The game of hockey has evolved massively over the decades, and this change is not restricted to only rules or players, the equipment too has seen a lot of significant improvements. The major upgradation has been seen in the game's weapon of choice - the hockey stick. From being shaped out of bamboo 4,000 years ago to the modern fibreglass version - the hockey stick has come a long way.
The existence of the early hockey stick is traced back to early Egypt, around 4,000 years ago. The Egyptians were the first people to create the field hockey stick out of a bamboo tree. This was proven by the presence of paintings of the stick in Egyptian caves.
In 1886, when an association of hockey clubs came into existence in England, the game became more standardised. This version of the game is as we know it today. The game had also given birth to various versions such as - Shinty, a game popular in Scotland, that uses both sides of a round stick with a curved end, shaped in a similar way to a walking stick;?
The Irish game, - hurling, uses both sides of a stick which is flat on both sides and shaped somewhat like bill-hook with an axe-like handle.?Bandy also uses both sides of the stick. It was called "hockey on ice" in the beginning, as it was considered an ice variety of hockey. The stick in England, possibly because of the close association and enhancement of cricket bat, developed with a stick with just one flat playing side, the left face, below a round grip area¡ªwith the use of the right-face side.
During the final stretch of the century, hockey stick never found one unilateral, profound shape and acceptance. While the rules differed from country to country, the hockey stick too had a visible differentiation in size and form.?
The first major developments to what was later termed the "English style" stick (and the method of play with such sticks) occurred in India. The game in its modern form was apparently brought to India by the British Army, although there does not appear to be any specific evidence of this. But certainly hockey was played by the British forces in India. At that time the stick head was very long in size - in excess of 12-300 mm - and made from an indigenous British timber, ash.
Indians then produced sticks with a much shorter head length and a tighter heel bend and used mulberry, which is tougher than ash, but has similar bending characteristics and weight and is easy to work. This development changed the nature of the game, led to the "Indian dribble" and to Indian dominance of the game in the first half of the twentieth century.
The game grew in India and the mulberry made sticks worked wonders. It also coincided with the wizard Dhyan Chand producing the magic across the world with this hockey stick. The Indian dribble was in full swing now and Chand was at the forefront of it. The success of the Indian team where they won three consecutive Olympic gold medals from 1928-1936, saw the Indian version of the stick gain prominence and it soon began to be widely used. As Dhyan Chand crafted his way to record books and produced crazy tricks and dribbles with his stick, it was seen as an era dominated by his presence and insane skills.
The hockey stick didn't witness any major development up until 1960, more than a decade after legendary Dhyan Chand's retirement from the game.
The most revolutionary change in the history of hockey came in the 1960s when use of fiberglass sticks were introduced. The wood blades were wrapped in fiberglass, and the usage of fiberglass made sticks cheaper, lighter, and more durable. The light weight gave players more time to make their shots. The dribble and run through the defences which needed more use of physical power to execute became easier as stick was moving more freely in hands. In the 1970s more reinforcements followed with carbon and aramid as well as glass fibre being used to produce sticks. The heel bend of the Indian stick of the 1970s underwent changes and now it covered the whole ball. The change made it possible to hit the ball long and also allowed players to gather it in their wings.
In 1982 a Dutch inventor, Toon Coolen, patented a hockey stick with a "hook" head. The British hockey stick manufacturers Grays, took the design up in 1983 and the first mass-produced hockey sticks, with laminated timber head parts, were manufactured in Pakistan. This new design was possible because of the development of resin glues that did not require perfectly dry timber for bonding and curing to a strength that could cope with the immense stress placed on a stick head when a hockey ball is struck with it. That opened the way for the appearance of more J-shaped stick heads and the gradual morphing of the "midi" shape with the hook shape.
In the mid-90s the "hook" head style hockey stick was relaunched, this time by the former German U21 International player Thomas Kille. Bright colours, bold graphics and painted heads were introduced. Manufacturers became much more aware of the look of their products and hockey sticks sold, particularly to new players, as much on colour and fashion as strength and usability.
The dawn of the 21st century also came with a revamp of its own - the number of wood core sticks in use declined paving way for a? moulded "composites" becoming the norm. Composite hockey sticks are built using a variety of advanced, high-tech performance materials that deliver superior strength, flex, feel, and power. Not only that, composite sticks are the lightest weight and most durable.
From bamboo to fiberglass, hockey stick has had quite a revamp.