Cambridge City Hockey Club working hard to bridge the state school gap

Hockey has long struggled to rid itself of the reputation of being a middle-class sport dominated by people that have attended private school.

But at Cambridge City Hockey Club, they are working towards making the sport a much more inclusive pastime.

Every Tuesday evening the club runs an outreach programme to help bridge the gap for young players at state schools.

For a long time the scheme was in the hands of Andy Richardson and then taken on by Dougie Brice before Rod Journeaux inherited the position of lead coach.

And the New Zealander, who played and coached at international level back in his homeland, believes offering these sessions is a real feather in the club’s cap.

“I was really impressed with how Andy and Dougie both run the sessions,” he said.

“As a Kiwi in England I saw certain sports were largely played by children at independent schools, which is very different to New Zealand where people in all schools play all of the sports.

“If you weren’t at an independent school, it felt like youngsters only played hockey in England if it was something their parents were keen on.

“But this programme gives everyone a real opportunity to play the game.

“The numbers are growing and while we have some good players, we also have some that are playing the game for the first time and that is brilliant to see.

“It’s a smaller group than a lot of other sessions and so it allows them to blossom, make mistakes and we can help them to develop their skills.

“We’re bridging the gap between state school children and their independent peers – that is great for the club.”

While the leading aim of the programme is to provide juniors with an opportunity they would not have previously experienced, Journeaux has been impressed with the standard.

A number of players have gone on to join the club, including Journeaux’s son Ben.

“It’s not a pre requisite but several players have joined up with the club and are playing some senior hockey,” he added.

“As long as they attend a state school, that is the only thing we ask.

“They are loving their hockey, showing great potential and to see some of them representing the club is really gratifying.

“My coaches Nick Wilyman, John Gordon, Ali Cotton and Pete Wilkinson all do an amazing job and so does Kim Small – she is always in contact with the schools. We couldn’t run the squad without them.”