Kavanagh Adds Experience to Kookaburras Line-up
Kookaburras Head Coach Graham Reid has called on the experienced duo of WAIS athlete Fergus Kavanagh and Russell Ford as the team looks to defend its Champions Trophy title in India next month.
The Kookaburras lost a recent four test series 3-1 to India in Perth with a youthful squad and Reid has responded by selecting experienced Kookaburras pair Kavanagh and Ford, who’d both been unavailable for the Perth series due to club hockey commitments in Europe.
Despite the older heads in the Kookaburras camp, Reid has also handed Champions Trophy call-ups to youngsters Tom Craig, Matthew Dawson and Flynn Ogilvie as Australia’s men’s hockey team heads to India to defend the title it won on home turf in Melbourne in 2012.
The trio made their senior international debuts against India at the start of November and are part of an 18-athlete squad, which contains 11 World Cup winners and 11 Commonwealth Games gold medallists.
Announcing the squad, Kookaburras Head Coach Graham Reid said, “We have increased our depth of experience since the India series with the addition of Fergus Kavanagh and Russell Ford, who have been playing in Europe.
“As I said when we announced the initial training group back in October, we are using the Champions Trophy as another opportunity to expose our younger players to the rigours of international competition. I think we have a good balance of youth and experience, however we do have a lot of work to do before the tournament starts on 6 December and the team is well aware of this.”
Kavanagh is one of three WAIS athletes in Reid’s squad, with goal keeper Tyler Lovell and Aran Zalewski also part of the 18 man squad.
Penalty corner danger man Chris Ciriello will make a milestone 150th appearance in Australia’s opening match against England while Tim Deavin is on course to reach a century of appearances for the Kookaburras if he plays in all six matches. Simon Orchard returns having made his comeback from a broken thumb in the Kookaburras’ fourth Test against India earlier in the month.
The Kookaburras have won the last five Champions Trophy titles, a run that stretches back to the 2008 tournament in Rotterdam, making Australia the most successful nation in the history of the competition having won 14 gold medals since the Champions Trophy began in 1978.
Australia will take on Belgium 24 hours after opening the biennial tournament against England, with 2012 runners-up Pakistan their final Pool A opponents. The ABC will broadcast the Kookaburras’ Champions Trophy campaign on ABC 2.
A number of athletes were not considered for selection due to their injury status. Captain Mark Knowles is undergoing rehabilitation for a foot injury, as is Joel Carroll, while Kieran Govers is recovering from hip surgery. Jamie Dwyer sustained a ligament injury in his foot at the end of the club season, ruling him out of Queensland’s AHL campaign and Australian selection.
-with HockeyAus
