The Golden Oldies World Hockey Festival was held last week in Hawaii and attended by David Costello and Nick West from the Three Rock Mens Vets. Below is a few words from Nick about their trip!

We played for a team called the Irish Gamesters which has players from a number of Irish Clubs including Monkstown, Glenanne and Lisnagarvey with some guests from England, Canada and Germany. Railway Union and Cork Harlequins also had players on other teams.

The Festival takes place over a week starting with the opening ceremony and party in the park where the games took place at the foot of Diamond Head, an extinct volcano at the end of Waikiki Beach. Three Days of hockey took place with 7 goals being scored by the Three Rock players and only one goal conceded in the week. But the hockey was not about the winning but about the three Fs – Fun, Friendship and Fraternity of course! Social Events included a picnic day at a ranch, a sunset cruise and various tours.

The final dinner was held in hanger 79 of the Pacific Aviation Museum in Pearl Harbour and the theme was "An Officer and a Gentleman" so our team was finely clad as Naval Officers. The band played into the night with an evocative Andrews Sisters set with a stage backdrop of a Douglas Dakota.

This is all was a great fun Festival. Roll on the next one in Leipzig 2015.

Nick