Well the Kookaburras got off to the best possible start last night, by scoring in the first minute of the game but were eventually overrun by a rampant Spanish team.

The Spaniards put the Kookas defence and midfield under huge pressure for the entire game and it was the usual suspects of Pol Amat, Eddie Tubau and Santi Freixa up front for the Spanish Inquisition that caused the Aussie defence all sorts of problems throughout the game.

The Aussies just couldn’t quite seem to break the pressure of the Spanish through the middle of the park and only created 1 penalty corner to Spain’s 7.

The Hockey Show’s correspondent on the spot David Wansbrough (who admittedly is moonlighting as a commentator on Channel 7 after his Beijing Hockey Show committments are over each day) agreed that the Spanish were the better team on the night and deserved to win.

And now the Kooka’s have to front up to play the Dutch for the bronze medal after they lost in penalty strokes to Germany. 

Let’s hope they can do it!

So….what does everyone think of the teams peformance over the tournament? Who played well? Who didn’t? Who’s going to retire now? What about Barry Dancer?

Here are the Hockey Show’s thoughts:

1. Ockenden has been an absolute revelation up front. He is going to be a gun.

2. The Hockey Show’s commentary is much better than that of either Wansbrough or Christison

3. Fantastic to see The Hockey Show’s own Andrew Smith get a run.

4. Gymp should have been in the team ahead of Lambert (based on sweeping generalisations from the comfort of the couch watching the games on Channel 7′s rubbish coverage and without having seen any training or how Gymp was going, but again, he’s The Hockey Show’s own, so he should have been in the team)

5. Retirements – Wells, George, Lambert, Brooks

6. Bronze medallists – Australia

MASSIVE show this week!!!

We get out the world’s biggest ice cream scoop and put it to work in an entirely journalistic sense as THS does the hard yards digging the dirt from Beijing. SERIOUSLY – you do not want to miss what we have in store for you!!

We also travel out to Hawthorn for the blockbuster between Hawthorn and TEM in the State League 1 men’s competition.

WATCH IT NOW!

Have you been meaning to get your skin checked for moles?

Have you ever wanted to watch hockey while someone looks intently over your entire body?

OK well the second one is a bit weird, but if you have been meaning to get your skin checked and haven’t gotten around to it St Kilda Powerhouse Hockey Club are here to help.

Get down to Albert Park on 2 August 2008 to watch some hockey and get your skin checked at the same time!!

THS was contacted by Alan Sinclair, the head National coach of the Oman Hockey Association. He thought we might be able to help get the word out there about our crazy game taking place in the middle east!

The Middle East …. not a gun or bomb or Al Qaeda or Taliban in site.. Not even a wayward Jew and surprisingly not even any resentment or persecution of we so called Christians. Lots of goats, camels and donkeys though… and maniacal car drivers.

No women playing Hockey, no partially clad beach babes, no cold wintery Victorian summers either. Just a lot of dust and sand and heat and flies and men wearing dresses and women being coyly hidden behind unfashionably uncomfortably hot black sheets. Sounds like a few Hockey carnivals I went to in New South Wales and Queensland way back when there were no plastic Hockey balls and for that matter no plastic fields either. And for the intrepid few like me some reasonably good waves to surf.

And there is Hockey. In fact Omanis played Hockey before we Aussies did. Seems when the sailing ships of the British fleets needed a place to get their crews suntanned and fit they stopped off here for a few weeks and began playing Cricket and Hockey to fill in time. Then the Indian labour that makes up over 30% of the population had a little input into the scene a while later. Also Oman used to own half of what is now Afghanistan and Pakistan and there was a great deal of fraternisation between the two continents… so much that there is a recognised tribe here called Balushis that are part Arab and part Pakistani.

So with this influence why does an aging overweight and aggressively competitive has-been want to try to teach them the gospel of Hockey Aussie style? I have often wondered that myself. But what I do know is that these people are superb athletes and willing learners .. if they are allowed to sleep between the hours of 10.00am and 5.00pm. and play all night. Must be something to do with the 45deg temperatures we have right now.

The Hockey??? Well I remember playing a team called Waratahs from near Murwillumbah in New South Wales when I was in my formative years and all of them basically came from the same family and lived on sugar cane farms. Strong arms and thick heads and Hockey sticks that were extensions of their tools of trade. In fact I think some of them used their sticks to cut the cane. So the Hockey was pretty agricultural.Not much difference here. Each street will field a Football team or Hockey team and they get their practice beating the life (could have used a more descriptive word of course) out of anything that moves. In fact I got this job because an assistant coach in the National programme beat the life (almost) out of an umpire and promptly got the sack and 6 weeks in a not very nice holiday camp. Another National player got life from international Hockey for taking to an opponent with his stick in front of the TV cameras and over 800million people saw it. I had to act as an interpreter at the hearing and told the judiciary to give him 50 lashes as well. Fortunately I was not the National Coach then just a lowly goalkeeper coach.

Fortunately (or unfortunately if you are crazy like me) we ex-pats cannot play the game here as it for Omanis only .. except if you come from Pakistan or India and get paid to play like the big boys do in the rest of the world. Each team is allowed 2 of these mercenaries and it spoils the fun as these people can mostly play Hockey but only by themselves. I think you know what I mean there. So it is quite incestuous and with only 15 clubs in the whole country the talent pickings may seem quite slim. This is actually not the case. As I said earlier the talent is here but they need more international competition to bring it out. As well as a better local coaching program of course.

However we have managed to do some interesting things… Our U/21 National Team won a major tournament a few months back … Got us to the Junior Asia Cup and maybe with a chance to the Junior World Cup if we get a reasonable placing. In doing this we drew with Chinese Taipei and then defeated China U/21 twice. We beat them the first time 4 – 1 in the pool game and in the final 3 -2 in extra time and it was like we had won the football world cup. We each even got presented with a nice fat cheque from the Ministry of Sport.

Anyway if you really want a story maybe you could take a little excursion over here or get to Singapore in June where our Senior team will be playing in the Asia Hockey Federation Cup or Hyderabad in July where our U/21 team (take out 3 players from Seniors and add 3 younguns) will be trying very hard to qualify for the Junior World Cup!

Cheers.

A quick look at The Hockey Show’s club locator reveals there are 36 synthetic grounds in metropolitan Melbourne, with another 4 scattered throughout Victoria.

Which of these grounds do you think need replacing?

Surely there are some grounds that need to be retired or at least resurfaced if they are to playable in the near future – Essendon number 2, Doncaster & Footscray number 2 are just a few that I can think of. Injuries are more likely to happen, and this must be addressed to avoid scenes similar to the picture below. In the coming years clubs like Camberwell, Waverley, MUHC, Hawthorn/TEM, Kew and Greensborough are going to need to come up with the money to replace or upgrade their existing grounds.

Without being too harsh about it Doncaster, in particular, is a mess and an injury related lawsuit waiting to happen. We love the Doncaster people and the fact that it feels like you are playing out in the wilderness is kind of cool but the ground is in a shocking state. The last time I played out there my orange Camberwell uniform looked more like I had dived in the Yarra when the game had finished….its a time bomb waiting for someone to get a cut infected and have some serious health problems as a result

Should clubs be concentrating on replacing grounds with sand, water or hybrid surfaces? My feeling is that the future of hockey is with the hybrids….with the ongoing drought in Australia water filled grounds will become more and more expensive as well as politically on the nose, while sand filled grounds are cheaper but probably don’t play as well as the hybrids. Altona and MCC have both installed hybrid grounds that seem to play quite well – what are people’s thoughts?

Finally, would the Victorian hockey competition would be better served by a smaller number of grounds that are used more frequently and by more than one club so that maintenance costs as well as upfront costs to replace or upgrade can be shared amongst clubs?

The cost to replace a synthetic turf is in the order of $350,000 which is a massive cost for amateur sporting clubs to come up with every 10 years or so. Once you add maintenance costs into the mix the ability for smaller clubs to come up with the cash to replace their ground is difficult.

Perhaps the questions is superfluous – like are there too many ex Neighbours starlets trying to thrash out a singing career – although having done a bit of research about the numbers of grounds in other states, we do seem to have heaps of grounds in Victoria and particularly in Melbourne.

In NSW and Qld, hockey is mainly regionally based which means less grounds in the big cities – Brisbane has only 3 synthetic grounds, Canberra has 3 , Perth and SA have only 5 while NT has only 2.

If you calculate the number of hockey players (from the 2006 Hockey Australia census) per synthetic ground per state the numbers stack up like this:

TAS 590; Victoria: 597; NSW 634; NT 825; QLD 1020; ACT 1591; SA 2190; WA 5372.

Of the states with the largest hockey playing populations (QLD, NSW, Vic & WA) Victoria and WA have the most centralised hockey playing populations, with NSW and QLD having strong regional competitions.

There has been some heated debate on the forums over the last year or two about which state has the strongest hockey competition, with the Western Australian and the Victorian comps both having their own advocates. Does the number of grounds per state affect the quality of the competition? The number of players per ground in WA and Victoria are poles apart but these two competitions are regularly sited as being the strongest in the country.

Interested to hear people’s thoughts….

Has there been a season so hotly contested in this history of SL1 than Season 2007? Has there been more controversy and questions asked of the system in years? It’s certainly no secret that 2007 was a remarkable year for the 10 teams in State League 1 Mens; the difference between 5th and the 9th relegation spot a mere 4 points. If memory serves us correctly, Camberwell, TEM, Essendon and Altona were battling to both avoid relegation and grab a spot in the four in Round 18. Crazy. As history will tell us, all this hooplah and nerves were put to rest in the first game of Round 18 when Doncaster won, snaring them them the prized fourth position, while Essendon lost to Aaron Kleinschmidt.

And so we stand on the cusp of Season 2008, with two new teams up, and a star-studded Essendon residing to battle it out for a SL2 premiership. What lies ahead for the 10 teams in this Olympic year? Ben & Ballza have again donned their gypsy outfits and gazed into their Crystal ball to reveal the following truths…undeniable, unequivocal truths.

No siree, you won’t be seeing us gypsy blokes on A Current Affair defending our honesty…we’re the real deal. Lump it or Loath it.

Greensborough. Greensborough, Greensborough, Greensborough. What will we do with you? What can you say about a team who boast as a formidable lineup as the boys from Yan Yean Road. They seem to breed Vikings out there. Highly-skilled, super professional boasting a killer knockout punch, the Greensborough boys will be hard to beat in 2008…just for something different. Led by super-coach and super cliche-user Jim Irvine, the ‘Borough boys will be looking to build on their already epic empire. With the catchment area at their disposal, it won’t be long till we start seeing some in-breeding and a new sort of “super player” will be born. God help the rest of us.

Hawthorn always seem to perform year after year. Despite pre-season nerves bowing out to MCC in the first round of The Hockey Show Cup, the Hawkers will welcome Josh Hawes back to their list to join a very experienced lineup. Him, along with Charlie Tulloch returning will add some solidarity to their lineup to build their plays around. With Vikings backup goalie and “heir apparent” (quote – Stephen Mowlam) George Bazeley in the net, the Hawthorn boys will be tough to beat especially at home. The flip side, is an older list with little hope of blooding younger players. It’s no secret that the Hawkers have an absolutely rubbish junior program and have ran themselves into a bit of a corner. Hawthorn are a club in need of rejuvenation, and with Andrew “Dos” Aldons returning as coach he will be hoping that the Hawks can put their terrible finals hoodoo behind them…again…please…come on…do it…just once…see how you go…it feels nice. Don’t choke.

Waverley will again be a force to be reckoned with. Experience, backed by new coach Brett Thompson implementing the tried and true methods of “do as i say, not as i did” see Waverley raring to go. Surprisingly fit and serious this time around, the Waverley boys will be out to crush teams. If given a sniff, they pounce…(how very Panther like), but if they’re dominated from the outset they will can crumble. The Wav’s have to start blooding some younger players this year, and the absence of Travis Brooks and Luke Doerner due to both picking up nasty chopstick habits should provide plenty of opportunity. A definate Top 4 team, will just be a matter of which spot they want the most.

Doncaster will be buoyed by last years performance where they scraped into the 4 by a bee’s dick. This year is a different story with both Andrew Smith and Russell Ford sure to miss a truckload of games over in Perth and hopefully Beijing. It’s time for blokes like Rhys Hanna & Brad David (two first names) to step up and prove themselves while Chris Cirello – provided he doesn’t spend too much time in the change rooms grooming himself pre-game, will be a lynch pin. Coach Cam Muir had a stellar first year out in 07, and will feel confident he can make the most out of his list – provided they all don’t end up in hospital with some form of weird skin irritant condition from the bacteria growing on their ground at last check. HOWEVER! – If the Man Mountain Smitty and Rusty come back for the Donny boys, they are serious contenders for a Top 4 finish.

TEM. Never a shrinking violet and never short of a word, the TEM lads will be out to prove the doubters wrong in 2008. A couple of handy pickups in Brenton Perry and Steve Dempster will see the TEM boys strengthen their midfield and defensive lines respectively, while word on the street is that some of the Dandenong SL2 boys have decided that the merger between Dandenong and SNP leaves no room for fisticuffs and have packed up and moved to the Lions Den also. All these trades push to one side however, with the youngest coach in living memory appointed to lead the TEM chargers this season. Phil Merriman, a former Camberwell SL1 player will start his State League coaching career at the tender age of 26 and has it all in front of him. A disciplined approach could see a massive year for the TEM boys, but with weaker opposition coming up from SL2 they should be confident of their chances to stay up if they put it all together on game day.

Camberwell had a disappointing 2007 with many punters predicting them to be certain challengers for the premiership. After failing to win the must win games and dropping points unexpectedly, a new ethos has been pumped into the boys and the club for 2008. With their robotic like pre-season fitness routine, the ‘Weller boys should be ultra-fit come round 1, but at what cost? Relatively injury free at the moment, it will be an interesting test for some of the older guys to remain that way. Vikings Declan Geraghty, Will Unkles and Lachie Gibson will be crucial to the success for the Blue & Tangerine this year as will Lachie Dreher fronting up for his 22nd consecutive season of State League at the tender age of 41! These experienced heads combined with some exciting new talent at Matlock, will see coach Andrew ‘Rosie’ Henderson’s boys utilize their tailor made nutrition plans and carbo-gel shots at half time to reach their full potential. They run the risk however that perhaps this new age of professionalism bubble may burst by a strange phobia of hitting at the goals.

MCC begin the year with new coach Jarrod Lester up against it trying to work out what he does with men who’s hair is going grey who still want to play State League 1. With the oldest list going around and no Juniors coming through the ranks, this will be a testing year for the Demons. Main man PJ Weller will again be the key, but with this more than likely being his last year the answer is what to do next? Having lost up and coming goalie Steve Dempster to TEM and conceding 10 goals in The Hockey Show Cup semi-final to Greensborough, one feels that MCC may have shot themselves in the foot. Ben and Ballza think that the Dee’s may have one more roll at the dice with this current crop of players, before they will have to take a leaf out of the TEM poaching book for the years ahead.

Altona scraped through by the skin of their teeth last year avoiding relegation, but showed plenty of seagull spirit throughout the year pinching points off higher fancied opposition. With Darren Duff taking over the reigns as coach and a good group of youth and experience, mean the A’s have every chance this year to consolidate their position in the middle of the table. Not quite a Top 4 team at the minute, but extremely capable of knocking off tough opponents. With Viking elder statesmen Matthew Higgins moving to the country, the A’s will be surely forking out his petrol money to get him back to the big smoke on the weekends. The most important player in their lineup, we feel that they may be lost without him and need to find someone as a reliable backup. Further, both Greg Drake and Higgo will be heading to Beijing to check out the goings on, so Altona will need to get runs on the board early to contend with this. All this said though, is there a team that relishes the underdog tag as much as the boys from the west…and is there a more feared away fixture than “The Snakepit”?

Kew feel like they’ve come up just as quickly as they’ve gone down. The only problem is that the list remains almost entirely the same last time we saw them in SL1 minus superstar and former Kew favourite son Tom Allen having moved to Camberwell in 07 and staying there. It will be good to see Pete Bunting running around again, but the vertical stripes won’t hide the few KG’s he’s put on after a year off. No doubt this will be a challenging year for the ‘Cumbers, but perhaps with the odd point pinched here and there, the familiar catch cry of…“YOU CAN DO IT KEW!” may be heard on the odd occasion.

Albury-Wodonga. At last report, without a coach as Dennis Martin has stepped down after a long tenure. . . could be a long year. . .

THE FINAL WORD

Again, the same mathematical processes have been applied by Ben & Ballza to determining the outcome of Season 2008.

Greensborough again will be an unstoppable force, but will drop games to lower ranked opposition due to a lack of respect shown by the Kookaburras. Waverley will be their main opposition demolishing teams by big margins, while perhaps also losing low scoring encounters. Hawthorn will accumulate points quietly to finish again well and truly in the four with P.Mac controlling the centre like never before with a more aerodynamic hairstyle. Assuming all our Victorian boys make the Olympic squad, Doncaster will find it tough without Smith and Ford and won’t make the finals this year. Camberwell, on the balance of probabilities will make the four. They will need to improve their scoring rates and utilise a more attacking style to get there however.

Doncaster will finish outside the four, but only just. They will feel confident that their year has been a great exercise in proving to themselves that they can do it without the big guns. TEM will finish 6th and exceed other teams expectations. New coach Merriman will have a testing year, put under the microscope by the team at THS, but will come out better for the experience. MCC will scrape enough points from hard fought draws and the odd win to finish seventh, only just from a 7th placed Altona, unless they pick up those early points. Kew will struggle greatly, and Albury will do a lot of traveling for not much reward, but at least those nights out in the big smoke will make up for it.

Round 18 Ladder

Greensborough

Hawthorn

Waverley

Camberwell

Doncaster

TEM

MCC

Altona

Kew

Albury-Wodonga

So if you think we’re wrong…go on…doubt us…do it, we dare you…make sure you enter The Hockey Show’s tipping competition so you can beat us both senseless.

This is the gospel according to Ben & Ballza.

Boom.

The Women’s SL1 competition looks set for another big year. In complete contrast to the mens competition of 2007, WSL1 saw 4 teams streak ahead from the outset, with the fourth positioned team 12 points clear of 5th at the end of round 18. As always, the start of the new season brings new challenges to each and every club…and by a tried and true scientific method that we can not disclose to the public, Ben & Ballza have come up with the following thoughts about Season 2008.

Waverley will be looking to defend their premiership after beating MCC in a rather one-sided grand final last year. With Hockeyroo Renee Trost most likely missing for the majority of the year with International commitments, the Waverley girls will be extra reliant on their Viper stars, Leah Merrett, Stacia Joseph and captain Bec Eastman. With a strong attacking style, the girls will go into the year as one of the teams to beat. With an ageing list, and a mini baby-boom taking place, perhaps the Waverley girls will be coming to end the of an era in the next few years, but we think they’ve probably got one more solid tilt at it left…The Panthers will outclass all but Greensborough, MCC, Hawthorn & Altona.

MCC have seen substantial changes take place over the summer. With coach Graeme Chittenden pulling up stumps on the eve of the Grand Final last year and leaving the girls coach-less for the big game, the Dee’s head into the the year new coach Dan Coulson at the helm. Importantly, he appears to have galvanised the group and restored the ethos of “fun” that was so sorely missing from the girls in previous years with the constant barrage of abuse from Chitto on the sidelines. With Viper Bec Waley rumored to be leaving the club for Hawthorn, and captain Carla Bond away for the first 4 rounds of the season playing in the Netherlands, the responsibility will fall on the elder more experienced players in the group, Bec Snezkov, Steff Napolitano & Bec Dyball to harness the new blood at the club into a formidable line-up. The Dee’s may struggle a little this year, but should still make the four. Keep an ear out for an exorbitant amounts of Pommy accents on the field…

Greensborough with their young list continue to impress. After finishing minor premiers in ‘07 and winning the flag for the first time in the club’s history in ‘06, the girls from the bush will be in a similar position to the Waverley team with goal-keeper Rachael Lynch a chance to head to Beijing. If she’s lucky enough to be selected, ‘Borough’s main challenge will be to find a defence that can keep the ball out of their defensive 25 and away from the net. “Junior” saved the girls skins numerous times throughout last year, so with a new goalie in the net will see pressure mounting on the girls. Viper players Hana Peake & Stephanie Riordan coupled with an established midfield and dominating Centre-Half Tegan Riordan, combined FURTHER with an incredibly quick forward line will see the girls again go into the season as THE team to beat. The super-club of Greensborough, both in men and women’s looks assured to cement itself in 2008.

Hawthorn are always a strong unit provided all their players are fit and ready to take the field. With one of the older lists going around, the team will have to start blooding some new players in 2008 to continue their success at nailing a top 4 position. Again, Hockeyroo commitments will keep Rachel Imison out of their line-up for the best part of the year, but Emily White provides a better than decent backup in the net. Claire Messent is a chance for Beijing and as Hawthorn’s most potent striker may see a decline in goals scored for the Hawks. However, with young-gun Kary Chau ready to take the field fully fit, she holds the key to the success of the Hawthorn in our opinion.

Essendon Ladies are Essendon’s only SL1 team (with their men getting relegated last year) and will continue to blood a young list. Led by Viper co-captain and Hockeyroo Sarah O’Connor, the girls will have another tough year in ‘08 as they strive for the Top 4. This being said however, with Sue McGill roaring from the sidelines nothing is out of the question! Erica Trahar provides a rock of Gibralter in the defensive half, while super youngster and token rednut Georgia Nanscawen will continue to develop and stamp her authority up front. A young team that will view this year as a stepping stone to a 2009 Top 4 spot should see the Bombers have a very solid year.

Altona are another of the younger teams floating around in 2008, and with typical Altona determination and grit will pinch points off the more highly fancied teams throughout the year. Capable of dominating on a fast breakaway, the girls showed patches of brilliance throughout 07 which put to rest the rumours of easy beats. Danielle Shubach is the only Viper representative from the A’s playing in 2008, but with this young list and new coach Brendan Denning the girls should have a promising year and we wouldn’t be surprised if they make the Top 4.

Camberwell have had a funny few years showing moments of class but losing games against less fancied opposition. This year with the return of Jess Monkivitch as ‘The General’ in the middle, we should see a tougher more determined side come out in Blue & Tangerine. Her toughness both mentally and physically combined with a nice mix of experience and youth across the team sheet sees the girls poised as good as anyone, but they will have to dig deeper than they did last year to make sure they stay out of the relegation zone. Experienced Viper Jane Elzinga is crucial and former Hockeyroo Ngairie Smith will make a huge difference when available. However, with experienced defender Megan O’Connell taking the year off and with another new coach at the helm, the ‘Wellers have a big ask ahead of them.

TEM will continue to stabilise their position in the SL1 fold with a reformed attitude. With a very young list the girls may lack a little in skill, but make up for it in sheer fitness. A committed pre-season has seen the girls made into super-fit robots and with a teriffic attitude should pinch some points this year. A momentum driven team with a committed club behind them; if they get on a roll they could shake things up.

Doncaster come into 2008 as the new kids on the block. And by new…we mean new, and by kids we certainly mean kids. A very young squad, but with a whole lot of heart, the Donny girls will be competitive this year. After toppling an out of sorts MCC in the The Hockey Show Cup, the girls will feel confident that they can match it with the big boys (girls). With U/18 stars Emma Pearce, Hayley Padgit, and Sophie Peskett firing, they will be as good as anyone on their day. Ben & Ballza expect however, that Donny will be looking at 2008 as a consolidation year with experienced players Lisa Blake and Sally Cox holding the reigns.

Southern United join the SL1 crew desperately hungry to stay up. They will be up against it this year there is no doubt but crucial to their success is a never-say-die attitude. If they think they can do it, they’re half way there…that being said however, given that they wear one of the worst uniforms ever invented, they will need to fight like buggery to be a chance to stay up.

THE FINAL WORD

After much thought and mathematical calculation…Ben & Ballza have come up with these undeniable educationally sound thoughts:

Waverley, Greensborough and Hawthorn will comfortably make the 4, while MCC and Altona will battle for that 4th spot, but the Demons will sneak in there in the final few rounds. Essendon Ladies will be competitive and hold their own with a view for Top 4 in 2009, while TEM will do a enough damage and sneak their way into 7th spot. Doncaster will use youth to their advantage and pinch points while Camberwell will struggle and fail to capitalise on their list. Southern United will try, but ultimately fail.

Round 18 Ladder:

Greensborough
Waverley
Hawthorn
MCC

Altona
Essendon Ladies
TEM
Doncaster
Camberwell
Southern United

Premiers: Greensborough
Runners Up: Waverley
Relegated: Camberwell & Southern United

The Hockey Show is proud as punch to announce our new major sponsors for Season 2008.

This year Adrenaline Rush, Hockey Action and F-H-E.com have merged to create the ultimate one-stop Hockey Shop.

With the buying power of 8 stores and several agents nationwide and an international class leading Online Store, F-H-E are able to offer the world’s most popular brands at great low prices direct to you. As always, if for some reason you see a product offered cheaper by one of their competitors simply let F-H-E know because they will not just match it, but beat any genuine written quote. Sounds pretty sick to us!

Gryphon join The Hockey Show as the official “Equipment and Clothing Sponsors”. Check out their awesome website.

Throughout the year, F-H-E will be providing discounted specials to THS subscribers, so make sure you’re joining up as on the right hand side of the page.

F-H-E’s Ben Ballantyne says: “F-H-E are stoked to jump on board with The Hockey Show as the Major Sponsor for this year. With the Olympics just around the corner Hockey is set to have its biggest year yet and who better to be involved with than the Hockey Show! Plus, with our free shipping for orders over $50 online and our crazy weekend specials, stay tuned to both the The Hockey Show and F-H-E.COM websites for some fantastic opportunities.”

The Hockey Show is proud to announce a new partnership with TruStorm Software, the makers of Hockey Pro.

Hockey Pro is the only software product that is specifically designed for creating animated Field and Indoor Hockey drills.

Got an idea for the next unstoppable Penalty Corner? By putting it in to Hockey Pro you will quickly find out if it is going to work by seeing it in action, get the timing right and test it against multiple defensive patterns.

Hockey Pro will help you communicate to your team. Get the message to your team by easily emailing your drills, publish your drills to a website or make a DVD to hand out.

A simple, effective and brilliant product, Hockey Pro promises to take the hockey coaching world by storm.

The Hockey Show has 10 copies of the software to giveway throughout the year, so keep your ears and eyes glued on The Hockey Show and The Hockey Show Online for your chance to win.

Click here to visit the Hockey Pro website!

Keen to sponsor The Hockey Show and have your product exposed to over 104,000 viewers each and every week, and to over 3500 hits per week on The Hockey Show Online? Click on the links at the top of the website to be sent a sponsorship pack.

Keep Dribblin’

The Hockey Show

Well, we’ve had the worlds greatest Barista and now we have the next Einstein.

Yep that’s right – John Fedderson of Hawthorn Hockey Club is off to Oxford University, England to drink twinings, learn Shakespeare, speak in an English accent and generally become a very learned individual.

The Hockey Show considers itself the supporter of all hockey players in Victoria so we have gotten in touch with John and offered our (and all of our fans) assistance to help him pass his entrance exam.

Here are some of the questions off his entrance exam…..lets see if we can help him out and that way, we can all be Rhodes Scholars in our own little way!

Mary Cassatt, an impressionist painter. Was the epitome of the ———- American : a native of Philadelphia who lived most of her life in Parts.

(A) Conservative

(B) Provincial

(C) Benevolent

(D) Prophetic

(E) Expatriate

Choose which of the answers is analogous to the two words above:

DISAPPROBATION : CONDEMN

A. calumny : eulogise

B. enigma : enlighter

C. fallacy : diseminate

D. exhortation : urge

E. solvency : deploy

Choose the antonym: banal

a) dry

b) tropical

c) enthusiastic

d) original

e) noisy

Fill in the blank: Some scientists argue that carbon compounds play such a central role in life on earth because of the possibility of ………………… resulting from the carbon atom’s ability to form an unending series of different molecules.

a. variety

b. stability

c. deviations

d. invigorations

e. reproduction.

Pretty straight forward questions really….

What are your answers?

PS No googling allowed!!!