Raph Robeson on shoot-out heroics, England aspirations and charity swims
Maddie Hinch's penalty shoot-out heroics to win Team GB an Olympic gold medal helped inspire Raph Robeson’s hockey dreams. And the 18-year-old from Cranleigh is fast developing a reputation as a shoot-out specialist herself as she bids to follow in Maddie's glittering Games footsteps.
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Raph, a keen footballer in her younger days, began life between the sticks five years ago having had it recommended to her as the only position on a hockey field where kicking the ball was an option. She’s enjoyed a steady rise ever since and, like Maddie, has saved many of her finest moments for the big occasion.
“I’ve been involved in a couple of national finals and both have gone to penalties,” she said. “We won on both occasions – once with my club at the time, Guildford, and then with school [Wellington College]. I really enjoy the pressure and it brings the best out of me.
“I first got properly into hockey when I started playing in goal and I really looked up to Maddie Hinch. I watched England play at Lee Valley and I got her autograph – she was really inspirational, especially after the Olympics.
“Those 2016 Games really inspired me – it was so great to see Team GB win, especially in a penalty shoot-out. She did a Zoom talk for us in the summer with our England Under-18s side, which was really interesting, and I’ve known John Hurst, her coach, since the start of my journey. He has helped me out a lot.”
Raph now represents Wimbledon Hockey Club alongside her England age-group commitments and helped them win promotion in their last league match before lockdown took hold last year. On-field action has been stop-start since amid three national lockdowns but a lack of on-field action has not dented the Surrey stopper’s ultimate ambitions.
“My long-term aim is to go as far in the senior pathway as I can,” she said. “I have trained a few times with the elite development programme and I’m hoping to do so again soon. I just want to keep progressing and maybe one day play for the senior side. I plan to go to university – I’m not sure where yet – and I’ll be keeping up my hockey alongside studies.”
Hockey may have been Raph's primary sport for several years but she is also a keen runner and swimmer who has embarked on two relay swims across the channel for charity.
“It took a lot of training,” she said. “We were in the sea on Brighton beach every morning – no wetsuits, just swimsuits. The challenge itself was really difficult. Each of us did one hour in, then you’d have five hours off and another hour in. But we came through it – one year it took 13 hours, and another just over 11. In terms of pure endurance, it’s definitely the hardest thing I’ve done. But I’ve had tough experiences in hockey too, like the penalty shoot-outs. It’s a different kind of challenge.”
The prospects of Raph fulfilling her ambitions are being boosted by a partnership between SportsAid and Gateley – a leading legal and professional services firm who work with forward thinkers and new talent, in both business and sport.
As well as financial support, Raph can take heart from the success enjoyed by SportsAid alumni such as Mo Farah, Jessica Ennis-Hill and Dina Asher-Smith as she joins an esteemed list of those who have benefited from similar assistance.
Gateley are proudly partnering with SportsAid to give additional support to promising stars across the country and Raph said: “This is the first time I’ve been involved with SportsAid and it’s great.
“There are so many kit costs as a keeper when you play a lot – the padding, the helmets and all the rest – so it means a lot to have that support. It’s difficult for everyone at the moment but this is really motivating and inspiring.”
Gateley is a legal and professional services group working with forward thinkers and new talent, in both business and in sport. They are proudly partnering with SportsAid to give additional support to promising young athletes across the country in a variety of sports.
