Australian Hockey League to run from October 6-28

The 2018 Australian Hockey League (AHL) will be played across four weekends in October and act as a pilot for a new look league in 2019.

The competition will be held from October 6-28, with states and territories split into pools.

Each team will play three weekends of home-and-away matches against the other sides in their pool before finals are played in a central location from October 25-28.

Several rule innovations and game modifications will also be tested ahead of possible inclusion in the re-launched league in 2019.

The announcement from Hockey Australia chief executive Matt Favier came after 18 months of consultation, research and testing.

“We are delighted to have formalised the model for the 2018 AHL which provides an ideal pilot competition with a month-long schedule, fixtures in every state and territory and rule innovations as we strive to define our fully revised model for 2019,” he said.

The pilot model will include 12-minute quarters, match day squads of 14 players, an automatic one-on-one with the goalkeeper for an extra point after a field goal and potential power plays.

Drawn games will go to a penalty shoot-out to determine a winner.

The governing body will look to equalise talent in 2019 by introducing a draft.

For information visit www.hockey.org.au.