Our youth players wear navy club tops, navy shorts or skorts with navy and red stripey socks for matches. Wearing of red club sweatshirts and navy rainjackets is optional.

These items can be purchased from Chilterns Sports either on-line or in their shop in Stoke Mandeville.

Please arrive in your kit, ready to play. Although we have changing facilities in the clubhouse, these are shared and can be accessed by all club members.
Please always bring your own water bottle with you to training and matches.
Obviously dress for the weather. At training make sure you wear appropriate clothing, thinking about wearing several layers in case of changes in weather (jacket, gloves, base layers, coat etc). Likewise, if it’s hot remember sunscreens and sunhats ….

Other Equipment

You do not need to purchase a stick straightaway as there are a number of sticks that can be borrowed from the club for training sessions. When the time comes to purchase a stick, they are available in most sports shops, including our kit supplier, Chiltern Sports.

Its mandatory for under 18s to wear a properly fitting mouth guard and full-length hockey shin pads. You will need these at every training session and tournament, including your first 2 taster sessions.

The club has worked with market leaders, Opro to create a bespoke Instant Custom-Fit mouthguard, which provides high quality mouth protection. More details are available here.

We also recommend that young players get used to playing with hand protection. Hard shell protective gloves are available in a range of sizes. The Left hand is most vulnerable to impact, however protective gloves can be worn on both hands to reduce risk of injury. Youth players transitioning to adult hockey have to play with a glove on the left hand as a minimum, so it’s a good idea to get used to playing in them early on.

U12s and above must wear a face guard if defending a short corner. So, when you are old enough to start learning to defend short corners and if you regularly play as a defender, this should become part of your protective gear. We have a few club face guards which you may borrow if they are available, until your position on pitch is more established and you manage to get your own. U8s and U10s games do not involve short corners.

Hockey astro shoes provide stability and some foot protection from impact with the ball compared with other types of footwear. Hockey astro shoes are suitable for use on the astro surface, and will reduce the risk of slipping and ankle injury. Trainers do not provide these same benefits.

Goal keepers obviously need full protection. If you don’t have your own kit the club does have kits to borrow. Ask our Youth Coordinator for specific advice on what’s needed for goalies.

Our supplier kit, Chiltern Sports, has a range of equipment and can advise you on what to buy.