Nightcliff University Tigers Hockey Club Inc Darwin Hockey Clubs
About Us
The Tigers Hockey Club is one of six Darwin hockey clubs who compete in the local Darwin Hockey League competition. In 2018 we fielded 12 junior teams and 6 senior teams (male and female) and these numbers will be very similar in 2019 when we celebrate our 70th anniversary.
The Nightcliff University Tigers Hockey Club was founded in 1949 as Works & Housing featuring only a men’s team and is one of two founding clubs in the Darwin Hockey League. Since then our club has been through a number of name changes, the inclusion of women’s teams in 1953 and the introduction of juniors in the 1970’s. Most importantly the culture of a family orientated and socially enjoyable club established by the founding members remains as a strong part of our club’s culture today.
Over the years Tigers Hockey Club has created a strong presence in the Darwin competition building a solid junior and senior player base, with new players welcomed the time - our 2018 membership totalling 230 players across all senior and junior grades. The cub is home to Olympians Des Abbott, Joel Carroll and Brooke Peris who began their hockey journey as Tiger juniors
Each year many of our junior and senior teams feature in the finals, with our A & B grade men and C Grade women winning premierships in 2018 and the club taking out the Club Championship Award for the best performing club across all grades. Our A grade men’s team is one of the most successful team in NT sporting history, winning 15 grand finals out of 21 appearances from 1996 to 2018.
While we are very proud of the achievements of our senior sides, national and international players, we never forget that Tigers Hockey Club is only as strong as its juniors, starting with our under 8’s, U/11’s, under 14’s right up to our under 17’s. Our juniors are the future of our Club and the reason for our success in the past.
For more information on the history of the club, our current committee and any policies or forms you may need, please click on a link below.
NT and Australian Representatives
Tigers Hockey Club has a strong history of producing NT representatives - both players and coaches.
We currently have a number of representatives involved with the Australian Hockey League Territory Stingers and Territory Pearls teams as well as many of our younger members representing the Territory in NT sides from under 13’s through to under 21’s, in addition to the many representatives in the Territory’s Master’s sides.
A number of our members have gone onto represent Australia at the junior and senior level and we are proud to say they were born and bred as Tigers.
Our most successful international players include current Australian squad members Joel Carroll (Kookaburras) and Brooke Peris (Hockeyroos), and retired Kookaburra Desmond Abbott. Even though Desmond, Joel and Brooke have played in competitions across the world they still call Tigers Hockey Club home and will always take the opportunity to play with the club they love.