Black Sticks Under-21 men and women squad announced in Dunedin – Hockey Update
A total of sixty best junior hockey players have been announced today in Dunedin for the new junior high performance programme, which a part of Hockey New Zealand. This programme is with regard to help develop the future Black Sticks.
These Under-21 players were listed down by the Selectors at the National U-21 Hockey Tournament, held at the Alexander McMillan Park in Dunedin.
These players have been named for being provided the coaching and progression that they require for building up their hockey career.
Chris Leslie from the Women’s Selection Committee said, “We have selected players who have good core technical skills, who are athletic and are consistently putting in a good effort. The players that stand out are those who make good decisions during a game
and can apply their skills to an overall game structure.”
Both the Men’s and Women’s junior squad include 30 players each that will be called up for the development programme, later this year and these will be short-listed to 20 players each. Both the teams will also play international competitions in this year.
Leslie added that players will receive training from within their region and some will also be invited to represent their region in the national Hockey League in August. Currently, the selected lot will undergo a fitness test and then will be retested later
in the year.
For the U-21 men, they will taste their first ever international meet in a recently announced four-test series against the Malaysian counterparts that will be held from June 2-8, in Dunedin.
Grant Edwards from the Men’s Selection Committee said, “We will be naming a team within the next week – it is a very exciting opportunity for these young players and we hope to assemble the team shortly before the series starts so we can have the opportunity
for some practice time on turf.”
As compared to the last years, the conveyors of both the men and women selection committee agreed to the fact that this week’s junior tournament was a step up for New Zealand’s hockey.
Edward admitted that the pace and fitness of the players was stronger and the strategic moves like tackling and player marking was quite mature than in the previous years. Another commendable thing observed was that many players were interested in improving
their drag-flicking skills.
The selection committee that had finalised the sixty players comprised of Peter Miskimmin, Chris Leslie, Mark Hager and Grant Edwards.
Meanwhile, the senior male counterparts of the Black Sticks are currently competing in the seven-nation Malaysian Invitational in Ipoh, the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup.
They will face-off today against the World Number 1 Australia, trying to beat them down for qualifying into the finals.
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