At the start of last week it came as no surprise to any involved in Hockey in Australia that dual Olympic Gold medallist Katrina Powell was appointed coach of the Hockeyroos until the end of the Tokyo Olympic Games.
It also came as no surprise that some of the leading media outlets could not get their facts right. One stating that the Olympic Games will commence “at the end of June” when they start at the end of July! Another named Powell as the first woman to coach the Australian Women’s Hockey team. Prior to 1979 when Merv Adams took on the role nearly all of the coaches had been women!
It is sad to read such incorrect information as it does a gross disservice to all of the women who held that position prior to 1979, and who strove so hard to elevate women’s hockey.
Which is a good time to segue into comparing the women’s and the men’s game.
On July 2 1910, the Australian Women’s Hockey Association was formed and was affiliated with the All England Women’s Hockey Association, which at the time was the International governing body. No doubt spurred on by the position taken by the women, the men talked about forming an Australian Hockey Association as early as 1912. Yet as most women know men have a habit of procrastinating, and the Association did not come into existence until 1925. Although to be fair the not so small matter of a World War from 1914-1918 may well have a great deal to do with the delay!
It appears interesting that prior to a national association most of the states had already created their own associations. Yet with travel at the turn of the last century as well as communication being so hard it is not that surprising. The South Australian Hockey Association was the first to be formed in 1903. Victoria and New South Wales soon followed forming their own associations in 1906. The official records state that ‘hockey was played in Western Australia as early as 1902 and that in spite of this the West Australian Hockey Association was not formed until 1908.’ Yet the records show that hockey was being played in country Western Australia in the early 1890’s. It was just that it had not taken such a strong hold in the city of Perth until the turn of the century. Queensland which would in time become a strong contributor to the nation’s teams was only formed in the late 1920s. This may again be because the majority of those playing the game came from the country towns rather than the capital city.
The Australian Women’s team played their first international match on 1 August 1914 at Rushcutters Bay in Sydney and lost to England 3-11. Their next match, also against England would come in 1927; this time they would lose 1-13.
The men’s first international game would be played eight years after the women’s, on 27 September 1922 in Palmerston North, New Zealand. They would lose 5-4. By the time 1927 had come around they had played a further two matches against New Zealand and lost those as well.
From 1922 to the start of 1956 when the Australian men would make their Olympic debut, when they took part as the host nation in Melbourne, they had played 14 international matches, 13 against New Zealand and one against India. By comparison up until the start of 1956 the women’s team had played 41 international matches against 14 countries. How could this be possible many will ask?
The answer is simple, in the sport of hockey the women were the drivers of the sport. In 1922 when the Australian men were embarking on their first International match Mrs Heron Maxwell, President of the All England Women’s Hockey Association was putting forward the idea of a body that would include all national women’s associations. Two years later – the year in which the seperate International Hockey Federation was formed – it was agreed and a constitution was drawn up and 12 nations were invited to join.
Communication was all written in this era and sent by post, so the wheels turned slowly and it was not until 1927 that the inaugural meeting of the International Federation of Women’s Hockey Associations was held. There were eight founding nations initially, as some countries were reticent with the FIH being formed at the same time.
In 1930 it was agreed that when the IFWHA held a conference all member nations would be invited to participate in a tournament to coincide with the meeting. The first time that this took place was in 1933.
It should be stated that as early as 1930 conversations were taking place between the IFWHA and the FIH to come together under one umbrella. There were three sticking points, representation, subscriptions and the definition of “country.” The FIH ruled ‘one country one vote.’ They maintained that Great Britain was one country and Ireland a seperate entity. The IFWHA believed that one country with a large membership would give the sport far greater support than another with a very small playing base. They felt that the idea of having Great Britain with so many players having three member associations ignored was unrealistic. So negotiations halted.
The FIH did however then set up a women’s committee, and in 1931 the two bodies met again in Paris. The FIH refused to recognise the IFWHA on an equal footing as itself. They also refused ‘the absolute independence of women in their internal organisation.’ So the two bodies parted company.
Not surprisingly the majority of women’s hockey-playing nations joined the IFWHA. Unfortunately just as the organisation was gaining real momentum a second World War broke out. At the end of that War the effects were felt for many years to come. However in 1950 South Africa stepped in as host of the conference and six national teams participated in the tournament.
Australia had sent a team to the third event in Philadelphia, USA, and won three and lost three of their matches. In Folkestone England in 1953 they won five of their six games, losing only to South Africa.
By 1948 the IFWHA membership numbers had grown to 26. It is interesting to note that in 1948 the IFWHA approached the International Olympic Committee to discuss the inclusion of women’s hockey at the 1952 Olympic Games. Their request was refused. At the 1950 conference in Johannesburg the IFWHA deemed that ‘tournaments and tours were far better suited to women’s hockey than anything offered by the Olympic Games with its necessary limitation on the number of participating teams, knock-out method and short duration.’
The IFWHA was a hugely successful organisation. their statutes saw a new President and Secretary appointed at every triennial conference, and these would be from the host nation of the next conference and unofficial world cup. They limited the term of officers so that fresh ideas were welcome. To ensure consistency and ensure a strong administration a General secretary was appointed.
It is important to note that while the tournaments at the IFWHA would appear to have been a precursor to a World Cup, under IFWHA rules, there were no official winners at these events. The emphasis was on participation. That changed in 1975. In Edinburgh, a Quaich – a Scottish drinking bowl – was presented to the winning team, England, by the Royal Bank of Scotland. Each player from the winning team was presented with a replica of the trophy. That trophy remains as the Women’s World Cup and that tournament is regarded as the first Women’s World Cup. The men’s first World Cup event took place in 1971.
The 1970’s would prove pivotal in women’s hockey. The equality for women movement was extremely strong in this decade and although the participation numbers for women had been growing at the Olympic Games the IOC realised that they had to increase the number of events open to women. In 1972 at the IOC Congress in Munich it was announced that three more sports would be added.
Women’s hockey was accepted in principle. That entry though was deferred. The official reason given is an absence of integrated management. The FIH disbanded the consultative committee. In 1974 they were persuaded to resume the relationship with a supreme Council having four representatives from each side of the game and a role of dealing with common policy. The IOC confirmed the participation of women’s, but deferred it until 1980, pending a special management structure. The FIH again withdrew. As they were the body affiliated with the IOC and each sport was only allowed one association per sport, the women were left hanging.
In 1978 their position had shifted and they resolved that the Olympics was now a vital component of developing the game. They resolved that in 1983 in Kuala Lumpur that would be their last conference and they would dissolve the IFWHA and its members would formally join the FIH, or its member nations men’s Associations. Many who recall those times look back and state that the IFWHA was the most successful and efficient body to run the game.
The Australian hockey teams withdrew from the 1980 Olympics for political reasons. Interestingly while the international merger was taking place between the men’s and women’s game in 1984 the Australian Women’s Hockey Association established its headquarters in Sydney.
Yet this was the era of the male coach taking the reins of the women’s team, which seems ironic at a time when women were fighting so hard for equality. Yet for the Australian Women’s hockey program it would prove to be a golden era. The Hockeyroos as they became known, won three Olympic gold medals (1988, 1996, 2000), two World Cup gold medals (1994, 1998), five consecutive Champions Trophies (1991, 1993, 1995, 1997, 1999) and its first Commonwealth Games gold medal (1998).
In the year 2000 the Australian Women’s Hockey Association merged with the Australian Hockey Association which had run the men’s game. In time they would become Hockey Australia.
Since the year 2000 the Hockeyroos have finished fifth at three Olympic Games and sixth in the most recent in Rio in 2016. In World Cups they have claimed silver twice, finished fourth twice and fifth once. In 16 Champions Trophy events since 2000 they have won one and finished second four times and third twice; two tournaments in the 16 they did not participate. While in the Commonwealth Games they have won three gold, one silver and one bronze since the merger took place.
Katrina Powell has a very short period of time in which to mould this team into a medal winning side and break that trend of Olympic results. As former coach Paul Gaudoin believed, and Powell stated at the time of her appointment the talent is there.
The worrying thing for the Hockeyroos program is that if they fail to medal the funding for this program will again suffer. There is a great deal on the line, not just medals.
The new format of the Olympic tournament makes the possibility of medalling far harder. No longer do the top two teams in each pool play off in the semi-finals, and contest the medals. Now in an effort to open up the tournament the top four in each pool cross over and play in quarter-finals. Meaning that there are three knock-out games before you are assured of a gold or silver medal, anything can happen. Lose your quarter-final match and depending on the pool results your team could finish as low as eighth in the rankings. Australia’s women bowed out at that stage in Rio and then finished 6th, their lowest ever finish in an Olympic Games. A finish below 6th is unthinkable to those who have gone before, but the format makes it a possibility.
Australian Hockey will only know after the Olympic Games whether Katrina Powell was the right choice at this point in time. She has a tough task ahead of her but hopefully she has everyone’s full support moving forward.
Her appointment does however throw up a whole raft of questions. While that period from the 1980’s to 2000 was hugely successful for the women’s team what was being done to encourage those women to take up coaching? It seems like an opportunity was missed with only Katrina Powell and Alyson Annan going on to coach at the elite level. A reflection of that situation is still within the women’s game 20 years on. In Western Australia prior to the start of the Hockey WA All Stars Premier League was the Ric Charlesworth Classic. A tournament named after a man who excelled as a player and a coach, and who led the Hockeyroos to two Olympic Gold medals. The competition is aimed at improving and bringing through the next generation of Western Australian players and coaches..
Of the four women’s teams participating only one was coached by a woman. Kate Denning was the playing coach of the victorious Breakers team, ably assisted by the experienced and well-credentialed Lindsey Wright. If this tournament is about developing talent surely all four women’s teams should have been coached by women, with possibly men with experience in an assistant role to guide and help?
If Katrina Powell is successful, and the Hockeyroos do indeed make the medal matches there will no doubt be much backslapping at Hockey Australia, however if they fall before that game, who will take the blame? Will the coach once again be sacrificed? Is four months a fair period of assessment? Or will anyone look back at the process that has led to Powell’s appointment and those involved?
A decision was clearly made that the time was right to once again appoint a woman; the first since Colleen Quinn in 1978. Quinn who played for the Hockeyroos from 1959-1971 coached NSW for six years and Australia for three. Katrina Powell has who played for the Hockeyroos from 1994-2004 has also coached New South Wales, but for four years in the old Australian Hockey League and one season in the new Hockey One league. Powell has been deemed the best qualified woman to lead the team, and there can be no arguments with those decisions.
Yet could there have been more openness about the process? At a time when people are quick to talk about equality it is important to remember that this cuts both ways. If Hockey Australia was looking to appoint a female coach why go through the charade of interviewing male applicants? The argument will be that they were looking for the best candidate, however it is alleged that the decision to appoint a female coach had been made before the interview process began.
What is possibly more of a concern is that those making the decision on the new coach were the same Board who were criticised for their handling of the turbulence within the high performance unit in the recently released report. The report stated “there should be transparency, ” and also recommended using outside facilitation. To many this process smacks of immediately ignoring the findings of that recent report. To start afresh and with a clean slate surely the interviews needed to be handled by an independent committee, with a brief from the board and possibly with a board member present purely as an observer?
The outcome would most probably have been the same. Katrina Powell would still have been judged the best candidate. However, importantly the board would have been at arms length from the decision. Now they must take full responsibility and accept that they will be under as much scrutiny as the team, if not more.
Looking back at where the women’s game has come from and the journey of the Australian women’s team, one cannot help wondering whether equality has in fact served the women’s game for the best. Were they better off running their own program? Certainly judging by the success that they achieved it would appear that they were definitely doing something right, and that a successful formula was abandoned following them relinquishing their independence.
As much as Governments and International sporting bodies want to see sports played under the auspices of one governing body, one cannot help feeling when one looks back at history that many women’s sports would be far better off running their own affairs rather than falling in line with their male counterparts. They would certainly be better off not following the same methods come-what-may, as the requirements are often very different and what may be good for one program may not be for another.
It feels apt to finish by sharing the theme of the IFWHA conference in Philadelphia back in 1936, the first that Australia attended, as it shows the wisdom of those women running the sport at the time. The theme was “contest without conflict, rivalry without rancour and struggle without strife.” Maybe it could become the catch cry for the Hockeyroos as they prepare for Tokyo?
