THE return of the Fiji Hockey Federation (FHF) State of Origin tournament is being used as a way to revive the sport in districts where the sport is no longer played.
The tournament, featuring hosts Lautoka, Ba, Nadi, Lami, Nausori, Suva and Levuka will be held next weekend has not been played for almost a decade.
FHF development officer Tai Smith said of those districts, Lami and Nausori were two districts where the sport was no longer played.
She said players from the two towns came to Suva to ply their trade as love for the sport but they wanted to spark revivals in their hometowns.
"Traditional giants like Lautoka, Nadi, Ba and Levuka have been active in the sport but is not as big as Suva," Smith said.
"But the reason why we have Lami and Nausori competing is because the players from these towns are playing in the Suva league," she said.
The idea of the return of the tournament was put forward during an FHF executive meeting earlier this year and Smith is optimistic it will live up to expectations.
"The first step is starting off and that is what we are doing because after we get it up and running then the interest will increase.
"So if you look at towns like Lami and Nausori, they may not have any competition but after this tournament, we may have some players or interested people who may want to take up the sport and represent their place of origins."
Meanwhile, organisers of the tournament are still trying to secure a sponsor for it.
"We are still looking for a sponsor and we have sent out some requests.
"We know everyone is facing hard times right now but we are not asking for anything major and any form of assistance be it cash or kind will help with the running of the tournament.
"We are trying to revive one of the Olympic sports in this country and any form of assistance will be appreciated," Smith said.
The tournament to be played at the Nadovu Park Hockey Courts on July 21 and 22 will be played in a round robin format.