Coast pair to take it to world’s best teams
GOLD and Tweed Coast hockey stars Ambrosia Malone and Madison Fitzpatrick are flying to China to take on the world’s best.
The pair are part of the Hockeyroos squad competing at the last ever Champions Trophy, to be held at Changzhou from November 17-25.
World No.3 Australia will face China, defending champions Argentina, Olympic Games champions Great Britain, world No.1 Netherlands and Japan.
Their first match is against Argentina on Saturday from 6pm AEST.
The event has run since 1978 and will be replaced by the FIH Pro League starting in January.
Hockeyroos coach Paul Gaudoin said the side was aiming to win the Champions Trophy but also expose his players with a long-term view to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
“We’re certainly looking at taking a team to try to win the Champions Trophy but also with an eye on Tokyo and developing our squad,” he said.
“We’re looking to expose some new athletes to the international arena too.”
Following the tournament selectors will name their national seniors women’s squad for 2019.
“We want to identify the right athletes who’ll help us prepare for 2020. We get the opportunity to expose some new athletes,” Gaudoin said.
The tournament will be the Hockeyroos’ final matches for the calendar year.