The Ultimate Guide To Hockey Balls

Welcome to the wonderful world of hockey balls! There are so many different kind of balls, different brands, colours, style etc so we thought we’d make a guide to help you better understand the different types of hockey ball, and why you would use each one. We’ll then take a look at what brands offer different types of hockey balls.

Firstly a few common questions we get:

• What is a hockey ball made out of?

Before 1980 hockey balls were made out of leather with a wooden centre, however nowadays most hockey balls are made of durable plastic. Brands such as Grays, Mercian and Kookaburra all make excellent plastic hockey balls which are hollow in centre. Higher quality hockey balls are usually manufactured with a PVC exterior and a cork centre.

• Why do hockey balls have dimples?

Adding dimples to a hockey ball improves the aerodynamics of the ball and allows the ball to travel faster whilst also controlling the direction it travels (think golf balls). By having an irregular surface it improves the surface drag of the ball allowing for improved speeds of travel.

• How much do hockey balls cost?

Quality = price! The higher the quality of the materials used usually dictates how expensive a hockey ball is. Your average training ball will cost roughly near £4 per ball. If you are looking at match balls these are made of higher quality materials and are usually around the £9 mark.

We’ll start with what types of hockey balls there are:

Generally there are 2 different types of ball; training and match balls. Training balls come in different styles, surface type and weight. Match balls are the higher quality more robust hockey balls which are designed for game days and some balls are designed for higher level hockey. Let’s take a look at training balls first.

TRAINING BALLS

Training balls are your most common ball used in hockey. Balls such as the Mercian training ball and Kookaburra Saturn are your most commonly seen balls used in hockey training sessions throughout the UK. Other brands including TK, Grays  and Shray also manufacture training balls. All of the balls are made of plastic, are robust and can come in different colours such as pink, orange and yellow. However white is the most commonly seen colour. These balls can be used in lower level hockey matches anything below National League level, anything National league or above then match balls are required.

MATCH BALLS

Kookaburra are the only brand currently to provide FIH standard match balls for high level hockey in the UK. Kookaburra offer their standard match balls which is aptly named their ‘Dimple Standard Match ball’. These balls are made with high quality PVC and unlike the training balls which are hollow, these match balls have a cork centre. Although these balls are slightly heavier than training balls, due to the cork centre and high quality PVC outer layer, they travel faster than your standard training ball.

Kookaburra also offer the ‘dimple elite’ hockey ball which is used in all International games due to its super high tolerance level and high quality materials. These balls are very expensive and you won’t need these balls if you are using them for training or even matches. It is only if you play International level should you be using these balls. And at £23 per ball you wouldn’t want to buy too many of them!

FUN BALLS

Brand have come up with some really fun ways of creating hockey balls for anyone to be able to use, especially the junior market! Below are some examples of fun hockey balls that are great for presents for junior players or anyone who is starting out in hockey and would like a ball of their own.

CONCLUSION

When shopping for hockey balls its all about what situation you are wanting to use them for. If they’re a gift for someone and for fun then you can’t go wrong with an emoji ball or Grays Glitter ball. If it’s more serious and you’re looking to purchase for a club or even to use yourself but you want a real high quality ball, then training balls such as the Kookaburra Saturn or Mercian Training ball are both excellent options.

To shop our full range of hockey balls click here