Havelock North women secure fifth straight club hockey championship

Rachel Cornwall (left) and the Havelock North Women’s Hockey Club celebrate their fifth straight first-division title.

A Hawke’s Bay hockey club has just won its fifth consecutive championship and done it all while proudly wearing pink.

Havelock North Women’s Hockey Club was established in 2018 when a crew of women from the village got together to build a club they could call their own.

This season’s premier team in the Women’s Division 1 Championship brought an impressive mix of players together, including Emily Gaddum, one of the Black Sticks Women’s most capped players, plus five players who will soon represent Hawke’s Bay in the National Hockey League in Christchurch.

The club had been in incredible form all season long, not losing a single match, which included a 13-nil win over Te Awa.

The club’s only black spot was a one-all draw with Bay Ferns on their way to the final.

In the competition final, held last Saturday, they more than made up for that draw by coming away with a 5-1 victory over Bay Ferns, cementing their place as the best women’s hockey club in the region for yet another season.

Havelock North have now won five straight championships, as well as making the final in all of the eight seasons since they were established.

Club founder and head coach Rachel Cornwall said at the heart of the club lies a deep commitment to giving back to the community.

“The club’s two major awards celebrate community service, and club heart; a reflection of how much these players and coaching and management crew contribute and care for many well beyond the turf,” she said.

“From additional coaching in school teams to refereeing, to chasing funds to ensure heavily reduced and accessible playing costs, and from parents guiding their kids to Emily’s involvement in New Zealand junior coaching, the ripple effect of this club spreads far and wide.

“This club is growing stronger every season, proudly wearing pink – and as the players say themselves, they don’t just wear it, they bleed it."