An examination of the role and legacy of the first USFHA-funded British women’s field hockey coaches to travel to America in 1922

In October 1920, 15 American women arrived in Plymouth, England, to take part in the first transatlantic field hockey tour. Three more exchanges between the nations would take place before the end of the decade, and an Irish team also visited the US in 1925. English physical educationalists had introduced field hockey to America in the late-1890s and numerous physical training college graduates were employed by US colleges to teach the game prior to World War One. But demand for British coaches grew exponentially after the Americans' tour and the subsequent visit to the US of an All England Women's Hockey Association (AEWHA) team in October 1921. After the United States Field Hockey Association (USFHA) was formed in January 1922, one of the first things it did was ask the AEWHA to source suitably qualified coaches to travel to the US. Eight women were selected and would play a pivotal role in not only exchanging sporting knowledge, but also in fostering the friendships and comradery that would influence field hockey's development globally in the interwar period.