Here at Swansea University, we have two Hockey clubs; a Ladies’ club and a Men’s club. Each boasts incredibly successful sides from elite performance groups, even down to social teams, and have eight teams in total. Whilst they play and train separately, the club has weekly joint socials and operates in a ‘one club’ family environment.
Swansea University Ladies’ Hockey Club is one of the biggest independent women’s clubs at the University. The 1st team currently compete in the Premier Division 1 Saturday league, and last season they were promoted to the Western 1A BUCS league.
Additionally, the squad reached the final of the Championship Cup, won the BUCS Western Conference Cup, and were victorious against Cardiff University to win their Varsity. All these achievements were recognised by the university’s sporting body, as the team was awarded Varsity Team of the Year at the 2018 Sports Awards.
For players just wanting to try the sport out, our 4th XI are involved in the Development League and regularly play friendly matches against local teams.
Swansea University Men’s Hockey Club was established in 1920 as one of the founding sports at Swansea University. Starting with only one side, the club has grown significantly, and now boasts four teams and a large social community.
All teams compete in the Verde Recreo Hockey Leagues on a Saturday, and in BUCS leagues on a Wednesday. Our teams cater for all different levels of hockey players, ranging from international and elite players to social players. The club has achieved much success over the past few seasons, most recently being with our second team, who achieved promotion in both their BUCS league, as well as their Saturday league. The club will be looking to build on this success in the 2018/19 season, with a large emphasis being placed on the Varsity match against Cardiff University.
Beyond the hockey side of the club, we also have a thriving social scene and enjoy friendly relations with many of the other sporting clubs within the university. The club holds joint, themed socials every Wednesday night, where members from both the Ladies’ and Men’s sides join together. This integrates all teams within the club and promotes team bonding off the pitch. The themes range from ‘dress to impress’ to full body paint, all of which are very entertaining, full filled evenings.
For more information regarding the Men’s club and how you can join in, please visit our website (www.swanseaunihc.com) or contact us via our club email (hockeymens@swansea-sports.co.uk), and for the Ladies’ team, contact us on Facebook and we can organise a taster session for you to join in!
by Gavin Williams & Katie Woodward
