Field Hockey Canada has finalized the roster of athletes who will begin the road to 2016 Olympic qualification at the International Hockey Federation’s Men’s World League Round 2 in March.
Eighteen men have been selected to wear the red-and-white for the Canadian Men’s National Field Hockey Team in the first key competition of 2015, which will take place from February 28 to March 8 in San Diego, California.
The Canadian roster is made up of sixteen athletes from British Columbia, one from Alberta, and one from Ontario. Veteran Scott Tupper will serve as team captain.
“There are always some surprises and that’s the great thing about it,” says Canadian Men’s National Team head coach Anthony Farry. “Some guys will come from left field and do quite well and we’ve got a couple of those.”
Of the eight teams in the competition, the top three finishers at World League Round 2 will earn spots in World League Round 3 set to take place in June in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The top four teams in Round 3 will earn qualification to the 2016 Olympic Summer Games in Brazil.
The Men’s National Team is coming off a training tour in Santiago, Chile, during which they played six test matches against the host Chileans. In the final match of the series, the Canadians won handily by a score of 4-0, and finished with a record of 3W-1D-2L.
“Winning that last game in Chile – under difficult circumstances to say the least – is a big thing for us,” adds Farry. “It’s a big boost for our confidence.”
Two officials, Ozias D’Souza (Judge) and Deric Leung (Umpire) will also represent Canada at World League 2.
In its first match of the tournament, Canada will play the host United States on Saturday, February 28 at 10:45am pacific time.
Canadian Men’s National Team World League Round 2 Roster
|
Name |
Position |
Hometown |
|
Adam Froese |
Defender |
Abbotsford, BC |
|
Antoni Kindler |
Goalkeeper |
Vancouver, BC |
|
Ben Martin |
Defender |
Vancouver, BC |
|
Brenden Bissett |
Forward |
New Westminster, BC |
|
David Carter |
Goalkeeper |
Vancouver, BC |
|
David Jameson |
Midfield |
Vancouver, BC |
|
Devohn Noronha-Teixeira |
Forward |
Mississauga, ON |
|
Gabriel Ho-Garcia |
Forward |
Burnaby, BC |
|
Gordon Johnston |
Defender |
Vancouver, C |
|
Iain Smythe |
Forward |
Vancouver, BC |
|
John Smythe |
Midfield |
Vancouver, BC |
|
Mark Pearson |
Midfield |
Tsawwassen, BC |
|
Matthew Guest |
Forward |
Calgary, AB |
|
Matthew Sarmento |
Forward |
Vancouver, BC |
|
Paul Wharton |
Midfield |
Vancouver, BC |
|
Scott Tupper (Captain) |
Defender |
Vancouver, BC |
|
Sukhi Panesar |
Midfield |
Surrey, BC |
|
Taylor Curran |
Midfield |
North Vancouver, BC |
Canadian Men’s National Team World League Round 2 Staff
Head Coach – Anthony Farry
Assistant Coach – Paul Bundy
Team Manager – Celia Plottel
Physiotherapist – Robert Dunlop
Performance Analyst – Geoff Matthews
Canadian World League Round 2 Travelling Officials
Judge – Ozias D’Souza
Umpire – Deric Leung
Additional thoughts from caoch Anthony Farry:
