Corinthian Hockey Club Today
Corinthian Hockey Club was founded over 75 years ago. Initially the club played on a grass pitch in Templeogue. In 1984 following a fire at the Templeogue club house CHC became hockey "nomads", until 1991 when the nomads finally settled in our current home at Whitechurch Park in St Columba's School, Rathfarnham.
CHC was founded as a men only club until some clear thinking members decided that it might be more fun to let ladies join!!!
Today CHC has 5 senior men teams, 6 senior ladies teams, more than 10 junior teams from under-8's to under-17's and 2 vets team. We are a large and vibrant club with members of all ages and hockey ability. Our junior section, of 250 members, is the envy of many and is core to the survival of the club. Many of the coaches are drawn from the senior section of the club, and include Leinster representatives, Ireland internationals and overseas Internationals. Such is the level of interest in CHC’s junior program that there is often a waiting list to get a place.
We have a large community of senior players who joined the club as young children and have remained with the club into adulthood. Some might say that CHC is in their blood. It is fantastic to see families where multiple generations are members at CHC.
Many people will know CHC as the home of the famous Easter Hockey Festival. A weekend of fun, and some hockey, for teams from all over Ireland and from further afield (the UK, Holland, Bermuda). Unfortunately the economic downturn has lead to the cancellation of the festival for the last couple of years but rumours are starting to circulate about a potential revival. Watch this space!
CHC has a very active social scene and an official club night out takes place on the first Saturday of every month. This is a great time to catch up with old friends, to bond with your team and to meet new people. Indeed many club members met their match at a "first Saturday". The end of season Dinner Dance is always a great night out. The club awards are presented and then filled at the bar.
At Christmas we have the now traditional and legendary fancy dress party. Competition between the teams for best-dressed is fierce. We have some very creative people at the club!
On St Stephen's Day we have the annual oldies (over 30's) versus youngsters (under 30's) match followed by mince pies and a hot pot. Great for clearing the head???
CHC had much to be proud of in the 2009-2010 season. Our M1's played in the All-Ireland Hockey league for the first year and had much success, reaching the semi-final stages. We are hugely proud of this achievement and are hoping for more of the same next season. Our U16 boys reached the final of their cup and our U17 girls won their cup. A number of members were selected to play at interprovincial and national level.
CHC has survived for 75 years due to the commitment and hard work of it's members. Families who volunteer their time and effort to make the club what it is. All members are encouraged to get involved at all levels of club life from umpiring and coaching to the pre-season club tidy up to joining the committee. Our members are the key to what makes CHC so great!
We are a welcoming club for all new comers and have a great tradition of welcoming players from domestic and foreign sources. We have International level & IHA qualified coaches who develop players of all abilities with a focus on skills development and fun ! This is a testimony to our substantial investment in Junior player development over the past 10 years in particular. CHC is a Club with a bright future particularly as we have a strong pipeline of talented players coming through at all levels.
