Hockey Victoria
Encyclopedia
Hockey Victoria is the governing body for the sport of field hockey
Field hockey
Field Hockey, or Hockey, is a team sport in which a team of players attempts to score goals by hitting, pushing or flicking a ball into an opposing team's goal using sticks...

 in Victoria, Australia. It is responsible for the administration of intrastate competitions, state representative teams, officials and the financial position of the sport. Its office is located on the ground level of the State Netball and Hockey Centre, in Parkville
Parkville, Victoria
Parkville is an inner city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 3 km north from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Melbourne. At the 2006 Census, the population was 4,980....

, a central suburb of Melbourne.

Organisation Structure

HV is run by a small number of full- and part-time staff, including
  • The CEO is responsible for overseeing the general operation of HV, and providing strategies for future development
  • two Competition and Events officers, responsible for coordinating fixtures, officiating, club liaison, finals, internal competitions and State Championships, and hosting external competitions such as National Championships and International Tests
  • a State Teams Manager, responsible for the selection and management of state representative players, staff (coaches and managers), and officials
  • a Development Manager, responsible for grass-roots development of the sport, including the VicStix
    VicStix
    VicStix is a junior skills development program run by Hockey Victoria.-History:VicStix originally began as a skills development initiative in the early 2000s aimed at the under-16 and under-17 age group....

     program, HookIn2Hockey implementation, and Rookey programs
  • an Administration Assistant/Receptionist

Logo

In the 1990s, the Victorian Hockey Association operated using a silver-and-black letter 'V'. When the Victorian Hockey Association, Victorian Women's Hockey Association and Victorian Junior Hockey Association amalgamated and became HV in 2003, the new peak body rebranded itself with a new logo. This represents a stylised 'V' and stylised hockey sticks, using the traditional Victorian colours of blue and white.

In September 2010, the HV logo was changed under a directive from Hockey Australia to bring the logos of all the State and Territory Associations into alignment, to demonstrate "that [the] sport is working together for the betterment of [its] members, ... [and to] demonstrate a modern and innovative look and feel and present [the] sport in a more professional way"http://www.hockeyvictoria.org.au/index.php?id=11&tx_ttnews%5bpointer%5d=3&tx_ttnews%5btt_news%5d=648&tx_ttnews%5bbackPid%5d=10&cHash=0dafeabd43. This new series of logos uses the same image, an abstraced person holding a hockey stick, for all Associations with the variation being provided in the colour scheme. HV's new logo uses navy blue, the traditional colour for Victoria, and orange, the alternate colour used by Victorian state teams in the event of a colour clash.

Melbourne Metropolitan

Club Colours Nickname Home Ground
Altona Seagulls JK Grant Reserve, Altona
Altona, Victoria
Altona is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 13 km south-west from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Hobsons Bay. At the 2006 Census, Altona had a population of 9685....

Baw Baw Bulls Bellbird Park, Drouin
Drouin, Victoria
Drouin is a major service town, located in West Gippsland, east of Melbourne. Its local government area is the Shire of Baw Baw. The town is supposedly named after a Frenchman who invented a chlorination process for the extraction of ore or an Aboriginal word meaning "north wind". New estate...

Box Hill Elgar Park, Box Hill
Box Hill, Victoria
Box Hill is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 14 km east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Whitehorse. At the 2006 Census, Box Hill had a population of 8,616....

Brunswick Brunswick Secondary College
Brunswick Secondary College
Brunswick Secondary College is located at 47 Dawson Street, Brunswick 3056 Victoria, Australia. It is one of two government secondary schools in Brunswick, the other one being Sydney Road Community School. BSC was created during the 1990s via an amalgamation of Brunswick Technical School,...

Camberwell Matlock Reserve, Camberwell
Camberwell, Victoria
Camberwell is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 9 km east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Boroondara. At the 2006 Census, Camberwell had a population of 19,637....

Casey Cannons Berwick Secondary College
Berwick Secondary College
Berwick Secondary College is situated in the outer Melbourne metropolitan suburb of Berwick. Until recently, it was the largest single campus government secondary college in Victoria....

Bayside Cougars Cougars Brighton Secondary College
Brighton Secondary College
Brighton Secondary College is a Year 7 to 12 co-educational. In 2010 it is estimated that 1200+ students will be enrolled at the college. Established in 1955, the College is set in spacious grounds in the City of Bayside, situated in Brighton East, Victoria, Australia...

Collegians-X
Wesley College, Melbourne
Wesley College, Melbourne is an independent, co-educational, Christian day school in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Established in 1866, the college is a school of the Uniting Church in Australia. Wesley is the largest school in Australia by enrolment, with 3,511 students and 564 full-time staff...

Lions Monash University
Monash University
Monash University is a public university based in Melbourne, Victoria. It was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. Monash is a member of Australia's Group of Eight and the ASAIHL....

, Clayton Campus
Doncaster Mullum Mullum Reserve, East Doncaster
Eastern Christian Hockey Organisation (ECHO) Ashwood Reserve, Ashwood
Ashwood, Victoria
Ashwood is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 14 km south-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Monash...

Essendon Bombers Essendon Hockey Center, Ascot Vale
Ascot Vale, Victoria
Ascot Vale is a suburb 7 km north-west of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Its Local Government Area is the City of Moonee Valley. At the 2006 Census, Ascot Vale had a population of 12,398....

Footscray Bulldogs McIvor Reserve, Yarraville
Yarraville, Victoria
Yarraville is a suburb 6 km west of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Its Local Government Area is the City of Maribyrnong. At the 2006 Census, Yarraville had a population of 12,726....

Frankston Stingrays Monash University
Monash University
Monash University is a public university based in Melbourne, Victoria. It was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. Monash is a member of Australia's Group of Eight and the ASAIHL....

, Peninsula Campus
Greater Dandenong Warriors Mills Reserve, Dandenong
Dandenong, Victoria
Dandenong is a suburb and major urban centre in metropolitan Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 30 km south-east from Melbourne's central business district. Situated on Dandenong Creek and mostly flat land at the foothills of Mount Dandenong, it is the main administrative centre for the City of...

Greensborough Kookaburras Plenty Park, Plenty
Plenty, Victoria
Plenty is a locality within Greater Melbourne beyond the Melbourne metropolitan area Urban Growth Boundary 20 km north-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the Shire of Nillumbik. At the 2006 Census, Plenty had a population of 986.Plenty is a...

Hawthorn Hawks Auburn Rd, Hawthorn East
Hawthorn East, Victoria
Hawthorn East is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 9 km east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Boroondara...

HMAS Cerberus
HMAS Cerberus, Victoria
HMAS Cerberus is the Royal Australian Navy's primary training establishment, located adjacent to Crib Point on the Mornington Peninsula, south of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is also an official bounded locality of the Shire of Mornington Peninsula...

HMAS Cerberus Naval Base
HMAS Cerberus, Victoria
HMAS Cerberus is the Royal Australian Navy's primary training establishment, located adjacent to Crib Point on the Mornington Peninsula, south of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is also an official bounded locality of the Shire of Mornington Peninsula...

, Crib Point
Crib Point, Victoria
Crib Point is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, as a part of the urban enclave on Western Port comprising Bittern, Crib Point, Hastings, Tyabb, and Somerville...

K.E.W. Elgar Park, Box Hill
Box Hill, Victoria
Box Hill is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 14 km east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Whitehorse. At the 2006 Census, Box Hill had a population of 8,616....

Knox Eagles The Knox School
Latrobe University Hardiman Reserve, Reservoir
Reservoir, Victoria
Reservoir is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 12 km north from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Darebin. At the 2006 Census, Reservoir had a population of 45,970....

M.C.C. Hockey Club
Melbourne Cricket Club
The Melbourne Cricket Club is a sporting club based in Melbourne, Australia. It was founded in 1838 and is regarded as the oldest sporting club in Australia....

Demons Melbourne High School
Melbourne High School
Melbourne High School is a selective entry state school for boys in years 9 to 12 located in the Melbourne suburb of South Yarra. Being a selective school, it is known mainly for its strong academic reputation...

Melbourne High School Old Boys
Melbourne High School
Melbourne High School is a selective entry state school for boys in years 9 to 12 located in the Melbourne suburb of South Yarra. Being a selective school, it is known mainly for its strong academic reputation...

Melbourne High School
Melbourne High School
Melbourne High School is a selective entry state school for boys in years 9 to 12 located in the Melbourne suburb of South Yarra. Being a selective school, it is known mainly for its strong academic reputation...

Melbourne University (MUHC) Shop Melbourne University
Maccabi Albert Park
Albert Park and Lake
Albert Park and Albert Park Lake are situated in the City of Port Phillip, Victoria, Australia, 3 km south of the Melbourne CBD....

Melton Mustangs Mowbray College
Mowbray College
Mowbray College is an independent, non-selective, co-educational day school, located in Maldon and Caroline Springs, Victoria, Australia.The school has three campuses. The Patterson campus, located at Melton, teaches students from pre-school to Year Twelve. The Brookside and Town Centre campuses...

, Melton
Melton, Victoria
Melton is an outer-suburban city of Melbourne Victoria, Australia located 35 km east from Melbourne's central business district. It is the administrative centre for the Shire of Melton Local Government Area. At the 2006 Census, the Shire of Melton had a population of 35,490...

Mentone Panthers Mentone Grammar School
Mentone Grammar School
Mentone Grammar School is an independent, Anglican co-educational grammar school in Mentone, a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.-History:...

 playing fields, Keysborough
Keysborough, Victoria
Keysborough is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 27 km south-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Greater Dandenong...

Monash University
Monash University
Monash University is a public university based in Melbourne, Victoria. It was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. Monash is a member of Australia's Group of Eight and the ASAIHL....

Farmers Monash University
Monash University
Monash University is a public university based in Melbourne, Victoria. It was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. Monash is a member of Australia's Group of Eight and the ASAIHL....

, Clayton Campus
Mornington Peninsula Falcons Monash University
Monash University
Monash University is a public university based in Melbourne, Victoria. It was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. Monash is a member of Australia's Group of Eight and the ASAIHL....

, Peninsula Campus
Old Carey
Carey Baptist Grammar School
Carey Baptist Grammar School is an independent, co-educational, Christian, international, day school consisting of four campuses in Victoria, Australia - Kew , Donvale , the Carey Sports Complex in Bulleen and an outdoor education camp near Paynesville in eastern Gippsland called Carey...

Elgar Park, Box Hill
Box Hill, Victoria
Box Hill is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 14 km east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Whitehorse. At the 2006 Census, Box Hill had a population of 8,616....

Old Haileyburians Association (OHA) Haileybury College, Keysborough Campus
Old Melburnians
Melbourne Grammar School
Melbourne Grammar School is an independent, Anglican, day and boarding school predominantly for boys, located in South Yarra and Caulfield, suburbs of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia....

Melbourne Grammar Sports Complex, Port Melbourne
Port Melbourne, Victoria
Port Melbourne is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 5 km southwest of Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government areas are the cities of Port Phillip and Melbourne. At the 2006 Census, Port Melbourne had a population of 13,293....

Old Xaverians
Xavier College
Xavier College is a Roman Catholic, day and boarding school predominantly for boys, with its main campus located in Kew, an eastern suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia....

Matlock Reserve, Camberwell
Camberwell, Victoria
Camberwell is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 9 km east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Boroondara. At the 2006 Census, Camberwell had a population of 19,637....

Old Yarra Valley Yarra Valley Grammar School
P.E.G.S.
Penleigh and Essendon Grammar School
Penleigh and Essendon Grammar School is an independent, Uniting Church, co-educational school, with campuses located in Essendon, Moonee Ponds and Keilor East in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia....

Penleigh and Essendon Grammar School
Penleigh and Essendon Grammar School
Penleigh and Essendon Grammar School is an independent, Uniting Church, co-educational school, with campuses located in Essendon, Moonee Ponds and Keilor East in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia....

, East Keilor
Powerhouse-St Kilda Albert Park
Albert Park and Lake
Albert Park and Albert Park Lake are situated in the City of Port Phillip, Victoria, Australia, 3 km south of the Melbourne CBD....

RMIT
RMIT University
RMIT University is an Australian public university located in Melbourne, Victoria. It has two branches, referred to as RMIT University in Australia and RMIT International University in Vietnam....

Redbacks McIvor Reserve, Yarraville
Yarraville, Victoria
Yarraville is a suburb 6 km west of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Its Local Government Area is the City of Maribyrnong. At the 2006 Census, Yarraville had a population of 12,726....

Southern United Strikers Farm Road, Moorabbin
Moorabbin, Victoria
Moorabbin is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 15 km south-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Kingston. At the 2006 Census, Moorabbin had a population of 5,170....

St Bede's Old Collegians
St Bede's College (Mentone)
St Bede's College is a Roman Catholic, secondary school for boys, located in Mentone, Victoria, Australia.Founded in 1938, it is administered by the De La Salle Brothers and named after St. Bede the Venerable, a Benedictine monk and priest who spent his life teaching and writing in the...

Mentone Grammar School
Mentone Grammar School
Mentone Grammar School is an independent, Anglican co-educational grammar school in Mentone, a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.-History:...

 playing fields, Keysborough
Keysborough, Victoria
Keysborough is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 27 km south-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Greater Dandenong...

St Bernard's Old Collegians
St. Bernard's College, Melbourne
St. Bernard's College is a Roman Catholic Independent school for boys located in the Melbourne suburb of Essendon. The College is named after its patron saint, Bernard of Clairvaux, and is a member of the Associated Catholic Colleges.-History:...

St Bernard's College
St. Bernard's College, Melbourne
St. Bernard's College is a Roman Catholic Independent school for boys located in the Melbourne suburb of Essendon. The College is named after its patron saint, Bernard of Clairvaux, and is a member of the Associated Catholic Colleges.-History:...

, Essendon
Essendon, Victoria
Essendon is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 10 km north-west from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Moonee Valley...

Swinburne Razorbacks Auburn Rd, Hawthorn East
Hawthorn East, Victoria
Hawthorn East is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 9 km east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Boroondara...

Toorak-East Malvern (TEM) Lions Auburn Rd, Hawthorn East
Hawthorn East, Victoria
Hawthorn East is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 9 km east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Boroondara...

Victorian Sikhs Monash University
Monash University
Monash University is a public university based in Melbourne, Victoria. It was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. Monash is a member of Australia's Group of Eight and the ASAIHL....

, Clayton Campus
Waverley Hockey Club
Waverley Hockey Club
The Waverley Hockey Club, also known as Waverley, is one of the premier hockey clubs in Victoria under the Hockey Victoria competition.Waverley caters for players of all ages and skill level, with top level senior men's and women's teams as well as junior teams from under 9 to under 17 age groups...

Panthers Ashwood Reserve, Ashwood
Ashwood, Victoria
Ashwood is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 14 km south-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Monash...

Werribee Tigers President's Park, Werribee
Werribee, Victoria
Werribee is a city in Melbourne, Australia, 32 km south-west from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Wyndham. At the 2006 Census, Werribee had a population of 36,641. Statistically, Werribee is considered part of Greater Melbourne.Werribee is...

Yarra Valley Yabbies Cyril Cummins Reserve, Bellfield
Bellfield, Victoria
Bellfield is a suburb in Victoria, Australia, 9 km north-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Banyule...


Regional Victoria

  • Central Victoria Hockey Association
  • Colac & District Hockey Association
  • East Gippsland Hockey Association
    East Gippsland Hockey Association
    The East Gippsland Hockey Association is a field hockey league in the East Gippsland region of Victoria, Australia. The league features five divisions, Open , Women's, under 18s, under 15s and under 13s.-History:...

  • Glenelg Hockey Association
  • Grampians Hockey Association
  • Hockey Albury Wodonga
  • Hockey Ballarat
  • Hockey Geelong
    Hockey Geelong
    Hockey Geelong is the governing body for the sport of field hockey in the region of the city of Geelong, Australia. HG coordinates men's, women's and junior local competition, as well as elite men's and women's squads in the Victorian State League conducted by Hockey Victoria.-History:The first...

  • Latrobe Valley Hockey Association
  • West Gippsland Hockey Association
  • Wimmera Hockey Association

Life Members

  • Bert Batch (dec)
  • Kathleen Bell (dec)
  • Allan Berry
  • Cheryl Blair
  • Isobel Caithness (dec)
  • Jenny Chaston (dec)
  • Dolly Corrigan
  • Michael Craig
  • Margaret Devlin
  • Sylvia Faram
  • Jesse Ferguson (dec)
  • Ron Ford
  • Alf Franks (dec)
  • Diedre Ginter
  • Hedley Hull
  • Marjorie Irving (dec)
  • Gael Knight
  • Valentine Leeper (dec)
  • Frank Levy (dec)
  • Gloria Logan
  • Val Mann
  • Peg McMahon
  • Wally McMillan (dec)
  • Finlay McNab OBE (dec)
  • Charles Morley (dec)
  • Gwen Mulconry
  • Margaret Murray (dec)
  • Harry Nederveen AM (dec)
  • Frances Newson (dec)
  • Ken Parkin
  • Robyn Pascoe
  • Dorothy Paul MBE (dec)
  • Noelle Payze
  • Frank Shann (dec)
  • Judith Silom
  • Edna Smith
  • George Stapleton
  • L. Thompson (dec)
  • Keith Thornton (dec)
  • Margaret Tomlinson
  • Pamela Vincent
  • Colin Wansbrough

Competition Structure

HV administers a statewide, club-based competition, where self-administering clubs enter teams into the competition. All competitions are based on a promotion-relegation system of advancement, as outlined below.

Openage (Senior) Competition

There are two concurrent tiers of competition in Victoria - State League and Pennant/Metro. There are 18 rounds of competition, allowing all teams to play each other twice.
Clubs may only enter one team in the State League (SL) competition, and this is treated as that club's "First XI" or highest-ranked team. State League One (SL1) is the premier competition in Victoria. In 2008, there were five State League grades for men and four for women. There is a maximum of ten teams per grade in State League. If a new club was to enter State League, they would have to enter at the lowest grade and earn promotion to the higher grades.

Clubs may have one team in each grade of Pennant/Metro competition. They progress by earning promotion from lower grades to higher grades. Grades are typically limited to 10 teams per grade, although Metro 4 (the lowest grade) may have fewer teams depending on team entries for that year. Pennant grades are statewide, but Metro grades are district-based to minimise travel distances. The Pennant/Metro grades are ranked as follows:
  1. Pennant A
  2. Pennant B
  3. Pennant C
  4. Pennant D
  5. Pennant E (men's competition only)
  6. Metro 1 (North & South - women's, East & West - men's)
  7. Metro 2 (North, South, East & West)
  8. Metro 3 (North, South, East & West)
  9. Metro 4 (North, South, East & West depending on number of team entries)

Thus, the highest grade attainable in the Pennant/Metro competition in Pennant A (PA). This is often the "Second XI" of a SL1 or SL2 club, so it is deemed a very strong competition. In fact, PA is deemed by many to be the second-highest competition behind SL1, although SL2 is considered to be higher than PB.

All Openage/Senior grades have a three-week finals series as follows:
  • Semi-Finals - The teams finishing 1st and 2nd after the regular season play in the "Qualifying Final", and the teams finishing 3rd and 4th play in the "Elimination Final"
  • Preliminary Final - The loser of the Qualifying Final plays the winner of the Elimination Final
  • Grand Final - The winner of the Qualifying Final plays the winner of the Preliminary Final


Teams finishing in the bottom two places of each grade after the regular season are relegated to the next lowest grade in that competition. For example, the teams finishing 9th and 10th in PB will be relegated to PC for the next season. Teams being relegated from PD/PE to M1 will go to the most appropriate district of M1 if possible, with one team going to each district. Likewise for teams being relegated from M1 to M2.

Teams finishing 1st in each grade after the regular season (the Minor Premiers) are automatically promoted to the next highest grade in that competition. If that team also wins the Grand Final (the Major Premiers) then the team finishing 2nd in the grade is promoted. If the Minor Premier is not also the Major Premier, then the Major Premier is promoted. For example, Teams A, B, C and D finish 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th in SL2 respectively. A is automatically promoted to SL1, and if A wins the Grand Final, B is promoted as well. If A does not win the Grand Final, the team that does win is promoted instead of B, regardless of where they finished. Only the Minor Premier of each district of M2 is promoted to M1, and likewise for M1 into PD/PE.

Underage (Junior) Competition

Competition in the Underage competition is based on age, gender and grade. HV operates competitions for age groups under-17, under-15, under-13, under-11 and under-9 in girls and mixed genders.

In each age group there are several grades, depending on team numbers, as follows:
  1. 'A' or 'Shield'
  2. Pennant North-West & Pennant South-East
  3. (District) North & South


There is a nominal limit of 10 teams per grade, but this is relatively flexible depending on team entries.

Promotion is based on the performance of a club over a number of years, and is re-examined every year. For example, a team that finished on top of U15PNW may not necessarily be promoted to U15A the following year if that team are all top-age players (hence ineligible for U15 the next year) and the next group of players have performed poorly (for example the U13PNW team finished last in the same year).

Age groups are taken from the 1st of January that year. For example, a player who is 14 on the 1st of January would be eligible for U15 and U17 grades.

The A-grades have perpetual shields named after notable hockey personalities in Victoria:
  • U17A - Ric Purser Shield
  • U17A Girls - Ron Penpraze Shield
  • U15A - George Stapleton Shield
  • U13A - Ron Ford Shield
  • U11A - Keith Thornton Shield
  • U15A Girls - Margaret Tomlinson Shield
  • U13A Girls - Ken Parkin Shield


All junior grades from U11 to U17 play a two-week finals series as follows:
  • Semi-Finals - The teams finishing 1st and 4th after the regular season play in one semi-final, and the teams finishing 2nd and 3rd play in the other
  • Grand Final - The winners of the two semi-finals play each other

Overage (Veterans) Competitions

There are two tiers of veterans competition - over-40 and over-50. Ages are taken from the 31st of December that year.

As for other competitions, 18 rounds are played and there is a limit of 10 teams per grade, except in the bottom grade.
Grades for the over-40 tier are ranked as follows:
  1. Veterans A
  2. Veterans B
  3. Veterans C (East & West)
  4. Veterans D (East & West)
  5. Veterans E (East & West)


There are two women's-only veterans grades, A and B.

Over-50s are colloquially known as "SuperVets" and play in either A or B.

Teams finishing in the bottom two places of each grade after the regular season are relegated to the next lowest grade in that competition. For example, the teams finishing 9th and 10th in VA will be relegated to VB for the next season. Teams being relegated from VB to VC will go to the most appropriate district of VC if possible, with one team going to each district.

Teams finishing 1st in each grade after the regular season (the Minor Premiers) are automatically promoted to the next highest grade in that competition. If that team also wins the Grand Final (the Major Premiers) then the team finishing 2nd in the grade is promoted. If the Minor Premier is not also the Major Premier, then the Major Premier is promoted. Only the Minor Premier of each district in VC is promoted to VB.

Indoor Competition

Over summer HV runs an Indoor competition. There are competitions for men and women. It is tiered as follows:
  1. Super League
  2. A League (Northwest and Southeast)
  3. B League (Northwest and Southeast)


There are also underage competitions for under-17, under-15 and under-13 boys and girls.

Intra-State Championships

HV runs a number of intrastate tournaments throughout the course of the year.

Pre-2010

Held during the week leading up to the first weekend in July, this was the premier intrastate Championship in Victoria. It consisted of five representative zones competing in a round-robin competition in under-13, under-14 and under-15 age groups in boys and girls competition. U13 and U15 State teams (or final trial squads) were selected from this tournament. Likewise this was the selection tournament for officials such as umpires to attend National Championships.

The competing zones were:
  • Western Wildcats - green and yellow uniform. Comprised Altona, Brunswick, Essendon, Footscray, Lowther Hall, Melton, MUHC and Werribee clubs
  • Eastern Hotshots - black and green uniform. Comprised Baw Baw, Camberwell, Knox, Hawthorn, MCC, MHSOB and Yarra Valley clubs
  • Southern Sharks - purple and white uniform. Comprised Casey, Greater Dandenong Warriors, Frankston, Mentone, Mornington Peninsula, Southern United, St. Bedes, TEM and Waverley clubs
  • Red Devils (North) - red and black uniform. Comprised Ajax-Maccabi, Box Hill, Doncaster, Greensborough, Kew and PowerHouse/St Kilda clubs
  • Country Cobras - navy blue and white uniform. Comprised all affiliated regional associations including Geelong, Bendigo, Albury-Wodonga, Ballarat, Warrnambool, and Gippsland.

2010 onwards

At the completion of the 2009 JSC, there was significant speculation that the structure of the Championship would be radically changed. Later that year, HV announced that the number of zones would increase from five to ten (6 metropolitan and 4 regional) and that the structure of JSC would be modified to reduce the time over which it was played. The age groups were revised to be U13 and U15 (run concurrently at the same event in July) and U17 (run separately in October). This brings the State Championships into alignment with the Hockey Australia National Championships (the U17 event provides players that will be U18 in the following April, when the U18 nationals is usually held).

The new zones are as follows:
  • Southern Sharks - Purple and White - Casey, Chadstone, Frankston, Greater Dandenong Warriors, HMAS Cerberus, Mentone, Mornington Peninsula, Old Haileyburians, Peninsula, Sandringham Women, Southern United, Southern Knights, St Bedes
  • Central Flames - Red and Yellow - Elwood, Hawthorn, Maccabi, MCC, Melbourne High, Old East Malvern, Powerhouse/St Kilda, Swinburne, TEM
  • North East Red Devils - Black and Red - Box Hill, Doncaster, Greensborough, Kew, Marcellin, Old Carey, Old Trinity, Old Yarra Valley
  • Eastern Hotshots - Green, Red and Black - Camberwell, Collegians-X, ECHO, Knox, Monash Uni, Old Camberwell Grammar, Old Xaverians, Victorian Sihks, Waverley
  • North West Tigers - Orange and Grey - Brunswick, Essendon, LaTrobe, Lowther Hall, Melton, Melbourne Uni, Parkville, PEGS, St Bernard's, Yarra Valley
  • Western Wildcats - Green and Yellow - Altona, Footscray, Geelong, Old Melbournians, RMIT, Sunshine, Werribee
  • Southwest Country Eagles - Maroon and Black - Ballarat, Corangamite, Glenelg, Grampians, Portland, Warrnambool, Wimmera
  • Southeast Country Cougars - Blue and Red - Baw Baw, East Gippsland, West Gippsland, LaTrobe Valley
  • Northeast Country Knights - Green and Blue - Golbourn Valley, Albury-Wodonga, Euroa
  • Northwest Country Lightning - Blue and White - Central Victoria (Bendigo), Kerang, Maryborough, North-Central, Sunraysia, Wimmera

U18 Women's State Championships

Traditionally held over the Labour Day long weekend in March, this was a zone-based development tournament. There were typically 10 zone teams selected (Bayside, Central Suburbs, Western Suburbs, Western Highway, Outer Suburbs, Central State, Southwest Districts, Gippsland, Upper Murray, Murray Valley) and they competed in a round-robin phase, with a finals series on the Monday. Zone teams were selected from trials based on the senior club the players play for. This tournament was run for the last time in 2010, being replaced by the U17 State Championship (see above)

Country Carnival

Affiliated regional associations are invited to send teams to compete in the Country Champs. A senior & veterans competition is held over the Queen's Birthday long weekend in June, and a junior competition is held on the last weekend in June, immediately preceding the Junior State Championships.

VicStix

A round-robin tournament is held at the conclusion of each VicStix development program
VicStix
VicStix is a junior skills development program run by Hockey Victoria.-History:VicStix originally began as a skills development initiative in the early 2000s aimed at the under-16 and under-17 age group....

, as a way for the participants to showcase the skills they have learned throughout the program. As VicStix is regionalised, it is straightforward to play each region off against the others. It is typically run during March.

State Teams

HV enters state representative teams in all national championships run by Hockey Australia. These include:
  • Victorian Vikings and Vipers in the Australian Hockey League (AHL)
    Australian Hockey League
    The Australian Hockey League is Australia’s premier national domestic field hockey competition. Despite its non-professional nature, AHL is considered one of the strongest and most competitive national field hockey leagues in the world. The AHL consists of both men's and women's competition...

  • Under-21
  • Under-18
  • Under-15
  • Country (open age)
  • Veterans
  • Under-13 (this is not considered a Hockey Australia national championship, but is sanctioned by HA)


Additionally, indoor hockey teams are entered in:
  • open
  • U21
  • U18
  • U14/U16 (these are not considered Hockey Australia national championships, but are sanctioned by HA) (both age groups are held simultaneously at the same venue)


A team is typically sent to the U14 invitational held annually, and HV may assist in the selection, coaching and support of the VPSSA (U12) and VSSSA (U16) school teams, although they are administered by School Sport Victoria.

State Uniform

The traditional colours of the state uniform are navy blue with white highlights, and the alternate colour (particularly used for socks) is orange. Kombat was the official uniform supplier of HV from 2003 to 2009, when Victorian-based Cramark took over the contract. Speculation amongst players was that Kombat was too expensive and too slow, and this local manufacturer could produce uniforms quicker and cheaper. This was short-lived, however, as it appears Cramark went out of business. Kukri is now the official uniform supplier, as it is for almost all of the other States and Territories and the Australian national teams.

Under Kombat, the "Big V" (a white V shape on the front of the navy blue shirt, stretching from shoulder to navel to shoulder) was reserved only for Victoria's premier teams, the Vikings and Vipers. Cramark and Kukri have since introduced that design to all state teams from U15 upwards. The alternate is a white shirt with a blue V.

Development Programs

HV has been involved in the implementation of its own statewide skills development program known as VicStix
VicStix
VicStix is a junior skills development program run by Hockey Victoria.-History:VicStix originally began as a skills development initiative in the early 2000s aimed at the under-16 and under-17 age group....

. It has also been active in providing affiliated clubs and associations with the tools to run the Hockey Australia
Hockey Australia
Hockey Australia is an organisation that formed from the merger of the Australian Hockey Association and Women's Hockey Australia in 2000. It is the national body responsible for the promotion, development and administration of field hockey in Australia...

-accredited HookIn2Hockey programs for primary-school-aged children, and Rookey programs for younger children.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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