D. Leask Posted June 5, 2016 Report Share Posted June 5, 2016 Orkney beat Shetland 10-0 in the intercounty junior hockey today and as a dad of one of the players I am going to have bit of a rant.I don’t mind them losing when all is square and fair but as a dad of three girls I am a bit fed up about how sports in Shetland seem to be focused on boys and men. Kids need team sports, doesn’t matter how good they are but being part of a team prepares them for life. Having to compromise and adjust to all your fellow players in a competitive environment when you win and lose together as a pack is such an education and one you don’t get in school. We all know the legendary names of older football players and hockey players who have committed to their sports and will always be people who we respect and admire in Shetland. At present we are only going to have men in that bracket in future and I don't think that is fair. Sport is an incentive that keeps kids fit, gives them a good perspective on life, creates friendship and keeps them on the straight and narrow.Somehow hockey in Shetland has become neglected. We have one dilapidated pitch in brae that we have to be up early doors on Sunday to run our kids to and without doubt, nobody south of Lerwick can be bothered with. Yes we can all go for swim whenever we feel like it but having to drive 20 miles for a game of hockey? Something has gone wrong here. Orkney doesn’t seem to have some of the issues with young folk we deal with and I wonder why! Is that because they have invested in team sports and taken the girls with them? Team sports for kids; training and development, learning to get along, is a huge benefit whether the girls become brilliant or not, but in Shetland I feel girls are currently missing out at this formative stage. Imagine how Orkney young girls are feeling tonight. They’ll all want to be picking up a hockey stick and desperate to get into that team. In Shetland however, young lasses will to want to stay well clear of anyone who mentions hockey training. Totally not the way it should be! We used to be good at hockey and had loads of girls and women playing when we had two pitches in Lerwick, but since artificial pitches became mandatory we seem to have given up. If the charitable trust is seriously about benefiting Shetland then build an artificial pitch in Lerwick and one at southend. Get another few hundred girls playing hockey, getting healthy, developing life skills and maybe we can step up to the mark against Orkney in a few years and I won’t be so worried about sending my two younger daughters to an intercounty where they will be devastated for losing the Stuart Cup! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Posted June 5, 2016 Report Share Posted June 5, 2016 Sorry to hear that but, football seems to be the only game that matters just now... Maybe it's because the playing surface requirements are different and, you can't really have big rough hockey players cutting up a footballers pitch now can you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
concerned shetlander Posted June 6, 2016 Report Share Posted June 6, 2016 I don't think that having the pitch in brae is a problem. It is only half an hour run from Lerwick to brae. The netball won and all netball is played in Lerwick, and all the country girls run into Lerwick, which takes them half hour or more. Why do Lerwick people think it is ok for country people to travel to them, but they can't make the effort the other way round. Maybe it's the parents effort that's missing. Effort is the biggest thing in sport. I'm not criticising your effort, because you obviously have run your child, but the people whom you say would come if it was in Lerwick. If they are not keen to drive for half an hour to fulfill their ambitions, then would they be any good? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
concerned shetlander Posted June 7, 2016 Report Share Posted June 7, 2016 I was thinking about this last night after I went to bed, and I was wondering if hockey is still played at school the same as it used to be. I know they don't all have the proper surface, but they could still play it on grass at school and then those who get interested would move on to the artificial surface if they really enjoyed it. That maybe happens , I don't know what happens at school with it now. That is how the girls in our day started. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Posted June 7, 2016 Report Share Posted June 7, 2016 Take a step back and look at the people who finance these facilities (SIC). I think that you will find that a lot of footballers/football addicts within the relevant departments are in a position to directly influence where the money is spent.. Football 1, The Rest 0 PS;I have nothing at all against football and, I quite like it but, it appears to me that far to big a bite out of limited resources has gone towards it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest tiodylb17 Posted June 7, 2016 Report Share Posted June 7, 2016 Will they not be allowed to use the new facility being built at Clickimin ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
concerned shetlander Posted June 7, 2016 Report Share Posted June 7, 2016 (edited) I know the footballers get coaches up from South now and then. I wonder if the same happens for the hockey? Maybe a bit of funding for that would be helpful. I think that Orkney has a lot of practice going down south, but it is easier for them because they are nearer to mainland, so they don't have the cost we have. I know the coaches here are very dedicated and do a good job, but it is difficult to get enough of harder competition to bring players on here. Edited June 7, 2016 by concerned shetlander Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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