Tiger Fellner

My hockey background

I have been playing hockey for almost 8 years, starting when I was 7 in primary school. Back then I played every sport but it didn’t take long for me to realise that I wanted to take hockey seriously. When I went into secondary school I was playing for Richmond hockey club and my school’s A team and following my first season I was nominated for country trials. I made it into the team and played two seasons at u13 and u14 representing London. At this time, I also captioned my school’s A team to a national final in which we placed 4th in the country in the second tier.

When I moved into the u15 age category I became eligible for a talent academy nomination. This was a massive jump in technical ability as well as physical capability but after working hard over numerous trials I found out I was selected into the squad. For this first season, I was the youngest on a team that ranged from ages 14-18 and I absolutely loved everything about it. Not only was the hockey and the coaching at an incredibly high standard, I found myself making friends that I would not have met otherwise. From an amazing tour in Valencia to the England hockey festival in July I found I improved massively, but this growth was not limited to on the pitch, I felt my mentality had shifted and I was becoming a much more mature and well-rounded player. This season playing at a high standard enabled me to experience being a part of a performance squad and I was growing in ability and confidence. 

Now, as my u16 season comes to an end, I have just spent my second year representing HWHC Talent Academy as we continue working towards this year's talent academy festival that will take place in July. Once again, this environment challenged me and I found myself improving, in particular on our tour in Holland in which junior international teams were present. This year I was also playing for Richmond Hockey Club u16’s as we progressed all the way to the national tier 2 final, which we won. This was an incredible moment for our team as we had spent several years playing together, yet this was our first final. In the game, I scored a hat-trick that led us on to victory, a special moment for myself and the team.

I often find myself adapting to various positions on the pitch, whilst I love to score goals and often play in the forward line, my other strengths lie in my vision, skills and speed, giving me enjoyment in a midfield position. I have experience playing in a centre mid role, distributing and playmaking, however more commonly play as a wide forward, attacking purposely and finding outcomes. 

Over my years playing hockey, I have found great success and enjoyment on the pitch whilst simultaneously being immersed in supportive environments that have aided my character development significantly.

Why I want to play college field hockey

I think playing hockey in the US would be an incredible experience. Firstly, there is of course the excitement that comes with exploring a new country and meeting new people. I also think that this opportunity would encourage me to explore things outside my comfort zone, enhancing my ability to get involved in new communities alongside developing resilience through new challenges.

Another extremely appealing feature of playing sports in the US is the facilities that are available and the high level of hockey that is accessible. To be able to pair such high-level athletic programmes with academic achievements it's something very important to me as I want to succeed in both these areas.

Finally, I have always valued the relationships that I have made in the teams I have been involved with. Whether it's support and trust between myself and a coach or friendship and guidance from my teammates, this is something I want to find in whatever environment I'm a part of and going to the US seems to be such a great opportunity to develop these new relationships and meet new people to continue my journey with.