Scovone Star Magazine 2017-2018 | Page 64

Constantly Competing: Field Hockey Nathalie Cho Varsity Huron High School Team “ Goooooo River Rats!” Secondly, for your protection, you will need shin guards and a mouth guard. The shin guards can either wrap around your shin or rest on it. Your shin guards go under long socks. The purpose of the shin guards is to protect your shin from the hard ball. The mouth guard goes on the top row of your teeth in case the ball flies up. Socks and rash guards are also very important. Your socks are long and prevent your shin guards from falling off and go over your shin guards. Rash guards help prevent itchy rashes. Sometimes you will need to wear goggles to protect your face, but you don’t usually need them. Imagine yourself on a huge field with your teammates all around you. The whistle blows and everybody starts yelling, grunting, running, then cheering.Then you hear sticks clapping together. So many unique things can happen in field hockey. Equipment First of all, the field hockey ball and stick are some of the most important things needed for field hockey. Every stick is right-handed so people who are left-handed still have to play right-handed. The stick is used to move the ball and do COOL moves like lifts, shots, and reverse sweeps! The ball is very hard and can come in many colors. The ball can move very fast depending how hard you hit / dribble it with your stick. -63- Last but not least, goalie equipment. There is a lot of equipment that a goalie needs. A helmet to protect your face, a throat protector that wraps around your neck, and kickers to kick the ball away. The kickers look like shoes for a giant. You’ll also need chest pads to protect your chest and hand pads to protect your hands from the ball. In one hand, you will hold a stick. Finally, quad pads. To protect your legs. Warning: If you choose to be a goalie, you