Kookaburras and Hockeyroos Select Commonwealth Games Squads

Five Western Australian athletes have been selected in the Australian men’s and women’s hockey squads for next month’s Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

With both the Hockeyroos (silver) and Kookaburras (champions) coming off successful World Cup campaigns in the Netherlands earlier this month, further tournament success beckons in Glasgow, with both squads brimming with talent.

WAIS athletes Ashleigh Nelson and Jayde Taylor were included in the Hockeyroos squad, and will look to win back to back Commonwealth Games gold medals after the duo were part of the squad that claimed gold in Delhi in 2010, following a dramatic penalty shootout win over New Zealand.

Nelson has established herself as a mainstay within the Hockeyroos squad since the last Commonwealth Games, whilst Taylor – a fellow London Olympian – has made a strong return to international hockey following a lengthy spell on the sidelines through a foot injury.

Nelson and Taylor form part of the experienced core within the Hockeyroos squad that also features eight players making their Commonwealth Games debut.

The Kookaburras have similarly selected a strong squad for Glasgow, with a collection of talent that will be considered likely to continue Australia’s perfect record in men’s hockey at the Commonwealth Games. The tournament marks the first for the Kookaburras since the retirement of dual world cup winning coach Ric Charlesworth.

WAIS athlete Trent Mitton received a call up for Australia, with the third generation Kookaburra looking to win a second Commonwealth Games title. The Delhi 2010 champion, will be joined by fellow WAIS athletes Fergus Kavanagh and Aran Zalewski.

Mitton has followed in the footsteps of his father Grant and grandfather Don in representing the green and gold, and Glasgow stands as a prime opportunity for the 23 year-old to establish himself in the Kookaburras line-up as they build towards the 2016 Rio Olympic Games.

Kavanagh – a dual Olympian – represents an experienced head amongst a relatively youthful squad, with only Kavanagh, Mitton and six other members having competed at Commonwealth level previously. One of the new breed of Australian players in Zalewski, has added steel to Australia’s midfield, with the Kookaburras aiming for a repeat of their undefeated campaign in Delhi.

Since hockey made its debut as a Commonwealth Games sport at Kuala Lumpur in 1998, the Kookaburras have won gold at each edition, whilst the Hockeyroos have never failed to medal, and are aiming for a third straight gold medal, in a run stretching back to Melbourne 2006.