New Look Red Caribou start build at 2022 Nations Cup
Field Hockey Canada is excited to announce the team and staff that will travel to South Africa at the end of November for the inaugural FIH Men’s Nations Cup. The tournament will take place November 27 – December 4, 2022, in Potchefstroom, South Africa.
Team Canada comes into the tournament world ranked 15. This is the first competition for the team since the Commonwealth Games in August. Recently, Field Hockey Canada hired Patrick Tshutshani to be the Head Coach of the Men’s National Team. Tshutshani previously coached and led the NextGen program in Canada and helped lead the senior programs during the midst of the pandemic. Tshutshani now returns to Canada after a stint coaching for Hockey India. According to Tshutshani, who just started his contract this month, this first competition is crucial for establishing a standard of play and building the foundation of the team for the future.
“The Nations Cup will be the first time I get to see the guys in person,” Tshutshani said. “The on-field and off-field chemistry will be key in our development steps moving forward. Of course, this is easier said than done, but I’m really looking forward to establishing this. The tournament brings great competition, and I look forward to how we apply ourselves in pressure moments.”
The roster was selected this week following last week’s extensive selection and training camp. The team is returning 11 players from the 2022 Pan American Cup and 10 from the 2022 Commonwealth Games but the team remains a departure from the core that went to the Olympic Games in 2021. Tshutshani said a lot of the work will go towards building the connections on and off the field and preparing this team for the next steps.
“The team has a mixture of youth and experience. The major focus for us will be process driven, as we start a fresh building forward,” Tshutshani said. “It will be great to play competitive matches again. I just want to see how the team plays and expresses themselves on the field.”
Red Caribou athletes during a selection-camp scrimmage on October 28, 2022. Photos/Blair Shier
Oliver Scholfield, Taylor Curran, Brenden Bissett, Gordon Johnston, Matt Sarmento and Devohn Noronha Teixeira make up the veteran core group of players that will be leading the charge in South Africa this month. For Scholfield, this period of development has been a change into a new generation of Red Caribou.
“We’re in a transition phase right now with the young guys coming up and a new coaching staff,” Schofield said. “But anytime you get the represent your country, it’s an honour and a privilege. Getting to play in a tournament like this is exciting. It will also give us a really good opportunity to improve.”
Manveer Jhamat, Zach Coombs, Roop Dhillon, Sean Davis, Chris Tardif and Gurpreet Singh make up the bulk of the youth movement. Many of these athletes played in the Junior World Cup, preparing the for the jump to the senior international game. Jhamat, who played at the Junior World Cup and the 2022 Commonwealth Games, said the team is transitioning but over the past year has developed well and is looking to take that next step. For him, he sees the next year as a chance to improve, develop and put it all together at the Pan American Games.
“Coming off of Commonwealth Games, we recognized where we’re at, as a field hockey nation,” Jhamat said. “Upcoming, we have the Nations Cup and we have Pan Ams next year, which is a major goal for qualifying for the Olympics.”
Team Canada will compete at the 2023 Pan American Games — an Olympic qualifier — in Santiago next November. Between now and then, the Men’s National Team will work to develop its identity and carry momentum into that event. For Tshutshani, the Nations Cup tournament and then the first few months of 2023 is all about establishing the consistency across the program and building step-by-step towards the next targets.
“The key steps are how we connect as a team and establishing what our DNA is about, and how we want to play the game,” he said. “These are key processes that take time to build. It is great that we can start this process now. We want to take it day by day and not look too far ahead of ourselves.
TEAM ROSTER
| PLAYER NAME | HOMETOWN | CAPS | POSITION |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sam Cabral | Vancouver, BC | 12 | DEF |
| Gordon Johnston | Vancouver, BC | 193 | DEF |
| Taylor Curran | North Vancouver, BC | 199 | DEF |
| Thomson Harris | Vancouver, BC | 0 | DEF |
| Manveer Jhamat | Abbostford, BC | 5 | DEF |
| Roopkanwar Dhillion | Surrey, BC | 5 | DEF |
| Oliver Scholfield | Vancouver, BC | 90 | MID |
| Harbir Singh Sidhu | Victoria, BC | 12 | MID |
| Chris Tardif | Chelsea, QC | 7 | MID |
| Brenden Bissett | Vancouver, BC | 151 | MID |
| Devohn Noronha Teixeira | Mississauga, ON | 108 | MID |
| Brendan Guraliuk | Tsawwassen, BC | 26 | FWD |
| Sean Davis | Marondera, Zimbabwe | 0 | FWD |
| Matthew Barnett | Calgary, AB | 7 | FWD |
| Matthew Sarmento | Vancouver, BC | 139 | FWD |
| Gurpreet Singh | Vancouver, BC | 5 | FWD |
| Tristan Burgoyne | Vancouver, BC | 2 | GK |
| Zachary Coombs | Chelsea, QC | 2 | GK |
| RESERVES | |||
| Balraj Panesar | Surrey, BC | 85 | DEF |
| John Fin Boothroyd | West Vancouver, BC | 41 | FWD |
| Ethan McTavish | North Vancouver, BC | 4 | GK |
| Gavin Bains | Ladner, BC | 6 | FWD |
| Flynn McCulloch | Chelsea, QC | 0 | FWD |
| Jyothswaroop Sidhu | Abbotsford, BC | 0 | MID |
| Johnny Jacoby | Victoria, BC | 0 | FWD |
TEAM STAFF
Patrick Tshutshani – Head Coach
Geoff Matthews – Assistant Coach
Alan Brahmst – HPD/Team Manager
Ayesha Koome – IST (Athletic Therapist)
Simon Taylor – IST (S&C)
Keep up to date on the 2022 FIH Men’s Nations Cup by watching all matches on watch.hockey, and following Field Hockey Canada’s website and social media channels. GO CANADA GO!
