Heat ramps on hockey crew
NEW Hockeyroos skipper Emily Smith admits she’s feeling the pressure to maintain the side’s Commonwealth Games golden run but she’s confident her teammates will produce the goods.
The Hockeyroos will be gunning for a fourth straight Games gold medal on the Gold Coast next month but will have to buck the rankings to do so.
They’re currently ranked world No.5 - below England (2nd) and New Zealand (4th).
Even so, the pressure is on to win gold on home turf.
Smith, who took over as skipper late last year, is well aware of the expectations.
“Please don’t remind me. I’m not going to sleep for another three weeks,” she said with a laugh.
“I have thought about it. It does put a bit of added pressure. But there’s nothing much else you can do.
“So (the key is) being able to hold our heads calm under the pressure and not let the enormity of the event get to us.”
The Hockeyroos’ 2016 Olympic dreams were dashed in a 4-2 quarterfinals loss to NZ in Rio.