2 Apr 2010

Black Sticks coach expects sleeping Argentine giant to awake

2:37 pm on 2 April 2010

The New Zealand women's hockey team has a chance in Tauranga this afternoon to score a first home series win over Argentina since 1988.

The Black Sticks beat the world's second-ranked team 3-1 in Hamilton earlier this week.

Argentina won all three tests in Zealand last year though, and coach Mark Hager says while the win's boosted the home side's confidence, it has also jolted the South Americans who may have been complacent after their series win in Australia.

Hager says he is expecting and hoping for two more hard games to test the team, to help identify their weaknesses before the major challenges of the World Cup and Commonwealth Games.

The Test gets underway at 2 o'clock, and the third is also in Tauranga tomorrow afternoon.