This camp was held in Honiara from the 12th to the 15th of December 2025. All 6 Pacific Island NF’s had participants involved as either coaches, youth leaders, or athletes. The camp had significant on the individuals attending and below are three reflections of how the camp affected impacted on specific individuals.
Georgina Bon – Coach (Papua New Guinea):
‘I learnt so much about how to coach. The International Coach Presenter Tsanelo Pholo taught me about technical terms and how to break them down to make them easier to remember for athletes. The value of using small games as every one likes to play games rather than doing static drills that may not reflect what happens in a game. Games are fun but have so many outcomes beyond hockey – fun, decision making, communication, and building teams together. As I reflected after the camp I thought about how I could lead my Hook in4 Health Program in Lae, and make changes for 2026, especially with regards to safeguarding athletes both on and off the field. I immediately enrolled in a first aid course to ensure I understood more about how to help our athletes with injuries.’
Kaylin Ila – Youth Leader (Papua New Guinea):
‘I was selected to represent Papua New Guinea as Youth Leader and this was an amazing experience for me personally. As Youth Leaders we became role models to the younger athletes and this was important as they were between 13 and 18 years of age and many had not been outside their own country before. Our role as Youth Leaders was to learn skills around event management and out task was to plan, prepare and deliver the festival competition for the last two days. The skills required and developed were all transferable skills which I believe will equip me well going from school to my adult life. Communication, time management and recognising strengths in other people were key skills that I appreciated learning. The workshop session on safeguarding was a highlight for me as it made me think about how I move around in my community especially as I have now left the safety of my secondary school. On returning home I realised how important the Hook in4 Health Program is and have engaged with Georgina Bon in Lae to act as a volunteer within the program.’
Grace Wateha’a – Athlete (Solomon Islands):
‘I got selected to be part of the Camp with others from PNG, Tonga, Fiji, Samoa and Vanuatu and I learnt so much over 4 days. Using the Journal for both workshops and for homework made me really think about what we had learnt. Because we were all staying together it was interesting to learn how they made choices on food and safeguarding. I made so many new friends being involved in Hook in4 Health and through the camp. It also taught me different ways to communicate as we had different languages. Building teamwork was a challenge, as we did not know many people in our team, coming from different countries, but this was good as it meant we had to not be shy but include every one quickly. The opportunity to get support from different coaches, especially the 2 international coaches, Australian Amy Ryan and South African Olympian Pholo. This was an amazing chance to learn from quality coaches and they all had different styles – we played lots of small games to learn the skills.’
Shana Nunua – Athlete (Vanuatu):
‘I got selected to participate in the FIH OHF Youth Camp in Honiara in December. This was a huge highlight as I have never had a passport, been on a plane, or travelled outside Vanuatu before. One of the things I loved about the camp was that we learned about taking care of ourselves, to be more healthy and not eat sugary foods and drinks but also how to keep safe, the safeguarding and nutrition topics were a big part of the first 2 days of the workshop sessions of the camp. Some of the skills and coaching styles were different to what I was used to but the coaching was so positive from all the coaches that they gave me the confidence to try new skills and even if I made a mistake I was encouraged to keep trying them as that is the way to learn. The Hook in4 Health program teaches us to Live Well, Learn Well, and Lead Well, through hockey and by using the Journal and now after the Youth Camp I can see how I have learnt things in each of these areas that will help as I grow.’