Hockey: Festival's humming without European giants

The Black Sticks in action against China at last year's Festival of Hockey. Photo / File

Multiple options exist in luring the women's European hockey giants to Hastings but Australia coach Adam Commens says the April window suits the nations already here just fine.

With the European club championship this weekend, Commens says the Hawke's Bay Festival of Hockey will have to reschedule around January/February to entice the likes of the Netherlands, Great Britain and Germany to its premier eight-nation HB Cup tournament.

"For us it's almost our off season through December/January so the Europeans tend to use that as a training moment for their national teams.

"We have the next best eight teams in the world here so it's really a top-class tournament so we applaud Hawke's Bay for putting it on," he said.

If the HB Cup wasn't on now, women would be left high and dry this time of the year.

"We're happy that's it here and really satisfied that we've been invited, actually."

The USA team have become more physical in the past 18 months so the Hockeyroos are bracing themselves. Argentina are up there and Commens singles out China coming on in leaps and bounds in the past six months after their tied series in Australia. Their focus - with the Black Caps - is the Olympic qualifiers in Antwerp, Belgium, while Argentina and the US will do the same in Valencia, Spain.