Hockey NZ left red-faced by Hager’s faux pas

A slip of the fingers has caused embarrassment for Hockey New Zealand and its national women’s coach Mark Hager.

Former Australian international striker and long time Black Sticks coach Hager inadvertently sent an email critical of some players to more than the intended support staff ahead of the World Cup in London last month, according to a report last night.

The email reached his players. In it, Hager was critical of some players for struggling to run, being unable to do repeat efforts at training and battling to push through pain and heat.

Hager also made the point the players do not train hard enough.

The Black Sticks, who were ranked fourth at the time, had a poor Cup campaign, failing to reach the last eight and dropping two spots in the world rankings.

In April, they had been jubilant, having won a maiden Commonwealth Games title on the Gold Coast, but there have also been some ordinary results and performances this year.

Hager, a straight-shooting personality, is in his 10th year in charge of the national women’s team.

According to One News, he apologised for his comments, which he acknowledged were poor and he had no excuses.

HNZ said it was aware of the incident. The matter had been dealt with immediately by senior players and Hager took full responsibility.

It believes no further investigation is required and both parties are understood to have put the incident behind them.

Their form in London was below expectations and there are sure to be claims Hager’s email didn’t help the players’ mood.

In a recent interview with the Herald, Hager admitted he was likely to stand down after the Tokyo Olympics in 2020, no matter the outcome there.