LOCAL hockey players will have their registration fees slashed by more than half over the next two seasons as the sport looks to "lead the way" in ensuring their player depth doesn't fall victim to the coronavirus pandemic.
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Wagga Wagga Combined Hockey Association (WWCHA) won't charge any fees this year, while Hockey NSW will effectively allow players to play two seasons for the price of one.
The quest to keep players in junior sport is set to be one of the major battles once life returns to normal. Many active Wagga youngsters juggle a number of different sports, and some families who have encountered financial battles during the pandemic may not be in a position to keep doing so.
WWCHA president Ken Larkin said they're doing whatever they can to ensure youngsters don't have to give up the game they love.
The reduced costs are also designed to entice junior and senior players to commit to a shortened season, which they hope will commence on July 18.
"We want to lead the way with this because Wagga is a town where kids play two sports or more," Larkin said.
"We're very mindful it's grassroots hockey and we're talking about our community, we want to support them in any way we can as they come through this very difficult time.
"Hockey NSW kicked it off with their generous offer of two seasons for one, and we're in a really good financial position to be able to support our members this year in not charging what we call a local fee, and also covering the cost of games.
"It's almost reduced it by well over 50 per cent, and it's designed to get as many people as possible to get them playing sport.
"It's part of mental health, the sooner we get back playing the better, and the better it is for our player base for this year.
"It's got great feedback from our members and I think we'll find we'll get a lot of our players come back to play this short season.
Larkin said grand finals will be played between the top two teams on each table immediately after the regular season, with the season to finish by the end of September.
"We've just tried to give everyone as many games as we can so we've cut out major semis and semis," he said.
"Normally players would get 19 or 20 games a year, but this year they'll get 12 games for half price cost, which gives them an incentive to play and get as many games as they can."
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