Glenn fronts with hockey funding
Black Sticks players will be receiving a much-needed funding boost thanks to a new multimillion-dollar deal.
Hockey New Zealand says an arrangement with businessman and philanthropist Sir Owen Glenn will see the men’s and women’s national squads receive $2 million a year for two years starting from next month.
Glenn confirmed he is donating $1m a year for two years to each of the squads, with the Government agreeing to match the donation through High Performance Sport NZ and Hockey NZ as part of the deal.
Hockey NZ boss Ian Francis said the grant comes at an important time.
“Our players are competing in the [FIH international] pro leagues in 2019 which will take the sport to a new level and make demands on our players like never before,” he said.
The deal will be paid monthly direct to each player in the new contracted squads (25 players from the men’s and women’s sides), which are yet to be announced. Under-fire women’s coach Mark Hager will still be part of the selection process despite an ongoing review into the team culture after claims he created a negative environment in the side.
Francis told Radio Sport he was confident there will be no conflict of interest, despite Hager’s involvement.
“Mark is our head coach and we’ve got a team of selectors . . . around him, and there is actually a full selection process to undertake. So yes we are confident in the process.”
Glenn, who has had a long association with hockey in NZ, said he hoped the funding would give the teams a better chance at winning medals at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
“The Black Sticks now have the same funding as other leading national hockey teams . . . I really believe we have a chance at winning gold with the right support.”