"I've always believed that if your are involved in a hockey club then if something needs doing, you just get on and do it." So says Wendy Stewart as she explains her long and multi-faceted involvement with hockey. In her time the Scot, who now lives in Canada, has played, coached, administrated and umpired. And this year, at the Rabobank Hockey World Cup, Wendy will be "just getting on and doing it" for the biggest fortnight in the hockey calendar as she pulls on her umpire kit and polishes her whistle.

Professional
Also working at The Hague will be Wendy's biggest fan – husband Tony will also be officiating at the World Cup, in his role as World Cup Judge. This is the first time a husband and wife have officiated at the same World Cup. "We will both be very professional while we are working at The Hague," says Wendy. "In fact I shall just pretend I don't know him most of the time." The married couple are unlikely to bump into each other during the tournament as Wendy will be umpiring women's matches and Tony will be doing all things technical at the men's tournament. However, there is a chance that they might catch a glimpse of each other in action and I asked what Tony would do if Wendy gets any stick from the coaches or players? Was he likely to jump over the barrier and spring to her defence? Wendy laughs: "I think Tony would just leave me to it, he knows I can look after myself."

Leaving hockey at the door
So is it all about hockey in the Stewart household? "Not at all, in fact we rarely mention the 'H' word. It is best to leave that side of things at the door." Wendy is very happy to compartmentalise all aspects of her life. "When we are at hockey events that is our total focus; when I am working (she is an event manager, working for herself) then I am focused on that. It is important for the balance in my life that I separate things out that way."

Tony's role
Tony's role at the World Cup is as one of the four judges. He explains: "I will be assisting the three technical officers and the technical director at the men’s tournament. I will be attending the pre-tournament meetings as required, especially the equipment and passport checks which tend to be busy. "During a match one judge runs the clock and the other the computer, so I’ll be working one or the other for about half the games." "In addition, because of my involvement with the Tournament Management System (TMS) software last year, I will be providing training and support as necessary to the technical officials and team managers (who now submit their starting lineups electronically) of both tournaments. TMS requires a reliable internet connection pitch side, so I’ll be on the case if there are problems."

Questioning decisions
Tony and Wendy met, not unsurprisingly, on a hockey pitch. Tony explains what happened: "I was umpiring a Scotland v USA indoor match in Aberdeen. Above and behind me was a viewing area where 50 or 60 fans looked down on the action. At a crucial point in the closely-fought match I made a decision the Scottish fans didn't agree with. The fans exploded in uproar. As the bedlam began to subside, a female voice yelled out, “Get your eyes tested!” "At the reception in the bar afterwards a woman strode purposefully towards me, demanding to know what I could possibly have been thinking about, not awarding the penalty stroke. And she’s been questioning my decisions ever since!"