Hockey parties agree to review
New Zealand Hockey and the Hockey Players’ Association will appoint an independent person this week to look into criticism over the Black Sticks women’s team environment.
The two parties met yesterday, following a number of past and present players’ complaints about the team culture. Past and present national players had contacted the players’ association, with some being critical of how the team was being run.
Both parties issued a joint statement following a ‘‘positive and constructive meeting’’ which discussed feedback from past and present players.
‘‘We have agreed a plan to address the feedback, which involves an independent person to look into the feedback and gather more information if appropriate,’’ the statement reads.
That independent person has not yet been appointed, but would be confirmed in the coming days, the statement said.
‘‘There is absolutely no question that athlete welfare is paramount. At the same time, we must consider and rights of employees.
‘‘We are conscious of the need to respect the privacy and confidentiality of all involved and will not be making any further public comment for now.’’
The meeting was not a direct result of, but related to, coach Mark Hager’s email blunder at the Women’s World Cup last month.
Players have since come forward to discuss the team’s culture after Hager sent an email, in error, to his whole team in which he criticised certain players’ protect the work ethic and fitness levels.
‘‘... is struggling to run, ... struggles to do repeated efforts, ... struggles to push through pain and heat,’’ the email read, with Hager apparently hitting reply all instead of replying to one person.
The email was sent after a loss during the recent World Cup, in which the Black Sticks failed to reach the quarterfinals.
NZHPA executive manager Glen Sulzberger confirmed after the meeting that Hager’s email was on the agenda for discussion, but he would not expand further.
No players were present at yesterday’s meeting, but HNZ chief executive Ian Francis was.
Sulzberger said the email incident had encouraged a number of players to come forward to speak about the team environment, although he would not confirm how many, or if they were current or former players.
One player who has spoken out publicly is former Black Sticks goalkeeper Amelia Gibson.
She told 1 News she was mistreated as a player in the national women’s hockey side and in 2017 called time on her seven-year international career because of it, while raising her concerns with Hockey NZ.