We heard rumour that we had a fairly decent team in the earlier years but it was only when we started to delve in to the archives in preparation for our 60th Anniversary in 2018 that we realised just how decent! Our first 10 years were phenomenal as you will read on. Our last 10 years haven't been too shabby either.

We have also been recognised as a Club in recent years, testament to the amount of work which goes on behind the scenes. But of course, we’ve also had our fair share of challenges to overcome over the years as most Clubs do, from struggling to field teams to having to relocate away from our roots. Through tough times, we come out the other side and it is only fitting that in our 60th year, we returned home to Garstang when the new pitch at the Academy was opened.

Take a trip through our hockey socio history and learn about our Club.....

Where did it all start?
Barbara Gardner. It was her idea to start the club with some help from her friends and staff from Lancaster Girls Grammar School. The founder members, pictured above in 1960 are:
Back row LtoR: Barbara Roberts (dcsed),?,Avis Saunders (dcsed), Judith Leake, Dorothy Williams, Ann Helme (dcsed)
Front row LtoR: Margery Rainford,?, Brenda Beatson, Audrey Shorrock, Barbara Gardner. Barbara Roberts was Barbara Gardner's best friend at LGGS. Brenda Beatson was the games mistress at the time.

1930 Leyland and District Hockey League formed by Mr Thomas Arnold Hart.

1931-32 League changed to accommodate Penwortham, Up Holland, Hesketh Bank, Blackburn and Dick Kerrs

Teams chosen to represent each League in an Inter-League Tournament. Held on Easter Monday – winners presented with the Caley Trophy, which the League fondly call the ‘Flying Angel’.

1958 Garstang Ladies Hockey Club formed. 1 team. White shirts, Navy skirt, White socks.

1959 1st Annual General Meeting held on 14 November.

1959-60 Win our first trophies, the Lady Spurrier Cup and the Caley Trophy.

1960-61 Division 3 Runners Up, promoted. Douglas Cup Winners. Shared with Lancaster. Final finished 0-0, Replay finished 1-1, 2-2 after Extra time.

1961-62 Win our first League Championship (Division 2) and a consecutive promotion. Registration fees were 2/- (10p) per player and were to be forwarded to the Honorary Treasurer before players took part in any League or Cup match.

1962 Division 1, 2nd after 3 games.

1963-64 Division 1 Champions, Lishman Cup Winners, Caley Trophy Winners. Decided the Dinner held at the end of this season would become an annual event.

1965 Possibility of a 2nd team discussed at the AGM. Decision taken not to pursue.

1967-68 2nd team formed and held friendlies. 1st team Glaxo Tournament Winners.

1968-69 2nd team entered in to the League, Division 3. 1st team had their most successful season ever.

Division 1 Champions, Glaxo Tournament Winners, Bury Tournament Winners, Caley Trophy Winners, Lancashire Club Tournament, Lishman Cup Winners and the Grant Shield.

1969-70 2nd team win their first League Championship and Cup a year after forming. 2nd team Division 3 Champions & Douglas Cup Winners.

1972 Club colours changed to all red along with Garstang FC. The 2nd team were asked to dye their white shirts red. 20 lbs of bri-nylon wool was bought from the market for one of their players to knit red sweaters… and everyone would sew their own up!

1979-80 1st and 2nd team both play in Division 1

1982 Both teams relegated to Division 2.

1990-91 Numbered shirts imposed by the League. For 91/92 Division 1, 92/93 Division 2, 93/94 Division 3.

1993 Goalkeepers must wear a full helmet and mask.

1994 We leave Garstang due to England Hockey mandating all League Clubs play on astro-turf pitches.

1998 40th Anniversary Dinner held at the Royal Oak, Garstang.

2008 The first U13 team is formed in January.

2008-09 3rd team introduced.

2008 50th Anniversary celebrated in June with a player’s Past v Present played on grass on the rugby pitch behind Garstang Sports and Social Club followed by a BBQ. 50th Anniversary Dinner held at The Pickerings, Garstang. Attended by over 100 guests.

2011-12 1st team reach the Caley Trophy Final but lose 2-1 against Lytham 1sts, 9 seconds from full time. 1st team came 2nd in the Premier Division and played a ‘play off’ against against bottom placed Lancashire Central representatives (Springfields 2) from North Hockey Division 2 North West. Game is drawn 2-2, Garstang won on flicks and are promoted. Former Garstang player failed to convert a flick.

2012-13 1st team play in the North Hockey Division 2 North West. Regional Level hockey for the first time, the highest level a Garstang team has ever played at.

2013-14 1st team relegated after a difficult 2nd year.

2014-15 Double Double season. 1st team win the Premier Division for the first time since 1973-74 and were unbeaten. Promoted back to North Hockey Division Two North West. 1st team win the Caley Trophy against Lancaster & Morecambe after flicks. 1-1 at full time, 2-2 at full time. The first Caley Trophy win in 46 years. 2nd team come 2nd in the 2nd Division and are promoted to Division 1 2nd team win the Lishman Cup. 3rd team rejoined the league, playing in Division 3 following a 4 year break.

2015-16

2016-17 2nd team finish 2nd in the 1st Division and are promoted back to the top Division for the first time since 1982. 2nd team reach the Caley Trophy Final for the first time and win.

2017 Club awarded £50k funding from the National Hockey Foundation for the new astroturf pitch at Garstang Academy.

2017-18 2nd team finish 2nd in the Premier Division, their highest ever League position. 2nd team win the Caley Trophy for a 2nd consecutive year.

2018 Work begins in April to build the new astro turf pitch at Garstang Academy

2018 Work completed in August.

2018 First match on the new pitch on 1st September. A 2-0 win against Urmston with goals from Grace McGarvey & Reb Worthington.

2018 60th Anniversary Dinner held at Garstang Country Hotel & Golf Club on 7th September.

2018 Official opening of the new astro turf pitch by GB Double Olympic medalist, Hannah MacLeod MBE on 8th September.

2019 First Men’s match v UCLan at UCLan on 21st January.

2019 Club win Garstang Town Council's Sports Team of the Year on 25th April. The presentation took place upstairs in Booths, Garstang. The 2nd year the awards have been held.

2019 The Club hosts its first tournament at Garstang Academy - the U12s.

2019 The Club runs its first 6 week cohort in October of England Hockey's Hockey Heroes programme for 5-8 year olds. This means we now offer hockey sessions from the age of 5.

2019-20 Ladies 1st team win the North Hockey League Division 2 West on a dramatic last day of the season having been in the runner up spot for almost the entire season. The team also reach the Quarter Finals of England Hockey's Tier 2 Championships, one of only two representatives left from the North of England, the other being Sheffield Bankers!

2019-20 Mens 1st team play their first League campaign in the North Hockey League, 4th Division 4 North North and finish in an impressive 4th spot and completed the last two months of the season unbeaten!

League fixtures were completed just in time as the country went in to lockdown due to the Coronavirus (Covid19) pandemic but before the 2nd team were able to play their Caley Final - their 3rd in 4 seasons. Our second cohort of the Hockey Heroes programme was postponed from week 3.

1st team begin twice weekly fitness sessions by Zoom in order to maintain some social contact and their fitness.

2020 The club is nominated for Garstang Town Council's Sports Team of the Year on 17th May for a consecutive year.

2020 All five senior teams return to pre-season training under strict England Hockey Stage 2 guidelines on 23rd June - 6 weeks earlier than usual but players were keen to return early following some relaxation of restrictions.

2020-21 All teams play a handful of games before the season is effectively abandoned null and void. Teams trained once restrictions were lifted and continued to throughout the summer to get some pitch time back. Ladies 1s competed in the Lancashire Lockdown Trophy for Tier 2 clubs, the brainchild of Head coach, Dave Gee to maintain some competitive hockey and then a further version of this (North West Lockdown Trophy involving Halifax, Kirkham Grammar and Liverpool Sefton) for clubs who still had an appetite to play when lockdown tiers were removed. Ladies 1s also competed in England Hockey's Adult Championships, beating Southport 1s in the 1st round, getting a bye in the 2nd and unfortunately losing against Timperley 1s in the 3rd round - the highest ranked opposition in an official cup competition. Juniors competed in the four rounds of tournaments during the summer - we entered U8s, 10s, 12, 14s and 16s teams - our biggest ever representation at junior level. Organised by the LCWHL Junior Committee (Charles Jackman, Sharron Bolton of Preston, Adele of Fylde and junior umpire coordinator Gemma Jones), we hosted the 1st and 4th rounds - over 250 juniors from across Lancashire (and South Lancashire & Cumbria in the final round).

2021-22 A huge nationwide League structure saw the end of the LCWHL and North Hockey, replaced by the 'North West Area'. England Hockey's new pathway and the divisions our teams began to compete in were:

Womens Division 5 North (Central) - 4th team (Grade 5 level)
Womens Division 4 North (Central) - 3rd team (Grade 4 level)
Womens Division 3 North (Central) - 2nd team (Grade 4 level)
Womens Division 2 North (Grade 3 level)
Womens Division 1 (Grade 2 level)
Womens Premier - 1st team (Grade 2 level)

Mens Division 5 North (Grade 5 level)
Mens Division 4 North - 1st team (Grade 4 level)
Mens Division 3 North Grade 3 level)
Mens Division 2 (Grade 3 level)
Mens Division 1 (Grade 2 level)
Mens Premier (Grade 2 level)

The next level is the England Hockey League (Grade 1)
Womens Hockey League Conference North
Womens Hockey League Division One North
Womens Hockey League Premier Division

The Caley Trophy and the Lishman Cup are now no longer competed for.

Despite Covid, the Leagues managed to complete their full fixture programme. Ladies 1s finished5th, 2s 3rd, 3s, 3rd, 4s, 7th and Mens 1s finished 2nd.

Ladies 1s, 2s and 3s also competed in the England Hockey Adult Championships - the national cup competitions. L1s (Tier 2), 2s and 3s (Tier 4) all made it through to the 3rd Round.

We also entered a Girls U16 side to the Junior Championships for the first time and the side did exceptionally well, reaching the Semi Finals, an away coach trip to neutral venue, Hampton-in-Arden, to face Marsden Russets.