Jillaroos & Burras named for 2024 with an eye to next year’s World Cup

Published Mon 08 Apr 2024

Jillaroos & Burras named for 2024 with an eye to next year’s World Cup

The next crop of potential Kookaburras and Hockeyroos have been unveiled, as Australia’s top Under-21 hockey talent look ahead to the 2025 Junior World Cup.

Following a week of scouting at the Under-21 National Hockey Championships in Newcastle, recently re-appointed Burras and Jillaroos coaches Jay Stacy and Stacia Strain are boasting squads that feature a solid mix of exciting new talent, along with some more experienced junior athletes.

One of them, Tasmanian Burras midfielder Lachie Rogers who is still coming to grips with being a senior member of the squad.

“My journey with the Burras only started towards the end of 2023 at the Sultan of Johor Cup, right before the 2023 Junior World Cup, so I still feel like I'm one of the junior players and it’s hard to imagine I'm actually one of the senior players.”

Delighted to see four other fellow Tassie statesmen in the squad, Rogers believes it will be an exciting season with a few new faces in the line-up.

In the Jillaroos camp, it was a similar reaction for NSW’s Makayla Jones who was selected not only for the U21 side again, but also for the U23 Women’s team which will tour Europe in June.

“I was hopeful but wasn’t entirely sure if I was being considered for U23’s. I had my fingers crossed!” Jones exclaimed.

“I was at work when I found out and I gave my boss the thumbs up and she had a bit of a cry, then I called my mum and she had a bit of a cry! I’m very excited and very very proud of myself.”

Ten Jillaroos made the 18-strong U23 team, which features a mix of older players including, Queensland’s Dayle Dolkens who became a Hockeyroo at the FIH Pro League in February.

For the Burras and Jillaroos, all eyes are on qualifying for the 2025 Junior World Cup in December.

“The culture in the Burras is really great, it’s a great environment. Last year we had a great leadership group, with huge buy-in and engagement so it’ll be great for these new players to get a taste of that professionalism,” Rogers says.

Rogers and Jones both know just how much the intensity lifts, having already competed at the Junior World Cup in 2023.

“I used to feel like I needed to make this squad quick and this team quickly but I’m learning so much at every step of the way,” Jones admits.

“Being able to hopefully play in a second World Cup is amazing for me. I think the way Stacia has brought in her values, ideas and styles of play has been amazing, it’s really lifted us and I think we’ll be unstoppable.”

Rogers agrees, saying there’s no feeling quite like the intense high-performance environment of a World Cup.

“One thing I think will be really good for the new players is that the coaching group is excellent. They have a really good approach to teaching you about on and off-field stuff. When I think about the Tassie players, I think they’ll get a lot of value from this setup and the same goes for the other boys too.”