New title sponsor for East Hockey League helps ‘reaffirm hockey’s wide appeal’
The East Hockey League will have new sponsors for the next three seasons at least. Picture: ADAM CUNDICK - Credit: Archant
It may be worrying times for many grassroots sports but the East Region Hockey Association has bucked the trend by announcing a new title sponsor for its league.
Sports retailer MR Cricket Hockey will sponsor the East Hockey League until at least the end of 2022-2023 season.
The league covers a huge area, stretching from Kent up to Lincolnshire and with 550 teams in their 55 divisions.
Merrick Fuller, director of MR Cricket Hockey, said: “Outdoor sports are an essential part of staying healthy, both physically and mentally, and it’s a real honour to be able to support the development of hockey in these trying times.”
The company, based in Burwell, Cambridgeshire, offers a range of services at www.mrcrickethockey.com including products for players and kit for clubs.
Development director of the ERHA, Stuart Burnside, said: “Finding new commercial partners willing to invest in the game despite the headwinds from the pandemic reaffirms hockey’s wide appeal.
“We anticipate using the sponsorship revenue to invest in developing access to our sport, with a particular focus on state schools, and we look forward to working with MR Cricket hockey over the next three years to build on the success of the competition and create many more memorable matches for us all to celebrate.”
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Businesses interested in sponsoring other parts of the ERHA should email Stuart on erhadevelopment@gmail.com
There will also be a change to the structure of the league in the men’s game.
Currently clubs feed from the four geographical sections into Division Two North and Division Two South before promotion to a single Division One followed by Premier B and then Premier A.
From next season that will be replaced by a single Premier Division tier above two Division One’s, both north and south.
The four geographical sections will then feed into them.
This brings it into line with the women’s divisions, whose structure will remain unchanged.
A spokesman for the league said: “The management committee can now crack on with producing promotion and relegation for the end of this season and will have a view of how we intend to operate post lockdown based on what we currently know.”
