WA Hockey forging ahead, despite the challenges

Chris Egan • Friday 1st December 2006

WA Hockey has grown 15% in membership, Asian links have been established and efforts are now being done to try and entrench support for the local teams in the National Hockey League.

Austadiums talked to the Marketing and Operations manager of WA Hockey on the future and the sort of difficulties they are trying to rectify in giving synthetic surfaces outside of their traditional stronghold in the Western and south-western suburbs.

Kate Main the Marketing manager of WA Hockey explained the way forward for hockey in WA. There has been a 15% growth in Hockey from previous years and there is some desire to gain a greater attachment with the national representative teams from Perth.

"Were doing a lot of promotion, only happens over a brief period in the summer, it's very hard to grab the winter hockey market...we are looking at getting an AHL Supporters Club going".

While they are also trying to tap into the local south-eastern suburbs in regards to promotion of the AHL representatives.

"We actually have a media cadet, who will be writing up reports, for the local papers...we have had a lot of success in getting write ups in our local papers".

While the location of Curtin University has enabled them to look at tapping into the overseas students who attend the university, going to the various Test matches that Perth Hockey Stadium hosts. 

"We actually already offer a discount for Curtin University students...it's a bit hard to know, we are trying to create closer links with the university".

"Curtin has a lot of overseas students, and we get a lot of those coming to the game and supporting the opposition".

There is an aura of confidence in the bid for the retention of the High Performance Unit in Western Australia, which was presented in Melbourne to Hockey Australia over the past few days.

"The Department of Sport and Recreation and WA Hockey put a lot of time and effort into the bid".

While various teams from Asia train at the venue and for WA Hockey this is where their target lies, after the amalgamation of Perth Hockey Stadium, Women's and Men's hockey into Hockey WA.

"Were linking lots of ties to Asia, we have got the Chinese men coming over from China...they will play the WA side or the AIS".

"We had 6 teams come over to train here, to try and get used to Australian conditions".

While the future problem for WA Hockey lies within trying to give greater access to Synthetic surfaces to regions which don't have the same sort of access, according to Operations Manager of WA Hockey Barbara Jenkins.

"We can provide support, in terms of loans, depending on the location of the request".

"We want to do it in areas that don't already have good access".

"It's the mainly the north-eastern corridor, we are working with the clubs in that area...in developing an interest in hockey. The northern suburbs are looked after by a separate body, the Wanneroo Hockey Association, so it's about trying to get them on board as well".

With the links with Asia, the efforts in trying to entrench support for the local teams and the efforts involved in trying to give synthetic surfaces outside the Western Suburbs, the future looks bright for Hockey in Western Australia.

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WA Hockey has grown 15% in membership, Asian links have been established and efforts are now being done to try and entrench support for the local teams in the National Hockey League.
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