Hockey New Zealand is proud to announce the appointment of Wellingtonians Peter Miskimmin and Chris Leslie as the Men’s and Women’s Junior Black Sticks coaches respectively.

The Junior Black Sticks programme was established in late 2006 as part of Hockey NZ’s talent ID efforts and in the knowledge that both our men’s and women’s teams have already qualified for the Junior World Cup. The first competitive outing saw the Junior Black Sticks Women secure a bronze medal at the recent Australian Youth Olympic Festival in January.

Chris Leslie, head coach to the Junior Black Sticks Women brings a wealth of expertise to this role. He has had a longstanding position of influence within New Zealand’s elite hockey scene, including positions as assistant coach to the Black Sticks women from 1998 until 2006 and as a selector for Hockey New Zealand since 2003. Chris’ coaching skills have helped shape Hockey New Zealand’s national development and age group players and it was under his guidance that the Junior Black Sticks Women’s team achieved their Bronze Medal finish on debut at the 2007 Australian Youth Olympic Festival. 

Peter Miskimmin has a well established reputation as an international player and recently as both a coach and leader within the elite sports sector. His coaching expertise has helped guide the Wellington Men’s Hockey team to 3 National Hockey League titles in just 5 years. He also brings extensive sports management experience to the role having held administrative positions with New Zealand’s Olympic and Commonwealth Games teams and more recently as a Board Director and currently as General Manager of Sector Development with SPARC. 

Both coaches will attend next weeks Smokefree National Under 21 Tournament which commences on Sunday 6 May at the Saxtons Sports Complex in Nelson. The tournament represents a key part of the Junior Black Sticks selection process with seven provinces contesting for the men’s and women’s national Under 21 title.

Source: Hockey New Zealand