HDF Stories
Check out these great stories from some of our members who have been supported by the Development Fund.
Also check out our latest Livelife magazine for even more stories of our members achievements!
Remember, the Development Fund is open to all our HASSRA members who meet the criteria as outlined in the HASSRA Development Fund Booklet (click the following link for an accessible version of the HDF form).
So why not apply – we’d love to see your stories published here in the future!
Lisa's Hockey Coaching International success!
Lisa Prince received support from the fund to help her as part of the coaching team with the England Ladies 50's Hockey Team. Here's her story:
I wanted to thank you for the generous sponsorship I received to enable me to lead the England Ladies 50's Hockey Team to a silver medal in the World Cup 2026. We narrowly lost 1-0 to Argentina in the final – literally 3 minutes to go when we conceded the goal. The event was held over the last 2 weeks with the final being played on 1 August. I was the lead coach with this team – my 7th season in charge and proud to say this was my only 4th loss throughout my tenure.
We were pooled against: Uruguay – 1 -1 DREW. Chile – 7-0 WIN. USA – 7-0 WIN. Scotland – 2 -0 WIN.
We then played Scotland again in the quarter final where we won 5 -0. New Zealand were our semi final opponents – they were finalists at last world cup – We won 2-0, then lost to Argentina 1 -0 in the final.
We scored a very credible 24 goals and conceded just 2.
Very proud to come away with a Silver Medal however we should have won! Even Argentina said we were the better team in the final along with a number of other nations. Just needed that little ounce of luck
A fantastic event hosted by the Netherlands. Age groups consisted from Over 35s, over 40s, over 45s and over 50 – men and women's teams. In total there were 140 teams entered and the largest event ever held. Teams from North and South America, most of Europe.
Congratulations Lisa, another great achievement!
Lucija takes to the court.
With assistance from the fund, Lucija travelled to Denmark to train with some of the top Badminton coaches in Europe. She also attended our July Festival representing HASSRA Scotland, coming runner-up in the mixed doubles after some excellent play in a very hard fought final.
Thanks to HASSRA's support, I was able to attend a week-long badminton training camp in Denmark. The camp provided the opportunity to train in a high-performance environment, take part in coaching and match play, and develop my skills alongside players from across the world. Many of the coaches had competed at the highest levels of the sport, including international and Olympic competition, making it a particularly valuable experience.
Over the course of the week, I challenged myself on court and identified key areas to focus on in my future training. Opportunities like this are not regularly available to me, so it was a fantastic experience and an important step in my development as a player.
I would like to thank HASSRA for their contribution towards the costs of attending the camp. The support helped make the opportunity more accessible and allowed me to take part in a valuable week of training and learning.
I would encourage anyone considering applying for support to do so. Funding like this can help make opportunities more achievable and allow you to gain experiences that support both your progress and enjoyment of your chosen activity.
Phil kicks his way to success.
Phil Prjanikov tells of his story of sporting success:
The support received from HASSRA was a massive help for both me as a player and my wife Debi as my nominated caddy as we made our way to Florida to represent England at the FootGolf World Cup.
Previous assistance allowed me to attend more competitions in the lead up to the World Cup and this support helped me to qualify for the World Cup squad representing England. I was introduced to FootGolf at a HASSRA event by Andrew ‘Sensei’ McCourt and have been hooked ever since, it’s a hobby/sport that has given me something to focus on after stopping playing football.
With HASSRA’s support I have been able to develop as a FootGolfer from a local HASSRA competition participant to a World Cup player. HASSRA funding has helped massively with this journey.
The best thing is anyone can also share this journey, I am nowhere near one of the best players out there but I strive to keep improving. I love playing the HASSRA competitions as I see new players that may one day enter some tour competitions, play some club league matches and totally get into FootGolf.
Jane keeps on running.
Jane received help towards her running journey, and has continued to progress:
"I raised £601 funds for the brain tumour charity, and completed the London half marathon race!
It was an amazing experience and I'm now planning my next running achievement".
