Field hockey is one of those sports that pretty much no one has thought about twice unless they’ve played it. But we, the few and the proud, know that field hockey was far from easy.

1. Absolutely no one came to your games because no one knew what was going on.

Your parents came to a few to show their support but they cheered at the wrong times and got confused when you got upset about a call. You tried to convince your friends to come to a game by lying about the concession stand being open, but it never worked.

2. The whistle blew every seven seconds because virtually every move you made was a violation.

Your stick was too high, or you spun around the wrong way, or the ball hit the wrong side of your stick, and so on and so on…

3. No matter how many games you won, football still got a better field than you.

After class you had about 15 to 30 minutes to get down the field for practice. The only problem was that after you changed into the proper gear (five to 10 minutes depending on the person), you had to depart on a journey past the football field, the football practice field, the soccer field, the baseball and softball diamonds, the batting cages, the other baseball diamond and a cemetery until you got to the “field hockey field” a.k.a. The Swamp. This may not have been your situation exactly but I know a few people who can relate.

4. The uniforms were stupid.

Who decided that a skirt was the best clothing choice for playing field hockey? Men? Probably. At least, the weird plaid skirts are phasing out but now those poor girls are forced to wear spandex skirts, which don’t even make sense. What about some sweet moisture-wicking capri legging things? I could totally get behind that.

5. The Catholic schools always kicked your butt and destroyed your spirit.

Those girls were handed field hockey sticks right out of the womb. Their coaches were always terrifying and wore really nice polos. Their fields were top of the line and they usually had hordes of fans. Some of this is probably because they didn’t have boys and, therefore, didn’t have boy sports but that’s a topic for another day…

6. Shin guards protect you from nothing.

Sure, maybe they lessen a blow from a stick or a ball that is conveniently near your feet, but we all know that both the sticks and the ball never really stayed on the ground. Your entire body was at risk throughout the whole game. They eventually started forcing everyone to wear those masks, but that wasn’t until 2011 or 2012.

7. Despite all of these things, your team was your family.

You all experienced these hardships together. You played games in the rain, in the cold, in the dark, and in the sweltering heat that makes you want to die. You slide-tackled one another during practice when the coach wasn’t looking. You accidentally injured one of your teammates but they forgave you because that’s what families do. It was never easy but you stuck it out, did what you could to finish strong.

No matter how long ago you played, you’ll always feel pretty good when you tell people you played field hockey in high school. Mostly because they don’t know anything about field hockey, so they’ll be impressed. But also, because you know that field hockey was an important part of your high school years and you wouldn’t trade it for anything.