For so long it was the rest of the hockey world doing all the laughing as the Kookaburras flew in and left Olympic Games gold medal-less.
Liam De Young Midfielder/Defender. Images: Theron Kirkman’BURRA TUCKER
“For me it’ll just be cereal and yoghurt and maybe a bit of toast for breakfast. I’m not a huge brekky eater. Today I have some nice, fresh bread for lunch. I’m looking forward to that – a bit of carbs, just ham and salad sandwiches. I’m not one who needs to eat a pasta before I play or train or anything like that.
“During heavy training I eat a lot more. I’ll feel before the 6am session like I could use a banana or something – you know what’s ahead and you think, ‘Maybe I’ll just have a bit of this to give me that extra burst of energy. At 8am, when you knock off, you’re actually looking for a proper breakfast. By then you’ve eaten twice, but not huge meals … As long as it’s common sense you’re pretty right.”
RIC’S TRICKS
“Ric is a very, very good focuser on basics, which was surprising to me. I had him down as a weird and wonderful, creative coach, but he’s very focused on basic skill execution and being the best in that area. He demands a lot out of you and sets high standards, but he’s very fair as well. Not a big, bad guy, but very understanding and modern in his ways. This year he’s given about ten guys their international debuts, so he’s really branching out and giving everyone a go and bringing up a lot of young players and that’ll be a real advantage come the Champions Trophy in Melbourne this month and the World Cup in Delhi next year. We’ll have such a large group of players who would’ve had international exposure and the opportunity to impress and that’s always good. The bigger the talent pool you have to pick from, the more chance of success you have.”
– James Smith
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