Premier Hockey League to test Black Sticks

A hundred gamers and players on the cusp of making the senior national sides will go head-to-head in the inaugural Premier Hockey League seeking silverware and Black Sticks contracts.

The Premier Hockey League (PHL) is the new elite domestic hockey competition contested between four franchises - the Tridents (Northland to South Auckland), Mavericks (Waikato/BOP), Falcons (lower North Island) and Alpiners (South Island) - each with a men's and women's side.

It is the first time New Zealand's domestic hockey competition has been run by private backers.

The seven-week competition starts on 2 November and the squads were announced on Thursday.

Players drafted by the franchises will get in front of Black Sticks selectors, with national contracts normally awarded in October delayed until the end of the PHL.

The future success of the Black Sticks could rest with how well the PHL concept is executed, according to 262-cap Black Stick Blair Tarrant, who will play for the Alpiners.

Tarrant said the players wanted the PHL, which had been a long time in the making, to be successful after some of the country's top players had identified the number one thing that needed to change in the current Black Sticks pathway was another tier of competition.

"It is good for both people that haven't reached the national squad but also for Black Sticks members to keep pushing their cause and showing that they are good enough.

"They want to best 80 players in the country playing and the harsh reality at the moment is we need those 80 to be better than what they are.

"We just came 12th at the Olympics that's not good enough so we all need to be better collectively it's not just whether we should be having a certain age-group playing this we need as many people playing as we can at a high level."

Thirty-four year-old Tarrant welcomed competition from those challenging for his black singlet.

"I love it when a young guy comes into the national squad and is doing well straight away and putting pressure on everyone - that's what it is all about. I wouldn't be playing at this age, trying to close the door to someone - I'm there to help and encourage competition."

Tarrant was a player-coach with Otago during the recent national competition and he knew some of his charges had missed out on the sought after PHL contracts.

"That's a good thing - that means that they need to have another good year to really prove that they should be in that 20 for the Alpiners side, and I think that's healthy because if you have a kid like that who doesn't have that opportunity to get better or to sometimes face that disappointment, then that's where you don't improve."

Mentoring the next generation

Former Black Stick Marcus Child will play for the Mavericks, but sees his limited role with the side more as mentor than someone trying to impress the selectors.

"I would like to play to help the younger guys develop. I'm a little bit past wanting to represent my country, I've done that, been there, got kids. But Hockey in New Zealand really needs something to build upon some good foundations to help the younger guys grow, because we all want to see the sport succeed.

"So for me it's giving back and hopefully being able to teach a few young guys a thing or two now that they're faster than I am, and probably have all the skill but maybe not the mental aspect."

Giving back to hockey through the PHL whether in playing or coaching was the "right thing to do", Child said.

"The national hockey championship everyone still has to pay their own way and [the PHL] is a really cool competition for the players who get selected that it is privately funded, so it gives people who may not have that financial commitment extra ability to help without really having to pay for it."

Child played in the national championships last month but there was no requirement for Black Sticks to do so, which meant there was limited high-level local competition before PHL came along.

He supported the Black Sticks taking a break from nationals after a big year of hockey, especially knowing they needed to perform at PHL not only for the selectors but also hockey fans.

"This will be the best hockey that has been around for quite a while I'd say, so it will be really good to see how it ends up."

Playing home and away games, like the national league did for a period of time in the 2000s, was a good move, Child said.

"That has kind of disappeared so there is not really a chance for the bigger associations to showcase hockey at all at the top level in a competition, so I think it's really cool that there will be some affiliation to a region.

"I know the franchise model is slightly different to representing your region but it is still regionally based, so I think that is something that has been missing around the country."

Tarrant agreed: "There is a good amount of kids who play hockey in this country and are pretty keen, and we just need to give them a league or a competition that they can aspire to and that's not just the Black Sticks product, because unfortunately we don't play that often in New Zealand as a Black Sticks group, and this is kind of the gap in between and hopefully there is some fanfare and some kids getting down and watching some cool hockey and are inspired by it,"

Coaches chance to shine

Hockey New Zealand high performance director Darren Smith said the PHL would be a "crucial component" of high performance coaching development.

"We've always had a wealth of coaching talent across New Zealand, but the PHL provides the challenging environment needed to push our coaches to new heights.

"Watching our coaches match wits, adapt their tactics, and bring out the best in their teams under pressure is not just exciting, it will elevate the standard of hockey coaching across the country".

After his coaching experience with Otago, Tarrant was not sure coaching was in his future, but could see the benefit the PHL would have for aspiring coaches.

"It is tough for coaches in New Zealand at times to try and prove themselves because there hasn't been that high level competition so we might find out some stuff about some coaches around the country that is really good, which would be cool."

The Tridents men will be coached by long-time Black Sticks assistant coach Bryce Collins, and the women will be coached by Australian representative Emily Hurtz.

Australia's Brent Livermore will coach the Mavericks men and New Zealand Hockey's Danielle Cranston will guide the women.

The Falcons men will be co-coached by James Birkefield and Graeme Findlay, and Verity Sharland from the New Zealand High Performance programme will coach the women.

Aaron Ford will coach the Alpiners men, and Chris Leslie is with the Alpiners women.

The squads for the Premier Hockey League

The teams include 25 Black Sticks men and 19 Black Sticks women

]Mens Teams:

Alpiners - George Baker, Louis Beckert, Malachi Buschl, Benjamin Culhane, Nick Findlay, Josh Irwin, Sam Lane, Nick Lidstone, Sam Lints, Felix McIntosh, Charlie Morrison, Joe Morrison, Gus Nelson, James Nicolson, Blair Tarrant, Daniel Torr, Finn Ward, Jordan Ward, Patrick Ward and Simon Yorston.

Falcons - Stephen Atkinson, Dean Clarkson, Jordan Cohen, Dominic Dixon, Jonty Elmes, Sean Findlay, Sam Hiha, Javahn Jones, Patrick Madder, Graeme Murrell, Oscar Nation, Finlay Neale, Sajan Patel, Lochie Paton, Maxwell Rasmussen, Dylan Thomas, Mackenzie Wilcox, Matthew Wilson and Will Zhou.

Mavericks - Luke Aldred, Aiden Bax, Marcus Child, Brad Coxon, Paul Doesch, Tim Greenwood, Vance Harvey, Sam Lowndes, Thomas Marchant, Josh Mccaul, Bradley Rothwell, Matthew Ruetsch, Aidan Sarikaya, Dylan Steveson, Jordan Whittleston, Nic Woods, Owen Brown, Denym Clarke, Tim Nield and Matthew Van Aardt.

Tridents - Robbie Capizzi, Luka Clark, Scott Cosslett, James Coughlan, Aiden Fraser, Zander Fraser, Hayden Ganley, Angus Griffin, James Hickson, Luke Holmes, Isaac Houlbrooke, Rocco Ludolph, Liam Mortimer, Jared Panchia, Ryan Parr, Jayshan Randhawa, Netesh Sukha, Charl Ulrich and Maks Wyndham-Smith.

Womens Teams:

Alpiners - Isabella Ambrosius, Jessie Anderson, Rosie Bedford, Amelia (Millie) Calder, Anneka Calder, Pippa Croft, Aleisha Davis, Jaimee Eades, Tessa Jopp, Jenna Rae Mcintyre, Kirsty Nation, Sophie Nation, Tessa Reid, Ruby Roberts, Annabelle Schneideman, Arabella Sheild, Issy Story, Mezzy Surridge and Britt Wang.

Falcons - Rebecca Baker, Kaitlin Cotter, Anna Crowley, Michaela Curtis, Stephanie Dickins, Hannah Donald, Emma Findlay, Megan Gibson (nee Hull), Julia Gluyas, Aniwaka Haumaha, Jodie Kent, Rileigh Knapp, Saasha Marsters, Riana Pho, Emma Rainey, Hope Ralph, Felicity Reidy, Olivia Shannon, Kelsey Smith and Anna Willocks.

Mavericks - Toni Cortesi, Greer Findlay, Hannah Findlay, Izzy Gill, Leah Hodges, Julia King, Ella Leighton, Victoria Methven, Grace O'Hanlon, Deanna Ritchie, Phoebe Steele, Sharnae Taylor, Zoe Teikamata, Jamee Webber, Katherine (Kat) Winter, Ruby Baker, Jayda Pawhau and Lucy Russ.

Tridents - Paige Blake, Breana Catley, Brodie Cochrane, Saffy Cribb, Kaea Elliott, Tyla Goodsell-Matthews, Claudia Hanham, Maddie Harris, Sophie Hildesley, Holly Hilton-Jones, Ella Hyatt Brown, Emilie Logan, Beth Norman, Pippa Norman, Holly Pearson, Brooke Roberts, Georgie Shotter, Petrea Webster, Charlie Wills and Ruby Worrall.