A north London hockey club is frustrated by a lack of pitches – and committee members are calling for more airtime to promote the sport.
In north London, hockey clubs are competing for as few as 18 ‘fit-for-purpose’ pitches, often losing out to make room for other sport facilities.
Alex Young, a 24-year old defender at PHC Chiswick, explains how the shortage of funding and suitable pitches is affecting hockey at the grassroots level.
He said: “My old club had a pitch rented from a sports facility, but when I was at university, I heard they were converting it to a 3G astro pitch, which isn’t suitable for hockey.
“The club had to rent a pitch in the next town, which was shared. This led to players not wanting to travel, and the team folded.”
Young shared that his current club, PHC Chiswick, has no stable home-ground, forcing them to play either at White City or Acton, depending on what’s available.
Judith Jones, chair for Junior Hockey London, is urging authorities to build more pitches that are suitable for hockey.
She said: “A major problem is that local authorities are converting pitches to 3G surfaces, which hockey cannot be played on.
“Although new pitches are planned, much more is needed to ease the congestion.”
Rupert Allen, Chairman of PHC Chiswick believes the shortage of pitches is just one issue holding the sport back.
Allen said: “Hockey isn’t the easiest sport to understand, and without airtime, it’s hard for kids to pick it up.
“Local councils and governing bodies must work together to give hockey the visibility it needs.”
Jones agrees that more exposure is needed but adds that education is also key to boosting participation.
While England Hockey (EH) has programmes aimed at increasing state school participation, the sport is still dominated by independent schools.
She said: “The main issue is whether state schools have someone amongst the staff who is passionate about hockey to lead classes and whether they have the facilities to teach it.”
Both Jones and Allen stress that hockey needs role models for juniors to learn from to help increase popularity of the sport.
Jones believes the best way to promote hockey is through wider TV and streaming coverage but noted that major broadcasters currently offer next to no exposure.
She said: “Not everyone has TNT Sports, which shows ProLeague games and other internationals.
“Even during the Olympics, the reporting was scant and focused more on losses than wins.”
While the 2012 Olympics initially boosted participation and increased the number of teams entering leagues the following season, the effect has faded.
Jones said: “Both the aftereffects of COVID and a lack of national success have led to a drop-off in numbers.
“When the national teams perform well, more kids want to play hockey.”
However, with more pitches planned and England Hockey’s push to promote the sport in state schools, there is hope that hockey will find the space and exposure it needs to grow.
Featured Image by Emrys Hart – Club Captain. (PHC Chiswick) Permission to use
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