Kookaburras to Tackle Dutch in WA

Newly appointed Kookaburras Coach Ric Charlesworth has wasted little time settling into his new role.

Only several weeks into his Kookaburras coaching tenure, Charlesworth has set the tone for the team early, organising a four test series against arch enemies the Netherlands in Western Australia in the week leading up to Australia Day 2009.

Three WAIS athletes competed for the Kookaburras in Beijing with the side captained by Bevan George and Fergus Kavanagh and Kiel Brown both featuring in their first Olympic campaigns.

While the event is booked as a ‘friendly’, the recent history for both nations has transformed the series into a ‘grudge match’.

It will be the first time the teams have met since the Kookaburras triumphed 6-2 in the Bronze medal match of the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Also, it will be the Kookaburras first series with Hall of Fame coach and player Ric Charlesworth at the helm.

Charlesworth said he had no hesitation placing the Kookaburras against one of the world’s best countries so early into his coaching tenure.

“The Netherlands are widely regarded as one of the best hockey nations in the world, and their back to back gold medal victories at the 1996 & 2000 Olympics are a testament to that.” Said Charlesworth.

“No doubt they will view this series as a good way to extract some level of revenge from the Bronze medal match in Beijing. I think that will add to the spectacle and generate a great buzz around the series. To regain our position as the number one ranked team in the world (currently ranked second) we will need to defeat the best nations in the big tournaments, and there is no better way to prepare for those matches than to play the best teams on a regular basis.”

The next major tournament in question is the 2009 ABN-AMRO Men’s Champions Trophy in Melbourne from November 28-December 6.

While it is still 12 months away, Charlesworth has already identified the Champions Trophy as the team’s next opportunity to gain more world ranking points, and sees this series as perfect preparation.

“We have a very active calendar in 2009, concluding with the 2009 Champions Trophy in Melbourne. There is obviously a lot of work to do from now until then, and this series presents itself as a good first step in working towards a successful 2009 Champions Trophy campaign and beyond.”

With a number of senior players retiring at the conclusion of the Beijing Olympics, this tournament will see a new look Kookaburras team, with a number of younger players looking to force their way into the team.

A number of familiar faces will join them, with the likes of Rob Hammond, Mark Knowles, Eddie Ockenden and Des Abbott amongst others returning from their European Club seasons to participate against the Netherlands.

A highlight of the series will be the clash between the world’s best players, Jamie Dwyer and Teun de Nooijer. These two players have dominated the World scene over the past years and will be looking to square off again throughout the series.

Overall, the Kookaburras have an impressive record against the Netherlands, winning 52 matches from 111 meetings, including 27 draws. In particular, the Kookaburras were undefeated against the Netherlands during 2008, beating the Netherlands on three occasions and drawing once.

While widely familiar with the Perth Hockey Stadium given it was the teams training base for the Beijing Olympics, the Kookaburras are also looking forward to taking this series to the regional areas of Western Australia.

The first two matches of the series will be played in Busselton and Bunbury respectively, with both areas showing great support for hockey in the past.

In the lead up to the match in Bunbury, the Kookaburras will be hosting a Hook in2 Hockey Superclinic on January 19th at the Bunbury Hockey Stadium.

The Hook in2 Hockey Superclinic will give 150 local children the chance to receive the fantastic opportunity to be coached by the Kookaburras. The entire Kookaburras squad and Australian coaching staff will take part in this event, giving the participants the chance to meet Olympic gold medalists, hear their stories, learn some of their skills and gain the inspiration to achieve their own dreams.

Event Details:
Game 1: Tuesday, January 20th Busselton Hockey Stadium, 7.00pm
Game 2: Wednesday, January 21st Bunbury Hockey Stadium 6.30pm
Game 3: Friday, January 23rd Perth Hockey Stadium, 7.00pm
Game 4: Sunday, January 25th Perth Hockey Stadium, 7.00pm

In other hockey news:

Australia has been heavily involved in the International Hockey Federation’s 2008 World Hockey All Star Team announcements, with five players selected in the men’s and women’s teams overall.

Retiring Kookaburras captain and WAIS stalwart Bevan George was selected in the All Stars team. Widely regarded as one of the best defenders in the world, George and teammate Jamie Dwyer have also been nominated for the 2008 WorldHockey Player of the Year. Winning the award would be a fitting way for George to finish his international career.

Men’s WorldHockey All Stars 2008:

Pol Amat (Spain)
Sebastian Biederlack (Germany)
Rehan Butt (Pakistan)
Jamie Dwyer (Australia)
Santi Freixa (Spain)
Bevan George (Australia)
Rodrigo Garza (Spain)
Robert van der Horst (Netherlands)
Alistair McGregor, goalkeeper (Great Britain)
Barry Middleton (Great Britain)
Teun de Nooijer (Netherlands)
Eddie Ockenden (Australia)
Jong Ho Seo (Korea)
Eduard Tubau (Spain)
Guus Vogels, goalkeeper (Netherlands)
Tibor Weissenborn (Germany)
Timo Wess (Germany)
Matthias Witthaus (Germany)
Maurits Hendriks, coach (Spain)
Markus Weise, coach (Germany)

Women’s WorldHockey All Stars 2008:

Naomi van As (Netherlands)
Luciana Aymar (Argentina)
Tina Bachman (Germany)
Minke Booij (Netherlands)
Kaori Chiba (Japan)
Baorong Fu (China)
Alejandra Gulla (Argentina)
Rachel Imison, goalkeeper (Australia)
Natascha Keller (Germany)
Seon Ok Lee (Korea)
Yibo Ma (China)
Maartje Paumen (Netherlands)
Carla Rebecchi (Argentina)
Fanny Rinne (Germany)
Maria Jesus Rosa, goalkeeper (Spain)
Janneke Schopman (Netherlands)
Qingling Song (China)
Melanie Wells (Australia)
Mark Lammers (Netherlands)
Chang Back Kim, coach (China)