YOU may be surprised to learn that Andover has an active roller hockey club, The Hawks, playing regularly at the ALC. In fact, it has been running for more than 15 years and some of the senior players have been involved since the club was formed.

The Hawks' lack of publicity has not been due to any fault of Advertiser Sport but the local club like so many others in the town did not have anyone who was prepared to take on the role of press officer, mainly due to their shortage of numbers.

But that now seems to have changed with the appointment of a new manager and club committee who are keen to develop in the town what is an exciting sport which is similar to ice hockey but with the players wearing in-line roller blades instead of ice skates.

"The main difference between the two is that there is no deliberate body-checking in roller hockey but, despite the less physical confrontation, it's still a fast and exciting game," said club official Keith Preston.

He added that clothing and protective equipment are the same as ice hockey and use a puck. There are various roller hockey groups and associations in the UK and The Hawks are affiliated to the National In-Line Roller Hockey League (NIRHA).

The Hawks runs teams at under-14 and undr-18 level as well as the senior side, and all three teams played in tournaments at the end of a season which runs from September to June.

Preston said that they were also considering starting an under-12's league at the ALC this season if there were enough players. "It can be an expensive sport to get started but we've recently bought, with the aid of a grant from Test Valley Borough Council, various items of equipment which prospective players can use while they decide whether to take up the game but anyone wishing to take it up must have their own set of roller-blades," he added.

The club trains every Friday evening and at midday on Sundays at the ALC, and all the matches take place at weekends. The Hawks are always on the lookout for new members, both male and female, and if anyone is interested in joining them they should contact the ALC for further details or alternatively go along to a training session where everyone will be given a warm welcome.