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Ball Hockey - not the ice or field variety, but the kind that your typical Canadian plays with a ball on concrete when the winter's ice has melted. That's what we play on the British Club's tennis courts every Thursday night from 9.00pm to 10.30pm.
Ball hockey developed in North America as a way for ice hockey players to keep in shape during the summer months when ice time was scarce. The game uses an orange plastic ball (instead of a puck) and ice hockey sticks that have been cut a couple of inches shorter (since the game is played with tennis shoes instead of skates).
The British Club ball hockey section practices every Thursday from September through May, which happens to coincide with the National Hockey League season and avoids Thailand's rainy season. The hockey season culminates with the Patpong Cup championship in April and the Mekong Cup International Ball Hockey Tournament in May. The annual Patpong Cup is played at the British Club between the Thai Stix (i.e., the British Club team) and the Bangkok Bullies. The Patpong Cup determines ball hockey dominance in Thailand.
The most prestigious ball hockey championship in the region is the Mekong Cup, held annually in Phuket, which earns its victor the right to claim ball hockey supremacy in Asia. Teams competing in this gruelling battle have included: Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Taiwan, Cambodia and the two teams from Bangkok. The tournament has been hotly contested since its first year in 1995. The Thai Stix have managed to form somewhat of a dynasty, capturing the trophy four times since 2000.
If you wish to come along, practice takes place every Thursday from 9.00pm to 10.30pm on tennis courts two and three.
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