Plans for the future are underway for Mudgee District Hockey Association (MDHA) as discussions with Hockey NSW continue regarding a potential facility upgrade.
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The upgrades may see the club relocate to another site that would allow for artificial turf after years spent playing on the grass of Victoria Park.
While Glen Willow Sporting Complex is the ideal location, MDHA president, Mark Collins said other options are being discussed.
"We've been working with Hockey NSW to look at our options for upgrading our facilities. It's something we've been doing in the background to try and achieve," Collins said.
"It's really in its infancy at the moment, but we're basically looking at getting an artificial surface whether it be at Glen Willow or another site.
"Glen Willow is obviously based around the plans Mid-Western Regional Council have in place. We were originally included in the stage two development but we've been pushed to stage three which is unfortunate.
We are looking at some other options because we could increase our numbers exponentially if we had an artificial surface.
- Mudgee District Hockey Association president, Mark Collins
With a drop in teams for this year's senior competition, it's obvious the sport has suffered. However a summer competition is on the table, should COVID restrictions allow.
"We had a challenging season with only two teams in the competition but we continued to play despite the delays in weather and obviously COVID impacted us," Collins said.
"We're hoping to have a summer competition. It may either be before or after Christmas, if COVID allows.
"Our members really just want to play hockey and it's been a real challenge."
A committee meeting will be held in the coming weeks to discuss how the club plans on closing the year.
"The 80 per cent fully vaccinated rate is really going to determine how we go moving forward," Collins said.
"We'll get back to hockey as soon as we can."
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