Hopefully by now every hockey player in Australia knows of the incredible hockey performances of the Australian men and women in 2014, i.e.,
- Rabobank World Hockey Cup – men (Gold Medal) and women (Silver Medal)
- Commonwealth Games, Glasgow- men (Gold Medal) and women (Gold Medal)
As an Australian you are proud of these men and women who make large personal and financial sacrifices when they wear the green and gold. But their success cannot be just contributed to them alone. There are so many behind the scenes who have made it all possible. Whether that be club or regional coaching personnel who fostered their early days talent, to the elite coaches and support staff that map out these winning journeys, or the hockey administrators, government support, and sponsors who have made it happen also, or finally the parents who have followed the lives of their talented children. And there is most likely many more to be thanked.
Hockey Australia can look back on this year’s success with the knowledge that one of their worst fears has been squashed. What is it? The very life blood of our existence and potential to grow the sport will not be withdrawn – government ASC funding. The future growth of National based amateur sports in Australia is defined by performance results. The statement ‘everyone loves a winner’ holds so true. Keep winning and you will keep the funding coming. However fortunes can be lost. For example it is scary for the future of Hockey New Zealand men at the moment after the results of the World Cup and Commonwealth Games. They wait nervously for the next round of government funding to be announced.
Money funds grass roots growth of hockey participation, the high performance centres of development, best coaches, elite hockey support personnel, and the gaining of and going to valuable international competition. As a result of the funding there needs then to be International success. Why? International success draws sponsors who provide the money. International success draws media attention which draws sponsors and potential champion players to the sport. It is a self-perpetuating circle of development and need that amateur based sports continually face.
What does all this say? It definitely highlights the fact as a national supporting organisation you need to remain at the top of your game. Hockey Australia can receive a ‘pat on the back’ when you look at the results of this year’s men’s and women’s team results. However they will be well aware that they cannot rest on their laurels. There is much work to be done when you consider the Hockey Australia Strategic Plan. For those of Go Hockey News readers who do not know about the 2014-2018 Hockey Australia Strategic Plan, this is the purpose and vision;
Purpose:
- To achieve success with Australian teams
- To grow the game of hockey in Australia
- To govern the game of hockey in Australia
Vision for this strategic plan will be achieved by:
- Consistent Australian team performance and team success at 14 benchmark events.
- Stronger business model by sustained profits through diversified revenue.
- Increased participation across all levels of hockey
- Highest standard of governance across whole of sport
When you review the above in the light of 2014 Hockey Australia can tick the achievement of
Australian teams in 2014. However the real purpose of this article is to bring to light a reflection on
some 2014 developments that would indicate we are failing in other clear purpose and vision
aspects as per Strategic Plan. These are;
Grow participation and achieve high standard governance
Bringing new participants to the game and ensuring they remain in the game is critical. When you see how the Netherlands have a population of 17 million and over 250,000 hockey players and in Australia with a population of 25 million and approximately half the number of Dutch hockey players there is much work to do in ensuring the game in Australia is grown. It is this writers belief that more of the funding Hockey Australia receives should be allocated to game development and promotion. As I understand funding from the ASC is dependent on both sports performance of its national teams and participation levels. The second source of funding comes from players’ hockey fees. The percentage of hockey fees which is sucked up by governing associations is extraordinary high. How much of this money that is then used for growing participation is questionable. The remainder of funding would come from revenue, e.g., sponsorship.
Sadly we lack the funds of professional sports like the football codes when it comes to growing the sport which puts hockey further behind the ‘eight ball’. This is further sadly accentuated by the perceived in ability of Hockey Australia to monetise the opportunities it has been presented with which would result in more money being available to spend on growing participation.
An example of this has been more recently the cruel way Hockey Australia handled the Jamie Dwyer omission from The Commonwealth Games. Ask most non hockey sportspeople who they identify with hockey in Australia and it would be Jamie Dwyer as number 1. Yet did we use our potential to work with Jamie about his possible future retirement rather than ‘cut him off at the knees’ for his unwavering service to Australian hockey. Having a planned retirement could have resulted in Jamie being used to promote hockey participation in Australia even more via media exposure which would result in income producing potential. As a result of the Jamie experience or in a similar retirement case[ pre- 2014 ] with that of former Australian captain and 300+ capped Brent Livermore it is hard to give a big tick to ‘high standard of hockey governance in 2014’. How honourable are both these legends? They were together as TV commentators and supporters for the Australian men’s games at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games.
A further example of a cloud that sits over the governance of hockey in Australia is the more recent debacle at the 2014 Australian Country Championships in Toowoomba. Toowoomba Hockey Association which is a forward thinking association took advantage of the elite event to promote hockey in their centre with their young hockey beginners involved in their Hook to Hockey program and their parents to stage a promotional day to coincide with the Championships, therefore enabling both the young players and their parents to enjoy both their Saturday morning small activities and then watch the elite players participating in the Championships. Great strategy – YES but it turned out to be a NO! It appears the Toowoomba Hockey Association had to cancel their plans the night before. WHY? It appears Hockey Australia has a CONFLICTING WHISTLES POLICY. What does this mean? I understand there can be no whistles coming from any other source than the ones connected to the game being played. As a consequence, there was no hockey for the young players who were looking forward to their weekly activities, and the extended opportunity to watch elite players in action as part of the promotional day. Surely with this sort of governance we are ‘shooting ourselves’ in the foot.
Also, excuse possible ignorance of the facts but absence of the Australian women at the 2014 Youth Olympics in Nanjing is puzzling when at the same time there is Australia Women’s Development Tour Squad playing in Japan.
Lastly, you may ask why write an article like this. When I talk to hockey coaches, administrators, players at the rank and file level there is excitement about the successes of the National men’s and women’s teams in 2014 yet there is also an underlying disappointment with many aspects of decision making with respects to the game development. Maybe it is time for a national survey to ‘flush out’ those Hockey Australia Strategic Plan aspects that are falling short of their written intent for the purposes of immediate rectification.
