Taupo hockey player brings home gold in U.S event

Jared Nicholson playing in the California Cup for the US Bulldogs last month.

A young Taupo hockey player invited to travel to the United States to play in the annual California Cup tournament last month came home with more than he bargained for - a gold medal.

Held in Moorpark, California, the CalCup is the largest field hockey tournament in the US.

It is in its 46th year and runs for six days each year. Players from age 8 upwards attend and as well as US teams, it attracts teams from Argentina and throughout the Americas.

Jared Nicholson, 19, first went to the Cal Cup last year when he was in the Mt Tauhara Hockey Club's under-19 men's team made up of Taupo players.

The team was the first New Zealand team to attend the Cal Cup and did well, bringing home silver medals after making it to the final and losing on penalty strokes.

After the tournament, Nicholson kept in contact with the CalCup organisers, who were keen to bring another Taupo team back in 2017.

That wasn't possible this year because some of the players had moved away so instead Nicholson played as an invitational player for the US Bulldogs, made up of Americans, plus Nicholson and one British player.

They played six games in four days and won the under-19 men's division.

Nicholson paid his own way to the tournament, but the US Bulldogs paid his entry fees and he was allowed to keep his playing gear.

He said the style of hockey and positions on the field in the US was quite different, which took him a couple of days to get used to but the skill level of the players was generally higher.

Some of New Zealand's top hockey players were there, including Black Sticks Krystal Forgesson, Charlotte Harrison and Gemma McCaw playing for team Jolie Pitts, and men's Black Stick Steve Edwards.

The women won silver medals but Nicholson was the only Kiwi to come home with a gold.

"I didn't expect to get a medal," he said.

"I just went over to have fun and after a couple of games I was like 'we could probably win this'. To come back with a gold medal, that's pretty cool."

Nicholson currently plays for Taupo Hockey.