Preparations are well under way for the international Summer of Hockey tournament — featuring the Black Sticks, Japan, the United States and New Zealand A — getting under way in Dunedin on January 21.
"Everything’s looking really good," Otago Hockey general manager Andy McLean said.
"It’s busy times getting everything ready for the teams arriving and getting the place all set up and ready to go."
The United States land in Dunedin tomorrow and will spend next week training at the Dunedin turf, while other teams will start filtering into the city from the middle of next week.
"We’re really lucky with the support from the Dunedin City Council in recent times to resurface both of our turfs, which make it ... a fantastic community asset.
"To have turfs at the quality that attract these sorts of events and have teams of the calibre of the USA women’s side wanting to come and base themselves here for the best part of two weeks ... it’s really exciting and awesome for Dunedin."
The tournament has been through several changes since it was announced last year.
India and South Korea were scheduled to be part of the event, but were forced to withdraw late last year due to a World Cup qualifier event.
The tournament will now feature four teams, from three countries.
Each team will play each other once before the finals day on January 25.
"Obviously, slight disappointment there just on Christmas with a couple of changes, but look, to have a four-team international event here for that period of time — if that’s what we’d started with, we’d be over the moon.
"We’re extremely excited to be hosting these teams. USA and Japan are both going really well at the moment.
"Our own New Zealand team, having already qualified for the World Cup, they’ve got a really big year on their hands.
"For them to be kick-starting that with this level of competition and this many test matches in Dunedin is really exciting."
While the tournament will attract Otago’s diehard hockey fans, Otago Hockey has also used the opportunity to tap into the sport further in the region by running a Hockey Her Way programme.
The programme, which started late last year and continues this week, has Black Sticks players — including Mezzy Surridge and Nina Murphy — running sessions from Duntroon to Invercargill for female players wanting give hockey a go for the first time or develop their skills.
"That’s all about using these inspirational female athletes just to run some really fun and engaging sessions that have been targeted at everyone.
"They’re going on the same little roadshow promoting hockey, and promoting women’s sport and promoting the series around the wider Otago area.
"That’s been a nice little thing that we’ve been able to tag on to it."
