Vantage U18s kick off this weekend
The Vantage National Under-18 Tournaments are underway on Sunday and will see the continuation of the association-based competition.
The National Under-18s, which runs from 2-8 July, are now the first age-group tournament opportunities for players, umpires, coaches and managers to perform on the national stage.
The National Under-18 Women’s Tournament will see 21 association teams arrive in Auckland to compete for the Amanda Hooper Memorial Trophy – named after the former Black Stick who was tragically killed in the Christchurch earthquake.
Canterbury currently hold the title after a dramatic game which saw them score two late goals against Hawke’s Bay to secure a 3-1 win.
The National Under-18 Men’s Tournament is this year hosted in Dunedin, putting them to the test in cold winter conditions, and will feature 20 association teams competing for the Paul Ackerley Memorial Trophy – named after the 1976 Olympic gold medallist and former Black Sticks women’s coach who passed away in 2011 after a short illness.
The men’s title is currently held by North Harbour who will be looking for a three-peat, after winning their second title in a row last year staving off a Canterbury comeback - Harbour were up 4-0 at half-time but Cantebury responded with 3 second half goals.
Hockey NZ General Manager - Hockey Network Ken Maplesden said it will be great to see our top youth players going head-to-head and continuing to build on the great work that associations have been doing to open up hockey.
“Our national under-18s are our pinnacle youth competitions and will be a great showcase of our best association-based teams as they strive to be named national champions.“
The tournaments are a fantastic opportunity for players to stick their hands up on the national stage and put themselves on show as we push forward with our Future Black Sticks programme with an eye on the Junior World Cups later this year. It’s also a great opportunity for our young umpires to begin their pathways into elite umpiring.”