Hockey: Southern players badly let down by administrators

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Southern Hockey has scored the public relations equivalent of a stunning own goal - a reverse stick from the edge of the circle that no-one saw coming.

A month ago the board made the monumental yet staggeringly brief announcement that it would not be entering teams in the National Hockey League this year.

No explanation was offered and all attempts to tease out the reasons why have been thwarted.

Southern Hockey board co-chairman Andrew Booth has remained stubbornly tight-lipped.

All he has said is the board will provide an answer after Southern Hockey has met Hockey New Zealand in a few weeks.

The Otago Daily Times understands financial concerns are the main reason behind the move.

With so many of Southern's players based outside the region, the expense of assembling the team and getting the players around the country to the various venues was prohibitive.

Southern teams faced expensive trips to Timaru, Blenheim and then to Whangarei for tournament week.

It appears as though the Southern hockey community is not enjoying the mystery.

Southern Dogs back-up goalkeeper James Bishop said he was disappointed the players affected were not consulted or contacted before the announcement was made and he was still none the wiser as to why Southern Hockey made the extraordinary decision.

"Talking with a few of the other guys, we would have liked notification and then we could have put a plan in place to try [to play] elsewhere,'' Bishop said.

"Nothing has come from Southern Hockey to the players about the draft process.''

Hockey New Zealand, however, has not forgotten the players down this way and has touched base with Bishop (34) and others about their playing futures.

"We were quite relieved that someone had reached out to us.''

Bishop also felt the teams should have been consulted so Southern Hockey could ascertain what level of financial commitment individuals were prepared to make in order to compete in the league.

Last season Bishop and the players kicked in about $1200 of their own funds.

Southern Storm goalkeeper Ginny Wilson was also critical about the lack of information.

She is one of the lucky players to find a playing gig elsewhere.

The Auckland-based 21-year-old will play for Capital but she is aware others will have to put their hockey aspirations on hold.

Southern's absence from the national league this season not only strips the men's competition of one of the leading teams, it also blots out an important pathway for the region's players.

The board of Southern Hockey has certainly not emerged which much glory.

It appears its fundraising efforts have fallen short.

Its communication strategy has been to keep the hockey community in the dark and it has made little or no effort to support the affected players.

If the board was a player, they would be pulled from the field and some fresh legs introduced.

It would be a dreadful disservice if Southern Hockey was in the same position 12 months from now, because no-one was held accountable.

But perhaps Hockey New Zealand needs to shoulder some responsibility, as well.

Its high performance director Terry Evans told the ODT last month he was aware of Southern Hockey's issues with "resources and coaches'' and the national body remained committed to building a sustainable league.

That said, Hockey New Zealand was either unwilling or unable to help Southern find a solution to help keep the region in the league.

It also made the decision to schedule tournament week in Whangarei, not the most convenient or cheapest of locations.

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