Following is a detailed explanation of the grades in which KJHC plan to enter. Links are provided to documents provided by Wellington Hockey Association with full competition details.
In New Zealand, hockey for children in school years one to eight is labeled “Small Sticks”. See the Small Sticks Handbook 2017 Final for full details. Small Sticks is broken into four divisions as follows:
Fun Sticks (Years 1&2)
The Fun Sticks programme is a New Zealand Hockey initiative. It is a 12 week programme designed for children aged 5 – 6 years old who are new or relatively new to the game of hockey. The programme will involve various activities which work on fundamental skills and movements and at the end of each session the group will break into small games. Players interested in Funsticks contact and register directly as an individual with WHA.
Mini Sticks (Years 3&4)
Mini Sticks is for 6-aside teams. Games are played on a quarter-sized turf and are 2 x 20 minute halves with 3 minutes for half time.
Kiwi Sticks (Years 5&6)
Like Mini Sticks, Kiwi Sticks is for 6-aside teams.
- Games are played on a half-sized or quarter-sized turf depending on the location of the hub.
As with Mini Sticks, games are 2 x 20 minute halves with 3 minutes for half time.
Kwik Sticks (Years 7&8)
- 7-aside – includes a fully kitted goalkeeper (note: while a goal keeper is not compulsory they cannot be replaced with a 7th field player). Games are played on a half-sized turf, games are 4 x 12 minute quarters with 2 minutes between each quarter.