AUSTRALIAN MEN’S MASTERS CHAMPIONSHIPS in Perth, Western Australia September 27 – October 11 2014.
This year’s championships was a notable one in terms of Western Australia’s winning dominance. They showed that on their home turf they are a powerhouse. Masters hockey in WA is week in and week out a very strong local competition however because the Masters championships are in the most on the east coast of Australia they do not have the opportunity of fielding their best teams. So for 2014 the tails were turned, and they showed their strength by winning 8/12 finals on offer.
It would be good if all of WA 2014 winning players could defend their titles in Cairns next year. Taking nothing away from the WA dominance it was apparent because of the 2014 World Masters Cup and travel cost commitment to Perth there were notable State player absences. In fact it was a first that Victoria one of the past leaders of masters hockey could not field a team in the Over 40’s competition.
How much the state of the economy the growing demands of employment, the growing cost of participation, the time length of the championships and the overall pressure of diminishing family time are effecting the participation ability of players. AMHA management is reviewing the length of the championships for different age groups which is good. Players who are self employed certainly find it hard to be away for two weeks when you address the fact they could be without income during this period depending on the nature of their work as well as be up for the cost of the trip. Also, players who have to take two weeks of their annual leave find it difficult to participate every year especially with family holidays to consider.
Definitely staggering the two week event in terms of start and finish times is a positive step. However the draw needs to be established as best as possible months and months before the event. States may need to consider selecting State teams earlier. Why? It was evident this year that certain State teams arrived on a Saturday and had their first scheduled game the following Friday. Why? It is a common practice to book your airfares once you are picked in a State team in order to reduce trip costs. They booked their fares, accommodation and work leave time only to find a normal playing draw expectation was changed. It is acknowledged it is a difficult process in getting the draw right and this year appears more than ever before. A late draw change even saw some players having to change their departing flight times which is a costly process.
Damon Diletti 
Adam Commens
It is a positive that the Australian Masters Hockey Championships has grown into a major event on the Australian hockey calendar. The introduction of the Over 35’s men’s competition has steadily grown in terms of State representation and the quality of the games played. It may be debateable but I thought this year’s competition level was the best yet. Some high quality exciting hockey was played throughout. The final between favourites Victoria and ACT was a well fought out battle. ACT grew taller in stature as the competition progressed over the week. Their self belief was evident as they threw everything into the final and as a result gave the spectators a thrilling game to watch. They were piped at the post by Victoria.
It was encouraging for the future of masters hockey to see former Kookaburra players Damon Dilletti and Adam Commens playing for WA. Adam the current Hockeyroos coach joins the current Kookaburra coach, Graham Reid, in participating at an Australian Masters Hockey Championships. Rumours are that we will see more former International players play at future masters championships. Former Kookaburra Grant Smith was part of the inaugural development of Over 35’s competition. He enjoyed his initial involvement and continues to play in the championships. He is the current Over 40’s Australian Masters team vice captain.
It is important for hockey as a sport to grow Over 35’s and 40’s masters hockey. Why? The suggested answer is an observation for discussion. Hockey has all the indicators to be a lifelong participation sport which tends not to be used as a marketing strategy effectively by the powers to be. Elite players today train and play ‘full on’ until their career finishes or they retire. Unfortunately they may then be lost to playing hockey (sometimes ‘burnt out’) choosing to pursue a career (rightfully so mind you) which swallows their time and/or they may choose another recreational or sport outlet to pursue because they have achieved or did not achieve what they set out to do. They have lost the impetus to go back and enjoy just playing hockey. Again hockey administrators need to use our past champions who are still playing to market hockey to prospective participators.
The advantage of the Over 35’s and 40’s competition is that it keeps players in the game with a new enjoyment and challenge without the ‘full on’ aspect attached to it. Also there is good evidence to suggest that once they remain involved in the sport of their youth they then take up other roles like coaching their children or others. This is a huge plus for hockey in general. The benefits that flow from keeping hockey players in their sport particularly when you combine playing and contribution back into hockey is something leading hockey administrators need to research. In the early days masters hockey held no major significance as being part of mainstream hockey by leading hockey administrators. Now because of the growing numbers of players participating in masters hockey [which includes new players who previously have not played hockey] and the identified benefits of this as compared to other sports is slowly changing a stubborn viewpoint. Although there is a growing awareness of masters hockey it would be catastrophic for AMHC to fall under the reign of Hockey Australia management without first doing its due diligence, should this be the case.
Much has been achieved by dedication of the AMHC committee and much still needs to be addressed. The future staging of Australian Masters (men’s and women’s) Hockey Championships is one that is put forward by the writer to be considered. The men’s and women’s events have become on the Australian hockey calendar major annual events which should mean big expectations placed upon the choice of event location and the requirements necessary to stage these events. Traditionally the event location has been decided upon a State roster, i.e., 2014 was Western Australia’s turn. This seems on the surface fair and equitable for all competing States. But is it the best approach? As a discussion stimulator I would suggest for the future, AMHC develop a policy which provides the criteria by which a men’s and women’s championship location is determined. For what is important for determining this criteria might be;
- Costs of attending by players, e.g., accommodation and flights
- Location’s ability to cater for players when not playing, e.g., dining, entertainment, tourist attractions
Both of the above may be a consideration by a player as to whether they take their family as use the event as a family holiday as well. The 2008 men’s championships on the Gold Coast was one where it was evident there were additional family spectators. This is one reason why Surf Lifesaving Championships chose to keep the annual event at a key location. The other advantage to keeping an annual event at a key location for a period of time is that the event holder in conjunction with AMHC could rationalize the holding of the event in terms of sales and costs. As well as having a strong case to bring event sponsors to the table and market the event which again value adds to the success of the event. Also this year’s problem of venue hire cost and event location could be avoided where there was additional bargaining power. It is still beyond me why a hockey association would set unrealistic cost expectations for AMHC when AMHC members are in most cases the ‘heart and soul’ of hockey development in that State.
- On ground catering to meet a high standard of food and drink provision and prices contained within identified price parameters
- Possible entertainment streams in order to create the right festive as well as playing spirit. Although WA volunteers did a sound job this year however for example there was a noticeable inconsistency of main game commentary.
- AMHC sponsors should be an integral part of the events they are sponsoring. Without going into detail, this year a loyal AMHC sponsor failed to have their sponsorship arrangements honoured. This was not due to the intentions of AMHC but out of their control. However it is a ‘loop hole’ that would be fixed if there were AHMC event and sponsorship policies to prevent it in the first place.
Cairns is next year’s destination for the men’s championships. I imagine planning is under way to ensure this event will be a memorable one for all participating.
FINALS RESULTS- AUSTRALIAN MASTERS CHAMPIONSHIP
OVER 35’S: Victoria 5 VS Australian Capital Territory 4
OVER 40’S: Western Australia 5 VS New South Wales 1
OVER 40/2’S: Western Australia 3 VS New South Wales 1
OVER 45’S: Western Australia 2 VS NEW SOUTH WALES 1
OVER 45/2’S: New South Wales 2 VS WA Country 1
OVER 50’S: Western Australia 2 VS New South Wales 0
OVER 50/2’S: Queensland 5 VS Western Australia 4
OVER 55’S: Western Australia 3 VS Queensland 2
OVER 55/2’S: Western Australia 3 VS New South Wales 0
OVER 60’S Western Australia 2 VS New South Wales 0
OVER 65’S Queensland 4 VS New South Wales 1
OVER 70’s Western Australia (2) 1 VS New South Wales 0
AUSTRALIAN MASTERS TEAMS NAMED FOR 2015 TRANS TASMAN EVENT IN MELBOURNE
35s
Daniel Brennan (Co-Captain), Dean Dawson (co-Captain), Todd Blackstock, Brett Crawford, David Hammond,
Alex Jones, Matthew Lobsey, Danny Mayfield, Jason Mulder, Mathew Selby, Philip Taylor, Graeme Thompson, Michael Tweedie, Kane Wetheral, Scott Whitaker, Mathew Whitbread.
Manager – Brendan Chambers; Coach – Andre Cabral, Medical – Alexandre Flohr, Umpire – David Bridgford.
Shadows – Peter Hollis, Ben Sharples, Steven Maffescioni, Gerard Evans, Casey Jobben, David Burd, Duncan Brown,
Darren D’Souza, Drew Harold, Geoff Neaves
40S
Nigel Toussaint (Captain), Grant Smith (V Captain), Brian Siva (V Captain).
Matthew Bradley, Jason Burns, Joe Cosenza, Matt Hope, Jason Lynch, Chris McCarthy,
Murray McIntyre, Andrew May, David Perry, Scott Reid, Till Sorensen, Glen Stolk,
Dean Tyler.
Manager – Russell Reick, Coach – Geoff Horsley, Medical – Sharon Dixon,
Umpire – Kirsten Schenk.
Shadows – Brett Connor, Brad Williams, Shane Johnson, Jordan Harle, Tony Barton,
Michael Enright, Jamie Rach, Garth Walter, Dion Phillips, Adrian Jones,
Richard Gardiner, Nathan Butterfield, Chris Forte, James Fordham, Mike Illingworth.
45s
Alan Dick (Captain), Craig Emslie (V Captain), Dean Wightman (V Captain),
Stuart Beltz, Chris Clark, Allan Colthart, Andrew Davy, Stephen Ford,
Peter Keeble, Dean Lomax, Darryn Marjoram, Leon Phillips, Wayne Porter,
Michael Rae, Damian Smith, Stewart Tyquin.
Manager – Paula Dick, Coach – Alan Sheehy, Medical – Lynn Dunnett,
Umpire – Philip Dubbin.
Shadows – Grant McCaskell, Eric Theul, Michael Starling, Trevor Beazley,
Wayne Grimes, Matthew Ferns, Warren Baker, David Hurst, Michael Austin, David Dart, Wayne Follett, Anthony Rudolph.
50s
Michael Irby (Captain), Phil Frost (V Captain), Matt Jones (V Captain),
Ric Ambrose, Roberts Behets, David Collier, Gary Faries, Peter Gaggin,
Tony Jones, Alan Kidd, Kevin Knapp, Phillip Price, Bede Rogers,
Michael Russ, Phillip Shaw, Andrew Small.
Manager – Paul Hardy & Murray Connop, Coach – Cameron Fairbrother,
Medical – Simone Muscat, Umpire – Damien Defret.
Shadows – John Dodderal, Michael Collins, Michael Hallam, Peter Storer,
Paul Gasmier, Brian Saxby, Amauri Amat.
55s
Noel Morrison (Captain), Kevin McLaughlin (V Captain), Graham Body,
Martin Ferrari, Ian Ferreira, Terry Horne, Lyle Kenny, Graham Miller, Paul Murray,
Craig Paton, Stephen Pestana, Nigel Rayney, Brian Robinson,
Stephen Sawyer, Paul Scicluna, Russell Staff.
Manager – Carolyn Campbell, Coach – Rob Lawson, Medical – Darren Poon,
Umpire – Scott Orth.
Shadows – Thomas Vince, David Allen, Paul Leadbetter, John Pestana, Don Bowser, Gil Puckering.
60s
David Peebles (Captain), John Campbell (V Captain), Peter Byrne,
David Campbell, John Chapman, Dennis Cranston, Wayne Cutler,
Noel French, Clive Harrison, Peter Mann, Robert Redding,
Geoff Robinson, Norman Same, Peter Shepherd, David Spiden,
Peter Sweeney.
Manager – Rob Thompson and Gary Smith, Coach – Peter Sweeney,
Medical – Marie Sarandogliou, Umpire – Richard Arthur.
Shadows – John Williams, Geoff Lewis, Rick McConnell,
Russell Clucas, Andrew Terry, Ian Pestana, Greg Richards, Glenn Buttsworth.
65s
Doug Truman (Captain), John Harper (V Captain), Bruce Snape (V Captain),
Keith Chay, Neil Coster, Anton Dekens, Rod Dyson, Warren Flower,
Peter Fogels, Winton Inkster, Keith Jervis, Denis Lovell, John Nicholas,
Ray Northwood, Tony Rodgers, Simon Thomson.
Manager – Ric Roberts, Coach – Bob Claxton, Medical – Peter Evison,
Umpire – Terry Mason.
Shadows – Peter Neagle, Robert McNeil, Peter Ridland, Ken Briggs,
Gil Voysey, David Edwards, Kevin Keep, Neil SueSee, Alan Stewart,
Keith Robertson, Jeff Wait.
