Hockey SA Member Update - June 2022 edition

WELCOME

Welcome to the June edition of the Hockey SA Member Update.
 
We've now crossed the halfway mark of Season 2022 and it's certainly been a busy few months!
 
The June long weekend saw some of SA's up and coming young talent on display, at the Under 13 State Championships. Congratulations to Burnside Hockey Club for winning the boy's and Adelaide Hockey Club for winning the girl's championships. Head to the GetSnapt website to see all the photo galleries and purchase your pics from the championships.
 
Last weekend saw the official opening of the new and improved Pitch 1, where all Premier League clubs played across the weekend for the first time.
 
This week welcomed some exciting announcements from the Adelaide Fire. Read further down for the full update on these.
 
This weekend, MATE Stadium will welcome regional associations for the State Country Championships. 
 
All of this and we're only approaching Round 14 of the season! We look forward to seeing what excitement is to come as we approach the business end of the season.
 

PITCH 1 UPDATE

Pitch 1 is officially open for hockey business!

After months of tireless work and many weather disruptions, we saw the return of hockey on Pitch 1 last weekend, featuring all Premier League teams across the weekend. 

Our brand new pitch is made from Poligras Platinum GT sustainable hockey turf. The only one of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere, and located right here in South Australia. This exact surface will be used at the upcoming FIH Women’s and Men's World Cup, meaning Hockey SA has an international playing surface. 

The team at Polytan have done a fantastic job on helping us achieve a hockey pitch that will meet FIH international standards. Polytan are the FIH’s preferred supplier of Hockey turf and constructed the surface at the recent Tokyo 2020 Olympics. So our project was certainly in the best possible hands. 

Phase 2 of the pitch redevelopment will see the upgrade of the Pitch 1 lighting in July, followed by seating upgrades once supplies are received from overseas. 

HIGH PERFORMANCE

Under 21 State Teams
Under 21 coaches and players are steadily building their preparation for Nationals, to be held in Perth in July. Both male and female sides have partaken in some excellent practice matches, against combined premier teams or state schoolboy's squads. A huge thanks to the broader hockey family assisting with our Under 21’s preparation for Perth.

Under 13 Metro Fire Academy 
Jamie Dowling, the Under 13 Metro Fire Academy Coach, has been impressed with the attitude and skills on display over the past 6 weeks of training. Both the boys and girls have shown a serious love of Hockey, and some could very well be on their way to the Brisbane Olympics.

Regional Fire Academy
Tremendous work from our Regional Fire Academy Coaches has seen fabulous numbers engage with the program. We are looking forward to seeing them compete at the upcoming Hockey 5’s game day next month.

STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS

On Saturday 25th and Sunday 26th June, we welcome the South Australian regional associations to MATE Stadium, when we play host to the 2022 State Country Championships. A full weekend of hockey action showcasing the best talent from our country regions. 

Competition will be happening all weekend across both pitches with prime viewing from the grandstand and enclosed marquee areas. The Pines bar and catering facilities are open all weekend, including a special dinner menu available on both Saturday and Sunday evenings. 

Admission is free and we invite the hockey community to come along and catch some live hockey action this weekend.

ADELAIDE FIRE

This week was full of action and excitement for the Adelaide Fire.

The Fire's new look coaching appointments were announced with an exciting line up of experience to lead the teams into Season 2 of the Hockey One League. Click on the coaching appointments tile below to read the full announcement article. 

Hockey One have officially launched the Season 2 fixtures. An exciting season coming up and we can't wait to see the Adelaide Fire back in action. The Fire will kick off their season against the Perth Thundersticks in Perth on Saturday 1st October, before heading back to Adelaide to take on the Tassie Tigers at MATE Stadium on Saturday 8th October. Click on the tile below to see the Fire's full season fixture. 

To top it off, the Adelaide Fire 2022 membership campaign also kicked off this week. Memberships are now available for purchase via Ticketek. General admission ticket sales will be available in the coming weeks, prior to the season start. We look forward to welcoming all Fire supporters back to MATE Stadium, after a long absence. For more details, click on the membership tile below to head to the Ticketek site.