Head of the Guyana Hockey Board Phillip Fernandes is lauding the success of its national teams that represented Guyana in 2024, attributing their performances to sheer determination, skill and hard work which overcome the venue handicap.
The long-time administrator said that efforts in pursuit of gold medals and rankings on the regional and international scene over the past year bore fruit.

According to Fernandes, “As far as international competition, 2024 was really an outstanding year, almost a landmark year for Guyana. The teams that went overseas they had good success, we started off the year with our men going to the Pan American Indoor championship, it was only the top five teams that made it there; we lost the bronze medal match by 1 goal, we could have had a bronze but we finished fourth.”

Fernandes, who featured as part of the team at the World Master’s Championship which saw some of the top hockey playing nations said that the results were surprising given Guyana’s experience at that level.

“Our masters over 45’s went to Nottingham England, it was the first time Guyana was at a world event for hockey, we were in a group with some pretty big names, England, Canada, Wales and we played unbeaten in the pool round. We met France in the crossovers and won and then we met back England in the final and we had that to win but the inexperience of the guys, we had a lead going into the final but we blew it, so we got silver,” Fernandes said.
He said they capped off the year with more success this time for the national women side.

He added, “Our ladies went to the Pan American challenge in Bermuda and we got bronze medal and in fact only loss to one tam Mexico, the eventual winners, so that was also a big success but apart from the results, if you take it into context with how we have to prepare against the other nations it’s a big disparity, we are under resources yet we are I believe overachieving.”

The hockey administrator has bemoaned the lack of a home for the sport for decades, adding that it would be a major booster to being on equal footing with the rest of the world.
“Hockey is played on artificial surfaces around the world but here in Guyana we don’t have such a surface which means that the nation’s teams prepare on grass which puts them at an obvious disadvantage when they have to adjust to the faster surface when playing outside of Guyana in outdoor hockey,”
“Last year his Excellency President Irfaan Ali gave the sport a lifeline when he announced an initiative in partnership with Saints Stanislaus College that will see the school with support from their partner and private sector developing an artificial surface for the sport at plot of land at Durban Park,” Fernandes said.