Australian Hockey League

Last updated

Australian Hockey League
AHLLogo.JPG
Sport Field Hockey
FoundedM: 1991
W: 1993
Ceased2018
Replaced by Hockey One
No. of teams8
CountryAustralia
Last
champion(s)
M: Flag of Queensland.svg QLD Blades
W: Flag of New South Wales.svg NSW Arrows
Most titlesM: Flag of Queensland.svg QLD Blades
(10 titles)
W: Flag of New South Wales.svg NSW Arrows
(10 titles)
Official website hockey.org.au/ahl

The Australian Hockey League (AHL) [1] was Australia's premier national domestic field hockey competition. Despite its non-professional nature, AHL is considered one of the strongest and most competitive national hockey leagues in the world. The AHL consists of both men's and women's competition. It includes many players from the Kookaburras and the Hockeyroos, and participating in the AHL is a selection requirement for all Australian national squad members.

Contents

The last edition of the AHL was contested in 2018. The league was replaced by Hockey One, Australia's new elite domestic hockey competition.

History

The first season of the Australian Men's National Hockey League (former AHL) took place in 1991, when the perpetual national championship was replaced by a new-look format. The competition, which was played over a two-month period, did not limit player eligibility to state of origin. Six teams competed in the first year – Brisbane Blades, Melbourne Redbacks, Adelaide Hotshots, Canberra Lakers, Sydney Stingrays and Tamworth Frogs. In 1991 and 1992, both the National Championship and the National Hockey League was played, placing a financial burden on the states. From 1993, the decision was made to play the National Hockey League as the sole competition in determining Australia's champion State.

The league has since evolved into an eight team competition played on a home and away basis before climaxing with a finals series. In 2000, 2004 and 2008 however, the league reverted to a two-week championship format. This format is designed to replicate the intense nature and heavy playing schedule of the Olympic Games. The league embraced some big changes leading into the 2001 season as the former Men's and Women's National Hockey League combined to form the Australian Hockey League (AHL). Both the men's and women's leagues shifted their seasons from mid-year to February–April and a unique format was adopted. The format devised allows a high level of hockey to be seen across Australia through four weeks of home-and-away competition. The league then climaxes with a full finals week that comprises three-round matches, the semi-finals and finals.

Competition Format and Rules

Past Editions

Prior to 2018, the Australian Hockey League was run as a centralised tournament.

Teams were split into two pools, Pool A and Pool B, playing in a single round robin format. At the conclusion of the pool stage, the top two teams entered the medal round, while the remaining teams played in the classification round.

2018 Australian Hockey League

Like in previous editions, teams are split into Pool A and Pool B. At the conclusion of the pool stage however, teams contest in a quarterfinal format, with each team still eligible to contest the medal round.

2018 Rule Innovations

Played under FIH international rules. 4 x 15 minute quarters.

  • At the end of the second and fourth quarters, one team is given a PumpPlay. During this 5-minute period, teams are reduced to 9 players, and goals for the team in possession of the PumpPlay are worth double.

If a field goal or penalty stroke is scored, that player has an immediate one on one with the goalkeep for an extra goal.

If any match culminates in a draw, the teams will contest a penalty shoot-out to determine a winner.

Point system

2018 Points System
WWDLDL
5320

Australian Hockey League Teams

Australian Capital Territory

Australian Capital Territory
Flag of the Australian Capital Territory.svg TeamsAHL TitlesYearsHome Stadium
Men Canberra Lakers 0National Hockey Centre,
Canberra
Women Canberra Strikers 0

Both the men's and women's Australian Capital Territory representative teams entered the AHL in the inaugural year for each gender, 1991 and 1993 respectively.

The men and women have both previously represented ACT under different names. The men have represented as the ACT Lakers (2011), while the women have previously represented as the ACTAS Strikers (1995–1996) and the ACT Strikers (2011).

New South Wales

New South Wales
Flag of New South Wales.svg TeamsAHL TitlesYearsHome Stadium
Men NSW Waratahs 31995, 2001, 2005 Sydney Olympic Park,
Sydney
Women NSW Arrows 101993, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000,
2001, 2002, 2009, 2014, 2018

Both the men's and women's New South Wales representative teams entered the AHL in the inaugural year for each gender, 1991 and 1993 respectively.

The men and women have both previously represented NSW under different names. The men have represented as the Sydney Stingrays (1991–1992), the Sydney Scorpions (1993–1994), the NSW Warriors (1995–2000) and the NSW Panthers (2001–2004). The women have previously represented as the NSWIS Arrows (2000–2004).

Northern Territory

Northern Territory
Flag of the Northern Territory.svg TeamsAHL TitlesYearsHome Stadium
Men NT Stingers 0Marrara Hockey Centre,
Darwin
Women NT Pearls 0

Both the men's and women's Northern Territory representative teams entered the AHL at different times. While the women joined in the tournament's inaugural year of 1993, the men didn't join until 1998.

While participating for the first three years, the women's team were absent from the AHL between 1996 and 1999.

The men and women have both previously represented NT under different names. The men have represented as the Territory Stingers (2001–2008) and the Darwin Stingers (2010, 2012), while the women have represented as the Darwin Blazez (1993–1995) and the Territory Pearls (2006–2007, 2010).

Queensland

Queensland
Flag of Queensland.svg TeamsAHL TitlesYearsHome Stadium
Men QLD Blades 101991, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2018 Queensland State Hockey
Centre
, Brisbane
Women QLD Scorchers 51997, 2005, 2013, 2015, 2016

Both the men's and women's Queensland representative teams entered the AHL in the inaugural year for each gender, 1991 and 1993 respectively.

The men and women have both previously represented QLD under different names. The men have represented as the Brisbane Blades (1991–1997), while the women have represented as the QAS Scorchers (1995–1997, 2000).

South Australia

South Australia
Flag of South Australia.svg TeamsAHL TitlesYearsHome Stadium
Men SA Hotshots 0 State Hockey Centre,
Adelaide
Women SA Suns 21995, 2011

Both the men's and women's South Australia representative teams entered the AHL in the inaugural year for each gender, 1991 and 1993 respectively.

The men and women have both previously represented SA under different names. The men have represented as the Adelaide Hotshots (1991–2007) and the Southern Hotshots (2008–2014), while the women have represented as the Adelaide Suns (1993–2007) and the Southern Suns (2008–2014).

Tasmania

Tasmania
Flag of Tasmania.svg TeamsAHL TitlesYearsHome Stadium
Men Tassie Tigers 1 2014 Tasmanian Hockey Centre,
Hobart
Women Tassie Van Demons 0

Both the men's and women's Tasmania representative teams entered the AHL following the inaugural year for each gender. The men joined in 1992, while the women joined in 1996.

Victoria

Victoria
Flag of Victoria (Australia).svg TeamsAHL TitlesYearsHome Stadium
Men VIC Vikings 41996, 1998, 2016, 2017 State Netball and Hockey
Centre
, Melbourne
Women VIC Vipers 32003, 2012, 2017

Both the men's and women's Victoria representative teams entered the AHL in the inaugural year for each gender, 1991 and 1993 respectively.

The men and women have both previously represented VIC under different names. The men have represented as the Melbourne Redbacks (1991–1992, 1994–2001), the VIS Redbacks (1993) and the Azuma Vikings (2005–2006), while the women have previously represented as the VIS Vipers (1993–2004) and the Azuma Vipers (2005–2006).

Western Australia

Western Australia
Flag of Western Australia.svg TeamsAHL TitlesYearsHome Stadium
Men WA Thundersticks 91992, 1993, 1995, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2008, 2009, 2011 Perth Hockey Stadium,
Perth
Women WA Diamonds 61994, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010

Both the men's and women's Western Australia representative teams entered the AHL at different times. While the women joined in the tournament's inaugural year of 1993, the men didn't join until 1992.

The men and women have both previously represented WA under different names. The men have represented as the Perth Thundersticks (1992, 1994–2001) and the WAIS Thundersticks (1993), while the women have previously represented as the WAIS Diamonds (1993–2002).

Men's AHL

Statistics

Men's Australian Hockey League
YearChampionRunner-upPlayer of the TournamentHighest GoalscorerPlayer of the Final
1991 Brisbane Blades Melbourne Redbacks Colin Batch (Redbacks) David Shaw (Redbacks)
1992 Perth Thundersticks Brisbane Blades Jay Stacy (Redbacks)
Todd Williams (Tigers)
1993 WAIS Thundersticks Sydney Scorpions
1994NHL Not Played in 1994
1995 Perth Thundersticks Brisbane Blades Lachlan Elmer (Hotshots) Bobby Crutchley (Lakers)
1996 Melbourne Redbacks Brisbane Blades Jay Stacy (Redbacks) Greg Corbitt (Thundersticks)
Jeremy Hiskins (Redbacks)
1997 NSW Warriors Perth Thundersticks Jay Stacy (Redbacks) Glen Kingston (Lakers)
1998 Melbourne Redbacks Canberra Lakers Daniel Sproule (Tigers) Daniel Davison (Thundersticks)
1999 Perth Thundersticks QLD Blades Michael York (Lakers) Craig Keenan (Tigers)
2000 Perth Thundersticks NSW Warriors Brent Livermore (Warriors) Craig Keenan (Tigers)
2001 NSW Panthers Perth Thundersticks Matthew Wells (Tigers) Michael McCann (Panthers)
2002 WA Thundersticks QLD Blades Zain Wright (Tigers) Andrew Smith (Vikings)
2003 QLD Blades WA Thundersticks Matthew Wells (Tigers) Andrew Smith (Vikings)
2004 QLD Blades WA Thundersticks Stephen Mowlam (Vikings) Troy Elder (Blades) Dean Butler (Blades)
2005 NSW Waratahs QLD Blades Rob Hammond (Blades) Taeke Taekema (Waratahs) Michael McCann (Waratahs)
2006 QLD Blades Tassie Tigers Mark Knowles (Blades) Chris Ciriello (Vikings) Dean Butler (Blades)
2007 QLD Blades WA Thundersticks Bevan George (Thundersticks) Marcus Richardson (Tigers) Mark Knowles (Blades)
2008 WA Thundersticks QLD Blades Bevan George (Thundersticks) Luke Doerner (Vikings) Aaron Hopkins (Thundersticks)
2009 WA Thundersticks QLD Blades Brent Livermore (Waratahs) Jason Wilson (Blades) Graeme Begbie (Thundersticks)
2010 QLD Blades NSW Waratahs Des Abbott (Stingers)
Simon Orchard (Waratahs)
Josh Miller (Waratahs) Jason Wilson (Blades)
2011 WA Thundersticks NSW Waratahs Eddie Ockenden (Tigers) Wouter Hermkens (Lakers)
Eddie Ockenden (Tigers)
Sam Pike (Thundersticks)
Sam Pike (Thundersticks)
2012 QLD Blades WA Thundersticks Simon Orchard (Waratahs) Chris Ciriello (Vikings) Matthew Swann (Blades)
2013 QLD Blades VIC Vikings Eddie Ockenden (Tigers) Aaron Kershaw (Lakers)
Mark Paterson (Waratahs)
2014 Tassie Tigers WA Thundersticks Eddie Ockenden (Tigers) Blake Govers (Waratahs) Tristan Clemons (Tigers)
2015 QLD Blades WA Thundersticks Eddie Ockenden (Tigers) Blake Govers (Waratahs) Cale Cramer (Blades)
2016 VIC Vikings WA Thundersticks Flynn Ogilvie (Waratahs) Chris Ciriello (Vikings) Chris Ciriello (Vikings)
2017 VIC Vikings QLD Blades Mark Knowles (Blades) Kieron Arthur (Tigers)
Chris Ciriello (Vikings)
Robert Bell (Blades)
2018 QLD Blades NSW Waratahs Jake Whetton (Blades) Blake Govers (Waratahs) Corey Weyer (Blades)
Men's Australian Hockey League
YearGoalkeeper of the TournamentPlay the Whistle
2012 Canberra Lakers
2013
2014 Leon Hayward (Stingers) Tassie Tigers
2015 Andrew Charter (Lakers) Tassie Tigers
2016 Tyler Lovell (Thundersticks) WA Thundersticks
2017 Johan Durst (Vikings) QLD Blades
2018 Andrew Charter (Lakers)

Related Research Articles

Hockey Australia is an organisation that formed from the merger of the Australian Hockey Association and Women's Hockey Australia in 2000. It is the national body responsible for the promotion, development and administration of field hockey in Australia. Hockey Australia is a full member of the International Hockey Federation and comprises the State and Territory associations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sport in South Australia</span>

Sport plays an important role in the business, community, social and cultural life in South Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Perth Redbacks</span> Basketball team in Belmont, Western Australia

Perth Redbacks is an NBL1 West club based in Perth, Western Australia. The club fields a team in both the Men's and Women's NBL1 West. The club is a division of Perth Basketball Association (PBA), the major administrative basketball organisation in Perth's eastern suburbs and across the CBD. The Redbacks play their home games at Belmont Oasis Leisure Centre.

Hockey Victoria (HV) is the governing body for the sport of field hockey in Victoria, Australia. It is responsible for the administration of intrastate competitions, state representative teams, officials and the financial position of the sport. Its office is located on the ground level of the State Netball and Hockey Centre in Parkville.

The Victorian Vikings are a field hockey team which participate in Australia's national field hockey league, the AHL. The team is mostly made up of amateurs who participate in the Victorian State League Division 1. Previous to being known as the Victorian Vikings, the Victorian team have been referred to Melbourne Redbacks, VIS Redbacks and Azuma Vikings. The team's home stadium is the Victorian State Netball and Hockey Centre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">State Hockey Centre (South Australia)</span>

The State Hockey Centre, currently known as MATE Stadium, is a 4,000 capacity, government owned outdoor field hockey stadium located in Gepps Cross, a northern suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. It offers two international-standard wet hockey pitches which are used for both competition and training activities.

The RMIT Redbacks are the sport collective of the Australian research University the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT), based at all campuses in Victoria and Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The program is managed by the RMIT Sport team, part of RMIT Student Life.

The Inline Hockey World Championship is an annual inline hockey tournament organized by World Skate. Prior to the creation of World Skate in September 2017, the championship was administrated by the Comité International Roller In-Line Hockey (CIRILH), an organization and discipline of Fédération Internationale de Roller Sports (FIRS). It is the sport's highest-profile annual international tournament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Melody Cooper</span> New Zealand field hockey player

Melody Cooper is a New Zealand field hockey player. She has played in the midfield and defence positions. She played club hockey in New Zealand and in South Australia before representing New Zealand at the 2012 London Olympics. Melody was captain of the SA Suns team that won the Australian Hockey League Championship in 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tassie Tigers</span> Australian field hockey club

Tassie Tigers is an Australian professional field hockey club based in Hobart, Tasmania. The club joined the Australian Hockey League in 1992 as a men's team. In 2019, the Tassie Tigers expanded to encompass both Tasmanian men's and women's teams, Tassie Van Demons, as one of 7 clubs to compete in Hockey Australia's new premier domestic competition, Hockey One.

The 2015 Men's Australian Hockey League was the 25th edition of the Australian Hockey League men's Field Hockey tournament. The tournament was held in the Northern Territory city of Darwin.

Holly Evans is a former field and indoor hockey player from Australia.

The 2013 Men's Australian Hockey League was the 23rd edition of the Australian Hockey League men's Field Hockey tournament. The tournament was held in the Victoria city of Melbourne.

The 2018 Women's Australian Hockey League was the 26th edition of the women's field hockey tournament. The 2018 edition of the tournament was held between 6 – 28 October, and featured a new format from previous editions.

The 2018 Men's Australian Hockey League was the 26th edition of the men's field hockey tournament. The 2018 edition of the tournament was be held between 6 – 28 October, and featured a new format from previous editions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adelaide Fire</span> Australian field hockey club

Adelaide Fire is an Australian professional field hockey club based in Adelaide, South Australia. The club was established in 2019, and is one of 7 established to compete in Hockey Australia's new premier domestic competition, Hockey One.

The 2011 Men's Australian Hockey League was the 21st edition of the men's field hockey tournament. The finals week of the tournament was held in the New South Wales city of Sydney.

The 2007 Men's Australian Hockey League was the 17th edition of the men's field hockey tournament. The tournament was held from 23 February through to 1 April 2007 at various venues, before culminating in Perth for the finals.

The National Premier Leagues WA Women, also known as the NPL WA Women, is a soccer competition in Western Australia. The competition is conducted by Football West, the organising body in Western Australia. The league is a subdivision of the second tier National Premier Leagues Women's structure, which sits below the national A-League Women, it is the highest tier of local women's competition in Western Australia. The league was founded in 2020 in Western Australia, several years behind equivalent leagues in other states.

The 2005 Men's Australian Hockey League was the 15th edition women's field hockey tournament. The tournament was held in various cities across Australia, and was contested from 25 February through to 3 April 2005.

References

  1. AHL Webpage Archived 25 September 2010 at the Wayback Machine