The Geelong region will be well represented in the Victorian Junior Country Hockey Championships this weekend in Melbourne.
Six local teams, involving 83 players, will compete across three age divisions for boys and girls at three locations. Under-13s will play at Essendon, Under-15s at Greensborough and Under-18s at Parkville.
According to Geelong Hockey’s junior coordinator for this weekend, Gavin Van Der Meer, the region’s teams returned with three silver medals last year. “This year, our Under-18 boys and Under-18 girls teams will be strong contenders for medals, as well as our Under-15 girls”, he said.
The Junior Country Championships, which showcase teams from across Regional Victoria, are distinct from the Junior State Championships, which include Melbourne and will be held in July.
The hockey centre at Stead Park in Corio has been selected as the site for the hockey competition in the 2026 Commonwealth Games and the GHA is hoping this will lead to an increase in interest in the sport locally. “We are hopeful that (it) will help to attract more junior players to the sport and continue to grow and expand our local competition and representative teams”, Van Der Meer said.
For full fixtures and locations for this weekend, see the Hockey Victoria website:
Image: 2022 silver medalists Under-15 girls. Supplied.