Women’s Hockey is on a roll this week with the Electric Ireland Champions’ Challenge drawing international teams and crowds of supporters to the National Hockey Arena at UCD.  Things are not so good on the men’s side however as it was announced yesterday that the team would be withdrawn from a similar tournament in Argentina.
No replacement has been made yet for manager Paul Revington who stepped down following the near miss in qualifying for the London 2012 Olympics.
The decision could have serious repercussions with a substantial fine payable in the short term but also the loss of world ranking points which may threaten Ireland’s current world ranking of 15.
There is a marked gap in terms of the quality of opposition and the number of tournaments needed to play in qualifying for major tournaments like the Olympics.  Reports from sources close to the team suggest that some players may be considering stepping away from Ireland and perhaps looking to play for Team GB at international level.
The decision to withdraw was taken at board level with the view expressed that in the continued absence of a manager and associated coaching structure, that resource would be better spent elsewhere.
This will be a major challenge for Mike Heskin when he steps into the role as Chief Executive in the next few weeks.
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