Canberra's fledgling women's ice hockey league is aiming to secure a place in the national competition this year.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
A decision about whether the ACT women's team, the Pirates, will be admitted into the competition is expected within weeks. The Pirates are vying for a place in the competition with a Melbourne outfit.
If the Pirates are successful it will be the first time an ACT women's team has competed in the Australian Women's Ice Hockey league.
The proposal to enter the league comes after strong growth in the sport over the past four years.
Former Ice Hockey ACT Association Women's league manager Natalie Relph was instrumental in the rise of the sport over the past four years.
When she started playing the sport in Canberra about five years ago, she said there were no women's teams or leagues.
"We got together and decided that we would develop a women's league," she said. "Some of the females wanted to play but not against the men.
"Last year through sheer terrier-like behaviour we got three teams, 52 players, each with their own dedicated female goalie.
"Getting to that stage was a lot of hard work. I'm very passionate about it and I've spent the past four years getting it to where it is now."
For the first time in many years, the ACT has a travelling women's team – the Dragons - in the NSW Ice Hockey Women's league.
The Pirates will be a separate entity to the Dragons and work is progressing to ensure they would be a viable entity if deemed suitable for national competition.
Relph said the Pirates had been training weekly ahead of a potential call-up to the national competition, which would begin in October.
She said there had been a lot of work behind the scenes to ensure the structures and sponsorship for a national team were in place.
The Ice Hockey ACT Association Women's league will host a tournament at Woden's Philip Swimming and Ice Skating Centre. Games will be played throughout Saturday and Sunday.
Meanwhile, the Canberra Brave will play the Melbourne Ice in a double-header of the men's Australian Ice Hockey League at Phillip on Saturday (5.30pm) and Sunday (5pm).