Group Canada U16 to play in upcoming Den Bosch Match

U16 Nationwide Group travels to Netherlands for Den Bosch Match

This week, the U16 Girls’s Nationwide Group departs for the Netherlands for the Worldwide Den Bosch Match. For a lot of of those athletes, it will likely be their first worldwide touring expertise. The journey, spanning Might 19and culminating in the Den Bosch hockey event from Might 27-29.

Group Canada is comprised of 14-16 year-old athletes from throughout the nation together with gamers from Ontario, PEI, Alberta and BC. 

Katie-Grace Noye is the one PEI athlete on Group Canada. She is a Grade-11 scholar at Three Oaks Senior Excessive in Summerside, PEI and performs for the provincial discipline hockey group. This journey to the Netherlands might be Noye’s first-ever worldwide discipline hockey expertise. For her, she’s most anticipating gelling along with her teammates and experiencing worldwide hockey for the primary time. 

“I’m excited to satisfy the group and get to know them, and their fashion of play,” Noye stated. “Additionally, one of many main issues I’m trying ahead to is experiencing a brand new depth and better degree of discipline hockey. I’m excited for this superb alternative.”

Noye began enjoying discipline hockey 5 years in the past in center faculty and has cherished it ever since. She at present performs ice hockey within the winter in addition to training indoor discipline hockey and performs within the PEI Spring League. Because the group has by no means educated collectively on-pitch, Noye understands that they’ll should work to be taught from one another. She is worked up to get all collectively for the primary time within the Netherlands.

“I anticipate our first scrimmages to be studying expertises for us. We’ll learn to play with one another and get a really feel for one another’s recreation,” she stated. “We have been going over construction and the way we need to play as a group, so all we’ve got to do is take it from paper to the sector with one another and I’m sure we are going to develop quick as a group.” She provides that the camaraderie is likely one of the most particular components of group sports activities.

Head Coach Kyle Marks can also be trying ahead to the primary time the group will get on the sector collectively. Him and his assistant coach Jenn Swagar, Group Alberta coach and coach of College of Calgary, haven’t had any discipline time with this group, making these first periods all of the extra essential to get on the identical web page. 

“The geographic unfold of the group provides character and problem to making ready for a global tour as a result of the athletes come from completely different areas with completely different kinds of play, teaching, and assets,” Marks stated. “As a coach, you will need to determine and tackle these variations to make sure that the group is cohesive and ready to compete on the highest degree. These first few coaching periods might be essential to assist get the squad gelling and enjoying like a group as quickly as attainable.” 

Marks is a Head Coach for SEAtoSKY Discipline Hockey Membership and the FHBC North Shore Academy in addition to his teaching duties for the U16 Girls’s Nationwide Group, and a technical coach for the Girls’s Nationwide Group. He has worldwide teaching expertise in South Africa, USA and Hong Kong. Marks acknowledges the U16 nationwide program as an essential a part of the nationwide group pipeline and desires to do his greatest to arrange these athletes for worldwide hockey careers. 

“My expectations for this group are that they’ll compete to the very best of their potential, present a willingness to be taught and enhance, and symbolize Canada with delight and sportsmanship. I need them to benefit from the expertise and are available away with precious classes that they’ll apply to their future endeavours,” he stated. “The U16 nationwide group is a vital steppingstone within the nationwide pipeline for younger discipline hockey gamers. The pathway will assist these athletes transfer up by way of to U18, U21 and finally into the Girls’s Nationwide Program.” 

The group departs on Might 19 and can start coaching and take a look at matches. The Worldwide Den Bosch event b