The stakes will be high when world class field hockey hits West Vancouver next April with Rutledge Field playing host to an eight-nation International Hockey Federation Women’s World League tournament.
Canada’s national team, currently ranked No. 18 in the world, will be joined by India (12), Belarus (19), Uruguay (22), Chile (23), France (24), Mexico (30) and Trinidad & Tobago (34) in the World League Round 2 event running April 1 to 9, 2017. The top two finishers at the tournament will move on to World League Round 3 where they’ll battle for berths in the 2018 World Cup.
The District of West Vancouver and West Vancouver Field Hockey Club will team up with Field Hockey Canada to host the event.
“The community of West Vancouver, with its storied hockey history, knowledgeable fans, legion of dedicated volunteers, and physical beauty provides the perfect backdrop for this competition and our women’s national program,” Field Hockey Canada CEO Jeff Sauvé stated in a release.
The roster for the women’s national team is usually stocked with North Shore players – West Vancouver Field Hockey Club alumni Hannah Haughn, Karli Johansen, Stephanie Norlander, Holly Stewart and Alex Thicke all suited up for Team Canada at the 2015 Pan Am Games in Toronto.
“We are very excited to see our women’s national team play on the North Shore where field hockey is embedded in the community,” stated Patricia Macleod, president of the West Vancouver Field Hockey Club. “This will create some unique opportunities for our youngest members to be inspired by international role models and to get involved in hosting this prestigious event.”
Ticket information will be released soon.
