Meet the Board
Chairperson
Bill Riley
Bill is a Chartered Mechanical Engineer he has extensive engineering and project management experience across many industry sectors including, Food and Drink, Semiconductor and Agrochemicals. He has been an elected Board member for a number of years.
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He is married to Louise and has 3 children, as a family they are all mad about hockey and as such are all involved in hockey in South Wales in one guise or other.
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Bill is a level 1 coach, and is also a Level 1 umpire.
Company Secretary
TBA
TBA
Board Director
Andrea Byrne
Andrea Byrne is one of the faces of ITV News. She anchors the BAFTA award-winning daily news programme Wales at Six, as well as ITV’s national bulletins. This has included ITV Weekend News, Lunchtime News, Evening News and News at Ten. Prince Harry and David Cameron are among the many high-profile names she has interviewed.
Andrea also presents the current affairs programme Wales This Week and presents her own fertility podcast ‘Making Babies’.
She is an ambassador for ‘The Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scheme’; a Trustee for the organ donation charity ‘Believe’ and a Non-Executive Director for Hockey Wales.
Andrea is married to Wales and Lions legend Lee Byrne. She is passionate about wellbeing and pioneered the introduction of Mental Health First Aiders in ITV’s newsrooms.
Away from the newsroom, she is a keen yogi, a novice stand-up paddle-boarder and a budding novelist!
Board Director
David Francis
David is the Managing Director of The Alliance Against Counterfeit Spirits, a joint venture organization that represents the world’s major international spirits producing companies. Prior to joining AACS David spent more than 20 years working for a number of large UK corporates in a variety of global finance roles. Most recently David spent 4 years as Finance Director for Johnson Matthey’s Global Clean Air business. Before joining Johnson Matthey, David worked for Castrol (a BP company) as Head of Finance for Global Supply Chain, Marketing and Technology. He was also the Global Head of Financial Control and Internal Audit.
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Prior to that David spent 12 years at Diageo in a variety of finance roles, starting in audit and risk and finishing as Finance Director for Global Travel Retail, the Middle East and North Africa.
Alongside his work commitments David chairs the Audit & Risk Committee at Audit Wales, the Finance & Resources Committee at the University of South Wales and the Finance Committee at the Brandon Trust. David is also a Governor at Ysgol Gymraeg Gwynllyw.
Board Director
David Hagendyk
Bio to follow
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Board Director
James Fortnam
James is a Market Director for Wales, Scotland & Ireland within Robert Half, a $6bn staffing and consultancy business.
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During his time, he was recognised as a global top performer as well as a top UK performer, his expertise lies within executive consultancy, Stakeholder engagement, commercial revenue generation & performance management.
Alongside his corporate career, James is a former international hockey player, earning nearly 50 senior caps for Wales and representing the nation at the 2018 Commonwealth Games & 2 A-Divisions. With over 13 years of club-level experience at Cardiff & Met Hockey Club, he remains deeply committed to the sport.
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James combines elite sporting insight with strategic leadership to support the organisation’s growth, champion inclusive governance, and strengthen commercial partnerships across the Welsh hockey community.
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Board Director
Jeevan Singh Chagger
Jeevan Singh Chagger has been involved in hockey for nearly two decades, taking up volunteer roles at his own club where he is chair as well as being an official and playing member. Jeevan's careers has had a focus on education and breaking down barriers to increase participation across a range of different activities including sport and ensuring opportunities are accessible to a diverse range of needs within the community.
Aside from Hockey, Jeevan is a sports enthusiast who likes to keep fit and active and enjoys watching the Cricket (in all it's formats)
Board Director
John Bowyer
John may be a rare figure in Welsh hockey—someone who’s never played the sport himself. His background lies in rugby, both as a player and a WRU referee for over 25 years. However, his passion for hockey has grown through his family’s deep involvement: his son and grandson play for Swansea, his daughter has captained the Welsh Masters more than any other player, and his granddaughters are active in junior hockey. Supporting them across the globe inspired John to contribute to the sport’s development in Wales.
Now retired from a successful career in the food industry—where he held senior roles in major UK companies and led Wales’ largest chilled and frozen food manufacturer—John brings strategic insight and commercial experience to hockey. He’s also known for helping establish a fisherman’s co-operative that boosted the Welsh fishing industry.
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John is committed to helping hockey grow, especially by attracting commercial funding to ease financial burdens and expand access. He says, “I don’t know how successful I’ll be, but I will try awfully hard.” His dedication and fresh perspective make him a valuable asset to Welsh hockey’s future.
Board Director
Kate Williams
Kate, an elected director of Hoci Cymru, has been heavily involved in hockey for 40 years, both as a player and as a volunteer.
As a coach, and umpire, Vice Chair and Volunteer Coordinator of Carmarthen Athletic Hockey Club, she understands the challenges that clubs are facing on a week to week basis, which adds to the insight that she is able to bring to board. Kate is dedicated to developing clubs and creating inclusive environments where everyone can thrive. Her love for hockey and commitment to community sports continue to drive her efforts to enhance the game at all levels.
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Off the pitch, Kate serves as the Head of Strategic Partnerships and Development with the West Wales Sports Partnership. She is married to an exceptionally patient husband and is a proud mother to an 18-year-old daughter. When not near a hockey pitch Kate can usually be found on a beach with her three rescue dogs.
Board Director
Matt Clement
Matt is an experienced sports leader and coach developer with more than 15 years’ experience across high-performance sport, coach education, and talent development.
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He currently leads global education strategy at FIFA, designing and delivering programmes that support coach and technical leader development across more than 200 national associations. Matt has been at the forefront of creating innovative learning systems in elite sport, including blended coach education, leadership mentoring, and the use of emerging technologies in learning.
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Matt has held coaching and player-development roles across the professional game in Wales, including coaching positions at Cardiff City and Swansea City, supporting youth and emerging talent pathways. He has also served as a national youth coach and coach educator for the FAW, contributing to player and coach development structures across Welsh football.
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He holds an MSc in Sports Directorship, an MSc in Coaching Science, a PGCE in Post-Compulsory Education, and UEFA coaching qualifications. Passionate about inclusive leadership and talent pathways, Matt is committed to supporting the continued growth of Welsh sport and contributing to the future development of hockey across Wales.