East Hockey has a Player Pathway committee with representatives from each sub-area (county), who share ideas and arrange competition in the form of inter AC festivals and a Finals day for each age group. Sub-areas run their activity as they see fit, whilst adhering to the centralised calendar dates as much as possible. Some sub-areas run sessions mid-week, whilst others on Sundays. The current structure for 2021/22 season consists of:
Development Centres (DCs) which are the first level in the Pathway. Players are nominated by their club or school to attend centres in their sub-area for a series of training sessions over the summer and in September where they receive coaching in core skills and match play following EH guidelines. DCs will be run at a number of different venues and players select the one which is the most convenient for them.
Following the DC sessions, some players will be selected for further assessment for the Academy Centres. Anyone who is not selected for the next level will have the opportunity to be assessed again the following season if renominated and may be offered the opportunity to attend camps which take place during School holidays.
Academy Centres (ACs) are the second level in the Pathway. Assessments are usually held in September in each sub-area and one or two squads of players are selected, depending on the resources available. Training and competition dates are decided by the committee but for the 2021/22 season these have been flexible because of Covid. Finals days were agreed and details can be found on the right hand side of the page
The Talent Development strategy “A New Way Forward” will replace the Player Pathway at the end of the 2021-2022 season. Whilst parts of the Pathway will change, the DCs and ACs will remain and run alongside, and complement, the new Talent Centres and Talent Schools. A copy of the latest EH Document regarding the Talent System Framework is linked on the right hand side of the page.