in the same Pool as Netherlands, Germany and South Africa at Tokyo 2020 and played Spain at Rio 2016. GB men will play hosts France on the Olympic stage for the first time Mexico 1968.

GB women will cross paths with Spain and South Africa again, who they played at Tokyo 2020, and will meet with Australia, Argentina and United States, who they competed against at Rio 2016.

Men – 27 July – GB v Spain – 09:00 GMT

Women – 28 July – GB v Spain – 12:15 GMT

Men – 28 July – South Africa v GB – 19:15 GMT

Women – 29 July – GB v Australia – 16:00 GMT

Men – 30 July – GB v Netherlands – 11:45 GMT

Women – 31 July – South Africa v GB – 09:30 GMT

Men – 01 August – France v GB – 11:45 GMT

Women – 01 August – USA v GB – 16:00 GMT

Men – 02 August – GB v Germany – 19:15 GMT

Women – 03 August – GB v Argentina – 09:00 GMT

Men – 04 August  – Quarter Final

Women – 05 August – Quarter Final

Men & Women – 06-07 August  – Semi-Final

Men – 08 August – Final

Women – 09 August – Final

GB Hockey goalkeeper Ollie Payne: We want to make winning and medalling a habit

Ollie Payne, the GB and Holcombe goalkeeper, says the Pro League looks set to be a tighter affair as the men’s side look to win the global hockey league for the first time after stumbling at the final hurdle in the last edition.

The former Durham University goalkeeper has a combined 66 international caps for England and GB having broken into the senior set-up ahead of the Tokyo Olympics.

At 24, Payne could be heading to his second Games in Paris where Paul Revington’s side harbour serious hopes of medalling.

He told the Holcombe website recently: “I’ll hopefully be involved in the summer, just got to keep working hard, keep improving and keep growing with the side.

“Preparation is coming along well, it’s been positive since Oman, we certainly needed some training time after spending a lot of time in hotel rooms in the last few months, playing a lot of games.

“With that, it’s about trying to peak and stay at that peak whereas now we can build a little bit more which has been important.

“Preparation has been good, it’s been a physical lot so that’s probably why there have been more injuries from the lads in and around the programme, but that’s just because we’re getting to a level that we need to be at to achieve our goals in the summer, it’s just unfortunate.

“I’ve got a bit of a sore body but can’t complain too much given I’m not really doing the running!

Great Britain host a series of games in the men’s and women’s competition ahead of both teams heading to the Paris Olympics this sumner.

“The home Pro League games are always a highlight of the summer, it’s so nice to play in front of friends, family, people from the club here, it’s brilliant,” added Payne.

“When the sun’s out, Lee Valley is a great place to play at – when it’s a bit windier, not so much. Hopefully the sun’s out and people can enjoy themselves.

“I think using the word habit is bang on, it’s certainly something we’ve spoken about, making winning and medalling a habit, we’re wanting to go one further now.”

Paul Revington rallies his troops PIC: WorldSportPics/Frank Uijlenbroek)

“We’ve got the confidence that we can beat teams ranked lower than us, not to say that we’re taking that for granted but we know we can score goals and beat teams, we’ve got that confidence.

“We know that we can compete with anyone ranked higher than us, too, so now it’s just a case of it all coming together for one tournament. It’ll be very difficult.

“The Pro League’s always quite a hard one to judge but this year you can see that teams are firing and the Pro League will be a much better indicator than the last few.

“That’s not taking away from our achievements last year in the Pro League but we’ve got to get up a gear if we want to be where we want to be on that podium.”

EuroHockey revamps to knock-out format from 2027

Future winners of the EuroHockey Championships will face just four matches in a new “every match matters” revamp.

Starting from EuroHockey 2027, the tournament will increase to 12 teams in the biggest change to the biennial event in two decades. For the last 10 editions, EuroHockey has been an eight-strong format across the men’s and women’s competitions.

“To go from eight to 12 is an opportunity for more teams to compete for the title while also bringing a responsibility to perform at this level,” said EuroHockey president Marcos Hofmann.

“We are taking our Every Match Matters mantra to the extreme with all games being played on a knock-out basis.”

The move, said a EuroHockey release on Thursday, will “also open further potential qualification avenues to events like the Olympic Games and the World Cup to a wider breadth of teams.”

How the 2027 EuroHockey will work

The sides ranked fifth to 12th will play a preliminary knock-out match with the winner going through to the last eight. The remaining quarter-final places will go to the winners of matches between the losers of that preliminary fixture and the top four ranked nations.

Quarter-final losers will play for ranking positions from fifth to eighth. The remaining sides will play for ninth to 12th. 

Germany will hoast the 2025 EuroHockey PIC: Worldsportpics

The format may mean scaled down matches for the top sides, but also more rest.

The qualification process

The increase from eight to 12 nations has a significant knock-on effect to the qualification process with extra significance added to events this summer and in the next two years.

The 2027 edition of the EuroHockey Championships will comprise, per gender, of all eight teams from 2025 EuroHockey Championships, the winner and runner-up from 2025 EuroHockey Championship II (2 nations) and the same with the 2026 EuroHockey Championship Qualifier tournaments.

Currently, six men’s and six women’s nations have pre-qualified for the 2025 EuroHockey Championships in Mönchengladbach based on their performances in 2023.

The last two places for that event will be determined at the EuroHockey Championship Qualifier tournaments from Aug 22 to 25.

Charity hockey event set to remember Grace O’Malley-Kumar

A hockey tournament to commemorate the life of Grace O’Malley-Kumar, one of the victims of the Nottingham attacks last summer, will be staged in May.

O’Malley-Kumar, who played for England Hockey’s U16s and U18s, will be remembered on May 4 when six teams compete for the Grace O’Malley-Kumar Cup. Her younger brother James will also captain a team at Nottingham Hockey Centre as the day pays tribute to the gifted 19-year-old.

The charity event, which will be raising funds for the foundation set up in Grace’s name, is being organised by the students’ union (SU) at the University of Nottingham, where the talented hockey player was studying medicine.
 
To support the tournament and Grace’s foundation, a silent auction has also been set up to raise funds.

Grace played hockey for her local club, Old Loughtonians and Southgate. At UoN, she won BUCS gold in her first year and also played in the Premier Division.

University team-mate Katie Curtis described Grace as “bubbly, welcoming, kind, compassionate, hilarious and thoughtful”.

She added: “It is precisely these characteristics that made her such an integral part of our team, fuelling us all with determination.”

Grace’s brother set up the foundation to back causes she supported and to “ensure she is never forgotten”.

He said: “For me as Grace’s younger brother, I have always said that the least I can do is ensure Grace’s legacy lives on.

“All of us decided to organise a hockey tournament, bringing together all paths of Grace’s career to have a day where we remember the amazing person she was.”

Playing hockey aged 88: ‘To play and see our English friends again – that’s a gift for us’

We speak to Netherlands’ 88-year-old captain Walter Hagedoorn, a doctor in economics, on a life in hockey and playing for his country after they beat England for the first time

Did we see a version of Total Hockey just now? 

“You saw everybody was playing with everybody, the passing was short and put yourself available and pass again. We can’t hit that hard but we all played together and kept the ball within the team. It’s about letting the ball do the work and you have to be in the position at the right moment.”

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Mark Pearn leaves Surbiton men’s coaching role

Mark Pearn has ended his eight-year tenure as Surbiton Hockey Club men’s coach, praised by the club for “shaping the future of some of the country’s finest young players” as well as top-tier trophy success.

Pearn guided a relatively young new team to the indoor and outdoor domestic double in his first season, both of which were firsts for the men’s side. Three domestic titles followed, and in 2022, he led the club to its first EHL European Medal, defeating Club De Campo Madrid in the bronze medal match.

They finished runners-up behind Old Georgians at last weekend’s League Finals.

“With his tireless work ethic and attention to detail, he has made a lasting mark on the future of many young players who have begun their Premier League careers and international journeys under his watchful eye,” the club said in a statement.

Board member Fred Moore said: “His calm, uncomplicated manner and love and enthusiasm for the game have helped to advance Surbiton HC immeasurably.

“He has shaped the future of some of the country’s finest young players by sharing his knowledge and putting his faith in them, and he has left this club in a much better place.”

Pearn said it had been an “incredible” eight years at Sugden Road.

The former England and GB international said: “I am grateful for the opportunity to have helped Surbiton break new ground and put itself regularly on the European stage. Although titles and success are important, what matters more is the ethos and respect for doing things the right way. I am thankful that I found a club that shared these values.

“When I joined, I had two primary goals – to win national titles and to support the outstanding junior section. I have enjoyed watching the young colts at the club, such as Zach Wallace and Conor Williamson, grow into international-class athletes just as much as any of our national title victories. I would like to express my gratitude to all the players, staff, volunteers, and club members at Surbiton HC who have supported the team and me over the years. I wish the entire club all the success in the future.”

England Over 80s: ‘You play to win but, what the hell, it’s a game of hockey’

“It’s never too late to catch the selectors’ eye,” proclaims Adrian Stephenson, the England over 80s manager and forward. Judging by the fact that England played Netherlands with two sides last week in Canterbury, it might also be harder to play in a side which is believed to be the oldest age group internationals in team sport.

The Hockey Paper was present at Polo Farm as the two sides met up for their annual tussle, which is played for a trophy made out of Dutch oak to represent durability.

“We all do our various routines and keep ourselves in nick,” Stephenson says.

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