As we inch ever nearer to the beginning of the FIH Hockey Professional League 2025-26 season on 9 December, we’re excited to deliver you an unique pre-season interview sequence with gamers and coaches from the world’s high hockey nations taking part within the “League of the Finest”.
This sequence will dive into the minds of the game’s most interesting athletes and coaches, uncovering their ideas on the upcoming season, private objectives, and the methods their groups are crafting to compete on the highest stage. From seasoned veterans to rising stars, these interviews present a singular glimpse into the fervour, preparation, and drive that gas the groups vying for glory.
In at the moment’s interview we converse with Sarah Hawkshaw, captain of the Irish ladies’s hockey staff — who will make their debut within the competitors throughout season 7, having earned promotion through the FIH Hockey Nations Cup 2024/25!
How excited are you to make your FIH Hockey Professional League debut?
“We’re extraordinarily excited for our Professional League debut in Dublin in December. Not solely that however attending to host our first Professional League video games provides to the joy. After following our nationwide males’s staff within the event the previous two years, we have now seen how vital it’s to be competing within the Professional League, and the way they’ve matched high world nations on quite a few events. We see the event as a significant alternative for our squad to play persistently on the highest stage all year long because of the structure of the event providing one thing totally different than what we’re used to, because it runs as extra of a 12 months lengthy league, fairly than the standard event type worldwide competitors. The sport of hockey strikes at a quick tempo, and being within the Professional League will progress the Inexperienced Military’s momentum as we transfer into vital years forward with World Cup and Olympic {Qualifications}.”
How particular is it to get to play these video games in Eire in entrance of a house crowd?
“Taking part in these video games in our dwelling brings with it an added sense of pleasure not just for us as gamers, however for our supporters and hockey neighborhood. We all know our Irish supporters have travelled far and large to assist us on the worldwide calendar and here’s a probability to offer again to them and produce the highest nations of hockey to our personal again yard. It additionally gives us the chance to deliver the love of hockey into extra individuals’s lives as we attain a broader viewers on the island of Eire that basically is sport mad. House benefit makes a distinction in sport, and we’ll ensure to maximise its potential. We stay up for seeing a sea of inexperienced line the sidelines in Sport Eire Campus.”
What are your ambitions for this Professional League season?
“Our ambition for this season’s Professional League is to take it recreation by recreation as we all know with every match comes the chance to extend our world rankings with such a focus of excessive calibre groups. We imagine we’re amongst this class of hockey nations and we will compete in each match up and are available away with a number of wins within the season forward.”
Other than Eire, what stage of the FIH Professional League are you most trying ahead to?
“It’s laborious to not point out Hobart, Australia as an thrilling stage forward. A nation that is also sports activities mad and is a rustic that I don’t imagine any of us have performed a global fixture in, will probably be new territory for us all. Even with it being the world over, we anticipate to see just a few acquainted faces out right here supporting us from the facet traces.”
What opposition are you most excited to play in opposition to?
“I don’t assume there may be one nation over one other that I may say. As we have now persistently competed in all however one of many top-level majors over the previous 8 years, we have now performed the entire competing nations. Each fixture will include its personal challenges, its personal alternatives, and we might be excited to line out proudly within the Inexperienced Jersey.”
