KEY POINTS:
Shane McLeod will push memories of one of the darker days of his hockey career aside when the New Zealand men tackle the Olympic qualifying tournament here early next year.
As Black Sticks coach, McLeod will be hoping the new water-based surface at North Harbour's Crown Relocations Stadium is a happier hunting ground than when he played one of his last games there.
Representing North Harbour in the first season of the new-look National Hockey League in 1999, McLeod copped a ball just above his left eye while defending a penalty corner.
He fell to the turf, his head quickly leaking a pool of blood before being taped up and stretchered off.
It was the third of three serious injuries McLeod suffered in his playing days. He also got smacked on the side of his head - a nasty injury which left him with a cracked eye-socket and needing a reconstruction. Then, while playing in Australia, a smashed finger required surgery to fuse an artificial bone in the end knuckle.
But injuries, seen as a byproduct of a sport played at uncompromising pace, have not dulled McLeod's enthusiasm for the game in which he now holds the key coaching reins.
His appointment to the role left vacant when long-serving coach Kevin Towns switched camps to lead the national women's side came a little earlier than expected.
"I always wanted to get back into the New Zealand system," said McLeod, 37. "Ideally it was envisaged it would be a couple of years down the track before I took this job."
McLeod played 20 times for New Zealand in 1995-96. His last appearance was the triumphant World Cup qualifier in Cagliari, Italy, before going on to play and coach in France and Belgium.
In his younger days, he first played hockey in Hamilton when he was 11 and went on to represent Waikato at Hatch Cup, under-15, under-18 and under-21 levels before playing in Christchurch while at Teachers College.
"I then came to Auckland and played for ABC in the North Harbour competition from 1991-99," said McLeod. While based on Auckland's North Shore and playing either inside-right or right wing, he fitted in his internationals, scoring four goals.
"Initially I headed to France but the contract I expected to sign to coach there fell through, so I ended up in Belgium. I was going to just coach but we were short and I finished up as player-coach for four seasons.
"Hockey there was far more structured with different systems of play," said McLeod. "It was good from a coaching point of view to learn the different styles of European hockey."
He also had a spell as head coach of Belgium's national women's side. The opportunity to return here to work alongside Towns and head the recently established Kelt Capital Hockey Academy in Hawkes Bay lured him back to New Zealand.
After taking the assistant coach role under Towns last year, McLeod was appointed interim head coach for the three-match series against the Dutch in January. He marked his debut with an impressive first-up victory.
After calling for applications from New Zealand and overseas, Hockey New Zealand eventually went back to McLeod, an appointment which has met universal approval.
"Coaching the New Zealand team is something I have always wanted to do but before I could commit to it I had to make sure everything was in place before I could resign from the academy, as they have been very good to me," he said.
"It is now a win-win situation."
He has appointed highly regarded South African coach and former 200-test player Greg Nicol as his assistant.
Nicol, ending a coaching stint in England, will be in New Zealand from next month, when he will also take over from McLeod in heading the Hawkes Bay academy.
Already shuffling between Napier and Auckland to continue his work with the national squads, McLeod faces a testing introduction to his initial two-year term with the Black Sticks.
After training camps, he will take the national side to Belgium for the Champions Challenge (for teams ranked 7-12 in the world, with New Zealand at 10) tournament in June-July.
"It will be a good chance to work with the players in a tournament being played near where I lived in Antwerp," said McLeod. "It will need a big effort to win that and get into the next Champions Trophy, but it will give us some great hockey."
In September the Black Sticks face a three-test series with Australia, the winner claiming an automatic Olympic spot.
If they miss out there, McLeod will then look to February's tournament on his home patch where the pressure will be intense with just the winning team, of six, claiming an Olympics spot.
THE CV
*Shane McLeod
*Born: September 4, 1969, Hamilton.
*Representative: Age groups Waikato. NHL, North Harbour 1991-99.
*Represented NZ: 20 tests, 1995-96. Debut v US, Lloyd Elsmore Park, November 25.
*International goals: Four.
