Telford & Wrekin Hockey Club Talent Centre - Cohort 4

Telford & Wrekin HC is happy to announce we are part of the England Hockey Talent Centre Cohort 4 working through the EH accreditation in the 2024/25 season.

England Hockey (EH) is evolving the way players develop and progress through its Performance Pathway. A Talent Centre club is a club that provides high quality provision for players at early talent development level (Talent Foundations). This provision will be embedded within the club’s junior programme. Talent Centre accreditation recognises the quality of a club’s talent development environment and provision. England Hockey will recognise, through accreditation, environments within the Talent System that provide high quality talent development.

As a Club Mark accredited club working towards becoming an EH Talent Centre in the EH Talent System, Telford & Wrekin HC is striving to:

- Provide the right training and development environment for all levels of player, including those aspiring to progress through the EH Pathway.

- Offer a direct route for player nomination to progress to Talent Academy and/or England National Age Group (U16 or U18 NAGS) trials.

- Provide an accessible way for all players to enjoy developing to the best they can be, within the club environment.

Player development

Player Development is at the core of our training ethos. To achieve this, our junior training and player development is being evolved to support a continuum of juniors from those aspiring to play at the highest national level to those learning and enjoying social hockey. This means that within our membership, there is a choice of playing environments for each player, depending on their playing priorities or commitments. Aspirational players do not need to pay to participate in outside-club hockey activity, e.g. County, in order to progress through the England Hockey Talent Pathway.

Hockey Foundations

At the root of player development is the development of strong core hockey skills. Therefore we start our focus on this in early primary age, reinforced with specific Foundations skills training for years 6-8.

Talent Centre Age Group Training

The main Talent Centre focus is for players in years 8-11 (age 12-16), however we have added an additional age group allowing juniors to train with their peers at U18. Therefore our U14, U16 & U18 age group training, run by professional coaches with experience of the Talent Pathway, is key for players who are keen to progress and commit to their hockey. 

Open Junior T&WHC Talent Centre Membership

Non-club members are invited to train with the club's junior section paying a small fee (£70) to attend T&WHC TC age group sessions. That player will be eligible to play Midlands League and England Hockey age group fixtures on Sundays for T&WHC but continue to play their Senior hockey at their 'parent' club. This will ensure there's no requirement for players to move clubs to get their Saturday hockey. We will work with the individual player, parent/guardian, school, club, TA to do what is right for their development.

Age Group Fixtures

We will be entering T&WHC into Sunday Boys & Girls age group teams in the Midlands Hockey League and England Hockey Cups fixtures. This will provide the opportunity for players to showcase their skills against their peers.

Please get in touch if you're interested in attending a few free taster sessions.