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10 August 2022 / Hockey; Birmingham Commonwealth Games

Hockey teams rise to the challenge in Birmingham

Mens Hockey team with gold medalsThe Kookaburras have claimed a seventh-straight Commonwealth Games gold, while the Hockeyroos claim back-to-back silver.

The Kookaburras have soared to a seventh-straight Commonwealth Games victory becoming one of the most successful Hockey teams to date.

The Australian Men’s Hockey Team silenced India on the final day of the Games in what has been called the most one-sided finals match in Games history.

Australia put on a clinical display bringing home the gold after a long pursuit in Birmingham, winning 7-0.

Featured on the star-studded team was SASI graduate Tom Wickham who put on a gallant spectacle in the Kookaburras’ forward line in only his second Commonwealth Games.

SA-born Wickham scored three goals during the game with one being scrapped by adjudicates for scoring with the back of the stick, denying the team a record breaking eighth goal.

Over the course of the Games, Wickham was a key member of the team scoring five goals total.

The Kookaburras are an unstoppable force on the hockey field leaving reigning bronze medallist India without an opportunity to make a mark on the scoreboard.

The team took on New Zealand, South Africa, Pakistan and Scotland coming out victorious in each match leading into the final.

The last match lost by the Kookaburras was in 1998 in Kuala Lumpur where the team dropped a pool stage match to South Africa.

It was almost two golds for Australia with the Hockeyroos settling for silver after a heartbreaking loss to England in front of a loud home crowd.

Hockeyroos captain and SASI graduate Jane Claxton led the women's team to victory against New Zealand, South Africa, Scotland and Kenya throughout the Games.

Unfortunately, the second quarter was crucial to England’s win, scoring two goals to relegate the Aussies to silver.

In one of the best moments of the match, Claxton tried to turn things around for the Hockeyroos late in the game, but England’s goalkeeper Maddie Hinch made the save.

It was the first time England has ever won hockey gold at the Commonwealth Games.

The Women’s Hockey team loss comes off the back of a massive campaign in the FIH Women’s World Cup where they were unbeaten on the road to a bronze medal.

The Australian Hockey Team as well as SASI graduates Jane Claxton and Tom Wickham have had a Commonwealth Games to remember. Eyes are now on the next prize, a repeat for the Kookaburras and redemption for the Hockeyroos in Paris 2024.