news
Fall 2016
National Hockey Showcase Programme
The National Hockey Showcase is a recruiting showcase event that takes place in Florida in February. Our programme gets underway in October when we run a series of open tryouts for high school athletes looking for an opportunity to play more field hockey and learn about the opportunities available through the sport. Teams (u16 and U19) are selected in November and the training begins and goes from November to February when we travel together and compete in Florida. We are incredibly impressed by the athletes who came to our tryouts this year and our job of selecting the teams was difficult. We look forward to working with this group, many of whom are new to Academy style training. It is always fun to see the athletes light up when they realize what the future could hold for them through this sport and to see the drive and determination kick in and keep them motivated when the going gets tough. This is one of our most rewarding programmes because it is often where we see athletes suddenly figure out that something they had never before considered is a realistic possibility for them. And we love getting to know all the athletes and see them forge friendships that will last a life time.
Shooting Stars
Every fall we take a U19 team comprised of Academy athletes to a recruiting showcase in the US. This year we head to Virginia over the US Thanksgiving to the Shooting Stars Tournament. This is an additional opportunity for those looking for scholarships to be seen by NCAA recruiters. It is also used as a development opportunity for some of our athletes with goals other than NCAA scholarships. Training and playing at this level is important prep for Canadian universities field hockey as well and for those who want to get to the next level, whether it be being awarded Quest for Gold funding or be prepared to a National camp. All of our Academy programmes are multi-faceted in terms of their purpose, with different athletes participating with their own individual goals in mind, but always with the ultimate purpose being to strive for excellence in field hockey.
High School Programmes
This is the time of year we live for. Field hockey is in full swing in the NCAA, in Canadian Universities, and in high schools all across Canada once September arrives. Our job at this time of year is to create awareness of what’s out there for field hockey athletes. This is such a short season and the vast majority of high school athletes are unaware that there is a club system of field hockey in Ontario, that there is a field hockey training Academy right in their back yard, that there is a provincial team, that there are opportunities to play after high school in universities in Canada, and that there are incredible scholarship and playing opportunities for field hockey athletes in the US. Our job is to help people understand what’s out there, help them understand the pathways, and help them access these opportunities. We spend a lot of time in schools running clinics for existing teams and talking to as many coaches and as many athletes and parents as we can. Our two Back to School camps turned up some new faces who have quickly become part of our A&C family.
High School Tournaments
This was our 5th year running our High School Tournament, now running at locations: Iceland in Mississauga and Woodside in Kitchener. The competition is fantastic at these tournament and they attract top teams from various regions who want to work out the kinks and face some different competition before playoffs. Check our website for the dates of our 2017 High School Tournaments.
We introduced a new tournament this year. The Tournament of Champions was a By Invite Only tournament taking place on the water based field hockey turf in Brampton. Only those who were in OFSAA the previous fall were invited. If you were in OFSAA 2016 and do not receive an invitation from us for our 2017 Tournament of Champions, please reach out to us…it just means we have been unable to find contact information for you. Because there is only one surface, we have limited spots so registration is first come, first served once registration opens.
Summer 2016
Bye Bye Graduates
It’s always bittersweet when our athletes move on. We know they’ll be back, but we know this part of their journey has come to a close. This year we saw one graduate head to University of New Hampshire (Kayla Sliz) to join A&C alumnus (Ashley Mendonca) also at UNH. We saw our first graduates head to UBC, to be close to the hub of senior national programming (Hannah Eborall and Margaret Pham); 3 to the University Toronto (Maeve Chambers, Nicole Hicks, Elizabeth O’Hara) joining alumni Alison Lee, Emma Wingrave, Sara Fredo, Julia Costanzo; and 2 to University of Guelph (Cassie Hawthorne, Kayla Magarelli) joining alumnus Rebecca Plouffe. It certainly is fun to go to an OUA weekend and know that now in any match up there will always be an A&C alumnus.
We’re Spreading Our Wings – Cross Canada Training
We had such a fun summer getting to know athletes from across the country. During July we hosted an athlete for a 10 day intensive individual private programme. This was an athlete from BC who wanted to have some extra private training prior to heading to the US on a scholarship in Fall 2016. It was a very positive experience, both for us and for this athlete, and she headed to the US feeling very prepared and has had a successful first season. While she was here the timing worked out that she was able to come to our Academy training and also our annual banquet so she really became part of our A&C family. Then later in the summer we had a small group from Nova Scotia’s provincial programme come for a 3-Day Training Programme. One of these athletes was doing final preparations for recruitment into a university team in Ontario. We are always available to custom design whatever it is people need in order to reach for their dreams. We are here to help and we couldn’t be more pleased that people across the country our coming to us for our expertise and guidance. It really makes us feel like we are making an impact in people’s lives and makes us so proud of what we do.
Provincial Teams
One of our purposes is to help athletes achieve their field hockey goals. For many, in addition to simply becoming a stronger player and an impact player on their school or club team, one of their first goals is to tryout for, and be named to, Team Ontario. This year over 90% of our athletes were in the provincial programme, with close to half of the U16 and U18 teams being comprised of A&C trained athletes. Yes, we are proud! These athletes then benefitted by experiencing the different styles of coaching of different coaches. The ability to respond well to different coaching styles is fundamental to an athlete’s success as they continue on in their sport and so the experience of switching back and forth between being coached at an Academy and then being coached by a provincial coach is an invaluable part of their learning.
Junior National Development Squad
There has always been a challenge for Ontario’s athletes when it comes to having a fair opportunity to be recognized by the National programme. Since the National programme operates out of Vancouver the BC athletes are simply more “visible” and the National team, in the past number of years, is comprised predominantly of BC based athletes or those willing to uproot themselves and put their lives on hold while they pursue their dream. We cannot be more thrilled that the tides are changing to what they were a generation ago and the National programme is willing to come to where the athletes are…at the Junior level at least. To that end the Junior Development Squad now runs a programme in Ontario for nationally identified junior age (u21) athletes based in Ontario. The senior level still requires their athletes to “centralize” on the west coast, but the future looks bright for having a more even representation of athletes from across the country. At this point the majority of the JDS athletes in Ontario come from the Academy. Again, this is a fantastic opportunity for us to work with the National programme to make sure our programmes complement each other for the best development for the athletes and again it allows the athletes to adjust to different coaching styles and personalities. The fact that the National Programme is making a shift back to the way they used to do things a generation ago when they were contenders in the Olympics speaks volumes about their desire to make sure they recruit the country’s top field hockey athletes into their programme. The future definitely looks bright for field hockey for Canada and we feel honoured that we can play our part in supporting the development of players who strive to be on a women’s National Team that is showing all the signs of running a programme that can catapult Canada back to having a shot at the Olympics.
Local Tournaments
It was a busy summer for our athletes. With over 90% of our athletes involved in the Provincial programme and many also part of the Junior Development Squad (a large squad of athletes working toward a place in the National Progamme) there were a lot of demands on our athletes. Our goal as an Academy is to ensure that our athletes can take advantage of every opportunity that helps them in the pursuit of their goals so our objective is to work hand in hand with our provincial and national programmes to ensure the best development and greatest chance of success for the athletes. In addition to all of this training we think it is important to always play in our local tournaments because part of the culture of field hockey is the social part and these tournaments are always a great way to reconnect with friends in the community and for our athletes to connect socially with their “competition” in other clubs.
FHO’s season opener is May Meltdown. It is a really big, well run tournament attracting teams from across the country (boys and girls) and is always a lot of fun. It was a great start to the season for us with both our U16 and U18 teams coming home with the Gold. In June we competed in CFHCC’s annual tournament. Always well run, and always well-known for its copious, complimentary, and delicious food for players and spectators alike. Our yummiest tournament by far. We entered one U16 team and two U18 team and our U18s battled it out for Gold against each other in the final game. Our U16s game home with the Silver. In July we entered our older/more experienced players in the Lions tournament, a Seniors tournament. This is always a great experience for our U18s because in this tournament the competition consists of teams scattered with university, ex-university, National, and ex-national players so it is a whole different level of play. We also bring back our alumni to play in this tournament so it is great for our younger athletes to play with and connect on a personal level with those ahead of them. We ended coming third and learned a lot.
Canadian University Showcase
Now in it’s third year, our Canadian University Showcase is a great opportunity for Canadian University field hockey programmes to see high school and club athletes that they might not otherwise have a chance to see. Most recruiting in Canada is purely by word of mouth or luck or at a camp run at a university (if an athlete happens to find out about it). Our event is a way to make these introductions, give the coaches a chance to look at the athletes and share information about their universities and their field hockey programmes, and facilitate these connections so that ultimately we can get more and better athletes into the university system and end up with more and better competition at the OUA and CIS level. The response by university coaches is obviously great because they see athletes they have never seen before and the response from athletes is positive too since it allows the athlete to get a feel for programmes they are considering. On Sunday we then have a Showcase for NCAA coaches who are specifically looking for Ontario athletes for their programmes. They love the smaller scale of our showcase compared to the large scale showcase style events in the US with 100s of coaches and 1000s of athletes. More and more coaches are interested in coming to our Showcase so we want to make sure we continue to attract more and more athletes into this event. It is incredibly rewarding to learn of scholarships that have resulted from the connections facilitated through our Canadian Showcase.
This year for, the first time, we also ran an NCAA Camp. This was not part of the NCAA Recruiting event but took place on a different day and served as an opportunity for athletes to experience the kind of coaching they might expect to find in the NCAA. We got tremendous positive feedback about this camp.
Academy Training
We hit the turf in Brampton at Cassie Campbell as soon as it opens in May and go twice a week for most of the summer. We fit in a total of 25 training sessions missing training only when other field hockey commitments make it necessary. We had a number of our senior athletes play in the Women’s Super League down at the Pan Am Fields this summer. This proved to be a great complement to our Academy training as it provided an opportunity for these athletes to play with university, NCAA, national team calibre athletes. We also ran a number of small group training sessions with a smaller ratio of coach to athlete which was beneficial for those needing more intensive training in order to ready themselves for recruitment either into a Canadian university or into the NCAA.
Spring 2016
Pan American Junior Men’s Championship
A&C was honoured to have been asked by Field Hockey Canada to take the lead as the Local Organizing Committee for the Pan American Junior Men’s Championship in May. This was a big undertaking that was made possible by the generosity of many people as they stepped up to give us their time, their knowledge, and their experience in running an event of this magnitude. A&C owes a debt of gratitude to so many of the A&C athletes, alumni, families, and coaches who all stepped up to help us out. We also are incredibly grateful to a multitude of others in the field hockey community in Ontario who all pulled together to help make this a huge success and showed the world a fantastic event. The visiting teams were wow’d by our beautiful city and our friendly and helpful people and the Pan Am Committee was wow’d by our event. And best of all…our Junior Boys earned themselves a spot in the World Cup! So a Thank You, Thank You, Thank You to all who helped. It was a lot of fun, we made new friends and connections through our sport with people around the world, and we are so proud of how our field hockey community was able to put on a world class show. Thank you!
Spring League
Now in our third year of this programme, we ran our Spring League for high school athletes — in 3 different locations, on 3 different days of the week. This is our effort at creating more opportunities to play. It runs for 6 weeks after the end of ice hockey and before the start of Spring club field hockey or soccer. Our goal is to continue to spread the word about this opportunity to play and to get more and more athletes out. Ideally, we would love every school that plays in the fall to encourage their athletes…or even their whole team…to sign up and have another season on the turf. This is designed to be all about fun, for every level of player…those just learning the rules and how to hit the ball, and those wanting more stick and ball time to work on their skills in a fun, non-pressured environment. This has also been a great opportunity for our coaches to work with school coaches who bring their athletes and for our alumni to give back and come and help coach during the league. Registration for Spring League 2017 is now open. Sign up soon and join the fun!
Spring Fling
A staple event and kick off to the start of a new outdoor season is to head to Syracuse in early May and participate in their always fun Spring Fling. This year A&C took 4 teams and aside from a great chance to connect and bond, it gave us all a chance to gauge where we are in our outdoor game and gave us a chance to think about our individual and team goals for the upcoming year. This is a fun tournament to get us geared up and ready to work hard as the new season gets underway. Everybody loves a road trip!
Winter 2016
FHO Indoor Championship
To end off the Indoor Season we competed in FHO’s Indoor Championship in March which took place this year at the Pan Am Training Centre in Scarborough. It was a busy weekend with lots of competitive games of all ages. When coming to an FHO event like this, there is no question that Field Hockey is alive and well in Ontario. Our U18s came away with a Gold and our U16s with a Bronze. Great success and amazing to see the progress in our players – especially those who picked up an indoor stick for the first time only 5 months earlier.
US-Canada Indoor Series
In February the Junior National Indoor Team hosted a series against the USA Junior National Team at the University of Toronto. This was an amazing experience for athletes to feel what it means to wear the Red and White and play for their country. Aside from an incredible amount of National Pride A&C is so incredibly proud that A&C athletes comprised 10 of the 12 spots on the roster. To be able to help our athletes participate in opportunities like this is why we exist and so to have our athletes be so integral to the success of the team is a real testament to the commitment of our athletes and the commitment of our coaches to helping our athletes achieve their goals.
Presidents Day Showcase 2016
We took two A&C Teams to the first ever President’s Day Showcase tournament in Florida in February. Teams in the U16 and U19 age groups had been selected through our open try outs in the fall and athletes, new and experienced, trained earnestly from November to February before heading to Sarasota for the tournament. For many this was their first, and very eye-opening, experience of a showcase style tournament attended by hundreds of NCAA recruiters. Once the initial nerves wore off both teams settled nicely into the tournament and were able to focus on playing their game. Our teams and our athletes had terrific success with our U19s winning Gold in their pool and our U16s learning a lot about playing under pressure against excellent competition and getting a feel for what’s required to succeed in a tournament of this calibre. In terms of individual successes, as a result of being showcased at this tournament we now have 4 more A&C athletes committed, on scholarships, for Fall 2017. Congrats to all and keep your eyes on our alumni page to see where our athletes have ended up.
Quest for Gold
In January the Quest for Gold ramped up and ran assessments to determine who would get financial assistance from the Province to help offset the costs of pursuing field hockey at the highest level. This is funding awarded to selected athletes who are put through the paces of fitness testing and skill and tactical evaluations as they compete for a limited pot of money. Criteria to apply and criteria for receiving the money are announced in advance and many of our athletes were eligible to apply. We know the costs of training and the travel involved in pursuing excellence in this sport can take a financial toll on families and so the opportunity to receive some financial backing is very much appreciated by all. A&C athletes were quite successful and ended up receiving almost half of the carding money (female) available to Ontario’s field hockey athletes. If you are interested in learning more or have played in the provincial system and want to have some additional Academy style training in order to be prepared for this year’s QFG camp, please get in touch with us. We’re here to help you succeed.
High School Indoor Tournament
With the return to school after the Christmas break comes the return of our Annual Indoor High School Tournament. This takes place on the first Saturday after the return to school and attracts teams from as far as 3 hours away – which is often a challenge with January weather. It is a small tournament as we are restricted by venue size, but it is a lot of fun for the athletes as there is so little opportunity for them to play Indoor field hockey in an organized way. We usually enter an A&C team in this tournament as well to give our newer/younger athletes a chance to compete and work on the skills and tactics they are learning in training. This is a really fun tournament from an organizers perspective as well, because it is a small venue with few teams so it is a very relaxed fun atmosphere with a great opportunity for us to connect with and get to know coaches, athletes, and families.
Academy Training
We continued on with our usual Academy training at our beautiful indoor facility up in Brampton. As always we manage to fit in 15 indoor training sessions between mid-October and end of March, with all of these other events and commitments fit in between and around our ongoing training. As is always the case, there are those who are discovering indoor field hockey for the first time at the start of our Indoor Season in November and it is always fun to watch how quickly the newer athletes pick up this game. It is always remarkable to see how these months of indoor training make such a difference when the athletes hit the turf in the Spring. Indoor field hockey is fast and technical and forces the development of “soft hands” and improved stick skills, remarkable agility and quick feet, fast decision making, and great fitness. It is also very exciting to watch as a spectator/parent. Our coaches have extensive experience coaching indoor at both the Senior and Junior National Level (men and women) and they love it!
Fall/Winter 2015/2016
Scarborough Cup
We had terrific success at FHO’s kick off tournament to the Indoor Season…the Scarborough Cup, hosted by Titan’s Field Hockey Club. We entered two U16 teams and two U18 teams and it was a valuable and successful experience for all. Those new to the sport improved game by game and it was great to see their progress over the course of the tournament. We are so proud of everyone and know it has given them a taste for the speed and excitement of Indoor hockey. Our U16 Red Team and U18 Red Team both won Gold in their respective divisions and the U18 White team came away with the Bronze. Our athletes executed the team tactics and skills they have worked so hard on in training and it was great to see their training paying off in the game situations. MVP for the U16 division was Jaslan Stirling and for the U18 division was Madison Babineau. Congrats to all for a successful weekend.
National Team Squads Named
After the completion of the Senior National Camp in early December in Vancouver and October’s Junior National Talent ID and Junior Development Squad Camps in Ontario, the National Team announced their selections to the 33 member Junior Development Squad and the 8 member Senior Development Squad. We are thrilled and proud to see so many of our athletes identified by the National Programme: Alison Lee, Senior Development Squad; Emma Wingrave, Ashley Mendonca, Ellie Cookson, Rebecca Plouffe, Nikki Woodcroft, Kayla Sliz, Hannah Eborall, Margaret Pham, Jordyn Faiczak, and Jaslan Stirling, Junior Development Squad. Congrats! We look forward to seeing your continued development and growth and know you will continue to make the Academy proud with your work ethic and sportsmanship, both on and off the field.
From the large Junior Development Squad,a smaller team has been selected to compete for Canada in a test series in Chile in January. For some of our athletes it will add to their Junior Caps and for others it will be their first time playing internationally. What a fantastic opportunity. We are so proud and excited for you. Going to Chile are: Ashley Mendonca, Ellie Cookson, Nikki Woodcroft, Hannah Eborall, Kayla Sliz, and Margaret Pham.
Festival
Another first for us this year was that we entered a U18 A&C Team in the USAFH’s National Hockey Festival in November. This is a showcase tournament that takes place each US Thanksgiving Weekend in Palm Springs, California. In the past, we have sent athletes to play as guest players on other teams to provide them with the development opportunity playing in a tournament of this calibre provides…as well as a chance to be seen by NCAA recruiters, so we are so proud to now have enough talented athletes to enter our own team. And we had a phenomenal “first run” and came first in our pool, coming home with a Gold Medal. Rated as a fantastic and valuable experience by athletes and parents alike.
President’s Day Showcase Tryouts
In October we held open tryouts for our President’s Day Showcase Programme. High School athletes from Ontario were selected to take part in our U16 and U18 programmes, consisting of Academy style training as a team to prepare to play in a high calibre recruiting tournament taking place in February in Sarasota, Florida. Our teams are now picked and are comprised of a good mix of new and experienced athletes; some interested in pursuing NCAA scholarship opportunties as well as those just wanting to train and play at a high level to help prepare for provinical, national team, or Canadian University identification. This experience helps athletes clarify their goals and really start to understand whether playing field hockey at a high level is something they want to pursue. Many of these athletes were previously unaware of the opportunities available through field hockey so it is really rewarding to see them come alive when they realize the opportunties that are available for them through this sport.
Academy Training
We continued on with our final round of outdoor field hockey training during September and October to complement the school season. A very busy time for our athletes as they learned to balance academics, school sports, and Academy training. Indoor training started up at the end of October just as President’s Day Showcase tryouts got underway.
The A&C Academy welcomed Coach Bernie Bowyer this fall as one of new Academy coaches. Her experience and coaching style is a great addition to our dedicated and passionate coaching team.
National Team Identification Camps
In October the Junior National Programme held a Talent ID camp along side a regionalized version of their Junior Development Squad training and many of our athletes were identified during these programmes: Katie Lynes, Mackenzie Janzen, Jordyn Faiczak, Madeline Osgarby, Madison Babineau, Kayla Sliz, Hannah Eborall, Elizabeth O’Hara, Lyndsay Swanston, Dallas Cochran, Jaslan Stirling, and Marg Pham. This was a great opportunity for our athletes to have a chance to experience some different styles of national level coaching and was a treat to have the camp take place on “home” soil, making it so much more accessible than previous opportunities.
High School Tournaments
This fall we ran two high school tournaments: Our usual Fall High School Tournament in Mississauga at Iceland Fields and one for the first time in Kitchener at Woodside Fields. Terrific competition at both tournaments with 20 teams taking part. Kitchener’s Resurrection Catholic Secondary School entered both tournaments and took first place in both tournaments…and then went on to win OFSAA this fall as well. Tremendously excited for us to have so many teams eager to be taking part in our tournaments as it shows that field hockey is alive and well….and growing…in Ontario.
Summer 2015
Local girls lead Ontario Red to national field hockey title
U16 team goes undefeated in Brampton
Canadian Showcase
After the success of our teams in the Disney Showcase tournament over the past 3 years, NCAA coaches are now aware of the calibre of the athletes produced in our programmes and were eager to be the first NCAA coaches to come up and see potential recruits at our Canadian Showcase in early June. On Saturday the athletes learned about the various CIS programmes, met the coaches, had an opportunity to ask questions, and then demonstrated their skills and work ethic during drills and game play for the Canadian University coaches. Those interested in the possibility of an NCAA scholarship and playing opportunity came back on the Sunday and showcased themselves to the NCAA coaches who were very impressed and excited to be invited to see our field hockey talent.
A&C Invitational
Our Third Annual Men’s and Women’s tournament was another huge success and athletes of all ages, from across Canada and even from overseas, were thrilled to reconnect with old friends and play some fast-paced competitive field hockey. This was a terrific opportunity for our athletes to play against older, more experienced athletes (university, ex-university, NCAA, ex-NCAA, National, ex-National) and our Academy team won Silver, so our coaches were thrilled. A great outcome and a lot of learning
Academy Training
We continued on with our final round of outdoor field hockey training during September and October to complement the school season. A very busy time for our athletes as they learned to balance academics, school sports, and Academy training.
Pan Am Games
Many of our athletes volunteered during the Pan Am Games and were able to witness the games and see the world’s top field hockey athletes up close and personal. What a thrill! We also had visits and coaching from some National Team athletes throughout the summer … Alumnus Alison Lee; Kat Leahy; and Shanlee Johnston. Terrific opportunity to have personal contact, coaching, and training with these very gracious athletes.
Junior Disney
We were thrilled to introduce our enthusiastic bunch of U14s to the Junior Disney Showcase in Orlando in late July. They battled through some tough playing conditions (HOT! HOT! HOT!) with a fraction of the experience of their competition and made us so proud. This group learned so much and the athletes and their families all had a fun time playing field hockey, soaking in the sun, and having a ball at Disney
Nationals
Outstanding performance for our Provincial teams at Nationals this year. Our Academy athletes made up a
large portion of the U16 and U18 provincial teams and were impact players on their respective teams to help bring home 3 medals to Ontario this summer. GOLD for U16 Red (Madison Babineau, Mackenzie Janzen, Dallas Cochran, Anna Costanzo, Katie Lynes, Madeline Osgarby); BRONZE for U16 White (Madison Workman, Pamela Kernohan, Danielle Husar, Jenna Berger); and GOLD for our U18s (Hannah Eborall, Kayla Sliz, Sara Fredo, Julia Costanzo). This performance by our U16s and U18s is sure to make an impact on the National programme and we look forward to seeing more and more Ontario athletes being recognized at the highest level in this sport.
Coaching Team Grows
This Spring A&C welcomed goalie coach and national indoor goal keeper, Pardeep Koonar as part of our Coaching Team. His arrival as a dedicated Goalie Coach has helped us provide a place for Ontario goalies to receive Academy style training as well.
March 2015
FHO Indoor Championship Weekend
The last indoor event of a very busy indoor season takes us to Waterloo’s RIM park indoor facility for the FHO Championship Cup. We have entered a U19 team and are looking forward to some fun competition with local clubs.
U21 Can-Am Indoor Series
Our Head Coach, Cassius Mendonca, was named as the Head Coach for the U21 National Indoor Squad. This team, including a number of Academy athletes and alumni, travelled to Pennsylvania to compete in the Can-Am Series. A number of Academy athletes earned their first indoor international cap at this series,
January and February 2015
Tremendously busy month for our athletes, coaches, and alumni.
Disney Field Hockey Showcase
This was our third trip to the Disney Field Hockey Showcase in Orlando (2nd one for the U16 age group) and both our teams had our best finish ever, making it to playoff games on the final day. Our U16s came fourth in their pool and both teams got fantastic recognition by the NCAA coaches and recruiters on the sidelines. We have had a tremendous and exciting amount of follow up on our younger athletes and they have now caught the eye of potential future coaches who will now be following their progress over the next year before scholarships are offered in grade 11 or 12. We have many lucky athletes now making some tough decisions about commitment, as they have several offers in hand — a nice dilemma to be in, that’s for sure. We wish our athletes good luck in making their final decisions and are eager to hear where they land.
National Indoor Qualifier and National Indoor Tournament
Both our U16 and U19 teams also qualified for NIT in our first ever participation in an NIT qualifying tournament. We were unable to send our U19s to NIT this year because many of them were involved in the U19 National Indoor Team Selection camp that was scheduled at the last minute for the same weekend. But our U16s had a phenomenal first ever trip to the National Indoor Tournament and finished 2nd in their pool. Congrats to all!
High School Indoor Tournament
Our second High School Indoor tournament of the season. In early January and late February we now run this as a staple event at the Academy and are thrilled at the growing interest from high schools – from as far as 3 hours away. Thank you North Hastings and Hagersville for being constants in our tournaments. Your passion and dedication is amazing! We look forward to many more fun events like this.
U10 and U12 Indoor Tournament
Again, the last weekend in February is dedicated to this tournament and we had a blast watching over 40 young ones play with such enthusiasm. Our skills competitions were a hit and all finalists were thrilled with the new stick bag they received. If you know of younger children who just want to give it a try, contact us and we’ll put them on our “independent” team so they have an opportunity to play.
Academy Training
Despite all the busyness, our coaches and athletes (and parents) still committed to both regular indoor academy training sessions as well as small group outdoor training.
Quest for Gold
Many of our athletes attended the Quest for Gold camp hosted by Field Hockey Ontario at the University of Toronto in order to compete for Quest for Gold athlete financial backing.
CanAm Series for Jr National Team
We are so proud of our athletes Ellie Cookson (Harvard), Chelcie Mendonca (Boston College), Emma Wingrave (University of Toronto), Hannah Eborall (Beamsville High School), and Nikki Woodcroft (University of Toronto) for being selected from the Junior National Squad to play for the Jr National Team in the CanAm Series in Pennsylvania. So amazing to see so many of our athletes playing at the top level in the country.
Indoor World Cup
Our Head Coach Cassius Mendonca and alumnus Alison Lee (University of Toronto) took part in the event of a life time in Leipzig, Germany, where they faced off against the top in the World. Coming first place in the Pan Am Cup last April earned them the only spot for a Pan American team in the World Cup. It was a tremendous learning opportunity and thrill to be able to play tight, competitive matches against the World’s best players.
December 2014
Scarborough Cup
Another great kick off tournament for the season, hosted by Toronto Titans. For many of our athletes this was the first opportunity to play the indoor version of the game. And now we’ve got a new generation of athletes hooked on this fast paced, technical, and amazing version of the sport.
October 10th 2013
A&C’s Second Annual High School Tournament
Close to 200 eager and talented high school field hockey athletes came together, from as far as three hours away, to compete at A&C’s Second Annual High School Tournament on Thursday, October 10th.
The Gold Medal match-up was an exciting game against league rivals, Pickering and Ajax, A&C Tournament defending champs. The Gold Medal went to Pickering! Well done!
GOLD – Pickering High School
SILVER – Ajax High School
BRONZE – Clarkson Secondary School
Summary Summer 2013
- Taking first team to Disney Junior Field Hockey Tournament in Orlando in July. One of two Canadian teams in the tournament.
- Two A&C Athletes named to Women’s Senior Provincial Team – Congrats Alison Lee and Emily Corbett
- Six A&C Athletes named to the U18 Provincial Team – Congrats Ashley, Mendonca, Chelcie Mendonca, Rebecca Plouffe, Ellie Cookson, Natalie Hanchar, and Rachel Kho
- Two A&C Athletes named to the U16 Provincial Team – Congrats to Jamie Bourbonnais and Sky Nadon
- A&C’s New Mini-Tournaments at Cassie Campbell field are a Huge Success – Local teams and players all asking for more…
- Stay tuned for indoor mini-tournament dates
July 13/14
A&C’s U18 Girls win Gold at CCFHC Tournament
June 22 – 23 2013
Hosted our !st Annual Women’s and Men’s Invitational Tournament – at Cassie Campbell field
Winners
Men – Ist place: United Brothers;2nd place – Lions
Women – 1st place: Toros; 2nd place: Titans
May 25 – 26 2013
May Meltdown
A&C’s U18s win Gold in FHO’s – First event of the Summer
April 2013
Spring Camps – in 3 different locations – Toronto, Guelph and Mississauga
Junior Disney Tryouts – in 3 different locations – Toronto, Guelph and Mississauga
Selections begin for our first every Junior Disney Team – heading to Orlando in July 2013 to play in the Junior Disney Field Hockey Showcase
March 2013
Participated in U of T Invitational
Playwell against much older and more experienced teams
- Cheered for our Alumni – Menina and Alison (U of T); Daniella and Erin (U of Guelph); Jess (Western)ed
Good luck to Alison Lee – in Vancouver taking part in the U21 National Team
Selection Camp at end of March
February 2013
Disney Field Hockey Showcase Tournament – Took First Disney Team
- Very successful – 5 wins and 1 tie
- Lots of US College Recruiters on the sidelines
- A number of players now in discussions with, and going on visits to, US Colleges as a result of contact made during tournament
- Congrats to Emily Corbet – accepted field hockey scholarship to Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia
Big Apple Indoor Tournament
Took two teams to Feasterville, PA to play some good international indoor field hockey
January 2013
3 v 3 Mini League and Training in Brampton
- Fun!
- Small group
- Great opportunity for younger athletes as well as newer athletes to get lots of stick and ball time
- Identified a number of future Academy recruits through this simple, fun, introductory programme
Quest for Gold Provincial Funding Announced
- Congrats to Ashley, Alison, Chelcie, Rebecca, Natalie, Rachel
- Six athletes received recognition – full cards, half cards, or alternates – Way to go girls!!
December 2012
Scarborough Cup
- Entered two teams
- Great first time experience for new players on the B team
- 2nd Place overall for A team
U17 National Team Squad
Ashley, Chelcie and Ellie were named to the U17 National Team Squad – Congrats!!
Guyana
- A few of our Academy players joined some players from the Toros (U of T and U of T Alumni) to play in an indoor tournament in Guyana under coach Jonathan Roberts
- 1st Place Finish – Wow!!
- Congrats to – Chelcie Mendonca, Ashley Mendonca, Lauren Lawson, Emma Wingrave, Emily Corbett and Jonathan
November 2012
Disney Team Tryouts
- Huge turnout – 50 talented young girls showed up to compete for 18 spots
- Team Selected after 3 tryouts and began training hard, on and off the field, getting ready for Disney Showcase Tournament in February 2013
October 2012
High School Tournament
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- Great turn out and lots of excited, yet cold and damp, field hockey players for our High School Tournament at Iceland Fields
- Congrats to GOLD Medal Winner Ajax High School….Silver medal goes to North Hastings !!!
Ongoing Academy Training and Fitness
New faces joining our programmme
Off to University
- Alison Lee and Menina Casalino off to University of Toronto
- Daniella Jelec and Erin Corrigan off to University of Guelph
- Jess Crawford back to Western for Second Year
- Came 1st (U of T); 2nd (Guelph) and 3rd (Western) in OUAs…ALL earning a spot in CIS Championships hosted by University of Toronto in November
Back to School Camp – September 8, 2012
Well attended camp in early September to get athletes ready to try out for their school teams
Summer 2012
U18 Nationals in Calgary, AB
- Congrats to Daniella Jelec and Alison Lee
- Silver Medal for Ontario
U16 Nationals in Vancouver, BC
- Congrats to Chelcie Mendonca, Ashley Mendonca, Rebecca Plouffe, Ellie Cookson, Natalie Hanchar and Rachel Kho
- Silver Medal for Ontario Ashley named Ontario Team captain
Ontario Summer Games – U16, Toronto
- Lots of Academy players playing on their regional teams
- Ashley Mendonca, Chelcie Mendonca, Natalie Hanchar, Rachel Kho, Rebecca Plouffe, Jaime Bourbonnais, Janelle Terhaerdt, Keith Lee,
Participated in:
- Ongoing Academy Training and Fitness
- TWFHA League
- CCFHC 1st Annual Tournament
- OKD 1st Annual Tournament
Toronto Academy and A&CFHA go to Guyana
The Toronto Academy is coming together for the first time in Guyana as a mix of the Toronto Toro’s FHC and the AC Academy, both field hockey clubs based out of Toronto, Ontario. Led by Head Coach Jonathan Roberts, the Toronto Academy brings a mix of experienced senior players from the Toros, and young talent from the Academy, which should be a promising mix on the court. The Toronto Academy is excited for their first tournament together, and look forward to an awesome trip to Guyana!
A&C alumni — “ Yahoo!!! This is what it’s all about !!!!”
Alison Lee plays for U of T and Jess Crawford (on left) plays for Western, Daniella Jelec also at Western but not seen in picture
June 2012
Our First “Annual Outdoor Invitational Tournament” – featured both high school and club divisions, as well as a U10 division
Our A team placed first overall and received the Noronha Cup
Entered to two teams in two separate leagues – our A team played in the TWFHA and our B team played in the JWPL
May 2012
A&C FHA was the only club to enter two teams in May Meltdown. Our A team placed second and the players on our B team had a fantastic development experience.
March 2012
Our B team entered the FHO Cup – Club Championships at RIM while our A team played in the UofT University Indoor Tournament..
Our A team, made up of 15, 16 and 17 year olds placed first in their division …with no subs!
Well done girls!!!
February 2012
Pennsylvania Tour – Participants of “Big Apple Indoor International Tournament”
– great launch to our indoor programme!!
Entered two teams in the Junior Indoor League at RIM Park
- our A team placed second overall
- our B team placed third
January 2012
First ever “Indoor High School Tournament” held at SJK
4 teams entered and eager to come back and play again.
Looking forward to hosting more teams in 2013!!
Individual Successes
- Two our our Academy Athletes competed with the U18 provincial team in Calgary:
Alison Lee and Daniela Jelec
Both Alison and Daniela will be playing in university in the fall – Alison at U of T and Daniela at U of Guelph! Good luck girls!! - Currently five of our athletes have made the first two cuts for the U16 team:
Natalie Hanschar, Rebecca Plouffe, Rachel Kho, Ashley Mendonca, Chelcie Mendonca
– good luck girls!! - Many of our athletes are currently trying out for their regional team for the Ontario Summer Games – taking place in August in Toronto. Best of luck to you all!!
- Ellie Cookson played with the U17 National Team in a series against the US, in April in BC – Congratulations to Ellie on her first International CAPS.
Year 2011 at A&C Field Hockey Academy
We are very proud of the successes of our first full year of operations. Our first time playing as the Trailblazers was at May Meltdown where we placed third overall. We entered our team in the JWPL and came first overall. We entered two teams in a 7-a-side tournament in Ottawa in July and placed first and second in the tournament. A great start to our programmes!!
Individual Successes of A&C Members in 2011:
Two athletes made the U18 B team, both reserves for the A team:
Jess Crawford and Alison Lee
A number of our athletes competed on the U16 B team in PEI – and took first place:
Three of our athletes competed on the U16A team in BC – and were all invited to the U17 National Team Camp in BC:
Ashley Mendonca, Chelcie Mendonca, Ellie Cookson
Congratulations to Ellie for earning a spot on the U17 National Team. We are proud of all of our Academy athletes…
Well Done!!!
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