A BIG BASH take on hockey had to happen. If done right, it should shine a spotlight on the strong need for more all-round attention in community ranks, particularly in Ballarat.
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Our hockey needs more space.
Hockey in Ballarat is experiencing unprecedented growth in players, especially coming through juniors, we are well-represented at state level by the WestVic program and our facilities are maxed out.
A reimagined elite domestic league aims to make a much-needed big play in raising the profile of the sport. In turn, hopefully this will strengthen the case for greater grassroots investment.
Right now, hockey has a reasonably low profile in Australia's national sporting psyche. We get all passionate and arm-chair knowledgeable on the sport every four years when the Olympics come about because our Kookaburras and Hockeyroos are ranked high among the best in the world.
In the Olympics, this means shiny medal hopes.
But most Australians would be hard pressed to know much about national competition level.
Hockey One is an overdue face-lift with revamped teams, a sharp structure revamp, guaranteed male-female double-headers and rule changes (still to be specified).
Importantly, all matches will live streamed on a growing sports network with finals broadcast on pay television - a big step in valuable increased exposure.
The struggle for hockey in our region is in the sponsorship and funding to really take our game to the next level and reinforce pathways for all players.
WestVic hockey president Mark Churcher says, like any state league program, there needs to be a strong homegrown talent pool to be competitive on the larger stage.
A strong base is vital to luring quality imports to in turn help showcase what this region can offer.
This goes for our marquee basketball and soccer programs and was important, in the right balance, for our now-defunct Victorian football and netball league outfits.
Mr Churcher said Hockey Ballarat worked hard to introduce thousands of pupils to the sport with Hookin2Hockey school sessions and the conversion rate was good for juniors then joining community clubs.
This school term, Hockey Victoria has also launched modified, specialist junior coaching for youngsters to learn skills of the game and build confidence before moving into under-11 competition.
A crucial element to keep players engaged in the game is having the right facilities on which to train and play. Ballarat has the Prince of Wales Park pitch and can access a pitch at Ballarat Grammar. This is inadequate should the city want to host major tournaments and this is inadequate to further develop the game.
This pressure was felt in the city's basketball ranks and is why Basketball Ballarat, teaming with other indoor sports in the region, lobbied so hard for so long for the Ballarat Sports and Events Centre expansion, which is under construction.
Where another hockey pitch might be made in Ballarat is another question but, at the least, increased exposure at the highest levels reinforces hockey is a sport to be taken more seriously at all levels.
Hockey showcases incredible agility, hard running and acute hand-eye coordination.
But tweaking the game to appeal to a broader national audience is now an important part of survival across sporting codes. Cricket led the way in Big Bash, tennis has been working on the shorter fast-four format to entice more modern time-poor players on court, even netball - the nation's highest female participation sport - has been forced to re-think how it presents Super Netball to justify more broadcast time.
Hockey One has much potential to offer the game, so it is time to get to know the our teams at Hockey Club Melbourne a little better when play flicks into action in mid-September.
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