In Hockive Fact 9 we recorded that England men’s first four international matches were all against Ireland in the 1890s. We therefore asked why they had not played Wales in those four years, especially as Wales had featured in the first ever hockey international against Ireland in 1895.
We now have the answer, albeit a quote from an Irish correspondent which, at this stage and certainly without physical evidence, should be taken more as supposition than concrete fact. That said, the alleged reason was that The Hockey Association (England) did not consider the Welsh strong enough to warrant holding an international match.
Another interesting fact from this very early era of international hockey is that originally, in 1895, all players had to be born in the country they represented. Within two years this was changed to, "birth or two years residence".
