A good crowd of almost 900 were treated to top class hockey in Parkes on Saturday when several Kookaburras and Hockeyroos were playing in the first ever Hockey One match in a regional centre.

“It was just fantastic. We had a good crowd and quality games,” said event manager Ian Westcott.

The second match of the day featured local star Mariah Williams playing for NSW Pride. She gave her local fans lots to cheer about as her team beat Canberra Chill 6 – 0. In the men’s game Canberra Chill came out on top with a 3 – 0 win.

The men’s and women’s matches were the final games for the second season of the Sultana-Bran Hockey One League and decided the make-up of the final series.

Mariah said before the match she was a bit nervous as usual, but it was great to be playing at home. She was handing out signatures before and after the game to young players who were very excited to meet her.

Ian said Parkes Hockey Incorporated had received lots of positive comments from the players and from Parkes supporters. World Hockey Player Award recipient Jamie Dwyer, who was guest speaker at a Celebration of Hockey dinner on Saturday night, said in his speech what a great event it was and that these competitions should be held in more regional centres.

Excitement is building for the biggest hockey day ever to be held in Parkes next Saturday when up to 11 international players will be in action at the McGlynn Park.

This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to watch Kookaburras and Hockeyroos in the NSW Pride and Canberra Chill teams on 12th November in the first ever Hockey One match to be played in a regional centre.

Parkes Hockey Incorporated (PHI) organisers are expecting a crowd of around 1,000 people with local hockey star Mariah Williams the biggest draw card on the day. The 27-year-old has been a lock in the national squads for the past decade and has made over 100 appearances across all national levels. Mariah has played a pivotal role in the 2022 instalment of the NSW Pride campaign.

Event Manager Ian Westcott from Parkes Hockey Incorporated said he would love to see local people getting behind the event.

The men’s and women’s matches in Parkes will be the final games for the second season of the Sultana-Bran Hockey One League and will decide the make-up of the final series to be held in Bendigo the following weekend.

The NSW Pride teams will feature a number of Kookaburras and Hockeyroos with some players returning from stints in the powerful European Hockey Leagues. This will also be the first taste of Australia’s Hockey One league for these returning superstars of the game.

In addition to these international superstars there is a mix of great young locally developed talent as well as some up-and-coming stars of the game.

This will be the first time a Hockey One game has been played out of a capital city and is a joint venture between Parkes Shire Council, Hockey NSW, NSW Pride and Parkes Hockey Incorporated.

“Hockey NSW is delighted to be partnering with the Parkes Shire Council and Parkes Hockey Incorporated to bring the only Hockey One game to regional Australia. It’s a wonderful opportunity for hockey enthusiasts and the broader community in and around Parkes to enjoy elite sport and we are expecting a capacity crowd on the day,” said Hockey NSW Chief Executive Officer, Emma Highwood.

Both games will be streamed on Kayo Sports, with the broadcast commencing at 3:30pm. 

Parkes Hockey will also be hosting a junior clinic on Saturday morning free of charge run by Glenn Johnstone -Hockey NSW RPC.

A Celebration of Hockey dinner will also be held at the Parkes Golf Club on Saturday evening with Jamie Dwyer as guest speaker. Jamie has won the World Hockey Player award six times was voted 5-time MVP. He will tell his hockey story and guests will be able to mingle with Jamie and a host of other Australian players. Tickets for the Clinics and Dinner can be found at the links below.

• Clinic: https://www.123tix.com.auevents/35611/hockey-coaching-clinic-with-nsw-pride-act-chill-players

• Dinner: https://www.123tix.com.au/events/35542/parkes-hockey-inc-presents-a-night-with-jamie-dwyer

• Tickets for the games are available via Ticketek at https://premier.ticketek.com.au/Shows/Show.aspx?sh=HOCKEYNS21

Parkes hockey player Denise Gersbach has been selected in the Australian Over 50s team to compete in the Trans-Tasman Challenge in Christchurch, New Zealand in May next year.

Denise will be representing Australia for the fifth time in New Zealand.

Two other Parkes players have been selected as shadow players for Australian teams.

Maureen Massey as a shadow goalkeeper for the Australian over 65s team, and Graeme Thompson as a shadow player for the Australian over 45’s team.

Unfortunately for Maureen, Australia could not select an over 70s team, which is Maureen’s age division, due to a lack of numbers on New Zealand’s part. This means Maureen had to compete with the 65-year-olds for a spot in the team.

If Maureen gets called up it would be her eighth time to represent in the green and gold.

The Trans-Tasman is a three match tournament between Australia and New Zealand for men and women’s teams from over 35s to over 65s every second year.

The men have an over 70s age division.

We keep our fingers crossed for Maureen and Graeme, and congratulations to Denise!

The Parkes East Primary School hockey team played in the state finals of the PSSA knockout in Newcastle on Tuesday. The team won the semi-final against Robertson Public School 1 – 0 to play Tamworth Public School in the finals. They ended second in the state with the final score 1 – 3 earning them a silver medal for the team members.

It was a golden result for Parkes residents Fran Dixon (left) and Maureen Massey (middle) as players and Donna Payne (right) as manager of the NSW 65 Blues team. They claimed the gold medal in their division at the 2022 Hockey Australia Women’s Masters Championships in Cairns last month. The NSW over 50s team with Parkes players Denise Gersbach, Jane Grovernor and Mandy Westcott won silver.

Parkes hockey will be very well represented at the 2022 Hockey Australia Women’s Masters Championships in Cairns next week with nine players selected in various teams. It is the biggest group of players to go to the Masters from Parkes and they are all very excited. “We have trained very hard and put in a lot of time and effort,” said Denise Gersbach. “We are looking forward to support each other, and catching up with hockey friends from all over the country,” said Maureen Massey. The Parkes players are (L-R) Sue McGrath (ACT 50s), Denise Gersbach (NSW 50s), Maureen Massey (NSW 65 Blues), Mandy Westcott (NSW 50s), Donna Payne (Manager NSW 65 Blues) and Louise Witherow (ACT 34s). (Absent: Jane Grosvenor (NSW 50s), Fran Dixon (NSW 65 Blues) and Lee Hodge (ACT 45s – withdrawn due to injury).

You can say sport takes precedence in the Westcott family home and this year they reached a singular achievement with all four members representing NSW on the hockey field.

Ian and Mandy and their two sons Jack and Sam have all been selected for NSW this year, and next week three of them will be playing for their respective teams all over Australia. “It is pretty exciting for all of us,” said Mandy.

Jack took first honours playing for NSW at the 2022 Australian Under 18 Hockey Championships in Cairns in April. He has been selected in the NSW team every year since U13.

Both Ian and Mandy had been selected for NSW last year, but COVID put a stop to all tournaments and they had to go through the selection process again this year.

Next week Mandy will be playing for NSW 50s in Cairns at the 2022 Hockey Australia Women’s Masters Championships, while Ian is heading to the Gold Coast for the 2022 Hockey Australia Men’s Masters Championships playing for NSW over 45s.

The pressure was on Sam, the youngest, to complete the picture and he delivered making it into the NSW U13 team, his first selection for NSW. He is heading to Hobart, Tasmania next week for the Under 13 Boys National Championships.

Once all the action is over the hockey conversation in the Westcott household is sure to continue for much longer.

By Maggi Barnard

Spring Night Competitions

Forbes netball is back in full swing for the popular Spring Night Competitions starting on 7th September. The committee will also be organising a 17 and under mixed and ladies competition, and a men’s grade if there is enough interest.

All teams are asked to enter as soon as possible, as there are only two grading dates before the competitions starts. Email the secretary on secretary.forbesnetball@gmail.com if you’re looking for a team or players.

Players already registered with NNSW only need to pay the FNA competition fee of $50 per player per team. New 2022 registrations can take advantage of the reduced NNSW registrations from 1st September, plus the FNA competition fees. All registrations are done online, including the FNA competition fees. Like our Facebook posts, and get all the information as soon as it breaks, on the Forbes Netball Facebook page.

NetSetGo And Junior Mixed

Tomorrow, 27th August will see the last sessions for 2022 of Saturday NetSetGo and Junior skills and games. All players are invited to join us at 9:30am with a presentation and sausage sizzle at 10:30am, and junior skills and games at 10:30am with a presentation and sausage sizzle at 11:30am. NetSetGo ages start at 5 years, and are modified skills and games for the very young players wanting to learn basic skills.

Gala Day

The Forbes Netball Committee is planning a Junior Mixed Gala Day on 4th September – grades start at NetSetGo, to approximately 12/13 years. Players should email the secretary on secretary.forbesnetball@gmail.com to get into a team, or put their name down on Saturday. All the dads will receive a free sausage sandwich to celebrate Father’s Day at the gala day.

By Robyn Kenny