Newcastle International Hockey Centre chairman Bob Fernance has slammed Hockey Australia after the Broadmeadow complex was stripped of international games due to its fields being deemed non-compliant.
In a blow to the Hunter hockey fraternity, Hockey Australia (HA) announced Thursday that six Pro League matches between the Hockeyroos, Germany and China in February had been shifted to Sydney's Olympic Park.
It followed a recent pitch inspection by the International Hockey Federation (FIH), one of many conducted around the country.
Fernance, who said Hockey Australia had failed to contact Newcastle officials before the announcement, described the decision as "very disappointing".
He explained the FIH now required all pitches for international fixtures to be flat, or with a slight fall to only the longer edges of a field, rather than a "turtle-back" base that falls away to all four edges.
He said two of Newcastle's pitches, the east and west fields, had the "turtle-back" bases, but the newer southern pitch didn't and therefore should have been compliant.
Regardless, he slammed the decision, saying the fields had the world's best turf.
"It wasn't altogether surprising as we don't believe that any in field in Australia would comply," Fernance said, adding facilities like Adelaide's had also failed.
"The FIH testing criteria is clearly written by consultants that have never played the game of hockey and know very little about the conditions under which it is played.
"Many elite players play or have played in Newcastle, and we have hosted many tournaments including an International Masters and we have had no complaints.
"To the contrary we get compliments about how exceptional our turf is."
The centre recently underwent a $12 million upgrade, but the project did not include works to the pitches themselves.
Despite having new grandstands and clubhouses, the facility has lost the opportunity to host some of the world's best players.
"We are disappointed in the way HA have handled this matter," Fernance said.
"It would have been better to have certified the fields before they announced the [games].
"We could've avoided the embarrassment of having them taken from us.
"I wonder if they care about the damage they cause to hockey in regional Australia by carrying on this way."
Hockey Australia did not respond to questions before the time of publication.
Fernance said the artificial turf on Broadmeadow's pitches was due to be replaced in the next few years at a cost of about $1.5 million, which is being budgeted for.
He said the centre would now have to consider redoing the base under the turfs, but this was a much larger overhaul that would likely cost many millions more.
"We'd have to rip out our kerb and gutter, rip up the tar, re-shape the road base and do the whole process again," he said.
"You've just added another $2.5 to $3 million to the bill.
"We want an international-class hockey centre, but we consider we've already got one."
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