National Field Hockey veterans, Ken Pereira and Rob Short have reached 318 international caps, surpassing Canadian Cap Record holder, Bubli Chohan. For over a decade, Chohan has held Team Canada’s National Men’s Field Hockey Cap Record. His record of 317 caps was broken on Tuesday, April 19th 2011 in Belfast Ireland, when Team Canada and Team Ireland tied in international play with a score of 0-0.
At the 2010 World Cup held in Delhi, India, Ken Pereira and Rob Short both reached 300 caps. “In all honesty I was expecting this moment for a while” says Bubli Chohan. “I'm happy for Ken and Rob especially knowing how dedicated and passionate they are for the sport and it was a lot of fun playing with both of them for a few years before I retired”.
“Reaching 318 caps is an outstanding accomplishment, and to have two senior players break the long standing Canadian cap record, during the same game, is extraordinary!” Stated Mary Cicinelli, President of Field Hockey Canada. “Canada should be proud of the dedication and commitment Ken and Rob have made to field hockey and sport in Canada.”
Ken Pereira and Rob Short met on the Junior National team in 1990 and both joined the Senior National Team in 1994. Since then, they have competed in 2 Olympic Games (2000, 2008), 2 World Cups (1998, 2010), 4 Commonwealth Games (1998, 2002, 2006, 2010), 4 Pan American Games (1995, 1999, 2003, 2007), and 3 Pan American Cups (2000, 2004, 2009). In October 2011,, they look forward to the Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico in October. A gold medal Guadalajara will guarantee the Men’s National Field Hockey Team an automatic birth to the Summer Olympics in London, 2012.
“I played my first game for Team Canada in 1994 and I never thought I would play 300+ games for Canada, let alone reaching this milestone set by Bubli”, says Ken. Before leaving on tour Rob commented, “Since my first match, it has always felt amazing to put on a red and white shirt for Canada. It was a dream that I always had and to think that I would be able to enjoy it for 16 years - I could never have imagined such a career”.
Luckily for Canada, Ken and Rob show no signs of slowing down. Just how far will they go? When asked, Ken replied with a smile, “We have a few games left in us and we look forward to the Pan American Games in the Fall and Olympics in London.”
By Dawn Phillips, Field Hockey Canada
