ALPINERS ANNOUNCE U18 HEAD COACHES

The Alpiners are delighted to announce the appointments of Ben Grant (Men's) and Riley Chandler (Women's) as the head coaches for our inaugural Future Hockey League campaign.

Ben brings a wealth of coaching experience to the role, having most notably coached the Timaru Boys 1st XI for over a decade, delivering the Rankin Cup in 2023.

On his appointment, Grant said, "This is a really cool opportunity to develop a strong bunch of athletes and teach them the Alpiners way. Coming up against some of the best young talent in Australia and NZ is exciting and a challenge we will embrace."

Riley also brings plenty of coaching experience, having coached a variety of representative sides over the past decade. In 2024, she lead Canterbury U18B to a very impressive 5th at the National Tournament, and earlier this year she was the assistant coach for the NZ 35W at the Masters World Cup.

On her appointment, Chandler said, "I’m stoked to have the opportunity to be involved with this campaign. For many of these players, this will be their first real taste of a high-performance environment, and I’m excited to help them make the most of it. Bringing together a talented group, building their confidence and helping them discover what they’re capable of is something I’m really looking forward to. There’s some exciting hockey ahead and I can’t wait for the girls to get stuck in!"

Both Ben and Riley bring southern roots, and we are delighted to formally welcome them into the Alpiners family.