THERE WERE many positives for hockey this year.

Locally, the Barbados Hockey Federation's (BHF) 2007 season flicked off in May with the seven-a-side competition which was won by the Butterfield Bank Empire women and the Combermere School Old Scholars (CSOS) men, who defeated BNB Deacons and All Stars respectively.

This year, there was a shortened league, spanning ten weeks. In the women's Premier League, perennial power houses Butterfield Bank Empire emerged queens with 13 points. BNB Deacons were second on 11 points and re-emerging CSOS third on ten points.

The men's Premier League was even more keenly contested with the winners decided in the last week of competition when Butterfield Bank Empire earned a hard-fought 3-3 draw with CSOS. The result gave CGI Maple the title with 15 points, followed by CSOS, 14 points and the youthful BNB Deacons, 12 points.

Harris Paints Wanderers also had 12 points but Deacons had a better goal difference.

The women's Division One was won by Butterfield Bank Empire, who amassed maximum 21 points from outright wins in all seven of their games. CSOS came second with 13 points by virtue of a better goal difference than third place, Vita Malt All Stars also with 13 points.

These results allowed All Stars the opportunity to challenge the last placed team in the women's Premier League for a spot in the 2008 Premier League and they subsequently won the deciding third game 3-1 after the first two in their best-of-three-series, were drawn to gain promotion.

The Men's Division 1 was won by CSOS for the fourth straight year with 19 points. Second was Harris Paints Wanderers on 15 points and third CGI Maple, on 13 points.

The Knock Out produced very keenly contested and exciting hockey. In the women's final, Empire defeated BNB Deacons 3-1 while the men's final saw the unlikeliest of opponents in the youthful Empire and the YMCA. The League match-up with these two teams had produced goals with YMCA winning 6-5. The tables were turned in the final as the lethal strike force of Empire won 5-3 to signal a Knock-out double for the "Blues".

The 22nd edition of the Banks International Hockey Festival (August 19-25), the jewel in the crown of the BHF, produced a satisfyingly high quality of play with local teams carrying off the four titles.

Dominion, boasting a number of Barbados representatives, toasted their fourth men's crown in the last five years with a 3-2 victory over Grasshappers, a well-oiled unit from The Netherlands. Rohan "Teno" Thomas, who now campaigns in England representing Harrogate in the National League North, inspired the win with three drag flick penalty corner conversions.

A Badd Connection landed the women's competition with an entertaining 3-2 victory over the multi-cultural Old Gold Roosters in the final.

Roosters, locally-based but with players from Barbados, Trinidad & amp; Tobago, Guyana, England, United States and Ireland in their line-up, came up short against a speedy ABC side, led by national cap Patrina Brathwaite.

The mixed title went to Remnants, their ninth success in the past decade, as they halted Dominion's hopes of a double with a 4-2 win in the final.

The veterans division was won by All Stars, who needed penalty strokes to defeat New York Islanders, an American team with a distinctly Caribbean flavour, in the final.

The week-long tournament, which began back in 1986 and has attracted visitors from nearly 20 countries over the past two decades, featured 49 teams this year, with six from the United Kingdom, two from the United States and one each from Trinidad & amp; Tobago, Germany and The Netherlands.

Barbados participated in the Pan American Hockey Federation Caribbean Cup women's and men's competition in Trinidad and Tobago.

With many of the senior players unavailable for a myriad of reasons two youthful teams were selected. The women, led by Dionne Clarke placed third and the men, captained by Rohan Thomas were second. Lana Als and Andre Boyce were adjudged the best goalkeepers.

Vice-captain Chiaka Drake, Nicky Brathwaite and Als were selected on the women's All Star team. The selectees for the men's All Star game were Thomas, Dave Cox and Andre Boyce.

Kim Hoyte and Brian Burrowes (umpires), Karen Bannister and Trevor Callender (judges) officiated at the tournament with Cameron Burke as tournament director.