Life Member - Cyril Dakiniewicz

Cyril Dakiniewicz deservedly joins the list of Hockey Australia Life Members after being a longstanding and highly respected official at national and international level.

Heralding from South Australia, Cyril obtained his international umpiring badge in 1980 which saw him go on to officiate as a Senior Championship panel umpire for seven years from 1981-1987.

He then turned his focus to umpire managing, a role which he held down at numerous Australian championships as well as the 2007 Indoor Asian Games.

Cyril spent 28 years on the Hockey Australia Appointments Committee and was also a key umpire selector for all age level national championships across both outdoor and indoor hockey.

Furthermore, his love and passion for the game saw him undertake various Technical Official roles including at a number of World Cups and the 2008 Olympic Games.

Cyril was awarded the Australian Sports Medal in 2000, the award given to recognise those who have contributed to making Australia a nation of sporting excellence.

Throughout his various roles, Cyril continued to play with Sturt Hockey Club (now known as Adelaide Hockey Club), a club he played at for 40 years, while he also represented South Australia at Under 21 level.

Cyril’s Life Membership was ratified in 2019.

What he said…
“It is a great honour and a very nice surprise. I have been involved in hockey in many ways, playing, umpiring, administering, technical and umpire coaching and development. I was also involved in those roles with Indoor hockey. They all gave me a great deal of enjoyment and satisfaction and I have met and worked with many great people. I really appreciate being awarded life membership.” Cyril Dakiniewicz

From those in the know…
“His service to hockey over so many years is quite amazing. In addition to what is included in his CV, Cyril has been involved in assessment of umpires at national championships (indoor and outdoor) for over 30 years. He has also been involved in umpires coaching courses (indoor and outdoor) throughout SA and nationally for decades. He is a great servant of our game.” Dennis Meredith (Hockey Australia Life Member)

Hockey Timeline
Player
South Australia
Played with Sturt Hockey Club (now Adelaide Hockey Club) for 40 years including Premier League
Represented South Australia at National Under 21 Championships

Umpire
International
1980 International Badge
1981-1987 Senior Championship panel umpire (Outdoor)
Senior Championship panel umpire (Indoor)

Umpire Manager
Australia
1987-2010 Indoor National Championships
Outdoor National Championships (multiple age groups)

International
2007 Indoor Asian Games

Tournament Director
Multiple National Championships

Umpire Administrator
Member of Hockey Australia Officiating (Umpire, Umpire Manager and Technical Official) Appointments Committee for 28 years until 2016
Responsible for the selection of all outdoor and indoor men’s national championship umpire panels from U13s to international matches

Technical Official
International
FIH Outdoor 4 Nations (China)
2007 Indoor World Cup Technical Officer
2003 Indoor World Cup Judge
2001 Junior World Cup Judge
2008 Olympic Qualifier Judge
2010 World Cup Qualifier Technical Officer