After more than a year on the sidelines, Crookwell native Emily Chalker and her Hockeyroos teammates will return to the field this month in Australian colours.
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Hockey Australia and Hockey New Zealand released a joint statement last week, announcing a Trans-Tasman series between the two nations which is scheduled to take place from May 27 to June 1 at Massey University in Palmerston North, New Zealand.
It will be the first fixture for both the Hockeyroos and the Kookaburras since March 7, 2020, and will be followed by Australia's first FIH Pro League matches since that date less than a month later.
These will also feature New Zealand, but the matches will this time be played in Perth.
They are scheduled for June 26 and 27, and are seen as valuable opportunities to prepare for the 2021 Olympics, which will begin on July 23.
Hockey Australia CEO, Matt Favrier, hoped the Perth community would attend the matches in force to support the players one last time before they depart for Tokyo.
"Together with Hockey New Zealand, we are delighted these FIH Pro League matches will go ahead before the Olympics," Favier said.
"Playing these matches within weeks of the Hockeyroos and Kookaburras heading to Tokyo will provide an opportunity for the people of Perth to come and support the players and give them a fitting farewell.
"Considering there will be no overseas spectators at the Games, it would be fantastic to see a big crowd creating an electric atmosphere at the Perth Hockey Stadium on both days."
The Hockeyroos are perennial contenders for Olympic gold, and under Chalker's leadership, claimed silver medals at the Champions Trophy and the Commonwealth Games in 2018.
Similarly, Chalker lead the team as co-captain, alongside Jodie Kenny and Georgina Morgan, to a second-place finish in the 2019 FIH Pro League.
Due to their strong pre-COVID form, the Hockeyroos are currently ranked second in the world, behind the ever-dominant Netherlands.
The upcoming matches against New Zealand will provide the team an ideal opportunity to see where it currently stands against one of the top ten sides in the world.
"These matches will give us an indication of how we are tracking and help to identify areas of our game that are progressing well and those that need more attention," Hockeyroos head coach, Katrina Powell, said.
"I have been impressed by the squad's application, commitment and attitude over the past month and playing against the Black Sticks will give us some crucial match conditioning leading up to what is going to be a totally unique Olympics."
"We are really looking forward to playing against an international opponent in front of a home crowd - it has been a long time coming."
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