England’s first female Sikh hockey player looks to inspire future generations

Sandeep Maan (pictured above) stepped onto the pitch at the Masters Indoor World Cup in Nottingham this past April becoming the first Asian and Sikh female hockey player to represent England at Masters Level.

In doing so, Maan fulfilled a lifelong ambition. Her impact, however, extends far wider than a personal bucket list, as she provided invaluable representation in a sport too often lacking in diversity.

It is a reality that, at times throughout her hockey journey, did not seem possible to Maan herself. But back when she was 10 years old nothing could stop her playing.  She recalls: “They used to do Council-run courses during the Easter holidays. So, I was like, ‘Mum, can I go along?’. It was on grass, but I absolutely loved it.

I’m from a family of five girls. My mum and dad didn’t drive and it was two buses to get training on Sunday. The timetable was horrendous. I had that discipline from an early on because I wanted to do it. I was the one who had to get a bus two hours before training just so I could go.”

Maan has been open about how she first faced racism when she was 11 at Bradford schoolgirls. 

She said: “I grew up in an area where it was predominantly Muslim. We were playing Leeds schoolgirls, a mostly white area. This girl called me a racial slur on the pitch and I was gobsmacked.

I thought ‘we’re here to play a game’. What has my race got to do it? It was horrible. I didn’t know what to do. I remember thinking she can say what she likes to me. I’m going to let my hockey do the talking.”

At age 15 she made her national league debut for Bradford, stick-stopping for GB and England captain Jill Atkins. She went on to represent English and British universities while studying at Salford before heading across the pond to the University of Richmond on a full scholarship for a year.

She said: “I felt like my life was Bend it Like Beckham. Ironically the year that film came out was the same year I was going to America and the same year my sister was getting married.”

Back in England she returned to the National League with Sutton Coldfield followed by spells at Olton & West Warwickshire and Bowdon HC. However in her journey she didn’t have many role models that looked like her.

She said: “At the junior level and in the National League I’d never seen another ethnic minority playing.”

Maan hopes that she can be an inspiration for budding hockey stars. She said: “If I can encourage at least one more girl from an ethnic minority to pick up a stick and get the same fulfilment from playing hockey and travel the world, I’ll be very happy.

Harry Jawanda’s sister has recently started bringing her daughter to hockey. You’re her role model now.”

She hopes to take inspiration from her two sons. She gave up hockey after giving birth to her second son, feeling it was taking too much time away from her sons.

Life was not easy off pitch as just prior to the first Covid she filed for divorce, leaving her to balance homeschooling her two children and work as a single parent.

She recalls: “It was survival mode getting through each day because the boys were only three and five at the time. It was impossible.

I felt mum guilt all the time because I was trying to work and I felt guilty because you’re trying to do the schooling.  I worked really hard over that period and I didn’t have anything to escape with.”

This lack of escape eventually caught up with her and through the encouragement of her sons last year she felt ready to pick up the stick again.

She said: “They kept nagging me ‘mummy you always tell us that you should follow what you want to do and never give up. Have some you time.’”