In England hockey is a popular family orientated sport, played mainly in clubs by both men and women. The game is well-liked in many schools, and offers a lifetime of both sporting and social opportunities for players, officials and administrators alike.

Hockey or "field hockey" (as it is also known to differentiate it from ice hockey) is an eleven a side game played on a pitch 100 yards by 60 yards (91.4 metres x 55 metres) with a ball which has a 23cm circumference. Each player has a stick with a rounded head to play the ball, with the ultimate aim of scoring goals by putting the ball in the other team's goal. Sticks are about a metre long and weigh between 340g and 790g.

The rules of hockey are very similar to the rules of football except that players must use sticks instead of their feet to play the ball. There are eleven players on a team made up of a goalkeeper, defenders, midfielders and attackers. The only player on the field who is allowed to use their feet and hands as well as their stick is the goalkeeper.

The season in England usually lasts from September until May.

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Hockey improves co-ordination, agility and cardio vascular fitness training. It includes basic movement skills such as running, changing directions and hand eye co-ordination, and core skills through coaching, formal game play and team tactics. Hockey also develops good strength in the upper body, especially the arms and shoulders. But watch out for ankle sprains, hand fractures and head or face injuries, which can be caused by being struck by the ball or a stick. Injuries are less likely with the use of correct equipment (e.g. gum shields).

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If you would like to get into hockey and are not sure where to start then let us help. We can put you in touch with the right person and the right club.

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Historical records show that a form of hockey was played in Egypt around 2000 BC, and in Ethiopia around 1000 BC. There is also evidence that a form of the game was played by Romans, Greeks and by the Aztec Indians of South America.

Whole villages played hockey in England in the 17th and 18th centuries, with the objective of hitting the ball into the opposing village's common ground. Teams were often made up of hundreds of players and games could last several days, with severe injuries such as broken arms and legs.

Today's game developed in the 1860s with the first organised club - the Blackheath Football and Hockey Club, which dates back to at least 1861. Another London club, Teddington, helped refine the game by introducing a number of the modern rules and concepts. These included the introduction of a sphere shaped ball, which replaced a rubber cube. Most importantly, they instituted the striking circle, which was incorporated into the rules of the newly founded Hockey Association (Men's) in London in 1886. The All England Women's Hockey Association was then founded in 1895, becoming the first women's national sporting governing body.

Today, field hockey is played all over the world by a variety of countries and field hockey is currently recognised as the second largest team sport in the world, after football.

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