Joyce a Black Stick
North Harbour goalkeeper, Richard Joyce, will have his first taste of action for the Black Sticks next week.
He j oins Richard Bain, defenders Dane Lett and Dwayne Rowsell, midfielder Nic Woods and goalkeeper George Enersen, as the Black Sticks Men’s head coach, Colin Batch, puts the six debutants to the test in next week’s four-test series against Japan in Wellington and Kapiti.
The four test series runs from November 18-22, with two games at the National Hockey Stadium in Newtown and a further two internationals at Coastlands Kapiti Sports Turf in Paraparaumu.
Balancing out the young talent are experienced campaigners Simon Child, Steve Edwards, Nick Haig, Arun Panchia and Blair Tarrant, who have all played more than 100 tests for New Zealand.
‘‘It’s always exciting when players debut - six is a large number at once,’’ Batch says.
Following the retirement of veteran Dean Couzins, Batch will be rotating captains during the upcoming Wellington and South Island series. Explosive striker Simon Child will captain the side in Wellington and Kapiti.
During the same week the Black Sticks Women will play against Australia in three tests in Wellington on November 15, 3pm, November 16, 3pm, and November 18, 7pm.
Tickets are on sale now for the series through dashtickets. co. nz, with discounts available for school teams, families, students and multiday passes.
Following the Japan tests, Batch will select a team for a four-test South Island tour with games against Canada in Nelson and Christchurch from December 9-14 .