Preparations for Season 2 of the Sultana Bran Hockey One League are well and truly underway with the upcoming 2022 season acting as a post-Covid ‘relaunch’ of the competition.
A successful inaugural season in 2019 of Australia’s new elite domestic men’s and women’s hockey league was followed by a two-year hiatus due to COVID.
Now with lockdowns and travel restrictions becoming a thing of the past, there is a clear runway for the Sultana Bran Hockey One League to establish itself as a must watch sport entertainment option for fans of Australian hockey.
Tasked with this objective is new Sultana Bran Hockey One League General Manager Andy Crook, who was appointed in February following the departure of inaugural GM Tony Dodemaide.
With experience in various leagues including the National Basketball League (NBL) and Super Netball (then known as the ANZ Championship), Crook knows what it takes to create and grow a league that sports fans are attracted to.
Since starting in the role, Crook has been busy working behind the scenes with the Hockey One teams and partners to give the Sultana Bran Hockey One League the best chance of a successful 2022 season.
“There is huge potential for the Hockey One League and excitement around what Season 2 will bring,” said Crook.
“In planning for this year, it is as good as launching a new competition after it could not be held over the past two years because of the pandemic.”
“The 2022 season will start in late September and as we put the final touches on the schedule, we look forward to announcing this in the next couple of weeks.
“No doubt hockey fans will be looking forward to locking in the dates when they once again get to see their favourite players and teams in action.”
Season 2 will feature the same seven clubs that took part in the inaugural season – Adelaide Fire, Brisbane Blaze, Canberra Chill, HC Melbourne, NSW Pride, Perth Thundersticks and Tassie Tigers.
There will be a host of blockbuster games early in the season to get fans excited, while Crook also confirmed women’s and men’s matches will uniquely once again be played in a back-to-back double header format.
Further, match times will remain consistent throughout the regular season.
“An important component of Season 2 will be consistency of match times,” said Crook.
“We want to ensure fans know when and where to watch their team every week, whether it’s getting out to support their team at their local stadium, or watching the games on TV.”
Keep an eye on the Sultana Bran Hockey One League website and social media channels for the latest as the league and teams start the build up towards the highly anticipated start of Season 2.