Golden Gate Rippers Field Hockey Club is passionate about developing youth and high school field hockey in the North Bay. We are proud to be the first field hockey club in the North Bay, established in 2019. We welcome players of ALL skill levels, including those new to the sport. Athletes are taught by experienced field hockey coaches and learn specific skills, strategies and teamwork through our practices and tournament play.
Our fall club program is open to grades 5-9. Our spring season and summer camps are open to grades 5-12. We can also help facilitate private or small group skills sessions (please contact us for more details).
For elite level players looking for travel team experience, please reach out to Coach Copp for a referral to the NorCal Bears Travel Team. Created to pool players from local club teams, Rippers players can participate with NorCal Bears for regional and national tournaments and Rippers for local tournaments.
USA FIELD HOCKEY MEMBERSHIP REQUIRED FOR ALL PLAYERS
Due to insurance requirements, all players must be members of the USA Field Hockey Association in order to participate in practices and non-USFHA sponsored local tournaments. You must purchase your annual USFHA membership through us for $10 during registration. Memberships last for one year. Note: if your child will be participating in a regional tournament or an event sponsored by USFHA tournament, you will have to purchase a full USA Field Hockey Membership directly from the USFHA ($25 for U12 and $60 for U14-U19; please select "Golden Gate Rippers" as your club affiliation). We will let you know whether a tournament or event is sponsored by USFHA in advance.
Waiver Required
All players new to Rippers are required to turn in a USFHA Waiver & Liability Form before you can play (practice or games). Waivers will be filled out electronically during registration. Additional waivers may be required depending on the program.
Required Equipment
*If interested in purchasing your own gear, please check out our field hockey equipment page for recommendations.
Sessions are rain or shine! If a practice is cancelled due to severe weather, we will try to reschedule a makeup session.
Notes on practices
If you can't make all the practice dates (e.g., you've committed to soccer or lacrosse and can only make 5 practices), please email us, and we can give you a promo code to use BEFORE (with) registration. Please do not register and ask for a pro-rate refund as this impacts operations. If you're unsure if your child will like field hockey, email us about trying a practice (even if the season has started). You can also come to our first practice to try it out and register after (please bring mouthguard and shin guards). We are more than happy to work with you! No refunds for missed practices or tournaments once the season has started.
JULY Rippers is offering two July camps this summer: one for incoming 6th, 7th and 8th graders and one for high school players. The first half of practice will cover stick skills and drills, followed by two 25 minute halves of scrimmages (so attendance is very important). The goal is to provide a lot of competitive playing time to prepare players for game play and to have fun! There are limited spots available to give everyone ample scrimmage time.
July skills and scrimmage camp for incoming 6th, 7th and 8th graders - LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE
July skills and scrimmage camp for incoming 9th graders and up - (for players with field hockey experience) - LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE
AUGUST Rippers is offering a 3-day August preseason field hockey camp. The camp is open to 5th-12th graders and players will be placed in the respective age/skills groups. This camp is a great way for incoming freshmen and returning high school players to get ready for their school preseason and tryouts, which starts the following week. For middle school players, it's a great way to introduce players to the sport and prepare them for our Rippers 2024 Fall Club Season. The camp will cover all aspects of the sport, including skills and strategy development along with plenty of scrimmage time.
August Preseason Camp
*If you can only attend part of the camp, we can prorate your fee. For example, we can prorate it to be a 2 day camp.
Dates: Saturdays - September 7th - November 2nd (9th is a potential makeup day)
Time: 8am-10am
Grades: 5-8 – ALL skill levels (*Option available for current 9th graders that are not on a JV or varsity field hockey team)
Location: Ghilotti Turf Field at Redwood High School
Cost: $570 (the registration fee is due in full on or before the first practice. Rippers shirt included for new players or those that need a new size).
*If you are new to field hockey, you are welcome to come to the first practice and try it out. If you like it, we can sign you up, and if not, no worries! We can also prorate the registration fee for those who cannot make the whole season. Please email us before registering.
Tournaments:
Players can sign up to participate in optional fall tournaments for an additional fee that is calculated at cost to keep it as low as possible.
Rippers is excited to offer high performance skills clinics during the hockey “off season” for players interested in ramping up their individual skills. These are intense sessions that focus on honing advanced stick skills and hitting technique. High school players will be divided into 2 skill groups for better player-to-coach ratio and speed of play. The number of player registrations will be limited to keep the player-to-coach ratio optimal for individual instruction. You MUST have some field hockey experience to participate in these clinics. It is NOT for beginners.
Our winter stick skills and hitting clinic will be 6 sessions. Please note the different practice times by date as 3 practices go until 9am and 3 go until 9:30am.
*Dedicated goalie skills instruction with our awesome international goalie coach Conor Mangat is available!
Dates and Times:
Grades: 8-12
Location: Ghilotti Turf Field at Redwood High School
Cost: $225
Dates: Sundays 2/4 - 5/12 (5/19 will be a make-up date in case we have to cancel a practice)
*There will be NO practice 2/18, 4/7 due to school holidays.
*Tournament weekends: 4 dates, but we do NOT normally practice on tournament weekends (unless otherwise notified in advance).
Times:
Grades: 5-12 – ALL skill levels.
Location: Ghilotti Turf Field at Redwood High School
Cost: $ 595 (registration fee is due in full on or before the first practice. Rippers shirt included for new players or those that need a new size).
*If you are new to field hockey, you are welcome to come to the first practice and try it out. If you like it, we can sign you up, and if not, no worries! We can also prorate the registration fee for those who cannot make the whole season. Please email us before registering.
Tournaments: Rippers will be participating in several tournaments this spring! Participation is optional and requires an additional fee, which is TBD and calculated at cost based on each tournament. More information about tournaments, schedules and registration will be provided during the season as we get updates from tournament organizers.
Tournament Uniforms: all players wear black shorts, their Navy Rippers shirt, and white and navy socks.
Shoes: We play on actual field hockey turf at Cal Berkeley, UC Davis and Stanford tournaments. NO CLEATS are allowed on proper field hockey turf! Wear turf shoes or running shoes. If you wear cleats, you will not be allowed to play!