Wiltshire men’s county hockey team 1926-27 from the era of the manners referred to below.

In January 1923, Hockey World magazine printed an article on the manners and etiquette expected of hockey players. The author suggests using this “medicine” for a few weeks and see how you improve!

• Always sport your club colours, even to the smallest details.
• For protection, housemaids’ gloves should be worn!
• When holding the stick, grip with your right hand lower down the binding, and always use two hands.
• Always stop the ball before hitting, steady yourself on your right leg, and hit hard.
• For beginners, learn to drive the ball outwards and to the right. Instead of right to left and at the risk of running around in circles!
• Avoid twisting and turning.
• Get rid of the ball before you are tackled and look to your teammate before passing.
• When tackling, only go for the ball and avoid colliding with the opponent or his stick.
• “Finally, read the rules, keep fit and play for all you are worth; never relax your efforts.”
• “Remember that combination and unselfish play wins the matches and consider the feelings of your fellow players before your own.”

Why was combination was so innovative in early twentieth-century hockey? 

The article was written in 1924 by Constant Terrier, the Hon. Secretary of the Swiss Hockey Association. Switzerland was one of the founding nations of the International Hockey Federation (FIH) in this same year. These Swiss tips reveal an international understanding of hockey manners and expectations following English rules and etiquette – with the possible exception of housemaids’ gloves! They also reflect sportsmanship values and club loyalties that can be found throughout The Hockey Museum’s (THM) collections.

A book from THM library on the history of one of the oldest Swiss hockey clubs. Stade-Lausanne Hockey 1922-2022 was authored by Francois Beboux. The illustration covers hockey in the period of Constant Terrier’s article. Sadly, no gloves are visible!