GB women’s ice hockey team chasing historic Winter Olympic qualification
Captain Judy Alderson-Smith is one of about six British women playing in both the men’s and women’s teams, seeking a physical advantage against “bigger, taller, stronger” teams.
But the men’s game is very different – body checks are not allowed in the women’s game – and she said “some players will go out and hit girls”.
“There are a few teams in the league … (who) don’t like it when you do something good and they yell insults on the bench, but I just laugh at them sometimes,” Alderson-Smith said. She plays in England’s men’s fourth tier for Coventry Flames and in the women’s top flight for Solihull Vixens.
“I just thought, ‘Okay, pick that girl and go ahead.’ It was really stupid, but that’s what it is.”
Playing with men also “makes you think faster,” Alderson-Smith said.
“Sometimes they don’t make the right decisions, but they (men) do think faster … and pass the ball faster.”
However, playing men’s hockey isn’t always rewarding.
“I’m playing my first game,” forward Katie Marsden said. “I got hit and I dislocated my shoulder, which suddenly ended my men’s career.”
She added that playing men’s hockey “is not an ideal solution” because “it’s not worth the trade-off of potentially career-ending injuries.”
She said the sport was best developed through visibility to increase participation, much like the Lionesses have done for women’s football.
The women’s game has made progress in some areas, with players saying an increase in funding this year means they now have access to experts in areas such as physiotherapy, strength and conditioning and nutrition.
“(Previously) I thought a lot of girls were left with little problems that turned into bigger problems,” Alderson-Smith said.
“And now we can have therapy every week, three times a week if you need it – just like people are doing on us to make sure we’re doing our best.”
It also means intern Marsden is no longer diagnosing her teammates’ illnesses.
“Luckily, they can turn their heads to them instead of me,” she said with a laugh.
There has also been progress on the equipment front as companies increasingly look to produce women’s-specific gear, with UK Sport investing a record £900,000 into ice hockey this Olympic and Paralympic cycle.
