29 Jul 2010

Black Sticks coach calls for more consistency

11:56 am on 29 July 2010

The Zealand women's hockey coach says the key focus as they prepare for the World Cup in Argentina is to tighten their game and build consistency.

Mark Hager says the Black Sticks' showed they can compete with the best at the Champions Trophy, where they finished with a draw and a win and moved from seventh in the world to fifth.

But he says they also learned that if they're to compete successfully at that level they need to be in the game for all 70 minutes.

Hager says it'll be good for the the young Black Sticks to have Kayla Sharland back in the midfield after the captain missed the Champions Trophy with a hamstring injury.

The rest of the team: Krysal Forgesson, Charlotte Harrison, Katie Glyn, Piki Hamahona (strikers); Stacey Carr, Ella Gunson, Sam Harrison, Gemma Flynn, Anna Thorpe, Stacey Michelsen, Anna Punt (midfielders); Emily Naylor, Clarissa Eshuis, Lucy Talbot, Natasha Fitzsimons, (defenders); Beth Jurgeleit, Bianca Russell (goalkeepers).

Kate Mahon and Laura Douglas miss out after playing in the Champions Trophy but both are on standby.

The Black Sticks are in Pool A with the Netherlands (1), Germany (4), Australia (5), Japan (9) and India (13).

Pool B is Argentina (2), China (3), England (6), Spain (8), Korea (11) and South Africa (12).

The tournament starts on August 29.