Kookaburra Brent Livermore, celebrating the gold medal in Athens, is set to represent Australia in his third Games team.
Australia has named a men’s Hockey team heavy on experience, and a women’s team built around young players to make the gold medal challenge in Melbourne.
The Kookaburras will field all but three of its victorious Athens Olympics men's hockey squad at the Games.
Brent Livermore has been named in the team, making him the only male player to represent Australia at the three Games since Hockey was introduced in 1998.
He’ll be joined by seven members of the Manchester squad, including Dean Butler, Liam De Young, Bevan George, Aaron Hopkins, Stephen Lambert, Michael McCann and Matthew Wells, and a further five members who played for gold in Athens.
Michael Brennan and Mark Hickman, who have retired, and Troy Elder who has been deemed ineligible because of overseas club commitments, are the only players not still with the team.
Filling those gaps are Luke Doerner, Aaron Hopkins and Stephen Lambert.
“Our men’s Hockey team has built up an enviable record since the introduction of the sport to the Commonwealth Games, and we have every confidence that the squad selected for Melbourne has the attributes to maintain it,” Australian Commonwealth Games Association CEO Perry Crosswhite said.
“One thing that we have to remember though is that the Commonwealth contains many of the world’s top Hockey nations and it will not be any easy road to gold in either tournament, particularly for the men.”
For the Hockeyroos, Nikki Hudson and Rachel Imison are making their third Commonwealth Games appearance and will lead a younger squad with the help of Angie Skirving and Karen Smith who played in the bronze medal winning team in Manchester.
“We know that our women’s team was very disappointed in 2002 but their excellent recent form in the Women’s Champions Trophy in Canberra in December shows the success of the team’s rebuilding programme,” said Mr Crosswhite.
“To go through the first part of that tournament undefeated and then only lose to the great Netherlands outfit in a penalty shoot-out indicates they are well on track to represent us very successfully in March.”
The women’s team we will be relying a little more on the drive and exuberance of youth with three players under 21 years of age when the Games begin. Kate Hollywood, 19, and Kobie McGurk and Madonna Blyth, both 20, will be making their Games debuts.
Australia plays the round robin section of the men's tournament in Group A against 2002 silver medallists New Zealand, England, Canada and Scotland, with their main challenge lying in the Group B competition with Hockey powerhouses Pakistan, India and Malaysia.
The women have also been drawn in Group A where they will face tough early-round match-ups against defending champions India, South Africa, Nigeria and Malaysia.
The Australian squads are:
Men: Travis Brooks, Dean Butler, Liam De Young, Luke Doerner, Jamie Dwyer, Nathan Eglington, Bevan George, Robert Hammond, Aaron Hopkins, Mark Knowles, Stephen Lambert, Brent Livermore, Michael McCann, Stephen Mowlam, Grant Schubert, Matthew Wells.
Women: Wendy Alcorn, Nicole Arrold, Madonna Blyth, Toni Cronk, Suzie Faulkner, Emily Halliday, Kate Hollywood, Nikki Hudson, Rachel Imison, Kobie McGurk, Rebecca Sanders, Angie Skirving, Karen Smith, Sarah Taylor, Melanie Twitt, Kim Walker.
The Commonwealth Games Hockey competition hits off at the State Netball and Hockey Centre from 16 – 26 March.
Buy Hockey tickets now.