Perth set for international showcase in Hockey WA Gryphon Cup

Hockey WA’s monumental international junior tournament is set to return to the Perth Hockey Stadium at Curtin University later this month, with teams across the globe preparing to compete in The Hockey WA Gryphon Cup.

The 2022 Hockey WA Gryphon Cup is open to international teams comprising of players 16-and-under and will run at Perth Hockey Stadium for four days, beginning on November 24.

This year’s tournament will feature more than 200 local youngsters, as well as teams from Singapore, Malaysia and Australia’s eastern states.

The tournament is designed to engage the State with the rest of the country and region in order to develop young talent.

Hockey WA Head of Asian Engagement Chris Ciriello said this year’s Hockey WA Gryphon Cup had the highest number of participants ever assembled.

“The Gryphon Cup is a really important event and is making its return after a couple of years off due to COVID,” Ciriello said.

“We have had the greatest response from invites from players within Western Australia that we have ever had.

“We are also lucky enough to have had quite a few teams from Asia and the East Coast sign up to come over and be a part of the Cup for 2022.”

WA hockey fans can expect to see some of the most talented players from the area who are set to become stars of the future.

Ciriello said engaging not only local talent was a great initiative from Hockey WA which would help grow the game.

“For teams from Singapore and Malaysia to come over, it is a five-hour flight, which is the same sort of distance as we are getting from the East Coast,” he said.

“We are really trying to open up that region, which will benefit our hockey community here in WA.

“The fact we have interest from the East Coast shows how well we have structured this tournament.”

Ciriello said the tournament was a great way to prepare WA youngsters and players from across the regional for international hockey and competition.

“A tournament like this focuses on the importance of giving players international experience,” he said.

“For our WA players, it is really important because they get to see different skills, different cultures and learn how other people play.

“That really develops our players, and we have a range of youngsters from 13 to 16 who will benefit from this.

“If we look to the benefits of this event in the past, we have seen guys like Brodee Foster and Cam Geddes play through this.

“Those two have just won the Under-21 National Championship with WA and recently competed in the Sultan of Johor Cup with the Australian Junior Men’s team, the Burras.”

The Hockey WA Gryphon Cup is set to soar at Perth Hockey Stadium at Curtin University from Thursday 24 to Sunday 27 November. Entry is free for all to attend – streaming information will be revealed soon.