I’ve always wanted to play a sport but I’ve never found one that appealed to me. I’m a freshman in HS currently and recently discovered field hockey, which is a fall sport at my school. I’ve never played it before. Can I practice over the summer yet make it to at least junior varsity next year (fall 2018)? Thanks!!
The answer to this question will vary by school. If your school has trouble getting enough kids to go out for a sport to field a team, the yes you may make JV. If on the other hand, field hockey is a popular sport and kids get cut, it is unlikely you will make the team after practing for just one summer, especially if you not a real athletic kid to begin with.
If field hockey is a cut sport, without knowing the competitiveness of your school and the quality of 9th grade field hockey players, nobody here can answer that question. Good luck.
My D was in your position. She had never done a sport and in the summer between 9th and 10th grades, she decided she wanted to join the field hockey team. She went for the first workout/training session and, after having drunk OJ and eaten breakfast. proceeded to barf her way up and down the field. However, she refused to give up and go home. She finished out that day and went back the next 4. At the end, the coach told her he admired her moxie and made her a goalie on the JV team. It was hard for her at that point to be out in the field because she didn’t have the grasp on the rules necessary for field play, but she enjoyed being a goalie. She was on JV for 2 years and played on the varsity in senior year, so she got her letter.
Whether you can make it or not depends on your school’s athletic program. Goalie might be the most likely position for you as well because, as with my D, being years behind in play means you don’t understand all of the rules.
Good luck. Although my D hasn’t played since HS, she has never regretted making the effort to join the team and playing on it.
skieurope and techmom99,
Thanks a lot for your advice!!
Ask your gym teacher or look on your HS website and find out who the Field Hockey coach is. Tell them that you are interested for next fall and can they put you on any mailing lists they have for info and what should you be doing over the summer to prepare (eg., run). T
Talk to the coach.
See if there is a summer camp you can attend to get your skills up to date. Watching some games on youtube or other video will help you learn the rules and gain a little awareness of where the players are on the field. Get yourself a stick and just start working with it. Chase a ball around your yard, find a friend to pass the ball back and forth, get a net and shoot the ball over and over and over.
If field hockey is big enough at your school to have a varsity and jv teams, it must be popular in your area and there will be camps or a summer league. It also may mean competition to make the team might be stiff.